Exercise 1 Read the text about baseball, America''''s number one pastime Choose ONE word that fits into each blank Baseball is America''''s national sport But, it originated in the USA, baseball is played i[.]
Bả o Exercise 1: Read the text about baseball, America's number one pastime m Choose ONE word that fits into each blank it originated in the USA, ật Baseball is America's national sport But, baseball is played in many other countries, especially in Central and South America and Japan Baseball an Olympic sport at the 1992 Olympics Baseball is not only a sport but an American summer afternoons of life Many families spend their children at a baseball park, sitting in the stands with popcorn and hot dogs They cheer for their favourite team and wear their baseball The game caps played with a long wooden bat and a small hard ball The players have large heavy gloves to the ball They usually light shirts and knee-long trousers Shoes have spikes on them to help players run on the field A baseball field is divided two parts The infield has the shape of a diamond and is bordered by the bases that runners run around A few players stand in the grassy outfield and wait to catch the ball A baseball game consists of nine parts, score runs and defend A pitcher letting it drop on the ground innings Teams take turns trying to the ball towards a batter tries to hit it so that the other team can't catch it The batter tries to run around the bases Bả o as possible A ball that is hit into the stands is called a home run The the game Exercise 2: read the text below and think of the word which best fits each gap ật team that scores the most runs after nine innings m as Use only one word in each gap There is an example at the beginning (0) Example (0) AS Motorbike Stunt Rider I work (0) a motorbike stunt rider - that is, I tricks on my motorbike at shows The Le Mans racetrack in France was (1) I first saw some guys doing motorbike stunts I'd never seen anyone riding a motorbike using just the back wheel before and I was (2) impressed I went straight home and taught (3) to the same It wasn't very long before I began to earn my living at shows performing my own motorbike stunts I have a degree (4) mechanical engineering; this helps me to look at the physics (5) lies behind each stunt In addition to being responsible for design changes to the motorbike, I have to work (6) every stunt I People often think that my work is very dangerous, but, apart (7) some minor mechanical problem happening occasionally during a stunt, nothing ever goes wrong I never feel in (8) kind of danger because I'm very experienced (Source: FCE Handbook Reproduced with permission from Cambridge English) Exercise 3: For questions 1-8, read the text below and think of the word which best fits each gap Use only one word in each gap Bả of English: Open Cloze JOB TRAINING IN o Use CALIFORNIA m In Cali Califo forn rnia ia,, Ms Bren Brenda da Blac Blackm kman an has has star (16) to ma marr rry y a mi milli llion onai aire ật starte ted d a busi busine ness ss teac teachi hing ng peop people le (16) re Her Her stud studen ents ts,, ma main inly ly wome women, n, sit sit (17) class saying over and over (18) : "I want to be rich I deserve to be rich I was born to be rich I will be rich." She (19) (19) them useful information, (20) (20) as the telephone telephone numbers of the golf and tennis tennis clubs (21) (21) the filthy filthy rich (22) to be found She advises them on (23) to wear at a croquet match She instructs them (24) the basic etiquette of dealing (25) servants: "Always address the chauffeur (26) his surname." (27) homework, her students study the Wall Street Journal She trains them to walk (28) straight backs, and to keep their arms (29) their sides She also advises them to confirm (30) his chequebook stubs that their target millionaire really does have the money he appears to have THE MAFIA LOAN SHARKS Exercise 4: read the text below and think of the word which best fits each gap Use only one word in each gap Loan-s Loan -sha hark rkin ing g - lend lendin ing g mo mone ney y - is the the bigg bigges estt rack racket et in the the Un Unit ited ed Stat States es underworld It is (01) (01) profitable that one New York gang boss built up $500,00 (02) (02) $7.5 million in about five years (03) (03) are are fou four oper peratin ating g lev levels in loan loan-s -sh hark arking ing At the the (04) (04) is the Mafia boss boss Just (05) Bả o (05) him are his principal principal lieutenants who m give money to (06) (06) own subordinates for themselves, and pass the rest (07) (07) to the ật investment These third-echelon underlings lend out much of the money lowest level, the bookie and the street-corner thug A retired expert from New York City's bureau of criminal investigation describes (08) it works: "A big racket boss (09) ten trusted lieutenants (10) a Christmas party in his home, He distributes one million dollars (11) cash - $100,000 to (12) of these ten men He doesn't have to keep any rec record ord of the the nam names or the am amo ounts unts All All he says ays is, is, I want one one per per cent ent (13) week I don't care (14) you get, but I want one per cent For the next year's Christmas party, the only problem this gang leader has is where he is going find five more men to hand out the $500,000 to that he earned during the year." Naturally Naturally,, the interest interest rate goes (15) (15) as the money money goes through the various echelons On the second level, the rate may be 1.5 or per cent a week On the lowest level, it can be per cent a week, 260 per cent a year A SIGN OF THE TIMES