CPE Use of English Tips & Practice

• Engels
• HBO
• Studiejaar 2

CPE Use of English

Tips & Practice 

Part 1: Multiple Choice Cloze

What's tested?

• semantic precision (word with right meaning in the context)
• collocation
• complementation (fits grammatically)
• idioms & fixed phrases (which single word completes them)
• phrasal verbs
• linkers

Skim the text (2 minutes)

Meeting Marvin Gaye

When I first met Marvin Gaye in his Sunset Strip studio, I had just (0) ....... a two-year project co-writing the autobiography of Ray Charles, an inspiring collaborator, but an authoritative and often (1) ...... figure. Marvin came on like a brother. He was warm, witty and (2) ..... to laugh. He spoke like he sang, in whisper-quiet melodies and soft falsettos. His conversation had a lyricism all of its (3) ..... . His affectations - a slight British accent when he was feeling aristocratic, for example - were more than (4) ..... by his disarming sincerity. We became friends. I felt (5) ...... to watch him work and play up-close. It soon became clear that, like his music, his personal life was (6) ..... with dramatic contradictions, a combination of charm and chaos. Because he was a hero of mine, and because his art was so dazzlingly beautiful - so self-contained, so accomplished, so (7) .... slick - it took me a  (8) ..... to realise my hero was drowning.

What is the text about?

Question 0

A accomplished      B completed        C ended              D achieved

Meeting Marvin Gaye

When I first met Marvin Gaye in his Sunset Strip studio, I had just (0) ...B.... a two-year project co-writing the autobiography of Ray Charles, an inspiring collaborator, but an authoritative and often (1) ...... figure. Marvin came on like a brother. 

Do not waste time answering question 0!

Read each question carefully and try to predict the answer

When I first met Marvin Gaye in his Sunset Strip studio, I had just (0) ....B... a two-year project co-writing the autobiography of Ray Charles, an inspiring collaborator, but an authoritative and often (1) ...... figure.

When I first met Marvin Gaye in his Sunset Strip studio, I had just (0) ....B... a two-year project co-writing the autobiography of Ray Charles, an inspiring collaborator, but an authoritative and often (1) ...... figure.

1. distant
2. faint
3. secluded
4. far-away

A: distant

If someone is distant, they are not friendly or communicative.

All options are connected with the idea of distance or being apart from others, but only A can be used to describe a person's personality.

Marvin came on like a brother. He was warm, witty and (2) ..... to laugh.

Marvin came on like a brother. He was warm, witty and (2) ..... to laugh.

1. prompt
2. impulsive
3. abrupt
4. quick

D: quick

All the options refer to speed, but only D is appropriate in the context and grammatically

A=prompt in doing something

He spoke like he sang, in whisper-quiet melodies and soft falsettos. His conversation had a lyricism all of its (3) ..... .

He spoke like he sang, in whisper-quiet melodies and soft falsettos. His conversation had a lyricism all of its (3) ..... .

1. type
2. self
3. like
4. own

D: own

If something has something all of its own, it means it has a quality that is unique to it.

The way he spoke was almost poetic.

All options refer to the nature of something, but only D completes the fixed phrase.

(B: self=by itself=alone)

His affectations - a slight British accent when he was feeling aristocratic, for example - were more than (4) ..... by his disarming sincerity. We became friends.

His affectations - a slight British accent when he was feeling aristocratic, for example - were more than (4) ..... by his disarming sincerity. We became friends.

1. set against
2. weighed up
3. made up for
4. settled up with

C: made up for

To make up for something = compensate so that something negative is balanced by something positive.

A: set  against = judge, compare a positive with a negative

B: weigh up = consider something carefully

D: settle up = pay money

All are phrasal verbs connected with balance. Only C fits in the context.

We became friends. I felt (5) ...... to watch him work and play up-close.

We became friends. I felt (5) ...... to watch him work and play up-close.

1. advantageous
2. privileged
3. indulgent
4. gainful

B: privileged

A: advantageous to /for you

C: indulgent towards someone

D: gainful employment = profitable

All options are connected with the idea of something benefitting someone, but only B can be used to describe a feeling.

It soon became clear that, like his music, his personal life was (6) ..... with dramatic contradictions, a combination of charm and chaos.

It soon became clear that, like his music, his personal life was (6) ..... with dramatic contradictions, a combination of charm and chaos.

1. inundated
2. filled
3. plentiful
4. dense

B: filled

All are connected with the idea of having a lot of something, but only B can be used with the preposition 'with' AND has the correct meaning in the context.

A: inundated = you receive a lot of something e.g. requests

Question 7 (not 8 yet)
Because he was a hero of mine, and because his art was so dazzlingly beautiful - so self-contained, so accomplished, so (7) .... slick - it took me a (8) ..... to realise my hero was drowning.

Question 7:
Because he was a hero of mine, and because his art was so dazzlingly beautiful - so self-contained, so accomplished, so (7) .... slick - it took me a (8) ..... to realise my hero was drowning.

1. appreciably
2. fully
3. utterly
4. sorely

C: utterly

Utterly means completely, totally or absolutely.

A: appreciably = used with comparative adjectives.

B: fully = completely; nothing can be added.

D: sorely = very badly. Used in a few phrases such as 'sorely missed' or 'sorely needed'.

All options mean 'very', but only C forms the correct collocation.

Question 8:
Because he was a hero of mine, and because his art was so dazzlingly beautiful - so self-contained, so accomplished, so (7) .... slick - it took me a (8) ..... to realise my hero was drowning.

Question 8:
Because he was a hero of mine, and because his art was so dazzlingly beautiful - so self-contained, so accomplished, so (7) .... slick - it took me a (8) ..... to realise my hero was drowning.

1. while
2. phase
3. length
4. course

A: a while

All the options refer to a period of time, but only A has the correct meaning in the context and can form a phrase with the verb 'take'.

Tips for Part 1

What would you like to practise?

Recap Emphasis

CPE Open Cloze

CPE Word Formation

Self Study

Part 2: Open Cloze

Laughing is good for you - Seriously

It is a sad fact (0) THAT adults laugh far less than children, sometimes (9)........... as much as a couple of hundred times a day. Just take a (10) .............. at people's faces on the way to work or in the office; you'll be lucky to see a smile, let (11) ........... hear a laugh. This is a shame - especially in (12) ................ of the fact that scientists have proved that laughing is good for you. 'When you laugh,' says psychologist David Cohen, 'it produces the feel-good hormones, endorphins. It counters the effects of stress (13) ................. enhances the immune system.'

There are many (14) .............. why we might laugh less in adult life: perhaps we are too work-obsessed, or too embarrassed to (15)............ our emotions show.

 Some psychologists simply believe that children have more naïve responses, and as adults we naturally grow (16) ................. of spontaneous reactions.

What is this text about?

It is a sad fact (0) THAT adults laugh far less than children, sometimes (9)........... as much as a couple of hundred times a day.

Just take a (10) .............. at people's faces on the way to work or in the office; you'll be lucky to see a smile, let (11) ........... hear a laugh. This is a shame....

This is a shame - especially in (12) ................ of the fact that scientists have proved that laughing is good for you.

'When you laugh,' says psychologist David Cohen, 'it produces the feel-good hormones, endorphins. It counters the effects of stress (13) ................. enhances the immune system.'

There are many (14) .............. why we might laugh less in adult life: perhaps we are too work-obsessed, or too embarrassed to (15)............ our emotions show.

Some psychologists simply believe that children have more naïve responses, and as adults we naturally grow (16) ................. of spontaneous reactions.

Tips for Part 2

Part 3: Word Formation

• Word-building exercise​
  
• Text with eight gaps and one example​
  
• Base form in capital letters at the end of the line​
  
• Change to adjective, noun, verb or adverb​
  
• Affixes (HONEST – DISHONESTY)​
  
• Internal changes (STRONG – STRENGTHEN)​
  
• Compounding (RAIN – RAINDROP)​
  
• Several changes (EXPECT – UNEXPECTEDLY)  
  

Part 3: Exam Technique

• Read the title​
  
• Skim the text​ 
  
• Read directly before and after the gap​ 
  
• What type of word is needed (noun, verb etc.)? ​ 
  
• Plural? Person? Negative?​ 
  
• Read the WHOLE sentence for CONTEXT​ 
  
• Add your answer and read the whole sentence again​ 
  
• When you have finished, re-read the whole text​
  
• Usually at least one negative form needed
  

Tube Inspired a Book

For many people, the London Underground is a grim (0) NECESSITY that gets them from A to B. But for (17)...... author Preethi Nair, it is a source of inspiration. She has just publised her first novel, Gypy Masala - a tale she dreamt up while commuting on the Metropolitan Line. 'Have you observed people on the Tube?' she asks (18)............ . 'Everyone is in their own little world. I just used to sit there and imagine what kind of lives they led.'

Gypsy Masala charts the adventures and (19) ............ thoughts of three members of an Indian family living in London, as they search for happiness. 'It is a story about following your dreams,' says Preethi, who gave up her high-pressure job as a management (20) ................ in order to go in (21) ............. of her ambition of becoming a writer. 'It was a big risk but it was definitely the right decision in terms of peace of mind and (22) .................. ,' she explains.

Preethi was born in a small village in the Indian state of Kerala and moved to London with her parents at the age of three. She says the striking contrast in cultures made a (23) .............. impression and is reflected in her story, which flits between the suburbs of London and (24) ................... India. Many of the scenes in the book are based on the place where she was born and spent long summer holidays. 

Tube inspired a Book

For many people, the London Underground is a grim (0)NECESSITY that gets them from A to B. But for (17) .... author Preethi Nair, it is a source of inspiration. She has just published her first novel, Gypsy Masala - a tale she dreamt up whilst commuting on the Metropolitan Line. 'Have you observed people on the Tube?' she asks (18)... . 'Everyone is in their own little world. I just used to sit there and imagine what kind of lives they led.'

Gypsy Masala charts the adventures and (19).... thoughts of three members of an Indian family living in London, as they search for happiness. 'It is a story about following your dreams,' says Preethi, who gave up her high-pressure job as a management (20)...... in order to go in (21) ...... of her ambition of becoming a writer. 'It was a big risk but it was definitely the right decision in terms of peace of mind and (22) .....,' she explains.

Preethi was born in a small village in the Indian state of Kerala and moved to London with her parents at the age of three. She says the striking contrast in cultures made a (23)........ impression and is reflected in her story, which flits between the suburbs of London and (24) ..... India. Many of the scenes in the book are based on the place where she was born and spent long summer holidays.

What is this text about?

But for (17) .... author Preethi Nair, it is a source of inspiration.
BUD

'Have you observed people on the Tube?' she asks (18)... .
ENTHUSE

Gypsy Masala charts the adventures and (19).... thoughts of three members of an Indian family living in London, as they search for happiness.
INNER

'It is a story about following your dreams,' says Preethi, who gave up her high-pressure job as a management (20).....
CONSULT

'It is a story about following your dreams,' says Preethi, who gave up her high-pressure job as a management (20)...... in order to go in (21) ...... of her ambition of becoming a writer.
PURSUE

'It was a big risk but it was definitely the right decision in terms of peace of mind and (22) .....,' she explains.
CONTENT

Preethi was born in a small village in the Indian state of Kerala and moved to London with her parents at the age of three. She says the striking contrast in cultures made a (23)........ impression and is reflected in her story...
LAST

and is reflected in her story, which flits between the suburbs of London and (24) ..... India.
FAR