B2 Use of English Test 1 – multiple choice gaps

For questions 1-9, read the text below and decide which answer (A, B, C or D) best fits each gap.

Why you should read fiction

At school, the (1)…………… majority of what we learn is factual. In history lessons we memorise names and dates; in science we have to cope (2)…………… chemical formulas and complex equations; in maths it’s all numbers and signs. It’s only in language lessons where we may (3)…………… fiction. Some people would argue that there’s (4)…………… point in reading something which is ‘made up’. If this is the (5)……………, why do language teachers encourage their students to look at anything (6)…………… from dictionaries and reference materials?

It is because they are (7)…………… of the benefits that reading brings. It isn’t simply because reading fiction helps us (8)…………… reality for a while and switch off from our everyday routines. Reading fiction also teaches us to see the world through other people’s eyes. It (9)…………… us to understand the feelings of others, making us more empathetic. Fiction, in other words, helps us be better friends.

1   A   vast               B   wide                   C   far                     D   high

2   A   for                 B   on                       C   by                      D   with

3   A   come up      B   come across      C   come about    D   come over

4   A   little              B   slight                   C   minimal           D   hardly

5   A   issue             B   matter               C   case                  D   point

6   A   except          B   apart                  C   other                 D   beside

7   A   aware           B   wise                    C   familiar             D   sensitive

8   A   depart           B   miss                    C   escape              D   break

9   A   lets                B   authorises         C   makes               D   enables