English Result Upper-intermediate

Unit 1 Test A The lives of others

Grammar
1 Extra uses of the present continuous Rewrite the sentences using always or more and more and the
present continuous.
Example Tom frequently borrows money from me.
Toms always borrowing money from me.
1 I frequently leave my umbrella on the bus.

2 It becomes more difficult to park as the days go by.

3 More people communicate by internet each year.

4 The teacher frequently chooses me to answer questions.

5 The roads get more crowded every year.

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2 Adverbs and word order Where does the adverb go? Write a, b, or c.
Example I a have b a shower in the c mornings. (usually) = a
1 a Im b often late for work c. (quite)
2 a My father reads b the newspaper c every day. (carefully)
3 They a dont b go to the cinema c. (much)
4 a My sister b does the washing up c. (hardly ever)
5 It snows in Andalucia. (rarely)
a b c
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3 Present perfect simple and continuousComplete the text with the correct form of the verbs in
(brackets).
Ive been teaching (teach) my grandmother to use email recently. She 1 never (use) a computer
before so its all new to her. Fortunately, she 2 (work) with a typewriter for many years so she
knows where the letters are on the keyboard. She 3 (think) of learning how to use email for
years, so she can write to her sister in Australia, but has never managed to get round to it, until now. We
4 (have) three lessons together so far, and she 6 (learn) to open the program and

write a message. In the next lesson, Im going to show her how the address book works.
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Vocabulary
4 Word familiesComplete the word in each sentence.
Example In Benicassm, there is a four-day pop festival every year.
1 We have a national holiday to celeb independence day.
2 Do you have to pass immigra controls to go from England to Scotland?
3 Whats the nation of a person from Vatican City?
4 The wedding cerem will begin at 2.30.
5 The police officer asked me to show some form of ident.
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English Result Upper-intermediate
Unit 1 Test A The lives of others
5 Empty verbsComplete the conversation with the correct form of have, make, or give.
A Its my birthday on Saturday.
B Oh yeah? Are you doing anything special?
A I dont know yet. I might have a party. Can you come?
B Hang on a minute Ill just 1 a look in my diary. Oh no, Im supposed to be having dinner with
my parents
A Thats a shame. Cant you 2 an excuse?
B Well, Ill try. Ill 3 you a ring and let you know. Have you invited anyone else yet?
A Well, Ive emailed a few people but nobodys 4 me an answer yet. Perhaps Ill 5 a few
phone calls after lunch
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Pronunciation
6 Stress in long wordsThink about the sound of these words. Underline the stressed syllable.
Example ce le bra tion
1 fes ti vi ty 4 tra di tion al
2 i den ti ty 5 ce le bri ty
3 re gu la tion
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GVP Total /30

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English Result Upper-intermediate
Unit 1 Test A The lives of others
Reading and Writing
1 Read the article. Choose the best answers, a, b, c, or d.
1 How is Bettina different from the tourists passing through Palma airport departure lounge?
a She has three suitcases.
b Shes not waiting for a plane.
c Shes often seen quietly reading.
d She looks different.
2 Why does the writer mention The Terminal?
a Bettina was inspired by the film.
b Bettinas story is similar to the story in the film.
c Bettina recalls that Tom Hanks is in the film.
d The film was set in the same airport that Bettina lives in.
3 What problem did Bettina have after spending some time in Mallorca?
a Her relationship ended.
b She lost her office job.
c Her documents were stolen.
d She couldnt get work.
4 Why does she live in Palma de Mallorca airport?
a She cant afford to return to Germany.
b She cant afford a home.
c She enjoys living in the airport.
d She has lots of friends in the airport.
5 Why do the airport staff like Bettina?
a Shes quiet, intelligent, and clean.
b She uses the facilities.
c She has an income.
d She has been there such a long time.
6 What is the attittude of the authorities to Bettina?
a They would like to get rid of her but they cant.
b They havent even noticed her.
c They wont want people washing clothes in the toilets.
d They dont mind her, as long as she doesnt cause problems.
/6

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English Result Upper-intermediate
Unit 1 Test A The lives of others

1 More than 20 million travellers pass through Spains

Palma de Mallorca airport each year and, at first
glance, Bettina could be just another tourist waiting
for a flight home. But she never checks in.
2 The 48-year-old German has been living at the
airport, known as Son Sant Joan, for ten years,
pushing her three suitcases, a blanket, a pile of
books, and her white cat, Mumu, around with her.
Referred to in the airport simply as the woman with
the cat, Bettina has become as much a part of the
airport as the planes.
3 Her story recalls the Tom Hanks film The Terminal,
reportedly inspired by the story of man who lived at
Charles de Gaulle airport near Paris for 18 years
after his documents were stolen.
4 Bettina, who refuses to disclose her full name, is
from a small town in southern Germany. She arrived
in Mallorca more than ten years ago for a new start
after a relationship ended and she lost her office
job. She took odd jobs working as a waitress then
helping in a kitchen, but the dream of living in the
sun turned sour. Suddenly there was no work
because they only give jobs to locals, she told the
local Diario de Mallorca newspaper. I wanted to work
in Mallorca but I got stuck here.
5 With no job, home, or money, she began living in the
airport, where she gets by on the kindness of friends
or strangers. One friend brings me some food twice
a week. Sometimes people give me a bit of money
as well, but I dont ask anyone for anything.
6 Amid the bustle of the airport, Bettina is often seen
quietly reading, dressed smartly in jeans and a
sweatshirt. She cleans herself and her clothes in the
toilets, while departure lounge seats serve as beds.
But she has no desire to return to Germany. No way.
Life is better for me here.
7 She is popular among airport staff. She is
intelligent, discreet and does not bother anyone. She
says she has made this her home because she has
everything she needs here, said cleaner Mara
Jess

8 Rueda Garca, 54. Things didnt work out so she has

come to live here. She can get by and is not a beggar
because she has income. I have seen her take money

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English Result Upper-intermediate
Unit 1 Test A The lives of others
out of the cashpoint. This could happen to us all.
9 Marie-Carmen Gallrdo, 40, a caf worker, said, She
has been here ten years, the same as me. Perhaps at
Christmas she goes home to see her family.
10 The airport authorities turn a blind eye to Bettina.
She has never bothered anyone and as this is a
public building she can use the facilities, washing in
the toilets or cleaning her clothes, said Marta
Fernndez, spokeswoman for Aena, the state
company that manages Spains airports. Generally,
such residents are tolerated so long as they do not
bother passengers.

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English Result Upper-intermediate
Unit 1 Test A The lives of others
2 Find words or phrases with these meanings.
Example the first time you look (3 words, para 1) at first glance
1 went bad; went wrong (2 words, para 4)
2 live; survive (2 words, para 5)
3 noise and movement (1 word, para 6)
4 quiet; not noticeable (3 words, para 7)
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3 Read the blogs. Write D (Danica), A (Annan), or M (Miguel) for sentences 110.
1 This person doesnt tell us if they think New Year celebrations are enjoyable.
2 We dont know if this person spends time with relatives during New Year.
3 This person talks about changes that have happened over time.
4 The shortest celebrations for New Year seem to happen in this persons country.
5 This person doesnt tell us if people reflect on the year gone by or the year to come in their country.

6 This person doesnt tell us about setting fire to anything in their description.

7 Were not told about what people wear in this persons description.
8 We dont know if food and drink are important to New Year celebrations in this persons country.
9 This person doesnt talk about socializing with strangers.
10 We dont know at what time of day things happen in this persons description.
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Happy new year everybody!

Sorry I havent written for a few days its New Year and Ive been
celebrating non-stop, day and night. Here in Belgrade, Serbia, theres
always a lot going on at this time of year. I always go to Terazije Square or
Republic Square to watch the outdoor concerts. Its freezing cold, of
course, but with hat and gloves, and surrounded by hundreds of
thousands of people, it feels warm enough.
Midnight is normally marked by a firework display, and everybody greets
and hugs the people around them, even complete strangers. Its a great
feeling! After that, the music starts again and continues through until
morning.
On January 1st, everybody heads to Svetogorska Street for a street
festival. Food and warm drinks are served, and there is street theatre to
watch. You can see all sorts of people walking down the street, including
celebrities and politicians sometimes. And then in the evening, its party
time again. We call this the repriza, and basically, we get together with
the same people from the previous night and celebrate again.
So thats what Ive been doing for the last couple of nights. But its not
over yet in a couple of weeks, we have another new year! Our year is
organized according to the Julian calendar, and so the new year is
celebrated on January 13th. So we have more concerts and fireworks to
look forward to. Not bad, eh?
Danica

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English Result Upper-intermediate
Unit 1 Test A The lives of others

Hi friends!
I know some of you are celebrating New Year at the moment, but
here in Thailand, we dont celebrate New Year on January 1st.
The date of the festival used to be set by astrological calculations,
but now its fixed. The Thai New Year, or Songkran, is celebrated
from April 13th to 15th. Thats the hottest time of year, and
temperatures often rise above 40C.
Our New Year traditions are generally connected with cleaning
and making things smell fresh. This symbolizes good luck and
prosperity for the coming year. Now, however, water-throwing is
perhaps the biggest tradition. We throw water over each other,
our friends and neighbours, as well as complete strangers
walking along the street. People go around with water pistols and
buckets of water, and everybody gets completely soaked. Its
great fun, and you can imagine how refreshing it is in the heat!
But apart from that, our New Year is a time for celebrating with
the family and visiting relatives. Some of us also make New Year
resolutions you know, planning to give up bad habits or do
good things. I dont always manage to keep my resolutions,
unfortunately!
Annan

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English Result Upper-intermediate
Unit 1 Test A The lives of others
Happy New Year from Ecuador!
I spent New Years Eve with my family as usual. We always have a big
family celebration at this time of year, with my parents and
grandparents and everybody. We have a big meal and we usually
have the TV on in the background so we can see the New Year
celebrations around the world and make sure we know when
midnight is approaching.
Just before midnight, we each eat twelve grapes and make a wish
with each one, and then we go out into the yard to burn the aos
viejos. Whats that?, youre thinking. Well, aos viejos are human
figures which we make from old clothes, newspapers, cardboard,
and so on. They represent the bad things from the past year, so at
midnight, we burn them to get rid of them and welcome the New
Year.
Oh yes and one last tradition I forgot to mention. People here
often wear yellow underwear on New Years Eve because they think
it will bring them good luck for the New Year.
Miguel

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English Result Upper-intermediate
Unit 1 Test A The lives of others

4 Write an informal description or a blog to tell people about how you and people in your country celebrate
New Year or another important date during the year. Write between 120180 words.

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Reading and Writing Total /30

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