PRACTICE TEST B (40-50) SECTION 3: READING COMPREHENSION TOEFL ITP PRACTICE TEST

 

TOEFL ITP PRACTICE TEST VOLUME 1 PRACTICE TEST B (40-50) SECTION 3: READING COMPREHENSION

 

Time: 55 minutes, including the reading of the directions Now set your clock for 55 minutes. Directions: In this section you will read several passages. Each passage is followed by several questions about it. For questions 1-50, you are to choose the one best answer, (A), (B), (C) or (D), to each question. Then, on your answer sheet, find the number of the question and fill in the space that corresponds to the letter of the answer you have chosen. Answer all questions following a passage on the basis of what is stated or implied in the passage. Read the following sample passage: The railroad was not the first institution to impose regularity on society, or to draw attention to the importance of precise timekeeping. For as long as merchants have set out their wares at daybreak and communal festivities have been celebrated, people have been in rough agreement with their neighbors as to the time of day. The value of this tradition is today more apparent than ever. Were it not for public acceptance of a single yardstick of time, social life would be unbearably chaotic: the massive daily transfers of goods, services, and information would proceed in fits and starts; the very fabric of modern society would begin to unravel.   Example 1 What is the main idea of the passage? A In modern society, we must take more time for our neighbors. B The traditions of society are timeless. C An accepted way of measuring time is essential for the smooth functioning of society. D Society judges people by the times at which they conduct certain activities. The main idea of the passage is that societies need to agree about how time is to be measured in order to function smoothly. Therefore, you should choose (C). Sample Answer A B C D   Example II In line 5, the phrase “this tradition” refers to A the practice of starting the business day at dawn B friendly relations between neighbors C the railroad’s reliance on time schedules D people’s agreement on the measurement of time The phrase “this tradition” refers to the preceding clause, “people have been in rough agreement with their neighbors as to the time of day.”Therefore, you should choose (D). Sample Answer A B C D   Questions 20-29 Woodpeckers also use their powerful beaks to excavate nest holes in tree trunks, drilling first of all a neat horizontal hole, then chiseling downward for a foot or so and there cutting out a chamber. They frequently choose dead trees, no doubt because the rotting wood is softer to work than that of living trees. Such trees also are usually infected by bark beetles, which provide a rich food supply conveniently near at hand. The drumming noise made by the rapid blows of a woodpecker’s beak on a tree trunk is one of the most characteristic sounds of the forest. The birds do not produce it solely when they are feeding or excavating a nest. They beat tattoos on echoing timber for the same reason that other birds sing, to declare possession of a territory and to attract a mate. Each species has its own length of drumroll with its own characteristic interval between one burst and the next. Different species of the woodpecker family specialize in different foods. The green woodpecker, as well as taking bark-boring beetles, often descends to the ground to forage for ants. The wryneck is even more dependent upon ants. It is not primarily a climber at all and lacks the stiff propping tail of other woodpeckers, but it does have the usual long sticky tongue, which it flicks into a nest of ants to bring out 150 of them at a time. The acorn woodpecker exploits its wood-boring skills by drilling neat holes in tree trunks, the diameter of which exactly accommodates acorns. It will cover a favored tree with several hundred such holes and store several acorns in each of them, so accumulating a massive larder for the winter. An even more specialized group within the family, the sapsuckers, bore holes in tree trunks for a quite different purpose. They choose living trees of species that produce liberal flows of sap and drill numerous small, squarish holes in them. The liquid that trickles out attracts insects that the sapsucker collects and then mixes with the sap to produce a little sweetmeat.   40.       What does the passage mainly discuss? (A)       The sounds made by different species of birds (B)       The characteristics of one kind of bird (C)       The importance of insects as a food source for birds (D)       The damage done to trees by one species of birds 41.       The word “excavate” in line 1 is closest in meaning to (A)       dig (B)       protect (C)       clean (D)       investigate 42.       The word “that” in line 4 refers to (A)       hole (B)       chamber (C)       wood (D)       supply 43.       It can be inferred from the passage that the different species of woodpeckers can be identified by the (A)       melody of their song (B)       design of their nest (C)       pattern of the drumming noise they make (D)       size of their beak 44.       The word “interval” in line 12 is closest in meaning to (A)       note (B)       pause (C)       call (D)       tapping 45.       The words “as well as” in line 14 are closest in meaning to (A)       besides (B)       easily (C)       after (D)       instead of 46.       According to the passage, the wryneck differs from other woodpeckers in that it does NOT (A)       have a long tongue (B)       make any noise (C)       build its own nest (D)       have a rigid tail 47.       The word “which” in line 19 refers to (A)       acorns (B)       holes (C)       tree trunks (D)       skills 48.       The word “massive” in line 21 is closest in meaning to (A)       secret (B)       potential (C)       huge (D)       fresh 49.       Which of the following is NOT mentioned as a species of woodpecker that eats insects? (A)       The sapsucker (B)       The green woodpecker (C)       The wryneck (D)       The acorn woodpecker 50.       The sapsucker’s behavior is different from the behavior of other species in which of the following ways? (A)       It searches for insects on the ground instead of in trees. (B)       It does not drill holes in trees. (C)       It is the only species that stores food for the winter months. (D)       It chooses trees that produce large quantities of sap.

 

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