Variant 12

1 Read the text and choose the correct item.

Strange noises. Voices in the distance. Footsteps going up and down

somewhere near. I seemed to be floating in a great black sea.

≪Derek. Сan you hear me?≫

≪He’s still unconscious,≫ somebody else said. I tried to open my eyes,

but my eyelids were too heavy.

≪Look. I saw his eyelid move,≫ a third voice said.

≪It’s just wishful thinking,≫ said the first voice. Then the voices faded

and I was back in my silent black world.

≪Mr Armstrong, Mr Armstrong?≫ this time the voice was nearer.

This time I was determined to open my eyes.

I managed to raise the corner of one eyelid but was blinded by bright

white light, and shut it again. There was someone by the side of my bed.

I forced my eye open once again. I was in a room with painted walls.

I could see someone in a white coat standing next to me.

A white coat! Oh no! Inside my head there was a picture of two spacemen

carrying something like a sack of potatoes, something with beautiful

red hair.

≪Maria!≫ I managed to whisper.

≪What was that? What did you say?≫ said the person beside me in

a foreign accent.

1. The narrator was…

a) floating in the sea.

b) travelling on the river.

c) unconscious.

2. Derek could see nothing because…

a) he was blind.

b) he had bandages over his eyes.

c) he was too weak to come to himself.

3. Mr Armstrong was…

a) a man with an accent.

b) Derek.

c) someone in a white coat.

4. When Derek managed to raise the corner of his eyelid he saw…

a) a picture.

b) person wearing a white coat.

c) two spacemen

5. Derek didn’t answer the questions because…

a) he became unconscious again.

b) he didn’t know the foreign language.

c) he had not understood the questions.

6. The narrator couldn’t…

a) move.

b) hear.

c) understand the meaning of words.

28 Variant 12

2 Complete the sentences with the correct words from the box.

among was believed fighting activities

women better tried thought neighborhoud

Jane Adams (1) born in 1860. In 1889 she decided to start

(2) the poverty she saw in Chicago. She wanted to live

(3) the poor people, so she found and rented Hull House.

The ≪house≫ became a social centre. She (4) the way to

improvement was through education.

The people in the (5) needed a cultural and intellectual

life. Some Hull House (6) included reading classes for young

women, kindergarten classes, and a Boy’s Club. They wanted laws for

(7) housing, an eight-hour workday, and the right for

(8) to vote.

Jane Adams also (9) to help immigrants. She

(10) that the multi-cultural experiences brought to America

would be the key to world peace.

3 Comment on the following issues.

Families are an important part of all cultures.

• Describe your family members and mention some main traits of their

characters.

• Describe their appearance, activities and achievements.

Орієнтовні зразки екзаменаційних завдань для державної підсумкової атестації 29

VARIANT 13

1 Read the text and choose the correct item.

In 1979 with publication of Overload, I announced my retirement.

I was tired. My life had been full. I was, and still am, grateful to those

millions of readers worldwide who have enriched my life in many ways

making retirement possible.

In whatever years remained I wanted to spend more time with my

dear wife Sheila: go fishing, read more books, relax with music, do other

things a working writer can’t.

What I did not know was that I was near death from six blockages

in the coronary arteries — a condition diagnosed soon afterward by my

friend and physician, Dr Edward Robbins of San Francisco, who urged

immediate surgery. This was done by Dr Denton Cooley and his associates

at Texas Heart Institute, to where my gratitude flows strong.

Sheila was supportive, as she has been through our long and loving

marriage. It is more than coincidence in this novel that the names Celia

and Sheila come similarly off the tongue.

The aftermath of everything was my revived good health and an

abundance of energy — so much of the latter that Sheila said one day,

≪I think you should write another book.≫ I took her advice. Strong Medicine

is the result.

1. The author retired because he was...

a) seriously ill.

b) tired.

c) old.

2. The phrase making retirement possible means...

a) the author got permission.

b) the author reached success.

c) the author earned money enough to live on.

3. The author of the story was a…

a) fisherman.

b) writer.

c) publisher.

4. The author had…

a) a sore throat.

b) heart trouble.

c) a fever.

5. The text prompts that the writer is…

a) successful.

b) infamous.

c) lazy.

6. … advised to write a new book.

a) The author’s wife.

b) The author’s friend.

c) His doctor.

30 Variant 13

2 Complete the sentences with the correct words from the box.

population a few shown does problem than

depiction show up consists in poverty

The United States is more diverse than usually (1) in

films. A usual film features a cast of white people, and maybe

(2) characters from other races, too. About two-thirds

of the (3) is White, but the other one-third, which

(4) of minorities, (5) not correspond to what

is shown in the theatre.

Additionally, the (6) of poverty is usually not depicted

in films. More (7) 15% of the US population lives

(8) and that is usually ignored. The last major inaccuracy

is the (9) of religious life. The vast majority of Americans

are religious, and this does not usually (10) in films.

3 Comment on the following issues.

People often keep their favourite animals as pets.

• Mention if you have ever kept a pet and what problems you had.

• Explain why lots of people keep animals as pets, and why some like

to have unusual animals.

Орієнтовні зразки екзаменаційних завдань для державної підсумкової атестації 31

VARIANT 14

1 Read the text and mark () the following statements «True» or «False».

Britain seems not to be so progressive when it comes to learning foreign

languages. More than half of other Europeans can speak at least

one foreign language, and often two. However, 66% of the British population

has absolutely no knowledge of any language apart from English

and 51% think that it would be too difficult.

Compare these figures with Luxembourg, where only 2% could not

speak a foreign language. Or Sweden, Denmark and Holland, where 80%

of the population can speak English. However, 56% of the Portuguese,

53% of the Spanish and 51% of the French spoke only their own languages.

18% of Britons claimed some knowledge of Spanish and 10%

some German. But it was not true. The British Tourist Centre (BTC)

carried out a little experiment: they hired researchers to pretend to be

monolingual Spanish and German speakers. They had to contact hotels

to ask questions about accommodations. Eighty-five percent of the hotels

were unable to answer even one question in Spanish, and 90% were unable

to answer anything in German.

True False

1 Britain is considered to be the leader of Europe

when it comes to learning foreign languages.

2 Less than half of other European countries can

speak another foreign language.

3 More than half of the British population know

two foreign languages.

4 Lots of British people think that learning

foreign languages is very difficult.

5 Not all other European countries were as good

at languages as Sweden, Denmark and Holland.

6 Two per cent of the people in Luxembourg

speak a foreign language.

7 Besides England, Portugal speaks the lowest

number of foreign languages.

8 The BTC experiment concluded that less than

18% of Britons spoke Spanish or German.

9 Ninety per cent of the hotel staff could not

answer questions in German.

10 The researchers from the BTC asked the hotel

workers about learning foreign languages.

32 Variant 14

2 Complete the sentences with the correct words from the box.

researchers difference have found could

are what running after repeatedly

In the Chinese zodiac, rats (1) considered witty, imaginative

and curious. Now scientists (2) discovered another

attribute.

They have (3) that rats can be helpful. The

(4) placed a free-roaming rat in an arena with a caged rat.

In a few days, the free rats realized they (5) push the door

open and release the caged rat.

After figuring this out, they did so (6) , day after day.

They then did (7) we refer to as a celebration. The

trapped rat was (8) around the arena, and the free rat ran

(9) the trapped rat.

There was also a (10) in the behaviour of male rats and

female rats.

3 Comment on the following issues.

There are thousands of professions in the world.

• Explain the importance of different professions.

• Specify what professions are the most important to the well-being

of society and why.

Орієнтовні зразки екзаменаційних завдань для державної підсумкової атестації 33