2017National English Contest for College Students

(Level A--- Preliminary)

Part I Listening Comprehension (25 minutes, 30 marks) Section A (5 marks)

In this section, you will hear five short conversations. At the end of each conversation, a question will be asked about what was said. Both the conversation and the question will be read only once. After each question, there will be a pause. During the pause, read the three choices marked A, B and C, and decide which is the best answer. Then mark the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the center. 1. What is the woman probably doing now?

A.She is writing an essay. B.She is studying for a test. C.She is shopping for shoes.

2. How did the woman feel according to the conversation?

A.She was relaxed B.She was pleased

C.She was disappointed

3. What does the woman say about her presentation?

A.It’s far from being ready

B.She got a lot of information from the internet C.She needs another week to get it ready

4. Where will the company probably hold the stuff party?

A B C

5. Which picture shows the corrections to the man’s name? Section B (10 marks)

In this section, you will hear two long conversations. Each conversation will be read only once. At the end of each conversation, there will be a one-minute pause. During the pause, read the five questions, each with three choices marked A, B and C, and decide which is the best answer. Then mark the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the center. 6. What does the man want to talk to Ann about? A.A holiday trip to Yellowstone Park B.A research project in Yellowstone Park

C.A lecture by a professor who visited Yellowstone Park

A B C

Section B (10 marks)

In this section, you will hear two long conversations. Each conversation will be read only once. At the end of each conversation, there will be a one-minute pause. During the pause, read the five questions, each with three choices marked A, B and C, and decide which is the best answer. Then mark the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the center.

Conversation one

6. What does the man want to talk to Ann about? A.A holiday trip to Yellowstone Park B.A research project in Yellowstone Park

C.A lecture by a professor who visited Yellowstone Park

7. According to the man, why is the buffalo population increasing in Yellowstone Park? A. a lot of buffalo have come from neighbouring areas. B. Fewer buffalo are dying of disease

C. It is easier now for the buffalo to find food in winter.

8. Why does the man think Ann would be interested in going to Yellowstone ? A. She has been studying animal diseases B. She is eager to visit Yellowstone Park

C. She needs the money to continue her studies 9. What did the woman plan to do in July? A. Work on her thesis B. Have a holiday

C. Study the buffalo population

10. Where will the woman most probably spend the coming summer? A. At the University of Wyoming B. At Yellowstone National Park C. At her friend’s home in Wyoming.

Conversation Two

11. What was Matt Ryan’s first job?

A. Doing holiday relief work at a television channel B. Working part-time as a model

C. Taking pictures for a television station

12. What did Matt find interesting about the sixties? A. The increasing number of comic books B. The rapid advances in technology C. The American space programme

13. Why were Matt’s models once used on the news? A. They presented better images than the real pictures

B. The spacecraft camera got damaged and failed to take any pictures C. The television studio was trying some new ideas

14. What was the name of the programme that marked the beginning of Matt’s TV career? A. Strange Creatures. B. Time Traveller. C. Bright Star. 15. What did Matt do for the programme? A. He made models.

B. He acted the part of a monster. C. He filmed it. Section C (5 marks)

In this section, you will hear five short news item. Each item will be read only once. After each item, there will be a pause. During the pause, read the question and the three choices marked A, B and C, and decide which is the best answer. Then mark the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the center 16. How many times has the National Hockey League allowed its players to take part in the Winter Olympics? A. Five times. B. Three times. C. Twice. 17. Where was the Africa Cup of Nations held?

A. In Togo. B. In South Africa. C. In Angola.

18. What has caused a large number of people to flee their homes in northern Yemen? A. An armed conflict. B. Lack of food. C. Freezing temperatures. 19. Who is Emtiaz Sooliman?

A. A search and rescue specialist. B. Head of a South African foundation. C. Leader of a local civic group.

20. What did the second stimulus bill passed by the House of Representatives aim at? A. Promoting international trade. B. Boosting employment.

C. Expanding the private sector. Section D (10 marks)

In this section, you are required to fill 10 blanks, each with NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS after listening to a short passage. The passage will be read twice. Remember to write the answers on the answer sheet.

Children’s Toys

? Most popular wooden toy: (21) ? The wooden toy is for (22) ? Output per (23) :4,000 items

? Average (24) time per box (25) minutes ? The number of boxes in (26) :1,000 ? Date of the coming dispatch (27) ? Current number of (28) :20 ? Number of staff working on the (29) :40 staff ? All staff do: (30) work Part II Vocabulary and Structures ( 15 marks )

There are 15 incomplete sentences in this part. For each blank there are four choices, marked A, B C and D. Choose the one that best completes the sentence, then mark the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the center.

31. When Ian was injured, Harry was chosen as last-minute for the rugby team. A. preference B. diversification C. alternative D. replacement

32.—Hello, Mr. Brown, I’m ringing about our component delivery. It’s not arrived yet and it’s already three

o’clock in the afternoon.

—Let’s see...it’s reach you on Tuesday afternoon. A. owing to B. likely to C. due to D. subject to

33. Among the last groups of people to accept the new model were religious groups, who still the idea that the earth was the center of the universe.

A. clung to B. applied to C. adapted to D. contributed to

34. Although apparently rigid, bones exhibit a degree of elasticity that enables the skeleton to considerable impact.

A. escape B. overwhelm C. withstand D. suppress 35.—Would you like me to go to the dentist with you? —No, you with me.

A. need not to go B. need not go C. do not need go D. not need go

36. Lance returned to cycling and training only five months after he was diagnosed with cancer. A. aggressively B. drastically C. exactly D. initially 37. Great minds generally look at life in a way to themselves. A. peculiar B. confined C. similar D. unusual

38. They called in an electrician he could put a finger on the cause of the short circuit. A. to hope B. to be hoping C. hoping D. to have hoped

39. The resistance experienced when one body moves over another, it is in contact, is called frictional force.

A. to which B. where C. with which D. while

40. Above all, they want to study a question: Are humans actually aware of the world they live in? A. contrary B. fundamental C. solemn D. progressive

41.—Tina, I hear you had a good journey to the Maldives last week, How was it? —I enjoyed the beautiful scenery, but the hotel was satisfactory. A. not anything B. nothing from C. nothing but D. anything but