Advertising in Britain

What does it say about a nation that when a national newspaper recently set (1)…..
to establish the best television adverts of all time, as(2) ..….. as 10000 people
responded? The answer lies (3) ..….. the fact that the British have developed an
intense admiration for a genre that has developed into an art from its (4)…….
right. In 1955, when Gibbs SR toothpaste broadcast the first TV commercial, it was
inconceivable that ads would ever end (5)……. being considered as sophisticated
and innovative as the programmes surrounding (6) …… Yet by 1978, the author
Jonathan Price was able to declare:” Financially, commercials represent the
pinnacle of our popular culture’s artistic expression. More money and thought per
second goes into (7) …… making and more cash flows from their impact than
(8)…. ...the case for any movie, opera, stage play, painting or videotape.”
Today, (9)…… the explosion of channels and websites, there is more onus than
ever (10)…….. the advertiser the shock , amuse, enthral, and entertain in its 30
second slot. But are ads really worthy (11) ……. cultural appraisal, in the same
way programmes (12)…..? And what (13)…….. an advertisement truly great ?
”Aesthetically, it’s something that is watchable for 1000 viewings and still remains
fresh “, says Robert Opie, founder of the Museum of Advertising and Packaging.
“Often, this is to (14)……… with perfect acting and with every single last detail
(15)……..correct. There are so many layers that you can watch it many times, like
listening to a piece of classical music.

1. When I’ve had a…………..day at work, all I want to do is go home and

relax in front of the television.
You shouldn’t have been so …………..on Jackie- she is only made a small
mistake and there was no need to shout at her like that.
I’m a bit …………of hearing. Would you mind speaking up?

2. Ann is always gossiping about other people- I wish she’d …………her own
business.
……….. your head when you go through this doorway, it’s rather low for
someone tall.
Colin earns an absolute fortune in his job -………you, he has to work
extremely hard for it.

3. Elaine’s self confidence is just a ……….because in fact she’s a very shy

person.
 The agreement is that we have to pay the builders half the money up ……..
and the other half once they’ve completed the work.
You must have got dressed in a hurry this morning- you’ve got your sweater
on back to ………..

4. Obviously, something had frightened the cat because it……… out of the
house and up the road with an expression of panic on its face.
The critics …………her last film to shreds and one of them even called it
‘comfortably the worst movie in living memory’.
Mike was obviously annoyed by the contents of the letter because as soon as
he’d read it he ……….it up and threw it in the bin.

5. I didn’t want to arrive late so I left earlier than I needed to, just to be on the
………side.
Since they haven’t phoned to tell us otherwise, I think it’s ………….to
assume that they’re still coming to see us next weekend.
Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone what you’ve just told me-your secret ……
…..with me.

6. Katherine and her sister look so alike that I simply can’t…….. them apart.
I expect the boss is going to ……….me off for not getting my work done on
time again.
I bought my niece a toy clock because she’s just learning to………the time.

1) So that he would be able to leave the room quickly, Matthew stood by the
door.
positioned
Matthew ………………………………………..as to be able to leave the
room quickly .
2) I haven’t been told clearly what I’ll have to do in my next project at work
required
It hasn’t been made……………………………….me in my next project at
work.
3) In my opinion, it was an absolute miracle that they survived the accident.
short
The fact that we survived the accident was………………………., in my
opinion.
 4) What gave you the impression that Sue and Jack were going to split up?
led
What was…………………………….that Sue and Jack were going to split
up?
5) I tried as hard as I could to make sure that this problem would not arise.
power
I…………………………………………….….….this problem from arising
6) I don’t think it was reasonable of you to complain so much about the
service.
justified
I don’t think you …………………………………...…fuss about the service.
7) Laura was faced by a lot of problems during her childhood.
contend
Laura had a ……………………………………….…..during her childhood.
8) The audience suddenly started to applaud loudly.
sudden
All………………………………………………………from the audience

Laughing is Good for you – Seriously

It is a sad fact that adults laugh far less than children, sometimes (1)….....as much
as a couple of hundred times a day. Just take a (2)………at people’s faces on the
way to work or in the office: you’ll be lucky to see a smile, let (3)………hear a
laugh. This is a shame -especially in (4)………of the fact that scientists have
proved that laughing is good for you.” When you laugh,” says psychologist David
Cohen, “it produces the feel-good hormones, endorphins. It counters the effects of
stress (5)………..enhances the immune system .”
There are many (6)……….why we might laugh less in adult life: perhaps we are
too work-obsessed; too embarrassed to(7)…………our emotions show. Some
psychologists simply believe that children have more naïve responses, and as
adults we naturally grow (8)……….of spontaneous reactions.
Luckily, (9) ………., it is possible to relearn the art of laughter. In India” laughter
clinics have been growing (10)………popularity of the last few years, (11)……….
to the efforts of Dr Madan Kataria (12)……….work has won him (13)……….
devoted following. Dr Kataria believes that his laughing techniques can help to
strengthen the immune system and lower stress levels, (14)…………other things.
He teaches his patients different laughs or giggles to relax specific parts of the
body. In 1998 when Dr Kataria organized a World Laughter Day at Bombay
racetrack, 10000 people (15)…………up.

1) David played the main role when the proposal was drafted.
instrumental
David ………………………………………of the proposal.
2) If you hadn’t change our original agreement, everything would have been
fine.
stuck
Had …………………………………………agreed, everything would have
been fine.
3) I think you should have some consideration for those who don’t have lives
as privileged as yours.
spare
I think you should………………………………………lives aren’t as
privileged as yours.
4) We decided to stay for longer because we were so thrilled by the place
prolonged
We decided to …………………………………………..we by the place.
5) Competitors were amazed by how shrewdly he conducted his business
affairs.
marveled
Competitors …………………………………………….which he conducted
his business affairs.
6) I didn’t want to give up while some hope of success remained.
defeat
I was loath ………………………………………………..some hope of
success.
7) After a long hard journey, I cheered up when I saw my home.
sight
After a long hard journey, my spirits……………………………………….of
my home.
8) Your attitude to life would be greatly improved by a regular exercise
wonders
Regular exercise would…………………………………………at life.
For many people the London underground is a grim necessity NECESSARY
that gets them from A to B. But for ……..author Preethi Nair, it BUD
is a source of inspiration. She has just published her first novel
Gypsy Masala-a tale she dreamt up whilst commuting on the
Metropolitan Line.” Have you observed people on the tube?”
she asks…….. “Everyone is in their own little world. I just used to ENTHUSE
sit there and imagine what kind of lives they led” Gypsy Masal
charts adventures and …….. thoughts of three members of an INNER
Indian family living in London as they search for happiness. “It’s a
story about following your dreams”, says Preethi who gave up
her high-pressure job as management ……… in order to go in …… CONSULT
of her ambition of becoming a writer. It was a big risk but it PURSUE
was definitely the right decision in terms of peace of mind
and……… “she explains. CONTENT
Preethi was born in a small village in the Indian state of Kerala
and moved to London with her parents at the age of three. She
says the striking contrast in cultures made a ………impression LAST
and is reflected in her story, which flits between the suburbs
of London and ………India. Many of the scenes in the book FAR
are based on the place where she was born and spent long
summer holidays.
“It’s in a tiny village that is lost in time. There is still no
……….water and it’s quite difficult to get to. It is completely RUN
………., and so beautiful”, she says. TOUCH

King of the Watchmakers

For a period of its history, the city of Coventry had a considerable CONSIDER
reputation as the main centre of clock and watchmaking in Britain
Coventry timepieces made then were……………with both quality SYNONYM
and…………. .Few people in the city today will have heard of RELY
Samuel Watson, but he almost…………paved the way for Coventry’s HAND
involvement in the clock and watch business. He was at the………. FRONT
of the watchmaking revolution in the 1680s, and although it is not
known how Watson became involved in the trade, he was a trailblazer
for others.
Watson made his name in 1682 when he sold a clock to King Charles II
and was invited to be King’s ………………. The following MATHEMATICS
year he began work on an astronomical clock for the King, complete with
planets and signs of the zodiac, which took seven years to build. It not
only told the time of the day but also the………… changes of the POSITION
planets. Queen Mary acquired it in 1691 and it is still in the………….. OWN
of the Royal Family.
He built several other clocks, and by 1690 the clamour for Watson’s
clock’s was such that he left Coventry and took up…………….. in RESIDE
London.
He became Master of the London Clockmakers’ Company in 1692,
which is testament to his……………in the growing industry. STAND
In 1712, Samuel Watson’s name disappears from the records of the
London Clockmakers’ Company, and the ……………..is that he died LIKELY
in that year.

1. Don’t cheat- you’ve just put a card down and it’s my ………………. now
I’m exhausted because it’s been a very busy at work and I’ve been on the …
………….all day.
Daniel had a ……………….at fixing the washing machine but he couldn’t
make it work properly.

2. It’s……………….. as well I remembered to take the map with me, or we’d

never have found our way there.
There’s no need to get upset.………………. because I’ve said that I don’t
agree with you.
Do you think you could phone back an about ten minutes- I can’t speak to
you ………………now.

3. They ………….. to lose a lot of money if they are forced to close down their
business.
He has treated me very badly for a long time and I think that the time has
now come for me to……………..up to him.
Wendy is extremely selfish and she can’t ……………….it when she doesn’t
get her own way.

4. I didn’t have a view of the sea from my hotel room because there was a ……
……. Big block of flats in the way.
The town where I live is not very well known and doesn’t attract a ………..
many visitors.
I didn’t want to go into ……………...detail at that point, so I said I would
discuss the matter further the following day.
5. In a united………….of defiance, the protestors refused to disperse when
ordered to do so by the police.
The burglars were in the……………of breaking in when he spotted them
and called the police.
His………………… was not well received by the audience and he left the
stage to total silence.

6. If you wait outside the building at six a clock, I’ll …………….you up in the
car.
He obviously wanted to……………. A fight with me but I refused to react to
his aggressive behavior.
Most fans regarded him as one of the best players in the country and were
astonished when the selectors didn’t …………………him for the national
team.

Celebrity Crossover
It is not surprising that actors want to be pop stars, and vice versa. (1) …… that
it deep in a part of our brain that most of us manage to keep (2)…….control, we
all want to be pop stars and actors.
Sadly, there’s nothing about the (3)…… profession that automatically qualifies
you for the other, (4)……. , of course, for the fact that famous actors and
singers are already surrounded by people whoever(5)……. no to them. (6)…
….. the whole, pop stars tend to fare better on screen than their (7)…….
numbers on CD. Lets (8)……. it: not being able to act is no big drawback in
Hollywood, whereas not being able to play or sing still tends to count (9)……
you in the recording studio.
Some stars do display a genuine proficiency in both disciplines, and the few
even maintain successful careers in both fields, but this just (10)……… a bad
example for all the others. (11)……... every success, here are two dozen
failures. And most of them have no idea (12)……. terrible they are. (13)………
as power tends to corrupt, so celebrity tends to destroy the ability to gauge
whether or not you’re making a fool of (14)…….. .
But perhaps we shouldn’t criticize celebrities for trying to expand their horizons
in this way.
(15)……… there’s one good thing about actors trying to sing and singers
trying to act, it is that it keeps them all too busy to write books.
1. If Tony hadn’t interfered, there would have been no problems yesterday, I’m
sure.
smoothly
Without Tony’s ……………………………………………… yesterday, I’m
sure
2. I said that I thought he was wrong about the best way for us to proceed.
issue
I …………………………………………………….. best we should
proceed.
3. He didn’t want to get in a position where he might loose all his money.
possibility
He didn’t want to expose……………………………………. all his money
4. The company received an enormous number of calls responding to the
advert.
deluged
The company…………………………………………….. response to the
advert.
5. The manager said that he had paid attention to my complaints and would
take the appropriate action.
note
The manager said that he had…………………………………… accordingly
6. We’ll have to make sure that costs are as low as possible or we’ll have no
money left.
minimum
We’ll have to keep …………………………………………….. ourselves
with no money left.
7. His behavior at the conference gave him the bad reputation he now has.
conducted
The way ……………………………………………………. In the bad
reputation he now has.
8. Her work didn’t meet the standards that were considered acceptable.
conform
Her work …………………………………………………. acceptable
standards.
People say that Frank is a nasty individual but whenever I’ve met him, I’ve
always …………………. him very pleasant.
You’ve …………………fault with absolutely everything at the hotel – I’ve never
known anyone complain so much!
Despite all the evidence against him, he was ………………… not guilty when
the case came to court.

The team showed no improvement on their previous terrible performances and so

it was inevitable that they would loose …………………….. again.
A change in the law has been agreed but the government have ………………….
to announce exactly when it will come into force.
I expect John will contact me with the details but as …………………… I haven’t
heard from him.

Suddenly becoming very famous went to his…………………… and became

extremely arrogant.
There had been a lot of discontent among the staff and matters came to a ………
…………….. at the monthly meeting, when an argument broke out.
The groups’ most loyal fans were at the ……………………….. of the queue,
having waited overnight for the concert tickets to go o sale.

I was sitting at the next table to them so I couldn’t …………………….

overhearing their conversation.
My financial situation is pretty bad anyway, so this unexpected bill doesn’t
exactly ………………………………..
I wish you wouldn’t …………………………. yourself to my CD’s without
asking me first.

He used to be one of the top players in the world but he has now had a…………
…………….. of fifteen consecutive matches without a single victory.
Leaving college without completing the course may seem like a good idée now,
but I think you may come to regret it in the long ………………….. .
The film is about someone who escapes from prison and goes on the……………
…. .

There was a very………………………… contrast between the scenes of wealth I

saw in some parts of the country and the scenes of poverty I witnessed in others.
Trudy is very ………………….. businesswoman and that is what has enabled her
to make all the right decisions for her company.
There was a very…………………………. bend in the road and for a moment I
nearly lost control of the car.

Capitan Webb
Capitan Matthew Webb is fortunate in being remembered as the first
man to swim the English Channel, rather than the one who later tried
and failed to plunge through the Niagara Falls. If ever a man possessed
self-confidence, it was Webb; but it was his stubborn refusal REFUSE
to give up that eventually proved his ………. . UNDO
Unwilling to recognize the Channel crossing as the peak of his career,
he went on and on, addicted to glory, literally swimming himself to death.
Webb astonished the British notion on August 25th, 1875, with a
Channel crossing that took a mammoth 21 hours and 25 minutes.
He had entered the sea a merchant-ship captain living in…………. OBSCURE
but he emerged in France, stung by jellyfish and half-dead with……. EXHAUST
a national hero. He was feted, mobbed and cheered wherever he went;
his appearance in the city of London brought business to a ……… . STAND
Alarmed by the sudden attention, the normally …………. Webb fled FEAR
to his native Shropshire.
But all this ………… was too much for him, and he made the fatal STAR
error of many a pop star in later years.
Craving ……….., he very nearly dissolved himself in a series of APPLAUD
marathon swims for money, including a six-day …………. contest. ENDURE
Then he sailed for America, where he had a …………. schedule PUNISH
of long swims. It was America that lured Webb to the final act in
his tragedy; his crazed attempt to swim the Niagara River beneath
the Falls in June 1883. ……….. of all advice, he dived in from a REGARD
boat and subsided forever into the boiling rapids.

The slow arrival of the wheel

it is nearly impossible in our post-industrial society to conceive of a world
without wheels. From clocks to huge machinery and from cars to computer disks,
(1)……….. employs cogs, wheels or other types of cylindrical components that
spin an axis. (2) ……… the wheel took relatively long time to be invented and
several civilizations reached a relatively high level of technological
sophistication (3)……….. it. The most likely explanation is (4)……… neither
terrain nor climate suited the wheel. Until 10000 BC, much of the world was (5)
…………. the grip of the last vestiges of the Ice Age. (6) ……. was not under ice
sheet was covered by desert, jungle or bog – conditions obviously unsuited for
something like the wheel.
Most experts agree that the wheel evolved (7) ……….. the fact that Neolithic
man was familiar with moving heavy objects (8)………… putting a roller, such
as a tree trunk, under the load. (9)………….. techniques were used to move the
huge stone blocks to build the pyramids around 2980 BC and probably
Stonehenge, which dates (10) …………. to around 2000 BC. (11) ………….
technique for moving large heavy objects was to place them on sledges and to put
the sledges rollers. In time it is likely that the sledge wore grooves into the rollers
(12)……… the result that ancient man had a ratio - a small turn of the inner edge
of the worn groove generated a larger turn of the outer edge of the roller.
The next (13) ………… final step in the invention of the wheel was to reduce the
weight of the roller by cutting away the wood between the grooves, in (14) ……
way creating an axle with wheel at each end. At last man (15)………… better
indulge his passions for travel, speed and movement.

A. From her description of events, it was hard to get a clear mental …………
…. of exactly what happened.
B. As regards the economic situation, the overall …………….. looks much
the same as it did six months ago.
C. For some reason, we never get a very good …………… on this channel on
our TV

A. I was feeling a bit ………….. because I’d had a late night and I was
beginning to get the flu.
B. I know you can’t give me the exact figure but could you give me a ………
…….. idea of what it might cost?
C. The sea was very ……………. and I began to feel ill half-way across.

A. I know you’re very upset now but I’m sure the feeling will …………..
soon.
B. His comment was so rude that I couldn’t let it …………………. without
telling him that I thought he shouldn’t have said it.
C. It was so hot in that room that I felt I might ………………… at any
moment
 A. When all facts came to ……………….. , there was such a scandal that he
was forced to resign.
B. We built a huge bonfire in the garden out of all our rubbish and set ………
…… to it.
C. It has been decided, that in the …………………. Of all the criticism it has
received, the scheme will be abandoned.

A. The situation was already bad but your interference has made it worse …
………..
B. I feel a bit guilty about what happened; …………….. , there’s nothing I
could have done to prevent it so I know I shouldn’t feel bad.
C. I haven’t officially signed ay agreement so I can ……………. Change my
mind if I want to.

A. After the concert, all the equipment was …………… away and transported
in a convoy of lorries to the next venue.
B. George ……………. In his job and went traveling around the world for a
year.
C. The club was absolutely ………………... and there was no room at all on
the dance floor.

1) The film was so controversial that it was banned in several parts of the world.
caused
Such was …………………………………………………. the film, that it was
banned in several parts of the world.
2) He had no idea what was going to happen to him when he walked into that
room.
store
Little ……………………………………………………. him when he walked
into that room.
3) You shouldn’t let trivial maters worry you so much.
prey
You shouldn’t let trivial matters ………………………………………. extent
4) He became famous but it cost him his privacy.
expense
His rise …………………………………………. of his privacy.
 5) I helped Ray, with the result that his business became successful.
favour
I ………………………………………….. which his business became
successful.
6) I had to wait for the manager for almost an hour before he would see me.
best
The manager kept ……………………………………… an hour before he
would see me.
7) I’ll have to consider working abroad if an opportunity doesn’t arise here soon.
near
Unless an opportunity presents ………………………………. future, I’ll have
to consider working abroad.
8) I wanted to make sure that my good work wasn’t wasted in that way.
waste
I wanted to prevent ………………………………………….. in that way.

The world “bogus”

For years ‘bogus’ was a word the British read in the newspaper headlines LINE
but tended not to say. Its popularity among the teenagers of America
changed that, although they didn’t use it with its original meaning. It
came from the Wild West. Its first appearance in print, in 1827, was in
the Telegraph of Painesville, Ohio, where it meant a machine for making
……………… of coins. Soon those ‘boguses’ were turning out ‘bogus FORGE
money’ and the world had……………... a change from noun to adjective. GO
th
By the end of the 19 century, it was well-established in Britain, applied to
anything false, spurious or intentionally ……………. . But computer LEAD
scientists of 1960s America, to whom we owe so much …………… LANGUAGE
innovation, redefined it to mean ‘non–functional’, ‘useless’, or ‘unbelievable’,
especially in relation to calculations and engineering ideas. This way
followed by its ……………. among Princeton and Yale graduates in the EMERGE
computer community. But it was the……………… of the word by ADOPT
American teenagers generally, who used it to mean simply ‘bad’, that led to it
being widely used by their counterparts in Britain.
…………….., ‘bogus’ is one of only about 1300 English words for INTEREST
which no sensible origin has emerged. The 1827 ‘bogus’ machine
seems to have been named by an …………….. present at the time of LOOK
its capture by police. But why that word? The Oxford English Dictionary
suggests a connection with a New England word, ‘tantrobogus’, meaning
the devil. A rival US account sees it as a …………….. of the name of CORRUPT
a forger, called Borghese or Borges. ……………….., it has been ELSE
connected with the French word ‘bagasse’ , meaning the refuse from
sugar-cane production.