CAMBRIDGE ENGLISH / ADVANCED / CAE / USE OF ENGLISH / Multiple Choice Cloze

For questions 1- 8, read the text below and decide which answer (A, B, C or D) best fits each gap.

 

living in australia

When people describe Australia, certain words ... [come/go/fall/bring]  up again and again. Hot, Dry, Flat, Sandy Harsh. The vast interior of the continent is all of these things and more. It’s unpredictable. One year the land may be ... [bone/pepper/baked/dusty]  dry, when not a drop of rain falls.  ... [Yet/Although/Thus/Despite]  the next year, heavy rains may bring floods, creating roads too muddy to pass. Not everyone would choose to live under these harsh natural conditions. So it’s no ... [wonder/good/use/trouble] that towns and people here are relatively few and far ... [between/away/under/beyond].

There is, however, another Australia. Clinging ... [to/by/on/in]  parts of the coastline are modern cities that thrive in the midst of green hillsides, grassy plains, and wet forests. Most Australians live in these green ... [zones/segments/territories/sectors] – where the weather and climate are moderated by moisture from the ocean. But even there, their lives, their habits, and their culture are still linked to the ... [Outback/Outbound/Outcrop/Outfield] – the hot, dry lands at the continent’s heart.

[answer-table]

 

 

 

 

 

 

ANSWER KEYS

 

 

1)    COME
PHRASAL VERB COME UP
To be mentioned or discussed:
The subject came up in conversation.
2)    BONE
COLLOCATION BONE DRY
Completely dry:
The ground was bone dry after the drought.
 
3)    YET
CONJUNCTION YET
Used to introduce a fact, situation, or quality that is surprising after what you have just said: 
He has a good job, and yet he never seems to have any money.
 
4)    WONDER
IDIOM IT'S NO WONDER THAT
It is not surprising:
It is no wonder that she was so upset.
 
 
5)    BETWEEN
IDIOM FEW AND FAR BETWEEN
Not frequent; not happening often:
Jobs are few and far between at the moment.
 
6)    TO
VERB + PREPOSITION CLING TO
To hold on tightly to somebody/something:
Leaves still clung to the branches.
 
7)    ZONE
COLLOCATION GREEN ZONE
An area covered with grass or other vegetation:
Discover amazing facts about life, the planet, our environment and evolution in the green zone.
 
8)    OUTBACK
NOUN THE OUTBACK
The area of Australia that is a long way from the coast and the towns, where few people live:
How do children receive their education in the outback?