Check Your Vocabulary

 Fill in the gaps with the given words.

affectation

amiss

deplete

fastidiously

funnel

imbue

pate

slab

stringent

stub

untoward

winch

1. Minds of the most _____ kind, including Nobel Prize - winner Francis crick, who deduced the twisted - ladder structure of DNA, famed Roman educator and rhetorian Quitilian, and even Sigmund Freud had all tried their hand at deciphering sleep's enigmatic code, all in vain.

2 I don't think he's seen anything ______.

3. A lantern holding a candle, lit at the beginning of our shift and now closer to a _____, burns on the wall

4.  I can't get his initial moment of _____ out of my mind.

5. but his document - or at least, the seal affixed to it- was _____ by Proconsul Manius, impossible to fake.

6. So I simply have to hope that his nerves, and his attempt to hide them, are not from anything _____.

7. I go to have lunch when I feel my energy level starts _____.

8. You can _____ him up.

9. Hispius rubs the dark surface of his shaven _____.

10. I start edging around the white _____, deeper into cell forty-one.

11. I've been unaffected by the Sappers, so far, but still I move with care, _____ avoiding brushing against anything.

all of your drive, your focus, your mental and physical evergy, is ______ away by these pale stone beds, to be received by some distant, particularly favoured Septimus.

Answer Key:

1. stringent; 2. amiss; 3. stub;4. affectation; 5. imbue; 6.untoward; 7.deplete; 8. winch; 9.pate; 10. slab;11.fastidiously;12. funnelled

Vocabulary Practice

 Complete the sentences with the words below.

allegation

concede

condone

feint

futile

glower

nitwit

pry

reek

shoo

siphon

snippy

stipulate

vault

1. Strange but he didn't want to _____.

2. She _____ him away with a wave.

3. I'm sorry I got _____.

4. Your wife went public and made some ______.

5. I've _____ a lot of things.

6. You always _____ of drugs and alcohol and whatever else you're taking.

7. You want to frustrate me, _____.

8. You ______ men for money.

9. The World Health Organization and the National Sleep Foundation both _______ an average of eight hours of sleep per night for adults.

10. Worse, should you attempt to diet but don't get enough sleep while doing so,  it is ______, since most of the weight you lose will come from lean body mass, not fat.

11. A ______, I realise immediately.

12. Hrolf ______ at the board, then me, then at the board again.

13. "Lost concentration," he mutters, disgusted as he ______ the game.

14. All of the mighty problem-solving methods in science have been unable to unlock the stubborn ______ of sleep.

Answer key:

1. pry; 2. shooed; 3. snippy; 4. allegation; 5. condoned; 6. reek;7.nitwit;8. siphoned;9. stipulate;10. futile; 11. feint;12.glower;13. concede; 14. vault

Reading practice TOEFL

 Fill in the missing letters in the paragraph

Healthy eating habits contribute significantly to long-term physical and mental well-being. Balanced die_ _ provide essen _ _ _ _ nutrients th_ _ support ene_ _ _ levels, immu_ _ function, a_ _ overall he _ _ _ _. Excessive consu_ _ _ _ _ _ of proce_ _ _ _ foods, su_ _ _, and unhealthy fats can lead to chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart conditions. Awareness of nutrition helps individuals make informed food choices. Developing consistent healthy eating routines reduces health risks and improves quality of life. Proper nutrition also supports concentration, mood stability, and productivity in daily activities.

Read a Campus Cafeteria Notice

Due to a temporary shortage of staff, the cafeteria will provide a limited menu this week. Popular items like pasta bowls and custom sandwiches will still be available, but several specialty dishes will not be offered. We apologize for any inconvenience, and we expect to return to the full menu next Monday once additional staff members complete their training.

What is the cafeteria administration expecting to happen next week?

(A) More specialty meals will be added gradually.

(B) Food prices will increase.

(C) The cafeteria will return to its usual menu.

(D) The cafeteria will close for maintenance.

Read an Online Shipping Update

Your package has left the distribution center and is currently making its way to the destination. According to the latest estimate, it should arrive sometime between Tuesday and Thursday. You can monitor its progress using the tracking link below. While most deliveries arrive on schedule, severe weather conditions or transportation disruptions may occasionally cause delays. If you expect to be unavailable during the delivery period, you may choose to have the package to a nearby pickup location instead.

What does the notice suggest about the package?

(A) It has not yet been processed.

(B) It is currently being transported.

(C) It has already been delivered.

(D) It is being returned to the sender.

Answer Key:

1 ts

2 tial

3 at

4 rgy

5 ne

6 nd

7 alth

8 mption

9 ssed

10 gar

11 B

12 C

Check Your Vocabulary

 Complete the sentences.

carjack

cattail

fender

scaffolding

shove

slew

stammer

SWAT team

unsub

1. Is the ___ recent?

2. Starting out pleased and approving, he rounded the hood and drew up short when he came upon the left ___.

3. The unsub, described as twentysomething, tall Hispanic man, was believed to have ____ a woman on a street nearby -taking off with the victim's vehicle and her child, who was in a car seat in the back.

4. I was ____ to the ground, but I'm okay.

5. After a perimeter had been established by the Merced County Sheriff's Echo 1 helicopter was deployed to help in the search for the suspect and rescue of young Gabriel Dunne.

6. While the ____ was nowhere to be found, Gabriel was left unharmed, still his car left.

7. When Lex stopped at the water's edge, barking vociferously, Isaih caught up to him and spotted what looked to be a person, almost totally underwater, amidst blackberry bushes and ____.

8. "We have Alphonse Olivarez in custody," Isaih reported to her satisfyingly, while noting that the suspect faced a ____ of serious charges, including murder, robbery, carjacking and the kidnapping of a child.

9. Westnick Hall really was magnificent even covered in ____ as the work Lorenti's recent investment had made possible got underway.

Key: 1. stammering; 2. fender; 3. carjacked; 4. shoved; 5. SWAT team; 6. unsub; 7. cattail; 8. slew; 9. scaffolding

Check Your Vocabulary

 Fill in gaps.

agile

deploy

fluster

gingerly

mundane

on pins and needles

safe and sound

vociferous-vociferously

1. Thank goodness for that much, Isaih told himself, ____ at the thought of the carjacking.

2. After a perimeter had been established by the Merced County Sheriff's Office, working with the Lodren Creek Police Departments, a SWAT team was called in and an Airbus H-125 Echo 1 helicopter was ___ to help in the search for the suspect and rescue of young Gabriel Dunne.

3. Isaiah had voluntarily joined the mission with his canine partner, intent on doing whatever could be done to bring Gabriel back to his mother ___.

4. As Isaiah lifted him from the car, he asked the frightened little boy ____, to be sure, "Are you okay, buddy?"

5. Sensing the armed suspect was hiding somewhere, Isaih took out his weapon and then le Lex loose, believing that the ___ and skilled Begian Malinois would have the element of surprise and fear on his side.

6. When Lex stopped at the water's edge, barking ____, Isaiah caught up to him and spotted what looked to be a person, almost totally underwater, amidst blackbeery bushes and cattails.

7. After being ____ with worry, Tamara was happily reunited with Gabriel at her sister's house.

8. By writing about the admittedly ____ details of my subjects' daily lives -when they slept and ate and worked and worried - I hoped to provide a novel angle on their personalitties and careers, to sketch entertaining small- bore portraits of the artist as a creature of habit.

Key: 1. flustered; 2. deployed; 3. safe and sound; 4. gingerly; 5. agile;6. voceferously; 7. on pins and needles; 8. mundane 

Check Your Vocabulary

 Complete the gaps.

accost

acquiesce

antsy

assailant

at gunpoint

carjack-v

falter

fender

frantic

frizz out

on what grounds

slate (for)

stammer

unsub

1. You don't ____ so you talk normally.
2. She patted down her bangs where they tended to ____ like a forelock.
3. This time the ____ moved, not for but enough to clear the tire, and she stood up and dusted off her hands.
4. What time was this meeting ____?
5. ____ didn't you make breakfast?
6. "All right," Stella ___, "but I want details tomorrow."
7. It was only after she closed the door and went around to the driver's side door that Tamara found herself being ____ by a tall and well-built, dark-haired, dark-eyed Hispanic man in his twenties.
8.  Unfortunately, neither of those was enough to prevent whatever it was her that ___ had in mind.
9. Lex sat quietly nearby in the great room but seemed ____, while Isaih sipped coffee and saw on the television news that a local convenience store clerk had been killed in an armed robbery.
10. The ____ , described as twentysomething, tall Hispanic man, was believed to have carjacked a woman on a street nearby - taking off with the vistim's vehicle and her child, who was in a car seat in the back.
11. She was ___.
12. I was ____ outside my sister's house.
13. He voice ___.
14. Gabriel was inside the car when the man stole it ___.    

Key:1. stammer; 2. frizz out; 3. fender; 4. stated for; 5. on what gorunds;6. acquiesced; 7. accosted; 8. assailant; 9. antsy; 10. unsub; 11. frantic; 12. carjacked;13.faltered; 14. at gunpoint

Check Your Vocabulary

 Enjoy this task and check your vocabulary knowledge!

conjure up

decrapulate

dignified

disarray

divulge

embezzlement

impeccable

rebate

1. Set in autum and winter, Miss Plum and Miss Penny allows the author to ___ evocative scenes of Greeth transformed by snow, where "every window framed a frozen picture of the most perfect artistry", of a Christmas  Eve carol - singing expedition, and of the whole village forsaking their daily tasks to ice-skate on the frozen Tarn.
2. Have you looked into Director Jin's ____?
3. Let's ____!
4. He is also charged with receiving ____ from businesses of two million dollars. 
5. The hospital is in ____.
6. People say I'm _____ and charismatic.
7. She pictured Stanley to herself, ______ dressed as always, and looking more like a retired bank manager than any retired bank manager had ever looked, sitting in Daddy's wing chair, his well- kept hands folded upon his stomach, his handsome grey head politely inclined toward the television screen, calmly and dispassionately evaluating the worth of the performers.
8. Be secret not to ____ secret information today.

Key: 1. conjure up; 2. embezzlement; 3. descapulate; 4. rebates; 5. disarray; 6. dignified; 7.impeccably; 8.divulge.