2. ______ are most mammals able to receive the most
information about what is happening in their immediate
environment.
Because they use sight By means of sight
This one's tricky! We need to notice
that we have subject-verb
inversion, so we must use a structure that requires
inversion.
With the sights
Using sight
3. The Consumer Price Index in the United States ______
the inflation rate.
as the primary indicates
is the indication primarily
primarily indicates of is a primary indicator of
We need a few things: A main verb,
correct word order, and correct word form.
4. Some of the most influential works
in twentieth-century American classical music were
composed in the period between the first and
the fifth decade.
works
were
and decade ==> decades
We are talking about two different
decades here, the first one and the fifth one.
5. Although the grammar of the English language is
chiefly derived ______ Germanic languages, some 80%
of its vocabulary comes from Latin.
for from
Memorize this! derive +
from
with
of
6. On the land or in the sea, carrion creatures
have adapted to feed by any type of food
that is available in their habitat.
On
have adapted by
Memorize: feed + on. We should also know
the meaning of this word since it appears fairly frequently
on the TOEFL: feed on = eat
is available
7. The brightest point seen in the night sky
is typically not a star but Venus, it is
the second planet from the Sun.
seen in
typically it is ==> it is
(get rid of it!) or which is
Two main sentences with no conjunction
to join them.
the Sun
8. Information technology is quickly becoming the most
important economic export ______.
in certain geographical
areas
Two things: Correct preposition
and word order.
for area that are geographic
in certain areas geographical
of certain geographical area
9. Althoughoriginated in tropical Africa,
watermelon is now cultivated all over
the world.
Although originated ==> originating
The perennial problem: -ing or
-ed form??? In this case, we need the -ing form since
watermelon is the subject of the verbal originating.
is now
all over
10. In 1995, Newt Gingrich was sworn ______ Speaker
of the House, the first Republican Speaker in more than
40 years.
in as
More than 90% of all people who
have tried this question have answered it incorrectly,
so I'd say this one's pretty darned tricky.
To choose the right answer, we
should know the expression to swear somebody in,
which refers to the ceremony in which a person (for
example, a new president) gives an oath promising that
s/he will do a great job! Then, we need to know that
we should use the preposition as if we want to
mention the position the person is taking. Finally,
we need to know how to chance this to passive voice.