Exam practice

An old man with a walking stick is standing in front of a tall, modern building in a city. Two young men stand near him. He seems to be looking for someone, perhaps asking them the way.

Both are important to me, but my family comes first. Work (for a student, study) gives us money, skills and a future, and our families want us to succeed in it. But our parents gave us everything before we could earn anything, and they won’t always be with us. Work can wait a day; time with them, once lost, can’t be got back. So I would work hard, and still keep time for my family.

a. burden b. approached c. stunned d. departed e. graveyard f. weird g. content h. radiated i. scurried
(Shined in h is the usual past of shine when it means “gave out light”; many writers also use shone.)

To meet his son, Thomas, whom he hadn’t seen for a few years, and to ask him to come home, because his mother dearly wanted to see him.

He wanted Thomas to come home with him to the village for a visit, because his mother dearly wanted to see him. In the end, all he wanted was that his son should spare some time for his parents.

No. He smiled, but he went back disappointed, because his son said he was too busy to come home with him, and he went back without telling him about the family’s trouble.

A few weeks later he wondered why his father had come alone after such a long time, and he felt guilty for treating him so strangely and coldly. So he took a few days’ leave and went to the village.

To pay for Thomas’s college education when he moved to the city, and again to buy him a new car.

Because Thomas was very busy and stressed with his work, and Jerry didn’t want to burden him with the family’s problem. All he wanted was his son’s happiness.

Our parents give up a great deal for us and ask for little in return. However busy we are with study or work, we should make time for them: visit them, ask how they really are, and help them when they are in trouble. Success means little if we lose touch with the people who made it possible. And in a family, problems should be shared, not hidden.

My neighbor’s son went to the Gulf to work eight years ago. Every month he sent money home, and his parents were proud of him. But he hardly ever called, and when his father fell ill last winter, his mother didn’t tell him, because she didn’t want him to worry or lose his job. Our family and the other neighbors took his father to the hospital in Dhulikhel. When the son found out, months later, he was very upset. He said, “I send money, but you need me too.” Now he video-calls his parents every Saturday, and he is coming home for good next year. It reminded me of Thomas: a son can be busy and loving at the same time, and still not know what is happening at home.

• a.A: Excuse me. Could you show me a bottle of shampoo, please? B: Here you are. A: Hmm, would you mind showing me a bigger one? This one will last only a week. B: Not at all. Here’s the large bottle.
• b.A: Good morning. Can I have a kilo of sugar, please? B: Sure. Anything else? A: Could you give me a toothbrush and a packet of detergent powder too? B: Of course. That’s three hundred and forty rupees, please.
• c.A: Good afternoon. It’s my sister’s birthday next week. Would you help me choose a gift for her? B: Might I suggest a shawl? This woolen one is very popular. A: That’s lovely. Could you wrap it for me, please? B: No problem.
• d.A: Excuse me. My cousin is getting married next month. I wonder if you could show me some wedding rings. B: Certainly. These are our gold rings, and these have small stones. A: Could I see that thin gold one, please? B: Of course. Here you are.
• e.A: Do you mind if I close the window? It’s quite cold in here. B: No, not at all. I’m feeling cold too.
• f.A: Dad, could you buy me an ice cream, please? B: I’m afraid not. You’ve had a cough all week, and ice cream will make it worse. A: All right. Maybe next week, then?

• a.An offer (Can I…?: I will help you). A shopkeeper often begins like this.
• b.An offer of a thing, help (Would you like + a thing?). Yes, please is the most usual answer.
• c.An invitation (Would you like to…?), answered warmly: I’d love to.
• d.A request (Can you…?: please do this for me), friendly and direct. The answer agrees and asks a question to help.
• e.A request (Could you…?), a little more polite than Can you…?. On my behalf means “for me, in my place”. A good answer: Of course I will.

• a.Can (an offer; Could is also right)
• b.Could or Can (a request to a stranger: Could is the more polite)
• c.Would … would (an offer, Would you like me to…?; that would be lovely)
• d.Can (asking permission; Could is also right. The answer You may is the formal way to give it)
• e.Can or Could (asking permission)
• f.Would (Would you mind + -ing)
• g.Would … Would (an offer; then Would you? means “Would you really do that?”. Could you? is also right)
• h.Could or Can (a request for a favor)
• i.Would (Would you mind if I + past: used)

In f, a careful speaker answers Not at all. Here you go.: see Answering “Do you mind…?”.

A formal letter: your address and the date; the head teacher’s title and the school’s address; a subject line; Dear Sir or Dear Madam. Then three short paragraphs: who you are and what you are asking for; why it is a good idea; what exactly you need (the equipment, a date, the ground). End politely, and with Yours faithfully.

Grade 9 ‘B’
Shree Bhimsen Secondary School
Dhulikhel, Kavrepalanchok
5 Mangsir 2083

The Head Teacher
Shree Bhimsen Secondary School
Dhulikhel, Kavrepalanchok

Subject: Request to organize an inter-house volleyball tournament

Dear Madam,

On behalf of the students of Grade 9 ‘B’, I would like to request you to organize an inter-house volleyball tournament in our school this winter.

Volleyball is the most popular game in our school, and many students play it every day during the break. A tournament between the four houses, Everest, Kanchenjunga, Makalu and Annapurna, would give every student a chance to take part or cheer for their house. It would also build teamwork and fitness, and help the school choose a strong team for the district tournament in Magh.

For the tournament, we would be grateful if the school could provide two new volleyball nets and poles, eight volleyballs, a whistle and a scoreboard, and colored bibs for each house. We would also request you to have the court’s lines repainted, to keep a first-aid kit ready, and to ask our sports teachers to act as referees. If it is possible, the tournament could be held in the week after the second terminal examination.

Our class would be happy to help with the arrangements. We hope you will kindly consider our request.

Yours faithfully,
Tenzing Lama
Class Captain, Grade 9 ‘B’

The first picture shows the stick dance (lathi naach) of the Tharu people: men in white dance in a circle at night, striking short sticks together in rhythm. The second shows a Maruni dance, the folk dance of the Magar people: a dancer in a bright skirt and ornaments, with men beating madal drums.

The stick dance is most popular in the Tarai, in Tharu villages across the plains, at festivals and celebrations; in Chitwan it is often danced for visitors too. The Maruni dance began in the western hills, in the Magar villages, and is now danced in many parts of Nepal, especially at Tihar and Dashain, and at weddings.

• a.lad (lads), chap, fellow, character
• b.arrived, walked up
• c.dress, and jacket or trousers

(These are not exact synonyms: lad, chap and fellow are informal words for a man, and a dress, a jacket and trousers are kinds of clothes.)

The first time I danced in front of people was at my cousin’s wedding in Gorkha, when I was eight. In the evening, everyone gathered in the yard and an uncle began to play the madal. My aunts pulled me into the circle, and I was so shy that I just stood there, moving my hands a little. Then my grandmother, who was over seventy, started to dance beside me, smiling, and showed me the steps. Everyone clapped, and I forgot to be shy. Now, at every family wedding, I am one of the first to dance.

• a.They are in a shop: a woman stands at the counter, and a salesman behind it shows her something, with clothes hanging behind him. She may be buying a gift.
• b.In Nepal, popular souvenirs are singing bowls, pashmina shawls, khukuris, thangka paintings, wood carvings, prayer flags, felt bags, Dhaka topis, tea from Ilam, and small statues and masks.
• c.Prices vary a lot: a set of prayer flags may cost a hundred rupees or so, a felt bag or a Dhaka topi a few hundred, a pashmina shawl a few thousand, and a large singing bowl or thangka many thousands. In tourist areas, it is usual to bargain.

• a.To his wife.
• b.A pearl necklace.
• c.Because it is too expensive.
• d.Because his wife already has a watch, and a phone, to check the time.
• e.Because the other gift shops have all closed.

a – vi: I’d like to rent an apartment.
b – iii: Would it be possible to invite my cousin?
c – v: Would you be able to get me a ticket for the concert?
d – i: Could you recommend a good dentist?
e – ii: Can I book a table for six?
f – iv: Would you like me to call a taxi?
Some answer keys give c – iii. But Would you be able to possible to invite… is not a sentence: only Would it be fits possible to invite my cousin, so b takes iii and c takes v.

• a.Would you like me to carry your bag to the bus stop? (an offer)
• b.Can I borrow your science notebook till tomorrow? (permission)
• c.Could you explain this sum to me again, please? (a request)
• d.Would it be possible to change my seat to the front row? (a request)
• e.Would you mind lowering the volume of the TV a little? (a request: -ing)
• f.Could you possibly give me a lift to Bhaktapur on Saturday? (a very polite request)
• g.Would you like some more momo? (an offer) or Would you close the gate behind you, please? (a request)

Other endings are right too, if the verb form fits: like me to + base form, mind + -ing, and the base form after the others.

Two paragraphs. The first: what the dance is, which community keeps it, and when it is danced. The second: how it is danced (who dances, the steps, the clothes, the music) and what it means to the people, ending with your own feeling about it.

Sakela: the Rai people’s dance with the seasons

Sakela, also called Chandi Naach, is the greatest festival of the Kirat Rai people of eastern Nepal. It is celebrated twice a year. Ubhauli, on the full moon of Baisakh, marks the start of the farming season, when people pray to nature for good rain and healthy crops. Udhauli, on the full moon of Mangsir, comes after the harvest, when they give thanks. In my village in Bhojpur, and now in towns like Dharan and Kathmandu, whole communities come together for it.

The dance is done in a big circle. Men and women in their best clothes, the women in red blouses and bead necklaces, move slowly round, led by a man and a woman called the Silimangpa and the Silimangma. Each set of steps, called a sili, shows something from life and nature: sowing seeds, weeding the fields, the movements of birds and animals. Everyone else follows the leaders, to the beat of the dhol and the clash of the jhyamta (cymbals). Anyone can join, young or old. For me, Sakela is the most joyful day of the year: it reminds us that our lives depend on the land, and that we are one community.

a. aunt b. bridegroom (groom) c. empress d. drake (duck is used for any duck, and for the female) e. heiress f. stallion (or horse)

• a.True
• b.False (she phoned him at once)
• c.False (he went back the same evening)
• d.False (the place was so bleak it looked like a graveyard)
• e.True

• a.Could you open the door, please?
• b.Would you mind if I used your phone? (past form after Would you mind if I)
• c.Would you mind lending me your notes?
• d.Would you like me to carry your bag?
• e.Would you like to come to my birthday party?
• f.I wonder if you could show me the way to Ratnapark. (a statement, so a full stop, not a question mark)

a. Could b. Would c. taking d. Not at all e. to visit
(Could you…, please?: a polite request; Would you like me to…?: an offer; Would you mind + -ing; Not at all means yes, I’ll do it; Would it be possible to + base form.)

• a.On Tuesday.
• b.Leave them at the counter.
• c.In the garden (not inside the galleries).
• d.Students in school uniform who come with their teacher.
• e.At the reception.

(A practice notice written for this page.)