August Was the Hottest Month Ever Recorded Globally, Scientists Say

Study the questions and tasks

Work through the material below, or start the interactive practice above to complete an attempt. Try the exercises before opening any answer or transcript sections, then use them to review your work.

Practice level

C2. Try this level if you can follow the instructions and understand most of the language; choose an earlier level if you need more support.

Question formats

Single choice

How to approach this practice

Read the passage for its main idea, then return to the relevant sentence or paragraph for each question. Base answers on the passage.

1. Question 1 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   What is the article’s central purpose?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. To forecast future temperatures from historical trends
   2. To compare two heat records and delimit the evidence
   3. To explain the methods used by individual scientists
   4. To provide a regional breakdown of American temperatures
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   To compare two heat records and delimit the evidence

   It presents two related records while carefully limiting unsupported conclusions.

   Read together, they explain why the period was characterized as exceptionally hot, while leaving the finer details of the measurements unspecified.

2. Question 2 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   What does “Those distinctions” refer to?

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   1. Differences between scientists’ identities
   2. Differences between the two records’ measurements
   3. Differences between weather and climate terminology
   4. Differences between global and historical methods
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   Differences between the two records’ measurements

   The phrase points to differences in timeframe, scope, and comparison.

   The global statement concerns August specifically and compares that month with all other months in the worldwide record.

3. Question 3 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   Why does the article mention that records are not identical measurements?

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   1. To reject the U.S. finding entirely
   2. To clarify the limits of the comparison
   3. To establish a causal relationship
   4. To identify the stronger scientific authority
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   To clarify the limits of the comparison

   It prevents readers from treating related findings as interchangeable evidence.

   Although the findings are related by the intensity of the heat described, they are not identical measurements.

4. Question 4 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   Which inference is best supported about the source package?

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   1. It prioritizes methodological completeness
   2. It deliberately avoids unsupported specificity
   3. It contains extensive regional measurements
   4. It disputes the scientists’ conclusion
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   It deliberately avoids unsupported specificity

   Its claims are bounded by explicit omissions rather than expanded through speculation.

   Those details cannot be inferred from the account.

5. Question 5 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   What does “two different scales” most nearly mean?

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   1. Two different degrees of scientific certainty
   2. Two different geographical and temporal scopes
   3. Two different methods of measuring humidity
   4. Two different stages of the reporting process
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   Two different geographical and temporal scopes

   The records operate across global monthly and national seasonal frames.

   Together, the two findings present a picture of exceptional heat across two different scales: a global monthly record and a national seasonal record.

6. Question 6 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   Which information is explicitly absent from the American result?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. The identity of the reporting scientists
   2. The month identified as globally hottest
   3. The locations and number of U.S. records
   4. The existence of earlier heat records
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   The locations and number of U.S. records

   The article states that locations and seasonal distribution are unspecified.

   Nor does the available account specify how many U.S. records were broken, which locations set them, or how the American results were distributed across the season.

7. Question 7 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   How is the global claim framed rhetorically?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. As a local anecdote with uncertain relevance
   2. As a conclusion grounded in temperature records
   3. As a prediction based on atmospheric models
   4. As an opinion attributed to unnamed residents
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   As a conclusion grounded in temperature records

   Attribution to scientists presents it as a recorded conclusion, not impressionistic observation.

   The global claim is attributed to scientists, making clear that it is presented as a conclusion based on temperature records rather than as a general impression drawn from weather in a particular location.

8. Question 8 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   What organizational move follows the initial presentation of the records?

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   1. It introduces unrelated historical context
   2. It qualifies the findings by identifying missing details
   3. It explains a new measurement technique
   4. It narrows the discussion to one U.S. location
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   It qualifies the findings by identifying missing details

   The article shifts from reporting the findings to qualifying their interpretation.

   The comparison also carries a limitation that should remain visible.

What to review next

Find the words that support each answer. For a mistake, compare the question with the evidence and identify the detail or inference you missed.

A focused practice result shows how you did on these tasks. Use several activities across skills to decide what to study next; one practice score does not certify an overall CEFR level.

Before you practise: a worked example

Look for evidence in the text. Separate what the writer says from what you already know about the topic.

The library normally closes at six, but on Fridays it stays open until eight. When does it close on Friday?

The answer is eight. But introduces an exception to the normal closing time, so the first time mentioned is not the answer.

This teaching example is separate from the scored questions. After your test, compare any mistakes with the explanation and revisit the topic before trying again.