Nuance in Institutional Responses

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

Cloze (dropdown)

How to approach this practice

Read the complete context. Check both the meaning and the grammar, including word forms, collocations and links between sentences.

1. Question 1 · Cloze (dropdown)

   Choose the correct option for each blank.

   Choose the best option for each gap: A rail operator responded to complaints after a timetable change disrupted journeys that passengers had planned around the earlier service. The statement acknowledges the concern without 1___ liability. Its wording carefully separates sympathy 2___ legal responsibility. Its first statement expressed sympathy while leaving responsibility for particular losses to be examined through the complaints procedure.

   Choices for blank 1

   1. admitted
   2. admit
   3. to admit
   4. admitting

   Choices for blank 2

   1. to
   2. from
   3. with
   4. at
   Check answers and explanations

   Blank 1

   admitting

   Blank 2

   from

   Without takes an ing form; separate from distinguishes the two concepts.

2. Question 2 · Cloze (dropdown)

   Choose the correct option for each blank.

   Choose the best option for each gap: The operator offered a practical concession while making clear that passengers were not being asked to surrender rights they already held. The concession is made without 1___ to existing rights. It should not be 2___ as a general waiver. The limited adjustment needed to be interpreted within its wording rather than expanded into an agreement about every possible claim.

   Choices for blank 1

   1. preference
   2. presumption
   3. precedent
   4. prejudice

   Choices for blank 2

   1. constructed
   2. construed
   3. constituted
   4. constrained
   Check answers and explanations

   Blank 1

   prejudice

   Blank 2

   construed

   Without prejudice to preserves rights; construe as means interpret as.

3. Question 3 · Cloze (dropdown)

   Choose the correct option for each blank.

   Choose the best option for each gap: A later reply adopted a warmer style but retained the condition that passengers had criticised in the first response. The reply is conciliatory in tone but 1___ in substance: the disputed condition remains. Politeness should not be mistaken for 2___. A more accommodating manner did not by itself establish that the company had altered its substantive position.

   Choices for blank 1

   1. revoked
   2. withdrawn
   3. unyielding
   4. yielding

   Choices for blank 2

   1. acquiescently
   2. acquiescence
   3. acquiesce
   4. acquiescent
   Check answers and explanations

   Blank 1

   unyielding

   Blank 2

   acquiescence

   Unyielding marks no substantive concession; acquiescence is the noun for acceptance.

4. Question 4 · Cloze (dropdown)

   Choose the correct option for each blank.

   Choose the best option for each gap: The company apologised for taking several weeks to answer, without apologising for the underlying timetable decision. The apology addresses the delay, not the decision 1___ se. Extending it to the latter would 2___ its scope. An accurate account had to identify the object of the apology instead of allowing an expression of regret to acquire a broader target.

   Choices for blank 1

   1. ex
   2. ad
   3. per
   4. pro

   Choices for blank 2

   1. circumscribe
   2. overstate
   3. narrow
   4. understate
   Check answers and explanations

   Blank 1

   per

   Blank 2

   overstate

   Per se means in itself; overstate would make the apology broader than it is.

5. Question 5 · Cloze (dropdown)

   Choose the correct option for each blank.

   Choose the best option for each gap: The statement retained an option to revise the arrangement after examining travel patterns, while avoiding a promise that a revision would occur. The committee reserves the right 1___ amend the terms. It does not undertake 2___ do so. The distinction between an entitlement and an undertaking mattered to passengers deciding how much reliance to place on the response.

   Choices for blank 1

   1. to
   2. with
   3. at
   4. for

   Choices for blank 2

   1. with
   2. at
   3. for
   4. to
   Check answers and explanations

   Blank 1

   to

   Blank 2

   to

   Both reserve the right and undertake take to-infinitives; entitlement differs from commitment.

6. Question 6 · Cloze (dropdown)

   Choose the correct option for each blank.

   Choose the best option for each gap: A proposed additional service depended on written approval from the organisation responsible for allocating access to the route. The undertaking is conditional, not 1___. It becomes operative only 2___ written approval is received. The response therefore could not be read as an unconditional assurance that the service would operate irrespective of that approval.

   Choices for blank 1

   1. unqualified
   2. contingent
   3. provisional
   4. qualified

   Choices for blank 2

   1. regardless of whether
   2. despite
   3. when
   4. even if not
   Check answers and explanations

   Blank 1

   unqualified

   Blank 2

   when

   Unqualified would remove reservations; only when makes approval necessary.

7. Question 7 · Cloze (dropdown)

   Choose the correct option for each blank.

   Choose the best option for each gap: Several passengers asked whether the same sentence described current rights or proposed a change to the agreement. Passengers would have to agree expressly to any substantive change; silence would not suffice. The clarification is intended to remove 1___, not alter the agreement. Any substantive change would require 2___ consent. The operator sought to clarify the existing wording while acknowledging that a substantive alteration would involve a separate decision.

   Choices for blank 1

   1. ambiguous
   2. ambivalence
   3. ambiguously
   4. ambiguity

   Choices for blank 2

   1. tacit
   2. presumed
   3. explicit
   4. implicit
   Check answers and explanations

   Blank 1

   ambiguity

   Blank 2

   explicit

   Ambiguity is the noun; explicit consent is the stated higher requirement for a change.

8. Question 8 · Cloze (dropdown)

   Choose the correct option for each blank.

   Choose the best option for each gap: The correspondence ended with an invitation to provide further evidence about journeys affected by the change. The response leaves the issue 1___ while inviting further evidence. It amounts to neither endorsement 2___ rejection. The invitation kept a question available for examination without silently turning the lack of a final verdict into either acceptance or rejection.

   Choices for blank 1

   1. settled
   2. open
   3. closed
   4. conclusive

   Choices for blank 2

   1. nor
   2. and
   3. or
   4. but
   Check answers and explanations

   Blank 1

   open

   Blank 2

   nor

   Leave open keeps unresolved; neither pairs with nor.

What to review next

Explain why each answer fits the meaning and structure. Record useful phrases and write a new example using each pattern you found difficult.

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.