Science roundup highlights T. rex footprints, solar “superflares,” and reading’s reported brain benefits

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

Use the surrounding sentence to identify the meaning and word form needed. Check which words naturally go together.

1. Question 1 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   Which option best matches “roundup” as used in the article?

   1. A detailed laboratory protocol
   2. A concise collection or summary of items, reports, or developments.
   3. A disputed scientific hypothesis
   4. A record of fossil layers
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   A concise collection or summary of items, reports, or developments.

   A roundup concisely collects several related reports or developments.

2. Question 2 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   Which option best matches “fossilized” as used in the article?

   1. Preserved as a fossil through geological processes over immense periods of time.
   2. Recently excavated from an active volcano
   3. Reconstructed from eyewitness testimony
   4. Temporarily protected from erosion
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   Preserved as a fossil through geological processes over immense periods of time.

   Fossilized describes remains preserved through geological processes.

3. Question 3 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   Which option best matches “traces” as used in the article?

   1. Complete biological specimens
   2. Residual signs or indications left by something that is no longer present.
   3. Predictions about future discoveries
   4. Measurements of solar intensity
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   Residual signs or indications left by something that is no longer present.

   Traces are residual signs left by something no longer present.

4. Question 4 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   Which option best matches “examining” as used in the article?

   1. Investigating something carefully and systematically in order to understand it.
   2. Rejecting without evidence
   3. Summarizing informally
   4. Preserving indefinitely
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   Investigating something carefully and systematically in order to understand it.

   Examining means investigating something carefully and systematically.

5. Question 5 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   Which option best matches “frequency” as used in the article?

   1. The intensity of a single event
   2. The rate at which an event occurs during a specified period.
   3. The distance from Earth
   4. The age of a fossil
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   The rate at which an event occurs during a specified period.

   Frequency concerns how often an event occurs within a given period.

6. Question 6 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   Which option best matches “scope” as used in the article?

   1. The extent, range, or breadth covered by an activity, subject, or investigation.
   2. The report’s publication date
   3. The report’s grammatical structure
   4. The report’s numerical conclusion
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   The extent, range, or breadth covered by an activity, subject, or investigation.

   Scope denotes the breadth or range encompassed by a report.

7. Question 7 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   Which option best matches “distinctions” as used in the article?

   1. Differences between concepts that are sufficiently significant to require separate consideration.
   2. Unverified similarities between events
   3. Formal titles of researchers
   4. Physical markings in sediment
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   Differences between concepts that are sufficiently significant to require separate consideration.

   Distinctions are meaningful differences requiring separate consideration.

8. Question 8 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   Which option best matches “cognitive” as used in the article?

   1. Relating to mental processes such as perception, memory, reasoning, or learning.
   2. Relating to planetary motion
   3. Relating to fossil preservation
   4. Relating to editorial scheduling
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   Relating to mental processes such as perception, memory, reasoning, or learning.

   Cognitive relates to mental processes including memory and reasoning.

What to review next

Keep a short list of unfamiliar words with their meanings and example sentences. Practise recalling them later, then use them in a sentence of your own.

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

Read the whole sentence before choosing a word. Check both its meaning and the words it naturally combines with.

Please make an appointment before visiting the clinic.

Make an appointment is a natural word combination. Knowing a dictionary meaning alone may not tell you which verb fits.

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.