ECPE

Examination for the

Certificate of
Proficiency in

PRELIMINARY
TEST 3

English

Keep your eyes on your own test. Examinees giving or receiving answers or using notes or other aids will be disqualified, and they will fail. Examination fees will not be
refunded.
This test may be machine scored, so you must follow
instructions carefully.
y Mark all your answers on the answer sheet.
Do not mark your answers in the test booklet.
You must use a number 2 (soft) pencil.
y Do not bend or fold your answer sheet.
Look at the TOP RIGHT of your answer sheet. Fill in the
following information on the lines:
y FULL NAME: print your full name in this order: family
name, then first name, then middle initial (MI). Use
capital letters.
y YOUR SIGNATURE: sign your name.
y TEST CENTER: print the name of the test center.
y NATIVE LANGUAGE: print your native language.
y TODAYS DATE: print the month, day, and year.

LANG. (LANGUAGE): print the code number for your

native language (the examiner will tell you the
number). Darken the circles.
CENTER NO.: print the test center number (the
examiner will tell you the number). Darken the
circles.
y REG. NO.: print your 6-digit personal registration
number. Include all zeros, including those at the
beginning of the number. Darken the circles.
FORM: Darken the circle corresponding to the number
of the form listed on your test booklet.

The example below shows the correct way for Joao

Costa Almeida dos Santos, born April 3, 1978, tested at
center no. 001, and whose personal registration number
is 100265, to fill out the information section.

Look at the TOP LEFT of your answer sheet. Use capital

letters to fill in the following information in the blocks. Use
the same spelling you used on your registration form:
y LAST NAME: print your main family name in the blocks,
one letter per block. There are 13 blocks. If your last
name is longer than 13 letters, print only the first 13
letters.
y FIRST: print the first 6 letters of your first name.
y MI: print the initial of your middle name.
Look at the columns of CIRCLES BELOW THE BLOCKS:
y Find the letter that is the same as the letter you have
printed in the block above.
y Darken the circle completely so that you cannot see
the letter inside.
y Do this for all the letters of your last name, first name,
and your middle initial.
y Darken only one circle in each of the columns.
Look at the BOTTOM LEFT of your answer sheet.
y BIRTHDATE: find the month you were born and darken
the circle next to it.
y DAY: print the day you were born. If it is a one-digit
day, write zero first. Darken the circles underneath
these numbers.
y YEAR: print the last two digits of the year you were
born. Darken the circles underneath these numbers.
y SEX: darken the circle M (male) or F (female).

When instructed to, open your test booklet and check to

see that it is complete. Check the pages quickly. You
should have 5 numbered pages in your test booklet. If
there are pages missing from your booklet, raise your hand,
and a proctor will give you a replacement.

2004-05 Preliminary Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English

This Preliminary Test was designed by the English Language Institute, University of Michigan, to screen applicants for the Examination for the
Certificate of Proficiency in English (ECPE). It contains examples of the grammar, cloze, vocabulary, and reading comprehension sections of
the ECPE. It does not contain examples of the writing, listening, or interactive oral communication sections of the ECPE.

Copyright 2004 by the Testing and Certification Division, English Language Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan U.S.A.
Prepared by D. Adam, S. Briggs, S. Dart, B. Dobson, J. Johnson, C. Leo, D. Mendis, M. Matice, A. Ohlrogge, M. Reilly, T. Rohlck, M.
Spaan, A. Yamashiro. The Regents of the University of Michigan: David A. Brandon, Laurence B. Deitch, Olivia P. Maynard, Rebecca
McGowan, Andrea Fischer Newman, Andrew C. Richner, S. Martin Taylor, Katherine E. White, Mary Sue Coleman (ex officio).
This Preliminary Test may be reproduced or reprinted after July, 2005, by authorized Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English
(ECPE) centers ONLY, as long as the source is clearly acknowledged. This document or any reproductions may not be sold, except by the
English Language Institute, University of Michigan.

2004-05 Preliminary Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English

GRAMMAR

CLOZE

VOCABULARY

READING

INSTRUCTIONS
There are 35 multiple choice problems in this test: 10 grammar, 10 cloze, 10 vocabulary, and 5 questions
about a reading passage. You will have 30 minutes to answer all 35 problems. Do not begin this test until you
have read the instructions and examples below and the test administrator has answered any questions you
may have.
In each example below, the correct answer is underlined. For the actual problems, fill in the circle on your
answer sheet that corresponds to your answer choice. For each problem, there are 4 possible answer
choices. Only one is correct. Fill in only ONE circle for each problem. Any problem with more than one
answer marked will be counted wrong. If you are not sure about an answer, you may guess. Answer all
problems. Unanswered problems will be counted wrong. Completely fill in the circle that corresponds to
the answer you have chosen. If you change your mind about an answer, erase your first mark completely.
Do NOT mark your answers in this test booklet. Do not make any stray marks on your answer sheet.
GRAMMAR
Choose the word or phrase that best completes the sentence or the conversation.
What is that thing?
That _____ a spider.
a. to call
b. calls
c. called
d. is called
CLOZE
Read the passage, then select the word that best fills the blank in both grammar and meaning.
Long ago roads were only trails for people and animals
to walk on, but today roads must be made for cars,
trucks, and buses. The most modern _____ is often called
a superhighway.

a. way
c. travel

b. road
d. walk

VOCABULARY
Choose the word or phrase that most appropriately completes the sentence.
The first things we study in school are very _____.
a. sturdy
b. shifty
c. trusty
d. elementary
READING
Read the passage, then answer the questions following it according to the information given
in the passage.
Viruses may be considered as regular
chemical molecules, since they have
a strictly defined atomic structure, but
on the other hand we must also consider
them as being alive, since they are able
to multiply in unlimited quantities.

The writer says that viruses are alive because they . . .

a. have a complex atomic structure.
b. move.
c. multiply.
d. have a regular molecular structure.

Please observe silence. Do not leave before the end of the time period. Please remain in your seat until
the test administrator dismisses the group. Remember, you have 30 minutes to complete all 35 problems.
If you have any questions during the test, you should raise your hand, and a proctor will help you.
2004-05 Preliminary Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English

GRAMMAR

GRAMMAR

1. Can you tell them your answer anytime?

No, theres a special date _____ we must
respond.
a. when by
b. when that
c. by which
d. by which when
2. Since he lost his job, Sam cannot afford many of
the products that he _____ regularly.
a. was used to buying them
b. had used to buying
c. used to buy
d. was used to buy
3. The people _____ for the bus looked tired and
upset.
a. waited
b. waiting
c. are waiting
d. have been waiting
4. To forget your homework is one thing, _____ to
tell your teacher that your dog ate it is another!
a. but
b. so
c. besides
d. because
5. My birthday is soon. Do you want to
celebrate _____ me?
a. by
b. to
c. of
d. with

GRAMMAR

6. Very few people are used to _____ an airplane.

a. fly
b. flying
c. flown
d. flew
7. _____ he cancelled tomorrows class, lets go to
the museum.
a. After
b. Once
c. Since
d. When
8. One problem that _____ is flooding.
a. concerns us
b. we concern
c. is concern to us
d. we are concerned
9. In the early 1960s, _____ successful.
a. only rarely were transplants
b. transplants were rarely only
c. transplants rarely only were
d. were transplants rarely only
10. _____ so rocky, we would have walked barefoot
on it.
a. The beach wasnt
b. The beach hadnt been
c. Hadnt the beach been
d. Had the beach not been

2004-05 Preliminary Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English

CLOZE

CLOZE

Mushroom hunting in Michigan can be a

CLOZE

11.

a. hospitalized
b. reported

c. dead
d. killed

12.

a. called
b. following

c. by
d. before

the chemical mono-methylhydrazine, which in (14)

people can be poisonous and
(15)
fatal.

13.

a. composes
b. contains

c. ingests
d. damages

Monomethylhydrazine, a component of rocket fuel,

can cause liver damage and has caused cancer in

14.

a. addition
b. minutes

c. some
d. turn

laboratory animals.
The false morel, which grows all over the state,

15.

is not easily (16) with the true morel, considered a

gourmet mushroom. The true morel is beige, has a

a. get
b. some

c. even
d. create

16.

a. separated
b. modified

c. confused
d. differentiated

17.

a. like
b. around

c. on
d. to

18.

a. inside
b. center

c. top
d. ground

19.

a. shape
b. surface

c. bunch
d. color

20.

a. collect
b. cause

c. emphasize
d. realize

dangerous sport. At least two people were (11) last

spring for liver damage _(12) ingestion of the false
morel, or Gyromitra mushroom. Also called the
beefsteak and elephants ear mushroom, it (13)

cap that is pitted (17) the surface of a sponge, and is

hollow on the (18) . False morels are wrinkled like
the (19) of a prune, are orange or reddish-brown in
color, and multi-chambered inside.
People usually know what theyre collecting, but
dont (20) the danger. Because an individuals
tolerance levels may change or chemical levels in the
mushroom may vary, people who have been eating
the mushrooms for thirty years will suddenly have a
very negative reaction.

2004-05 Preliminary Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English

VOCABULARY

VOCABULARY

VOCABULARY

21. Even at very high temperatures, this material

still _____ its shape.
a. reforms
b. reserves
c. resolves
d. retains

26. Even though Bob and Bill are good friends,

theyre _____ when they play soccer.
a. aggregates
b. contrasts
c. counterparts
d. rivals

22. Bobs role in organizing the party was _____.

He didnt do much at all.
a. minor
b. indifferent
c. lenient
d. abstract

27. Ellen lost her purse and was _____ asking

everyone to help her find it.
a. frantically
b. glaringly
c. obscurely
d. unspeakably

23. The softball team was _____ by another loss.

a. disinterested
b. disheartened
c. compressed
d. repulsed

28. Id like to buy a used car in _____ condition.

a. apt
b. worthy
c. reasonable
d. considerable

24. She went to prison for printing _____ money.

a. unreal
b. fictitious
c. counterfeit
d. simulated

29. He saved a lot of money through _____

financial planning.
a. impudent
b. prudent
c. precarious
d. conducive

25. The introductory history class was _____ mainly

of first-year students.
a. involved
b. composed
c. implicated
d. encompassed

30. Joe is such a good student. His low chemistry

grade is just _____.
a. an excursion
b. a malocclusion
c. a delusion
d. an aberration

2004-05 Preliminary Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English

READING

READING

This passage about bio-based plastics comes from a

research article.
Soybeans or cereal grains, such as wheat or corn,
usually make people think of food. However, some
agricultural researchers are now working to make
plastics out of such foods. The type of plastic products researchers say can be made from plant material
is limited only by the imagination.
Depending on how its formulated, the plastic
can be either thin or thick, malleable or hard. Uses
for this new material could range from bottles, to plastic-coated paper, to car parts. For example, one prototype plastic is made in a lab with a machine that
mixes and heats the material and then squeezes it out
like giant spaghetti strands. Researchers speculate
that anything now made from traditional petroleumbased plastic could, in the future, be produced from
compounds using plant material. They are already
developing some plastics using both grain starches
and soybean proteins, the latter of which seems to
make stronger, more elastic products than grain
starches do. Researchers hope that eventually all the
petroleum in plastics can be replaced with bio-based
materials that are environmentally friendly. These
plastics would join other new bio-based products such
as adhesives, fiberboard, diesel fuels, and soy-oil
based inks. Utilizing bio-based plastics would also
create a new use for agricultural products, thus benefiting farmers.
An important factor in the fate of bio-based plastics is their cost. For industry, cost is the principal
driving force that determines whether a new technology is adopted. If soy-based plastics can be made
more inexpensively than petroleum-based plastics,
they are more likely to be considered a viable alternative. Though this is not the case yet, scientists hope
that with time, bio-based plastics will become more
common. As a result, the cost will come down, as is
the case with most new products such as computers
and cellular phones.

READING

31. What is the main purpose of this passage?

a. to demonstrate the manufacturing
process of bio-based plastics in a lab
b. to explain how the cost of computers
and cellular phones can be reduced
c. to illustrate a new application of plant
products
d. to argue that bio-based products are
more durable than petroleum-based
products
32. Why does the author use the example of
spaghetti strands? To illustrate . . .
a. one form bio-based plastic can take.
b. possible uses of bio-based plastics.
c. how strong bio-based plastics can be.
d. how many different products can be made
from bio-based plastics.
33. Why does the author mention computers and
cellular phones? As an example of products
that . . .
a. are environmentally friendly.
b. can be made from bio-based materials.
c. created whole new industries.
d. became cheaper as they became more
widely used.
34. What are the advantages of bio-based plastics?
a. They will reduce the costs of computers
and cellular phones.
b. They will replace petroleum as a fuel.
c. They benefit the agricultural industry.
d. They benefit the petroleum industry.
35. According to the passage, what must happen to
make industry adopt plant-based plastics?
They must become . . .
a. more environmentally friendly.
b. more durable.
c. less malleable.
d. less expensive.

Adapted and reprinted with permission of the Associated Press.

2004-05 Preliminary Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English