Модуль IX: Контроль знаний: лексико-грамматический тест

Read the text carefully and then answer questions on it.

There are many myths surrounding the origin of the ancient Olympic Games; the most popular identifies Heracles and his father Zeus as the progenitors of the Games. According to the legend, Zeus held sporting events in honor of his defeat of Cronus and succession to the throne of heaven. Heracles, his eldest son, defeated his brothers in a running race and was crowned with a wreath of wild olive branches. It is Heracles who first called the Games "Olympic" and established the custom of holding them every four years. One popular story claims that after Heracles completed his twelve labors, he went on to build the Olympic stadium and surrounding buildings as an honor to Zeus. After the stadium was complete, he walked in a straight line for 200 steps and called this distance a "stadion", which later became a unit of distance. Another myth associates the first Games with the ancient Greek concept of Olympic truce. The most widely held estimate for the inception of the Ancient Olympics is 776 BC. Inscriptions have been found of the winners of a footrace held every four years starting in 776 BC with Koroebus, who became the first Olympic champion. From then on, the Olympic Games quickly became important throughout ancient Greece. They reached their zenith in the 6th and 5th centuries BC. The Olympics were of fundamental religious importance, featuring sporting events alongside ritual sacrifices honoring both Zeus (whose colossal statue stood at Olympia) and Pelops, divine hero and mythical king of Olympia. Pelops was famous for his legendary chariot race with King Oenomaus of Pisatis. The winners of the events were admired and immortalized in poems and statues. The Games were held every four years, known as an Olympiad, and this period was used by Greeks as one of their units of time measurement. The Games were part of a cycle known as the Panhellenic Games, which included the Pythian Games, the Nemean Games, and the Isthmian Games.

Gradually, though, the Games declined in importance as the Romans gained power and influence in Greece. There is conjecture that Roman emperor Theodosius I, in an attempt to re-assert Christianity as the official religion of the Empire, outlawed the Games in 393 AD due to its perceived links with paganism. After the demise of the Olympics, they were not held again for another 1,500 years.

The Modern Olympic Games were first revived in 1895 by the Greek philanthropist Evangelis Zappas, in Athens, Greece.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) was founded in 1894 on the initiative of a French nobleman, Pierre Frédy, Baron de Coubertin, and has become the governing body of the Olympic Movement, a conglomeration of sporting federations responsible for the organization of the Games. The original ideal of a pure amateur athlete had to change under the pressure of corporate sponsorships and political regimes.

The modern Olympics feature the traditional Summer and the Winter Games, along with the more recent Paralympics and Youth Olympic Games, each with a summer and winter version. Participation in the Games has increased to the point that nearly every nation on Earth is represented. The Games encompass many rituals and symbols established during its beginning, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Most of these traditions are displayed in the opening and closing ceremonies, and the medal presentations. Despite the current complexity of the Games, the focus remains on the Olympic motto: "Citius, Altius, Fortius" — "Faster, Higher, Stronger".

progenitors - прародитель

succession - наследование, порядок наследования

labor - подвиг

truce - перемирие

inception – начало, отправная точка

governing body – руководящая, управляющая организация

Аanswer the questions: a-yes, if the statement agrees with the text, b-no, if the statement is false, c-not given, if there is no such information in the text and it’s impossible to say whether the statement is right or wrong.

1. According to one of the legends the progenitors of the Olympic games were Zeus and his son Heracles.

a) yes b) no c) not given

2. Heracles defeated Cronus and was crowned with a wreath of wild olive branches.

a) yes b) no c) not given

3. Heracles was the first to call the games “Olympic” and established the custom of holding them every 12 years.

a) yes b) no c) not given

4. Historically the first Olympic winner won his race in the 8th BC.

a) yes b) no c) not given

5. All the Olympic Games are held in honour of Zeus and Heracles.

a) yes b) no c) not given

6. In the 4^th century BC the Olympic Games were banned dew to its links with paganism by the Roman emperor Theodosius I, in order to reassert Christianity as the official religion of the Roman Empire.

a) yes b) no c) not given

7. The Olympics were revived at the border of the 19^th & the 20^th centuries in order to create IOC.

a) yes b) no c) not given

8. The five intertwined rings, which is the symbol of the Olympics, represent the unity of the five inhabited continents (with the Americas regarded as a single continent).

a) yes b) no c) not given

9. Winter Olympics are held since 1921, though they were only officially recognized by the IOC as such in the following year.

a) yes b) no c) not given

10. The translation of the Olympic motto from Latin is: “Faster, Higher, Stronger”.

a) yes b) no c) not given

11. Choose the correct translation to the given sentence:

“The most widely held estimate for the inception of the Ancient Olympics is 776 BC”.

a) Самое распространенное мнение о появлении Олимпийских игр было найдено в 776 году до нашей эры.

b) Согласно самому распространенному мнению, отправной точкой отсчета истории Олимпийских игр считается 776 год до нашей эры.

c) В 776 году до нашей эры Олимпийские игры были наиболее популярным спортивным событием, проводившимся регулярно.

Do the following grammar test based on the grammatical themes studied.

12. Today the world ..... so rapidly; things never stay the same.

1. changes

2. has changed

3. is changing

4. has been changing

13. As far as I know Mike ..... Italian for quite some time, but he still doesn’t understand very much.

1. is learning

2. has been learning

3. has learnt

4. learns

14. Peter and Mary ..... on the platform. They have been waiting for their train for half an hour.

1. have been standing

2. are standing

3. stand

4. have stood

15. ..... you a ride home yet since he started working in your department?

1. Has Sam been giving

2. Does Sam give

3. Is Sam giving

4. Has Sam given

16. I ..... Mario for some time since he left Milan a few years ago.

1. haven’t seen

2. don’t see

3. didn't see

4. aren’t seeing

17. My mother is a medical nurse; she takes care of sick and old people. What ..... for a living?

1. does your mother do

2. is your mother doing

3. has your mother done

4. has your mother been doing

18. I got lost in the forest because I took the road I ..... before.

1. didn’t never take

2. never took

3. had never taken

4. didn’t take

19. Margaret didn’t wear her shoes; she was barefoot. She ..... on a piece of broken glass and cut her foot.

1. stepped

2. had stepped

3. was stepping

4. had been stepping

20. She was not interested in the book because she ..... it.

1. hadn’t understood

2. didn’t understand

3. wasn’t understanding

4. hadn’t been understanding

21. When I first ..... to England in 1938, I thought I knew English fairly well.

1. came

2. had come

3. was coming

4. had been coming

22. While I ..... a burglar climbed into the room through the window.

1. had been sleeping

2. was sleeping

3. slept

4. had slept

23. You can't see this film on TV tonight, they ..... it only next Sunday.

1. are showing

2. will show

3. show

4. will be showing

24. ..... their luggage by the time the taxi comes?

1. will they

2. will they have packed

3. will they be packing

4. they will pack

25. Do you think ..... here in a few years’ time?

1. will you still be working

2. you will still be working

3. you are still working

4. will you still work

26. John has bought this TV set on credit. He ..... all the money by the first of August.

1. will pay

2. is paying

3. will have paid

4. will be paying

27. She is not sure if she ..... his telephone number in the telephone directory.

1. will find

2. will have found

3. finds

4. will be finding

28. My room has been in a mess for days. So tomorrow afternoon I ..... it.

1. will clean

2. am going to clean

3. will have cleaned

4. am cleaning

29. Jerry promised to come to work on time. He is not here, and he even ..... .

1. isn’t calling

2. hasn't called

3. hasn't been calling

4. doesn’t call

30. I think you ..... very silly. Don't get out of bed. You’ll only make your temperature go up again.

1. are

2. are being

3. were

4. have been

31. Their car is as good as new though they ..... it for a number of years.

1. have

2. have been having

3. are having

4. have had

Prepare yourself to answer some teacher’s questions like:

1. Compare the system of higher education in Belarus and Great Britain. Describe your university.

2. What are you going to do for a living? Why did you choose your future profession? What are the merits and demerits of your future profession?

3. Can you name any popular sports of the UK? Can you describe one of them? Why do people go in for sports? What is your favorite kind of sport? What role does it play in your life? Can you explain the word “Olympics”? Try to speak on the history of this event.

4. What youth organizations in Belarus and the UK do you know? Are you a member of some youth organization? What is the role of the youth organizations in our society?