OLIMPIADA DE LIMBA ENGLEZĂ

ETAPA LOCALĂ - 22 FEBRUARIE 2020

CLASA A IX-A - SECȚIUNEA A
SUBIECTUL A – USE OF ENGLISH – 40 points

I. Read the following text and put the verbs in brackets into the correct tense. (10 points)
Bill and Ray (1) _________ (work) for the same company for over ten years, and in all that
time they had never had an argument. All that changed last Friday, though. It was almost time to go home and
Bill, grinning widely, walked up to Ray and said, “It’s nearly five, Ray. (2) __________ (you come) out for
something to eat?”
Ray looked at Bill and replied, “I really wish I (3)_______ (can), but it looks like I’ll have to do some overtime
this evening.” Bill (4) _______ (be) shocked. “What? It’s Friday. You can’t work overtime on a Friday! Come
on, let’s get out of here.”
Ray thought for a second but then (5) ________ (shake) his head and said, “I really can’t, Bill. Mr Cameron
called me into his office earlier and asked me if I could stay late and finish up a job for him. He (6) ________
(never do) that before, so I couldn’t say no.”
Bill didn’t know what to say. As he (7) _______ (walk) towards the door, Ray called out to him. “Hey, maybe I
can catch up with you later.” Suddenly, all the times Ray (8) ___________ (offer) to help him when he was
having problems on the job came flooding into Bill’s mind. “I guess I (9) _______ (stay), too,” he said to Ray.
“We’ll get the job done twice as fast if there are two of us (10) ________ (work) on it.”

II. Use the word given in brackets to form a word that fits in each sentence. 10 points

There has been a significant (1) _____ in police popularity in the last few years. That's 1. REDUCE
why this week a public relations campaign is being launched to make people more (2) 2. SENSE
______ to the role of the police officer. The ads will stress that police do more than 3. MOTOR
just give (3) _____ speeding tickets. They often act as unofficial social workers, visit 4. VARY
schools and talk to students, familiarising them with traffic signs and warning them of 5. RISK
(4) ______ dangers. Being a police officer is (5) ______ , considering that every day 6. CRIME
they deal with (6) ______ such as thieves and even (7) _________. In (8) ________ , 7. MURDER
the campaign wants to make the public realise that, even though in some cases the 8. CONCLUDE
police's approach may seem extreme, they cannot ignore the (9) ______ of injury or 9. POSSIBLE
even (10) ______ while on duty. 10. DIE

III. Read the following text and decide which answer A, B, C, or D best fits in each gap (10x1p=10p)

The trend for children to multitask by juggling all sorts of electronic gadgets at the same time is seriously
damaging their levels of concentration, scientists have warned. (1)______ use of the Internet, iPods, mobile phones and
DVDs (2) ________ behind that finding. Scientists have (3)_______ the belief of many parents that is impossible to
concentrate on more than one thing at the same time. They found that children (4)_________ homework while sending
messages via Internet can (5) _________ up spending 50% longer than if they had done each task (6)_________.David E.
Meyer, Professor of Cognitive Psychology at the University of Michigan, said that true multitasking is (7)_________
possible for simple activities such as ironing and listening to the radio. He (8) __________ experiments demonstrating
that young adults who had to (9) _______________ from one maths problem to another wasted significant amounts of
time. “For situation (10)___________________ more complex tasks, especially those requiring language, the total time
taken to get all the tasks done will increase greatly.

1 A Rocketing B Heightening C Ascending D Leaping

2 A stands B rests C lies D sits
3 A assured B guaranteed C authorized D confirmed
4 A engaging B tackling C attending D undergoing
5 A turn B come C use D end
6 A separately B distinctly C apart D aside
7 A merely B purely C only D simply
8 A set B put C took D ran
9 A alter B switch C interrupt D exchange
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 10 A consisting B containing C involving D meaning

IV.Translate the following text into English. (10points)

‘Mama, care era vestită pentru năzdrăvăniile sale, îmi zicea cu zâmbet uneori, când începea a se ivi soarele
dintre nori după o ploaie îndelungată: „Ieși, copile cu părul bălan, afară și râde la soare, doar s-a îndrepta
vremea“ și vremea se îndrepta după râsul meu.’

SUBIECTUL B – INTEGRATED SKILLS

1. Read the following text, then choose the correct answer for each question: (5 x 2p= 10p)
If you are a comic book fan or just love free things, you are in luck because Saturday, May 6 is Free Comic Book Day. As
the name indicates, it is the day when retailers across the globe will give out free comic books to anyone that walks into
the store.
Celebrated on the first Saturday of May, the annual event, which began in 2002, is the brainchild of the retailer Joe Field.
The owner of Flying Colours Comics & Other Cool Stuff was inspired by the success of similar events like Free Cone
Day and suggested the idea to retailers, publishers, and distributors.
He believed it would make people, both young and old visit their neighbourhood store and revive interest in comic books.
Over the past sixteen years, retailers have given away over 12 million comic books and the numbers are only growing.
Not every comic book in the store is free. However, with 50 specially published titles to choose from, there is something
to suit every taste. Even if none of the free offerings catch your fancy, a visit to the store might still be worth the effort.
That's because vendors usually discount all comic books and other merchandise on this fun day.
1) What is the writer's main aim in writing the text?
A) To persuade people to buy comics.

B) To explain that comics are too expensive.

C) To tell people about an event.

D) To explain how comics are made.

2) What does the writer say is expected to happen on May 6?
A) People will get a gift through the post.

B) People visiting shops will get a free gift.

C) People will need to pay a little bit for the gift.

D) People will get a gift if they buy something.

3) What is the motivation for this event?
A) To get rid of unsold comics.

B) To improve the image of the comic producing industry.

C) To persuade parents to let their children read comics.

D) To make people more interested in comics.

4) What additional benefits are available?
A) Cheaper prices for other products.

B) Cheaper membership for comic clubs.

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 C) The option of reading comics not previously available.

D) Access to comic writing courses.

5) Which of the following could also be a title for this text?
A) COMIC SALES EXPLODE

B) COMIC SELLS FOR RECORD AMOUNT

C) COMICS ARE GOING OUT OF FASHION

D) COME AND GET YOUR FREE GIFT

2. Starting from the topic of the text, imagine you are a famous character in a comic book. Write a
narrative essay, telling the story of an unusual event that made you famous. (180-200 words) (50 p)

NOTĂ: Toate subiectele sunt obligatorii. Timp de lucru: 3 ore