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Reading Comprehension TOEFL 10 - ANSWERS
Reading Comprehension TOEFL 10 - ANSWERS
Questions 21-30
During the nineteenth century, women in the United States organized and participated in
a large number of reform movements, including movements to reorganize the prison
system, improve education, ban the sale of alcohol, and, most importantly, to free the
slaves. Some women saw materials in the social status of women and slaves. Women like
Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucy Stone were feminists and abolitionists who supported the
rights of both women and blacks. A number of male abolitionists, including William Lloyd
garrison and Wendell Philips, also supported the rights of women to speak and participate
equally with men in antislavery activities. Probably more than any other movement,
abolitionism offered women a previously denied entry into politics. They became involved
primarily in order to better their living conditions and the conditions of others.
When the Civil War ended in 1865, the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments to the
Constitution adopted in 1868 and 1870 granted citizenship and suffrage to blacks but not to
women. Discouraged but resolved, feminists influenced more and more women to demand
the right to vote. In 1869 the Wyoming Territory had yielded to demands by feminists, but
eastern states resisted more stubbornly than before. A women's suffrage bill had been
presented to every Congress since 1878 but it continually failed to pass until 1920, when the
Nineteenth Amendment granted women the right to vote.
A) encourage
B) publish
C) prohibit
D) limit
A) disregarded
B) acknowledged
C) contested
D) promoted
24. According to the passage, why did women become active in politics?
27. The word "suffrage" in line 13 could best be replaced by which of the following?
A) pain
B) citizenship
C) freedom from bondage
D) the right to vote
A) bill
B) Congress
C) Nineteenth Amendment
D) vote
30. When were women allowed to vote throughout the United States?
A) After 1866
B) After 1870
C) After 1878
D) After 1920
Question 31-40
The Acacia is a genus of trees and shrubs of the Mimosa family. Although nearly five
hundred species of Acacia have been identified, only about a dozen of the three hundred
Australian varieties grow well in the southern United States, and of these, only three are
flowering. The Bailey Acacia has fernlike silver leaves and small, fragrant flowers arranged
in rounded clusters. The Silver Wattle, although very similar to the Bailey Acacia, grows
twice as high. The Sydney Golden Wattle is squat and bushy with broad, flat leaves and
sharp spined twigs. Named for its bright, yellow flowers, the Golden Wattle is the most
showy and fragrant of the Acacias. Another variety, the Black Acacia or Blackwood, has
dark green leaves and unobtrusive blossoms. Besides being a popular tree for ornamental
purposes, the Black Acacia is valuable for its dark wood, which is used in making cabinets
and furniture, including highly prized pianos.
The Acacia's unusual custom of blossoming in February has been commonly attributed to
its Australian origins. In the Southern Hemisphere, of course, the seasons are reversed, and
February, which is wintertime in the United States, is summertime in Australia. Actually,
however, the pale, yellow blossoms appear in August in Australia. Whether growing in the
Northern or Southern Hemisphere, the Acacia will bloom in winter.
31. With which of the following topics is the passage primarily concerned?
32. How many species of Acacia grow well in the southern United States?
A) Five hundred
B) Three hundred
C) Twelve
D) Three
A) United States
B) varieties
C) species
D) Trees and shrubs
A) smooth
B) pretty
C) pointed
D) short
A) strange
B) elaborate
C) huge
D) fragile
37. Which of the following Acacias has the least colorful blossoms?
A) Bailey Acacias
B) Sydney Golden Wattle
C) Silver Wattle
D) Black Acacia
38. Which of the following would most probably be made from a Black Acacia tree?
A) A flower arrangement
B) A table
C) A pie
D) Paper
A) valuable
B) unique
C) stylish
D) attractive
A) February
B) Summer
C) August
D) Spring
1. shrubs : n. noun a plant which is smaller than a tree and has several main stems arising at or near
the ground.
TOEFL
2. mimosa : an Australian acacia tree with delicate fern-like leaves and yellow flowers. [Acacia
dealbata.]
3. mud : soft, sticky matter consisting of mixed earth and water.
4. wattle : a material for making fences, walls, etc., consisting of rods or stakes interlaced with twigs
or branches.
5. daub : n. verb carelessly coat or smear with a thick substance.
6. legumes : a leguminous plant grown as a crop.
7. includes : comprise or contain as part of a whole.
8. peas : a spherical green seed eaten as a vegetable.
9. lentils : a high-protein pulse which is dried and then soaked and cooked prior to eating.
10. pods : an elongated seed vessel of a leguminous plant such as the pea, splitting open on both sides
when ripe
11. edible : n. adjective fit to be eaten.
12. resin : a sticky flammable organic substance exuded by some trees and other plants (notably fir and
pine).
13. dense : closely compacted in substance. crowded closely together.
14. bark : n. noun the sharp explosive cry of a dog, fox, or seal.
15. acidic : having the properties of an acid, or containing acid; having a pH below 7.
16. proven : demonstrate by evidence or argument the truth or existence of.
17. capable : having the ability or quality necessary to do something.
18. arid : very dry; having little or no rain.
19. dozen : a group or set of twelve