PRE-READING 2 Look at the keywords in bold in the text and

match them to the definitions.

For example:
The process of building something ___________
1. Very tall buildings ___________
2. How heavy something is ___________
3. Write down something that has happened ___________
4. Railroad that goes under the ground ___________
5. Two materials used for building ___________
6. People with important positions in an organization ___________
7. An area of very wet land ___________
Read the text quickly and check (V) the sentences True (T) or False (F).
1. Shanghai became a very big city quite slowly. T__ F__
2. The buildings in Shanghai are too heavy. T__ F__
3. Shanghai now has the tallest building in the world. T__ F__
4. There are problems in Shanghai because the land isn’t hard. T__
F__
5. All the construction is good for Shanghai’s subway. T__ F__
6. Some parts of Shanghai are sinking faster than other parts. T__
F__
7. The problems started in 1921. T__ F__
8. Shanghai is the only city in the world that is sinking. T__ F__
COMPREHENSION 2 Read the text again and answer the questions.
1. In line 2, reduce the construction means______
A. Build more
B. Build less
C. Stop building
2. In line 2, high-rise buildings are _____
A. Very tall
 B. Very small
C. Very old
3. In line 4, more refers to ____
A. Officials
B. Years
C. Buildings
4. In line 5, in history means _____
A. In the world now
B. During all time before
C. In the rest of China
5. In line 10, the rock bed is ____
A. Rock under the ground
B. An area of the city
C. A place where people sleep
6. In line 11, below the surface means ____
A. In the sky
B. To the side of
C. Under the ground
7. In line 15, an example of a busy financial center is ___
A. Buckingham Palace
B. Wall Street
C. Mount Fuji
8. In line 22, slow down means ____
A. Stop
B. Happen faster
C. Not happen so fast
9. In line 23, however is like ___
A. And
B. Because
C. But
COMPREHENSION 3 These key words from the text are used in a
new context. Underline the correct work or phrase in each sentence.
1. In a soccer game, the referee and his assistants are officials /
tunnels.
2. You really should reduce / record the number of cigarettes you
smoke.
3. I don’t want a cake. I really need to watch my construction /
weight.
4. Knives and forks are usually made of concrete / steel.
5. I couldn’t see Alice. She was swimming below the surface /
subway of the water.
6. I can’t believe your dog is so big. He’s absolutely soft / huge.
7. My brother isn’t very good with money. In fact, he is having a lot
of financial / construction problems.
8. My uncle is rich. He wants to buy some land / swamp in Spain and
build a hotel.
9. When I travel, I forget / record everything I do in my diary.
10. You need to go up / slow down. You’re driving much too
fast.