Cloze Task

Directions: Below are several passages from which some words have been removed. Read
each passage quickly to get its general meaning. Then go back to the beginning and write the
missing word or words in the blank, using the word before the blank. If you are not sure of an
answer, leave it blank and continue on to the next question. Once you have turned a page,
please do not go back and change your answer.
1. This watch is very special so I don’t wear it very often. My mother (give)
____________ it to me for my sixteenth birthday. It (belong) ____________ to her
grandfather.
2. My grandfather (grow up) ____________ in the middle of a big city. It was a poor, but
friendly neighbourhood. He (know) ____________ everyone on his street. He (go)
____________ to the same school as all the other children. He (marry) ____________
his best friend’s sister and they had eight children.
3. Did you know George when he was in college?
Not very well. He (stay) ____________ in his room and (study) ____________ a lot.
He didn’t go out with other students very often, but sometimes he (like)
____________ to go see a movie with us on the week-end.
4. I’m not surprised to hear that restaurant closed. The food there (taste) ____________
so bad, and it was expensive too. Since January, we (eat) ____________ at the new
place up the street. It’s good, and much cheaper!
5. Bill was a participant in a triathlon here last summer. He didn’t win but he (seem)
____________ satisfied at the end of the race. He (swim) ____________ a kilometer,
(run) ____________ 5 kilometers and then (ride) ____________ his bicycle 10
kilometers. Maybe next year I (participate) ____________, too.
6. Since the revolution the economy of my country (improve) ____________. Now more
children can go to school, and more people (have) ____________ jobs.
7. My English teacher (go) ____________ to Paris in 1980 to study French. In class
yesterday she (tell) ____________ us a funny story about her first day in France.
Tonight for homework, all the students (write) ____________ a story about a funny
language learning experience. Tomorrow we (read) ____________ our stories to the
rest of the class.
8. The doctor is very slow today. Julia (wait) ____________ for two hours. She hopes it
will be her turn very soon. She (drop) ____________ a big box on her foot this
morning and she thinks her foot is broken.
9. Let me introduce you to my good friend Sarah. She (stand) ____________ over there
by the window. She (wear) ____________ a red dress. I (know) ____________ her
since elementary school.
10. In 1896 a prospector (discover) ____________ gold in the Yukon and started a gold
rush. Everyone (think) ____________ it was possible to find gold and get rich. Today,
people continue to visit the Yukon and (search) ____________ for gold.
11. Tom lived next to a bakery last year. The bread (smell) ____________ so delicious
that he always bought a loaf in the morning, and (eat) ____________ some of it while
he was walking to school.
12. Last night Louise (work) ____________ very hard. She (write) ____________ two
papers and (finish) ____________ all of her grammar homework.
13. Did you see Bob at the library last night?
Yes. He (sit) ____________ in the study area near the elevator until about 11:00 p.m.
He (look) ____________ very busy, so I didn’t talk with him for very long.
14. Do you have any plans for the summer?
Yes, my boyfriend and I (drive) ____________ across Canada to Vancouver. My
sister lives there and we (visit) ____________ her for a couple of weeks. It (be)
____________ a great opportunity to practice English.
15. When he was in first year university, Pierre (eat) ____________ in the cafeteria most
of the time. The following year, Pierre (change) ____________ apartments. His new
apartment was near a good grocery store so he (cook) ____________ at home. The
apartment was a little expensive, so he (move) ____________ again last year. Now he
(live) ____________ near three fast food restaurants so he never cooks anymore!
16. I went for a walk around midnight last night. It (snow) ____________ earlier in the
evening. It was very silent and everything (look) ____________ calm and peaceful.
17. When I was a baby, I didn’t fall asleep easily. To help me fall asleep, my father (sing)
____________ to me. Maybe this is why I always (listen) ____________ to music
when I go to bed now!
18. My parents’ vacation in Florida didn’t start off very well. It (rain) ____________ for
the first 6 days! After that, the weather was nice so my mother (swim) ____________
in the ocean and my father (ride) ____________ his bicycle along the beach.
Sometimes my mother (run) ____________ along the beach beside him. They (plan)
____________ to go back to the same place next year.
19. Did you listen to the news on the radio? Something terrible (happen) ____________ in
our apartment building last night. A boy (fall out) ____________ the window and
(die) ____________.
20. Poor Tom! He (lose) ____________ his notebook the day before a big exam. He
(panic) ____________ because he (need) ____________ it to prepare for the exam. He
finally (find) ____________ it under the seat of his car at about 11:00 p.m.
21. One year my parents went to another country. That year my younger brother (live)
____________ with my grandmother. He (enjoy) ____________ it very much because
she (tell) ____________ him good stories. One day when she (tell) ____________ a
very scary story, a bad thunder storm (start) ____________ and he was really afraid.
When she saw how scared he was, she (change) ____________ the story into a funny
one and he (feel) ____________ much better.
22. Barbara came over to my place for supper last night. She (wash) ____________ the
dishes when she (drop) ____________ my favourite dish and (break) ____________
it.
23. There has been an increase in terrorist attacks in Europe. Just two days ago in London
a bomb (explode) ____________ and (kill) ____________ ten people. The police
(look) ____________ for two men in a red van.
24. In 1932 my grandfather (own) ____________ the first car in town. He (buy)
____________ it because he (want) ____________ to go fast. Today, he still (like)
____________ to drive fast. Last week he got a ticket for driving too fast! It was the
third time this year that he (have) ____________ a speeding ticket.
25. Last weekend John (rent) ____________ his favourite video. So many of his friends
called while he (watch) ____________ it that he got angry and (turn) ____________ it
off.