ECPE

Examination for the

Certificate of
Proficiency in
English
Keep your eyes on your own test. Examinees giving or
receiving answers or using notes or other aids will be
disqualified, and they will fail. Examination fees will
not be refunded.
This test may be machine scored, so you must follow
instructions carefully.
y Mark all your answers on the answer sheet.
y Do not mark your answers in the test booklet.
y You must use a number 2 (soft) pencil.
y Do not bend or fold your answer sheet.
Look at the TOP RIGHT of your ANSWER SHEET. Fill in
the following information on the lines:
y FULL NAME: print your full name in this order: family
name, then first name, then middle initial (MI). Use
capital letters.
y YOUR SIGNATURE: sign your name.
y TEST CENTER: print the name of the test center.
y NATIVE LANGUAGE: print your native language.
y TODAY’S DATE: print the month, day, and year.
PRELIMINARY
TEST 3
y SEX:
darken the circle “M” (male) or “F” (female).
y LANG.:print the code number for your native
language (the examiner will tell you the number).
Darken the circles.
y CENTER NO.: print the test center number (the
examiner will tell you the number). Darken the
circles.
y REG. NO.: print your 6-digit personal registration
number. Include all zeros, including those at the
beginning of the number. Darken the circles.
y FORM: Print the number of the form listed on your
test booklet. Darken the circle.
The example below shows the correct way for Joao
Costa Almeida dos Santos, born April 3, 1978, tested at
center no. 001, and whose personal registration number
is 100265, to fill out the information section.

Look at the TOP LEFT of your ANSWER SHEET. Use capital

letters to fill in the following information in the blocks. Use
the same spelling you used on your registration form:
y LAST NAME: print your main family name in the blocks,
one letter per block. There are 13 blocks. If your last
name is longer than 13 letters, print only the first 13
letters.
y FIRST: print the first 6 letters of your first name.
y MI: print the initial of your middle name.

In the COLUMNS OF CIRCLES BELOW THE BLOCKS:

y Find the letter that is the same as the letter you have
printed in the block above.
y Darken the circle completely so that you cannot see
the letter inside.
y Do this for all the letters of your last name, first name,
and your middle initial.
y Darken only one circle in each of the columns.

Look at the BOTTOM LEFT of your ANSWER SHEET.

y BIRTHDATE: find the month you were born and darken
the circle next to it.
y DAY: print the day you were born. If it is a one-digit
day, write zero first. Darken the circles underneath
these numbers. When instructed to, open your test booklet and check to
y YEAR: print the last two digits of the year you were see that it is complete. Check the pages quickly. You
born. Darken the circles underneath these numbers. should have 5 numbered pages in your test booklet. If
there are pages missing from your booklet, raise your hand,
and a proctor will give you a replacement.

2003-04 Preliminary Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English

This Preliminary Test was designed by the English Language Institute, University of Michigan, to screen applicants for the Examination for the
Certificate of Proficiency in English (ECPE). It contains examples of the grammar, cloze, vocabulary, and reading comprehension sections of the
ECPE. It does not contain examples of the writing, listening, or interactive oral communication sections of the ECPE.

© Copyright 2003 by the Testing and Certification Division, English Language Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan U.S.A.
Prepared by D. Adam, S. Briggs, S. Dart, B. Dobson, J. Johnson, C. Leo, D. Mendis, M. Matice, A. Ohlrogge, M. Reilly, T. Rohlck, M. Spaan, A.
Yamashiro. The Regents of the University of Michigan: David A. Brandon, Laurence B. Deitch, Olivia P. Maynard, Rebecca McGowan, Andrea
Fischer Newman, Andrew C. Richner, S. Martin Taylor, Katherine E. White, Mary Sue Coleman (ex officio).

This Preliminary Test may be reproduced or reprinted after June, 2004, by authorized Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English
(ECPE) centers ONLY, as long as the source is clearly acknowledged. This document or any reproductions may not be sold, except by the English
Language Institute, University of Michigan.

2003-04 Preliminary Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English

 GRAMMAR CLOZE
CLOZE VOCABULARY READING
INSTRUCTIONS

There are 35 multiple-choice problems in this test: 10 grammar, 10 cloze, 10 vocabulary, and 5 questions
about a reading passage. You will have 30 minutes to answer all 35 problems. Do not begin this test until you
have read the instructions and examples below and the test administrator has answered any questions you
may have.
In each example below, the correct answer is underlined. For the actual problems, fill in the circle on your
answer sheet that corresponds to your answer choice. For each problem, there are 4 possible answer choices.
Only one is correct. Fill in only ONE circle for each problem. Any problem with more than one answer
marked will be counted wrong. If you are not sure about an answer, you may guess. Answer all problems.
Unanswered problems will be counted wrong. Completely fill in the circle that corresponds to the answer
you have chosen. If you change your mind about an answer, erase your first mark completely. Do NOT
mark your answers in this test booklet. Do not make any stray marks on your answer sheet.

GRAMMAR
Choose the word or phrase that best completes the sentence or the conversation.
“What is that thing?”
“That _____ a spider.”
a. to call
b. calls
c. called
d. is called

CLOZE
Read the passage, then select the word that best fills the blank in both grammar and meaning.
Long ago roads were only trails for people and animals a. way c. travel
to walk on, but today roads must be made for cars, b. road d. walk
trucks, and buses. The most modern _____ is often called
a superhighway.

VOCABULARY
Choose the word or phrase that most appropriately completes the sentence.
The first things we study in school are very _____.
a. sturdy
b. shifty
c. trusty
d. elementary
READING
Read the passage, then answer the questions following it according to the information given
in the passage.
Viruses may be considered as regular
chemical molecules, since they have The writer says that viruses are alive because they . . .
a strictly defined atomic structure, but a. have a complex atomic structure.
on the other hand we must also consider b. move.
them as being alive, since they are able c. multiply.
d. have a regular molecular structure.
to multiply in unlimited quantities.

Please observe silence. Do not leave before the end of the time period. Please remain in your seat until the
test administrator dismisses the group. Remember, you have 30 minutes to complete all 35 problems. If you
have any questions during the test, you should raise your hand, and a proctor will help you.

2003-04 Preliminary Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English 1

 GRAMMAR GRAMMAR GRAMMAR

1. “John has a large garden, doesn’t he?” 6. Henry Smith is the name of the man _____
“Yes, _____ vegetables he also has fruit daughter I met.
trees.” a. his
a. more than b. whom his
b. besides c. who his
c. except for d. whose
d. as much as
7. Small children are completely _____ on their
2. The new deadline means that we have to parents.
finish our work _____ a shorter amount of a. depend
time. b. dependable
a. on c. dependent
b. at d. depended
c. in
d. for 8. According to a recent report, cellular phone
sales _____ 300 million a year.
3. “Mary is starting a new job next week.” a. were approached
“I really hope she _____ well.” b. has approached
a. does c. are approaching
b. would do d. have been approached
c. did
d. have done 9. This car belongs to my sister; the other, _____.
a. to me
4. “Did the doctor give you medicine for your b. is to me
stomach problem?” c. me
“No, but she told me _____ to eat.” d. mine
a. not that
b. not what 10. “Are you excited about your trip?”
c. that not “Yes, I’m really looking forward _____ away for
d. what not a few days.”
a. to get
5. I’m sure Liz’s Spanish would improve if b. to getting
she _____ a semester in Spain. c. getting
a. had been spending d. on getting
b. had spent
c. is to spend
d. were to spend

2 2003-04 Preliminary Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English

 CLOZE
CLOZE CLOZE
CLOZE CLOZE
CLOZE

The case of food storage in tin cans illustrates 11. a. substitutes c. becomes
b. causes d. is
how an invention can be successful even when it (11)
a new problem for the one it solves. In 1810, Peter 12. a. provided c. invented
Durand (12) tremendous progress in food b. made d. discovered
preservation with his invention of the tin can. The 13. a. storing c. preserving
cans were ideal for transporting food and for (13) b. keeping d. preventing
spoilage for extended periods. But consumers of 14. a. create c. know
canned food had to (14) their own ingenuity to b. use d. make
open the solidly constructed cans, which sometimes
15. a. easily c. especially
outweighed the foodstuffs inside. Durand’s solution b. hardly d. namely
had created a new problem, (15) opening the cans.
16. a. consumers c. method
In the early days, the (16) most favored was the
b. can d. food
brute force of a hammer and chisel. In 1858, Ezra
Warner designed a crude and somewhat (17) can 17. a. called c. dangerous
b. safer d. sophisticated
opener. Finally by 1930, the safe design that underlies
today’s common kitchen utensils (18) been invented. 18. a. having c. have
From the (19) of their introduction, however, the b. has d. had
problem of opening the cans (20) not detract from 19. a. latest c. way
their wide acceptance as a solution to the problem of b. time d. first
food preservation. 20. a. did c. does
b. could d. will

2003-04 Preliminary Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English 3

 VOCABULARY VOCABULARY VOCABULARY

21. The situation might not be as bad as she says; 26. She _____ the cap off the bottle.
she often _____. a. circled
a. exaggerates b. twisted
b. expands c. winced
c. amplifies d. diverted
d. inflates
27. I don’t think these coins are really 2500 years
22. In some countries, poor people have old. They must be _____.
limited _____ to good medical care. a. denominations
a. reception b. reproductions
b. parameters c. revisions
c. access d. manipulations
d. convenience
28. In the past, India _____ a great cultural
23. Frank is usually very calm but when he has to influence on its neighbors in Southeast Asia.
give a speech, he loses his _____. a. exerted
a. diversion b. extended
b. partisan c. distributed
c. menace d. dominated
d. composure
29. Over the last decade Bill’s family _____ quite a
24. John tried to _____ me to change my mind. fortune.
a. convey a. amassed
b. pursue b. joined
c. persuade c. congregated
d. consider d. prospered

25. There are more accidents at the _____ of Main 30. As we approached the city, the tall
Street and Fourth Street than anywhere else in buildings _____ in the distance.
town. a. strode
a. jurisdiction b. adhered
b. interaction c. loomed
c. cross-section d. launched
d. intersection

4 2003-04 Preliminary Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English

 READING READING READING

This passage about exercising comes from an article 31. What is the main purpose of the study
in a newspaper. presented in this passage?
a. to investigate college students’
Recently, researchers conducted a survey to
attitudes towards good health and
investigate what motivates young adults to exercise.
exercise
The study might shed light on why so few college
b. to find out why young women don’t like
students exercise and why many stop their exercise
to exercise
workouts after they graduate. Researchers analyzed
c. to learn what makes college students
responses from 937 randomly selected college
exercise
students at a leading U.S. university. What the
d. to find the best type of exercise workout
research team found was that 39% of the male
for college students
students and 26% of the female students exercised
at least three days a week for 20 minutes at a time.
32. What research method was used in this study?
These exercise patterns were fairly similar to those
a. College students reported on their
in surveys at other universities. The survey also
friends’ exercise workouts.
revealed some critical factors which motivate college
b. College students reported on their
students to exercise.
families’ exercise patterns.
Men who exercised regularly reported that their
c. College professors answered questions
friends provided considerable support for them to
about their students.
do so. Those who exercised only occasionally had
d. College students answered questions
moderate support from their friends, while those
about themselves.
who did not exercise at all had little or no support
from friends. For women, however, the crucial
33. What similarity between men and women did
motivating factor seemed to come from family
the study find?
members rather than from friends. Women who
a. The more friends they have, the more they
exercised regularly had a great deal of positive
exercise.
support to do so from their families. However,
b. The more support they have to exercise,
women who exercised only occasionally received
the more they exercise.
moderate levels of encouragement from their
c. The closer they live to their families, the
families, while those who did not work out at all
more they exercise.
received little or no support from their families.
d. The more health-conscious they are, the
Since college students often live far from home,
more they exercise.
women students are likely to have a weaker support
system than do their male counterparts.
34. In comparison to the general college
A medical professor, upon seeing the results of
population, students at this university
the study, remarked that generally there is not so
exercise . . .
much emphasis on body performance among girls
a. less often than average.
and young women. “It’s a macho thing to be able to
b. about the same amount as average.
run faster or lift weights,” he said. “However,” he
c. more often than average.
continued, “for the younger generation, this gender
d. for longer at a time than average.
gap appears to be getting smaller.”

Adapted and reprinted with permission of the Associated Press.
35. Why does the passage mention that some
college students live far from home?
a. to emphasize that they do not see their
families every day
b. to criticize their life styles
c. to show how independent they are
d. to explain why they depend on their
friends so much

2003-04 Preliminary Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English 5