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Use of English

Level C1

Part 2 - Open Cloze

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For questions 1-8, read the text below and think of the word which best fits each gap.

Urban Silence

In many modern cities, silence has become so rare (0) THAT people often fail to notice its absence until they leave the centre behind. Urban planners have long been aware (1) .......... the psychological effects of constant noise, yet only recently have they begun to treat quietness as something worth designing (2) .......... rather than merely hoping for. Research suggests that people recover more quickly from stress when they spend time in places (3) .......... traffic, machinery and electronic alerts are less intrusive. It is not simply a matter of volume, (4) .......... of unpredictability: sudden sounds demand attention and prevent the mind from settling. For this reason, some architects argue that public spaces should be planned in such a way (5) .......... unwanted noise is absorbed or redirected. Measures of this kind are expensive, and critics question whether city authorities should invest in them when there are other problems to deal (6) .......... . However, supporters insist that the issue is not a luxury but a public-health concern, one (7) .......... consequences extend far beyond mere discomfort. If cities are to remain liveable, they must be designed not only for movement and efficiency, but also for the moments in (8) .......... people can pause and think.

What to do

This part consists of a short text with a series of gaps. There are no words from which to choose the answers, candidates have to think of a word which fits the gap correctly.

Errors in punctuation are ignored, although spelling must be correct.

Contractions (e.g. don’t, we’ve, won’t) count as two words. However, can’t is a contraction of cannot, which is one word.

Sometimes, there is more than one correct answer. Cambridge will always account for this and all options will be accepted. However, you should not write more than one answer.

Don't spend time in a word you don't know. Wasting time on this activity might cost you points later in the exam because you won’t have enough time to do other tasks well.

Strategy

  1. Read the title and the whole text so that you understand what it is about.
  2. Read the whole sentence in which the gap occurs, to look for clues as to what kind of word you need.
  3. Check the words before and after each gap and look for grammatical collocations.
  4. Remember you must write only one word.
  5. You are never required to write a contraction. If you think the answer is a contraction, it must be wrong, so think again.
  6. Read the whole text through once you have completed it to make sure you have not missed any connectors, plurals or negatives.

Instructions

For questions 1-8, read the text below and think of the word which best fits each gap.

Exercise Details

Author

Bejenaru Alexandru

@bejenaru-alexandru

User Prompt

"Make it hard but similar to the Cambridge exam"

Tone: Formal
Level: C1

Created on:

Apr 21, 2026

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