Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks. 

NEW YEAR

New Year celebrations date as far back as 2000 BC in Mesopotamia. Yet, the actual date has changed a number of times. There was always a problem because New Year was (27) ______ by the movements of the Sun and Moon which allowed room for error. To cut a long story short, it wasn't until 1582, when the calendar we use today was introduced, that January 1st became New Year's Day in most cultures. Some cultures, (28) ______ celebrate the New Year at various times, according to their calendar and religious traditions. For example, the Chinese celebrate it between the 21st of January and 19th of February. In contrast with most people all over the world (29) ______ celebrate at the beginning of the year, the Jewish people celebrate it in September or early October. 

In any case, the New Year is a festive occasion. Some people celebrate at home with no shortage of champagne, while (30) ______ party on the streets, watching the fireworks that the city council may have provided, joining the long (31) ______ of people waiting to get in and dance the night away.

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions. 

Who talk more men or women? Most people believe that women talk more. However, linguist Deborah Tannen, who has studied the communication style of men and women, says that this is a stereotype.  According to Tannen, women are more verbal - talk more in private situations, where they use conversation as the “glue” to hold relationships together. But, she says, men talk more in public situations, where they use conversation to exchange information and gain status. Tannen points out that we can see these differences even in children. Little girls often play with one "best friend", their play includes a lot of conversation. Little boys often play games in groups; their play usually involves more doing than talking. In school, girls are often better at verbal skills, boys are often better at mathematics. 

A recent study at Emory University helps to shed light on the roots of this difference. Researchers studied conversations between children aged 3-6 and their parents. They found evidence that parents talk very differently to their sons than they do to their daughters. The startling conclusion was that parents use more language with their girls. Specifically, when parents talk with their daughters, they use more descriptive language and more details. There is also far more talk about emotions, especially with daughters than with sons. 

Which sentence best expresses the main idea of the first paragraph? 

The word "butchered" in paragraph is closest in meaning to ______.

Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?

Some people celebrate at home with no shortage of champagne, while (30) ______ party on the streets, watching the fireworks that the city council may have provided, joining the long (31) ______ of people waiting to get in and dance the night away.

I'm sure it wasn't Mr. Phuc you saw yesterday because he's on business.

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the option that best completes each of the following exchanges.

Mike and David are university students. They are talking about the result of the Physics test.

- Mike: “I was worried about the Physics result, but Mr. David gave me an A.”

- David: “____________________”

A professor of economy and history at our university developed a new theory of the relationship between historical events and financial crises. 

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the sentence that best combines each pair of sentences in the following questions. 

He is very slow, so we won't give him such an important task. 

There are plenty of ______ solutions that have been tried and tested successfully in many countries.