Originally published July 2026. Last reviewed 3 July 2026.
⚡ TL;DR
Essential strategies and practice techniques for this IELTS Reading passage. Learn question types, timing, and how to secure the answers.
Published 3 July 2026.
The Blog post contains the following IELTS Reading Questions:
IELTS Reading Matching Headings.
IELTS Reading Diagram Completion.
IELTS Reading Sentence Completion.
Stay informed and prepared for success – Explore our comprehensive Reading Test Info page to get valuable insights, exam format details, and expert tips for mastering the IELTS Reading section.
IELTS Reading Passage – High speed high rise
High Speed High Rise
A Chinese manufacturer has developed a method for producing 30-story, earthquake-resistant skyscrapers that assemble in just 15 days.
Broad Sustainable Building, also known as “Broad,” was founded and is led by Zhang Yue. On January 1, 2012, a time-lapse film of the 30-story feat was made public. A clock in the bottom-right corner of the screen displays the time as construction workers are seen scurrying about like gnats. A 100-meter-tall tower known as the T30 will be built to overlook the Xiang River in Hunan in under 360 hours from an empty plot. The Broad logo, a lowercase letter that wraps around itself in imitation of the @ symbol, emerges on the screen when the camera circles the building overhead at the end of the video. The business is currently franchising its technology to collaborators in Russia, Brazil, and India. The first standardized skyscraper in the world is what it is offering, and Zhang hopes to make Broad the McDonald’s of the sustainable building sector with it. Zhang responds, “It’s not a construction company,” when asked why he chose to launch a business in the construction industry. It is a structural revolution.
Broad has so far erected 16 structures in China and one more in Cancun. Two facilities in Hunan, about an hour’s drive from Broad Town, the expansive headquarters, are where they are made. The components used to construct the skyscrapers’ floors and ceilings have dimensions of 15.6 by 3.9 meters and a depth of 45 cm. Each floor module is threaded with pipes and ducts for power, water, and garbage while it is still in the factory. Additionally, the flooring of the client’s choice is pre-installed on top. Two modules are delivered to the construction site in standardized truckloads, each containing the required columns, bolts, and equipment to connect them. When they go to the building, which is put together like a set of toy Lego bricks, a crane lifts each part right to the top. Workers connect the pipes and cables swiftly using the materials on the module. The distinctive column design incorporates tabs that bolt into the floors above and below and diagonal bracing at either end. The last process is crane-slotting in the outer walls and windows that are highly insulated. The outcome is by no means appealing, but the technique is surprisingly safe and astonishingly quick.
Zhang credits his inventiveness and outsider viewpoint on technology for his achievement. In the 1980s, Zhang was a student of art, but he quit the field in 1988 to develop Broad. The business originally produced non-pressurized boilers. He built his fortune on boilers, according to Juliet Jiang, his senior vice president. Although he could have continued his business, he realized the importance of nonelectric air conditioning. She argues that by the end of the decade, China’s economy had outgrown the country’s electrical grid. Power shortages were starting to pose a significant threat to growth. Large natural gas-powered air conditioning (AC) machines might save energy costs, cut operating expenses, and provide more dependable climate control for businesses. Today, Broad operates facilities in more than 70 nations, including some of the world’s biggest structures and airports.
The AC company of Zhang was booming in the past 20 years. But a number of things happened in concert to alter his course. Zhang first became an environmentalist. The second occurred in 2008 when an earthquake struck the Sichuan Province of China, resulting in the collapse of several shoddy structures. He claims that in the beginning, he sought to persuade developers to retrofit existing structures in order to make them more solid and sustainable, but he wasn’t very successful. Zhang then hired his own engineers and began investigating ways to create affordable, ecologically friendly buildings that could survive earthquakes. After six months of investigation, Zhang had given up on using conventional techniques. The expense of employing designers and specialists for each new construction irritated him. He determined that moving the building to the factory was the best approach to reduce expenses. However, Broad had to stray from accepted architectural practices in order to build a skyscraper in a factory. It was necessary to change the load-bearing structure as a whole. Less concrete was used in the floors to reduce the building’s overall weight, which allowed for a reduction in structural steel.
Prefabricated and modular buildings are becoming more and more well-liked all around the world. However, prefabricated and modular structures elsewhere are often low-rise. Only Broad uses these techniques for buildings. Zhang believes that the environmental benefits alone are worth the effort. A conventional high-rise will generate approximately 3,000 tons of construction debris, while a Broad structure will generate only 25 tons, according to Broad’s calculations. Broad structures consume no water during construction, in contrast to traditional buildings, which use 5,000 tons of water. Additionally, construction is less risky. The risk of injury can be reduced by installing elevator systems at the factory, including the base, rails, and machine room. Additionally, Broad orders a finished elevator car and drops it into the shaft using a crane rather than bringing it to the location in sections. The goal of elevator manufacturers is to preinstall the doors in the future, entirely removing the possibility that a worker could trip and fall. He claims that conventional construction is disorganized. “We moved construction into the factory,” the statement reads. Zhang claims that his structures will help address the myriad issues facing the construction industry and that they will also be easier and less expensive to create.
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Recommended Questions:
Renewable Energy IELTS Reading Question with Answer
High Speed High Rise IELTS Reading Questions
Question 1-5
In the question, you will find a list of headings provided from I to VIII. Each heading will put forward the main idea of the paragraph in the text.
List of headings:
A joint enterprise project
Additional engineering successes
Looking at the overall advantages
A distinctive structure
Traditional techniques have several advantages.
A shift in course
Worldwide brands that are comparable examples
Construction site and factory
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Question 6-9
Label the diagram You can use ONLY ONE WORD, to fill in the answer.
5. Pipes and ducts installed while in ___________.6. Chosen by customer ___________7. Diagonal bracing at top and bottom of ___________8. Section contains less __________ than a conventional building.
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Question 10-13
Choose No More than two words can be used to answer the question. In the answer box, you need to fill the answer with the help of one or two words.
10. Zhang describes his company as a _______.11. The very first goods produced by Broad were _______.12. In China, _______ were impeding industrial development in the late 1980s.13. Broad’s AC units increase ______ along with power and cost advantages.
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Renewable Energy IELTS Reading Question with Answer
High speed high rise Reading Answers
1. IV2. VIII3. VI4. III5. FACTORY6. FLOORING OR FLOOR7. COLUMN8. CONCRET9. STRUCTURAL REVOLUTION10. [NON-PRESSURIZED] BOILERS12. POWER SHORTAGE13. CLIMATE CONTROL
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Originally published July 2026. Last reviewed 3 July 2026.
⚡ TL;DR
Essential strategies and practice techniques for this IELTS Reading passage. Learn question types, timing, and how to secure the answers.
Published 3 July 2026.
The Blog post contains the following IELTS Reading Questions:
IELTS Reading Matching Headings Questions
IELTS Reading Matching Sentence Ending Questions
IELTS Reading Summary completion Stay informed and prepared for success – Explore our comprehensive Reading Test Info page to get valuable insights, exam format details, and expert tips for mastering the IELTS Reading section.
IELTS Reading Passage – Irish potato famine
Irish potato famine
Over 750,000 Irish people perished in the ten years that followed the Irish potato famine of 1845, including many who tried to immigrate to nations like the United States and Canada. One of Ireland’s primary issues before the potato disaster was overcrowding. The population of the nation was thought to be less than three million in the early 1500s, but by 1840 it had nearly tripled. The population increase was partly due to the abundant potato harvest, which includes practically all of the nutrients needed for human survival. However, the population of Ireland was cut in half within five years of the 1845 harvest failure. The dependency of the Irish on the potato crop, the British tenure system, and the insufficient English relief efforts were some of the factors that caused the population of the Irish to drastically decline.
Although the specific circumstances surrounding the potato’s first introduction to Europe are unknown, it is generally accepted that it did so on a Spanish ship some time in the 1600s. The belief that potatoes belonged to a botanical family of a dangerous breed persisted among Europeans for more than a century. Potatoes didn’t become a novelty item until Marie Antoinette had potato blossoms in her hair in the middle of the seventeenth century. When the potato’s nutritional significance was recognized in the late 1700s, European monarchs commanded that the vegetable be widely grown.
The vast majority of Irish people had grown to depend on the potato as their main food source by the year 1800. An Irish potato farmer would typically eat more than six pounds of potatoes every day. Families even fed their livestock potatoes that they had stockpiled for the winter. The unexpected potato blight of 1845 decimated the Irish because of this dependence. Researchers initially hypothesised that the blight was brought on by static electricity, railway smoke, or fumes from subsurface volcanoes; however, the real culprit was later identified as an airborne fungus that originated in Mexico. The disease not only wiped out the potato harvests, but it also affected all of the potatoes that were being stored at the time. Famine was killing their families, but the exhausted farmers had little left of their farming expertise to gather other crops. Those who succeeded in cultivating oats, wheat, and barley relied on the money earned from these exported crops to pay their rent in their rented residences.
Irish people experienced widespread famine as a result of the potato blight, but the British tenure system kept them in their predicament. The English had focused on their colonial land holdings after the Napoleonic Wars in 1815. British landowners understood that the easiest way to make money off of their properties was to extract the resources, export them, and charge high rents and taxes to anyone who wanted to live there. 95% of the Irish land, which was divided into five-acre allotment for people to live and farm on, was owned by Protestant landlords under the tenure system. However, the plots were continually divided into smaller parts as Ireland’s population increased. Living circumstances drastically deteriorated, forcing families to relocate to less productive terrain where essentially nothing but potatoes would grow.
Throughout the same colonisation era. The Penal Laws were also established to break the spirit of the Irish people. Irish peasants were denied fundamental human rights under the Penal Laws, including the freedom to speak their own native language, pursue particular economic opportunities, practise their religion, get education, and possess land. Despite the famine that was wreaking havoc on Ireland, landlords did nothing to help tenants who were unable to pay their rent. Between 1845 and 1847, landowners evicted almost 500,000 Irish tenants. Many of these individuals also had home fires and were imprisoned for unpaid rent.
The laissez-faire doctrine, which backed a strategy of nonintervention in the condition of the Irish, was endorsed by the majority of British officials in the 1840s. Sir Robert Peel, the former prime minister, was an outlier. He moved to remove the Corn Laws, which had been placed in place to shield British grain producers from the competition of foreign markets, out of compassion for the Irish. Peel was swiftly compelled to retire as a result of his rash decision, which cost him the favour of the British people. Lord John Russell, the new prime minister, gave full command of all relief operations in Ireland to Charles Trevelyan, his assistant. Trevelyan thought that Providence should be allowed to handle the Irish crisis. He even took action to shut food depots that were selling maize and to reroute shipments of grain that were already headed to Ireland on the justification that it would be dangerous to allow the Irish to grow dependent on other nations. A few relief initiatives, like soup kitchens and workhouses, were finally put into place; nevertheless, these were badly operated institutions that contributed to the spread of disease, tore families apart, and provided insufficient food supplies in light of the severity of Ireland’s food shortages.
The Irish potato famine still has many aftereffects that are visible today. There are people all over the world who are descended from those who left Ireland in the 1840s. In the Irish hills, a few of the houses that were removed by absentee landlords now stand empty. Many Irish dependents still harbour resentment toward the British for prioritising politics over people. Irish people are still plagued by the potato blight itself during specific planting seasons when the climate is conducive to the fungus’s growth.
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Irish potato famine IELTS reading questions
Question 1-5
The passage has seven paragraphs, A-G. Which paragraph contains the following information? Write the correct letter in boxes 1-5 on your Answer Sheet.
1. The British government’s stance on the potato famine2. An explanation of Ireland’s land ownership structure 3. Early European perceptions of the potato4. Justification for Irish farmers’ lack of legal protection5. The significance of potatoes in Irish culture
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Question 6-10
Complete each sentence with the correct ending, A-L from the box at the top of the next page. Write the correct letter in boxes 6-10 on your Answer Sheet. There are more endings than sentences, so you won’t use them all.
Sentence Endings
Because they were unable to pay their farm rent.
Due to the air pollution created by railroad trains.
Because their primary food source was potatoes.
Because Charles Trevelyan assumed control of the relief effort.
Because they needed to pay the rent and needed the earnings.
Since they weren’t properly managed.
Since there wasn’t enough land to accommodate the growing population.
Because the British were against his efforts to aid the Irish.
For the reason that they thought potatoes were harmful.
Due to the British introduction of punitive laws.
Due to the discovery that potatoes are packed with nutrients.
Because Marie Antoinette decorated with potato blossoms.
6. Europeans first refused to consume potatoes.7. European kings promoted potato cultivation8. The Irish were devastated by the potato blight.9. Oat, wheat, and barley farmers didn’t consume these crops.10. Many Irish farmers farmed unproductive land.
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Question 11-13
Complete the summary below. Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.
Peel was promptly forced to 11…..………… Because of his imprudent decision. Trevelyan thought that Providence should be allowed to handle the Irish crisis. He even took action to shut 12…………… that were selling maize and to reroute shipments of grain that were already headed to Ireland on the justification that it would be dangerous to allow the Irish to grow dependent on other nations.Irish people are still plagued by the potato blight itself during specific planting seasons when the climate is conducive to the 13……………growth.
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Irish Potato Famine Reading Answers
1. F2. D3. B4. E5. C6. I7. K8. C9. E10. G11. Retire12. Food Depots13. Fungus / Fungus’s
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The best way to keep up to date with posts like this is to like us on Facebook, then follow us on Instagram and Pinterest. If you need help preparing for the IELTS Test, join the IELTS Achieve Academy and see how we can assist you to achieve your desired band score. We offer an essay correction service, mock exams and online courses.
Originally published July 2026. Last reviewed 3 July 2026.
⚡ TL;DR
Essential strategies and practice techniques for this IELTS Reading passage. Learn question types, timing, and how to secure the answers.
Published 3 July 2026.
The Blog post contains the following IELTS Reading Questions:
IELTS reading matching headings questions
IELTS reading matching features questions
IELTS reading locating information question
IELTS reading passage – Australian popular magazines
A. Magazines as a product of entertainment reading, enjoyment, and information, or as gentlemen of the time called “indoctrination”, have their origins in England in the early 18th century when the innovator became Robinson author Daniel Defoe. The term Maga comes from the French Magazin, initially intended as a repository, and was apt because the first published magazine held an inventory of various writings on a wide range of subjects. Defoe titled his magazine “The Review”, which he published five years after the first issue. It was published with the help of various now-famous magazines such as The Trailer and The Spectator. Each produced with the help of the same partner’s authors Richard Steele and Joseph Addison.
B. As for Australian famous magazines, initially, for the founding days of the colonies, readers of the time trusted the sluggish cruising ships from England to deliver most of the different vital items, newspapers, and journals.
C. In 1855, Australia published its first popular magazine. It was a hugely successful Melbourne punch whose longevity stretched into the first quarter of the 20th century.
D. Popular illustrated magazines quickly became a significant factor for the educated Australians, shaping our national image, just as ballad singers and touring entertainers also made major contributions. Against this background, the now famous ‘Old Bulletin’ was created in 1880. From the outset, the Bulletin’s policy has been to promote and encourage Australian writers and artists: it has succeeded in the names and reputation of Henry Lawson, ‘Banjo’ Paterson, Steele Rudd, and dozens of others. He created a new and unique school of black and white art that, for example, gave Phil May his big breakthrough and eventually worldwide recognition. Such was the influence of The Bulletin that this legendary ’90s era is considered the source of our national culture. In this pre-federation era of Australia, not only were several fascinating periodicals founded but many were created and owned by respected writers of the time. These included writers Henry Kendall, Marcus Clarke, Rolf Boldrewood, Randolph Bedford, Edward Dyson, Norman Lindsay, and CJ Dennis, among others.
E. As they were developed, technological advances were quickly taken advantage of. Most notable was the development of photoengraving, which made it possible for the first time to reproduce “halftone” photographs. In this ingenious method, simply rephotographing through a dotted glass plate onto a metal plate, after an acid bath, the color tone is simulated by a pattern of small raised dots of varying sizes. After inking, the metal sheet is ready to reproduce a facsimile picture composed of tiny dots. Historically, artists painted scenes and events upside down on prepared blocks of wood. This was given to the sculptor, who used a variety of delicate cutting tools to scrape away areas of the drawing, leaving a raised surface, then inked and applying pressure to get the black and white impression of the image. And for the first time, photoengraving allowed artists to draw cartoons in any way and any style, and the printed result could be scaled up or down, drawn down to the smallest detail. will be as shown. Other less important technological developments included high-speed printing presses, simultaneous multi-color printing, and certain electronic “scanner” devices for producing color illustrations.
F. In general, Australian journals today do not differ much in content from those of the last century. There are some new addresses. For example, The Bulletin’s highly political content reflects a recognition that Australia is increasingly drawn to the wider international community. While once popular and hugely successful magazines like Pix and Original People only survived in the 1980s after World War II, the famous Australasian Post survived for more than 120 years (it changed its name slightly in 1946). However, the magazine has long topped the list of the highest circulation magazines of its kind in Australia. Much of this success is due to a deliberate editorial policy with a focus on Australia. Penthouse Australia and other contemporary magazines such as Playboy, Creo, and Cosmopolitan have a policy of striving for international quality rather than national identity, and Penthouse is different.
G. Today, at a new high of public awareness, formerly minor courses of the past take on new significance as reassessments of records for a comprehensive look at our civilization. The changes in social behaviors, interests, attitudes, styles, and manners that they reflect are an important part of our personality.
Australian popular magazines reading questions
Question 1-6
Reading Passage 1 has 7 sections A—G. Choose the most suitable heading for each section from the list of headings below. Write the appropriate numbers (i-x) in boxes 1—6 on your answer sheet.
Note: There are more headings than sections so you will not use all of them. You may use any of the headings more than once. Example C Answer iv
HEADINGS (i–x)
i. Daniel Defoe wrote Robinson Crusoe
ii. Culture of Australia and the bulletin
iii. Australia’s magazines today
iv. The country’s first magazine
v. The very first magazines
vi. Australians rely on the news from England.
vii. The historical significance of magazines
viii. Printing technology advancements
ix. Photographic printing
x. Some periodicals have passed away.
1. Section A
2. Section B
3. Section D
4. Section E
5. Section F
6. Section G
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Question 7–11
Look at the following Questions 7 – 11 and the list of the statements below. Match each
statement with the correct one.
N New method of printing illustrations
O Old method of printing illustrations
B Both methods of printing illustrations
NB You may use any letter more than once.
7. a wooden block
8. a metal sheet
9. a glass screen
10. inking
11. image is reversed
Question 12–14
Improve your performance in Matching Features questions by clicking here to access our comprehensive guide. Learn how to match specific features or characteristics with the options provided in the IELTS Reading section.
This reading passage has six paragraphs, A–F.F or which magazines are the following statements true? Write the name of ONE appropriate magazine for each question in boxes 12—14 on your answer sheet.
Example: The first magazine Answer: The review
12. is no longer published
13. has changed his name
14. has a strong political focus
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Australian popular magazines IELTS reading answers
1. V 2.VI 3.II 4.VIII 5.III 6.VII 7.O 9.N 9.N 10.B 11.O 12.MELBOURNE PUNCH / PIX / PEOPLE 13.AUSTRALASIAN POST 14.THE BULLETIN We hope you found this post useful in helping you to study for the IELTS Test. If you have any questions please let us know in the comments below or on the Facebook page.
The best way to keep up to date with posts like this is to like us on Facebook, then follow us on Instagram and Pinterest. If you need help preparing for the IELTS Test, join the IELTS Achieve Academy and see how we can assist you to achieve your desired band score. We offer an essay correction service, mock exams and online courses.
Originally published July 2026. Last reviewed 3 July 2026.
⚡ TL;DR
Essential strategies and practice techniques for this IELTS Reading passage. Learn question types, timing, and how to secure the answers.
Published 3 July 2026.
The Blog post contains the following IELTS Reading Questions:
IELTS Reading Matching Information
IELTS Reading Multiple Choice Question
IELTS Reading Short Answer Question
Stay informed and prepared for success – Explore our comprehensive Reading Test Info page to get valuable insights, exam format details, and expert tips for mastering the IELTS Reading section.
IELTS Reading Passage -‘Hearing Impairment’
‘Hearing Impairment’
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Renewable Energy IELTS Reading Question with Answer
We hope you found this post useful in helping you to study for the IELTS Test. If you have any questions please let us know in the comments below or on the Facebook page.
The best way to keep up to date with posts like this is to like us on Facebook, then follow us on Instagram and Pinterest. If you need help preparing for the IELTS Test, join the IELTS Achieve Academy and see how we can assist you to achieve your desired band score. We offer an essay correction service, mock exams and online courses.
How to Approach This Reading Passage
This passage covers a scientific topic related to hearing impairment. When tackling science-based reading passages in IELTS, focus on understanding the main argument, the evidence presented, and any cause-and-effect relationships described.
Key Reading Strategies
- Skim for structure: Identify the introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion. Note topic sentences.
- Scan for specific information: When answering detail questions, locate keywords from the question in the passage.
- Watch for paraphrasing: IELTS questions rarely use the same words as the passage. Match meaning, not just vocabulary.
- Manage your time: Spend no more than 20 minutes on each passage. Move on if stuck and return later.
Vocabulary from This Passage
Building vocabulary around health and science topics will help with similar passages. Key terms to learn include: auditory, frequency, decibel, cochlear, impairment, congenital, progressive, and intervention.
Originally published July 2026. Last reviewed 3 July 2026.
⚡ TL;DR
Essential strategies and practice techniques for this IELTS Reading passage. Learn question types, timing, and how to secure the answers.
Published 3 July 2026.
The Blog post contains the following IELTS Reading Questions:
IELTS Reading Matching Headings.
IELTS Reading Summary Completion.
IELTS Reading Yes/No/Not Given.
Stay informed and prepared for success – Explore our comprehensive Reading Test Info page to get valuable insights, exam format details, and expert tips for mastering the IELTS Reading section.
IELTS Reading Passage – This Marvellous Invention
This Marvellous Invention
Language must be given honourable mention among all of humanity’s many creations. Our material existence may have been changed by other discoveries like the wheel, agriculture, and sliced bread, but the development of language is what gave rise to the human race. All other inventions are insignificant in comparison to language because language is the foundation of all human achievement. Without language, humans would not have been able to begin our ascent to unmatched dominance over all other animals and even over nature.
Language is important, but not just because it was the first. Although it is based on a concept of brilliant simplicity, it is a tool of extraordinary sophistication in its own right: “This marvellous invention of making out of twenty-five or thirty sounds that infinite diversity of statements which, although in themselves having no likeness to what is in our mind, allow us to expose to others its full secret, and to make known to those who cannot fathom it all that we envisage, and all the many stirrings of our soul.” No one has subsequently praised the magnitude of this achievement more eloquently than the famed French grammarians of the Port-Royal convent near Versailles who did it in 1660. There is only one problem in all of these hymns of praise, however, as the devotion to each language’s singular achievement obscures a little but crucial incongruity. The greatest innovation of mankind is language, except that it was never created. Our interest with language stems from this apparent paradox, which also holds many of its secrets.
Language frequently appears to be so expertly crafted that it is difficult to picture it as anything other than the refined workmanship of a master craftsman. How else could this instrument produce such a large amount of sound from just thirty-two meagre sound bites? These mouth shapes—p, f, b, v, t, d, k, g, sh, a, e, and so on—amount to nothing more than a few careless spits and sputters, meaningless noises that are incapable of expression or explanation. However, if you run them through the gears and cogs of the language machine and arrange them in some very precise orders, there is nothing that these useless streams of air cannot accomplish, from unravelling the fundamental order of the cosmos to signifying the endless boredom of existence.
The most amazing thing about language, though, is that everyone can use it; they don’t need to be geniuses. Everyone, from pre-modern foragers in the subtropical savannah to post-modern thinkers in the sprawling suburbs, can weave these meaningless sounds together into an unlimited number of delicate perceptions, all seemingly without exerting the least effort. However, because language’s victories are typically taken for granted in daily life, it is precisely this misleading ease that becomes language a victim of its own success. The wheels of language move so smoothly that one rarely thinks to pause and think about all the inventiveness and expertise that must have gone into making it tick. Language hides the arts.
Often, the marvel of language design is only realized when one becomes alienated by foreign tongues and all of their bizarre and unusual aspects. Some languages have the power to construct words that are so long that they are literally impossible to breathe, expressing in one word what it would take an English speaker a full phrase to utter. To give one example, the Turkish phrase şehirliliçtiremediklerimizdensiniz literally translates to “you are one of them who we can’t change into a town-dweller.” (In case you were wondering, this monstrosity is actually just one word, not just a bunch of words crammed together; most of its constituent parts can’t even support itself.)
If you think that’s a one-off freak, think of Sumerian, which was used by people who established writing and allowed for the recording of history some 5,000 years ago on the Euphrates riverbanks. In comparison to the Turkish colossus above, a Sumerian phrase like munintuma’a (‘when he had made it suited for her’) could appear relatively trim. Contrarily, the economical compactness of its construction, not its length, is what makes it so stunning. The term is made up of various slots, each of which corresponds to a distinct semantic component. Due to this sophisticated design, even the lack of a sound may be used to portray a specific idea. Single sounds can even be used to provide useful information. The answer would have to be nothing if you were to inquire as to which portion of the Sumerian term corresponds to the pronoun “it” in the English translation “when he had made it acceptable for her.” But not just any nothing—the nothing that occupies the empty space in the middle, to be exact. The technology is now so refined that, when positioned precisely in a given location, even an inaudible object can perform a specific task. Who could possible have come up with such a nifty contraption?
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This Marvellous Invention IELTS Reading Questions
Question 1-6
Reading Passage has six paragraphs, A-F. Choose the correct heading for paragraphs A-F from the list of headings below. Write the correct number, i-vii, in boxes 1-6 on your answer sheet.
list of Headings
Language variations highlight how outstanding they are.
how a small number of sounds can be arranged to represent a wide variety of meaning
why various languages don’t use the same sounds
Apparently conflicting linguistic traits
Even a moment of silence has value.
Why the development of language is the most significant one ever
the shared capacity for language
1 Paragraph A 3 Paragraph C 4 Paragraph D 5 Paragraph E 6 Paragraph F
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Question 7-10
Complete the summary using the list of words, A-G, below. Write the correct letter, A-G, in boxes 9-10 on your answer sheet.
The importance of language
The development of the wheel had a significant impact on 7…….. facets of life, but no other invention had an impact as 8……. as language.Despite having only a few sounds, language is very 9……. It seems that language is 10….. to use. But its sophistication is frequently disregarded.
A difficultB complexC originalD admiredE materialF easyG fundamental
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Question 11-14
Do the following statements agree with the views of the writer in Reading Passage? In boxes 11-14 on your answer sheet, write
YES if the statement agrees with the views of the writerNO if the statement contradicts the views of the writerNOT GIVEN if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this
11. Human beings might have achieved their present position without language.12. The Port-Royal grammarians did justice to the nature of language.13. A complex idea can be explained more clearly in a sentence than in a single word.14. The Sumerians were responsible for starting the recording of events.
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1. vi2. iv3. ii4. vii5. i 6. v7. E8. G9. B10. F11. NO12. YES13. NOT GIVEN14. YES
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