FCE Reading and Use of English Part 5

You are going to read a magazine article about a young mother whose house was burgled. (2 points for each question).
For questions 1 – 7, choose the correct answer A, B, C or D.

Lisa Tyler was weary after a long, hard day at the pottery factory where she works. But as she approached her home in the English city of Stoke-on-Trent, her heart lightened.; soon she would be having a nice cup of tea, putting her feet up and watching Friends, her favourite TV series. But first, she needed to change out of her work clothes and pick up her three-year-old son from his grandmother’s house nearby.

As Lisa walked up her garden path, she noticed a light flashing on and off in an upstairs bedroom. A shiver went down her back. What if it was a burglar? Quietly, she crept round to the back of the house to see if there was any sign of a break-in. Sure enough, a window was open and someone’s coat was hanging on the gatepost!

Well, 26-year-old Lisa didn’t fancy coming face to face with a burglar, so she ran to a neighbour’s house and rang the police. But as she sat waiting for the police to arrive, Lisa’s curiosity got the better of her and she decided to go back and see what was going on. That’s when she saw a leg coming out of the downstairs front window. It was a man climbing out. Lisa gasped in shock. The burglar was carrying her portable television!

At this point, Lisa saw red. She didn’t have many possessions and she’d saved long and hard to buy that set. Besides, nobody was going to stop her watching Friends.

“Oh, no you don’t,” she muttered under her breath, as the fury swelled inside her. Without even stopping to think, she tore across the garden and started shouting at the burglar. “Give me my TV - drop it now!” she screamed.

Ignoring her, the man fled across the garden. So Lisa threw herself at him and successfully rugby-tackled him to the ground. The burglar struggled to escape, but Lisa hung on like the best kind of guard dog despite being punched and kicked. As she looked up, she realised that she recognised the burglar’s face. She was so surprised that she lost her grip and burglar got away, leaving the TV behind in the garden.

By the time the police and her father arrived, Lisa was in tears. “I can’t believe you were so foolish, Lisa”, scolded her father. “You could have been killed.”
“I know, but at least he didn’t get my TV,” she replied.

Lisa later remembered the name of the burglar, who had been in the same year as her at school. He was later caught and jailed for 15 months after admitting burglary and assault. In May last year, Lisa was given a Certificate of Appreciation by Staffordshire Police, for her outstanding courage and public action. But in the future she intends to leave household security to a new member of her family, Chan, who is real guard dog.


How was Lisa feeling as she walked home from work?

What does"pick up" mean in line 5 ?

What first led Lisa to think there was a burglar in her house?

Why didn't Lisa wait in her neighbor's until the police arrived?

What does "Lisa saw red" (line 16) mean?

What happened when Lisa shouted at the burglar?

What did Lisa's father do when he arrived?

FCE Reading and Use of English Part 7

You are going to read an article about student accommodation in which four college students talk about the place they live. For questions 15-26, choose from the people (A-D). The people may be chosen more than once. There is an example at the beginning (0). (1 point for each question)


Which student says?

My accommodation seems quite expensive.......... (A)

I have plenty of storage space.

My college doesn’t provide accommodation.

My room is maintained to a high standard.

I have washing facilities in my room.

I would like to have more independence.

I had to buy some extra electrical equipment.

I would like to have more private space.

It’s easy to keep in touch with people here.

My room is not very well-furnished.

This is the only place where I can afford to live.

I save money by doing my own cooking.

There are good recreational facilities nearby.