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Practice Listening: Fill in the Blanks (Type In) ID: #34866 Short Counterintuitive Findings
Instructions ›
You will hear a recording. Type the missing words in each blank.
* Fill in the missing words into the blank fields
To  figure  out  these  counterintuitive  findings,  the  researchers  conducted  an  experiment  in  a  hotel  room.  They  rounded  up  some  lizards,  gave  them  a  perch,  and  used  a  leaf  blower  to    the  effects  of  high  winds.  They  set  up  a  net  to  catch  any  lizards  that  lost  their  grip.  As  the  artificial  wind  blew,  the  lizards    so  the  perch  took  most  of  the  air  flow.  But  their  hind  legs  would  stick  out,  and  if  those    limbs  stuck  out  too  far,  they  acted  as  sails.  "Eventually  those  back  legs  were  blown  off  the  perch,  and  the  lizards  were  just  holding  on  with  their  front  two  legs.  And  they  could  only  hold  on  like  that  for  so  long  as  the  wind  speed    further  and  further,  until  eventually  they  were  blown  off  the  perch  and  into  the    so  shorter  back  legs  gave  a    advantage.  A  trait  that  might  be  passed  on  to  the  next  lizard  generation.

Result:

AI explanationShows the answer. Tap to open.
Correct answer: mimic

Explanation: You hear "to mimic the effects". It comes after "to", so you need an action word.

Meaning: "mimic" means copy or make the same as something else.

Wrong options:

  • mimick: It adds an extra "k". The right spelling is "mimic". Every letter must be correct to get the mark.
Correct answer: moved

Explanation: Listen for "lizards moved so the". This already happened, so the word ends in ed.

Meaning: "moved" means changed position or went to a new place.

Wrong options:

  • movd: It leaves out the "e". Write "moved". Only the exact spelling gets the mark.
  • move: "move" is missing the ending. The speaker says "moved", with "d" at the end.
Correct answer: rear

Explanation: On the recording you hear "those rear limbs stuck out". The word is just before "limbs", so you need a word for the back part.

Meaning: "rear" means at the back or the back part of the body.

Wrong options:

  • reer: It has "e" where the word has "a". The right spelling is "rear". Every letter must be correct to get the mark.
Correct answer: increased

Explanation: Listen again to "wind speed increased further". It shows more and more, so the word ends in ed.

Meaning: "increased" means became bigger or stronger.

Wrong options:

  • increassed: It adds an extra "s". The right spelling is "increased". Every letter must be correct to get the mark.
  • increasing: "increasing" is a close word, but it ends in "ing". The speaker says "increased", which ends in "ed".
Correct answer: nets

Explanation: Here you hear "into the nets". After "the" you need a thing and more than one, so the word ends in s.

Meaning: "nets" means the catching mesh objects used to trap the lizards.

Wrong options:

  • netts: It adds an extra "t". Write "nets". Only the exact spelling gets the mark.
  • net: The sentence needs more than one. The word needs s at the end.
Correct answer: survival

Explanation: The speaker says "gave a survival advantage". It comes after "a", so you need a word for a thing.

Meaning: "survival" means the ability to stay alive in a situation.

Wrong options:

  • surival: It leaves out the "v". Write "survival". Only the exact spelling gets the mark.
  • survive: "survive" is a close word, but it ends in "e". The speaker says "survival", which ends in "al".

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