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Practice Listening: Fill in the Blanks (Type In) ID: #44527 Short Man from Future
Instructions ›
You will hear a recording. Type the missing words in each blank.
* Fill in the missing words into the blank fields
In  1945,  while  in  a  state  of  ,  the  mathematician  John  von  Neumann  had  a  kind  of  stammering  premonition.  He  was  in  Los  Alamos,  working  on  the  atom  bomb,  and  he  told  his  wife  Klari  that  the  “energy  source”  he  was  helping  to  develop  would  make  scientists  “the  most  hated  and  also  the  most  wanted    of  any  country”.  Then  he    her  that  his  other  ongoing  project,  the  computer,  would  one  day  be  even  more  important—and    even  more  dangerous.  Good  biographies  of  some  of  the  greatest  mathematical  minds  are  rare:  because  they  were  polymaths,  biographers  who  can    their  manifold  achievements  for  the  ordinary  mortal  are  themselves  thin  on  the  ground.  This  has  been  von  Neumann’s  fate,  and  the  upshot  is  that  he  has  not  had  the  recognition  he  deserves.

Result:

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

Explanation: Listen for "in a state of exhaustion". The word is a word for a thing, person or idea.

Meaning: "exhaustion" means very great tiredness.

Wrong options:

  • exhaution: It leaves out the "s". Write "exhaustion". Only the exact spelling gets the mark.
  • exhausted: "exhausted" is a close word, but it ends in "ed". The speaker says "exhaustion", which ends in "ion".
Correct answer: citizens

Explanation: On the recording you hear "the most hated and also the most wanted citizens". It comes after "the", so you need a word for people.

Meaning: "citizens" means the people of a country.

Wrong options:

  • citizans: It has "a" where the word has "e". Check the letters: "citizens". A small spelling mistake loses the mark.
Correct answer: informed

Explanation: Listen again to "Then he informed her that". The sentence is about the past, so the action word ends in ed.

Meaning: "informed" means he told her, gave her information.

Wrong options:

  • infromed: Two letters are in the wrong order. Write "informed". Only the exact spelling gets the mark.
Correct answer: potentially

Explanation: Here you hear "and potentially even more dangerous". You need a word that tells how or how much, so it ends in ly.

Meaning: "potentially" means possibly or maybe in the future.

Wrong options:

  • potentialy: It leaves out the "l". Check the letters: "potentially". A small spelling mistake loses the mark.
Correct answer: interpret

Explanation: The speaker says "who can interpret their manifold achievements". It comes after "can", so you need the plain word.

Meaning: "interpret" means to explain or make clear for others.

Wrong options:

  • interprete: It adds an extra "e". The right spelling is "interpret". Every letter must be correct to get the mark.

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