Reading comprehension (Test 64)

Multiple-choice quiz; Answer the following questions according to the text.

(Note: The text below will disappear once you start answering the questions; so, understand the text fully before answering. Also, the technique in reading comprehension tests is to read the questions first before reading the text.)

There is nothing that man fears more than the touch of the unknown. He wants to see what is reaching towards him, and to be able to recognize or at least classify it. Man always tends to avoid physical contact with anything strange. In the dark, the fear of an unexpected touch can lead to panic. Even clothes give insufficient security: it is easy to tear them and pierce through to the naked, smooth, defenseless flesh of the victim. All the distances which men create round themselves are dictated by this fear. They shut themselves in houses which no one may enter, and only there they feel some measure of security. The fear of burglars is not only the fear of being robbed, but also the fear of something touching you in the darkness.

According to the passage, what frightens people most is _____.
1. the thought of being robbed at night
2. the unexpected contact with something unknown
3. a sense of insecurity
4. being alone in the dark
5. the knowledge that they won’t be protected
Because people are frightened of the unknown _____.
1. they feel it necessary to put a barrier between themselves and the unknown
2. it is natural that they should always be in a state of panic
3. they feel safer in a crowd
4. they try to avoid physical contact of all kinds
5. burglars find it much easier to break into houses
This passage is concerned with _____.
1. how people can regain a sense of security
2. the measures people are advised to take against burglars
3. the three main types of fear
4. people’s fear of the unknown and how they try to cope with it
5. how to bring one’s fears into the open

Exercises created by Atty. Gerry T. Galacio based on copyrighted materials available on the Internet. You can use these exercises only on a personal, educational, and non-commercial basis; you must not upload these exercises and resources to an intranet, to a website, or to the cloud. For comments, questions, or corrections, email gtgalacio@yahoo.com

Exercises created with freeware Hot Potatoes v. 6.3 from the University of Victoria in British Columbia, Canada.

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Better English resources and exercises (free resources on grammar, pronunciation, spelling, writing, vocabulary, idioms, reading comprehension, public speaking, etc.); Related website: Interactive English grammar and vocabulary exercises based on Korean historical dramas such as A Jewel In The Palace, Dong Yi, Jumong, Empress Ki, Moonlight Drawn by Clouds (Love In The Moonlight), etc.

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