Problem: practising the short grammar and vocabulary tasks separately from longer reading can hide the connections between them — collocations learned for Part 1 reappear as paraphrases in Part 5, reference words drilled in Part 2 decide Part 6 gaps, and word families from Part 3 unlock Part 7 statements. Answer in brief: train Parts 1–4 as the engine room of the whole paper. Learn each gap type (multiple-choice cloze, open cloze, word formation, key word transformation) with a short decision method, apply the same grammar and vocabulary knowledge to the longer reading tasks, and rehearse the full paper against the clock. This guide teaches that route with exact exercises from the source book, new practice written for this article with fully explained answers, and a transparent list of places where the book itself needed correction.
Learning outcomes
By the end of this article you will be able to:
- describe what each of the seven parts of the B2 First Reading and Use of English paper asks you to do;
- apply a short decision method for each of Parts 1–4 and explain why the correct answer fits;
- rewrite sentences under the key word transformation word limit without changing meaning;
- transfer collocation, reference-tracking and word-family skills into Parts 5–7;
- recognise ambiguous workbook questions, incomplete instructions and defective options, and practise with clearly labelled repairs.
The exam and the book: what you are preparing for
The Cambridge B2 First Reading and Use of English paper lasts 1 hour 15 minutes and contains seven parts with 52 questions in total. Parts 1–4 test grammar and vocabulary in short texts and single sentences; Parts 5–7 test comprehension of longer texts. There is no penalty for wrong answers, so you should answer every question. The official format is published by Cambridge English on its B2 First exam format page, and the B2 First handbook for teachers (PDF) gives the paper’s total reading load as about 2,200–2,500 words. Scores for Reading come from Parts 1, 5, 6 and 7, while Parts 2, 3 and 4 feed the Use of English score — which is why this article treats Parts 1–4 as the engine room of the whole paper.
| Part | Task | Core skill |
|---|---|---|
| Part 1 | Multiple-choice cloze, 8 gaps, 4 options each | Collocation and vocabulary in context |
| Part 2 | Open cloze, 8 gaps, one word each | Grammar and structure words |
| Part 3 | Word formation, 8 gaps, root word given | Derivation: prefixes, suffixes, word class |
| Part 4 | Key word transformation, 6 sentences | Paraphrase under a word limit |
| Part 5 | Multiple-choice reading, 6 questions with 4 options each | Detail, attitude and gist with evidence |
| Part 6 | Gapped text, 6 gaps (7 sentences in the examined task, one spare) | Cohesion across a text |
| Part 7 | Multiple matching, 10 questions on one long text or several shorter texts | Scanning for detail and gist |
The source book for this article is Strategic Cambridge B2 First Reading Skills Development for Top Performance by Jobin Thomas (Jobins Training, 2025), used here in its EPUB edition. It covers all seven parts: strategy chapters for each part, a practice workbook with exercises and answer keys for Parts 1–7, micro-drills, study plans and review systems. That full-paper coverage is exactly what makes this article different from the companion article for Book 1, which teaches Reading Parts 5–7 only. Here the emphasis falls on Parts 1–4 — the grammar-and-vocabulary practice — and then shows how that engine drives the reading parts.
A practical timing frame that fits the 75-minute paper: allow about 8 minutes each for Parts 1–4 (32 minutes together), about 12 minutes for Part 5, about 11 minutes for Part 6, about 15 minutes for Part 7, and keep the last 5 minutes for checking spelling in Parts 2 and 3 and re-reading Part 4 answers (32 + 12 + 11 + 15 + 5 = 75). Adjust the split to your own strengths, but always decide the split before test day.
Where the source needs care
The following points concern the exercises used in this article. They are not an exhaustive audit of the book.
- Part 4 instructions. A workbook rubric gives a three-word maximum; the official task requires two to five words including the unchanged key word. The book supplies completed sentences without gapped second-sentence frames. This article therefore adds clearly labelled adapted frames. Count only what goes inside a specified gap.
- The SINCE sentence is grammatical. “It has been years since I saw them” is not an error. With no original gap frame, its written-answer length cannot be judged. Below, two adapted frames show how different printed boundaries change the count.
- Ambiguous choices. “Profound impact” and “dramatic impact” both fit the technology example. A preferred key alone does not rule out another natural answer. The matching example about “true experiences” also needs a more specific statement to distinguish a biography from personal travel stories.
- Defective sentence-insertion tasks. The bicycle set includes two unrelated water-cycle options and lacks relevant choices for two gaps. A water-cycle gap places a full sentence inside an unfinished sentence. The worked examples explain these defects and label any repaired wording.
- Preparation length and scoring. Use official full-length sample papers to calibrate timing; the handbook’s total reading load is about 2,200–2,500 words across the paper. That total is not a separate length specification for each part. The book’s overview also understates the marks for Parts 5 and 6: each has six questions worth two marks each.
Part 1: multiple-choice cloze
The decision method
- Read the whole text quickly first for the overall idea.
- At each gap, read the full sentence and decide what kind of word the slot needs.
- Test collocations: which option combines naturally with the words around it?
- Remove any option that breaks the grammar, even if its meaning looks close.
- Put your choice back into the sentence and re-read it before moving on.
Exact exercises from the source book
The book’s Part 1 Exercise 1 is a text on technology. Three of its gaps are quoted below with their four options, with the opening of gap 5 shortened; try each before opening the answer.
Gap 1 (exact). “Recent advances in technology have had a [1] ___ impact on society.” A. profound B. dramatic C. gradually D. drastic
Answer and explanation
Workbook key: A (profound) — but this item is ambiguous as printed. “Have a profound impact” is natural for a deep, significant effect, yet “have a dramatic impact” is equally natural English, so options A and B cannot be separated on collocation alone (“drastic” is possible but less idiomatic here). C can be excluded on word class: “gradually” is an adverb and cannot modify the noun “impact.” The examined paper would not offer two such close options for one gap; treat this as an ambiguous workbook item, with A as the book’s preferred answer rather than the only possible English phrase.
Gap 2 (exact). “Many tasks that once took hours [2] ___ performed in minutes with just the touch of a button.” A. can be B. could be C. have been D. are being
Answer and explanation
Workbook key: B (could be), but A (can be) gives a natural present contrast. The surrounding source text discusses what technology enables today. “That once took hours” is a relative clause describing the tasks, not a command to put the main clause in the past. “Can be performed” contrasts their old duration with present capability. “Could be” can express past ability or a more tentative possibility, depending on context; “are being” and “have been” also form grammatical passives with different viewpoints. The source key’s claim that “once” forces B is therefore unsound. Read the whole context and consider the meaning of each modal or tense.
Gap 5 (excerpt; opening shortened). “The development of renewable energy sources has helped [5] ___ reliance on fossil fuels.” A. reduce B. reduce of C. reduce on D. reduce in
Answer and explanation
Answer: A (reduce). After “helped,” the bare infinitive “reduce” completes the collocation “reduce reliance on.” The prepositional endings in B, C and D have no grammatical function here.
New practice written for this article: short drill
The passage below is fictional and was written for this article; every answer is explained underneath. It is a short drill of five gaps, shorter than the eight gaps of the examined Part 1.
Marshfield library festival. Last spring the small town of Marshfield held a weekend festival to celebrate its hundred-year-old library. Volunteers organised outdoor readings, and local shops [1] ___ cakes and tea for the visitors. The organisers had expected a quiet afternoon, but the square was soon [2] ___ with families. Children borrowed costumes and [3] ___ part in a parade of storybook characters. Entry to every event was free, [4] ___ the organisers hoped visitors would donate to the repair fund. By Sunday evening the fund [5] ___ passed its target, and the library committee thanked everyone who had helped.
1. A. served B. cured C. repaired D. mended 2. A. crowded B. crowd C. clouded D. counted 3. A. made B. gave C. took D. held 4. A. although B. despite C. however D. because of 5. A. has B. had C. have D. having
Answers and explanations
1 — A (served). “Served cakes and tea” is the natural collocation for offering food to visitors. “Cured” applies to illness or meat, while “repaired” and “mended” apply to broken objects — none of the three can take cakes and tea as an object.
2 — A (crowded). The predicative adjective “was crowded with families” describes the square. “Crowd” is a noun or verb, “clouded” concerns blurred vision or weather, and “counted” needs a different construction.
3 — C (took). “Took part in” is a fixed phrase meaning participated. The other verbs do not combine with “part in.”
4 — A (although). The sentence contrasts free entry with the hope for donations, and “although” introduces that concessive clause grammatically. “Despite” would need a noun phrase (“despite the free entry”), “however” would need different punctuation (a semicolon or full stop before it), and “because of” would also need a noun phrase and would reverse the meaning.
5 — B (had). The passage narrates finished past events (“held,” “organised,” “thanked”), so the past perfect “had passed” reports the fund result within that finished sequence. “Has passed” would reach into the present and “have/having” break subject agreement and form.
Part 2: open cloze
The decision method
- Skim the text first so the missing words serve the whole meaning, not one clause.
- Ask what kind of word the gap needs: article, preposition, auxiliary, pronoun, linker or quantifier.
- Read the sentence before and after the gap; the controller of the missing word often sits outside the gap sentence.
- Write exactly one word and check the spelling.
- Re-read the full text at the end; a correct page reads smoothly aloud in the head.
Adapted grammar practice with complete inputs
The book’s open-cloze chapter practises linkers, pronouns and other words in context, but some of its vocabulary gaps allow several answers. The four neutral examples below are new illustrations of those grammar decisions, not quotations or a full exam task. Write one word for each gap; where several words work, compare their meanings.
1. The library is closed on Sundays, ___ it opens every Saturday.
2. Nora is the volunteer ___ designed the poster.
3. Volunteers look forward ___ welcoming visitors.
4. The reading room is ___ the first floor.
Possible answers and explanations
1 — but or yet. These coordinate a contrast. “Although,” “though” and “while” also create a grammatical contrast; “and” presents the opening times as added information. A context would need to exclude those alternatives before this could be marked as a single-answer test item.
2 — who or that. Both can introduce this defining relative clause about a person. The pronoun is the subject of “designed,” so it cannot simply be omitted.
3 — to. The expression is “look forward to” plus a noun or -ing form: “to” here is a preposition, and “welcoming” follows it.
4 — on. “On the first floor” identifies the room’s location within the building.
Official Part 2 chiefly tests grammar, with some vocabulary. A gap is not restricted to a fixed list of structure words, and some official items allow more than one answer. In the exam, give one answer that fits the complete text.
New practice written for this article: short drill
The passage below is fictional and was written for this article. It is a short drill of six gaps, shorter than the eight gaps of the examined Part 2. Write ONE word for each gap.
Cycling to work in Alderwick. Alderwick is a fictional market town where cycling to work has become popular. Most riders leave home early so [1] ___ they can avoid the morning traffic. The route along the river is pleasant, [2] ___ it can be slippery after rain. New cyclists are advised to wear a helmet, [3] ___ protects the head in a fall. The club meets [4] ___ Saturday at half past eight beside the old mill. Riders [5] ___ arrive late are asked to wait for the second group. [6] ___ you cycle regularly, you will soon notice the journey getting easier.
Answers and explanations
1 — that. “So that they can avoid” expresses purpose. The pronoun “they” refers back to “most riders.”
2 — although (though, but, yet and while also acceptable). The second clause concedes a drawback of an otherwise pleasant route. “Although” and “though” mark the concession directly; “but” and “yet” coordinate the contrast (“is pleasant, but it can be slippery”); “while” gives the same contrast more formally.
3 — which. A non-defining relative clause adding information about the helmet; “which” unambiguously refers to the helmet itself, since it is the helmet that protects the head. (A vaguer continuation such as “which is required” could refer to the act of wearing rather than the object, so the sentence names the function explicitly.)
4 — every, each or on. “Every Saturday” and “each Saturday” state a repeated schedule. “On Saturday” can identify a particular Saturday, and the supplied passage does not exclude that reading. Accept it in this practice item. A regular habit must not be inferred from words that are absent from the passage.
5 — who. The relative pronoun stands for “riders” as the subject of “arrive.” “That” would also be grammatical; “which” would not, since riders are people.
6 — If (When and As also acceptable). The conditional frame “If you cycle…, you will…” matches the first conditional pattern used for real future results. “When” makes the result sound more certain, and “As” gives a time-course reading (“during the weeks you cycle”); all three are grammatical here.
Part 3: word formation
The decision method
- Read the sentence around the gap and name the word class it needs: noun, verb, adjective or adverb.
- Check the neighbours as guides, not fixed rules: articles and possessives often signal nouns; forms of “be,” “seem” and “feel” often precede adjectives; verbs and whole clauses often attract adverbs — but always confirm against the meaning.
- Build the form with the smallest change first — suffix, then prefix, then spelling adjustment — and consider a negative prefix only when the meaning demands it.
- Test number and agreement: plural nouns, third-person verbs, comparative adjectives.
- Check the spelling. Either British or American spelling is accepted when the form is correct (so “organised” and “organized” both pass); pick one variety and stay consistent to avoid slips.
Exact exercises from the source book
The book’s Part 3 Exercise 1 is a text on international travel with the root word printed after each gap. Four items are quoted exactly.
Item 1 (exact). “Over the past decades, international travel has become much more ___ (ACCESS) than ever before.”
Answer and explanation
Answer: accessible. In “has become much more ___ than ever before,” an adjective describing travel is needed, and “accessible” means easy to reach or obtain. The phrase “than ever before” confirms the comparison.
Item 2 (exact). “It’s now possible to visit ___ (EXOTIC) places…”
Answer and explanation
Workbook key: exotic — a labelling warning. The gap modifies the noun “places,” so the book asks you to recognise that the root is already the required adjective. This is a workbook adjective-identification item, not a faithful official word-formation item: in the examined task the root must genuinely change (prefix, suffix or spelling shift), whereas EXOTIC here is returned unchanged. Learn the recognition step from it, but practise derivation on items like the PRESS → pressure and MEAN → meaningful ones below.
Item 3 (exact). “…tourism can put a lot of ___ (PRESS) on local infrastructure and the environment.”
Answer and explanation
Answer: pressure. After “a lot of” a noun is required, and “put pressure on” is the fixed collocation. This item shows how Part 3 tests vocabulary knowledge as well as affixes.
Item 4 (exact). “To truly benefit from global travel, individuals should aim for ___ (MEAN) exchange and understanding.”
Answer and explanation
Answer: meaningful. The gap modifies the noun “exchange,” so an adjective is needed, and the sense required is “full of meaning,” giving the suffix “-ful.” Do not confuse the root MEAN with the adjective “mean” (unkind or average), which would reverse the sense.
New practice written for this article: short drill
The passage below is fictional and was written for this article. Change the word in brackets to fit each gap; the root is supplied exactly as in the examined task.
A school garden project. Our school decided to turn an unused corner of the playground into a garden, and the planning was surprisingly [1] ___ (CARE): every detail had been checked twice. Pupils measured the beds with great [2] ___ (PRECISE), and the science teacher explained which plants were [3] ___ (SUIT) for shade. Watering duties were shared [4] ___ (FAIR) between the classes. At first a few seedlings looked [5] ___ (HEALTH), but they recovered and soon looked strong again. By July, in the head teacher’s word, the garden was a genuine [6] ___ (SUCCEED).
Answers and explanations
1 — careful. After “was,” an adjective describing the planning is needed, and the sense (thorough, attentive planning) requires building CARE into “careful” with the suffix “-ful” — a genuine derivation from the root.
2 — precision. After “with great,” a noun is required: the noun form of PRECISE.
3 — suitable. After “were,” an adjective complement is needed: plants “suitable for shade.”
4 — fairly. The gap modifies the verb phrase “were shared,” so the adverb “fairly” is required.
5 — unhealthy. The concessive “at first… but” signals a negative state that later improved, so the negative prefix “un-” plus the adjective gives “unhealthy.”
6 — success. After the article “a” and the adjective “genuine,” the noun form is needed: “a genuine success.”
Part 4: key word transformation
The decision method and the official word limit
- Read the first sentence for meaning, not for words.
- Look at the key word and recall which grammar patterns it controls (for example, “despite” takes a noun or -ing form; “unless” replaces a negative condition).
- Build the second sentence from the printed beginning, keeping the key word unchanged.
- Count the words you write, including the key word: the examined rule allows between two and five words. An answer outside the required range fails the word-limit instruction.
- Compare the two sentences for identical meaning and check the tense.
High-frequency patterns worth rehearsing: too/enough with infinitives (“too weak to lift”), “despite” + noun/-ing for “although” clauses, “unless” for “if… not,” reported-speech verbs such as “told,” comparative “far” + comparative adjective, and “since” for measuring time from a past point (“It is years since…”).
Exact exercises from the source book
Each original sentence and key word below is quoted exactly from the book’s Part 4 Exercise 1; try each before opening the answer. An important honesty note: the book prints the original, the key word and its completed key sentence, but no gapped second sentence — so the frames below are editorial (adapted), supplied so that word counts can be checked. Counts apply to these adapted frames only, and every answer is reinserted into its exact frame with the full completed sentence shown.
Item 1 (original exact). “She wasn’t strong enough to lift the box.” Key: TOO. Book’s key sentence (exact): “She was too weak to lift the box.” Adapted frame: “She ___ to lift the box.”
Answer and explanation
Suggested answer, written into the frame: She was too weak to lift the box. Full completed sentence: “She was too weak to lift the box.” You write three words: was(1) too(2) weak(3). The “not strong enough” structure converts to “too” + opposite adjective + infinitive. The tense stays past, matching “wasn’t.”
Item 2 (original exact). “Although he had little money, he still managed to pay for the tickets.” Key: DESPITE. Book’s key sentence (exact): “Despite having little money, he still managed to pay for the tickets.” Adapted frame: “___, he still managed to pay for the tickets.”
Answer and explanation
Suggested answer, written into the frame: Despite having little money, he still managed to pay for the tickets. Full completed sentence: “Despite having little money, he still managed to pay for the tickets.” You write four words: Despite(1) having(2) little(3) money(4). “Despite” cannot take a full clause, so “although he had” becomes the -ing clause “having little money” (not simply a noun phrase, and never “despite of”).
Item 3 (original exact). “He’ll never forgive me if I don’t apologize.” Key: UNLESS. Book’s key sentence (exact): “He’ll never forgive me unless I apologize.” Adapted frame: “He’ll never forgive me ___.”
Answer and explanation
Suggested answer, written into the frame: He’ll never forgive me unless I apologize. Full completed sentence: “He’ll never forgive me unless I apologize.” You write three words: unless(1) I(2) apologize(3). “Unless” already carries the negative, so “if I don’t” collapses to “unless I” with a positive verb. Caution: “unless” works for “if… not” here, but it is not universally interchangeable with it — never apply the swap blindly.
Item 4 (original exact). “It was necessary for him to learn the language to find a job abroad.” Key: HAD. Book’s key sentence (exact): “He had to learn the language to find a job abroad.” Adapted frame: “He ___ to find a job abroad.”
Answer and explanation
Suggested answer, written into the frame: He had to learn the language to find a job abroad. Full completed sentence: “He had to learn the language to find a job abroad.” You write five words: had(1) to(2) learn(3) the(4) language(5). “It was necessary” converts to the past obligation “had to,” keeping the finished-past reference in the past tense.
The SINCE item: count the gap, not the whole sentence
Original and completed key from the book. Original: “I haven’t seen them for years.” Key: SINCE. Completed key: “It has been years since I saw them.” Both sentences are grammatical. The book does not supply a gapped second sentence, so we cannot declare that its answer exceeds the word limit.
Adapted frame A: “It has ___ them.” Adapted frame B: “It ___ them.” Try both using SINCE, with two to five words inside each gap.
Answers, completed sentences and counts
A: been years since I saw. Five words: been(1) years(2) since(3) I(4) saw(5). Completed sentence: “It has been years since I saw them.” The original key works within this adapted frame because “has” is already printed.
B: is years since I saw. Five words: is(1) years(2) since(3) I(4) saw(5). Completed sentence: “It is years since I saw them.” Here “has been years since I saw” would require six written words, so choose the five-word alternative. That constraint comes from frame B, not from an error in the original complete sentence.
Count contractions as their full forms under Cambridge’s instructions, except “can’t” representing “cannot.” Writing “didn’t” does not turn “did not” into one counted word.
New practice written for this article: short drill
All four items below are new and fictional, written for this article. Rewrite each second sentence using the key word, writing between two and five words including that word.
1. The meeting was so long that everyone felt tired. Key: SUCH → It was ___ that everyone felt tired.
2. “You should arrive before nine,” the organiser said to us. Key: TOLD → The organiser ___ before nine.
3. I last saw my cousin in 2019. Key: SINCE → I have not ___ 2019.
4. The second film was much funnier than the first one. Key: FAR → The second film was ___ the first one.
Answers and explanations
1 — Suggested answer, written into the frame: It was such a long meeting that everyone felt tired. Full completed sentence: “It was such a long meeting that everyone felt tired.” You write four words: such(1) a(2) long(3) meeting(4). The “so + adjective + that” structure converts to “such a + adjective + noun,” with “that” already printed in the frame.
2 — told us we should arrive. Five words: told(1) us(2) we(3) should(4) arrive(5). Completed sentence: “The organiser told us we should arrive before nine.” This keeps the original advice expressed by “should.” “Told us to arrive” presents it as an instruction, so the five-word version is the closer meaning match for this item.
3 — Suggested answer, written into the frame: I have not seen my cousin since 2019. Full completed sentence: “I have not seen my cousin since 2019.” You write four words: seen(1) my(2) cousin(3) since(4), with the key word SINCE inside the written answer. The last sighting converts to a present perfect span with “since,” and the year and the people are preserved exactly as supplied.
4 — Suggested answer, written into the frame: The second film was far funnier than the first one. Full completed sentence: “The second film was far funnier than the first one.” You write three words: far(1) funnier(2) than(3) — “the” is already printed in the frame, so writing it again would duplicate it. The intensifier “much” before a comparative converts to “far.” The comparison and both films are preserved exactly as supplied.
Bridge: how Parts 1–4 skills score in Parts 5–7
Grammar and vocabulary support the reading skills needed for longer texts. These connections are useful to practise alongside comprehension:
- Part 1 collocations become Part 5 paraphrases. If you know “have a profound impact,” you will recognise “had a deep effect on” as the same idea in different words when an option restates the text.
- Part 2 reference words become Part 6 connectors. Tracking “it,” “this,” “they” and contrast linkers across a cloze gap is the same operation as choosing which removed sentence fits a gapped-text slot.
- Part 3 word families support Part 7 scanning. Recognising that “explore” and “exploration” are related can help locate an idea. Still check who acts, what happens and whether the statement is supported; a related word alone is not enough.
- Part 4 paraphrasing becomes Part 5 distractor defence. Many wrong options in Part 5 are failed transformations: they change the agent, the time, the quantity or the certainty of the text sentence. Checking “same meaning?” for each option is the Part 4 habit reused.
Part 5 in this book: evidence for every answer
The book’s method for Part 5: skim for the main idea, read each question against the relevant lines, eliminate distractors and accept nothing without textual evidence. Two questions from the book’s Exercise 1 (the letter-writing passage) are quoted exactly below. The passage argues that handwritten letters convey emotion and personality more deeply than digital messages because of handwriting, careful phrasing and even paper choice, while email made staying in touch instant.
Source passage for the two questions (exact). For centuries, handwritten letters were the primary way of communicating personal thoughts, news, and feelings across long distances. Grandparents wrote to grandchildren, soldiers to families, and lovers to each other – all in carefully chosen words on paper. However, the advent of the internet and email revolutionized communication. Suddenly, messages could be sent instantly. Although this change made staying in touch easier, it also signaled the decline of the art of letter writing. Many people now prefer to send a quick email or text message rather than take the time to write a letter. Some cultural commentators lament this loss. They argue that letters can convey emotion and personality more deeply because the writer’s handwriting, careful phrasing, and even the choice of paper add personal touches. One novelist suggests that receiving a handwritten letter can be a deeply moving experience that digital texts cannot match. Despite this, there are still people who keep the tradition alive, such as enthusiasts who participate in global pen-pal programs. They believe that preserving letter writing reminds us of the patience and thoughtfulness inherent in human communication.
Question 1 (exact). What does the novelist suggest about handwritten letters? A. They are outdated. B. They can be deeply moving. C. They travel faster than emails. D. They are too personal.
Answer and explanation
Answer: B. The passage states that receiving a handwritten letter “can be a deeply moving experience that digital texts cannot match.” Option A reverses the novelist’s admiration, option C contradicts the passage (instant messaging belongs to email), and option D adds a judgement the text never makes.
Question 2 (exact). What do cultural commentators argue about letters? A. Handwriting adds personal touches and emotion. B. Emails are faster. C. People prefer texting now. D. Writing skills are declining.
Answer and explanation
Answer: A. The commentators argue that letters “convey emotion and personality more deeply” through handwriting, phrasing and paper choice. Option B is true in the passage but is not the commentators’ argument; C describes behaviour, not their claim; D is never stated.
New practice written for this article: mini-passage
The passage below is fictional and was written for this article (about 160 words — shorter than an examined Part 5 text, so treat it as a short drill). Answer the four questions, then check the key.
The night market on Bell Street. For eleven months of the year, Bell Street is an ordinary shopping street of banks and bakeries. Every December, though, it changes character entirely. Stallholders arrive before dawn to build wooden cabins along both pavements, and by ten o’clock the smell of roasted nuts fills the cold air. The market’s organiser, Priya Nair, took over the event in 2018, when traders complained that rising rents had emptied half the stalls. She replaced the entry fee with a share of each stall’s daily takings, and within two years every cabin was booked. The market itself began in 2011. Visitors often assume it is centuries old, but its oldest tradition — the lantern parade led by local schoolchildren — dates only from 2015. Nair is frank about the workload: “People see the lights and think it runs itself. Behind every bulb there is a rota, a risk assessment and somebody’s frozen fingers.” This year’s market opens on the first Friday of December and runs for sixteen evenings.
1. What do visitors often assume about the market? A. That it is older than it is. B. That it loses money. C. That it opens in November. D. That schoolchildren organise it.
2. Why did Nair change the payment system? A. To raise rents. B. To fill the empty stalls. C. To pay for the lanterns. D. To shorten the market.
3. The quotation from Nair mainly shows that the market is… A. completely automated. B. harder work than it looks. C. run only by children. D. too dangerous to visit.
4. Which statement is supported by the passage? A. The market runs for sixteen evenings. B. The market opens at ten o’clock. C. Nair founded the market in 2018. D. The parade is the market’s main income.
Answers and explanations
1 — A. The stated assumption that the market is centuries old supports A, and the passage gives the explicit facts: the market began in 2011 and even its oldest tradition, the lantern parade, dates only from 2015. B, C and D have no textual support.
2 — B. The change followed complaints that “rising rents had emptied half the stalls,” and “within two years every cabin was booked.” A reverses her action, C and D are unstated.
3 — B. Rotas, risk assessments and “frozen fingers” behind the lights show hidden labour. A contradicts the quotation, C confuses leading the parade with running the market, D invents danger.
4 — A. Stated in the final sentence (“runs for sixteen evenings”). B confuses ten o’clock — the time by which the smell of roasted nuts fills the air — with opening time; stallholders arrive before dawn. C is wrong (she “took over” in 2018 — taking over is not founding; the market began in 2011); D is never stated.
Part 6 in this book: cohesion, plus one honest warning
For Part 6: read the whole text for flow first, study the sentences before and after each gap, match pronouns, linkers and repeated vocabulary, and remember that one of the seven options is unused in the official task; the source workbook’s sets use different counts. The warning from the corrections section applies here: in the book’s bicycle-history Exercise 1, options C (“Eventually, this water makes its way into streams and rivers”) and D (“This process thus completes the cycle”) belong to the water-cycle exercise, so gaps [3] and [4] of the bicycle text have no valid printed option. The two workable insertions below use short source extracts; gaps [3] and [4] are left unanswered deliberately.
Gap [1] (exact). “Bicycles have a long and fascinating history. [1] The first two-wheeled vehicles appeared in the early 19th century.” Option A: “In the beginning, bicycle designs were extremely basic.”
Answer and explanation
Answer: A fits gap [1]. The sentence generalises about simple early designs, bridging “fascinating history” and the first dated fact. It carries no pronoun needing an earlier referent, which suits an opening slot.
Gap [2] (exact). “A major breakthrough came when pedals were attached to the front wheel, creating the ‘velocipede’. [2] However, this design was quite dangerous…” Option B: “At first, the velocipede was something of a novelty in cities like Paris.”
Answer and explanation
Answer: B fits gap [2]. “The velocipede” repeats the new noun from the previous sentence, and the text moves from the invention’s novelty to a safety problem with “However.” “Novelty” means something new or unusual; it does not automatically express praise.
Water-cycle insertions from source excerpts
The book’s Exercise 2 on the water cycle prints six matching sentences for six gaps. Two use shortened excerpts, with omissions marked by an ellipsis, with a third taught as a printed defect rather than an approved insertion. Notice the active verbs of movement and change (“moves,” “rises,” “makes its way” with its directional complement), which are worth copying in your own scientific descriptions.
Gap [1] (excerpt). “The water cycle is the process by which water circulates… [1] The cycle has no beginning or end…” Option A: “In this cycle, water continually moves and changes form.”
Answer and explanation
Answer: A fits gap [1]. “This cycle” refers back to the defined term, and the summary statement prepares “no beginning or end.”
Gap [4] — defective as printed; taught here, not approved. “Over time, this water may flow through rivers back to the ocean, [4] completing the cycle.” Option D: “This process thus completes the cycle.” Inserting D into the comma slot gives “…back to the ocean, This process thus completes the cycle. completing the cycle” — a capitalised complete sentence wedged after a comma with the original participle left dangling. That reconstruction is ungrammatical, so D cannot fill gap [4] as the text is punctuated, even though the book’s key matches D by meaning. Read the completed paragraph aloud and the break is obvious. An adapted frame that D genuinely fits would end the sentence first: “…back to the ocean. [4]” — then “This process thus completes the cycle” follows cleanly, with “this process” gathering the whole circulation just described. The lesson: never accept an insertion because the key matches; always re-read the reconstructed text.
Gap [6] (excerpt). “…it keeps changing state and location through evaporation, precipitation and collection. [6]” Option F: “In short, the water cycle never stops.”
Answer and explanation
Answer: F fits gap [6]. “In short” signals a closing summary, and “never stops” restates continuity — the passage’s main idea — in fresh words.
Part 7 in this book: gist labels before matching
The book’s method for Part 7: read all statements first, skim the texts for gist, label each text in a few words, then scan statements back to precise wording and expect paraphrase. The book’s Exercise 1 gives five short book descriptions (A–E): a humorous travel guide (City Highlights), a historical biography (Timeless Tales), a detective novel (Midnight Murder), a Mars science-fiction novel (Space Odyssey) and a beginners’ cookbook (The Home Kitchen). Four statements are quoted with their matches below, followed by one adapted statement that resolves an ambiguity in the original.
Source descriptions, shortened with original wording retained:
A. City Highlights. A travel book full of personal stories and advice from an adventurous explorer. Filled with humorous anecdotes, it offers practical tips for visiting famous landmarks. The author encourages readers to wander off the beaten path and discover new places, making it an inspiring guide for curious travelers.
B. Timeless Tales. This narrative non-fiction recounts the life of a famous historical figure. It covers significant events that shaped the person’s life and the era they lived in. The writing is informative and factual, drawing on real experiences and archival sources to present a clear picture of the past.
C. Midnight Murder. A thrilling detective novel set in London. The story follows a determined detective solving a series of puzzling crimes. Readers will find suspense and plot twists as clues are uncovered one by one, leading to the resolution of the mystery.
D. Space Odyssey. A science fiction novel that takes place on Mars. The protagonist is an engineer on a spacecraft conducting experiments in outer space. The book delves into futuristic technology and scientific concepts, appealing to fans of space exploration and advanced science.
E. The Home Kitchen. A practical guide to cooking for beginners. The author shares step-by-step recipes and cooking tips in an easy-to-follow, instructional manner. Aimed at home cooks, it emphasizes the joy of cooking while providing useful guidance for everyday meals.
Statement 1 (exact). “Contains recipes or cooking tips.” → E. The Home Kitchen “shares step-by-step recipes and cooking tips.”
Statement 2 (exact). “The story involves solving a mystery or crime.” → C. Midnight Murder follows “a determined detective solving a series of puzzling crimes.”
Statement 3 (exact). “The setting is in outer space.” → D. Space Odyssey “takes place on Mars… conducting experiments in outer space.”
Statement 4 (exact). “Writing style is humorous and light-hearted.” → A. City Highlights is “filled with humorous anecdotes.” This is direct evidence of humour; it is not an example of a different word family.
Statement 5 (adapted). “Recounts a historical figure’s life using archival sources.” → B. Timeless Tales explicitly supplies both details. The book’s broader statement, “Content is based on true experiences,” is less secure: A also promises personal travel stories. The adapted statement identifies the biography without assuming that personal stories must be fictional.
New practice written for this article: mini-match
The four notices below are fictional and were written for this article. Match each of the six statements to one notice (A–D); each notice may match more than one statement, and each statement has one match. This is a short drill: the examined Part 7 has ten questions on one long text or several shorter texts.
A. Evening pottery class. Learn to shape clay on the wheel in our relaxed Tuesday evening sessions. All materials are provided and no previous experience is needed. Booking in advance is essential because places are limited to twelve.
B. Saturday cycling club. Join our friendly group rides through the valley every Saturday morning. New members are welcome at any time and the pace suits beginners. The weekly ride costs two pounds, collected at the start; bring a helmet, and cycles can be hired cheaply at the start point.
C. First-aid evening course. This practical two-evening course teaches emergency skills including bandaging and resuscitation. Participants receive a certificate recognised by local employers. Early registration is advised as the course fills quickly.
D. Library reading group. We meet on the first Thursday of each month to discuss a chosen novel over tea. Membership is free and newcomers can simply turn up. The group occasionally invites local authors to answer questions.
1. Advance booking is required. 2. You can take part without paying. 3. You receive a certificate at the end. 4. Equipment can be hired for a fee. 5. Meeting a writer is possible. 6. There is a small charge for each session.
Answers and explanations
1 — A. “Booking in advance is essential.” (C advises early registration but does not require booking.)
2 — D. “Membership is free” — the only notice that states taking part costs nothing. (B charges two pounds per ride; A requires advance booking without stating free entry.)
3 — C. “Participants receive a certificate recognised by local employers.” The statement asks for the certificate explicitly — a certificate is not necessarily a qualification, so the statement claims no more than the notice gives. No other notice offers one.
4 — B. “Cycles can be hired cheaply at the start point.” Note the wording: hiring means paying a small fee, which is different from free borrowing — the statement says “for a fee” to match exactly what B supplies. No other notice offers equipment for hire.
5 — D. “Occasionally invites local authors.” No other notice mentions writers.
6 — B. “The weekly ride costs two pounds, collected at the start” — the only notice stating a per-session charge. (D’s membership is free; A and C name no charge.)
Full-paper rehearsal plan
Adapted from the book’s review systems: keep an error log with a code per mistake (for example V for vocabulary, G for grammar, C for comprehension), note the question number, your answer and the reason, and revisit the log after a few days.
- Weekly mixed set. Take one drill from each part in this article in paper order (Parts 1–7) under a 60-minute timer — shorter than the real paper because these are short drills, but strict.
- Mark immediately. Check every answer against the keys above, including items you got right; the explanation often contains the transferable rule.
- Log and code. Record each error with its code and one sentence on the cause (for example, “Part 4 — wrote six words; forgot to count the key word”).
- Targeted repair. Spend the next session only on your most frequent code, using the matching method section of this article.
- Full-length practice. Move to complete official-style papers — the book recommends official B2 First practice tests — with the timing frame from the exam-map section.
Common errors and corrected versions
Error 1 — claiming one collocation where two fit. “Dramatic impact” is entirely natural English, as is “profound impact” — so Gap 1 above cannot be settled on collocation alone. Correct by testing every option inside the full sentence, and where two options survive, recognise a defective item rather than inventing a reason to reject one.
Error 2 — letting one clause dictate the tense. “Tasks that once took hours” does not force the main clause into the past. “Can be performed” can contrast an old duration with present capability. Identify the main clause’s time reference and intended meaning before choosing its verb.
Error 3 — counting without a gap frame. “Has been years since I saw” contains six words and is too long if all six must be written inside the gap. If “has” is already printed, only five remain. Count the actual inserted words, including the unchanged key word, and keep the total between two and five.
Error 4 — changing the key word. Writing “despite of” is ungrammatical here; replacing “unless” with “except” also fails the unchanged-key requirement. Copy the key word exactly.
Error 5 — answering from opinion in Part 5. “Emails are faster” is true in life and in the passage, but it was not the commentators’ argument. Correct by asking “who claims this, and where?” for every option.
Error 6 — forcing a sentence into a Part 6 gap that only fits grammatically. A water-cycle sentence can sit neatly in a bicycle gap as far as grammar goes and still be wrong. Correct by demanding a lexical or logical tie — a repeated noun, a pronoun with a clear referent, a linker the next sentence answers.
Self-assessment checklist. Before you book the exam, confirm you can: name all seven parts and their question counts; finish Parts 1–3 checking spelling; keep every Part 4 answer within two to five words including the key word; justify each Part 5 answer with the relevant text evidence (an inference or purpose question may need several sentences, not one); place Part 6 sentences by reference chains; and label Part 7 gists before matching.
Study plans using the book
The following study sequence is an article plan that combines the book’s practice topics: early weeks pair one Use of English part with its reading counterpart (Part 1 with Part 5, Part 2 with Part 6, Part 3 with Part 7, Part 4 with Part 5 distractors), middle weeks mix parts under timing, and the final stretch is full rehearsal plus error-log review. If you have only two weeks, work Days 1–3 on Parts 1 and 5, Days 4–6 on Parts 2 and 6, Days 7–9 on Parts 3, 4 and 7, Days 10–12 on mixed timed sets, and Days 13–14 on your logged weak areas.
FAQs
Should I do the parts in order?
The paper allows any order. The book suggests starting with your strongest part to build confidence; many candidates prefer Parts 5–7 first while concentration is fresh, or Parts 1–4 first to bank methodical marks. Trial both orders in rehearsal and keep the one with the better score.
How strict is the spelling?
In Parts 2 and 3 a misspelt answer is marked wrong, including article, plural and verb-form slips. Either British or American spelling is accepted when the form itself is correct — this article uses British forms (such as “organised”), but “organized” would equally pass. Staying consistent through the whole paper helps avoid slips.
Should I guess when unsure?
Yes. Answer every question. Eliminate options that the text rules out, then choose the best-supported remaining answer. Two remaining options do not automatically mean a reliable fifty-fifty choice: your elimination may itself be mistaken.
Why does the five-word limit matter so much in Part 4?
The official instructions require two to five words, including the unchanged key word. The SINCE example above shows why you need the printed frame before counting: the same complete sentence can require different numbers of inserted words in different frames.
Are the real texts really longer than the book’s overview says?
The book gives short per-part length estimates. Use complete official sample tasks to judge the actual reading load and practise timing. Cambridge gives about 2,200–2,500 words across the whole paper; that total alone does not specify the length of either Part 5 or Part 6.
The book behind this article
Strategic Cambridge B2 First Reading Skills Development for Top Performance by Jobin Thomas (Jobins Training) is a full-paper preparation book: strategy chapters for all seven parts of the Reading and Use of English paper, a practice workbook with exercises and detailed answer keys for Parts 1–7, micro-drills for Parts 5–7, study plans and error-log review systems. If the methods in this article suit the way you learn, the book gives you the volume of practice — many more complete exercises per part — that a single article cannot. You can find it on its product page: Cambridge B2 First Reading — Book 2.
Take this further with Strategic Cambridge B2 First Reading Skills Development for Top Performance
If this guide helped, Strategic Cambridge B2 First Reading Skills Development for Top Performance gives you the full training volume behind it: more practice, worked examples and step-by-step preparation. Get the book →
Sources and editorial notes
- Source book read for this article: EPUB file Cambridge b2 159-1 (title page: Strategic Cambridge B2 First Reading Skills Development for Top Performance, Jobin Thomas, Jobins Training; copyright 2025). Worked examples refer to the technology cloze, travel word formation, transformations, letter-writing passage, bicycle and water-cycle insertion tasks, and book-description matching exercise.
- Exam format verified against the official Cambridge B2 First exam format page and the B2 First handbook for teachers (PDF) (7 parts, 52 questions, 1 hour 15 minutes; about 2,200–2,500 words in total; Part 5 has 6 four-option questions, Part 6 has 6 gaps, Part 7 has 10 questions on one long text or several shorter texts; accessed September 2026). Official facts are paraphrased, not copied.
- Labels used honestly throughout: “exact” marks short quotations from the source book; “new” marks practice and passages written for this article (all fictional); “adapted” marks the study plans and rehearsal routine reshaped from the book’s review chapters. Suggested answers are explained models, not examiner-approved responses.
- Corrections to the source (Part 4 word limit, missing transformation frames, ambiguous items, Part 6 options and punctuation, and overview scoring) are listed in the corrections section; the original file is unchanged.