TOEFL IBT Reading Practice Test 15 from Barron’s TOEFL iBT
The Reading section tests your ability to understand reading passages like those in college textbooks. The passages are about 700 words in length.
This is the short format for the Reading section. On the short format, you will read three passages. After each passage, you will answer 12-14 questions about it. You may take notes while you read, but notes are not graded. You may use your notes to answer the questions.
Some passages may include a word or phrase that is underlined in blue. Click on the word or phrase to see a glossary definition or explanation.
Choose the best answer for multiple-choice questions. Follow the directions on the page or on the screen for computer-assisted questions. Most questions are worth 1 point, but the last question in each passage is worth more than 1 point.
The Reading section is divided into parts. Click on Next to go to the next question. Click on Back to return to previous questions. You may return to previous questions for all of the passages in the same part, but after you go to the next part, you will not be able to return to passages in the previous part. Be sure that you have answered all of the questions for the passages in each part before you dick on Next at the end of the passage to move to the next part.
You can dick on Review to see a chart of the questions you have answered and the questions you have not answered n each part. From this screen, you can return to the question you want to answer in the part that is open.
You will have 20 minutes to read each passage and answer the questions for that passage. You will have 60 minutes to complete all of the passages and answer all of the questions on the short format. A dock on the screen will show you how much time you have to complete the Reading section.
Reading 1 “Resources and Industrialism in Canada”
While the much-anticipated expansion of the western frontier was unfolding in accordance with the design of the National Policy, a new northern frontier was opening up to enhance the prospects of Canadian industrial development. [A] Long the preserve of the fur trade, the Canadian Shield and the western Cordilleras became a treasury of minerals, timber and hydroelectric power in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. As early as 1883, CPR [Canadian Pacific Rail-way] construction crews blasting through the rugged terrain of northern Ontario discovered copper and nickel deposits in the vicinity of Sudbury. [B] As refining processes, uses, and markets for the metal developed, Sudbury became the world’s largest nickel producer. The building of the Temiskaming and Northern Ontario Railway led to the discovery of rich silver deposits around Cobalt north of Lake Nipissing in 1903 and touched off a mining boom that spread northward to Kirkland Lake and the Porcupine district. [C] Although the economic importance of these mining operations was enduring, they did not capture the public imagi-nation to the same extent as the Klondike gold rush of the late 1890s. [D]
Fortune-seekers from all parts of the world flocked to the Klondike and Yukon River valleys to pan for gold starting in 1896. At the height of the gold rush in 1898, the previously unsettled subarctic frontier had a population of about 30,000, more than half of which was concentrated in the newly established town of Dawson. In the same year, the federal government created the Yukon Territory, administered by an appointed commissioner, in an effort to ward off the prospect of annexation to Alaska. Even if the economic significance of the Klondike strike was somewhat exaggerated and short-lived, the tales of sudden riches, heroic and tragic exploits, and the rowdiness and lawlessness of the mining frontier were immortalized through popular fiction and folklore, notably the poetic verses of Robert w. Service.
Perhaps less romantic than the mining booms, the exploitation of forest and water resources was just as vital to national development. The Douglas fir, spruce, and cedar stands of British Columbia along with the white pine forests of Ontario satisfied construction demands on the treeless prairies as well as in the growing cities and towns of central Canada and the United States. British Columbia’s forests also supplied lumber to Asia. In addition, the softwood forest wealth of the Cordilleras and the Shield was a valuable source of pulpwood for the development of the pulp and paper industry, which made Canada one of the world’s leading exporters of newsprint. Furthermore, the fast flowing rivers of the Shield and Cordilleras could readily be harnessed as sources of hydroelectric power, replacing coal in the booming factories of central Canada as well as in the evolving mining and pulp arid paper industries. The age of electricity under public ownership and control was ushered in by the creation of the Ontario Hydro-Electric Power Commission (now Ontario Hydro) in 1906 to dis¬tribute and eventually to produce this vital source of energy.
Western settlement and the opening of the northern resource frontier stimulated industrial expansion, particularly in central Canada. As the National Policy had intended, a growing agricultural population in the West increased the demand for eastern manufactured goods, thereby giving rise to agricultural implements works, iron and steel foundries, machine shops, railway yards, textile mills, boot and shoe factories, and numerous smaller manufacturing enterprises that supplied consumer goods. By keeping out lower-priced foreign manufactured good, the high tariff policies of the federal government received much credit for protecting existing industries and encouraging the creation new enterprises. To climb the tariff wall, large American industrial firms opened branches in Canada, and the governments of Ontario and Quebec aggressively urged them on by .offering bonuses, subsidies, and guarantees to locate new plants within their borders. Canadian industrial enterprises became increasingly attractive to foreign investors, especially from the United States and Great Britain. Much of the over $600 million of American capital that flowed into Canada from 1900 to 1913 was earmarked for mining and the pulp and paper industry, while British investors contributed near $1.8 billion, mostly in railway building, business development, and the construction of urban infrastructure. As a result, the gross value of Canadian manufactured products quadrupled from 1891 to 1916.
1. Why does the author mention “the railroads” in paragraph 1 ?
A/ Because miners were traveling to camps in the West
B/ Because mineral deposits were discovered when the railroads were built
C/ Because the western frontier was being settled by families
D/ Because traders used the railroads to transport their goods
Paragraph 1 is marked with an arrow [->].
2. In paragraph 1, the author identifies Sudbury as
A/ an important stop on the new railroad line
B/ a large market for the metals produced in Ontario
C/ a major industrial center for the production of nickel
D/ a mining town in the Klondike region
Paragraph 1 is marked with an arrow [-*].
3. The word enduring in the passage is closest in meaning to
A/ disruptive B/ restored C/ identifiable D/ lasting
4. According to paragraph 2, why was the Yukon Territory created?
A/ To encourage people to settle the region
B/ To prevent Alaska from acquiring it
C/ To establish law and order in the area
D/ To legalize the mining claims
Paragraph 2 is marked with an arrow [->].
5. The word previously in the passage is closest in meaning to
A/ frequently B/ suddenly C/ routinely D/ formerly
6. How did the poetry by Robert Service contribute to the development of Canada?
A/ it made the Klondike gold rush famous.
B/ it encouraged families to settle in the Klondike.
C/ It captured the beauty of the western Klondike.
D/ it prevented the Klondike’s annexation to Alaska.
7. According to paragraph 3, the forest industry supported the development of Canada in all of the following ways EXCEPT
A/ by supplying wood for the construction of homes and buildings
B/ by clearing the land for expanded agricultural uses
C/ by producing the power for the hydroelectric plants
D/ by exporting wood and newsprint to foreign markets
Paragraph 3 is marked with an arrow [->].
8. The word Furthermore in the passage is closest in meaning to
A/ Although B/ Because C/ Therefore D/ Moreover
9. Which of the sentences below best expresses the information in the highlighted statement in the passage? The other choices change the meaning or leave out important information.
A/ New businesses and industries were created by the federal government to keep the prices of manufactured goods low.
B/ The lower price of manufacturing attracted many foreign businesses and new indus¬tries to the area.
C/ Federal taxes on cheaper imported goods were responsible for protecting domestic industries and supporting new businesses.
D/ The federal tax laws made it difficult for manufacturers to sell their goods to foreign markets.
10. The word them in the passage refers to
A/ governments B/ plants C/ firms D/ policies
11. According to paragraph 4, British and American businesses opened affiliates in Canada because
A/ the Canadian government offered incentives
B/ the raw materials were available in Canada
C/ the consumers in Canada were eager to buy their goods
D/ the infrastructure was attractive to investors
Paragraph 4 is marked with an arrow [->].
12. Look at the four squares [■] that show where the following sentence could be inserted in
the passage.
Railway construction through the Kootenay region of southeastern British Columbia also led to significant discoveries of gold, silver, copper, lead, and zinc.
Where could the sentence best be added?
Click on a square [■] to insert the sentence in the passage.
13. Directions: An introduction for a short summary of the passage appears below. Complete the summary by selecting the THREE answer choices that mention the most important points in the passage. Some sentences do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that are not included in the passage or are minor points from the passage. This question is worth 2 points.
The northern frontier provided many natural resources that contributed to the industrial expansion of Canada.
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Answer Choices
A/ The Yukon Territory was created in 1898 during the gold rush in the Klondike and Yukon River valleys.
B/ The frontier was documented in the popular press, which published tales of heroes and gold strikes.
C/ Significant discoveries of mineral deposits encouraged prospectors and settlers to move into the territories.
D/ Wheat and other agricultural crops were planted after the forests were cleared, creating the central plains.
E/ Powered by hydroelectricity, lumber and paper mills exploited the forests for both domestic and foreign markets.
F/ Incentives encouraged American and British investors to help expand manufacturing plants in Canada.
Reading Passage 2 Reading Passage 3 Answer Keys & Explanation