Objective Proficiency p 67. Boston: Two Halves of a City. Extra Multiple Choice Cloze

Boston: Two halves of a city

There are two --(0)-- named Boston. The tourist’s Boston is the old city, the centre of New England civilisation and the --(1)-- of American independence.  Its most famous buildings are not merely civic --(2)-- but national icons; its great leaders are not only the political and financial leaders of today but also --(3)-- of history and myth. This city is almost 300 years old, far older than the republic it helped to create in the days of its youth.

The other Boston is much younger and every --(4)-- as vibrant as the original town.  This is the business traveller’s destination, the new Boston created by --(5)-- finance and technology as an answer to those who thought the city had become --(6)-- more than a museum. It is a place where granite and glass towers rise along what once had been --(7)-- village lanes, the commercial structures --(8)-- those that just a generation ago had been the city’s largest buildings. With a little time and effort, visitors can appreciate both sides of Boston.


0 A cities B destinations C states D places
 1 A pram B cot C cradle D bed
2 A images B landmarks C locations D signposts
3 A players B personae C characters D figures
4 A way B piece C part D bit
5 A great B high C top D peak
6 A scarcely B slightly C sparsely D practically
7 A rutted B furrowed C grooved D indented
8 A diminishing B dwarfing C minimising D stunting
 

KEY

0. B destinations






1. C cradle






2. B Landmark
Landmark: something, such as a large building, that you can see clearly from a distance and that will help you to know where you are. Sp. punto de referencia, lugar muy conocido. E.g. The Empire State Building is a familiar landmark on the New York skyline.
Signpost: a sign at the side of a road giving information about the direction and distance of places. Sp. señal. E.g. Follow the signposts to the superstore. (Figurative) The chapter headings are useful signposts to the content of the book.



3 D figures
Persona: /pəˈsəʊnə/ (pl. personae /pəˈsəʊniː/or personas) the aspects of a person's character that they show to other people, especially when their real character is different. Sp. imagen. E.g. His public persona is quite different from the family man described in the book.



4 D bit



5 B high



6 A scarcely
Scarcely: /ˈskeəsli/ only just; almost not. Sp. apenas. E.g. I can scarcely believe it. We scarcely ever meet. Scarcely a week goes by without some new scandal in the papers. There was scarcely a tree left standing after the storm.
Sparsely: /spɑːsli/ only present in small amounts or numbers and often spread over a large area. E.g. a sparsely populated area. A sparsely furnished room.



7 A rutted
Rutted: with deep tracks that have been made by wheels.
Furrowed: with long narrow cuts in the ground made by a plough (Sp. arado) for planting seeds in. Sp. con surcos. E.g. furrowed fields.
Grooved: having long narrow cuts in the surface of something hard (grooves: Sp. ranuras) 
Indented: an indented edge is not even, because parts of it are missing or have been cut away. E.g. an indented coastline. The first line of each paragraph should be indented.



8 B dwarfing
Diminish: 1. to become or to make something become smaller, weaker, etc. E.g. The world's resources are rapidly diminishing. His influence has diminished with time.  2. To make somebody/something seem less important than they really are. Belittle. E.g. I don't wish to diminish the importance of their contribution.
Dwarf: /dwɔːf/ to make something seem small or unimportant compared with something else. E.g. The old houses were dwarfed by the huge new tower blocks.
Minimize something: to reduce something, especially something bad, to the lowest possible level. E.g. Good hygiene helps to minimize the risk of infection. Costs were minimized by using plastic instead of leather.
Stunt somebody/something: to prevent somebody/something from growing or developing as much as they/it should. Sp. detener. E.g. The constant winds had stunted the growth of plants and bushes. His illness had not stunted his creativity.