English Base

Test 016

Reading Practice: The Saturday Market

Reading Text

On Saturday morning, the smell of warm bread and honey came through our kitchen window. My sister and I walked to the town market because we needed food for the weekend. The market opened at eight, so we arrived early.

The first stall sold honey in glass jars. The seller, a tall man with grey hair, let us taste three kinds. We bought dark forest honey because my sister loved the strong taste. A woman gave us a slice of soft white cheese to try.

Near the fountain I met Anna, an old classmate. We had not seen each other for two years. She told me about her new job and her little dog. After that, I bought fresh vegetables for soup and a loaf of bread.

The bags were heavy, so we took a bus home. In the evening, we cooked dinner from everything we bought: vegetable soup, cheese on warm bread and tea with honey. It was simple food, but it was the best meal of the week.

Comprehension Test

Question 1. Why did the narrator and her sister walk to the market?

✗ IncorrectAnna was an old classmate who was met by chance near the fountain, so meeting her was not the reason for the trip.

✓ CorrectThe text says they walked to the market "because we needed food for the weekend".

✗ IncorrectThey took their own bags from home; the text never mentions buying bags.

✗ IncorrectSchool appears only later, in connection with Anna, and nothing is said about the market being near it.

Question 2. How did the narrator and her sister get to the market?

✗ IncorrectThe bus is mentioned only for the way home, when the bags were heavy, not for the way there.

✗ IncorrectNo car appears in the text; the two of them carried the bags themselves.

✗ IncorrectBicycles are never mentioned in the text.

✓ CorrectThe text says: "My sister and I walked to the town market".

Question 3. What do we learn about the time of their arrival?

✓ CorrectThe text says the market "opened at eight, so we arrived early".

✗ IncorrectTen o'clock is not mentioned; the market opened at eight and they arrived before that.

✗ IncorrectThe visit happened in the morning, before the evening cooking, not after lunch.

✗ IncorrectThey arrived early, so they did not miss the opening at all.

Question 4. What did the honey seller do for them?

✗ IncorrectThe cheese was offered by a woman at another stall, not by the honey seller.

✗ IncorrectThe text describes the seller as "a tall man with grey hair", not as a young man with dark hair.

✓ CorrectThe text says the seller "let us taste three kinds" of honey.

✗ IncorrectThey bought a jar of honey; the text does not say it was a gift.

Question 5. Why did they choose the dark forest honey?

✗ IncorrectPrices are not discussed in the text, so the choice was not about money.

✓ CorrectThe text says they bought it "because my sister loved the strong taste".

✗ IncorrectThe seller let them taste, but the text does not say he recommended one kind.

✗ IncorrectThere were three kinds to taste, so other honey was still available.

Question 6. What is true about Anna?

✗ IncorrectAnna was a classmate from school who was met near the fountain; she did not work at the market.

✗ IncorrectShe spoke about her new job and her little dog, not about a baby.

✗ IncorrectThe fountain is only the place where they met; the text says nothing about her home.

✓ CorrectThe text says: "We had not seen each other for two years."

Question 7. Why did they go home by bus?

✓ CorrectThe text says: "The bags were heavy, so we took a bus home."

✗ IncorrectRain is not mentioned anywhere in the text.

✗ IncorrectNothing is said about the price of the bus; the reason given is the weight of the bags.

✗ IncorrectAnna left before the shopping ended, and her address is never discussed.

Question 8. What did they make for dinner in the evening?

✗ IncorrectFish and rice do not appear in the text; the dinner was made from what they bought at the market.

✗ IncorrectHoney went into the tea, not into the soup, and the cheese was served on bread.

✓ CorrectThe text lists "vegetable soup, cheese on warm bread and tea with honey".

✗ IncorrectBread and cheese were only part of the meal, which also had soup and tea.

Question 9. What does the narrator mean by "It was simple food, but it was the best meal of the week"?

✗ IncorrectPrices are not mentioned, and "simple food" points to ordinary, not costly, dishes.

✓ CorrectThe words "the best meal of the week" show real pleasure, and "simple food" explains that the dishes were plain.

✗ IncorrectThe narrator calls it the best meal of the week, so there is no regret about staying at home.

✗ IncorrectThe text praises the meal and says nothing about the size of the portions.

Question 10. In the text, what is a "stall"?

✗ IncorrectThe stalls stood in the open market street, and no building with shops is described.

✗ IncorrectCheese was one of the products at the market, not the meaning of the word "stall".

✗ IncorrectThe jars held the honey, but the stall is the place where the seller stood with them.

✓ Correct"The first stall sold honey" means the place where the seller stood with his jars — a stand at the market.
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