Cambridge 13 Listening Test 4 - Answers With Explanation

1. The gap names the department Alex started in; 'Finance' — a specific department name, capitalised as a distinct division of the company.

2. The gap names a school subject Alex lacked; 'Maths' (UK), 'Math' (US), or 'Mathematics' — all accepted spellings/forms of the same subject.

3. The gap names an alternative qualification Alex now regrets not taking; 'business' — paired with 'skills' already given, describing the diploma type.

4. A numeric gap for an age; the numeral '17' — the youngest trainee's age, a specific figure that must be caught precisely.

5. The gap describes an employment benefit equal to permanent staff; 'holiday(s)' (UK) or 'vacation(s)' (US), singular or plural all accepted.

6. The gap is where trainees study; 'college' — day-release study is a common training/apprenticeship structure.

7. The gap is a positive attribute of the company's site; 'location' — accessibility/convenience of the workplace.

8. A dress-code instruction; the gap names a forbidden clothing item — 'jeans' — a common dress-code restriction mentioned near the end of interview-advice notes.

9. A behavioural instruction; the gap is an adjective — 'late' — punctuality advice, a typical closing tip in interview-preparation notes.

10. A behavioural instruction; the gap is a verb — 'smile' — a simple, common piece of interview-presentation advice to close the notes.

11. Answer A: "get away from the regular trails." The recommendation favours exploring beyond marked paths, rather than sightseeing stops (B) or a cautious pace (C).

12. Answer B: "Anyone has the chance to drive a team of dogs." Participation is open to everyone rather than limited to volunteers for a race (A) or a single chosen leader (C).

13. Answer A: "All participants receive a medal." The detail given is an inclusive reward for everyone, not a specific course length (B) or teacher-led format (C).

14. Answer C: "climb to the top of a mountain." The activity's highlight is reaching a summit, rather than visiting a historical site (A) or a botanical focus (B).

15. Answer A: "a supply of drinking water." Only water is included in the price, not luggage transport (B) or meals (C), which are presumably extra or self-catered.

16. Answer B: "wait until the weather improves." The advice is to stay put rather than attempting contact (A) or using emergency equipment (C), which would be for more serious situations.

17. 'Highland Trail' is matched with B: 'It is suitable for all abilities' — an accessible, beginner-friendly route.

18. 'Pine Trail' is matched with D: 'It demands a lot of skill' — a more challenging, advanced route.

19. 'Stony Trail' is matched with A: 'It has a good place to stop and rest' — a route noted for a rest point along the way.

20. "Loser's Trail" is matched with E: 'It may be closed in bad weather' — a route with weather-dependent access.

21. Answer A: "He didn't read everything on them." His previous habit was partial/selective reading, not dismissing their importance (B) or finding them too complex (C).

22. Answer A: "she was unaware of what certain foods contained." Her gap was in knowledge/awareness, not effort (B) or narrow focus on calories alone (C).

23. Answer C: "the nutritional label is misleading." Their shared concern is about how the information is presented, not the ingredients themselves (A) or a resulting behaviour change (B).

24. Answer C: "more comprehensive." Jack values how much information the system covers, rather than ease of access (A) or internal logic (B).

25. Answer B: "The products did not contain any meat." The surprise was about an absent ingredient they expected (likely a meat-flavoured variety with no actual meat), not a labelling error (A) or omission (C).

26. Answer A: "It did not produce clear results." Their critique is about inconclusive findings, not flawed sampling (B) or impractical suggestions (C).

27–28. The two surprising facts are that the system is 'voluntary for supermarkets' (B) and that 'little research was done before its introduction' (C), rather than its widespread use (A), manufacturer unpopularity (D), or colour choices (E).

29–30. The two true statements are that participants 'were from all socio-economic groups' (D) and 'were interviewed face-to-face' (E), rather than low literacy (A), being regular packaged-food consumers (B), or random selection (C).

31. The gap is a noun describing the ruler's drastic action; 'destruction' — a strong historical detail, anchored by the precise date given (1623).

32. The gap is what coffee shops were likened to; 'universities' or 'university' — highlighting their role as centres of discussion and learning.

33. The gap pairs with "social and ___ changes"; 'political' — coffee houses' historical role extended into political influence, not just social life.

34. The gap names the naming convention basis; 'port(s)' — coffee varieties named after their shipping origin.

35. The gap names the labour system coffee cultivation relied on in these regions; 'slaves' or 'slavery' — an important and sobering historical fact about the coffee trade.

36. The gap describes an economic/administrative use of coffee; 'taxation' — coffee itself functioning as a form of tax payment under colonial rule.

37. The gap is a comparison commodity; 'sugar' — placing coffee's historical/economic significance alongside another major colonial-era trade good.

38. The gap names the beverage Britain shifted toward; 'tea' — contrasted with the USA, which the note says didn't follow the same shift.

39. The gap explains a cause of falling prices; 'transportation' — logistics/shipping improvements reducing costs, a standard economic-history explanation.

40. The gap describes a time-related benefit; 'night' — coffee's stimulant effect supporting night shifts during industrialisation.