Advanced grammar tests - English exam centre 2015
English Tenses / Test-4
01. In 1619, the first African slaves ... in Virginia, USA, and by 1790, their numbers ... nearly 700,000.
A) were arriving / have been reaching
B) arrived / had reached
C) have arrived / were reaching
D) were going to arrive / reach
E) had arrived / will have reached
02. We ... a lovely view of the Bosphorus and the bridges over it while the plane ... over Istanbul.
A) are getting / flies
B) had got / is flying
C) got / was flying
D) get / has flown
E) are getting / had been flying
03. When they ... in Sydney Harbour, they ... non-stop for three months.
A) anchor / will have been sailing
B) were anchoring / sailed
C) have anchored / were sailing
D) are anchoring / have been sailing
E) are going to anchor / have sailed
04. According to the new schedule, the whole team have accepted, we ... every Monday and Wednesday next term, but I’m sure we ... back to our normal routine of once a week before long.
A) had trained / revert
B) train / have reverted
C) are training / reverted
D) are going to train / will revert
E) have been training / are reverting
05. The prospector ran into town in excitement because, at last, he ... some gold at the site which he ... for months.
A) was finding / was panning
B) will find / is going to pan
C) will have found / has panned
D) had found / had been panning
E) found / will have panned
06. I expect you ... bored with working at the
Post Office by this time next year and ... for a more interesting job.
A) have become / will have looked
B) were becoming / are going to look
C) will have become / will be looking
D) had found / had been panning
E) found / will have panned
7. Listen! The coach ... the strengths of our opponents because our team ... against them before.
A) has explained / weren’t playing
B) explains / won’t play
C) is explaining / haven’t played
D) was explaining / don’t play
E) will explain / hadn’t been playing
08. When I ... the alterations to the company accounts, I was left in no doubt that the accountant ... money from the firm.
A) saw / had been stealing
B) am seeing / has stolen
C) was seeing / was stealing
D) have seen / will have stolen
E) see / steals
09. According to the doctor, this time next week, I ... around as normal and the cut on my foot ... completely.
A) am walking / healed
B) will be walking / will have healed
C) walked / was healing
D) have been walking / heals
E) walks / is going to heal
10. Shadow puppets ... in China and ... as far as Turkey and Greece today.
A) will originate / have been spreading
B) are originating / will be spreading
C) originate / had spread
D) originated / have spread
E) will have originated / were spreading
11. Over recent years, many skilled craftsmen and women ... their jobs in the pottery trade in the UK, but gradually English porcelain ... its reputation.
A) will have lost / will regain
B) had been losing / has regained
C) lost / regains
D) are losing / regained
E) have lost / is regaining
12 After she ... to turn up for our appointment for the third time, I ... to meet her again.
A) is failing / am refusing
B) has failed / had refused
C) was failing / will refuse
D) had been failing / have refused
E) had failed / refused
13. Since I took part in my first debating match, I ... a member of the debating club, which I ... most weekends.
A) will have been / have attended
B) have been / attend
C) will be / was attending
D) am / had been attending
E) was / am attending
14. By the first half of the 19th century, the potato ... the staple food in the Ireland. In 1854, a disease ..., which resulted in widespread starvation.
A) was becoming / has struck
B) will become / was going to strike
C) had become / struck
D) was going to become / strikes
E) has become / has struck
15. The origins of domestic poultry ... uncertain, but experts believe that some breeds are descended from the Indian junglefowl, which still ... in India today.
A) are going to be / will exist
B) had been / will have existed
C) were / had been existing
D) are / exists
E) have been / existed
16. In 1868, the US government ... 7000 Navajo Indians to return to their homeland and, since then, they ... the largest and richest Indian tribe.
A) allowed / have become
B) has allowed / are becoming
C) was going to allow / will become
D) has allowed / were becoming
E) was allowing / become
17. In 1960, only 2000 American Indians ... at university, while in 1970, only a decade later, this number ... to 12000.
A) are studying / is increasing
B) were studying / increased
C) will be studying / will have increased
D) studied / will increase
E) had studied / was increasing
18. Today we ... a lot of tangerines at one pound per kilo, unlike yesterday, when we ... very few customers.
A) were selling / have had
B) are selling / had
C) had been selling / had had
D) sold / will have had
E) are going to sell / will be having
19. A: Isn’t that your daughter playing outside without a coat on? She ... a chill.
B: She has a thermal vest on under her pullover, but you have a point. I ... her coat.
A) was catching / am fetching
B) is catching / fetch
C) will be catching / have fetched
D) will catch / will fetch
E) catches / am going to fetch
20. The number of orders per week ... all year and the sales manager is confident that we ... our target.
A) has increased / had been reaching
B) will increase / have been reaching
C) increases / reached
D) increased / reached
E) has been increasing / will reach
21. As the police ... the road, we ... a time consuming detour around the mountain.
A) are closing / were making
B) will close / had made
C) had closed / made
D) will have closed / had been making
E) close / have made
22. I ... some shopping during my lunch break, but I couldn’t as I ... awful because of my cold.
A) was going to do / felt
B) have done / have felt
C) will do / am feeling
D) did / was feeling
E) do / will have felt
23. By the time the work on their house is finished, they ... the painters, decorators and carpenters a total of £8000. They ... a beautiful kitchen, though.
A) are paying / have had
B) paid / are having
C) had paid / were having
D) will have paid / will have
E) have paid / have
24. I feel certain that Greg ... in his new business because he ... so hard all the time.
A) is succeeding / will work
B) will succeed / works
C) was succeeding / is going to work
D) had succeeded / will be working
E) has succeeded / had worked
25. Before Petar Preradovic ... poems in his native Croatian, he ... all his poems in German.
A) has published / is writing
B) is publishing / was writing
C) published / had written
D) had published / will have written
E) has been publishing / has written
26. I ... some notes earlier and ... to them during my presentation. In the event, however, I didn’t use them once.
A) will have written / will refer
B) am going to write / refer
C) had written / was going to refer
D) wrote / have referred
E) write / will have referred
27. Because of Istanbul’s geographical location, it ... a place of trade since civilisation ... .
A) is / was being
B) was / has begun
C) will be / had begun
D) had been / is beginning
E) has been / began
28. When Boris Yeltsin ... on 31st December 1999, he ... President of Russia for eight years.
A) had resigned / was
B) has resigned / is
C) will have resigned / will be
D) resigned / had been
E) resigns / is being
29. The circumference of a circle ... 3.14159265 times its diameter no matter how small or large it is.
A) measures
B) measured
C) will be measuring
D) had measured
E) was measuring
30. At present, British farmers ... to the government because since the EC lifted the ban on British beef, the French ... to buy any.
A) were protesting / refused
B) are protesting / have refused
C) had protested / were refusing
D) will protest / refuse
E) protest / will be refusing