The discovery of penicillin - Module 5

B2 First · Word Formation · First Expert Coursebook, Pearson Education

For questions 1–8, read the text below. Use the word given in capitals at the end of some of the lines to form a word that fits in the gap in the same line. There is an example at the beginning.

INVESTIGATE

ACCIDENT

KNOW

DELIGHT

EXCITE

EFFECT

INFECT

SUCCESS

One of the most amazing advances ever made in medicine began with an (0) ___ discovery. Sir Alexander Fleming, a Scottish bacteriologist, had been conducting an (1) ___ looking into new ways of killing germs, when he came upon something puzzling in his laboratory. Some mould had (2) ___ landed on one of the dishes and, for some (3) ___ reason, had killed the bacteria he was growing. At first he was baffled (4) ___ by his discovery and grew more of the mould, playing it the name 'penicillin'. However, his (5) ___ wore off when he decided that penicillin would only really be (6) ___ as an antiseptic against certain skin (7) ___ and soon lost interest as he believed that antiseptics often did more harm than good. It wasn't until ten years later that two other scientists managed to isolate the substance that killed the bacteria, and (8) ___ began to save people's lives with it. In 1945 Fleming and the two others were awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine.

The discovery of penicillin (1928)

EXPECT

Available as a free printable PDF worksheet with an optional answer key.

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