Facing the Room

C1 Advanced · Word Formation · Cambridge Ready original exercise

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 (0).

ACCOMPLISH

DETECT

SYMPATHY

COMMON

SILENT

CONVERSATION

EXCITE

RESPOND

Few everyday tasks fill people with as much (0) ___ as being asked to speak in public. Even (1) ___ professionals, perfectly at ease in a meeting, can find their hands shaking and their minds going blank the moment they stand up in front of a room. The good news is that the physical signs of nerves are usually far less (2) ___ to an audience than the speaker imagines, and most listeners are (3) ___ , quietly hoping that the person at the front will do well. Very few are looking for mistakes, and fewer still will remember them afterwards. The remedy most (4) ___ recommended by coaches is rehearsal. Practising out loud, rather than reading through notes (5) ___ , helps a speaker to sound (6) ___ rather than scripted. Some people also find it helps to think of their nerves as a form of (7) ___ : after all, the body's (8) ___ to both is remarkably similar, from the racing heart to the dry mouth.

Facing the Room

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

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