Use of English - Open Cloze
C1
Cambridge English C1 Exam
For questions 1-8, read the text below and think of the word which best fits each gap. Use only one word in each gap. Click the gaps to type your answer.
Euler's Legacy
Leonhard Euler, (0) ONE of the most influential mathematicians in history, made contributions that extended far beyond the field of mathematics itself. Born in Basel in 1707, he soon became known (1) .......... his remarkable ability to solve complex problems with unusual speed and clarity. During his career, he worked in several major academies, first in St Petersburg and later in Berlin, where he produced an astonishing quantity of research, much of (2) .......... still shapes modern science today. Euler was not only prolific but also versatile. He wrote on mechanics, astronomy and optics, as well as pure mathematics, and many of his ideas gave rise (3) .......... entirely new ways of thinking. So great was his influence that later scientists often built directly (4) .......... his findings rather than starting from first principles. Even after losing much of his eyesight, he continued working, dictating papers from memory and astonishing colleagues (5) .......... his mental discipline. What sets Euler apart is not merely the number of works he produced, but the elegance and precision of his reasoning. It is thanks (6) .......... him that several mathematical symbols in common use today became standard. His name remains associated (7) .......... formulas, constants and theorems, and his impact was so profound (8) .......... it is difficult to imagine modern mathematics without him.
About Use of English Open Cloze — Cambridge English C1
In this Cambridge English C1 Use of English Open Cloze exercise you read a short text and think of the one word that best fits each of the 8 gaps.
Open Cloze tests grammar and common fixed expressions — articles, prepositions, pronouns, auxiliary verbs and linking words. Only one word goes in each gap, and it is usually a small grammatical word rather than vocabulary.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many gaps are in this C1 Open Cloze exercise?
There are 8 gaps, and you must write exactly one word in each.
What kind of words go in the gaps?
Usually grammatical words: prepositions, articles, pronouns, auxiliaries, relative pronouns and parts of fixed phrases.
What is the best strategy for Open Cloze?
Read the whole text first for meaning, then look closely at the words around each gap — the answer almost always depends on the immediate grammar.
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What to do
This part consists of a short text with a series of gaps. There are no words from which to choose the answers, candidates have to think of a word which fits the gap correctly.
Errors in punctuation are ignored, although spelling must be correct.
Contractions (e.g. don’t, we’ve, won’t) count as two words. However, can’t is a contraction of cannot, which is one word.
Sometimes, there is more than one correct answer. Cambridge will always account for this and all options will be accepted. However, you should not write more than one answer.
Don't spend time in a word you don't know. Wasting time on this activity might cost you points later in the exam because you won’t have enough time to do other tasks well.
Strategy
- Read the title and the whole text so that you understand what it is about.
- Read the whole sentence in which the gap occurs, to look for clues as to what kind of word you need.
- Check the words before and after each gap and look for grammatical collocations.
- Remember you must write only one word.
- You are never required to write a contraction. If you think the answer is a contraction, it must be wrong, so think again.
- Read the whole text through once you have completed it to make sure you have not missed any connectors, plurals or negatives.