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FCE: Use of English (B2 First Paper 1, Parts 1–4)

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Use of English (B2 First Paper 1, Parts 1–4)

Use of English is Parts 1–4 of Paper 1: 32 questions in the same 75-minute paper as Reading, worth 20% of the total. It tests grammar and vocabulary at B2 in context - collocation, fixed phrases, word formation, and the ability to express a given meaning in a different structure.

Part 1: multiple-choice cloze

Eight gaps, four options each. All options may be grammatical; the decision is lexical: collocation (make a decision, heavy rain), fixed phrases (in advance, on purpose), phrasal verbs (put off, take up), dependent prepositions (interested in, famous for), and sometimes linking words.

Part 2: open cloze

Eight gaps, one word each. Tests grammar words: articles, prepositions, auxiliaries, modal verbs, pronouns, quantifiers, comparatives and linkers. Exactly one word - "in spite" cannot fill one gap, and contractions such as don't or it's count as two words, so write full forms.

Part 3: word formation

Eight gaps, with a base word in capitals. Change it to the form needed: decide the part of speech first, then singular or plural, then a negative prefix, then spelling. Examples: succeed → success/successful; argue → argument; permit → permission; strong → strength; polite → impolitely.

Part 4: key word transformations

Six items. Use between two and five words, including the given word unchanged, to keep the same meaning. Tests passive, reported speech, conditionals, inversion, comparatives, wish/if only, phrasal verbs and idioms. Write full forms: contractions count as two words.

Worked example (Part 4)

"I've never seen such a beautiful sunset," said Maria. NEVER Maria said that ______ such a beautiful sunset. Answer: she had never seen (four words). Reported speech backshifts present perfect "I've never seen" to past perfect "she had never seen"; "such a beautiful sunset" stays unchanged; NEVER is used unchanged and the total is within the limit.

Traps that cost marks

  • Writing six words in Part 4, or altering the key word (never → not).
  • Part 3: right meaning but wrong form (success for successful), or a missing plural or negative prefix.
  • Part 2: writing two words, or a contraction that counts as two.
  • Part 1: choosing an option that is grammatical but does not collocate.
  • Spending too long on one transformation and losing time elsewhere in the paper.