Inside Reading Unit 4 Test
Name: __________________________ Date: _____________
Reading Comprehension: True or False
Mark each statement as T (true) or F (false) according to the information in the reading passage.
Read this passage carefully and answer the questions that follow.
Sherlock Holmes
Although most famous for his creation of Sherlock Holmes stories, British author Arthur Conan
Doyle spent most of his life working as a physician and actually had a love-hate relationship with
his famous creation.
Arthur Conan Doyle began studying medicine in 1876 and worked as a physician from 1881
through most of his life. In 1887, while working as a physician, he published his first Sherlock
Holmes novel, titled A Study in Scarlet. The story is told by Holmes's friend, a physician like
Doyle known as Dr. Watson. Conan Doyle published two more novels featuring Holmes and his
faithful friend, but then grew frustrated with the public's obsession with his fictional character.
He decided to write a story in which Sherlock Holmes dies.
In 1893, Conan Doyle “kills off” Sherlock Holmes in a story titled “The Final Problem.” In this
story, the public was amazed to read that Sherlock Holmes went over a waterfall as the result of
a struggle with the evil Dr. Moriarty. Strangely enough, although Conan Doyle was ready to be
finished with writing Sherlock Holmes stories, he left the circumstances of Holmes's death
somewhat vague. There were no witnesses to the death, but there were signs of a struggle near
the edge of a waterfall where Holmes was fighting Moriarty. From that evidence, Watson
presumes that both Holmes and Moriarty fell to their deaths.
The story shocked readers but seemed to liberate Conan Doyle from Holmes once and for all.
During Conan Doyle's break from writing Holmes stories, he continued to work as a physician
and wrote other books. He even served Britain by managing a war hospital in South Africa.
Upon returning home, in answer to public debates about the war, he wrote two books in defense
of Britain's involvement and, as a result, was knighted Sir Arthur Conan Doyle by King Edward
VII.
The public, however, was reluctant to accept the idea that there would be no more Sherlock
Holmes stories. As a result, Conan Doyle relented and wrote a book of stories that included “The
Adventure of the Empty House.” The story was published ten years after Holmes's “death” and
explained Holmes's disappearance. He had actually thrown Moriarty into the waterfall and
climbed up the cliff to avoid leaving tracks, making it seem that he, too, had been killed. The
public considered that an adequate explanation and embraced the story along with several others
that followed.
Even though Conan Doyle spent his life in a variety of pursuits, he is most remembered for his
ability to write ingenious stories about a clever detective named Sherlock Holmes.
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1. At the request of the public, Arthur Conan Doyle “kills off” Sherlock Holmes in a
famous story involving a waterfall.
A) True
B) False
2. Arthur Conan Doyle is best known as the author of the Sherlock Holmes stories.
A) True
B) False
Reading Comprehension: Multiple Choice
Choose the option that best completes each sentence.
3. Conan Doyle “kills off” Sherlock Holmes because ___.
A) he was too busy as a physician to write Holmes stories anymore
B) he was more interested in writing war books
C) the stories about Holmes were not selling well
D) he grew tired of writing about the detective
4. King Edward VII knighted Conan Doyle because he ___.
A) managed a hospital during a war
B) wrote books in defense of Britain in the war
C) contributed to literature through his Holmes stories
D) defended Britain publicly in debates
Vocabulary: Word Families
Choose the word form that correctly completes each sentence.
5. The soldier traveled for many days without food or water, courageously ____ until he
finally reached army headquarters.
A) persistence
B) persist
C) persisting
D) persistently
6. Unable to ____ at his low-paying job, David decided to look for work elsewhere.
A) persistence
B) persist
C) persisting
D) persistently
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7. Because of the committee's ____, the famous author finally agreed to speak at the
graduation ceremony.
A) persistence
B) persist
C) persisting
D) persistently
8. The librarian opposed ____ in a whole new computer system because she knew that new
software would resolve their problems just as well.
A) investment
B) invest
C) investing
D) invested
Vocabulary: Multiple Choice
Choose the word that best completes each sentence.
9. ___ required the president to attend the funeral of the prime minister of the neighboring
country.
A) Investment
B) Volume
C) Protocol
D) Debate
10. She wanted the job promotion, but she was ___ to give up her office because it had a
window with a nice view.
A) indicative
B) persistent
C) adequate
D) reluctant
11. Let's not ___ the facts. Instead, we should spend our time discussing the things that we
are not sure of.
A) debate
B) invest
C) sustain
D) depress
12. All of his missed deadlines ___ that he is unable to complete tasks on time.
A) accumulate
B) invest
C) persist
D) indicate
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13. Without ___financial support, amateur writers are not able to complete their first novel.
Many find that they need to get a job with a steady income.
A) persistent
B) adequate
C) reluctant
D) depressing
Vocabulary: Fill in the blank
Use the words below to complete the sentences. Use each word one time.
accumulated
depress
invest
persisted
text
volumes
14. The _____________ added an important level of understanding to the photo essay.
15. The writer didn't want to _____________ his readers, so he decided to change the
story's ending to a happy one.
16. Several _____________ of the journal can be found in electronic form at the library.
17. Ready to _____________ in property, the young couple looked for real estate that was
within their price range.
18. Despite the efforts of several doctors, the symptoms _____________, making it difficult
for the patient to breathe.
19. The couple _____________ many assets during their working life so that they could
retire comfortably when they turned 60.
Writing Prompts
Read the questions. Write your answers in paragraph form.
20. Fans often get so involved with the characters of their favorite books that they feel
empathy, excitement, and even pain on their behalf. Have you ever found yourself
engaged in a book so much that the events in the book actually had a physical effect on
you? Have you ever found yourself thinking about a particular story long after you read
it? Describe a time in which a character or story had a strong effect on you.
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