A penny for your thought

[Theresa]

I did an ENGLISH level test on line. The result came out 66/68 but it did not say what's wrong with my answer. Here are the two questions whose answers I'm not sure of. Can you help me please?

That's the_____ of my worries, it'll never happen.
A. fewer
B. less
C. last
D. least

_____ thinking that he would win the lottery.
A. There was no use
B. It was no point
C. It was no use
D. It was usefulness.

Personally, either A or C is right? In B., we should have IN to complete the expression?
Here are some others questions from another test:
Rewrite these sentences so they mean the same as the first.

It makes no difference if the play is full booked, we will still try to get a ticket. (We will still try and get a ticket)
They had to wait 2 hours before the meeting began
( Only after a)
The house was so run down that nobody would buy it
(They had such)
I had better go to the dentist's soon
(It's)

Thanks a lot.
Theresa

[Lost_Soul]

Hi, Theresa

I can help you with your first sentence, it should read like so:
That's the least of my worries, it'll never happen.
Mind you, you can also replace worries with troubles.
_________________
Alex

How much upchuck would a woodchuck upchuck if a woodchuck could upchuck ?

(a guy from Russia)

[Torsten]

Hi Alex,

Where did you learn the phrase 'it should read like so'? I think the phrase is 'it should read like this'.
_________________
Test Of English for International Communication
TOEIC Preparation & TOEIC Vocabulary

[Lost_Soul]

Hi, Torsten

Well, I took it from my dictionary. The dictionary says that it means exactly the same as "like that/this", and there is also an example: Cut the apple up like so
_________________
Alex

How much upchuck would a woodchuck upchuck if a woodchuck could upchuck ?

(a guy from Russia)

[Alan]

Hi,

'Like so' rings a bell for me but I can't be all that sure about its legitimacy in a sentence explaining how something should be read/interpreted. I think you hear it most in demonstrations say of cookery on TV or when someone is showing you how to operate a piece of machinery as in: You press this button here and then turn the red handle like so. In summary I would tend to use it more for manipulations of some sort.

Alan
_________________
English as a Second Language
You can read my ESL story Head expressions for you

[Lost_Soul]

Hi, Alan

Thanks for your clarification ! It's as clear as day
_________________
Alex

How much upchuck would a woodchuck upchuck if a woodchuck could upchuck ?

(a guy from Russia)

[Theresa]

I had to convince myself that there was something wrong with the scoring system since I did choose LEAST but still got no point for that answer. So no one could help me with the other questions?

[Yankee]

.
Online English tests sometimes contain errors, Theresa. Where did you find the test questions? Have you tried asking your questions there?
.
_________________
Amy
.
ESL teacher, and native speaker of American English

[Theresa]

I did the test on this site : www.englishjet.com
My friend and I did the test again this afternoon and we got 68/68. We did change one answer. We chose LEAST and IT IS NO USE for the two questions. Nothing is absolute, and this is a case in point, I guess.
Thanks, anyway.

[Alan]

Hi Theresa,

Have a look at this from that site:

[Yankee]

[Theresa]

They must be very disappointed because I will never take any language courses. I can't afford them. Moreover, I'd rather pick up a language bit by bit on websites like this one. I've been watching this site on and off for quite a long time. I read all the articles related to culture shock, British versus American English. I've been writing diary too, but my writings are full of mistakes, for sure. I just wonder why we have lots of ESL websites, cafes on line but none in reality. Can we?

[Theresa]

Thanks, Amy, for the rewriting questions. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel now. My answers were:

Only after a two-hour wait, ...
It's advisable that
They had such a run down house...

My English is getting rusty. By the way, my name is Thu.

Thu

[Yankee]

It's nice to meet you, Thu.

Your confusion and frustration with that test at englishjet is a perfect example of why I am so vocal about editing the tests here at english-test.net.

By the way, the expression you used as the title of your thread is usually worded this way:
'a penny for your thoughts'
.
_________________
Amy
.
ESL teacher, and native speaker of American English

[Duc]

Hello,
After reading this thread I wonder what ''That's the_____ of my worries'' means. Forgive my stupidity ,please help me!
_________________
Don't see your shade think you are great