Unit 4 · Workbook

4A. Forces of nature — Workbook

Extra practice for home study · with answer keys

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Workbook illustration

How to use this workbook

  • Try each exercise on paper first — don't peek!
  • Tap Show answer on a single item, or use the big button above to reveal everything.
  • Re-do anything you got wrong the next day.

1. Vocabulary — extreme weather

Choose the word that best fits each sentence.

  1. The 2003 European ___ killed more than 70,000 people.

  2. After three years without rain, the region was in a serious ___ .

  3. The mountain village was cut off for a week by a ___ .

  4. In August, ___ destroyed thousands of hectares of pine forest.

  5. The tropical ___ made landfall on the Philippine coast at dawn.

2. Vocabulary — weather adjectives

Complete each sentence with ONE adjective from the box.

Word bank — drag or tap, then tap a gap
  1. It was  drop  outside — 42 degrees at midday.
  2. Take a jumper — it's a bit  drop  in the evenings now.
  3. Summers in Singapore are extremely  drop  — you sweat just walking.
  4. It's been  drop  all morning — I don't think we'll see the sun.
  5. The winter has been surprisingly  drop  this year — no snow at all.
  6. Turn the fan on — it's  drop  in here!

3. Grammar — future continuous or future perfect?

Choose the correct form.

  1. This time tomorrow, I ___ on a plane to Oslo.

  2. By the end of the century, half the coral reefs ___ .

  3. Don't ring me at 9 — I ___ the news.

  4. By the time you read this, I ___ my flight.

  5. In 2050, most European cars ___ powered by electricity.

  6. By 2030, the EU ___ single-use plastics.

4. Grammar — put the verb in the right future

Put the verb in CAPITALS into the future continuous OR future perfect.

  1. By 2040, scientists (map) the entire ocean floor.

  2. At midnight, most of the city (sleep) through the storm.

  3. By this evening, the storm (pass).

  4. This time next month, I (live) in Berlin.

  5. By the age of 30, she (write) three novels.

  6. At 8 o'clock tomorrow, we (drive) to the airport.

5. Grammar — put the sentence in order

Put the words in the correct order.

  1. have / by 2040 / risen / sea levels / will

  2. will / this time next week / lying / I / on a beach / be

  3. the roof / by lunchtime / built / they / have / will

  4. will / all afternoon / be / it / snowing

  5. have / by 2035 / banned / most countries / plastic bags / will

6. Grammar — find and fix the mistake

Each sentence has ONE mistake. Rewrite it correctly.

  1. By 2050 the ice caps will melting completely.

  2. This time tomorrow I will have swimming in the sea.

  3. By the time she arrives, we finished dinner.

  4. At 9 tonight I will been studying.

  5. By 2030 they will build the new dam.

  6. I'll have seeing you tomorrow morning.

7. Reading — true / false / not given

Read the short article and mark each statement T, F or NG.

The small town of Longyearbyen, on the Norwegian island of Svalbard, is one of the fastest-warming places on Earth. In the last thirty years, average winter temperatures have risen by more than 4 °C. Local scientists predict that by 2050 the town will have lost more than a third of its permafrost, and the airport runway, built directly on frozen ground, will be shifting slightly every year. Most houses are already on stilts. Tourists still come for the northern lights and the polar bears, but by the end of this decade the guides will be leading visitors along completely different routes — the old glacier trails have become too dangerous. Locals joke, darkly, that their grandchildren will be growing tomatoes in the garden.

  1. Winter temperatures in Longyearbyen have risen more than 4 °C in the last thirty years.T  /  F  /  NG
  2. By 2050 the town will have lost all of its permafrost.T  /  F  /  NG
  3. The airport runway is built directly on frozen ground.T  /  F  /  NG
  4. Tourism has completely stopped in Svalbard.T  /  F  /  NG
  5. The old glacier trails are no longer safe.T  /  F  /  NG
  6. Longyearbyen has the highest polar bear population in the world.T  /  F  /  NG

8. Writing — guided task

Write 80–100 words about YOUR life ten years from now. Include at least: 3 future perfect sentences, 2 future continuous sentences, and 2 words of environment / weather vocabulary.

Check your writing

  • 80–100 words
  • 3 future perfect sentences
  • 2 future continuous sentences
  • 2 environment / weather words

9. Listening — climate reporter interview

Listen to the short interview with a climate reporter in Lisbon. Two voices — the interviewer and the reporter. Answer the questions. Play it twice if you need to.

🎧 Interview · climate change in Portugal · ~1 min
  1. How long has the reporter been covering the climate?
  2. What has changed most about Portuguese summers, in her view?
  3. What does she predict Lisbon will look like by 2040?
  4. What is her BIGGEST worry?
  5. What good news does she share?
  6. What single piece of advice does she give to viewers?

10. Dictation — future forms (from the interview)

Listen again to the reporter and complete each line with the missing verb form.

🎧 Climate reporter — key future forms
  1. By 2040, Lisbon into a very different city.
  2. Every new building solar panels.
  3. Wildfires earlier every year.
  4. Portugal more than 80% of its electricity from renewables.
  5. By the end of this decade, we almost entirely with coal.
  6. In ten years, farmers crops we don't even grow today.

11. 🔥 Challenge — sentence transformation

Rewrite the second sentence to mean the same, using 2–5 words including the KEYWORD.

  1. 1. I'll finish the report before 6 p.m. → I ___ the report by 6 p.m. (KEYWORD: HAVE)

  2. 2. At 8 tonight I'm in the middle of dinner. → At 8 tonight I ___ dinner. (KEYWORD: HAVING)

  3. 3. In 30 years, the Arctic ice will disappear. → In 30 years, the Arctic ice ___ . (KEYWORD: DISAPPEARED)

  4. 4. When you get home, the film will be in progress. → When you get home, we ___ the film. (KEYWORD: WATCHING)

  5. 5. By June we'll be finished with the exams. → By June we ___ the exams. (KEYWORD: FINISHED)

12. 🔥 Challenge — vowel sounds

Write the vowel sound each pair shares — /iː/, /ɪ/, /æ/, /ʌ/, /ɜː/, /ɔː/, /uː/ or /ʊ/.

  1. 1. bird / heard

  2. 2. sheep / leave

  3. 3. cut / run

  4. 4. cat / ran

  5. 5. port / storm

  6. 6. pool / food

  7. 7. pull / full

  8. 8. ship / hit

13. 🔥 Challenge — odd one out

Three share a category. Pick the ODD ONE OUT.

  1. 1. Extreme weather:

  2. 2. Weather adjectives:

  3. 3. Environment nouns:

  4. 4. Verbs of nature's power:

14. 🔥 Challenge — extended writing

Write a 130–160 word letter FROM your future self, dated 2050, to yourself today. Use AT LEAST 4 future perfect + 3 future continuous sentences, and 3 words of weather/environment vocabulary.

Check your writing

  • 130–160 words
  • 4+ future perfect sentences
  • 3+ future continuous sentences
  • 3+ weather/environment words

15. Self-check

Tick what you can now do confidently.

  • I can form the future perfect (will have + past participle) correctly.
  • I can form the future continuous (will be + -ing) correctly.
  • I can choose between the two based on the time reference.
  • I can describe extreme weather with precise B2 vocabulary.
  • I can talk about the environment (emissions, renewables, pollute, preserve).
  • I can distinguish the vowels /iː/ vs /ɪ/, /æ/ vs /ʌ/, /uː/ vs /ʊ/, /ɔː/, /ɜː/.
  • I can make confident predictions about my own life and the planet in 2050.