Practice English Reading Exercises for A2 – Business, Retail & Entrepreneurship
Reading 1
For each question, choose the correct answer.
David’s Big Office Dream
David is fourteen years old and lives in a small town. Most of his friends want to be famous actors or football players when they grow up. However, David has a different idea. Every time he visits the city with his parents, he looks up at the tall glass office buildings. His biggest dream is to work inside one of them as a bank manager.
To make his dream come true, David studies very hard. Mathematics is his favourite subject, and he usually gets the highest marks in his class. He also reads the business news on his tablet every morning before school. He wants to learn everything about money and how banks work.
During the weekend, David doesn’t spend his free time playing video games. Instead, he helps his uncle in his busy sports shop. David doesn’t sell the trainers or the T-shirts. His uncle lets him count the cash and write down how much they sell. David loves doing this because it feels like real bank work.
David knows that he must do well in his exams to go to a good university. He will have to study finance for a few years. It will not be easy, but he cannot wait for the day he puts on a smart suit and walks into his own big office.
1 What do we learn about David in the first paragraph?
(A) He hopes to get a job in a bank.
(B) He wants to be a famous actor.
(C) He works in a tall glass office building.
2 How does David find out about business?
(A) He usually gets the highest marks in his class.
(B) He reads daily articles on the internet.
(C) He uses his tablet every morning at school.
3 What does David do for his uncle at the weekend?
(A) He spends his free time playing video games.
(B) He sells the trainers and the T-shirts.
(C) He calculates the money in the shop.
4 What does David think about his future?
(A) He knows that achieving his goal will be hard.
(B) He is going to study finance in his own big office.
(C) He wants to put on a smart suit for his exams.
5 What is the best title for the article?
(A) The best university for business students
(B) How to manage a busy sports shop
(C) A teenager’s plan to work with money
ANSWER KEY
1 A 2 B 3 C 4 A 5 C
Reading 2
For each question, choose the correct answer.
Liam’s Plan for Success
Fifteen-year-old Liam has a very unusual hobby. While his friends enjoy reading comic books or playing video games, Liam prefers reading thick books about money. His biggest dream is to learn how to save and invest his cash so he can become a successful businessperson one day.
To make his dream come true, Liam is already changing his daily habits. Every week, his parents give him some pocket money. Most teenagers spend their cash on fast food or new clothes, but Liam is different. He puts almost all of his money into a special bank account. He read in a famous book that keeping your money safe is the first step to success.
Last month, Liam decided to start a small business. He offered to wash his neighbours’ cars at the weekend. At first, he was worried that nobody would pay him. However, he did a great job, and soon everyone in his street wanted his help. He doesn’t buy toys with the money he earns. Instead, he uses it to buy better soap and cleaning brushes to improve his business.
Next year, Liam is going to study business and maths at college. He knows that nobody can become a millionaire immediately. It will take many years of hard work and reading, but he is excited to start his journey.
1 What does Liam like doing in his free time?
(A) reading comic books
(B) learning about money
(C) playing video games
2 What does Liam do with his pocket money?
(A) He buys fast food and new clothes.
(B) He buys famous books about success.
(C) He saves most of it in a bank.
3 How does Liam spend the money from washing cars?
(A) He buys toys with it.
(B) He pays his neighbours.
(C) He gets things to help his business.
4 What does Liam understand about his future?
(A) He will become a millionaire immediately.
(B) He needs to work hard for a long time.
(C) He is going to start a journey next month.
5 What is the best title for the article?
(A) A teenager’s plan for business success
(B) How to wash cars at the weekend
(C) The best books about video games
ANSWER KEY
1 B 2 C 3 C 4 B 5 A
Reading 3
For each question, choose the correct answer.
Saving the Village Fruit
Fifteen-year-old Tom lives in a small village with a lot of farms. While his classmates spend their weekends playing football, Tom likes visiting his neighbours. Recently, he noticed something that made him feel sad. Local farmers were throwing away delicious apples and pears just because they looked a bit ugly. Supermarkets only want perfect fruit, so the farmers couldn’t sell them.
Tom wanted to help, so he decided to start a small business. He went to a local farmer, Mr. Jones, and bought a big box of ugly fruit for a very low price. Tom’s idea was to sell this fruit to people in his village so the farmers wouldn’t lose money.
To get customers, Tom and his older sister built a simple web page. They posted photos of the apples and explained that they tasted fantastic. However, during the first week, nobody bought anything. People didn’t want ugly fruit. So, Tom tried something different. He made sweet fruit juice and gave it to his friends at high school.
The juice was a huge success! Soon, everyone wanted to buy Tom’s fruit to make their own drinks at home. Next year, Tom is going to study business at college. He hopes his company will grow and help all the farmers in his area sell everything they produce.
1 What made Tom feel unhappy in the first paragraph?
(A) Good food was being wasted by the growers.
(B) His classmates spend their weekends playing football.
(C) He had to throw away delicious apples and pears.
2 What did Tom plan to do?
(A) Sell a big box of ugly fruit to Mr. Jones.
(B) Offer the unusual fruit to buyers in his area.
(C) Help the farmers to lose money.
3 When Tom and his sister opened their web page,
(A) their friends at high school posted photos of the apples.
(B) people bought sweet fruit juice during the first week.
(C) they didn’t have any success immediately.
4 What do we learn about Tom’s future?
(A) He is going to study business at high school next year.
(B) He hopes to get an education to expand his project.
(C) He wants to make his own drinks at home.
5 What is the best title for the article?
(A) How to make sweet fruit juice at home
(B) The cheapest supermarkets in the village
(C) A teenager’s idea to support local farms
ANSWER KEY
1 A 2 B 3 C 4 B 5 C