Practice English Reading Exercises for B2 – Modern Domesticity, Lifestyle & Household Challenges 1
Reading 1
You are going to read a magazine article about a teenager whose family underwent a weekend without screens.
For questions 1-6, choose the answer (A, B, C or D) which you think fits best according to the text.
The Digital Detox Weekend
When my parents called a sudden family meeting on a gloomy Friday afternoon, my brother Toby and I assumed we were about to be lectured on our messy bedrooms. Instead, Dad dramatically placed a heavy metal lockbox on the kitchen table and announced we were embarking on a ‘digital detox’. Until Sunday evening, all smartphones and laptops were to be confiscated. My immediate reaction was one of fierce, hostile rebellion. I argued passionately that I had crucial homework to check, while Toby claimed his social life would suffer irreparable damage. Our protests fell on completely deaf ears. The phones went in, and the key disappeared into Dad’s pocket.
The reality of our screen-free existence hit me hardest the following morning. Normally, I would spend the first hour of my weekend scrolling through social media, catching up on gossip. Deprived of my usual digital diet, I experienced twitchy withdrawal symptoms. I kept reaching for my pocket, expecting to feel my phone, only to grasp empty fabric. I was convinced my friends were organising incredible plans without me, and I deeply resented my parents for isolating me. To make matters worse, they kept cheerfully suggesting we ‘enjoy the peace and quiet’, which only fuelled my growing irritation.
By Saturday afternoon, the initial anger had faded into a profound, suffocating boredom. The house felt unnervingly silent without the constant pinging of notifications or the background hum of the television. Toby and I wandered aimlessly from room to room like lost tourists. At one point, I found myself staring blankly at a dictionary, seriously considering reading it just to give my brain something to process. Mum tried to engage us in a conversation, but she was met with monosyllabic grunts. This was not the idyllic family bonding experience our parents had clearly envisioned when they locked away our devices.
As evening approached, a sense of quiet desperation descended upon the living room. Saturday night was traditionally reserved for streaming movies or playing online video games. Stripped of these comforts, the hours stretched out before us like an endless desert. Sensing the heavy atmosphere, Dad suddenly sprang from his armchair and vanished upstairs. He returned moments later clutching a worn, faded cardboard box. It was a notoriously complicated property-trading board game that had been banished to the attic years ago, mainly because it historically caused monumental arguments. Toby and I exchanged a look of pure dread.
Reluctantly, we gathered around the coffee table as Dad handed out the paper money and miniature pieces. The first half-hour was predictably tedious, filled with half-hearted dice rolls. I was determined to remain miserable, stubbornly refusing to find any joy in the antiquated activity. However, as the game progressed, the competitive tension began to rise. Toby unexpectedly managed to acquire the most valuable streets, bankrupting Mum in a single, devastating turn. Her look of absolute outrage was so uncharacteristic and comical that I felt a sudden, uncontrollable smile tugging at the corners of my mouth.
The turning point came when Dad accidentally knocked his tea over, sending a wave of liquid dangerously close to the bank. Toby’s frantic, exaggerated attempts to save his fake fortune were utterly ridiculous. Suddenly, I let out a sharp snort of laughter, and within seconds, the entire family was in hysterics. We laughed until our stomachs ached, the earlier hostility completely forgotten. When Sunday evening eventually arrived and the lockbox was finally opened, I didn’t immediately lunge for my phone. The digital detox had unexpectedly provided us with one of the most genuinely joyful weekends we had shared in years.
1 What was the writer’s initial reaction to the digital detox?
(A) She assumed her parents were going to lecture her about her messy bedroom.
(B) She was worried that her brother’s social life would be completely ruined.
(C) She strongly opposed the idea and tried to invent reasons to keep her device.
(D) She happily placed her phone in the heavy metal lockbox on the kitchen table.
2 How did the writer feel on Saturday morning?
(A) She was annoyed that her friends were catching up on gossip without her.
(B) She felt relieved to finally enjoy some peace and quiet away from social media.
(C) She experienced physical pain from keeping her phone in her pocket.
(D) She was frustrated because she suspected she was missing out on social events.
3 What does the word ‘This‘ refer to in paragraph 3?
(A) the pinging of notifications
(B) the uncommunicative atmosphere in the house
(C) the dictionary on the bookshelf
(D) the background hum of the television
4 What can be inferred about the board game from paragraph 4?
(A) It was a brand new game that Dad had hidden in the attic.
(B) It had previously been the source of significant family disagreements.
(C) It was usually played when the family wanted to stream movies.
(D) Toby and the writer were secretly eager to begin playing it.
5 Why did the writer eventually start to smile during the game?
(A) She found her mother’s reaction to losing in the game very amusing.
(B) She enjoyed rolling the dice and acquiring the most valuable streets.
(C) She was determined to remain miserable despite winning paper money.
(D) Her dad was behaving in a passive-aggressive way with the pieces.
6 What is the writer’s main conclusion about the weekend?
(A) She intends to completely stop using her smartphone from now on.
(B) Board games are always more entertaining than online video games.
(C) A restriction she initially hated led to a surprisingly positive family experience.
(D) Her parents should use the lockbox as a cruel punishment more often.
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 C: The text states her reaction was “fierce, hostile rebellion” and she “argued passionately” using “crucial homework” as an excuse to keep her phone. Distractor A is a False Match; she assumed there would be a lecture before the detox was announced, not in reaction to it.
2 D: The writer explains she was “convinced my friends were organising incredible plans without me” and deeply resented her parents for isolating her. Distractor A uses exact words from the text (“catching up on gossip”), but this was the writer’s normal routine, not what her friends were necessarily doing.
3 B: The pronoun refers to the preceding sentences where Toby and the writer were wandering aimlessly and responding with “monosyllabic grunts,” which contrasted with the “idyllic family bonding experience” the parents wanted.
4 B: The text notes the game had been banished to the attic because it “historically caused monumental arguments,” meaning it led to disagreements. Distractor A is a False Match, as the game was in a “worn, faded” box, not new.
5 A: The writer smiled because her mother’s “look of absolute outrage” after Toby bankrupted her was “uncharacteristic and comical.” Distractor B mixes up the characters; it was Toby who acquired the valuable streets, not the writer.
6 C: The writer concludes that the detox, which she initially saw as a “cruel punishment,” ultimately provided them with “one of the most genuinely joyful weekends we had shared in years.” Distractor A is an Over-Inference; although she didn’t grab her phone immediately, she never claims she will stop using it entirely.
Reading 2
You are going to read an article about a teenager who changes their family’s dinnertime habits.
For questions 1-6, choose the answer (A, B, C or D) which you think fits best according to the text.
The Silent Dinner Table
It used to be that the only sounds heard in our dining room were the clanking of cutlery and the occasional ping of an incoming notification. We were a family of four physically sharing a table, yet mentally we were miles apart. My parents were usually scrolling through work emails, while my younger brother and I were utterly absorbed in our social media feeds. I might never have noticed how bleak this routine had become if the Wi-Fi hadn’t unexpectedly dropped one evening. Looking up from my lifeless screen, I observed the tops of my family’s heads, illuminated by the cold, bluish glow of their devices. The sheer level of disconnection was frankly depressing.
The following evening, I decided to take drastic action. Before anyone could sit down, I placed a woven basket in the centre of the table and announced a strict new policy: absolutely no phones during dinner. If I had suggested we eat our meal on the roof, my family couldn’t have looked more horrified. My father immediately began protesting, claiming that he was expecting a crucial message from a client. Meanwhile, my brother muttered something under his breath about how unfair it was. Despite their resistance, I stood my ground, insisting that we needed to spend at least thirty minutes a day actually acknowledging one another’s existence. Reluctantly, they surrendered their devices.
The beginning of our first device-free meal was excruciatingly awkward. Without our digital crutches to lean on, an oppressive silence settled over the room. We chewed our food mechanically, occasionally exchanging hesitant glances. I could actually see my mother’s fingers twitching, betraying her subconscious urge to check her messages. The void left by the absent technology was palpable, and trying to fill it with meaningful dialogue felt like an impossible task. For a few agonizing minutes, I genuinely wondered whether I had made a terrible mistake by forcing this experiment upon them.
Desperate to alleviate the tension, I asked my parents a generic question about how their days had been. I fully expected the standard, monotonous reply of ‘fine’ or ‘busy’. However, deprived of his phone, my father actually paused to consider the question. He slowly began recounting a highly amusing mix-up that had occurred at his office involving a misplaced delivery of two hundred inflatable flamingos. As he vividly described the chaos, his normally serious expression transformed into a broad grin. My mother then chimed in, sharing a surprisingly funny anecdote about her daily commute.
I sat there completely captivated. It was as though a veil had been lifted, revealing that my parents were not merely authority figures, but actual individuals with entertaining, multifaceted lives. I had always assumed their days were filled with dull meetings and tedious paperwork, yet here they were, proving me entirely wrong. Even my sullen brother perked up, eager to contribute his own ridiculous story about a mishap in his science class. The conversation flowed effortlessly, shifting from hilarious complaints to genuine debates about current events.
That single, uncomfortable experiment drastically altered our household dynamic. The basket remains in the centre of our dining table to this day, and depositing our phones into it has become an unquestioned ritual. We still spend plenty of time staring at screens, but those thirty minutes of dinner are fiercely protected. It turned out that stepping away from our virtual worlds was exactly what we needed to rediscover each other. I now realize that real-life interactions, with all their unpredictable twists and turns, are vastly more entertaining than anything I could possibly scroll past on a timeline.
1 What made the writer realize there was a problem with their family dinners?
(A) He became depressed by the cold, bluish glow of his own mobile device.
(B) A sudden failure of the internet connection forced him to observe his surroundings.
(C) He noticed that his parents were constantly working instead of eating their food.
(D) The lack of conversation and the loud sound of cutlery began to deeply annoy him.
2 How did the family react to the writer’s new rule in the second paragraph?
(A) They were terrified by the idea of having to eat their food on the roof.
(B) They were angry that the writer had bought a woven basket for their phones.
(C) They strongly opposed the idea and offered excuses to avoid participating.
(D) They quickly accepted the policy because they wanted to connect with him.
3 What does the word ‘it‘ refer to in paragraph 3?
(A) the noticeable emptiness
(B) the absent technology
(C) the oppressive silence
(D) the subconscious urge
4 What does the writer imply about his father in the fourth paragraph?
(A) He was usually too busy with clients to answer questions properly.
(B) His typical responses about his day were usually uninspiring.
(C) He had intentionally ordered flamingos to entertain his family.
(D) He preferred to talk about his commute rather than his office.
5 During the dinner conversation, the writer discovered that
(A) his parents were considering quitting their tedious and stressful jobs.
(B) his brother was frequently getting into serious trouble in science class.
(C) his family preferred discussing the news over sharing personal stories.
(D) his parents were far more interesting people than he had assumed.
6 What is the writer’s main purpose in the text?
(A) to explain how modern technology ruins teenage communication skills
(B) to describe how a forced break from screens improved family relationships
(C) to advise parents on how to effectively limit their children’s phone usage
(D) to warn others about the highly addictive nature of social media apps
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 B: The text states that the writer “might never have noticed how bleak this routine had become if the Wi-Fi hadn’t unexpectedly dropped”. This loss of connection made him look up and see the disconnection. Option A is a False Match; he saw the glow on their devices, not his own. Option C is a Partial Truth; they were working, but this wasn’t the trigger for his realization. Option D is Unstated.
2 C: The family “looked horrified,” the father “began protesting, claiming that he was expecting a crucial message,” and the brother “muttered… about how unfair it was.” This shows strong opposition and excuses. Option A is a False Match; eating on the roof was just a comparison to show how shocked they were. Option B is a False Match; they were upset about the rule, not the basket itself. Option D is the Opposite.
3 A: The pronoun “it” refers back to “the void left by the absent technology” (which means the noticeable emptiness). The writer says that “trying to fill it [the void] with meaningful dialogue felt like an impossible task.” Option B is a False Match; you cannot fill “technology” with dialogue. Options C and D are mentioned in the text but do not fit grammatically or logically.
4 B: The writer implies this by stating, “I fully expected the standard, monotonous reply of ‘fine’ or ‘busy’.” This shows that the father usually gave dull, uninspiring answers. Option A is an Over-inference; he may have been busy, but the text focuses on his usual lack of detail, not his inability to answer. Option C is a False Match; the flamingos were a “misplaced delivery” at work, not a deliberate purchase. Option D is a False Match; it was the mother who talked about her commute.
5 D: The writer states, “revealing that my parents were not merely authority figures, but actual individuals with entertaining, multifaceted lives,” directly supporting the idea that they were more interesting than he thought. Option A is the Opposite; their jobs provided funny stories, not a desire to quit. Option B is an Over-inference; the brother had a “mishap,” but there’s no mention of him frequently being in serious trouble. Option C is a False Match; they discussed both personal stories and the news.
6 B: The text focuses on the emotional arc of a family suffering from digital disconnection, who implement a “no phones” rule and discover they genuinely enjoy each other’s company. Option A is a Partial Truth; it touches on technology, but the focus is on the family, not just teenagers. Option C is a False Match; a teenager is the one limiting the screen time, not advising parents. Option D is an Over-inference; addiction is hinted at, but it is not a warning text.