Boost your Vocabulary Cambridge 8 - Test 1 - Passage 01

Front

regulate Example: According to archaeological evidence, at least 5,000 years ago, and long before the advent of the Roman Empire, the Babylonians began to measure time, introducing calendars to co-ordinate communal activities, to plan the shipment of goods and, in particular, to regulate planting and harvesting.

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adjust

Front

regulate

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alignment

Front

"Orbit" in the sentence: They based their calendars on three natural cycles: the solar day, marked by the successive periods of light and darkness as the earth rotates on its axis; the lunar month, following the phases of the moon as it orbits the earth; and the solar year, defined by the changing seasons that accompany our planet's revolution around the sun.

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circle

Front

accompany Example: They based their calendars on three natural cycles: the solar day, marked by the successive periods of light and darkness as the earth rotates on its axis; the lunar month, following the phases of the moon as it orbits the earth; and the solar year, defined by the changing seasons that accompany our planet's revolution around the sun.

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come with

Front

artificial Example: Before the invention of artificial light, the moon had greater social impact.

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synthetic

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conspicuous Example: And, for those living near the equator in particular, its waxing and waning was more conspicuous than the passing of the seasons.

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obvious

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crucial Example: In more northern climes, however, where seasonal agriculture was practised, the solar year became more crucial.

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important

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formulate in the sentence: Centuries before the Roman Empire, the Egyptians had formulated a municipal calendar having 12 months of 30 days, with five days added to approximate the solar year.

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create

Front

municipal Example: Centuries before the Roman Empire, the Egyptians had formulated a municipal calendar having 12 months of 30 days, with five days added to approximate the solar year.

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civic

Front

interval Example: The cosmic significance the Egyptians placed in the 12 decans led them to develop a system in which each interval of darkness (and later, each interval of daylight) was divided into a dozen equal parts.

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interlude