🔥The Clipper Races: an era of competition between cargo ships: Đề thi IELTS READING máy 06/11/2022 (actual tests) - Giải + Giải thích từ vựng

During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the British East India Company had the monopoly on trade with China and India. This meant that because no rival could legally import tea or other goods from these countries at this time, the company was rarely in a hurry to transport its merchandise. Instead, its priority was to minimise costs by carrying as much as possible on each ship. This meant that its ships - known as East Indiamen - were enormous, strong and very slow.

By 1800, the average East Indiaman could carry 1,200 tons of merchandise. The trading pattern for China tea usually meant the East Indiamen set sail from Britain in January, sailed round the Cape of Good Hope at the southernmost tip of Africa, and arrived in China in September. There they would load up that year's tea harvest, set off again and, depending on the wind and weather, aim to arrive back by the following September. So even with favourable sailing conditions, the round trip lasted almost two years, and if anything went wrong it could take a lot longer.

However, by 1834 the company had lost its trading monopolies, and tea had become a freely traded item. Having no more use for its great ships, the company sold them off, and many were bought by merchants or their captains, who continued to plough the seas between Britain and China. But now that tea could be traded freely, a few smart sailors began to realise that whoever brought each new harvest of tea to Britain first, stood to make the most money.

This was partly because if you were home first, you could sell your shipment of tea before your competitors even arrived, and partly because consumers in Britain in the nineteenth century believed that the fresher and earlier-picked the tea, the better the resulting drink. Tea traders now needed faster, sleeker ships to bring their precious cargo back. Nevertheless, in Britain this idea only caught on slowly, and white the 1840s saw a few faster ships launched, for the time being many merchants remained satisfied with the slow but reliable East Indiamen.>> Form đăng kí giải đề thi thật IELTS 4 kĩ năng kèm bài giải bộ đề 100 đề PART 2 IELTS SPEAKING quý đang thi (update hàng tuần) từ IELTS TUTOR

In fact it was the Americans who pioneered the first clipper ships. These vessels were fast and slender, with a narrow hull that was deeper at the back than at the front and masses of sails on tall masts. They earned their name from the way that they clipped off journey times British merchants resolved to build their own clippers to rival the Americans and the first British tea clipper, Stornaway, was built in Aberdeen in 1850 More tea clippers were designed and built in Britain throughout the 1850s and 1860s, they had a narrower beam than their American equivalents, making them less powerful during storms, but faster in calmer weather.

There was a great spirit of competition between the British and American ships plying the tea trade, but to begin with the Americans had the edge. Then in 1851 a British ship owner, Richard Green, built the aptly named clipper Challenger, with the stated intention of beating the American ships. Loaded with tea, Challenger left China for London in 1852 at the same time as the American clipper Challenge, a much larger, older ship, already greatly admired for its speed. Large sums were bet on which would complete the journey first. In the event, the British ship beat its rival to London by two days, amid much jubilation. From then on, such international races grew in popularity.

After 1855, American participation in the British tea trade gradually stopped. But even without the Anglo-American rivalry, the competitive spirit continued. It was really ignited when new ports were opened up for trade in China. These included Fouchow, which was much closer to the tea-producing areas than Canton, the port used previously. As a result, tea could be loaded onboard earlier and fresher, and the clippers could set off in late May or early June - sometimes not even taking time to fill out the official paperwork - racing back to Britain whatever the difficulties.

They sped down through the South China Sea and into the Indian Ocean, then raced to get round the southernmost tip of Africa at the Cape of Good Hope. Then it was north across the vast Atlantic, past the Azores, through the English Channel and into the estuary of the River Thames. Once there, they would be towed by tugs, up the river and into the docks.

The cargo of the winning ship could earn a premium of up to sixpence per pound-and so the captain and crew were rewarded by the owners of the cargo. But the races were about more than just money the crews, about 40 men on each clipper, were expert sailors, proud of their ships, and they delighted in competing against each other. Without their enthusiasm, the races would never have happened, since getting the ship home as fast as possible required the crew to be totally dedicated and to sacrifice much of their rest for the duration of the race.

Questions 1 - 6
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 1? In boxes 1-6 on your answer sheet, write:

TRUE if the statement agrees with the information

FALSE if the statement contradicts the information

NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this

1. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the British East India Company faced a lot of competition.

2. Before 1800, cargo size was the most important consideration for the East India Company.

3. At best, voyages of the East Indiamen to China and back took nearly two years to complete.

4. Before 1834, voyages to and from China were considered to be highly dangerous.

5. After 1834, the ships which had served the East India Company stopped being used for commercial purposes.

6. In the nineteenth century, British drinkers preferred tea made from mature leaves to that made from younger leaves.

Questions 7-13
Complete the notes below. Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer. Write your answers in boxes 7-13 on your answer sheet.

Clipper races

The ships

Clipper ships were first used for trading by American merchants.

The ships were remarkable for the number of 7 ............. they had.>> IELTS TUTOR có hướng dẫn kĩ PHÂN TÍCH ĐỀ THI THẬT TASK 2 (dạng advantages & disadvantages) NGÀY 04/8/2020 IELTS WRITING GENERAL MÁY TÍNH (kèm bài được sửa hs đi thi)

The performance of British tea clippers was particularly affected when there were 8 ............ at sea.

The races

It was in a ship called 9 ................. that the British first competed successfully against the Americans.

Richard Green’s ship arrived two days ahead of its competitor.

Competition increased when additional Chinese trading 10 ............. were established.

Merchants were occasionally in such a hurry that they failed to complete the 11 ............ before leaving China.

At the end of their journey, the ships needed the help of 12 ...............

The rewards

The crews were motivated by both 13 ................... and their enthusiasm for the competition.

1. Monopoly

Definition: The exclusive possession or control of the supply or trade in a commodity or service.
Vietnamese: Sự độc quyền.
Example: The British East India Company had the monopoly on trade with China and India.(IELTS TUTOR giải thích: Công ty Đông Ấn Anh Quốc có độc quyền về thương mại với Trung Quốc và Ấn Độ)

2. Merchandise

Definition: Goods to be bought and sold.
Vietnamese: Hàng hóa.
Example: The average East Indiaman could carry 1,200 tons of merchandise. (IELTS TUTOR giải thích:Tàu East Indiaman trung bình có thể chở 1.200 tấn hàng hóa)

3. Harvest

Definition: The process or period of gathering crops.
Vietnamese: Mùa thu hoạch.
Example: There they would load up that year's tea harvest. (IELTS TUTOR giải thích:Ở đó, họ sẽ chất lên tàu vụ thu hoạch trà của năm đó)

4. Freely traded

Definition: Able to be bought and sold without restrictions.
Vietnamese: Tự do buôn bán.
Example: By 1834, tea had become a freely traded item. (IELTS TUTOR giải thích:Đến năm 1834, trà đã trở thành một mặt hàng tự do buôn bán)

5. Slender

Definition: Gracefully thin or narrow in shape.
Vietnamese: Thon, mảnh mai.
Example: These vessels were fast and slender, with a narrow hull. (IELTS TUTOR giải thích:Những con tàu này nhanh và thon gọn, với thân tàu hẹp)

6. Pioneer

Definition: To develop or be the first to use or apply a method or idea.
Vietnamese: Tiên phong.
Example: It was the Americans who pioneered the first clipper ships. (IELTS TUTOR giải thích:Người Mỹ đã tiên phong tạo ra những con tàu clipper đầu tiên)

7. Hull

Definition: The main body of a ship.
Vietnamese: Thân tàu.
Example: With a narrow hull that was deeper at the back than at the front. (IELTS TUTOR giải thích:Với thân tàu hẹp sâu hơn ở phía sau so với phía trước)

8. Rivalry

Definition: Competition for the same objective or for superiority in the same field.
Vietnamese: Sự cạnh tranh, ganh đua.
Example: There was a great spirit of competition between the British and American ships. (IELTS TUTOR giải thích:Có một tinh thần cạnh tranh mạnh mẽ giữa các tàu Anh và Mỹ)

9. Jubilation

Definition: A feeling of great happiness and triumph.
Vietnamese: Niềm hân hoan, vui mừng.
Example: The British ship beat its rival to London by two days, amid much jubilation. (IELTS TUTOR giải thích: Tàu Anh đã đánh bại đối thủ đến London trước hai ngày, trong niềm hân hoan lớn lao)

10. Premium

Definition: An amount of money added to the usual price of something.
Vietnamese: Phần thưởng, phí thưởng thêm.
Example: The cargo of the winning ship could earn a premium of up to sixpence per pound. (IELTS TUTOR giải thích:Hàng hóa của con tàu chiến thắng có thể kiếm được phần thưởng lên đến sáu xu mỗi pound)

11. Dedicated

Definition: Devoted to a task or purpose.
Vietnamese: Tận tụy, cống hiến.
Example: Getting the ship home as fast as possible required the crew to be totally dedicated. (IELTS TUTOR giải thích:Đưa con tàu về nhà nhanh nhất có thể yêu cầu thủy thủ đoàn phải hoàn toàn tận tụy)