Nutmeg and mace both come from one fruit that once grew only on Indonesia's Banda Islands. Arab traders kept the source secret, then the Portuguese and Dutch took over the trade. Believing nutmeg cured the plague, Europe paid a fortune, so the Dutch coated exports in lime and swapped Manhattan for the last British island. Smuggling, a tsunami and a British raid ended the monopoly.
The notes (1-4) are all in the first paragraph. The three TRUE / FALSE / NOT GIVEN statements (5-7) jump through the second, fourth and fifth. The table (8-13) walks the whole history again by period.
Note completion (ONE WORD ONLY)
Questions 1-4
How to attack this block: The first paragraph describes the tree from outside in: the leaf shape, the husk that splits open, the seed, and the red aril. Remember which spice comes from which part. Nutmeg comes from the dried seed, and mace from the aril.
Question 1
Answer: ovalParagraph 1, third sentence
What shape are the nutmeg tree's leaves?
The tree is thickly branched with dense foliage of tough, dark green oval leaves
Question says → Passage says
the leaves of the treedense foliage of tough, dark green oval leaves
Why: The gap sits before 'in shape', so it needs a shape adjective. The only shape word attached to the leaves is 'oval'. 'Tough' and 'dark green' describe texture and colour, not shape.
The trap: The same sentence has two other shape words: 'bell-shaped' (the flowers) and 'pear-shaped' (the fruits). Check which noun each one belongs to before you copy it.
Question 2
Answer: huskParagraph 1, fifth and sixth sentences
Which part around the fruit splits open when it's ripe?
The fruit is encased in a fleshy husk. When the fruit is ripe, this husk splits into two halves
Question says → Passage says
surrounds the fruitThe fruit is encased in a fleshy husk
breaks opensplits into two halves
Why: 'Surrounds' is a paraphrase of 'is encased in', and 'breaks open' matches 'splits into two halves'. Both point to the husk.
The trap: The aril also 'surrounds' something, but it surrounds the seed inside, not the whole fruit, and it doesn't split. The notes also use 'aril' in a later line, so it can't be this answer.
Question 3
Answer: seedParagraph 1, last sentence
Which part of the fruit gives us the spice nutmeg?
the two spices nutmeg and mace, the former being produced from the dried seed and the latter from the aril
Question says → Passage says
is used to produce the spice nutmegnutmeg… the former being produced from the dried seed
Why: 'The former' refers back to the first spice named, nutmeg, and it comes from 'the dried seed'. The gap follows 'the', so you need a noun: 'seed'.
The trap: Don't write 'dried seed'. That's two words and the limit is ONE WORD ONLY. 'Husk' is wrong too: the husk just splits off and isn't a spice source.
Question 4
Answer: maceParagraph 1, last sentence
Which spice comes from the aril?
the two spices nutmeg and mace, the former being produced from the dried seed and the latter from the aril
Question says → Passage says
the covering known as the arila lacy red or crimson covering called an 'aril'
is used to producethe latter from the aril
Why: 'The latter' means the second item in the pair 'nutmeg and mace', so the aril produces mace. The note even reuses the passage's word 'covering' to point you there.
The trap: If you mix up 'former' and 'latter' you'll write 'nutmeg'. Former = first named, latter = second named.
TRUE / FALSE / NOT GIVEN
Questions 5-7
How to attack this block: The Arabs never revealed where nutmeg grew, so Europeans didn't know (FALSE). The VOC became the richest company in the world, which isn't the same as the first (NOT GIVEN). After Breda the Dutch held every nutmeg island (TRUE).
Question 5
Answer: FALSEParagraph 2, third sentence
Did most people in medieval Europe know where nutmeg came from?
They sold nutmeg for high prices to merchants based in Venice, but they never revealed the exact location of the source of this extremely valuable commodity.
Question says → Passage says
In the Middle Agesin the Middle Ages / Throughout this period
knew where nutmeg was grownnever revealed the exact location of the source
Why: The Arabs were the only importers and they kept the source secret. If the only people who knew never told, Europeans couldn't have known. That contradicts the statement, so it's FALSE.
The trap: Some students choose NOT GIVEN because the passage never says 'Europeans didn't know'. But the secrecy line makes the statement impossible, and that is a contradiction, not missing information.
Question 6
Answer: NOT GIVENParagraph 4, first two sentences
Was the VOC the first big trading company in the world?
By 1617, the VOC was the richest commercial operation in the world.
Question says → Passage says
The VOCthe VOC, a trading corporation
the world's first major trading companythe richest commercial operation in the world
Why: The passage tells you when the VOC was founded (1602) and that it became the richest. It says nothing about whether any big trading company existed before it. 'First' is never discussed, so it's NOT GIVEN.
The trap: 'Richest… in the world' sounds like 'world's first', but richest is about size and money, not about order in time. Don't let the shared words 'in the world' trick you into TRUE.
Question 7
Answer: TRUEParagraph 5, last part
After the Treaty of Breda, did the Dutch hold every island where nutmeg grew?
Intent on securing their hold over every nutmeg-producing island, the Dutch offered a trade… The British agreed.
Question says → Passage says
Following the Treaty of Bredathe Treaty of Breda, in 1667
control of all the islands where nutmeg grewtheir hold over every nutmeg-producing island / a monopoly over the nutmeg trade
Why: Run was the 'only one obstacle' to Dutch control. Under the Breda settlement the British handed Run over, so the Dutch now held every nutmeg island. 'A monopoly over the nutmeg trade' confirms it. TRUE.
The trap: The British seized the islands in 1809, which can make you think control was never complete. But that's over a century later. The statement is about the period right after 1667.
Table completion (ONE WORD ONLY)
Questions 8-13
How to attack this block: The table's periods are signposts. Use the Middle Ages for who imported the spice, the 17th century for the disease, the lime and the island of Run, and the late 18th century for where the plants were smuggled and what wiped out half the groves. Two answers need capitals.
Question 8
Answer: ArabsParagraph 2, second sentence
Who brought nutmeg to Europe in the Middle Ages?
Throughout this period, the Arabs were the exclusive importers of the spice to Europe.
Question says → Passage says
was brought to Europe bywere the exclusive importers of the spice to Europe
Why: 'Importers… to Europe' is the passage's way of saying 'brought to Europe'. 'This period' points back to the Middle Ages, which is the table's row. Write 'Arabs' with a capital A.
The trap: The Venetians are in the next sentence, but they were the buyers. The Portuguese only arrived in 1512, after the Middle Ages and in the 16th-century row.
Question 9
Answer: plagueParagraph 4, middle
Which disease did people think nutmeg could cure?
thousands of people across Europe were dying of the plague, a highly contagious and deadly disease… they decided nutmeg held the cure
Question says → Passage says
believed to be effective againstdecided nutmeg held the cure
the disease known as thethe plague, a highly contagious and deadly disease
Why: The table already gives you 'the disease known as the ___', so you only need the name. The passage names it, then explains it: 'the plague, a highly contagious and deadly disease'.
The trap: Don't write 'disease' or 'contagious'. The table has already used 'disease', and the gap needs the disease's name.
Question 10
Answer: limeParagraph 5, middle
What did the Dutch put on exported nutmeg so it couldn't be grown elsewhere?
all exported nutmeg was covered with lime to make sure there was no chance a fertile seed which could be grown elsewhere would leave the islands
Question says → Passage says
put ___ on nutmegcovered with lime
to avoid it being cultivated outside the islandsa fertile seed which could be grown elsewhere would leave the islands
Why: 'Put ___ on' is a paraphrase of 'covered with', and 'cultivated outside the islands' matches 'grown elsewhere'. The word after 'covered with' is the answer.
The trap: 'Seedling' and 'seeds' are in the sentence just before, but those are what people were punished for carrying. They aren't something put on the nutmeg.
Question 11
Answer: RunParagraph 5, second half
Which island did the Dutch finally get from the British?
if the British would give them the island of Run, they would in turn give Britain a distant and much less valuable island in North America
Question says → Passage says
obtained… from the Britishthe British would give them
the island ofthe island of Run
Why: The table row is about what the Dutch did, and the island they received was Run. It's a proper noun, so write it with a capital R.
The trap: Manhattan is the famous name in this paragraph, but that island went the other way, from the Dutch to the British.
Question 12
Answer: MauritiusParagraph 6, first sentence
Where were nutmeg plants smuggled to in 1770?
in 1770, a Frenchman named Pierre Poivre successfully smuggled nutmeg plants to safety in Mauritius
Question says → Passage says
secretly taken tosmuggled… to safety in
1770in 1770
Why: 'Smuggled' means taken secretly, and the date 1770 locks it to this sentence. The place is Mauritius, with a capital letter and careful spelling.
The trap: The next sentence mentions the Caribbean and Grenada, but the plants only went there later, from Mauritius. 'Africa' is just there to locate Mauritius.
Question 13
Answer: tsunamiParagraph 6, third sentence
What destroyed half the Banda nutmeg plantations in 1778?
in 1778, a volcanic eruption in the Banda region caused a tsunami that wiped out half the nutmeg groves
Question says → Passage says
half the… nutmeg plantationshalf the nutmeg groves
were destroyed bywiped out
Why: Follow the chain: the eruption caused the tsunami, and it's the tsunami 'that wiped out' the groves. 'Destroyed by a ___' needs whatever did the wiping out.
The trap: 'Eruption' is tempting because it started it all, but the passage makes the tsunami the direct cause. 'Volcanic' is an adjective, so it can't follow 'a' on its own here.
Exported nutmeg was covered with lime so no fertile seed could be grown elsewhere. 'Put ___ on nutmeg' needs that noun.
Words from this passage worth keeping
foliage(Paragraph 1)
the leaves of a plant or tree
encased(Paragraph 1)
completely covered or surrounded
exclusive(Paragraph 2)
the only ones; not shared with anyone else
commodity(Paragraph 2)
a product that is bought and sold
soared(Paragraph 3)
rose very quickly to a high level
contagious(Paragraph 4)
easily passed from one person to another
compromise(Paragraph 5)
an agreement where each side gives up something
monopoly(Paragraph 5)
complete control of a trade by one group
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The full Cambridge 15 Test 1 reading paper: all three passages, 60 minutes, marked the second you finish with a review of every answer. Already done it? Take it again and see if the same traps still get you.
Cambridge IELTS 15, Test 1, Reading Passage 1. The passage and questions belong to Cambridge University Press and are not reproduced here. We quote short extracts only as evidence for our own commentary, and the answers are published for self-marking. Get the book for the full text, or sit the test on Langujet.
