The Origin of Paper

Read The Origin of Paper and check the IELTS Reading answers. The word paper derives from the Greek term for the ancient Egyptian writing material called papyrus. In about 2400 BC, the Egyptians discovered how to make a writing surface out of papyrus, a type of reed that grows along waterways in so…

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The word paper derives from the Greek term for the ancient Egyptian writing material called papyrus. In about 2400 BC, the Egyptians discovered how to make a writing surface out of papyrus, a type of reed that grows along waterways in southern Europe and North Africa. The Egyptians cut the plant into strips which they softened in water. Papyrus was cross-woven into a mat and then pounded into a hard, thin sheet.

Vocabulary from this passage

10 words worth learning before you sit the test, each with the sentence it appears in.

an abundant supply of noun phrase

A very large amount of something that is easy to get.

In the passage: "it had an abundant supply of hemp and flax" explains why Samarkand suited papermaking.

Synonyms: a plentiful supply of, a rich source of

Opposites: a shortage of

awkward to transport adjective phrase

Difficult to carry or move from one place to another.

In the passage: Q7 mentions the "difficulty of transporting" rags; the passage uses "awkward to transport" only for bone and bamboo documents, so it is a trap.

Synonyms: difficulty of transporting, hard to move

Opposites: easy to carry

bestow verb

To give something valuable or special to someone, often formally.

In the passage: "paper money bestowed as gifts" means given as presents.

Synonyms: present, grant

Opposites: withhold

bulk manufacturing noun phrase

Making goods in very large quantities, usually in factories.

In the passage: Q4 says "large-scale industry" and "originated"; the passage says "bulk manufacturing of paper began in Iran" (paragraph 7).

Synonyms: large-scale industry, mass production

curious adjective

Strange or unusual in a way that is interesting.

In the passage: "some curious attempts were made to find new materials" means odd, not interested in learning.

Synonyms: odd, unusual

Opposites: ordinary

it has been estimated that verb phrase

Used to report a figure that experts believe but have not proved exactly.

In the passage: "it has been estimated that a single book ... required the skins of 300 sheep" shows the figure is an estimate, not a fact.

Synonyms: experts believe that, it is thought that

mass production noun phrase

Making large numbers of identical products by machine in a factory.

In the passage: "allowing the mass production of printed books" is a fixed phrase to reuse for industry and technology topics.

Synonyms: large-scale manufacture

Opposites: craft production

medium noun

The material or form an artist uses to express ideas or work.

In the passage: "the preferred medium for the artists and literati" means writing material, not a middle size or a TV medium.

Synonyms: material, form of expression

rudimentary adjective

Very basic and not yet developed or improved.

In the passage: "The rudimentary and laborious process of papermaking was refined" describes the early method before improvements.

Synonyms: basic, primitive

Opposites: sophisticated

seems to have been verb phrase

Is probably true, although the evidence is not certain.

In the passage: "seems to have been invented in China" hedges the claim, which matters when judging TRUE or NOT GIVEN statements.

Synonyms: appears to have been, is thought to have been

Answers with explanations

  1. 1. TRUE

    The question's **occasionally** is the passage's **sometimes used**, and the material is **silk**. The writing material in the Shang and Zhou dynasties was mostly bone or bamboo, but silk did serve now and then, so the statement is TRUE.

  2. 2. NOT GIVEN

    Look for the **Tang Dynasty** paragraph. It says **multi-coloured** paper cups and napkins were in use then, but not that coloured paper was **invented** at that time. Using something is not the same as inventing it, so the text gives no answer: NOT GIVEN.

  3. 2-3: C

    2: Look for the **Tang Dynasty** paragraph. It says **multi-coloured** paper cups and napkins were in use then, but not that coloured paper was **invented** at that time. Using something is not the same as inventing it, so the text gives no answer: NOT GIVEN.

    3: The deciding word is **captured by**. The passage says the **Chinese caravan** was captured and the papermakers were taken away to Samarkand, so the Chinese were the captives, not the captors. The statement reverses who captured whom, which makes it FALSE.

  4. 3. FALSE

    The deciding word is **captured by**. The passage says the **Chinese caravan** was captured and the papermakers were taken away to Samarkand, so the Chinese were the captives, not the captors. The statement reverses who captured whom, which makes it FALSE.

  5. 3-4: YES

    3: The deciding word is **captured by**. The passage says the **Chinese caravan** was captured and the papermakers were taken away to Samarkand, so the Chinese were the captives, not the captors. The statement reverses who captured whom, which makes it FALSE.

    4: **Large-scale industry** in the statement is **bulk manufacturing** in the passage, and **originated** matches **began**. Both say Iran was where it started, so the statement is TRUE.

  6. 4. TRUE

    **Large-scale industry** in the statement is **bulk manufacturing** in the passage, and **originated** matches **began**. Both say Iran was where it started, so the statement is TRUE.

  7. 5. TRUE

    Follow the route into Europe. The **Moors from North Africa** invaded Spain and Portugal and **brought the technology with them**, so papermaking reached Europe **via North Africa**. The statement says the same thing in other words: TRUE.

  8. 6. NOT GIVEN

    The passage links **Gutenberg** to the time paper became an everyday item, and says parchment was expensive earlier. It never says what **paper** cost then, so the word **expensive** has no support. The text gives no price for paper: NOT GIVEN.

  9. 7. FALSE

    Look at the end of the rag trade. The passage gives the cause: the supply of old rags **became insufficient**, so people looked for new materials. Transport is never mentioned as the reason, and a different cause clashes with the statement, so it is FALSE.

  10. 8. strips

    The table row is **Egypt**, and the method says the plant parts were **softened in water**, woven and pounded. The first paragraph says the plant was cut into **strips** which they softened in water, so the gap needs the plural noun **strips**.

  11. 9. sheep

    Find **parchment** in the second paragraph, where it is made from animal skin. The only animal named is in **the skins of 300 sheep**, so the gap after "animals such as" is **sheep**.

  12. 10. stretched

    The table says the skin was **dried and** a second step follows. The passage lists **drying them** first and then **stretched** on a frame, so the missing second step is **stretched**.

  13. 11. bark

    Look at the **China** paragraph for the **mulberry** and hemp rags. Ts'ai Lun mixed **mulberry bark** and hemp rags with water, so the material taken from the mulberry tree is **bark**. A later sentence also mentions bark cloth, but the ingredient list comes first.

  14. 12. Samarkand

    The row is dated **751 AD** with **flax and hemp** as materials. In that year papermakers were taken to a place with an **abundant supply of hemp and flax**, which the passage names as **Samarkand**. The place name goes in the first column.

  15. 13. stone

    Look for **mills** in the Samarkand paragraph. Papermaking there moved to **stone mills**, so the material the mills were made of is **stone**.

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