A Brief Introduction to Pepper Reading Answers

A Brief Introduction to Pepper Reading Answers contains 13 questions and belongs to the assessment system of the IELTS General Reading test. A Brief Introduction to Pepper reading section must be answered within 20 minutes. In this IELTS reading passage, you'll encounter question types like Do the following statements agree with the information and choose one word only.

A Brief Introduction to Pepper Reading Answers explores the origin, cultivation, and historical significance of pepper, a spice derived from the Piper plant. To practice reading comprehension passages like this one, candidates are encouraged to explore the IELTS Reading Practice Test section.

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Topic:

Pepper, the spice, comes from the berries of a plant that is a woody climbing vine. In the botanical world, pepper belongs to a genus of plants called Piper. This genus was created in 1753 by Carl Linnaeus, the Swedish botanist whose system for classifying plants is still in use today. He placed seventeen species in the piper genus and probably used the ancient Greek name for black pepper, Peperi, as the basis for the group.

Pepper isn't a fast-maturing plant. It takes several years for the branching woody vines to mature, and during their growth the vines can reach up to thirty feet. The pepper berries- which grow in clusters and dangle from the vines-are picked by hand when they are ready for harvesting, which usually begins two or three years after the vine is first planted. Black pepper is picked when the berries are still green, while white pepper is picked later, when the berries have turned from green to red. Preparing the berries for sale involves a lengthy process of drying, cleaning and sorting. Once the berries have been dried, they are then referred to as peppercorns, and these are what are used in food preparation around the world.

The pepper plant loves the warm, humid, rainy tropics, in a narrow band around the equator. Pepper also requires well-drained soils, and its preferred habitat is forests. Unshaded plants which are exposed too long to the sun will not yield many berries.

The colourful mixes of whole peppercorns seen in many markets today contain green and black peppercorns. Although there are pink peppercorns, the ripest berries, these are more fragile and are therefore more costly than other kinds. This is why there are few of them in a peppercorn mix.

No one knows when the first human bit into a peppercorn and decided it would taste good on a piece of meat or in a vegetable stew, but in the West it was the ancient Romans who apparently first made pepper an essential part of their meals. Food was only part of the reason for pepper's popularity; health played an equally important role. In the Roman Empire, pepper was employed to relieve the pain that was a common consequence of numerous medical conditions and complaints. If you showed signs of a fever, it was common practice to be given a liquid that had some pepper in it.

The Romans were not the first to embrace pepper as a medicine. Belief in the spice's considerable usefulness is reflected in India's ancient Ayurvedic system of medicine, which is more than three thousand years old. In Sanskrit (a language of ancient India), black pepper is known as maricha or marica, meaning an ability to get rid of poison, which suggests it was used in patients for this purpose. Pepper was also believed by the Indians to have other qualities as well. For example, physicians would frequently apply pepper-based lotions to reduce the effects of decay in teeth, which made it an extremely popular remedy.

In the Middle Ages (5th-15th centuries) black peppers renown made it a must-have item for the European wealthy, who loved the spice. At that time, pepper was guarded by servants in royal households and kept in the private wardrobes of the rich. It was considered a privilege to cook with pepper and many of the recipes from the period called for substantial quantities of pepper, which might be considered very unappetising today. But for most people, pepper was too expensive.

In the year 1439, a pound of pepper was roughly equal to more than two days' pay in England. Meanwhile, pepper could be exchanged for gold, and also became a form of payment for peoples work. In some of the larger cities, it was even possible to use pepper as rent in some kinds of accommodation. Employees in the pepper industry were not allowed to have pockets in their jackets or trousers so that this valuable commodity would not be stolen.

The huge demand for pepper and the money it could bring encouraged people to risk adventure on foreign oceans and in foreign lands, and it is within this context that the story of pepper really begins.

Questions 1-6

Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 1? 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. Carl Linnaeus' method for categorising plants has been replaced by a better one.

Answer: FALSE

Supporting statement: "…Carl Linnaeus, the Swedish botanist whose system for classifying plants is still in use today."

Keywords: [Linnaeus, system, still in use]

Keyword Location: Paragraph 1, Line 2

Explanation: The passage clearly states that Linnaeus’ classification system is still used today, indicating that it has not been replaced by any new method.

2. The ancient Greeks originally took the word for pepper from another language.

Answer: NOT GIVEN

Explanation: While the passage mentions the Greek word Peperi, it does not provide any details about whether the Greeks borrowed it from another language.

3. Machines are used to harvest pepper berries.

Answer: FALSE

Supporting statement: "…are picked by hand when they are ready for harvesting…"

Keywords: [picked by hand, harvesting]

Keyword Location: Paragraph 2, Line 3

Explanation: The text directly states that pepper berries are harvested by hand, clearly ruling out the use of machines for picking.

4. Pepper berries are riper than black pepper berries when they are picked.

Answer: TRUE

Supporting statement: "Black pepper is picked when the berries are still green, while white pepper is picked later, when the berries have turned from green to red."

Keywords: [picked later, green to red]

Keyword Location: Paragraph 2, Lines 4–5

Explanation: Since white pepper is picked later, after the berries ripen from green to red, it confirms that white pepper berries are riper.

5. Pepper vines need a lot of sunlight to produce a large harvest of berries.

Answer: FALSE

Supporting statement: "Unshaded plants which are exposed too long to the sun will not yield many berries."

Keywords: [exposed to sun, not yield many berries]

Keyword Location: Paragraph 3, Final line

Explanation: The passage emphasizes that too much sun exposure reduces berry yield, indicating pepper vines do not need a lot of sunlight.

6. Pink peppercorns are more expensive to buy than other varieties.

Answer: TRUE

Supporting statement: "…pink peppercorns… are more fragile and are therefore more costly than other kinds."

Keywords: [pink peppercorns, more costly]

Keyword Location: Paragraph 4, Line 3

Explanation: The text clearly says pink peppercorns are more fragile and costly, confirming they are more expensive than other types.

Questions 7-13

Choose ONE WORD ONLY for each answer.

THE MANY USES OF PEPPER

ANCIENT ROME

• the Romans used pepper to reduce 7………….. caused by many health issues

Answer: pain

Supporting statement: "…pepper was employed to relieve the pain that was a common consequence of numerous medical conditions…"

Keywords: [relieve, pain, medical conditions]

Keyword Location: Paragraph 5, Line 3

Explanation: The passage explicitly mentions that pain relief was one of the primary medical uses of pepper in ancient Rome.

• 8...... containing pepper was used as medicine to bring down high temperatures

Answer: Liquid

Supporting statement: "If you showed signs of a fever, it was common practice to be given a liquid that had some pepper in it."

Keywords: [fever, liquid, pepper]

Keyword Location: Paragraph 5, Final line

Explanation: The text specifies that pepper-infused liquid was used as a treatment for fever, which is associated with high temperatures.

INDIA

• pepper has been used in Ayurvedic medicine for thousands of years

• pepper was thought to be able to extract 9………….. from people, as indicated by its name in Sanskrit.

Answer: poison

Supporting statement: "…black pepper is known as maricha or marica, meaning an ability to get rid of poison…"

Keywords: [Sanskrit, poison, get rid of]

Keyword Location: Paragraph 6, Line 2

Explanation: The Sanskrit name implies that black pepper was believed to eliminate poison, showing its detoxifying use in ancient Indian medicine.

• pepper was used to treat problems with peoples 10…………………

Answer: teeth

Supporting statement: "…physicians would frequently apply pepper-based lotions to reduce the effects of decay in teeth…"

Keywords: [pepper-based lotions, decay, teeth]

Keyword Location: Paragraph 6, Line 4

Explanation: The application of pepper on teeth for reducing decay clearly highlights its role in dental treatment.

USES IN EUROPE IN THE MIDDLE AGES

• in wealthy households, pepper was stored in 11……………

Answer: wardrobes

Supporting statement: "…kept in the private wardrobes of the rich."

Keywords: [stored, wardrobes, rich]

Keyword Location: Paragraph 7, Line 3

Explanation: The passage explains that the wealthy safeguarded pepper in private wardrobes, showing its high value.

• 12……………. written at that time required large amounts of pepper

Answer: recipes

Supporting statement: "…many of the recipes from the period called for substantial quantities of pepper…"

Keywords: [recipes, quantities, pepper]

Keyword Location: Paragraph 7, Line 4

Explanation: Historical recipes frequently used pepper in large amounts, even if that seems excessive by modern standards.

• rent could be paid in the form of pepper in city areas

• people who worked with pepper had to wear clothes without 13........ to discourage theft.

Answer: pockets

Supporting statement: "…employees… were not allowed to have pockets… so that this valuable commodity would not be stolen."

Keywords: [employees, not allowed, pockets, stolen]

Keyword Location: Paragraph 8, Final line

Explanation: The rule against pockets for workers was a preventive measure to avoid theft of valuable pepper.

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