# PTE RW FIB #20: Historical Origins of...

Reading & Writing: Fill in the Blanks #20 - Level 2 - Feeds Reading

> Below is a text with blanks. Click on each blank, a list of choice will appear. Select the appropriate answer choice for each blank.

Dictatorship is not a modern concept. Two thousand years ago, during the period of the Roman Republic, exceptional powers were sometimes given by the Senate to ____ dictators such as Sulla and Julius Caesar. The ____ was that the dictatorship would be temporary and that it would make it ____ to take swift and effective action to deal with an emergency. There is some ____ as how the term should be applied today. Should it be used in its original form to describe the temporary exercise of emergency powers? Or can it now be ____ in a much broader sense as common usage suggests?

## Answer

Dictatorship is not a modern concept. Two thousand years ago, during the period of the Roman Republic, exceptional powers were sometimes given by the Senate to **individual** dictators such as Sulla and Julius Caesar. The **intention** was that the dictatorship would be temporary and that it would make it **possible** to take swift and effective action to deal with an emergency. There is some **disagreement** as how the term should be applied today. Should it be used in its original form to describe the temporary exercise of emergency powers? Or can it now be **applied** in a much broader sense as common usage suggests?

## Explanation

Blank 3 follows "make it" and comes before "to take swift action." "Make it possible to" is a fixed pattern. "Urgent" and "immediate" describe the action, not whether it can happen. In blank 4, the questions that follow show people disagree about the term. That is why "disagreement" is right and "agreement" is wrong.

## Hints

- Focus on the historical context of the Roman Republic when selecting terms related to power and intent.
- Look for contrast markers in the final sentences to identify the correct term for the ongoing debate.

[Practise this question with the exam timer](https://testmigo.com/pte/practice/reading-writing-fill-in-the-blanks/historical-origins-of-dictatorial-power) - [All Reading & Writing: Fill in the Blanks questions](https://testmigo.com/pte/practice/reading-writing-fill-in-the-blanks)