CELPIP Reading Part 3Reading for Information Practice

A. A dip pen could make clear marks, but writers had to return its nib to an ink bottle after only a few lines. Transporting an open bottle also increased the risk of stains, spills, and interrupted work away from a desk. A fountain pen placed a small ink reservoir inside the barrel and delivered ink continuously to the point. Achieving dependable flow required more than storage because liquid had to leave without flooding the page. This combination helps explain why limitations of repeatedly dipping a writing pen cannot be understood from one feature alone or from one brief observation.

B. A narrow feed beneath the nib used fine channels to conduct ink from the reservoir toward the writing surface. As ink moved out, a separate path allowed air to enter and replace the lost volume. This exchange balanced pressure so the pen supplied ink gradually instead of releasing the entire contents at once. Heat from a hand or a change in altitude could disturb the balance by expanding air trapped inside the barrel. For design and operation of fountain pens, relationships among these features matter because a change in one may influence several others within the same setting over time.

C. A split metal nib carried ink through its central slit and placed a controlled line on the paper. Pressure spread flexible tines slightly, making the line broader before the metal returned toward its original shape. The best nib shape depended on writing angle, hand pressure, paper texture, and the writer's preferred style. Hard tipping material protected the contact point because softer nib metal would wear during repeated movement across paper. Viewed together, details about nib flexibility and writing performance connect visible characteristics with processes that are less immediately obvious to an ordinary observer at first.

D. Some pens filled through levers or pistons, while others accepted a removable cartridge containing a prepared ink supply. Dried ink could block the feed, so flushing the pen helped restore the narrow channels. Ballpoint pens later offered greater convenience on many surfaces and reduced the everyday dominance of fountain pens. Fountain pens nevertheless remain valued for refillability, line variation, and the individual feel of a well-matched nib. Within design and operation of fountain pens, the result is a system in which structure, timing, and local conditions remain closely connected throughout continuing development.

E. Not given in any of the above paragraphs.