IX. Read the text and fill in one word which best fits each gap. (2p)

    A desert is a special region where only certain kinds of plants and animals can survive. All deserts have very (1) ____________ water. This means that only animals and plants that can (2) ____________ without water for long (3) ____________ of time can exist in the deserts. Plants in the deserts are particularly adapted (4) ____________ the dry and hot environment. (5) ____________ well- known desert plant is the cactus. (6) ____________ many desert plants, this plant has very tiny leaves. As plants lose most of their water (7) ____________ their leaves, the small leaves of cactus help to cut down water (8) ____________ . There are (9) ____________ desert plants that do not have leaves at all. Some desert plants survive (10) ____________ avoiding the dry season altogether.