G RAMMAR RESOU RCE BANK

Co ntents

Units

1 Present tenses

2 Past tenses

3 Future forms ( 1 )

4 Future forrr1s (2)

5 The perfect aspect

6 Conditionals ( 1 )

7 Conditionals (2)

8 Articles and other determiners

9 Countable and uncountable nouns

10 Noun phrases

11 Adjectives

1 2 Adverbs
13 Comparatives and superlatives

14 Modals ( 1 )

15 Modals (2)

16 Modals (3)

17 Passives ( 1 )

18 Passives (2)

19 Relative clauses ( 1 )

20 Relative clauses (2)

21 Connectors/linkers

22 Reported speech

23 Verb patterns

24 Prepositions

Appendices

Common Irregular Verbs

Basic Rules for Punctuation and Capitalisation

302 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANI<

 13@fiif.@;1;1£jelil@f=f.1fli
We use the present continuous:
1 Present tenses • to talk about temporary situations.
I'm living with my grandparents at the moment.
Present simple
Used with: at the moment, currently, now, this weekI month
Affirmative Negative
---- •
to talk about changes a n d developments.
1/You/We{fhey live here. 1/You/We{fhey don't live House prices are rising again.

I Used with: at the moment, now

here. • to talk about an action in progress now.
(don't = do not) We're watching TV

He/She/It lives here. He/She/It doesn't live here.

(doesn't = does not)
• to talk about repeated actions which are annoying.
Question Short answer She's always telling me what to do.
-----

Do I/you/we/they live here? Yes, I/you/we/they do Used with: always, constantly, forever
No, I/you/we/they don't.

Does he/she/it live here? Yes, he/she/it does. Stative verbs

No, he/she/it doesn't.
Stative verbs refer to states. These talk about thoughts
We use the present simple: (believe. know, think, understand), feelings ( love. ha te,
• to talk about facts. enjoy'i, senses (smell, taste, see) and possession (have (got),
The Earth moves around the Sun at approximately 107,000 belong, own). Stative verbs are usually used in the present
kilometres per hour. simple. Some stative verbs are used in both the simple and
• to talk about habits and routines. continuous form. The verbs in the present simple refer to
I cycle to college every day. permanent situations, or states, while those in the continuous
• to talk about timetables. form refer to more temporary situations.
The next train leaves at 14:20. have I have two brothers and a sister.
Used with: a t + time, every+ time period (hour, 20 minutes) be
I'm having a great time. Wish you were here.
We have a new boss. She's very nice.
• to talk about states, thoughts or feelings. That's enough, Jamie. You 're being silly.
He doesn't know the answer. feel Mark feels we should get married in May.
• to tell stories or describe the plot of a book or film. Carla can't make it. She isn't feeling well.
The action in this movie takes place on a ship. think I really don't know. What do you think?
You're very quiet. What are you thinking about?
Time adverbials smell Can you smell that? I think it's smoke.
Why are you smelling the milk ? It 's fresh.
We often use time adverbials with the present simple,
especially when talking about habits and routines. Adverbs
of frequency (always, never, normally. occasionally. often,
Exercises
rarely. regularly. seldom, sometimes, usually'i generally come Complete the conversation with the present simple or
before the main verb but after the verb be. Time phrases like present continuous form of the verbs.
every hour/morning/day/week/month/year and once a week/ A: This 1 ............................. (be) a photo of us in Senegal. In this
month/year usually come at the end of the sentence but can one, we 2 ........................... .. (celebrate) Sean's birthday.
sometimes come at the beginning. B: I can see you 3 . .............. (have) a great time. There's a
guy here who 4 .................... .. .. ..... (look) exactly like Jude.
Present continuous A: That's Sean.
B: Is he the one who 5 ... ...... ... .... ..... ...... . . (swim) in the ocean ?
Affirmative Negative A: No, h e 6 . ........ ..... (play) football over there. Oh, I
7 ........ ..................... (see) the one you 8 ........................ .. ... (talk) about.
I'm sleeping. ('m = am) I'm not sleeping.
That's Joe. Oh, yes, you're right, he 9 ............................. (have)
('m not = am not)
some of Jude's features, although his eyes and hair
You/We/They're sleeping. You/We/They aren't sleeping. 10 ............................. (not be) the same.
('re = are) (aren't = are not)
2 Look at these sentences. Correct the mistakes. If the
s
He/She/It's sleeping. ( 's = i ) He/She/It isn't sleeping. sentence is correct, put a tick (,/).
(isn't = is not)
1 I' m having a lovely time.
2 I'm believing you might be right.
Question Short answer
3 A: What are you thinking?
Am I sleeping? Yes, I am. B: Mm? Oh, nothing important.
No, I'm not. 4 I don't understand what they are saying.
Are you/we/they sleeping? Yes, you/we/they are. 5 A: What are you thinking of this?
No, you/we/they aren't. B: I love it!
6 A: Do you have any hobbies?
Is he/she/it sleeping? Yes, he/she/it i s. B: I'm enjoying listening to music.
No, he/she/it isn't.

GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANK 303

 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANK

We use the past conti nuous:

2 Past tenses • in contrast with the past simple, to talk about an activity in
progress when something happened.
Past simple They were driving to London when they heard the news.

Affirmative Negative
• to describe situations in the past.
l/You/He/She/lt/We!They l/You/He/She/lt/We!They In California, they were researching and developing a new
lived here. didn't live here. (didn't = did
operating system.
not)

Question Short answer Exercises

Did I/you/he/she/it/we/they Yes, I/you/he/she/it/we/they 1 Complete the text with the correct form of the verbs.
live here? did.
No, I/you/he/she/it/we/they (not) be bring come continue go interrupt
didn't. establish invade laOO lay leave start

We use the past simple:

When the Romans 1 landed in Britain in 43 AD, they
• to talk about completed actions and events in the past.
2 . ...... ....... . ...... .. ..... with them schools and education. When
While at university, she played bass guitar in a band.
they 3 ... . ... nearly 400 years later, education
We went sightseeing in Rome.
4. . ........... with them. With invasions from the
There is often a clear reference to a time in the past. When
Saxons and other groups, there 5 ....... .. .. .. . ... .. ...... .. .. any formal
there is no stated time, it is usually implied or understood.
education until almost 200 years later. Then the state
Used with: yesterday, last week/month/year, two days ago, etc. 6 .. .. ..... ... ................. a system of education known as grammar
schools. This system 7 . .... ........... ..... .. .. .. .. to develop over the
• to list a series of events in the past in a sequence.
next 250 years but it was 8 ...... .. .. ..... once more, this
He had a coffee, brushed his teeth, combed his hair and left.
time by the Vikings. In 1066 the Normans 9 ..
Sequence words can be used to show the order in which
Britain and shortly afterwards schools 10 ............................ .
something happened.
springing up all over the country. Then 11 .......
First. he had a coffee. Then he brushed his teeth. After that,
the first universities, at Oxford and Cambridge. These
he combed his hair and finally, he left the house.
universities 12 .... ..... the foundations for the system
Used with: first, then, next, after that, finally which exists today.

2 Write complete sentences. Use the past simple and

Irregular verbs the past continuous in each sentence.
1 you/have lunch/when I/call?
Although most verbs are regular and end in -d or -ed in the
Were you having lunch when I called?
past, some verbs have an irregular affirmative form.
2 what/they/do/when you/arrive?
be -7 was/were do -7 did go -7 went write -7 wrote
For more irregular verbs see page 329.
3 we/cancel/the game/because it/rain

used to and would 4 when we/get off the plane/they/wait for us

We often use used to + infinitive to talk about past habitual
actions or states, or for an action that no longer occurs. 5 she/not listen/when I/tell her/how to do it
We used to go to our grandparents' house every Christmas.
6 you sleep/when they/take/your bike?
Did you use to have curly hair?
When we talk about repeated actions in the past (but not past 7 when I/say ' No'/l/not talk/to you
states). we use would + infinitive.

3 Future forms ( 1 )
We would walk for hours along the beach.

Past continuous

Affirmative Negative We use various forms in English to express different functions

---
when referring to the future.
I/He/She/It was sleeping. I/He/She/It wasn't sleeping.
(wasn't = was not) Present continuous
You/We!They were sleeping. You/We{They weren't I 'm meeting Jo at 6:00.
sleeping. (weren't = were
You/We/They aren't meeting Jo at 6:00.
not)
Is he/she/it meeting Jo at 6.00?
Question Short answer For present continuous form, see page 303.
Was I/he/she/it sleeping? Yes, I/he/she/it was. We use the present continuous to talk about future plans and
No, I/he/she/it wasn't. arrangements.

Were you/we/they sleeping? Yes, you/we/they were. Often used with: a tim e (at 2p.m., on 19th April) o r a place (in the
No, you/we/they weren't. city centre, at the cinema)

304 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BA N K

 i§;tjMf.tj;l;lf{elll@!:W!i
going to Exercise
Affirmative Negative Read the situations and choose the best answer
(a or b).
I'm going to move to I'm not going to move to 1 The doorbell rings.
Germany. Germany. a Don't worry, I'm going to answer it.
You/We/They're going to You/We{They aren't going to b Don't worry, I'll answer it.
move to Germany. move to Germany. 2 You intend to answer an email.
a Don't worry, I'm going to answer the email today.
He/She/It's going to move to He/She/It isn't going to move
b Don't worry, I'll answer the email today.
Germany. t o G e rm a ny.
3 A friend invites you out but you already have an
Question Short answer arrangement with another friend.
- ·---- a Sorry, I'm meeting Ruby tonight.
Am I going to move to Yes, I am. b Sorry, I'll meet Ruby tonight.
Germany? No, I'm not 4 You have bought a ticket to go to Rome.
Are you/we/they going to move Yes, you/we/they are. a I think I'll go to Rome.
to G ermany? No, you/we/they aren't. b I'm flying to Rome next week.
5 You see a film poster and immediately decide to
Is he/she/it going to move to Yes, he/she/it is.
go.
G ermany? No, he/she/it isn't.
a I'll see the film today.
We use be + going to: b I ' m going to see the film today.
• t o talk about things we have thought about and intend to 6 You notice there is no bread so decide to buy some.
do in the future. a I'm going to get some bread.
He's going to live in Venezuela. b I'll get some bread.
• to make predictions based on present evidence. 7 You are standing on a wobbly chair and don't feel safe.
Based on curren t sales, we're going to make a loss t/Jis year. a I ' m going to fall off the chair.
We can also use going to to talk about future plans and b I ' l l fall off the chair.
arrangements, but more often use the present continuous as 8 You haven't completely made up your mind where to
it is understood that the present continuous is used to denote go for your next holiday.
arrangement. In a situation where A invites B out for coffee, a I ' m going to Rome.
compare the two responses: b I think I ' l l go to Rome.
1 Sorry. I can't. I'm going to meet a friend. 9 You have planned to visit a friend this evening.
2 Sorry. I can't. I'm meeting a friend. a I ' m going to visit Jack tonight.
Both responses are acceptable, but response 2 is better b I'll visit Jack tonight.
because it tells us that the meeting with the friend has
already been arranged (and therefore can't be broken).
4 Future forms (2)
will
Present simple
Affirmative Negative
...---- We use the present simple:
• to talk about timetabled or scheduled events in the future.
l/You/He/She/lt/We{They'll 1/You/He/She/It/We{They
arrive on time. ('II = will) won't arrive on time. (won't = The course starts next Friday.

Often used with: a ti m e (at 3 p.m., 011 Mo11day), a ti m e period (in/

will not)

for te11 mi11utes, two days)

Question Short answer

[Used with: whe11, �

• for a future event after certain time clauses.
Will I/you/we/they/he/she/it Yes, I/you/we/they/he/she/
arrive on time? it wil l . I will feel more relaxed once I start the talk.

We use will: as /011g/soo11 as, after, before, 011ce, u11til

• to make predictions based on experience or subj ective
view. be about to
You must meet Ewan, you'll love /Jim.

Often used with: think, expect, imagine, (be) sure Affirmative Negative

•
I'm about to go. I'm not about to go.
to talk about a decision made at the moment of speaking.
I'll help you. I won't forget this. I'll get him for this! You/We/They're about to go. You/We{They aren't about
These are often requests, offers, promises or threats. to go.
• to state facts about the future.
He/She/It's about to go. He/She/It isn't about to go.
T/Je government will make more cuts in t/Je months ahead.

Often modified with: probably or possibly Question Short answer

Am I about to go? Yes, I am.

No, I'm not.

GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANK 305

 - �-;:-,...�
.
GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANK •

We use the ruture perfect continuou s:

Are you/we/they about to go? Yes, you/we/they are.
o to talk about an action in progress leading up to a point in
No, you/we/they aren't.
the future.
In a week's time, we'll have been working here for two years.
Is h e/she/it about to go? Yes, he/she/it is.
No, he/she/it isn't. Exercise
1 Complete the sentences with the verbs in brackets in
We use be about to: the correct form.
• when we want to talk about something which is going to 1 By 2020, the student population .............................. ...... (rise)
happen very soon. by ten per cent.
I'm about to leave now. I'll see you in an hour. 2 The number of road traffic accidents ....... ............................ .

(decrease) significantly by 2025.

Future continuous 3 The bar chart shows that this time next year,

l
the growth rate ... . .................. (level) out but it
will/won't + be + -ing
..... (not yet reach) the desired target.
4 The graph shows that the use of motor vehicles
Affirmative Negative
--------
...................................... (not decrease) until there
I/You/He/She/It/We/They'll be I/You/He/She/It/We/They ...................................... (be) a satisfactory alternative available.
working in Dubai. won't be working in Dubai.
5 The decline ................ . . . (be) steady as long as the
interest rate ........................... .. . .. (remain) stable.
Question Short answer
--- 6 As soon as deforestation .. ..... .... (reach) a
Will I/you/he/she/it/we/they Yes, I/you/he/she/it/we/they critical peak, nothing ......... .. . (be) able to stop
b e working in Dubai? will. the extinction of the orangutans.
No, I/you/he/she/it/we/they
won't.

We use the future conti nuous: 5 Th e perfect aspect

o to talk about an activity which will be in progress at a
We use the perfect aspect to describe an action or state that
specific point in the future.
takes place in time leading up to a point in the past, present
This time next week we'll be flying to Shanghai.
or future. The perfect aspect looks back from one point i n
time t o an earlier time.
Future perfect simple There are two different forms, the simple and the continuous.
will have + past participle Each form has a different emphasis.
We use the simple form when we want to emphasise that
Affirmative Negative the action is completed.
Have you been to Africa?
I/You/He/She/It/We/They'll I/You/He/She/It/We/They
When we arrived, they had already left.
Call me at 2:00, I'll have finished it by then.
have finished by next week. won't have finished by next
week.

Question Short answer Present perfect simple

Will I/you/he/she/it/we/they Yes, I/you/he/she/it/we/they have/has + past participle
have finished by next week? will.
No, I/you/he/she/it/we/they Affirmative Negative
won't.
I/You/We/They've seen him I/You/We/They haven't seen
We use the future perfect simple: before. ('ve = have) him before. (haven't = have
o to talk about something that is going to be completed by a not)
certain point in the future. He/She/It's seen him before. He/She/It hasn't seen him
By this time next week. I'll have finished painting the house. ('s = has) before. (hasn't = has n ot)

Future perfect continuous Question Short answer

---

will have been + -ing Have I/you/we/they seen him Yes, I/you/we/they have.
before? No, I/you/we/they haven't.
Affirmative Negative

By next Monday, I/you/he/ By next Monday, I/you/he/ Has he/she/it seen him Yes, he/she/it has.
she/it/we/they'll have been she/it/we/they won't have before? No, he/she/it hasn't.
living here for ten years. been living here for ten
years. The present perfect looks back from now to actions or
situations in the past that are in some way connected to the
Question Short answer present. We use the present pe1feet simple:
• to talk about a life experience.
By next Monday w i l l I/you/ Yes, I/you/he/she/it/we/they
Have you ever climbed a mountain?
he/she/it/we/they have been will.
o to talk about recent events.
living here for ten years? No, I/you/he/she/it/we/they
Have you heard the news about Susanna?
won't.

306 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANK

• to talk about an action or situation leading up to the 3 They have been based in Tokyo since
present time (often with for or since). 4 She has studied English for a year
They've lived here for 30 years. 5 We missed our flight
6 By the time we reach the summit,
Used with: ever, never, just, already, recently, lately, for, since, so
far, up to now, yet a they started work there, in 2010.
b I'll have landed at JFK Airport.
c we will have climbed twelve miles.
Past perfect simple d because the drive to the airport had been terrible.
had + past participle e because it hadn't been properly managed
f as she wants to get a job in Australia.
Affirmative Negative
2 Complete t h e text using t h e present, past and future
l/You/He/She/lt/We{They'd l/You/He/She/lt/We{They perfect simple.
s e e n him before. I'd = had) hadn't seen him before. In 2013, the UK business community detected the start
(hadn't = had not) of an economic recovery. They 1 ...................................... (wait) long
enough. In 2008, the overall number of UK businesses
Question Short answer 2 ...................................... (decline) to a 50-year low. By 201 1 ,
Had I/you/he/she/it/we/they Yes, I/you/he/she/it/we/they morale 3 ........................... ........... (reach) a n all-time low. However.
seen him before? had. by the following year, there 4 ..... ... .............................. (be) a change
No, I/you/he/she/it/we/they in fortunes. The decline 5 ..... .... .............. ............. .. (stop). In fact,
hadn't. from early 2013 until now. the number of businesses
The past perfect looks back from a point in the past to an
6 ...... .. .. ......... ... .. ...... (rise) by 18,000. And it continues to rise.
earlier event. We use the past perfect simple: Although we 7 ..................................... (see) a shift in market share.
• to talk about something that happened before the main manufacturing companies 8 .................................... . (give) way to
event. emerging scientific businesses. One enterprise minister
When we met, I knew I had seen him before. predicts that 'by the end of the decade, scientific and
• to talk about a situation leading up to a time in the past technical companies 9 . .......... .. . ........ ............ . (become) the largest
(often with for or since). sector in the UK business market:
I knew London well. I'd lived there for five years. We use the continuous form when we want to emphasise
Used wit h: before, after, as soon as, when the ongoing nature of an action, when i t is not important if
the action is completed.
Have you been crying?
Future perfect simple When we arrived, they had been discussing the important
will have + past participle decisions all morning.
By this time tomorrow, we will have been travelling for
Affirmative Negative seven hours.
Note: I n sentences containing stative verbs (like, love,
l/You/He/She/lt/We{They'll l/You/He/She/lt/We{They want. hear) the simple form is usually used rather than the
have finished by next week. won't have finished by next
continuous form.
week.
I've loved maths since I was nine years old.

Question Short answer

Present perfect continuous
Will I/you/he/she/it/we/they Yes, I/you/he/she/it/we/they
have finished by next week? will. have/has been + -ing
No, I/you/he/she/it/we/they
won't. Affirmative Neg at i ve

The future perfect looks back from a point in the future to an l/You/We{They've been l/You/We{They haven't been
earlier event. We use the future perfect simple: waiting for two hours. waiting for two hours.
• to talk about something that is going to be completed by a He/She/It hasn't been waiting
He/She/It's been waiting for

I Used with:
certain point in the future. two hours. for two hours.
By this time tomorrow, I'll have finished my exams.

b y + a ti m e (by 2016), by the end of Question Short answer

Have I/you/we/they been Yes, I/you/we/they have.
Note the position of an adverb that modifies a verb in the
waiting for two hours? No, I/you/we/they haven't.
perfect simple form: has/have/had + adverb + past participle.
We have just moved house. Has he/she/it been waiting Yes, he/she/it has.
The concrete in the path has already hardened. for two hours? No, he/she/it hasn't.
The proposal on dealing with climate change had largely
We use the present perfect continuous:
gone unchallenged.
• to talk about recent events when the focus is on a
continuous activity rather than a completed action.
Exercises My eyes are red because I've been swimming.
1 Match the two halves of the sentences, (1-6) with • to talk about a repeated action. o r state (focusing o n
(a-f). continuous activity rather than completed action). leading up
1 By the time you pick u p this message to the present time (often with for or since).
2 The project failed

GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANK 307

 We've been goi11g to the same restaurant every month for Exercises
twenty years.
3 Complete the dialogue with the verbs in the present
Used wit h: just, recently, lately, for, since, so far perfect simple and continuous. Use the continuous
whenever possible.
Past perfect continuous
ask do see wait
had been + -ing
Thelma: I don't think anyone 1 has seen us. We
Affirmative Negative 2 . .. .. ... . .. ..... ... here for over half an hour and nobody
.... . . . . . . ... .

l/You/He/She/lt/We(They'd l/You/He/She/lt/We!They 3. . ... ....................... us what we want. Ah, here's Tony. Oh,
been acting for ten years hadn't been a cting for ten you look terrible. What 4 . . you . ............... ? ..................... . . ..

before becoming famous. years before becoming

famous. catch (not) come (not) feel look take

Question Short answer Tony: Mrs Allen, I'm sorry no one 5 ............ .

Had I/you/he/she/it/we/they Yes, I/you/he/she/it/we/they your order. I 6 . . ............ ... . after all the tables tonight.
...... . .... . . . ..

be en acting for ten years had. Alfredo, our waiter, 7 .. .... .... .... . . i n today. He .. .. . .. .......... .

before becoming famous? No, I/you/he/she/it/we/they 8.. . . . .well. I think he 9

. ...... ............... ..... .. ... . . . a cold. .......... ... . . .... ..

hadn't.
come (not) forget not give happen sit
We use the past perfect continuous:
o to talk about an action in progress, or state (focusing on
Thelma: Oh, you 10 . . . .. . us, then? It's not
...................... .... . .

continuous activity rather than completed action). leading up

good enough, Tony. We 11 ... . . .... .. . .. . here politely . ....... . .... .. .. .

to a given time in the past.

for the last 30 minutes and you 1 2 . . ......... even
She'd been working on her thesis for five months before she
.

. ............................. us a menu yet.

graduated.
Tony: Mrs Allen, you are one of my best customers. You
Used with : before, after, as soon as, when, for, since, by tile time 13 .. .. .... to our restaurant for over ten years and
................... ..... ....

I hope you agree that this i s the first time anything like
this 14 .............. ......................
Future perfect conti nuous .

4 Complete the text with the present, past and future

will have been + -ing
perfect. Use the continuous form where possible.
Affi rm ative Negative The study was set up to look at the behaviour of young
adults in the UK. At the end of this year, we
By next Monday, I/you/he/ By next Monday, I/you/he/ 1 . . . .. ... ... .. (record) data over a period of 30 years.
she/it/we/they wo n t have
... . . .... ... ........

she/it/we/they'll h av e been '

In that time we 2 . . .... . . . (provide) statistics on a
............. . . . . ... .. . . ....

living here for ten years. been living here for ten
number of occasions for the government. Most recently,
years.
we 3 .. . ...... ... ....... (collect) data on the percentage of
. ..

young adults living with their parents. We 4 .... ...............................

�����·-��
Question Short answer .

���.....
(discover) that the number of young adults living at home
By next Monday, w i l l I/you/ Yes, I/you/he/she/it/we/they 5 .. . .... .
. ... (gradually/rise) over the last twenty years,
..... ...................

he/she/it/we/they have been will.

although the sharpest increase was between 2002 and
living here for ten years? No, I/you/he/she/it/we/they
201 2 . From 1996 to 2002 the number 6 .. .. .... . .
won't.
(slowly/decrease) from 2.7 million to 2.2 million. However,
We use the future perfect continuous: since then it 7 (rise) to 3.7 million, a record
......... .............................

• to talk about an action in progress (focusing on continuous high. This figure accounts for 30% of the age group. The
activity rather than completed action) leading up to a given economic downturn 8 . .. .... .. . . .. ... . . (largely/contribute) . .. . .. . . ... .. .. . . . . .

time in the future. to the record figures that we are seeing today. If the trend

I Used with
At the end of this year, we'll /Jave been studying here for continues, the figure 9 . (reach) 4 million by . . .. . . . .. ..... . ........

three years.

6 Conditionals ( 1 )
the end of the decade.
: b y + a ti me, by the end of

Note the position of an adverb that modifies a verb in the

perfect continuous form: has/have/had been + adverb + -ing:
The population has been rapidly declining in more rural areas. Conditional sentences talk about factual or hypothetical
The quality of service had been generally improving. situations and their potential consequences. There are two
clauses: the if-clause, which states the situation, and the
main clause, which presents the consequence.
We can use if in two positions, but a comma separates the
clauses when the if-clause comes first:
If you freeze water, it turns to ice.
Water turns to ice if you freeze it.

308 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANK

 : .

Zero conditional Other ways of expressing condition

if+ present tense + present tense unless + present tense
If you heat ice, it melts.
We use unless to mean if not:
Present tense + if+ presen t tense If you don't stop talking, I'll go and work in the library.
Ice melts if you heat it. Unless you stop talking, I'll go and work in the library.

We use the zero conditional to talk about situations that

are generally true, e.g. for scientific truths. When we in case + present (or past) tense
talk about predictable or repeated actions. if can be used We use in case to talk about taking precautions against
interchangeably with when. something bad happening in the future.
Lily cries if/when she watches her favourite film. Take your umbrella in case it rains. (It might rain and it might
not. If it does, you will have the right equipment.)
First conditional Take your umbrella if it rains. (Only take your u mbrella if you
see it raining before you leave the house.)
if+ present tense + will/won't+ infinitive (without to) We don't usually start a sentence with in case.
If I see John, /'II tell him.
will/won't+ infinitive (without to)+ if+ present tense as long as I provided that+ present (or past) tense
/'II tell John if I see him.
These expressions mean if or on condition that and are often
We use the first conditional to talk about a future situation used more formally.
with a possible consequence. Both clauses refer to the We will work with the same manufacturer as long as it
future, even though the verb in the if-clause is in the present maintains its market position.
tense. He will not go to prison provided that he stays out of trouble.
If you see Paul, will you ask him to call me?
If she's coming to the meeting, I 'll speak to her then. Inversion in conditionals
If they're going to be here tomorrow, we 'II ask them to come
I n more formal speech or writing, we can put the auxiliary
to the exhibition with us.
verb before a subject instead of using if
In the main clause we can use may, might or could instead of Had the link been established, they would have published the
will if the consequence is less certain. paper.
If you invest your money in a high risk account. you may lose Were he here right now, I'd tell him to his face.
it all.
We can also use should instead of if.
Other modals that can be used in the main clause are:
Should you have any questions, please don't hesitate to
• can for permission.
contact me. (=if you have any questions, please don't
If you finish your homework, you can come with us.
• hesitate to contact me.)
must/mustn't for obligation/prohibition.
If you are at the meeting, you mustn't challenge the director.
• should for recommendation. Exercise
If you go to Crete, you should try to see Knossos. Complete the second sentence so that it means
If we manage the way fish are caught, there should be plenty exactly the same as the first.
of food for the growing number of mouths on the planet. 1 If she doesn't work harder, she won't pass the test.
Unless .......
Second conditiona l 2 I'd challenge him if I was a younger man.
Were ........... ......................... . .

if+ past tense + would/wouldn 't+ i n fi n itive

If I won the lottery, I'd buy a new car.
3 You can't hope to complete your research project on
time unless you have already started it.
would/wouldn't + infinitive + if+ past tense
I'd buy a new car if I won the lottery.
If you haven't ....... . ...........................
4 I recommend sushi if you ever try Japanese food.
We use the second conditional to talk about a situation with Should .................................... ..

a consequence which is either improbable or impossible. The 5 You may use my photos if you credit me by name.
verb in the if-clause is in the past simple but it doesn't refer to Provided ................ .
past time. Second conditional sentences refer to the present 6 I advise you to eat less meat.
or the future. If I . . . . . ... . .
.. . .

If I had the money; I 'd visit Australia. (present: I don't have the 7 I'd consider any job if it involved travel.
money) As ........................
.

If I became rich, I'd move to California. (This is an imagined

situation in the future.)
If countries with long shorelines set limits on fishing, there 7 Conditionals (2)
would be plenty of fish to go around.
We can use was or were when using I, he, she or it: Third conditional
If he was/were here right now, I 'd tell him to his face.
if+ past perfect + would ha ve + past participle
We can also use could o r might instead of would in the main If I had seen him, I would have spoken to him.
clause to talk about events that are possible but not certain.
would have + past participle + if+ past perfect
I f people used renewable energy, household bills might be I would have spoken to him if I had seen him.
cheaper.
If people clicln't use so much energy; fossil fuels might not
run out.
GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANI< 309
 We use the th1rcl conditional to talk about hypothetical (unreal) if only + would + infinitive
situations or events in the past and to speculate about things If only he wouldn't speak with his mouth full. (But he does.)
that did not happen. if only + past simple/continuous
If we had studied harder, we would have passed the exam. If only I had more money. (But I don't.}
(We didn't study hard and so we didn't pass the exam.) If only it wasn't raining. (But it is . )
We use could or might instead of would to say that the If only I wasn't helping John out tonight. (But I am.)

should have
consequence or outcome was less sure.
If we had studied harder, we might have passed. (=We didn't
study hard and even if we had, it's not certain that we would We use should have + past partic i ple to express regret about
have passed ). an action that took place in t he past.
I should have gone to the meeting. (But I didn't.)
M ixed conditionals I shouldn't have trusted him. (But I did.)

Mixed conditionals are a combination of second and third

Exercise
conditionals .
if+ pa s t simple + would have+ past participle
Read each situation. Then complete the sentences as a
If the policy worked, exam results would have been better. conditional.
1 They didn't go because Jana was ill.
if+ past perfect + would + infinitive (without to)
If he hadn't taken the money, he wouldn't be in trouble now. If Jana . .... ...... . . ... . ... .
.. . . . . . .. . . .. ...

2 I was late for work because there was an accident.

We use mixed conditionals to talk about unreal situations If there . .... . . ... ..... .

when the if-clause and main clause don't refer to the same 3 Ben is so insensitive. H e hurt Jan's feelings.
time. We can use mixed conditionals: If Ben ..
• to express the present consequence of a past action. 4 We aren't in Rome because we missed our flight.
If the aeroplane hadn't been invented, we wouldn't be able to If we ............... .

travel the world so easily. 5 I went to the party. I embarrassed myself.

I wouldn't
• to explain how a present situation influenced a past action.

If she wasn't so stubborn, she would have listened to our

6 We aren't rich. We didn't buy the Porsche.
warnings.
We
In situations where we use had, it is possible to invert the
................... ...... ........... .

7 They didn't speak the language so they didn't

subject of the clause and had, and leave out if.
understand.
Had I realised the consequences, I wouldn't have told him.
If they .............. .

( = I f I had realised the consequences, I wouldn't have told him.)

8 I didn't hear him so I didn't answer his question.

wish
Had ...... . . .. .. . .. ..
9 I have a lot of money so Mel wanted to be my friend.
wish ·I- past simple/continuous Mel wouldn't . .. .
............. ....... .. ....

We use wish + past simple/continuous to express regret

about a present situation. 8 Articles and other
I wish I had more money.
We also use this to express regre t about an action in progress determ i ners
in the present (I wish it wasn't raining), or to express regret
about a future arrangement (/ wish I wasn't helping Jo out Definite article the
tonight).
We use the + singular countable nouns, plural countable
wish .;. past perfect nouns or uncountable nouns:
• mainly with si n g u lar nouns
We use wish + past perfect to express regret about an action
.

• when the listener knows what we are talking about,

that took place in the past.
because it has already been referred to or it is clear from
I wish I had bought a bigger car. (But I didn't.)
context.
We often add never for emphasis:
There has been a fall in the rate of inflation. Tiie fall was
I wish I had never bought that car. (But I did.)
caused by slower increases in food prices.
I was in tile car the other day . (We understand from the
wish + would + infinitive . .

context that the speaker is talking about his/her own car.)

We use wish + would + infinitive as a criticism, to express • with certain geographical features such as seas and
that we would like someone or som e thing to change. oceans. rivers. mountain ranges and deserts: The Atlantic,
I wish he wouldn't interrupt when someone else is speaking. The Amazon, The Andes, The Sahara
This is not used with stative verbs: • to talk about professional groups or bodies: the police, the
+-wsltfte-wett
i lef-lwv&-ffleFe-ifflir. press, the navy
And the same subject is not used in both clauses: • with nat i onalities : The British, The French
IwishIwettldn'tsner
e. • with groups of countries or states and groups of islands:
The Solomon Islands, The United States, The Republic of
if only Moldova
We can use if only in a similar way to wish. • with some buildings: The Taj Mahal, The Eiffel Tower
if only + past perfect 0 with superlatives: the best, the most prominent
If only I hadn't bought this car. (But I did.) 0 with newspaper names: The Times
with a musical instru m ent: play the piano, the guitar is a
versatile instrument
310 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANK
Indefinite article a/an Exercises
We use a/an: Complete the gaps in the texts with al an, the or - {no
• with singular nouns: a project, an essay article).
• when we talk about something for the first time. I read in my copy of 1 ............ ..... Times this morning that
There has been a fall in the rate of inflation. Tile fall was 2 . ....... ......... Prime Minister of 3 .................... UK and 4 ... ...... .. .
caused by slower increases in food prices. President of 5 ................... US met in 6 ................... New York and
• with occupations: a student, an electrician, a scientist signed 7 ................... agreement to offer 8 .................. .. aid to
• to refer to a member of a group, or class. U N I C EF. 9 ................... aid will be used to provide 10 .................. .
Simon Jenkins was a columnist for the New York Times. vaccines for 11 .................. . . children all over 12 ...................
• before an adjective that describes a noun. developing world.
There was an enormous explosion followed by a long silence. There has been 13 . ..... . ........ .... traffic accident on 14 ......
M4 motorway involving 15 ................... car and 16 ...................
N o article truck. 17 ................... driver of 18 ................... truck is from
We don't use an article: 19 ................... Poland, and 20 ................... driver of 21 ................... car
• to talk about plural nouns (people or things) in general. is 22 ................... accountant from 23 ................... Oxford. Both
Film producers borrow widely from manuals and websites.
24 ................ . men are currently being treated for 25 ...................
• with certain geographical features including mountains minor injuries at 26 .................... Reading Hospital.
and lakes: Mount Fuji, Lake Como 2 Complete the text with the words in the box.
• before most towns, cities, countries and continents: New
York, Egypt, Asia all all the both both of each each of
• with certain familiar places (work, home, sdiool, university) either either of neither neither of
What time do you go to school? How do you go to work? Are
they at home? The United States, the United Kingdom, India and
• with meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner Japan have 1 .. .................... ....... . felt the effects of unseasonal
• with play + a game: play tennis, play football weather activity this year. 2 .......... .... ... ..... ...... .. these countries
• with languages: Arabic, Italian has experienced extreme conditions and 3 ........ ................... .
• with certain time expressions, such as days of the week, one has been brought to a standstill by the weather.
months, years: Tuesday, August, 2012 The US and Japan have suffered snowstorms, which
Note that there are some exceptions: at the weekend, in the have closed roads and airports. The US has had extreme
1990s, in the 15th century conditions on 4 ............................ .side of the country; drought in
the west and snowstorms in the east. 5 ............................. .
Other determiners the other two countries have endured country-wide
flooding. 6 ......... ......... .... ........ the UK nor India expected the rains
all/ every/ each
to continue as long as they did and so 7 .................. ..
We use all (+ the, of the) to talk about three or more people
them were adequately prepared for the consequences.
While some people have blamed 8 .................... . ....... . . adverse
or things. We use all with plural or uncountable nouns:
All floors have wheelchair access.
conditions on global warming, others have called the
We use every to talk about three or more people or things.

I Used with: -thing,

infrastructure of the countries themselves into question.
We use every with singular nouns:
Who knows, it could be 9 .............................. them and is most
likely a combination of 10 ...................... ....... of them.
Both lifts stop at every floor.

- one, - where, -body

We use each (+ of the) to talk about two or more people or

things. We use each with singular nouns and each of the with
9 Countable and
plural nouns: uncountable nouns
The name of each candidate is listed in Part 2.
Each of the names is listed in Part 2. Nouns can be countable, uncountable o r both. Countable
nouns have a singular form and a plural form, while
both/ either/ neither uncountable nouns only have a singular form.
We use both (+ of the) to say the same thing about two
people o r things. We use both/both of the with plural nouns. Countable nouns
We'll take both chairs. We'll take both of tl1e chairs.
Countable nouns refer to things w e c a n count. They:
We use either (+ of the) to say that there are two possible
• have a singular and a plural form: the chair is small, the
options. We use either with a singular noun and either of the
chairs are small
with plural nouns.
• are used with a/an and numbers: a book, an examiner.
You can take either chair. You can take either of the chairs.
one girl, 1,500 residents
We use neither (+ of the) to say that something is not one or • have some nouns which exist only in plural form: clothes,
the other. We use neither with a singular noun and neither of
glasses, goods, jeans, scissors, trousers
the with plural nouns.
• have some irregular plural forms: children, feet, fish,
Neither room has chairs. Neither of the rooms have chairs. mice, people, police, sheep

Uncountable nouns
Uncountable nouns refer to things we can't count. They:
• don't have a plural form: advice, milk, information

GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANI< 311

 (t10H1elviees;-trtilks�informBtitms) Other quantifiers
o have a singular verb form: This baggage is heavy.
o aren't used with a/an: tifHJdviee;-tt-bteBei plenty of/ lots of
• have some nouns which exist only i n plural form: We use these phrases to refer to a large amount of
economics, gymnastics, mathematics, news, politics something. They can be used with both countable a n d
• can only be counted/measured by using countable nouns uncountable nouns:
with them: a bit of news, a bottle of water, a loaf of There is plenty of milk.
bread, a piece of advice, a slice of cake, a tin of soup There are lots of people outside the station.
• include some words that refer to a group of people,
animals or things: audience, family, flock, government, group, a (small) piece of/a bit of/a drop of
herd, staff. team We use these phrases to refer to small amounts of
something. They are only used with uncountable nouns:
Quantifiers Could I have a drop of milk in my coffee, please?
some and any
Exercises
We use some and any with plural and uncountable nouns to
talk about the number or quantity of things or people. Choose the correct word.
We use some in affirmative statements: 1 I ' m afraid the news is I are bad.
• with plural nouns: There are some books. 2 I hope my advice help I helps.
• with uncountable nouns: There is some milk in the fridge. 3 His team hasn't I haven't enjoyed much success over
• to talk about an indefinite (not large) quantity: We have the last year. They are in danger of relegation.
made some progress but there is a long way to go. 4 Am I putting on weight? My jeans feels I feel a bit
We also use some in limited questions, particularly offers tight.
and requests: Would you like some tea? 5 Do you think politics is I are important?
We use any with uncountable and plural countable nouns: 6 So far the police hasn't I haven't made any comment.
• in negative sentences: There weren't any survivors. 7 His advice was I were very helpful.
• in questions: Is there any news about Matthew? Do you 8 He was a great actor and entertained audience I
have any questions? audiences all over the world.
We also use any in affirmative sentences, usually with
2 Complete the sentences with the words provided.
a singular noun, to suggest unlimited choice: Choose any
some/ any
number between one and ten.
There is information here about the
and
......................................

much many/ a lot of tourist sites.

2 You can take ................ .................... of these samples.
We use much, many and a Jot of to talk about quantity. Much
3 They don't have ....... ............................. more kerosene in
is used with uncountable nouns and many is used with
stock.
countable nouns. A lot of can be used for both countable and
4 I have . ....................... concerns about the project.
uncountable nouns. We use much and many:
• in questions: Do we have much time? Do we have many much / many
volunteers? 5 I can't buy that. It costs too ......................................
• negative statements: We don't have much time. We 6 How ...................................... people are attending today?
don't have many volunteers. 7 There has been ...................................... excitement over the
• in certain affirmative statements, in a formal style: opening of the new shopping mall.
Many countries have signed up to the treaty. 8 There are far too ...................................... unresolved questions.
There has been much discussion about ONA profiling. few I little

few and little/ a few and a little

9 ...... ...
.. .......... American consumers bargain when
buying a car.
We use few and little to mean not much;tnany/enough. Few is 10 I will probably spend a ...................................... hours at my
used with countable nouns and little is used with uncountable desk this weekend.
nouns: 11 There i s always too ...................................... time.
There were few supporters of the minister at the meeting. 12 The latest incentive from the government i s likely to
Hurry up, there is little time to spare. have .. .. ................... .......... effect on the economy.
We use a few and a little to mean a small quantity/clmount.
A few is used with countable nouns and a little is used with
uncountable nouns: 1 0 Noun phrases
I've had a few replies.
Give me a little time to think about this. A noun phrase i s a group of words that have a noun as the
main part. A noun phrase gives extra information about the
too little/ few/ much/ many noun. Modifiers can come before or after the noun.
We use too little and too few to mean not enough of
something: modifier + noun
We have too few resources to last us indefinitely. Modifiers can be:
We use too much and too many to mean more than we want • adjectives (a brilliant idea)
or need: • nouns (water tank)
I can't pay that. It's too much money! • possessives (the student's essay)
• adverb-adjective combinations (a universally accepted
truth)

312 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANI<

noun ·:- prepositional phrase Order of adjectives
The most common prepositions are about, for, in, of, on, to Before a noun, adjectives expressing an opinion, e.g.
and with. fantastic, interesting come before adjectives expressing facts,
He loved to tell stories about India 's wild animals. e.g. Italian, red, oval.
There's a chair in the comer of the room. We can also use nouns (paper, leather) as adjectives to give
Most athletes only eat food with a high nutritional content. extra details about the noun (paper plane, leather jacket).
The order of adjectives is usually:
noun + relative clauses opinion I size I age I shape I colour I origin I material I
type + noun
A man, who was working in a post office, won the lottery
We usually use a maximum of three adjectives, as more than
today
three can sometimes feel unnatural.
The woman who is living at the house is Sue, Finn's wife.
The office buildings that were built last year were all
adjective -i- and + adjective
destroyed.
The house, which was valued at £1 million, sold for If there are two or more adjectives after a verb or noun, we
£900, 000. usually put and between the last two adjectives. Compare:
It was a small, round, green purse.
noun + participle clause The purse was small, round and green.
When there are three or more adjectives, use a comma
A participle clause can give the same information as a relative
between the other adjectives.
clause in fewer words.
We use the present participle (-ing form) to form a participle
the + adjective
clause when the meaning is active.
The man wearing the red jacket is my cousin. (= The man We use the + adjective to describe a group like: the rich, the
who is wearing the red jacket) poor, the sick, the wise, the homeless, the young, the old.
We use the past participle (-ed form in regular verbs) to form These adjectives function like nouns.
a participle clause when the meaning is passive. We can describe some nationalities in this way, particularly
The office buildings built last year were all destroyed. (= The those ending in -ish or -ese: the British, the Japanese, the
office buildings which were built last year) French. Most nationality groups, however, are referred to as
The house, valued at £ 1 million, sold for £900, 000. (= The plural nouns: the Italians, the Brazilians, the Australians.
house, which was valued at £1 million)
-ingl-ed adjectives
noun + to + infinitive phrase
We form some adjectives from present participles
To + infinitive can be used after a noun to express purpose.
(interesting) and past participles (interested!. Adjectives
Let me show you the way to go.
ending in -ed often describe how we feel:
She wants the chance to prove she can do it.
I've never been so bored! You look tired.
Adjectives ending in -ing describe the person or thing that
Exercise
causes the feeling:
1 Join two sentences to make one, using a noun phrase. He is an interesting man. It was a thought-provoking play
A man won the lottery. He was working with me.
A man .............. ........... the lottery. -ed adjectives + prepositions
2 A parcel was sent to my tutor this morning. It
We often use -ed adjectives with certain prepositions,
contained an award.
especially when talking about feelings:
A parcel . .. ..................... this morning.
• in: interested in
3 Many teachers leave the profession before retirement.
• of: scared of, terrified of, frightened of, ashamed of, tired of
The number is rising.
• about: excited about, worried about
The number ..... .. .... ....... ... . .. . rising.
•
with: bored with, pleased with, disappointed with
4 Food is served in UK hospitals. It isn't of a high
• at: shocked at, amazed at, surprised at
standard.
The preposition is followed by a noun or a gerund (I'm
Food .. . .. .. high standard.
interested in starting a dance class. I I'm interested in tl1e
5 Bees search flowers for nectar. They also collect
dance classes you run.).
pollen.
+
Bees.. .... pollen. Other adjectives dependent
6 Can you find this cat? Anyone who does will be
offered a reward. prepositions
Anyone . ........................ reward.
..................
• on: dependent on, keen on
• of: fond of, proud of, afraid of, guilty of, jealous of
• about: angry about, furious about, passionate about
1 1 Adjectives • with: angry/happy with (someone about something)
We use adjectives to describe nouns. They can come:
• at: good at, bad at, terrible at, useless at (ability)
• before nouns
• to: kind to, cruel to, pleasant to, good to, opposed to
a rich country, a useful gadget
o after certain verbs Adjectives followed by to + infinitive
they were acting strange, you look great We can use to + infinitive after certain adjectives that express
0 with other adjectives feelings (happy, pleased, surprised, angry, sorry, delighted,
She's got long, /Jrown, wavy hair.
GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANI< 313
 glad, proud), ability/willingness (able, ready, willing, keen, Adverbs of place
eager, unable, unwilling, unlikely) . possibility (easy, difficult,
possible, hara) and opinion (right, wrong, good, lucky). Adverbs of place describe where something is done
(everywhere, there, nearby, outside, on the corner). Adverbs
of place usually come after the object: He put the dog
Exercises
outside.
1 Choose the correct option. Adverbial phrases. which include a preposition + noun phrase,
1 It's important to try to naturally act I act naturally usually come after the main verb and object.
2 When he took the stand, he appeared nervous I He bought a house near the football stadium.
nervous appeared until he started talking.
3 Our ideal candidate would show commitment solid I Adverbs of time
solid commitment to the job.
4 Will we get the report in by Friday? It's not good Adverbs of time describe when something is done (last week,
looking / looking good at the moment. a year ago, yesterday, for three hours, yet). Adverbs of time

5 Brazil is one of the resource-rich countries I countries can come at the beginning of a sentence or at the end of
resource-rich a t the top of our list.
a sentence, but not between subject and verb or verb and
6 Paul's absences this term may damage his exam object.
prospects, although we optimistic remain I remain Yesterday we got the keys to our new house.

optimistic. We got the keys to our new house yesterday.

7 Finding a manufacturer for these parts is proving more

difficult I more difficult proving than we expected.
Adverbs of frequency (-/y and other
8 That leather old I old leather armchair used to belong endi ngs)
to my grandfather.
Adverbs of frequency describe how often something is done.
2 Complete the text with the correct adjective form (-ing They usually come between the subject and main verb.
or -ed) of the words in brackets. We usually go to the pool on Saturdays.
The graph compares the 1 . .. . .. . . . (prefer) snack . .. . .. .
Some can come at the beginning of a sentence and after the
choices of boys and girls at one secondary school. We verb (and object. when there is one).
weren't 2 (surprise) that the results showed
........................... Usually, we go to the pool on Saturdays.
different preferences, but we did find some of those We go to the pool on Saturdays, usually.
differences 3 (interest). The boys find crisps
........ .............................. Adverbs that can go in all three positions include usually,
and chocolate most 4 ... .. .... (appeal). This i s not sometimes, occasionally and often.
5. ................ (amaze). especially as the girls liked them
.
Adverbs that only come between subject and verb include
just as much, but more 6 .. . (astound) was the
...... ......... always, never and hardly ever.
finding that girls eat twice as much fruit as boys. Although Adverbial phrases like once in a while, now and then o r from
the boys aren't particularly 7 . . (interest) in . . . . . . ...
time to time usually come at t h e end of a sentence.
fruit, we were 8 . (relieve) to learn that they
.....................................
Examples: regularly, hardly ever, always, frequently, rarely
do eat a lot of vegetable snacks. The girls find sweets and
ice cream more 9 . . ......... (tempt) than the boys.
.. ..

The results show that overall girls have a sweeter tooth Adverbs of degree ( -/y and other
than the boys, while the boys overall were more
10 (excite) by the saltier snacks.
......................................
endings)
Adverbs of degree make adjectives or adverbs stronger or
weaker. Gradable adjectives or adverbs can be made weaker
1 2 Adverbs when preceded by adverbs fairly, quite, rather. a bit, pretty
and stronger with very, really, particularly, extremely.
Adverbs give us extra information about verbs, adjectives
and other adverbs. Adverbs can be single words (recently) o r Non-gradable (also known as extreme or absolute) adjectives
phrases (at the end of the road) . are preceded by completely, absolutely, totally. Compare
You can add -ly to many adjectives to form adverbs: slow -7 these gradable adjectives with their extreme counterparts:
slowly, quick -7 quickly cold/freezing, hot/boiling, big/enormous, small/tiny, good/
Also note the following spelling: fantastic, bad/awful, tired/exhausted, dirty/filthy.
full -7 fully, beautiful -7 beautifully, happy -7 happily, energetic The film wasn't very good.
-7 energetically, remarkable -7 remarkably I thought the film was absolutely fantastic!
Thef
il
m\>v
8 Sabsolutely'good.
Adverbs of manner (-/y)
Word order
Adverbs of manner describe how something is done (badly,
beautifully, enthusiastically, happily). Adverbs of manner When there is an auxiliary verb, the adverb comes after the
usually come: auxiliary verb and before the main verb.
• after the object: She opened the box slowly. I don't usually arrive on time. I They haven't often visited us.
• after the verb if there is no object: He ran quickly. Adverbs come after the verb be in the present or past tense.
For emphasis, the adverb can come between the subject and I'm always late.
verb and even at the beginning of a sentence. In a sentence where adverbs of place and adverbs of time are
She slowly opened the box. both used, place usually comes before time.
Slowly, she opened the box. I'll see you here a t 8.00 tomorrow.

314 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANK

 'MVM@;i;ifMIMH:f.M+ J
Exercises big bigger biggest

.
. ..
Com p l ete the text with the adverbs of the adjectives easy easier easiest
in brackets.
S h e 1 ... .. .... (quick) climbed t h e tree and expensive more expensive most expensive

I rre gul ar
2 . _. . . . ... .... . (careful) stepped onto a large branch
... .. ... . ...

and then onto the roof of the house. As 3 ..... ..

(cautious) as she could, she 4 . .... . ................. (slow) .... . good better best

.. .
stepped through the open window, making sure she didn't
bad worse worst
knock over the 5 (beautiful) carved statue
......................................

or wake anyone up. Once in the room, she heard the

sounds of a man sleeping 6 .. . ... . ..

.
(noisy) and a
.. ..... ....... .... ... .....
Spelling rules
woman breathing 7..... .................. (quiet). She knew the
..

house 8 . .... ... (good) and so she

. Regular adjectives
Short adjectives ending in -e, add -r I -est:

.
9 .. -............ . ...... (swift) ran down the stairs, through the
hall, down the corridor and into the kitchen. She sprang nice 7 nicer7 n icest
large 7 larger 7 largest

.
10 _........ .... (energetic) across the room, bowed her
..

head and drank 11 ..... . ... ... . . ...... ..... ... (thirsty) from a bowl in
. . .. .. . . . Short adjectives ending in a consonant. add -er J -est:
the corner. Then she curled u p in her basket and cheap 7 cheaper 7 cheapest
12 -· . ...... .... ......... . (dreamy) closed her eyes. long 7 long e r 7 long e st
Short adjectives ending consonant-vowel-consonant, double
2 Rearrange the words to mal<e sentences. the final consonant + -er I -est.
1 apartment I the I coast I bought I I I an I on sad 7 sadder 7 saddest
big 7 bigger 7 biggest
2 freezing I absolutely I it's I outside Adjectives ending in -y, replace -y with -ier I -iest:
cloudy 7 cloudier 7 cloudiest
tennis I yesterday I played I I
easy 7 easier 7 easiest
3
Long adjectives (three syllables or more) add more I mos t +
4 Fiona I ever I see I we I hardly
adjective:
intelligent 7 more intelligent 7 most intelligent
5 a house I near I bus I they I station I rent I the
expensive 7 more expensive 7 most expensive
Irregular adjectives
6 ca l l I me I Ian I usually I doesn't I at work good 7 better 7 best
bad 7 worse 7 worst
7 month I to I my I came I stay I last I mother
morel less/ fewer + than
8 filthy I wasn't I it I dirty, I it I just I completely I was

1 3 Comparatives and
We can compare countable nouns with more and fewer and
uncountable nouns with more and less.
By 2013, there was less unemployment in Uruguay and
Venezuela than in the USA.
There were fewerjob opportunities in Italy than in France.
superlatives
as + adjective + as
Comparative adjectives
When we want to say something is the same as another, we
We use comparative adjectives to compare people, places or use as + adjective + as.
things. When we want to compare one thing or group with Rome is often as /wt as Istanbul in summer.
another, we use than after the adjective.
The carbon footprint of Kenyan flowers is nearly six times
not as + adjective + as
smaller than that caused by the production of Dutch flowers.
If t h e context is clear for a comparison, it is possible to leave When we want to say something is not the same as another,
out t h e than-clause. we use not as + adjective + as.
Everything is more expensive. (than it used to be) Stockholm is not as lwmid as Madrid in July.

Superlative adjectives Adverbs

We use superlative adjectives to compare a person, place or We can also compare how things are done by using more/
thing with all the others in the same group. Jess + an adverb (+ than).
Real Madrid is the richest football club in the world. Events progressed more rapidly than anticipa ted.
We can modify superlative adjectives by adding one of/ some
of + supe rlative + plural noun. Making comparatives stronger and
Robert Redford is one of the best actors in Hollywood. weaker
The room contains some of the rarest species in the world.
To make a comparative stronger, we add these modifiers:
Com p arat ive
a lot, much, far, even, a good deal, considerably, significan tly
Adjective Superlative
+ comparative (or more/less + adjective/adverb)
Regular This year 's test was a lot longer tlrnn last year's.

long longer longest

GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANI< 315
 13&M'Mi;l;ifi.lil@j:W!M
To make a comparative weaker, we add these modifiers: public spending in the UK and Finland is
a bit, a little, not much, not a lot, slightly + comparative 4 ... . ... .
. . . . . . .... . (far I great) Australia or the US. However,
.... ............ ...

or nearly, not quite, almost + as + adjective/adverb. the statistics reveal that public spending in Singapore i s
The process is taking a bit longer than we would like. 5 ...... ... ..... .. .. .. (significant I generous) than t h e other
. .. .. .... . ...

This model is not quite as efficient as the CVS-460 model. countries in the survey. In fact, we can see that the
government in Singapore also spends 6 ......................................
Quantity (considerable) than the governments of the other
countries. The government of Finland spends
When we want to compare quantity, we can use (not) as
7 ... .. . . . . .. (slight) than the government of Australia
.. .... ..... ..... .... ...... .

much/many + noun (phrase) + as:

but spending in the UK is 8 ....... .. .. ..... ...... (by far I high).
....

There aren't as many {wild tigers} as there used to be.

There is as much water 011 the Eartl1's surface as ever.

Exercises 1 4 Modals ( 1 )
Complete the text. Choose the correct option. We use can, must, should, ought to to talk about permission,
In a recent survey, it was found that there are a lot obligation and necessity. These verbs don't change form (she
1 more I most I less mobile phones today compared with ean ./ -slte-ettts
t ).
four years ago. Now, 80% of teenagers own a mobile
We can also use be allowed to, have to and need to. These
phone. Half (40% of teens} own a smartphone today,
verbs require the verb be or auxiliary verbs and therefore
compared with 23% four years ago.
change form (she isn't allowed to, he doesn 't have to, she
2 Less I Fewer I The least teens own a tablet (25%),
needs to).
which is comparable to the adult population. Four years
ago this figure was just 9 % . Teens generally have
3 more I less I fewer access to the Internet at home
Permission (can, may, be able to)
because the home computer is usually shared by other Present Past
family members. Mobile access is more common among
teens, with 26% accessing the Internet exclusively Permi ss ion can, is/are allowed could, was/were
from their mobile phone or tablet. Although adults tend to, may allowed to
to spend 4 fewer I fewest I more time on the Internet. We use can to request and give permission.
because many use it for their work, only 1 5 % access the • The permission may be internal, i.e. from the speaker.
Internet exclusively from handheld devices. The group
Ca11 I borrow your pen? Yes, you can.
that spends the 5 more I most I less time online using • Or permission may be external, i . e . from an outside
handheld devices is those aged between 17 and 19. The
source which may be an institution or law.
main use for this group is social networking.
Can I use my mobile phone here? No, you can't. (It is the rule
The group that spends the 6 least I more I fewest hours
of the institution.)
on the Internet is those aged between 1 3 and 1 6. This is
We use be allowed to to request and give permission, usually
also the group that has the 7 fewest I less I least access
from an external source.
to the Internet, as their parents tend to have greater
'Am I allowed to leave my bike here?' 'Yes, you are. '
control over their time online.
A more polite way of asking for permission is to use may. You
2 Look at the table and complete the text with can only use may in this context with I or we.
comparative and superlative forms. Use the words in May I/we leave the room, please ?
brackets. You may need to change the words and/or The past form of can is could and be allowed to is was/were
add other words. allowed to. There i s no past form of may for permission.

Public National Government We could stay up late every night when we were young.
s p e nding as h ea l th c are s p end i n g o n I was allowed to wearjeans at school yesterday.
% of GDP expenditure healthcare We only use could to speak generally about permission in the
as % of G D P as % o f total past. When we want to talk about a specific event in the past,
healthcare we use was/were allowed to.
spending
To refuse permission, we use can't or may not.
Australia 27 9 68 Can / leave early? No, you can 't.
May I leave early? No, you may not.
Finland 40 9 75
Singa pore 13 4 36 let, allow
Sweden 33 10 81 When we want to talk about permission to do something, we
can use let + object + infinitive (without to).
UK 46 10 84
Dad lets me use his car from time to time.
us 27 18 53 Do you think Anna will let me wear her shoes?
When we want to make a passive sentence, we need to use
We checked a number of sources and found that allowed to rather than let.
1 (reliable) statistics were provided by
.. .. ... .... .. .. ...... . . .... ......... . .
We aren 't allowed to use mobile phones in lectures. (not X}
the World Bank. According to the World Bank, national
healthcare expenditure is 2 . . . . . . in Australia ............ ... .... ... . .....

(same} it is in Finland, and Sweden spends

3 .. .. . . . ...
........ (much} the UK. As a percentage of GDP.
... . ...

316 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANI<

 •a@W@;l;lfj.l•l;MJ:h�''
Obligation and necessity (must, have 6 She doesn't need to I needn't be nervous, they do all
the safety checks before they let her jump.
to, need to, be allowed to) 7 I didn't need I needn't to drive there. I could have

I Obligati�n/
walked.

I necessity
Present Past
2 Look at the sentences. Correct the mistakes, if
must, have to, had to, needed to
necessary. Tick (.I) the correct sentences.
need to
1 May Sam and Leo attend the meeting too?
We use must or have to to say that something is obligatory or
very important. 2 They have left their car in the staff car park. Are they
You must do your homework. (The obligation is from the allowed to do that?
teacher.)
We have to be there at a.m. (The obligation comes from the 3 I mustn't to be late for work again.
organisers of the event, not the speaker.)
4 Shh ! This is a library. You don't have to talk in here.
We use need to when we want to say that something is
necessary, but not obligatory.
5 He needn't has done his homework. The teacher was
You need to wear a hat today. ( It's necessary as it is very
away.
cold outside.)
The past form of must and have to is had to and the past of 6 Do you think your tutor will let you hand in your
need to is needed to. assignment late?
He had to report his findings to the committee. (Il emust
tefJt)Fteti-his-1-ifltiif!gs--ffl-the-eemfflittee . ) 7 Do we must complete this exercise today?
He needed to renew his passport and visa.
We use mustn't to say it is obligatory or important not to do 8 You don't have to have experience to apply for the job,
something. but it'll help.
You mustn't drive without a licence. (The obligation is not
from the speaker). (:Jfet:Hie>ftf-lt8ve-t&-dfive-witlte>ut-&-lieef!ee.)
The past form of mustn't is wasn't/weren't allowed to.
We had to complete the test. We weren't allowed to leave
1 5 Medals (2)
before we had finished.
We use can (can't) and will (won't) t o make requests and
could (couldn't) and would (wouldn't) for more polite requests.
No obligation/necessity ( don't have to, We use let's, could and shall in suggestions and will and shall
don't need to, needn 't) in offers.
To express an opinion or give advice we use should, could,
Present Past ought to and had ('cl) better.
None of these verbs changes form in the third person and we
use the verbs as auxiliaries in questions.
No obligation/ don't have to, don't didn't have to,
He could go to another shop. .I
necessity need to, needn't didn't need to,
needn't have
(He-eeultis-tfy-tlflt>tftef-She>13. X)
We use don't have to or don't need to to say that something Will you help me? ,/
is not obligatory or necessary. We can also use needn't to (Ber-ye>u-wifHtel{Tffle! X)
mean the same as don't need to.
We don't have to/don't need to/needn't go to work today. Making requests (can, will, could, would}
The past forms are didn't have to, didn't need to and needn't We use can and will to make requests.
have + past participle. The meaning between didn't need to Can you open the window, please?
and needn't have (+ past participle) is different. Will you give me a lift tomorrow?
We didn't have to go/didn't need go to work today. ( I t We use could and would to make the request sound more
wasn't necessary, s o we didn't go.) polite.
We needn't have gone to work today. (We went but it turned Could you open the window, please?
out not to have been necessary.) Would you give me a lift tomorrow?

Exercises Suggestions and offers (let's, shall,

1 Choose the correct option. Sometimes more than one could, will)
option is possible.
1 Do they need I have to knock all the houses down to We use let's + infinitive (without to) and shall + I/we
build the new sports centre? + infinitive (without to) and could + infinitive to make
2 I'll be here all week, so he hasn't to I doesn't need to suggestions.
call me, he can just come in. We usually use let's and could in affirmative sentences and
3 You needn't I need to be here by 1 p.m. tomorrow. shall I/we in questions. In expressions with let's and shall, the
4 He was unsure about the quality of the laptop. He speaker is included in the suggestion. With could, the speaker
didn't need I needn't have worried, it was fine. 1s only included in sentences with we.
5 You don't need I needn't shout. I can hear you perfectly Let's do something this afternoon. (I want us to do
well. something.)

GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANI< 317

 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANK

Shall we go to the poof? ( I want us to go to the pool).

We could try that new Thai restaurant on South Street.
1 6 Modals (3)
(I want us to try the new restaurant.) We use the modal verbs can, could, may, might, must and
You could try that new Thai restaurant on South Street.
should to talk about certainty, speculation and deduction.
(I recommend you try the new restaurant - without me.)
These verbs don't change form.
We use will and shall to make offers. We usually use will in He may get a different result next time. (He-mays-get--&­
affirmative sentences and shall I/we in questions. tfi#efflttt-tesult11extt
ime.X)
I'll carry your bags. This group of modal verbs can be used to talk about the past,
Shall we go? e.g. can't + have + past participle.
They can't have arrived already. It's too early.
Advice and opinion (should, ought to,
'd better) Speculation (may, might, could)
When we want to recommend, advise or express an opinion. Present and future
we use should and ought to. may, might, could it is possible that something
You sl10uld do more exercise. is true
You ought to join my gym.
may not, might not it is possible that something
When we want to say we think something is not a good idea, is not true
we use shouldn't.
He shouldn't eat so much. Past
When we want to ask for advice, we use should.
Should I buy this shirt? may have, might have, could it is possible that something
have is true
The past form is should(n't) have + past participle.
The government shouldn 't lrnve increased spending. may not have, might not have it is possible that something
When we want to give advice in a specific situation, we use is not t rue
had ('cl) better (not) + verb (without to).
I'd better go. I'm already late. We use may, might and could+ infinitive (without to) to
You 'd better not leave your bag unattended. speculate about the present and future when we think it is
Had we better stop there? possible that something is true.
Cargo containers may provide a useful resource.
Exercises The workers in Papua New Guinea might earn £5 a day.
Don't make a noise. They could be asleep.
1 Complete the text with the words in the box.
We use may not and might not + infinitive (without to) to
should ought better could speculate about the present and future, when we think i t is
possible that something is not true. We don't use could not.
The company's output 1 ... .... double if they They might not come. (=We expected them to come but it's
reduced the workforce by 20 per cent and invested in robot possible they won't).
technology. The finance director 2 to take the
......................................
I may not go into work today. (=I would normally go into
initiative at the next AGM and the operations manager had work but today it's possible I won't.)
3 . . . . . . . .. . . . . listen if she wants to keep her job.
.. . . . . . . . .. .. .... . ... We use may have, might have and could have + past
I believe the company 4 ... ...... ............. start the process of participle to speculate about the past when we think it is
streamlining the production line. This 5 . . . .. ... be
........... ..... .... ... .... . possible that something was true.
the perfect time to do this - it has worked for other similar His flight may have been delayed.
companies. However, I think we 6 . .. . ... . .... . to research
........ . . . . .... .. .. He could have missed the flight.
all the options, and we'd 7 ..... ... . . . . not rush things.
.. ... ....... ... ....... ....
We use may not have and might not have + past participle
Instead, we 8 .. .............. wait until we have the best
.....
to speculate about the past when we think it is possible that
strategy available. something is not true. We don't use could not have.
2 Looi< at the sentences and correct the mistakes. She might not have heard us. (We expected her to hear u s
1 Could you mind not talking so loudly? b u t it's possible she didn't.)
They might not have received our message. (We sent a
2 Let email the company and tell them about their message but it's possible they didn't get it.)
mistake.
Deduction (must, can't, couldn't)
3 Do you will give me a lih?
Present and future

4 He shouldn't has reduced the number of people must we are certain that something
working on his team. is true

can't, couldn't we are certain that something

5 Would you mind if you didn't talk during the is not true
presentation, please?
Past
6 Is that the time? We would better finish the seminar.
must have we are certain that something
is true
7 Shall you pick me up aher work?
can't have, couldn't have it is possible that something
is not true
318 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANI<
 13MW.f.i;i;Ifi·!ii@J:&V'*
We use must + infinitive (without to) to deduce something 4 a might b might not
i n the present or future when we are sure that something is c might have d might not have
true. 5 a could b couldn't
Look at her music collection. She must love jazz. c could have d couldn't have
I'm sure the weight of the pedals must be an issue if you 6 a may b may not c may have d may not have
need to cycle fast.
2 Rewrite the sentences so they have the same meaning
We use can't/couldn't + infinitive (without to) to deduce

.
as the first sentence. Use the words in brackets.
something in the present or future when we are sure that 1 I don't think it's possible that they spoke to the film
something is not true. director. (can't)
I've rung the bell three times. They can't be in. They ....................................................... . ........ ........ . ........ . .
You couldn 't be tired already - you've only just got up! 2 My guess is that you were exhausted when you got
We use must have + past participle (without to) to deduce back. (must)
something in the past when we are sure that something is You . ............................................
true. 3 It's possible Sue didn't get my email. (might)
They walked 30 miles in one day. They must /Jave been Sue . ............................. ... .......... ..........
exhausted. 4 I think those aren't the final results because the initial
We use can't/couldn't have + past participle (without to) figures were incorrect. (can't)
to deduce something in the past when we are sure that Those .. ............... ............. .......................
something is not true. 5 Look at the map. I ' m sure we are here. (must)
He didn't send us a card. He can't liave received ours. Look at the map. We ............................
They couldn't /Jave thought much of her if they didn't call. 6 The birds have similar markings, so maybe they are
from the control group (could)
Assumption (should/shouldn't) The birds have similar markings, so they ...... ..........................
7 It's possible that the bag will be too expensive for me
Present and future to afford. (might)
I
should, shouldn't we think something is
8 It's possible that there are people who depend on their
probably true
phones too much. (may)

1 7 Passives ( 1 )
Past There .

should have, shouldn't have we think something is

probably true

We use should/shouldn't to make assumptions about what is The passive voice is often used i n academic and formal
probably true in the present or future. writing. The object of an active verb is the subject of a passive
We should arrive there at about five o'clock. verb.
It sl10uldn 't take too long. Active
We use should/shouldn't have + past participle (without to) to subject active verb object
IThe central bankl increased the lending rate to 12%.
make assumptions about what is probably true in the past.
They should have arrived by now.
It shouldn 't /Jave taken such a long time. Passive
subject passive verb agent
Exercises
The lending rate was increased to 12% ilY l�
t1
-
ie-ce
--11t-
ra
_l_
b_
a-
nk
�.I
1 Read the report and then choose the correct option
0 The subject of an active sentence becomes the agent of a
(a-d) to complete the text.
passive sentence. We use by to introduce the agent.
The court heard that Max Warneford had not been honest
• by + agent can often be omitted.

.
about his business practices. The prosecuting lawyer said
0 The passive form is not used with i ntransitive verbs
that, although there is no way of knowing, this 1 .......... ........
(arrive, disappear, go, sit, die, wait) because they have no

.
going on for years. He added that, as Warneford had
direct object.
kept separate accounts, he 2 ..... ........ ..... known that he was
They disappeared. (not T h eyw eredi s
a ppe&Fed.)
breaking the law. He concluded by saying that Warneford
3 ... .. .... .. .. . helped his accountant, as he claimed, because
his accountant had no knowledge of these accounts.
Forms of the passive
We form the passive with be + past participle (+ by + agent).

. ..
Indeed, his accountant is one of his accusers. Sources
say that without the testimony of so many of Warneford's
present and past simple The system is/was used by
victims, the case 4 ................... come to court. The trial
large corporations.
5 .. ... . .... .... . continue for several weeks and there is a
chance, if found guilty, that Warneford 6 ... ...... .... .... .. face a present and past continuous The system is/ was being
long prison sentence. used by large corporations.

a could be b could not be present and past perfect The system has/ l1ad been
simple used by large corporations.
c could have been d could not have been
2 a must b must not
c must have cl must not have
3 a can b can't c can have d can't have

GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANI< 319

 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANK

The land is wanted for development.

modal verbs The system will/sl1011ld//
The books will be saved for the grandchildren of the writer.
must be used by large
c orpora tions
.

The system woulcl/ couldn 't/ Exercises

can't have been used by
1 Complete the description of a food manufacturing
large corporations.
process with the passive form of the verbs in the box.
going to The system is/ was
going to be used by large add coat compress cool cut load mix
corporations. pack pour roast wrap
used to The system used to be used
The oats, nuts and rice 1 . ..................... .. .... at a temperature
by large corporations
of 1 60°c and then they 2 . .. .. .. . together with
.

syrup in a large drum. Then the mixture 3 ......................... .

Uses of the passive out onto a conveyor. Chocolate chips 4 ...................

We use the passive (often omitting by + agent): and then the mixture 5 ... .. .. .. ........... by large rollers
..

• in formal writing. to a standard thickness. The compressed mixture

Your attention in this matter would be much appreciated (by 6 .. .... ... ........ .. ..... into strips and then again into bars.
... . . . . .... .

ttS). Next. the bars 7 ...... . ....... in chocolate and then

• when we describe a process. they 8 ... . .. .... . .... .. ........ .with cold air. The individual bars
. . .. . .

The chassis is coated with a primer (by-tHTtBettitJe). 9 ....... ........... . ..... .... .. in plastic and then they 10 .
.. . . .. ..

• when we want to present an opinion anonymously. into cardboard boxes. The packed boxes 11
It is said that Grimaldi's painting style was influencec/ by onto delivery vehicles.
Marotti.
2 Complete the sentences using the passive form.
We usually omit by + agent when the agent:
Include the agent only when necessary.
• is unknown.
1 They taught us the Chinese alphabet.
The vase was made around 400 years ago ( hysomeone). We..................................... ..... .. ... ... .
•
.. . .

has already been mentioned or is obvious.

2 The bank lent the company £100,000.
MBS Bank stated that, over the next two years, 300
£100,000 ...... .....................................
members of their workforce would be laid off (by-MB5-Btmk).
3 Unforeseen weather conditions had delayed the flight.
• is not important.
The flight ... . .. .. ... ..... .... ... .
Our flight has been delayed (fly-sf)ffleOfle-et'-SOffle#tittfj) .
4 The marketing manager presented u s with an
interesting proposal.
We usually include by + agent when the agent:
•
We. ... ........... .. . ... .
contains important information, despite not being the
. . . ......... .

5 We assure our clients a first-class service.

primary focus of the sentence.
Our .............. . .. .... . . ..............................
Over twenty people were injured by a hurricane in Cuba.
.

6 Anyone attending the university can use the library.

The bank was robbed by a man in his thirties.
The library... ... .... ........ . .. .. ..
• is the name of a writer, artist, inventor or person of note.
'Crime and Punishment' was written by Fyodor Dostoevsky. 7 The investigation revealed a series of errors.
A series of errors ........................................
8 We will assign specific jobs in the next few weeks.
Verbs with two objects Specific jobs .......... .. .. . . . . . . . . . . . ............ ..................... .

When a verb is followed by two objects in an active sentence,

there are two possible ways of making a passive sentence.
18 Passives (2)
subject active verb indirect object direct object
IWe I sent our customers a refund. We form the passive infinitive with infinitive + to be + past
subject passive verb object participle.
We aim to be seen as a progressive company.
Our customers were sent a refund. GPS technology could allow snowfall to be measured across
subject passive verb preposition object a wider range of landscapes.
A refund was sent to our customers.
Used with:
The following verbs are commonly used with two objects. verbs of thinking and feeling: appear, choose, decide, expect,
forget, hate, hope, illtend, learn, like, need, plan, prefer, prepare,

[
Used with the preposition to: ask, give, lend, owe, pay, promise, pretend, seem, wish
sell, send, show, teach, tell, write
verbs of saying: agree, demand, offer, promise, refuse

[
Used with the preposition for: build, buy, draw,
other verbs: afford, aim, arrange, attempt, <ieserve, disregard, fail,
fix, paint
help, manage, measure, tend, try, see, want

Used with the prepositions to or for: bring, leave We form the passive -ing form with being + past participle.
I remember being told not to try getting into Cambridge.
for He enjoyed being tested by the university students.

When a passive sentence doesn't have an agent. we can add

extra i nformation with for + noun phrase after the verb, which
describes its purpose.

320 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANK

 +ii;tM'M';';lfi.Ul@i:f.M'
2 Complete the second sentence so that it expresses
Used after: verbs of liking and disliking: can't stand, detest, don't
mind, dislike, enjoy, hate, fancy, like, love
the meaning of the first in the passive form. Re-use
the verbs in bold. Change the form as necessary. Don't
verbs of s aying and thinking: admit, consider, deny, imagine,
include the agent.
1 We expect this year's conference to be cancelled.
mention, remember, suggest, tell
other verbs: avoid, begin, finish, keep, miss, practice, risk, start,
11 ............................................................................................................................... .
stop, test

. ... . .. . . . .
2 People knew that the president enjoyed boxi ng .
The president ............................................... . . . .. . ..... .. ........ . ..
................... . . . . . . ........

Reporting structures 3 People believe that Brunel built this bridge.

This bridge .. . .. ...... ... ......... .. .. . .. . ..... .. .. . . .... ... .... ...
.. .. ... .... . . . .... .

We use passive reporting structures with certain reporting

4 Some people argued that a strike would harm the
ve r bs
company.
.

11 .....................................................................................................................................
• it + be + past participle of reporting verb + that
It is hoped that more evidence may come to light.
5 We think 3,000 people took part in the study.
It is believed that people sleep less well when there is a full
3,000 people ................................................................................................ .

moon.
6 We estimate 1 5,000 people are attending the
Used with: agree, announce, argue, believe, claim, decide, festiva l .
disclose, expect, feel, hope, know, predict, recognise, report, say, 1 5,000 ..................................................... ......................................................... .

suggest, think, understand 7 We know the battle took place in 1793.

The batt le .. . .. .. .
....................... . .. . ......... ... . . .
.............. .. .............. .. ..

• s u bject + be + past participle of reporting verb + to +

infinitive
Apicius is believed to be the world's oldest cookbook. 1 9 Relative clauses ( 1 )
Fihy dolphins are known to frequent the saltwater coastal
lakes of the rural Gippsland region.
We use relative clauses to give extra information about the
The Chess Turk was revealed to be an elaborate and clever noun, or noun phrase, in the main part of the sentence.
hoax.
Relative clauses can be defining or non-defining.

Used with: ask, consider, believe, estimate, expect,

Relative pronouns
feel, intend, know, mean, report, reveal, say, see, suppose, think,
understand Relative pronouns (who, which, that, where, when, why,
whose) link the relative clause to the main clause.
• subject + be + past participle of reporting verb + to have
A relative pronoun can be the subject or the object of a
+ past participle
relative clause.
�
St Mercurius was believed to have killed the emperor
Julian. Subject
This episode is tl1ougl1t to /Jave taken place in 1976. l l
There's the man who took my phone.
The man took my phone.

�
Used with: consider, believe, estimate, know, mean, report, say,
suppose, think, understand Object
l
There's the woman who I met yesterday. I
The speaker in passive reporting structures is usually I met the woman yesterday.
u nknown or unimportant.
When the relative pronoun is the subject of the clause, it
have/ get something done always follows the noun it refers to.
• We use who for people: Martin Cooper is the man who
We use have/get + obj ect + past participle when someone
invented the mobile phone.
does something for us (and we often pay them money for it).
• Muybridge was an Englishman who went to the USA at
I am having my car serviced tomorrow.
the age of twenty in search of fame and fortune.
They got their house remortgaged by the bank.
• We use which for things: It's a vehicle which not many o f
us could afford.
have to do! need to do • We use that for people or things: He's the boy that I told
We use have to/need to + be + past participle to talk about you about. It's something that joins one pipe to another.
necessity. That is more commonly used in spoken and more informal
Roses, for example, have to be shipped by air rather than written English. That is not used in non-defining relative
sea. clauses.
The tyre needs to be changed. • We use where tor places: I don't live there now but it's
the place where I was born.
Exercises • We use when for a time: She lived in the Middle Ages, a
time when invasion and resettlement was commonplace.
1 Choose the correct option.
• We use why for a reason: There are a number of reasons
1 I d on t have a car. I hope to be I being driven to the
'

why they chose to leave their native country.

party.
• We use whose for possession: This is Cathy, whose
2 They can't stand to be I being watched when they play.
sister went to my school.
3 Mark had a new broadband network installed I being
Included in the team is a geomorphologist, whose task
installed last week.
4 We are having the TV deliver I delivered next Saturday.
is to examine how the coastal landscape has changed over
time.
5 My car has to service I be serviced soon.
6 The recycled glass needs to be transported I
transporting to the factory.
GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANI< 321
 Defi ning relative clauses 4 The animals tend to live in the east of the region.
There is more vegetation there.
We use defining relative clauses to give essential information
about the noun in the main clause. If a defining relative 5 These are the tools. They date back 1 5,000 years.
clause is left out, the meaning of the entire sentence is often
unclear. Commas are not used before a defining relative 6 He grew up in the 1970s. Life was much simpler then.
clause.

It's a place where we spent our summer holidays ./

7 He's an artist. He discovered the hidden painting.

It's a place, where we spent our summer holidays. X

.

8 There are three reasons. I left my job.

When the relative pronoun ( who, which or that) is the subject
of the clause, we must always include it in the sentence. 9 They use this device in areas. The weather can change
However, when the relative pronoun is the object of the rapidly there.
clause, it is possible to leave it out.
There's the man who took my phone. 10 That's the gadget. He invented it in 1 999.
There's the woman (who) I spoke to.
1 1 The technique was developed in 1890. Much less was
We don't use other pronouns to refer to the noun in the known about this type of engineering then.
relative clause when the relative pronoun is the object.
There's the woman. I spoke to her. 12 I was talking to the biology professor. He also
There's the woman who I spoke to her. participated in the earlier study.

Non-defin ing relative clauses

We use non-defining relative clauses to give extra information 20 Relative clauses (2)
about the noun, or noun phrase, in the main part of the
sentence. Reduced relative clauses
The dock workers, who load and unload the ships, are all
We can sometimes shorten a relative clause by using a
government employees. (Essential: The dock workers are
participle clause instead. We omit the relative pronoun and
government employees. Extra: They load and unload the
use a present or past participle.
ships.)
We use the present participle (-ing form) when the verb in the
A non-defining relative clause is separated from the main relative clause is in the active.
clause with commas. People living in this area use traditional agricultural methods.
J.M. W Turner. who was a landscape painter. died in 1851. (People who live in this area use traditional agricultural
methods.)
Non-defining relative clauses are more commonly used in
She is the one wearing the red jacket. (She is the one who is
formal and written forms of English.
wearing the red jacket.)
The Brough Superior was designed by a man called George
Brough, who was one of the early pioneers of motorcycle We use the past participle (-edform in regular verbs) when
construction. the verb in the relative clause is in the passive.
The soldier, stationed in a remote area known as the Wessel
We don't use that to replace which or who. Islands, was named Maurie Isenberg. (The soldier, who was
The girl's name was Steffi Graf, who went on to win 22 Grand stationed in a remote area known as the Wessel Islands, was
Slams. (The girl's name was Steffi Graf, tltttt wen t on to win named Maurie Isenberg.)
22 Grand Slams.) The table, made in Italy, was worth $5 million. (The table,
which had been made in Italy, was worth $5 million.)
We can't omit the relative pronoun in a non-defining relative
clause. We can't use a reduced relative clause if the relative pronoun
He travelled to Alaska, which had just become US territory. is the object of the relative clause.
{He-tffl ve lledt
oAlBskB,hBdjustbeeeme-l:JS-te ffitory+ The painting, which I have been working on for a year. will be
in my next exhibition.
Exercise -flte-pBirttiftg-wofkirt{JOrrfflf-ft-tet!-he-itH
trWil tty-rtext­
e-xhibiliem: X
Write a single sentence with a relative clause. Choose
We often used reduced relative clauses in announcements
from the words in the box. Don't forget to include
and reports.
commas where necessary.
Researchers working off the coast of Africa discovered the
remains of the shipwreck.
who which when where whose why
who/whom
The coffee beans are put into sacks. The sacks are
easier to transport. We sometimes use whom instead of who when it is the
object of a relative clause. The relative pronouns who or that
2 He's the man. His sister married my brother. are more common in less formal situations.
He was a colleague whom she had never met.
3 The Rafflesia is a plant. It produces the largest flower He was a colleague wholtl1at she had never met.
in the world. It is also possible to omit the relative pronoun as it is the
object of the clause.
He was a colleague she had never met.
322 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANK
 •9;'·'MfJ;laJi·lll;iif=W''
Prepositions in relative clauses 21 Connectors/li n kers
The relative pronouns which and whom can function as the
object of a preposition. When we put the p reposition before
conjunction and, or, but, because, so, although
the relative pronoun, the sentence sounds more formal. (It is
more usual to find the preposition at the end of the relative preposition in spite of, despite, due to, because of
clause.)
adverb/adverbial however, nevertheless, also, moreover,
this world in which we are living I this world wl1ich we are therefore, furthermore
living in
a subject about which I am passionate I a subject which I We can connect two ideas using a conjunction, a preposition
am passionate about or an adverb/adverbial.
a friend with whom I am pleased I a friend whom I am Conjunctions join two clauses. Some conjunctions are not
pleased with usually found at the beginning of a written sentence.
an issue to which you are opposed I an issue which you are Magnetic resonance imaging scans can accurately measure
opposed to body fat, but are very expensive.
We don't follow a preposition with when, where or why. Prepositions usually come before a noun, pronoun or
When we want to talk about a time, place or reason, we use verb + -ing.
preposition + which. Despite the public protests, in late 2011 Seracini and his team
were given permission to continue their work.
Place
It was a wonderful place in which we lived for 30 years. ./ Adverbs o r adverbial phrases usually come a t the beginning of
It was a wonderful place -in-where-we lived for 30 years. X a sentence; some can come i n a number of positions.
Furtl1ennore, O'Hara and Smith concluded it would be
Time
difficult to change the curriculum altogether.
We talked about his time a t university, about which much
has been said. ./
Also, it is apparent that standards vary. I It is also apparent
that standards vary.
We talked about his time at university, -Bbottt-wlten-much has
been said. X Connectors can be used to contrast ideas. to introduce
Reason additional information, to give reasons, to present results and
It was a foolish thing to do, for which I have no excuse . ./ to express purpose.
It was a foolish thing to do, fflr-why I have no excuse. X
Contrast
Exercises
despite I in spite of(+ noun, pronoun, verb + -ing)
1 Complete the sentences using a reduced relative
clause from the i nformation in brackets. We use despite o r in spite of at the beginning of a sentence
Students wanting to register should speak to a n or in the middle. When they are used at the beginning of the
advisor first. (the ones who want t o register) sentence, the clause is followed by a comma. In the middle
2 This pen, ..... .......................... ............. . is very special. (my father of a sentence no comma is required.
gave it to me), Despite the bad weather conditions. the team completed the
3 This is a n announcement for passengers race .
.. ..... ............................. to Manchester. (the ones who want Sales increased in spite of the higher prices.
to travel)
The phrase the fact that can be added to either despite o r in
4 Anyone ..................................... ......... to get in touch can text me.
spite of.
(who needs) She was civil to him despite the fact that she didn't lil<e
5 The necklace, is valued at £10
................................................ .
him.
million. (Queen Victoria wore i t a t her wedding)
6 I lost the book ................................................ the addresses of my
although I even though I though I while I whereas I
friends. (that contained)
but
7 The tree ................................................ was over 500 years old.
(the wind blew it down in the storm) We usually use but to contrast opposing ideas within one
8 The painting, ........................................... .... . has been on display sentence.
at the Louvre since 1 797. (someone stole it in 1 9 1 1 and That story is still being written but some of the lessons of the
someone else recovered i t two years later) past are being ignored.

2 Rewrite the sentences in a more formal manner. We use although, even though and though to contrast
Include a preposition in a relative clause. opposing ideas at the beginning of a sentence or in the
1 Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway, who not much middle. A comma usually divides the two clauses.
is known about. Although the research project isn't complete, it is possible to
identify some preliminary findings.
2 It was the stretch of sea that the children loved to This was one of the few tools available to combat infections
swim in. and treat wounds, although in many cases the treatment
was ineffective.
3 Is this the book you are referring to? We can also use though at the end of a sentence.
We didn't know any of the others and didn 't really like action
4 Who did he live with during his time at Cambridge? films. We still went. tlrough.

GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANI< 323

 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANK

We use these expressions to introduce a reason for

however I nevertheless I even so I yet I something.
on the other hand I on the contrary I in contrast She went to Los Angeles because she wanted to work in the
film industry.
These adverbs and adverbials link contrasting ideas in Any attempt to tweak the Jaw won't happen until 2021 at the
earliest, since it doesn't even take effect until 2020.
two sentences. They are often used at the beginning of a
sentence, although many can appear in different parts of a These areas may have disappeared owing to a rise in sea
sentence, usually separated by commas.
levels over time.
Mason lived and worked on the outskirts of Barcelona for This variety became virtually extinct due to the rapid spread
seven years. However, he doesn't speak a word of Spanish. of a fungal infection.
Jn natural systems. nothing is wasted. Human manufacturers, Some have questioned the validity of the letter due to the
on the other hand, use large inputs of non-renewable fact that it is not written on House of Commons stationery.
energy.
We use while/whilst and whereas to contrast opposing ideas Result
at the beginning of a sentence or in the middle.
so/therefore/consequently/ + subject + verb
Jn the game of squash, a beginner's ball would have a blue thus/as a result of
dot, an advanced player's yellow, whilst an intermediate
player would use a ball with a red dot on it. as a result of/as a + noun/pronoun/verb + -ing
consequence of
Addition We use these words and phrases to introduce a result of
something.
and I also I as well as I furthermore I moreover Tl1e computer system crashed. Consequently the engineer had
to reboot the system.
We use these words and phrases to give further information, He is only seventeen and tl1erefore not eligible to vote.
usually to support a point of view. We use them before He Jost his job as a result of downsizing but continued to work for
subject + verb. the company on a freelance basis.
A Jiving wage is not being paid to a large part of the While all the expressions can be used at the beginning of a
population. Moreover, as the cost of living soars, the problem sentence or in the middle of a sentence. so is more commonly
is destined to get worse. used in the middle of a written sentence.
Ideas are always built upon other ideas, so it's important to find a
Exercise solid starting point.

Choose the correct option.

1 Ben has not made good progress this term. In
Purpose
contrast, I Nevertheless, he is expected to pass his to/in order (not) to/so as (not) + infinitive (without to)
final exams. to
2 Although I In spite of the network no longer airs the
in order that/so that + subject+ i nfinitive (usually
show, the series is available online.
a modal)
3 Unlike its competitors, the supermarket chain has
not shown a downturn this year. On the contrary, I We use these words and phrases to express purpose.
However, it has shown a significant profit. She bought her clothes from a secondhand shop and wore
4 The show closed after twelve performances neutral colours so as not to stand out in a crowd.
whereas / despite receiving positive reviews from They have slashed their prices in order to recover some of the
Broadway's toughest critics. market share they have Jost in the last two years.
5 I know I promised I would call you from Paris but I He set up a webcam so that the world at large could witness the
whereas I ' m afraid I won't get the chance. event.
6 While I Nevertheless the new technology has
enormous potential, it is still a new technique that Exercises
requires further research.
2 Complete the sentences with the words in the box.
7 On the contrary I In contrast to the morning, which will
be wet and windy, the afternoon is going to be fine as a result consequently furthermore
and sunny. owing to
8 These animals can often be difficult to tell apart
however I in spite of apparent di fferences in size and . ... of poor planning, what should have
colour. been a great conference turned out to be a flop.
2 She knew they wouldn't come . ... ............... . ... ...... . she
Giving reasons didn't prepare any food.
3 Doctors believe some bacteria are more resistant
because/as/since + subject + verb nowadays ..... ..... ... ....... . .. ..... .. the misuse of antibiotics.
because of/on account of/ + noun/pronoun/verb + -ing 4 Rubbish strewn around in the streets looks and smells
owing to/due to unpleasant. ..................................... . there are health issues
concerning rats and other vermin.
owing to the fact that/due to + subject + verb
the fact that

324 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANI<

 '9iM·1M@;lafi·lii@i:f·'�':'

. .
will would
therefore in order to since so that
They will win the cup this He said they would win the
year. cup that year.
5 ... . most biofuels cost more to produce
. ... ...

than fossil fuels, the cost on motorists is set to rise. can could
6 This dress is lighter than my jeans, and .. We can go to college She said they could go to
more comfortable in this heat. together. college together.
7 speed up the registration process,
.............................. ......
may might
please complete the personal details online. The claims may relate to 6% They said the claims migflt
8 We collected our coats ...... ......... we could leave. of students. relate to 6% of students.

3 Complete the second sentence so that it means the must had to.
same a s the first. Use the word in brackets but don't You must do your homework. She said we had to do our
change the form of the word. homework.
The failure in the system was attributed to human
error. (result)
The failure in the system happened
Time and place change
human error. We also need to make changes to other words when referring
2 The air traffic controllers went on strike so I missed to time or place.
my meeting in Stockholm. (consequence) yesterday-> the day before/the previous day
............. the air traffic controllers' strike, I missed last night -> the evening before/the previous evening
my meeting in Stockholm. today-> that day
3 She spoke Spanish fluently as her mother was now -> then
Mexican. (owing) tomorrow-> the day after/the following day
Her spoken Spanish was flawless ....... . .. her next week -> the week after/the following week
mother was Mexican. here -> there
4 He implicated his best friend in the crime so that he this -> that
wouldn't be suspected himself. (order)
He implicated his best friend in the crime No change
......................... ........... suspected himself.
We can choose not to change the verb:
5 The tutor has given us a n extension, enabling us to
• if the reported statement refers to something which is still
meet our deadline. (so)
in progress, or true.
The tutor has given us an extension . ................................. . our
I have a house in Brighton She said she had a house in
•

deadline.
Brighton I She said she /1as a house in Brighton.
• if the original statement uses a verb form which is already
22 Reported speech moved back as far as it will go, for example: the past perfect
and modal verbs would, could, should and might.
Tense change They hadn't thought of that. -> He said they hadn't thougllt
of that.
When we report what someone has said, we use reported
speech. To make it clear that we are reporting, we often move Reporting verbs
the tense of the verb backwards in time.
The most common three verbs used when reporting are
Direct s1>eech Reported speech say, tell and think. However, other verbs give more specific
information about how the original statement was made.
Present simple Past simple verb + that
I'm b usy. He said he was busy.
He later admitted tlrnt he'd made up the original figures.
Present continuous Past continuous
We're waiting. They said they were waiting. Used with: admit, agree, announce, argue, believe, claim,
complain, deny, explain, insist, promise, propose, reply, request,
Past simple Past perfect simple say, state, suggest, think
She /eh earlier on. He said she had /eh earlier on
Past perfect simple Past perfect simple verb ·� someone + that
We had arrived before our He said that they had arrived They informed him tl1at his proposal had been accepted.

Used with: advise, assure, persuade, remi11d, tell, warn

friends. before their friends.
Past continuous Past perfect continuous
I was staying with friends. � She said she hacl been verb + to + infinitive
staying with friends. The company had threatened to pull out of the deal.

Present perfect simple Past perfect simple Used with: agree, ask, claim, offer, promise, propose, refuse,
I 've been here twice. She said she hacl been tl1ere threaten
twice.
Present perfect continuous Past perfect continuous verb + someone + to + infinitive
I've been playing tennis. He said he'd been r1/aying Chloe's professor reminded f1er to submit her article to the

.
be going to. tennis. journal.
I'm going to see her was/were going to.
tomorrow. She said she was going to Used with: advise, ask, convince, encourage, invite, persuade,
see her the following da y remind, tell, urge, warn

GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANI< 325

 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANK

verb + someone + noun 5 Why can't we go to Sue's today?

They promised him a research position.

I
He asked us ...........................
6 Are you going to be late tonight?
Used with: offer, promise, refuse
She asked me . ....... .
. .. . . .... . .

7
verb +
They have lived here for twenty years.
-ing I noun
He told us ..............................
The chairman suggested finishing the meeting early
..

Used with: admit, deny, mention, propose, recommend,

suggest 23 Verb patterns
verb + preposition + -ing I noun Sometimes one verb form follows another in a sentence.
They apologised for releasing the upgrade before it had When this happens, the second verb can take various forms
been properly tested. depending on the first verb. We call these verb patterns.

Used with: argue about, complain about, apologise for, Verb + infinitive or -ing
insist on
Verb + infinitive
verb + someon e + preposition + -ing I noun
verb + to+ infinitive They chose to go to Canada
He thanked his family for being patient with him while he
for their research project.
wrote the book.
verb + object + to + infinitive I'd advise you to arrive early.
Used with: accuse of, advise about, remind about, warn about,
advise on, congratulate on, blame for, thank for verb + object + infinitive They watched the chicks
(without to) hatch.

Reporting questions Verb + -ing

When reporting questions, we change the verb i n the same verb + -ing I enjoy listening to current
way as we do for statements. However, there is no question affairs programmes.
mark and we use statement word order. verb + object + -ing He kept the project going in
When is the deadline? --> She asked me when the deadline spite of the difficulties.
was. (S heaskedmevvhenw ·
ast hed dlitt&. X)
ea
Question words (what, who, why, where, when, how) remain
in the same form. Verb + to + infinitive
When reporting questions which require a yes/no answer, we They decided to wait and see the results before making their
use if/whether and we don't use the auxiliary do/does/did. decision.
Does the moon affect human behaviour?--+ He asked if the Verbs with this pattern include: agree, aim, appear. arrange,
moon affected human behaviour. (HtHJS-kedd idthem eett­ ask, attempt, be able, be likely, choose. claim, dare. decide,
a
ffe
c thumanbehaviour. X) deserve, expect. fail, help, hope, intend. invite, learn, manage,
need. offer, plan, prefer. prepare. promise. refuse, seem,
tend, try, want
Exercises
Verb + object + to + infinitive
Underline the correct option.
1 M r Grant reminded I congratulated me about the Some verbs are followed by an object + to + infinitive.
awards ceremony the following month. Laura's teacher expected her to fail her exam, but she came
2 They assured I agreed us that the meeting would go top of her class.
ahead as planned. These include: advise, allow, � choose, dare. encourage,
3 We refused I denied taking anything without first expect. force, get, help. intend, invite, need, persuade, prefer.
paying for it. prepare. remind, teach, tell, want. warn
4 She blamed I accused the restaurant of overcharging. The underlined verbs can be used with or without an object.
5 They proposed I persuaded us to accept their otter. Used with: feel, hear. help, let, make, see, watch
6 The principal promised I recommended to include
Verb + object + infinitive (without to)
a special note of thanks to the organisers of the
marathon in her end of term speech. The most common taught verbs in this category are make
7 They argued I insisted on staying in the cheapest hotel and let. The verb help can be used with or without to.
in town. She helped him (to) understand Newton's Laws of Motion.
8 Ben told I announced that he intended to stand as a Used with: feel, hear, help, let, make, see, watch
candidate in the college elections. Verb + -ing
2 Complete the second sentence as a report of the first. Some verbs are followed by -ing.
1 I will see them tomorrow. She considered abandoning her career at the hospital.
She told us .......................................... .
avoid. can't help, consider, deny, dislike, enjoy, fancy, finish,
2 You have to make your minds up here and now. imagine, include, involve, keep, like, Jove, mention, (don't) mind,
H e said that ..............................................................
miss, postpone, practise, recommend, remember, report, resist,
3 Can we deal with this issue next week? risk. (can't) stand, stop, suggest
She asked ........................ .. .. .... . . .... ... ... ...

4 Simon asked me this question yesterday.

I said that Simon ......

326 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANI<

 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANK

Verb + -ing or to + infinitive on: Evans agreed to concentrate on his own studies
Used with: agree, base, concentrate, count, depend, insist,
Some verbs can be followed by -ing or to + infinitive with little rely
or no change in meaning.
to: Guest speakers will be expected to respond to questions
The particles started to accelerate/accelerating. they have not seen or prepared for.
These include: attempt, begin, bother, can't bear, continue, Used with: apologise (to someone for something), explain,
hate, like, love, need, prefer, start introduce, present, refer, respond, speak, talk, write
with: Volunteers will be provided with sacks to collect the
Verb + object + -ing
litter and debris.
Some verbs are followed by an object + -ing. Used with: agree, be, deal, play, provide, stay
I saw her walking into the shop.
These include: dislike, hate, imagine, involve, keep, like, love, Exercises
mind, remember, risk, see, stop 1 Choose the correct option.
All these verbs can be used with or without an object Ha rvey decided 1 applying I to apply to the U n iversity of
Some verbs can be used with both forms, but the meaning Southern California to study business. His parents warned

changes. him not 2 abandoning I to abandon his research but he

was determined. It was harder than he thought.
continue/go on He didn't mind 3 working I to work long hours, but he
He went on working Jong after everyone else had gone home. didn't understand business. He considered 4 leaving I
( continue an action)
=
to leave more than once. He let his teachers 5 thinking I
After working as a TV reporter, she went on to become a think he was keeping up, but he wasn't. Eventually, it
was his friend Westcott, who helped him 6 getting I get
politician. (one action is followed by another)
through that first semester. After that he stopped
forget 7 worrying I to worry and started 8 enjoying I to enjoy
I'll never forget meeting you. ( = it happened and I won't his studies. Two months after graduating, he was invited
forget it) 9 starting I to start up a new department at a hospital i n

it didn't happen because I forgot)

London.
I forgot to call you. ( =

remember 2 Complete the sentences with the words in the box in

the correct form.
I remember meeting him. ( it happened and I remember
=

the event) announce conduct eat fix get live pass

I didn't remember to write to /Jim. ( it didn't happen= play
because I didn't remember to do it)
1 Do you expect ························-············..-your exam?
stop
2 Kie ran promised ............... ..................... my computer.
I stopped speaking to Joe. ( = one action happened) 3 Do you enjoy ...................................... computer games?
I stopped to speak to Joe. ( two actions happened. The first
=
4 I love this place but I can't imagine .......... .....................
stops so that the second can start.) here.
try 5 You should avoid .. .... .. .. ..... .... ... food high in refined

Try holding your breath for two minutes. ( = used to give a sugar if you want to lose weight.
suggestion) 6 She would prefer ...................................... the findings at the
Could you try to keep quiet for the next few minutes? conference.
( = attempt to do something potentially ditticult) 7 The partners are considering ..... ......................... ..... together
to discuss marketing strategies.
Verb + preposition + -ing 8 I intend . ............. a series of experiments to
Certain verbs are followed by certain prepositions. Some can prove this theory.
be followed by more than one preposition, depending on the
meaning. When a verb follows a preposition it takes the -ing
form.
24 Prepositions
about: Many undergraduates these days worry Jess about
Most prepositions have more than one meaning, depending
their final exams than their job prospects beyond university.
on the context. In this unit we look at prepositions of time
Used with: complain, hear, know, learn, talk, think, warn,
(at midday) and place (at the supermarket).
wonder, worry, write
between: It is easy to differentiate between an atom and an Prepositions of time
element.
We use in, on and a t to describe different times.
Used with: choose, decide, differentiate, distinguish, divide
for: They spent years searching for the answer. at at six o'clock, at noon, at
Used with: aim, apologise, apply, ask, care, forgive, hope, (precise t i m e holiday
, the weekend, at sunrise, at
long, prepare, search, wait, watch, wish periods) lunchtime, at the moment, at
from: A good password will protect you from computer New Year
viruses. i11 in the evening, in the summer,
Used with: borrow, learn, prevent, protect, recover, save, ( peri o ds of time, future 'from in December, in 2012, in the
suffer now') 1990s, in five minutes, in an
i11: She is a lawyer who specialises i11 corporate mergers. hour, in two years
Used with: believe, specialise, succeed
of: She did not approve of the use of water cannons.
Used with: approve, assure, convince, die, smell

GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANI< 327

 on on Wednesday, on New above The instructions are above the graph.
(days (and parts of days). Year's Day, on my birthday, on
below Look at the diagram below.
datesl Monday morning, on Sunday
evening, on May 15th, 6th under Instead of cleaning properly, he simply sweeps
August 1945, on lst April 2014 the dirt u11der the carpet.

We use in to talk about periods of time (days, weeks. months, on top of The advertising board is on to11 of the telecom
years, centuries) and we also use it to talk about the point a t building.
the end o f a period o f time.
I'll be there in twenty minutes. ( I will arrive at the end of a Exercises
twenty-minute period.)
Choose the correct preposition of time to complete
We don't use a preposition of time with the words yesterday,
the sentence.
today, tomorrow or the phrases last, this, next.
1 They made the announcement on I theTuesday.
Other commonly used prepositions and prepositional phrases 2 Shall we meet a t / for lunchtime?
of time include: 3 The agreement was signed in I on May 2014.
for We usually stay with Michel for at least a 4 We thought we would miss dinner, but we managed to
month every year. get back in I on time.
5 This project has been running for I since a long time.
since They've lived in Berlin since the 1990s.
6 Are you able to finish this by I until the end of the day?
during/in We visited my grandmother duri11g/i11 the 7 n1e baby is due in I on July.
summer vacation. 8 TI1ey have by I until the end of the month to vacate the
by Can we finish this by Tuesday? property.

until We have until 8 p.m. to get this finished. 2 Complete the sentences with the words from the box.
Sometimes more than one answer is possible.
in time I thought I was going to be late, but the
traffic cleared and I got there just in time .
above at between in in front of
on time Unlike my rail travel experiences in next to on opposite
Germany and Japan, the trains here never
seem to run 011 time. The cafeteria is .. ........ ....... . . ... .... the box office and the
main auditorium.
2 You'll see the admissions office directly ...
Prepositions of place reception.
We use in, on and at to describe different places: 3 High ............ ....... the clouds, we could see the
white vapour trail from the jet against the blue sky.
at at the table, at my desk, at the bus stop,
4 Mr Bartlett is not in his office at the moment. He will
(next to something, at the comer, at home, at the end of the
be back ........ ...... his desk this afternoon.
located at a point) pier, at work, at the door
5 The twins were born .. . ...... Russia and moved
to the United States when they were two.
6 The statue was ......... .... the main entrance so
in in the bank, in the garden, in a car, in
(enclosed spaces, Madrid, in South Korea, in America, in you saw it when you left the building.
cities, countries, his suitcase, in my pocket 7 The office used to be on the first floor, but now it's
continents) ...................... the second floor.
8 The bathroom is at the end of the corridor,
on on the table, on the T\I, on the coast, on
.............. the fire exit.
(attached to/ an island, on the phone, on a train, on a
touching bus, on the menu
something)
We use at to describe a general visit, whereas in puts a greater
emphasis on the 'enclosed' element.
Compare: I am in the bank (I am within the walls of the bank
building) with I am at the bank (I'm visiting the bank, probably for a
transactional purpose).

Other commonly used prepositions and prepositional phrases of

place include:

opposite The gift shop is opposite the entrance.

in front of There is a statue in front of the library.

behind The car park is behind the sports centre.

near The airport is near the business park.

next to The bank is next to the hotel.

between There is a water fountain between the sports hall

and the gym.

328 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANI<

 -
GRAMMAR RESOURCE
-
BANK
' -

Common I rregular Verbs Basic Rules for Punctuation

infinitive past simple past participle End punctuation
be was/were been I n academic writing, most sentences will end with a full stop.
become became become I agree with the idea that advertisements for cigarettes
should be banned.
begin began begun
break broke broken Questions end with a question mark.
Wha t are some ways to reduce air pollution?
bring brought brought
build built built Exclamation marks ( ! ) are seldom used in academic writing.
buy bought bought
choose d1ose d1osen
Commas
Ohen, the use of a comma (.) is optional - you can use one
come came come
or not. However. there are some cases when you should
cost cost cost definitely use commas.
do did done
Before introductory phrases
draw drew drawn
In 1945, Indonesia became an independent nation.
drink drank drunk
In my opinion, there are several reasons to disagree with
drive drove driven this concept.
eat ate eaten Generally, there is more than one solution to any
feel felt felt problem.

2
find found found
Between nouns or phrases in a list
forget forgot forgotten The researcher gathered information from books, journal
get got got articles, television shows and websites.
give gave given The final comma (before the word and} is usually not used
go went gone/been in British English. In US English, it is usually used.
have had had 3 When there are two or more adjectives describing a
hear heard heard noun. There is never a comma after the final adjective.
hold held held an expensive, powerful car . . .
keep kept kept some thin, high clouds . . .
know knew known 4 Use a comma to separate place names when one
learn learnt learnt place is part of another.
leave left left Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
let let let Denver, Colorado, USA
lose lost lost 5 A comma follows a subordinate clause if the
make made made subordinate clause comes first in the sentence. If the
mean meant meant main clause comes first, no comma is needed.
meet met met Although I agree that there is too much violence on
pay paid paid television, I don't think the government should censor
shows.
put put put
I don't think the government should censor shows
rise rose risen
although I agree that there is too much violence on
run ran run
television.
say said said When energy prices rise, people buy more economical
see saw seen cars.
sell sold sold People buy more economical cars when energy prices
send sent sent rise.
sit sat sat 6 After connecting words such as therefore, furthermore
sleep slept slept and however.
speak spoke spoken I don't like the idea of putting animals in a zoo; however,
spend spent spent I agree that zoos serve some useful functions.
stand stood stood Police officers and firefighters have dangerous jobs.
Therefore, it is only fair that they receive decent wages.
take took taken
teach taught taught
tell told told
think thought thought
wear wore worn
win won won
write wrote written

GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANI< 329

 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANK

Inverted commas (quotation marks o r 4 Capitalise names and titles if the title comes before
speech marks) the name. Do not capitalise the title if it is given as a
description of a person. Do not capitalise a person's
I nverted commas ( ' ') or (" ") are used around direct quotes profession if it comes before the name.
(but not around indirect quotes). I admire Presiden t John F. Kennedy for several reasons.
John Lennon said, 'Life is what happens while you are busy Nelson Mandela, who was presiden t of South Africa . . .
making other plans.' The astronomer Johannes Kepler is most famous for . . .
Oscar Wilde once wrote that he was not young enough to
know everything. 5 Capitalise the names of months, days of the week,
and of holidays, but not of seasons.
Notice that a comma is used before a direct quote (but not a n
New Year's Day comes in winter in the United States but
indirect quote).
in summer in Australia.
My father will be 50 years old on the first Friday in July.
Colons (:)
6 Capitalise place names: the names of continents,
Colons a r e used before a list.
countries, oceans and seas, states and provinces,
Ms. Vasquez imports tropical fruit: pineapples, mangos, and
cities, rivers, buildings, etc. (but not the word the).
guavas.
Africa South America Paris Bangkok New Zealand
Apostrophes l<enya California Quebec the Thames River
the Nile the Pacific Ocean the Mediterranean Sea
Apostrophes (') are used in place of omitted letters in Petronas Towers the White House
contractions.
I can't agree with this argument.
7 Capitalise the names of wars, historical periods and
There's one critical reason why I disagree with this idea. special events.
World War I the Trojan War
Apostrophes are also used to show possession. For singular
the Renaissance the Middle Ages the Olympics
nouns, the possessive form is 's.
The boy's bicycle . . . (one boy) 8 Capitalise all of the letters in initials and acronyms
The city's problems . . . (one city) (but not the word the).
For plural nouns that end in s, the possessive form is s'. the UI< NYC NATO the EU NASA the U N
The boys' bicycles . . . (more than one boy) 9 Capitalise t h e n a m e s of newspapers a n d magazines.
The cities' problems . (more than one city)
..
The London Times Time Magazine Paris Match
For plural nouns that don't end in s. the possessive form is 's.
women's rights, children 's imaginations
Do NOT use an apostrophe to make nouns plural.
I am sure that most experts agree (NOT I am sure that
...

most e;sf!ert's agree . . . )

Note that an apostrophe is used for the contraction it's (it is)
but not for the possessive pronoun its.
It's important to look at both sides of this issue.
My city has a serious traffic problem. Its streets are jammed
with cars.

Basic Rules for Capita lisation

Capitalise the first word of a sentence.
Today, people have less and less privacy.
Globalisation has had a profound effect on many cultures.

2 Capitalise the first word of a direct quote but not of a n

indirect quote.
The critic Edward R. Murrow once said, 'Television is a
vast wasteland.'
U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt said that we have
nothing to fear but fear itself

3 Capitalise the pronoun I.

While many people think old buildings should be torn
down and replaced with new ones, I think most old
buildings should be preserved.

330 GRAMMAR RESOURCE BANI<