Introductory it

Empty/Dummy subject

Frequent phrases To talk about:

It + be Weather: It’s a bit chilly for this time of year.
Time/dates: It’s about half past two.
Situations: It’s a very peaceful place.
Distance: It’s about 30 km away.

Other fixed phrases

It’s no wonder/coincidence that…
It’s considered rude to + inf
It’s pointless/no use + ing
It looks as though ....

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Introductory it
Use and structures
1 To avoid beginning a sentence with an infinitive or gerund
it + be + adj + –ing It was lovely meeting you at last.

It’s wonderful to sit out here under the stars.

it + be + adj + inf
It was possible to send real-time messages.
2 When the subject of a clause is another clause*
It’s good that she’s doing more exercise. (or, more formally: That she’s doing
more exercise is good.)
It’s quite likely that we will be late, so please do start without us.
It isn’t surprising that she left you.

*Spoken English: it may be omitted with some verbs like look, seem and sound,
e.g. Looks as if we're out of luck, Seems he knows all the answers, Sounds as if
it runs in the family.
Sometimes it is is omitted, e.g. Pity you didn't let me know. CS009
Introductory it
Use and structures
3 Cleft sentences
It was his sister who ran the marathon in New York, wasn’t it?
Was it the printer that caused the problem?
It was Mary they promoted, not Laura.
4 Passive voice
It’s good that this type of crime is being reported.
It’s quite likely that we shall be late, so please do start without us.

5 ‘Empty’ or ‘dummy’ object

She doesn’t like it when you are so quiet.
I find it amazing that they’ve never stopped arguing about football.
Local people will consider it to be an insult that they have not learned to
speak a few words of the language.
I find it surprising to see so many people here.

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