KEY WORD TRANSFORMATION BANK

· PHRASAL VERBS /LEXICAL CHUNKS

Take place

School prizes are given out at the end of the year. / School prize-giving takes place at the end
of the year.

Make up (smb’s) mind

My dad is deciding whether to buy a new car or not. / My dad hasn’t made up his mind yet
about whether to buy a new car.

· SUPERLATIVES / COMPARATIVES

Elisa is the luckiest person I’ve ever met. / I’ve never met (known) anyone as (so) lucky as Elisa.

· NEARLY SO + ADJ / MUCH COMPARATIVE THAN

I hadn’t expected the film to be nearly so long! / The film was much longer than I had
expected!

· CONTRAST LINKERS: DESPITE THE FACT (THAT) /EVEN THOUGH

· SO / SUCH

the stories were so interesting /such interesting stories

· SUPERLATIVE / SUCH

That was the most exciting game of football I’ve ever seen. / I’d never seen such an exciting
game of football.

· EVER / ANYONE

Elisa is the luckiest person I’ve ever met. / I’ve never met-known anyone as-so lucky as Elisa.

· EVER / NEVER

That was the most exciting game of football I’ve ever seen. / I’d never seen such an exciting
game of football.

· WHY DIDN’T YOU + INF / SHOULD + HAVE + PAST PARTICIPLE

Why didn’t you tell me (...). / You should have told me (...).
· WOULD RATHER / DON’T WANT TO

I’d (really) rather not go out tonight. / I don’t really want to go out tonight.

· SINCE / FOR

It’s been a long time since I saw Jo because she lives in Canada. / I haven’t seen Jo for a long
time because she lives in Canada.

· SIMPLE PAST/USED TO + INF

The stories Bent told were always so interesting (...). / Ben always used to tell such interesting
stories that (...).

· REPORTED SPEECH / DIRECT SPEECH

+ reporting verbs (admitted, refused, denied)

· PASSIVE /ACTIVE

School prizes are given out at the end of the year / School prize-giving takes place at the end of
the year.

by

· TO BE SAID/KNOWN TO – THEY SAY...

· 3RD CONDITIONAL: IF+HAD+PAST PARTICIPLE WOULD+HAVE+PAST PARTICIPLE

HAD+THERE+BEEN WOULD+HAVE+PAST PARTICIPLE

With more sunshine, the strawberries would have ripened sooner last year.

The strawberries would have ripened sooner last year if there had been more sunshine.

The strawberries would have ripened sooner last year had there been more sunshine.

· USED TO + INFINITIVE = WOULD + INFINITIVE To talk about past habits.

· GET / BECOME / GROW USED TO + GERUND To talk about the process

· TO BE USED TO + GERUND To talk about the result

· MODAL VERBS:

(ADVICE) Should + infinitive = ought to + infinitive = if I were you, I would do

· RELATIVE PRONOUNS