Ciortescu Lorena Cristina

Lecture 10. Exercises

Grammar practice for Upper Intermediate Students

TYPES OF NOUN
2. Re-write the sentences. Use capital letters where necessary.
1. It’s open to visitors daily in the summer, from August to September.
2. I took the train to London and then the underground. It’s a short walk from there
3. Fortunately, I speak German so I was able to join a group of tourists from Germany, who
were being shown round by a guide.
4. Have you met my sister Jane? She’s studying at the University of Manchester.
5. She’s coming home for Christmas and then she’s returning to Manchester for New Year’s
Eve.
6. Would you like to come with us to see Titanic at the Oden Cinema on Wednesday?
7. Did you hear about Grace’s promotion? She’s taken over as head of the European division of
the company.
8. That’s great news! Does this mean she’ll be moving to Paris before the autumn?

COUNTABLE AND UNCOUNTABLE NOUNS

3b. Complete the leaflet. Use the nouns in the box and a/an where necessary.
We’re open from 7a.m. to 10 p.m. so if you can’t find time to work out during the day, you can
fit us in before or after you go to work. However, do try and make an appointment to consult
one of our qualified instructors at a time that’s convenient for you. They will give you valuable
advice about choosing the best exercise programme. Then once you start your programme, they
will also help you make progress towards becoming fitter and healthier.
Our gymnasium has a full of up-to-date equipment for running, cycling and weightlifting. Or, if
you prefer swimming, try our Olympic size pool. We also have day and evening classes in yoga
and Pilates for those who would like a gentler form of exercise. For more information about
what we offer, you can phone, e-mail or drop and see us!

4a. Complete the sentences. Use the plural of the nouns in brackets.
1. There were men, women and children aboard the doomed flight.
2. Technology has opened up new job opportunities in this field.
3. It was one of the best television series of the last ten years.
4. Before you serve the steaks, decorate with a few leaves of lettuce.
5. I’ve put the glasses next to the knives and forks.
6. The two armies faced each other across the river.
7. Do you know how many species of birds there are in the world?
8. There were at least a thousand people at the demonstration but nobody was carrying arms.

4b. Circle the correct answer.

There is little doubt that pollution is contributing to changes in weather patterns. The melting of
the polar ice is receiving a great deal of publicity but there are other phenomena which we can
also attribute to global warming. Plant and animal species are losing their natural habitats and
are in danger of extinction. Meanwhile, living conditions in many countries have been affected
by floods and droughts.
Some say that governments are not doing enough to solve the problem, while politicians claim
they are doing the best they can with limited resources. In any case, we find ourselves at a .
Perhaps only a crisis will encourage us to change our habits.

4c. Complete the news flashes. Use one word in each gap.
An aircraft has gone down and news is now coming in about the crash. Rescue services have
been sent to the area but the authorities are not releasing any more information about the
accident at this point.
Fire has destroyed a home in South London. All the members of the family are safe but their
belongings have been destroyed and they will be homeless for some time. The family have said
they have no idea what caused the blaze. The police are treating the incident as suspicious.

7.10 Present tense

For each verb listed in its base form, give the -s form (third person singular present), then make
up sentences with that form. For example, live has the 3rd person singular present form lives, as
in:
He lives in Sydney.
1. think – thinks: He thinks about his lovely newborn.
2. taste – tastes – Shara tastes it very much.
3. say – says: Daniel says something important in every meeting.
4. imply – implies: The class schedule implies having Math classes on Tuesdays.
5. push – pushes – There is something that pushes him towards her.
6. die – dies: The evil man dies in the end of the story.
7. refuse – refuses: That man refuses to go away from me.
8. fly – flies: It is said that thr Migrating Ruby-Throated Hummingbird the flies alone.
 9. camouflage – camouflages: The camelon camouflages itself by changing his skin colour.
10. do – does: Does Amelie love dark chocolate?
11. go – goes: The girls’ chat goes daily around finding a husband.
12. have – has: Samuel has a lot of work when December comes.

Exercise 7.11 Past and -ed participle

For each irregular verb listed in its base form, give the past form, then make up sentences with
that form. For example, live has the past form lived as in I lived in Sydney last year.
1. choose – chose – He chose to let her go one year ago.
2. have – had – Tiara had a good job last month while she was in Hungary.
 3. bring – brought- Last month Carmen was the one who brought me my correspondance
from the post.
4. cost – cost – Last Christmas the Christmas three cost 150 £.
5. lead – led – Pope Ioan Paul the II led the Church till 2005.
6. hide – hid – It is said that the Doctor Crazy hid his victims in his basement.
7. write – wrote – Shakespeare wrote great plays.
8. put – put – John put it in the closet last evening.
9. shake – shook – Last night’s news shook me very much.
10. make – made – Yesterday I made a chicken soup for you.
11. see – saw – I saw him last Thursday.
12. set – set – The building was set in 1890

7.12 Past and -ed participle

For each irregular verb listed in its base form, give the -ed participle. For example, draw has the
-ed participle form drawn, as in I have drawn a map.
1. hear – heard – They have never heard such thouching Carols.
2. win – won – The World Cup has been often won by England.
3. fall – After they got married, they have still fallen in love with one with another daily.
4. make – made – My mother has made us a big sweet cake
5. grow – grown – The memory of my childhood had grown grey by the time I moved
here in my student age.
6. tell – told – I have told you not to say a word to your father!
7. give – given – Tom had given up his job long before he met her.
8. have – had – We have had such an wonderful time together this weekend.
9. drive – driven – He has driven over 100 miles to see her only for an hour.
10. think – thought – I always thought Jem was the one I would marry with one day.
 11. see – seen – I’ve never seen her in such a hurry.
12. find – found – The researchers have found a new species of shark in the Adriatic Sea.

7.13 Past and -ed participle

Select the form given in brackets that would be appropriate in formal writing, and write it down
in the blank.
1. We saw an accident on our way to work this morning. (saw, seen)
2. Her husband came home late after spending the night with his friends. (came, come)
3. The other workers and I done the job without even being asked to do so. (did, done)
4. He was hung for murder in 1951. (hung, hanged)

Exercise 7.14 Past and past subjunctive

Select the verb form that would be appropriate in formal writing, and write it down in the blank.
1. If I were you, I would make an effort to come to work on time. (was, were)
2. We did not know if she was the right person to ask. (was, were)
3. The commander acts as though he were ready for combat at any time. (was, were)
4. If he were to work a little harder, he would have no trouble getting into a very good
university. (was, were)

Exercise 7.15 Multiple negation

Rewrite the sentences containing non-standard double negatives. Some sentences may not need
any revision.

1. I can’t hardly hear nothing with the radio turned up so loud.

2. We are not displeased with the jury’s verdict.
 3. Nobody has any better ideas.
4. You can’t become not involved in such an emotional issue as saving baby seals from being
murdered by hunters.

8. For each of the following sentences, decide if the word or phrase in bold is a participle, a
gerund, or an infinitive.
1. The wine urges me on, the bewitching wine, which sets even a wise man to singing and to
laughing gently and rouses him up to dance and brings forth words which were better unspoken.
(Homer)
singing – gerund
laughing - gerund
2. The wine urges me on, the bewitching wine, which sets even a wise man to singing and to
laughing gently and rouses him up to dance and brings forth words which were better unspoken.
(Homer)
To dance - infinitive
3. There are many ways of breaking a heart. Stories were full of hearts broken by love, but
what really broke a heart was taking away its dream--whatever that dream might be. (Pearl
Buck)
Breaking - participle
4. There are many ways of breaking a heart. Stories were full of hearts broken by love, but
what really broke a heart was taking away its dream--whatever that dream might be. (Pearl
Buck)
Broken - participle
5. Happiness is having a large, loving, caring, close-knit family in another city. (George
Burns)
Loving – participle
Caring – participle
Exercise 5.24 Meanings of the modals
Paraphrase the meanings of the underlined modals in the sentences below.
1. If you hit volleys like this you will have lots of success.  it will certainly have the result of...
2. In addition to the basic volley, you may have to play half-volleys.  you can possibly…
3. If played badly, a half-volley can have drastic consequences.  is possible to have a finality
of…
4. The grip must be firm on impact.  is demanded to be…
5. Although you can use a two-handed volley, the major disadvantage is one of reach.  there is
a possibility of using…

*Exercise 5.25 Meanings of the modals

Explain the ambiguity of the underlined modals in the following sentences by paraphrasing the
different meanings.

1. 1. They may not smoke during the meal.  May can be used either to show a possibility
that ,,they’’ will not ,,smoke during the meal’’ or an interdiction against ,,their’’ act of
smoking.
2. Could you explain these figures to the tax inspector?  Could can mean either the ability of
the asked person to explain those ,,figures to the tax inspector’’ or a request of the speaker to the
asked person.

1. Identify all the verbs (both main verbs and auxiliaries, both finite and non-finite) in the
following text:
I was on my way to get roaring drunk from sheer embarrassment when Jordan Baker came out of
the house and stood at the head of the marble steps, leaning a little backward and looking with
contemptuous interest down into the garden. Welcome or not, I found it necessary to attach
myself to someone before I should begin to address cordial remarks to the passers-by. (…) I was
still with Jordan Baker. We were sitting at the table with a man of about my age and a rowdy
little girl, who gave way upon the slightest provocation to uncontrollable laughter. I was
enjoying myself now.
(From The Great Gatsby, J. S. Fitzgerald)
was – main verb, finite
to get –infinitive, non-finite roaring
– gerund, non-finit came – main
verb, finite stood – main verb, finite
leaning – participle, non-finite
looking -– participle, non-finite
found – main verb, finite
to attach – infinitive, non-finite
should – modal
begin – main verb, finite
to adress – infinitive, non-finite was
– main verb, finite
were – auxiliary verb sitting –
main verb, finite gave – main
verb, finite was – main verb

2. Give all the inflectional forms of the following verbs:

If you smelt this, you would be disgusted. past simple If smelt,
it does not seem so bad. – past tense
Have you smelt this perfume before? – tense
Has it been smelt before being cooked? - past participle
Having smelt that perfume was the best thing I ever did. – past participle

3. Are the underlined verb forms below past tense forms or past participial forms?
If you smelt this, you would be disgusted.  past
If smelt, it does not seem so bad.  past
Have you smelt this perfume before?  tense
Has it been smelt before being cooked?  past participle
Having smelt that perfume was the best thing I ever did.  past participle

4. Are the underlined verb forms below short infinitive or present tense?
You should go.  short infinitive
When they go, I will too.  present
I requested that he go.  short infinitive
Go right away!  present tense
I understand that you go on a long vacation.  present tense

*5. Have, need, used (to) and dare are sometimes used as operators and sometimes as main
verbs. For instance, do is a main verb in I did my homework and an operator in Do I know you?
and I did not do my homework.
Come up with sentences that illustrate
a) the operator use;
 Have I met you before?
You needn’t have washed the dished.
She was not used to eat vegetables.
b) the main verb use for each of the four verbs listed above.
 I have some books with me.
I need chocolate.
She used to go at seaside every summer.
9. Identify all the modal verbs in the excerpt below. What do they express (e.g., advice,
admonition, recommendation, obligation, indignation, supposition, a polite command, an
enquiry, etc.)?
After all, what laws can be laid about books? (…) Nobody can say. Each must decide that
question for himself. To admit authorities, however heavily furred and gowned, into our libraries
and let them tell us how to read, what to read, is to destroy the spirit of freedom which is the
breath of those sanctuaries. Everywhere else we may be bound by laws and conventions – there
we have none. We must not squander our powers, helplessly and ignorantly, squirting half the
house in order to water a single rose-bush; we must train them, exactly and powerfully, here on
the very spot. (…) How are we to bring order into this multitudinous chaos and so get the
deepest and widest pleasure from what we read?
(from How Should One Read A Book?, Virginia Woolf?)
Can – an enquiry
Can - ability

Must- recommendation

May - supposition
Must - indignation
Must – advice/ a polite command

10. Certain verb forms and verb phrases (finite) have full assertive power; they are needed for a
sentence to be complete. Others (non-finite) do not assert fully and frequently appear in
embedded clauses. Indicate whether the verb forms italicized below are finite or non-finite:
a) Make the best of what you have.
 make – finite
Have – non-finite
b) He intended to call the lawyer a fraud.  non-finite
c) Keeping quiet, she peered through the drapes and spied on them.  non-finite
d) I made Klaus repay the loan.  non-finite
e) I watched her throw away her books.  non-finite
f) Remaining a truthful man, Jude brought everything out in the open.  non-finite
g) To err is human.  non-finite
h) To stop this nonsense would be the right thing to do.  non-finite
i) Ross’ father did not object to his becoming an engineer.  non-finite
j) The victim must have been shot through the window.  finite

13. Classify the italicized verbs below as either phrasal (forming an idiomatic unit with its
adverb particle) or prepositional (taking a PpP as its complement):
a) Jane threw out all her friend’s books.  phrasal verb
b) Mom finally decided to apply for a loan.  prepositional verb
c) The supermarket unfortunately took off their discount.  prepositional verb
d) In this game, you are allowed to follow up every lead.  phrasal verb
e) The professor referred to our heroic efforts to learn.  phrasal verb
f) Mark called out their names.  phrasal verb
g) Never have I been keener on not giving up all hope.  prepositional verb
h) They blamed Judith for everything.  prepositional verb
i) I had to turn down the company’s offer.  phrasal verb
j) I will turn in the assignment on time.  phrasal verb
k) I will turn in the street.  prepositional verb
l) She ran up a hill.  prepositional verb
m) She ran up a bill.  phrasal verb
n) Your car can turn on a dime.  phrasal verb
o) Are you sure you want to turn on the lights in the other room?  prepositional verb
p) Phoebe ran down her roommate.  phrasal verb
q) Leslie turned down the volume.  phrasal verb
r) Leslie turned down the lane.  prepositional verb
s) Victoria finally made up her mind.  phrasal verb
t) I had to make up a story for the little ones.  phrasal verb