TAY NGUYEN UNIVERSITY

FACULTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES STUDY

WRITING ENGLISH II

DAKLAK, 2016

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 THE SENTENCE- SENTENCE PATTERNS

A knowledge of basic sentence structure is necessary to write well. Despite the complexity
of our language there are only six basic sentence patterns into which words are arranged.
Once the six basic patterns have been learned, the study of more complicated patterns will be
easier. Most of the more difficult sentences are merely combinations of the basic sentences
or well-defined orderly alterations of them.
Note that in each of the six basic sentence patterns, the function of the verb and the nature of
the complement or completer required by the verb, are what distinguishes one pattern from
another. Verbs are identified as transitive or intransitive. Transitive verbs transfer the action
of the verb to a receiver. Intransitive verbs have no noun or object to act upon.

Sentence Pattern #1: Made up of a subject and a verb plus any modifiers--there is no
complement or completer; therefore, the verb is intransitive: SV
Examples (subject is bold, verb is underlined, and prepositional phrases are in parentheses):
Boys sing.
The boys (in the choir) (from Detroit) sing sweetly (at Christmas).
One (of the thieves) must have been hiding (in the basement).

Sentence Pattern #2: Made of a subject and a verb and a direct object. The verb is transitive
because it is acting upon an object directly: S V DO
Examples (subject is bold, verb is underlined, and direct object is italicized):
Students write essays.
JCCC students write amazingly well-written essays about themselves.
With one special kind of verb there is a problem of distinguishing between a direct object
and an object of a preposition. Notice these two sentences:
Harry jumped off the box.
Harry took off his raincoat.
The first sentence is Pattern #1. Off is a preposition, box is the object of the preposition, and
the prepositional phrase is used as an adverbial modifier, because it tells where Harry
jumped. The second sentence is Pattern #2. The verb, with its adverbial modifier off, is the
equivalent of the transitive verb remove. Raincoat is the direct object.
There is another way to distinguish between the adverbial use and the prepositional use of
such a word as off in the above examples. When the word is a vital adverbial modifier of the
verb, it follows the direct object--"Harry took off his raincoat" or "Harry took his raincoat
off." But when the word is a preposition, the alternate position is not possible. "Harry
jumped the box off" is non-English.

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Here are some other examples of this kind of verb with adverbial modifier(s). Notice that in
each case you can easily find a transitive verb synonym for the combination:
...give up (relinquish) his rights
...leave out (omit) the second chapter
...put out (extinguish) the fire
...make over (alter) an old dress
...make up (invent) an excuse

Sentence Pattern #3: Consists of a subject and a verb with two completers of the verb: the
direct object, which directly receives the action of the transitive verb and answers who or
what, and the indirect object, which indirectly receives the action of the verb and answers to
whom (or which) or for whom (or which). S V IO DO

NOTE: There cannot be an indirect object without a direct object.

A typical verb for this sentence pattern is give, allow, assign, ask, tell, write, send, show,
pay, grant, etc. (Nearly all sentences using these verbs can make essentially the same
statement by using a prepositional phrase, the preposition usually being to or for. When the
preposition is present in the sentence, it is a Pattern #2 sentence.) Examples (subject is bold,
verb is underlined, direct object is italicized, and indirect object is in all capital letters):
I gave the TEACHER my essay.
I nervously gave my demanding English TEACHER my perfectly correct essay.
REMEMBER: 1. Every verb has a subject.
2. Some verbs have a direct object.
3. A few verbs have both a direct object and an indirect object.

Sentence Pattern #4: Consists of a subject and a verb and two completers. The one closer to
the verb is the direct object and the second one is the objective complement, which is either a
noun that renames the direct object or an adjective that describes the direct object.
NOTE: You may test this pattern by inserting to be. Sometimes the word as is used between
the direct object and object complement.
The following verbs are the most frequently used in Sentence Pattern #4: elect, appoint,
name, call, consider, find, make, think. S V DO OC
Examples (subject is bold, verb is underlined, direct object is italicized, and object
complement is in all capital letters):
The parents considered their child a GENIUS.

Sentence Pattern #5: Consists of a subject, a special kind of intransitive verb called a
linking verb (a list follows) and a subjective complement (may be a noun which renames the
subject): S LV NC

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Example (subject is bold, linking verb is underlined, subjective complement—noun—is
italicized):
The child is a genius.
verb and a subjective complement (may be an adjective which describes the subject):
S LV AC
Example (subject is bold, linking verb is underlined, subjective complement—adjective—is
italicized):
The child is stupid.
Linking Verbs--Verbs that do not always express action.
Become She became a housewife.
Grow He grew weary of the lecture.
Turn Mac turned green with envy.
Seem Mary seemed ill to me.
Appear Gladys appeared well to me.
Look Frances looks good in red.
Remain He remained calm.
Stay He stayed my friend.
Continue The weather continued warm.
Feel Later he felt better.
Smell The fish smells spoiled.
Taste The fish tastes terrible.
Sound This sentence sounds all right to me.
Prove She proved faithful to the end.
Get The roads have been getting progressively worse.
Wear Her patience is wearing thin.
The following to be verbs:
Be Shall be Being Will be Am Has been
Are Have been Is Had been Was Shall have been
Were Will have been
NOTE: An alternative to the basic sentence patterns given is the passive voice. Only
transitive verbs can have passive verb forms; therefore, only patterns #2, #3, and #4 can be
altered to this structure. Because the use of passive voice is considered to be lifeless writing,
many composition teachers will discourage it.
Examples:
Sentence Pattern #2 Active--Students write essays.
Passive--Essays are written by students.
Sentence Pattern #3 Active--I gave the teacher my essay.
Passive--My essay was given to the teacher by me.
Sentence Pattern #4 Active--The parents considered their son a genius.
Passive--Their son was considered a genius by the parents.

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If the doer of the action is expressed in a sentence using a passive verb, the doer must occur
as the object of the preposition.
Active--I have.
Passive--I am had.
Sentence Pattern #6: Consists of a subject, a special kind of transitive verb and a
prepositional phrase/ or an adverb S V O Adverb (location)

Oscar put his bicycle in the laundry room

Oscar put his bicycle away
PRACTICE
Exercise A
Identify the sentence pattern (#1, #2, #3, #4, #5, or, #6) of each of the following sentences.
1. The museums provide something for everyone.
2. The runner ran around third base.
3. Trying to let in some fresh air, Doris opened a window.
4. The air outside was worse than the air inside.
5. Annie yielded to Jack's sweet talk.
6. Unemployment is getting worse.
7. Partying is fun.
8. Sue wants to quit her job.
9. Bert stumbled through the lobby of the union.
10. The excited horse threw its rider.
11. Have they started the game yet?
12. The hunter on safari killed two lions.
13. I haven't got any money for the movie.
14. There are two new theaters in town.
15. I enjoy going to the movies.
16. The pitcher pitched a wild pitch.
17. That wild pitch of his cost him the game.
18. The following students should report to the dean's office.
19. I have been following tennis for years.
20. This sentence is the last one in this exercise.
Exercise B
Write two sentences as examples of each of the sentence patterns. Be sure to mark subject
(S), verb (V), and complement (DO, IO, OC, AC, and/or NC).
Sentence Pattern #1
Sentence Pattern #2
Sentence Pattern #3
Sentence Pattern #4
Sentence Pattern #5
Sentence Pattern #6

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Exercise C. Indicate the S, V DO, IO, C

1. Water loosens the soil.

2. The team has already left.
3. The speaker‘s question surprised and amused the audience.
4. Have some yogurt and fruit.
5. Are the snow and ice melting?
6. The World Wide Web and television provide information and entertainment.
7. Jonathan returned the books to the library.
8. Sunburn itches.
9. Ms. Jones will tell the court the truth.
10. The store owner offered the customer a discount.
11. Did the judge grant the suspect bail?
12. The city will build the Giants a new stadium.
13. Brendan has made his parents a promise.
14. A passerby slipped and fell.

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REVIEW OF NOUNS, ADJECTIVES & ADVERBS

 A possessive noun is a noun that shows possession or ownership. A

possessive noun always contains an apostrophe [ ’ ].
Here are some examples of possessive nouns:
1. student’s money The possessive noun student’s shows that the money belongs to the
student.
2. students’ money The possessive noun students’ shows that the money belongs to the
students.
3. children’s money The possessive noun children’s shows that the money belongs to the
children.
Note that a possessive noun can help us express ourselves in fewer words. For example,
we can say the children’s money (two words) instead of the money belonging to the
children (five words).
 An adjective is a word that modifies a noun or a pronoun.
1. Light rain fell. The adjective Light modifies the noun rain.
2. Joan wore red shoes. The adjective red modifies the noun shoes.
3. He was angry. The adjective angry modifies the pronoun He.
Adjectives give information by answering such questions as What kind? Which one?
How many? Whose?
WHAT KIND? blue sky, rainy day, early riser

WHICH ONE? this book, first job, second floor

HOW MANY? four girls, many reasons, few failures

WHOSE? my brother, your face, his wallet

 Proper Adjectives
The adjectives formed from proper nouns (Canadian, Shakespearean, etc.) generally are
capitalized. They are called proper adjectives. Here are some proper nouns and the proper
adjectives that can be formed from them.

China Chinese food

Jefferson Jeffersonian democracy
Egypt Egyptian pyramids
France French perfume
Rome Roman arch

Make your writing more concise by replacing a wordy expression with an adjective.
WORDY: The diplomat visited several nations on the continent of Africa.

CONCISE: The diplomat visited several African nations.

WORDY: Avoid decisions that are made in haste.

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CONCISE: Avoid hasty decisions.
Before using an adjective, make sure that it is needed.
QUESTION: What is wrong with the following sentence?

We want the true facts.

ANSWER: The adjective true is not needed because all facts are true. The sentence

should read:
We want the facts

 An adverb is a word that modifies either

a verb, or
an adjective, or
another adverb.
.
The Pirates played brilliantly. (Brilliantly is an adverb because it modifies the verb played.)
The team performed well. (Well is an adverb because it modifies the verb performed.)
The Dodgers did not play. (Not is an adverb because it modifies the verb did play.)
They are playing tomorrow. (Tomorrow is an adverb because it modifies the verb are
playing.)
They will play here. (Here is an adverb because it modifies the verb will play.)
Most adverbs answer one of the following questions: HOW? WHEN? WHERE? TO
WHAT EXTENT?
The Pirates played brilliantly. (Brilliantly tells HOW the Pirates played.)
They are playing tomorrow. (Tomorrow tells WHEN they are playing.)
They will play here. (Here tells WHERE they will play.)
They have fully recovered from (Fully tells TO WHAT EXTENT they have) their slump.
Adverbs can often help us express ourselves more concisely. Compare the following:
WORDY: You worked in a careless manner.

CONCISE: You worked carelessly.

PRACTICE

Exercise1 Rewrite the following paragraph, using possessive nouns wherever possible.
You should be able to reduce the number of words in the paragraph from69 to 56.

The dog that Anna owns is huge but gentle. He tries to get the attention of her friends to
show that he likes them. The parents of Anna, too, are fond of the dog. At first some
neighbors were frightened by the size of the dog. They feared for the safety of their children.
Now they no longer worry. By the way, the name of the dog is Tiny.

Exercise 2: Rewrite the sentence, using an adjective instead of the italicized expression.

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Sample:
Many dealers sell products manufactured in Japan.
Many dealers sell Japanese products.
1. Olives imported from Spain are sold in supermarkets.
2. They spoke in words that were full of bitterness.
3. I read an article on the Internet about Inuits who live in Canada.
4. Coffee grown in Brazil is flavorful.
5. He never makes a move that involves risk.
6. Many gifts made by hand are deeply appreciated.
7. In every class there are students who give in to laziness.
8. What is the name of the ambassador from the Commonwealth of Australia?

Exercise 3: Find the adverb and the adjective that it modifies.

Sample:
You were absolutely right. (The ADV. modifies the ADJ.)
1. They were very lucky.
2. An unusually large crowd gathered.
3. Is the soup too hot?
4. They had a quite inexpensive meal.
5. Freshly made pasta tastes fantastic.

Exercise 4 Indicate how the italicized word is used in its sentence.

1. We pay the cell phone bill monthly.

2. How much is your monthly cell phone bill?
3. Do you read a newspaper daily?
4. Susan‘s dad left for his daily trip to the office.
5. What is the minimum hourly wage?
6. The patient‘s temperature was checked hourly.

Exercise 5. Which adjectives should be removed because they are unnecessary?

Sample:
Put some cold ice cubes into the lemonade. COLD
1. I was a stupid fool.
2. A young, rich millionaire has bought the painting.
3. We were never told the real truth.
4. Antony wept at the sight of Caesar‘s dead corpse.
5. Draw a round circle.
6. The end result was that we lost the game.

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7. Do you own any old antiques?
8. One student slept throughout the entire assembly.
9. It happened on a summer evening in July.
10. A cold icy wind is blowing from the northeast.

Exercise 6. Fill in the blank with the correct choice.

1. You should take your work ____________________ . (serious, seriously)
2. It is _____________________________ cold outside. (terrible, terribly)
3. Ripe melon tastes ___________________________ . (delicious, deliciously)
4. They were _____________________________ sorry. (real, really)
5. Angela behaved very ________________________ . (rude, rudely)
6. Reuben has an _______________________ bad cold. (unbelievable, unbelievably)
7. The fire spread ________________________ quickly. (awful, awfully)
8. Rush-hour traffic was _____________________ slow. (painful, painfully)
9. No one plans so _______________________ as Katy. (careful, carefully)
10. You sounded ________________________ yesterday. (hoarse, hoarsely)

Exercise 7 Rewrite each sentence, changing the predicate adjective to a predicate noun.
Sample:
Ben was sensational.
Ben was a sensation.
1. You were cowardly.
2. Gambling can be risky.
3. He was brutal.
4. The puppy is beautiful.
5. Don‘t be bossy.
6. They said the man in the blue baseball cap was creepy.
7. It was pitiful to see him this way.
8. Their meeting was coincidental.
9. The loss of the running back was catastrophic.
10. Driving under the influence of alcohol is felonious.
Exercise 8. Express the following thoughts more concisely. Hint: Change the italicized
expression to an adverb ending in ly.
Samples:
The motor runs with a noisy sound.
The motor runs noisily.
Under normal conditions, we leave at 3 P.M.
Normally, we leave at 3 P.M.
1. They behaved in a strange way.
2. Under usual circumstances, the school bus is on time.

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3. He acted like a foolish person.
4. All of a sudden, the lights went out.
5. My heart was beating at a rapid rate.
6. It is probable that you will soon feel better.
7. Our meetings are run in a democratic way.
8. In an angry voice, she demanded that we leave at once.
9. Try to explain the problem in simple language.
10. From a financial point of view, the business is sound.

Exercise 9 Rewrite the sentence, replacing the italicized adjective with a prepositional
phrase.
Samples:
You may find yourself penniless.
You may find yourself without a penny.
A mayor is an important person.
A mayor is a person of importance.
1. Many European tourists visit the United States each year.
2. My help was useless.
3. Many cars are designed to use unleaded gasoline.
4. The Canadian people are our neighbors.
5. Take the end seat.

Exercise 10. In each sentence, underline the correct form of the verb.

1. The books on that shelf (are, is) biographies.

2. The coach, together with his players, (are, is) having pictures taken.
3. The elm and the chestnut (is, are) subject to a deadly disease.
4. Neither the president nor the other officers (was, were) present at the lecture.
5. A good food for dogs (contain, contains) the right balance of vitamins and minerals.
6. Either the Denby brothers or Wu Chen (are, is) my choice for first place in the
competition.
7. The door as well as the windows (was, were) locked.
8. A woman representing local consumer organizations (speak, speaks) tonight in the
auditorium.
9. The two computers in my father‘s study (are, is) old but still in working order.
10. A yogurt or an apple (are, is) not enough for lunch.
11. I was happy when you (was, were) chosen class president.
12. There (was, were) several garnets in that rock you found.
13. On top of the mountain (are, is) two huge boulders, easily seen from below.
14. Here (come, comes) the winners!

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15. (Was, Were) you surprised to find your watch in that old jacket?
16. Jennie Lynn (doesn’t, don’t) know whether or not to get her hair cut short.
17. The front tires of your sister‘s car (are, is) worn and smooth.
18. The first clock to strike the hours (was, were) constructed in 1754 by Benjamin
Banneker.
19. Aunt Ginny, with her two daughters, (are, is) arriving on the ten o‘clock train from
Danville.
20. Fog, with poor visibility, (are, is) often a problem on the coast.
21. There (was, were) several good scoring opportunities in the playoff game between the
Pirates and the Reds.
22. At the Halloween party, (was, were) you the vampire with the long cloak?
23. At the intersection of Church Street and Main (are, is) two new stores.
24. Four questions on the biology test (are, is) really difficult.
25. Heavy rainfall during September and October (help, helps) to keep down forest fires.
26. One of the twins (are, is) taking Russian next year.
27. Neither the coach nor his assistants (was, were) available for an interview after the
game.
28. Either broccoli or asparagus (are, is) perfect for tonight‘s dinner.
29. In the barn (was, were) two ancient tractors still in good running order.
30. (Was, Were) there any doughnuts left after the meeting?

Exercise 11 Choose the correct words

1. You cannot do (good, well) if you don‘t have enough sleep.
2. The runaway truck lurched (wild, wildly) down the road before running into a ditch.
3. After only two lessons, Marie-Louise plays golf very (good, well).
4. The river current was rushing too (swift, swiftly) for safe swimming.
5. Our relay team ran (good, well), but we still came in second.
6. Please travel (safe, safely) at night.
7. After his accident, he walks as (good, well) as can be expected.
8. Naina finished the Spanish test (quick, quickly).
9. She spoke (loud, loudly).
10. Mike did (bad, badly) on his driver‘s test.
11. Don‘t answer too (rapid, rapidly).
12. The gymnast performed her routine (careful, carefully).
13. The car (isn’t, is) hardly moving.
14. Jay doesn‘t have (any, no) work to do tonight.
15. That second contestant sang really (good, well).
16. You don‘t get (anywhere, nowhere) with a bad attitude.
17. Juma isn‘t saying (nothing, anything) about why he was absent.
18. He knew how to solve the chemistry problem (simple, simply).

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19. I felt relieved when the robot worked (good, well) at the science fair.
20. Cameron was considerate and played the music (soft, softly).
21. That haircut makes Brian look as if he hasn‘t (any, no) hair.
22. There isn‘t (any, no) more iced tea in the jug.
23. Paulina doesn‘t go (anywhere, nowhere) without her pocket calculator.
24. The light was so dim I (could, couldn’t) hardly read the message.
25. Don‘t (ever, never) cross the street against the light.

Exercise 12. In each sentence, underline the correct form of the pronoun (used as a
subject) in parentheses.

1. (We, Us) students are late for class.

2. Maria and (her, she) are fond of swimming.
3. When I‘m dancing, nobody else can be as happy as (I, me).
4. Todd and (I, me) went to the Lakers-Celtics game.
5. Sharon, Mike, and (he, him) are studying together.
6. . Mike bought shakes for him and (I, me).
7. Janna saw Greg and (them, they) on the bus.
8. The coach awarded letters to all of (us, we) members of the team.
9. We found our cat Max and (she, her) asleep on the couch.
10. Play with Sean and (I, me) in the band concert.
11. (Her, She) and her tennis partner will travel to Cleveland for the match.
12. Mom prepared a hot dinner for Dad and (I, me).
13. (Us, We) students are entering our sweet potato casserole in the cooking contest.
14. Devon caught sight of Lam and (them, they) on the bus to Lockport.
15. (Them, They) are applying for American citizenship as soon as possible.
16. 11.My faithful dog and (I, me) climbed Mt. Washington together.
17. When it comes to precalculus, Don is as quick as (her, she).
18. Mr. Ortiz brought Nathan and (her, she) some homemade fudge.
19. The treasurer asked all of (us, we) club members to pay our back dues.
20. Joanna and (them, they) made all the sandwiches for her sister‘s bridal shower.
21. At the end of the recycling drive, the chairperson of the committee thanked (us, we)
workers for our help.
22. Aaron and (I, me) played a strong doubles match but lost in a tiebreaker.
23. Ellen is planning a picnic for Danny and (I, me).
24. At the end of the school year, Sasha, Annie, and (he, him) were commended for
academic achievement.
25. (Us,We) members of the National Honor Society had a special assembly.
26. Li and (he, him) are in the same Spanish class.
27. (Them, They) are the best strawberries I‘ve ever tasted.

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 28. Our pen pal in Bosnia wrote a long letter to Karin and (I, me).
29. We saw Marisol and (he, him) in the stands at the baseball game.
30. (Him and I, He and I) went on a rafting trip on the Nantahala River.

Exercise 13 Fill in the blanks with the correct pronoun.

1. Alicia was in an accident. She broke _____ leg.

2. You ordered this CD and paid for it. Take it. It is _____.
3. Jon and I are neighbors. _____ lives next door to me.
4. Linda and Safiya are our friends. We like _____ very much.
5. The ball came right to you, but your bat could not connect with _____.
6. Meredith gave Matt the book. _____ had bought it especially for _____.
7. One of the boys played in every game of the tournament. _____ was exhausted.
8. The coach and the team prepared for the game. _____ still lost.
9. Did you know the last answer? _____ was easy, wasn‘t it?
10. My older sister made the last payment on her car. Now it belongs to _____.
11. Isabella and I are neighbors. _______________ live on the same street.
12. Melanie and Abe are our friends. We like _______________.
13. Ellen and I will come when you call _______________.
14. Mr. and Mrs. Stern have just made the last mortgage payment. Now the house is all
_______________.
15. I admit I am to blame. The fault is _______________.

Exercise 14 :
Use the sets of words given to write complete sentence. Do not change the order of the words

1. Jim/ television/ every evening.

2. earth/ revolve around/ sun.
3. Please shut/ window. Rain/ come/ in now.
4. I / go to sleep easily/ when/ radio/ play.
5. We/ leave/ Dalat/ early next month.
6. sun/ not rise/ west/; it/ rise/ east.
7. Where/ the Scotts/ usually/ stay when they/ come/ town?
At / hotel. But tonight they/ stay/ us.
8. Mother/ cook/ food/ kitchen/ moment. She always/ cook/ morning.
9. My sister/ usually/ not quarrel/ anyone.
10. Be careful! teacher/ look/ you.
11. baby/ fall asleep while its mother/ sing/ lullaby.
12. You/ look for Geoge? I/ think/ he/ read/ library.
13. She /speak English/ good/ but she / not understand/ Spanish.

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 14. my way/ work/ I generally/ meet/ a lot of children/ go / school.
15. Listen /those people. What language/ they speak?
16. when/ I last/ see him, he/ be/ good health.
17. She/ do/ little work recently.
18. Miss Clark/ be/ this company/ two years /now.
19. As soon as he/ save/ $500, he will retire/ business.
20. When / I/ be/ boy, every holiday/ seem/ ideal.
21. patient/ condition/ improve/ considerably/ last night.
22. brother/ serve/ army/ 1980/ 1983
23. Jenny/ study/ French/ few months/ last year
24. You/ ever/ yourself what/ make/ life beautiful / worth/ live?
25. We/ not hear/ her/ nearly/ six months
26. Men/ travel/ since/ they / first appear/ earth.
27. Tom/ meet /Mary/ 1986 and they/ be good friends since then
28. Is John in? – No, he/go/ cinema.
29. I / can tell you whether/ machine/ be/ good/ bad only after I /try /it
30. A taxi just/ come round/ corner.
31. by/end/ summer/ farmers/ harvest/ crop.
32. I/ go/ shop/ they/ sell/ book/ I want.
33. he/ tell/ me/ he/ be/ ill/ since/ he/ return/ abroad.
34. How many countries/ you/ visit/ by March/ last year?
35. We/ live/ through terrible time during/ war years.
36. Before I/ can/ say anything, they/ admit/ mistakes.
37. The thief/ already/ run away by/time/ I arrive.
38. Where/ you/ go/ holiday/ last year?
39. yesterday/ father/ buy/ new watch/ as/ old one/ be/ stolen.
40. He/ pay/ visit/ Halong Bay/ 1980.

Exercise 15 Rewrite each of the following sentences in such a way that it means the same
as the sentence printed above it
1. If you don‘t want Sally to be angry with you, I suggest you apologize.
You‘d .............................................................
2. You might fall if you‘re not carefully.
Be careful ........................................................
3. Mrs. Edwards is the owner of that house.
That house .......................................................
4. The station clock showed half-past ten.

According ..............................................................
5. Henry found a wallet with no name in it.

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The wallet ........................................................
6. Ronald denied stealing Mrs. Clark‘s handbag.
Ronald said that ...............................................
7. Susan likes staying in hotels but she prefers camping.
Susan doesn‘t ..................................................
8. The fridge was so heavy that we couldn‘t move it.
The fridge was too ..........................................
9. ―John, Please don‘t tell anyone my new address,‖ said Mary.
Mary asked ......................................................
10. The judges had never seen a prettier flower display.
It was ...............................................................
11. Whose documents are these?
To ............................................................ ?
12. ―Have you had enough for lunch?‖ the landlady asked me.
The landlady asked ...............................
13. We ought to leave the party now if we are to catch the last train.
If we don‘t ............................................
14. It‘s Alice‘s job to look after new staff.
Alice is responsible .....................................
15. What‘s your date of birth?
When ..........................................................
16. John could not find the right house.
John was ......................................................
17. The doctor should have signed my insurance form.
My insurance form .....................................
18. Michael laughed when I told him the joke.
The joke .....................................................
19. Jenny does not play tennis as well as she used to.
Jenny used ...................................................
20. The door was so heavy that the child couldn‘t push it open.
The door was too ........................................
21. That meal was excellent!
What ............................................................
22. I don‘t really want to visit the museum.
I‘d rather......................................................
23. John missed the ferry because his car broke down.
If .................................................................
24. Jane is a better cook than Robert.
Robert can‘t .................................................
25. Please do not smoke in this area of the restaurant.

16
 Customers are requested ............................
26. ―‗I‘m sorry. Angela,‖ said Martin, ―I‘m afraid I‘ve damaged your car.‖
Martin apologized .................................
27. Although he took a taxi, Bill still arrived late for the concert.
In spite .........................................................
28. Carol finds it easy to make friends.
Carol has no ................................................
29. Mark is too young to see the horror film.
Mark is not .................................................
30. The architect has drawn plans for an extension to the house.
Plans ……………………………………………………………………………..
Exercise 16 Fill in the blank with the correct form of the words in parentheses.
1. Many people think that Faraday is the greatest (INVENT) ___________ in history.
2. The young apprentice broke the chemistry glassware because of his (CARE)
______________
3. He looked very (EXCITE) ____________ because the messenger came to invite him
to the laboratory.
4. The little boy felt very (DISAPPOINTMENT) _______________ his parents did not
let him go with them.
5. That singer has such a _______________ voice that she has just won a contest.
(WONDER)
6. Drawing and singing were among her many _______________ (ACCOMPLISH)
7. My father is working for Intel branch as an _______________ in Ho Chi Minh City.
(ACCOUNT)
8. She has decided to settle _______________ in France. (PERMANENT)
9. Astronauts work in _______________ conditions. (WEIGHT)
10. Money can‘t buy _______________. (HAPPY)
11. He said, ―Good morning‖ in a most _______________ way. (FRIEND)
12. My teacher _______________ me to take this examination. (COURAGE)
13. No-one with a recent _______________ record will be considered for this job.
(CRIME)
14. We have decided to interview only the best six _______________ for the job.
(APPLY)
15. David‘s _______________ at winning the competition was clear to everyone.
(ASTONISH)
16. That large dog is perfectly _______________ and has never been known to attack
anyone. (HARM)
17. Work is going on to _______________ the bridge, which carries a great deal of
traffic. (STRONG)

17
 18. The country is very _______________ so travelling by road is difficult.
(MOUNTAIN)
19. The teacher stressed the need for regular _______________ (ATTEND)
20. Sarah _______________ opened the door of the cellar, wondering what she might
find. (CAUTION)
21. There were over fifty _______________ in the orchestra. (MUSIC)
22. Jim always does what he says; he‘s a very _______________ person. (RELY)
23. Alexander knows which mushrooms are _______________ so ask him before you
pick the (POISON)
24. The company is very efficient and gives a _______________ service. (SPEED)
25. The _______________ of the fire was very welcome after our long walk. (WARM)
26. They have agreed to _______________ the road because of the amount of heavy
traffic now using it. (WIDE)
27. John‘s _______________ improved at his new school. (BEHAVE)
28. Sally came in so _________ that she woke everyone up. (NOISE)
29. Martin was very _________ of what he had done. (SHAME)
30. The museum does not charge for _________ on Sundays. (ADMIT)

Exercise 17 Find and correct the mistake.

1. A five-thousand-dollars reward was offered for the capture of the escaped
criminals.
2. The equipment in the office was badly in need of to be repaired.
3. A liter is one of the metric measurements, aren’t they?
4. We thought he is planning to go on vacation after the first of the month.
5. There are a large supply of pens and notebooks in the storeroom to the left of the
library entrance.
6. The president refuses to accept either of the four new proposals made by the
contractors.
7. She wishes that we didn’t send her the candy yesterday because she‘s on a diet.
8. They are planning on attending the convention next month, and so I am.
9. Today was such beautiful day that I couldn‘t bring myself to cemplete all my
chores.
10. While they were away at the beach, they allowed their neighbours use their
barbecue grill.

18
 A PERSONAL PROFILE
1. Read the writing task and the two personal profiles. Have the writers:
 included all the information?
 written the correct number of words?
Writing task
Write a personal profile of 80-100 words for an internet chatroom. Call your profile ‗The real
me‘. Include
 an introduction with your name, hometown, age, and brief information about your
school and family
 information about your hobbies, interest and sports
 a description of your personality

2. Answer the questions for each person.

o How old are they?
o What year are they in at school?
o Which sports do they like?
o What other hobbies and interests do they have?
o What personality adjectives do they use to describe themselves?
3. Read the writing tip. Underline all the modifying adverbs in the personal profiles

Writing tip: using modifying adverbs

We use modifying adverbs to make the meaning of adjectives stronger or weaker
a little not at all quite really slightly very
4. Look at the modifying adverbs in the personal profiles. Underline the correct words
in the rules below
 Modifying adverbs usually go before/ after the adjective.

19
  The modifying adverbs quite and not at all go before/ after a/ an when there is a
noun.
5. Rewrite the sentences to include the modifying adverb in brackets.
1. I‘m pessimistic.( slightly)
2. My best friend is confident. ( really)
3. He‘s an impatient person. ( not at all)
4. I‘m a student at a big school. (quite)
5. I find English difficult. ( quite)
6. I‘m sometimes shy. ( a bit)
6. Write your personal profile
7. Check that you have completed the writing task correctly by ticking the following:
 name
 age
 town/ village
 school
 family
 hobbies and interests
 sports
 personality
 80-100 words

20
STORY- TELLING WITH PICTURE PROMPT
Work in pair. Look at the following set of picture and guess what happened

21
Now read the story and answer the questions below
The walk
One day a little girl wanted to go for a walk with her doll, so she made a sandwich and took
an apple and some fruit juice. She put them in her bag and put on her pink hat. Then she put
her doll in the stroller and went outside. Soon, a big wind came and blew her hat into the
tree. A nice little sparrow saw that, and he wanted to help the little girl. So, he took the hat in
his beak and gave it back to the girl. The small girl was very happy. She gave the bird some
pieces from her sandwich. Now the sparrow was happy, too.
1. What is the title of the story?
2. How many characters are there in the story? Who are they?
3. Where did the story happen?
4. What problem occurred?
5. How it was solved?

Writing techniques
Layout
Every story should consist of these components:
- The title
- Characters
- Setting
- A problem
- Events or/ and actions
- Solution/ ending

Steps for writing

1. Planning: think about your story. What is it about? Who is in it? What happened? Jot
down a few ideas for your story quickly, but don‘t write the story yet
2. Characters: who is in your story? What do they look like? What are they doing? What
do they say?
3. Location/ setting: where are we? Are we in the street or in the forest? Is it day or night?
4. Plot (Problems, actions and events): What happened? How does the story begin? What
happens next? How does it end?
5. Now write the story: when you know about the characters, the scene and the plot, you
are ready to write the story. Tell about one thing at a time.

22
Writing task : Using the following prompts to write a story

23
 AN INFORMAL LETTER
1. Read the letter. Find three things that Amy got for her birthday.
2. Find colloquial words and phrases in the letter that mean:
 beautiful
 to look good with something
 to return something
 the USA
 I think ….
 aeroplane
 friends
 very good

3. Put what Amy says in the correct paragraph and in the correct order.
a. She says that she enjoyed her birthday.
b. She says what Sophie gave her.

24
 c. She thanks her aunt for the scarf.
d. She says what her parents gave her.
e. She thanks her aunt again for scarf.
f. She says why she likes the scarf.
g. She says how often she‘s won the scarf.
Paragraph 1 Paragraph 2 Paragraph 3
1_______ 4_______ 7_______
2_______ 5_______
3_______ 6_______

4. Read the writing tip below. What expression does Amy use to end her letter?
Writing tip
When you write an informal letter:
 put your address in the top right-hand corner
 put the date below your address
 start the letter Dear…
 you can use colloquial language
 finish the letter with Love or Best wishes and your name

5. Imagine you have received a present from a friend or a family member. Choose a
present from the box (or use your own idea) and say why you like it.
an MP3 player a CD a book a DVD some money some make- up
a necklace or earrings a bag some pens a mobile phone

6. Write an informal thank-you letter of 120-150 words. Use the plan to help you.
Paragraph 1
 Say thank you. Say what the present is and say something about it: what‘s it
like? Why do you like it? Have you used it?
Paragraph 2
 Say what you did on the special occasion. Say what other presents you
received.
Paragraph 3
 Say thank you again

25
 DESCRIBING PEOPLE
I. APPEARANCE
Hair, face, skin and complexion

He used to have black hair bur now it's gone grey, almost white.
What sort of person would you like to go out with? Blonde, fair, dark or ginger-haired/
red-haired?
She has such beautiful auburn hair. [red-brown]
Fair and dark can be used for hair, complexion or skin.
Height and built

Fat may sound impolite. Instead we often say a bit overweight. If someone is broad and
solid, we can say they are stocky. A person with good muscles can be well-built or muscular.
If someone is terribly thin and refuses to eat, they may be anorexic.

General appearance

She's a very smart and elegant woman, always well-dressed; her husband is quite the
opposite, very scruffy and untidy-looking.

26
He's very good-looking, but his friend's rather unattractive.
Do you think beautiful women are always attracted to handsome men? I don't. I think
first impressions matter most.
Tip: The surfix -ish is useful for describing people:
She's tallish. He has brownish hair. He must be thirtyish.

Exercises
1 Answer these remarks with the opposite description.
Example: A: I thought you said he was the short, chubby one,
B: No, quite the opposite, he's the tall, thin-face one
1 A: Was that his brother, the dark-skinned, wavy-haired one?
B: No, quite the opposite, his brother's...
2 A: She's always quite well-dressed, so I've heard.
B: What! Who cold you that? Every time I see her, she's...
A: So Charlene's that rather plump fair-haired woman, is she?
B: No. you're looking at the wrong one. Charlene's ……
4 A: So, tell us about the new boss; good looking?
B: No, I'm afraid not; rather... .
5 A: I don't know why, but I expected the tour-guide to be middle-aged or elderly.
B: No, apparently she's only...
2. Write one sentence to describe each of these people, giving information about their hair
and face, their height and build and general appearance.
1. you yourself 3 a neighbour
2 your best friend 4 your ideal of a handsome man/a beautiful woman
Now, in the same way, describe somebody very famous, give some extra clues about them,
e.g. pop star/politician and see if someone else can guess who you are describing.
3. From these jumbled words, find combinations for describing people, as in the above
example. Some of the combinations are hyphenated. Use a dictionary if necessary. Example:
good-looking

4. Wanted! Missing Complete the gaps in these police poster

27
5. Make a collection of descriptions of people from newspapers and magazines.
Court/crime reports, celebrity and gossip pages of magazines, and the 'personal‘ columns
where people are seeking partners are good places to 'start.
II CHARACTER
Intellectual ability

Ability: intelligent bright clever smart shrewd able gifted talented brainy
(colloquial)
Lacking ability: stupid foolish half-witted simple silly brainless
daft dumb dim (the last four are predominantly colloquial words)
Clever, in a negative way, using brains to trick or deceive: cunning ,crafty, sly

Attitudes towards life

Looking on either the bright or the black side of things: optimistic , pessimistic
Outward-looking or inward-looking (i.e. to the world around one or to one's own inner
world): extroverted, introverted
Calm or not calm with regard to attitude to life: relaxed tense
Practical, not dreamy in approach to life: sensible down-to-earth
Feeling things very intensely; sensitive

Attitudes towards other people

Enjoying others' company: sociable gregarious
Disagreeing with others: quarrelsome argumentative
Taking pleasure in others' pain: cruel sadistic
Relaxed in attitude to self and others: easy-going even-tempered
Not polite to others: impolite rude ill-mannered discourteous
Telling the truth to others: honest trustworthy reliable sincere
Unhappy if others have what one dues not have oneself: jealous envious

28
One person's meat is another person's poison

Some characteristics can be either positive or negative depending on your point of view. The
words in the right-hand column mean roughly the same as the words in the left-hand colon
except that they have negative rather than positive connotations.
determined —— obstinate stubborn pig-headed
thrifty/economical —— miserly mean tight-fisted
self-assured —— self-important arrogant full of oneself (colloquial)
assertive —— aggressive bossy (colloquial)
original —— peculiar weird eccentric odd
frank/direct/open —— blunt abrupt brusque curt
broad-minded —— unprincipled permissive
inquiring —— inquisitive nosy (colloquial)
generous —— extravagant
innocent —— naive
ambitious . —— pushy (colloquial)
Exercises

1. Match these words with their opposites.

1 clever introverted
2 extroverted tight-fisted
3 rude courteous
4 cruel gregarious
5 generous kind-hearted
6 unsociable half-witted

2. Do you think that the speaker likes or dislikes the people s/he is talking about?
1 Di's very thrifty. 5 Dick's quire bossy.
2 Moliy's usually frank. 6 I find Dave self-important. „
3 Liz's quite broad-minded 7 Don't you think Jim's nosy?
4 Sam can be aggressive. 8 Jill is very original.

3. Reword the sentences above to give the opposite impression. Example: Di's very stingy.
Magazines often publish questionnaires which are supposed to analyse your character (or
you. Look at the words below and then match them to the question which aims to decide
whether a person is like that.
Example: If you arrange to meet at 7 p.m., do you arrive at 7 p.m.? Reliable

pessimistic argumentative sensitive sociable

extravagant assertive inquisitive

29
 1 Do you prefer to be in the company of other people?
2 Look at the picture. Do you think my glass is half empty?
3 Do you find it easy to tell your boss if you feel he or she has treated you badly?
4 Do you always look out of the window if you hear a car draw up?
5 Do you often buy your friends presents for no particular reason?
6 Do you frequently disagree with what other people say?
7 Do you lie awake at night if someone has said something unkind to you?
5 What questions like those in 4 could you ask to try to find out whether a person is the
following
1 thrifty 3 sensible 5 even-tempered 7 obstinate
2 blunt 4 intelligent 6 original
6 Can you complete each of these word forks?
1 self- ...... ..... 2 ........... -tempered 3 ..... ..... -minded
Write a sentence to illustrate the meanings of each of your words.
7. Choose five or six adjectives from the opposite page which you think best describe either
your own or a friend's character. How do you or your friend demonstrate these characteristics
Example: Sociable- I am sociable because I love being with other people

30
 WRITING A POSTCARD

Discussion

a) Think of me last time you sent a postcard. Who was it to? Can you remember what vou
wrote about?
b) Look at the postcard below. Try to decide who is writing to who in each case. Which of
them seem strange? Why?'
c) Why do people usually write postcards? Who do they usually write them to?

Dear Alfed,
Dear Sir/ madam,
Thanks for letting
Could you please me stay at your flat
send me further last week and for
details of the the delicious meal. Alferd Hinds
We must get Flat 4
post advertised Personal Manager, together again soon 26, Rhindol Street
in the Times on Metal Box Co., All the best, London NW124 AW
Saturday? Jersey Marine Geogre
Yours faithfully, Swansea SAIB9TQ
John Francis
(4, ElmClose ,
Swansea)

Dear Tony, Dear Jo,

I‘m sorry to have to Having a lovely time.
We‘re staying in a small
tell you that we can hotel on a hill near a tiny
no longer to secluded beach. Behind us
employ you. I do Tony Harper are mountains covered
with tall pine trees and
hope you‘ll be able 14 Beale Street sweet smelling bushes. Jo Thomas
to find another job Ipswich IP2 3AQ The weather is fantastic. 29 Glebe Road
soon Hope you‘re enjoying
your holiday. See you Norwich
Regards when I get back. Miss England
Asley you.
Love Peter

2 This unit looks at postcards sent by people who are on holiday to their friends. Below is a
list of some of the things people often write in postcards. Look at postcards C and F in
exercise 1. Which of the following can you find in them?
Write C and/or F next to each.
a) description of a place _______
b) description of the weather ___________
c) expressions of feelings for the person to whom the card is being sent ___________
d) arrangements for the future_______

31
e) description of things that have happened

Language focus

3.1 Describing a place

a) Read the following extract.

We‘re staying in a quiet hotel on a hill near the tiny secluded beach. Behind us are mountains
covered with tall pine trees and sweet-smelling bushes. Everything is so peaceful

This extract describes the location and the general atmosphere of the place the person is in.
using a thesaurus and or a dictionary, write down as many words as you can that could
replace the words underlined (they may not mean the same).
Write them in the grid at the top of the next page.
SIZE LOCATION ATMOSTPHERE
tiny secluded peaceful
huge

b) Now look at this picture. Imagine you are staying in the hotel and write description similar
to that in part a) above

3.2 Describing the weather

Look back at postcard C in exercise 1. What adjective does the writer use to the weather?
Now look at these other words that can be used to describe weather. Put them in the correct
place in the grid.

awful beautiful amazing fantastic terrible dreadful

wonderful OK lousy sunny hot freezing cool
dull miserable quite warm not too bad rotten

32
POSITIVE NEUTRAL NEGATIVE
BEAUTIFUL

Did you find that some words were difficult to put into the grid? Some words can be positive
or negative depending on the circumstances. Which words are they?

3.3 Describing your feelings

It is very common to begin a postcard with a sentence which tells the reader how much you
are enjoying yourself. Find an opening sentence that does this in one of the postcards in
exercise 1- Write it here.

What do you notice about the structure of this sentence?

3.4 As you can probably see, there is something odd about the sentence. It has no subject. It
is very common in postcards to leave out the subject if it refer'. to the writer. To include it is
a waste of space, and the reader knows perfectly well that it is the writer who is the subject.
Look at this text from a postcard. Which words could you leave out if you wanted to?

Dear John, we‘re having a lovely time. we went to visit a monastery yesterday. I had to
climb 400 steps up the side of a mountain! I look forward to seeing you on my return.
Best wishes, Sally

3.5 Describing something you've done

a) When we describe something we have done we need to make the description interesting to
the reader. Look at this dull description of an event and try to
make it more interesting.

We went to see a castle yesterday. It was very nice.

Work with your partner and add information about:

33
• how you travelled
• what the castle was like
• how you felt

b) Now look at this picture. Imagine you went on a trip in the boat shown in the picture.
Write a few sentences to describe what happened. Try to make your description interesting to
the reader.

3.6 Closing a postcard

Look at the phrases below. Which of them could you write to a close relative/boy
or girlfriend and which to a more distant friend or acquaintance?
Lots of love
All my love
Regards
See you soon
Best wishes
Love
Yours
All the best

Writing model

4. Although it is possible for postcards to be organized in a variety of different ways, it is

worth looking at one good model. Rewrite the text on the right so that it fits the model given
on the left below.

Dear_______
1. See you soon , Harry
Describe your feelings 2. Dear Jane,
Describe the weather 3. Having a wonderful time here in Greece
Describe the place 4. Our hotel is in a valley about half a mile from the beach.
Describe something
you've done 5. Yesterday we took a boat to Aegina and spent the dav
Close lying on the beach and exploring the island
6. The weather is absolutely wonderful.

Writing task
Imagine you are on holiday, use the model in exercise 4 to write a postcard to a British
friend.

34