A2 Practice time

PVIII Gym English Handbook final review practice pages.    

1 Use the correct form of the verb in brackets to complete the sentences. Scroll down for answers.

1    Why _______________ (not  be) you at the cinema last night?

2    Did you _______________ (arrive) by bus?

3    They _______________ (be)late for the match last Saturday.

4    He _______________ (have) a bath in the evening.

5    I _______________ (see) David Beckham in London last week.

6    Look! Harry _______________ (dance) with the new girl.

7    Dave and Bill _______________ (start) school at 7.30 yesterday.

8    I _______________ (watch) The X Files on TV last night.

9    Did you _______________ (buy) a mobile phone?

10 Be quiet! I _______________ (watch) TV!

11  Giles and Lola _______________ (not be) going to the cinema with us.

12  He _______________ (not be) a teacher.

13  Jane and Ruth _______________ (be) from Los Angeles.

14  My parents _______________ (have got) a Japanese car.

15  The film _______________ (start) at 8.45.

16  There _______________ (be) a video camera in the bank.

17  They _______________ (not have got) a computer.

18  Mrs. Smith_______________ (not want) us to come to school early.

19  _______________ your sister _______________ (like) techno?

20  I _______________ (not like) geometry.

 

 

Look at these verbs.  Write the infinitive or past tense.

VERB	PAST TENSE
leave	left
1  run
2	took
3  go
4  see
5	heard
6  sleep
7  think
8	gave
9	wore
10	put

3 Use the words and phrases in the box to complete the sentences. There are two extra words.   

tight / after /at / first / how often / in / hate / never / then / these / those / too / usually / what’s / on / them / which

       Which_________ city is the most populated?

1    We _______________ dancing. We_______________ go to the disco just to hang out.

2    His birthday’s _______________ June. It’s ______________ the 14^th.

3    _______________ are my new shoes. Do you like ______________?

4    My sister’s clothes are _______________ baggy. I prefer ______________ jeans.

5    I do my homework and _______________ I watch TV.

6    I hate fried potatoes. I _______________ eat them.

7    _______________ do you use the Internet?

8    I _______________ surf the internet before I go to bed.

9    Can you see _______________ girls in the red car? The short one is my cousin.

10   ______________I have a shower _______________that I style my hair.

4 Read and answer the questions.

Well, yesterday, summer came to parts of Britain at last.  South-east England was the sunniest part of Britain yesterday, with seven hours of sun in Canterbury.  This was the warmest part, too.  We had 25 degrees Centigrade in some places.  The coldest part of Britain was the north of Scotland, with temperatures of only 7 degrees Centigrade. 

The west of Britain had some very wet weather.  The rainiest weather was in the west of Wales, where it rained for 24 hours.  In the east of England there was no rain, but it was very windy.

Fog was a problem in the south of Scotland yesterday, and there were some bad traffic accidents.

Now, a word about the weather abroad.  If you are going to Florida, be careful! Yesterday, temperatures were the hottest for fifty years, with a maximum temperature of 42 degrees Centigrade near Miami!

a) Choose the best title for the passage:

1    Yesterday’s weather

2     The weather tomorrow

 

3     Britain’s bad weather

 

b) True or false? Write T for true, write F for false.

1     The season is autumn in Britain.                                                                       c

2    Yesterday, England was warmer than Florida.                                                   c

3    The east of England was wet yesterday.                                                             c

4    Yesterday, the west of Britain was wetter than the south-east.                           c

 

 

 

1.       weren’t

2.       arrive

3.       were

4.       had

5.       saw

6.       is dancing

7.       started

8.       watched

9.       buy

10.   am watching

11.   aren’t going

12.   isn’t

13.   are

14.   have got

15.   starts

16.   is

17.   haven’t got

18.   doesn’t want

19.   Does     like

20.   Don’t like

Verbs

1.       ran

2.       take

3.       went

4.       saw

5.       hear

6.       slept

7.       thought

8.       give

9.       wear

10.   put

 
3.

1.        hate      usually

2.        in           on

3.        These   them

4.        too        tight

5.       then

6.       never

7.       How often

8.       usually

9.       those

10.   First       after

 

4.

a)  1 Yesterday’s weather

b)            1. F

                2. F

                3. F

                4. T

 

 

 

Countable & Uncountable Nouns

Nouns can be either countable or uncountable. Countable nouns (or count nouns) are those that refer to something that can be counted. They have both singular and plural forms (e.g. cat/cats; woman/women; country/countries). In the singular, they can be preceded by a or an. Most nouns come into this category.

A smaller number of nouns do not typically refer to things that can be counted and so they do not regularly have a plural form: these are known as uncountable nouns (or mass nouns). Examples include: rain, flour, earth, wine, or wood. Uncountable nouns can't be preceded by a or an. Many abstract nouns are typically uncountable, e.g. happiness, truth, darkness, humour.

Some uncountable nouns can be used in the plural as well, depending on the meaning or context of the word. Take a look at these sentences:

Would you like some coffee?	uncountable because it's referring to the drink in general
He ordered a coffee.	countable, because it's referring to a cup of coffee
There's no truth in the rumours.	uncountable, because it refers to the quality or state of being true
The fundamental truths about human nature.	countable, because it's referring to facts or beliefs that are true

In the Oxford Dictionary of English, nouns that are chiefly uncountable are described as ‘mass nouns’. This type of noun entry may also include an example sentence showing a countable use of the type described above. For example:

·      beer noun [mass noun] an alcoholic drink made from yeast-fermented malt flavoured with hops: a pint of beer | [count noun] he ordered a beer.

There are some words that should only be used with countable nouns and some that you should only use with uncountable nouns. Here are the main examples:

word	with countable noun?	with uncountable noun?	examples
few, fewer	✓	✗	fewer students; few cars
little, less, least	✗	✓	less food; little time
many, several	✓	✗	several books; many changes
much	✗	✓	much pleasure; much sleep

You often hear people using less with countable nouns (e.g. ‘there are less cars outside the school gates’). Although it's a common mistake, it is still a mistake and you should try to avoid making it in formal writing or speaking.

Grammar Rules

A) Most nouns have singular and plural forms. They are countable nouns.
     e.g. One letter, two letters

•               There is a letter on the table for you. (singular)

•               There are letters on the table for you. (plural)

B) Some nouns only have one form. They are uncountable nouns.

    e.g. Money

•               There is no money in my bank account.

•               There is a lot of money in my bank account.

C) Many uncountable nouns refer to substances:

    e.g. Chocolate, water, coffee, milk, sugar, salt, cheese, bread, rice, wood,
           glass, plastic, soap, toothpaste.

•               Do you have any chocolate?

•               The milk is sour - let's make cheese.

•               Rice is only edible when it has been cooked.

D) Many uncountable nouns refer to abstract ideas or emotions.

    e.g. love, sadness, happiness, education, knowledge, and grammar.

•               Money can't buy love.

•               We like to experience happiness.

•               This education is priceless.

E) You can use a/an with singular countable nouns.

    e.g. an umbrella, a wheel, a mistake.

•               It's raining so I need an umbrella.

•               I made a mistake.

•               This is a job for superman.

F) You can use plural countable nouns alone.

    e.g. apples, bees, clouds.

•               There are clouds in the sky today.

•               There are bees making honey.

•               We eat apples for breakfast.

G) You can't use an article with an uncountable noun.

    e.g. time, sand, electricity.

•               We need electricity to use our heater.

•               I lost track of time and we stayed up very late.

•               The beaches in Brazil have very nice sand.

H) It is very common in English to use some / any with plural nouns and  
    uncountable nouns (Refer to grammar notes on Some Any for more details).

    e.g. They don't listen to any advice.

•               We don't have any toys for the children.

•               There are many lessons in life, this is just one more.

•               It is important to have some knowledge of grammar.

I) There are a range of nouns that are uncountable in English but are countable in
    other languages.

    These include: accommodation, advice, baggage, behaviour, bread, chaos,
    damage, furniture, information, luck, luggage, news, permission, progress,
    scenery, traffic, weather and work.

J) For comparison purposes, look at these sentences:

Countable	Uncountable
I'm looking for a job.	I'm looking for work.
What a beautiful view!	What beautiful scenery!
It's a nice day today.	It's nice weather today.
We had a lot of bags and suitcases.	We had a lot of luggage.
These chairs are mine.	This furniture is mine.
It was a good suggestion.	It was good advice.

Can you figure out which are countable and uncountable nouns?