Revision - Grammar

Word Formation

1. Fill in the blanks with a word formed from the one in brackets. The first one has been
done for you.

When Richard Branson left school at the age of seventeen, his headmaster made a (0) prediction

(predict) – he would either go to prison or become a (1) _______________ (million). He avoided going

to prison and became one of the most popular and (2) _______________ (success) businessmen in

Britain. Branson has won the (3) _______________ (admire) of British teenagers, who have voted him

as the businessman they think of most (4) _______________ (high). Branson is the (5)

_______________ (found) of the Virgin group, that includes airlines, music, soft drinks and clothing.

His mum always told him that being shy was a (6) _______________ (weak) and when he was only four

years old she left him half a mile from his grandparents’ house and told him to walk there alone. Later

that night he was found a mile away in the wrong (7) _______________ (direct), tired but (8)

_______________ (cheer). In the 1970s, Branson opened a record store on London’s busy Oxford

Street. This store was a success and within a year there were fourteen Virgin record stores in Britain,

making the business one of the (9) _______________ (large) chain stores in the country at the time.

Branson made several attempts for a balloon flight record around the world, but all these attempts

were (10) ______________ (success).

2. Fill in the spaces with a word formed from the words in brackets. The first one (0) has been

done for you.

Doctors have warned that (0) increasing (increase) numbers of children are finding it hard to hold

pencils and may be developing handwriting late in their (1) ___________________ (child) because of

an (2) ___________________ (excess) use of technology at home. It is (3) ___________________

(easy) for parents to give a child a tablet than encouraging them to do muscle-building play such as

building blocks, cutting and sticking or pulling toys and ropes. As a result they are not developing the

(4) ___________________ (move) skills which are (5) ___________________ (necessity) to hold

a pencil. “They are not coming to school with the hand (6) ___________________ (strong) and

dexterity they had ten years ago. The overuse of touchscreen phones and tablets is preventing

children’s finger muscles from developing sufficiently to (7) ___________________ (able) them to

hold a pencil (8) ___________________ (correct),” said Sally Payne, a paediatric occupational

therapist. The growing (9) ___________________ (evident) shows the (10) _________________

(deny) impact that technology is having on our children.

 3. Complete the passage by forming ONE word from the one in brackets. The first one (0)
has been done for you. 5 marks

A tourist on holiday in Egypt was shocked to see a recent graffiti on a 3,500-year-old monument in

Luxor. A photo of the graffiti was soon (0) uploaded (LOAD) on his blog on the Internet and hundreds

of people couldn’t believe it! They were angry at this (1) ___________________ (RESPONSIBLE)

act. The message wasn’t very (2) ______________ (IMAGINE) or clever either. It (3)

_____________ (BASIC) stated that a certain person had been there. It is a serious crime to write

on a (4) _______________ (HISTORY) monument in Egypt. You can be (5) _________________

(PRISON) for a year for doing it. But in the past people could write on monuments and no-one was angry

about it. At Giza there is an example of graffiti on a temple wall (6) _______________ (DATE) from

1244 BC. It says: Hadnakhte …came to make an excursion and enjoyed himself on the West of the

Memphis, together with his brother, Panakhti’. Even in Roman times, it was quite normal to write

messages on ancient monuments. The Italian Egyptologist Giovanni Belzoni, was the first modern man

to enter the pyramid of Khafre, where he left a text (7) __________________ (CELEBRATE) the

(8) _______________________ (DISCOVER), with his name and date. When in the late 19th century,

Europeans started to travel around the world, they also left their marks on many (9)

________________ (PRICE) monuments as a memento. Luckily, it wasn’t difficult to remove this

particular graffiti. But Egypt’s National Tourism Administration is right to advice all tourists to act in

a (10) _____________ (CIVIL) way

Prepositions

Fill in the blanks with the correct preposition. You can use the same preposition more than once.
The first one (0) has been done for you. 5 marks

It is a good thing sloths, the adorable animals living (0) in treetops of tropical forests, do not have to
go to school. They would never make it (1) ____________________ time for the first lesson. Sloths
live lonely lives and travel (2) ____________________ tree (3) ____________________ tree (4)
____________________ tropical forests. These animals (5) ____________________ roundish
heads need up to 20 hours of sleep a day and when they are awake, they barely move at all. They are
so slow, algae actually grows (6) ____________________ their fur. Sloths live in the forests (7)
____________________ Central and South America. With their long arms and shaggy fur, they
resemble monkeys. They can weigh up to 7 kilograms depending on the species. Some scientists think
sloths developed their slow-motion lifestyle so they would be less noticeable (8)
____________________ predators. If a sloth is caught (9) ____________________ a predator,
it turns (10) ____________________ sweet to fierce and bites at the predator fiercely to defend
itself.
Tenses

1. Put the verb in brackets in the correct form. The first one (0) has been done for you.

Five masked men armed with axes and knives (0) walked (walk) into the Ritz hotel in central Paris
yesterday at around 6.30pm and (1) ________________________ (flee) shortly afterwards with an
estimated €4.5 million worth of jewels. Terrified guests who earlier on (2)
____________________________ (enjoy) themselves in the hotel bar were told (3)
________________________ (get) down on the floor, while the robbers smashed several display
windows inside the hotel and grabbed the jewels, (4) ________________________ (stuff) them into
bags before leaving. A witness told reporters, “I (5) ________________________ (never forget)
the scene!” But luckily, French police who (6) ________________________ (patrol) outside the five-
star hotel at that moment, blocked and caught the robbers after tasering them. Gérard Collomb, the
French interior minister, praised the police response following the arrests. “If the police (7)
________________________ (not react) so quickly, the robbers (8)
___________________________________ (not arrest). I (9) ________________________
(be) very grateful to them,” he tweeted. An official close to the investigation said that all the stolen
jewels (10) __________________________________ (recover).

2. Fill in the blanks with the correct form of the verb in brackets. The first one (0) has been
done for you. 5 marks

The world (0) will soon know (know/soon) who will get “the best job in the world”. The position is for a
caretaker (1) _________________ (look after) and live on a tropical island off the coast of
Queensland, Australia. Duties include (2) _________________ (relax) on the island, which is part of
the Great Barrier Reef, and writing a blog to promote the area. Other responsibilities include feeding
the fish, cleaning the pool and collecting the mail. The job website tells applicants: “There are over
1,500 species of fish living in the Great Barrier Reef, but you (3) _______________ (not/need) to
feed them all.” The successful applicant will get a salary of nearly US$100,000 for six months.
Unsurprisingly, over 35,000 people applied for the job. Officials from Queensland’s Tourism
Department (4) _________________ (announce) last Tuesday that they had looked at 50 candidates
from 22 countries. Queensland Tourism Minister Desley Boyle said there (5)
_____________________ (is) much discussion to narrow down the list to 50. He told reporters, “If
we (6) ___________________ (not/use) this method, it (7) _________________________ (be)
impossible to choose the right applicant for the job!” The next stage in the selection process is to get
the list of candidates down to 11. Recently the tourism board (8) ____________________ (select)
10 people. Visitors to the website will choose an eleventh person. The 11 lucky finalists will then fly to
Hamilton Island for a formal interview. The winner will be announced on May 6, and the job (9)
___________________ (start) on July 1. The previous caretaker (10) ____________________
(last) only 3 years on the island.

3. Fill in the blanks with the correct form of the verb within brackets. The first one (0) has
been done for you. 5 marks

When Ethel (0) called me late that night, I (1) ____________________ (read) a good book and (2)
____________________ (not want) to be disturbed. I (3) ____________________ (be) angry
because the night before, at precisely the same time, she (4) ____________________ (do) the exact
same thing and this (5) ____________________ (annoy) me. I usually (6) ____________________
(listen) to her go on and on about her many plans, but that night I was not in the mood. I (7)
____________________ (have) enough. I (8) ____________________ (pick) up the phone and
heard Ethel sobbing. I (9) ____________________ (shock). “What (10) ____________________
I ____________________ (do) now?” I thought

Cloze Text
1. Fill in the spaces with an appropriate word. The first one (0) has been done for you.
Banana news (0) from

Japan! Most people would (1) _________________ think of eating the peel of a banana. But there is
now a banana that has an edible peel. Banana farmers in Japan have created a new technique for growing
bananas with a peel we (2) _________________ eat. The new banana-growing method is (3)
_________________ the "freeze-thaw awakening" technique. Farmers in Okayama, in the west of
Japan, keep their banana trees at a freezing (4) _________________ temperature of -60° Celsius.
The farmers then replant the trees in 27ºC temperatures. The huge (5) _________________ in
temperature makes the tree suddenly grow too quickly for the peel to fully mature. This makes the
skin thin, soft and sweet (6) _________________ to eat. It also contains nutrients (7)
_________________ as vitamin B6 and magnesium. However, only a small number of people will get
to sample it — the Mongee banana, which is being sold in small (8) _________________ of 10, is
currently on sale in (9) _________________ one regional Japanese outlet, with each banana (10)
_________________ around yen 650 (about six dollars)!

2. Fill in the blanks with ONE suitable word. The first one (0) has been done for you. 5 marks

The annual Turn Off TV Week starts today. The idea is to live (0) without TV for a whole week. The
people who organise it say that television is a bad thing. Personally, I’m not sure that they’re right.
First of all, the organisers say that the kids of today are lazier and in a (1) _____________ physical
condition than kids of the past because they spend all their time in front of TV. But a recent study of
10,000 US children aged 10 to 15 found no (2) ________________ between TV and physical fitness.
Children who don’t watch TV don’t always do more physical activity. And even the world’s biggest TV
(3) ___________________ can find an hour in the day to do exercise

I agree that there are lots of low quality (4) _______________ on TV. But I don’t agree with saying
‘No TV’. TV can be informative, funny and moving. And, yes, it can be awful too. The most important
thing is to think about what we watch and be more (5) __________________. Another thing that is
not so well defined is the idea that TV stops us from (6) _____________________ with others. An
American researcher found that parents in homes with no TV have an hour of (7)
___________________________ with their children every day. In other homes, there was much (8)
_____________________ , which is bad. But TV can also bring people together, by having them (9)
_____________________, for example, the latest episode of their favourite series. Turn off my
TV? OK. But I also (10) ______________________ to continue turning it on when there’s something
good on.

3. Fill in the blanks with ONE word. 5 marks

Earth is the only (1) ____________________ we know of in the universe that can sustain human (2)
____________________, although human activity is making the planet less fit to live on. The western
 world (3) ____________________ two-thirds of the world’s resources. Fertile (4)
____________________ is either being built on or washed into the sea. We discharge pollutants into
the atmosphere without any (5) ____________________ of the consequences. As a (6)
____________________, the planet’s ability to support life is being diminished. The Earth’s (7)
____________________ resources are there for us to use and if we are sensible, they will (8)
____________________, for a long time. If, however, we use them (9) ____________________,
they will soon run out. If this happens (10) ____________________ will suffer.

The Passive

1. The Statue of Liberty - Complete the sentences (Active or Passive Voice). You must either
use Simple Present or Simple Past.
1. The Statue of Liberty (give)_____-_________________ to the United States by France.
2. It (be) _________________a present on the 100th anniversary of the United States.
3. The Statue of Liberty (design) _________________ by Frederic Auguste Bartholdi.
4. It (complete) _________________________ in France in July 1884.
5. In 350 pieces, the statue then (ship) ______________ to New York, where
it (arrive) _________________ on 17 June 1885.
6. The pieces (put) _____________ together and the opening ceremony (take)
7. ________________________place on 28 October 1886.
8. The Statue of Liberty (be) ________________________ 46 m high (93 m including the base.
9. The statue (represent) _________________ the goddess of liberty.
10. She (hold) ____________________a torch in her right hand and a tablet in her left hand.
11. On the tablet you (see / can) _______________ the date of the Declaration of Independence
(July 4, 1776).
12. Every year, the Statue of Liberty (visit) _______________by many people from all over the world.

Gerund or Infinitive – Fill in the correct form.

1. We encouraged her __________________ (succeed in ) __________________ (become) a top

player.
2. It's no good __________________ (force) him to go with us.
3. I promised __________________ (care) for the cat but I'm not much good at
__________________ (babysit).
4. The people thanked me for __________________ (offer) __________________ (help) them.
5. I begged her __________________ (not accuse) me of __________________ (ruin) her
hairstyle by __________________ (try) __________________ (kiss) her.
6. It is not worth __________________ (help) him __________________ (do) the job.
7. I let him __________________ (choose) between __________________ (fly) and
__________________ (take) the train.
8. The film was really worth __________________ (see) so we made Mary __________________
(go) to the movies with us.
9. Her forced us __________________ (accept) his offer by __________________ (raise) it by 5
%.
10. Normally I enjoy __________________ (go) out but today I'd prefer __________________
(stay) indoors.
11. She promised __________________ (not object) to his __________________ (smoke).
12. They continued __________________ (eat) after the interruption.
13. I am not in the habit of __________________ (smoke) in the car.
14. Ann reminded me __________________ (finish) my work on time.
15. He'd better __________________ (get) used to __________________ (work) harder.
16. I am capable of __________________ (stand) on my head and __________________ (play) the
saxophone.
17. You'd better __________________ (start) __________________ (dig) the garden.
18. I expected someone __________________ (pick) up these papers.
19. The Romans were quite happy about Hannibal __________________ (not attack) Rome.
20. It was interesting __________________ (watch) our cat __________________ (play).
21. We have taught our children __________________ (wash) their hands before
__________________ (eat).
22. __________________ (write) letters is more boring than __________________ (phone).
23. Jack decided __________________ (have) a break from work.
24. I refused __________________ (speak) with them.
25. We agreed __________________ (meet) them at the airport.
26. There is no sense in __________________ (earn) more money than you can
__________________ (spend).
27. They made us __________________ (leave) the campsite after __________________ (make)
such a mess.
28. "Do you mind __________________ (work) overtime ?, " asked the boss
29. She has never known how __________________ (fry) a steak.
30. The doctor made him __________________ (promise) __________________ (reduce) his
__________________ (smoke).
Reported Speech

1. Report the following conversation between Janet and Alan. The first one (0) has been done
for you. 5 marks

Janet: Hi Alan! I haven’t seen you for ages! Alan: I have been training hard for a swimming competition
since last month. Janet: I’m glad I ran into you, as I want you to come to a party I’m having next Friday.
Alan: Thanks! I can’t wait to have some fun after all this training. Janet: You will surely have a good
time! 0. Janet told Alan that she hadn’t seen him for ages.

1. Alan told her that __________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

2. Janet told him that ________________________________________________ as she

___________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________

3. Alan thanked her and said that _______________________________________

________________________________________________________________

4. Janet told him that _________________________________________________

Pharsal Verbs

1. Fill in the blanks with the correct form of the phrasal verbs in the box. You can use each
phrasal verb only once. The first one (0) has been done for you

wear out touch down check out set off pick at

take off track down play up think about fall apart
prop up

Last week we (0) set off on a long journey to Ecuador. After three flights we finally landed there, but
had to stay in a hotel overnight. To reach our final destination on the coast, we (1)
___________________ from our hotel at 9 am to have enough time to go through security before
our plane (2) _________________ at noon. Once we were in the air, the plane started making a
strange noise. It sounded like one of the engines was (3) ____________________! We were hoping
that nothing would go wrong but I was definitely thinking that the mechanics should (4)
___________________ the source of the noise; because throughout the entire flight I was (5)
___________________ all the horrible things that might happen if there was a problem with the
engine in mid-flight. About half way through, I (6) _________________ my jacket against the side
of the aeroplane and used it as a pillow because I was feeling (7) ___________________. Just as I
was about to fall asleep, a little girl started to (8) ___________________ and was crying. Although
I’m complaining about the flight and the plane, I’m not trying to (9) ____________________ the
airline. The staff were really friendly and after all, we did (10) __________________ safely in the
end.