B1 – PET – Unit 3

Grammar reference                             Verbs followed by to or – ing

some verbs are followed by the –ing form of another verb:

Everyone enjoys listening to music. I have finished reading my book.

Other verbs like this include:

Admit, avoid, dislike, fancy, feel like, imagine, mention, mind, miss, practise, put off, suggest.

some verbs are followed by the to + infinitive of another verb:

We expected to win the game. I can’t afford to buy a car.

other verbs like this include: agree, appear, attempt, begin, decide, demand, fail, hope, intend, learn, manage, offer, plan, pretend, promise, refuse, seem, want, would like.

some verbs are followed by the-ing or the to infinitive of another verb with similar meanings:

I love playing tennis. I love to play tennis. It continued raining all day. It continued to rain all day.

other verbs like this include:

begin, continue, hate, like, love prefer, start.

Phrasal verbs

a phrasal verb is a combination of a verb and a preposition, a verb and an adverb or a verb with both an adverb and a preposition, any of which are part of the syntax of the sentence.

phrasal verbs are important because of their figurative or idiomatic application in every day speech.

a phrasal verb consists of two or three parts. There are three main kinds of phrasal verb:

• verb + adverb, with object, e.g. he picked up his coat.
• verb + adverb without object, e.g. the plane took off.
• verb + adverb + preposition, with object, e.g. I got on with my work

   

  Unit 3

   

  ESSENTIAL VOCABULARY

   

  admission fee (n) the amount of money that  you pay to enter a place.                                                                  

• patient (adj) having patience.

  can afford (v) to have enough money to buy something.                  

• put someone’s name down (v) to write a name on a list or document.                                                                                                                                          
• art gallery (v) a building that is used for showing paintings and other art.                                                     
• set out (v) to start a  journey.

  backpack  (n) a bag that you carry on your back.                                 

• sightseeing (n) visiting interesting places. 

  book ahead (v) to arrange to use or do something at a particular time in the future                               

• surfing (v) the sport of riding waves on a board. 

  catch up with (v) to reach someone or something  in front of you by going faster, working harder etc.                                                                                                     

• take up (v) to  start doing a job or activity.                                                     

  chess (n) a game that two people play by moving pieces around a board of white and black squares.                 

• tent (n) a structure made of metal poles, ropes and cloth fixed to the ground to sleep under                                                          

  cyclist (n) someone who rides a bicycle.                                                       

• turn into (v) to change and become someone or something different.

  deal with (v )to take action in order to achieve  something                                      

• value (n) how useful or important something is. 

  diving (n) the sport of jumping into water head first.                         

• water-skiing (v) a sport in which someone is pulled behind a boat while standing on skis                                                                                                                                                                          .

  feel like (v) to want something or want to do something.                

• work out (v) to calculate an amount. Or to do physical exercise 

  formal (adj) being serious and not relaxed about behaviour

  language, clothes etc.                                              

  get on with (v) to continue doing something especially work 

  give up (v) to stop doing something before completing it.

  go off (v) to stop liking someone or something.

  go on (v) to last for a particular period of time.

  healthy (adj) physically strong and well or good for your health

  helmet (n) a hard hat that protects your head

  instrument (n) an object that is used for playing music.

  join in (v) to become involved in an activity with other people

  look forward to (v) to feel happy and excited about something that is going to happen

  make up for (v) to reduce the bad effect of something.

  mountain-biking (n) riding a bicycle made foe hills or mountains.

  opening hours (n) the time of the day when a place is open to the public. 

  oven (n) a piece of kitchen equipment with a door used for cooking food

   

GRAMMAR REFERENCE

Quantifiers: we use different quantifiers a few many, a little, much with countable and uncountable nouns.

• For small quantities of countable nouns, we use a few: A few students.
• For small quantities of uncountable nouns, we use a little: A little information.
• For large quantities of uncountable nouns in questions and negative sentences, we use much: Do you have much money? / There isn’t much information.
• We use a lot of, or lots of for large quantities of countabble ans uncountable nouns: We had a lot of fun. I have lots of friends. Does she have lots of money?
• If there is no noun after the quantifier, we use a lot without of: I like him a lot.
• We can use other words to refer to quantity of an uncountable noun, e.g.a bit of chocolate, an amount of money, and a drop of water. 

Prepositions of time: at, on and in indicate when something happens.

• We use at for times of day: at 6.15 at breakfast and expressions such as at night, at chrismas at the weekend.
• We use on for days and dates: on tuesday, on the 2^nd day of the week, on december 25^th.
• We use in for years, seasons, months, parts of the day, long periods: in 2009, in summer, in may, in the morning, in the holidays. 

Prepositions of place: at, on and in indicate where someone or something is.

• We use at for a point: at the train station and expressions such as at the bottom, at the front. At college.
• We us on for surfaces: on the table, on the wall, and for lines: on the border, on the coast.
• We use in for someone or something in space: in madrid, in the sea, in a house, in america. 

Frequency adverbs: we use frequency adverbs to say how often something happens.

• We can use a word, sometimes, always or a phrase like most afternoons or every night.
• We usually put one-word frequency adverbs and hardly ever) before the main verb: we sometimes watch a film in the evening, i don’t usually go out until 8 o’clock, it hardly ever rains in july?
• With am, is, are, was or were, etc. They come after the verb: they are always late! Nowadays my grandmother is always ill.
• They also come after auxiliary and modal verbs: it has often happened. I can never understand him.
• If we want to, we can put usually, often, sometimes and occasionally at the beginning or end of a sentence: occasionally we eat in the garden. I feel tered soetimes. We cannot put always or never at the beginning or end of a sentence.
• We put phrases at the beginning or end: I have piano lessons once a week. Most evenings i stay at home.
• We can form questions using: How often do you, do you ever, do you always, etc. How often do you swim? Do you ever drink tea? Do you often walk to school? 

PRESENT SIMPLE AND PRESENT CONTINUOUS

The present simple is used to describe:

• A permanent state or situation: I live in the town where i was born.
• A fact or something which is always true: The earth goes round the sun.
• An activity that happens regularly or occasionally: He gets up at six o’clock every day. 

The present continuous is used to describe:

• A temporary situation: I’m living with my uncle while they are painting our house.
• An activity happening at the present moment: I’m sorry you can’t talk to her at the moment. She is having a shower.
• An activity in progress but not exactly at the present moment: I am studying three foreign languages, so i am quite busy nowadays.
• A situation which is changing or developing: Lots of people are coming to live here, so the town is growing quickly.
• Things the speaker finds strange or annoying, with always. (this is away of complaining): You are always using the telephone. Our phone bill will be enormous!
• Something which happens frequently, with always: My girlfriend is always cooking me special meals! 

STATE VERBS

Verbs which describe states, not actions, are not usually used in the continuous.

These verbs describe:

• Thoughts: believe, know, remember, and think.
• Feelings: like, hate, want, need, and prefer.
• Senses: smell, taste, hear, and see.
• Possession: have, belong, own, contain, and include.
• Existence: exist contain, consist, seem, mean, and matter. 

Some state verbs can be used in the continuous when they describe actions:

I’m thinking about what you said. (i’m considering it.)

She is feeling unhappy. (how she is at the moment.)

COUNTABLE AND UNCOUNTABLE NOUNS 

Nouns can either be countable (c) or uncountable (u). 

Some nouns can be both countable and uncountable, but with a difference in meaning:

They say it is healthy to drink tea. (u) (tea in general.)

Would you like a tea? (c) (a cup of tea.)

Living in a large house is a lot of work (u.)

The grammar of countable nouns is different from the grammar of uncountable nouns. 

Countable nouns:

• Use a or an in the singular, e.g. a job, an animal.
• Can be made plural, e.g. cars, books.
• Use some and any in the plural, e.g. some friends, any answers. 

Uncountable nouns:

• Do not use a or an.
• Cannot be made plural, e.g. work, music.
• Use verbs in the singular, e.g. the news is good, music helps me relax.
• Use some and any in the singular, e.g. some food, any advice. 

Some common uncountable nouns in english

WORD LIST

Armchair (n) a comfortable chair with sides that support your arms.

Balcony (n) a small area joined to the wall on a high level where you can stand or sit.

Bell (n) an electrical object that makes a ringing sound when pressed.

Belong (v) to feel happy and comfortable in a place or with a group of people.

Blanket (n) a thick warm cover that you sleep under in bed.   

Bulb (v) a glass object which produces light relax using electricity.

Cave (n) a large hole in a mountain or under the ground.

Chest of drawers (n) a piece of furniture with drawers for keeping clothes in.

Consist of (v) to be formed or made of two or more things.

Contain (v) if one thing contains another, it has it inside.

Cooker (n) a piece of equipment to cook food.

Corridor (n) a passage in a building or train with rooms on one side or both sides.

Cosy (adj) comfortable and warm 

Cottage (n) a small house usually in the countryside.

Cushion (n) a cloth bag filled with something soft which you sit on to make you comfortable.

Design (n) the way in which something is planned and made.

Exist (v) to be real or present.

Fridge (n) a large container that uses electricity to keep food cold.

Guess (v) to give an answer or opinion about something without having all the facts.

Improve (v) to get better or to make something better.

Include (v) to have someone or something as part of something larger or more general, such as a group, a price or process.

Matter (v) to be important, or to affect what happens.

Microwave (n) an electric oven that uses waves of energy to cook or heat food.

Mirror (n) a piece of glass that produces a image of your

Own (v) to have something that legally belongs to you.

Pillow (n) a soft object which you rest your head on in bed.

Relax (v) to be happy and comfortable with no problems.

Remain (v) to contiue to be in the same state; to continue to exist when everything and everyone has one.

Right (adv) exactly in a place or time.

Sink (n) a bowl that is fixed to the wall in the kitchen or bathroom where you wash dishes or your hands.

Suppose (v) to think that something is likely to be true.

Tap (n) the part at the end of the pipe that controls water.

Tidy (v) to make a place clean and organised.

Upstairs (adv) on or up to a higher level in a building.

Washbasin (n) a bowl in a bathroom that water can Flow into, used for washing hands and face.

Windmill (n) a building with long parts at the top that turn in the wind, used for producing power.