Grammar Practice Exercises [ 29 ] Upper Intermediate

29 - ] Vocabulary Practice Exercises

Upper Intermediate

Participial Constructions

Past Participial Phrases .

1 - ] The past participle can sometimes replace subject + passive verb .

I often saw her at the theater . She was surrounded by her admirers .

I often saw her at the theater , surrounded by her admirers .

Although it was intended to be a nice surprise , the party was not what I wanted at all .

Although intended to be a nice surprise , the party was not what I wanted at all .

2 - ] Being + past participle following after , before , when , since , while , on , by .

After it was cleaned the bike looked as good as new .

After being cleaned , the bike looked as good as new .

The message got across to people because it was repeated over and over again .

The message got across to people by being repeated over and over again .

Rewrite the sentences below using a past participial phrase or being + past participial phrase .

Example

1 . I was exhausted through lack of sleep and fell asleep at my desk .

Exhausted through lack of sleep , I fell asleep at my desk .

2 . He was abandoned by his parents at an early age and took to stealing .

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3 . Although it was written many years ago , the book is still relevant today .

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4 . Since I was promoted , I’ve had no time to go out .

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5 . The boy was taken from his parents at an early age .He had a very difficult life .

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6 . The money was hidden in the cellar . It was not discovered for many years .

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7 . He was frequently criticized for his self-centered attitude but was nonetheless very popular .

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8 . After he was released from prison , Ali could not find a job anywhere .

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9 . The committee meetings , which were always dominated by the same people , were slow-moving and ineffectual .

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10 . When he was caught , he confessed everything . (On-------)

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11 . When it is seen from the outside , the building looks a mess , but it is lovely inside .

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12 . If we are elected , we will increase the value of pensions .

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13 . Although he was ridiculed by everybody , he continued to pursue his bizarre projects .

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14 . Unless it is destroyed , this material could have damaging consequences .

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15 . She had been shoplifting for many years before she was found out .

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Adverbial Clauses of Time , Place , Manner And Reason .

Adverbial clauses ,like adverbs , tell us sometimes about the verb and answer the questions When , Where , How , Why ? , etc.

Some of the most common conjunctions to introduce adverbial clauses .

1 - ] Time : when , after , before , as , as soon as , by the time (that) , once , since , until / till , wherever , while

2 - ] Place : where , wherever , anywhere , everywhere

3 - ] Manner : as , as if , as though

4 - ] Comparison : than , as --------as

5 - ] Reason : because , as , since

6 - ] Purpose : so that , in order that , in case

7 - ] Result : so --------- that , such a ---------- that

8 - ] Condition : if ,unless , provided / providing (that) , so / as long as

9 - ] Contrast : although / though / even though , while , whereas , however , ( + much / good / badly ) , whatever , whenever , wherever

Underline the adverbial clauses and complete them with an appropriate conjunction .In some sentences , more than one conjunction is possible .

Example

1 . I’m sorry I wasn’t here earlier but I came as soon as I could  .

2 . I’m staying in all weekend -------------------I can get my work done .

3 . He spoke to me ----------------it was all my fault .

4 . He didn’t react ---------------I’d hoped ; he was actually rather angry .

5 . Things are never ---------------------bad ----------------------you think they are .

6 . You are growing fast . You’re taller ---------------------your mother is now .

7 . He’d like to be an actor ------------------his father would like him to be a lawyer .

8 . She’s --------------------interested in her work .

9 . I’ll meet you ----------------------you like ; I don’t mind where it is .

10 . I won’t believe you ---------------------I’ve seen it for myself .

11 . She seems happy --------------------she can’t find a job .

12 . -------------------------I didn’t feel very well , we decided to leave early .

13 . The money was hidden ----------------------no-one could find it .

14 . I’ll come with you --------------------we don’t stay late . I need to be up early tomorrow .

15 . ----------------------------I like him , I sometimes find him very irritating .

2 - ] Put an appropriate conjunction before the adverbial clauses .

(1) Since the petrol-fueled internal combustion engine was first developed by the German engineers Benz and Daimler in 1885 , our lives have changed completely . (2) the damaging effects of the motor car are now well-recognized , the number of cars on the road continues to grow every year . In 1950 , there were fewer than 50 million cars in use around the world , but (3) ------------cars became more widely available and relatively cheaper , this number grew to 500 million by 1999 .

        We continue to drive cars (4) ----------------we know how dangerous they are in every respect .People seem to accept the higher number of deaths and injuries as a normal fact of life (5) ----------------smaller risks in other areas of life seem to generate more publicity and fear . We accept the awful risk (6) ------------it is somehow justifiable . (7) --------------any other activity carried with it such a risk , there would be a huge public reaction .

      And what of the pollution ? (8) ------------------research into car emissions started , it has become clearer and clearer how damaging the emissions are to health and the environment . Will we keep on driving our cars (9) -----------------much damage we do ? It seems that people are (10) ----------------attached to their cars that they won’t give them up for anything . To some people , their car is more important to them (11) ---------------anything else .

        One of the obvious answers to the problem is better public transport . (12) --------------

we could travel (13) ----------------we liked on cheap , comfortable public transport , we would be less inclined to use the car . People will not stop using their cars (14) ---------------

there is a good alternative . But we need to act now (15) -------------------it is too late . We must change our attitude and our priorities (16) ---------------future generations can live in a cleaner world .

Participial Phrases  

Write the following text changing clauses to participial phrases where possible.

Vincent Van Gogh , who was born in Holland in 1853 , is one of the world’s most famous painters . Although his talent was unrecognized throughout his life , it was much appreciated after his death .

     After he had failed in every career he had attempted , Van Gogh first turned to art to express his strong religious feelings . After he had decided to become a painter ,in about 1880 , he started to paint studies of peasants and miners . During the next few years , which are known as his ‘Dutch period’ , he produced paintings with rather greenish-brown colors.

     In 1886 , when he went to Paris to visit his brother Theo , he was immediately attracted to the Impressionist work he saw there . He decided to stay in Paris and continued his painting there . He was encouraged by Pissaro to use more color in his pictures and his subsequent paintings were bright and immensely colorful .

       After Van Gogh had moved to Arles in the south of France , in 1888 , he worked frantically . This frenzied activity , which was interrupted by bouts of deep depression and despair , produced the majority of his most famous paintings . One of these , which is called Self Portrait with Bandaged Ear , shows Van Gogh : he was wearing a bandage after he had cut off his own ear . A year later , in 1890 , he committed suicide .

     A lot is known about Van Gogh’s life and his feelings because of the hundreds of letters which were written by him to his brother Theo and others . Because his brother believed in Van Gogh’s genius , he always encouraged him in his work . He was the person closest to Van Gogh .

Example

Born in Holland in 1853 , Vincent Van Gogh one of the world’s most famous painters .