Pub - New Intermediate English Grammar PDF
Pub - New Intermediate English Grammar PDF
Pub - New Intermediate English Grammar PDF
CONTENTS
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CONTENTS
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CONTENTS
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CONTENTS
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CONTENTS
READING PASSAGES GRAMMAR POINTS PAGE
V
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We are grateful to the following for permission to include copy-
right material: Arthur Barker Ltd. for an abridged extract from
While Rome Burns by Alexander Woollcott; the author for an
abridged extract from The Purple Plain by H. E. Bates; The Bodley
Head Ltd. and The Viking Press Inc. for an abridged version of
'The Story-Teller' from The Short Stories of Saki; Miss D. E.
Collins and Methuen & Co. Ltd. for 'Passing Through the Cus-
toms' from The Glass Walking-Stick by G. K. Chesterton; J. M.
Dent & Sons Ltd. for abridged versions of In Defence of Wasps
and On Living Again by A. G. Gardiner; Punch for 'Re Helicop-
ters: To the Secretary of State for Air' by H. F. Ellis and an
extract from 'I'm All Right, Jack' by Alan Hackney, reprinted by
permission; the author for an abridged version of The Voice by
V. S. Pritchett; The Society of Authors as the literary representa-
tive of the late Miss Katherine Mansfield for an abridged version
of The Canary; Arthur Stanley for an abridged version of A Night
Out in the Dolomites by Bertha Smith, published in The Bedside
Book by Victor Goliancz Ltd.; the author for an abridged version
of The Cage by Dal Stivens; the author and Harcourt, Brace &
World Inc. for an abridged extract from Mrs. Miniver by Jan
Struther; The Times for abridged versions of 'A Biped's Quandary',
'An Englishman's Chair', 'Backstage Tensions', 'Englishmen
Abroad' and I Was a Private Eye'; the author and Hamish
Hamilton Ltd. for an abridged version of 'The Private Life of Mr.
Bidwell' by James Thurber from The Middle-aged Man on the
Flying Trapeze; and Miss Helen Vlachos for her permission to
translate from the Greek, Holes in the Road.
vii
LESSON ONE
THE I N T E R V I E W
(from "I'm All Right, Jack")
BY ALAN HACKNEY
EXERCISES
1. Make sentences freely with these words from the story:
interview echo react vital fluent
candidate enthusiastic impressive family profound
shift independent pose decay distaste
2. Explain the meaning of the following:
a. at the farthest point from Stanley (line 10).
b. I beg your pardon (line 16).
c. in an indifferent tone (line 19).
d. aimless wandering (line 43).
e. with a show of confidence (line 50).
f. at first sight (line 71).
g. Let me put it in this way (line 72).
h. if we were faced with that (line 76). .
i. cleared his throat (line 97).
j. expelling his breath (line 109).
3. Can you find the "Type A" and "Type B" adverb-particles in
the story?
(As you will remember from Book One3, "Type A" adverb-
particles are those which change the meanings, completely or
only slightly, of the verbs with which they are used. "Type B"
particles are those which give a more "complete" or more
emphatic sense to their sentences—but which could be omitted
without changing the meanings of the sentences.)
In this story there are 10 adverb-particles of "Type A", and
1 of "Type B " .
4. Make sentences with the opposites of these words from the
story:
follow including forward aimless vital
1. deep. 2. disgust; dislike. 3. Page 29.
5
THE NEW I N T E R M E D I A T E E N G L I S H COURSE
TWO P O I N T S O F G R A M M A R
1. QUESTION FORMS AND CONSTRUCTIONS
(PART TWO)
As we saw in Book One, there are four basic forms that ask
for the answer " Y e s " or " N o " (or, of course, "I don't know"):
i e. "Is his name Windrush?" {the "General" Question)
"His name is Windrush, isn't it?" {the " Yes-Expectation"
Question)
6
THE INTERVIEW
PRACTICE EXERCISE 1
Make Information Questions to which the following sentences
could be the answers. The words in italics show the information
that is required.
e.g. Answer: " William went there last Thursday."
Question: " Who went there last Thursday?"
8
THE I N T E R V I E W
1. Statements
If the verb to say is without a prepositional object, we can use
it with Reported Speech;
e.g. "That's one of the difficult things to see in this situation,"
said Stanley.
becomes: Stanley said that that was one of the difficult things
to see in that situation.
But if it is with a prepositional object of any kind, we cannot
use it with Reported Speech. We must change it into some such
verb as to tell:
e.g. "That's one of the difficult things to see in this situation,"
Stanley said to the Chairman.
becomes: Stanley told {informed, etc.) the Chairman that that
was one of the difficult things to see in that situation.
There are several other things to note when reporting state-
ments :
(a) The conjunction that may be used or omitted, as we prefer;
e.g. Richard said that it was a bit cold that day.
or: Richard said it was a bit cold that day.
(b) The words " Y e s " and " N o " in Direct Speech usually
disappear in Reported Speech;
e.g. "Yes," said Stanley, "I can."
becomes: Stanley said (that) he could.
and: "Oh, yes," said Stanley. "Yes, I think one's work is
jolly important."
becomes: Stanley said (that) he thought one's work is
jolly important.
(c) With Direct Speech, the verb to say and its subject may be
at the beginning of a sentence, or in the middle, or at the end.
With Reported Speech, it should be put at the beginning;
e.g. "That's one of the difficult things etc.," said Stanley.
becomes: Stanley said (that) that was one of the difficult
things etc.
2. Questions
If the verb to say is used with the Direct Speech, it must in all
cases be changed into some such verb as to ask—whether it is
with or without a prepositional object;
e.g. A man said: "How would you assess your Japanese?"
becomes: A man asked how he would assess his Japanese.
and: A man said to Stanley: "How would you assess your
Japanese?"
11
THE I N T E R V I E W
(f) And, finally, here is a list of some of the " u s u a l " changes
of tenses, forms and words:
Direct Speech Reported Speech
He goes . . . becomes He went . . .
He is going . . . „ He was going . ..
He has gone . . . „ He had gone . . .
He has been going . . . „ He had been going . . .
He w e n t . . . „ He had gone . . .
He was going . . . „ He had been going . . .
He will go . . . „ He would go . . .
He will be going . . . „ He would be going . . .
He will have gone . . , „ He would have gone . . .
He will have been
going . . . „ He would have been going . . .
He may go . . . „ He might go . . .
He may be going . . . „ He might be going . . .
He can go . . . „ He could go . . .
He can have gone . . . „ He could have gone . . .
He must go . . . ,, He had to go . ..
He ought to go . . . „ He had to go . ..
PRACTICE EXERCISE 2
Turn the following sentences into Reported Speech.
1. "There are no mistakes at all in your exercise," Mr. Brown
said to James.
2. "It's going to be a lovely day," she said.
3. "I'm going to bed," said William. "I'm very tired."
4. " D o you know where Michael has gone?" said Mrs. Blyth
to her husband.
J 5. "How often do you have your hair cut?' my employer
asked me.
6. A tall man stopped me outside the station and said: "Are
you the man I've been told to meet here?"
10. " D o you know where Michael has gone?" said Mrs. Blyth
to her husband. "I'm getting worried about him."
11. " I ' m getting worried about Michael," said Mrs. Blyth to
her husband. " D o you know where he has gone?"
12. "Will you please buy a load of bread on your way home?"
Madeleine said as her husband left to go to the office.
13. "Let's have the outside of the house repainted," said Andrew.
14. "We're quite ready," Mrs. Blakeway said to the maid.
"Serve lunch as soon as you can."
15. "Serve lunch as soon as you can," Mrs. Blakeway said to the
maid. "We're quite ready."
16. " Y o u know," said Patricia, "I definitely need some new
dresses." {Careful!)
17. " I ' m sorry to have to say," said the manager to his secretary,
"that you have behaved—er—extremely foolishly."
18. "What is the time, please?" said Andrew.
19. " I t is time for you to go to bed," said his mother.
2 0 . " Michael may have gone to the cinema," said Mr. Blyth.
21. "They weren't there," said Susan. "They had already left
for the station."
22. " A t last," said my friend, "I can agree with what you are
saying." (Careful!)
16
THE INTERVIEW
23. "I should have done that," said Jonathan, "if it had been
possible."
24. "If I had won that lottery," said Robert, "I should have
bought a little house by the sea."
25. "We must get up early tomorrow," said Patricia to her
husband.
17
LESSON T W O
1. i.e. in London.
2. Literally: concerning beauty in nature, art, music, literature, etc.
3. Literally: splendid display (especially at a public event).
4. Literally: concerning something that must be kept secret.
5. a good-for-nothing fellow; a rogue; a rascal.
6. i.e. the servant who drove the family coach.
7. a broad, confidential smile.
8. i.e. looking as though he drank a lot of beer.
19
THE NEW INTERMEDIATE ENGLISH COURSE
EXERCISES
1. Make sentences freely with these words from the article:
efficient confusion vast grin vision
revolution twilight brutal wink lately
2. Explain the meaning of the following.
a. who was unfamiliar with travel (line 8).
b. it seems to soothe them (line 21).
c. with silent pomp (line 30).
d. . . . as if he were rather a scapegrace son returning to the
family (line 42).
e. The smell of my country smacked me in the face (line 45).
3. There is one adverb-particle in this article. Can you find it?
4. Give a synonym of each of these words, in the meaning in which
they are used in the article:
lately (line 1) pieces (lines 12) vast (line 25)
nuisance (line 6) right (line 16) pass (line 31)
exactly (line 6) proper (line 17) brutal (line 33)
particularly (line 9) examination (line 17) collected (line 35)
luggage (line 12) shed (line 24) sort (line 48)
5. Answer these questions as fully as you can:
a. Why were the Customs Houses a nuisance?
b. Precisely what was so different about them?
c. What was the same about them?
d. Why did the English lady remember the French Revolu-
tion?
e. Why did the French officials push, bang, shout and throw
luggage about like pieces of wood?
f. Why, a few minutes later, was everyone happy again?
g. Why did the French Custom House look like a shed?
1. i.e. "Yes, Sir. She's coming in here . . . yes, she's coming in." (Un-
educated dialect)
2. look bad-temperedly.
3. shut and open one eye quickly, as a private signal of amusement.
20
E N G L I S H M E N ABROAD
PRACTICE EXERCISE 3
(», In the following sentences, take away the expression It is
possible, and use may or might with a Perfect Infinitive
instead.
1. It's possible that Michael has arrived home by now.
2. It's possible Philip wanted to tell you something.
3. The ground is very damp. It's possible that it rained during
the night.
4. It's possible that they have not left yet.
5. It's possible that I left my cigarette case at your office.
(6) In these sentences, take away the expression It is as though
or It was as though, and use might with either a Simple or
Perfect Infinitive instead.
6. It is so warm today that it's as though it is the beginning of
summer.'
7. You looked at me so angrily! It was as though you wanted
to kill me.
8. Look at your room! It's as though there has been a revolu-
tion in it.
9. Oh, Peter, do be less clumsy! It's as though you are an
elephant, the way you move about.
10. You know, they haven't very much money, but from the
way they live, it's as though they are millionaires or as though
they've won a big lottery or something.
(c) Compose five sentences of your own with might as a sort of
protest.
(d) Compose five other sentences with might as a friendly type
of order or instruction.
PRACTICE EXERCISE 4
Put the following exclamations into Reported Speech.
1. " O u c h ! " said Oliver, as he hit his thumb with the hammer.
2. " O h dear!" said Billy, as his plate was put in front of him.
" N o t boiled beef again!"
3. "My word, you're strong!" said Anne, as Roger lifted the
heavy box.
4. "Nonsense!" Roderick said to me. "Complete rubbish!
Bosh!"
5. "A goddess!" murmured David, as Madeleine entered the
ballroom.
26
LESSON THREE
EXERCISES
1. Make sentences freely with these words from the article:
wild glacier vivid dairy jewel
precious hindrance detour meadow pool
landmark restless shelter mist refresh
1. a roundabout journey.
2. a field of grass.
3. a group of stars in the northern sky.
4. a long band of millions of stars stretching across the sky.
5. i.e. only a very small distance away.
29
THE N E W I N T E R M E D I A T E E N G L I S H COURSE
MR. P H A N O U R A K I S
ANONYMOUS
EXERCISES
1. Can you find the adverb-particles in this anecdote? There are 3.
2. a. From your memory, put, in the blank spaces below, the
prepositions (or adverb-particles) that were actually used by
the writer of the anecdote; and
b. Say what other prepositions (or adverb particles) could be
used.
Mr. Phanourakis knew no other language — his own but,
— the dignified self-confidence — a mountain villager, he made
his way easily — the ship. When the bell announced the
serving — lunch — his first day — board he found the number
— his table — the list — the dining-room and went straight —
his table while many — the other passengers crowded help-
lessly — the chief steward waiting to be told where their tables
were.
It was a small table — two. Mr. Phanourakis sat —. — a few
moments his table-companion arrived. "Bon appetit, m'sieur,"
he murmured, as he took the other chair.
Mr. Phanourakis looked — him quickly and then smiled.
1. i.e. people whom he knew.
32
MX. P H A N O U R A K I S
Line 59. We were wet as well as cold, for our clothing had
been made very wet by the mist.
When . ..
Line 45. We tried to clear a space to lie on but whenever we
moved a sharp stone we found a sharper one under-
neath.
Line 68. . . . and just as day was beginning to dawn, we had
a final drink . ..
Although . . .
Line 43. We decided to spend the night in the hollow, al-
though it seemed very stony and unattractive.
If...
Line 58. Even if our beds had been more comfortable, we
should have been awakened by the cold.
3. Noun Clauses
In the sentence, "William told James the time.", the word
time, one of the objects of the sentence, is of course a noun. In
the sentence, "William told James that it was five o'clock.", the
words that it was five o'clock are a clause—and, because they are
doing the same work as the noun time, they are a noun clause.
In line 9 we have, . . . the sinking sun warned us that it would
be impossible for us to reach San Martino. The words that it
would be impossible for us to reach San Martino are a noun clause.
Similarly, in I felt sure that our way lay across the foot of that
glacier (line 23), the words that our way lay across the foot of that
glacier are another noun clause.
Note that a noun clause does not always begin with that,
as the three examples above have done. There is one in line 27
which begins with what:... climbing and descending what seemed
a never-ending series of small hills.
Other characteristics of these three types of clauses will be
discussed in later lessons of this book.
PRACTICE EXERCISE 5
Find the clauses in the following sentences and say whether
they are adjective clauses, adverb clauses, or noun clauses.
1. Mr. and Mrs. Jenkins, whom we met yesterday, have asked
us for dinner.
2. I went to bed early last night because I was very tired.
3. Peter said that he would give it to me tomorrow.
4. Will you come and help me, when you have finished your
own work?
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THE NEW I N T E R M E D I A T E E N G L I S H COURSE
PRACTICE EXERCISE 6
From these sentences, take away the relative pronoun if it is
possible to do so.
1. Richard has bought a motor car which has a very powerful
engine.
2. Do you remember that funny man whom we met here last
year?
3. A cough which is purely nervous can be very annoying
sometimes.
4. This is the friend whom I spoke about.
5. This is the friend about whom I spoke.
6. That is the chair which he was sitting on.
7. We usually choose our friends from among people whose
interests are in some way similar to our own.
8. The law to which I refer was first discussed by Aristotle.
9. These cigarettes which you smoke are much lighter than the
one which I smoke.
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THE N E W I N T E R M E D I A T E E N G L I S H COURSE
10. The new maid whom we found last week is a very good cook.
11. I'm afraid that the vase which I've broken cannot be replaced.
12. Father, this is the man whom I want to marry, if you will give
your consent.1
13. Father, this is the man who wants to marry me, if you will
give your consent.
14. That car accident which you were in last week is going to
cause quite a lot of trouble.
15. That is the sort of house which I'd like to have.
3. MORE ABOUT INFINITIVES
Line 80. His sons . . . wanted him to spend his re-
maining years with them.
In languages which are inflected (i.e. where verbs, among other
things, have different endings according to whether they are used
with the 1st, or 2nd, or 3rd person) the word for him in the line
above might not be necessary.
English, however, is an uninfected language (except for the
" s " of the 3rd Person Singular of the Present Simple), and in
such a construction the him is absolutely necessary.
Look at the difference between:
"I" want to leave at once."
and: "I want you to leave at once."
him
or: "I want her to leave at once."
them
The pronouns you, him, her and them are the objects of the
verb want, but are the subjects of the verb to leave. In the first
example, "I want to leave at once.", the subject of to leave is,
of course, " I " .
1. permission.
38
LESSON FOUR
THE VOICE
BY V. S. P R I T C H E T T
1. a minister of religion.
2. i.e. the air-raid warden; a Civil Defence worker.
3. i.e. The Reverend—the title used by clergymen.
4. i.e. " I shouldn't be surprised to hear that the medals were gold."
5. Note: the word devil has no meaning here. This is simply an emphatic
way of saying: " What is he doing in there? "
6. thin but strong.
7. easily annoyed.
8. i.e. the final tragic happening.
9. i.e. had been destroyed.
10. i.e. called this (The Rev.) wrongly, without justification.
40
THE VOICE
1
virile, masculine, from verse to verse of the hymn. Shooting
50 up like a stem2 through the rubbish the voice seemed to rise
and branch out powerfully, luxuriantly and even theatri-
cally, like a tree, until everyone was in its shade. It was a
shade that came towards one like dark arms.
"All the Welsh can sing," the warden said. Then he
55 remembered that Lewis was Welsh also. " N o t that I've got
anything against the Welsh," the warden said.
The scandal of it, Lewis was thinking. Must he sing so
loudly, must he advertise himself? I locked up myself last
night. How the devil3 did he get in? And he really meant:
60 How did the devil4 get in?
To Lewis, Morgan was the nearest human thing to the
devil. He could never pass that purple-gowned figure,
sauntering5 like a cardinal6 in his skull cap on the sunny
side of the street, without a shudder of distaste and derision.
65 An unfrocked priest,7 his predecessor8 in the church,
Morgan ought in strict justice to have been in prison, and
would have been but for the kindness of the bishop. But this
did not prevent the old man with the saintly white head and
the eyes half-closed by the worldly juices of food and wine
70 from walking about dressed in his priest's clothes, like an
actor walking in the sun of his own vanity. It was terrible
but it was just 9 that the bomb had buried him; only the
malice of the Evil One10 would have thought of bringing the
punishment of the sinner upon the church as well. And now,
75 from the ruins, the voice of the wicked man rose up in all
the elaborate pride of art and evil.
proud voice, the voice of a man, a voice like a tree, the soul
of a man spreading in the air like the Cedars of Lebanon. 1
" Only one man have I heard with a bass 2 like that. Owen of
115 the Bank, at Newtown before the war. Morgan!" he shouted.
"Sing! God will forgive you everything, only sing 3 !"
One of the rescue party following behind the clergyman
in the tunnel shouted back to his mates :4
" I can't do anything. This bloke's blocking the gangway."5
120 Half an hour Lewis worked in the tunnel. Then an extra-
ordinary thing happened to him. The tunnel grew damp and
its floor went as soft as clay to the touch. Suddenly his
knees went through. There was a gap with a yard of cloth,
a curtain, or the carpet at the communion rail, hanging
125 through it. Lewis found himself looking down into the
blackness of the crypt.6 He lay down and put his head and
shoulders through the hole and felt about him until he
found something solid again. The beams7 of the floor were
sloping down into the crypt.
130 "Morgan. Are you there, man?" he called.
He listened to the echo of his voice. He was reminded of
the time he had talked into a tank when he was a boy. Then
his heart jumped. A voice answered him from out of the
darkness from under the fallen floor. It was like the voice of
135 a man lying comfortably and waking up from a snooze,8
a voice thick and sleepy.
"Who's that?" asked the voice.
"Morgan, man. It's Lewis. Are you hurt?" Tears pricked
the dust in Lewis's eyes and his throat ached with anxiety as
140 he spoke. Forgiveness and love were flowing out of him.
From below the deep thick voice of Morgan came back.
1. i.e. a group of nearly 400 trees, in the Lebanon, said to be between
4000 and 5000 years old. (A Cedar is a pine-like, evergreen tree, with
sweet-smelling wood.)
2. a low, deep-sounding voice.
3. i.e. ". ... if only you sing."
4. fellow-workers. (Colloquial)
5. i.e. "This man is in the way." (Slang)
6. an underground room below a church, usually used for burials.
7. long, heavy bars of wood, used in making ceilings and floors.
8. a short sleep.
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THE NEW I N T E R M E D I A T E E N G L I S H COURSE
" Y o u ' v e been a hell of a long time," it said. " I ' v e damn
near finished my whisky."
EXERCISES
1. Make sentences freely with these words from the story:
rescue release justice sinner snatch
destroy frown vanity elaborate chew
blink so-called malice wreckage prick
2. Explain the meaning of the following:
a. the church . . . broke the line of the street like a decayed
tooth (line 6).
b. in passive anger (line 13).
c. soon a tune became definite (line 19).
d. "That's Mr. Morgan all right." (line 30).
e. " N o t that I've got anything against the Welsh." (line 55).
f. The scandal of it, Lewis was thinking. (line 57).
g. eyes half-closed by . . . food and wine (line 69).
h. like an actor walking in the sun of his own vanity (line 70).
i. Forgiveness and love were flowing out of him (line 140).
j. "You've been a hell of a long time." (line 142).
3. Can you find the adverb-particles in the story? There are 25.
4. Make questions to which these sentences could be answers;
the information that is required is shown by the words in
italics:
a. The man buried under the debris was singing again.
b. Words became clear.
c. The buried man was singing a hymn.
d. He got silver medals for it.
e. He got silver medals for it. {Careful!)
f. I locked up at eight o'clock last night.
g. To Lewis, Morgan was the nearest human thing to the devil.
h. To Lewis, Morgan was the nearest human thing to the devil.
i. He ought in strict justice to have been in prison.
j. The bricks began to slide down.
k. The bricks began to slide down.
1. Cautiously he went to what was left of the hole.
m. He had stopped chewing and muttering.
n. Owen was the manager of the Bank.
o. Half an hour Lewis worked in the tunnel.
5. Punctuate the following passage, arrange it in paragraphs, and
put capital letters where necessary. (Do NOT look back at the
story until you have finished!)
44
THE V O I C E
the party above could do nothing morgan they heard him call,
its lewis were coming can you hear he shouted for an axe a n d
presently they heard him smashing with it. he was scratching
like a dog or a rabbit a voice like that to have stopped to have
gone, lewis was thinking how unbearable this silence was a
beautiful proud voice the voice of a man a voice like a tree the
soul of a man spreading in the air like the cedars of lebanon
only one man have i heard with a bass like that owen of the
bank at newtown before the war morgan he shouted sing god
will forgive you everything only sing one of the rescue party
following behind the clergyman in the tunnel shouted back to
his mates i cant do anything this blokes blocking the gang-
way.
(Lines 106-119)
6. Answer these questions as fully as you can:
a. Why did the policeman tell the crowd to keep quiet for five
minutes?
b. Why did the destroyed church break the line of the street
like a decayed tooth?
c. Why did heads turn in passive anger when the bus roared
by?
d. Why do you think the leader of the rescue party held back
the people who strained forward to hear the singing of the
buried man?
e. How did the warden recognise that the buried man was
Mr. Morgan?
f. Why do you think the Rev. Frank Lewis made the remark:
"Gold, I shouldn't wonder."?
g. Why did he look like an old man?
h. Why did it seem that everyone was in "the shade" of the
voice?
i. Why did the warden say that he had nothing against the
Welsh, when he remembered that Lewis himself was Welsh?
j. To Lewis, Morgan was the nearest human thing to the devil.
Why was he?
k. Why was Morgan not in prison, as he ought to have been?
1. Why do you think that Lewis suddenly began, in a frenzy,
to try to rescue Morgan?
m. Why couldn't the party above do anything to help him?
n. Why was he reminded, half an hour later, of having talked
into a tank when he was a boy?
o. Before Morgan spoke to him, he was feeling forgiveness
and love. What do you think he felt after Morgan spoke
to him? Why?
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THE N E W I N T E R M E D I A T E E N G L I S H COURSE
P R A C T I C E EXERCISE 7
Change the infinitives which are in parentheses in these sen-
tences into either the Past Continuous or the Past Simple,
according to your choice.
(You will be able to give more than one version for each
sentence.)
1. They (to sing) as they (to drive) back from their picnic in the
country.
2. Billy (not to make) the slightest sound while Miss Carson (to
spank) him.
3. The rain (to fall) in bucketfuls and the wind (to whistle)
through the old house.
4. The old man (to sleep) peacefully in spite of the fact that the
children (to make) a lot of noise.
5. Billy (to bang) his drum, Margaret and Susan (to have) an
angry quarrel and (to pull) each other's hair, and little Hugh
(to sing).
The words cinema (pictures),1 theatre and opera use the Defin-
ite Article the other way round; that is to say, when the places are
used for entertainment (i.e. their primary and basic purpose)
they generally take "the";
the cinema
e.g. "Let's go to the theatre tomorrow night, shall we?"
the opera
but: "The Committee has decided that our next political meet-
ing shall be held in a cinema or a theatre, instead of in the
open air. It poured with rain during our last meeting in
Hyde Park."
PRACTICE EXERCISE 8
In the blank spaces in these sentences, put either the Definite
Article, the Indefinite Article, or no article at all.
1. Of course he's having difficulty in finding a good job! He's
been in — prison three times for theft.1
2. I hope to go to Austria for some ski-ing — next Christmas.
3. Peter said: "I think that Roman Catholics go to — church
more often than the average Protestants."
4. Streiffer wrote his best works during — last four years of his
life.
5. Pamela was away from — school for most of — last month,
because she was rather ill. She was in — hospital for ten
days in fact.
6. Look at that awful spider on — bed! Do get rid of it quickly.
7. I met the Governor of — prison at the Bells' party — last
Thursday. He told me that he had been in the army until —
last December.
8. No, Mr. Forbes is not up yet. He always lies late in — bed
on Sundays.
9. You seem to have enjoyed your holiday on the Riviera. Will
you go there again — next summer?
10. Have you forgotten to put the stopper back on that medicine
bottle? The house smells like — hospital.
1. stealing.
50
LESSON FIVE
work than their own men and "had picked up the wrong
bather by mistake"!
Yours faithfully,
85 H. F. ELLIS.
EXERCISES
. Make sentences freely with these words from the letters:
helicopter float unconscious ridiculous busybody
rash ignore hysterical tide rubber
pilot manners harness obey draught
. Explain the meaning of the following:
a. That is as it may be (line 17).
b. to suit your convenience (line 18).
c. Quite apart from the question of good manners (line 26). *
d. to see about it (line 30).
e. by the way (line 37).
f. a much more commanding type (line 37).
54
LETTERS C O N C E R N I N G H E L I C O P T E R S
TWO P O I N T S O F G R A M M A R
1. ANOTHER USE OF THE INDEFINITE ARTICLE
Line 97. . . . a Mrs. Winsworth.
The Indefinite Article which is used here with the name of a
person gives the sense, roughly, of: somebody or other, whom you
yourself cannot be expected to know, whose name is Mrs. Wins-
worth.
It is a fairly common use. Here are a few other examples:
"A Mr. Richardson telephoned you just after you'd gone
out. He wouldn't say what he wanted. He'll ring again in
an hour."
{i.e. Somebody or other called Richardson. I personally
have no idea who he is. You may or may not know him.)
The accident was witnessed1 by a Miss Smith from Balham.
(A typical report in a newspaper.)
"A Mrs. Worthington lives in the house opposite, I'm
told. I don't know anything about her though, and I've
never met her."
If the Definite Article, on the other hand, is used with the name
of a person, a very different sense is created. We now understand
that the person is the famous one of that name;
e.g. " D o you see Maria Callas over there?"
"Where? You don't mean the Maria Callas, do you?"
(i.e. the famous opera singer)
"I met Albert Einstein when I was a boy."
"The Einstein? How interesting that must have been."
Note: In this sense, the word must always be pronounced
with the long " e " (as in she) whether it is followed
by a vowel or a consonant.
PRACTICE EXERCISE 9
Make two sentences of your own with:
(a) the special verb need with " t o " ;
(b) without " t o " ;
(c) the special verb dare with " t o " ;
and (d) without " t o " .
LETTER-WRITING
Like most languages, English has certain special "formalities"
about letter-writing. Opinions differ about some of them (and
American customs are not always the same as the English),
but if you follow these points of guidance you will always be
correct (in both countries).
1. If you are writing a letter from your home (and not, that is to
say, from your office or business), you must always write the
58
LETTERS C O N C E R N I N G H E L I C O P T E R S
Dear Sirs,
Would you please send me a few cuttings of whatever
Harris Tweed material you have in stock, together with
prices.
Yours faithfully,
Patrick Danielson
1. i.e. the language that uses such expressions as: "We beg to acknow-
ledge the favour of your esteemed letter of the 20th instant. . .", "Assuring
you of our best attention at all times, my dear sir, we beg to remain, yours
faithfully, etc.", "Yours obediently, etc.", "Yours respectfully, etc."
60
LETTERS CONCERNING HELICOPTERS
PRACTICE EXERCISE 10
Write three short letters according to the points of guidance
above. Write one letter that is on a personal subject, one that is
on a professional subject, and one that is on a business subject.
1. In England, that is to say; Esq. is rarely used in America.
61
THE NEW INTERMEDIATE ENGLISH COURSE
20 besides the white egrets there moved across it, in the pitiless
heat haze, a spark of purple flame. This flame seemed to
burn itself forward on the burning dust, quivering1 and dying
and brightening in the dazzling2 air until it became at last
a group of people : a solitary line of Burmese peasants,3 tiny
25 and brilliant in waistcloths of vermilion4 and violet, travel-
ling south to the villages of the river.
When Forrester turned over and lay on his back and
stretched his long legs and felt the sun strike down through
the brown canvas tent flap like an acetylene lamp6 through a
30 piece of gauze,6 the splintered glare clashed into white stars
on his eyeballs and jerked out of his body a new rush of
sweat. And when he moved as if to wipe it off with his hand
it was only to find that his hands, too, were streaming7 with
that small exertion. He lay for another moment or two
35 gasping for breath. Then he turned and lay right over on
his side, his face to the tent wall, away from the downward
glare of light, feeling immediately the slight relief brought
about by shadow. And as he did so he caught sight of
Blore.
Blore was sitting with cool immobility8 in the far corner
40 of the tent at a small table of teakwood, writing with spec-
tacled eyes held at a careful distance from the page. He was
still wearing his bush hat, the strap buckled under the chin,
and his face had something of the look of a pudding tied
with string. The table had been crudely9 made by Burmese
45 carpenters at the bazaar and it was now neatly filled with the
steady precautions of the older campaigner :10 the bottle of
yellow mepacrine tablets,11 the glass of salt water, the thermos
1. trembling; shaking.
2. i.e. so bright as to be almost blinding.
3. countrymen who work on the land.
4. a bright red colour.
5. i.e. a lamp that produces a hard white light.
6. thin, transparent, net-like material of cotton or silk,
7. i.e. covered with a stream of sweat.
8. i.e. not moving at all.
9. roughly.
10. soldier.
11. a medicine to prevent malaria.
64
THE REAL H E A T BEGINS IN J U N E
EXERCISES
1. Make sentences freely with these words from the extract:
scorch dissolve impression quiver precaution
dainty create spark dazzle heroism
ghostly illusion flame relief hostile
2. Explain the meaning of the following:
a. a sergeant kept a tame monkey (line 9).
b. the whole plain melted away under the glitter of dust and
sun (line 15).
c. it was always to create for Forrester (line 18).
d. jerked out of his body a new rush of sweat (line 31).
e. it was only to find (line 33).
f. sitting with cool immobility (line 39).
g. eyes held at a careful distance from the page (line 41).
h. There was a singular absence of heroism in Blore (line 48).
i. (His feeling against Blore,) in which was wrapped up his
feeling against the heat, the dust, etc. (line 81).
j. it had become boundlessly and personally hostile (line 84).
3. Can you find the adverb-particles in the extract? There are 15.
4. Here is a list of nouns and adjectives from the extract. Form
verbs from them and then make sentences with the verbs:
flock tame white breath hot
long explosion sweat relief intensity
dust impression exertion absence anger
1. i.e. the feeling of an enemy.
66
THE REAL HEAT BEGINS IN JUNE
PRACTICE EXERCISE 1 1
Compose sentences of your own which will be logical examples
of:
1. The Present Perfect Non-Continuous in the "Finished" Use.
2 in the "Unfinished" Use.
3. The Present Perfect Continuous in the "Finished Use.
4 in the "Unfinished" Use.
5. The Past Perfect Non-Continuous in the "Finished" Use.
6 in the "Unfinished" Use.
7. The Past Perfect Continuous in the "Finished" Use.
8 in the "Unfinished" Use.
PRACTICE EXERCISE 12
Compose five sentences of your own with the Present Con-
tinuous or the Present Simple and a period of time—to show
futurity.
70
LESSON SEVEN
EXERCISES
1. Make sentences freely with these words from the story:
hiss struggle transfer partially budge
stray wrench departure fasten lap
continual vanish line (verb) shock chuckle
2. Explain the meaning of the following:
a. a weakness for stray cats (line 7).
b. seized its chance (line 13).
c. in his shirt sleeves (line 17).
d. for sure (line 34).
e. within arm's length of it (line 41).
f. I'll fix him (line 52).
g. I hope you won't be airsick (line 65).
h. Enough is enough (line 83).
i. Lilian felt greatly relieved (line 114).
j. couldn't stand embassies (line 126).
3. Can you find the adverb-particles in the story? There are 17.
4. Look at the meanings in which these words are used in the
story, give the opposites of these meanings, and then make
sentences with the opposites:
normal (line 9) quiet (line 33)
wide (line 15) well-ventilated (line 58)
heavily (line 19) partially (line 62)
1. the front part of the legs between the knees and the body when a person
is sitting.
2. gave a low, quiet laugh.
75
THE NEW I N T E R M E D I A T E ENGLISH COURSE
o. Why did she think that he was teasing her when he said
the cat had slept the right on his stomach?
PRACTICE EXERCISE 13
Compose three sentences of your own with the Future Perfect
in the "Finished" Use, and three sentences with the Future Perfect
in the "Unfinished" Use.
2. A SPECIAL USE OF THE VERB "TO BE" IN
THE CONTINUOUS TENSES
Line 27. "It's being a bit obstinate."
We saw in Book One 2 that the verb to be has no continuous
tenses when it expresses a state, but that it is used in all con-
tinuous tenses when it forms the continuous passive of other
verbs.
1. i.e. an increase in his salary (the money he earns).
2. Page 158.
77
THE NEW I N T E R M E D I A T E ENGLISH COURSE
PRACTICE EXERCISE 14
Use a continuous tense or form of the verb to be in these
sentences instead of the verbs to behave, to act, to speak.
1. Why are you acting so coldly to me?
2. He is not speaking honestly about that.
3.1 think the President is speaking a bit ironically, don't you?
4. I don't like that woman. Did you see her behaving so arro-
gantly just then?
5. You are behaving very tenderly to me today! I wonder why?
6. The lecturer was speaking so boringly that I had to leave.
7. Don't think that I'm speaking cynically. I mean what I say.
8. The manager must be in a bad mood. Everybody is behaving
very carefully with him.
9. You're not a child, you know. Why on earth are you acting so
stupidly?
78
THE CAT U N D E R THE BED
81
LESSON EIGHT
BACK-STAGE TENSIONS
from The Times
EXERCISES
1. Make sentences freely with these words from the article:
gay happy-go-lucky fiction asset
impulsive mutiny offend accomplishment
2. Explain the meaning of the following:
a. It takes . . . a good deal to turn a chorus-girl sour (line 1).
b. one was brought up to believe (line 1).
1. valuable or useful thing, or quality, or skill.
2. one of two or more persons working together- and (usually) having
similar rank and duties.
3. "To send someone to Coventry":—an idiom meaning to refuse to
talk to someone, and to be silently unpleasant and unfriendly to him.
4. i.e. to accept the trouble as cheerfully as they can.
83
THE N E W INTERMEDIATE E N G L I S H COURSE
c. the sunniest nature (lien 6).
d. This sort of thing is constantly happening in fiction (line 11).
e. as near as makes no difference (line 14).
f. the more hopelessly confused one's values become (line 24).
3. Can you find the adverb-particles in this piece? There are 2.
4. Ignoring the special meaning of "various types of",1 say which
of the following nouns are countable, which are uncountable,
and which are countable in one meaning but uncountable in
another:
enthusiasm trouble difference costume part
profession cast player injustice experience
comedy fiction creature salary economist
5. Answer these questions as fully as you can:
a. Why does it take a good deal to turn a chorus-girl sour?
b. Why do you think that in almost all stories about chorus
girls the leading lady is shown to be like a devil in human
form?
c. Why could none of the girls perform the job that the horse
had been engaged to do?
d. Why must it be very annoying for a beautiful young lady to
receive a lower salary than an elderly horse?
e. Why does part of the horse's value lie in the fact that he can
be trusted not to do with his legs what a chorus girl does
with hers?
f. Why do you think there are so few horses with stage ex-
perience when there are thousands of chorus girls in the
world?
g. Why was this horse more indispensable than any of the
girls?
h. How do we know that the girls are well-practised in "the
first of these accomplishments"? (line 42)
AN E N G L I S H M A N ' S C H A I R
from The Times
In officers' and sergeants' messes,2 in clubs, and in
residential hotels, it is generally understood that certain
1. See page 88 of Book One again, if necessary.
2. military dining- and sitting-rooms.
84
AN E N G L I S H M A N ' S C H A I R
EXERCISES
1. Make sentences freely with these words from the second
article:
free-for-all householder instinctive master
self-respecting denial intruder
2. Explain the meaning of the following:
a. where guests come and go with some frequency (line 49).
b. the necessities of life (line 65).
c. An emphatic but hollow denial (line 71).
d. a spoilt old man (line 77).
3. Can you find the adverb-particles in this piece? There are 3.
4. Make sentences with nouns that can be made from these verbs
in the piece:
understand move come refuse select
reserve observe spring proceed glare
occupy happen offer stay settle
5. Answer these questions as fully as you can:
a. Why do guests come and go "with some frequency" in
country-house hotels?
b. Why is the rush from the dining-room not so blatant as the
free-for-all across the air-port tarmac?
c. What is the reason for the free-for-all across the tarmac?
d. Why is the rush from the dining-room just as purposeful?
e. Why does the evening proceed, a little while later, with the
fireside chairs left empty and with everybody sitting round
the sides of the room in comparative discomfort?
1. Literally: a person who has entered a place without an invitation.
Here: the person who is sitting in the chair which he should not be sitting in.
86
AN E N G L I S H M A N ' S C H A I R
PRACTICE EXERCISE 16
Compose three sentences of your own with "always" and the
Present Continuous, and three sentences with "always" and the
Past Continuous. (Make sure that the actions are in some way
unusual.)
PRACTICE EXERCISE 17
Compose three sentences of your own which could be examples
of this use of the Definite Article.
1st Step. Find the subject of the noun-clause and make it the
subject of the new passive sentence;
e.g. 1. The Prime Minister . . .
2. Henry Bradford . . .
3. The King . ..
2nd Step. Change the active main verb into the passive (in exactly
the same way as you do with the other method);
e.g. 1. The Prime Minister is said . . .
2. Henry Bradford is thought. . .
3. The King is expected . . .
3rd Step. Decide whether or not to put the subject of the whole
active sentence after by (in exactly the same way as
with the other method);
e.g. 1. The Prime Minister is said (by the radio) . . .
(Here it could be put in or left out, equally cor-
rectly.)
2. Henry Bradford is thought by most people . . .
(Here it is rather necessary.)
3. The King is expected . . .
(Here, it should not be used.)
4th Step. Omit the conjunction that.
5th Step. Change the verb of the noun-clause into an infinitive
form: 1
(i) a Perfect Infinitive if the time of this verb
is "earlier" than the time of the main verb of
the sentence;
(ii) a Simple Infinitive if its time is the same as
the time of the main verb;
(iii) a Simple Infinitive again if its time is "later"
than the time of the main verb;
e.g. (i) 1. The Prime Minister is said (by the radio) to
have gone . . .
(ii) 2. Henry Bradford is thought by most people to
be . . .
(iii) 3. The King is expected to open . . .
6th Step. Fill in all the other words that were in the active
sentence;
e.g. l. The Prime Minister is said (by the radio) to have
gone on holiday.
2. Henry Bradford is thought by most people to be
a genius.
1. See page 213 for table of infinitive forms.
D 89
THE NEW INTERMEDIATE ENGLISH COURSE
91
THE NEW INTERMEDIATE ENGLISH COURSE
In Book One,1 we saw that the form which is generally known
simply as the Present Participle (but which, in full, is the Active
Simple Present Participle) is often used for an action which hap-
pened (or happens) at the same time, or nearly the same time,
as another one;
e.g. "Putting on his hat and coat, he left the house."
"Good luck with the rabbits," I said, shaking him by the
hand.
And the Perfect Participle is used when the action had happened
(or has happened) before the other one;
e.g. "Having glided past a cold poem of mountains, I arrived
in Salzburg."
"Having got his university degree, he now has a very good
job."
The Passive Participles are used in the same way. If we have a
passive action which happened at the same time, or nearly the
same time, as another one, we simply use the Passive Present
Participle;
e.g. " Being faced by a sudden need for more money, William
took on some extra work at night."
And if the passive action had happened some time before the
other one, we put the Passive Participle into its Perfect form;
e.g. "Having been exhausted by the journey, I found my Salz-
burg hotel as quickly as possible and went to bed."
As with the active participles, the position of the subject is im-
portant. If it is a noun, two positions are possible:
e.g. "Being faced by a sudden need for more money, William
took on etc."
and, " William, being faced by a sudden need for more money,
took on etc."
But if it is a pronoun, only one position is permitted:
e.g. "Having been exhausted by the journey, I found etc."
not: "I, having been exhausted by the journey, found etc."
The Passive Participles have one extra characteristic: they may
be shortened to the Past Participle:
i.e. instead of "Being faced by a sudden need for more money,
William etc."
we may, if we wish, use only the Past Participle:
e.g. " Faced by a sudden need for more money, William etc."
1. Page 163.
92
AN ENGLISHMAN'S CHAIR
and instead of "Having been exhausted by the journey, I found
my Salzburg hotel etc."
we may, if we wish, have only:
"Exhausted by the journey, I found my Salzburg hotel etc."
Note carefully that this shortening is possible only with the
Passive Participles, not with the Active.
There are three examples of it in the second article:
Line 56. The people occupying the chairs, faced by the late
arrival etc.
Line 67. This arrangement, scrupulously if resentfully respected
by his family etc.
Line 73. . . . and his host, relegated to the sofa etc.
PRACTICE EXERCISE 19
A. Change the verbs that are in italics in these sentences into one
or other of their Passive Participles. Use both positions of the
subjects wherever it is possible to have two. Make whatever other
changes are necessary in the sentences.
1. The piano had been broken by the children, so it could not
be played at our party.
2. Barbara was suspected of being the thief, so she was arrested
by the police.
3. They had been delighted by the whole Festival. They de-
cided to go again the following year.
4. The car was completely destroyed in the accident. It was left
at the side of the road for several days as a warning to other
drivers.
5. Billy was severely spanked. He behaved quite well for the
next few hours.
6. The rabbits were frightened, so they ran away as fast as they
could.
7. Mary's diamond ring was stolen on Monday. It was found
by the police the next day. Very quick work, don't you think?
8. He is always moved on by the police when he tries to sell
his fruit and vegetables in the street, so he doesn't feel very
friendly towards them.
9. The streets have been decorated with flags. They look very
gay.
10. The small child was found alone in the park. He was taken
to the police station and given some hot food while a search
was made for his parents.
B. Now use only the Past Participle in place of the verbs in
italics. Use two positions again wherever possible.
93
LESSON NINE
ON LIVING AGAIN
BY " A L P H A OF THE P L O U G H "
church tower, and with the end of the journey in view, that
the question rises unexpected to the lips. The answer does
not mean that the journey has not been worth while. It only
means that the way has been long and rough, that we are
25 footsore and tired, and that the thought of rest is sweet. It
is Nature's way of reconciling us to 1 our common destiny.
She has shown her child all the pageant 2 of life, and now
prepares him for his 'patrimony of a little mould'. 3 Yes, it
is enough. We accept the verdict of mortality4 uncomplain-
30 ingly—indeed, we would not wish it to be reversed, even if
that were possible.
Now, this question must not be confused with that other,
rather foolish, question, "Is Life worth living?" The group
round the smoking-room fire would have answered that
35 question—if they had troubled to answer it at all—with an
instant and scornful "Yes". They had all found life a great
and splendid adventure; they had made good and whole-
some5 use of it; they would not surrender a moment of its
term or a fragment6 of its many-coloured experience. And
40 that is the case with all healthy-minded people. We may,
like Job, 7 in moments of depression curse the day when we
were born; but the curse dies on our lips. Swift,8 it is true,
kept his birthday as a day of mourning; 9 but no man who
hates humanity can hope to find life endurable, for the
45 measure of our sympathies is the measure of our joy in living.
Even those who take the most hopeless view of life are care-
ful to keep out of danger. A friend of mine told me recently
of a day he had spent with a writer famous for the gloomy10
philosophy of his books. In the morning the writer declared
EXERCISES
1. Make sentences freely with these words from the essay:
conspicuous downward fragment mourning short cut
unanimous reverse depression philosophy dreary
resemble surrender curse chill yearn
2. Explain the meaning of the following:
a. had achieved conspicuous success in life (line 1).
b. that very familiar question (line 7).
c. He had found one visit to the play enough (line 10).
d. the thoughts of youth are long, long thoughts (line 16).
e. the curse dies on our lips (line 42).
f. almost pathetic eagerness (line 53).
g. a thoroughly safe three-per-cent investment (line 68).
h. It is character which is destiny (line 76).
i. the brief adventure of time (line 83).
j. the ghosts of old memories (line 92).
3. Can you find the adverb-particles in this essay? There are 5.
1. time without end.
2. American essayist, 1809-1894.
3. sad because one is away from home.
4. have an extremely strong desire.
97
THE NEW I N T E R M E D I A T E E N G L I S H COURSE
PRACTICE EXERCISE 20
Change these "sorry" and "pity" sentences into "wish"
sentences.
1. I'm sorry that you've forgotten to bring enough money with
you.
2. It's a pity that I've only five shillings on me.
3. She was sorry that she'd been rude.
4. We're sorry that you haven't any time to spare. {Careful!)
5. I'm sorry that they're so late.
6. It's a pity that my watch has broken.
7. It's a pity that I can't repair it myself.
8. I'm sorry that I can't speak your language.
9. They're sorry that I didn't remember to give them the
message.
10. It's a pity that that car is so expensive.
11. I'm sorry that I don't know where she is.
12. Everybody is sorry that Timothy thinks so much of himself.
13. We were sorry that they hadn't kept our seats for us.
14. It's a pity that he won't come.
15. Billy thinks it's a pity he's so often spanked.
102
LESSON TEN
THE CAGE
BY DAL STIVENS
I kept asking her to marry me but all she'd say was, "My
father's a tiger." 1
"What if he is?" I'd tell her. "I'm not scared of any man."
She'd laugh at this and change the subject and I'd get no
5 further. Then one day after I'd asked her again to marry me,
she said:
"All right, Paul. I'll take you to him."
She did, and it was just as she'd said. Her father was a
tiger. "Felis tigris.2 Indian male, 3 years," said the sign on
10 the cage at the circus.3
" Father, this is Paul," she said, going right up to the bars.
" He wants to marry me."
The tiger growled. At least, that's how it sounded to me,
but Hatty pinched my arm. "He's going to be friendly,
15 Paul," she said. The tiger got up, shook his huge orange
head and rubbed his whiskered nose against the bars. I
looked a foot4 deep into his large yellow eyes.
"I give my consent," said the tiger," but on one condition.
I've got to give her away." 5
1. Lit.: a large fierce animal of Asia, yellow-skinned with black stripes.
Fig.: a fierce, frightening person.
2. i.e. tiger (zoological name).
3. a place of entertainment with performing animals, etc.
4. Lit: twelve inches. Here: very deeply.
5. i.e. I must be at the wedding to give my formal consent in public.
103
THE NEW I N T E R M E D I A T E ENGLISH COURSE
EXERCISES
1. Make sentences freely with these words from the story:
friendly massive ceremony assure occasion
condition hire invariably observe quote
stretch swish custom cautious tedious
2. Explain the meaning of the following:
a. I'd get no further (line 4).
1. not clear-headed.
2. i.e. He didn't do anything wrong.
3. i.e. He knew very well what he had to do and how he had to behave.
4. i.e. It did not seem correct or proper.
5. i.e. "Yes, I agree."
6. Lit.: following. Here: continuing with.
7. repeats words used by someone else.
8. Lit.: lovingly puts one's arms round someone.
9. Lit.: dull; monotonous; Here: irritating; not at all amusing.
105
THE NEW I N T E R M E D I A T E ENGLISH COURSE
b. I looked a foot deep into his large yellow eyes (line 17).
c. Human, but throaty (line 24).
d. I was to give him (line 36).
e. he was wide awake (line 41).
f. no occasion for anxiety (line 53).
g. I waited for him to make the first move (line 59).
h. Well, that's that (line 62).
i. His visits have become more widely spaced (line 69).
j. "He who marries embraces a tigress." (line 73).
3. Can you find the adverb-particles in this story? There are 8.
4. Change these sentences into Reported Speech:
a. She said: "My father's a tiger."
b. "I'll take you to him," she said to me.
c. "I give my consent," said the tiger, "but on one condition.
I've got to give her away."
d. "I hope you don't fool around with Black Magic," he said.
e. He said to me: "I did."
f. "He won't say any more," she said.
g. "Did you notice that he was purring?" she said to me.
h. "You know, of course, you have to let me out for the
ceremony?" he said to me. (Careful!)
i. "There's no occasion for anxiety," said the tiger.
j. "Well, that's that," I said.
5. "He who marries embraces a tigress" is an Indian proverb.
Here are 10 common English proverbs. What do you think
they mean?
a. An apple a day keeps the doctor away.
b. Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy
and wise.
c. Rome was not built in a day.
d. When in Rome, do as the Romans (do).
e. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
f. A bad workman finds fault with his tools.
g. A friend in need is a friend indeed.
h. Many hands make light work.
i. Necessity is the mother of invention.
j. It takes two to make a quarrel.
6. Answer these questions as fully as you can:
a. Why did Hatty always change the subject when Paul said
he was not afraid of any man?
b. Her father had been turned into a tiger. Why had this
happened?
106
THE CAGE
c. Why do you think the tiger was purring as Hatty and Paul
left him?
d. Why did Paul have to hire the tiger for the following day?
e. Why did it take six men a couple of hours to get the tiger
up to Paul's apartment?
f. Why did Paul hurry away the next morning to buy another
thirty pounds of horsemeat?
g. The tiger said there was no occasion for anxiety, but Paul
gave him the extra thirty pounds all the same. Why?
h. Why was the tiger muzzy when he went to sleep in the sun-
light?
i. Why was the tiger later let out of the cage?
j. Why did Paul think it was "hardly the thing" to ask the
tiger, when the wedding was over, to get back into his cage?
k. Why did he suddenly push Hatty into the cage?
1. In line 63, Paul says, "My father-in-law who was the tiger,
etc." Why does he use was? What do you think happened
to the tiger after Hatty and Paul had locked themselves in
the cage?
m. And what do you think happened to Hatty and Paul when
they were inside the cage?
n. Why do you think the father-in-law's visits have recently
become more widely spaced?
o. Why do you think Hatty and Paul are beginning to find
him rather tedious?
Exactly the same principle applies if we have the last month, the
last year, etc.
NOTE: When we have the Definite Article in these expressions,
the word past may be used, if we wish, instead of the word last;
e.g. the past week, the past month, etc. (It cannot, of course, be
used when we have not the Definite Article.)
e.g. . . . but the last month his visits have become more widely
spaced, (line 69)
and: " Patricia was here with us last week."
but: "Patricia has been here with us the last (past) week."
The reason for this difference of tense is explained below.
Part B
When we studied the use of the perfect tenses, we saw that a
period of time is a very important matter because:
(a) a perfect tense without a period is in its "Finished" Use;
(b) a perfect tense with a period is in its "Unfinished" Use.
This does not mean, however, that periods are used only with
perfect tenses. They are used also with simple tenses, of course.
We have already seen an example of the future meaning that is
made when we put a period with the Present Simple or Present
Continuous:
"We are staying here for about a month."
(Lesson Six, page 69)
Here are some more examples of periods used with tenses that
are not perfect:
" I t took three years to build that hotel."
"The train was over an hour late today."
"He'll go to Paris next month and stay there for a year."
"Do you know that you kept me awake for several hours
last night, with all that noise you were making?"
"A Harris tweed jacket generally lasts for a long time."
And now for the periods that are used with perfect tenses.
These have certain special characteristics—and deserve special
names:
(i) if they are used with Present Perfect tenses, let us call them
Present-Perfect Periods;
(ii) if they are used with Past Perfect tenses, let us call them
Past-Perfect Periods;
(iii) if they are used with Future Perfect tenses, let us call them
Future-Perfect Periods.
What are their special characteristics?
(i) Present-Perfect Periods.
These are periods which started in the past and which have not
finished yet.
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THE NEW I N T E R M E D I A T E E N G L I S H COURSE
We have already seen three examples: the last week, the last
month, the last year. Let us have a look at some more:
"For the last {past) six weeks
"For four months up to today Tom has been in hospital,
"From then till now (i.e. and he is still in
"Since the beginning of April hospital now.)
Do you remember the example in Lesson Six (line 6): ". . . the
great plain where for three years no rice had grown"? That is to
say, for three years up to that moment.
110
THE CAGE
(iii) Future-Perfect Periods.
In exactly the same way, these are periods which will have
started before some date or time in the future and which will not
have finished on that date or at that time in the future;
for five days."
e.g. "By next Christmas Day Tom for a fortnight.''''
will have been in hospital for a month."
for nearly six weeks."
Let us look at this, too, in a diagram:
When you have a period in your mind you must make sure
whether it is one of the Perfect Periods, or not. If it is, remember:
(i) a Present-Perfect Period must have a Present Perfect
Tense;
(ii) a Past-Perfect Period must have a Past Perfect Tense;
(iii) a Future-Perfect Period must have a Future Perfect Tense;
—and whether the perfect tenses are continuous or non-
continuous will depend only on logic.
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THE NEW INTERMEDIATE E N G L I S H COURSE
PRACTICE EXERCISE 21
A. Here are five sentences with Perfect Periods. Decide whether
the periods are Present-Perfect Periods, Past-Perfect Periods
or Future-Perfect Periods, and then change the infinitives
which are in parentheses into the suitable tenses.
1. By the time their first child was born, they (to be) married
for three years.
2. I (to wait) for you for over half an hour now.
3. By the end of this year, Paul (to study) English for four years.
4. Mary (to write) letters for the last three and a half hours.
5. When Andrew was made a director, he (to work) for the
company for only three years.
B. Here are five sentences with periods that are not perfect.
Change the infinitives which are in parentheses into suitable
tenses that are not perfect.
6. Many years ago, Ian (to spend) a month in Sinkiang.
7. I (to stay) in Florence next month for ten days.
8. She had a bad night last night. She (to lie) awake for several
hours.
9. It (to rain) last week for three days without stopping.
10. The doctor has a patient with him at the moment. You (to
wait) for a little while?
C. And here are ten sentences with a mixture of Perfect Periods
and periods that are not perfect. Change the infinitives which
are in parentheses into suitable tenses.
11. By last Easter, we (to live) in this flat for just one year.
12. Years ago, we (to have) a similar flat in Vienna for several
years.
13. Hatty and I (to be) in this cage since our wedding.
14. Hatty and I (to be) in this cage for over six months now.
15. Up to the time I met Hatty, my father-in-law (to be) a tiger
for four years.
16. I wonder how long we (to stay) in this cage before he changes
us back into human form.
17. Up to the time he was changed into a tiger, my father-in-law
(to play) with Black Magic for only six weeks.
18. During the last war, Philip (to be) in the Navy for three
years.
19. Martin is the Governor of a prison. By the end of next
month, he (to have) that position for ten years.
112
THE C A G E
20. I hope the doctor will be free soon. I'm in an awful hurry,
but I (to wait) for another ten minutes or so.
PRACTICE EXERCISE 22
Make Confirmative "Question" Expressions for these state-
ments:
1. " R i c h a r d h a s lost his w a t c h . " "__ ___?"
2. " I haven't done that j o b very well." "__ ___?"
3. " Y o u haven't done that j o b very well." "__ ___?"
4. " T h e i r parties are usually very gay." "__ ___?"
5. " I t isn't very pleasant t o d o t h a t . " "__ ___?"'
6. " I t ' s very pleasant to do t h a t . " "__ ___?"
7. " Y o u ought t o have your hair cut, d e a r . " "__ ___?"
8. " T h e r e are t o o m a n y chairs in this r o o m . " "__ ___?"
9. " T h e r e a r e n ' t enough chairs in this r o o m . " "__ ___?"
10. " I might start learning the p i a n o s o o n . " "__ ___?"
11. " T h e Blakeways used to live t h e r e . " "__ ___?"
12. " Y o u needn't write that letter n o w . " "__ ___?"
13. " I ' v e written it myself." "__ ___?"
14. " I ' m going to the m o o n one of these d a y s . " "__ ___?"
15. " I h o p e t o g o t o the m o o n when I grow u p . " "__ ___?"
115
LESSON ELEVEN
80 country ; and Nicollier, the farmer with whom she had made
friends at the village fête, had expressed in a different tongue
precisely the same feelings and opinions as Tom Iggulsden.1
If only, she thought, sipping her black coffee, one could
somehow get them together—not the statesmen and the
85 diplomats, but Toby and Hansi, Iggulsden and Nicollier. If
only all governments would spend the price of a few bombers
on exchanging for the holidays, free of charge, a certain
number of families from each district. . .
The attendant brought her bill. She paid it, burying her
90 last thought as a dog buries a bone, to be returned to later.
They had passed Boulogne now and were on the last lap of
the journey to Calais. As one does when there are only a
few minutes to go and it is not worth while embarking2 on
anything new, she let her gaze wander round the carriage,
95 idly seeking the titillation3 of the printed word. On the
window-sill she read :—
Ne pas se pencher en dehors.4
Nicht hinauslehnen.5
E pericoloso sporgersi.6
100 Exactly, she thought. "What I say three times is true." 7
But the trouble was, it still had to be said in three different
languages. . . .
EXERCISES
1. Make sentences freely with these words from the story :
shrewd request adjust overhear precise
drive solitary essential dodge embark
regret parallel spirit link wander
1. i.e. a farmer whom she knew in her own country.
2. Lit.: going on board a ship. Fig. (as here): beginning to do something.
3. a pleasant stimulation of the mind (or the appetite).
4. French)
5. Do not lean out of the window. German)
6. Italian)
7. A child s saying.
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THE NEW I N T E R M E D I A T E E N G L I S H COURSE
2. Explain the meaning of the following:
a. in her mind's eye (line 3).
b. to see that Alison was happily established (line 9).
c. to see her off (line 10).
d. for the space of a breath or two (line 14).
e. hedgeless fields like foreheads without eyebrows (line 19).
f. they have adjusted their lives a little to your absence (line
26).
g. for the life of you you cannot tell them (line 29).
h. they do not really take in what you are saying (line 34).
i. they know quite well (line 40).
j. like the earthbound spirit of one who has recently died
(line 48).
k. a day or two's distant politeness (line 58).
1. Her heart turned over (line 63).
m. hard ones at that (line 74).
n. a few minutes to go (line 93).
o. the titillation of the printed word (line 95).
3. Can you find the adverb-particles in the story? There are 7.
4. In line 50, we have: "Glancing up at the clock . . ." Although
the verb to glance belongs to the "family" of the verb to look, it
is not a synonym because it means to look quickly, to take a quick
look.
Here are some other verbs which belong to the '"family" of to
look but are not synonyms. Explain their precise meanings, and
then make sentences with them to illustrate these meanings:
stare watch peep glimpse
gaze regard peer glare
5. Make a summary in about 70 words of the meaning of the 5th
paragraph of the story (i.e. from line 67 to line 82). It will be
accessary, of course, for you to use many of the words of the
paragraph, but do not use whole phrases and clauses; use your
own words and expressions, as far as possible.
6. Answer these questions as fully as you can:
a. Why had Mrs. Miniver travelled out to Switzerland with
her niece?
b. What could be one reason why Mrs. Miniver stayed at a
pension in the village and not at the house of the Swiss family
to which the niece had gone?
c. Why do you think the solitary porter had a grass stalk
between his teeth?
120
M R S . MINIVER COMES BACK FROM ABROAD
Why did the moon look like a vast snow-ball which was
about to roll down the glacier?
Why are you always "something of a ghost" when you
return home from a strange place?
Why does it take a day or two for you to feel that you are
really home?
Why did Mrs. Miniver smile when she heard Hansi's
mother asking him if he had cleaned his teeth?
Why are the links stronger between people of the same
calling than between people of the same race?
Mrs. Miniver wished that one could get the Iggulsdens and
the Nicolliers together—but not the statesmen and the
diplomats. Why not the statesmen and the diplomats?
Why should one not put one's head out of a railway-
carriage window?
E 121
THE NEW I N T E R M E D I A T E ENGLISH COURSE
PRACTICE EXERCISE 23
Use will, with Simple or Perfect Infinitives, instead of the ex-
pressions with the verb to suppose in these sentences.
1. I'd like to buy that painting, but I suppose that it is fearfully
expensive.
2. I suppose that Mummy is getting lunch ready now.
3. I suppose that this crossword puzzle is rather too difficult
for me.
4. I suppose that my husband is at his club.
5. I suppose that your children are quite grown-up now.
6. Listen to that awful noise outside the house. I suppose they
have begun to repair the road.
7. He looks very tired this morning. I suppose he was very late
getting to bed.
8.I suppose the Smiths were the first to leave.
9. I suppose that Hugh passed his examinations very easily, as
usual.
10. I suppose that young Billy has been a bad boy again.
11. I suppose that the flowers in the garden are enjoying this
rain.
12. I suppose they took a taxi. They left here so late.
13. I suppose that Mary is upstairs, doing her homework.
14. I suppose that Father is resting now.
15. It's curious that the Pattersons haven't come. I suppose they
forgot the invitation.
RIEN NE VA PLUS 1
BY ALEXANDER W O O L L C O T T
EXERCISES
1. Make sentences freely with these words from the story :
disastrous breathless automatic limply notify
boredom fateful behave formality trick
pile grandeur coincidence rush restore
2. Explain the meaning of the following:
a. a final disastrous turn of the wheel (line 8).
b. With all eyes on him (line 27).
c. reached for his wallet (line 29).
1. police (French), 2. i.e. gaiety. 3. i.e. money.
128
R I E N NE VA P L U S
d. behaving like any desperate young man in a play (line 36).
e. with empty pockets (line 53).
f. this trick must be in progress (line 57).
g. Notified in due course (line 61).
h. alive with new excitement (line 67).
i. somebody or other (line 69).
j. apparently restored in spirits, and certainly restored in
funds (line 70).
3. Can you find the adverb-particles in the story? There are 4.
4. Make sentences with the opposites of these words from the
story :
fair (hair) noticeable enough limply hurry
lose boredom push dark (stain) due
final add (his) back whisper missing
5. (a) In the story, the following paragraph has only the Past
Simple and Past Perfect tenses. First, change the infinitives
into one or other of these two tenses :
Notified in due course, the gendarmerie (to go) to the
beach in search of the body. But there (to be) none. After
further search, the official from the Casino, who himself
(to put) ten thousand francs into the pocket of the now
missing suicide, (to return) at last to the Casino and (to
find) it alive with new excitement. It (to seem) that the
young American with the fair hair—the one somebody or
other inaccurately (to report) as killed—(to reappear)
apparently restored in spirits, and certainly restored in
funds. He (to bet) tremendously on only three turns of the
wheel, and (to leave) with a hundred thousand francs.
The attendants (to assume) that he simply (to go) out to
dinner. At least the careless fellow (to spill) some tomato
sauce on his shirt-front.
(b) Now imagine that this is part of a play or a film that is
going to be produced. You are the producer, and you are
telling one of the actors about it before it happens. All the
tenses will now change into the Future Simple and Future
Perfect; e.g. Notified in due course, the gendarmerie will have
gone to the beach in search of the body. But there will be
none . . . Change the rest of the tenses yourself.
6. Answer these questions as fully as you can :
a. Why do you think that the writer and his friends were
talking about suicide as they sat at dinner?
b. What could be one reason why the young American was
wearing evening dress?
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THE NEW INTERMEDIATE ENGLISH COURSE
TWO P O I N T S O F G R A M M A R
1. THE "-ING" FORM OF A VERB (PART FOUR)
The "Absolute" Participle
Line 46. The young man lay on his back, one
outstretched hand limply holding the
revolver . . .
An "Absolute" Participle is simply a present participle which
has a subject that is different from the subject of the principal verb.
Let us take a simpler example than the one above:
"The day being wet, Mary did not wear her new shoes."
What is the subject of the principal verb did not wear?
It is Mary.
130
RIEN NE VA P L U S
What is the subject of the participle being?
It is The day.
Thus, because it has a separate, different subject, being
is an "Absolute" Participle here.
Another example:
"The children were very happy, the holidays having begun.
The children and the holidays. Different subjects.
Having begun is therefore an "Absolute" Participle.
Now look again at the example about the young man and the
hand that held the revolver. The subjects are different: holding
is therefore an "Absolute" Participle.
There are two points of importance about the "Absolute"
Participle:
1. The subject of the Participle must be put in front of the
Participle;
e.g. "The day being wet . . ."
NOT: "Being wet the day . . . "
(This is different from the ordinary use when we have
a noun as the subject of both the principal verb and
the participle—and therefore two positions of the
subject are possible; 1
e.g. "Being faced by a sudden need for more money,
William took on some extra work at night."
and: " William, being faced by a sudden need for
more money, took on some extra work at
night.")
2. It is never separated from its subject by a comma;
e.g. ". . . the holidays having begun."
(And this is different from the ordinary use, too;
e.g. "William, being faced etc.").
132
RIEN NE VA PLUS
Here is another example of a "misrelated" participle :
"Being new and expensive shoes, Mary did not want to
wear them on such a wet day."
The comic meaning of this is that Mary herself was a pair of
new and expensive shoes! To make the sentence correct, we must
use the "Absolute" Participle Construction again:
"The shoes being new and expensive, Mary did not want to
wear them on such a wet day."
PRACTICE EXERCISE 24
Here we have ten "misrelated" participles. Make the sentences
correct by using the "Absolute" Participle Construction. (In some
cases, you will have to use your imagination to find the proper
subject for the "Absolute" Participle.)
1. Patrick missed the first train, and was disappointed by the
second. Being full, he had to stand all the way.
2. Weighing about twenty pounds, Robert was glad when
someone offered to help him carry the box.
3. Having been cooked by his aunt, a wonderful cook, Billy
ate everything on his plate.
4. Being such a smart mackintosh, Helen never minds if it is a
rainy day.
5. Being a mower 1 driven by a motor, John finds it much
easier to mow2 the lawn nowadays.
6. Being a very large lawn, it still takes him over an hour to
mow it, even with the motor-mower.
7. Being wet, David took his umbrella.
8. Being midnight, we all went to bed.
9. Painted bright red, Philip can always find his bicycle quickly
among all the others outside the workshop.
10. Being so expensive, I couldn't buy it. (Very careful!)
i.e. . . . Rosenkavalier'."
137
LESSON THIRTEEN
From where she was sitting, Mrs. Bidwell could not see
her husband, but she had a curious feeling of tension: she
knew he was up to something.1
"What are you doing, George?" she demanded, her eyes
5 still on her book.
"Mm?"
"What's the matter with you?"
"Pahhhhh-h-h," said Mr. Bidwell, letting out his breath
slowly and with great pleasure. "I was holding my breath."
10 Mrs. Bidwell twisted in her chair and looked at him; he
was sitting behind her in his favourite place under the lamp
with the street scene of old New York on it. "I was just hold-
ing my breath," he said again.
"Well, please don't do it," said Mrs. Bidwell, and went
15 back to her book. There was silence for five minutes.
"George!" said Mrs. Bidwell.
"Bwaaaaaa," said Mr. Bidwell. "What?"
"Will you please stop that," she said. "It makes me ner-
vous."
20 "I don't see how it bothers you," he said. "Can't I
breathe?"
1. i.e. doing something that he shouldn't be doing.
138
THE P R I V A T E L I F E OF MR. B I D W E L L
"You can breathe without holding your breath like a
goop," 1 said Mrs. Bidwell. " G o o p " was a word that she
was fond of using; she rather lazily applied it to everything.
25 It annoyed Mr. Bidwell.
"Deep breathing," said Mr. Bidwell, in the impatient
tone he used when explaining anything to his wife, "is good
exercise. You ought to 2 take more exercise."
"Well, please don't do it around me," said Mrs. Bidwell,
30 turning again to her book.
when she said she would leave him if he didn't stop those
horrible breathing noises?
j. Why did he then try to look surprised and hurt?
k. At the next party, he tried to let out his breath without her
noticing it. Why did he do this?
1. Why did she ask him to lower his voice when he told her
to let him alone?
m. At the third party, he looked at her vacantly when she asked
him what he was doing. Why did he look vacant?
n. Later that night, while undressing for bed, Mr. Bid well
calmly multiplied numbers in his head and paid no atten-
tion to his wife. Why didn't he pay any attention to her?
o. Why doesn't he go to parties any more?
TWO P O I N T S O F G R A M M A R
1. MORE ABOUT "WILL" AND "WOULD"
The Various Forms of Requests
Line 18. " Will you please stop that," she said.
Line 89. " Will you please lower your voice 1 ?"
The first thing that must be said here is that the plain impera-
tive (e.g. "Stop that!", "Lower your voice!") is not & request;
it is an order, a command, and is much too abrupt for ordinary,
polite use.
The request form with "Will you .. ." is the one which is most
commonly used among members of the family and close friends,
and when speaking to subordinates;
e.g. " Will you lend me your pencil, please, Daddy?"
" Will you please type these letters as quickly as you can,
Miss Smith?"
The form "Would you . . ." is also often used in the family
and so on;
e.g. " Would you lend me your pencil, please, Daddy?"
" Would you please type these letters as quickly as you
can, Miss Smith?"
When, on the other hand, we are speaking to people who are
not members of the family, close friends, and so on, we should
always prefer the form with "Would you . . .". It is "softer",
more polite, than the form with " Will you . . ." (in the same way
as "Could you lend me five pounds?" is "softer" than " Can you
lend me five pounds?").
1. A question mark in requests may be used, or omitted, at will.
144
THE PRIVATE LIFE OF MR. BIDWELL
PRACTICE EXERCISE 25
Change these plain imperatives into the two familiar forms of
request (i.e. "Will you . . ." and "Would you like to . . .") and
the four "softer" forms with "Would you . . .".
1. Close the door.
2. Give me that newspaper.
3. Walk as quietly as you can.
4. Let me sit down.
5. Turn on the light.
PRACTICE EXERCISE 2 6
Test your existing knowledge by putting either to do or to make
(in their suitable tenses or forms) into the blank spaces below.
1. Twelve plus thirteen — twenty-five.
2. Have you — a lot of work today?
3. They seem to be — a lot of alterations to their house.
4. Don't — any noise when you come home tonight.
5. No, I didn't — anything at all last night. I was so tired that
I went straight to bed.
6. You must take this medicine. I know it's nasty but it will
— you good.
7. The medicine is nasty, I know, but it will — you well again.
8. Have you — the beds yet?
9. Miss Smith, this letter is typed very badly. Will you — it
again, please?
10. I must have a new suit —.
INVITATIONS
As we have seen, Mr. and Mrs. Bidwell went to a good many
parties.
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THE NEW I N T E 1 M E D I A T E E N G L I S H COURSE
148
THE PRIVATE LIFE OF MR. BIDWELL
Note. (1) The hand-written "black tie" means that a man must
wear "dinner-jacket" 1 evening dress. (If the words "full
evening dress" are written on the card, a man must
wear "tails". Unless, however, the dinner is followed.
by a dance, or is a very formal reception of some
sort, it is rare today to be asked to wear "tails" in
England.)
(2) The printed R.S.V.P. (short for the French "Répondez
s'il vous plait.") asks us to reply to the invitation. (Mot
all invitation cards have this; an invitation to a large
reception that celebrates a country's National Day,
for example, very often omits it. In such cases, we
make no reply at all, whether we intend to accept or
not.)
(3) On an invitation to a cocktail party, the letters R.S.V.P.
are often crossed out and the words Regrets only are
written above them (usually with a telephone number).
This means that we must telephone our apologies (i.e.
our regrets) only if we cannot accept the invitation.
(If there is no telephone number, we must write
our apologies, in the third person; see the example
below.)
151
LESSON FOURTEEN
IN DEFENCE OF WASPS
BY " A L P H A OF THE P L O U G H "
1. i.e. angry complaints are being made against him; unkind things are
being said about him.
2. i.e. producing large numbers of other wasps.
3. i.e. to be executed; to be put to death.
4. portion; amount.
5. polite; well-behaved.
6. walks very unsteadily, as a result (usually) of drunkenness or illness.
152
IN DEFENCE OF WASPS
50 thank you. Let us eat, drink, and be merry, he says, for to-
morrow .. . 1 He runs through his little fortune of life at top
speed, has a wonderful time in August, and has vanished
from the scene by October, leaving only the queen behind
in some safe and comfortable place to raise a new family of
55 20,000 or so next summer.
But I repeat that he is inoffensive2 if you let him alone.
Of course, if you hit him he will hit back, and if you attack
his nest he will defend it. But he will not go for you 3 un-
provoked 4 as a bee sometimes will. Yet he could afford this
60 luxury of unprovoked warfare much better than the bee, for
unlike the bee, he does not die when he stings. I feel that I
can speak of the relative habits of wasps and bees, for I've
been living in the midst of them. There are fifteen hives in
the orchard, 5 with an estimated population of a quarter of a
65 million bees, and tens of thousands of wasps about the cot-
tage. I find that I am never deliberately attacked by a wasp,
but when a bee begins circling around me I flee6 for shelter.
There's nothing else to do. For, unlike the wasp, the bee's
hatred is personal. It dislikes you as a person for some un-
70 explainable reason, and is always ready to die for the satis-
faction of its anger. And it dies in very large numbers. The
expert, who has been taking honey-sections from the hives,
showed me her hat just now. It had nineteen stings in it.
It is not only in his liking for beer that the wasp resembles
75 man. Like him, too, he is an omnivorous7 eater. If you don't
pick your pears in the nick of time8 he will eat them all.
He loves butcher's meat, raw or cooked, and I like to see
the workmanlike way in which he cuts off his little joint 9 ,
usually fat, and flies away with it for home. But his real
PRACTICE EXERCISE 27
Freely compose five sentences of your own with this special
use of the Definite Article.
2. MORE ABOUT "WILL"
In Book One, 1 we saw that would, in all persons, is often used
to express something that was repeated or habitual in the past.
e.g. " Until a year or so ago, Timothy would walk all the way
to his office every day, instead of taking the bus."
Something that is repeated or habitual in the present is usually
expressed with the Present Simple tense;
e.g. "Roger goes to his club to play bridge every Tuesday
evening."
—but it can also be expressed with will, in all persons;
e.g. " Roger will go to his club to play bridge every Tuesday
evening."
(There is no danger of our misunderstanding this as a
statement of futurity; the expression every Tuesday evening
clearly shows that it is something repeated and habitual
in the present.)
There are quite a lot of examples in the essay; here are a few:
Line 29. A fly will trust nobody and nothing, and has a vision...
Line 31. . . . a wasp will walk into any trap . . .
Line 32. . . . he will never have the sense to walk out the way
he went in.
Line 58. . . . h e will not go for you unprovoked as a bee
sometimes will.
Line 91. He will help a fellow in trouble.
PRACTICE EXERCISE 28
Freely compose five sentences of your own with this special
use of will.
3. ANOTHER NOTE ABOUT REPORTED SPEECH
Line 89. There goes a whole generation of flies,
said I, nipped in the bud.
This seems to break all the rules we studied in Lesson One. It
seems to be neither Direct Speech (there are no inverted commas),
nor Reported Speech as we are accustomed to it.
1. Page 171.
158
IN DEFENCE OF WASPS
160
LESSON FIFTEEN
You can say what you like, but the fact remains that women
loiter1 and idle2 with a great deal more taste than men.
They waste their time, I agree. They go backwards and
forwards between the dressmaker and the milliner.3 They
5 loiter spellbound4 before each shop-window. Their aimless
spending of the morning or the afternoon often causes
lunch or dinner to be late, and rows5 and scenes follow.
"That's all very well, but what on earth were you doing all
the morning? You can't possibly have spent all that time
10 buying half a yard of ribbon!"
Now, let us look at the logical male animal. He hurries
down the street without turning his head. With utter in-
difference he sweeps past the shops whose windows are
filled with all the things he needs: ties, shirts, socks, jackets,
15 shoes; he has not the least interest in them. Unless he has
set out with the definite intention of buying something that
has become indispensable to him, he will not squander6 a
second or waste a glance at a shop-window.
He has work to do, you will tell me. He hurries along, so
1. go slowly and stop frequently on the way somewhere; stand about.
2. waste time.
3. a woman's hat-maker.
4. with the attention held—as if by magic.
5. quarrels.
6. waste; foolishly spend.
161
THE NEW I N T E R M E D I A T E ENGLISH COURSE
and was relying on his car to get him back from London to
60 Loamshire after some social function,1 his immediate diffi-
culty is acute,2 and especially so if the poor fellow has been
attending an occasion, such as a regimental reunion, 3 for
which evening dress and decorations4 were required. The
hour is late. If he rings up friends and asks for shelter for the
65 night, or if he goes to an hotel, he will have to face the world
tomorrow in a white tie.5 Not knowing what to do, he
stands sadly on the pavement. Where does he go from here"?
A fine but wetting rain is falling. This reminds him that,
as well as his suitcase, the car contains—or contained—a
70 mackintosh, almost brand new. Whatever he does about his
difficulty, he will for the next twenty-four hours or so be
sorely troubled by the irregular workings of his memory,
which, like a young dog bringing unwelcome trouvailles6
into the house, will continually recall to his mind other pos-
75 sessions which, seldom for any good reason, were also in
the car. He remembers the torch in the glove-pocket, a bor-
rowed book on the back seat. He realises that in his suitcase
he has lost not only a new shirt but the ancestral cuff-links
in its sleeves, not only a pair of shoes but a pair of trees7
80 which he has used all his life. Stoicism8 is, as so often, the
only proper answer to misfortune; but here stoicism would
be much easier to achieve if he had been able to realise,
at the beginning, the total volume of his loss.
EXERCISES
1. Make sentences freely with these words from the article:
compensation emotion tow insult acute
2. Can you find the adverb-particles in the article? There are 2.
1. i.e. dinner, ceremony, etc.
2. Lit.: sharp. (Here) very great.
3. meeting of former fellow-officers or soldiers after long separation.
4. medals, etc.
5. i.e. which a man wears with full evening dress:
6. "discoveries". (French)
7. stretching-supports which are put inside shoes to help them keep
their shape.
8. great self-control.
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THE NEW I N T E R M E D I A T E E N G L I S H COURSE
3. Answer these questions as fully as you can:
a. Why, in ordinary circumstances, would he feel alarm and
indignation at the possibility that the police have towed
away his car?
b. Why are his dearest hopes now pinned on this possibility?
c. " It takes a certain amount of telephoning before they are
finally dashed." Telephoning to whom? And how are they
dashed?
d. Why doesn't he want to face the world tomorrow in a white
tie?
e. Why does he stand sadly on the pavement?
f. What do you think he will decide to do?
Like the Present Participle, the Verbal Noun has four forms:
ACTIVE PASSIVE
Like the Perfect Participles, the Perfect Verbal Nouns are used
to show that the actions to which they refer happened (or will
have happened) before the time of the principal verbs;
e.g. "Jenkins was sent to prison for having robbed a bank."
(i.e. he robbed the bank before he was sent to prison.)
"I'm so sorry about our having made so much noise last
night."
167
THE NEW I N T E R M E D I A T E ENGLISH COURSE
We have now seen the three principal uses of the Past Contin-
uous Tense:
l . T o show that an action had begun to happen before some
moment of time in the past, or before another (shorter) action
happened;
e.g. " H e was having breakfast at a quarter past eight."
" H e was having breakfast when 1 telephoned him."
Note: with this use, there is no freedom of choice between the
Past Continuous and the Past Simple. (See Book
One, page 148, if necessary.)
2. To show that two or more continuous actions were happen-
ing at more or less the same time in the past;
e.g. "They were singing as they were driving home from
the picnic."
Note: with this use, there is freedom of choice: the Past
Simple may also be used, if we wish. (See page 46
of this book again, if necessary.)
170
THE STOLEN CAR
3. To show that an action was continuous between two stated
or understood points of past time;
e.g. "What were you doing all the morning?"
Note: with this use, there is freedom of choice again: the
Past Simple may also be used, if we wish.
In addition, we have the special case of the Past Continuous
with always and constantly for repeated, unusual actions;
e.g. " I ' m so glad they've left the neighbourhood. They
were always quarrelling with everybody."
(See page 87 of this book again, if necessary.)
PRACTICE EXERCISE 31
(a) Make one sentence of each of these pairs of sentences by
omitting the verb to want and its subject, and by using an
Infinitive of Purpose in its place.
(e.g. Helen bought an expensive mackintosh. She wanted
to be smart even in the rain.
will become: Helen bought an expensive mackintosh in
order to (so as to, to) be smart even in the rain.)
1. He is going to buy a smaller car. He wants to spend less on
running costs.
2. He is going to buy a smaller car. He doesn't want to spend so
much on running costs.
3. We booked our seats earlier than usual. We wanted to be
sure of getting them.
173
THE NEW I N T E R M E D I A T E ENGLISH COURSE
THE STORY-TELLER
BY " S A K l "
"I didn't listen after the first bit, it was so stupid," said
Cyril, the small boy.
"You don't seem to be much of a success as a story-
teller," said the bachelor suddenly from his corner.
25 The aunt was annoyed at this unexpected attack. "It's a
very difficult thing to tell stories that children can both under-
stand and appreciate," she said stiffly.
"I don't agree with you," said the bachelor.
"Perhaps you would like to tell them a story," said the
30 aunt.
"Tell us a story," demanded the bigger of the small girls.
"Once upon a time," began the bachelor, "there was a
little girl called Bertha, who was extraordinarily good."
The children lost most of their interest at once; all stories
35 seemed dreadfully alike, no matter who told them.
"She did all that she was told, she was always truthful,
she kept her clothes clean, ate milk puddings as though they
were jam tarts, learned her lessons perfectly, and was polite
in her manners."
40 "Was she pretty?" asked the bigger of the two girls.
" N o t as pretty as either of you," said the bachelor, "but
she was horribly good."
The children's interest came back; the word horrible in
connection with goodness was something new to them, and
45 they liked it. It held a suggestion of truth that was absent
from the aunt's stories.
"She was so good," continued the bachelor, "that she
won several medals for goodness, which she always wore,
pinned to her dress. There was a medal for obedience,
50 another medal for punctuality, and a third for good be-
haviour. They were large metal medals and they clinked1
against one another as she walked. No other child in the
town where she lived had as many as three medals, so every-
body knew she must be an extra good child."
55 "Horribly good," said Cyril.
"Everybody talked about her goodness, and the Prince
1. i.e. made the sound of bits of metal knocking together.
176
THE S T O R Y - T E L L E R
of the country heard about it, and he said that as she was so
very good she might he allowed once a week to walk in his
park, which was just outside the town. It was a beautiful
60 park, and no children were ever allowed in it, so it was a
great honour for Bertha to be allowed to go there."
"Were there any sheep in the park?" demanded Cyril.
" N o , " said the bachelor, "there were no sheep."
"Why weren't there any sheep?" came the inevitable
65 question.
The aunt permitted herself a smile of satisfaction.
"There were no sheep in the park," said the bachelor,
"because the Prince's mother had once had a dream that
her son would be killed either by a sheep or else by a clock
70 falling on him. For that reason the Prince never kept a
sheep in his park or a clock in his palace."
The aunt gasped with admiration.
"Was the Prince killed by a sheep or by a clock?" asked
Cyril.
75 "He is still alive, so we can't tell whether the dream will
come true," said the bachelor calmly; "anyway, there were
no sheep in the park, but there were lots of little pigs run-
ning all over the place."
" What colour were they? "
80 "Black with white faces, white with black spots, black all
over, grey with white patches, and some were white all
over." The story-teller paused to let a full idea of the park's
treasures sink into the children's imaginations; then he
went on:
85 "Bertha was rather sorry to find that there were no
flowers in the park. She had promised her aunts, with tears
in her eyes, that she would not pick any of the kind Prince's
flowers, and she had meant to keep her promise, so of course
it made her feel silly to find that there were no flowers to
90 pick."
"Why weren't there any flowers?"
"Because the pigs had eaten them all," said the bachelor
promptly. "The gardeners had told the Prince that you_
177
THE NEW I N T E R M E D I A T E E N G L I S H COURSE
In this lesson we shall deal with the six simplest "If" Clauses:
two referring to the past, two to the present, and two to the
future. Let us see what they look like:
1. "If she had been good
yesterday..." i.e. referring to the past.
2. "If she was good yesterday..."
3. "If she were1 good today . . ." i.e. referring to the present.
4. "If she is good today . . . "
5. "If she were good tomorrow..." i.e. referring to the future.
6. "If she is good tomorrow . . ."
Of these, numbers 1, 3 and 5 are subjunctive "If" Clauses, and
numbers 2, 4 and 6 are indicative "If" Clauses.
Before we start to study the various meanings that are hidden
"between the lines" of these subjunctive and indicative clauses,
we must first learn how to distinguish a subjunctive clause from an
indicative clause—how, in other words, to recognise that this
clause is subjunctive and that one is indicative, etc. . . .
Let us compose a diagram. It will have three "steps":
1. The difference between was and were after "If" is discussed later in
this lesson.
182
TEE STORY-TELLER
183
THE NEW I N T E R M E D I A T E E N G L I S H COURSE
Indicative Clauses
If the time is past or present, an indicative "If" Clause
expresses the fact that the speaker does not yet know
whether the condition was a fact or not—or whether it is a
fact or not.
If the time is future, an indicative "If" Clause expresses
"probability of fufilment"—i.e. the probability that the
condition will be fulfilled.
Let us now have Nos. 2, 4 and 6 of our "If" Clauses again:
2. "If she was good yesterday . . ." (An indicative clause)
The time is past. The clause therefore expresses the fact
that the speaker does not yet know whether the girl was
good yesterday or not.
4. "If she is good today . . ." (An indicative clause)
The time is present. The clause therefore expresses the
fact that the speaker does not yet know whether the girl
is good today or not.
6. "If she is good tomorrow . . ." (An indicative clause)
The time is future. The clause therefore expresses the fact
that the speaker thinks that the girl probably will be good
tomorrow.
Before we go any further, it would be a good thing for you to
see whether you can recognise subjunctive and indicative "If"
Clauses, and whether you can say correctly what meaning is
hidden in them.
G 185
THE NEW I N T E R M E D I A T E E N G L I S H COURSE
PRACTICE EXERCISE 32
Here are 10 simple "If" Clauses. First say whether they are
subjunctive or indicative, and then say what is the meaning hidden
"between the lines" of each.
1. If Peter was at home last night. . .
2. If Mary buys a new car next month . . .
3. If Nigel had been with us in Salzburg last summer . . .
4. If they are at home now . . .
5. If it were a fine day tomorrow . . .
6. If Sheila had had enough money in her bag yesterday . . .
7. If I receive an increase in salary next month . . .
8. If Ronald were here now . . .
9. If Peter caught that train yesterday . . .
10. If we go to the Riviera again next year . . .
shall
will
(6) . . . She may be taken to the cinema."
can
must
(Note: the use of shall—with the 3rd Person—in the
Result Clauses of Nos. 4 and 6 shows us that the speaker
is promising that she shall be taken to the cinema.1)
Provided we use the correct group, we have freedom to choose
our special verb according to whichever we think expresses our
meaning best.
Infinitives in Result Clauses
We choose an infinitive to follow our special verb according
to whether our Result Clause refers to the Past, or to the Present,
or to the Future—and not according to whether the "If" Clause
is subjunctive or indicative.
If the Result Clause refers to the Past, we shall
PAST use one of the Perfect Infinitives—non-continuous
or continuous, active or passive.
e.g. 1. "If she had been good yesterday . . .
2. " If she was good yesterday . . .
(1) . . . she might (etc.) have been taken to the
(2) . . . she may (etc.) cinema."
If the Result Clause refers to the Present, we
PRESENT shall use one of the Simple Infinitives (usually a
continuous), active or passive.
e.g. 3. "If she were good today . . .
4. "If she is good today . . .
(3) . . . she would (etc.) be making everybody
(4) . . . she must (etc.) happy."
If the Result Clause refers to the Future, we shall
FUTURE use one of the Simple Infinitives again (usually a
non-continuous), active or passive.
e.g. 5. "If she were good tomorrow . . .
6. " If she is good tomorrow . . .
(5) . . . she could (etc.) be allowed to go to the
(6) . . . she will (etc.) Prince's park."
PRACTICE EXERCISE 34
Freely compose Result Clauses of your own that could logically
follow the "If" Clauses in Practice Exercises 32 and 33. (Don't
forget that some of the "If" Clauses may be able to have past,
present and future results.)
!
192
LESSON SEVENTEEN
PRACTICE EXERCISE 35
Freely compose five sentences of your own with this construc-
tion (in the present or the past) to show that an order has (or had)
been given, and five other sentences to show that an arrangement
has (or had) been made.
PRACTICE EXERCISE 36
Freely compose five sentences of your own with this construc-
tion in its future meaning, and five other sentences in its future-
in-the-past meaning.
PRACTICE EXERCISE 37
These "If" Clauses all express future Improbability of Fulfil-
ment. Change them with this were to construction so that they
can express Extreme Improbability or Impossibility;
e.g. "If I became ten pounds lighter before tomorrow
night..."
will be: "If I were to become ten pounds lighter etc...."
1. If they arrived in an hour's time . . .
2. If the King and Queen came to our party next week . ..
3. If those two political parties joined forces . . .
4. If we found another plate exactly like this broken one . . ,
5. If we had fine weather next week for our holiday . . . "
6. If he were more helpful next time . . . (Careful!)
7. If our chickens laid more eggs tomorrow . . .
8. If my book were published by some publisher or other. . .
(Careful again !)
9. If Patrick ever got up enough courage to ask Angela to
marry him . . .
10. If this furniture became suddenly new again . . .
PRACTICE EXERCISE 38
Freely compose five "If" Clauses of your own in which should
would be more logical (or more realistic) than the expressions of
Improbability and Probability.
(c) The Inversion of "were", "had", and "should"
Line 76. . . . were they honest enough to confess it.
Line 32. . . . should I see anyone taking a book
from this particular shelf. . .
The meaning of these two lines is:
. . . if they were honest enough etc.
. . . if I should see anyone etc.
As we saw in Book One (page 111), whenever we have the
special verbs were, had and should in an "If" Clause, we may, if
we wish, omit the "If" and put the were, had or should in front
of the subject of the clause.
201
THE NEW INTERMEDIATE ENGLISH COURSE
PRACTICE EXERCISE 39
Omit the "If" in these clauses and invert the were, the had, or
the should.
1. If it were a fine day tomorrow . . .
2. If it were to be a fine day tomorrow . . .
3. If Sheila had had enough money in her bag . . .
4. If I should see Paul on my way to the office . . .
5. If Ronald were here now . . .
6. If I had won the last lottery . . .
7. If Madeleine were as slim as her sister . . .
8. If it should be a fine day tomorrow . . .
9. If it were not raining now . . .
10. If Helen had not lost her umbrella . . .
11. If Helen should find her umbrella . . .
12. If Billy had not been so rude to Miss Carson . . .
13. If I were as clever as you . . .
14. If I were to find the necessary time . . .
15. If only I had had these shoes repaired last week... (Careful!)
202
LESSON EIGHTEEN
THE CANARY
BY K A T H E R I N E M A N S F I E L D
. . . You see that big nail to the right of the front door? I
can scarcely look at it even now and yet I could not bear to
take it out. I should like to think it was there always even
after my time. I sometimes hear the next people saying,
5 "There must have been a cage hanging from there." And it
comforts me; I feel he is not quite forgotten.
. . . You cannot imagine how wonderfully he sang. It was
not like the singing of other canaries. And that isn't just
my fancy. Often, from the window, I used to see people
10 stop at the gate to listen, or they would lean over the fence
by the mock-orange 1 for quite a long time—carried away. I
suppose it sounds absurd to you—it wouldn't if you had
heard him—but it really seemed to me that he sang whole
songs with a beginning and an end to them.
15 For instance, when I'd finished the house in the afternoon,
and changed my blouse and brought my sewing on to the
veranda here, he used to hop, hop, hop from one perch to
another, tap against the bars as if to attract my attention,
sip a little water just as a professional singer might, and
20 then break into a song so exquisite that I had to put my
needle down to listen to him. I can't describe it; I wish I
could. But it was always the same, every afternoon, and I
felt that I understood every note of it.
1. a type of shrub, bush.
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THE NEW I N T E R M E D I A T E E N G L I S H COURSE
THE CANARY
EXERCISES
1. Make sentences freely with these words from the piece:
scarcely long (verb) entertain scatter comfort
absurd thankful scrape exaggerate realise
exquisite drowsy tuck heartless joyful
2. Explain the meaning of the following:
a. after my time (line 4).
b. that isn't just my fancy (line 8).
c. carried away (line 11).
d. I had to put my needle down (line 20).
e. Flowers respond wonderfully (line 28).
f. we had the house to ourselves (line 51).
g. the washing-up (line 52).
h. "You're only showing off." (line 68).
i. I can hardly bear to recall it (line 71).
j. the little things that made my day (line 80).
k. I could not help laughing (line 89).
1. as much as to say (line 110).
m. I shall get over it (line 117).
n. a cheerful disposition (line 119).
o. giving way to (line 121).
3. Can you find the adverb-particles in the piece? There are 12.
1. having unnaturally gloomy ideas and feelings.
207
THE NEW I N T E R M E D I A T E E N G L I S H COURSE
PRACTICE EXERCISE 40
Freely compose ten Statements of Cause and Effect.
209
blank
APPENDIX 1
SOME SUBJECTS FOR COMPOSITION
APPENDIX 2
SOME MORE SUBJECTS FOR LETTER-WRITING
APPENDIX 3
TABLE OF INFINITIVE FORMS
ACTIVE PASSIVE
Non- Con- Non- Con-
Continuous tinuous Continuous tinuous
SIMPLE To do To be To be To be be-
(Ordinary) doing done ing done
APPENDIX 4
INDEX OF GRAMMAR POINTS IN BOTH BOOKS OF
THE NEW INTERMEDIATE ENGLISH COURSE
PRINCIPAL POINTS BOOK LESSON
Prepositions One 2
Adverb Particles One 3 (et seq.)
Special Verbs
The Emphatic Affirmative with do,
does, did One 1
Had better One 1
The Various Uses of have;
Possession One 4
Necessity One 9
Causation One 11
May, might One 7
Two 2
Must, for Supposition (Deduction) One 8
Must, should, ought to for Neces-
sity, Duty, Obligation, Advisa-
bility One 8,11
Two 10
Going to One 16
Used, would One 15
Shall, will One 18
Shall, will, should, would Two 2, 7, 9, 11, 13, 14
Need, dare Two 5
Be.. Two 7,17
The Use of Tenses
Past Simple and Past Perfect
("Finished" Use) One 1,6
Past Simple and Present Perfect
("Finished" Use) One 9
The "Unfinished" Use of the
Perfect Tenses One 10
Two 6, 7
Past Continuous One 13
Two 4, 8, 15
214
APPENDIX FOUR
216
Back Cover blank