GRAMMAR 3 PAST TIME

3 Decide if the verb form underlined is correct or not. Write the correct verb form,
or put a tick (/ ) if it is already correct.

Text 1
T h e train (1) a ro u n d to a h a lt a t a sm a ll sta tio n m ile s fro m L o n d o n , a n d it

(2) b e ca m e a p p a re n t th a t it (3) had b ro k e n d o w n . E v e ry o n e (4) w a s g e ttin g th e ir

c a se s d o w n fro m th e lu g g a g e ra cks, a n d w e (5) w e re w a itin g on th e p la tfo rm in th e

fre e zin g w in d fo r h o u rs until th e n e x t tra in (6) w a s tu rn in g u p .

1 ....... ............ 3 .................... 5 ....................

2 .................... 4 .................... 6 ....................

Text 2
T h e m y ste rio u s d isa p p e a ra n c e o f P ro fe ss o r D a w so n (1) w a s on In sp e c to r G o rse 's
m ind. S ix m o n th s b e fo re th e p ro fe s so r's d isa p p e a ra n c e , he (2) w a s re ce iv in g a letter

fro m Je a n D a w so n , th e p ro fe s so r's w ife. In th e letter, J e a n (3) a c c u se d h e r h u sb a n d

o f p lo ttin g to m u rd e r her. G o rs e (4) c o n sid e re d h is n e x t ste p w h e n th e p h o n e rang.

It w a s S e rg e a n t A d a m s fro m th e T h a m e s V a lle y p o lic e fo rce . A fish e rm a n

(5) d isc o v e re d a b o d y in th e river, a n d it (6) fitte d th e d e s c rip tio n o f th e professor.

1 .................... 3 .................... 5

2 .................... 4 .................... 6

4 Complete the text with a past tense form of the verbs in brackets.

This time last year I (1) (cycle) in the rain along a country road in Wales with a

friend of mine. We ( 2 ) ............................ (decide) to go on a cycling and camping holiday there.

Neither of us ( 3 ) ............................ (be) to Wales before, but we ( 4 ) .............................. (know)

it was full of interesting places to visit and we ( 5 ) .............................(manage) to book a few

camping sites in advance. Now we ( 6 ) ............................ (wonder) if we ( 7 ) ..............................

(make) the right decision. We ( 8 ) ............................ (plan) our route carefully, but we

( 9 ) ............................ (forget) one important thing: the weather. It ( 1 0 ) .............................. (rain)

solidly since our arrival and that night we ( 1 1 ) .............................(end up) sleeping in a tent in a

wet muddy field. Then the next morning, as we ( 1 2 ) .............................(ride) down a steep hill,

my bike ( 1 3 ) ............................ (skid) on the wet road and 1 ( 1 4 ) .............................. (fall off). I

( 1 5 ) ............................ (realize) immediately that I ( 1 6 ) ............................. (break) my arm,

and after a visit to the local hospital 1 ( 1 7 ) .............................(catch) the next train home.

Unfortunately my parents ( 1 8 ) ............................ (not / expect) me home for a fortnight, and

( 1 9 ) ............................ (go) away on holiday. So I ( 2 0 ) .............................. (spend) a miserable

couple of weeks alone, reading Be a Better Cyclist.

17
LANGUAGE PRACTICE FOR ADVANCED

8 Complete the sentences with the best form of the verbs in brackets.
1 I realized that someone (steal) steeiUt^... my wallet when I (feel) ...fj?!*..
.................. their hand in my jacket pocket.
2 When I (phone)............................. Helen last night sh e.............................. (wash)
her hair.
3 Peter (offer)............................. me another drink but I decided I (had)
............................. enough.
4 Nobody (watch)............................. .. so the little boy (take).............................the
packet of sweets from the shelf and (p u t)............................. it in his pocket.
5 I (not / realize)............................. that I (leave).............................. my umbrella on
the bus until it (start)............................. to rain.
6 At school I (dislike)............................. the maths teacher because he (always / pick)
............................. on me.
7 Wherever Marion (fin d )............................. a job, there was someone who (know)
............................. that she (g o ).............................. to prison.
8 Several years later I (find o u t)............................. that during all the time I (write)
............................. to my pen friend, my mother (open)................................and
reading the replies!
9 I (not / understand)............................. what (go o n )................................ Several
people (shout)............................. at me, and one passer-by (wave)..............................
a newspaper in front of my face.
10 I (know )............................. I (d o )...............................well in my exams even before I
(receive)............................. the official results.

9 Complete the text with the best past form of the verbs in brackets.

When Helen reached the village it was in confusion. Soldiers ( 1 ) .................(rush ) around

carrying equipment but there ( 2 ) .................(not seem) to be much purpose to what they

( 3 ) .................(do). Helen ( 4 ) ...................(never be) in a war zone before, but it was obvious that the
men ( 5 ) .................(expect) an attack of some sort. She ( 6 ) ...................(try) to phone her newspaper

but her mobile phone ( 7 ) .................(run out) of power. She ( 8 ) ...................(walk) across the street
to talk to one of the soldiers when the first flying saucer ( 9 ) .................(fly) low above the roofs with
a roar. A large building a few hundred metres away ( 1 0 ) .................(disappear) in an explosion of

flame. One minute houses ( 1 1 ) .................(burst) into flame all around her, and the next minute, just
as suddenly, everything ( 1 2 ) .................(go) quiet, apart from the crackle of the flames. Some of the
soldiers ( 1 3 ) .................(still fire) their weapons, but the flying machines ( 1 4 ) .................. (vanish)

completely. The war against the invaders from outer space ( 1 5 ) .................(begin).

^ S E E ALSO
Grammar 4: Present perfect Grammar 8: Unreal time
Consolidation 1: Units 1-4 Grammar 9 and 10: Modals
Grammar 7: Conditionals Grammar 13: Reported speech
20
LANGUAGE PRACTICE FOR ADVANCED

5 U n d e r lin e t h e c o r r e c t v e r b fo r m to c o m p le t e e a c h s e n t e n c e .

1 The price of petrol has risen / has been rising by 15% over the past year.
2 No wonder you are overweight! You have eaten / have been eating chocolates all
day long!
3 I ’ve read / I ’ve been reading a really good book this morning.
4 Doesn’t this room look better? I ’ve put / I ’ve been putting some posters up on
the walls.
5 Don’t disappoint me! I ’ve counted / I ’ve been counting on you.
6 Don’t forget your pill. Have you taken it? / Have you been taking it?
7 Who has worn / has been wearing my scarf?
8 I think there’s something wrong with your motorbike. It’s made / It’s been making
some very funny noises.
9 Jack has asked / has been asking for a pay rise three times this year.
10 I ’ve been phoning / I ’ve phoned Ann all evening, but there’s no reply.

6 C o m p le t e th e t e x t w ith th e p a s t s im p le , p r e s e n t p e r fe c t s im p le o r p re s e n t
p e r f e c t c o n t in u o u s fo r m o f t h e v e r b s in b ra c k e t s .

Three weeks ago I (1) ..^pytd.......... (move) to London, full of enthusiasm, to

start a new job, but ever since I ( 2 ) .......................(arrive) in the capital, I
( 3 ) .......................(wonder) whether this was the right decision. Before coming
here, I ( 4 ) .......................(hear) a lot of great things about life in London,
but since arriving I can't really say that the city ( 5 ) .......................(make) a
favourable impression on me. It's so crowded and the people are so unfriendly,
and I ( 6 ) .......................(spend) hours every day on the underground going to
and from work. You see, I ( 7 ) ....................... (grow up) in a small town in Wales
and I ( 8 ) .......................(not be) away from home before. O f course, I
( 9 ) .......................(always / want) to see the world, so when my company
( 1 0 ) ......................(offer) me a post in the London office, I ( 1 1 ) ..........................
(jump) at the chance. The problem is that now I ( 1 2 ) .......................(actually
/ start) living here, I can see that there are lots of reasons for being back in
Wales! In fact, according to a piece I ( 1 3 ) ....................... (come across) in the
paper the other day, a lot of large companies ( 1 4 ) .......................(choose) to
move away from the centre of London recently. I feel so miserable that I
( 1 5 ) ....................... (secretly / hope) my company might decide to move too,
and that I'll be able to go back to Wales.

26
C O N S O L ID A T IO N 1

Units 1-4
1 C o m p le t e t h e t e x t w ith t h e b e s t fo r m o f t h e v e r b s in b ra c k e ts .

Reporter Philip Taggart visits a farm where the sheep are super fit!
Farmers, as you may (1) ..fe.K\ow......................(know), ( 2 ) ...................................
(have) a hard time of it in Britain lately, and ( 3 ) ..................................(turn)
to new ways of earning income from their land. This ( 4 ) .................................
(involve) not only planting new kinds of crops, but also some strange ways of
making money, the most unusual of which has got to be sheep racing. Yes, you
( 5 ) .................................. (hear) me correctly! A farmer in the west of England
now ( 6 ) .................................. (hold) sheep races on a regular basis, and during
the past year over 100000 people ( 7 ) .................................. (turn up) to watch
the proceedings. 'I ( 8 ) .................................. (pass) the farm on my way to the
sea for a holiday,' one punter told me, ‘and I ( 9 ) .................................. (think) I'd
have a look. I ( 1 0 ) .................................. (not / believe) it was serious, to tell you
the truth.' According to a regular visitor, betting on sheep is more interesting
than betting on horses. 'At proper horse races everyone ( 1 1 ) .................................
(already / study) the form of the horses in advance, and there are clear
favourites. But nobody ( 1 2 ) .................................. (hear) anything about these
sheep! Most people ( 1 3 ) .................................. (find) it difficult to tell one from
another in any case.' I ( 1 4 ) .................................. (stay) to watch the races, and
I must admit that I ( 1 5 ) .................................. (find) it quite exciting. In a typical
race, half a dozen sheep ( 1 6 ) .................................. (race) downhill over a course
of about half a mile. Food ( 1 7 ) .................................. (wait) for them at the other
end of the track, I ought to add! The sheep ( 1 8 ) ..................................(run)
surprisingly fast, although presumably they ( 1 9 ) ..................................(not / eat)
for a while just to give them some motivation. At any rate, the crowd around
me ( 2 0 ) .................................. (obviously / enjoy) their day out at the races,
judging by their happy faces and the sense of excitement.
 CONSOLIDATION 1

5 Complete each sentence with the best form of the verb in brackets.
1 This is my new boat. What (you / think) r!?.................. of it?
2 A: Who are you?
B: What do you mean? I (live)............................................. here.
3 I can’t find the keys. What (you / d o )............................................. with them?
4 Sorry I haven’t fixed the plug. I (m ean)..........................................to get round to
it, but I just haven’t found the time.
5 What (you / d o )............................................. on Saturdays?
6 I don’t know what time we’ll eat. It (depend)............................................. when
Helen gets here.
7 I supported you at the time because I (feel)............................................. that you
were right.
8 Peter couldn’t understand what had been decided because too many people (talk)
.............................................at once.
9 Alice, I’m so glad you’ve got here at last. I (expect)............................................. you
all day.

6 C o m p le t e th e t e x t w ith t h e b e s t fo r m o f t h e v e r b s in b r a c k e t s .

Ask hundreds of people what they (1) ..............(plan) to do on a certain

day in August next year, or the year after, and there ( 2 ) ........................................... (be)
only one reply. Provided of course that the people you ( 3 ) ........................................... (ask)
( 4 ) ........................................... (belong) to the Elvis Presley Fan Club. Although the King
of Rock and Roll ( 5 ) ........................................... (die) over four decades ago, his fans
( 6 ) ........................................(meet) every year since then outside his home in Memphis,
Tennessee, to show respect for the singer they ( 7 ) ........................................... (love) so much.
Fans like Jean Thomas, from Catford in South East London. Jean ( 8 ) ........................................
(visit) Gracelands, the house where Elvis ( 9 ) ........................................... (suffer) his fatal heart
attack, twice in the past five years. 'The first time, I (1 0 )........................................... (borrow) the
money from my mum, as I (1 1 )........................................... (not / work) then. But two years ago
I (1 2 )........................................... (get) married and since then I ( 1 3 ) ....................................... (work)
in my husband Chris's garage. Chris and I (1 4 )........................................... (go) together last year,
and we (1 5 )........................................... (think) of spending two or three months in the USA next
year. 1 (1 6 )........................................... (always / want) to visit some of the places where Elvis
(1 7 ) ....................................(perform), like Las Vegas for example.' Jean says that Elvis
(1 8 ) ....................................(be) her obsession ever since she (1 9 )............................................
(be) ten years old, and she (2 0 )........................................... (own) every single one of his records,
good and bad.

31
 GRAMMAR 5 PASSIVE 1

1 C o r r e c t a n y v e r b fo r m s w h ic h a re in c o r r e c t o r in a p p r o p r ia t e . P u t a t ic k / if th e
s e n t e n c e is c o rr e c t.

1 A lot of homes in the area have been being broken into by burglars.
baye beery b ro fe e j.lyyto
2 As I drove south, I could see that the old road was rebuilding.

3 I suppose the letter will have been delivered by now...............................................

4 There is nothing more annoying than been interrupted when you are speaking.

5 Jim was been given the sack from his new job...................................................
6 Somehow, without my noticing, my wallet had been disappeared.

7 The new shopping centre was opened by the local M P........................

8 A lot of meetings have been held, but nothing has being decided yet.

2 Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first
sentence.
1 The crowd was slowly filling the huge stadium.
The huge stadium ..YV&&sLowly.b£LM}, .fE-lLfffil...........by the crowd.
2 The invention of the computer simplified the work of accountants.
Since the computer....................................................... the work of accountants
.......................................................simplified.
3 Someone has suggested that the shop should close.
I t .......................................................that the shop should close.
4 ‘I’d take out some travel insurance if I were you, Mr Smith.’
Mr Sm ith........................................................ take out some travel insurance.
5 The waitress will bring your drinks in a moment.
Your d rinks........................................................ in a moment.
6 Someone used a knife to open the window.
This window........................................................ a knife.
7 You will hear from us when we have finished dealing with your complaint.
After your complaint....................................................... you will hear from us.
8 An announcement of their engagement appeared in the local paper.
Their engagement....................................................... in the local paper.
9 Nobody ever heard anything of Leo again.
Nothing.......................................................Leo again.
10 They paid Lucy £1000 as a special bonus.
£1000.......................................................Lucy as a special bonus.

35
 GRAMMAR 5 PASSIVE 1

5 R e w rite e a c h s e n t e n c e in a m o re fo r m a l s t y le , u s in g a p a s s iv e fo r m o f t h e w o rd
in C A P IT A L S .
1 Sorry, but we’ve lost your letter. MISLAY
. r tM Kvf?t ?.i y . .y.p .w r. ks.tt.SK.b .b.f.SKV. lot....................................................

2 The police are grilling Harry down at the station. QUESTION

3 They’ve found the remains of an old Roman villa nearby. DISCOVER

4 You’ll get a rise in salary after six months. RAISE

5 They stopped playing the match after half an hour. ABANDON

6 They stopped traffic from using the city centre. BAN

7 They took Chris to court for dangerous driving. PROSECUTE

8 You usually eat this kind of fish with a white sauce. SERVE

9 I don’t know your name. INTRODUCE

6 C o m p le t e t h e s e n t e n c e s w ith a p a s s iv e fo r m o f t h e v e r b s in b r a c k e t s .

1 Nothing (see) ..bfl.S.Jp.efitv.se.e.KV..................of Beth since her car (find)

.............................................abandoned near Newbury last week.
2 As our new furniture (deliver)............................................. on Monday morning,
I’ll have to stay at home to check that it (not / dam age).............................................
during transit.
3 The new Alhambra hatchback, which in this country (sell)....................................
under the name ‘Challenger’, (fit)............................................. with electric windows
as standard.
4 For the past few days I (w ork)............................................. in Jack’s office, as my
own office (redecorate)...............................................
5 It (announce)............................................ that the proposed new office block (now /
not / build)............................................. because of the current economic situation.
6 A major new deposit of oil (discover).................................... in the Arctic. It (think)
....................................to be nearly twice the size of the largest existing field.
7 Pictures of the surface of the planet Mars (receive).............................................
yesterday from the space probe ‘Rover 3’ which (launch)........................... last year.
8 A large su m .............................................(raise) for the fund by a recent charity
concert, but the target of £250 000 (still / not / reach)...............................................
9 No decision (m ake)............................................. about any future appointment until
all suitable candidates (interview)...............................................
37
LANGUAGE PRACTICE FOR ADVANCED

7 In s o m e s e n t e n c e s t h e a g e n t d o e s n o t n e e d to b e m e n t io n e d . U n d e r lin e a n y
m e n t io n s o f th e a g e n t w h ic h a re u n n e c e s s a r y . P u t a t ic k / if t h e s e n t e n c e
is c o rr e c t.

1 My jewellery has been stolen by a thief!

2 It has been decided by the authorities that Wednesday will be a school holiday.
3 Harry was pushed over by someone standing next to him in the queue.
4 The goods are transported by rail to our warehouse in the Midlands.
5 I was told by someone that you have a vacancy for a computer operator.
6 Sue has been picked by the selectors for the national event.
7 The letter was sent by post on the 21st of last month.
8 The larger portrait was painted by a little-known Flemish artist.
9 It has been agreed by everyone that no smoking should be allowed.
10 As I arrived at the conference a note was handed to me by one of the delegates.

8 C o m p le t e th e t e x t w ith a n a c t iv e o r p a s s iv e fo r m o f t h e v e r b s in b ra c k e ts .

Dear Mrs Patel,

We are delighted to inform you th a t you ( 1 ) . . . A?Lf ct f d (select) for a free holiday.
According to our information, you ( 2 ) ............................................(answer) a telephone survey last
month, as a result of which your name ( 3 ) ............................................(enter) in the holiday draw.
Now our computer ( 4 ) ............................................(choose) your name, so you and your family
( 5 ) ............................................(invite) to spend a week in a European destination of your choice.
This offer ( 6 ) ............................................(make) on the condition th a t you attend a special
promotions day with other lucky families in your region who ( 7 ) ........................................... (offer)
a similar deal. You ( 5 ) ............................................ (ask) to attend on any Saturday next month
a t the Royal Hotel, Manchester. If you ( 9 ) ............................................(interest) in attending and
taking up th is offer, please ( 1 0 ) ............................................(detach) the slip below and return it
to us a s soon a s possible.

9 C o m p le t e th e t e x t s b y w r it in g a p a s s iv e fo r m o f a v e r b in th e b o x in e a c h g a p .

announce call discover offer take

assume destroy display print write

Text A

It (1) . . . h « . s . b p e i that fossil remains of one of the largest ever sea

creatures ( 2 ) ......................on an island in the North Sea. The 150 million-year-
old fossil, a type of pliosaur, ( 3 ) ......................'Big Boy' by scientists, as it is
over 15 metres long. The remains ( 4 ) ......................to the Natural History
Museum in Oslo, where, after conservation work, they ( 5 ) .......................in a
special section of the museum.
38
 GRAMMAR 5 PASSIVE 1

Text B

A bookseller has found a previously unknown poem by the English poet Shelley
nearly 200 years after it ( 6 ) ........................ The anti-war poem ( 7 ) ........................
in a pamphlet first published in 1811 in Oxford when the poet was 20. It
(8 ) .............. until the recent discovery that all copies of the poem
(9 ) .............. , and experts are predicting great interest when the poem
(1 0 ) .................for sale in a book auction at the end of next month.

10 R e w rite th e t e x t u s in g a p a s s iv e v e r b fo r m in e a c h lin e .

^ SEE ALSO
Grammar 6: Passive 2
Consolidation 2: Units 5-8

39
 GRAMMAR 6 PASSIVE 2

6 C o m p le t e t h e t e x t w ith th e p h r a s e s fr o m t h e b o x .

was seen were made to was brought was obliged to

are believed to have been is known to have experienced is not known
are thought to be was packed is thought to have been

A plane carrying 15 members of the government to a conference in Brussels

(1) ..i-S.fe.KV?w^v.t.Q.h a y e ne wc?c>!........ a small-scale fire earlier this morning.
The plane ( 2 ) .............................................................. about 20 minutes into its
journey when the fire occurred in the luggage area. It ( 3 ) ......................................
how the plane caught fire, but initial eye-witness accounts confirm that a trail
of smoke ( 4 ) ..............................................................coming from the under­
carriage. The fire ( 5 ) .............................................................. rapidly under control,
but the pilot ( 6 ) .............................................................. make an emergency
landing. Five people ( 7 ) .............................................................. treated for shock.
The plane ( 8 ) .............................................................with business people flying to
Belgium. All 209 passengers ( 9 ) .............................................................. stay behind
for questioning after landing at a military airport in northern France. Police
( 1 0 ) ..............................................................treating the incident as suspicious.

7 R e w rite th e t e x t u s in g th e p a s s iv e w h e r e p o s s ib le . D o n o t u s e t h e
u n d e r lin e d w o rd s .
Nobody knows exactly when someone invented gunpowder. People know for a fact
that the Chinese made rockets and fireworks long before people used gunpowder
in Europe, which was around the beginning of the thirteenth century. We generally
believe that gunpowder brought to an end the ‘A ge of Chivalry’, since anyone with a
firearm could bring down a mounted knight. In fact, people did not develop efficient
firearms until the sixteenth century. They used gunpowder mainly in siege cannon
when people first introduced it. Later they used it in engineering work and in mining,
but they found that it was extremely dangerous. Modern explosives have now replaced
gunpowder, but we still use it for making fireworks, just as the Chinese did.
J t l s wot, fewp.Vyw y ....................................................................................................................

45