A Book On Writing

a .
I n t e l l iG e n e
book
F irst published by IntelliG ene 1997 on
writing
R eprinted 1998
Second R eprint 2002
C opyright Sam M cC arter and The N uffield Self-access Language lYpjcci

for O verseas D octors at Southw ark C ollege, L ondon.
IS B N 0 9519582 1 6
Sam McCarter
t HnHHrirt
( ontcnls
P rcfiiee............................................................................................................. >
A cknow ledgem ents........................................................................................ ii
Section 1: Focus on coherence

1. I low to interpret essay title s ........................................................................ 4
2. Mow to link your introduction to your essay title .................................. 5
3. Language sa lv a g e ........................................................................................ 6
4. Controlling your id e a s ................................................................................ 7
5. How to organise and control your essay ................................................. 8
6. Giving names to sen ten ces........................................................................ 9
7. Naming sentences in a paragraph...............................................................10
8. Awareness of coherence in a p a rag rap h ................................................... 12
9. Organising a paragraph by q u e stio n s........................................................14
10. More questions for organising...................................................................... 16
11. Creating questions for organising a te x t..................................................... 17
12. The sequence of te n s e s...................................................................................18
*s lu m s iiiu im
For Alison, Deborah and Johnathan 13. Making c h o ic e s ............................................................................................... 19
14. A chaos m a z e ................................................................................................... 20
K e y .......................................................................................................... 86-106
Section 2: Focus on cohesion

15. Sentence relationships - knowledge check 1 .......................................... 26
16. Sentence relationships - knowledge check 2 .......................................... 27
17. Some areas of confusion ............................................................................. 28
18. Split te x ts .........................................................................................................30
19. Lost connecting words and p h rases............................................................31
20. Sentence relationships in a t e x t .................................................................. 32
21. Text with gaps ............................................................................................... 34
22. Text with no gaps .......................................................................................... 35
23. Reference with sy n o n y m s............................................................................36
24. More reference with synonym s...................................................................37
25. Words and phrases that are not exactly c o rre c t........................................38
26. The definite article as a connecting w o rd ..................................................39
27. The articles: fill the g a p s ..............................................................................40
28. Reference awareness and connections in a text .......................................41
29. Awareness of old/new information in a sentence: 1 ................................ 42
30. Awareness of old/new information in a sentence: 2 ................................ 42
31. C ontradictions................................................................................................ 44
K e y .........................................................................................................107-121
l u m m u m i eh n o0si f
Section 3: Writing letters Preface
32. Formal letter checklist Part 1 .......................................................................48
33. Formal letter checklist Part 2 .......................................................................49
34. Formal letter a n a ly s is.................................................................................... 50 T h is p u b licatio n is a self-stu d y b o o k on w ritin g . It is b a se d on th e a u th o r’s w o rk o v e r
35. Sequence of tenses in a te x t...........................................................................51 m any years in E nglish as a S eco n d /F o reig n L an g u ag e an d E n g lish fo r S pecial P u rp o ses,
36. Reading for writing ........................................................................................52 first in S ierra L eo n e, W est A frica, and th en in the U K .
37. Formal and informal aw aren e ss...................................................................54 The book is d esig n ed prim arily fo r E n g lish lan g u ag e stu d en ts at an a d v a n c e d lev el,
38. Translation from informal to formal ...........................................................55 i.e. th e C a m b rid g e C e rtific a te in A d v a n c e d E n g lis h ,C a m b rid g e P ro fic ie n c y and th o se
39. Dressing up an informal le tte r...................................................................... 56 stu d e n ts p re p arin g to a ch ie v e ap p ro x im a te ly b etw een 6.0 an d 7.5 in th e IE L T S ex am
40. Formal to informal translation..................................................................... 57 m an ag e d and a d m in iste re d by the B ritish C o u n c il, the U n iv e rsity o f C a m b rid g e L ocal
41. A writing d r ill.................................................................................................58 I ix am in atio n s S y n d icate (U C L E S ) an d by IE L TS A u stralia. N ativ e sp eak ers o f E n g lish
K e y .........................................................................................................122-129 m ay also find so m e asp e c ts o f th e b o o k o f use.
Section 4: Correcting written English T h e book h as been w ritten from a c o g n itiv e , rath e r than a g ra m m a tic a l, p o in t o f view .
42. Recognising spelling m ista k e s.................................................................... 62 T h e g u id in g p rin c ip le th ro u g h o u t is to m im ic th e u n d e rly in g m ech a n ism s a n d th o u g h t
43. Recognising the correct word p ictu re....................................................... 63 p ro c e sse s that m a k e u p the act o f w ritin g . T h e re fo re , it is h o p ed th at if y o u fin ish th is
44. Recognising words with a different appearance..................................... 64 b o o k you w ill re m e m b e r th e m e c h a n ism s ra th e r th a n th e la n g u ag e an d ad a p t th e m to
45. Editing sentences with different m istak es............................................... 65 suit y o u r o w n n eed s.
46. Speed e d itin g ...................................................................................................66
T h e re arc five S e c tio n s, fo cu sin g on th e fo llo w in g areas: co h e re n c e in a te x t, co h esio n ,
47. A teacher’s rev e n g e !...................................................................................... 67
letter w ritin g , c o rre c tin g a tex t and p u n ctu atio n . A ll th e e x ercises m ay b e u se d in
48. Correcting a te x t.............................................................................................68
iso latio n , b ut you arc m ean t to read th em as fa r as p o ssib le in seq u en ce.
49. Correcting and improving a te x t.................................................................. 70
50. Learning to see mistakes in a t e x t ............................................................. 72 T h e e x e rc ise s a rc , in the m a in , d e sig n e d to m ak e you slow d o w n a n d th in k about
51. Finding irrelevant in fo rm atio n .................................................................... 73 org an isatio n in w ritten texts. You m ay fin d , th erefo re, th at you hav e to rep eat an exercise
52. Another m a z e ..................................................................................................74 sev eral tim es. O n o c c a sio n , y o u m ay ev en feel th e n e e d to use th e K ey to h elp you
K e y .........................................................................................................130-136 c o m p le te a p a rtic u la r ex ercise; d o not b e afra id to do th is. T h e im p o rtan t th in g is that
you are ab le to d o th e ex e rc ise s w ith ease a fte r so m e p ra ctice.
Section 5: Punctuation
O n e w ay p erh ap s to a p p ro ach the ex e rc ise s is to th in k o f th e m as creatin g a m ech a n ism
53. Punctuation n am es..........................................................................................80
fo r you to ab so rb the in fo rm atio n in the K ey. R e m e m b e r th a t you are a lso try in g to
54. Questions about p u n ctu atio n ........................................................................ 81
a b so rb the m ental p ro cesses in v o lv ed in w ritin g . T h is is o b v io u sly m u ch m o re tim e
55. Missing pun ctu atio n .......................................................................................82
c o n su m in g , an d so m e tim e s m o re fru stra tin g , th an learn in g b are facts. Y ou sh o u ld not
56. Punctuation correction................................................................................... 83
th ere fo re e x p e c t to d o each e x e rc ise p erfectly , n o r a lw ay s at th e first a ttem p t.
57. Capital L etters.................................................................................................. 84
K ey.......................................................................................................... 137-139 l*'or e a ch e x e rc ise in this b o o k y o u sh o u ld read all th e in stru ctio n s v ery carefu lly .
A s you d o the ex e rc ise s try not to m ark the book so th at you can re p e a t th em .
Sam M cCarter
August 1997
Acknowledgements
I w ould like to th an k th e fo llo w in g c o lle a g u es a n d frie n d s fo r th e ir h e lp an d sup p ort

d u rin g th e w ritin g and p ro d u c tio n o f th is b o o k .
Ju d ith A sh , D o ris B a y b u tt, W e n d y B isik e r, J u lie E a s to n , H ila ry F in c h , C a ro lin e

H a m m o n d , P h il Ja k e s, R o g e r T o w n sen d , M ic k y S ilv e r a n d B e rn ie W all.
I w ould also like to th an k all th o se stu d en ts o v e r th e y e a rs w h o h a v e h elp e d in m any

w ays to d ev e lo p the id eas in th is b o o k . It is im p o ssib le to n a m e th em all, but I w ould
like to n am e th ree p eo p le in p articu lar: H iro K h o sh n a w , Z o ran M o m c ilo v ic and S hujaat
A1 N ath an i.
A sp ecial th a n k s is also d u e to th e m e m b e rs, p a st an d p re s e n t, o f th e C o m m itte e o f the

N u ffie ld S e lf -a c c e s s L a n g u a g e P ro je c t fo r O v e rs e a s D o c to rs , n a m e ly : A n a h ita
A m in o s se h e , J u d ith A s h , A le x a n d ra D a v ie s , S tu a rt E v a n s, T o n y H o o p e r, F arh a d
Ib r a h im , D o ro th y J o n e s , J o y P a r k in s o n , J u lie t R a y n e r, W e n d y R ile y , H c rn a n
R o sen k ran z, A z a r S h eib a n i, T oni S c o tt, R o b y n Y oung.
T w o m em b ers o f the said C o m m itte e , w h o a re n o lo n g e r w ith u s, D r K a th e rin e E llio tt SECTION 1

and K en C rip w e ll, also d e se rv e a m e n tio n .
D rs G ill and B ru ce H a d d o c k d e serv e m o re th a n k s th a n I can say fo r th e ir lo n g p atien ce

a n d fo rb earan ce.
F in ally , I w o u ld like to say a v ery sp ecial th a n k y o u to M arg o B ly th m a n fo r h av in g

faith .
a book on w ritin g
Contents
Page
1. H ow to in terp re t essay t i t l e s .............................................................................. 4
2. H ow to link y o u r in tro d u c tio n to y o u r essay t i t l e .....................................5
3. L a n g u a g e s a l v a g e .................................................................................................. 6
4. C o n tro llin g y o u r i d e a s ..........................................................................................7
5. H ow to o rg an ise and co n tro l y o u r e s s a y ........................................................ 8
6. G iv in g n a m e s to s e n t e n c e s ................................................................................. 9
7. N a m in g se n ten ces in a p a r a g r a p h ...................................................................10
8. A w areness o f co h e re n c e in a p a r a g r a p h .................................................... 12
9. O rg a n isin g a p a rag rap h by q u e s t i o n s ......................................................... 14
10. M ore q u e stio n s fo r o r g a n is in g ....................................................................... 16
1 1. C re atin g q u e stio n s fo r o rg a n isin g a t e x t ...................................................... 17
12. T h e se q u e n c e o f t e n s e s .......................................................................................18
13. M ak in g c h o ic e s .................................................................................................... 19
14. A ch a o s m a z e ......................................................................................................... 20
a book on writing a book on w ritin g 3

Exercise 1 Exercise 2
How to interpret essay titles How to link your introduction to your essay title
The first step in writing any essay is to read and interpret the essay title correctly. Let us look al
In the last exercise, you looked at interpreting essay titles and writing a suitable introduction.
the following example:
In other words, you were looking forward from the essay title to the introduction. As you write,
1. What steps do you think should he taken to reduce pollution? however, you also need to look back at what you have written, as well as forward.
In this essay question, the word steps is the organising word and the general subject is puliation.
In the introductions below, look for the organising words and decide what the general subject
You do not need to describe pollution itself; the title assumes that you already know what
is. Then write down a possible essay title for each one.
pollution is. The title also indicates that pollution, at the mom ent, is bad. You could, therefore,
use this idea as part o f your introduction: Example:
Pollution is nowadays one o f the most serious threats to all living things on the planet To many people boxing is a cruel sport, which ought to be banned. In my opinion,
There are, however, many steps that can be taken to remedy this situation. however, it should not be stopped fo r many reasons.
The first sentence is a general statement about the general subject. The second sentence is the It you look at the topic sentence first, you will see that there are several clues to the title. The
topic sentence: it gives the direction of the essay and tells you how to organise it. essay is about your opinion and the reasons. The general sentence shows you that the general
subject is boxing. Look at the following titles and you will see that the introduction expresses
(lie general subject and focus or topic o f the title:
Now study the essay titles below and: - Boxing should be banned. What is your opinion o f this statement? Give your reasons.
(a) find the word(s) in each question which will help you to organise your essay - What is your opinion o f boxing? Give your reasons.
(b) decide what the general subject o f the essay is.
1. Capital punishment is an issue about which people fe e l very passionately. However,
there are many strong arguments against this issue.
2. Banning smoking in public places is an issue that gives rise to endless controversy.
2. W h a t are th e m o st e ffe c tiv e w ay s to re d u c e u n e m p lo y m e n t in E u ro p e ? There are, therefore, many arguments fo r and against.
3. W h a t are th e d isa d v a n ta g e s o f u sin g c o m p u te rs in the w o rk p la c e ? 3. Road deaths in Europe are still a major problem. This situation could, however, be
improved enormously by adopting a wide-ranging package o f measures.
4. F o o d a d d itiv es sh o u ld b e b a n n e d . D isc u ss. 4. Over recent years, poverty has increased in many parts o f the world with disastrous
5. W h a t are the m ain b en efits o f in v e stin g m o n ey in sp ace re se a rc h ? consequences.
5. The legalisation o f cannabis is a subject that has aroused considerable debate. There
6. T h e m ain c a u se o f th e d e stru c tio n o f th e e n v iro n m e n t is th e b u rn in g o f
are, however, a number o f benefits to be derived from making the drug legal.
fo ssil fu els. D iscu ss.
6. Recycling waste paper, glass and scrap metal is obviously a sound m ethod fo r
7. D is c u s s th e a d v a n ta g e s o f se x e d u c a tio n in th e s c h o o l c u rr ic u lu m at reducing pollution. Even so, a number o f equally important measures exist to tackle
seco n d ary level. the problem.
8. T h e b est solution to u rb an traffic p ro b lem s is to b an all cars fro m city c e n tre s. 7. In some cases a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, but there are also certain
W h a t is y o u r o p in io n ? circumstances where it can be o f enormous help.
8. Both public and private means o f transport have advantages and disadvantages.
9. T o b acco a d v ertisin g in th e m e d ia sh o u ld b e b a n n e d . W h a t is y o u r o p in io n ?
G iv e y o u r reaso n s. 9. Corporal punishment, in one form or another, has been part o f the educational system
in many countriesfor a long time. As fa r as I am concerned, however, such punishment
is unacceptable.
10. Now that oil resources are becoming rapidly depleted, more attention is being focused
on alternative form s o f energy.

Exercise 3
Ex eicise 4
Language salvage
L ^ j rolling your ideas_______ ___________ _
Now it is time for you to try to write your own introductions, with some help. All the essay
You h |vc |()0|<C(j ilt ^ow t() jn(CrprC( cssay questions. The next stage is controlling your ideas.
questions below have the same general subject. The focus of each essay, however, is different.
hen you read an essay title, you may sometimes have lots of ideas, but y ° u may not know
In each case, decide first what the focus is. Then look below. You will see that you have a list of
introductions with another general subject. Find an introduction, or introductions, with a similar w hleho fth c m are relevant.
focus and adapt the text to fit the titles.
Look at the following titles:
E xam ple: W hy do more and more people w ant to live in cities?
1. Do you agree that euthanasia should be made legal? Give your reasons. What are the disadvantages o f living in cities?
You can adapt a (and also e and h) as follows:
Making euthanasia legal is an issue which arouses enormous controversy. However, I N(,w look al the map below. It shows the general subject, living in cities and the focus o f each
[largely] [disjagree with such a practice and fe e l that it should not be legalised issay above: reasons and disadvantages. Around the map is a chaotic juinblc ° f ideas. Look at
2. Euthanasia should be made legal. What are the arguments fo r and against, and j"'n b lc and decide which ideas can follow each direction.
what is your opinion o f this statement? List your answer on a piece of paper. D o not mark the bo°h-
3. Discuss the risks o f making euthanasia legal.
4. How fa r do you agree with the statem ent that euthanasia should be made legal? greater variety of jobs
5. Euthanasia should be made legal. Discuss.
noise don’t know
6. What are the benefits o f making euthanasia legal?
your neighbours overcrowding
7. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages o f making euthanasia legal.
better facilities
8. What are the arguments against making euthanasia legal? living in small towns is boring entertajnm ent \
9. What are the arguments fo r or against making euthanasia legal? is accs85*'!5!6 \
pollution
more jobs/better prospects
Introductions:
crime \ better health facilities
a. Experimenting on animals is an issue which arouses enormous controversy. However,
I largely disagree with such experiments and feel that they should be banned.
better services
b. Experimenting on animals is an issue which arouses enormous controversy. There greater variety of
are, therefore, many arguments for and against. leisure facilities
c. Experimenting on animals for medical purposes is a controversial issue. However, in living in cities (j h
my opinion, such experiments should definitely be banned for many reasons.
d. Experiments on animals have brought mankind not only many advantages, but also
some disadvantages.
isolation less friendly
e. Although many people are violently opposed to experiments on animals, they have
brought many benefits to mankind. cities can
f. Experimenting on animals is a controversial issue. There are, however, many strong better edicational be very ugly
arguments against such experiments. facilities hazards
g. Experimenting on animals is an issue which arouses enormous controversy. There
are, therefore, many arguments for and against, but, in my opinion, such experiments more exciting greater variety o
on animals should definitely be banned. entertainment
h. Experimenting on animals is an issue which arouses enormous controversy among
the general public. As far as I am concerned, however, such experiments are necessary greater anonymity
for a number of reasons and should not be banned.
6 a book on writing
a book on w ritin g
Exercise 5 3. Euthanasia is immoral. Discuss.
How to organise and control your essay____________________ 4. Many people now try to keep fi t by jogging or working-out in a gym. What are the
dangers o f such exercise?
5. Some people fe e l that all medical personnel should be tested fo r HIV. What would
As you develop your essay, you also need to keep your ideas under control. Look at the essay
the problems o f such a programme be? Give your own opinion.
title and plan below:
6. Animal organs should not be used fo r human transplants. What are the main
What are the differenttfypeho f alternative energy? arguments against this statement?
As the world looks to a future without o il, more attention 7. How can accidents in the home be prevented?
is being focused on alternati vef§ource?i 8. War can never be justified. How fa r do you agree with this statement?
of energy.
9. Describe your pet hates.
The most commontfornftof alternative energy is
hydro power. \
Another abundant^ffergy soiircftis the sun. Exercise 6
There is also, o f^ d u rse, wind power, of which the Hiving names to sentences___________________________________ _
best known(£xampIbis windmills.
— .....
As we have seen, there are many differentflandsi of This exercise focuses on the meaning of individual sentences and giving them names. You have,
alternative energy. in effect, been doing this already in this Section so far, perhaps w ithout realising.
Som etim es, people have difficulty w hen they are reading or w riting, because they do not
recognise the signs in a text w hich pinpoint m eaning. T he result is that there is too much
If you examine the above plan carefully, you can see:
unknow n inform ation to process at one tim e. If you learn gradually to recognise text m arkers,
(i) the focus word in the title is highlighted. This word shows the specific direction of whether they are obvious or hidden, it will improve the amount of detail you are able to process,
the essay. and absorb. T his, in turn, will influence your w riting, as you learn to m anipulate the signposts
(ii) the focus word in the introduction is highlighted to show the direction of the essay. you need to m ark your own w riting.
(iii) each paragraph begins with a topic sentence. In each o f these sentences, there is a Look at the sentences below. In som e cases, the sentences stand on their ow n and, in others,
focus word which links the paragraph to the topic sentence in the introduction and they have been rem oved from a larger text. G ive a nam e to each sentence (e.g. a general
shows the direction o f the paragraph. The focus words are also highlighted. statem ent, a topic sentence, a fact, a suggestion) and give a reason fo r your answer. Some
(iv) the synonyms for the word types: sources, form , energy source, example and kinds. sentences have m ore than one nam e.
These are interchangeable and help you to avoid repetition o f the word ty p elsl.
Example:
(v) the underlined phrases w hich introduce ideas in the paragraph. Students often
Water boils at 1001C.
complain that they have ideas, but they do not know how to put them down on paper.
This inability to introduce ideas is a central problem in writing and, for the most part, The sentence is a fact. Note the use of the Present Simple, boils, which is used to express a fact.
goes unrecognised. Compare this with the difficulties you have beginning essays, i.e.
writing introductions, and putting your ideas on paper. 1. The sun rises in the East and sets in the West.
(vi) you have a basic mechanism to help you control your writing. 2. I f only you had come a little bit sooner!
Now, it is your turn to make essay plans. Below is a short list o f essay questions. Work out the 3. My main argument fo r the ban is that personal stereos are a nuisance to all
focus and the general subject o f each essay. Then write an introduction with no more than two passengers.
sentences and an essay frame for each one as above. Pay careful attention to the way you 4. The main argument fo r the ban is that personal stereos are a nuisance to all
introduce your ideas in the plan, and also to the synonyms you use. For the synonyms, you may passengers.
need to use a thesaurus. 5. Such a policy could, I feel, take quite a fe w young people o ff the streets.
1. Discuss the measures to reduce obesity in rich countries. 6. Such a policy would, I feel, take quite a fe w young people o ff the streets.
2. Euthanasia is immoral. Discuss your opinion. 7. Such a policy will. 1feel, take quite a fe w young people o ff the streets.
8. These properties could even be renovated by the homeless themselves.

9. The most important advantage is the safety o f the fo o d .
1. u. introducing the general subject of pollution
10. As a result, Antarctica w ill be saved fo r future generations. b. a topic sentence
11. The law might be difficult to enforce. c. a proposal
d. an organising sentence
12. He might have told you about the proposed changes.
2. u. introducing the general subject of pollution
13. He might have told you about the proposed changes! b. a topic sentence
14. Shaniqua prom ised to come. c. a proposal
d. an organising sentence
15. For example, now it is possible to keep people alive on m achines fo r a considerable
time. 3. a. introducing the topic o f the paragraph
b. a proposal
c. a tentative proposal
Exercise 7 d. expanding the word measures in sentence 2
4. a. a development of the previous sentence
Naming sentences in a paragraph
b. a conclusion
c. a result
This exercise looks at the meaning o f sentences as they relate to each other in a continuous text.
d. a recommendation
In other words, you are going to look at coherence in writing a passage.
5. a. a result
Read the first two paragraphs o f the essay title below. As you read, think about the relationship b. an explanation o f the organising word: benefits
between the sentences. Then do the exercise which follows.
c. an expansion of the previous sentence
d. a suggestion
W hat measures do you think should be taken to reduce pollution? 6. a. a result
b. an explanation of the organising word: benefits
(1) The very survival o f all living things on our planet is now under threat from
c. an expansion o f the previous sentence
pollution. (2) In my opinion, however, there are a number o f very effective measures
that can be taken to remedy the situation. d. a suggestion
7. a. a reservation
(3) The introduction of a carbon tax, i.e. a tax on coal and oil products, such as plastics,
petrol and fuel for domestic and industrial consum ption, is, I feel, the most important b. a suggestion
measure. (4) Such a tax would have a number o f benefits. (5) First o f all, the reduction c. a result
in the consumption o f fuel would give us fresher air to breathe. (6) At the same time, d. a contrast
it could raise money far cleaning up the environment and make the general public more 8. a. a conclusion
conscious o f pollution. (7) H aving said th at, how ever, this tax w ould be rath er a recommendation
b.
unpopular among the general public, as it w ould reduce their spending power. (8)
c. a cause
Moreover, there would be a strong industrial lobby against it because of the extra costs
and, thirdly, the government would be against it, as it would result in increased inflation. d. additional reservations and reasons
(9) So politicians w ould not support such a measure. (10) N evertheless, I strongly 9. a. a tentative result
believe that a carbon tax is an essential step in the fight against pollution. b. an example
c. a generalisation
d. a conclusion of sentences 7 and 8
On the opposite page are ten multiple choice questions with four alternatives.
10. a. a contrast
Read the passage again and decide which alternatives best describe the purpose of each sentence b. an opinion
and why the others are not suitable. In same cases, more than one alternative may be correct.
c. an example
d. a conclusion for the whole paragraph
10 a book on writing a book on w ritin g li

i
Exercise 8 function list
n
Awareness of coherence in a paragraph a. a conclusion
b. an expansion of the previous sentence
Below is the beginning o f an essay. Read the text carefully and, while you are doing so, keep in
mind what you learnt in the previous two exercises. Think specifically about the coherence in c. supplying background information
ii n 11
the text.
d. giving an example
On the page opposite, there is a list o f words and phrases to describe the purpose or function o f
each sentence. Study the list and decide which purpose or function describes each sentence. e. an explanation
Note that a sentence may have more than one function.
f. an argument against animal experiments
g. a topic sentence for the essay
Experiments on animals should be banned. What is your opinion?
h. an organising sentence
(I) Experiments on animals may have contributed enormously to the
welfare of the human race. (2) Nevertheless, I personally feel that such i. a concession
experiments are totally unacceptable for many reasons. j. alternative solutions
(3) By far the most important reason is the suffering that animals have k. suggestions
to endure during tests. (4) Every year, many thousands of innocent
creatures are used in laboratory experiments. (5) Cosmetics companies, 1. an opinion
for instance, test many of their products on rabbits and dogs to make nt. an expansion of the word ‘reasons’
n
sure they are safe for humans. (6) Such testing, however, means that
n. introducing the general subject of the essay
harmless animals have to endure appalling pain and torture for the
vanity of human beings. (7) Surely, the cosmetics industry should use o. an argument for animal experiments
other techniques now available, like computer models; or, instead, they
111 o u t u 11
p. a contrast
could develop new methods. (8) The main counter argument is that a
human life is more important than that of an animal. (9) Furthermore, q. introducing the focus or topic of a paragraph
the countless lives saved by animal experiments cannot be overlooked. r. introducing a reason
(10) Still, in my opinion, experiments on animals do not justify the
suffering caused to innocent creatures.
(II) Another argument against is that animals also have rights.
Reminder
Write yctur answers on a separate sheet for all the exercises so that you can repeat
them.
12 a book on writing a book on w ritin g 13

Exercise 9 a. There are, however, many arguments for and against banning
Organising a paragraph by questions blood sports.
b. In this instance, an innocent animal is chased by men and women
In this exercise, you are going to look at some o f the thought processes involved in writing a on horses and by a pack of dogs. When the poor creature is trapped,
text. Read the instructions below.
it is then inhumanely killed and may even be viciously torn to
Instructions: pieces by the dogs.
1. Imagine that you have to write an essay on the following title:
c. Consequently, people’s tolerance of brutality is increased and
All blood sports should be banned. Discuss the main arguments fo r this statement other violent activities, including crime, are encouraged.
and then give your own opinion.
2. Imagine that you are writing the introduction and the first argument for the above d. As far as I am concerned, sports are quite civilised.
essay title.
e. There are, however, many reasons why blood sports should be
3. Imagine that the questions below are your own. made illegal.
4. Read the questions one at a time.
f. Every year many thousands of helpless animals and birds are killed
5. Match each question with an answer from the jum bled text on the opposite page. in this country, not primarily for food, but for pleasure.
6. Answer the questions in sequence.
g. Finally, blood sports cannot really be considered as sport at all and
are a waste of time.
Three o f the sentences opposite do not match any o f the questions.
h . Fox-hunting is probably the best example of the sheer brutality of
such entertainment.
1. The first statement in the essay title above is written in such a way
i. For my part, after considering the arguments above, I feel there
that it will create a discussion, and is, therefore, controversial. As
can be no justification whatsoever for allowing blood sports to
a starting point, can I write a general statement about blood spoils
continue.
to include this idea?
j. Few issues arouse more bitter controversy than attempts to ban
2. How many arguments are there supporting a ban on blood sports?
hunting animals for sport.
3. What is the main reason for banning blood sports?
k. To many people, this practice is barbaric, because innocent
4. Can I give some background information about thenumbers of animals are tortured and killed for the amusement and gratification
helpless creatures killed for pleasure each year?
of human beings.
5. What do people think about blood sports? Are they barbaric/
1. The most obvious justification for the ban is that blood sports such
uncivilised?
as fo x -h u n tin g , shooting birds and, in fact, any form of
6. There must surely be many examples to support this view. Can I game-hunting, are uncivilised.
give one?
7. Can I explain this example more fully?
8. What does such cruelty do to people in general?
9. Can I draw a personal conclusion from this?
14 a book on writing 15
book on w ritin g
Exercise 10
Exercise 11
More questions for organising Creating questions for organising a text
Look at the text below and the list of jum bled questions which follow. Mulch nu h qtu Hue
The text below is part o f an essay written by a student. Read through the passage quickly. Then
a sentence in the text.
read it again, carefully, and decide what questions the writer asked him self to develop the essay.
Write your questions, in full, on a piece of paper.
The responsibility for reducing juvenile crime in the UK lies as much with paicnh and
teachers as with the government. Discuss.
What would you do to improve the lot of the elderly in this country?
(1) Crime committed by young people in the UK is an ever-increasing problem (2>
Although there is some suggestion that the governm ent should take the lead in reducing The UK, like other countries in Europe, has an increasingly ageing
juvenile crime by. say, introducing more severe forms o f punishm ent, parents and population, yet it is a pity that the elderly are not properly looked after
teachers certainly have a greater role to play in this process. or cared for. There are many ways, however, in which the lot of elderly
(3) Statistics show that young offenders frequently come from unstable, uncaring ot people in this country can be improved.
violent family backgrounds. (4) A comfortable family environment is, therefore, one
o f the most important factors in helping to reduce crime committed by the young. (5)
The first step that needs to be taken is to improve the living conditions
It is obviously the parents’ responsibility to teach and bring up their children to follow of all old people. According to statistics, there are over one million
the law and to behave as respected members o f our society. (6) O f course, not every dwellings which have been declared unfit for habitation. Out of these,
family can create the ideal surroundings for educating their children. (7) In that case, at least half a million are occupied by the elderly. Special houses
teachers could share the burden of teaching young people how and why they should
should, therefore, be built, which are cheap, and designed in such a way
obey rules. (8) The government, of course, also has a very important part to play. (9)
It is surely the state’s role to provide the environment necessary for a stable, caring that they are easily accessible. By this I mean, they ought to have special
society. provision for those who have joint problems or difficulty in walking.
Moreover, all the basic amenities should be nearby, so that the old will
not have any trouble purchasing their food and other articles of daily
use. The provision of adequate heating is a further improvement that
Q uestions could be made. These homes should be provided with proper heating
a. Is it possible fo r all fam ilies to create an appropriate environment fo r their children? facilities, as the elderly are susceptible to cold. It is estimated that
b. Has the government any role to play? I f so, how great?
hundreds of people who are old and frail die of hypothermia in their
homes each winter.
c. What are the responsibilities o f parents?
d. What is the governm ent’s role specifically?

Another area which requires attention is food.
e. What is the rate o f juvenile crime in the United Kingdom at the moment?
f. What do the statistics say about juvenile crime in the UK?
g. I f this is so, what is the m ost important fa cto r in helping to reduce juvenile crime?
h. Who else could share the burden i f parents cannot do it all themselves?
i. Which o f the two groups, parents and teachers or the government, has the greater
role to play?

Exercise 12
Exercise 13
The sequence of tenses
Making choices
Verbs also reflect and reinforce the relationships between sentences in a text. Read the following essay title:
Drug addiction among young people in the UK is daily becoming more and more
In the passage below, choose the correct verb form from the alternatives given to fit the
serious. How, in your opinion, should the problem be tackled?
relationship between the sentences. Decide also why the other alternatives are not suitable.
Now read through the Maze below. At each number choose the correct sentence to develop the
first paragraph o f the above essay title. The sentences are in the correct order.
Relations between different countries are now better than they have 1. Drug addiction among the young in the UK is. unfortunately, on the increase.
been for many years. Even so, there is a lot of tension in the world. A B
W hat do you think governments should do to relieve this tension? 2. The problem, however, is not The problem, in my opinion, comes
insurmountable, if it is approached not just from the break-up of the
In my opinion, the tension in the world [1 comes/is comingJ from realistically. family, but from other sources as well.
ignorance and the lack of contact between different people and com 3. Peer group pressure is. I feel, one of the In my opinion, the most effective
munities. To overcome this situation, there [2 is/are/would be J much most likely causes of addiction among method to combat drug addiction
young people. among young people is through health
that the international community can do. First of all, I [3 am think
education.
ing/think| governments [4 should/would/might] encourage their peo
4. Such education can be divided roughly into What often happens here is that
ple, especially young people, to learn more languages. This [5 would
two broad categories, namely health youngsters start playing around with
bring about/might bring about/brings about] closer contact between education in school and out of school. drugs, because they see their friends
different cultures and people. For example, at the moment many taking them.
countries [6 would give/will give/should give/give] scholarships to 5. At school, children and teenagers can be They do not want to be left out or, as is
enable people from other countries to study their languages. Most of shown the dangers of drug addiction in frequently the case, taking drugs
these scholarships are for adults, but they [7 would usefully be/could health education classes. becomes a kind of badge of acceptance
usefully be/are usefully] extended to cover school children, or rather within a group.
groups of school children. 6. Then, if someone does not do what the The older pupils could do projects on
others in the group are doing, they may addiction; watch videos on the topic;
Second, there [8 could/would/might] be more informal sporting events. be ostracised or cut off by their friends. speak to ex-addicts, and so on.
F o r e x a m p le, sp o rts o rg a n isa tio n s in d iffe re n t c o u n tries 7. Education outside the school could take the All one has to do is to look at the
[9 could/would/might] organise regional and international events on an form o f advertising on television and the prevalence of smoking among
amateur basis. Already, we [10 are having/have/do have] the Olympic radio, as well as in magazines aimed at youngsters to realise the extent o f the
young people. danger from such pressure.
Games, but, worthy though they are, they [11 have become/would
become/could become] too political or too competitive. More informal 8. The advertisers could use well-known Money is another cause of addiction.
figures that young people admire, and
sports meetings, however, in the true spirit of the Olympic Games
are likely to listen to, like pop stars and
[12 would go/go] some way to bringing people from all over the world footballers.
together. In this way, drug addiction would then
9. Nowadays, the younger generation have
more pocket money and are able to earn be prevented before it starts.
quite a bit from part-time jobs.
10. Thus, when something novel like drugs
comes their way, they can often afford to
try it out, at least once.

I3yI5!5uIi5u5I5aya!Syuuu5
Exercise 14 I . All this leads me to conclude that the 2. Intelligence is very difficult to
A chaos maze interplay betw een environm ental and m easure, but, if we look at the issue
hereditary factors is crucial in the carefully, w e can identify certain
d evelopm ent o f hum an intelligence. criteria for assessm ent.
3. In oth er w ords,intelligent parent m ean 4. N evertheless, there are countless

In Roger’s English class recently, he and his fellow students had a intelligent children. others w ho are talented, but w ithout
lively discussion about whether intelligence is inherited or not. the right environm ent and influences
During the debate, Roger supported the opinion that it is impossible they do not realise their full potential
to separate the inheritance from the environmental factors when
discussing intelligence. 5. For exam ple, m ost professional fam ilies 6. Further, surely parents w ho are
produce children w ho are very intelligent and are successful are
One student in the pro-inheritance group raised the point that there successful and follow a professional m ore likely to try to provide an
are many examples of people who are very gifted and who rise to career. environm ent w hich nurtures the
the top no m atter what happens. This was an argument which developm ent o f their children.
Roger’s group could not disagree with.

7. b o oking at the issue from another angle, 8. T his gives rise to the statem ent that
Roger, however, also raised the point that there are many talented there arc m any intelligent children w ho doctors are born, not m ade.
people, but, without the right environment and influences, they are do not have intelligent parents, and vice
held back. He then observed that intelligent parents tend to encour versa.
age their children and provide an environment favourable to devel

9. Som e people rightly feel that intelligence 10. I accept that there are som e people
opment. depends solely on hereditary factors. w ho are very talented and they
succeed no m atter w hat happens.
He went on to quote examples of families where the parents are not
considered generally to be ‘bright’, yet their children are top of the
11. 1low ever, I personally believe that 12. A n exam ple o f this is fam ilies where
class at school. Conversely, as he also mentioned, there are students intelligence is based on a m ixture o f the parents and children are doctors.
who are not very good academically, but whose parents are both in both hereditary and environm ental
intellectually demanding professions. factors.
At the end of the lesson, the teacher asked the class to express their 13. The debate about w hether intelligence is 14. In fact, these factors are so
views in an essay entitled: inherited has been raging for quite som e inextricably interlinked that it is
tim e. im possible to separate them .
Is intelligence inherited?
15. In other w ords, they believe that people
in certain professions, like m usicians,
teachers, doctors, etc., are born, not
Bearing in mind the opinion of R oger's group, choose sentences opposite that would make up m ade.
the first paragraph o f his essay. You may use only eight o f the sentences to reflect the points
above. Text number 14 is the third sentence which Roger wrote.

SECTION 2
a b o o k on writing a b o o k o n w ritin g 23
Contents
Page
15. Sentence relationships - knowledge check 1 ................... 26
16. Sentence relationships - knowledge check 2 ................... 27
17. Some areas of co n fu sio n .................................................... 28
18. Split tex ts...............................................................................30
19. Lost connecting words and phrases................................... 31
20. Sentence relationships in a te x t......................................... 32
2 1. Text with g a p s ...................................................................... 34
22. Text with no g a p s .................................................................35
23. Reference with synonym s.................................................. 36
24. More reference with synonym s..........................................37
25. Words and phrases that are not exactly c o rrect............... 38
26. The definite article as a connecting word ......................... 39
27. The articles: fill the g a p s .................................................... 40
28. Reference awareness and connections in a t e x t .............. 41
29. Awareness of old/new information in a sentence: 1 .........42
30. Awareness of old/new information in a sentence: 2 .........42
31. C ontradictions...................................................................... 44
a book on writing
a book on w ritin g 25
s B o n n m s n n t u m n n
Sentence relationships - knowledge check 1 Sentence relationships - knowledge check 2
As you are writing, it is worth bearing in mind that it helps your readers if they can see clearly This exercise is also a test of your knowledge of basic text markers, which help to lead both
the relationship between your sentences. Quite often you can show this relationship with parliculm
you and the reader through your writing.
joining words or phrases. Not only are you then guiding the reader through your thoughts in
written form, but you are also directing yourself. Answer the questions below as far as you can. Again, do not expect to know all the answers;
the exercise is to help you check and organise your knowledge.
In this exercise, you are going to test how much you know about some basic connecting devices,
or text markers. Avoid writing in the book so that you can do the exercise several times, if necessary.
Answer the questions below as far as you can. Do not expect to know all the answers. One aim
of this exercise is to help you check and then organise your knowledge. 1. I t ’s n o t e a sy to d e a l w ith a situ a tio n like th is. I t ’s a b it m u ch , th o u g h , to
p u t a ll th is p ressu re on y o u r fr ie n d s .
Avoid writing in the book so that you can do the exercise several tim es, if necessary.
Is the w o rd th o u g h in th e seco n d sen ten ce an ad v erb o r a co n ju n c tio n ?
1. To connect sentences you can use basically two types o f connecting words or phrases: 2. E x p lain th e c o n n e c tio n b etw e e n the th ree se n ten ces b elo w . T h e th ird
adverbs and conjunctions. In the list below, which words are adverbs and which se n ten ce is a lso u n fin ish e d ; fill the gap w ith o n e w ord.
conjunctions?
A m a n a p p e a re d ro u n d the c o rn e r a n d w a lk e d b risk ly a lo n g the street.
while, and, besides, consequently, moreover, although, if, where, when, but, however, T he m a n s lo p p e d su d d e n ly a n d w as a b o u t to e n te r a s h o p . door
though, thus, what is more. w a s o p en , a n d s o ........
2. What is the difference between an adverb which links sentences and a conjunction?
3. T h e te x t b elo w is not w ell c o n n ected . W h ere d o es th e p ro b le m lie an d
3. W hich o f the two sentences below is correct? can you c o rre c t it?
(a) The steps that have been taken are admirable, but they m ay be too late to do
A n o th e r rea so n w h y is th a t a lc o h o l a d v e rtise m e n ts are re sp o n sib le f o r a
any good.
la rg e n u m b e r o f h ea lth p ro b le m s . In fa c t, a lc o h o l a d v e rtise m e n ts ca u se
(b) The steps that have been taken are admirable, however they may be too late to m illio n s o f d e a th s in a n y o n e year.
do any good.
4. U se th e te x ts b elo w to ex p lain th e d iffe re n c e b e tw e e n in the e n d an d
4. Is the text below correct?
finally.
The steps that have been taken are admirable.
But they may be too late to do any good. (a) A t fir s t, sh e w as u seless a t d rivin g , but, in the end, sh e b e c a m e a
very g o o d driver.
5. W hat is the difference between although and but?
6. W hat is the difference between y£t and but? (b) F irst, he b o u g h t a ll th e d eco ra tin g eq u ip m e n t he n e e d e d . N e x t, he
w a s h e d d o w n th e w a lls a n d , th e n , h e p a in te d th e m . F in a lly , he
7. In the list below which word or phrase is the odd one out?
c le a r e d up the m ess.
similarly, furtherm ore, on the other hand, moreover, in addition, what is more.
(c) F irst, re a d a ll the q u e stio n s v e ry ca refu lly. S eco n d , c h e c k h o w m a n y
8. W hen can you use much as to link sentences together?
q u e stio n s y o u h a v e to a n sw e r; a n d , fin a lly , w rite o n ly the n u m b e r
9. W hich is the odd one out: o f w ords required.
such as, like, namely, fo r example?
5. W hat d o the fo llo w in g w o rd s and p h rases h a v e in co m m o n :
10. There is a problem in the text below. W hat is it?
s o l th erefo re!a s a re su lt/a s a co n seq u en c e !a c c o rd in g ly /c o n se q u e n tly !
Take rugby, fo r example, it is also a sport which can cause considerable injury.
n o w /th e n /b e c a u se o f th is/th a t/th u s /h e n c e /fo r th is/th a t reason

6 . L o o k at th e se n te n c e s below . In w h ic h se n te n c e is th e u se o f o th e rw ise 2a. T h e arg u m e n ts fo r re strictio n s 2 b. T h e arg u m en ts fo r restric tio n s on
co rrect? o n gun o w n e rsh ip a re , as w e gun o w n ersh ip are, as w e have
h a v e se e n , o v e rw h e lm in g . seen , o v e rw h e lm in g , th e re fo re ,
(a) T his m a tte r n e e d s to be e x a m in e d ca re fu lly ; o th e rw ise , th ere w ill be
T h e re fo re , th e law sh o u ld be th e law sh o u ld be ch an g ed .
p ro b le m s in th e fu tu r e .
changed.
(b) T his m a tte r n e e d s to b e e x a m in e d ca refu lly, o th e rw ise th ere w ill be
p ro b le m s in th e fu tu r e . 3a. A lth o u g h you have been 3b. A lth o u g h you h av e been
e x p re ssly fo rb id d e n to leav e ex p ressly fo rb id d en to leav e
7 . W h a t is th e d iffe re n c e b e tw ee n d e sp ite an d in sp ite o f an d a lth o u g h . Join b e fo re 3 p m , yet you c o n tin u e b efo re 3 p m , b u t you co n tin u e to
the tw o sen ten c e s b e lo w to sh o w th e d iffe re n ce . to do so. d o so.
H e p la y e d a m a jo r ro le in th e p e a c e p r o c e s s . H is a c h ie v e m e n t w e n t 4 a . P lan tin g trees in cities w ill 4b. P la n tin g trees in citie s w ill m ak e
u n reco g n ised . m ak e the e n v iro n m e n t m o re the e n v iro n m e n t m o re p le a sa n t to
8. There are a lo t o f m e a su re s ca n b e in tro d u c ed to re m ed y th e situ a tio n . p leasan t to live in. B e sid e , it liv e in. B e sid e s , it w ill m ak e the
W h a t is w ro n g w ith th is sen te n ce ? w ill m ak e th e a ir c le a n e r as a ir c le a n e r as w ell.
w ell.
9. W h a t is the d iffe re n c e b e tw e e n first an d at firs t?
5 a. M an y im p ro v em en ts h av e 5b. M a n y im p ro v e m e n ts h a v e been
10. In the e x tra c t b elo w , th e w o rd A n o th e r te lls y o u th a t th is is th e seco n d
b een m ad e to the m ad e to the in fra stru c tu re , ev en
su b ject u n d e r d isc u ssio n . W h ic h n o u n o r n o u n s c a n y o u p u t in th e sp ace
in fra stru c tu re . E v en so , m ore so m o re h as y et to be d o n e.
b elo w ?
has yet to b e d o n e.
A n o th e r d e lic a te ____________ n e e d s to b e c o n sid e re d h e re: a t w h a t a g e
6 a. Ja n e an d D iv a got u p e arly so 6 b. Jan e an d D iv a got up early , so
ch ild ren sh o u ld b e g iv e n in fo rm a tio n a b o u t se x . To m a n y p e o p le , g ivin g
th e y w o u ld be able to catc h th ey w o u ld be ab le to c a tc h the
su ch in fo rm a tio n a t an ea rly a g e is m u ch to o d a n g e ro u s.
th e first train . first train .
7 a. A lth o u g h th e talk s on n u c le a r 7b. B ec a u se the talk s on n u c le a r
d isa rm a m e n t w ere su c c e ssfu l, d isa rm a m e n t w e re su c c e ssfu l, w e
w e can n o w lo o k fo rw a rd to a can n o w lo o k fo rw a rd to a m ore
Exercise 17 m o re re la x e d w o rld . re la x e d w o rld .
Some areas of confusion 8 a. M u ch as I sy m p a th ise w ith 8b. E v e n I sy m p ath ise w ith th is
th is p o sitio n , I c a n n o t ac c e p t p o sitio n , I c an n o t ac c e p t that
From the last two exercises, you have probably realised that you do, in fact, know most connecting th at e u th a n a sia is really the e u th a n a sia is really the answ er.
words and phrases. However, you may have discovered that there is often some vital information, an sw er.
about even very common connecting devices, o f which you are not aware. So, when it comes to 9 a. T h e re are fo u r m ain sk ills in 9b. T h e re are fo u r m ain sk ills in
putting these linking words into a text, you may find it difficult to use them correctly. la n g u ag e le a rn in g , n am ely :
la n g u a g e le a rn in g , lik e,
This exercise looks at a few areas where students are sometimes confused. In each pair o f sp e a k in g , liste n in g , re ad in g sp e a k in g , liste n in g , re a d in g and
sentences below, one sentence is correct and the other is wrong. Decide which answer is correct and w ritin g . w ritin g .
and why.
lO a.S om e p e o p le , n am ely 10b. S o m e p e o p le , lik e A risto tle ,
A ris to tle , L e o n ard o da V inci L e o n a rd o d a V inci and E in ste in ,
l a . T h e g o v e rn m e n t tig h te n e d the lb . S o th at th e m e d ia c o u ld be an d E in ste in , have have c o n trib u te d m u ch to the
law s on c e n so rsh ip , b e c a u se th e b ro u g h t u n d e r stric te r c o n tro l, c o n trib u te d m uch to the d e v e lo p m e n t o f m an k in d .
m e d ia c o u ld be b ro u g h t u n d e r th e g o v e rn m e n t tig h te n e d the d e v e lo p m e n t o f m an k in d .
stric te r co n tro l. law s on c e n so rsh ip . 1la .H e h ad d riv en all n ig h t, so he 1 lb . H e h ad d riv en all n ig h t, th e refo re
w as tired . he w as tired .

Exercise 18
Exercise 19
Split texts
Lost connecting words and phrases
Now you are going to look at connections in another way. M atch the text on the left with a
In the sentences below, the connecting words and phrases are missing. Read through the
suitable clause or sentence on the right.
exercise first and see if you can identify where you need to add an appropriate connector. The
As you do the exercise, think about the relationship between the two parts o f the text. punctuation will help you to decide what you need and where. Note that you can only use
connectors which the punctuation allows. Sometimes, you may be able to use more than one
1. D espite the fact that he arrived in item to connect the sentences.
a. that thousands o f people fled
this country as a penniless from the area. Use only words and phrases from the list below the exercise. If, however, you feel confident
refugee, enough, try to do the exercise without using the list.
2. T he outbreak o f the disease b. that he w on the N obel Prize for Example:
caused such a panic, Physics.
In sentence I , you have to put a connecting word at the beginning o f the sentence,
3. N ow that m ore and m ore people c. N evertheless, I cannot b ear him
because he_ has a sm all letter. You can use W hen. Once or As soon as.
have access to the Internet, personally.
4. The roads w ere jam m ed , d. he w as finally arrested and sent
to prison. 1. he had found the key, he was able to get out.
5. B eing a com petent linguist, e. they will be able to find their 2. action had been taken sooner, this tragedy would not have occurred.
w ay here quite easily.
3. the exams are over, I can relax.
6. T here is no doubt th at the law f. she is able to understand the
4. There are many things you can do to get exercise, walking, swimming, cycling, tennis
needs to be changed problem s that h er students face.
and so on.
7. I adm ire him as a politician. g- so that people w ith physical
5. a referee sees that a boxer is hurt, he should stop the fight.
disabilities can have greater
access to all public buildings. 6. television has had a detrimental effect on society, it has brought many benefits.
8. It w as such a brilliant h. the num ber o f injuries w ould 7. There are many steps can be taken to make public transport safer.
developm ent, have been dram atically reduced. 8. the law on gun ownership in the UK should be more strictly controlled is now being
9. O n account o f his violent i. yet the am bulance m anaged to seriously considered.
behaviour tow ards his w ife and reach the scene o f the accident. 9. the leak is mended, the structure o f the house will be severely damaged.
children,
10. They ate their meal quickly and left the restaurant the owner could close early.
10. H ad the w earing o f safety belts j- he has m anaged to overcom e
11. Maureen teaches botany Violet teaches history.
been com pulsory on coaches as all his difficulties.
well as in cars, 12. the number o f car accidents is decreasing in the UK, in other countries, it is increasing.
11. In the end, he bought the k. the am ount o f inform ation 13. The plane was delayed; the hotel was a mess and it rained most o f the time; the holiday
building, m oving around the globe is was a disaster.
phenom enal. 14. the violence occurred rarely. Then over the years it became worse.
12. Som ething needs to be done 1. o therw ise, there m ay well be
about w ater conservation in w ars in the near future.
m any parts o f the w orld; Item bank
13. Provided they follow the m. even though it w as practically if/unlcss/when/if only/like/so that/and/whether/that/at first/whereas/but/
instructions, falling dow n. although/howevcr/all in all/now that/since/which/as soon as/once

tiiimiBiuuimium
Exercise 20
Sentence relationships in a text_____________
(Guidelines for sentence relationships
This exercise will help you focus on marking the relationships between sentences in a text.
Obviously, highlighting such connections is much more complex than just joining a few sentences
or clauses together. Sentences 1 and 2. You can join these sentences together; the second
First of all, read the introduction and the first paragraph o f the essay below. As you are reading, sentence stales the reasons why such vehicles play an important role.
try to feel where there is a need for connecting devices to mark the sentence relationships in the
passage. Sentence 3 shows the opposite side of the picture, so insert an adverb
Then, use the guidelines which follow the text and write out the passage, connecting the sentences
that brings out the contrast. Be careful with the punctuation! You will
where possible. find in the Key that the author has added another phrase, because he
Avoid marking the book.
finds that the contrast is not strong enough, and because there is a
problem with the rhythm of the sentence. Can you add something
yourself to the sentence?
What are the arguments for and against private vehicles? What is your
Sentence 4 is the first argument of your essay. Add a word or phrase to
opinion in this matter?
indicate this.
(1) Private vehicles play a key role in our lives. (2) They provide
independent transport, freedom and many jobs. (3) They cause pollu Sentence 5 is a consequence of Sentence 4. Use a conjunction to join
tion, traffic jams, noise and death. them together.
(4) Private transport, especially the car, gives us freedom to move. (5) Sentence 6 is an extension of the previous one. It states another true fact
We no longer need to organise our lives around bus or train timetables. about private vehicles. Can you add a phrase to help show this?
(6) Many people think that their cars are indispensable machines. (7)
They cannot live without them. (8) People who live in rural areas need Sentence 7 is a result of Sentence 6 .
private vehicles to go to towns for shopping, socialising, taking children
Sentence 8 is an example of the previous sentence.
to schools, etc. (9) Without a car their lives would be very difficult.
(10) They would be forced to rely on infrequent public transport, if it
You can join Sentences 9 and 10 with a simple conjunction that
existed at all. (11) Many families who live in the country have one or
indicates the two are of the same value.
more cats. (12) They would be cut off from the rest of the world. (13)
For many people a car is a necessity. Sentence 11 is a consequence.
Can you think of an adverb to join Sentence 12 to the previous one?

Use a word that means or else. Be careful with the punctuation.
S e n ten ce 13 is a co n c lu sio n .
32 a book on writing
5 5 1 5 515 5 52 3 5 5 2 55 5 1
Exercise 21
Exercise 22
Text with gaps
Text with no gaps
You are now going to connect the sentences in a text by inserting suitable words and phrases,
f rom Iixerciscs 15 to 2 1, you have been concentrating on connecting words and phrases which
but, this tim e, you will have no help.
contribute to (he texture o f what you write. This exercise attempts to focus your attention more
A. Look at the items in the following list: on this quality to help you improve your writing. Below are the introduction and first two
paragraphs o f an essay on Knowledge is power. D iscuss. The text is grammatically correct, but
1. Further 8. To put it another way
it is not well connected. Put the numbers which relate to the words and phrases below into the
2. and consequently AIDS 9. Thirdly
most appropriate place in the text, as in the two examples. The punctuation will help you to
3. Take the threat of AIDS, for example 10. Admittedly
complete the exercise. If you are not able to put in all the words and phrases in the first few
4. In my opinion 11. whether sex education should
attempts, use the Key to help you.
5. especially young girls be introduced
6. First of all, I believe 12. Even so, I strongly believe that it needs 1. Work is another obvious area where 9. so that
7. To me, however 13. W hat is more knowledge bestows power. 10. A very good example is the field of
2. In a similar way, politics.
Now read the passage below and write the numbers o f the items from the list in the appropriate
3. For example. 11. At the interview itself.
blanks. You may use each item once only.
4. In fact, in all areas of life, 12. , for instance,
5. Looking at the matter from another angle, 13. are then more likely to
6. above 14. With this power.
B. W hat is the title of the essay?
7. When the successful candidate finally 15. This
starts working, 16. such as
8. , thus, 17. , among other things,
The issue o f (a) in all schools at secondary level has been an on-going debate
for quite some ti m e . (b) , such education is a necessary part o f the
curriculum at this level.
Few people would deny the validity o f th e 6 saying, the power of knowledge exerts
(c)-------pupils need be given lessons on sex education, just like any other field a considerable force.
o f study (d)-------- , they should not be protected from this subject, as it is one of As som e politicians have access to m any sources o f inform ation, they possess a
the most important matters in our everyday life (e) Sex education would formidable weapon: power, they are able to control the lives of the general public, when
go a long way in preventing the spread o f the HIV v iru s, (f)_____ , among the politicians want public support for a particular cause, all they have to do is put forward
younger generation. (g)_____ , there may be some reticence, and even antago the positive aspects o f their proposals and hide the negative. The public, ignorant of the
nism, among certain groups o f people, as to the way and the degree this subject is whole picture, lend their support to the politicians’ cause, other politicians are also
presented (h) to be part of the curriculum. controlled, the general public and other politicians, through lack of knowledge, are at the
(i)------- , we have to remember what other hazards ignorance about sex may mercy of the politician who possesses knowledge, and power.
bring for pupils, at secondary sc h o o l, (j)______ (k)_____ , it is better to When someone applies for a j o b 12 the success of the application depends on the
know everything about this ‘taboo’ subject than to seek knowledge when it is too late, knowledge of the person who applies, knowledge involves skills, knowing how best to
for example in the case o f unwanted pregnancies. complete the application form; using the correct language; or how to write the accom
(1)------- , we all know that young people are especially vulnerable to stress as panying letter, the success o f the application will depend on the applicant’s display of
regards sex. Proper education would. I feel, help to prevent frustration in certain knowledge about the post applied for. success or failure will largely be dependent on
circum stances (m)_____ , it may also stop young people from seeking ‘nonsci- his/her accumulation of knowledge, he/she can deal effectively with others and not be
entific’ ways o f solving their problems, and halt the development o f superstition. manipulated by them, too much.
1 SIIU
As we can see, there are many aiguments to support giving lessons in sex education at
secondary school.
Check your answers with the Key and correct any of the numbers. Then read the text to yourself
and try to put in the words and phrases above automatically. Repeat the exercise several times
so that you can learn to feel where there is a gap in the text.

Reference with synonyms More reference with synonyms
The use of synonyms to link sentences also improves the quality and texture of a passage. This exercise gives you further practice with synonyms. Read the sentences below and think of
W hen you are writing, synonyms help you summarise part of the previous text, and, thus, link a suitable word for each of the blanks. Note that in some cases it is possible to use more than
sentences together. Furthermore, they help you to avoid repetition and stop you from relying one word. Only this time, try to do the exercise without any help, if you can.
over much on adverbs and conjunctions to make connections.
As you read, try to predict which words will be translated into a synonym in the next part of the
Below is a list o f such words that are often used to help link sentences. Put the words into the text. Then as you choose each synonym think about the text which it looks back to. Let us take
appropriate spaces below. Note that in some cases it is possible to use more than one word. You an example from the previous exercise:
may also be able to think o f other words from outside the list.
6. a Scenes o f murder and physical assault are now commonplace on TV.
solution/ entertainment/ problem/ proposal! policy/ group/ violence/ measure/ move/
b Such entertainment/violence, unfortunately, has a negative effect on the minds
idea/ situation/ ploy/ amenities/ recommendation/ fa c t/ suggestion/ crime/ damage
of young people.
Try not to write the answers in your book. W hen you have compared your answers with the
In (a), the underlined text looks forward to both the synonyms in (b). The synonyms, in turn,
Key, repeat the exercise over a period of time until the words come automatically.
look back to the text underlined in (a).
If you cannot find a word which fits, then select one from the list on the next page.
1. Old people should be given a higher pension during winter months. This seems to be
1. Animals are kept in appalling conditions during transport from one country to another.
the best possible__________to the problem.
S u rely , o f this kind cannot be tolerated in a civilised society.
2. Millions of people are dying each year because of a lack of basic medicine; a _________
2. Violent attacks by young people are increasing alarmingly, but little is being done to
that surely cannot be ignored.
address th e .
3. Many inner cities have been disfigured by insensitive office developments, but the 3. Poverty and ill-health are inextricably bound together, yet t h e between
__________, I feel, is not irreparable. them does not appear to be recognised by those in power.
4. Safety belts should be made compulsory on all coaches. If t h i s __________ were 4. In 1945, there were 100,000 vegetarians in the United Kingdom and now there are 3
adopted, it would certainly help reduce injuries in road accidents. million. With 2000 people changing to a meat-free diet each week, it is a _____
5. More swimming pools, leisure centres and sports clubs are being built all over the that is set to continue.
country. Even so, there are still not e n o u g h __________ like this to satisfy demand. 5. Euthanasia may have to be considered as a possible solution to overpopulation in the
6. Scenes o f m urder and physical a ssau lt are now com m onplace on TV. Such future; at the moment, fortunately, it is not a serio u s .
__________, unfortunately, has a negative effect on the minds of young people. 6. One way to solve the problem would be to legalise the use of cannabis and other soft
drugs. T h is could, o f course, prove to be rather risky.
7. The Department o f Transport has decided to introduce a green tax on fuel. There are,
o f course, many people who would object to the introduction of th is __________. 7. lie said that I should have taken up the job. If I had followed h i s , though,
I would have been completely worn out by now.
8. Making petty criminals wear electronic tags has been a failure in the United States.
8. Through the media, people are now being encouraged to recycle different materials
Surprisingly, th e __________is being considered by the Home Office in the UK.
like bottles, paper, plastic bags, etc. S u c h doesn’t always work.
9. Young people nowadays have many forms of technology to amuse them. Teachers
9. The Project can only go ahead, if 75% of the funding is found from the private sector.
often disapprove of su c h __________ , as it tends to make students lazy and unable to
In the present climate such a will be difficult to fulfil.
think for themselves.
10. If speed limits on motorways were reduced, the number o f car accidents would fall
10. Society often fails to m eet the needs o f physically handicapped people. Yet they are dramatically. This is obviously a highly desirable .
a __________that obviously deserves more help.
11. The world is in imminent danger of being destroyed by the greenhouse e ffe c t. Yet
11. The government introduced the new rule while everyone's attention wasengaged
little is b e in g done to counter t h i s .
elsewhere. It was quite a c lev e r__________.
12. With the rising costs o f medicine, the question of whether to allocate scarce resources
to the elderly or the young is a many hospitals now face.

Exercise 26
Below is a list o f words you can use to help link the sentences on the previous page.
The definite article as a connecting word
disaster, outcom e, dilem m a, craze, action, advice, issue, danger, relationship,
encouragem ent, problem , cruelty, threat, trend, link, step, condition, situation,
connection, p ra c tic e s, optio n , p o licy, p red ica m en t, treatm ent, catastrophe, You have looked at joining sentences together by various means. It is now time to focus on
requirement. another linking device, the definite article.
In the exercise below, explain the use o f the articles, the/a/an. and the lack o f articles, as far as
you can. Then read the Key carefully. You may need to do the exercise several times.
Exercise 25
Words and phrases that are not exactly correct 1. A man was walking slowly along a dark street of low cottages. The
street was narrow and unwelcoming. As he glanced into the alleys
W hen you are writing, it is difficult to think about the gram mar and spelling as well as the between some of the cottages, the man looked quite scared.
different connecting devices, all at the same time. However, if you can learn to control the
reference and connections in your writing, it gives you greater freedom, and more time, to 2. The advice you gave me was unsound.
concentrate on the content and the ideas.
3. The blind may benefit from new developments in technology.
In this exercise, you are going to look at a mixture o f connections. Some words or phrases are
almost correct; some are completely wrong; and yet others are repetitions. Read the text below 4. The walk to Studland along the beach from the ferry takes just over
once and then read it again, replacing, where possible, the underlined words with suitable words/ an hour.
phrases. Try not to mark the text so that you can repeat the exercise.
5. I usually hear from him twice a year.
6. We were sitting in an old cafe. The sun was shining in a blue sky,
Why are people turning more and more to alternative medicine?
but it was bitterly cold. The room was very cosy and the hot
Alternative, or non-orthodox, medicine is now attracting an ever-increasing number of
chocolate was warm and rich.
people. There are, (11 however, many (21 causes behind this (31 custom .
The most important argument is the public’s increased awareness o f their (41 condition.
7. Islands are romantic places and the Seychelles are no exception.
(51 The public are no longer willing to bear the mildest of pain, (6) as headaches, or 8. The most important bee in a hive is the queen.
(71 bear even minor illnesses like flu. (81 On the other hand. (91 the public spare no
effort looking for help by any means available. As orthodox medicine often does not 9. In the following exercise fill the blanks with a suitable word.
work or needs time to work, (101 they do not hesitate to seek help from an acupuncturist
or osteopath in the hope o f better relief. ( I l l And in chronic situations, (121 namely 10. I was set upon from behind. The attack lasted only about five
arthritis, headaches or backache, where (131 orthodox medicine can often do little, minutes, but, believe me, it seemed like a very long time.
some forms of (141 unorthodox medicine are favoured by an increasing number of
people.
(151 Other important reason is that (161 in contrary to orthodox medicine, non-orthodox
forms o f treatment do not usually involve much intervention. (17) They also fear being
admitted to hospital for any length of time, taking drugs or chemicals, which may do
harm . A bove all, they (18) fear operations o f any kind. (19) In ad d itio n , when
something simple promises relief, they naturally (20) switch to it.

m utnm um m nut
Exercise 27
Exercise 28
The articles: fill the gaps
Reference awareness and connections in a text
Now you have a chance to use the information you learnt in the previous exercise to complete
Below is part o f an article for a school magazine on: Life in 100 yea rs’ time; a personal view.
a series of texts. For each blank in the texts below, decide whether you should add either a/an/thc.
Read the texl through carefully; you will see that the passage is not very well connected.
or leave the space empty. Rem em ber to ask yourself the questions you learnt in the Key in
the previous exercise. Again try not to mark the text so that you can repeat the exercise. Just as it would have been difficult to predict, a hundred years ago, life in this century, so
now it is not easy to say what life is going to be like in 100 years’ time.
1 advice is often difficult to accept fro m 2 friends, b u t 3 advice Samir First of all, I must say that I think life will be very different in many ways by the year 2096.
gave me was surprisingly helpful. The next time 1 n e e d 4 help I shall know where People will be living on other planets, perhaps even on planets outside the solar system.
to go. Obviously, therefore, travelling will be incredibly sophisticated and people will be able to
travel vast distances in space; perhaps, even in a matter of seconds.
Secondly, communication is also bound to be so sophisticated, that people will be able to

5------ old people always think th a t_6______young la c k 7__ discipline; maybe it’s
communicate by telepathy. A nother possibility is that people may be able to communicate
b ecau se 8 young people are free fr o m 9 shackles that h in d ered 10
previous generations. visually with each other w herever they are. For example, people will be able to send
holographic messages to each other; these holographic messages will be able to be stored
for play back later, just as answering machines do today.
11 first time she saw him she was only thirteen. His curly auburn hair and sailor’s Thirdly, a planet is certain to be free from disease and, as a consequence, we will have a
uniform were what did it 12 year later she was out deliverin g ___ 13___ milk on longer lifespan. M any people may fear the introduction of euthanasia as the earth becomes
her bicycle, when she saw him fo r 14 second time. He was also o n 13 bike. more crowded, but, if it is introduced, I believe that it will be only a temporary measure, as
If you are going in 16 opposite directions, 17 bicycles are not very convenient more and more men and women will be needed to colonise other worlds.
for starting 18 love affair!
Now try to improve the article by completing the following exercise:
19 whales are i n 20 danger of becoming extinct.

1. The writer has repeated certain words and phrases. Use the synonyms below, in the
order they occur in the list, to improve the text.
(a) the m ajor events that have taken place; (b) our lives; (c) worlds; (d) cover; (el
highly developed; (f) we; (g) everyone; (It) human beings; (i) one another; (j) images
For example, (c) worlds = planets in Paragraph 2.

Sarah and Matty w e r e 24 great friends. W henever Sarah went out to see her at
25 big house, Matty would always make her tea i n 26 large kitchen. Then, 2. Are the words and phrases below necessary in the text?
if Lady Margaret were not around, they would slide d o w n 27 banisters o n 28___
First o f all, in many ways, Secondly, Thirdly, For example, as a consequence,
staircase i n 29 front entrance hall. How difficult it is, when you are young, to resist
30 banisters, especially if they look dangerous! 3. The writer couldn’t decide whether to add .therefore, to the beginning of the second
sentence in the fourth paragraph. In your opinion, is it necessary?
4. In one place in the fourth paragraph, the indefinite article a is used instead o f the?
On 31 arrival a t 32 a irp o rt, 33 first thing he did was phone home. Why is it wrong?
5. Note also that the writer has repeated the structure will be able to four times. W hat
other alternatives can you use in the third paragraph?
i G iant’s Causeway is one o f 35 most beautiful places in 36 Europe.
6. Which other two structures d o es the w rite r u se to a v o id th e re p e titio n o f th e
construction w ill b e ?

Exercise 29
l
Awareness of old/new information in a sentence: 1 Introduction
y
This exercise helps make you aware of the organisation o f the information in a sentence. Not till people in the world enjoy equal standards of health care, simply
Below is part of an article entitled Violence in our Society. The sentences o f the first paragraph because not everyone in the world has equal access to such care.
are divided into two parts. The part on the left is in the correct order, but the part on the right
u
is jum bled.
Second paragraph
M atch the two sections and you will have a complete paragraph. As you do the exercise, think
u
about the balance of the information in each sentence. it. This treatment is available, because there are
1. One of the most pressing problems a. is the inability of society to tackle b. In the latter, however, there are
u
the root of the problem, namely
poverty. c. First of all, the rich can afford to go to
H
2. This increase can be attributed b. operate in isolation.
d. What is more, those living in
3. Lack of discipline in the home and at c. to many different causes depending
y
school on one’s particular viewpoint. c. Second, for people living in big cities it is
4. The break-up of marriages and the d. is often quoted as a reason for the
f. Thus, for poor people living in remote areas
u
increase in one-parent families disintegration o f our society.
5. B ut without doubt the primary cause e. are also blam ed fo r the in creasing g. Poor patients, on the other hand, have to go to
u
violence in our lives.
6. Poverty is often the source o f a host of f. like the lack of opportunity, squalor
other contributory factors, 1. a private hospital where they are able to have better investigations
u
and unemployment, to name but a
few. and treatment without delay.
7. However, rarely does one o f the above facing our society today is the
u
g- 2. a government hospital where they may encounter many difficul
causes increasing incidence o f violence.
ties, including long waiting lists for treatment, or even a lack of
i
basic supplies like bandages.
Exercise 30
3. easier to find modern treatment.
S
Awareness of old/new information in a sentence: 2
4. many highly equipped hospitals available in large cities compared
l
This exercise helps you to focus on the organisation of the information in a sentence from a with small towns.
different angle. Below is part o f an essay: Inequalities in health care cannot he avoided. Discuss.
l 3. often no hospitals at all and public transport is non-existent.
The sentences of the second paragraph are divided into two. The parts indicated by letters,
which contain the text references, are jum bled, but those indicated by numbers, containing the
(). large urban areas have access to more specialists in different fields
B
ideas, are in the correct order. Match the two sections o f each sentence and you will have it
complete paragraph. with modern technology like CT scans, dialysis machines, etc.
Read through the part of the text on the opposite page carefully. Use the connecting words and
S
phrases, the grammar and the sequence o f information, to help you find your way through the 7. access to health care is not easily available.
text.
H
As you do the exercise think about the relationship between the two parts o f each sentence and
how they connect.
H
42 a book on writing a book on w ritin g

H
Exercise 31
Contradictions
As we have seen, it is difficult to think about the content, as well as the grammar and the
connections, when we write. It is not surprising, therefore, that we sometimes contradict ourselves
in m inor detail.
Read through the text below quickly. Then read it again carefully and find the contradictions.
Note that the first fact in the text is always true. One o f the contradictions is marked for you.
Kimberley was born in 1953 and brought up in Hackney, north London, the
only girl in a family of four boys. She had a happy childhood with parents
who were very caring and easy going. Being rather well-off, the family lived a
totally carefree life in a large, rambling house.
5 Kimberley was quite an ordinary child, rather dull, in fact, with no real interest
in any school activity. She was very mischievous and always getting into
trouble. Her behaviour caused her parents no end o f anguish, as her other SECTION 3
brothers and sister were doing extremely well. At school, insects, drawing and,
o f course, boys were her main obsessions.
10 Then, in 1972, at the age o f sixteen. Kimberley began to blossom. The plain
girl turned into a very handsome young woman, but still very much a loner.
She w asn’t exactly elegant, as, coming from a poor background, she could not
afford to buy many expensive clothes.
She had always been a model pupil of average intelligence, but now she began
15 to shine in the class, especially in languages. In her first attempt at her
A -Levels, she did rather well, much to everyone’s surprise.
Kim, as she was known to her many friends, couldn’t decide whether to stay in
south London, where she was born, or go to Exeter. She went to the latter,
where she studied French and Italian. She lasted only two years, as she hated
20 the student life in London. As part o f her course, she spent a year abroad: six
months in Moscow and six in Athens. W hen she came back to England, she
found it very difficult to settle down. Being decisive, at first, she didn’t know
what to do, but gradually Kimberley found her feet.
She started an acting career, which took off rather quickly. After a
25 considerable time, she had a lucky break in a comedy called Right Monkey,
about a family who bring up a baby chimpanzee. The film was a huge success.
She is now also a big hit in a romantic comedy, called Hello and Bye.

( o u t cuts
32. F o rm al le tte r ch e c k list P a rt I ........................................................... 48
33. F o rm al letter ch e c k list P art 2 ........................................................... 49
34. F o rm al letter a n a ly s is .......................................................................... 50
35. S e q u en ce o f ten ses in a t e x t ..............................................................51
36. R eading for w r itin g .............................................................................. 52
37. F o rm al an d inform al a w a r e n e s s ...................................................... 54
38. T ra n slatio n from in fo rm al to f o r m a l ..............................................55
39. D ressin g up an in fo rm al le t te r ..........................................................56
4 0 . F o rm al to inform al tra n sla tio n .........................................................57
4 1. A writing d r ill......................................................................................... 58

Exercise 32
Exercise 33
Formal letter checklist Part 1
Porniiil letter checklist Part 2
This exercise checks how much you know about formal letters. Read the statements below and
This is another exercise to check how much you know about formal letters. Read the statements
decide whether they are true or false.
below uiul decide whether they are true or false.
1. Y ou can p u t y o u r n am e ab o v e y o u r ad d re ss in th e to p rig h t-h a n d corner.

1. In the fo llo w in g se n te n c e , you can u se w o u ld in stead o f sh o u ld :
2. Y ou m u st n e v e r le a v e o u t p u n c tu a tio n in y o u r a d d re ss.
/ sliou h i b e g ra te fu l i f y o u c o u ld se n d m e a c o p y o f the report.
3. T h e d ate sh o u ld a lw a y s be im m e d ia te ly b e lo w y o u r a d d ress.
2. W hen you are applying fo r a jo b , it is better to include a sum m ary o f your
4 . You can ab b re v ia te th e d ate as fo llo w s: 2 2 .8 .9 6 . c u rric u lu m vitae in th e letter.
5. Q u o tin g th e re fe re n c e o f the p e rso n y o u are w ritin g to is e sse n tia l. 3. You c a n n o t use c o n tra c tio n s (e.g. don ’t/I ’m /c a n ’t).
6 . It is alw ay s n ec e ssa ry to p u t th e n am e an d th e a d d re ss o f th e a d d re sse e 4. H ope to h e a r from you so o n is a g o o d w ay to en d a fo rm al letter.

on th e le ft, startin g b e lo w y o u r o w n a d d re ss.
5. Y ours faith fu lly , is u se d in all fo rm al letters.
7. Y ou m u st alw a y s g iv e th e p o sitio n o f th e p e rso n y o u are w ritin g to a fter
6 . You sh o u ld alw ay s say T h an k v o u /T h a n k in g v o u in ad v an ce at th e end
h is /h e r n am e in th e a d d re s s, e.g.:
o f form al letters.
M r S ingh
7. It is b e tte r to p rin t y o u r n a m e a fter y o u r sig n atu re at the e n d o f th e letter.
T he M anager
8 . Y ou sh o u ld a v o id co llo q u ia l ex p re ssio n s, e.g . p h rasal v erb s, g e t, etc.
8 . I f you do not k n o w th e a d d re sse e p erso n a lly , b u t y o u k n o w h is/h e r n am e,
y o u sh o u ld still u se D e a r S ir/M a d a m to b eg in y o u r letter. 9. You do not need to w rite n u m b ers in w o rd s.
9. A ll fo rm al letters sh o u ld b e g in w ith a h e a d in g o n the lin e 10 . W hen you use ab b rev iatio n s in a form al letter, you should w rite the w ords
in full w ith th e a b b re v ia tio n in b ra c k e ts a fte rw a rd s, e .g . th e U n ite d
b elo w D e a r .........
K ingdom (U K t. W hen you w ant to use the phrase/nam e again in the text,
10. Y ou m u st alw ay s in d e n t the b e g in n in g o f e a ch p a ra g ra p h as fo llo w s: you can use the abbreviation on its ow n.
D e a r S ir!M a d a m , 11. F o rm al letters sh o u ld b e fairly n eat a n d tidy.

I sh o u ld like to a p p ly ..... 12. You m ust alw ay s u se u n lin c d paper.
11. You sh o u ld start a fo rm al le tte r by statin g w h y y o u are w ritin g , e.g.:
I am w ritin g to c o m p la in a b o u t/a p p ly f o r . ..
1 sh o u ld /w o u ld like to a p p ly f o r the j o b . . .
T h a n k y o u f o r y o u r le tte r d a te d ...
I refer to y o u r le tte r o f . ..

Exercise 34
Exercise 35
Formal letter analysis
Sequence <>i~lenses in a text
In the letter below, there are a number of problem s, which relate to style and layout. Edit the
The text below is part of a letter to a newspaper, stating how the writer thinks the incidence of
letter using the true/false checklists in Exercises 32 and 33.
rape can be reduced.
In the text, there is a problem with most o f the verb forms. Look carefully at the relationships
between the sentences. Then decide what the correct verb form is. In some instances, there may
2 7 S ilv e r S treet be more than one correct alternative. Before you do the exercise, you may like to repeat Exercise
L ondon, 12 in Section I .
S E 1 6 1CH
12/7/96.
D e a r S ir !d&eax < S i i / a d a m ,
I ’m a so cial w o rk e r liv in g in L o n d o n . N o rm a lly , I d o n ’t w rite to j l . O m wxite] to e x ji x e a niij concern a f o u t t f e increasing n u m fe x

p a p e rs , b u t I feel I m u st d o so o n th is o cc a sio n .
o f xafie a t t a e f s a g a in s t w o m e n in our society a n d to fia t fo x w a x d
I m u st say th at 1 d o n ’t ag ree w ith th e w rite r’s p o in t o f view . S h e has said
th at, w ith the use o f fetal m aterial fo r tra n sp lan ts, w e are activ ely en co u rag in g som e h x o h o s a ts a f o u t f o w t f e incidence, o f xafie f l . w o u f d f e ]
m o re a b o rtio n s . A re c e n t stu d y , th o u g h , sh o w s th at a b o u t 175,000 a b o rtio n s xeduced.
are c a rrie d o u t leg ally e v ery y e a r in th e U K , w h ic h m e an s th a t tissu e fro m
175,000 fetal b rain s is a v ailab le fo r tra n sp la n ta tio n . D o w e th e n really need
m o re ab o rtio n s?
B y ca rry in g out th ese o p e ra tio n s, w e are h e lp in g lo a d s o f p a tie n ts su fferin g 0 [3. a m s u g g e s tin g J tfia t the g o v e x n m e n t [4. w o u f d in c r e a s e f t f e
from P a rk in so n ’s d ise a se . (T h ere are ab o u t 110,000 p a tie n ts su fferin g fro m fie n a ftie s fo x rafiists a n d tfia t tfe x e f5. w o u f d f e f no fiarofe once a
th is co n d itio n in the U K ). T h u s, w e c a n h e lp a large n u m b e r o f p eo p le lead
b etter and purposeful lives. S econdly, after the op eratio n th e patient has to take sentence [6. p a s s e d ] , {f J f i s f 7. s f o w s ] t f e p u f f i c tfia t th e sta te
few er d ru g s. B oth th ese facto rs w o u ld re d u c e the load on th e N H S as m illio n s /S. m a y f e ] sexious a f o u t f9. t a c f f e J t f i e p r o f fern o f s e x u a f a s s a u ft
o f p o unds are spent on th e reh abilitation o f p atien ts suffering fro m P a rk in so n ’s
d ise a se . on wom en. c z /ft t f e sa m e tim e , wfiife in p ris o n , se x offe nd e rs, a t
F in ally , by sto p p in g th ese o p e ra tio n s w e are a c tu a lly try in g to h alt flO. f a s recent fy x e c o m m en d ed j, f l l . u n d e r g o ] fo n g - t e r m coun-
m ed ical re se a rc h and p ro g re ss. H o w th en can w e h o p e to k ee p u p w ith o th e r seffing to f e l p’ tfiem. f l l . f i g f t i n g ] t f e p r o f fern tfe m s e f v e s . 1Ucfl
d eveloped nations w here scientific progress is adv an cin g at an incredible pace?
counseffing f l 3 . is c o n tin u in g ] a ftex t f e r e f ease o f i e x offe nd e rs,
H o p e I can g et th is le tte r p u b lish e d in y o u r paper.
then 0 [1.4. am stro n g ly f e f i e v i n g ] t f a t t f i s [15 . can Ij e . J one o f t f e
Y ours sin cerely ,
m o l t effective w a ys f l 6 . x e d u c e ] t f e n u m f e x o f s e x u a f a s s a u f ts on
wom en.
cs= ®
Exercise 36
Reading for writing
D e a r S ir/M a d a m ,
One way of improving your writing is to learn to absorb the oiganisation o f a text as you read. I am w ritin g to e x p re ss m y o p in io n ab o u t an article on A cq u ired
Many of the exercises you have done up to now have, in fact, been teaching you how to do just Im m u n o d eficien cy S y n d ro m e (A ID S ), w h ich a p p eared in y o u r
this. n e w sp a p e r on 15th A u g u st 1 9 9 6 .1 fe a r th at th ere is a d a n g e r o f y o u r
The aim of this exercise is specifically to make you read a text actively and to revise some re a d e rs b e in g m isled by the re m ark s m ad e by th e w riter. A s a d o c to r
points you have already looked at. 5 w h o has sp en t six m o n th s in rese a rc h on A ID S , I w o u ld lik e to
c larify a few p o in ts fo r y o u r read ers.
Read through the questions below and read the text on the opposite page. Then answer the
questions and check your answer with the Key. T h e w rite r stated th at A ID S is a p lag u e sen t to th o se w h o h a v e an
im m oral life. T h is is n o n sen se. I w o u ld lik e to ask the a u th o r how
1. In line 1, is it p o ssib le to start th e le tte r 1 w rite in ste ad o f 1 am w ritin g ? w o u ld he ex p la in , fro m h is e x trem ely n arro w p o in t o f v iew , th e
10 tra n sm issio n o f th e H u m an Im m u n o d e fic ie n c y V irus (H IV ) to
2. W h y is it not p o ssib le to re p lace th e first se n te n c e w ith th e fo llo w in g : I
h a e m o p h ilia p atien ts. M o reo v er, w h a t a b o u t the o u tb re a k o f H IV
re a d an article in v o u r n e w sp a p e r o n A ID S o n 15 A u g u s t.?
in fectio n in n eo n ata l w ard s in so m e parts o f the w o rld ?
3. W h ich o f th e fo llo w in g w o rd s c o u ld re p la c e th e w o rd o p in io n in line 1:
v iew s/c o n c e rn /b e lie f/fe a rs? A quick look at the latest inform ation on A ID S w ould reveal that it is
4 . In line 3, can y o u w rite th e d ate as fo llo w s: 1 5/8/96? sp re a d in g th ro u g h o u t th e w o rld am o n g d iffe re n t n atio n s.
15 T h e re fo re , it is a th re a t to all h u m an b e in g s , re g ard less o f th e ir
5. In lin es 4 /5 . the c la u se A s a d o c to r w h o h as sp e n t six m o n th s in re search
lifesty le.
on A ID S c o u ld be left o u t w ith o u t affe c tin g the te x t in an y w ay. D o you
ag ree w ith this state m e n t? R e a d th e in tro d u c tio n , if n e ce ssary sev eral A fte r his initial sta te m e n t, th e w rite r g o es on to su g g est th a t
tim e s, w ith an d w ith o u t th e p h rase. re so u rc e s sh o u ld n o t b e allo c a te d fo r re se a rc h p ro g ra m m e s o n A ID S .
6 . D o you th in k the w rite r sh o u ld start th e sec o n d p a ra g ra p h w ith a p h rase T h is m ean s a c o m p le te and u tte r su rre n d e r to a very th re a te n in g , b u t
like: F irst o f all, F irstly , F irst? G iv e re a so n s fo r y o u r an sw er. 20 c o n tro lla b le and p re v e n ta b le situ atio n .
7. Y ou can rep lac e T h is in lin e 8 w ith It. Is th is tru e? G iv e y o u r re a so n s. T h e article m ust also h av e been a g re a t sh o ck to the v ictim s o f A ID S .
C an you th in k o f an y o th e r w ay to co n n e c t th e tw o se n te n c e s? W c sh o u ld b e a r in m in d th a t p e o p le w h o h a v e th is d is e a s e n e e d
8 . In lin e 9, is the w o rd o rd e r h o w w o u ld h e ex p lain c o rre c t? G iv e a reaso n s y m p a th y , s u p p o r t, c o u n s e llin g a n d h e lp , r a th e r th a n is o la tio n ,
fo r y o u r answ er. a c c u sa tio n and p u b lic h u m iliatio n .
9. In lin e 11, w hat o th e r w o rd s can y o u th in k o f to re p la c e M o re o v e r? Is it 25 I d o h ope the w rite r w ill, in fu tu re , c o n sid e r th e eth ical an d h u m an
p o ssib le to o m it M o re o v e r h e re ? G iv e a reaso n . c o sts o f w h at he w rites.
10. W h a t o th e r w o rd s/p h ra se s can re p la c e th e w o rd T h e re fo re in line 15? Yours faithfully,
A lso , is the w o rd T h e re fo re really n e c essary here?
11. Is it p o ssib le to re w rite th e o p e n in g sen te n c e o f th e fo u rth p arag ra p h as
fo llo w s: T h e w rite r a lso su g g ests th a t re so u rc e s ...? I f so , w h ic h o f the
tw o do you th in k is b e tte r?
12. C o n n e c t the tw o se n te n ce s o f th e fo u rth p a ra g ra p h in a d iffe re n t w ay.
W h ich do you p refer, th is n ew v ersio n o r th e w rite r’s? G eorgina M oore.

Sill I yuuiJu 5! uu! yu! yuuuu
Exercise 37
Exercise 38
Formal and informal awareness
Translation from informal to formal
The first stage o f deciding whether a word or phrase is formal or informal is being aware that
there is a difference between the two o f them . This exercise will help you to recognise You arc now going to sec whether you can distinguish between formal and informal language
formal/informal language. in a text. Itelow is a formal letter to a bank manager complaining about a cheque that was not
honoured by the bank. The grammar, spelling, etc. are correct, but some o f the words and
Read through the sentences below and you will see that they are all informal. Try to make them phrases are not suitable for a formal letter. First of all, read through the text and make a list of
formal and then compare your answer with the suggested versions in the Key. the words and phrases which you think are too informal. Then try to find formal items to replace
Example: them without any help. If necessary, however, you may choose from words and phrases from
the list at the bottom o f the page. Some of the informal examples have been marked for you.
Why don Vthey invest more money in the education system?
Hello Mr Underall,
This is informal.
Just a few lines to say that 9. you bounced a cheque, which was presented for payment
Formal: on 25/1/96, in spite of the fact that my account 17. had money in it at the time of
presentation. I would also like to make a complaint about the subsequent service I got
I suggest that more money (should) be invested in the education system.
from 1. one o f your chaps.
I would call your attention to the fact that a banker’s draft for £150 was paid into my
account at your branch by my elder daughter, Rebecca M erstone, on 20/1/96, five days
1. T h a n k s fo r y o u r letter, w hich I g o t y esterd ay .
before the said cheque was presented and refused. The following day my younger
2 . I f I w ere y o u , I ’d m a k e a w id e r sele ctio n o f fo o d a v a ilab le . daughter, Rosie, also paid £100 in cash into my account. There were, then, enough
funds in my account at the time of presentation and the cheque should have been cleared.
3 . Ju s t a b rie f n o te to say h o w b ad ly a m e m b e r o f y o u r s ta ff tre a te d m e.
And I’d like to point out that I got in touch with you by phone and the chap I spoke to
4. You sw itch ed m y flig h t-tim e w ith o u t tellin g m e! was really rude. Not being used to such behaviour, I was, as you can im agine, left
speechless.
5. Ju st a few w o rd s to say w h a t I th in k a b o u t th a t a rtic le w h ic h ap p ea re d in
I’lease inform me what compensation you propose to offer me for my inconvenience
y o u r p a p e r th e o th e r day. It w as o n sp o rt fo r th e y o u n g .
in this matter and what you are going to do re the rudeness of the cashier.
6 . A n y w ay , d ro p m e a lin e w hen y o u h av e th e ch an ce . Look forward to hearing from you when you’ve got the time.
7 . W h a t he said w as ju s t a lo ad o f ru b b ish . Best wishes,

Ms Caroline Grinaide.
8 . T h e re are to n s o f th in g s th at w e can d o to so lv e th e p ro b lem .
1. a member of your staff 11. I look forward to hearing from you
9. A nd w h at is w o rse is th a t you fin d d o g d irt all o v e r th e a re a w h ere c h ild ren
are p lay in g . 2. 1 should be grateful if you could 12. failed to honour
3. at your earliest convenience 13. telephone
10. T h e th in g th at re a lly g o t m e w as th e w rite r’s ig n o ra n c e o f th is m atter.
4. 20 January 1996 14. 25 January 1996
11 . I reck o n th at th e w rite r has g o t it all w ro n g . 15. what action you propose to take
5. contacted my branch
12. F irstly , you n e v e r cle a n th e c a n te e n flo o rs. 6. I am writing to lodge a complaint 16. sufficient
13. P lease reply soon. about the fact

7. therefore 17. was in credit
14. Y ours,
K. the gentleman 18. Yours sincerely,
15. I ’d like to g et an a p p lic atio n fo rm fro m y o u fo r th e c le ric a l assistan t jo b . 9. the bank 19. very
10 . 1 should also like 20. received
21. Dear
54 a book on writing 55
a book on w ritin g
Exercise 39
Exercise 40
Dressing up an informal letter
Formal lo informal translation
A nother aspect o f editing a text is to improve on a draft, which requires both patience and
This exercise helps you focus on the difference between formal and informal language. Below
practice.
is an informal letter to a friend. The grammar, spelling, etc. are correct, but some o f the words
Below is the beginning o f an informal letter. The text is correct, but it could be improved. Read or phrases arc not suitable for a friendly letter. First, see if you recognise the language which
the text and then insert some, or all, o f the words and phrases below to dress up the passage. is too formal. Then try to make the letter more informal by replacing the formal words and
You do not have to use all o f the items; how far you improve the text is for you to decide. Then phrases with the informal items below. Two examples have been done for you.
read the Key and see if you can find the words and phrases listed.
1. Give my regards to 9. decided 16. getting me down
Please note that, in some cases, you may have to change the punctuation.
2. great 10. hope to hear from you soon 17. we can m eet up
1 .then 9. which w asn’t exactly easy.
3. things v 11. has not been sorted out 18. Anyway
2. The first thing .... do was .... 10. a bit
4. Why don’t you 12. walk 19. Love
3. and so I went along with them. 11. It’s quite handy for the shops and
5. nice r 13. get through to 20. write
4. very pleasant studio 12. in one piece
6. really 14. sotted out 21. Many thanks
5. and have been settling in gradually 13. where
7. got 15. getting 22. loads of
since then.
8. hear
6. loads of 14. Now that I ’ve got my own place
7. really 15. first Dean Sarah
8.1 must admit 16. a few lines iam writing to thandgoa ftorgoar better, which ireceia-eda coupbe oftdags
ago, and fa r tie message on mg answering machine, b t was 5. such a pheasant
experience to hear ftromgoa. i'o-e triedinnamerabbe times to made contact withgoa on
D ear P /err/c£ , the phone, bat i dept obtaining goar answering machine. So i resobo-ed to patpen to
paper instead.
(7us,C to /& /pon £now / tfo t h ere ancito <gbu-e egou meg new at/dres#,
it's reabbg wonderfa b oftgoa to hao-e arranged the hobidag to /enice so
cftfticicntbg. These dags idon'tseem to be abbe tog e t mg a ct together; nor do ihao-ethe
/ arr-iu-ed in /ondon a t o a t a month atfo. / h ad to fand a g /a ce to Time,
time or energg to do angthing. i mast sag th a t chasing abbthispaper aroanda t word
hi/hen / g o t h ere, /P ■)h am m edput me of) fa r a coapde ofa n ights and
is depmC'Ssing me.
then / fa u n d th is fabat in li/c s t /ondon through an agcnceg. T h ere s Ip/ebb, i'm sorrg to be infarm ed th a t goar noise pro idem has not come to a
a tahe station n o t too faar awag. /oa s’hoaddcome oo-er h ere fa r a fa w satisfactorg concbasionget. it's trabg sebfash andinconsiderate oftpeopbe topbag masic
a tfabbbbast, especiabdg when abbgoa hear is th a t deep thud, iwoabdsuggestgoa bbast
w eeds a t th e endoftg term .
them with some opera in the middbe oft the night.
/fe e tin^- geogde in / ondon is quite difafacubt. /n th e beginning, / fa b t On a happier note, a meeting between as can be arranged beftore we go to
{/enice, ift it's nice, we coabdftinish th a tpromenade abong the rio-er and then we coabd
homesied, h u t one eo-ening / w ent to th e d/tudent ddnion. /g o t tadding have a bate aftternoon tea. Tinabbg, i boodftorward to hearing ftrom goa soon andhope
to some o th er students. T heg ino-itedme to agartg, which th eg w ere J. goar biftc andenvironment are a b it quieter, i woabdbegrateftabiftgoa coabdcono-eg
going to g a te -c ra sh . / t was fa n ta stic. / m et o th er geogde, some ofa tS = 3 » mg regards to Hugh.
whom / o-e m et seo-eradtim es since. /ours ftaithfta dbg,

« = » Todneg

Exercise 41
A writing drill
Students often learn words and phrases in isolation. Then when it conies to writing a text the
words and phrases do not fit in properly, or more often than not they do not come to mind easily.
In this exercise, you are asked to think of a word to fill each blank in an informal letter. Read the
text through once. Then read the letter again and think o f a suitable word for each gap. Write the
words on a separate sheet o f paper.
Check your answer with the Key. Repeat the exercise until you are able to read and fill the
blanks fluently. Please note that you are not expected to be able to fill all the blanks at the first
attempt. With repetition, however, you should be able to fill most o f them automatically.
D ear D oug,
1________2___ y o u r le tte r ,____ 3 ________4________5 ___
y e ste rd a y 6 w as re ally n ice t o 7 ________ 8 ________9 I m ust
say , 10 ___ , th a t I w a s 11________ 12 su rp rise d to learn th at y o u
w ere b a c k ___13 c ig are tte s ag ain .
I k n o w y o u ’re u n d e r p re ssu re b e c a u se o f y o u r e x a m s ,___ 14___

it d o e s n ’t m ean th at y o u sh o u ld g i v e 15 now 16________ 17___ SECTION 4
18___ ,1 c a n ’t b eliev e cigarettes are h elp in g y o u . D o you rem em b er
19____ I said b e fo re a b o u t all th e illn e sse s y o u c a n 20 by
s m o k in g , 21___ lu n g can ce r, h e art d ise a se an d so o n ? B y sm o k in g , in
o t h e r ____ 22_, y o u ’re p u ttin g y o u r o w n l i f e ______ 2 3 risk .
24 ,w h at ab o u t C a ro lin e a n d t h e 25 ? A re n ’t th e y n o w at
g re a te r risk du e to y o u r s e lfis h n e s s ? 2 6 ________2 7 ________2 8 ___ y o u ,
I ’d start g iv in g u p 29 I k n o w it is n ’t easy , b e c a u se I ’ve been
30 it all m y se lf.
31 d o n ’t 32 sta rt b y 33 u p g ra d u a lly ?
34 ________35___ , fo r in sta n c e , g iv e u p th e m o st im p o rta n t c ig a re tte s o f
th e d a y , 36 ___ : th e first o n e in th e m o r n in g ; 37 a fte r m e a ls; and
38 w h ile y o u ’re d rin k in g 39 y o u can c u t 40 at the
rate o f on e a day. In th is w ay, y o u w o n ’t feel th e w ith d ra w a l sy m p to m s
q u ite so badly. I su p p o se th e re ’s a lso th e p o ssib ility o f g iv in g u p in one
41 Y ou re m e m b e r M ary , d o n ’t y o u ? 4 2 ___ , s h e 4 3 ____ in
sm o k in g a fter she sta rte d w h ee z in g all th e tim e . N o w s h e ’s t a k e n ____ 4 4 __
jo g g in g . Y o u 4 5 ________4 6 ___ to try th e sam e.
47 ___ , h o p e you d o n ’t m in d m e ra n tin g o n lik e th is. A n d

48 you 4 9___ m y a d v ic e 50 m e a lin e w h e n y o u ’ve
g o t the tim e. M y re g a rd s to Jo a n and th e k id s. A n d g o o d lu c k in th e ex am s!
B e st w ish es,

Contents
2 5!
Page
4 2 . R e c o g n isin g sp ellin g m i s t a k e s ........................................................................ 62
4 3 . R e c o g n isin g the c o rrect w o rd p i c t u r e ...........................................................63
U 1 1 IIII I U U U 111
4 4 . R e c o g n isin g w o rd s w ith a d ifferen t a p p e a r a n c e ........................................ 64
4 5 . K diting se n ten ces w ith d iffe re n t m is ta k e s ................................................... 65
4 6 . S p eed e d it in g .......................................................................................................... 66
4 7 . A te a c h e r’s r e v e n g e ! ............................................................................................ 67
4 8 . C o rre c tin g a t e x t .................................................................................................... 68
4 9 . C o rre c tin g a n d im p ro v in g a t e x t .................................................................... 70
5 0 . L e a rn in g to see m ista k e s in a t e x t .................................................................. 72
5 1. F in d in g irrele v an t in f o r m a tio n ........................................................................ 73
5 2 . A n o th e r m a z e .........................................................................................................74
Ill

Exercise 42
Exercise 43
Recognising spelling mistakes
KccoKiii.siiiK the correct word picture
Once we have written something, it is difficult to recognise spelling mistakes. There are many
Spelling is also about recognising that the picture of a word that you have in your head is the
reasons for this: we are not careful enough when we write; we check too quickly; we recognise
same as the one you see on the written page. In this exercise, you are going to pick out the
the overall shape of the word, but we do not check the detail within the word.
correct word picture from a series of words.
One way of looking at spelling is to consider each word as a picture. Like a person, if you see
In each list below, there is ONE word which is spelt correctly. Read each list carefully and
people often enough in different clothes and in different contexts, you can recognise them
decide which word is correct.
easily. We all come across people whom we do not recognise outside the context we usually see
them in! With words, it is not much different. You have to be able to recognise words in books, Do not mark the book so that you can do the exercise again.
in newspapers, in your own handwriting, in advertisements, on computer screens and so on. All
these different word shapes and sizes can cause problems. Compare the way you write and print
a word with a printed word from a book. They will all be different. 1. rcaly fulfil acknow lege availible esential finaly
Further, some of our word pictures may be wrong, so that we are not able to see that there is a
mistake in the spelling of a word. You should not, therefore, be surprised that errors occur in 2. benifit bcautifull governm ent independant b reif studing
your writing, especially as it develops.
As you study language, you can consciously alter the pictures you have o f words. One method 3. dissaray dissagree disaprove disappear em barass iritate
is by learning to recognise that something is wrong.
4. feild beleive receive plaed polution preceed practiced
In each line below, there is at least one spelling mistake. Read the list carefully. Find the spelling
mistakes and write the corrections on a piece o f paper.
5. successful w onderfull pow erfull preffer g reif dificulty
1 . p a ra g ra p h acco u n t ap p ly fin a ly p re fe rre d d e fin ite ly 6. procede w riten inteligent separately proceedure
2 . p ro g ra m m e ex e c ises su p p o rt en v iro m e n t p o stp o n e re lie f
7. occurred originaly posession fascilitate atem pt behavour
3. stu b b o rn listn in g sto p p in g v e g ta b le s a d itio n a l su d d e n ly
X. diffrent rcfcring difficult carefuly gaurantee
4 . y este d a y allo w e d ex p e n siv e te m p o ra ry a lth o u g h t b e c a u se
5. p assa g e b e le if tu m m y carefu l arriv al b e g in in g g u a ra n te e d 9. acom m odation phisical arrange sirnlar preferrable posess
6 . in trestin g tra v e lle d im e d iate ly to m o rro w e sp e c ia lly
10.cquiped responsable necessary ocasional appearence
7. im agine an serin g c o rre sp o n d a d v e rtism e n t p u n ish m e n t
8 . straig h t re stu a ra n t d isc u sin g d e lig h tfu l b u isn e ssm an 11. know ledge benifited licenced acheive desparate
9. a d m ited d isa p o in te d tu n n e l th re a te n in g la n g a u g e n o n se n se
10 . can c e lla tio n ex a m in a tio n p ro ffe sio n afec te d o c c a sio n al
11 . m ain ten en ce sk ille d su p rise co lo u rs ap ro v al attra c tiv e
12 . fo rtu n atly p u tin g p e rm e n a n t im p o rta n t g e n eral

Recognising words with a different appearance Editing sentences willi dilTcmit mistakes
In this exercise, you are again going to look for words which have been correctly spelt.To see When you write, you lutve to think about many tilings, not just spelling. You need to be aware
if you can recognise words with a different appearance, the typeface in the lists below has been ol the correct word to use, the correct conjunction, the correct adverb, the correct punctuation,
changed. the organisation and so on. In other words, your attention is being sent in different directions
In some of the lists, all o f the words are correct and in others only one or two are correct. Read at the same lime. As your ability to control your writing develops (see Sections 1 and 2), you
each list carefully and decide which words are spelt correctly. may find that some organisational mistakes disappear. This is partly because certain mechan
isms have become reflex actions; you do not have to think about them all the time! You can
Do not mark the book so that you can do the exercise again. then direct your attention to other types of inaccuracies.
In this exercise, you have to find and correct mistakes in sentences. This time the errors are not
111st to do with spelling. Read each sentence carefully to find the mistake and write the correction
1. irresponsible aprove dillema com m ittee aeroplain
on a piece of paper.
2. desperate separate phenom enon intention occurence Do not mark the book so that you can do the exercise again.
3. delinquant appointm ent ordinry develope
correspondance I All p rim ary sch o o ls sh o u ld b e p ro v id e d c o m p u te r su ites.
4. independence technique vehicle possibility thorough 2. L ast y e a r the m a tte r has been d e b a te d in p a rlia m e n t.
5. com puter tem perature envlromental erradicate alochol 3. T h e re arc m any p eo p le w o u ld ag ree w ith th is statem en t.
4 . E x cep t from buses an d tra in s, th ere are o th e r fo rm s o f p u b lic tra n sp o rt

6. dictionery therfore thier permission enginering
th a t co u ld be u sed .
7. teatotaller independent professor tastefull
5. Y oung p eo p le still seem to hav e en o rm o u s p ro b le m s in fin d in g w o rk .
8. conscientious m anagem ent envelope February 6 . M any p eo p le arc v ery in te restin g in p o litics.
9. frightening application detention fascilitles 7. In recen t y e a rs, ju v e n ile crim e is a se rio u s th re a t to th e fab ric o f society.
10. liesure perceive offensive neighborhood envelop 8 . T h e a c c o m o d atio n on o ffe r is u su ally o f p o o r q u ality and v e ry e x p en siv e.
11. intrested unfortunatly apolegetic directory 9 . O n e w ay to red u ce the in creasin g p o p u la tio n is to in tro d u ce licen ses to
h ave ch ild re n .
12. occasion embarrassment casaltles deforestration
10. T h a n k s you fo r y o u r letter, w h ich I g o t y esterd ay .
13. miscelaneous aproach mischievous secretary
11. U rban a reas are not en o u g h big to h o ld all th e p eo p le w ho m ig rate to
th em .
12. C ritic ism is levelled a g a in st m o d ern arc h ite c tu re m any tim e s b e fo re.
13. L ines sh o u ld be im p o sed on th o se b reak th e law.
14. M ore m o n ey n eeds to be sp e n t fo r a cu re for cancer.
15. It sh o u ld be also m ad e c le a r th at b ein g p u n ctu al is necessary.

Speed editing A teacher’s revenge!
In this exercise, there is a mistake in most o f the sentences; five sentences are, in fact, correct. In lliis exercise, you need to be a little bit more active in your recognition and correction of
As with spelling, you need to learn to recognise what is wrong and what is correct. Now, you mistakes, as you will find out when you turn to the Key. Below you have 25 sentences;
should try to increase your speed. Read each sentence as quickly as you can to find the mistake altogether, they are roughly the sam e length as an essay o f 250-260 words. Three o f the
and write the correction on a piece o f paper. As you do the exercise, time yourself. If you repeat sentences have no mistakes and you may also find that some have more than one. Time yourself
the exercise, try to do it more quickly. and see il you can find the mistakes in less than five minutes. Leave the exercise for a few days
and try it again.
1. In m y o p in io n , n e w s o n tele v isio n a b o u t v io le n c e n e e d to be c e n so re d , as
it en c o u ra g e s v io len c e. 1. fossil remains of dinosaurs are found recently.
2. T h e affects o f te c h n o lo g y on o u r liv e s are e n d le ss. 2. The governm ent must tighten the law in this respect.
3. Nowadays, especially young people, everyone should practise safe sex.
3. A fte r the m a tte r w ill be c o n sid e re d fully, th e law w ill be ch an g ed .
4. I le arised the matter at the meeting before last.
4 . T h e re is a little d o u b t as to th e tru th o f th is sta te m e n t. N o b o d y w o u ld
5. I wonder how can the writer explain this statement.
arg u e a g ain st it.
6. Success only can be acheived by hard work.
5 . I c an n o t say th at I ag re e to th e o p in io n e x p re sse d in th e article .
7. I suggest you to try working a bit harder.
6 . T h o u g h gen erally v ery c o n fid e n t, th e re are c e rta in a rea s w h e re h e is q u ite 8. Instead, the money should be spent on improving school buildings and to help old
shy. people.
7 . T h is can not be d o n e as ea sily as p eo p le th in k . 9. If people arc careful when they drive, there will be fewer accidents.
8 . T h e m a tte r a lm o st w as o v erlo o k ed . 10. This is a delicate matter that has raised considerable controversy.
11. Smoking is very harmful! to our health.
9. A lth o u g h th e p ro p o s a l h as b ee n p u t fo rw a rd b e fo re , b u t it sh o u ld be
ex a m in e d ag ain . 12. Less people would mean less problems.
13. Should education be free for all?
10. A lth o u g h th e c o st in v o lv e d , n e w tree s m u st be p la n te d .
14. Passing exams often depends of luck.
11. I f m an y people d o n o t have e n o u g h m o n ey to b u y fo o d and c lo th e s, su rely
so m eth in g has g o n e w ro n g . 15. We pick knowledge throughout life.
16. The idea is certainly sound and, in my opinion, it should not be introduced.
12. M an y p e o p le fin d sp id e rs ra th e r frig h te n in g .
17. I le bought the stationary he needed and then rushed home to right the letter.
13. N o b o d y as yet has fo u n d an a n sw e r fo r th is p ro b le m .
18. The govermcnt arc surely responsible in this case.
14. T h e p atien t lay in a c o m m a fo r sev e ral d ay s. 19. Had they acted sooner, then the collapse o f the housing market would not happen.
15. W ith in the n e x t d e c a d e , b io te c h n o lo g y m ay tra n sfo rm o u r liv es. 20. I le appears to be very experienced with dealing with people.
16. A big n u m b e r o f p e o p le w e re in v o lv e d in th e a c c id e n t. 2 1. We arc all sensible to criticism at times.
17. T h ey fin ally m a n a g e d in fin d in g a so lu tio n to th e p ro b le m . 22. I’ve kept a dairy since I was in primary school.
23. 1le had to pay a £50 fee when he was caught parking in a restricted area.
18. E v en th ere is p le n ty o f sco p e fo r d e v e lo p m e n t.
24. I often lo o se m y w ay around here.
19. It is v ery e ssen tial to e x a m in e th e situ a tio n carefu lly .
25. Recent stnistics have shown that the distance between the rich and the poor is
20. T h is is no d iffe re n t fro m the o th e r o n e. increasing.

Exercise 48 1. W hich is correct: the com puters/ the co m p uter/com puters?
Correcting a text
2. education... etc arc exam ples o f the areas o f our lives? Can
iis introduce exam ples here?
Correcting a sentence, or a series o f sentences, is very different from finding mistakes in a
continuous piece o f writing. In a sentence, you are working within very specific limits, i.e.
L I ,ook at the pattern in the rest o f the sentence carefully: ...do
between two full stops. A text like the one below, however, is larger and more complex. As the
language in any one sentence is subject to many influences, your mind, therefore, needs to be anything.
touching different points at any one time, like a spider.
4. w ithout is a preposition. Is the verb w hich follow s in the
In the text below, on the importance o f computers nowadays, there are some errors. As you
read the passage think about the mistakes, which are numbered. Then use the notes on the page correct form ?
opposite to help you correct the passage.
5. T h e re are tw o m ain verbs in th is se n te n c e . C o rre c t the
punctuation.
Nowadays 1. the computers are being used in so many 6. A w ord is m issing here. It refers to the previous sentence.
areas o f our lives, 2. as education, leisure, work, etc, that
7. Is the w ord com puter correct here? L ook also at 1 above as
you can hardly go 3. nowhere or do anything 4. without w ell.
come in contact with one in some form or other. 5. Take
8. You need to add a w ord or a phrase here to help the reader.
schools for example even at primary level, children are
You w ant to show h im /h er that this sen ten ce is an o th e r
learning more and more through the use o f computers.
exam ple to support your argum ent. You need, therefore, to
So much 6., in fact, that some people even believe that qualify the sentence by using a w ord that m eans p lu s .
one day, in the none too distant future, 7. computer will
9. Is the spelling correct here?
replace the teacher in the classroom. 8. Many, if not
most, homes are now 9. equiped with home computers, 10. Is the form o f this verb correct?
so many children spend a lot o f their time 10 . surround 11. You need to show the relatio n sh ip b etw een this sentence
by machines. 11. Parents increasingly find that they are and the previous one. W hat is the purpose o f this sentence?
now part o f a new group o f illiterates - the computer
12. Repetition?
illiterate. As such 12. parents are in danger not only of
being unable to help their children with their homework, 13. Is the verb in the right form ?
but also 13. to be left behind in the work field. 14. A 14. Add a word or phrase to show the relationship betw een this
knowledge o f how to use computers is a necessity for sentence and the previous text.
15. everyone in the modern world.
15. Should this be everyone o r every o n e?

Exercise 49 Use the guidelines below to help you edit the passage. Note that the guidelines are in the order
Correcting and improving a text that you should make the improvements to (he text. As an example, number 14 has been done
for you.
Try not to mark the text so that you can repeat the exercise.
In the passage below, the writer has made some mistakes and there are also some changes he
would like to make. Read the text carefully. Then look at the guidelines on the page opposite.
1. In the first lin e, there is a w o rd m issin g .

The Temple to the Winds 2. R ep lace th is w ord w ith the w o rd ju st.
How well remember the very first time I saw it. To a child’s eyes, the 3. A n n o y ed m ig h t be b e tte r at o n e p o in t in the tex t.
distance was great and it was merely a blob on a cliff top, far away and
4 . T h e se tw o w o rd s are th e w ro n g w ay ro u n d .
out of reach, but somehow the blob did not look right. I couldn’t say
why and it perturbed me that I couldn’t work it out. I didn’t think to ask 5. T w o letters in th is w o rd a re the w ro n g w ay ro u n d .
what it was: so mysterious it was, that 1probably thought they wouldn’t 6 . T h ese tw o w o rd s sh o u ld be o ne w o rd .
know anyway.
7. T h is w o rd is not n eed ed . It is in th e th ird p a rag rap h .
The image has huanted me ever since.
8 . T h ese th ree w ords are in th e w ro n g order.
It was to be many years later when I had left home, had been to an other
9. A dd the fo llo w in g p h rase in th e c o rre c t place: th ro u g h sog g y g ro u n d .
continent even, that I returned back. It was on a summer’s, wet, cold
day with the wind lashing in from the north. We approached it from the 10. T h e w ord w ill is w ro n g h ere. W h a t sh o u ld y o u use?
main road, walking towards the cliff top and the sea. I was apprehensive 11. T h is w o rd has a g m issin g .
and excited: apprehensive, because it will prove to be such a dissapoint-
ment, and excited by the thought that it might not be so. And there it 12. T h is w ord h as an e x tra le tte r s.
was, precariously on the cliff edge. 14. in the Celtic 13. I’tit the w ord p erch ed in to a su itab le p lace in th e tex t.
landscape, the round classical building stood proud and solid against
14. A dd the w o rd In co n g ru o u s to a su itab le p la c e in th e text.
the temper of the North Sea.
1A A dd the p h rase a short flig h t o f to a su itab le p la c e in the text,
We entered; and it was more than I had imagined. Opposite the door,
to which we had climbed stone steps, was a tall narrow window facing lb . T h is w o rd sh o u ld be tw o w o rd s.
straight out into the sea. There was another opening to the east, and then 17. T h is w ord h as o ne g to o m any.
I turned and looked west.
18. R ep lace this w o rd w ith the w o rd p e e re d .
Inspite of the rain, the golden strand curved round, followed by the
railway line, which passed directly beneath the Temple to the Winds.
The mountains, slopping up from the beach, looked different from this
viewpoint; and the hills of Donegal were lost to the rain. I moved to the
window and looked into the distance that still seemed so great. For a
time I waited, but I could not see the little boy, so full of dreams, who
was beckoned upon the winds.

Exercise 50
Exercise 5 1
Learning to see mistakes in a text
finding irrelevant information
In this exercise, you are going to look at correcting a text in a different way. The passage below
You lire now going to look at another aspect o f editing a text: finding and removing irrelevant
is correct. Read the passage several times and then look at the Key.
information from a passage.
You may want to leave a gap o f several days between reading the two texts.
We all find it difficult to concentrate as we write. Even when we have worked out the focus of
an essay,there is always the temptation to add extra, and usually irrelevant, details. This is
Through the distant haze of childhood, my school holidays with Auntie partly because it is not easy to keep within the limits we have created for ourselves. Sometimes,
Maureen and Auntie Vi stand out clearly in my mind. Even now as an it also happens because we do not know how to relate additional facts to the text we are writing.
Sorting out relevant information from the almost relevant is also a problem.
adult, my occasional visits to Farkleberry Rise never fail to cheer me
up. Helow is a passage with ten irrelevant sentences or clauses. Read the text and decide which
parts are irrelevant.
Auntie Maureen is a favourite of mine. She is tall and slender and wears
E xam ple the first sentence in paragraph I is irrelevant, but why?
her hair in a tight bun. Her faint moustache still amuses me; at first, it
made her appear rather fierce and strict to my sister and myself. Wind are the main arguments for or against banning genetic engineering?
She is, in fact, rather an exciting character. To us children, she was 1. G e n e tic s is a su b ject w h ich is ra th e r c o m p lic a te d fo r the p u b lic . A s
always such fun to be with and constantly trying to keep us entertained; the scien ce o f g en etic en g in e e rin g a d v a n c e s, scien ce fic tio n is b e in g
whether it was playing games on the wide lawn, or launching bomb tu rn e d into reality an d it is, in m y o p in io n , a g re a t im p ro v em en t.
attacks on the Wendy house in the wilderness at the bottom of the S u ch d e v e lo p m e n ts, h o w e v e r, are to tally u n a c c e p ta b le to a large
orchard. Auntie Vi, on the other hand, a rather jolly and quite erudite 5. p ro p o rtio n o f the g e n e ra l p u b lic.
character, always seemed to be working furiously in some far off comer M an y p e o p le o b je c t to th e u se o f g en etic en g in e e rin g in fo o d
of the Rise, and hanging out of windows shouting encouragement at our p ro d u c tio n , an d a re a ls o w o rried a b o u t th e safety o f b e e f p ro d u c ts. In
goings-on in the garden. Much later, we found that she was, in fact, rese a rc h c e n tre s th ro u g h o u t th e w o rld , ex p e rim e n ts are b e in g c arried
shouting at us to shut up. o u t to p ro d u ce g e n e tic a lly e n g in e e re d p la n ts th a t ca n re sist p ests o r
10. p ro d u c e a h ig h e r y ield o r last lo n g er. G en etic e n g in e e rin g w ill lead
Auntie Maureen was, and still is, something of a legend in the local
to a h e a lth ie r diet fo r all o f m a n k in d an d , c o n seq u en tly , an ev en
area, famous for her amateur dramatics, homemade jam and hedges. On
b e tte r stan d ard o f liv in g . F o r e x a m p le , to m ato p ro d u c ts a re alread y
one memorable occasion, she put on rather a spectacular display for us. b ein g sold w hich d o n o t rot; so -calle d ‘F ra n k e n s te in ’ to m a to e s. T h e
She was up a ladder cutting the hedge at the back of the Rise. We had m ain co n c e rn o f m an y p e o p le is th a t th ese c h a n g es are unsafe.
been acting B reeze in the Birches, a play Auntie Maureen had written 15. S afety is a lso a p rim a ry co n c e rn o f m any p e o p le in o th e r areas o f
for us, when we rushed round the comer of the house to find dear Auntie life, e.g . th e sid e -effects o f m e d ic in e s. T h ey fe a r th at su ch alteratio n s
Maureen in mid-air, legs and arms akimbo like a great star. w ill, in tu rn , u ltim ately lead to c h a n g e s in the e n v iro n m e n t an d food
c h a in , w h ich sc ie n tists h av e n o t th o u g h t o f. S c ien tists are re sp o n sib le
We thought she had got bored cutting the hedge and had decided to join
fo r m any d isasters: th e re are co u n tle ss sto ries ab o u t w aste b ein g
in our fun. We roared with laughter, as Auntie Maureen disappeared 20. sp illed into riv ers a n d th e sea. S im ilarly , m an y p e o p le are an x io u s
over the top of the hedge with what sounded like great squeals of that ce rta in altered m ic ro -o rg a n ism s, w h ich are d a n g e ro u s, m ig h t
delight. Never have I laughed so much in all my life! acc id e n ta lly e scap e into th e e n v iro n m e n t w ith cata stro p h ic
Auntie Maureen then spent three days in bed, barely able to move. co n se q u e n c e s . C an sc ie n tists c o n firm c a te g o ric a lly th at the
m o d ific a tio n s they h a v e m ad e to the stru ctu re o f p lan ts an d an im als
continued over page
72 a book on writing a b o o k on w ritin g 73

25. w ill n o t affect th e h e a lth o f both h u m a n s a n d a n im a ls , sin ce in n o c e n t
A B C
c re atu res need p ro te c tio n a g a in st e x p e rim e n ts?
A n o th e r m a jo r a rg u m e n t a g a in st is th a t th e m o ra lity o f u sin g g en etic Such investment Increased investment Investment leads to a

en g in e e rin g is q u e stio n a b le . R e c en tly , th e g e n e ra l p u b lic w e re v ery would lead to a in public transport more efficient system.
sh o ck ed an d d istu rb e d to see o n T V and in m an y n e w sp a p e rs the more efficient would lead to a more
30. sig h t o f a m o u s e , w h ic h h ad b e e n g e n e tic a lly e n g in e e re d to h a v e no public transport efficient public
im m u n e sy ste m . W h a t d istu rb e d m o st p e o p le w as th e sig h t o f a infrastructure. transport infrastructure.
h u m a n e a r g ro w in g u n d e r th e sk in o f th e m o u s e ’s b a c k . S u ch b izarre
im ag es sh o u ld n o t b e sh o w n o n T V , as it u p se ts m an y p e o p le . T h e More people would More people would
It, in turn, would
e a r w as d ev e lo p e d fo r c o sm etic re a s o n s, e .g . to h e lp d e fo rm e d
lead to a greater then use public then use public
35. ch ild re n . W h ile e v e ry o n e w o u ld ag re e w ith th e a im o f h e lp in g
use of public transport and there transport, provided
p eo p le w ith p h y sic a l d e fo rm itie s, fe w p e o p le c o u ld n o t b u t b e
ap p alled at th e im m o ral u se o f h e lp le ss an im als in th is w ay. M an y
transport, would be fewer
an im al lo v ers, m y s e lf in c lu d e d , fe e l th at they m u st m a k e a stan d fo r provided accidents, provided
th e rig h ts o f an im a ls.
more buses and more buses and trains more buses were
40. T h ese are b u t a fe w e x am p le s o f th e m ain a rg u m e n ts a g a in st the
trains are made were made available provided and they
p ra c tic e o f g en e tic e n g in e e rin g . T h e re a re , o f co u rs e , m any
a rg u m en ts in fav o u r, fo r e x a m p le a b e tte r q u a lity o f fo o d . available and it and the fares kept low. were cheaper.
is cheaper.
This would have It would reduce the Fewer vehicles would

the beneficial number of vehicles on mean fewer accidents
Exercise 52 effect of the roads. on the roads.
Another maze reducing the
number of
private vehicles
W hen you write, you are constantly making choices about your knowledge o f the grammar in
a language, about the content and about the connections. You have to be very alert! In this on the roads.
exercise, you are going to create a text by making choices from different alternatives.
Below is a passage on the measures to reduce traffic congestion in cities in the UK. The
There will be There would be fewer As there would be
introduction is: fewer vehicles, vehicles, fewer vehicles,
the roads would and the roads would be and less congestion.
A s th e ro ad s in the U K , esp e cia lly in u rb an are a s, b e c o m e m o re co n g e ste d ,
be less less congested.
atten tio n is b eing fo c u se d o n w ay s to deal w ith th e p ro b le m . T h e b est w ay, in
congested.
m y o p in io n , is to in c re a se in v e stm en t in p u b lic tra n sp o rt.
The traffic Motorists would, The cars will, as a

would move therefore, be able to result, be less
Now continue the paragraph. In I below, two o f the alternatives are wrong and one is correct.
Choose the correct answer. Move on to number 2 and do the same. In each case, think o f a more freely. move around much congested.
reason, or reasons, for your choice, and why the other two alternatives are unsuitable. more easily.
SECTION 5

ni 1
Contents
Page
53. Punctuation n a m e s..................................................................80
s s aj 111 so i 11jis
54. Questions about punctuation................................................. 81
55. Missing punctuation................................................................82
5b. Punctuation c o rrectio n........................................................... 83
57. Capital le tte rs ...........................................................................84
ni b

lQDBlDDDB13523uuuuuyuyyu
Exercise 53
Exercise 54
Punctuation names
Questions about punctuation________________________________________
This exercise will help you test your knowledge of the names of the different punctuation marks.
li is quite difficult (u learn rules in any list; and the rules of punctuation arc no exception. In this
Try not to mark the book, as then you will be able to repeat the exercise several times. exercise you can test how much you know.
Name all the punctuation marks in each of the sentences below. I ry not to mark the book, as then you will be able to repeat the exercise several times.
1. What is wrong with the punctuation in this sentence:

1. M rs Jackson c o u ld n ’t find the letter im m ediately, but after Many people will now want to know why the taxpayer’s money is being
a few days it turned up. wasted in this way?
2. How does the punctuation change the meaning in the sentences below?
2. Is it so difficult to give a straight answ er? (a) Your nephew, who bought the painting, came in the shop again yesterday.
(b) Your nephew who bought the painting came in the shop again yesterday.
3. T he dog had been very badly treated; its back was covered
3. Is the punctuation in both sentences below correct?
in sores.
(a) Mr Jam es, who bought the painting, came in the shop again yesterday.
4. ‘W hy d id n ’t they bring this law in so o n er?’ she asked. (b) Mr James who bought the painting came in the shop again yesterday.
4. Are all the commas in the sentences below necessary? If so, what is their
5. That was rather a half-baked idea. effect on the meaning of the sentences?
(a) Two factory managers, M r Jones and Mrs Blair, spoke very eloquently at
6. W hat a w onderful fireplace! the meeting.
(b) Two factory managers, M r Jones and Mrs B lair spoke very eloquently at
7. Frederick B artlett (1913-1947) is one o f the w o rld ’s great the meeting.
undiscovered poets. (c) I Ic got up early, so he would be able to finish his essay.
(d) Mr Cook, the chair, of the Committee, spoke, at length, about the matter,
8. I t’s Ja m e s’s book. however.
(c) The man, wearing a red jum per, is the leader of the gang.
9. H e gave m e a really nice present - a beautiful handm ade (f) He bought a house, a garage, a cat and a garden.
(g) Tell me immediately, if you need me for anything.
bow l. (h) If you need me for anything, tell me immediately.
10. T he m ark et w as fu ll o f such ex o tic fru it, like: g u av as, 5. What is the difference between a colon and a semicolon? Use the
following sentences to work out the answer:
m angoes, starfruit and kum quats.
(a) You need three docum ents, namely: your passport, your driving licence
and a bank statement.
11. You can use several punctuation m arks in a list: com m as/
(b) I have a piece o f advice for you: listen carefully to what he tells you.
sem icolons/oblique strokes.
(c) The film was so boring; people just seemed to sit around and talk.
(d) The government can do one of three things: raise taxes; increase borrowing;
or just do nothing and let things take their course.
(■>. Which of the two following sentences has the correct punctuation?
(a) ‘Why is it’s tail so long?’ the little boy asked.
(b) It's gelling rather lale and w e’d better get home.
a book on w ritin g si
S 1 3 SI S S 31 i S 5 S 02 2 i II0 IS SI 1
7. C an you u se a d ash in fo rm al w ritin g ? Exercise 56
8 . W h en d o you use a h y p h e n ? 1’iiiictnation correction
9 . W h en you use w o rd s an d p h ra ses lik e m o re o v e r/sim ila rly /h o w e v e r at the
b e g in n in g o f a se n te n c e , o r in th e m id d le , sh o u ld y o u u se c o m m a s to Some o f the sentences below have the correct punctuation, some have too m uch, and some do
not have enough.
sep arate th em fro m th e rest o f the te x t?
Read the sentences carefully and decide which sentences contain the wrong punctuation. Then
10. Y ou ca n use b ra c k e ts to in d ic a te p a re n th e sis. W h a t o th e r p u n c tu a tio n
write your corrections on a separate piece o f paper.
m ark s c an you u se?
Check your answ er with the Key.
11. C h an g e th e m ea n in g o f th is se n te n c e b y ad d in g tw o c o m m as:
The planes made from a new kind o f alloy were returned to the factory.
1. T h e re w as a lo n g , d a rk , w in d in g , ro a d lead in g up to th e ho u se.
2. M s B artlett risin g to a d d re ss the H o rtic u ltu ra l S o ciety trip p e d a n d fell.
Exercise 55 3. M o re o v e r th e m e d icin e sh o u ld hav e b een b an n ed im m ed iately .
M issing punctuation 4 . Its body w as long a n d th in , an d co v e re d in tiny spikes
Now it is time to use the information from the previous exercises on punctuation. In each 5 . H e c o u ld n ’t re m e m b e r w h e n to u se ‘Y o u r’s f a ith f u lly ,’ a n d ‘Y o u r ’s
sentence below, there is one punctuation mark missing. Read the sentences carefully and decide sin c e re ly ,’ .
where the missing punctuation is. Then write your corrections on a separate piece o f paper.
Check your answer with the Key. 6 . O n the su rfa c e , it so u n d s like a g o o d id e a , b u t d ig a bit d e e p e r and the
p ro b le m s start to ap pear.
1 . I w o n d e r w hat I can d o to h e lp y o u in th is m a tte r 7 . P e o p le, like scien tists a n d in v en to rs o ften a p p e a r e c c en tric to th e re s t o f

2. W h at a b rillian t id e a lve ju s t had! us.
3. M r Jo n es te le p h o n e d early an d left y o u th e fo llo w in g m e ssa g e p le ase rin g 8 . T h e g ro u p o f c h ild re n w h o w e re g iv e n lo ts o f h e lp by th e ir p a re n ts

a fter 4 p m today. p ro g re sse d m uch m o re qu ick ly .
4. I t ’s c o rre c t, is n ’t it
9 . ‘D ont e v e r d o that a g a in , he sh o u ted .
5. H e w an ted to g et h o m e early b e ca u se it w as sn o w in g ra th e r h eav ily that
e v e n in g . 10. F e w e r an d fe w e r p e o p le c a m e to th e library. T h e re fo re , itw as d ec id e d
th a t it sh o u ld b e c lo sed .
6 . T h ere are m an y w a y s o f g o in g a b o u t th is fo r e x a m p le , y o u co u ld arran g e
it th ro u g h a trav el ag en t o r th e airlin e c o u ld d o it fo r y o u . 11. In re ality , its not that e a sy to d eal w ith .
7. S h o u ld you w ish to h av e fu rth e r in fo rm a tio n , I sh all b e g la d to su p p ly the
12. W h o ’s fau lt is it?
sam e
8 . C o u ld you ty p e th is u p fo r m e, p lease 13. W c had a p le a s a n t en d o f term party.
9. T h re e lin g u ists, P ro fe sso r Jo n e s P ro fe sso r H a rv e y a n d D r B o y d , tu rn ed 14. M ichel said the te a c h e r is a v ery fast reader.
up at th e sem in ar.
10. Y ours is m uch b ig g e r b u t its b o n n et is a bit sm all.

Exercise 57
Capital letters
Another aspect of writing, which you normally find under punctuation, is the use of capital
letters.
In this exercise, you are going to complete the rules for yourself. On the left, you have examples
o f the use o f capital letters. M atch them with the rules o f use in the right-hand column.
1. Jo h n , M o h a m e d , N ick y (a) th e n a m e s o f riv ers
2. S ep tem b er, M arch (b) title s w ith n am es
3. F re e to w n , N e w Y ork (c) th e n am e s o f c o u n trie s
4. G e rm a n , In d ian (d) th e n am e s o f p e o p le
5. T u esd ay , F rid ay (e) m an y a b b re v ia tio n s
6. the T h a m e s, th e A m az o n (f) a d je c tiv e s o f n atio n a lity

KEY
7. A frien d to ld m e. (g) d ay s o f th e w eek
8. P a k ista n , F rance (h) n o u n s as p art o f th e n am es o f

p lace s
9. E aster, D iw a li, R a m ad a n (i) th e titles o f b o o k s, p la y s, etc.
10 . the R en aissan ce G) th e first w o rd in a sen ten ce
11 . T h e T em pest (k) th e n am es o f fe stiv a ls
12 . M rs S tu art, ( 1) p e rio d s o f h isto ry

P ro fe sso r W est
13. the C ity o f L o n d o n (m ) m o n th s o f th e y e a r
14. N B , M P, B B C (n) th e n am e s o f cities
15. the H im a la y a s, th e A lp s (o) the n am e s o f m o u n tain s

■mcy to Exercise 1 Food additives should be banned is a statement which not everybody would agree with. The
word Discuss with this statement is asking you to look at arguments for and against banning
food additives. The word Discuss is. therefore, your organising word.
2. Organising word: ways
The general subject, the banning of food additives, is obviously a very controversial issue; so
General subject: Deducing! unemployment fin Europel why not put this in the general statement? In the topic sentence, you can sec that the organising
word Discuss has changed to arguments for and against. This is, in fact, a direct translation of
Possible introduction:
the ±f_ aspect of the word controversy.
Unemployment throughout Europe is a m ajor problem. However, there are several very Notice that the word connecting the two sentences is therefore. If you look at N um ber 2 above,
effective measures which can be implemented to tackle the situation. you will see that 1lowcvcr emphasised the contrast between the general statement and the topic
sentence. There, we saw that the relationship between the sentences was: (i) positive/negative
The general subject of this essay is unemployment. The title, however, does not ask you to write
(contrast); (ii) general statement and topic sentence.
about unemployment itself; it asks you to write about ways Do reduce itl.
In this introduction, the relationship is general statement and topic sentence, but there is no
Note the organising word in the topic sentence has been changed from wavs to measures to
contrast. This is because the two sentences are both plus/minus and are in this sense equal. We
avoid repetition. (See Exercise 5). The word measures gives you the focus, or topic o f the essay.
therefore need a connecting word which shows that the phrase arguments for and against is a
That is why the second sentence is called a topic sentence.
logical translation o f the word controversy.
To write the general statement, the title itself will help you. If you look back to number I, you
A diagram here should help you:
will see that it is very similar. The phrase to reduce unemployment in Europe in the title implies
that unemployment is high, too high or increasing. Why not use this as your general statement? General statement Focus statement
The relationship between the two sentences in the introduction is: a general statement about
Controversial arguments for and against
unemployment and a topic sentence with the organising word m easures. There is another way
to look at the relationship, which will help you to understand the mechanisms involved in + /- Therefore + /-
writing. The first sentence contains a negative idea: is a major problem . This is followed by a
positive statement in the second sentence:
5. Organising word: benefits
General statement Topic statement G eneral subject: [investing money ini space research
however + Possible introduction:
The enormous sums o f money spent on research into space travel is an issue that is
The connecting word However emphasises the contrast between positive and negative, and arousing more and more controversy. Such investment has, however, brought many
links the two statements even closer together.
benefits to the world.
3. Organising word: disadvantages We are now going to look at the relationship between the two sentences in the introduction in
General subject: fusing! computers in the workplace another way. Think of the first sentence as a unit. This unit does two things:
Possible introduction: (i) it gives you a general statement about the subject o f space research.
Computers have brought enormous benefits to the workplace. However, at the same (ii) and it contains the idea o f +/- in the word controversy.
time, there are many disadvantages associated with using such technology.
The second sentence performs different functions:
The structure o f this introduction is very similar to Number 2 above. Notice that this time,
(i) it contains a topic sentence.
however, the general statem ent is positive and the topic sentence is negative. Again, the
connecting word is However and the phrase at the same time helps to emphasise the ± L contrast. (ii) it contains the organising word: benefits.
(iii) unlike the first sentence, it contains a + idea.
4. Organising word: Discuss
(iv) it is also a contrast sentence. The word however emphasises that the relationship
General subject: Food additives
between the two sentences is not just that o f general statement and topic sentence. It
Possible introduction: shows that the second sentence contrasts with the first: ±E contrasts with ±.
The use o f additives in fo o d is a matter o f some controversy. N ot surprisingly, therefore, Ihe two units lit togclliei from the meaning point o f view. T his relationship is called coherence.
there are many arguments fo r and against this practice. Compare the structure ol this question and the introduction to numbers 2 and 4 above.

6. Organising word(s): cause(s)/Discuss
You can see that these two units of meaning arc already linked to a certain extent by coherence
General subject: destruction of the environment and there is also a cohesive link with the contrast between a good wav and many other measures.
The word measures here is a synonym for the word way and works like a pronoun in the
Possible introduction:
sentence.
The burning o f fo ssil fu e ls has contributed enormously to the destruction o f the
The cohesive link betw een the tw o sentences is, how ever, not strong enough. We need
environment. However, there are many other, no less, important causes.
something else to bind them together. We could use the word however as in 5 above, but this
This essay asks you to examine whether the burning o f fossil fuels is the main contributing time you have another way of showing contrast by using although. The cohesive words in this
factor to the destruction o f the environment. It is obvious, however, that there are other factors. sentence are Although, a good way and many other measures.
This allows you to use the contrast mechanism you saw in 2 ,3 and 5 above.
Compare 6 above. Prom the point o f view of meaning, the organisation is the same as in 6
Notice here that the contrast is different. The word however emphasises the contrast between above, except that there is only one sentence.
the fact that burning fossil fuels is a major contributing factor and the fact that there are others.
Compare this with the contrast in 2, 3 and 5 above.
7. Organising word(s): Discuss the advantages (). Organising word(s): opinion/reasons
General subject: Sex education in secondary school General subject: tobacco advertising
Possible introduction: Possible introduction:
Sex education at secondary level is a much debated issue. However, such education Hanning tobacco adverts on television and in other areas o f the media does provoke
does have many advantages. i onsiderable opposition. As fa r as I am concerned, however, such advertising should
Notice that the organisation here is the same as in 5 above. not be (dlow edfor many reasons.
Notice also the meaning of the word Discuss here. It means describe/explain. Compare this We can have a brief look at the cohesion in this introduction:
meaning of Discuss with 4 and 6 above. In 4, Discuss means: to set out the arguments for and
F Banning tobacco adverts on television and in other areas of the media is a
against. When you have a statement which is followed by the word D iscuss, you should read
synonym for the whole statement in the title. Thus, it links the general statement
the statement and decide whether it is controversial or not. Obviously, the essay title in number
to the essay question.
4 asks you to discuss a controversial issue, whereas this essay title does not. The subject of sex
education may be controversial, but the essay question does not ask you to focus on this aspect F As far as 1 am concerned links the topic sentence to the title as it shows that the
o f the general subject. sentence is your opinion.
You have already seen that you can hold sentences together by meaning, that is, by coherence. F however shows the contrast between the opposition to the banning in the general
You can also link sentences together by using adverbs, pronouns and synonyms. The name for statem ent and the opposition to allowing tobacco advertising in the topic
this kind of linking is cohesion. In the introduction above the basic cohesive words are much sentence.
debated issue. However, such education and advantages.
F such advertising is a substitute for tobacco adverts on television and in other
Read the above introductions again and see if you can find the cohesive words.
areas of the m edia. Note also the sequence is advertising, adverts and then
8. Organising words: opinion/measures advertising: the change o f word helps to avoid repetition. The contrast in the
General subject: urban traffic problems sequence also helps to link the sentences together.
Possible introduction: F reasons links the topic sentence again with the title.
Although banning cars fro m city centres is a good way to solve current traffic problems, I (ink ai the previous introductions and see if you can work out how the sentences arc connected
there are, in my opinion, many other measures that can and should be taken. by cohesion, If you cannot at this stage, do not worry.
The introduction shows that the writer disagrees that the solution contained in the title is the
best measure to solve the problem. Banning cars is a good measure, but not necessarily the best;
there are others. In this introduction, the general statement and the topic sentence are in one
unit. It is possible, however, to divide them into two sentences:
(i) Banning cars from city centres is a good way to solve current traffic problems.
(ii) There are many other measures that can and should be taken.

Key to Exercise 2 The connecting word however emphasises the contrast between positive and negative, and links
the two statements even closer together.
Note that the general sentence states a negative idea about Road deaths Iin E uropel. Against
1. If you now look at the topic sentence, you can see the focus of the essay: arguments
against. The general sentence tells you that the general subject is capital punishment. this negative background, the positive remedy to the situation is expressed in the topic sentence.
This implies that the title asks you about measures (+1 to improve the situation.
General sentence Focus sentence
If you now look back at essay titles I and 2 in Exercise I, you should be able to see the same
capital punishment connection between the title and introduction.
feel passionately arguments against Titles:
(i.e. for and against)
What measures could be taken to reduce the number o f road deaths in Europe?
+ /- H ow ever -
Discuss the measures to reduce the number o f road deaths in Europe.
T itle: What are the arguments against capital punishment? 4 Uy now you should be aware o f the fact that your introduction must link with the title
Discuss the arguments against capital punishment. both cohesively and coherently. You should also realise that, while you are writing,
Note the use of H ow ever to em phasise the contrast betw een feel passionately (+/-) and you must always look back to the text you have written to make sure it is well
arguments against(-). connected. If you can learn to link your introduction with your title correctly, half the
battle in writing an essay is won.
Now compare the structure o f this introduction with that o f essay titles 5 and 7 in Exercise 1.
In this introduction, the general subject of the essay, poverty, and the topic o f the essay,
2. The general sentence gives you the general subject in the essay title IBanninpl consequences, are contained in one sentence. The essay is obviously not about a description of
smoking in public places. The word controversy, in the first sentence, and the words poverty itself; the topic is, the consequences of poverty.
arguments for and against, in the second, tell you that the title asks you to discuss the
pros and cons o f banning smoking in public places. Note that the word controversy With this information, you should be able to work out the title.
is an organising or topic word. The topic sentence then expands, or translates, the Title:
word controversy into arguments for and against. This gives you more specific words
around which you can organise your essay. What are the consequences o f poverty ?
Discuss the consequences o f poverty.
T itle: Smoking in public places should be banned. Discuss.
5. Again, start with the topic sentence to find the organising or focus word for the essay:
If you look at the cohesion between the two sentences, the organisation is as follows: benefits. The general subject is legalising cannabis. Looking back at the general
sentence from the topic sentence, the word however tells you that there is a contrast
Controversy arguments for and against
between the two sentences. The contrast is as follows:
+ /- therefore + /-
A. a subject that has C. benefits
aroused considerable
The word therefore links and emphasises the translation o f the word controversy. Notice that, debate
when you read the two sentences, you stress the word therefore.
+ /- B . how ever +
Compare what you have written with title number 4 in Exercise 1.
In the general sentence, phrase A describes the general subject. It also gives you a setting, or
3. The relationship between the two sentences will again help you to work out the
background, for the word benefits C.
title. The general subject of this essay is Road deaths Iin Europel. The title, however,
does not ask you to write about this. The organising word measures in the topic sentence The general subject and the topic word give you a clue to the title. It is obviously something to
gives you a clue to the focus or topic. The organisation is: do with the benefits o f legalising cannabis.
General sentence Topic sentence

T itle:
Road deaths measures What are the benefits o f legalising cannabis?

in Europe Discuss the benefits o f legalising cannabis.
- how ever + Compare this title with essay titles 5 and 7 in Exercise I and with I above.

5 I ii 5 5 5 5 5 H H 3 3 1 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3
6. To work out the essay question in this case is not as easy as the other titles in this
10. In this introduction, the general subject of the essay, the depiction o f oil resources,
exercise. Starting with the topic sentence you can see that the topic word is m easures.
and the topic of the essay, alternative forms of energy, are contained in one sentence.
You can also see from the phrase Even so. in the topic sentence, that there is a contrast
between the topic sentence and the general sentence. The contrast is between the Compare Title (> in Exercise I .
measures in the topic sentence and the sound method for reducing pollution men-
With this information, you should be able to work out the title.
tioned in the general sentence. This implies that the title stated that recycling waste
materials is the best way to reduce pollution and that you are asked to discuss it. Title:
D iscuss here means: describe the wav mentioned in the title and, perhaps, other
Oil resources are now running out. What alternative sources o f energy are available?
methods as w ell. It is very unlikely that discuss here would mean talk about the
arguments for and against.
Compare the title and explanation for essay title 8 Exercise 1. You could rewrite the introduction Key lo Exercise 3
here by using although. Note, however, that this is not an opinion essay.
Title:
2. You can adapt j> as follows:
Recycling waste paper, glass and scrap metal is the best way to reduce pollution.
Discuss. The legalisation o f euthanasia is an issue which arouses enormous controversy.
There are, therefore, many arguments fo r and against, but, in my opinion, such a
7. This introduction gives a statement that is contained in the title: a little knowledge is practice should definitely be banned.
a dangerous thing. The organising words (cases and circumstances') tell you that you You could also adapt introduction h.
are going to describe/discuss the areas where this statement is true or false.
3. You can adapt fi as follows:
Title: Although many people support the legalisation o f euthanasia, there are many dangers
A little knowledge is a dangerous thing. Discuss. involved in such a practice.
8. The general subject is public and private means o f transport. The organising words You could also adapt introduction f.
are advantages and disadvantages. 4. The answ er to this is the sam e as number 1.
Title: 5. You can adapt b as follows:
Compare the advantages and disadvantages o f private and public transport. Making euthanasia legal is an issue which arouses enormous controversy. There are,
Discuss the advantages and disadvantages o f private and public transport. therefore, many arguments fo r and against.
9. Look first to the topic sentence to find the topic/focus o f the essay. You can see that (>. You can adapt c as follows:
there is no word that is easily recognisable as an organising word, e.g. measures,
Although many people are violently opposed to the legalisation o f euthanasia, there
benefits, etc. However, you have the phrase As far as I am concerned, and unaccept
are a number o f benefits to this practice.
able. which show that the essay is about expressing your opinion about a particular
issue. Turning now to the general sentence, you can see that the general subject is You could also adapt introduction f. Compare 3 above.
corporal punishm ent. 7. You can adapt d as follows:
Notice that the general sentence gives you general information that is neither negative nor Hie legalisation o f euthanasia has both advantages and disadvantages.
positive, but that the topic sentence is negative. The contrast is between the fact that corporal
N. Y ou c m m liip t f a s fo llo w s :
punishment exists and the w riter’s opinion against.
Making euthanasia legal is a controversial issue. There are, however, many strong
If we now examine the title, we can see that these two elem ents, the general subject and the arguments against this practice.
topic phrase, reflect the title.
9 , Y o u c u n i h I i i |U f u s f o l l o w s :
Title:
Making euthanasia legal is a controversial issue. There are, however, many strong
Corporal punishment in schools should be banned. What is your opinion o f this arguments against this practice.
statem ent?
Should corporal punishment in schools be banned? N n l r llin t y o u m i l r e p l u c r u ^ u iu M w ith lu i. C o in p u re 8 a b o v e .

Key to Exercise 4
Key to Exercise 5
9 = m
(a) Reasons (b) Disadvantages
more jobs/better prospects overcrowding Essay Plan 1
better facilities noise
entertainment is accessible pollution
greater variety of jobs health hazards Obesity is a problem which is on the increase in many parts
greater anonymity crime of the world, especially in affluent societies. However,
more exciting cities can be very ugly several e flee Iiv e r)lie asurekicx ist to tackle the problem.
living in small towns is boring less friendly
greater variety of entertainment faster pace o f life In my opinion, the most iiiiportantiwavlis to educate the
greater variety of leisure facilities isolation general public. ___.-----
faster pace o f life don’t know your neighbours -
better health facilities Anolhcrfjitcplis to encourage parents not to buy sweets or
better educational facilities junk food for children.
better services
Persuading people to change thcn' ljfe styles and take up
some exercise is vet another possible (Course of action?)
Note
As we have seen, there are a number of (wavs) to reduce
1. W hen some students see an essay title, they have no ideas to write about. If you are obesity in rich countries.
one of these students, take your essay title and make a list o f any ideas which are
connected with the title, like the chaotic jum ble in the exercise. Do not exclude any
idea. Then pick out the ideas which are connected with the focus o f your essay. This
is what you have already done in this exercise.
2. Above, you have the ideas for two other essays. You can combine the two together
and you have the ideas for the following title:
What are the advantages and disadvantages o f living in cities? Essay Plan 2
and in (a):
What are the advantages o f living in cities?

W hether mercy-killing is a moral act or not is an issue
3. You can also create more ideas. For example, look at list (a). You can create a about which many people feel very strongly. Personally,
disadvantage by making any idea negative: however, I am largely against the practice of euthanasia for
a number offreasons)
entertainment is accessible/entertainment is inaccessible
O f course, the same is true for the disadvantage list. MyCpiain argument against.is that human beings do not have
the right Tcrpl;ty\G63.
So you see the problem is not a lack of ideas, but having too many, and perhaps controlling
them!
AnothcKfgnson 1 am agaii]st)thc practice is because one can
never be sun/that the patient is, in fact, terminally ill.
In certain circumstances, however, there is some

( j pstilii aiiop^for the practice of euthanasia.
All m all. I feel that euthanasia should be banned.
C C 1111 u 0141 I H l H B 5 5 S H E 11
Essay Plan 3
#
Essay Plan 6
S
Public debate about the morality of mercy-killing has grown
The use o f animal organs for transplants in humans caused
in intensity in recent years. There are, therefore, many
l
quite a stir recently. Thctqryumcnljofor such transplants,
(areuments)both for and against the issue.
however, are overwhelming.
i
The mairr^rgumenbagainst is that human beings do not have --------
Thecfmmi reason foDthis is that humans arc more important than
the right ttfplay God.
i
animals.
M any/people are fundamentally opposed to euthanasia,
t
A InilhcKqrgumcqEin favour of transplanting animal organs
(argumg)that it is not always possible to be completely sure that a
y
patE nt is, in fact, terminally ill.
. . . I S . yet another soundrfcason for iustifyinjMhe
In/certain circumstances, however, there is strong
w
transplantation of animal organsjin humans.
CjustiflcationTor mercy-killing, provided there are strict
safeguards. — ---------- To conclude, there are manyfiifgumcntjbin favour of using
t
animal organs for human transplants.
As we have seen, there are manyrSrgumentsiroth for and against.
t
o
Essay Plan 7
Essay Plan 4
i
Accidents in the home are increasing at an alarming rate,
t
Exercise o f every kind is becoming increasingly popular and yet many of them could be easily avoided with a little
c
among all age groups. Few people realise, however, how much care.
they are putting their health at risk
The most obvious(wav)is to educate the general public about
y
The mairfdangef)is that people start exercising without the problem. ^
e
taking propctjadvice^
Another(tecimique)would be to attach warning labels to
A notheidiazarttis that, if someone already has a minor household goods.
u
injury, exercise may make it worse.
Persuading manufacturers to looR'at-ways to make certain
U
A furtherAvavUhat people can endanger their health is by goods safe to use is yet another possihlejriourse of actions
training tob hard. ' --------- --- --------
y
There may be othert^ep^that people can take, but these are
As we have seen, taking exercise is fraught, withfflanger) the most important.
B
g
Essay Plan 8
Essay Plan 5 g
As tin as I am concerned, there is nothing totjustifvAvar.

g
Testing everyone in the medical field for HIV would lead to

all kinds ofm oblem s^ l ot m e. the iiiainqirgiunciiftliguinst war is the cost in terms of
p
human lives.
The biggestrqu7mdary)would be deciding who to test.
Aiiotliem'usuu vvljyol am against war is the senseless
J
AnotheirmoTdem'iwould he the matter o f cost.

destruction. ****— ,
t
In my opinion, such a programrntTwtrold-beinroossiMe, because Last, but not lits t. is the waste o f resources.
it would result in immense organisationalCdjfficulties^
O
"""" s
In conclusion, there is no'juslilicatiyu'iuTWiii
O

□
Essay Plan 9
Key to Exercise 8
Like all people, there are manydTrjngs that I jishlc& very
m uch: most o f them are connectetjAvith living in the modern 1 ii After doing the first two exercises, you should not have any problems with
world. Sentences I and 2.
I In relation to the contrast in number 2 below, this sentence is a concession. Join
At the top of mv list ofCpet hates)come mobile phones.
the first two sentences together with although and leave out the word Never
Another of mv(dishkes)is noise. theless. Sentence I then becomes the concession after although.
2. g/li This is the topic sentence for the essay and contains the organising words: I
M otorbikes also fill me withCjqathing)
lccl/reusons.
Finally, people who complain all the time(annovjTTe)intenselv. p Nevertheless marks the sentence as a contrast to the concession in the previous
sentence. The phrase ...totally unacceptable contrasts with contributed enor
mously in sentence 1.
Key to Exercise 6 I | personally leel indicates this sentence is expressing an opinion.
1 i|/li Like essays, paragraphs also have topic/organising sentences. The organising
1. a fact. Note the use of the Present Simple: rises and sets. word or topic word is reason. See Exercise 5.
2. a regret (If o n ly .. h a d come!). r The reason is the suffering that animals have to endure during tests.
3. an opinion; a subjective argument. Note the word M y. l>/in The word reason here connects with the word reasons in the second sentence.
4. an objective argument. Note the word The [m ain...] This paragraph will develop the w riter’s main argument against vivisection.
5. an opinion fl feel): a development o f the previous sentence (Such/could): a tenta I' Following on from m , then f is also true.
tive/possible result (could). 4 I) This is specifically an expansion of the word tests.
6. an opinion (I feel): a development of the previous sentence (Such/would): a hypo c You could also think of this as a general example of the more specific example
thetical, but definite result (w ould!. in the next sentence,
7. an opinion (I feel): a development o f the previous sentence (Such/will: a real, definite e The sentence could also be called an explanation.
result twill!. 5. 1) This is specifically an expansion o f laboratory experim ents. Note here the
8. a possibility; an example; a development of the previous sentence (These/could). development: tests [noun] laboratory experiments [noun phrase]; test [verb],
9. a fact. Stating an advantage. (I This sentence gives a specific example of the laboratory experiments in sentence
10. a real definite result tAs a result/will! . 2.
11. a weak possibility (m ight). 6. I (See Sentence 2). There is no word or phrase specifically stating that this is the
w riter’s opinion. 1lowever, you can see from sentence 2 that he is against animal
12. a weak possibility (might.).
experiments. Therefore, you can take this sentence as a statement o f his opinion,
13. a criticism. Note the exclamation mark at the end of the sentence.
c This is an explanation, i.e. of tests, in sentence 3.
14. a statement.
I' This is an argument against animal experiments.
15. an example; a possibility. p Note the word however. The phrase appalling pain and torture for the vanity of
Note that you may be able to give different names to some of the sentences. human beings contrasts with to make sure they are safe for hum ans.
7. J This sentence provides alternative solutions.
Key to Exercise 7
k Notice the two suggestions in this sentence: one with should and the other with
could The first one indicates the w riter’s opinion. The second one is a tentative
1. a 2. b .d . 3. a. b. d.
suggestion, which is really like an example put forward for consideration, but it
4. a. c. 5. a. b. c. 6. a. b. c. is not very strong,
7. a. c .d . 8. d. 9. c .d . p Note the use of Instead.
I The word should carries the w riter's opinion. (See Exercise 12).
10. a. b .d .

I H ! § 0! 1 5 81! H I I I I! 1111I I 2 S 5
8. o This is the first argument for animal experiments.
p The phrase The main counter argument indicates the writer is stating a contrast Key to Exercise 11
with his own opinion.
i In relation to sentence 10, this sentence and the next one is a concession. Note In the answers below, you will sec what the writer thought about the text he was writing, and
the word Still in Sentence 10. then the questions he created to help him develop the text.
9. o Furtherm ore shows that the w riter is stating another argum ent for animal As you read the 'thoughts and Questions below, think about the relationship between the text
experiments. and the questions.
i See Sentence 8. Thoughts: Question: Answer:
The essay title asks me What can I write generally The U K, like other
10. p Still marks the contrast.
what I should do ‘to about the elderly in the UK? countries in Europe, has
1 Note the use of in mv opinion. improve the lot o f the W hat can I write to show an increasingly ageing
elderly’; that must mean the situation for elderly population, yet it is a pity
a This final sentence o f the paragraph restates the w riter’s opinion, which he
the teacher/examiner people is not good? that the elderly are not
revealed in the topic sentence, number 2. Note that there is no connecting word
thinks the situation is bad. properly looked after or
to indicate that it is a conclusion. It is obvious.
cared for.
11. See Sentence 3.
2. Thoughts: Question: Answer:
Note My previous statement is How many ways are there to There are many ways,
1. You m ay be able to think of other words or terms to describe the function of the above (he background for my im prove the lot o f elderly however, in which the lot
sentences. next sentence, which needs people? of elderly people in this
to reflect the focus o f the country can be improved.
2. As you can see, it is possible for a sentence to have more than one function. It is title.
hardly surprising, therefore, that we make mistakes in writing when we have to I must also get a focus, or
think about the gram mar as w ell as th e m e a n in g o f se n te n c e s. organising, word into my
introduction as soon as
possible to stop myself
from wandering round in
Key to Exercise 9
circles. This will guide me
as I write, and give the
1. j 2. e 3. I reader a direction as well.
4. f 5. k 6. h Thoughts: Question: Answer:

I need to develop the word Can I state a specific The first step that needs
7. b 8. c 9. i
ways. I need to state a measure to improve the to be taken is to improve
Sentences a, d and g do not match any o f the questions. specific measure. situation of elderly people? the living conditions of
W hat measure can I suggest? all old people.
Key to Exercise 10 Thoughts: Question: Answer:

I'd like here to say Can I give some statistical According to statistics,
something about housing information? If so, what? there are over one
1. e 2. i 3. f in the UK at the moment. million dwellings which
4. 5. c 6. a have been declared unfit
g
for habitation.
7. h 8. b 9. d

2 5 2 1 U 1 1 115 5 i 3 U 315 J 5 5 II1
Thoughts: Q uestion: Answer:
I must rem ember that I am W hat can I write about O ut o f these, at least half
I'd like to give a How many old people die of It is estimated that
writing about elderly elderly people and housing? a million are occupied by
conclusion which is cold each year? hundreds of people who
people and must not get the elderly.
dramatic and shows the arc old and frail die of
side-tracked into talking
consequence of inadequate hypothermia in their
generally about housing. I
heating. homes each winter.
need to return to the topic
at hand.
I want to change to a new What other area is important Another area which
area. I also need to start a for elderly people? requires attention is food.
In Sentence 3 , 1 made a Can I expand on Sentence Special houses should,
new paragraph.
suggestion which is quite 3? Can I make a more therefore, be built, which
general. I need to be more specific suggestion or are cheap, and designed
specific here. proposal which is a logical in such a way that they
development of the previous are easily accessible.
sentence? Yes, I can. W hat? Key lo Exercise 12

I have said accessible here; W hat do I mean by By this I m ean, they 1. com es. The writer wants to state his opinion (a fact) about the real world at the present
the reader may not know accessible? Can I explain ought to have special time. He, therefore, uses the Present Simple tense.
exactly what I mean. myself more fully? provision for those who The Present Continuous (is coming) is not suitable, because it expresses a temporary
have joint problems or action, which happens around Now.
difficulty in walking.
2. is. The word m uch, the subject o f the impersonal verb, is singular.
8. Thoughts: Question: Answer: For would he. sec would in 5 below.
I’d like to make another Can I make another Moreover, all the basic
suggestion which is a suggestion or proposal amenities should be 3. think. The writer wants to show that the duration o f his opinion is not temporary.
specific solution and which is a logical nearby, so that the old Therefore, he cannot use the Present Continuous - see 1 above.
develops Sentences 3 and 6. development o f Sentences 3 will not have any trouble 4. should. In the first sentence, the writer described the present conditions in the world,
and 6? If so, what? purchasing their food which lie thinks are unsatisfactory. The word should:
and other articles o f daily
use. u puts forward a proposal or suggestion about how to improve this situation.
u modifies the verb encourage to express the w riter’s attitude, i.e. his opinion.
I have mentioned two areas W hat other improvement The provision o f u is subjective.
for improvement: could be made to the living adequate heating is a
u is hypothetical.
accessibility and local conditions o f elderly people? further improvement that
amenities. Surely, heating could be made. You cannot use would to make a suggestion in this sentence. [See 5 below]. You
is also important. could, however, change the sentence round to read: Encouraging young people to
k ill ll mure languages would be a good idea. This sentence depends on a hidden
10. Thoughts: Question: Answer: condition, i.e. il the government did encourage young people to learn more languages.
I need to say something W hat should be done about These homes should be Note llial the word would does not carry any attitude here; it is neutral and objective.
more about heating as heating, and why? provided with proper
You can use might to put forward a tentative (weak) proposal. If you look at the
regards the elderly. heating facilities, as the
question itself, should indicates that you arc being asked for proposals which you
elderly are susceptible to
think are desirable. M ighl here is. therefore, unlikely.
cold.

ii
5. would. Here the writer wants to show a result of the proposal/recommendation in the
previous sentence. 10. have. The writer is talking about a state that exists already.
i i oi i ooi oiii i i o111 on

C om pare: If governments encouraged their people, especially young people, to learn ate lutviaji•The slate is not temporary, so the writer cannot use the Present Continu
more languages, this would bring about closer contact between different cultures and ous.
people.
do have is too emphatic.
The condition is in the fir s t p art o f this sentence, i.e. in the if clause. The inevitable
11 have becom e. The writer has moved back into the real world to describe a real
result, which depends on the condition, is in the second part. The word w ould:
situation there.
u develops a new condition in some way, e.g. to express a result.
would becom e. Where is the unreal condition (even a hidden one) for the would to
u shows that this developm ent is inevitable, provided that the new condition
depend on? There isn't one. Also we are now in the real world.
exists.
could becom e. We are back in the real world and the writer is stating what has
u shows that your thoughts about the developm ent are on a new level. They
happened rather than what could happen, if... Again, where is the condition, even
belong to a world that does not exist, i.e. they are hypothetical.
a hidden one?
u is neutral and objective. It does not carry any attitude. (Compare should.!
12. would go. II there could be more informal sporting events, they... The writer is
The repetition of should is not necessary, as the writer has already shown his attitude
now returning to give the result of the condition he created in the first sentence of this
in the previous sentence. He just wants to develop the proposal and show the
paragraph.
consequences. Note that should is not incorrect, but it is weaker than would as a result.
(It should, but it may not happen.) Again, the word might is too tentative. It is unlikely This sentence depends on the condition created in the first sentence of the paragraph.
that the writer would develop and support his argument with such a weak word. It is the result o f this condition. The sentence contrasts the hypothetical result with
Regarding brings about, we are not in the real w orld, but in an imaginary state created the unsatisfactory reality o f the previous sentence. (Note however.)
by the writer with the word should in the previous sentence. The Present Simple in
brings about expresses a fact, which is too definite. Look at the development in the
next two sentences. Note, therefore, the sequence of tenses:
6. give. The clue is in the words at the moment as they show that the writer has now 1. Fact/opinion - comes
moved back into the real world. He wants to give a real example to support his
2. Fact - is
proposal. Hence, the use of the Present Simple tense.
7. could usefully b e . The first part o f this sentence states the present reality. The second 3. O pinion - think
part contrasts the unsatisfactory reality with a hypothetical possibility.(See but.) 4. Proposal - should encourage
The words are usefully are obviously ridiculous. W ith the Present Simple there is no
5. Hypothetical Result - would bring about
contrast (see but) between the two parts o f this sentence. The impossibility o f are
usefully helps us to see the need for a contrast at a different level, i.e. the reality and (>. Fact/Example - give
unreality.
7. Example/Possibility - could usefully be
The use of would usefully be is not suitable. The writer is not stating a result here,
but a possibility. 8. Tentative Proposal- could be
8. could. The writer is putting forward another proposal. He also wants to show that his 9, Example/Possibility could organise
support for this proposal/new condition is not as strong as his first one in sentence 3.
It). Fact have
He is saying that the proposal is for our consideration rather than saying he thinks it
is desirable. In other words, it is a possible solution/tentative proposal. The writer 11. Fact have become
also wants to avoid repeating the word should.
12. Hypothetical Result would go
For would compare 4 and 5 above.
The word might is too tentative/weak here. Note how the verb forms relied the function of each sentence and also mark the relationships
9. could. See the explanations for 8 .The writer is only expanding his proposal, which between the sentences, In this sense, they help to connect a text.
he put forward in the previous sentence. The example is hypothetical.
h
104 a b o o k on writing
U 2 1 5 5 5 3 2 i !2 2 0 I I 1 1 112 2 2 1
Key to Exercise 13
Key to Exercise 15
2. A 7. A
1. Adverbs besides, consequently, however, moreover, thus, though, what is more
3. B 8. A Conjunctions: and, though, although, if, where, when, while, but
4. A 9. B Note that though can be an adverb and a conjunction.
See 4 below for the word hut.
5. A 10. Conclusion for the second essay only
2. A conjunction is a word which joins two sentences together into one unit. An adverb
6. B connects two sentences, but the sentences still remain separate units, with a fullstop
or semicolon between them.
The rem aining sentences put forward a particular cause o f drug addiction and state
3. T h e an sw er is (a); h u l is a conjunction and how ever is an adverb (see 4 b e lo w ).
your opinion. They answer the following essay question:
However is used as follows:
Drug addiction among the young in the UK stems largely fro m the disintegration o f (it) The steps that have been taken are admirable. However, they may be too late
the fam ily. What is your opinion ? to do any good.
or
Note
(b) The steps that have been taken are admirable; however, they may be too late
In the topic sentence, 2A, there is no noun which acts as a focus or organising word. Then in to do any good.
3B, you have an organising noun: m ethod. In 2A, a focus word (like approach, way, method)
Note that you may also place the word however after the word may and at the end of
is, in effect, contained in the verb: [if it] is approached.
the sentence:
As you read, look for similar examples of this way of connecting. (Compare the Key to Exercise (c ).. .They may, however, be too late to do any good.
36.6 and 36.11.) (d ).. .They may be too late to do any good, however.
4. T he answer is yes and no. But is a conjunction, and so the text should read as follows:
...adm irable, hut... Many people now use but in the same way as however. So in
Key to Exercise 14 answer 1 above, they would say the word but is an adverb as well.
5. The two words are both conjunctions, but look at the following examples:
(i) The steps that have been taken are adm irable, but they may be too late to
13,11, 14, 1 0 ,4 ,6 ,7 , 1. do any good.
(ii) Although the steps that have been taken are admirable, they may be too late
to do any good.
(iii) They may be too late to do any good, but the steps that have been taken are
admirable.
(iv) A llhough they may be too late to do any good, the steps that have been
taken are admirable.
Note, first of all. the positions o f although and hut in the sentences.
The basic d ifferen ce is that although in troduces the part o f the sen ten ce w hich
contains the concession and hill introduces the part with the contrast. In m ost cases,
it is up to you which aspect o f the relationship you wish to highlight. That is why all
the above are possible.
It is, however, not always possible to change the clauses around; the second sentence
below does not make sense.
M lln n ig li It wits 2 0 ) f she went out w ithout a coot.
Although she went o u t w ith o u t a c o o t, it w a s - 2 0 ) C .
a book on writing
6. You can use yet as a conjunction or an adverb. Note you can say and vet, but not and
5. They all indicate a result.
but. Compare 3 and 4 above.
6. The answer is u. because the word otherwise is an adverb. You therefore need a
7. On the other hand. Many students think this phrase means the same as In addition.
semicolon or a lull stop alter the word carefully and a comma after otherw ise.
etc. It means by contrast.
7. Although is a conjunction, despite is a preposition and in spite of a prepositional
8. With words that express feelings, e.g. admire, approve, disapprove, dislike, enjoy,
phrase. Note that the verb is in the -ing form after Despite and In spite o f.
sympathise. For example:
Although lie played a m ajor role in the peace process, his achievement went
Much as I disapproved o f the policy, it was introduced.
unrecognised.
9. namely. The others introduce examples from a list o f items: namely introduces the
Despite playing a major role in the peace process, his achievement went
complete list.
unrecognised.
10. The words Take and is are two main verbs without any connecting word. You
In spite o f playing a m ajor role in the peace process, his achievement went
therefore need a full stop or a semicolon after the word example, not a comma:
unrecognised.
. ..exam ple. It is also a sp o rt...
You can also say:
.. .example; it is also a sp o rt...
In spite o f the fa c t that he played...
Despite the fa c t that he p la yed ...
Key to Exercise 16
8. You need a relative pronoun after the word measures, that/which.
1. It is an adverb. 9 First is part o f a list of points. I ., 2., 3., etc. It can be followed by second(lv) and also
then/next, etc. At first is connected only with time. It means at the beginning o f a
2. You can divide the first sentence into two parts: period and contrasts with in the end. You can use in the beginning instead o f at first.
(i) A man appeared... Sec 4 above.
(ii) .. .round the corner and walked briskly along the street. 10. matter, issue, subject, question. Note that each o f these words can refer to the text
The word A shows you that this is the first time this person has been mentioned. The which comes after the colon. Compare 3 above. See Exercises 23 to 28.
article the with com er and street shows you that these places are already part o f the
story, picture or context.
Another way to help you understand this is that the first sentence is divided into two K ey to Exercise 17
parts: (i) new information; and (ii) old information. Look at the second sentence; you
can see that A man has now become The man [old information]. The new information
1. Answer: b
comes with the indefinite article a ... a shop. As you write, and read, keep this old/new
balance in mind. You should now be able to work out which word fills the blank: the U does not make sense. The desired result or purpose o f tightening the censorship
(old information). laws is to bring the media under stricter control.
See Exercises 29 and 30 for more information on the old/new division in cohesion. 2. Answer; a
For the articles in connections within a text, see Exercise 26. Therefore is an adverb. It can link two sentences together, but it cannot make them
into one unit. (Compare in Exercises 15.1. 15.2 and 15.3.)
3. You need to avoid the repetition o f the phrase alcohol advertisements. If you use the
3. Answer: a
plural pronoun they here, it could refer to problem s, which is possible, but it is the
alcohol advertisements that the writer wants to refer to. You could use such adver You cannot use Although and bid together in this way. You can, however, use yet,
tisements or advertising alcohol [ ... causes], or alcohol advertising [ ... causes]. as the word yet is used as an adverb here. (See Exercise 15.6.)
4. Answer: b
4. In (a), in the end means after a time and contrasts with At first. You could not use
finally here. besides is an adverb with the same meaning as In addition, etc. The word beside is a
preposition meaning next to.
In (b), finally indicates the last step in a sequence: First... .N ext... then... .and Finally.
You can replace it with Last or Lastly here. 5. Answer: a
In (c). finally is part o f another sequence o f steps: F irstflv l.... Secondtlv)... finally. Even so is an adverb, Ii cannot make two sentences into one unit. It is slightly stronger
^ Note you could replace finally here with thirdtlvl and tastily 1. in meaning than however.

6. Answer: a
The word s q in the second part o f the sentence introduces a purpose. You cannot Key Co Exercise 1*1
therefore use a comma before s q .
Compare: 1. W hen/Onec/As soon as he h a d .............................................................................
Jane and Diva got up early, so they were able to catch the fir s t train. 2. If/If only action h a d ................................................................................................
Now you can use a comma before s q , because the second clause i s a result. Compare
.1. Now that/Sincc/W hen/As soon as the exams are o v e r .....................................
the verb forms in the second part o f each sentence.
4. There are many things you can do to get exercise, like w alking ....................
Also compare 11a below.
7. Answer: b 5. Once/W hen/If/As soon as the referee s e e s .........................................................
a is obviously illogical. Although introduces a concession, not a reason. Note the 6. Although television h a s ..........................................................................................
position o f the clause with the word because in it, at the beginning of the sentence. 7. There are many steps th at/w h ich ..........................................................................
8. Answer: a.
8. W hether the law o n .................................................................................................
See Exercise 15.8. Even is not a conjunction. If you wrote Even though, then the
sentence would be correct. 9. Unless the leak is m ended......................................................................................
9. Answer: b 10......................................... left the restaurant so that the ow ner could close early.
Like gives examples out o f many possibilities and namely introduces a list o f all the 11. Maureen teaches botany and Violet teaches history.
possibilities.
12. W hereas/Although the number of car accidents i s ...........................................
10. Answer: b
or
See 9 above.
11. Answer: a 4* but, in other co u n tries,...............................................................
13.............................. ; all in all the holiday was a disaster.

See 2 above. r 14. At first the violence o c c u rre d .............................................................................
Key to Exercise 18 Now that you know the answers, repeat the exercise and see how quickly the connectors
come to mind. After you have repeated the exercise several times, you should be able to
feel where you need to put the connecting devices.
1. j Relationship: Concession/contrast C = JD >
2. a Relationship: Cause/effect-result
3. k Relationship: Cause/effect-result C = »
4. i Relationship: Concession/contrast
5. f Relationship: Reason/statement t = o
6. g Relationship: Statement-assertion/purpose
7. c Relationship: Concession/contrast
8. b Relationship: Cause/effect-result
9. d Relationship: Cause/effect ^ 3 0
10. h Relationship: Condition/result
11. m Relationship: Statementlconcession
12. 1 Relationship: Warning/result
1 = 9
13. e Relationship: Condition/result
IK) a book on writing

a book on w ritin g
1Sy1 ] 1 y I H-J fH S! y J 5!!! ui
Key to Exercise 20
Key (o Exercise 21
Suggested text:
A.
II. 11 b. 7 c. 6
Private vehicles play a key role in our lives, as they provide independent transport, freedom d. 8 c. 3 f. 2
and many jobs. A t the same time, however, they cause pollution, traffic jam s, noise and
death. »■ 10 h. 12 i. 1
j. 5 k. 4 1. 9
Firstly, private transport, especially the car, gives us freedom to move, so we no longer
need to organise our lives around bus or train timetables. In fact, many people think that in. 13
their cars are such indispensable machines that they cannot live without them. For example,
It. K s s u v title :
many people who live in rural areas need private vehicles for shopping, socialising, taking
children to schools etc. Without a car. their lives would be very difficult, and they would l)<> you <if>rcc that sex education should be taught in all schools at secondary level?
be forced to rely on infrequent public transport, if it existed at all. That is why many families
When you are writing always put the title at the top of the page, as this will help guide you as
who live in the country have one or more cars; otherwise they would be cut off from the
you write. In an exam, if the title is very long, it may not be possible to do this. In that case,
rest o f the world. Hence, for many people a car is a necessity.
keep referring to the title to make sure you are answering the question correctly.
Note
Notes
When you have checked your answ er with the Key, you can repeat the exercise as many times
Sentences 1 and 2. You can also use because and since. as you want. Try and put in the missing words and phrases automatically. The more you repeat
Sentence 3. At the same time emphasises the contrast. Notice the change in rhythm the exercise, the easier it becomes.
of the text if you leave it out.
Sentences 4 and 5. This is a different way o f saying therefore, accordingly, etc.
Sentence 6. You could also have o f course and indeed. If you put M oreover, or words Key to Exercise 22
or phrases with a similar meaning, it is correct. It just changes the relationship as
regards meaning between the two sentences.
Few people would deny the validity o f the , _ 6 _ saying. _ 4 _ the power of knowledge
Sentence 7. There are many variations here. You could have: exerts a considerable force.
M any people think that their cars are so indispensable that they cannot live without
10 As some politicians have access to many sources o f information, they possess
them.
a formidable weapon: power. _ 1 4 _ they are able to control the lives o f the general
Many people think that their cars are indispensable machines. As a result/Conse- public. 3 _ , when politicians want public support for a particular cause, all they have
quently/etc, they cannot live without them. to do is put forward the positive aspects o f their proposals and hide the negative. The
Sentence 11. See Sentences 4/5/7 above. public, ignorant of the whole picture, _ 1 3 _ lend their support to the politicians’ cause.
Sentence 12. Note that otherwise is an adverb. You can have a semicolon or a full 2 , other politicians are also controlled. _ 5 _ the general public and other
stop here. politicians, through lack of knowledge, are at the mercy of the politician who possesses
knowledge, and _ 8 _ power.
Sentence 13. You could also use Thus/Therefore.
I When someone applies for a job, _ 12__, the success ofthe application depends,
17 . on the knowledge o f the person who applies. _ 1 5 _ knowledge involves
Now read the text several times with and without the connecting words. You can see that skills, Hi knowing how best to complete the application form; using the correct
the sequence of short sentences in the original does not read very well. Try therefore to language; or how to write the accompanying letter. _ 11 _ , the success o f the applica
avoid writing short sentences one after another. tion will depend on the applicant's display of knowledge about the post applied for.
Before you write your own essays, read the two versions above so that you can learn to 7 success oi failure will largely be dependent on his/her accumulation o f knowl
feel where the connectors in a text should be. edge, 9 lie/she can deal effectively with others and not be manipulated by them,
too much.
112 a b o o k o n writing
a b o o k o n w ritin g 113
Key to Exercise 23 Key to Exercise 24
015 5 5 S3 5 HiHHrH 1HHHI H i m

1. solution
I . practices. treatm ent. cruelty. 2. issue, situation, problem. 3. relationship, link,
The first sentence is a measure/proposal/recommendation/suggestion. The word connection. 4. trend, crn/.e. 5. option. 6. step, action. 7. advice. 8. encouragement.
solution, however, is the only one which fits the structure o f the latter part o f the 9. condition, requirement. 10. outcome. 11. threat,disaster,catastrophe. 12. dilemma,
second sentence. The phrase to the problem limits your choice o f words here. predicam ent.
2. situation, fact, problem You may, of course, have other words that are not listed above.
If you wanted to make a strong statement about the situation,you could use crime Note how the way you view the text affects the word you use. For example, in Sentence I the
here. The word you use depends on how you view the situation. word cruelly is much more forceful than treatm ent. In Sentence 11, you can see the negative
3. damage scale increasing from threat to catastrophe.
The word situation is also perhaps possible here.
4. measure proposal recommendation suggestion idea Key to Exercise 25
The word should shows that the writer is making a .suggestion/proposal/recommen-
dation in the first sentence. The sentence also contains a measure that should be made 1. in fact/in effect/of course
compulsory by legislation.
Notice that there is no contrast between the two sentences. Moreover, the second
The word idea is suitable here as a reference word, but it is less specific than the word sentence is not a developm ent of the first; it is a fact related to the first sentence.
suggestion, etc., in that it does not carry the opinion contained in the word should. 2. reasons
Note also that it does not carry the idea o f action which is intended to achieve an
You cannot say causes behind. The title also asks you for reasons: Why...
effect, as in the word m easure. It is, therefore, a more general synonym.
3. devclopm ent/changc/trcnd/phenomenon
5. amenities
The first sentence does not describe a custom. (See Exercises 23 and 24). Note how
This one is easy, because it is the only word in the plural. Can you think o f another
strong the connections are here: in fact - this developm ent.
word that might fit in here? Is the word exactly what is required? Some people might
use facilities, but you normally find facilities in amenities. 4. health
6. violence, entertainment The word condition is not specific enough. The next few sentences indicate the
meaning o f the word required. Note that the word health is looking forward in the
It is interesting that the word which first comes to mind here, for some people, is
text.
entertainm ent.
3. People
7. measure, idea
You need to avoid repetition in a text by looking for alternative words. (See Exercises
It is clear that the first sentence contains a measure, which is to be introduced. Notice
23/24/28).
that you cannot use suggestion/recommendation/proposal here, as nothing is being
proposed. The measure has already been decided upon. Compare this sentence with f>. such ns/l'or example
number 4 above. N ote you have the word like later in the same sentence.
Note that the word idea can be used here again. See Sentence 4 for an explanation.
8. idea, measure Again you need to avoid repetition. Note that the following alternatives are too
N ote that suggestion/recommendation/proposal do not fit here. See 4 and 7 above.
9. entertainment 8 Moreover/Further, etc.
10. group H ie phrase oil the other hand does not mean the same as in addition.
9. They
11. idea, move, plov. solution
This is the 11i i 11 1lime you have seen this phrase. You cannot use People again as this
Another word you could have here, which is not in the list, is m anoeuvre. would lie repetitive; hence, the pronoun.
Id peuple/llie public
You need to use a noun here, as the word you need to refer to is too far away.
114 a b o o k o n writing a b o o k o n w ritin g 115

11. Similarly/Furthermore, etc. The word alleys is different. You have not seen the word in the context before, but
You have probably seen the word and used at the beginning o f sentences. Note, the writer lias written the definite article. The writer created a specific context with
however, that the word is not an adverb of connection; it is a conjunction. sheets and cottages. 1Ic can see, in his mind, a specific picture with the cottages and
12. for example/such as/like the nian: it is logical that the word alleys will fit into this context. Note that this is an
The word namely is wrong here, as you are only giving examples. You need to avoid example of the text creating a specific context for a noun.
repeating the same word/phrase as at 6 above. 2. The noun advice is uncountable. The context is specific; the phrase you gave me
13. To avoid repetition above and in the next paragraph, you can use conventional defines the advice; it does not mean advice generally. Compare: Advice is always
medicine as a synonym for orthodox m edicine. difficult to follow.
14. To avoid repeating the words orthodox and m edicine, you can use alternative .1, In this sentence, we have two nouns, namely: developments/technology.T he context
treatm ents. for the first noun is general. We only know that the developments are new, but we
15. The word Another is needed here. cannot define them or identify them. The noun is also countable and plural. You do
not, therefore, need tin article. Technology again is general, because we cannot define
16. You need in contrast here.
which technology, and it is uncountable. You, therefore, do not need an article.
17. People/the public
The word blind is an ad jective and it is used here to refer to a definite group of people.
You need a noun here. See 10 above.
The context here, which is specific, is outside the written text in the real world. There
18. To avoid repetition o f the word fear, you could use: are frightened of/are worried are other groups in the world, like the young, the old, the poor, the rich, etc. Note that
about/dread/are afraid of/are terrified o f. the phrase is always plural. The word the connects the text with the world outside the
19. Thus/Hence text.
This sentence is the conclusion o f the paragraph. 4. There arc five nouns: w alk. Studland. beach, ferry and hour. All of them, except
20. turn Sludland. are countable. The specific context for the words walk, beach and ferry are
The word switch is too colloquial. Also, look at the title. created by the picture the writer has in his mind of Studland. Studland is in itself a
specific name; it, therefore, does not need a definite article to distinguish it from other
town names. Compare The Seychelles in Sentence 8. The context for hour is general;
Key to Exercise 26 you cannot define which hour or name a particular hour.
5. There is only one noun: year. It is countable and its context is general, as the indefinite
1. In the first sentence, there are three nouns: man! street/cottages. To decide whether article a tells you. The context cannot be definite, as you cannot point to a particular
to use an article or not and which one to use, you need to ask yourself several year in your mind; it refers to any, or every, year.
questions, namely: 6. Cafe is countable and the context is general, because the writer is setting the scene.
Is the noun countable or uncountable? Compare I above. In the second sentence, the word sun has the definite article before
it. flie context is in the real world outside the text. The sun always has a definite
Is it singular or plural?
article, because unless you go outside the solar system where the sun becomes a star,
and
the context never changes. In the solar system, there is only one sun. That is why it
W hat is the context? Is it general or definite/specific? If it is specific/definite: is
is always definite.
the context in the text; is it created by the text; or is it in the world outside the
text? flic context for the word sky is general, according to the way the writer is thinking.
I Ic could simply have said in the skv. Here, the adjective blue is descriptive; it is not
The first sentence here is general. It sets the context for the sentences that follow. All
important enough to focus attention on the word skv.
three nouns are countable. Therefore, two of the three countable nouns, man and
street, need the indefinite article (a) before them. The word cottages, which is plural, In the third sentence, the two nouns room (countable) and chocolate (uncountable)
does not need an article. have definite articles They have not been mentioned in the text before, but we know
that loom fils within the specific context of the physical structure o f the cafe.
In the next sentence, you need to ask the same questions again. The word street is
Llioeulute is definite, because it is the sort of drink that one drinks in cafes. Compare
countable. The context, which is now specific, was created in the previous sentence.
1 above.
Therefore, you need the definite article the. In the third sentence, you have three
nouns: man/alleys/cottages. Again, you need to ask yourself the same questions for 7. I lie word Islands is countable and plural . The sentence is making a general statement
each one. Man and cottages are countable; the context was created in the first sentence about islands Seychelles is countable, plural and definite, because the writer is talking
and is obviously specific. Hence, you need the definite article. about a definite grouping ol islands called the Seychelles. I le is not talking about all
islands.
116 a b o o k o n writing b o o k o n w ritin g 117

8. You have three nouns, namely: bee, hive and queen. All the nouns are countable.
The definite context for the word bee is created by the word hive. The construction Key to Exercise 2K
m n u m m i m s Q u n m
IThel most important also narrows the context for the word beg and makes it definite.
The writer o f the sentence is referring to all hives, so he has made the context
1. Paragraph I
general. The context for the word queen has been created by The most important
bee and the word h ive. n. the major events that have taken place = life (in this century)
Compare: Paragraph 2
A bee lives in a hive and the leader of the hive is the queen. b. our lives = life
Bees live in hives and their leaders are called queens. e. worlds = planets (You can replace cither one)
d. cover = travel
9. The nouns with a definite context are exercise and blanks: word has a general context.
All three nouns are countable. Note the definite context for exercise, which is created Paragraph .3
by the word follow ing. Also note the definite context for the word blanks which is
e. highly developed = sophisticated
created by the word exercise.
f. wc = people
10. In Sentence 2 you have three nouns, namely: attack, minutes and tim e. All the nouns
g. everyone = people
are countable. The definite context for the word attack was created in the first
sentence, so you need the definite article. You cannot say from the text which five h. human beings = people
minutes the writer is talking about. In other words, you cannot pinpoint them exactly i. one another = each other (You can replace either)
inside or outside the text. The context is, therefore, general. j. images = messages (Replace the second phrase)
Again the context for the word time is general. You do not know which fimg the writer 2. first of all. In Exercises 15-22, you looked at texts where the signposts and markings
is talking about and it is not important. As the noun is countable, you need a- were obvious. Many confident writers of English are able to write without putting
obvious guidelines into the text.
In this text, you could leave out First of all. The fact that you are beginning a new
Key to Exercise 27 paragraph, and that it is the first one after the introduction, indicates that this is the
first point that you are going to describe, in many wavs in the first sentence of the
second paragraph could also be left in or taken out. It depends on whether you want
1 . - 2. - 3. the to make the signposts in your text obvious or not.
4. - 5. - 6. the .Secondly, you could also leave out. The fact that you are starting a new paragraph
7. - 8. - 9. the indicates that you are moving on to a second or new topic. Note the word also in this
sentence has the same function as secondly.
10. - 11. The 12. A
Thirdly, is necessary. The first idea was obvious. The second one was marked by
13. -/th e 14. the 15. a beginning a new paragraph and the word also. Here you are beginning a new
16. - 17. paragraph, but there is no other marker like the word also. You need, therefore, to
- 18. a
remind yourself and the reader of how many points you have made. Without the word
19. - 20. - 21. T h e /- Thirdly. therefore, the paragraph would probably not be well connected to the
22. -/the 23. previous text.
the 24. -
25. the For exam ple, in the third paragraph, is necessary to indicate the relationship between
26. the 27. the
the two sentences.
28. the 29. the 30. -
us a consequence. (The first line in the fourth paragraph.) The word und has the same
31. - 32. the 33. the function as this phrase here. I lowever, it is probably better to put it in, as it makes the
34. The 35. the _ relationship between the two parts of the sentence clearer.
36.
118 a book on writing a b o o k on w ritin g 119

3. The word .therefore. [Many people may, therefore, fear...] is necessary at the
beginning of the second sentence in the last paragraph. You need to indicate the Key 1<> Exercise 30
relationship between the two sentences more clearly.
4. In the first line, the text should read the planet. You need the definite article (the) to I. c. 2. g. 3. c.
connect the text. The writer is writing the text within the context of the solar system. 4. u. 5. b. 6. d.
If the writer uses a planet, then the context is general, which would obviously not be 7. f.
correct here. (See Exercises 26 and 27.)
Note how much trickier this exercise is compared with the previous one. It is not surprising,
5. Possible alternatives are:
therefore, that so many mistakes occur in the section of the text that contains the connections
will have the ability to communicate by telepathy between sentences.
will have the capacity to send
will be capable o f being stored

Key (o Exercise 31
Note that the underlined phrases are interchangeable.
6. In the first line o f paragraph 3 is bound to be and is certain to be in paragraph 4, line 1. lielow are the contradicted facts in the text, with the line numbers indicated.
Line Line
I in I‘>53 10 Then, in 1972, at the age of sixteen.

Key to Exercise 29
1 born and brought up in 17 couldn’t decide whether to stay in south
I lackney, north London London, where she was bom.
1. g. 2. c. 3. d.
2 the only girl in a family o f 7 as her other brothers and sister were
4. e. 5. a. 6. f. lour boys. doing extremely
7. b. 3 Being rather well-off, 12 as coming from a poor background she

could not afford to buy many expensive
Notes clothes.
1. In each sentence, you can see that the information is divided into two parts. This * = » 3 the family lived a totally 6 Her behaviour caused her parents no end
division is basically marked by the verb. carefree life o f anguish
2. In Sentence 1, the phrase One o f the most pressing problems facing our society today 5 with no real interest in any 8 At school, insects, drawing and, of
is not referring to any previous text. You could think o f it as an introducing phrase school activity. course, boys were her main obsessions.
for the new information in the latter part o f the sentence (Compare Exercise 5.) 6 She was very mischievous 14 She had always been a model pupil.
3. In Sentences 2, 5, 6 and 7, the language which refers to the previous sentence is in and always getting into
the first part o f the sentence, before the verb. You can can this old information. trouble.
II but still very much a loner. 17 as she was known to her many friends,
4. In Sentences 3 and 4, the old information is in the second part of the sentence.
18 or go to Exeter. She went to 19 as she hated the student life in London.
5. Many, if not the majority of, sentences in continuous texts contain this old/new the latter,
balance. As you write and read, bear this in mind and it will help you to understand
writing, and reading, more easily. 19 where she studied French 21 six months in Moscow and six in Athens
and Italian.
22 Being decisive 22 at first, she didn't know what to do,
After you have studied this exercise, cover the text on the right. Then try to complete
24 She started an acting career, 25 Alter a considerable time
the paragraph using only the text on the left.
which took oil rather quickly.
120 a b o o k o n writing a b o o k o n w ritin g

> r'T T
Key to Exercise 32 2F. It looks bad if you repeat details from your CV. When you are sending your CV,
all you need is a simple covering letter.
T = T rue an d F = False. 3T. You should avoid all contractions. They look very casual.
IF. In English letters, this is not acceptable. However, you can use headed paper which 4K. The sentence is too colloquial. The formula for ending a formal letter is: I look
has your name and address printed at the top. lor'ward to hearing from you or I am looking forward to hearing from you.
2F. You can leave out all o f the punctuation or you can put it in, e.g.: 5t'. You only use Yours faithfully, when you use Dear Sir/M adam .. You use Yours
sincerely, when you know the name of the addressee.
Either: 27 Marylebone H ouse, or 27 M arylebone House
Buffin Road, Buffin Road til1'. You should always end formal letters with the normal formulae. See 4 and 5 above.
London. London 7T. Your signature may be difficult to read. If it is, who can the reply be sent to?
SF.1 7SM. SE1 7SM ST. In a formal letter, you should try to avoid all colloquial expressions.
N ote, however, that you cannot leave half o f the punctuation in and the other half hi''. Some people write numbers up to ten in words and larger numbers, like 41, in
out. figures.
3F. Some people put the date on the left, above the addressee’s name and address. It I lll.
doesn’t matter which you do. If you are worried about it, put it directly below your 11E Formal letters should be perfect.
address, e.g.:
121.
27 M arylebone House
Buffin Road
London
Key to Exercise 34
SE17SM
22nd August 1996
1. The sender’s address should have no punctuation or all the punctuation.
4F. It is better to write the date in full, but in some business letters you may see the date
abbreviated. 2. You need to write the date in full: 12th July 1996.
5T. If you have a reference, you should put it above the addressee’s address, on the left. 3. You need to write the name and the address of the addressee, e.g.:
6T. This is true. Remem ber about the punctuation. The Editor
The National Guardian
7T. O f course, this is only true if you know hislher position.
21 Farringdon Street
8F. If you know the addressee's name, you should always use it to begin your letter. II London ECI
does not matter whether you know the person or not.
4. Dear Sir/M adam , is required rather than just Dear Sir. Note the comma after Madam.
9F. It is not always necessary to begin with a heading. If you have an obvious heading.
5. You need to indent the paragraphs correctly. Or, you can start all the paragraphs below
you can use it.
the D o f Dear and leave a line between each paragraph.
10F. You can also begin a formal letter bv missing a line after D ear......... and starting
6. You need to say at the beginning why you are writing: I am writing to express mv
immediately below the D o f Dear, e.g.:
opinion about a recent article on fetal brain tissue transplants published in ypur
D ear Sir/Madam,
I am writing 7. L in and don’t in the first paragraph and 1 must sav that I don’t agree, in the second,
You should leave a gap of one line between each subsequent paragraph and begin should be written without contractions.
directly below the D of Dear. K In the second paragraph, you should use however instead of though: A recent study.
11T. You should always do this. however, show s The word though is too informal.
hi paragraph 2, in the UK should read in the United Kingdom (UK).
Key to Exercise 33 It) In the lust line of paragraph J, loads o f patients is too informal. You can say many
patients instead.
IT . The difference is that the word should is more formal here. II In paragraph L the N llij should read the National Health Service (N1IS). Sec 9
above.

H i i I m 05 m sSI! 1 !1 U 1 1 1! 1 11
12. The original text for the final paragraph is too colloquial. The following is more
formal: I hope that you are able to publish this letter in vour newspaper. K ey lo Exercise 3ft
13. You need Yours faithfully, as the letter begins Dear Sir/M adam . Note that after
Yours faithfully, you need a comma.
1 Yes. il is. 1 mil Wliling is more common than I w rite. The latter is very formal.
14. A signature is needed at the end of the letter.
15. A printed name is needed, e.g.: 2 You need to slate the reason lor writing in the introduction to your letter. If you use
the suggested sentence, the letter loses focus, Compare this with Exercises 1 to 2
Yours faithfully.
on introductions.
George MacArthur. 3 views/concern. The word belief does not lit here. Note that you should not use the
word fears in order to avoid repetition in line 3.
4 No, You need to write the date in full, as in the letter, or else in words: the fifteenth
Key to Exercise 35
5. II you leave out the text, there is an abrupt jum p between the two sentences. Read
the introduction several times with and without the text. Compare the text in
1. I am w riting. I write is possible, but very formal.
Exercise 20.
2. can be (real possibility).
6. The fact that the writer has started a new paragraph after stating I would like to
could be reduced (hypothetical possibility - tentative proposal).
clarify a few points shows that this is the first point. Therefore, any kind of
should be reduced (proposal- with opinion). connecting woril would be unnecessary. See Exercise 28.2
is to be reduced (fact - present simple).
7. No. If you use if, it is not clear what the word it refers to: A ID S, plague, life or the
3. I suggest. sentence its a whole. You therefore need T his. You could also put a comm a after
4. the government should increase/increase. Note the subjunctive after the verb the word life and then use w hich. The sentence, however, would be very long. You
suggest. If you treat the noun government as singular, you do not add =s. would also lose the dramatic effect of the short sentence. Note the main stress is on
nonsense and the secondary stress on T his. See Exercise 20.
5. there should be/be. Note again the subjunctive (be) after suggest. You use the
infinitive without to for all parts of the verb. 8. No. This is an indirect question. It should read: ... how he would explain.
6- a sentence has been/is passed.
0. in addition, fu rth er, furtherm ore. Note you cannot use What is m ore, because of
7. This would show (neutral/hypothetical result - objective). the word what in the sentence. It is not possible to omit M oreover here. The word
This should show (result with opinion - subjective). is necessary to show the relationship between this sentence and the previous text.
Read the text several times with and without M oreover so that you can learn to feel
You could also say: will show (neutral/real result - objective)
the need for the word.
8. the state is.
9. about tackling. 10 As a consequence. T hus. Accordingly, etc. See Exercise 16.5. You cannot omit
llie re lore or a similar word here for the same reason as in 9 above. Read the text
10. has recently been/was recently recom m ended. with and without Therefore to feel the difference.
11. (sex offendersl should (proposal - with opinion).
11 The answer is yes. The original is slightly more sophisticated. Both versions
ought to (neutral proposal- without opinion). indicate that this is the second point for clarification. Notice the writer is trying not
could undergo (hypothetical possibility - tentative proposal). to use obvious markers like First/Second/Third, etc.
12. fight/to fight. 12. You can put a comma alter AIDS instead o f a full stop. You can then join the two
13. such counselling is continued/continues/wcre continued/were to be continued. sentences with which Both ways tire acceptable, but if you change the two
14. I strongly believe. sentences Into one, it is rather long.
15. this would be (neutral result - objective). Note that you cannot use could or might
here, as they are too weak. They would contradict I strongly believe.
16. to reduce/of reducing.
Key to Exercise 37 Key to Exercise 3N
1. A formal version: I am writing to thank you fo r your letter, which was received
yesterday.
21. Dear Mr Undcrall,
2. You could say: 1 suggest/recommend that a wider selection offood [should] he
made available. Note the contraction in E d is unacceptable in formal writing. 0.1 am wilting lu ludgg-iLiiiiiiplaiiil about lhc.iavl.ihat 9. the bank 12, failed to honour
a cheque which was presented for payment on the 14. 25 January 1996. in spite of the
1111 no 1 1 1 1 1 o i o o i o i
3. A formal version is: I am writing to complain about the treatment / received from la d that my account 17. was in credit at the time of presentation. I would also like to
a member o f your staff. make a complaint about the subsequent service I 20. received from 1. a mem ber of your
4. A formal version is: I am writing to complain about the fa c t that my flig h t time was staff.
changed without my being informed. I would call your attention to the fact that a banker’s draft for £150, was paid into my
5. A formal version is. I am writing to express m y opinion about an article on sport account at your branch by my elder daughter, Rebecca Merstone, on 4. 20 January 1996.
fo r the young, which appeared in your newspaper recently. live days before the said cheque was presented and refused. The following day my
younger daughter, Rosie, also paid £100 in cash into my account. There were, 7,
6. The formal equivalent is: I look forw ard to hearing fro m you at your earliest therefore. 10. sufficient funds in my account at the time o f presentation and the cheque
convenience; o r I am looking forward... Note that I look forward to is more formal. should have been cleared.
Compare I write/I am writing in Exercise 35.1.
10. I should also like to point out that I 5. contacted mv branch by 13. telephone and fL
7. Noun phrases like W hat he said are very common in informal/colloquial English. the gciillcillilll I spoke to was 19. very rude. Not being used to such behaviour, I was,
This could be replaced by His statem ent. Instead o f a load o f rubbish, you could as you can imagine, left speechless.
just say nonsense.
2. I should be grateful if you could inform me what compensation you propose to offer
8. A formal version is: There is much that can be done to solve the problem. Compare me for my inconvenience in this matter and 15. what action you propose to take re the
9 and 12 below. rudeness of the cashier.
9. A formal version is: Moreover, a worse problem is that dog faeces can be fo u n d 11.1 look forward to hearing from you 3, at your earliest convenience.
all over the area where children are playing.
18. Yours sincerely.
10. You could make it formal as follows: I was very annoyed!dismayed by the writer's
ignorance o f this matter.
r fn iH a id c
11. A formal version is: I think that the writer o f the article has made an enormous!
serious mistake. Ms ( 'amlinc ( irinaide.
12. The sentence is informal and too direct. To make it more formal and impersonal,
you can change it into the passive: Firstly, the flo o r o f the canteen is never cleaned.
13. See 6 above.
14. Yours faithfullv./Yours sincerely, should be used in formal letters.

Key In Exorcise 3*1
See Exercise 33.5.
15. A more formal version is: I should/would be grateful if you would/could send me
I lie c x c i c i s c is not yet fin ish e d . Y ou c a n s e c that th e text b e lo w s h o w s y o u w h e r e o n ly tw o o f
an application fo rm fo r the p ost o f clerical assistant.
the a d d itio n s h a v e b e e n m a d e.
lie litre y o n lo o k at th e K e y , read th e v e r s io n o f th e tex t in th e e x e r c is e a g a in . T h e n read the

le lle i b e lo w an d s e e it y o u c a n fin d th e o th e r w o r d s an d p h ra se s th at h a v e b e e n in se r te d . Can
y o u fe e l th e d if fe r e n c e hi the te x t?
Y ou m a y n e e d to d o th is e x e r c is e s e v e r a l lim e s .
126 a b o o k on writing a b o o k o n w ritin g 127

h
t H 5 1 0 1 H I 51! 5! 0 5 1 5 1 5 5 H
Dear Pierrick,
Key lo Exercise 41
Just a few lines to let you know I got here in one piece and to give you my new address.
I arrived in London about a month ago and have been settling in gradually_since then. 1 Chunks 2. for 29. right away/immediately
The first thing I had to do was find a place to live, which w asn’t exactly easy. When I
15. first got here, Mohamed put me up for a few nights and tl>ey I found this very 3, which 4 1 5. got 30. through
pleasant studio flat in West London through an agency. It’s quite handy for the shops 0 It 31. Why 32. you
and there’s a tube station not too far away. Now that I ’ve got my own place you should
come over here for a few weeks at the end of term. 7, Item 8. from 9, you 33. giving
M eeting people in London is quite difficult. In the beginning, I must admit I felt a bit II) though 34. You 35. could
homesick, but 1. then one evening I went to the Student Union, where I got talking to II a 12. hit/littlc 36. namely
some other students. They invited me to a party, which they were going to gate-crash,
and so I went along with them. It was really fantastic. I met loads o f other people, some 13 on 37. those
of whom I'v e met several times since. 14 hut 38. those
15 up/in 39. Then
16 What 17. 's 18. more 40. down

Key to Exercise 40
116. And 17. another 18. thing] 41. go
19 what 42. Well

Dear Sarah,
211 get 43. packed
21. Many thanks for your letter, which 17. got a couple of days ago, and for the message
on my answering machine. It was 5. nice to hear from you. I’ve tried 22. loads of times 21 like 44. up
to 13. get through to you on the telephone, but I kept 15. getting your answering 22 words 45. might 46. like/want
machine. So I 9. decided to 20. write instead.
23 at 47. Anyway
It’s really 2. great of you to have 14. sorted out the holiday to Venice so efficiently.
These days I don’t seem to be able to get my act together; nor do I have the time or 24. And/Also 48. hope
energy to do anything. I must say that chasing all this paper around at work is 16. getting 25. kids 49. follow/take
me dow n.
26. If 27.1 28. were/was 50 Drop
Well, I ’m sorry to 8. hear that your noise problem 11. has not been sorted out yet. It’s
6. really selfish and inconsiderate o f people to play music at full blast, especially when
all you hear is that deep thud. 4. Why don’t you blast them with some opera in the
You can try the same approach with many o f the exercises that you have done so far. If you
middle of the night?
have not marked the text, you can try to read exercises until you are able to supply the answers
On a happier note, 17. we can meet up before we go to Venice. If it’s nice, we could automatically. Exercises 23 and 24. for example, arc perfect for doing this.
finish that 12. walk along the river and then have a late afternoon tea.
18. Anyway. 10. hope to hear from you soon and hope 3. things are a bit quieter. L
Give mv regards to Hugh.
19. Love.
Rodney
Read the text in the exercise and the Key several times so that you learn to feel the d if ference
between informal and formal language. Compare Exercises 37 and 38.
128 a b o o k o n writing a b o o k o n w ritin g 129

! 5 2 S ! 9 5 5 &3 3 5 0 0 1 1 0 II010 0 I i
Key to Exercise 42
Key lo Exercise 45
1. finally 7. answering advertisement
9 ............. licences...............................
2. exercises environment 8. restaurant discussing businessman 2 ..................... was debated........................... 10. Thank you for/Thanks f o r ............
3. listening vegetables additional 9. admitted disappointed language 3..................... people who/that would agree.. ..11. ............. big e n o u g h ........................
4. yesterday although 10. profession affected 4. Apart from ........................................... 12. .................... has b e e n ......................
5 ..................... problems finding w ork....... 13. ............. those who b re a k ...............
5. belief beginning 11. maintenance surprise approval
t>..................... interested i n ......................... Note: those thal sounds odd here.
6. interesting immediately 12. fortunately putting permanent 7 ..................... has been/has becom e........... 14.
8 ..................... accommodation .................. 15. It should also b e .............................
Also, it should be...
Key to Exercise 43
1. fulfil
Key lo Exercise 4ft
7. occurred
2. government 8. difficult 11. This sentence is correct.
1. ............. needs .....................................
3. disappear 9. arrange 2. 12. This sentence is correct.
4. receive 10. necessary 3. ............. is/has been co n sid ered....... 13............... answer t o .............................
4 14............... in a co m a ..............................
5. successful 11. knowledge
5. ..............agree w ith ............................ 15. This sentence is correct.
6. separately 6. This sentence is c o rre c t................... 16. A large n u m b e r..............................
A nother task for you is to look up the other words in the dictionary to find the correct spelling. 7. .....c a n n o t............................................ 17............... managed to f i n d .................
8. ......was a lm o s t................................... 18. Still there is............................
9. A lthough...............it sh o u ld .............. 19. It is essentiaL........................
Key to Exercise 44 (but is not correct here.) 20. This sentence is correct.
10. Despite/ln spite of the cost involved,..
1. irresponsible committee
2. desperate separate phenomenon intention Key lo Exercise 47
3. appointment
4. independence technique vehicle possibility thorough In (lie Key below, you have to find the corrections yourself. Once you have studied the Key,
repeat the exercise.
5. computer temperature
6. permission Now you can see why the exercise is called A teacher's revenge!
7. independent professor 1. Fossil remains o f dinosaurs were/have been found recently.
8. conscientious management envelope February 2. The government must tighten the law in this respect.
9. frightening application detention 3. Nowadays everyone, especially young people, should practise safe sex.
10. perceive offensive envelop 4. I le raised the matter at the meeting before last.
11. directory 5. I wonder how the writer can explain this statement.
12. occasion embarrassment P. Success can only be achieved by hard work.
13. mischievous secretary 7. I suggest you try working a bit harder.
Note in 8. envelope and 10. envelop. Check the difference in a dictionary. 8 Instead, the money should be spent on improving school buildings and helping old
people.
Check the spelling o f the misspelt words in a dictionary. 9 II people arc curclul when they drive, there will be fewer accidents.
It). I Ins is a d e lic a te m a ile r t h a l h a s aroused considerable controversy.
a b o o k o n w ritin g 131
# = •
11. Smoking is very harmful to our health.
10 The verb form should be surrounded |b y ).
12. Fewer people would mean fewer problems.
11 The sentence expresses a result of the increased use o f computers in the home
13. Should education be free for all? environment. You need a word or phrase, like: As a result. Consequently. As a
14. Passing exams often depends on luck. consequence. Therefore, e tc .
15. We pick up knowledge throughout life. 12. To avoid repetition you can use They.
16. The idea is certainly sound, but, in my opinion, it should not be introduced. t 3 11, The verb is still governed by the preposition qf. You need the word being here.
17. He bought the stationery he needed and then rushed home to write the letter. II I lie last sentence a d s as a conclusion, but the sentence does not show this clearly.
» You need Thus/I Icnce/thcrcforc followed by a comma.
18. The government are surely responsible in this case.
19. Had they acted sooner, then the collapse o f the housing market would not have 15 You need everyone here.
t = m
happened.
20. He appears to be very experienced in dealing with people. t = *
21. We are all sensitive to criticism at times. Key to Exercise 49
22. I’ve kept a diary since I was in primary school. t 3
23. He had to pay a £50 fine when he was caught parking in a restricted area.
24. I often lose my way around here. t = m H ow w ell I 1 rem e m b e r th e very first tim e I saw it. T o a c h ild ’s e y e s, the
d ista n ce w as g reat and it w as 2. jiis l a b lo b on a c liff to p , fa r aw ay a n d o u t o f
25. Recent statistics have shown that the gap between the rich and the poor is increasing.
e = o reach, blit som ehow the blob did not look right. I c o u ld n ’t say w hy and it 3.
umtuyeU m e th at I c o u ld n ’t w o rk it o u t. I d id n ’t th in k to a sk w h a t it w as: so
Key to Exercise 48 m y ste rio u s 4. w as it. that I pro b ab ly th o u g h t th e y w o u ld n ’t k n o w anyw ay.
The im age has 5. h au n ted m e e v e r since.

1. The answer is com puters. This first sentence is an introduction and is a general a
statement. The context for the noun computers is, therefore, general. If you write the Ii w as to be m any y ears later w hen I h ad left h o m e , h ad b een to 6. an o th er
computers, could you point to or identify the specific machines you are talking about? r = # continent ev en , that I returned 7 . It w as on a 8. cold, w et, su m m e r’s day
Note: you cannot have the computer, because the verb is plural. If you had is in the w ith the w ind lash in g in fro m the n o rth . W e a p p ro ach ed it fro m the m ain ro ad ,
text, it would be correct. Note the difference between computers and the computer « will king 9. th ro u g h so g g y gro u n d to w ard s th e c liff to p and the sea. I w as
here. It is purely a matter o f the context in which you picture the word. See Exercise a p p re h e n siv e and ex cited : a p p re h e n s iv e , becau se it 10 . m ig h t p ro v e to b e such
26. al l . and 12. d is a p p o in tm e n t, and ex c ite d by the th o u g h t th at it m ig h t n o t be
2. You need to use such a s. so. A nd there it w as, 13. p erch ed precario u sly on th e c liff ed g e. 14. In congruous
3. The word anywhere is needed. Compare ...or do anything. m the C eltic la n d scap e, the ro u n d cla ssic a l b u ild in g stood proud an d solid
4. You need coming after the preposition w ithout. ag ain st the tem p er o f the N o rth S ea.
C 3 >
5. The text should read: Take schools, for example. Even at primary level children are We en tered ; and il w as m o re than I had im ag in ed . O p p o site th e d o o r, to w hich
learning.....,,.. You could replace the full stop after example with a semicolon (;). w e had c lim b ed 15. a short flight o f sto n e ste p s, w as a tall n arro w w in d o w
6. The word so is missing. It refers to the fact that children are learning more and more lm inp. straight out into the sea. T here w as an o th er o p ening to the east, and then
through the use o f computers. I tin n cd and lo o k ed w est.
c = o
7. The word computer by itself is wrong. The word will means you can use either the
I<> In .pile ol the rain, the g o ld en strand cu rv ed ro u n d , fo llo w ed by the railw ay
computer or com puters. See 1 above. N ote it would probably be better to use the
lin e, w hich p assed d irectly b en eath the T em p le to the W inds. T h e m o u n tain s,
computer, as then you would avoid repetition and thus improve the texture o f the
passage. 17 sloping tip from the b e a c h , looked d ifferen t from this v iew p o in t; and the
m = o lulls ol I lo n eg al w ere lost to the rain. I m oved to the w in d o w an d 18. peered
8. A word or phrase like M oreover/In addition, etc. is required.
into the d istan ce that still seem ed so g re a t. F or a tim e I w aited , but I c o u ld not
9. The spelling of the word is wrong. It is equipped.
see the little hoy, so lull ol d re a m s, w ho w as b eck o n ed upon the w in d s.
1.32 a book on writing a book on w ritin g 133

H 1 H S 3 3 SI i i S S 5 5 5 1 Q i i S t i
Key to Exercise 50
Key to Exercise 51
The passage in the exercise is repeated below, but it now has 25 mistakes. A t the end o f each The general subject is about genetic
1. Genetics is a subject which is rather
paragraph, the number of mistakes is indicated in brackets.
complicated fo r the public. [Line 1] engineering, not about genetics.
Now look for the mistakes in the text below. Try not to refer to the original text. The essay is objective, not
2. and it is, in my opinion, a great
Try to resist the temptation to cheat! improvement. [Line 3] subjective. Therefore, the writer
should not express a personal
opinion.
T h ro u g h the d istan t h aze o f c h ild h o o d , m y shool h o lid a y s w ith A u n tie M au re e n 3. and are also worried about the The safety of beef is not connected
an d A u n tie Vi stan d o u t cle a rly in m y m in d . E v en n o w as an a d u lt, m y o casio n al safety o f b eef products. [Line 7] with genetic engineering.
v isits to F a rk le b e rry R ise n e v e r fa ils to c h e e r m e u p . [3]
4. G e n e tic e n g in ee rin g w ill le a d to a This certain result docs not fit in
A u n tie M a u re e n is a fa v o u rite o f m in e . S h e is h ig h a n d s le n d e r an d c a rrie s h e r h e a lth ie r d ie t f o r a ll o f m a n k in d and, here, because we are talking about
h air in a tight bun. H e r fain t m o u stach e still am u ses m e; first, it m ade h e r ap p ear c o n seq u en tly, an even b e tte r genetically engineered plants. The
ra th e r feirce an d stric t to m y siste r a n d m y se lf. [4] standard o f living. [Lines 10-12] author has just introduced the idea
and then goes straight to an
S he is, in fa ct, ra th e r an e x c ite d ch ara c ter. To u s c h ild re n , she w as a lw a y s su ch affirmative result, which is rather
fun to b e w ith and con stan tly trying to k eep u s entertain ed ; it w as p laying g am es abrupt.
o n th e w id e law n o r lu n c h in g b o m b a tta c k s o n th e W e n d y h o u se in th e 5. Safety is also a primary concern o f This is obviously irrelevant here.
w ild e rn e ss at the b o tto m o f th e o rc h a rd . A u n tie V i, on o th e r h a n d , a ra th e r jo lly m a n y p e o p le in o th e r a re a s o f life,
a nd q u ie t eru d ite c h a ra c te r, alw ay s se e m e d to b e w o rk in g fu rio u sly in so m e fa r e .g . the sid e -e ffe c ts o f m e d ic in e s.
o f c o m e r o f the R ise , an d h a n g in g w in d o w s sh o u tin g e n c o u ra g e m e n t at o u r | Lines 15-16]
g o in g s-o n in g ard e n . M u ch later, w e fo u n d th at she w a s, in fa c t, sh o u tin g at us
6. S c ie n tists are resp o n sib le f o r m a n y Like 5 above, this is obviously not
to sh u t. [9]
d isa ste rs: there are c o u n tle ss sto ries connected with the text, except for the
A u n tie M a u re e n w a s, a n d still is, so m e th in g o f a le g e n d in th e lo cal a re a , a b o u t w a ste b ein g s p ille d in to rivers reference to scientists.
fa m o u s fo r h e r a m a te u r d ra m a tic s, h o m e m a d e ja m a n d h ed g e s. O n o n e m e m o and the sea. [Lines 18-20]
rab le occasio n , she pu t on ra th e r a sp ectaclar disp lay fo r us. S he w as u p a lad d er
7. sin c e in n o cen t crea tu res n e e d The protection o f animals here is not
c u ttin g th e h ed g e at th e b a c k o f th e R ise . W e acte d B re e ze in th e B irch es, a
p ro te c tio n a g a in st e x p erim en ts? part o f the argument.
p lay A u n tie M au re en h a d w ritte n fo r u s, w h en w e ru sh e d ro u n d th e c o m e r o f
| Lines 25-26]
th e h o u se to fin d d e a r A u n tie M a u ree n in m id -a ir, le g s a n d arm s ak im b o lik e
a g re a t sta r [4] 8. S u ch b iza rre im a g es sh o u ld n o t be This sentence is not relevant,
sh o w n on TV, a s it u p se ts m a n y because it expresses an opinion
W e w ere th in k in g she h a d g o t b o re d to c u t th e h e d g e an d h a d d e c id e d to jo in people. [Lines 32-33] which is not appropriate in an
in o u r fu n . W e ro a re d w ith lau g h ter, as A u n tie M a u re en d isa p p ea red o v e r th e objective essay like this.
to p o f the hed g e w ith w h a t so u n d e d lik e g re at sq u eals o f d elig h t. N e v e r 1 h a v e
9 M a n y a n im a l lo vers, m y s e lf in clu d ed , The paragraph is not talking about
lau g h e d so m uch in all m y life! 13]
/e e l that th ey m u st m a k e a s ta n d f o r animal lovers or animal rights. The
A u n tie M au reen w as th e n sp en d in g th re e d ay s in th e b e d , b a re ly a b le to m o v e. the rights o f animals, [Lines 38 39] specific focus of the paragraph is
[2 ] about the morality of genetic
engineering,
10, There are, o f co u rse, m any The arguments for arc irrelevant here.
a rgum ents in favour, f o r exam ple a
b e lte r q u a lity o f fo o d | L ines 4 1 4 2 1
134 a b o o k on writing a b o o k o n w ritin g 135

Ifr! t HI U ! H 1115551! I i H
Key to Exercise 52
Key lo Exercise 53
1. A is correct. The word Such and the would for result connect the sentence with the
1. couldn't apostrophe 7. (1913-1947) brackets
previous text.
immediately, comma w orld’s apostrophe
B is unacceptable, because it repeats text from the previous sentence. turned up. full stop poets. full stop
C is a statement o f fact about an investment and a system , which are not specified. 2. answer? question mark 8. It’s apostrophe
N either noun connects with the previous text. Notice the use o f the Present Simple 3. treated; semicolon Jam es’s apostrophe
tense here to express a fact. in sores. full stop book. full stop
•I •Why...' quotation marks/ 9. - a beautiful dash
2. C is correct. The words would and then take the developm ent o f the proposal in the
inverted commas bowl. full stop
introduction a step further.
didn’t apostrophe 10. fruit, comma
A is confusing. It is not clear whether It refers to investment, infrastructure or the sooner? question mark like: colon
whole idea. You cannot, therefore, use it. If you replaced It with This it would be asked. full stop guavas, mangoes, commas
acceptable. 3. half-baked hyphen kumquats. full stop
In B, the phrase there would be fewer accidents is irrelevant. idea. full stop 11. list: colon
6. fireplace! exclamation mark commas/ oblique stroke
3. IJ is correct.
oblique strokes. full stop
A is not acceptable because the text should read were made: and it is cheaper should
read they were cheaper.
C only covers buses and the word provided is repeated. Key to Exercise 54
4. A is correct.
In B, it is not clear what the word It refers to. 1. The sentence is not a question. The word why introduces an indirect question;
C is irrelevant. therefore, a question mark is not needed.
5. C is correct. It is the only one which connects with the next part o f the text. 1, In a. (lie text between the commas is additional information.The words could, in fact,
In A, the tense has changed and it does not connect with anything in the text that be left out; they are not identifying which nephew. In b, the writer shows that there
comes before or after. are other nephews and that he is only talking about the one who bought the painting.
B is not accpetable for the same reasons as A, except for the tense. The words who bought the painting are essential to the meaning in b.
6. A is correct. ' Sentence b is impossible, because the name M r James already defines the person.
B does not connect with the previous text. 4. (a) The punctuation shows that two people spoke. M r Jones and M rs B lair.
C does not connect with the previous text. (b) hour people spoke, namely: two m anagers. M r Jones, and Mrs B lair. The first
two people arc not named.
7. B is correct. You need the word therefore to make the link firm.
(e) The comm a after early is unnecessary as the second clause is a purpose. If the
Without the word therefore in A, the connection with the previous text is very weak. sentence read so he was able to finish his essay, the second clause would be a
In C , the tense has changed and the cars cannot be congested! result. A comma would then be necessary .
(d) You do not need a comma after chair, spoke and length.
(e) The commas in the sentence should be removed as the phrase wearing a red
lum per identifies the m an as the leader. C o m p are 2 above.
(I) All the commas are necessary.
(g) You do not need a comma here. Read the sentence to yourself and compare it
with Ii below.
(h) When you turn the sentence in g round as here, you need a comma.
•36 a b o o k o n writing
a b o o k o n writing 137
011: i I-i
5. A semicolon
A semicolon marks a connection between two independent clauses which are related Key to Exercise 56
to each other, e.g. c. If you had a full stop instead o f a semicolon in c, the sentences
would be too staccato (i.e. abrupt, clipped). H ence, another reason for using a
semicolon. You can use a semicolon to mark clauses in a list, e.g. d. I You do not need a comm a after winding.
A colon 2. The phrase, rising to address the Horticultural Society, is non-defining. It is additional
information and does not distinguish Ms Bartlett from anyone else. Therefore, you
A colon marks an explanation o f a word or clause which comes before it, e.g. b. You
should put the phrase inside commas.
can use a colon to m ark the beginning o f a list, e.g. a/d.
3. You should add a comma after Moreover.
6. Ills means It is/it has. So a is incorrect.
4. A full stop is needed at the end of the sentence. The writer considers the information
7. A dash is usually quite informal, but people do use it in formal writing. in the latter part of the sentence as additional, so you can have a comma before the
word ami. You can also leave the comma out.
8. You use a hyphen to mark certain words which are made from: (i) two or more words,
e.g. half-dead self-made (ii) a prefix and a word, e.g. semi-nomadic, co-ordinate. 5. You can’t use an apostrophe with Yours.
(>. The punctuation is correct.
9. Yes. You normally separate connecting words like these from the rest o f the sentence
U 1 1 1 5 iH
with commas. 7. There should not be a comm a after people. The phrase like scientists and inventors
is defining. Read the sentence to yourself without the phrase; it doesn’t make sense.
10. You can use commas ( .........,) and dashes ( - ........ -) .
8. You can put commas around the clause who were given lots of help bv their parents
11. You can write: The planes, made from a new kind of alloy, were returned to the or you can leave them out. It depends on whether you want to talk about a restricted
factory. This means that all the planes were returned. Without commas, it means that group o f children (defining) or to give additional information (non-defining).
only those planes made from alloy were returned. The others were not. 9. An apostrophe is needed in D on’t: you also need an exclamation mark instead of a
comma. After the comm a, you should close the quotation : ... again!’ he shouted.
10. The punctuation is correct.
Key to Exercise 55 11. The apostrophe is missing in it's: it is.
12. Not only is the punctuation wrong, the word is w rong.The word should be W hose
1. The full stop at the end o f the sentence is missing. Notice the sentence contains an and there is no apostrophe.
indirect question. Therefore, you do not need a question mark. 13. 1lyphens are needed in end-of-term .
2. The apostrophe is missing in I've. 14. The punctuation is correct, but notice the change in meaning in the following:
’M ichel.' said the teacher, ‘is a very fast reader.’
3. You need a colon after message. The latter part o f the sentence is an explanation of
the word message. In informal writing, von could h a v e a d ash
5 1 ! 1! § 110
4. You need a question mark at the end of the sentence.
Key to Exercise 57
5. A comma is needed after earlv.
6. You need a full stop or a semicolon after the word this. After a full stop, the word far 1, d 2. m 3. n
would have a capital letter.
4. f 5. g 6. a
7. You need a full stop at the end of the sentence. Note that this is not a question. The
inversion at the beginning o f the sentence is the same as If vou wish ... 7. j 8. c 9. k
8. This is a question not a statement, so you need a question mark at the end. 10. 1 11. i 12. b
9. You need a comma after Jones. 1.3 It 14. c 15. 0
10. A comma is needed before but.
138 a book on writing a book on writing 139

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This publication is designed primarily for English language students
at an advanced level, i.e. the Cambridge Certificate in Advanced
T ' m
N '
English, Cambridge Proficiency and those students preparing to achieve
approximately between 6.0 and 7.5 in the IELTS exam managed and
administered by the British Council, the University of Cambridge Local
Examinations Syndicate (UCLES) and by IELTS Australia. Native speakers
of English may also find some aspects of the book of use.
a
book
The hook as far as possible has been written from a cognitive, rather than
a grammatical, point of view. The guiding principle throughout has been
to mimic the underlying mechanisms and thought processes thal make up
the act of writing.
The book is divided into five Sections, focusing on the following areas:
coherence in a text, cohesion, letter writing, correcting a text and
punctuation.
This is a great little book which has already been extensively used j i
in the short time w e’ve had it. It seems to be the kind o f book
that contains all the exercises that otherwise you would s/tend
i
i1 l l
hours trawling fo r ...A m ong teachers who test drove this book,
the m ost common adjective used to describe it was 'meaty'. All M
essential resource book. « Z— * jj
Roland Davies, Network News .S m
Additional copies can be obtained from:

Dr G M Haddock
IntelliGene
Woodlands, Ford, Midlothian EH37 5RE, UK
J
M - I pw
j
i l
Tel: +44 (0) 1875 320063 Fax: +44 (0) 1875 320276
Sam McCarter
M
i jm
«i — • i
4

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a .

Second R eprint 2002

C opyright Sam M cC arter and The N uffield Self-access Language lYpjcci

Section 1: Focus on coherence

Section 2: Focus on cohesion

I w ould like to th an k th e fo llo w in g c o lle a g u es a n d frie n d s fo r th e ir h e lp an d sup p ort

Ju d ith A sh , D o ris B a y b u tt, W e n d y B isik e r, J u lie E a s to n , H ila ry F in c h , C a ro lin e

I w ould also like to th an k all th o se stu d en ts o v e r th e y e a rs w h o h a v e h elp e d in m any

A sp ecial th a n k s is also d u e to th e m e m b e rs, p a st an d p re s e n t, o f th e C o m m itte e o f the

T w o m em b ers o f the said C o m m itte e , w h o a re n o lo n g e r w ith u s, D r K a th e rin e E llio tt SECTION 1

D rs G ill and B ru ce H a d d o c k d e serv e m o re th a n k s th a n I can say fo r th e ir lo n g p atien ce

F in ally , I w o u ld like to say a v ery sp ecial th a n k y o u to M arg o B ly th m a n fo r h av in g

1. H ow to in terp re t essay t i t l e s .............................................................................. 4

2. H ow to link y o u r in tro d u c tio n to y o u r essay t i t l e .....................................5

4. C o n tro llin g y o u r i d e a s ..........................................................................................7

5. H ow to o rg an ise and co n tro l y o u r e s s a y ........................................................ 8

7. N a m in g se n ten ces in a p a r a g r a p h ...................................................................10

9. O rg a n isin g a p a rag rap h by q u e s t i o n s ......................................................... 14

10. M ore q u e stio n s fo r o r g a n is in g ....................................................................... 16

1 1. C re atin g q u e stio n s fo r o rg a n isin g a t e x t ...................................................... 17

a book on writing a book on w ritin g 3

a book on writing a book on w ritin g 5

a book on writing a book on w ritin g 9

10 a book on writing a book on w ritin g li

12 a book on writing a book on w ritin g 13

d. What is the governm ent’s role specifically?

f. What do the statistics say about juvenile crime in the UK?

16 a book on writing a book on w ritin g 17

18 a book on writing a book on w ritin g 19

3. In oth er w ords,intelligent parent m ean 4. N evertheless, there are countless

Roger’s group could not disagree with.

age their children and provide an environment favourable to devel­

20 a book on writing a book on w ritin g 21

15. Sentence relationships - knowledge check 1 ................... 26

16. Sentence relationships - knowledge check 2 ................... 27

17. Some areas of co n fu sio n .................................................... 28

18. Split tex ts...............................................................................30

19. Lost connecting words and phrases................................... 31

20. Sentence relationships in a te x t......................................... 32

2 1. Text with g a p s ...................................................................... 34

22. Text with no g a p s .................................................................35

23. Reference with synonym s.................................................. 36

24. More reference with synonym s..........................................37

25. Words and phrases that are not exactly c o rrect............... 38

26. The definite article as a connecting word ......................... 39

27. The articles: fill the g a p s .................................................... 40

28. Reference awareness and connections in a t e x t .............. 41

29. Awareness of old/new information in a sentence: 1 .........42

30. Awareness of old/new information in a sentence: 2 .........42

26 a book on writing a book on w ritin g 27

28 a book on writing a book on w ritin g 29

30 a book on writing a book on w ritin g 31

Can you think of an adverb to join Sentence 12 to the previous one?

34 a book on writing a book on w ritin g 35

36 a book on writing a book on w ritin g 37

a book on writing a book on w ritin g 39

Secondly, communication is also bound to be so sophisticated, that people will be able to

19 whales are i n 20 danger of becoming extinct.

For example, (c) worlds = planets in Paragraph 2.

age their children and provide an environment favourable to devel

I k n o w y o u ’re u n d e r p re ssu re b e c a u se o f y o u r e x a m s ,_ 14_