Unit 9 | Grammar | B2

Fill in the gaps with the appropriate phrasal verb in the correct tense.

1. Guess who I_____________________ yesterday?
2. Let’s_________________ these figures again.
3. What made her_______________ from home?
4. The project won’t be completed as we have _______________ serious difficulties.
5. At some point, I______________ patience and started shouting at him.
6. Stop___________ her. She’s not worth it.
7. I______________ dear old Mrs Grainger in the supermarket today.
8. To avoid______________ the little boy, the driver crashed into a wall.
9. She was blinded by the sun and________________ a passing cab.

Use either ago or before to fill in the gaps.

1. Tom phoned only five minutes__________________.
2. I’m sure I’ve met you________________ .
3. The football match had started_______________ Tom's phone call.
4. He lived in Lancaster ten years_______________ when he was doing his postgraduate studies.
5. He got here at four but Jane had left fifteen minutes________________ then.

Use the word given in capitals to form a word that fits in the space.

1. I’d like to speak to the person………………..(RESPONSE) for this project.

2. I’m afraid this isn’t………………. . (ACCEPT) You’ll have to do it again.

3. The………………………….(LIBRARY) was very helpful so it didn’t take me long to find the book I needed.

4. I found his demands quite………………………………. (REASON)

Use the appropriate tense of the verbs in brackets to fill in the gaps.

When I (1)_____________(leave) home it (2)_____________(get) cloudy. I (3)______________ (start) walking quickly along the street because I (4)____________ (wake up) late that morning. A couple of kids (5)_____________ (play) noisily next to my house and drivers (6)__________ (blow) their horns.

Suddenly, I (7)__________ (hear) the sound of two cars crashing into each other. I (8)________ (stop) and (9)____________ (look) around. I (10)___________ (turn) and (11)__________ (see) the two drivers who (12)________________          (collide) with each other staring at a little cat as it happily (13)______________ (cross) the road.

Rephrase these sentences using used to/would or be/get used to.

1. John smoked a lot in the past but he has now given up smoking.

John _________________________________________________________

2. My son doesn’t believe that storks bring new babies but he did once.

My son_______________________________________________________

3. I can’t wake up early in the morning. I’m not used to it.

I’m not_______________________________________________________

4. She has gradually learned to work long hours.

She is now____________________________________________________

5. When Joanna was a child, she woke up late every morning.

As a child, Joanna______________________________________________

6. When he came to India, he didn’t like eating spicy food, but he soon became accustomed to it.

After living in India for some time, he______________________________

Exercise 1  

For numbers 1-9, read the text below and look carefully at each line. Some of the lines are correct, and some have a word which should not be there. If a line is correct, put a tick (✓) by the number. If a line has a word that should not be there, write the word in the box.

IT S MAGIC

1_________ Before a few years ago, I decided to take a magic class because I was

2_________ feeling down and needed to renew my sense of fun. It class turned out to be

3_________ just the thing. Most of the tricks were pretty easy and the most best thing

4_________ about the classes was that they were cheap. All the ‘equipment’ I needed it

5_________ was a pen, a few rubber bands, and some string. Within a few days, I had

6_________ got become familiar with such exotic tricks as Mental Mover (in which a pen

7_________ moves up a rubber band) and Professor’s Nightmare (connecting three

8_________ ropes into one without knots). If I had wanted an audience, I would use my

9_________ cats. They used to watch carefully but couldn’t work out the secrets - unlike

my husband. I still keep two rubber bands in the bathroom drawer, and I

practise some of my tricks while I’m getting ready for work.

Exercise 2

For numbers 10-18, read the text below. Use the word given in capitals at the end of each line to form a word that fits in the space in the same line.

DRESSING UP

Costumes in films can range from Tarzan’s simple loincloth to the dazzling, historically accurate, (10 ELIZABETH)………… clothes worn in ‘Orlando’ (1993). Costumes today are the (11 CREATE)………… of costume designers while a hundred years ago, in the early days of cinema, actors and (12 ACT)………….. used to wear their own clothes or hire costumes from (13 THEATRE)…………….. prop companies. One story goes that Charlie Chaplin created the costume of the Tramp by borrowing items of clothing from other (14 COMEDY)…………..at the Keystone studios. Later, the big studios built up their own costume departments. When the ‘talkies’ arrived just before the end of the 1920s, costumes suddenly presented (15 EXPECT)……………  problems. The sensitive microphones would pick up every rustle, forcing costume makers to look for softer, silent fabrics. In the golden age of Hollywood, costumes in (16 HISTORY)…………… films were often more fantastic than they were accurate. The (17 EMPHASIZE)………….. was on creating the right atmosphere rather than paying (18 ATTEND)……………. to detail. Nowadays, great care is taken when creating period clothes. Costume designers study paintings and books and have costumes hand-stitched so as not to look too neat and modern.

Exercise 3

For numbers 19-25, read the text below and think of the word which fits each space. Use only one word in each space.

HEART OF STONE

Paula pulled up outside the villa, turned (19)………………. the engine and stepped out of the car. It took her a while to (20)……………….  accustomed to the darkness, but when she did, she made her way to the front door. She opened it as quietly as she could and quickly climbed up the wooden staircase. Over the past few weeks she had become so (21)……………….. with the layout of the house that she had no trouble (22)………………. her way in the dark. She walked into the room that had been her office and quickly gathered together her sketches and plans. When she had first seen the house three weeks (23)………………  she had fallen in love with it. Now she needed to get away from it as quickly as (24)……………… With bundles of blueprints under her arms, she ran down the stairs to the front door. As her hand turned the handle, the door burst open and Paula came face to face with the man she had been running (25)………………… from.

Exercise 4

For numbers 26 - 30, complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the word given. Do not change the word given.

26.  Waking up at six o’clock in the morning doesn’t bother him anymore. (use)

He………………………………………………… waking up at six o’clock in the morning.

27.  My uncle used to clean his bicycle every Sunday afternoon. (would)

My uncle………………………………………….. his bicycle every Sunday afternoon.

28.  Emma soon got used to living in London. (grew)

Emma soon………………………………………………………… living in London.

29.  He was barely recognisable after his long illness. (could)

He………………………………………………….. after his long illness.

30.  Don’t worry. You’ll soon find out how the machine works. (familiar)

Don’t worry. You’ll soon………………………………………….. this machine works.