МИНОБРНАУКИ РОССИИ

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Санкт-Петербургский государственный электротехнический
университет «ЛЭТИ» им. В. И. Ульянова (Ленина)
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Т. С. ГУРЬЕВА Е. С. ЗУБКОВА С. В. ИГНАТОВА

DEVELOPING WRITING SKILLS

Учебно-методическое пособие

Санкт-Петербург
Издательство СПбГЭТУ «ЛЭТИ»
2016
УДК 372.881.111.1(07)
ББК Ш143.21-923
Г 95

Гурьева Т. С., Зубкова Е. С., Игнатова С. В.

Г 95 Developing Writing Skills: учеб.-метод. пособие. СПб.: Изд-во СПбГЭТУ «ЛЭТИ»,
2016. 36 с.

ISBN 978-5-7629-1800-8

Содержит информационно-справочный материал по основным разделам курса

письменной практики по английскому языку и упражнения к этим разделам. Имеет целью
совершенствование навыков письменной речи в области композиции текста, расширение
словарного запаса и знания грамматических явлений, обеспечивающих письменную
коммуникацию без искажения смысла.
Предназначено для студентов-бакалавров направления «Лингвистика».

УДК 372.881.111.1(07)
ББК Ш143.21-923

Рецензенты: Управление международного образования Санкт-Петербургского

политехнического университета Петра Великого (О. Г. Емельянова), канд. филол. наук
доц. О. И. Санникова (СПбГУПТиД)

Утверждено
редакционно-издательским советом университета
в качестве учебно-методического пособия

ISBN 978-5-7629-1800-8 © СПбГЭТУ «ЛЭТИ», 2016

Гурьева Татьяна Сергеевна,

Зубкова Евгения Сергеевна,
Игнатова Светлана Витальевна

Developing Writing Skills

Учебно-методическое пособие
Редактор Н. В. Кузнецова
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 CONTENTS
UNIT I. IT’S ALL ABOUT STRUCTURE ..……………………………………4
1. Reading the story................................................................................................ 4
2. Asking and answering questions ........................................................................ 4
3. Underlining or writing out the key words/phrases/sentences ............................ 5
4. Formulating the milestones ................................................................................ 5
5. Dividing the text into paragraphs ....................................................................... 5
Exercises................................................................................................................. 6
UNIT II. TO CUT A LONG STORY SHORT ..………………………………10
1. Dividing up long sentences .............................................................................. 10
2. Avoiding a succession of simple sentences ..................................................... 10
3. Combining ideas logically ............................................................................... 11
4. Using proper linking words to connect ideas and events logically ....................... 11
Exercises............................................................................................................... 12
UNIT III. THE POWER OF WORDS ..……………………………………….17
Exercises............................................................................................................... 18
UNIT IV. HOW TO INTRODUCE OTHER PEOPLE’S WORDS ..………..21
Exercises............................................................................................................... 22
UNIT V. SOMETHING ABOUT GRAMMAR ………………………………26
1. Relative clauses or Can we do without commas? ................................................ 26
2. Pronouns «all», «every» and «whole» ................................................................ 27
3. Position of adverbs in sentences ......................................................................... 29
Exercises ............................................................................................................... 31
UNIT VI. DOUBLE CHECK …………………………………………………..34
Exercises............................................................................................................... 34

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 UNIT I. IT’S ALL ABOUT STRUCTURE

A clear structure is a distinct feature of a good text. The text should be divided into
paragraphs conveying one main idea each. A common text is usually divided into three
parts: an introduction in which the scene is set (people involved, time, and place), a
main part in which the story is developed and a conclusion in which people’s feelings,
comments and reactions or consequences can be referred to. Note that main part may
consist of more than one paragraph, and each new main idea/event deserves a new
paragraph.
To find the best way to divide a text into paragraphs some steps may be followed.
Here is an example how to do this.
1. Reading the story
This step helps to get the main ideas/events of the story.
There was once a very rich old lady whose husband had died, and whose children
had married and gone to live in foreign countries. When she reached the age of eighty
and was too old to live alone and look after a house herself, this rich old widow went
to live in an expensive and very comfortable hotel near the sea, in the south, where it
was not too cold in winter. This rich old lady had a pair of ugly dogs, which used to
growl and bark at everybody, but which she loved very much, although nobody else
did. They lived in the hotel with her and went wherever she did. After the old lady and
her dogs had been at the hotel for nearly a year, a new young waiter came to work
there and began to do everything that he could to help the old lady and be nice to her.
He carried her blankets and pillows for her, helped her to get into and out of the car
which she hired when she wanted to go for a drive and even pretended to like her
unpleasant dogs and offered to look after them in his free time. He fed them, cleaned
them and took them for daily walks for some years. The young waiter did not doubt
that, when the rich widow died, she would leave him a lot of money, to pay him for
everything that he had done for her and her dogs; but when she died a few years
later, he soon discovered that she had left him only two things which she loved most
in the world, and that she thought he loved too – her dogs. All her money and
jewellery went to her children, who had never done anything for her.
2. Asking and answering questions
This step helps to clarify the details of the plot.
1. Who are the characters of the story?

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 2. Why did the old lady move to a hotel?
3. Whom did the old lady take to live with her in the hotel? What were her
feelings towards the dogs?
4. Why did nobody like the dogs?
5. Who helped the lady when she lived in the hotel?
6. What did the young man do in particular?
7. Why did the young man expect to get a lot of money after the lady’s death?
8. What did he discover when the lady died?
9. Why did the lady decide to leave her dogs to the young man?
10. Whom did the lady leave her money to?
3. Underlining or writing out the key words/phrases/sentences
This step helps to get the language means to express the main ideas/events
and the details. See the words/phrases/sentences underlined in the text above.
4. Formulating the milestones
This step helps to distinguish the fragments of the text belonging to different
structure parts: introduction, main part or conclusion.
1. The reasons for the old lady to move to a hotel. (the introduction)
2. The old lady and her dogs. (the main part)
3. The young waiter’s care of the lady and her dogs. (the main part)
4. The old lady’s deathbed will and the young waiter’s feelings about it. (the
conclusion)
5. Dividing the text into paragraphs
This is the final step of the procedure. Study the example how it may be done.
There was once a very rich old lady whose husband had died, and whose children
had married and gone to live in foreign countries. When she reached the age of eighty
and was too old to live alone and look after a house herself, this rich old widow went
to live in an expensive and very comfortable hotel near the sea, in the south, where it
was not too cold in winter.
This rich old lady had a pair of ugly dogs, which used to growl and bark at
everybody, but which she loved very much, although nobody else did. They lived in
the hotel with her and went wherever she did.
After the old lady and her dogs had been at the hotel for nearly a year, a new
young waiter came to work there and began to do everything that he could to help

5
the old lady and be nice to her. He carried her blankets and pillows for her, helped her
to get into and out of the car which she hired when she wanted to go for a drive and
even pretended to like her unpleasant dogs and offered to look after them in his free
time. He fed them, cleaned them and took them for daily walks for some years.
The young waiter did not doubt that, when the rich widow died, she would leave
him a lot of money, to pay him for everything that he had done for her and her dogs;
but when she died a few years later, he soon discovered that she had left him only
two things which she loved most in the world, and that she thought he loved too – her
dogs. All her money and jewellery went to her children, who had never done anything
for her.
Exercises
Task 1
A. Read the story «Letters in the Mail».
Almost everybody likes to receive letters. And perhaps nobody in Stillwater liked
to get letters more than Ray Buffin. But unfortunately Ray received fewer letters in his
box at the post-office than anybody else. Guy Hodge and Ralph Barnhill were two
young men in town who liked to play jokes on people. But they never meant anything
bad. One afternoon they decided to play a joke on Ray Buffin. Their plan was to ask a
girl in town to send Ray a love letter without signing it and then tell everybody in the
post-office to watch Ray read the letter; then somebody was to ask Ray if he had
received a love letter from a girl. After that somebody was to snatch the letter out of
his hand and read it aloud. They bought blue writing paper and went round the corner
to the office of the telephone company where Grace Brooks worked as a night
telephone operator. Grace was pretty though not very young. She had begun working
for the company many years ago, after she had finished school. She had remained
unmarried all those years, and because she worked at night and slept in the daytime it
was very difficult for her to find a husband. At first, after Guy and Ralph had explained
to her what they wanted to do and had asked her to write the letter to Ray, she
refused to do it. «Now, be a good girl, Grace, do us a favour and write the letter.»
Suddenly she turned away. She didn’t want the young men see her crying. She
remembered the time she got acquainted with Ray. Ray wanted to marry her. But she
had just finished school and had started to work for the telephone company; she was
very young then and did not want to marry anybody. Time passed. During all those

6
years she had seen him a few times but only a polite word had passed between them,
and each time he looked sadder and sadder. Finally she agreed to write the letter for
Guy and Ralph and said she would send it in the morning. After they left the telephone
office Grace thought about Ray and cried. Late at night she wrote the letter. The next
day Guy and Ralph were in the post-office at four o’clock. By that time there was a
large crowd in the post-office. When Ray came in and saw a letter in his box he looked
at it in surprise. He couldn’t believe his eyes. He opened the box, took out the blue
envelope and went to the corner of the room to read it. When he finished he behaved
like mad. He smiled happily and ran out of the room before Guy and Ralph had time to
say anything to stop him. Ray hurried round the corner to the telephone office. When
Guy and Ralph ran into the room where Grace worked they saw Ray Buffin standing
near the girl with the widest and happiest smile they had ever seen on his face. It was
clear they had not spoken a word yet. They just stood in silence, too happy to worry
about Guy and Ralph watching them.
B. Answer the following questions to the story.
1. Who are the characters of the story? What are their names?
2. What did Ray Buffin like?
3. What was Guy and Ralph’s hobby?
4. What was their plan to play a joke on Ray?
5. What did Grace Brooks do?
6. Why was she unmarried?
7. Why did she first refuse to write a love letter to Ray? What were her
recollections about the time she got acquainted with Ray?
8. What did Grace do after Guy and Ralph left the telephone office?
9. What was Ray’s reaction to the letter in his box? Where did he hurry when
he had read it?
10. Did Guy and Ralph watch Ray reading the letter? What did they do
afterwards?
11. What did the young jokers see when they ran into the telephone office?
C. Underline or write out key words/phrases/sentences.
D. Formulate the milestones of the story.
E. Divide the text into paragraphs.
F. Retell the story from Grace’s or Ray’s point of view.

7
 Task 2
A. Read the text «The Dinner Party».
There are still some rich people in the world. Many of them lead lives of
particular pleasure. But rich people do have their problems. They are seldom
problems of finance, since most rich people have enough sense to hire other
people to take care of their worries. But there are other, more genuine problems.
They are the problems of behaviour. Let me tell you a story which happened to
my uncle Octavian a full thirty years ago. My uncle Octavian was then a rich man.
He was a charming and accomplished host whose villa was an accepted
rendezvous of the great. He was a hospitable and most amiable man – until
January 3, 1925. There was nothing special about that day in the life of my uncle
Octavian, except that it was his fifty-fifth birthday. As usual on such a day he was
giving a party, a party for twelve people. All of them were old friends. I, myself,
aged fifteen, was deeply privileged. I was staying with my uncle at his exquisite
villa, on holiday from school, and as a special concession on this happy day, I was
allowed to come down to dinner. It was exciting for me to be admitted to such
company, which included a newspaper proprietor of exceptional intelligence and
his fabulous American wife, a recent prime-minister of France and a distinguished
German prince and princess. At that age, you will guess, I was dazzled. Even
today, 30 years later, one may fairly admit that the company was distinguished.
But I should also stress that they were all old and intimate friends of my uncle
Octavian. Towards the end of a wonderful dinner, when dessert had been
brought in and the servants had left, my uncle leant forward to admire a
magnificent diamond ring on the princess’s hand. She turned her hand gracefully
towards my uncle. Across the table, the newspaper proprietor leant across and
said: «May I also have a look? She smiled and nodded. Then she took off the ring
and held it out to him. «It was my grandmother’s – the old empress,» she said. «I
have not worn it for many years. It is said to have once belonged to Genghis
Khan.» There were exclamations of delight and admiration. The ring was passed
from hand to hand. For a moment it rested on my own palm, gleaming splendidly.
Then I passed it on to my neighbour. As I turned away again, I saw her pass it on.
It was some 20 minutes later when the princess stood up and said: «Before we
leave you, may I have my ring back?» There was a pause, while each of us looked
expectantly at his neighbour. Then there was silence. The princess was still

8
smiling, though less easily. She was unused to asking for things twice. The silence
continued, I still thought that it could only be a practical joke, and that one of us –
probably the prince himself – would produce the ring with a laugh. But when
nothing happened at all, I knew that the rest of the night would be dreadful. I am
sure that you can guess the sort of scene that followed. There was the
embarrassment of the guests – all of them old and valued friends. There was a
nervous search of the whole room. But it did not bring the princess’s ring back
again. It had vanished – an irreplaceable thing, worth possibly two hundred
thousand pounds – in a roomful of twelve people, all known to each other. No
servants had entered the room. No one had left it for a moment. The thief (for
now it could only be theft) was one of us, one of my uncle Octavian’s cherished
friends. I remember it was the French cabinet minister who was most insistent on
being searched, indeed, in his excitement he had already started to turn out his
pockets, before my uncle held up his hand and stopped him. «There will be no
search in my house,» he commanded. «You are all my friends. The ring can only
be lost. If it is not found» – he bowed towards the princess – «I will naturally
make amends myself.» The ring was never found, it never appeared, either then
or later. Uncle Octavian was a comparatively poor man, when he died (which
happened, in fact, a few weeks ago). And I should say that he died with the
special sadness of a hospitable host who never gave a single lunch or dinner party
for the last thirty years of his life.
B. Answer the questions to the text.
1. When did the story take place? Why was the day special?
2. Who attended the dinner?
3. Why being present at the dinner was a privilege for the author?
4. What was special about the Princess’s ring?
5. What happened when the author took the ring?
6. Why did uncle Octavian refuse to conduct a search?
7. Why was he a comparatively poor man when he died?
8. Who do you think stole the ring? Justify your version.
C. Underline the key words and phrases. Formulate and put down the
milestones of the story (the underlined words/phrases may be of help).
D. Divide the text into paragraphs.
E. Retell the story.
9
 UNIT II. TO CUT A LONG STORY SHORT
To make a text appealing to a reader, you should not forget about the way
your ideas are expressed and woven into a text. It is crucial to avoid sentences that
are verbose as well as those that are short and way too simple. Here are some rules
that will help you strike a happy medium when writing a text.
1. Dividing up long sentences
To make your text readable, try to avoid long sophisticated sentences. This doesn’t
imply that you have to write sentences five or six words long. It means that you should
steer clear of expressing all ideas in one sentence. The more transparent the structure of
the sentence is, the easier it is to understand what you’ve meant.
Look at the following example:
The aim of this study was to assess the effects of sending children away to a school
at the age of eight (or earlier) and its impact on their adult life (particularly after the
age of 50) and thus to reach some definitive conclusions as to whether boarding
schools (i. e. those schools where children study and sleep) actually fulfill the important
educational and social roles that they claim to have.
The author has evidently tried to impress the reader by representing the
importance of the work done as well as its aims just in one sentence. Unfortunately they
have failed to do so as towards the middle of the sentence one forgets what the
beginning of the sentence was about. Dividing up the sentence into shorter and clearer
ones will help both the author and the reader.
The aim of this study was to assess the effects of sending children away to school
at the age of eight (or earlier) and its impact on their adult life, particularly after the
age of 50. The ultimate objective was to reach some definite conclusions as to whether
boarding schools (i. e. those schools where children study and sleep) actually fulfill the
important educational and social roles that they claim to have.
2. Avoiding a succession of simple sentences
When you begin learning a foreign language, short simple sentences are the
best you can manage. You are at the level of a child who speaks in a series of short
sentences: My bike was lost. I found my bike. It was behind the garage. I lost it last
night. It was wet. It rained on it. With time, after you have mastered enough
grammar, you should be able to present the same ideas in a more sophisticated
form: Bobby found his bicycle behind the garage, where he had left it last night
when it began to rain.

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 3. Combining ideas logically
Sentences may lack logic and therefore clarity because they are overloaded with
unrelated and often incompatible details, e. g. The library, old and dusty and well lit
with bright new lamps, was a melancholy place to work in. «Melancholy» is related to
«old and dusty», but not «the new lighting», so this last detail should either have been
omitted or expressed in a subordinate clause: The library, though well lit with new
lamps, was old and dusty and therefore a melancholy place to work in.
Here is another example of muddled logic in writing:
Military training teaches a person to stand upright and walk with his head up; this
helps in future life because it becomes a habit and so many people have the habit of
walking stooped and this leads to poor health and poor appearance.
If you write sentences like these, your remedy is to go back to the first principles
of thought communication: say one thing at a time; say it as simply and as clearly as
you can; say it so that it cannot be misunderstood. Let us try to dissect these sentences
in order to discover what the writer was trying to say.
Military training teaches a person to stand upright and to walk with head up.
Good posture becomes habitual, which leads directly to better health and better
appearance.
As you see, the improved version is shorter, clearer and more sophisticated in
syntax.
4. Using proper linking words to connect ideas and events logically
When you express ideas and events by a subordinate clause you should often use
connectives and transitional phrases to open the clause. It is of great importance to
choose a proper linking word or phrase not to change the sense or make the idea look
illogical. Below you will find a list of some connectives and transitional phrases which
will help you to vary your clause or complex sentence openings.

Linking Words Phrases

Addition and, also, in addition (to this), furthermore, moreover, what is more,
besides (this), apart from this/that
Temporal when, whenever, before, until, till, after, then, at that time, now, at
present, from the (very) beginning, firstly, finally, eventually, at last,
in the end, while, meanwhile, after a while, in a while, presently,
next, some time ago, soon, as soon as, as long as, immediately, at
once, as

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 Linking Words Phrases
Spatial here, there, here and there, close (to), next (to), nearby, in front of,
behind, on the left/right, opposite to, over, above, on the top of,
under, below, around, about, beyond, in the distance, further
Relative who, whose, whom, that, which, where
Opposition but, yet, nevertheless, however, at the same time, even so, still, non-
theless, although, even though, despite the fact that, in spite of the
fact that, regardless of the fact that
Cause because, as, for, due to (the fact that), since, owing to (the fact that)
Comparison similarly, like, unlike, on the one hand, on the other hand
Consequence, consequently, then, so, thus, therefore, as a result, for this reason
effect
Affirmation certainly, of course
Generalization generally, in general, on the whole, for the most part
Exercises
Task 1
Divide up these sentences into more manageable and shorter sentences that will
help the reader understand the content better. You may need to rearrange the word
order and/or delete unnecessary words.
1. Using automatic translation software (e. g. Google Translate, Babelfish, and
Systran) can considerably ease the work of researchers when they need to translate
documents thus saving them money (for example the fee they might have otherwise
to pay to a professional translator) and increasing the amount of time they have to
spend in the laboratory rather than at the computer.
2. In order to establish a relationship between document length and level of
bureaucracy in European countries and to confirm whether documents, such as
reports regarding legislative and administrative issues, vary substantially in length
from one language to another, we conducted analysis of A, B, and C.
3. A substantial increase in sensitivity to emotional situations characterizes the
first stages of adult life leading to a possible uncontrolled release of anger or
apparently unexplained feelings of anxiousness that appear to come from nowhere
and may last for several days thus making life quite difficult not only for the subjects
themselves but also for those living around them.

12
 Task 2
Combine each group of sentences to form one complex sentence. You may
make any necessary changes in the arrangement of material and in the wording,
but must not change the sense of the original.
1. I returned to the city. I had been born there. I had been absent for many years.
Many of its narrow streets had been demolished. So had their picturesque houses. I
was dismayed to find this. 2. The bubonic plague raged in Europe during the Middle
ages. The name given to it was «The Black Death». It carried off thousands of the
population. In some cases, it exterminated whole towns and villages. 3. He was a
heavy man, and I could hardly help him. But he still wanted to ride to T. But it was
impossible for him. He could not mount the horse.
Task 3
Combine each group of sentences to form not more than two complex sentences.
You may make any necessary changes in the arrangement of material and in the
wording, but must not change the sense of the original.
1. Sir Christopher Wren had already attained distinction as an astronomer. He
was only sixteen then. Nevertheless, later, he seriously took up the study of
architecture. This was not till he was nearly thirty. The most precious fruit of this study
was St. Paul’s Cathedral. 2. Queens’ College was the second royal foundation at
Cambridge. King’s College was the first. The former is distinguished from the college of
the same name at Oxford in a certain respect. It owes its foundation to two Queens.
One was Margaret. She was the wife of Edward the Fourth. This is why the apostrophe
comes after the «s». 3. The Pilgrim Fathers were a group of English Puritans. They first
spent some years in exile in Holland. They did this to escape religious persecution.
They later sailed to America on the Mayflower. They established a colony at Plymouth
in Massachusetts.
Task 4
Choose the proper linking words from those given in the box to fill in the
blanks.
as soon as, at last, immediately, meanwhile, then, when, what, while
The airplane had only been in the air for about twenty minutes ….. suddenly it
began to dive towards the ground. ….. the passengers began to panic. ….. the flight
attendants realized ….. was happening, they did their best to calm everyone down, …..

13
the plane continued to lose altitude.
….. in the cockpit, the pilot was struggling to control the plane. ….. it righted itself
and he sighed with relief. The flight ….. continued without any further problems.
Task 5
Divide the sentences of the text «Success Story» into shorter ones. You may need
to rearrange the word order and/or delete unnecessary words. Do not change the sense
of the sentences.
I met Richards, a short, sharp-faced, agreeable chap, then about 22, ten or
more years ago when I first went down to Cuba and he introduced himself to me
on the boat and I was surprised to find that Panamerica Steel was sending us both
to the same job.
Richards was from some not very good state university engineering school.
In fact I couldn’t imagine how he had managed to get this job as being the same
age myself, and just out of technical college I saw at once that his knowledge was
rather poor.
Richards was naturally likable, and I liked him a lot. The firm had a contract for
the construction of a private railroad. For Richards and me it was mostly an easy job of
inspections and routine paper work. At least it was easy for me and it was harder for
Richards, because he didn’t appear to have mastered the use of a slide rule, and when
he asked me to check his figures I found his calculations awful. «Boy,» I was at last
obliged to say, «You are undoubtedly the silliest white man in this province. Look,
stupid, didn’t you ever take arithmetic? How much are seven times thirteen?» «Work
that out,» Richards said, «and let me have a report tomorrow».
So when I had time I checked his figures for him and the inspector only caught
him in a bad mistake about twice. In January Richards and I were to accompany
around the place several directors of the United Sugar Company who came down to
us on business, but mostly pleasure; a good excuse to get south on a vacation. One of
the directors, Mr. Prosset was asking a number of questions. I knew the job well
enough to answer every sensible question – the sort of question that a trained
engineer would be likely to ask. As Mr. Prosset was not an engineer some of his
questions put me at a loss. For the third time I was obliged to say, «I’m afraid I don’t
know, sir. We haven’t any calculations on that». Then suddenly Richards spoke up.
«I think, about nine million cubic feet, sir», he said. «I just happened to be

14
working this out last night. Just for my own interest.»
«Oh,» said Mr. Prosset, turning in his seat and giving him a sharp look. «That’s
very interesting, Mr. -er- Richards, isn’t it? Well, now, maybe you could tell me about».
Richards could. Richards knew everything, and all the way up Mr. Prosset fired
questions on him and he fired answers right back. When we reached the head of the
rail, a motor was waiting for Mr. Prosset who nodded absent-mindedly to me, shook
hands with Richards. «Very interesting, indeed,» he said. «Good-bye, Mr. Richards,
and thank you.»
«Not, at all, sir,» Richards said. «Glad if I could be of service to you.»
As soon as the car moved off, I exploded. «A little honest bluff doesn’t hurt; but
some of your figures...!»
«I like to please,» said Richards grinning. «If a man like Prosset wants to know
something, who am I to hold out on him?»
«What’s he going to think when he looks up the figures or asks somebody who
does know?»
«Listen, my son,» said Richards kindly. «He wasn’t asking for any information he
was going to use, he doesn’t want to know these figures, he won’t remember them,
and I don’t even remember them myself. What he is going to remember is you and
me.» «Yes,» said Richards firmly. «He is going to remember that Panamerica Steel has
a bright young man named Richards who could tell him everything, he wanted, – just
the sort of chap he can use; not like that other fellow who took no interest in his work,
couldn’t answer the simplest question and who is going to be doing small-time
contracting all his life.»
It is true; I am still working for the Company, still doing a little work for the
construction line. And Richards? I happened to read in a newspaper a few weeks ago
that Richards had been made a vice-president and director of Panamerica Steel when
the Prosset group bought the old firm.
Task 6
A. Read the story «Lost in the Post».
Ainsley was a post-office sorter. He turned the envelope over and over in his
hands. The letter was addressed to his wife. It had an Australian stamp.
Ainsley knew that the sender was Dicky Soames. Dicky was his wife’s cousin. It
was the second letter Ainsley received after Dicky’s departure. The first letter had

15
come six months before. He did not read it. He threw it into the fire. Ainsley had no
reason for jealousy. His wife was frank as the day. She was a splendid housekeeper.
She was a very good mother. They had two children. He knew that Dicky Soames had
been fond of Adela. Dicky Soames had years back gone away to join his and Adela’s
uncle. But it made no difference to him. He was afraid that someday Dicky would
return and take Adela from him.
Ainsley did not take the letter when he was at work. He didn’t want that his
fellow-workers would see him do it. The working hours were over. He went out of the
post-office together with his fellow workers. Then he returned to take the letter. The
letter was addressed to his wife. The door of the post-office was locked. He had to get
in through a window. The postmaster saw him. He got angry and dismissed Ainsley. So
another man was hired. Ainsley became unemployed. Their life became hard. They
had to borrow money from their friends.
Several months had passed. One afternoon when Ainsley came home he saw the
familiar face of Dicky Soames. «So he had turned up,» Ainsley thought to himself.
Dicky Soames said he was delighted to see Ainsley. «I have missed all of you so
much,» he added with a friendly smile.
Ainsley looked at his wife. «Uncle Tom has died,» she explained «and Dicky has
come into his money».
«Congratulation,» said Ainsley, «you are lucky».
Adela turned to Dicky. «Tell Arthur the rest,» she said quietly. «Well, you see,»
said Dicky, «Uncle Tom had something over sixty thousand. He wished Adela to have
half. But he got angry with you. Adela never answered the two letters I wrote to her
for him. Then he changed his will. He left her money to hospitals. I asked him not to do
it. He wouldn’t listen to me!» Ainsley turned pale. «So those two letters were worth
reading after all,» he thought to himself. For some time everybody kept silence. Then
Dicky Soames broke the silence, «It’s strange about those two letters. I’ve often
wondered why you didn’t answer them.» Adela got up. She came up to her husband.
She took him by the hand. She said «The letters were evidently lost.» At that moment
Ansley realized that she knew everything.
B. Extend the sentences. Unite shorter ones or/and add some words to make the
sentences more sophisticated.
C. Retell the story in written.

16
 UNIT III. THE POWER OF WORDS
When writing a text, try to be as precise and accurate as possible. Using one and
the same word over and over again is not desirable. Start looking for synonyms and
words that have the exact meaning you need. Enrich your vocabulary and try to use
new words in your sentences. Thus you will improve the quality of your writing.
Other ways to say …
nice good bad sad happy
enjoyable excellent awful depressed cheerful
pleasurable amazing dreadful gloomy delighted
lovely pleasant nasty miserable pleased
likeable marvelous wicked cheerless glad
pleasing exceptional lousy unhappy joyful
cordial fantastic terrible sorrowful content
admirable outstanding unpleasant upset merry
terrific disagreeable downcast thrilled
splendid wretched elated
great big little pretty scared
admirable huge small beautiful afraid
astonishing giant tiny gorgeous frightened
astounding gigantic miniature appealing spooked
awe-inspiring enormous teeny cute horrified
breathtaking large miniscule lovely startled
fabulous massive minute handsome petrified
fascinating colossal stunning alarmed
incredible immense dazzling terrified
magnificent bulky shaken
splendid hefty
unparalleled
like go run look laugh
admire crawl bolt gaze giggle
adore depart sprint examine chuckle
treasure escape rush glance snicker
fancy enter dash peek cackle
cherish march hustle stare chortle

17
 Exercises
Task 1
A. Read the extracts that follow.
«February Dragon»
The noise was sickening, the sight unbelievable. Huge masses of flame-like
outbursts from the sun’s rim broke away from the fire and shot high into the air,
flapping and folding in fierce incandescent sheets. Whole trees exploded into torches.
There was fire on the ground, and fire like hellish harpies in the air. The whole world
was writhing and flinging, convulsing, twisting … and dying.
«The Small Woman»
It was a scene which never ceased to fascinate … The city was crowded. Across
the alleyways hung the scrolls, garish with scarlet, blue, and gold lettering. Moving
among the people were the priests: Buddhists in bright orange robes, the blue-black
stubble of their shaven heads oiled to a pale golden colour: Taoists in scarlet robes;
priests and acolytes inhabiting the dozen and one dark stone temples along every
alleyway dedicated to Sun gods, Moon gods, Cat gods, Ancestor gods …
«Pride and Prejudice»
Mr. Bennet was so odd a mixture of quick parts, sarcastic humour, reserve, and
caprice, that the experience of three and twenty years had been insufficient to make
his wife understand his character. Her mind was less difficult to develop. She was a
woman of mean understanding, little information, and uncertain temper. When she
was discontented, she fancied herself nervous. The business of her life was to get her
daughters married; its solace was visiting and news.
B. Look up the meaning of the adjectives in bold in a dictionary.
C. Write at least 2 synonyms to each word.
D. Make 3 sentences using any of the highlighted adjectives and their synonyms.
Task 2
A. Read the text «Mr. Know-All».
Once I was going by ship from San Francisco to Yokohama. I shared my cabin
with a man called Mr. Kelada. He was short and of a strong build, clean shaven and
dark-skinned, with a hooked nose and very large liquid eyes. His long black hair was
curly. And though he introduced himself as an Englishman I felt sure that he was born

18
under a bluer sky than is generally seen in England. Mr. Kelada was talkative. He
talked of New York and of San Francisco. He discussed plays, pictures and politics. He
was unceremonious. Though I was a total stranger to him he used no such formality as
to put «mister» before my name when he talked to me. I didn’t like Mr. Kelada. I not
only shared a cabin with him and ate three meals a day at the same table, but I
couldn’t walk round the deck without his joining me. It was impossible to ignore him.
It never occurred to him that he was not wanted. He was sure that you were as glad to
see him as he was glad to see you. In your own house you might have kicked him
downstairs and slammed the door in his face.
Mr. Kelada was a good mixer, and in three days knew everyone on board. He ran
everything. He conducted the auctions, collected money for prizes at the sports,
organized the concert and arranged the masquarade. He was everywhere and always.
He was definitely the best-hated man in the ship. We called him Mr. Know-All, even to
his face. He took it as a compliment. But it was at meal times that he was most
unbearable. He knew everything better than anybody else and you couldn’t disagree
with him. He would not drop a subject till he had brought you round to his way of
thinking. The possibility that he could be mistaken never came to his mind.
We were four at the table: the doctor, Mr. Kelada, Mr. Ramsay, and me.
Ramsay was in the American Consular Service, and was stationed at Kobe. He
was a great heavy guy. He was on his way back to resume his post, having been on a
flying visit to New York to fetch his wife, who had been spending a year at home. Mrs.
Ramsay was a very lovely little thing with nice manners and a sense of humour. She
was dressed always very simply, but she knew how to wear her clothes.
One evening at dinner the conversation by chance drifted to the subject of
pearls. There was some dispute between Mr. Kelada and Ramsay about the value of
culture and real pearls. I did not believe Ramsay knew anything about the subject at
all. At last Mr. Kelada got angry and yelled: «Well, I know what I am talking about. I’m
going to Japan just to look into this Japanese pearl business. I’m in the trade. I know
the best pearls in the world, and what l don’t know about pearls isn’t worth knowing.»
Here was news for us, for Mr. Kelada had never told anyone what his business was.
Ramsay leaned forward.
«That’s a nice chain, isn’t it?» he asked pointing to the chain that Mrs. Ramsay wore.
«I noticed it at once,» answered Mr. Kelada. «Those are pearls all right.»
«I didn’t buy it myself, of course,» said Ramsay. «I wonder how much you

19
think it cost.»
«Oh, in the trade somewhere round fifteen thousand dollars. But if it was bought
on Fifth Avenue anything up to thirty thousand was paid for it.»
Ramsay grinned. «You’ll be amazed to hear that Mrs. Ramsay bought that string
the day before we left New York for eighteen dollars. I’ll bet you a hundred dollars it’s
imitation.»
«Done.»
«But how can it be proved?» Mrs. Ramsay asked.
«Let me look at the chain and if it’s imitation I’ll tell you fast enough. I can afford
to lose a hundred dollars,» said Mr. Kelada.
The chain was given to Mr. Kelada. He took a magnifying glass from his pocket
and closely examined it. A smile of triumph spread over his face. He was about to
speak. Suddenly he saw Mrs. Ramsay’s face. It was so white that she looked as if she
were about to faint. She was staring at him with wide and horrified eyes. Mr. Kelada
stopped with his mouth open. He blushed deeply. You could almost see the effort he
was making over himself. «I was mistaken,» he said. «It’s a very good imitation.» He
took a hundred-dollar note out of his pocket and handed it to Ramsay without a word.
«Perhaps that’ll teach you a lesson,» said Ramsay as he took the note. I noticed that
Mr. Kelada»s hands were shaking.
The story spread over the ship. It was a good joke that Mr. Know-All had been
caught out. But Mrs. Ramsay went to her cabin with a headache.
Next morning I got up and began to shave. Suddenly I saw a letter pushed under
the door. I opened the door and looked out. There was nobody there. I picked up the
letter and saw that it was addressed to Mr. Kelada. I handed it to him. He took out of
the envelope a hundred-dollar note. He looked at me and flushed.
«Were the pearls genuine?» I asked.
«If I had a cute little wife I shouldn’t let her spend a year in New York while I
stayed at Kobe,» he said.
B. Replace the words in bold with the synonyms. Remember that the meaning
should remain the same.
C. Retell the story in written.

20
 UNIT IV. HOW TO INTRODUCE OTHER PEOPLE’S WORDS
Reported speech is almost inevitable if you are retelling a story. There are two
things to be remembered when dealing with reported speech: grammar rules and
expressions used to introduce someone’s words. A person can not only say something,
but also whisper or shout, exclaim or mumble, demand or beg.
How have they said it?
Normally Happily Full of worry/fear Quietly
add beam stammer breathe
comment cheer stutter mumble
remark giggle mutter
report joke whisper
state rejoice
tell smirk
As a question Loudly Angrily Silently
ask announce bark ponder
inquire bawl bellow think
request boom demand
wonder call grumble
exclaim grunt
holler hiss
scream roar
shout scold
yell snap
thunder
As an answer Bossily Sadly Others
acknowledge command groan beg
agree dictate sigh blurt
answer insist sob boast
argue order whine brag
deny confess
explain implore
reply plead
respond promise
retort sneer
warn

21
 Exercises
Task 1
A. Read the story «The Beard».
I was going by train to London. I didn’t have the trouble to take anything to
eat with me and soon was very hungry. I decided to go to the dining-car to have a
meal.
As I was about to seat myself, I saw that the gentleman I was to face wore a
large beard. He was a young man. His beard was full, loose and very black. I
glanced at him uneasily and noted that he was a big pleasant fellow with dark
laughing eyes.
Indeed I could feel his eyes on me as I fumbled with the knives and forks. It was
hard to pull myself together. It is not easy to face a beard. But when I could escape no
longer, I raised my eyes and found the young man’s on my face.
«Good evening,» I said cheerily, «Good evening,» he replied pleasantly, inserting
a big buttered roll within the bush of his beard. Not even a crumb fell off. He ordered
soup. It was a difficult soup for even the most barefaced of men to eat, but not a drop
did he waste on his whiskers». He kept his eyes on me in between bites. But I knew he
knew that I was watching his every bite with acute fascination.
«I’m impressed,» I said, «with your beard.»
«I suspected as much,» smiled the young man.
«Is it a wartime device?» I inquired.
«No,» said he; «I’m too young to have been in the war. I grew this beard two
years ago.»
«It’s magnificent,» I informed him.
«Thank you,» he replied. «As a matter of fact this beard is an experiment in
psychology. I suffered horribly from shyness. I was so shy it amounted to a
phobia. At university I took up psychology and began reading books on
psychology». And one day I came across a chapter on human defence
mechanisms, explaining how so many of us resort to all kinds of tricks to escape
from the world, or from conditions in the world which we find hateful. Well, I just
turned a thing around. I decided to make other people shy of me. So I grew this beard.
The effect was astonishing. I found people, even tough, hard-boiled people,
were shy of looking in the face. They were panicked by my whiskers. It made

22
them uneasy. And my shyness vanished completely.»
He pulled his fine black whiskers affectionately and said: «Psychology is a
great thing. Unfortunately people don’t know about it. Psychology should help
people discover such most helpful tricks. Life is too short to be wasted in
desperately striving to be normal.»
«Tell me,» I said finally. «How did you master eating the way you have?
You never got a crumb or a drop on your beard, all through dinner.»
«Nothing to it, sir,» said he. «When you have a beard, you keep your
eyes on those of your dinner partner. And whenever you note his eyes fixed
in horror on your chin, you wipe it off.»
B. Change all direct speech sentences into the ones with the reported speech.
Task 2
A. Read the story «The TV Blackout».
A week ago, on a Sunday, New York City had a blackout and all nine
television stations in the area went out for several hours. This created
tremendous crises in families all over New York and proved that TV plays a
greater role in people’s lives than anyone can imagine.
For example, when the TV went off in the Bufkins’s house panic set in. First
Bufkins thought it was his set in the living room, so he rushed into his bedroom
and turned on that set. Nothing. The phone rang, and Mrs. Bufkins heard her
sister in Manhattan tell her that there was a blackout.
She hung up and said to her husband, «It isn’t your set. Something happened
to the top of the Empire State Building.»
Bufkins looked at her and said, «Who are you?»
«I’m your wife, Edith.»
«Oh,» Bufkins said. «Then I suppose those kids in there are mine.»
«That’s right,» Mrs. Bufkins said. «If you ever got out of that armchair in front of
the TV set, you’d know who we are.»
«Oh! They’ve really grown,» Buffkins said, looking at his son and daughter. «How
old are they now?»
«Thirteen and fourteen,» Mrs. Bufkins said.
«Hi, kids!»
«Who’s he?» Bufkins’s son, Henry, asked.

23
 «It’s your father,» Mrs. Bufkins said.
«I’m pleased to meet you,» Bufkins’s daughter, Mary, said shyly.
There was silence all around.
«Look,» said Bufkins finally. «I know I haven’t been a good father, but now that
the TV»s out I’d like to know you better.»
«How?» asked Henry.
«Well, let’s talk,» Buffkins said. «That’s the best way to get to know each other.»
«What do you want to talk about?» Mary asked.
«Well, to begin with, what school do you go to?»
«We go to High School,» Henry said.
«So you’re both in High School!» There was a dead silence.
«What do you do?» Mary asked.
«I’m an accountant,» Bufkins said.
«I thought you were a car salesman,» Mrs. Bufkins said in surprise.
«That was two years ago. Didn’t I tell you I changed jobs?» Bufkins said.
«No, you didn’t. You haven’t told me anything for two years.»
«I’m doing quite well too,» Bufkins said.
«Then why am I working in a department store?» Mrs. Bufkins demanded.
«Oh, you are still working in a department store? If I had known that, I would
have told you could quit last year. You should have mentioned it,» Bufkins said.
There was more dead silence.
Finally Henry said, «Hey, you want me hear play the guitar?»
«You know how to play the guitar? Say didn’t I have a daughter who played
the guitar?»
«That was Susie,» Mrs. Bufkins said.
«Where is she?»
«She got married a year ago, just about the time you were watching the World
Series» (World Series = a baseball contest in America)
«You know,» Bufkins said, very pleased. «I hope they won’t fix the antenna for
another couple of hours. There’s nothing better than a blackout for a man who really
wants to know his family.»
B. Retell the story in written paying attention to the reported speech.

24
 Task 3
A. Read the story «The Bramble Bush».
Fran felt herself losing out, slipping away into an inferior position. She began to
exaggerate – often lie – about friends, feelings, grades at school, anything possible to
keep herself high in her father’s esteem, and at the same time gain some small bit of
admiration from her mother. The exaggerations, though, had constantly turned back
on her, until eventually a disgusted Mrs. Walker had insisted she be sent away to a
nearby summer camp. «They award a badge of honour there,» she had said, «and if
you win it – not a single untruth all summer – then we’ll know you’ve stopped lying
and we’ll do something very special for you.»
«We’ll give you a pony,» her father had promised.
As Fran Walker, one of the nurses of the Mills Memorial Hospital, was sitting
between rounds behind her duty desk, she often recollected her childhood, which
would return to her as it existed in reality – bewildering, lonely, and frustrating.
Her father, Mr. Walker, had owned a small lumber business in one of Indiana’s
numerous smaller towns, where Fran had lived in a large frame house. The first Mrs.
Walker had died, when Fran was still a baby, so she did not remember her real mother
at all. She remembered her stepmother, though – small, tight-lipped, thin-faced,
extremely possessive of her new husband and the new house which had suddenly
become her own. Fran had adored her father, tried desperately to please him. And
since he desired nothing more than a good relationship between his daughter and his
second wife, she had made endless attempts to win over her new mother. But her
displays of affection had not been returned. Her stepmother had remained jealous,
resentful, without the slightest understanding of the small girl’s motives and emotions.
Fran wanted the pony. More than the pony, she wanted to prove herself. After
two months of near-painful honesty, she finally won the badge of honour, and
brought it home, clutched in her fist, hidden in her pocket while she waited, waited, all
the way from the station, all during the tea in the living-room for the exact proper
moment to make her announcement of glorious victory.
«Well?» her mother had said finally. «Well, Fran?»
«Well –», Fran began, with the excitement building higher and higher as she
drew in her breath and thought of exactly how to say it.
«You can’t hide it any longer, Fran.» Her mother had sighed. «We know you
didn’t win it, so there’s simply no point in lying about it now.»
25
 Fran had closed her mouth. She’d stared at her mother, then stood and gone out
to the yard and looked across the green meadow where the pony was going to graze.
She had taken the green badge from her pocket, fingered it tenderly, and then buried
it beneath a rock in the garden. She had gone back into the house and said, «No, I
didn’t win it,» and her mother had said, «Well, at least you didn’t lie this time,» and
her father had held her while she’d cried and known finally that there was no further
use in trying.
Her father had bought her an Irish setter as a consolation prize.
B. Arrange the paragraphs in logical order.
C. Substitute the words or phrases set in bold for their synonyms.
D. Retell the story in written paying attention to the reported speech.

UNIT V. SOMETHING ABOUT GRAMMAR

Grammar rules are to be observed when writing. Here are some of them intended
to eliminate mistakes in a written work.
1. Relative clauses or Can we do without commas?
The following sentences all contain relative clauses. Some of these clauses are
separated by commas while some are not. Do commas make any difference?
1. My son, who lives in New York, is an engineer. My son who lives in Manchester
is a psychologist.
2. Politicians who tell lies are to be despised. Politicians, who tell lies, are to
be despised.
3. I had a cocktail, which was very unusual. I had a cocktail that was very unusual.
You are right if your answer is positive. The explanation can be found below.
Relative clauses are subordinate clauses which refer to the noun of the main
clause, identifying it or adding extra information. There are two types of relative clause:
defining clauses (identifying the noun or classifying it as part of a group) and non-
defining clauses (adding information about the noun).
A defining relative clause identifies or classifies a noun or pronoun in the main
clause. Study the examples:
1. identifying relative clause: Is this the book that you were looking for?
2. classifying relative clause: Would all those who have booked dinner please go
to the restaurant now?
In the second example, the relative clause classifies the members of a group.
26
 The defining relative clause gives information which is necessary for the sense of
the sentence. In the first example above, if we say just «Is this the book?», this does not
convey the key meaning of the whole sentence, i. e. «the book that you were
looking for».
A non-defining relative clause gives extra information about the subject of the
main clause. Study the example:
ITV’s News at Ten, which occupied the mid-evening slot for many years, was a
very popular programme (main clause = ITV’s News at Ten was a very popular
programme).
Non-defining relative clauses also show consecutive actions. Study the example:
Heskey passed the ball to Owen, who scored a magnificent goal.
Non-defining relative clauses are mainly used in writing or formal speech.
Commas are used to separate the relative clause from the main clause in non-
defining relative clauses, but they are not used in defining relative clauses. Study the
examples:
1. The tribespeople, who traded with the settlers, retained their land. (All of the
tribespeople retained their land, and, incidentally, they traded with the settlers.)
2. The tribespeople who traded with the settlers retained their land. (Only some of
the tribespeople retained their land. This defines a group.)
Prepositions can be used with relative pronouns. Where we put the preposition
depends on formality. Study the examples:
1. informal: Have you seen the little case that/which I keep my contact lenses in?
2. formal: This system provides a case in which contact lenses can be kept.
! Prepositions are not used before the relative pronoun «that».
! If a preposition is put before «who», the pronoun always becomes «whom».
Study the examples:
1. The people who this report is addressed to will have to consider the
consequences.
2. The people to whom this report is addressed will have to consider the
consequences.
«Where» and «when» can be often used instead of «which» + preposition. Study
the example:
This is the house where I grew up / which I grew up in / in which I grew up.
2. Pronouns «all», «every» and «whole»
«All» or «Everybody / Everyone»
We do not normally use «all» to mean «everybody/everyone». Study the example:
27
 Everybody enjoyed the party. (not «All enjoyed…»)
But note that we say «all of us/you/them», not «everybody of …»
«All» or «Everything»
Sometimes you can use «all» or «everything». Study the example:
I’ll do all I can to help. Or I’ll do everything I can to help.
You can say «all I can»/«all you need» etc., but we do not normally use «all»
alone. Study the examples:
1. He thinks he knows everything. (not «he knows all»)
2. Our holiday was a disaster. Everything went wrong. (not «All went wrong»)
We use «all» in the expression «all about». Study the example:
They told us all about their holiday.
We also use «all» (not «everything») to mean «the only thing(s)». Study the
example:
All I’ve eaten today is a sandwich. (= the only thing I’ve eaten today)
«Every/everybody/everyone/everything» are singular words, so we use a singular
verb. Study the examples:
1. Every seat in the theatre was taken.
2. Everybody has arrived. (not «have arrived»)
But we often use «they/them/their» after «everybody/everyone». Study the
example:
Everybody said they enjoyed themselves. (= he or she enjoyed himself or herself)
«All» or «Whole»
«Whole» means «complete, entire». Most often «whole» is used with singular
nouns. Study the examples:
1. Did you read the whole book? (= all the book)
2. She has lived her whole life in Scotland.
We normally use «the/my/her» etc. before «whole». Compare «whole» and «all»:
1. the whole book/all the book
2. her whole life/all her life
You can also use: «a whole»…
Jack was so hungry, he ate a whole packet of biscuits. (= a complete packet)
We don’t normally use «whole» with uncountable nouns:
I’ve spent all the money you gave me. (not «the whole money»)
«Every/All/Whole» with time words
«All day/the whole day» means «complete day from beginning to end». Study the
example: We spent all day/the whole day on the beach.

28
 Note that we say «all day» (not «all the day»), «all week», etc.
Compare «all the time» and «every time»:
1. They never go out. They are at home all the time. (= always)
2. Every time I see you, you look different. (= each time, on every occasion).
3. Position of adverbs in sentences
The position of an adverb depends on its meaning and the word or phrase it is
modifying. Adverbs which modify adjectives, other adverb and noun phrases have
fixed positions; usually it is a «front position». Study the examples:
I thought his answers were pretty good on the whole.
But: We missed the bargains because we didn’t get there soon enough.
Adverbs which modify a verb or add information about how, when, where
something happens can take several positions in a sentence – «front position» before
the subject, «mid position» next to the verb and «final position» after the object or
complement. Study the example:
These days I probably take my health much more seriously.
! If the object of a verb is very long we can put a final position adverb before it.
Study the example:
These days I take much more seriously all those things I used to take for granted.
Front position
Adverbs in this position often link or contrast with information in the previous
sentence. Study the example:
I’ve been incredibly busy this week. Yesterday I worked more than twelve hours.
After negative adverbs, or after adverbs of time and place followed by a verb of
movement or position, we put the verb before the subject (inversion). Study the
examples:
1. Never have I seen such a disturbing sight.
2. Here lies the body of our late lamented sovereign.
! Adverbs of definite frequency, e. g. «daily», «weekly», are never used in front
position. Study the example: I get paid monthly.
Mid position
This is the usual position for adverbs of indefinite frequency, adverbs of degree, of
certainty, one-word adverbs of time, «even» and «only»:

29
Adverbs of indefinite always, frequently, generally, hardly, ever, never, normally,
frequency occasionally, often, rarely, seldom, sometimes, usually
Adverbs of degree absolutely, almost, completely, entirely, just, partly,
quite, rather, really, slightly, totally
Adverbs of certainty certainly, definitely, probably
One-word adverbs already, finally, immediately, just, now, no longer, soon,
of time still, then

What is their place?

After the first auxiliary
Before the verb
After «to be» or modal verb
(simple form of verb)
(complex form of verb)
He often comes here He is often here They have just returned.
on Sunday. on Sunday. He can always help us.
He hasn»t (yet) come yet.
Does he often come here? Is she ever free in the Will they ever forget it?
morning?
These adverbs go after «do» or «not».
They don’t really understand my point of view.
! But «sometimes», «still», «certainly», «definitely» and «probably» are put
before a negative auxiliary. Study the examples:
I sometimes don’t understand his arguments. He still hasn’t convinced me.
In spoken English a mid-position adverb can be put before an auxiliary verb
or a simple form of «to be» in order to emphasize them. Study the examples:
1. You really don’t understand me at all!
2. But she never is on time!
3. I really don’t like him!
Final position
The most frequent position for adverbs in English is the end of the sentence. It
is the usual position for «yet», «a lot», «any more», «any longer», «too», «as
well». Study the example:
They aren’t selling it any more.
Adverbs of manner and definite frequency are usually put in this position.
Study the example:
He plays the guitar well.
Adverbs of manner which end in -ly (except badly) can go in final or mid
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position. Study the example:
Harry painstakingly counted out the coins and arranged them neatly into piles.
! «Hardly ever» is never used in final position. Study the example:
They hardly ever watch television.
! «Often», «rarely» and «seldom» with «very» or «quite» are used in final
position. Study the example:
These days I eat desserts very rarely.
If there are several adverbs in final position, we usually follow a sequence of
adverbs of manner, then place, and finally time. Study the example:
The statue was lifted carefully onto the plinth before the ceremony.
Sentence adverb
Adverbs can describe the particular aspect of something we are commenting
on. Study the examples:
1. Economically, the current government has been a success.
2. Naturally, the animals behave quite differently in captivity.
Exercises
Task 1
Write the correct word. In some sentences both variants are correct. Punctuation
is to be checked as well.
1. It’s usually children from deprived backgrounds that/who cause the worst
problems.
2. Captain Corelli’s Mandolin that/which topped the best-seller lists for weeks on
end was never formally publicised.
3. The Council provides bins in that/which waste paper can be deposited for
recycling.
4. Address the reference «to who/whom it may concern», as it’s very formal.
5. The town hall clock played a different tune at twelve every day which/what
amused the locals and attracted tourists.
6. «There’s a lucky person in this hall, who/whose lottery ticket has just won
them £2,000!»
7. The film is set in the period, where/when the divide between rich and poor
was much greater than it is now.
8. You can put the photo whichever/wherever you think it looks best.

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 Task 2
Find the mistakes and correct them.
1. The jackets, which this shop makes, are of excellent quality.
2. Jack has prepared his favourite dish from Delia Smith’s recipe book, which he
is about to eat.
3. Can you get me one of those chocolate bars have got toffee in the middle?
4. The charity event raised over £1,000 for St. Andrew’s Hospice which
opened last year.
5. I’d always wanted to take Graham to the city where I grew up in.
6. Have you invited the residents who living here temporary to the meeting?
7. He presented the visiting ambassador with a genuine Ming vase that was
worth over $10,000.
8. The bank robbery, what I told you about, is in the local newspaper.
9. High taxation is often the main reason which governments fall.
10. The new buyer identified a dozen new sources for the material, most of them
proved to be reliable.
Task 3
Complete these phrases with «all», «everything» or «everybody/everyone».
1. It was a good party. … enjoyed it.
2. … I’ve eaten today is a sandwich.
3. … has got their faults. Nobody is perfect.
4. Nothing has changed. … is the same as it was.
5. Margaret told me … about her new job. It sounds quite interesting.
6. Why are you always thinking about money? Money isn’t … .
7. I didn’t have much money with me. … I had was ten pounds.
8. When the fire alarm rang, … . Left the building immediately.
9. We all did well in the examination. … in our class passed.
10. We all did well in the examination. … of us passed.
Task 4
Write sentences with «whole». Then use «all» instead of «whole» in
sentences 5 and 7.
1. I read the book from beginning to end. I read the whole book.
2. Everyone in the team played well. The … .

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 3. He opened a box of chocolates. When he finished eating, there were no
chocolates left in the box. He ate … .
4. The police came to the house. They were looking for something. They
searched everywhere, every room. They … .
5. Ann worked from early in the morning until late in the evening. She … .
6. Everyone in Dave and Judy’s family plays tennis. Dave and Judy play, and so do
all their children. The … .
7. Jack and Jill went on holiday to the seaside for a week. It rained from the
beginning of the week to the end. It … .
Task 5
Translate the following sentences using «all» or «whole».
1. Я потратил все деньги, которые ты мне дал.
2. Она работает каждый день, кроме воскресенья.
3. Я устал. Я работал весь день.
4. Это был ужасный пожар. Все здание сгорело.
5. Я пытаюсь ей дозвониться весь день, но каждый раз, когда я звоню,
линия занята.
6. Я не люблю здешнюю погоду. Дождь идет все время.
Task 6
Rewrite these sentences putting the words and phrases in brackets in the best
order. Note that none of these sentences are emphatic.
1. My parents (allowed/hardly ever) us to (late/on weekdays/stay up).
2. Taking advantage of a gap between the players, Owen kicked the ball (into the
net/just before half time/skillfully).
3. Foxes (often/be seen/can) scavenging (on the streets of London/at night).
4. David (well/behaves/quite) when he is at home but he (at school/causes
trouble/often).
5. The post (arrive/sometimes/on time/doesn’t) in this part of the city.
6. Jennifer (immediately/didn’t/recognize) the man waving (at the end of the
show/frantically/from the balcony).
7. We (unable/are/usually) to offer refunds on the spot, but we will examine
(thoroughly/before the end of the week/your claim).
8. These children (never/have/given/been/probably) the opportunities we all

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take for granted.
9. Access to the Internet (no longer/is) available (on weekday mornings/free of
charge/at our libraries).
10. Many of the old masters had assistants who would prepare the oil pigments
(each morning/by hand/in their studios).

UNIT VI. DOUBLE CHECK

No matter how many sophisticated words you use, how well-thought and
thoroughly planned your text is, mistakes thwart all the efforts. This means that
you should always check what you have written. Reread your writing, straight
away or, if possible, the next day. When you do so, you will probably see the
places that need being polished or a few mistakes you didn’t notice when you were
writing the text. Remember to check spelling, grammar, and vocabulary.
Exercises
Task 1
There are some grammar, lexical, and spelling mistakes in the text «A Good
Start». Find them and make corrections.
Bill liked painting more than something in life. He has started painting when he
was fifteen, and people said he had quiet a lot of talent and had mastered most of the
technical requirements. At twenty-two he had his first one-man show when he was
discovered by the critics and his pictures were selled out. With a money he could
afford to merry Leila, rent a studio and stop being a student. To complete his
education he went to Italy, but after five months all the money was spent and he
could to return.
Bill never had the other show like the first one, though he became a better
painter. The critics do not think him modern enough and said he was too academic.
From time to time he managed to sell some of his paintings but evenchually things
had got very tite and he was oblidged to look after a job.
The day before he went for an interview with his uncle Bill was especially gloomy.
In the morning he went up to one of his unfinished pictures in a studio but he felt he
can’t paint. He thrown away his brush and the bright red spot appeared on the boad
already covered with black and yellow paint from his previous work. The boad had
been used to protect the floor and was at the moment a mixture of brite colours.

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 When Bill left, Leila got down to cleaning the studio. She took up the board and
put it again the wall to clean the flor. At that moment Garrad, Bill’s deeler, came in. Bill
had asked him to come, look at his work and arrange a show, but the deeler had for
some time been uncertain on the matter. So he was looked around the studio,
explaining how the gallery booked up for a year and how he could not really promise
Bill a show for two years or so.
Suddenly board against the wall attracted his attention.
«Leila, my dear,» he exclaimed. «I felt there must be something as this. Tell me,
why he is keeping it away from us?»
Leila was two shocked to answer. But Garrad went on: «I think it’s wonderful. I
douted never Bill will catch up with the modern trends. Now Leila, are there more a
pictures for the full show? I must go now but I ring him up. I’m going to change all plan
and show his new work in the autumn. Tell him not to waist time. As to this one if he
wants to cell it, I’ll buy it myself.»
Leila stayed in the studio till Bill comes back. She was too excited to tell him the
story clearly and Bill could not understand nothing at first. When he realized what had
happened, he shook with laughter. «You didn’t explain the all thing about the board to
him, do you?» he managed to say at last.
«No, I didn’t.» I couldn’t really, I beleive I should have, but I would have made
him look too silly. I just said I didn’t think you sell it.»
What was Bill to do? What a thing, he thought, to find waiting for you on your
return from taking a job at two pounds a week. He could paint more for an exhibition
that very evening and show them to Garrad the next day. After all, why not use is as a
start for a good painters» carreer?
Task 2
A. Read the text «The Perfect Woman».
One day, beleive it or not, I found that I was indede reach. My aunt Camilla died
and leaved all to me. She had some valueable paintings. I sold them, and set off round
the world in sirch of … the perfect woman. You see, I had wanted always to get
merried but I never had been able to find a women that I really loved. I desided that it
was better not to make do with second best, but to wait and hope that one day I
would met the woman of my dreams. I first went in America. I must have visited every
stait, but I did not found what I were looking for. The women I met their were either

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to thin or to fat, too quiet or too noisy, too fare or too dark. So I set off for the
Australia. I didn’t stay there very long. Most of the women I met there were much to,
self-confident. They made me feel uncomfortable. Than I went to Thailand. The
women there were lovely, but much too shy, and anyway I prefer taler women.
Finally, I found myself back in my own country. I was sad. How it was possible to meet
so many woman and not find one that suited me? You can guess what happenned. In
my own country, I found the woman I was looking for! Funnyly enough, she lived near
me, and I was amazed that I have not noticed her before. We met in local
supermarket. She dropped her purse. I picked it up and gave it to her. She smiled at
me and said thank you, and I knew at this moment that she was the woman for me.
But I wanted to be very carefull. I didn’t want to say or do something that might
frighten her away. So I just made small talk as we walked back to the car park. Back
home, I planed my campain to win her heart. After a few more meetings, I finally
invited her to have dinner with me. She accepted. I am not very good cook, but I
believe that if you lie the table properly, anybody will notice the food. I went out and
bought an expensive tablecloth and some silver knives and forks. I lade the table, put a
huge bowl of flowers in the middle, then stood back and admired the result. As a
finishing touch, I putted two silver candlesticks on a table. A perfect table for a perfect
woman. All went good during the dinner. She admired the flowers and the
candlesticks. She complimented me on my cooking (she was just being kind, of course)
and the conversation flowed easily. Finally, as we set drinking coffee, I told her about
my search. «… so, when my aunt Camilla left me well of, I decided to set off round the
world in search of the perfect woman.» «That is amazing!» she exclaimed. «I’ve just
come into many money, too, and I have decided to set off round the world in search
of the perfect man. I hope I find him.» I tryed to smile, but it weren’t easy.
B. There are some grammar, lexical and spelling mistakes in the text. Find them
and make corrections.
C. Divide the text into paragraphs and retell the story in written.

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