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Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan

Kostanay State University named after. A. Baytursynova

Department of Foreign Languages

Collection of grammar exercisesin English

V.P. Kasyanova

CM. Smirnova

Kostanay 2011

Compiled by:

Vera Pakhomovna Kasyanova, senior lecturer of the Department of Foreign Languages

Smirnova Svetlana Mikhailovna, teacher of the Department of Foreign Languages

Reviewers:

Solovyova N.A. Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Associate Professor, Head of the Department of Humanitarian and Social Disciplines of KInEU named after. Dulatov

Levshina S.M.., Ph.D., Associate Professor, Senior Lecturer of the Department of English Language KSPI

Fedorova M.L. Senior Lecturer, Department of Foreign Languages, KSU named after. A. Baytursynova

Kasyanova V.P.

Smirnova S.M.

K 28 Collection of exercises on English grammar for students of non-linguistic faculties, 2011-92p.

This collection of exercises on English grammar aims to help students of non-linguistic faculties to master in practice the main topics of English grammar. Each topic is accompanied by a short theoretical introduction and tables that should help students perform various types of exercises.

The collection can be used both for classroom work with a teacher and for independent work.

Approved by the Methodological Council of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, protocol No. dated___ __________200__.

BBK 81.43.21я73

©Kostanay State University named after. A. Baitursynova

INTRODUCTION

1. ARTICLE

2. NOUN

3. PRONOUNS

4. DEGREES OF COMPARISON OF ADJECTIVES

5. PREPOSITIONS

LITERATURE

INTRODUCTION

In compiling this collection, The authors saw their main task as systematizing and present exercises on basic grammatical topics of the English language according to the requirements of the standard foreign language curriculum for non-linguistic majors. It is envisaged that the implementation of these exercises will contribute to the development of speaking skills and abilities on the basis of carefully selected information on English grammar

Tables, diagrams and models that systematize the material of grammatical topics should contribute to better assimilation of the material and successful completion of exercises. The exercises are built on the principle of increasing language difficulties. The compilers of this collection strived to ensure that the texts of the exercises represented a wide range of examples of modern English speech, were informative, meaningful and not too complex in their lexical composition.

The collection is intended for students of non-linguistic faculties. In fact, it can be successfully used by all persons who have previously mastered the basics of the English language and who want to improve their knowledge of English grammar. The collection can be used both for classroom work with a teacher and for students to work independently.

1. ARTICLE

Indefinite article a/ an used with singular countable nouns if the subject is mentioned for the first time. The article is not used if the noun is preceded by a possessive or demonstrative pronoun, another noun in the possessive case, a cardinal number or a negation " By"(Not " not").

1. Insert article where necessary

1.This is... book. It is my... book. 2. Is this your ... pencil? -- No, it isn't my ... pencil, it is my sister's ... pencil. 3. I have...sister. My...sister is...engineer. My sister"s ... husband is ... doctor. 4. I have no ... handbag. 5. Is this ... watch? -- No, it isn't ... watch, it"s. .. pen. 6. This ... pen is good, and that ... pen is bad. 7. I can see ... pencil on your ... table, but I can see no ... paper. 8 . Give me ... chair, please. 9. They have ... dog and two ... cats. 10. I have ... spoon in my ... plate, but I have no ... soup in it .

There is a huge number of so-called “frozen phrases” in which the article is traditionally used or absent. These phrases have to be learned by heart.

Remember the following constructions.

Thereisa... Whereisthe... ?

Remember also the following suggestions:

The(book) is onthe(table). Ho: The (book) is ona little(table)

2. Pastearticle, Wherenecessary

1. Where is ... cat? --.. cat is on... sofa. 2. Where is ... book? -- .. book is on ... shelf. 3. Where are... flowers? -- ... flowers are in ...beautiful vase. 4. Where is.. vase? -- ... vase is on ... little table near ... window. 5. Open... window, please. ... the weather is fine today. I can see...sun in...sky. I can see...nice little bird. ... bird is sitting in ... big tree. ... tree is green. 6. There is ... little white cloud in ... sky. 7. We have ... large room. There is ... big sofa in ... room and ... little lamp on ... wall over ... sofa. I like to sit on ... sofa and read ... good book.

to have (cook, make, prepare) _ breakfast to go to school

Lunch. to go home _ tea to come home _ dinner to be in bed _ supper to go to hospital

3. Insert article where necessary

I go to ... school in ... morning, so I get up early. I usually get up at ... quarter past seven. I go to ... bathroom, turn on ... water and wash my face and hands. My father and mother also get up early in ... morning. My mother works at ... office. She is...typist. My father is... doctor. He works at ... polyclinic. We have ... breakfast in ... kitchen. We eat... porridge and... eggs. We drink... tea. My father and mother leave ... home for ... work at ... half past eight. My father goes to ..\ polyclinic, and my mother goes to ... office. I don't leave ... home with my parents: ... school where I study is near our house.

Remember that the definite article is used before superlative adjectives.

E.g. Asia is the largest continent.

My brother is the best pupil in his class.

4. Pastearticle, Wherenecessary

When we want to write ... letter, we take .... piece of ... paper and ... pen. We first write our-... address and ... date in ... right-hand corner. Then on ... left-hand side we write ... greeting. We may write, for instance, "My dear brother," "Dear Henry," etc., and then on ... next line we begin ... real letter. We must not forget to leave ... margin on ... left-hand side of ... page. At ... end of ... letter we write "Yours," and then we sign our name. We put ... letter into ... envelope and close ... envelope. On ... envelope we write ... name and address of ... person who will receive it. We stick ... stamp in ... top right-hand corner, and then we post ... letter.

Remember the following frozen phrase:

5. Pastearticle, Wherenecessary

Once there lived ... man who was very fond of ... gold. He used to say: "While I have my gold, I am... happiest man in... world." And so all his life he saved... money. One day he was traveling in ... desert of ... North Africa. He lost his way. He had no ... food or ... water. He was almost dying of... hunger. He was so weak that he could not walk, he could only crawl. ... the heat was terrible. There were only ... stones and ... sand around. Just then he saw ... bag lying on ... sand. He hoped that he would find ... food in it and ... water, too, He crawled up to ... bag and opened it. He saw that ... bag was full of ... gold. What is ... use of ... gold to ... hungry man in ... desert? He left... bag on... hot sand, crying bitterly: "I am... the most unhappy man in... world."

Rules for using articles with geographical names.

The definite article is used before the names of rivers, canals, seas, bays, straits, oceans, archipelagos, and mountain ranges.

The article is not used before the names of lakes, individual mountain peaks, individual islands, continents, cities, countries.

Exceptions:

theUnited States of America

theUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and

Northern Ireland

theNetherlands

theUkraine

theCrimea

theCongo.

6. Insert articles where necessary.

1.... Moscow is located on ... Moscow River. ...Moscow is a river that moves very slowly. There is ... canal called ... Moscow-Volga Canal which joins ... Moscow to ... Volga. ... Volga runs into ... Caspian Sea. 2. Several rivers run into ... sea at... New York. ... most important is ... Hudson River which empties into ... Atlantic Ocean. Besides ... Hudson there are ... two other rivers: ... East River and ... Harlem River. 3. In ... Siberia there are many long rivers: ... Ob, ... Irtysh, ... Yenissei, ... Lena and ... Amur. 4. ... Altai Mountains are ... higher than ... Urals.

7. Fill inomissions of articles where necessary:

1. ... Volga is ... longest river in ... European part of ... Russia. 2. I"d like to go on ... excursion to ... Crimea. 3. There is ... stadium not far from our ... house. ... stadium is ... largest in our town. 4 . My brother is ... pupil of ... 8th form and he wants to become ... engineer. 5. ... chemistry is his favorite subject at ... school. 6. ... children like ... ice-cream. 7. Can you tell me ... way to ... theater? 8. Here is ... book you need. 9. ... walls of our classroom are yellow. 10. ... butter and ... cheese are made of ... milk. 11. Which ... fruit do you like: ... apples or ... oranges? 12. I go to ... bed at 12 o"clock at night. 13. When will you finish... school? 14. I get up at 7 o"clock in ... morning.

Remember the following frozen phrases:

inthenorth

inthesouth

intheeast

inthewest

tothenorth

tothesouth

totheeast

tothewest

8. Insert articles where necessary.

1. ... Neva flows into ... Gulf of ... Finland. 2. ...Pacific Ocean is very deep. 3. ...Urals are not very high. 4. ... Kazbek is ... highest peak of ... Caucasus. 5. ... Alps are covered with ... snow. 6. ... Shetland Islands are located to ... north of ... Great Britain. 7. ... USA is ... largest country in ... America. 8. ... Crimea is washed by ... Black Sea. 9. ... Lake Baikal is ... deepest lake in ... world. 10. ... Paris is ... capital of ... France. 11. Lomonosov was born in ... small village on ... shore of ... White Sea. 12. Gogol was born in ... Ukraine in 1809. 13. ... Caucasus separates ... Black Sea from ... Caspian Sea. 14. ... Europe and ... America are separated by ... Atlantic Ocean. 15. ... Baltic Sea is stormy in winter.

9. Fill inomissionsarticles, WhereThisnecessary:

1. ... England has to import ... raw materials, such as ... timber, ... petroleum, ... wool and others. 2. Many ships with ... grain, ... oil, ... cotton and other goods come to ... London along ... river Thames. 3. I usually drink ... tea with ... sugar. 4. Will you have ... cup of tea? 5. Pass me...sugar, please. 6. ... tea is very hot, I "ll put ... milk in it. Don"t pour milk into my cup, please. I don't like ... tea with ... milk. 7. ... Peace is ... life, ... war is ... suffering and ... death. 8. What ... beautiful rose !What ... beautiful flowers! 9. Good ... luck! 10. We shall go to ... theater ... next week. 11. We shall see ... new play at ... Belarusian Drama Theatre. 12. Let's go to ... cinema. 13. They say ... new detective film is on.

10. Pastearticle, Wherenecessary.

1. This is... pen. It is... good pen. ... pen is black. It is on... table. 2.1 have got... dog. ... dog's name is Spot. He is ... big gray dog. ... dog is very strong. 3. My friend has ... sister. Her name is Ann. ... girl is... pupil. 4. We have ... picture in ... living-room. ... picture is very good. It is on ... wall. 5. ... Irish Sea is between ... Great Britain and . .. Ireland. 6. There is ... map on ... wall of ... classroom. It is ... map of ... world. There are many seas and lakes on ... map. This is . .. Mediterranean Sea and that is... Red Sea. These are ... Himalayas. They are ... highest mountains in ... world. 7. We live in ... St. Petersburg. ... St. Petersburg is ... very large city. It is one of ... largest cities in ... Russia.

11. Pastearticle, Wherenecessary.

1. ... Russia occupies ... eastern half of ... Europe and ... northern third of ... Asia. 2. ... climate of ... northern part of ... Russia is severe. 3. This winter is... true Russian winter with... hard frosts. 4. It is warm in... Crimea and... Caucasus. 5. ... Washington is ... capital of ... United States of America. 6. I want to go to... New York some day. 7. ... the best way to know and understand ... people of ... other countries is to meet them in their own homes. 8. Is ... Australia ... island or ... continent? 9. ... Red Sea is between ... Africa and ... Asia. 10. There are six continents in ... world, 11. ... France is to ... north of ... Italy.

12. Translate into English, paying attention to the use of articles.

1. Autumn is the rainy season. 2. Water and air are necessary for life. 3. In the evening I drink tea or milk, but not coffee. 4. The milk is too cold, don't drink it. 5. He asked for a glass of water. 6. This is a very simple question. The student can answer it. 7. Show me the article you wrote. 8. The Ivanovs left for the south this morning. 9. It's a pity I can't have lunch with you.

2. NAME CREATURESANDBODY

Plural of nounbnykh

General rule - ending - s or - es(after voiceless consonants), which is added to a singular count noun:

a cat - cat s cats a bab y-bab i es

a book - book s books a cit y- cit i es

f>v es

a life -li ves life

a knife - kni ves knives

a shelf - shel ves shelves, but a roof - roof s roofs

1. Put the following nouns into the plural (don’t forget that the indefinite article must be omitted before the plural),

A table, a plate, a fox, a room, a lady, a knife, a chair, a bus, a Negro, a match, a way, a house, a family, a flag, a town, a wolf, a country , a lion, a park, a play.

Remember the plural form of the following nouns:

a man -- mena goose -- geese

a woman -- womena tooth -- teeth

a child -- childrena fool -- feet

a mouse -- micean ox -- oxen

Remember also:

an Englishman -- Englishmen

a Frenchman -- Frenchmen

But: aGerman -- Germans

Remember three nouns that have the same form in the plural as in the singular:

a sheep -- sheep

a deer -- deer

aswine -- swine

2. Put the following nouns into the plural (pay attention to the articles: the indefinite article in the plural is omitted, the definite article is retained).

A star, a mountain, a tree, a shilling, a king, the waiter, the queen, a man, the man, a woman, the woman, an eye, a shelf, a box, the city, a boy, a goose , the watch, a mouse, a dress, a toy, the sheep, a tooth, a child, the ox, a deer, the life, a tomato.

Remember: this is -- these are

that is -- those are

there is -- there are

it is -- they are

3. Put the following sentences into plural.

1. This is a star. 2. This is a boy. 3. This is a baby. 4. That is a plate. 5. That is a flower, j 6. That is a bookshelf. 7. Is this a sofa? 8. Is this a bookcase? 9. Is this a man? 10. Is that a ball? 11. Is that a train? 12. Is that a plane? 13. Is the window open? 14. Is the door closed? 15. Is the boy near the window? 16. That is not a king, 17. That is not a queen. 18. That is not a bus. 19. This isn't a mountain. 20. That isn't a goose. 21. This isn't a mouse. 22. It is a sheep. 23. It is a cigarette. 24. It is a cat. 25. It is not a girl. 26. It isn't a bag. 27. It isn't a tree. 28. It is not a bad egg. 29. It is a good egg. 30. Is that a flower?

4. Put the following sentences into plural.

1. What is that child's name? 2. The cat has caught a mouse. 3. There was a lady, a gentleman, a boy and a girl in the room. 4. In the farm-yard we could see an ox , a sheep, a cow and a goose. 5. Is this worker an Englishman or a German? -He is a Frenchman. 6. Why don't you eat this potato? 7. This strawberry is still green. 8. The withered leaf has fallen to the ground. 9. Can you see a bird in that tree? 10. Does your tooth still ache? 11.1 held up my foot to the fire to warm it. 12. His child studies very well. 13. This man works at our office. 14. There is a new house in our street. 15. This story is very interesting. 16. I have hurt my foot. 17. The wolf has been shot. 18. He keeps his toy in a box. 19. Put this knife on that table.

5. Put the following sentences into plural.

1. This is a bird. 2. Is that also a bird? - No, it isn't. That is a cat. 3. Is that a good horse? - Yes, it is. 4. Is that cow big or small? - It is big. 5. This is an apple and that is a flower. 6. Where is the coin? It is in the box. 7. What color is the box? - It is green. 8. What is it made of? - It is made of wood. 9. What is that man? - He is a clerk. 10. Is he in the office? - Yes, he is. 11. Is that woman a typist? - No, she isn't. - What is she? -- She is a doctor. 12. Is his brother at home? - Yes, he is. 13. This house has a balcony looking out on the street. 14. The architecture of this building is quite modern. 15. This is a new district of St. Petersburg. 16. There is a shop, a cinema and a theater in the new district. 17. He is a retired worker. 18.1 am a doctor. 19. We hear the sounds of a child's voice. 20. She is a nice girl.

Possessivecasenouns

the student" s book = (this) student's book

the book of the student

the student s" books = books of (these) students

6. Paraphrase the following phrases and sentences using the possessive case.

1. The room of my friend. 2. The questions of my son. 3. The wife of my brother. 4. The table of our teacher. 5. The poems of Pushkin. 6. The voice of this girl. 7. The new club of the workers. 8. The letter of Pete. 9. The car of my parents. 10. The life of this woman. 11. The handbags of these women. 12. The flat of my sister is large. 13. The children of my brother are at home. 14. The room of the boys is large. 15. The name of this girl is Jane. 16. The work of these students is interesting.

7. Translate into English using the possessive case.

1. He showed me a letter from his sister. 2. She took her brother's skates. 3. Give me your students' notebooks. 4. Bring the children's things 5. Yesterday the children found a bird's nest. 6. This is my friend's family. My friend's father is an engineer. My friend's mother is a teacher. 7. Whose bag is this? - This is Tom's bag. 8. Whose dictionaries are these? - These are students' dictionaries. 9. Have you seen our teacher’s book? 10. I like this boy's handwriting. 11. I hear my sister's voice. 12. She opened the window and heard the laughter and screams of the children. 13. She put the boys' wet boots to the stove. 14. This is grandma's chair.

3. PRONOUNS

Some, any, no, every and their derivatives

1. Pastesome, anyorBy.

1. There are ... pictures in the book. 2. Are there ... new students in your group? 3. There are ... old houses in our street. 4. Are there ... English textbooks on the desks? - Yes, there are.... 5. Are there ... maps on the walls? --No, there aren't.... 6. Are there ... pens on the desk? - - Yes, there are.... 8. Are there ... sweets in your bag? - Yes, there are.... 9. Have you got ... English books at home? - Yes, I have.... 10. There are ... beautiful pictures in the magazine. Look at them. 11. There is .. ink in my pen: I cannot write.

2. Pastesomething,anything, nothingoreverything,

1. ... is all right, the patient is much better today! 2. Is there ... interesting in the program of the concert? 3. I could see...: it was quite dark. 4. Give me... to drink. 5. I didn't take any money with me so I couldn't buy ... . 6. My new eyeglasses are very good, I can see ... now. 7. I saw ... near the wood that looked like a tent.

3. Pastesomething,anything, nothingoreverything.

1. Give me... to read, please. - With pleasure, 2. I don't know ... about your town. Tell me .., about it. 3. Please give me ... warm: it is cold here. 4. I understand ... now. Thank you for your explanation. 5. There is ... white in the box. "What is it? 6. Is there... that you want to tell me? 7. Where is the book? -- It is on the table. - No, there is…. there.

everybody-- All

4. Pastesomebody, anybody, nobodyoreverybody.

1. Has ... in this group got a dictionary? 2. ... left a magazine in our classroom yesterday. 3. The question was so difficult that ... could answer it. 4. I am afraid I shan"t be able to find ... in the office now: it is too late. 5. ... knows that water is necessary for life. 6. Is there ... here who knows French ? 7. You must find ... who can help you. 8. ... knew anything about America before Columbus discovered it. 9. I saw ... in the train yesterday who looked like you. 10. There is .. . in the next room. I don't know him. 11. Please tell us the story. ...knows it. 12. Is there ... in my group who lives in the dormitory? 13. Has...here got a red pencil? 14. ... can answer this question. It is very easy.

5. Fill in the blanks by inserting one of the words given in brackets.

1. We haven"t ... black stockings (no, any). 2 They have ... red boots, Kate (any, no). 3. I don"t want... today, thank you (nothing, anything). 4. "I haven"t got ... clean exercise-books, Mother," said the boy (any, no). 5. "We shall not buy ... in this shop, children," said the mother (nothing , anything). 6. Didn't you buy ... potatoes yesterday (any, no)? 17.1 didn't see ... in the street when I went out (anybody, nobody). 8. We did not play ... games in the yard because it was raining all day long (no, any). 9. There is ... at home (anybody, nobody). 10. How much did you pay for these boots? - I didn’t pay ... (nothing, anything). They are a present from my grandmother. 11. Have you lost... (anything, nothing)? - No, nobody here has lost…. (nothing, anything).

6. Translate into English.

1. Is there anyone in the dining room? 2. There is no one in the garden. 3. Is there anyone in our room? 4. There is someone there. 5. There is no one there. 6. Is there anyone in the library? 7. Is there anything behind the curtain? - No, there's nothing there. 8. There is something in the bag. 9. Is there anyone in the house? - Yes, there is someone there. 10. Is there anything under the table? - Yes, there is something there. 11. There is nothing there. 12. Is there anyone in the doctor's office? -- No, there's nobody there. 13. Our library has some books in English. 14. Are there any books by Jack London in your library? 15. My uncle wants to tell me something. 16. The next day my brother knew everyone. 17. If you want something to eat, go to the dining car. 18. Tell us all about your journey.

everywhere-- everywhere

7 . Pastesomewhere, anywhere, nowhereoreverywhere.

1. I put my dictionary ... yesterday and now I can"t find it ....- Of course that is because you leave your books.... 2. You must go ... next summer. 3. Did you go ... on Sunday? 4. Let's go.... The weather is fine. I don"t want to stay at home in such weather. 5. I cannot find my glasses.... I always put them ... and then look for them for hours. 6. Today is a holiday. The streets are full of people. There are flags, banners and flowers....

8. TranslateonEnglishlanguage.

1. There is something round on the table. What it is? 2. Nobody knows anything about this. 3. There are many parks in the city. There are trees and flowers everywhere. 4. There is someone in that room. 5. Anna lives somewhere in this area. 6. I don't know anyone in this city. 7. Please give me something to eat. 8. Does anyone know the address of our teacher? 9. Everything is fine. 10. Does anyone want to watch TV? 11. We heard this song everywhere. 12. He is somewhere in the garden.

9 . Insert one of the following words:some, any, no, theor leave the blanks blank.

1. Soup (in general) contains a lot of water. ... soup contains much water. 2. The soup is ready. ... soup is ready. 3. Give me some soup. Give me... soup. 4. The name of this soup is borscht. The name of ... soup is borsch. 5. First of all, we need to warm the water. First of all we must heat... water. 6. First of all, we need to warm the water. First of all we must heat... water. 7. Water consists of hydrogen and oxygen. ... water consists of hydrogen and oxygen. 8. Soap is necessary for washing. ...soap is necessary for washing. 9. There is no soap on the washbasin. There is ... soap on the wash-stand. 10. Soap on the shelf. ... soap is on the shelf. 11. I don't like the color of this soap. I don"t like the color of ... soap. 12. Do you have carbolic soap? Have you got ... carbolic soap? 13. There are many factories in Karelia that produce. .. paper. 14. Paper for the wall-newspaper is on the table. 15. Give me paper. Give me ... paper.

10. Insert one ofthe followingwords:some, any, no, the, Aorleaveomissionsblank.

1. ... cats like ... milk. 2. They stopped in ... front of ... house where Tom lived. 3. I showed him ... way to ... station. 4. What is ... name of ... street in which you live? 5. I want to say... words to your sister. 6. ...tea in this glass is cold. 7.... the sun was high in ... sky. 8. Oh, there are ... apples in ... vase: ... children have eaten all of them. Please put ... apples into ... vase. 9. Yesterday we had ... fish for dinner. 10. He gave me... coffee. 11.1 drank ... cup of ... coffee after ... dinner. 12. She bought ... new books yesterday. 13. Where are ... books which you brought from ... library yesterday? 14. Did you buy ... apples when you were at ... shop? 15. We could not skate because there was ... snow on ... ice.

11. Fill in the blanks with pronouns:some, any, no, every or derivatives from them.

1. You must ask ... to help you in this work. 2. If I have... free time, I shall go... tonight. 3. Have you heard ... about our plan? 4. Did... see this film yesterday? 5. Did you say? -No, I said ... 6. I know ... about it and he doesn't know ... about it either. ... knows about it.

Use much/many; (a) little/ (a) few

1. Translate the following pairs of words into English.

A lot of notebooks, a lot of milk, a lot of water, many days, a lot of newspapers, a lot of chalk, a lot of snow, many years, a lot of paintings, a lot of music, a lot of boys, a lot of girls, a lot of tea, a lot of lemons, a lot of meat, a lot of rooms, a lot of teachers. , a lot of work, a lot of air, a lot of birds, a lot of cars.

2. Pastemuchormany.

1. Please don"t put ... pepper on the meat. 2. There were ... plates on the table. 3. I never eat I... bread with soup. 4. Why did you eat so ... ice-cream? 5. She wrote us ... letters from the country. 6. ... of these students don"t like to look up words in the dictionary. 7. ... in this work was too difficult for me. 8. ... of their answers were excellent. 9. ... of their conversation was about the institute. 10. There are ... new pictures in this room. ll. There are ... teachers at our school, and ... of them are women. 12. ... of these plays are quite ... new. 13. Thanks awfully for the books you sent me yesterday. - Don"t mention it, it wasn"t... bother. 14. ... of her advice was useful. 15. He had ... pairs of socks.

3. Translate the following pairs of words into English.

Few houses, few tea, few cups, few apples, few windows, little paper, little coffee, few articles, little joy, little soup, few trees, little grass, few children, few toys, little light, few desks, little sausage , little juice, few books, few flowers, little salt, few friends, few palaces.

4. Pastelittleorfew.

1. I have ... time, so I can't go with you. 2. He has ... English books. 3. There is ... ink in my pen. Have you got any ink? 4. There are ... bears in the zoo. 5. Tom Canty was the son of poor parents and had very ... clothes. 6. There is tool ... soup in my plate. Give me some more, please. 7. The children returned from the wood very sad because they had found very ... mushrooms. 8. There was too ... light in the room, and I could not read. There are very ... people who don"t know that the earth is round.

5. Fill in the blanks with pronouns or adverbsmuch, many, more, less, (a) little, (a) few.

1. How... English words do you know? 2. There are ... parks in our city. 3. They work too... 4. Does he read...? -- It "s a pity but he reads too ... 5. I had very ... friends at school. 6. Do you speak English....? 7. Hurry up! We have ... time to waste. 8. Don't hurry! We have ... time before the train comes in. 9. I have something to say. May I have... words with you? 10. Some... tea, please. 11. Please, try to make... noise. 12. I don't drink ... coffee. 13. There were not ... people at the stadium yesterday.

6. Pastemuch, many, little, a little, few, a few:

1. I"d like to say ... words about my travelling. 2. She gave him ... water to wash his hands and face. 3. He had ... English books at home, so he had to go to the library 4. After the lesson everyone felt... tired. 5. Let's stay here... longer. I like it here. 6. There were ... new words in the text and Peter spent ... time learning them. 7. There was... sugar in the bowl, and we had to put... sugar there. 8. My mother knows German ... and she can help you with the translation of this text. 10. When we walked ... farther down the road we met another group of pupils. 11. Have you got... time before the lesson?

7. Translate the following pairs of words into English.

A little money, a little money, a few chairs, a few chairs, a few songs, a few songs, a little fun, a little fun, a few boys, a little water, a few people, a little water, a little air, a few tables, a few minutes, a few cats, a little grass , a little luck, a few days, a little work, a little salt, a few spoons, a little light, a few windows, a few cars, a little sugar, a little eggs, a little cheese.

8. Pastelittle, a little, fewora few.

1. I have ... money, so we can go to the cinema. 2. I have ... money, so we cannot go to the cinema. 3. This girl works very ... , that"s why she knows nothing. 4. Mother gave us ... apples, and we were glad. 5. He did not like it at the camp: he had very ... friends there. 6. This lemon drink is sour; if you put ... sugar in it, it will be sweeter. 7. This lemon drink is sour; if you put ... lumps of sugar in it, it will be sweeter 8. The hall was almost empty: there were ... people in it. 9. I can't buy this expensive hat today: I have too ... money. 10. She left and returned in ... minutes. 11. I think you can spare me ... time now. 12. I am sorry I have seen ... plays by this author.

9. Pastemuch, many, little, few, a littleora few.

1. He had ... English books at home, so he had to go to the library for more books. 2. She gave him ... water to wash his hands and face. 3. I"d like to say ... words about my journey. 4. After the play everyone felt ... tired. 5. Let"s stay here ... longer: it is such a nice place. 6. There were ... new words in the text, and Peter spent ... time learning them. 7. There was... hay in the barn, and the children could not play there. 8. There was ... water in the river, and they decided to cross it. 9. My mother knows German ... and she can help you with the translation of this letter. 10. When we walked ... farther down the road, we met another group of students. 11. Have you got I... ink in your pen? 12. At the conference we met ... people whom we knew well. 13. There are very ... old houses left in our street. Most of them have already been pulled down. 14. If you have ... spare time, look through this book. You will find ... stories there which are rather interesting. 15. There are ... things here which I cannot understand.

10. Translate into English:

A lot of notebooks, a lot of milk, a lot of water, many days, a lot of newspapers, a lot of chalk, a lot of snow, many years, a lot of paintings, a lot of music, a lot of sugar, a lot of tea, a lot of lemons, a lot of meat, a lot of rooms, a lot of teachers, a lot of work , a lot of air, a lot of birds, a lot of cars.

4. DEGREESCOMPARISONSADJECTIVES

1. Form comparative and superlative degrees of the following adjectives:

tall, long, short, hot, cold, nice, large, big, wide, strong, happy, warm, high, heavy, low, hard, busy, easy, bright;

interesting, comfortable, important, necessary, beautiful, famous, pleasant, popular, wonderful, active, careful.

2. Translate into English.

Old, older, oldest, oldest, my older brother, my old friend, further, farthest, longest, shorter, happier, happier, happiest, best, blackest, longer, worse, better, warmer, her best friend, her youngest son, his eldest son.

3. Replyonquestions:

A) Are the mountains of the Crimea as high as the mountains of the Caucasus?

Is the climate of England as mild as that in our country?

Is the Volga longer than the Don?

Is the Moscow underground the best in the world?

b) Which is the shortest month of the year?
Which is the biggest city in Great Britain?

Which season is the coldest?

4. Open the brackets using the required form of the adjective.

1. Which is (large): the United States or Canada? 2. What is the name of the (big) port in the United States? 3. Moscow is the (large) city in Russia. 4. The London underground is the (old) in the world. 5. There is a (great) number of cars and buses in the streets of Moscow than in any other city of Russia. 6. St. Petersburg is one of the (beautiful) cities in the world. 7. The rivers in America are much (big) than those in England. 8. The island of Great Britain is (small) than Greenland. 9. What is the name of the (high) mountain in Asia? 10. The English Channel is (wide) than the straits of Gibraltar. 11. Russia is a very (large) country.

Remember:

as... as-- such as

not so… as--not like

5 . Pasteas... asorso... as.

1. Mike is... tall... Pete. 2. Kate is not ... nice ... Ann. 3. My room is ... light ... this one. 4. This book is not... thin... that one. 5. Sergei is... old... Michael. 6. She is ... young ... Tom"s brother. 7. This woman is ... good ... that one. 8. Nick"s English is not ... good ... his friend"s 9.1 am not ... tall ... Pete 10. This woman is ... young ... that one 12. I am ... thin ... you 13. Kate is ... lazy . .. her brother. 14. This child is not … small … that one.

6. Translate the following sentences into English.

1. This house is as tall as that one. 2. Today the water in the river is not as warm as yesterday. 3. You are not as smart as dad. 4. India is not as big as China. 5. The Thames is as beautiful as the Neva. 6. His grandmother is not as old as his grandfather. 7 Apples are as tasty as plums, but not as tasty as pears. 8. Is the Russian Museum as rich as the Hermitage? 9. Derzhavin is not as famous as Pushkin. 10. The Dnieper is not as long as the Volga. 11. Last year August was as hot as July.

Don't forget to use the conjunction than with the comparative degree of an adjective:

Tom is tallerthanKate.

Tom is taller than Katya.

7. Translate into English.

1. The hottest days occur in summer. 2. The rainiest weather occurs in autumn. 3. The more I read, the more I know. 4. March is not as cold as February. 5. Mathematics is the most difficult subject in school. 6. Vitebsk is further from Minsk than Orsha. 7. Today is as cold as yesterday. 8. Better late than never. 9. This film is as interesting as that one. 10. Anya is the best student in the group. 11. This song is very popular now.

8 . Open the brackets using the required form of the adjective.

1. This man is (tall) than that one. 2. Asia is (large) than Australia. 3. The Volga is (short) than the Mississippi. 4. Which building is the (high) in Moscow? 5. Mary is a (good) student than Lucy. 6. The Alps are (high) than the Urals. 7. This garden is the (beautiful) in our town. 8. She speaks Italian (good) than English. 9. Is the word "newspaper" (long) than the word "book"? 10. The Thames is (short) than the Volga. 11. The Arctic Ocean is (cold) than the Indian Ocean. 12. Chinese is (difficult) than English. 13. Spanish is (easy) than German. 14. She is not so (busy) as I am. 15. It is as (cold) today as it was yesterday.

9. Open the brackets using the required form of the adjective.

1. Oil is (light) than water. 2. We shall wait for a (dry) day to go on the excursion. 3. A bus is (fast) than a tram. 4. Take some of these sweets: they are very (nice). They are (nice) than the sweets in that box. 5. He clearly did not like the explanation, and as he listened to it, he became (angry) and (angry). 6. He worked (hard) and (hard) as the end of the term came nearer. 7. The (tall) trees in the world grow in California. 8. Please be (careful) next time and don't spill the milk again. 9. Bobby was a (quiet) child. He was (quiet) than his sister. 10. Her eyes are (grey) than mine. 11. He was the (fat) man in the village. 12. As he went on, the box became (heavy) and (heavy). 13. My sister is the (tall) girl in her class. 14. Who is the (attentive ) student in your group? 15. It is autumn. Every day the air becomes (cold), the leaves (yellow).

10 . Translate the following sentences into English.

1. The building of Moscow University is the tallest in the capital. 2. Our city is not as big as Kyiv, but it is just as beautiful. 3. Nevsky Prospekt is one of the most beautiful streets in St. Petersburg. 4. Who is the youngest student in our group? - Petrov. But he is the tallest. 5. English grammar is difficult, but English pronunciation is more difficult. 6. The shops on our street are larger than the shops on your street. 7. Our TV is as good as this one. 8. This room is brighter than that one. 9. The weather today is worse than yesterday. It's colder today and it's raining. 10. My room is not as big as my friend’s room, but it is brighter and warmer. 11. Which of these books is the most interesting? 12. November is not such a cold month as January. 13. My father is a very busy man. 14. Crimea is one of the best places to relax. 15. Today he feels much better.

5 . PREPOSITIONS

Prepositions of place and direction
In order to develop speech fluency, it is useful to memorize the following phrases:
WHERE?	WHERE?
On the table ON	ON THE TABLE ON
	On the table, on the floor, on the sofa, on the chair, on the window-sill, on the ground, on the grass, on the roof, on the bridge, on the platform, on the shelf, on the cupboard, on the bench, on the snow, on the ice, on the wall, on the blackboard, on the table, on the floor, on the sofa, on the chair, on the window-sill, on the ground, on the grass, on the roof, on the bridge, on the platform, on the shelf, on the cupboard, on the bench, on the snow, on the ice, on the wall, on the blackboard.
	WHERE?
In the room IN	Into the room INTO
In the room, in the kitchen, in the house, in the car, in the box, in the cupboard, in the bag, in the pocket, in the hall, in the plate, in the cup, in the glass, in the bottle, in the snow, in the water, in the river, in the lake, in the sea, in the wood, in the park, in the garden, in the yard, in the classroom.	Into the room, into the kitchen, into the house, into the car, into the box, into the cupboard, into the bag, into the pocket, into the hall, into the plate, into the cup, into the glass, into the bottle, into the snow, into the water, into the river, into the lake, into the sea, into the wood, into the park, into the garden, into the yard, into the classroom.

1. Insert prepositionson, inorinto.

1. Where is the book? - It is... the table. 2. Where is the tea? -- It is... the cup. 3. Put the plates...the table. 4. Put the book ... the bag. 5. There is a beautiful picture... the wall. 6. He went...the room. 7. I like to sit ... the sofa ... my room. 8. Mother is cooking dinner... the kitchen. 9. She went ... the room and sat down ... the sofa. 10. There are many people... the park today. 11. There is a girl standing... the bridge. Why is she crying? - She has dropped her doll... the water. 12. There is no tea... my cup. 13. Pour some tea... my cup. 14. Put these flowers...the window-sill. 15. I saw many people ... the platform waiting for the train.

2 . Translate into English using prepositionson, in, at, to, into.

1. Go to the board. 2. Write the number on the board. 3. Hang the picture on the board. 4. She poured water into a vase and put flowers in it. Then she went to the window and put the vase on the windowsill. 5. The teacher is standing at the blackboard. He is writing a sentence on the board. Students are sitting at their desks. They write this sentence in their notebooks. 6. Nick entered the kitchen and sat down at the table. Mother was standing next to the stove. She walked to the table, put a cup on the table and poured tea into the cup. 7. We collected a lot of mushrooms in the forest. 8. Masha opened the door and entered the house. There was no one in the house. Bears were in the woods. Masha saw a table in the room. She came to the table. On the table she saw three plates. 9. Katya was in the room. She stood by the bookcase. 10. There was a thick carpet on the floor. The children sat down on the carpet and began to play. 11. Where are the boys? -- They are playing in the yard. 12. It's winter now. Snow covered earth. Ice on the river. 13. She went to the blackboard, took the chalk and began to write on the blackboard 14. Oil is on the table. Put it in the refrigerator. Now sit down at the table. There is juice in this glass. Drink it and put the glass on the shelf. 15. Where is your pen? - It's in my pocket.

Remember the following phrases
WHERE?	WHERE?
At the theatre, at the cinema, at the museum, at the swimming-pool, at the library, at the shop, at the institute, at the port, at the railway-station, at the concert, at the exhibition, at the stadium, at the stop, at the factory, at work, at school, at the lesson.	To the theatre, to the cinema, to the museum, to the swimming-pool, to the library, to the shop, to the institute, to the port, to the railway-station, to the concert, to the exhibition, to the stadium, to the stop, to the factory, to work, to school, to the lesson.

3. Translate the following phrases into English using prepositionsinorat,

In the kitchen, in the port, in the swimming pool, in the park, in the forest, in the theater, in the garden, in the library, in the river, in the store, in a glass, in the room, in the cinema, in the snow, in school, in the classroom, in at home, in a cup, in a museum, at an institute.

4. Translate the following phrases into English using prepositionsonorat.

On a shelf, on a windowsill, on a bench, in a factory, on a wall, at a station, on a platform, on the floor, on a roof, at an exhibition, at a bus stop, on the ground, at a concert, on a blackboard, in a lesson, on a bridge, in a stadium , in the snow, on the grass, at work.

5 . Translate into English, using prepositionsat, on, in, to, into.

1. Where is Kolya? - He's at the institute. 2. Dad goes to work every day. 3. Yesterday dad was at work and mom was at home. 4. Yesterday I went to the library. I took a very interesting book from the library. 5. Katya was sitting at the table. There were books and notebooks on the table. Dad walked up to the table and put a vase on the table. He put flowers in a vase. 6. Yesterday we went to the exhibition. We saw many paintings at the exhibition. 7. Where is Tom? - He's at the stadium. He always goes to the stadium on Sunday. And his sister goes to the swimming pool. She's in the pool now. 8. Do you like going to the theater? 9. When we arrived at the station, we put our things on the platform and sat on a bench. Mom went to the store and bought lemonade. 10. Yesterday in class the teacher told me: “There are two mistakes on the board. Go to the board and correct the mistakes.” 11. Were you at the concert yesterday? - No, we worked in the library, and then we went to the park. We played in the park, and then sat on the grass. 12. Put the book in your briefcase and go to the blackboard. 13. There are a lot of guys in the yard today.

1. The Good Grammar Book

Level: Elementary-Lower Intermediate

The Good Grammar Book is intended for students of English and can be used starting from the Elementary level. The authors themselves created the book for independent work.

The book consists of 21 sections, each section begins with an introduction and a test (the test is designed to identify gaps in your knowledge). At the end of section B you will also find a test that will help you understand how well you have mastered a particular topic.

The grammar in the book is presented in small portions, in several lines, followed by exercises to consolidate this material. A pretty good textbook with simple explanations that will help you better understand English grammar.

2. Essential Grammar in Use

Level: Elementary-Pre-Intermediate

Essential Grammar in Use, also known as “red Murphy”, appeared later, after such a successful debut of “blue Murphy” (we will talk about it below), after which both books began to be distinguished by color.

"Red Murphy" covers topics that are typically covered at the Elementary-Pre-Intermediate levels.

There are two editions of “red Murphy”, with and without answers, respectively, this textbook can be used both for classroom work and for independent study of the English language.

The book consists of 114 independent lessons, which can be studied in any order.

Each lesson consists of theory, which is located on the left, and exercises, which you will find on the right.

Traditionally, there is also a test to identify problem areas.

If your level is higher, then you should pay attention to the grammar aids given in the article below.

3.English grammar in use

Who doesn't know old man Murphy? This book also goes under the code name "Blue Murphy", and in Russian as "blue Murphy".

The grammar in Murphy's Blue is laid out in a very simple, “human” language, so it can be used starting from the Pre-Intermediate level.

This is a grammar reference book, each topic of which is accompanied by reinforcement exercises.

Consists of 136 lessons, each of which is devoted to a separate grammatical topic. One grammar topic takes up an entire spread of the textbook, on the left of which you will find an explanation, and on the right - exercises for it.

Each of the lessons is independent and can be studied in any order. As a bonus to the lessons, there is a test to determine your level of English, as well as gaps in your knowledge.

Can be used independently or in English lessons. Murphy is perhaps the classic of English grammar.

And you should know this textbook if you want to pass as one of your own in English learning circles.

4. A Practical English Grammar

Level: Intermediate

A practical English Grammar - a reference book of the English language. It does not contain exercises itself, but it comes with two collections of exercises that cover the topics in the reference book.

After Murphy's simplicity and laconicism, A Practical English Grammar may truly shock you.

This is an extremely broad and in-depth presentation of English grammar, with many usages, exceptions and examples. Perhaps one of the most detailed and in-depth publications of practical English grammar.

However, this reference book should be used rather as an additional guide to learning English, to understand the details and nuances, since I don’t think it’s practically possible to put everything that is presented in one chapter of this book in my head.

You can also use it to find the information you need; Thompson's table of contents is quite convenient and allows you to quickly find the information you need. The style of the reference book is dry and academic, without illustrations or jokes.

The collections of exercises are reminiscent of their “parent” in every way and may seem boring to you.

However, they are very useful for working on English grammar. The collections contain answers and can be used independently.

5. Oxford Practice Grammar

Level: Intermediate

Oxford Practice Grammar, if you follow the words of its publishers, will provide you with the necessary material to pass the FCE (First Certificate in English). The structure of this textbook is very similar to Murphy's above-mentioned structure, since each topic also occupies one spread, with theory on the left and exercises to work through the material on the right. The book consists of 153 lessons grouped under thematic tables of contents. Every 5-6 lessons there is a test that will help you test your knowledge on previous topics; the book also contains a test to test your knowledge of the English language and identify problem areas. Suitable for both home and classroom use. Among the advantages of the book, it is worth noting the fact that each of the lessons begins with illustrations or dialogue, which helps to enliven the boringness of other grammar reference books, as well as the fact that the book sometimes contains quite atypical and interesting tasks, as well as tasks that later will be at FCE. The disadvantages include stinginess and even some lack of theoretical material.

Essential Grammar in Use,

English grammar in Use,

Oxford Practice Grammar,

Longman English Grammar Practice,

Cambridge Grammar for IELTS,

Advanced Grammar in Use,

Enterprise Grammar Books,

6. Longman English Grammar Practice

Level: Intermediate

Longman English Grammar Practice is designed for Intermediate level students. Can be used both for independent work and for working with a teacher. Contains 16 topics, each of which is divided into several subtopics. Each of the subtopics occupies a spread on which both theory and consolidation exercises are presented. The theory is presented in portions, followed by practical exercises. The last exercise is about using grammar in context, usually a fun story with an illustration that summarizes all the knowledge gained in the section. The book can be worked through in any order. Quite a good English textbook with a sufficient number of both theoretical and practical exercises. The disadvantages include a basic presentation of grammar, without nuances and details.

7. Cambridge Grammar for IELTS

Level: Upper-Intermediate

Cambridge Grammar for IELTS is intended for those wishing to take the exam of the same name. Designed for students to use independently, but can also be used as a textbook in the classroom. It also contains a diagnostic test to determine the level, which will allow you to highlight problem areas and focus on working on them. The lessons in the book are not related to each other, so they can be studied in any order. Consists of 25 lessons. Each lesson consists of 4 parts: “Context Listening”, which introduces the listener to new grammar and also trains listening comprehension; "Grammar", which contains theory; “Grammar exercises”, which contains exercises to study, and “Test practice”, which contains an examination task. On the plus side, one can note a fairly detailed presentation of grammar with examples, as well as “Grammar extra”, a section that provides additional interesting information on the topic, for example, the use of modal verbs in official documents. The downside is that the presentation of the grammar is complex and not very logically organized, which makes it difficult to understand. Each section contains 4 small grammar exercises to develop new grammar, which is clearly not enough to master the topic.

8.Advanced Grammar in Use

Level: Advanced

Advanced Grammar in Use is a book in the same series as Essential Grammar in Use and English Grammar in Use, also known as Murphy's Red and Blue, but in a break with tradition, the book is written by Martin Hewings. This book is intended for advanced English learners, mainly used independently to improve their English grammar. The structure is reminiscent of its predecessors, and consists of 120 sections, each of which takes up a page spread, with extensive theory on the left and exercises on the right. The presentation of the theory is quite simple and successful, contains a lot of useful information, exceptions and nuances of use, which will really allow you to improve your command of English. The sections are independent and can be completed in any order. First, it is recommended to take a test to identify problem areas (the test is also in the book), then begin to study the problem sections. The only drawback of this textbook is the insufficient number of exercises with a huge amount of theoretical information, therefore, in order to master a particular topic, you will have to use additional materials. Overall, a good textbook for self-improvement.

It is also worth paying attention to the series of grammar guides for children and adults:

9. Round-up

Level: Starter-Upper-Intermediate

The Round up series from the British publishing house Longman consists of 7 books. Intended for children and teenagers and probably well known to those children who studied English in post-Soviet times. This is a very popular series that is often used by schools and courses in teaching English as it has a number of advantages. Firstly, this is a very colorful publication, which is a definite plus for children. After all, when they see gray grammar books with monotonous exercises, their faces immediately change and, remembering the grammar exercises, they involuntarily shudder. Information is presented in the form of tables with examples and situations close to real ones. The exercises are intended for both written and oral training of grammatical structures; there are also exercises for group work. It can also be used for self-study of the English language, since the series contains detailed explanations for each section, as well as exercises for repeating the material covered. Grammar is presented in portions, each new topic is introduced by dialogue, often a joke, accompanied by a funny illustration. In general, this series is replete with illustrations and exercises that are interesting for children, but, on the other hand, provides a sufficient number of exercises for mastering new grammar. So, if you want to reduce your child’s stress in learning English, feel free to choose Round-up.

10. Enterprise Grammar Books

Level: Beginner-Intermediate

In general, the Enterprise series consists of a “Student’s Book”, “Workbook” and “Grammar Book” for additional grammar development, but can also be used independently. In my opinion, one of the best books for working on grammar, especially for Pre-intermediate, Intermediate and Upper-Intermediate levels. The series consists of 4 levels, the entire theory is presented at the beginning of the lesson, followed by exercises to develop it. There are a lot of exercises, they are quite dynamic and allow you to work well on new grammatical structures. After 2-3 lessons there are exercises for repetition and elaboration of several studied topics. The undoubted advantage of this particular series is exercises in paraphrasing and transforming one grammatical structure into another. A very good grammar book, more suitable for classroom use as it does not contain keys. At the end of the books there are tests to test the learned material.

In an interview, Michael Swan, a famous English grammarian, admitted that he often receives letters from English language learners asking them to eliminate the ending “-s” in the third person singular in the Present Simple, and one of my friends even suggested organizing a movement to eliminate confusion in English grammar, abolition of articles and most tenses. You can join this movement or write to Michael Swan, or you can simply learn grammar from one of the above-mentioned textbooks. It's up to you to decide and in any case I wish you success in learning English via Skype!

Big and friendly EnglishDom family

This material includes 2 exercises for developing writing skills and preparing for an essay in the Unified State Exam format:

Task 1 - rephrase the data in the statement task.

Task 2 - express your opinion on the statements and give two detailed arguments regarding the proposed plan.

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State Exam Essay Practice Tasks – Set 1: Paraphrasing and Arguments

Paraphrase the following essay statements.

Write at least two different phrases, using different beginnings. Some of the beginnings you can use are given below:

Nowadays there is a popular/widespread opinion that…

Nowadays a lot of people believe/ claim/ think/ suppose that…

Nowadays there is an ongoing debate about/ whether …

Now many young people consider…. to be...

The following fashion helps you show who you really are.

Ecotourism benefits the environment.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Public transport is better than using private cars.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Love is impossible without jealousy.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Nothing can ruin a true friendship.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Only money can make a person happy.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

It’s more important to have a well-paid job than an interesting job.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Computers may replace teachers in the future.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

For each of the statements above write a paragraph, expressing your opinion, giving two main arguments. Use the following structure when you are doing this task:

Express your opinion (e.g. Personally, I think...)
Provide your first main argument (e.g. Firstly, ...)
Provide a supporting argument based on your experience to illustrate your first main argument (e.g. In my experience, …)
Provide your second main argument (e.g. Secondly,/ Moreover…)
Provide a supporting argument based on your experience to illustrate your second main argument (e.g. As far as I am concerned,/ From my first-hand experience I know …)

Example:

Statement : Having one child is better than having many children.

Paragraph (opinion and arguments):

Personally, I suppose that having a big family surpasses having just one child in many ways. Firstly, children learn to co-operate and care for other people’s interests if they have siblings. In my experience, I have become more flexible, sociable and less selfish only because of my brother and sister. Having a sibling has improved my communication skills and have taught me not only to take, but also to give. Secondly, it is socially more responsible to have at least two children. As far as I know from our Social Studies and History lessons, societies have always welcomed having more than one child if they wanted to maintain the necessary rate of population growth. Moreover, nations are not caring about the number of children in the family soon begin to decrease rapidly.

We use although, despite, in spite of to talk about two contrasting ideas which were surprising or unexpected:

Although is followed by a clause and a comma:

Although he studied very hard, he didn’t pass the exam.
Even though is stronger than although:
He didn’t finish the job, even though he worked all night.

We can change the order of the two clauses:

He didn’t pass the exam, although he studied very hard.

In spite of/despite are followed by a noun, -ing, or the fact that:

Despite/In spite of her excellent qualifications, Carol didn’t get the job.
Despite/In spite of having excellent qualifications, Carol didn’t get the job.
Despite/In spite of the fact that she had excellent qualifications, Carol didn’t get the job.

Again, we can change the order of the two clauses:

Carol didn't get the job, despite/in spite of her excellent qualifications.

Contrast

We use but, however, nevertheless, yet, on the other hand, whereas, while to show a contrast. But is a simple way of expressing a contrast and is followed by a clause:

Jack works very hard but James is really lazy.

nevertheless and however contrast two ideas but the ideas must be in separate sentences or be separated by a semi-colon:

I loved the film. However/Nevertheless, most of the critics gave it a bad review.
I loved the film; however/nevertheless, most of the critics gave it a bad review.

We can change the position of however and nevertheless:

I loved the film. Most of the critics, however, gave it a bad review.
I loved the film. Most of the critics gave it a bad review however.

while and whereas are followed by a clause:

John loves playing outdoors all day, while/whereas Harry likes playing computer games.

reason

We use as, because and since to show the reason or the cause of something and these are followed by a clause:

We didn’t tell him about the damage to his car as/because/since we knew he would be angry.
We use because of, on account of, owing to, due to, as a result of to show the reason or cause of something and these come before a noun or noun phrase:
They didn’t go to the beach because of/on account of the bad weather

Notes:

due to follows the verb to be:

The delay in the train service was due to snow on the tracks.

owing to is quite formal:

Owing to the lack of interest, the meeting has been cancelled.
On account of usually means ‘as a result of something bad:
He had to sell his house on account of losing his job and not having any money.

Purpose

We use in order to and so as to to express purpose. They are used before a verb:

He started jogging in order to/so as to get fit.
in order that and so that are used before a clause:
He started jogging in order that/so that he could get fit.

Result

We use consequently, therefore and as a result to express the result of a previous action. They either start a new sentence or follow and:

I didn’t pass my driving test, and consequently I had to take it again.
John won £1 million on the Lottery. As a result, he was able to buy a bigger house.

Addition

We use and, in addition, furthermore, also, moreover and what's more to express addition:

He bought a pair of shoes, a shirt and a coat.
He found out that he had passed his exams. In addition, he learned that he had got into university.
When Janet got to the airport, she found that she had left her passport at home. Furthermore, she couldn’t find her ticket.