Arxiu de l'autor: hbarbera

Defining and non-defining relative clauses

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Defining relative clauses:  to postmodify a noun – to make clear which person or thing we                                             are talking about.

Non-deifining relative clauses: to tell us more about a person or thing.

READY TO PRACTISE THEM? CLICK ON A PICTURE TO START!

A RELATIVE PRONOUN EXERCISE

FIVE GAMES TO ENJOY LEARNING THE RELATIVE PRONOUNS

 

“such as” and “like”

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Like Such As

“Tom enjoys desserts such as brownies, cheesecake, and macaroons”

or

“Tom enjoys desserts like brownies, cheesecake, and macaroons”? 

Both are acceptable for many grammarians. But, what do people usually do?

Characters like Cinderella, Dracula, and Frankenstein continue to appear in movies and novels. (The “like” tells us characters that are comparable to Cinderella, Dracula, and Frankenstein continue to appear in movies and novels.)

Jim would love to travel to several European cities such as London, Florence, and Athens. (The “such as” tells us these are specific cities Jill wants to see. They are examples of cities he wants to see.)

Like says that what follows is intended as a reference to indicate the group of things you’re talking about but is itself not included in the group.
Such as means that what follows are examples of the things that are part of the group you’re talking about.

 

Academy Island

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A game for B1 level students.      An unknown alien life form lands on earth and has to learn English to get by in a range of social situations. Players of Academy Island have to progress through different difficulty levels by helping the alien use English in a range of situations such as shopping in a bakery and visiting places such as an art gallery and library. The game is designed to help learners improve their English language ability, in a fun way.

However, although, despite

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Do some exercises about the linking words. If you need some grammar references, read the text bellow.

Exercise 1

Exercise 2

Exercise 3

But / However

But is more informal than however. You can usehowever at the beginning of a sentence, but you can’t use but at the beginning of a sentence (in written English).

  • I tried to lift the box, but it was too heavy for me.
  • I tried to lift the box. However, it was too heavy for me.

Although / Even though

These linking words are the same, and they are both followed by a subject + verb.

  • Although I exercise every day, I can’t seem to lose any weight.
  • She still loves him, even though he treated her very badly.

Despite / In spite of

These linking words are the same, and they are followed by a noun or a gerund (-ing form of the verb, which can function as a noun).

  • Our plane arrived on time in spite of the delay during takeoff.
  • We won the game despite having two fewer players.

Despite the fact that / in spite of the fact that

These phrases are followed by a subject + verb.

  • Our plane arrived on time in spite of the fact that it left 30 minutes late.
  • We won the game despite the fact that we had two fewer players.

While / Whereas / Unlike

These linking words are used to make contrasts. While and whereas are usually used between two complete phrases. Unlike is typically used with only a subject.

  • I like tennis, while my brother prefers bowling.
  • This cell phone plan costs $0.05 per minute, whereas that one gives you up to 800 minutes per month for a fixed price.
  • His boss allows him to work from home, unlike mine.
  • She’s very friendly, unlike her sister.