a sport you would like to try.
an object that is very important to you.
a dish you can cook.
an actor whose films you like.
a time when you were proud of yourself.
a place where you would like to go.
a person that you look up to.
a decision which was hard to make.
a day when you were very happy.
Relative clauses - Exercise 6
Student A, look at role card 1. Student B, look at role card 2. Make sure you understand the words. Take turns defining the words to your partner using relative clauses. Example:
A: It's a place where you can borrow books.
B: A library.
Role card 1 - Student A
1. Define the following words to your partner using relative clauses: waiter, dictionary, helmet, umbrella, kidnapper, telephone, rush hour, professor, desert, butterfly.
2. Listen to your partner's definitions and guess the words.
Role card 2 - Student B
1. Listen to your partner's definitions and guess the words.
2. Define the following words to your partner using relative clauses: burglar, camera, memory stick, bicycle, skyscraper, robot, basketball, winter, supermarket, wolf.
Answer key: relative clauses
Answer key - Relative clauses - Exercise 1
An advocate is a person who can help you get information about your rights. defining, who cannot be omitted
That is the kind of house that everyone would love to live in. defining, that can be omitted
Beijing, which is one of the world's most populated cities, is the capital of China. non-defining, which cannot be omitted
Do you know anyone who can lend me a bike? defining, who cannot be omitted
The food that they served at the reception was delicious. defining, that can be omitted
This poem, which was written by Robert Frost, is one of my favourites. non-defining, which cannot be omitted
The blue whale, which is the largest existing mammal, is an endangered species. non-defining, which cannot be omitted
The man whose seat I had accidentally taken offered to sit somewhere else. defining, whose cannot be omitted
Was it you who called the ambulance? defining, who cannot be omitted
Alex, who had never flown before, was terribly nervous. non-defining, who cannot be omitted
The commas were missing in the following sentences: 3, 6, 7, 10.
Answer key - Relative clauses - Exercise 2
The beer which/that/- I drank last night was the best I had ever had.
She should apologise for what she said.
Correct
Correct
On Monday, which was wet and windy, we stayed in the hotel.
Correct
I was very upset about what I heard.
Do you know a shop which/that sells good wine?
Do you know a shop where they sell good wine?
Look! That's the guy whose son has won the Best Student award. (no comma)
Correct
Answer key - Relative clauses - Exercise 3
Everyone who/that heard about the murder was shocked.
That is the boy with whom Cindy used to go out.
It was the kind of day when everything goes wrong.
Nothing happened for a long time, which made me feel worried.
He will be punished for what he has done.
Ryan, whose car had been towed away, had to take a bus.
This is the place where the accident happened.
His last movie, in which he plays the main character, was great.
It was his tie which/that made him stand out.
Kathy called her mother, who was very upset.
Answer key - Relative clauses - Exercise 4
The new pancake recipe which/that/- I tried this morning was really delicious.
She wrote an angry e-mail to her boss, who was very upset about it.
First they told us to go to room 105, where we had to wait for two hours.
Gabriel, who is a very helpful person, agreed to do the washing up.
What I need is a few days off.
They were very silent, which was unusual.
The story is about Hans, who works for an international music company.
The story is about a man who works for an international music company.
It was George who broke the window.
Have you been to the new street food restaurant which/that is down the street?
Chapter 8: Inversion
Guiding questions: inversion
What is inversion?
Subject-verb inversion
Subject-auxiliary inversion
Revision questions: inversion
Exercises: inversion
Guiding questions: inversion
What is inversion?
Which parts of the sentence can be inverted?
What is the main function of inversion?
What are the two types of inversion?
What do questions and inversion have in common?
When do we use inversion with negative adverbials?
When do we use inversion in conditionals?
What is inversion?
Inversion is the reversal of the normal word order in a sentence or phrase. There are two types of inversion:
Subject-verb inversion, where the subject and the main verb switch positions and the word order becomes verb + subject: On the top of the hill stood an old oak tree.
Subject-auxiliary inversion, where the subject and the auxiliary switch positions and the word order becomes auxiliary + subject (+ verb): Hardly had I arrived home when my phone rang.
When does the bus leave?
You're hungry, aren't you?
Subject-verb inversion
In this type of inversion, the subject and the main verb switch positions, so the verb comes before the subject.
Subject-verb inversion after place adverbials
Subject-verb inversion in direct speech
Subject-verb inversion in news headlines
Subject-verb inversion after place adverbials
When an adverb or an adverbial expression of place comes in the initial position (at the beginning of the sentence), the subject and verb are inverted:
Down the hill
rolled the children
.
Round the corner
was a nice café
.
This is a rhetorical device used mainly in formal and literary styles; however, it may also occur in everyday conversation: