Common Mistakes at IELTS Advanced

dulie Moore

CAMBRIDGE

ow to avoid them


vn:

cciitue
Pee ARS His estos
Fa

ee

eee

rae

i

Re

Common

mistakes at —
IELTS Advancef
--. and how to avoid thei

—

1. Aictes: the before general
2 Axtices:
alan before ndun
3. When dotuse capitalleters?
Test1

7

8

4 When doluse when, ifand whether?

10

5 Punctuation: commas with discourse mates
using apostrophes
6 Punctuatio
n: 12

ss available from the British Library
'no responsiblity
or the persistence or
third-party internet websites referred to in
Eguarantee that any content on such websites is,
‘Information regarding prices, travel
given in this work are correct at
Came Unvesty Pres does not guarantee
n thereafter.

Test2

12

7 Common spelling mistakes
8

Spelling:
one word or two?

9° Adjective forms
Yest3

4g

15

16

18

400° UengprepoatlaaEwittiteOE

11. Using prepositions:
after verbs
21
12 _ Using prepositions: describing trends and changes

Test4

23

13 Describing statistics: using prepositions
14 Describing statistics: nouns 26
15 Describing statistics: verbs
27

Test 5 2s
16 ‘Number and amount

25

.


" Articles: the before general
1. Tick the correct sentence in each pair.

1 Many peope are worried about the bad effects of ob
Db Many people are worved about the bad effects of mob
2 a `Weneed folook otfoclors sách os the molebif of
'. Weneedlolockot
foclorssích os rolcbif of bedfhooe
We use the before nouns which describe
a general type of thing)
example of that thing
These are problems
for students living away from the family
We dont know the effects of such chemicals on the body.
:

The role ofthe student at university level varies greatly from country
to coun
Most of our business is carried out over the telephone.

|nouns: habits, customs and practices

(nouns:
eft, influence and impact

sỉ
Britain, British or Briton?

46

45

‘Theis also uted before abstract nouns which describe a situat
ora change. These words are often followed by of something. a ion,DI
There isa problem with the availability of clean water in some villages.
The distribution ofincome is uneven in most countries.
On the whole, the standard of livingis better in urban areas
‘Many residents complained about the frequency of bus services.
This advance was brought about by the developmen
of antibiotics
t.
He made a number of recommendations for the improvem
of staffent
training.
ye We

use the developmentlimprovement, etc. of somethingto descr
a general
ibe
process of change, but developments/improvements, etc. insomething to desi

52

specific changes:
We ty to keep up-to-date with new developments in information technology.

2 Correct the mistake below.

Dosis fabled
ava essdt
Inpoanc

Doctors always stress

3 Are these sentences right or wrong? Correct those:
A diet high in cholesterol is bad for heart.
‘The introduction of computerised systems led toan increase
in
‘We all benefit from development of new technologies.
‘We were unhappy about quality of the food available,
Last year the airline saw a 20% improvementin d
There have been changes in the relat

é

|

‘When do| use capital letters?

| mecca

secre

1a She explained that Thal food offen rexpines & ot Of
ingredient
1b She explcined that thai food offen reqires alot of ngrecints.
2. a. Sixty percent of students enroled a the universfy ane male
Sixty percent of students eneoled atthe University are me,
Capital letters are always used for nouns in the following groups:
‘+ countries: Germany, the United States, Britain, the Czech

e phrases:
bs (very, really, quite, etc.) in thes
ernment posts
gov
r
senio
in
ing
fof women work

with:
seuls
to be caref
phra

gre: [agree with you to a certain degree.
We have a wide range of books to choose from.and wornen
numb:er of men
ount
equal
‘numberlanam
e:nts
of patie
ntag
certion
l propo
smaler
proportiona/p

towns, cities, states and regions: Tokyo, Paris, Texas, New South
nationalities, ethnic groups and religions ~referringto peol,
a
from a county, egion or culture:
o
You can hear he's
Can you speak Chinese?
a Buddhist temple
Ta lke to learn more about
months and days of the week: October, Sth April, Tuesday, S
+ Capital leters are not used forthe seasons: spring summer,
+ names of organisations and institutions: the United Nations, the!
‘Where a word like museum, university, station ox hospitals
institution, it has a capital letter: Harvard Universing Karachi
they do,not
However, when these words are not part of name

They built a new 100-bed hospital in the provincial capital.
He first joined the company in 2008.
the Third
the
Also remember: the Earth (but not World,
country, AIDS, CDIDVD (plural CDs/DVDs)

2 Correct the mistake below.

"in the same order to form correct sentences, adding any
or prepositions.
‘troublemakers / were / responsible for / problems.
important / role / education/ nowadays.

| 3 Add the correct punctuation, including capital letters, in
a clock as
visitors to china should remember not to give
these customs are common in muslim countries suchas
she started work for microsoft in july 2005
{went to university in geneva in switzerland
‘we took a taxi from york station to the royal
this is a photo of me on wall street when we
the red cross works throughout
the world not


trlcle: gian, the or— (no ardicle).
concentration of acid in a/thel- stoounmaccedh..
bly long time for the results to beityannas well as an/thel{improvements in althe/— qual

‘of businesses fail in the first year.
two cars.
‘athe! significant number of homes hadalloc
ated to health
aid
in a/thele- proportion of
‘sharp declin
people.
older
for
ole of an/thel- extended family in caring
.
have succeeded to a/the/- certain extent
-althel- basic education.
‘deals with a/the!- recruitment of new staff
of these figures?
ent communication skils.
s with articles (the, a/an) and capital
of mistakeer
Janumb
‘and correct them.

¬.

cai
3. Put the words below together to make three
punctuation and extra words (such
as articles or preposit
1 odile is french she was born lyon 21 september 1968 she.
moved britain 20 years ago and now has british

citizenship she speaks english fluently but she still has
quite strong french accent
corinne lives with her husband steve near melbourne
australia steve is australian but corinne has german
mother and american father she was born united states
and met steve while they were both working europe

andré is travel photographer he lives switzerland buthe
spends large part of the year travelling around world last
summer he went on long trip south america to photograph
ancient inca temples

yarn,

er for Refugees (UNHCR) was established on
‘was set up to protect refugees throughout World
problems. It has its headquarters in
hhas a staff of around 6,540 in
safeguard rights and well-being of
n of the 20.8 milion people which UNHCR
pecially in countries in africa and asia. More
ug Đội
are in europe and united
nth

Rewrite the sentences below using the word given and
+
necessary to keep the meaning the same.
‘The council wants to encourage new businesses to develop.
KH.

development.
is for
His main role is to assess how good the service
ae
ar
quality
transpo
goods
of
amount
the
in
increase
an
been
has
‘There
—
Ề
transportation .
on whether:
depends
often
work
to
return
‘Whether mothers
—
_
‘

:
availability
tourism
that
fact
the
to
due
are
‘Many of the changes
“ae
growth


| Punctuation: commas with discourse

whether

-...
"X
rg nena
sic
Ben aniversities
should charge tuition fees

‘an eventor situation that we believe will happen:
‘finish my studies. (expect to finish.)
airport. (We expect the person to arrive.)
ive
atthe

jyou arr
out a hypothetical possibility, especially in conditional sentences:
sift was a real emergency.
sare any problems. (Problems are only a possibility)

lifLasked you a few questions about the accident?

re we are considering
two
possibilities:
to have the beef or the lamb.
shave to get part-time jobs whether or not they want to.

‘certain verbs (and nouns) which involve considering two options:
gto discuss whether they should take further action.
iswhether immigrants should adopt local customs.

1 Tick the correct sentence in each pair.
1 @ Inco lusion
the world population is expanding at an a
b_Inconclasion the world population is expending at an
2a Tr welook for exanpl, a sport in schools.
b Tf welock, for exanple, at sport in schools
Discourse markers are words or phrases which show how ideas
‘They are often separated from the rest of the text by commas,

‘We usually use a comma after a phrase or an adverb which

In addition, many disabled people suffer discrimination at work.
On the other hand, the unemployment rate has fallen.

in Af
Water is particularly scarce in arid regions, for examplefor instance mores
spend
to
People who livein cold countries, such alike Norway, have
-Where an adverb describes an adjective, commas are not needed:
This was matched by a similarly dramatic increase in Maye
However careful you are, accidents can always happen.

2 Correct the mistake below.

Inevitably there's nays
something you forge.

{t's usefulor just a waste of money,
they could give us a breakdown
of the marks,
eeeeee«.e.ee
0F not he had the disease,

rs

Finally, local councils need to consider the cost of eeyeling schemes.
5
Unfortunately, there were no more tickets available.
Similarly, animals kept outdoors are also vulnerable to infection.
‘We also use commas around certain words and phrases in the middle
‘This problem can, however, be solved quite so simply.
There are more jobs in the city, but, of course, the cost of living sn

Which option you choose depends, to a certain extent, on your budget,

3 Add commas in the sentences below where needed.
1 What happens if for example you forget your password?
‘To sum up I like to recap the main advantages and
Statistics can however be misleading,
Low-lying countries such as Bangladesh are p
Furthermore not everyone will be able to afford
Contact sports like rugby will inevitably:
priced house in the city centre
Assimilarly
‘We will of course reimburse any travel

l


contractions - where a leter or letters have been missed out.
‘used in informal writing or to represent spoken language.

for ĐỘ)
te ease er
15 we need to consid

send the goods by firs class post.
dy gone through passport control, so Tcouldn't go back.
like to change the booking.

Uneray, webu lod for oameple a ways
‘such a5 rook insulation and double-glazinga
Poreote ưng to perme Lt toll He

owerbutlaings

shas) been invited to the party?
is this? (whose = belonging to who)

Stoonally its much easier for governments of rich
veguistions for industry without their econonses. st

( have not) been announced yet.
ithe answer or Ido not know the answer. (not Hdenot-knew-sheanswer}

"`...
tu? (thế {atuvø, However portant this i
Underline the best word or phrase to complete each sentence.
m
the booking’
you could confir
1 I would be grateful when/iffwhether
o
who'stuhoselwh
patient
a
with
deal
to
way
the best s
2. What'
3. It's important to start saving towards a pension naw so that!
secure iffas/when you retire.

have:
ether
Please don't hesitate to contact me ifithat/whyou
1 don't know yet ifthat/whether or not tbe ableto come.
Cheap airlines have brought benefits. Such as/For ex
.
longer only for the rich.
i
of
50
lose
will
it
that
announced
has
‘The bank


e
rises will cause real difficulties. 5 (especially singl
r- Feal difficulties
to surgery for some patient
. for some patients
i
hbins are not feasible. (such as those in flats)

‘of precautions we would recommend. (therefore)
recommend,
es

extent)
for cutting emissions. (toa certain
cutting emissions,
instance)
to suche infections. (for
-wulnerabl
such infections,
:
unavoidable,
{the box to complete the advice below. Use one word in each gap_

from
ly,
gain more
ure and, ultimate

-You get back!

“a We have becone very dependant on computers
ers
ent
on comput
} Webave becone very depend
went fo achios
goo
what
of
red
clea
2. You reed fo have

1 You need to have a clear idea of what you want to acheive.
4
include:
‘Nouns which are commonly miss, pelt
TE
moi
faccomsynodation, benefit, country environment, government, percentage,

mme has two matn meanin
tn British English, the noun prograof session
s, a TV programme = aT broadcast si
7 ining programme =a series er softwar
e
comput
=
{gut a computer program
“Words containing the ie or ei vowel combination often cause problems. British es
remember: “T before E except after”
Wiuldren learn a rhyme to help them hygiene
sehievetachieverent, believebelef, ceiling thygleta, retievelretrieval
ut receivereceipt, deceiveldecet,
noun and practises the verb form:
tn British English, practice is the spelling ofthe
Now they can put into practice what they have learnt.

{rl be a good opportunity to practise speaking English.
‘The adjectives dependent and independent are spelt with -entat the end:
‘The degree of influence is dependent on a number offactorson. someone else financial:
‘Dependant is a noun referring to a person who depends
‘The company provides private healthcare for workers and their dependants.

3 Correct any spelling errors in the sentences below.
enced workloress
1 beleive that successful companies need anonexperi
enviromental projects:
We need to look at goverment expenditure owners.
ant
Food hygine is a major concern for restaurinvestor
s.
foreign
on
‘Many farmers are dependent
les
poorest
the
‘This money should be spent to benifit are vital countar
dev
for
Strong health and educational programes class d
¢
‘The propotion of women who acheive first
Everyone has the right to practise their eligion.
18


the correct sentence in each pair.
11a Nery university students have a port=tine jobs
1b. Nary university students havea part tne jobs
2. These Jobs comot be done by unexperienced young people
1b. These obs cannot be done by inexperienced

young people.

te, wilde, workforce, workplace
websi
is
ljesp
on
Tfep
ome, outside, overall, overcome
thing, someone, sometimes
nowadays, trowghout, whereas

hich are written with a hyphen include:

fie te.
words include:
h ae writ en as separate
spend a lot of money on clothes.
have decreased in the past five years.
of
ds pollution
‘even though she knows its bad for her health.

his 7 ar

‘has been delayed. (= an adverb meaning perhaps)

‘iain reason for the change may be financial (= a verb phrase)
Nobody seems to talk
face-to-face now-a-days.

‘There are many compound adjectives in English which are usually
‘good-looking, good-natured, well-known, well-educated, well-paid
badly-behaved, bad- tempered, ill-equipped, hard-working, easy-going
short-lived, short-tempered, short-term, long-term, long-lasting
{fully-qualified, full-scale, full-size, full-time, part-time, time-co
‘Many phrases describing the age, size or length of something are form
‘way. When they are used before a noun, they are hyphenated:
six-year-old boy
He is six years old.
‘three-month training course
‘The course lasts three months,
‘a two-bedroom
flat
4 flat with two bedrooms

‘Adjectives are also formed using prefixes, especially
to describe opposites:
dis- dissatisfied, disorganised
‘over- overcrowded, overpriced
inexpensive, inexperienced, inappropriate post- post-chool, postgraduate
im- immoral, immature, impolite
pre- pre-school, prearranged
ron- nonexistent, non-smoking
un- unaware, unsuitable,
tr Some of these adjectives are spelt with
a hyphen and some as one words check a
dictionary for the correct spelling.
2 Correct the mistake below.
Don't you think thats

bit unappropriate for
2 job interview?

nthe compounds
and phrases in the sentences below.
they were satisfied, where as only 60% of men were happy.
nd every thing was neatly arranged,
are due to changes in lifestyle,
health and well being of all our residents.
re the outbreak of the civil war.
n of people living in the country side,
in school should be compulsory.
{through out the country.

:

Dontt you think.
3 Underline the correct word.

The figure rose steadily over a 30 year/30-year period.
The stalls sell a variety of non-expensivelinexpensive
snacks.
He was a polite, well-educated/good-educated
man.

storeys house.
The family live in a simple, single-storey/single
She is punctual, conscientious and hard work/hard-working.

Everyone needs a healthy, well-balanced/well balanced diet.

All supervisors must attend a week-long/one week long sa

Many tours onto te mountains wearing
Is

ini


2 Underline the correct words in the text below.

Stayfit QB

(

The Stayfit Health Club offers a wide range of fitness (1) progre

suit your (2) lifestyle/tfestyle. Choose from a package of
cone of our (3) fully-trained/full-trained instructors or joi
@ Z armed, I was tod by a rather urpite

as only a single room availble. 1 then
Fit was a Fifth Fox room and the Ft was
I had « runber of heavy bags, no body
“ro thaug
me.

Larva at my room, I realised that I had
key and had to retum 40 the reception
uramract
\ Thế

Whno I Finally Found. some ore Ảo exchange the key and
gd fo.gct wto my room, 1 foud that it was cramped
sth no phone a tdevson as advertised on your

(4) twenty-five/twenty five different exercise classes
we run e

you can brush up on your serves or (5) practice/practise your t

(6) fullsize/full size indoor tennis courts.

Apply now for a 20% discount*
(7) 12 months/12-month membership j

“hvala (6) dependent dependanton demand. `

Rowrlte vhem with appropriate spaces between
words and any neck
punctuation.
1
'goodlookingeasygoing.
.30yearoldmanseekswel!
educatedyoungwoman.
attractivewellequippedtwobedrao
mholidaycottagesetinbreathiakings
‘ountrysidenonsmokersonlyplease
‘tweatyourselftoaonetoone

bint

hosing prepositions:

after verbs

(1 Tiek the correct sentence in each pair.

inthe US spend nore money on research and development
|| 1 'b Compares
Gomponies in the US spend nove noney forcesearch and development
2. a Wiehave fo provide doctors with the resoarces thay need fo do the obs `
| 1b Wehave to provide doctors the resources they need to do than jobs
are a number
of common verb + object
+ preposition combi
ng | ‘There
You
can
check
the
patterns
used
with
a
particular
verb in a good!
screen, such asa television:
+
spend
+

timelmoney
+
on
something
internet.
the
the tain times on
The average person spends £100 a month on transport.
|
isavailable on the university website.
Also:
Expenditure on/Spendingon education has risen.
‘music and store it on your computer.
invest
+ money+ in something
every night on the TV news.
It up to local government to invest money in improved leisure facilities.
Also: The protesters want more state investment in agriculture.
5
ing: No one explained the reason for the delay.
provide
+
something
+
for
someone
`
|
ig something: There are many reasons for choosing
a small car

The
project
will
provide
employment
for
young
artists
and
performers.
was forced
to leave early for family reasons.
| ‘Also: There has been progress in the provision of facilities for the disabled.
3
usedto introduce a reason for something. Due to already contains the | provide+ someone + with something
We aim to provide the children with an opportunity fo experiencea
sowe do not use due to + a reason:
help + someone+ (out) + with something
She visits rwice a week to help her grandmother out with the housework.
‘Also: Some students need extra help with reading and writing,
| 2 Correct the mistake below.

On average, how much

‘below (in the same order) to create sente
Addnces.
any necessary
‘articles, and put the verbs in an appropriaform.
te
ƒ copy | role models / they / see / television

performance / personal / reasons
/ publi
c
/ safety concerns

‘There is one incorrect or missing preposition in each sentence
‘changes or additions necessary to correct the sentences.
Some companies spend huge sums in advertising,
‘The new labels provide customers better information about ing
have a problem Ithink you can help me.
‘The party promised to increase investment
for education.
‘There are no facilities provided to passengers with young
Spending for photographic film has dropped dramatically.
‘There's a porter in reception to help guests their bags.
21


TEST 4

41. Complete the news stories below with one prepositi
in on
each:

‘The number of births in Scotland has
risen to its highest level since 1999,
according to the Registrar General
Figures suggest that more than $4,000
babies were born in 2005, a rise
()........

420 births on the previous
Year ~ that’s an increase (2) nou
1658
than 1%. The increase (3)
births
| | ts tower chi Perea ct
| _ almost 396 between 2003 and 2004. The
Regist
General forrar
Scotland said: “The

in the bird population.

‘cuts in the level of spendingon the elderly.
m
‘ation, et. in something
‘improvement
in health
s care,

‘changes in people’ lifestyles.
Vi s dũng
of a change „+ of + a number
the result ....
nga change or——.:

ductiontrse,
etc. of + number
\areduction 0ƒ20% in energy costs as a result ofthe measures.
experienced

listeners to a total audienceof2.1 million,
Mime
:

|

recent upturn (S)..........the birth ratejs
encouraging but it may be easing off”

thethe numbe
numb
:
eh
TH
|
and heart disease, two of
Scotlan
| three causes
of death. There was also a
J fall @) soon the number
of both

|
|

marriages and divorces,

ben e a slight rise inlofto the number of men employed.
thr tobe a fall by/offin approximately 30% over the next decade.
fPYDs has led toa decline otto video sales

bylofin only 0.5% during the past year.
ofitolin educational levels.

2 There are 10 mistakes with prepositions in the paragraph bel— ow
or missing prepositions. Find the mistakes and correct them. either
In the past few years, there has been a dramatic increase of the number of bi
airlines which offer cheap flights throughout Europe. Ifyou look in the in
will nd some amazing deals at their websites. These ‘no
airlines
few facilities their passengers, but when they're only spendfils
ing
‘most people are happy with a basic service. This reduction of thea fewcosteuros
of E
{travel has, inevitably, led to an explosion of the number of people
who
can
take foreign holidays. The growth to air travel and changes to patterns:
Withi
n Europe have had both positive and negative impacts Ithas
ee
|| investment for
a d local economies
many e
regional airports and booste
environmental impact of those extra air miles?


ribing statistics: using p

from five people who have chosen to give up their cars, but

to form correct sentences.
sare in the incorrect order. Rewrite them

4. Tick the correct sentence in each patt,
1 a The chont shows that only 18% men work ess than 151
1b The chart shows that ony 18% of nen work ess than 15
2. a TF welook at the Figores for people between 20 and 30 ye
J we look at the figures for people between 20 to 30
‘There are several key prepositions which are used when
+ X% of something
(Only 28% of customers said that they were satisfied with
+ between Xand¥
The rate rose dramatically
between july 2005 and February.
the figure/percentageltota, etc. for a group or category
Looking at the figures for winter and sumer .
‘we compare the percentages for skilled and unskilled workers
‘The average income for government employees is...
ata levelirate
Inflation has remained at roughly the same level over a umber of years.
They can obtain loans at cheaper rates.
bbe highest | come top / rank second, etc. with X
Footbal scored highest with 68% of the vote.
aris is second in the table with 76 million passengers per year
ot the mistake below.

80%
dogs
Sald they preferred

3 Are these sentences right or wrong? Correct those with

1 France has the greatest number at 12 million, followed by!
‘The percentage fluctuated between 3.5 to 4%.
‘The total value is approximately 18,000 yen from the eu
Data is only available of the UK.
1
The drop-out rate reached a peak of 18% in 2001.
‘The table shows the annual usage for
“Africa was the least popular destination
12% interviewees had consulteda
doct


lescribing statistics: verbs.

‘Tick the correct sentence in each palr.
n
1 a Thebith rate has reduced over the post fen years.
b The beth rate has chopped over the past fen years.
2. a The graph shows a risen the ranber of accidents
b The graph represents a rise inthe ranber of accidents
Common verbs used to describe graphs, charts and diagrams
‘The chartlgraph shows levels of post-school education in four:

ral noun to describe part ofa total, expressed as parts of 100:
‘af households with more than one car.
d to describe part ofa total:

co andSằ

Mr.
some other measures: |
fast something happens,
n orhow
`
cốoếễêố
sa
vate, the birthideath rate, the exchangelinterestrate |
(the vertical axis and the horizontal axis)
„
andalineorcurveshowinga trend.
tics in visual form, often as coloured lines ›;
‘chart) or as sections ofa circle (a pie chart).
something, usually numbers, organised within a
{going across ++) and columns (going down |).
is a general word for something represented in a

‘The chartigraph compares average working hours in the UKand
see from the chartigraph that the number of visitors peaks in
We can

statisties
to describe
verbs used suggest
Common
are healthier
areas include:
in rural
people and
that figures

Ty varirics/igures
The figure will increase further, reaching6 million in 2020. (not:
Demand rose by 48% in just 2 years. (not eieed by-48)
‘Time spent with the family dropped from 21% to just 6%. (not
sz Verbs such as rise, drop, decline and fall describe a change which!
‘A person or organisation can raise or reduce something:
‘The Bank of England has raised interest rates.

‘achat

a

The pie chart shows proportion af an average
day a student spends on different activites.

‘The number of visitor

student spends on different activities. 3a Complete the sentences using an appropriate verb.

_...........

|

the rate/percent
of fights
age delayed by more than minutes.
the unemploymentiunemployed rates in six European60 countr
ies, |
artillusthetrat
plannes

ed layout of the buildings.
a Seventy percentagelperce
succes
nts rate.
t proportion/rate of people aged 65 and over.
films increase the criminallerime rate.

‘The population ofthe city

From the chart, we can
The inflation rate has
_ its lowest point in 10 years.
‘The chart...
. the amount of water consumed pet
Diagram 2.4
sown the life cycle of a butterfly.
The results of the survey
vue that most people are:
public transport.
‘The percentage of households without
a phoRê .......
‘To combat global warming,
we all need to .....
š
consume,


water slide = least popular ride ~ only 2%.
‘The wer slide was te eas poplar re who
chart shows % employees work late approx.

figu
show re
averags
e no, holiday skilled &
rate tooth decay dropped days
10%
990
we can see § children watch more1960-1
than
4hrsTV/day
Zurich = 2" in table most expensive European cities:
1st graph compares % single-parent families diferent

‘Vocabulary extension, There are many different words used
English

, Use a dictionary if necessary to put the words in the bxto i
column below.

Er. TLthen (10).................
levels towards the end of the year.
“TEMAMTTASONE

i

of our water usage
and cleaning. Then showering
‘next, accounting for around
- ~- of our daily consumption.

cconmpimperpcton

Re e3
ening
sven
Coueyas

{Incorrect prepositions or add prepositions where nece
ssary in the
below.

'dropped dramatically between
shortages of language teachers in2000al tolevels2008.,
ishows the average rates of payin workers in four key indus
tries,
pecupy only 5% senior posts in the banking
sect
or.
seame top in the survey at a 75% approval rating.
‘overall budget is spent on training?
Ho be rising in a rate of 1.8mm per year,

dramatically
downturn
3
gradually
boost

jump
trough

th
arp
gain

|Words to describe a | Words to describe a
—_/movementor rend. | movementend
s
pwards ZX
downwards \.
|(nouns and verbs) | (nouns and verbs)
a


somparisons

bl fo a growing
anount of people
ocessbl fo a growing ranber of people
the nanber of people who vied the galery each doy.
niser of people who vated the galery each cou.
-ofbefore
a plural countable noun:
the number of hoursipassengers/peoplelschoolsitimes, et
oftbefore
an uncountable noun:
he amount ofenergyfeod!information/moneyitimelwast, etc
number oflamount ofto talk generally about a quantity
fpassengers carried each year has risen gradually.
the amount
of water we waste.

before an adjective + number oflamount oft

‘correct sentencein each pair,
‘rate of union nenbership rose to 26.2%,

b The figure is now theee fies higher than in 1968,
are a number of common words and phrases that
we use 10
ôcompare something (to/with something)
â The graph compares the crime rates in Japan and the US.
“itsimpossible 1o compare modern films with those made maybe 20
“Many have compared her voice to Aretha Franklins. ( they have said
‘compared tolwith something
‘Women’s income rose by 31% compared to only 13% for men. (not
‘incomparison (to(with something)
US workers get very little holiday in comparison with their European
“After 1wo weeks in a tent, the simple tittle hotel seemed luxuriousi
{(draw!make) a comparison between two things
There is no comparison between my life here and the way of life in my

"Its impossible to draw a direct comparison between the two conflicts.
+ something is bigger/higher/lower/more important, ete. than somethingelse

are used to describe the actual quantities
Percentage, proportion, rate, etc. are used
measurements as part of a total:
ge of students with blue eyes is 25%.
‘of students with blue eyes is 6.

Prague has more churches than any other European city.

-mething is double/half, etc. that of something else
fritain’s population density is double that of China. (noteeraperads9)
ẤT uc: the mistake below.
inthe amount of
butterflies this year,

“Fifi really quite big
country
has lowest people living in poverty?
‘were asked about time they spend doing different activities,
‘customers who were attracted into the shop by special offers.
Ieisure time spent with friends and with
generate large money for the tourism industry, family members.
total overseas students at UK universities has risen,

4 Are the sentences right or wrong? Correct those which are wrong.

1 66.6 million people travelled abroad in 2007, comparing to 64.6 million in:

Non-smokers’ risk of heart attacks is roughly half that of people who
In comparative with other writers, she uses very simple, everyday!

‘There is no comparison to watching a band on DVD and seeing’
‘The pass rate was over 70% in 2005, compare to 62% in 1990.
‘Many more crimes were committed by males compared tof
‘The article draws a comparison between his writing and that
Population growth is quite high in Madagascar at 3.31%
Mauritius at 0.89%.

2
“".-ae
i

in Japan.:
29% different
thelr families,
lve withbetween
sities
areto very
which st
two thingsin contra
isa contrast
.^<

ays a year from work. Good sleepers, 2) on the
“contrarylin contrast, miss only 2. days on average.
“This chart (3) contrastvcomparesthe average
__(@) numberoroportion of hows ep aight for
"people indifferent professions. Mechanics get the
‘most sleep, with 7.6 hours per night, (5) in contrast | yeshlegsnnss
o/in contrast doctors and company directors, who
services, unsurprisingly, get relatively litte sleep (6) in comparison

M
jespecialyin speech, to introduce the opposite of whathas | those in nine-to-five jobs. How stressful your job is could alsopi
sleep you get, with one in five insomniacs blaming work
(7) amountinumofber
‘an opposite opinion:
dropped since theattack?"‘On the contrary, they've risen slighthy| fr their sleeplessness. The figures suggest that goverment employees are good

(@) compared tolcompares to private sector workers, o pethaps job security
‘on the other
hand to introduce an opposite viewpoint:
Kến
to warn their child about things to avoid, hut, on the other hand, they
ic
2 Match the two halves of the sentences.
1 The sample contained an equal number of
Tim a bit of ftnes fan
2 They are expected to make a certain number of
My sister, onthe contrary,
3. The job involves a fair amount of
refer less energetic hobbies. /} 4. There is only a limited amount of
x
5 We try to cause the minimum amount of
6 There are the same number of
calls per hour.

| & Rewrite the sentences using the word in brackets without changingit,
1 Spain has a relatively low crime rate compared with other European countries.
(comparison) Spain has.
‘with one of the phrases from above.
The
average life expectancy of someone livingin Mozambique is only 31 years
'ProRis of 343 milion. Zenon,.........................
Ia de only $17.3
compared with 78 years in the UK, 79 in France and nearly 81 in Japan.
(contrast) The average ge life
expectancy of someone living§ in Mozambique
is 0

itshrink
when ite tums into ice, but,
re nhóc
cm
life expectancy
R-.
._ ohherslong the coast ` 3 AMeuniia biking and track cycling are completely different.
vw the two politicians could not be greater.
(no comparison) There.
“
‘sensiti
than our ve
own. Birds,
Many people have compared them to the Beatles.
(comparison) Many people have
Most European students receive some funding. nthe USA, however,
work their way through college.
(hand) Most European students receive some funding,


table and uncountable nouns

en those living in other regions,

“London is also home to the high

groups ~29 percent of its population,

large

fice
limited

eal
increasing}
_}

canoe i haa
number of places still available.
{measure
of wine, spirit or beer contains the

.
¬_..<

amount of disruption.

ig Tick the correct sentence in each pair.
1. a. Internationa
ids very inportont after natural easter.
b Intemational aids are very inportant after natural asters
2. very country has its own custons
and behaviodrs
ery country hs ts own custors and behaviour
Many common nouns in English are uncountable ~ they de nothaveaj
they are followed by a singular verb form. These include: aid, behaviour,
employment, equipment, furniture, help, information, pollution, software,
Alot of information is available on the internet,
Nouns ending -ing to describe an activity are also uncountable:
shopping, swimming, training, etc.

This type of farming causes damage to the environment,

elo

Some words have countable [C] and uncountable forms used in different ex
He has no work experience. (U: knowledge and skills{U] you
gain by doing:
Going into hospital is often a stressful experience. (C: a particu
ow much time do you spend commuting? (U: hours, minutes,laretc)event or:
How many times do you go each week? (C: occasions)
‘the waiters all wear local dress. (U: clothes for a particu
lar context)
‘had two bridesmaids in pink dresses. (C: a piece of women'
clothing)
‘iso: We often go walking in the country. (singular: the countrsyside)
He's visited a number of countries. (C: a nation)

2 Correct the

4 Underline the correct word in each sentence.
1 The shop sells children’s clothingsicl and
ng footwear.
2 In developing countries/country, malariaothi
stil
ons each year.
3 She has 20 years of experienceslexperience as akillsnursemilli
.
4 The company sells specialist softwares/softw
are comput
8 These patients need injections several rimes/fortim

a
day.
e
6 Ithas excellent facili
ties, with all the latest equipmentslequipment.
7 Cigarette advertisings/advertising
has beenbanned in many
8 How often
do you use public transports/transportt

36

`

quad


they and them

{going on fobigher education have increased.
orm (is, has, makes, needs, etc.)

‘amount
of sleep per night.
Cnt

ih

sae

portion, etc. of

ty

er fom are

‘Tick the correct sentence in each pair.
we
1 a. There have been big changes in the Food we eat and thee way
o
we
wey
andth
eat
we
food
1b. There have been big changes inthe
s.
n
vicleno
contai
e
they
n
becaus
2. a Sach fins are not suitable for chicre
e
e.
us
s

violenc
ca
contain
it
n
be
chicee
e
for
1b Such files are not suitabl
we have mentioned
Itrefers back to a singular or uncountable noun
The lost my umbrella, have you seen it anywhere?
Emergency aid can help in the short term, but it isnt the answer in
Each school has its own computer support officer.
‘They refers back to a plural noun when the pronoun is the subject ofa ver
Such events costa lot of money, but they can also creat obs for Teal people:
Dont take these painkillers when drivingas they may cause drowsiness,
‘Them refers back to a plural noun when the pronoun is the object
of
‘Medical facilities have to be located where people can make best use oft

‘We use their before something which belongs to a plural noun:
Vie help developing countries to manage their natural resources carefully.

{US have similar rates of literacy.

that where you tse more than one verb in a sentence with the same

ust albe in the same form:

saplace
for children to play safely
and keeps them out oftrouble.

with the correct present form of the verb in brackets.
(allow) us to analyse the data in seconds.

‘te We usually only use he/him and she/herto refer to people and not to things:
‘My car's quite old, but it's stil fairly reliable. (not she’)
Soveet the wlatake below.

‘Tom, don't take all the toys,
‘Complete the sentences with one pronoun in each space.

1 With a digital camera you can take photos and send......... t9

2 I did all my homework and handed
3. The plane was forced to land when....

4 You should take off your shoes and leave

5 Ifyou drink too much coffee,

we

. can st0p you sleeping.

6 Fifty years ago, most women didn't work,

stayed at

7 We need to crack down on illegal drugs and the people.

8 Such huge companies
have a number of ad

a7

0