The Common Sense School: February 2016

Tuesday, 16 February 2016

At / on / in (time)

Unit 120 - I E G - At / on / in (time)

120.1

1. Columbus made his first voyage from Europe to America in 1492.

2. In Britain most people do not work on Sundays.

3. If the sky is clear, you can see the stars at night.

4. After working hard during the day, I like to relax in the evening.

5. The first man walked on the moon on 21 July 1969.

6. It’s difficult to listen if everyone is speaking at the same time.

7. Jazz became popular in the United States in the 1920s.

8. I’m going out to the shop. I’ll be back in about 20 minutes.

9. (on the phone) ‘Can I speak to Clare?’ ‘I’m afraid she’s not here at the moment.

10. In Britain people send each other cards at Christmas.

11. Many of Europe’s great Cathedrals were built in the Middle Ages.

12. Bob is a very fast runner. He can run 100 metres in 11 seconds.

120.2

1. a) I’ll see you on Friday.

1. b) I’ll see you next Friday. (no preposition)

2. a) What are you doing on Saturday?

2. b) What are you doing at the weekend?

3. a) They often go out in the evenings.

3. b) They often go out on Sunday evenings.

4. a) Do you work on Wednesdays?

4. b) Do you work every Wednesday? (no preposition)

5. a) We usually have a holiday in the summer.

5. b) We often have a short holiday at Christmas.

6. a) Pauline got married in 1991.

6. b) Pauline got married on 18 May 1991.

6. c) Chris is getting married this year. (no preposition)

120.3

1. Mozart was born in Salzburg in 1756.

2. I haven’t seen Kate for a few days. I last saw her on Tuesday.

3. The price of electricity is going up in October.

4. I’ve been invited to a wedding on 14 February.

5. Hurry up! We’ve got to go in five minutes.

6. I’m busy now but I’ll be with you in a moment.

7. Jenny’s brother is an engineer but he’s out of work at the moment.

8. There are usually a lot of parties on New Year’s Eve.

9. I hope the weather will be nice at the weekend.

10. On Saturday night I went to bed at 11 o’clock.

11. I don’t like traveling at night.

12. We traveled overnight to Paris and arrived at 5 o’clock in the morning.

13. The course begins on 7 January and end sometime in April.

14. It was quite a short book and easy to read. I read it in a day.

15. I might not be at home on Tuesday morning but I’ll probably be there in the afternoon.

16. My car is being repaired at the garage. It will be ready in two hours.

17. The telephone and doorbell rang at the same time.

18. Mary and Henry always go out for a meal on their wedding anniversary.
19. Henry is 63. He’ll be retiring from his job in two years time.

Sunday, 14 February 2016

By and until By the time. . .

Unit 119 - I E G - By and until        By the time. . .

119.1

1. I have to be home not later than 5 o’clock.             I have to be home by 5 o’clock.

2. I have to be at the airport not later than 10.30 am.

I have to be at the airport by 10.30 am.

3. Let me know not later than Saturday whether you can come to the party.

Let me know by Saturday if you can come to the party.

4. Please make sure that you’re here not later than 2 o’clock.

Please make sure that you’re here by 2 o’clock.

5. If we leave now, we should arrive not later than lunchtime.

If you leave now, we should arrive by lunchtime.

119.2

1. Fred has gone away. He’ll be away until Monday.

2. Sorry, but I must go. I have to be at home by 5 o’clock.

3. I’ve been offered a job. I haven’t decided yet whether to accept it or not. I have to decide by Thursday.

4. I think I’ll wait until Thursday before making a decision.

5. It’s too late to go shopping now. The shops are open until 5.30. They’ll be closed by now.

6. I’d better pay the phone bill. It has to be paid by tomorrow.

7. Don’t pay the bill today. Wait until tomorrow.

8. A: Have you finished redecorating your house?

8. B: Not yet. We hope to finish by the end of the week.

9. A: I’m going out now. I’ll be back at 4.30. Will you still be here?

9. B: I don’t think so. I’ll probably have gone out by then.

10. I’m moving into my new flat next week. I’m staying with a friend until then.

11. I’ve got a lot of work to do. By the time I finish, it will be time to go to bed.

12. If you want to do the exam, you should enter by 3 April.

119.3

1. Fred is away at the moment. He’ll be away until Monday.

2. Fred is away at the moment. He’ll be back by Monday.

3. I’m going out . I won’t be very long. Wait here until I return.

4. I’m going shopping. It’s 4.30 now. I won’t be very long. I’ll be back by 4.00pm.

5. If you want to apply for the job, your application must be received by tomorrow evening.

6. Last night I watched TV until 2.00 am.

119.3

1. Jane was invited to a party but she got there much later than she intended.

By the time she got to the party, most of the other guests had gone.

2. I had to catch a train but it took me longer than expected to get to the station.

By the time I got to the station, my train had already gone.

3. I saw two men who looked as if they were trying to steal a car. I called the police but it was some time before they arrived.

By the time the police arrived, the two men had disappeared.

4. A man escaped from prison last night. It was a long time before the guards discovered what had happened.

By the time the guards had discovered what had happened, the escaped prisoner was miles away.

5. I intended to go shopping after finishing my work. But I finished my work much later that expected.
By the time I finished my work, it was too late to go shopping.

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For, during and while

Unit 118 - I E G - For, during and while

118.1

1. It rained for three days without stopping.

2. I fell asleep during the film.

3. I went to the theatre last night. I met Lucy during the interval.

4.Martin hasn’t lived in Britain all his life. He lived in Brazil for four years.

5. Production at the factory was seriously affected during the strike.

6. I felt really ill last week. I could hardly eat anything for three days.

7. I waited for you for half an hour and decided that you weren’t coming.

8. Sue was very angry with me. She didn’t speak to me for a week.

9. We usually go out at weekends, but we don’t often go out during the week.

10. Jack started a new job a few weeks ago. Before that he was out of work for six months.

11. I need a change. I think I’ll go away for a few days.

12. The President gave a long speech. She spoke for two hours.

13. We were hungry when we arrived. We hadn’t had anything to eat during the journey.

14. We were hungry when we arrived. We hadn’t had anything to eat for eight hours.

118.2

1. We met a lot of people while we were on holiday.

2. We met a lot of people during our holiday.

3. I met Mike while I was shopping.

4. While we were in Paris, we stayed at a very comfortable hotel.

5. During our stay in Paris, we visited a lot of museums and galleries.

6. The phone rang three times while we were having dinner.

7. The phone rang three times during the night.

8. I had been away for many years. During that time, many things had changed.

9. What did they say about me while I was out of the room?

10. Jack read a lot of books and magazines while he was ill?

11. I went out for dinner last night. Unfortunately, I began to feel ill during the meal and had to go home.

12. Please don’t interrupt me while I’m speaking.

13. There were many interruptions during the speech.

14. Can you lay the table while I get the dinner ready?

15. We were hungry when we arrived. We hadn’t had anything to eat while we were traveling.

118.3

1. I fell asleep while I was watching television.

2. I fell asleep during the film.

3. I hurt my arm while I was playing football.

4. Can you wait here while I am getting ready.

5. Most of the students looked bored during the lesson.

6. I was asked a lot of questions during the interview.

7. Don’t open the car door while it’s in motion.

8. The lights suddenly went out during the exams.

9. It started to rain during the game.
10. It started to rain while we were playing tennis.