English_Grammar_in_Use

U NIT

School/the school, prison / the prison,

71 etc.

	School	college		prison/jail		church
II Compare these examples:
				,\\:~~
				~~~~~~:=~~
				==
								?'iF
							Mrs. Kelly went to the school to meet
	The children are going to school.						her son's teachers.
	We say:	_	a child goes to school (as a student)
		_	a student goes to college (to study)
		_	a criminal goes to prison or to jail (as a prisoner)
		_	someone goes to church (for a religious service)
We do not use the when we are thinking of the idea of these places and what they are used
for:		_	Mr. Kelly goes to church every Sunday. (not to the church)
		_	After I finish high school, I want to go to college.
		_	Ken's brother was sent to prison for robbing a bank.
We say: "be in or at school/college" (but "be in high school") and "be in prison/jail":
		_	What did you learn at (or in) school today?
		_	Ken's brother is in jail. (or in prison)
	Now study these examples with the:
		_	Mrs. Kelly went to the school to meet her son's teachers. (she went there as
			a visitor, not as a pupil)
		_	Ken went to the prison to visit his brother. (as a visitor, not as a prisoner;
			he went to the jail where his brother was)
		_	The workers went to the church to repair the roof. (they didn't go to a
II bed			religious service)
		work		home
	We say:
	"go to bed / be in bed" (not the bed):
		_	It's time to go to bed now.				_ Is Tom still in bed?
	"go to work / be at work / start work / finish work," etc. (not the work):
		_	Why isn't Ann at work today?					_ What time do you finish work?
	"go home / come home / get home / arrive home" (no preposition):
		_	Come on! Let's go home.				_ What time did you get home?
	"be (at) home / stay (at) home":
		_	Will you be (at) home tomorrow?					_ We stayed (at) home.

142

UNIT 71			Exercises
		Complete these sentences using the words in this unit.
Example: Fred robbed a bank but was caught by the police. He was sent				taja-d•................
1.		I was very tired and it was very late, so I went		.
2.		Tom doesn't often go out in the evenings. He usually stays		.
3.		Jill isn't a religious person. She never goes		.
4.		In the U.S., children over the age of five have to go		.
5.		Children sometimes get into trouble ifthey are late for		.
6.		There is a lot of traffic in the morning when everybody is going		.
7.		Fred was arrested by the police and spent the night		.
8.		When Sue finishes high school, she wants to study economics		.
9.		Bill never gets up before 9:00. It's 8:30 now, so he is still		.

Write short answers to these questions.

Example:· If you wanted to meet your children's teachers, where would you go?

	711. the. sch(J.(J.(	~	.
1.	A friend of yours is in prison. Where would you go to visit your friend?		.
2.	Where are criminals sent?		.
3.	Where do children go during the day?		.
4.	A friend of yours is at church. If you wanted to meet your friend immediately after the
	service, where would you go?		.
5.	Where can you go if you want to study after finishing high school?		..

Choose the correct form, with or without the.

Example: Ken's brother is in prison /;..·~n for robbery. ("prison" is correct)

1.Some children hate school/the school.

2.What time do your children finish school/the school?

3.Every term parents are invited to school/the school to meet the teachers.

4.After leaving high school/the high school, Jane worked as a nurse in a hospital.

5.All over the world, people are in prison / the prison because of their political beliefs.

6.The other day the fire department had to go to prison / the prison to put out a fire.

7.On the way to Boston we passed through a small village with an old church. We stopped to visit church / the church. It was a beautiful building.

8.John's mother is a regular churchgoer. She goes to church / the church every Sunday. John himself doesn't go to church / the church.

9.After work / the work, Ann usually goes home / to home.

10.Tom left college / the college without taking his exams.

11.I like to read in bed / the bed before going to sleep.

12.What time do you have to start work / the work tomorrow morning?

13."Did they catch the thief?" "Yes, I'm sure he's in jail / the jail by now."

143

U NIT

72 Geographical names with and without the

II

II

Continents:	We do not say the with the names of continents:
Africa (not	the Africa)	Asia	Europe	South America

Countries and states: We	do not usually say the with the names of countries and states:
France (not the France)	Japan	Germany	Nigeria	Texas

But we say the with names that include words like "republic," "kingdom," "states" :

the Dominican Republic		the Republic of Ireland	the United States (of
the People's Republic		the United Kingdom	America)
of China		the United Arab Emirates
We also use the with plural names:
the Netherlands	the Philippines

II Cities: We do not use the with the names of cities/towns/villages: Cairo (not the Cairo) New Yark Madrid Tokyo

Exception: The Hague (in the Netherlands)

	Islands: Island groups usually have plural names with the:
	the Bahamas		the Canaries/the Canary Islands					the British Isles the Virgin Islands
	Individual islands usually have singular names without the:
II	Corfu	Sicily		Bermuda		Easter Island
	Regions:	We say:
	the Middle East			the Far East
	the north of France				the south of Spain			the west of Canada
	(but: northern France / southern Spain / western Canada - without the)
II	Mountains: Mountain ranges usually have plural names with the:
	the Rocky Mountains / the Rockies						the Andes		the Alps
	But individual mountains usually have names without the:
II	(Mount) Everest			(Mount) Fuji			(Mount) Etna
	Lakes: Lakes usually have names without the:
	Lake Superior			Lake Victoria
II	Names of oceans/seas/rivers/canals have the:
	the Atlantic (Ocean)				the Indian Ocean			the Mediterranean (Sea)		the Red Sea
	the (English) Channel				the Nile		the Amazon		the Mississippi
	the Rhine		the Suez Canal			the Panama Canal
	Note: On maps the is not usually included in the name.
	Place names with of usually have the:
	the Bay of Naples				the United States of America
	the Sea of Japan				the Gulf of Mexico

144

UNIT 72			Exercises
	Read these sentences carefully. Some are correct, but some need the (perhaps more than
	once). Correct the sentences where necessary.
Examples: Everest was first climbed in 1953.				15.1G:d:r:....
			Milan is in north ofltaly.	WI!.tJ.I'!/i.-:: ~ north of:Italy
1.		Last year we visited Canada and United States.			.	.
2.		Africa is much larger than Europe.			.	.
3.		South of England is warmer than north.			..	.
4.		We went to Spain for our vacation and swam in Mediterranean.			.	..
5.		Tom has visited most countries in western Europe.			.	..
6.		There are many different languages spoken in Far East.			.	..
7.		Next year we are going skiing in Swiss Alps.			.	..
8.		Malta has been a republic since 1974.			..	..
9.		Nile is longest river in Africa.			.	..
10.		United Kingdom consists of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.			..	.

Here are some geography questions. Choose the right answer. Sometimes you need the, sometimes not. Try and find out the answers ifyou don't know them.

Example: What is the longest river in the world? (Amazon / Rhine / Nile)		the /lmaZrfl/ll.
1. Where is Bolivia? (Africa / South America / North America)		.
2.	Where is Ethiopia? (Asia / South America / Africa)	..
3.	Of which country is Manila the capital? (Indonesia / Philippines / Japan)	.
4.	Of which country is Stockholm the capital?
	(Norway / Denmark / Sweden)	.
5.	Which country lies between Mexico and Canada?
	(Venezuela / EI Salvador / United States)	.
6.	Which is the largest country in the world?
	(United States / China / Russia)	.
7.	Which is the largest continent? (Africa / South America / Asia)	..
8.	What is the name ofthe mountain range in the west of North America?
	(Rocky Mountains / Andes / Alps)	.
9.	What is the name of the ocean between America and Asia?
	(Atlantic / Pacific / Indian Ocean)	.
10.	What is the name of the ocean between Africa and Australia?
	(Atlantic / Pacific / Indian Ocean)	.
11.	What is the name of the sea between England and France?
	(Mediterranean Sea / English Channel/French Sea)	.
12.	What is the name 9f the sea between Africa and Europe?
	(Black Sea / Red Sea / Mediterranean Sea)	.
13.	What is the name of the sea between Britain and Norway?
	(Norwegian Sea / English Channel/North Sea)	.
14.	Which river flows through Vienna, Budapest, and Belgrade?
	(Rhine / Danube / Volga)	..
15.	What joins the Atlantic and Pacific oceans?
	(Suez Canal/Panama Canal)	.

145

U NIT

73 Names of streets, buildings, etc. with and without the

II We do not normally use the with names of streets, roads, avenues, boulevards, squares, etc.:

Bloor Street	Fifth Avenue	Piccadilly Circus
Wilshire Boulevard	Broadway	Red Square

II Many names (for example, of airports or universities) are two or three words: Kennedy Airport Boston University

The first word is usually the name of a person ("Kennedy") or a place ("Boston"). We do not usually say the with names like these:

Pearson International Airport	Buckingham Palace
Penn Station	Hyde Park

But we say "the White House," "the Royal Palace" because "white" and "royal" are not names. This is only a general rule. There are exceptions. See section (c) for hotels, etc., and section (e) for names with of.

II We usually say the before the names of these places:

hotels	the Hilton Hotel, the Sheraton (Hotel)
restaurants	the Bombay Restaurant, the Stage Delicatessen
theaters	the Shubert (Theater), the National Theater
movie theaters	the RKO Plaza, the Quad
museums/galleries	the Metropolitan Museum, the National Gallery,
	the Louvre
buildings/monuments	the Empire State Building, the Washington Monument
But banks do not usually take the:
First Interstate Bank	Citibank	Lloyds Bank

III Many stores and restaurants are named after the people who started them. These names end in s or's. We do not use the with these names:

•"Where did you buy that hat?" "At Macy's." (not the Macy's)

•We're going to have lunch at Mama Leone's. (not the Mama Leone's)

Churches are sometimes named after saints (St. = Saint):

St. John's Church St. Patrick's Cathedral

II We say the before t~e names of places, buildings, etc., with of:

the Tower of London	the Museum of Modern Art
the Great Wall of China	the University of Southern California

146

UNIT 73 Exercises

Use the map to answer the questions in the way shown. Write the name of the place and the street it is on. On maps we don't normally use the; in your sentences, use the if necessary.

Example: "Is there a movie theater near here?" "Yes, tile.P.alac.e. lin. .W8.$hilJj.1;(m.::

1.	"Isthereasupermarketnearhere?" "Yes,			on	:
2.	"Isthereahotelnearhere?"	"Yes,		on	:
3.	"Isthereabanknearhere?"	"Yes,		on	:
4.	"Istherearestaurantnearhere?"		"Yes,	on	:
5.	"Isthereachurchnearhere?"	"Yes,			:
6.	"Isthereamuseumnearhere?"		"Yes,		:
7.	"Is there a park near here?"	"yes,		atthe end of	:

Choose the correct form, with or without the.

Example: When we were in Washington, D.C., we visited ~y/ the National Gallery.

1.The President lives in White House / the White House.

2.One of the nicest buildings in Washington is Supreme Court Building / the Supreme Court Building, which is very close to Capitol Building / the Capitol Building.

3.Frank is a student at Georgetown University / the Georgetown University.

4.If you want to buy some new clothes, the store I would recommend is Jack's / the Jack's.

5.We flew from Washington to O'Hare Airport / the O'Hare Airport in Chicago.

6.Smithsonian / The Smithsonian is an important museum in Washington.

7.A favorite restaurant is Luigi's / the Luigi's.

8.Have you ever visited Lincoln Memorial/the Lincoln Memorial?

9."Which hotel are you staying at?" "At Sheraton / the Sheraton."

10.Did you see the movie at Quad / the Quad (movie theater)?

11.In my opinion, the best stores in Toronto are on Yonge Street / the Yonge Street.

12.Yesterday I opened a checking account at Barclay's Bank / the Barclay's Bank.

147

U NIT

74 Singular or plural?

II We use some nOUJ1S only in the plural. For example:

slacks/pants jeans

shorts

pajamas

scissors

glasses

II

•

You can also use a pair of ... with these words:

• I need some new slacks. or I need a new pair of slacks.

We dO not often use the plural of person ("persons"). Instead we use people:

•	He is a nice person.		They are nice people. (not nice persons)
These nouns end in -s but they are not usually plural:
mathematics	physics	economics		athletics	gymnastics	news

•Gymnastics is my favorite sport.

•What time is the news on television? (See also Unit 65d.)

These words end in -s and can be singular or plural:

	means	a means of transportation	many means of transportation
	series	a television series	two television series
	species	a species of bird	200 species of bird
II	We always use a plural verb with the police:
		• The police have arrested Tom.

• Are the police paid well?

II Sometimes we use a plural noun with a singular verb. We do this when we talk about a sum of money, a period of time, a distance, etc.:

•	Five thousand dollars (= it) was stolen in the robbery. (not were stolen)
•	Three years ( = it) is a long time to be without a job. (not are)

We say "a vacation of three weeks" but "a three-week vacation":

• I have a three-week vacation in July. (not a three-weeks vacation)

Here, three-week is used as an adjective before "vacation." When we use "three-weeks" as
• an adjective, it loses the s. So we say:
a ten-dollar bill (not dollars)	two 14-year-old girls
a four-week English course	a six-hour journey

You can also say "I have three weeks' vacation." See Unit 75d.

148

UNIT 74 Exercises

Complete the sentences with words from sections a, b, and c. Sometimes you need a or some.

Examples: She can't see very well. She needs .gl.as.s.e:~..
	This plant is .... g, ...... very rare ..OS/:u;f:/es......
1.	Soccer players don't wear long pants when they play. They wear			.
2.	The bicycle is	of transportation.
3.	The bicycle and the car are	of transportation.
4.	I want to cut this piece of material. I need		.
5.	Ann is going to write	of articles for her local newspaper.
6.	There are a lot of American television		on television throughout the
	world.
7.	While we were out walking, we saw 25 different		of bird.
8.	We need at least four	to play this game.

Choose the correct form, singular or plural. Sometimes either singular or plural is possible.

Example: Gymnastics ~myfavorite sport. ("is" is correct)

1.The pants you bought for me doesn't / don't fit me.

2.Physics was / were my best subject at school.

3.Fortunately the news wasn't / weren't as bad as we had expected.

4.The police wants / want to interview Fred about a robbery.

5.Three days isn't / aren't-l~enough for a good vacation.

6."Have you seen my sunglasses?" "Yes, it's / they're on the table."

7.Does / Do the police know about the stolen money?

8.Can I borrow your scissors? Mine isn't / aren't sharp enough.

9.I'm going to take a taxi. Six miles is / are too far for me to walk.

IIUse the structure in section e.

Examples: Our vacation lasted three weeks.					It was a.three.-;.w:e.eA..va.c~t.ioY.l.	..
	The girls were 14 years old.			They were.I.~::.ye.<J.r..-:.tllt:;(.!Jlr/~		.
1.	The woman was 27. She was a					..
2.	The flight lasted three hours.		It was a			..
3.	The strike lasted four days.		It was a			.
4.	The book has 200 pages.	It is a				..
5.	The boys were ten years old.		They were			.
6.	The television series has ten parts.			It is		..
7.	The bottIe holds two liters.		It is			..
8.	Each of the tickets cost ten dollars.			They were		.
9.	The building has ten stories (= floors).				It is	.
10.	This bag of potatoes weighs five pounds.				It is	..
11.	We walked for five miles.	It was				.

149

U NIT

75 .. . 's(apostrophe s) and ... of ...

•

We normally use's when the first noun is a person or an animal: the manager's office (not the office of the manager)

Mr. Evans's daughter the horse's tail a police officer's hat Otherwise (with things) we normally use ... of ...

the door of the room (not the room's door)

the beginning of the story (not the story's beginning)

Sometimes you can use's when the first noun is a thing. For example, you can say: the book's title or the title of the book

But it is safer and more usual to use ... of ... (but see also section b).
You can usually use's when the first noun is an organization (= a group of people). So
II you can say:
the government's decision	or	the decision of the government
the company's success	or	the success of the company
It is also possible to use's with places. So you can say:
the city's new theater			the world's population
France's system of government			Italy's largest city
After a singular noun we use's. After a plural noun (which ends in os) we use only an
II apostrophe ('):
my sister's room (one sister)			Mr. Carter's house
my sisters' room (more than one sister)			the Carters' house (Mr. and Mrs. Carter)
If a plural noun does not end in os, we use's:
a children's book
Note that you can use's after more than one noun:
Jack and Jill's wedding	Mr. and Mrs. Carter's house

But we would not use's in a sentence like this:

•I met the wife of the man who lent us the money. ("the man who lent us the money" is too long to be followed by's)

Note that you can use's without a following noun:

•Tom's apartment is much larger than Ann's. ( = Ann's apartment)

II You can also use's with time words (tomorrow, etc.):

•Tomorrow's meeting has been canceled.

•Do you still have last Saturday's newspaper?

You can also say: yesterday's ... today's ... this evening's ... next week's ...

Monday's ... etc..

We also use's (or only an apostrophe (') with plurals) with periods oftime:

•I have a week's vacation.

•I have three weeks' vacation.

•I need eight hours' sleep a night.

•My house is very near here - only about five minutes' walk.

Compare this structure with "a three-week vacation" (Unit 74e).

150

UNIT 75 Exercises

Join two nouns. Sometimes you have to use an apostrophe ('), with or without s. Sometimes

you have to use ... of . ...

Examples: the door / the room t..he.@/ir..r;!the.r.flPLY.J the mother / Ann AI?f.1.~~.mrrt.h.e.r. .

1.	the camera / Tonl.......................	5.	the newspaper / today	..
2.	the eyes / the cat................................	6.	the toys / the children	..
3.	the top / the page	7.	the name / your wife	.
4.	the daughter / Charles........................	8.	the name / this street	.
9. the name / the man I saw you with yesterday				..
10.	the new manager / the company			.
11.	the result / the football game			.
12.	the car / Mike's parents			.
13.	the birthday / my father			.
14.	the new principal/the school..			.
15.	the garden / our neighbors			.
16.	the ground floor / the building			.
17.	the children / Don and Mary			..
18.	the economic policy / the government			..
19.	the husband / the woman talking to Tom			.
20.	the house / my aunt and uncle			..

Read each sentence and write a new sentence using's with the underlined words.

Example: The meeting tomorrow has been canceled. 1O.mo.yr.~w.'.i.m.e.e.c;I1!J.h.4.S./;,e.eI7.ClII1~e/ed.

1.	The storm last week caused a lot of damage.
	Last	.
2.	The only movie theater in the town has been closed down.
	Thet	.
3.	Exports from Canada to the United States have fallen recently.
	C	.
4.	There will be a big crowd at the football game this evening.
	There will be a big crowd at this	.
5. Tourism is the main industry in the region.
	Ther	.

Use the information given to complete the sentences.

Example: If I leave my house at 9:00 and drive to Houston, I arrive at about 12:00. So it's about .. t.hr.ee.hp./Ar.".' drive to Houston from my house.

1. I'm going on vacation on the 12th. I have to be back at work on the 26th. So I have vacation.

2. I went to sleep at 3:00 this morning and woke up an hour later at 4:00. So I only had sleep.

3. If I leave my house at 8:50 and walk to work, I get to work at 9:00. So it's only walk from my house to work.

151