Exercise 1 - Comparatives and superlatives

Read the sentences below and decide whether the sentences are acceptable or not. If not, how
would you correct them?

Q1. That Prada bag is more cheaper than mine.

Q2. My dog was the greater friend a person could ask for.

Q3. He’s nice, but he’s the most stupidest man I’ve ever met.

Q4. She’s happiest than she was before.

Q5. The Empire State Building is highest than the Chrysler Building.

Q6. I like wine, but beer is more nice.

Q7. Leo Messi is the most fast football player in the world.

Q8. Learning Chinese is more hard than learning English.

Exercise 2 - Adverbs of frequency

The sentences below have the adverbs of frequency incorrectly placed. Can you move them to
where they should be?

Q1. I always have wanted to go into space.

Q2. Never he goes to the gym.

Q3. She reads a book when she usually gets home.

Q4. It rains in the Sahara rarely.

Q5. Mr Brown stands sometimes outside his house and watches the sun set.

Q6. You never should smoke near babies.

Q7. Always I love watching Barça.

Q8. Usually we go to the cinema on Saturday night.

 Exercise 3 - Bring and take

Read the sentences below. Choose which word should be used in each sentence: bring or take.
There is only one correct answer for each sentence.

Q1. Could you my book here, please?

Q2. He wants you to the papers to the boss´s office.

Q3. When you leave the party you can some cake if you like.

Q4. Damn! I forgot to my glasses with me.

Q5. Is it okay if he his dog here with him?

Q6. I believe that Mr Brown his son with him to Camp Nou.

Q7. You don´t need to the money to me - just pay it in the bank.

Q8. She’ll the rubbish to the bins if you ask her nicely.

Exercise 4 - Comparatives and Superlatives (2)

Use the adjective shown (in brackets) to complete each sentence correctly. You will need to decide
whether to use the comparative or superlative form, based on the context.

Q1. My brother is (fast) boy in his sports class at school.

Q2. The Cup Final was (amazing) football match in history.

Q3. Diagonal is (long) street in Barcelona.

Q4. A minute is (short) an hour.

Q5. We are having (glorious) weather this summer!

Q6. Could you open this bottle, please? You’re (strong) me.

Q7. England isn’t (hot) Spain.

Q8. Is this book (cheap) that one?

Q9. Antarctica is (cold) place on the planet.

Q10. The Burj Khalifa in Dubai is (tall) building in the world at the present time.

Exercise 5 - Comparatives and Superlatives (3)

In this exercise we will focus on adjectives of three syllables. Write down the comparative and
superlative for each adjective shown. Translations are shown for more difficult words.

Q1. popular

Q2. dangerous (peligroso)

Q3. Important

Q4. Creative

Q5. generous

Q6. powerful (poderoso)

Q7. difficult

Q8. wonderful (maravilloso)

Q9. poisonous (venenoso)

Q10. tentative (tentativo)

Exercise 6 - Next and Last

Think of the months of the year in English: January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August,
September, October, November, December.
For the sentences below, write down what the last month and the next month would be, if it were
that month now (e.g. if it were May, last month would be April and next month would be June).

Q1. March, last month was ..................................................... and next month will
be .......................................................

Q2. December, last month was .............................................. and next month will
be ...................................................

Q3. October, last month was .................................................... and next month will
be ....................................................

Q4. July, last month was ........................................................... and next month will
be .........................................................

Q5. February, last month was ................................................. and next month will
be ....................................................

Q6. August, last month was ..................................................... and next month will
be .......................................................

Q7. If today were Wednesday, the next day would

be .................................................................................................

Q8. If today were Sunday, the next day would

be .................................................................................................

Q9. January, last month was .................................................... and next month will
be ......................................................

Q10. If the letter is B, the next letter is ................................................................

Exercise 7 - ‘A.M’. and ‘P.M.’

Decide whether the following times should be followed by

a.m. or p.m. Remember that we do not use past or to when telling the time with ‘a.m.’ or ‘p.m.’.

Q1. 6.30 (Evening)

Q2. 8.17 (Morning)

Q3. 12.45 (Night)

Q4. 11.15 (Night)

Q5. 9.06 (Morning)

Q6. 9.15 (Evening)

Q7. 10.10 (Morning)

Q8. 1.55 (Night)

Q9. 3.19 (Afternoon)

Q10. 5.23 (Afternoon)

Exercise 8 - If + present + present = zero conditional

Match the beginnings of the sentences (1 - 10) to the correct endings (a - j).

Q1. When it rains... a) ... it burns you.

Q2. When I sleep... b) ... you learn more.

Q3. If you eat too much... c) ... she shouts a lot.

Q4. If water reaches 100 degrees... d) ... you get bigger.

Q5. If you put your hand in a fire... e) ...please answer it.

Q6. When my daughter gets angry... f ) ... I dream that I am flying!

Q7. If one doesn’t sleep well... g) ... one gets tired.

Q8. If my son reads in the car... h) ... it boils.

Q9. When you concentrate... i) ... I sometimes get wet.

Q10. If the phone rings... j ) ... he feels dizzy.

Exercise 9 - ‘A lot of’ vs ‘Many’ and ‘Much’

Choose which quantifier (s) should be used to complete each sentence: a lot of, many or much.
There may be more than one correct answer.

Q1. People who live in Beverly Hills generally have money.

Q2. He’s a sad person. He doesn’t have friends.

Q3. There are cars in London.

Q4. Hurry up! We don’t have time!

Q5. How cats do you have?

Q6. Don’t put too sugar in her coffee, please.

Q7. She hasn’t got patience.

Q8. I saw films last year.

Q9. Is there traffic in the city?

Q10. We didn’t visit new places on our last holiday.

Exercise 10 - Both... and

Read the passage below and fill in the gaps ( ) using the phrases from the box, all of which contain
both... and.

A Common Tongue

The world is getting smaller. Increasingly sophisticated technology is helping to make communication
across the globe easier and more efficient. This means that Q1. ................................

.................................................................................................................................. can talk to people

on the other side of the

planet. Social networks have also exploded in popularity,

Q2. ..........................................................................................

More than ever, the ability to speak more than one language is vital. If a businessman can
communicate in Q3. , for example, it will greatly

advance his prospects of conducting successful deals.

And learning English doesn’t need to be hard. It can be

Q4. ...............................................................................................

............................, depending on how a student approaches the work. If you want to improve Q5. ..

.............................................................................................................................................. - what we
call ‘receptive’ skills - you don’t

only need to read a grammar book to do

so. .Q6. .................................................................................................................................
.............................................................. can also help you to get better.

Exercise 11- Either... or

Read the text below and fill in the gaps using the phrases in the box, all of which contain either... or.

Likes and Dislikes

People have very different tastes. Some prefer spicy food; others like milder dishes. Thankfully, in
Barcelona there is a wide variety of restaurants to choose from. Personally, if it’s a choice between
Q1. , I prefer

the first option.

Of course it’s not just food that divides opinion in the city - sport can be equally divisive. There are
two main sports in Barcelona, but most people prefer .Q2. ....................................................................

.............................................. In terms of football, most people follow

Q3. ............................................................................................

............................................................, whereas some like Barça’s main rivals, Real Madrid.

When people talk about Catalan architecture, two names are often mentioned: Q4. .....................

.................................................................................................................................................... The
former’s creations figure prominently

in the city’s collection of Modernisme institutions; indeed, when Gaudi is mentioned, people usually
think of Q5. ...........................................................................................................................................

Continuing the theme of artistic expression, when considering who to crown Catalunya’s most
famous painter son most people would choose
Q6. ....................................................................................................

..........................................., with Pablo Picasso an honorary consideration.

Exercise 12 - Dates

Write complete sentences using the information and dates shown below in the form you would use
to write a letter, e.g. 12/03/68 would be ‘12th March 1968’. Unless shown otherwise, all dates are in
the 20th Century. So ‘Elvis died on the...’, and so on.
Q1. Elvis died - 16/08/77

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q2. England won football’s World Cup - 30/07/66

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q3. JFK assassinated - 22/11/63

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q4. Elizabeth Windsor became Queen of England - 02/06/53

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q5. The Titanic sank - 14/04/12

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q6. General Franco died - 20/11/75

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q7. World War II ended - 02/09/45

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q8. DNA (ADN in Spanish) discovered - 28/02/53

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q9. Barça founded - 29/11/1899

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q10. Man landed on the Moon - 21/07/69

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Exercise 13 - Each

Choose which auxiliary verb in brackets ( ) should correctly fill the gaps in the sentences below.
Q1. Each teacher (has / have) a good level of English.

Q2. Each chair (are / is) blue.

Q3. Each building in the city (is / are) tall.

Q4. Each country (have / has) its own flag.

Q5. Each book (has / have) a different story.

Q6. Each class at high school (were / was) special in its own way.

Q7. Each year (have / has) different historical events.

Q8. Each time we meet (are / is) a pleasure.

Q9. Each song he sings (is / are) beautiful.

Q10. Each boy (was / were) given a football.

Exercise 14 - Not as... as

Write sentences using the information below and the structure not as... as. The adjective to use is
shown in brackets ( ),

e.g. Ronaldo > Messi (good) = ‘Ronaldo is not as good as Messi.’

Q1. Justin Bieber > Pau Gasol (tall)

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q2. The Amazon > The Nile (long)

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................
Q3. Learning English > learning Chinese (difficult)

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q4. Barcelona > Sitges (small)

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q5. Donald Trump > Amancio Ortega (rich)

...................................................................................................................................................................
..................................................................................................

Q6. The Sagrada Familia > Shanghai World Finance Center (high)

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q7. Penelope Cruz > Madonna (old)

...................................................................................................................................................................
..................................................................................................

Q8. My shirt > my shoes (new)

...................................................................................................................................................................
..................................................................................................

Q9. The ocean > the sky (blue)

...................................................................................................................................................................
..................................................................................................

Q10. Paper > wood (hard)

Exercise 15 - Precede / Follow (1)

Look at the diagram below. Use the information in it to complete the sentences, with either precede
or follow. Remember to use the third person -s only in positive sentences - not in negative sentences
or questions.

Q1. The number 2 the number 3.

Q2. The number 4 the number 3.

Q3. Does the number 1 ..................................................... 5? No, 1 5.

Q4. The number 2 ..................................................... 1 and 3.

Q5. The number 3 ..................................................... 4 and 2.

Exercise 16 - Precede / Follow (2)

Look at the diagram below. Use the information in it to complete the sentences, with either
‘precede’ or ‘follow’. Remember to use the third person -s only in positive sentences - not in
negative sentences or questions.

Q1. Tuesday does not .............. Monday. It it.

Q2. Which day precedes Friday? Thursday………………….Friday.

Q3. Does Wednesday ............................................... Tuesday? Yes, Wednesday Tuesday.

Q4. Monday……………….Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

Q5. Which day …………………. Wednesday? Thursday.

Exercise 17 - As many... as / As much... as

Answer the questions using the pictures below.

Q1. Does Victor have as many apples as David?

Q2. Does Frank have as much paper as Ruth?

Q3. Look at the picture below. Are there as many men as women?
 Exercise 18 - ‘Better than...’ / ‘Worse than...’

Look at the information below. An upward arrow (^) means better than. An asterisk (*) means worse
than. Write complete sentences using the information shown.

NB: you may need to rearrange the words to form a correct sentence. For example:

My brother... at playing chess ^ me = My brother is better at playing

chess than me.

Q1. My Spanish ^ my English.

........................................................................................................................................................

Q2. Wanting what you have ^ having what you want.

.........................................................................................................................................................

Q3. I think that having a cold * being really tired.

.........................................................................................................................................................

Q4. My sister... playing football * my friend Susan.

.........................................................................................................................................................

Q5. When you have a problem to solve, they say two heads ^ one!

.........................................................................................................................................................

Q6. The film we saw last night * the one we watched last week.

.........................................................................................................................................................

Q7. Her English ^ it was earlier this year.

.........................................................................................................................................................

Q8. A pub that offers free wi-fi ^ one that doesn’t.

.........................................................................................................................................................

Q9. My new phone ^ my old phone.

.........................................................................................................................................................
Q10. Not taking a chance * taking one and perhaps being disappointed

Exercise 19a - ‘Look at’ / ‘Watch’

Read the text below and fill in the gaps using either look at or watch. Remember to put your answers
in the correct tense.

Memories of the Sun

When we are children, our parents and teachers tell us not to Q1………………………..the sun

in the daytime, as it can be very bad for our eyes. At night-time, however, it is safe; indeed, many
people like to lie back and .Q2………………………………..the stars circle in the heavens.

When I was a child, I loved to Q3…………………………the sun set. The day’s colours would

dissolve into the evening sky: blues, yellows, purples and all shades of orange and red. It was
beautiful to Q4…………………………………. so many different colours on such a huge canvas.

In the summers of my youth, when the sun was out, I would Q5………………………………..my

friends play football beneath beautiful blue skies. Those days are long gone; it would be nice to have
some photographs of those happy days to Q6………………………..,or video to Q7………………., now I am
older.

The Wonder of Art

What do you feel when you Q8………………..a beautiful painting or

Q9……………………..a heart-breaking operatic performance? Happiness, that humanity is capable of

such creation? Frustration, perhaps, that you feel you will never be able to create art of comparative
worth? Or do you simply feel a sense of wonder at how mysterious the act of imagining really is?

It can be interesting to Q10…………….an artist as they are working - to see the processes they go
through to bring their ideas into the world. It can be a long, difficult voyage; if we talk about
paintings, for example, during the early stages of a picture we may not even know what the painting
that we are .Q11………………………………is intended to be!

Exercise 19b - ‘Look at’ / ‘Watch’

Art, of course, comes in many different forms. We can Q12………………..the still-lifes of Cézanne or the
Surrealist splendours of Miro and Dali; admire the modern sculptures of Rodin or the early
Renaissance works of Donatello; listen to the avant-garde stylings of John Cage or the timeless
melodies of Mozart. Q13……………..new forms being brought to life is always inspiring.

So we should all endeavour to patronise new galleries when we can: to Q14....................................

the works of new, up and coming painters; to Q15……………theatre plays written by the latest hot,
young drama writers; to become part of a scene, and maybe even start to produce our own material.

For as the Russian philosopher Nicholas Berdyaev once wrote: creativity is freedom.
 Exercise 20 - Beside / Besides

Read the sentences below and decide if they are acceptable or not.

Q1. We need to talk about other things beside that topic.

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q2. The chair is besides the table.

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q3. Come and sit besides me.

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q4. Do you know any languages besides French?

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q5. Oklahoma is not besides the sea.

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q6. Besides his wife and three daughters, John’s college friend, Henry, lives in his house.

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q7. I don’t want anything to eat beside salad.

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q8. Oh, I do like to be besides the seaside!

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q9. You don’t do anything beside play on your Xbox!

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q10. My cat sleeps beside me at night.

Exercise 21 - Preposition plus noun or gerund

Read the sentences below and decide if they are correct or not. If they are, leave them. If they are
not, correct them.
Q1. You need to be careful when buying a new house.

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q2. I brush my teeth after eat dinner.

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q3. She needs the money for to travelling.

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q4. We’re going home after the party.

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q5. They’re going home after partying.

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q6. I get nervous when go to the doctors.

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q7. Is this food for cook?

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q8. The baby needs to eat before to sleep.

...................................................................................................................................................................
..................................................................................................

Q9. I’m no good at painting.

...................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................

Q10. Are you bad at general knowledge questions?

Exercise 22 - Ever and Never

Read the questions below and answer them, either positively or negatively. Sometimes the answer is
already given, and you simply have to finish the sentence. Compare your answers to the model
answers in the ‘Answers’ section.

Q1. Have you ever been to London?

Yes, ........................................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................

No, .........................................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................

Q2. Have you ever played the piano?

Yes, ........................................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................

No, .........................................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................

Q3. Has she ever seen the film ‘Forrest Gump’?

No, ..........................................................................................................................................................
................................................................................................

Q4. Has William ever been on a plane?

Yes, .........................................................................................................................................................
................................................................................................

Q5. Have you ever been in love?

Yes, ........................................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................

No, .........................................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................

Exercise 23 - Adjectives and Adverbs

Complete the sentences using the words from the box. Remember: adjectives describe nouns and
adverbs describe verbs, i.e. how an action is done.

The words in the box can be used more than once; also note that there may be more than one
correct answer to a question.

Q1. That perfume is lovely! You smell .................................................................................................

Q2. He will help you if you ask him ...........................................................................................

Q3. If you want to speak English……………………, you need to study.

Q4. She’s a…………………….learner. You don’t need to tell her twice.

Q5. The job was done……………….., so it had to be done again.

Q6. That was a really…………….thing to do. You’re so sweet!

Q7. I will explain it to you………………..so that you understand.

Q8. She needs to reply to the email………………..or she won’t get the job.

Q9. You’re a…………….dog! What is all this mess?

Q10. He did very…………………..in the exam. He got top marks.

Exercise 24 - ‘Over’ and ‘On’

Q1. Look at pictures 1 and 2, below. Are the person’s/people’s hands over or on the table?

Q2. Look at picture 3, below. Are the man’s hands ‘over’ his eyes or ‘on’ them?