Here is a review of some grammar for advanced level. There is a short explanation and a link with exercises.
INVERSION
Inversion happens in English for emphasis, dramatic
purpose or formality. To invert a sentence move the adverbial to the beginning
of the sentence and invert the subject and auxiliary verb: 'I had never met someone so interesting.' becomes
'Never had I met someone so interesting.'
We usually
make inversions with negative adverbs. Here are some negative adverbs and
adverb phrases that we often use with inversion:
Hardly
|
Hardly had I got into bed when the telephone rang.
|
Never
|
Never had she seen such a beautiful sight before.
|
Seldom
|
Seldom do we see such an amazing display of dance.
|
Rarely
|
Rarely will you hear such beautiful music.
|
Only then
|
Only then did I understand why the tragedy had happened.
|
Not only
... but
|
Not only does he love chocolate and sweets but he also smokes.
|
No sooner
|
No sooner had we arrived home than the police rang the doorbell.
|
Scarcely
|
Scarcely had I got off the bus when it crashed into the back of a car.
|
Only later
|
Only later did she really think about the situation.
|
Nowhere
|
Nowhere have I ever had such bad service.
|
Little
|
Little did
he know!
|
Only in
this way
|
Only in this way could John earn enough money to survive.
|
In no way
|
In no way do I agree with what you're saying.
|
On no
account
|
On no account should you do anything without asking me first.
|
You can try inversion here
CLEFT SENTENCES
We use cleft
sentences, to connect what is already understood to what is new to the
listener. In a cleft sentence, a single message is divided (cleft) into two
clauses. This allows us to focus on the new information.
IT CLEFT SENTENCES are the most
common type of cleft clause. The information that comes after it is
emphasised for the listener. The clause which follows the it-clause is connected
using that and it contains information that is already understood. We
often omit that in informal situations when it is the object of the verb:
A: Sharon’s car got broken into yesterday, did it?
B: No. It was Nina’s car that got broken into!
WH- CLEFT SENTENCES are most often introduced by what, but we can also use why,
where, how, etc. The information in the wh-clause is typically old
or understood information, while the information in the following clause is new
and in focus:
A: I don’t know what to cook for them? I don’t know what they like.
B: What they like is smoked salmon.
You can try cleft sentences here
WISHES AND REGRETS: “I wish, If only, It’s time, It’s high time”
A.- Use of I wish / if only:
There are three distinct types of I wish / if only sentences:
1.
Wish, wanting change for the present or future with the simple past.
2.
Regret with the past perfect.
3.
Complaints with would + verb.
1.- Expressing
a wish:
Use:
-To express
a wish in the present or in the future.
-The simple
past here is an unreal past.
-When you
use the verb to be the form is “were”.
Example: If only I knew
how to use a computer. (I don’t know how to use a
computer and I would like to learn how to use it)
2.- Expressing
regret:
Form: If only / I wish + past perfect
Use:
-To express
a regret.
-The action
is past.
Example: If only I had
woken up early. (I didn't wake up early and I
missed my bus.)
3.- Complaining:
Form: I wish / if only + would + verb
Use:
-To complain about a behavior that you disapprove.
-Expressing impatience, annoyance or dissatisfaction with a present action.
Example: I wish you wouldn't arrive so
late all the time (I'm annoyed because you
always come late and I want you to arrive on time)
B.- It’s time / It’s high time
Form: It’s
(high) time + past simple
Use: -When someone should have
already done something
Example: It’s (high) time the government took
measures about the problem (It hasn’t taken measures, and it’s urgent)
You can practise wishes and
regrets here
REPORTING PASSIVES: news reporters often use phrases
like: "It is believed that..." and "The
suspect is known to be..." These structures are called passive reporting
structures.
Meaning and use: This structure is used to report information in a formal style or to
report facts. Passive structures hide the source of the information. This
is because a) it is obvious b) the source is unimportant or is 'people in
general', or c) the source is unknown.
Common verbs
used with these structures: say, think, expect, know, believe, understand,
consider
Form: A passive
reporting structure can take two forms:
1.- It + passive reporting verb + that-clause
- It
is known that the sky is blue
- It
is known that the criminal escaped
- It
is thought that chocolate is delicious
2.- Subject + passive reporting verb +
to-infinitive
- The
sky is known to be blue
- The
criminal is known to have escaped
- Chocolate
is thought to be delicious
You can practise reporting
passives here
