UNIT # 5 BASIC GRAMMAR SKILLS

5.1 Affixes (Prefix)

Add the correct prefix to the word to complete each sentence.

1. I wanted to ease my stomach ___ comfort, so I drank some ginger root tea.

2. Lenny looked funny in his ___matched shirt and pants.

3. Penelope felt ___ glamorous at the party because she was the only one not wearing a dress.

4. My mother said those ___ ageing creams do not work, so I should not waste my money on them.

5. The child’s ___standard performance on the test alarmed his parents.

6. When my sister first saw the meteor, she thought it was a ___ natural phenomenon.

7. Even though she got an excellent job offer, Cherie did not want to ___ locate to a different
country.

8. With a small class size, the students get to ___ act with the teacher more frequently.

9. I slipped on the ice because I did not heed the ___cautions about watching my step.

10. A ___combatant is another word for civilian.

Practice Exercise # 5.1

Writing Application (Prefix & Suffix)

Write a paragraph describing one of your life goals. Include five words with prefixes and five words with
suffixes. Exchange papers with a classmate and circle the prefixes and suffixes in your classmate’s paper.
Correct each prefix or suffix that is misspelt.

5.2 Vocabulary
Practice Exercise # 5.2
Use the vocabulary to complete the sentences. Make grammatical changes when necessary.

potential; appropriate; condemn; policy; cover; endanger; temporary; custody; suffer from; severe;
aggravate; bar; end up; habitually; risk; expose; hazardous; addictive; sue; patch;

1. Due to the _____________ weather around the airport, flights were delayed for 45 minutes.

2. It’s not good to _____________your skin to the sun every day.

3. At first, he only played a few video games, but then the games became _____________ and he couldn't
stop playing them.

4. Some people disagree with the military’s _____________ of keeping homosexuals out of the military.

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5. In the past, women almost always got _____________ of children in a divorce settlement; nowadays,
men often prevail.

6. Jan _____________ the doctor who mistakenly removed her left kidney instead of her right one.

7. Do you think the teacher’s action concerning the student who cheated on the test was _____________?

8. Our new insurance policy _____________ hospital stays but not dental work.

9. Instead of making things better, I think this medicine has actually _____________ my condition.

10. We were supposed to go bowling, but we _____________ at the movies instead.

Practice Exercise # 5.3

Use the vocabulary to complete the sentences. Make grammatical changes when necessary.

plot; character; maximum; familiar with; minimum; recount; clarify; clarification; keep in mind;
systematic

1. Could you please _____________ what you just said about the final exam questions?

2. I’ve used computers before, but I’m not very _____________ this type of computer.

3. The survivor of the crash began to _____________ what took place on flight 882 just before it fell out
of the sky.

4. Though the room is quite big, the _____________ number of people that it can seat is 85. If you need
more space for your meeting, I’m afraid you’ll have to use a different location.

5. If you ever need a plumber, please _____________. I do very good work, and I’m cheap, too!

6. I like a book that has a very _____________ presentation of grammar.

7. The doctor tried to explain what the words on the medical chart meant, but her _____________ didn’t
reply much.

8. I don’t like this book because the _____________ is too difficult to follow. First, the man gets killed
and we think it was his wife, but she’s not his wife. Then his sister confesses. Then the man turns up
alive. I finally gave up!

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Practice Exercise # 5.4
Use the vocabulary to complete the sentences. Make grammatical changes when necessary.

assume; race; all at once; bullet; currently; likely; bar; submarine; quarters; arrange; abuse; execute;
bring about; strict; formally; sniper; prisoner; discontinue; P.O.W; combat

1. The convicted killer was _____________ in the electric chair.

2. Cameras used to be _____________ from the courtroom, but nowadays we can sometimes see live
coverage of a trial on TV.

3. The officers stay in that building, but these _____________ are for the regular soldiers.

4. Because rain is _____________ for tomorrow, I doubt that we’ll get to play tennis.

5. If we had _____________ guns laws, perhaps the murder rate would be lower.

6. The janitor _____________ all the desks in rows after he finished mopping the floor.

7. The company _____________ that kind of pants due to very poor sales.

8. When the dogs appeared at the front gate, the kittens _____________ into the bushes.

9. We heard the thunder and _____________ the skies opened up. (It began to rain hard.)

10. _____________ , I’m a student at the local college. However, by next year, I hope to be working for
McDonnell-Douglas Corporation.

5.3 Articles
Indefinite Articles
Practice Exercise # 5.5
Insert a or an if necessary.
1. My neighbour is ___ photographer; let's ask him for ____ advice about colour films.

2. We had ____ fish and ____ chips for ____ lunch. ~ That doesn't sound ____ very interesting lunch.

3. I had ____ very bad night; I didn't sleep ____ wink.

4. He is ____ vegetarian; you won't get ____ meat at his house. He'll give you ____ nut cutlet. ~ Last time
I had ___ nut cutlet I had ___ indigestion.

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5. ____ travel agent would give you ____ information about ____ hotels.

6. We'd better go by _____ taxi—if we can get ____ taxi at such ____ hour as 2 a.m.

7. _____ person who suffers from ____ claustrophobia has ____ dread of being confined in ___ small
space, and would always prefer ____ stairs to ____ lift.

8. Do you take ____ sugar in ____ coffee? ~ I used to, but now I'm on ____ diet. I'm trying to lose ____
weight.

9. ____ man suffering from____ shock should not be given anything to drink.

10. You'll get ____ shock if you touch ____ live wire with that screwdriver. Why don't you get ____
screwdriver with ____ insulated handle?

11. It costs fifty-five and ___ half pence and I've only got ____ fifty pence piece. ~ You can pay by ____
cheque here. ~ But can I write ____ cheque for ___ fifty-five and ____ half pence?

12. ____ Mr Smith is ____ old customer and ____ honest man. ~ Why do you say that? Has he been
accused of ___ dishonesty?

13. I'm not ____ wage-earner; I'm ____ self-employed man. I have ____ business of my own. ~ Then
you're not ____ worker; you're ____ capitalist!

14. When he was charged with ____ murder he said he had ____ alibi.

15. ____ friend of mine is expecting ____ baby. If it's ____ girl, she's going to be called Etheldreda. ~
What ____ name to give ____ girl!

The Definite Article

Insert ‘the’ if necessary.
1. ___ youngest boy has just started going to ___ school; ____ eldest boy is at ___ college.

2. She lives on ___ top floor of an old house. When ___ wind blows, all ____windows rattle.

3. ___ darkness doesn't worry ____ cats; ____ cats can see in ____dark.

4. My little boys say that they want to be ____ spacemen, but most of them will probably end up in ___
less dramatic jobs.

5. Do you know ____ time? ~ Yes, ___ clock in ____ hall has just struck nine. ~ Then it isn't ___ time to
go yet.

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6. He was sent to ___ prison for ___ six months for ___ shoplifting. When ____ six months are over he'll
be released; ____ difficulty then will be to find ____work. ~ Do you go to ___ prison to visit him?

7. I went to ___ school to talk to ___ headmistress. I persuaded her to let Ann give up ___ gymnastics and
take ____ ballet lessons instead.

8. ____ ballet isn't much use for ____ girls; it is much better to be able to play ____ piano.

9. I am on ____ night duty. When you go to ____ bed, I go to ____ work.

10. Peter's at ___ office but you could get him on ___ phone. There's a telephone box just round___
corner.

11. He got ____ bronchitis and was taken to ____ hospital. I expect they'll send him home at____ end of
____ week. ~ Have you rung ___ hospital to ask how he is?

12. Ann's habit of riding a motorcycle up and down ____ road early in ___ morning annoyed ____
neighbours and in ____ end, they took her to ____ court.

13. He first went to ____ sea in a Swedish ship, so as well as learning ____ navigation he had to learn ___
Swedish.

14. ____ family hotels are ____ hotels which welcome ____ parents and ____ children.

15. On ____ Sundays my father stays in ____ bed till ten o'clock, reading ____ Sunday papers.

Articles: a/an, the

Insert a, an or the if necessary.
There was ______ knock on _______ door. I opened it and found _______ small dark man in ______ blue
overcoat and ______ woollen cap. He said he was ______ employee of_____ gas company and had come
to read _______ meter. But I had ________ suspicion that he wasn't speaking _________ truth because
________ meter readers usually wear _______ peaked caps. However, I took him to _________ meter,
which is in _________ dark corner under ________ stairs (_______ meters are usually in_______ dark
corners under_______ stairs). I asked if he had _____ torch; he said he disliked torches and always read
_______ meters by________ light of ________ match. I remarked that if there was _______ leak in
_______ gas pipe there might be ______ explosion while he was reading ______ meter. He said, 'As ______
matter of ______ fact, there was _______ explosion in ______ last house I visited; and Mr Smith, _______
owner of ______ house, was burnt in ______ face.' 'Mr Smith was holding ________ lighted match at
_______ time of _______ explosion.' To prevent _________ possible repetition of this accident, I lent him

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______ torch. He switched on ______ torch, read ______ meter and wrote _______ reading down on
_____ back of ________ envelope. I said in _________ surprise that ________ meter readers usually put
_______ readings down in ______ book. He said that he had had _______ book but that it had been burnt
in ______ fire in ______ Mr Smith's house. By this time I had come to _______ conclusion that he wasn't
________ genuine meter reader; and ________ moment he left_______ house I rang _________ police.

Articles and Possessive Adjectives/Pronouns

Insert a, an, the, or my, his, her, our, your, their if necessary.

1. He took off ______ coat and set to work.

2. Why are you standing there with _____ hands in _______ pockets?

3. At most meetings _______ people vote by raising _________ right hands.

4. The bullet struck him in _______ foot.

5. They tied ________ hands behind _______ back and locked him in a cellar.

6. He took _______ shoes off and entered on_______ tiptoe.

7. Someone threw ________ egg which struck the speaker on ________ shoulder.

8. I have ________ headache.

9. I have ________ pain in _______ shoulder.

10. The windscreen was smashed and the driver was cut in _______ face by broken glass.

11. He was ______ very tall man with ______ dark hair and ______ small beard, but I couldn't see_____
eyes because he was wearing _______ dark glasses.

12. He tore_____ trousers getting over a barbed wire fence.

13. Brother and sister were quite unlike each other. He had _____ fair wavy hair; ____ hair was dark and
straight.

14 She pulled _____ sleeve to attract his attention.

15. She pulled him by ______ sleeve.

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