OXFORD LEARNER''''S GRAMMAR 8 doc

Prepositions E Near, close, by, and next to Near , near 10, and close to mean 'nol far from '. MOlherwelf is flear Glasgo/v. 'fIlere's a taxi rank quite near (to) the hOlel. You shouldn't put a healer close to curtains. Here close is pronounced /klous/. Near ( to) and close to have comparative and superlative forms. We were gradually getting nearer (to) our destin.alion. f was sitting closest to the door. Nearby and close by mean ' not far away'. We don't serve dinner, bu.t there is all excellent restauranl nearby / close by. By means 'at the side of or 'very near', We live rigilt by the hospllUI. Come and sit by me, Next to means 'directly at fhe ~ide of'. The woman siuing next to me was smoking the whole time, Tllere's a flewsagent's nexl Lo tile post office. N OT E N OW /litre near mean s '(1 long way from' Blfmillghnm' tS nowhere near Gln sgow. F In front of, before, behind, after, and opposite When we cue talking about position, we prefer ill front of to before. There 's (l statue in fronL of the museum. Tina s pends hours in front of the mirror. We prefer behind to after, The car behind uS ran into the back of us. Before usually means 'earlier in tun e', and after means 'later in time' . But we also usc be/ore and after to talk about what order things come in. J comes before K. K comes after ). Opposite means 'on the other side from'. Compare in front o[and opposite. Simon was sitting in front of me in the cinema. Simon was Silting opposite me at lunch. G Between and among 2911 We use be t ween with a sma lJ number of things , especia lly with two things. Tile bungalow is between two hous es. (= There is a house 011 bOlh sides of the bungalow.) Tile ball went belween the player 's legs. It's an ar ea a/countryside between three quire large TOwns, For expressions such as a conflict between and a link between, > 2260. 212 At, on, and In expressing time Among suggests a larg er Ilumber. I thought I caught sight oJ someone among the trees. H (A) round ,and about Around or round mcans movement in a circle> 209A. We can also use it to mean 'in differcnt directions' or 'in different places'. We just like tiriIJing arollndlround the country visiting different places. There were piles oJ old magazines lying aroundJround the ]Iat. Ameri cans use around rarher Ihan round. We can use about in the sallle way. t:veryone was rus/ling around/about the place in a panic. , [ 212 At, on, and in expressing time A We usc at wiLh a ptHticular time such as a clock time or a meal lime. The perJormance stal"ls at eight o'clock. I'll see you at breakfasl, At that lime there were no mobile phones. We're velY busy at the mornenl. We also lise at with short holiday periods. The family IS always wgeliler at Christmas/at Thanksgilling. Are you domg anything at the weekend? (US: on I.he weekend) We also use at with ages. A sporling career can be over at thirty. B We usc on with a day. The meeting is on Tuesday/on 7 August. I have to go to an interview on thac day. Do they play foolball games on Christmas Day/oil. EaSler Sunday? On can mean 'immedialC ly after'. On his arrival, the President held a press conference. C We u sc ill with lon ger periods. I'll have to make my mind up in the next few days. We'll halle lots of rime in the summe r holidays. The term starts in September. The company was set up in 1997. III the 16th cenfury only about 5 million peopl e spoke English. We also lise in with a part of a day. Why don't you come over in the afternoon? I always work better in the mornings. 299 Prepositions But we usc on if we say which day. Why don 't YOll come over on Friday afternoon? The in cident occurred 011 I.he evening of 12 May. NOTE We say In IIle nigllt but at flighl wIthout lhe I heard (J no u;c ill the night. (= in the middle or the night) The willdows are shut at night. (= when it is night) D We can use in to say how l ong something takes. Ha ve you read 'Around the World in Eighty Days? Lots of athletes can run a mile in four minutes. We can also use in for a lime in the future measured from the present. We take our exams in three weeks. (= three weeks from nowlin three weeks' time) Compare these examples. YOLI can walk there in half an hour. (It takes half an hour.) I'm going oW in half an hour. (= half an hour from now) E Sometimes we can use an expression of time without a preposition. 300 I received the leller last Thursdny. I'm slarting a new course next year. We've got visitors this week. The same thing happens ellery time. You aren't going to lie in bed all day, are you? Don't be fate tomorrow morning. A week later I got a reply. We do not normally use al, on, or in with last, next. or lllis, with every or aff, with yesterday or tomorrow. or wi[h the adverb later. In some contexts we can either use the preposition or leave it out. Something unusual happened (on) that day. Profits we re £50 milliol1, compared with £35 million (in) the previous year. They agreed to play the match (on) the following Sunday. In informal En gl ish. and especially in American English, we can somet imes leave out 011 before a day. I'll see you (on) Monday. NOT E a We can use ol.her prepositions with laH , (Wery, etc. After this week, I'll 'II!(.'(/ a holiday. J feel ncruou.s during every jliRIIt. b We do not use a preposilion wi th these day s ( 0:0. no wada ys). It's 0./1 dOTle by comfJute rs these days 213 For, Sin ce, and ago 1 13 For, since, and ago A We use for wilh a period of time 10 say how long something continues. The kids play computer games faT hours on end. 1 once stayed at that hotel for (l week. I ju.'it watll to sit down for fiue minutes. We do not use for before a phrase with ali. /I rained all day . (NOT }/-mittet1-fo,.aJl-day.) And we do not usua lly usc for before a phrase with whole. It rained the whole day. This is more usual than It rained for lhe whole day. B We often lISC for and since with the perfect. fnr /lachel has worked for I.he company for fl/Je yea.rs now. We ha/Jen't been to the lheatre for months. rile been waiting here for twenty minutes. We lise for + length of time. for two years for a week for four days for a few minutes We can somc times Icave out for in jnformal English. I've been waiting twenty minutes. NOTE since Hachel has worked for the company since 1999. We h01 )en ', been to the theatre since April. rrJe been waiting here since twelve o'clock. We use since + time when. since 2003 since last week since Monday since hal! past. two We sometimes also use since with an event. I hal/en't heen anywhere since the concer t. For mor e examples with for and sillce. > 46D. We can al so use S II'lU! a~ a conJunction. > 2311A For the pattern It' s momh s since we last wmJt CO file Ihealre, > 461:. C We use the adverb ago for something that happened in the past at a tIIllC measured from the present. Rachel joined the company jil le years ago. (= five years before now) We last went lO the theatre months ago. (= months before now) An hour tlgO I was still in b ed. (;: an hour hefore now) Ago comes after the length of time (fi ve years, month s, an hour ). When we look back from the past to an even ea rli er lim e, we usually li se the adverb beJore. Rachel left the company last year. She'd joined them jille years before. (;: five years before last year) This is more usual than She'd joined them five years ago. 3 01 Prepositions o Compare these examples referring to the past and the future. Looking inro the past ! 'fle be en here ([or) ten minutes, f'v e been here since twenty to four, ~ . ~~~jv~d ten mitlltles ago . Looking into the future 1''' stay ([or; len minutes. I'll Slay until four o'clock. > 214C I'nz Leaving in ten minutes. - 214 More prepositions of time A Place and time Some prepositions of place can also be used as a preposition of time. l'l/ be with you. between three and halJ past. Il nW.H have been close to ten when J finally got home. tots of people work from nine o'clock to five. > D You can do the journey inside an hour. I had a stream of visilOrs throughout tile day. Towards midnight peopLe were starting to leave. We ca n park here up to six o'clock. > C AI, on, and in cim also express either place (> 210) or time (> 212). B During and over look at these examples. 302 Nobody does any work during the [eslival. 1he office will be closed during Augu s t. We use during with an event (lhe !e stilJal) or a specific period (August). It means the whole period. We cannot usc during + length of time. The offICe will he closed for a monlh (N OT aud ilg a mmtth ) The festival luetll on for five days . (NOT dttt'i:ttg-fibl dtt)3) But we can LIse during with a specific period of time. No one does any work during the five days of th e festival. J'ue been extremely busy during the last few weeks. We can also use during for a period in which a shorter action takes place. The e-mail arrived during lh e rneeling. I have to make several trips abroad during the n ext few week s, During is a preposition; while is a conjunct ion. My phone rang during lunch. My phone rang while J was having lunch. 2 14 Mor e prepositio ns of time We can also use Oller for a whole period of lime . Over/During the past year, 25,000 r ef ugees Izalle elllered tile coulJl ry. Free meals will be served to the poor over / during the C11rislmas pe nod . NOTE a When so methmg continue~ for a complele period, \'\Ie Coin also li se ,"rOlls'wlll or all tllTOugh. The population grew rapIdly during /I/Jruughrmr ,/u: 19 1/l I.W l! Ury . lJle man at tlw end of the table kept s tanng at fill! tlmillg / all tlmme" IllIIch . . b The adverb ouer can mean 'filllshcd'. The meetillg was soon oloer. C Till/until and by We lISC Lilli umilm say wh en something t.: ornes to \:Ill end. We sat there till/until th e end of the shau ), I'll be working here till/until next April. Till is more informal than until. We can also li se up lO. I'll be working here up to next April. Not . till/until means th at something happ ens lalCr thull ex pected, We didn't gel home tilYuntil half pa sl tw o in the morning On Sundays I s om e tim es don't get up tillluntilllln chtime The flew law will not come into for ce ulllil next year. By means ' not lat er than'. I h aIJ(} in be at work by !lin e. (= at nine or earlier) They should halle replied to my l elle r by now . (= now or earlier) Debbie is going to pay me back by Friday. (= on Friday or earlier) Co mpar e the lise of before. DefJbie is going to pay me back before Friday. (::: earlier than Friday) NOTE <I Tilllil l/ ul does not ex pr ess plm:c. We walked (0 tile hridge! IllS far (L " the bridg e. { NOT till/until tl 'll'! fJj ldgt:l b We can use till! 1, /lUi! as II conjunction, We /,ualk (:! d 0 /1 all/fmtil we got 10 Ihc bridge. We cannot use hy on it s own as a COIl JllnC TiOn , but we can use by tile t ime . II wm I'fIlnlllg by til e t.im e we gO I (f) a,e brulge o From . to/till/until We li se from for the time when some thing starts. Tickets will be OIL s al e from next Wednesday. •. From SeIJe l1 in the morning th ere's c onslant traffic noise. \'\le can use fr om to or from ,., till/until for the times when something starts and finis he s, Tile cricket se a SO n la sts from April to September. The roatl will be closed from Friday evening till/until Monday morning. Americans li se through , e. g. from Friday through Monday. 003 Prepositions E Before and after Look at these ex am ples. I /J su ally go jo ggi ll g before hreakfasl. /:'lIeryo ne will n eed to stu.dy th e propo sals prior to ou.r disc us sion s. People felt nervous after the alla ck on tile World Trad e Ce n te r. Fol/owing a change of sponsor, the competition flO W ha s a new nam e. Prior to (formal) mea ns 'before'. Follo wi ng mean s 'after' or 'os a result of. 215 Prepositions: other meanings A Pr epositions can have meanings oth er than place or tim e. Iler e arc s ome examples. We we re arguin g about politic s. According 10 tile opinion poll s, th e gOI J ernment is very popular. The r es ort was very crowded. And as for the accommodalion, it was awful. We need some advice as to what we should do next. I'm reading a huok by Thomas Kenea ll y. Contrary to pupular belief, prisons are not holiday c amp s. The co uple want to stay logelher for th e sake of the children. Th e product should he assembled in accordance with the inslruccion s. Who 's in charge of this departm e nt ? Alm os t all lhe voters were in favour oj independence. Profits ha ve fallen len per ce m, in line with foreeasl s. The furnitur e has to be the ri g ht size ill relalion 10 the si ze of t.h e room . Can I use a pencil instead of a pen? J-Jow eff ec ti ve are speed cameras in terms of road safety? On behalf of the company, I wou.ld like to express my thank s. No action has been taken rega rding / with regard to my complaint. The book is be uer than Ih e film . > 206A Brazil won the g ame thank s to a late goal from Ronaldo. /l's up to you what you do nex t. You decid e. This train goes to Birmin gham via Oxford. B For has a numb er of differe IU m ea nings. Here are s om e of th em. Could yo l.l do s ome thing for m e, please? (= to help me) J'/Je called in for a chal. (p urpose. > 240C) She's a /Jery clever child for her age. (~ c on S id er ing her age) Are pe ople for rhe scheme or againsl it? (= in favour of /s upp o nin g) VV-hen f or m eans 'in fa v our of', it is normall y s tre ssed. C With has these meaning s. 304 J wenl 1.0 the co ncert with a friend. (We were together.) Matthew is th e man with long hair. (I -Ie ha s long hair.) I c ut th e wo od with an el ec tric saw. (I used an electric sa w. > D) We all seI to work with en thu siasm. ( :::: enthu siastically) With people w at c hing J fell em barrassed. ( ~ Because peo pl e \!., 'ere watc hing, . > 128 B) 2 15 Pr eposit ions: other mean angs Without is the opposite or with. Who's the man without any shoes on? We all SN LO work, bill without enthusiasm. NOTE We c an usc witll oj. noun \() rOm} an advcrbial cxp res:o illg mann er or reelmg I lIStened 10 lite (Il :. cussioll wi th ;nleresL \Vith cc nain nouns we usc ill. Ti le h))( ~ n sank 10 lI, e gruund in despair. For to in a co mm enl adverbial such as 10 my hor ror, ;;. 201C o We use with and by to express means. We use with to talk about an instrumcnl, something we use Lo help us do something. The thi eves broke t.h e door down with a hammer . Just stir this wilh a wooden spoon, could you? We can al so lISC by means of to explain how something is done, The site was made secure by means of a so phi sticated alarm system. Vve li se by before an ing-form. The tltielles got in by breaking the door down, By stirring th e mixture , you s top it sticking to the ran. ]n a passi ve sentence we lis e by before the agent. > U!)A The door was broken down by the thieves/wi th a hammer. The motor is powered by electricity. No rE ::-'omelimes we can lise either Wil li or by . I paid willI a credit card/by crI 'dlt card. /\fter by expressing means we do not LIse ala ll or lhe. E Wc li se by + noun for a means of transport. J usually prefer to travel by train, We do not use al an or th e. (NIH 1-ff!IttttIIy 'prefer- CtHrtlllei-1Jj " E. am ) ~lIc h phrases with by inclu de: by aeroplane. by air, by bicyc le, by bik e, by baal, by /JlJ S, by car, by co ach, by fer ry , by hov ercraft, by hydrofoil, by plan e, by rail , by road, by sea. by s hip , by taxi, by traill, by tube, by und erground. We do nO{ normally u se by to mcan n specific bi cy cl e, car, etc. I'lf go on my bike, (Not Pll-go hy my -hike.) We can use phrases lik e i ll th e/my car, in a taxi, on the / our boat, all the bitS/ coach/ferry/tra in , et c, We sayan fo ot and on horseback, I came here on foot . (= I walked h ere .) 0 11 fOOl is more usual than by jl)ot. We can also use by for m eclllS of communication, e.g. by e- mail , by fax , by le it er, hy pilon e, by post, by radio. I sen t the information hy post. I spoke to Tim by phon e / (m the phone. 305 Prepositions NO TE We c OIn usc otht'r prepo si tions wllh 11 ib . (.flr . etc Th ese ex ample s expre ss IIHlVt"lllcnL 11w pa sst mgp ,-s !,'O( int%ul vlllie {' ,ar / tax, . l;: mmfl gvt on / off IICr I}lke/ tlle bll s/ 1I1(' Imm We weill vn board tile s illp . F O/has a numb er of dirfere nt m e~ ning s. a tin of soup > 138A some of my friends> 1 68 tile elld of ,h . gallle > I:JJC our firsl sight of land > 257 We ca n also u se of in lhis patt ern. 71l ese souvenirs are of no value. (They have no valuc.) She's an actress of great ability. (She has great ab iliry.) G We can usc as to ex pr ess a role or fUllc[ion. Maria lias co rn e along as our guide. (She is our gUide.) I'm having to use Ihe sofa as a l >ed. (It is a bed.) Afler as we normally u sc a determin er (e.g. Ollr, a), but for a phrase like as Queen without th e, > 159F. We u sc like to make a comparison. A hang-glider ca n soar through the air like a bird. I think I.ouise looks a bit like Kylie Minogue. Like everyone el se, I ha ve to pa y my lar es. Compare as and like. He speaks as all ex pe rt . He is ajier all a professor. lI e wlks Uke an expert, but really ',e knows /Je!y lilt/e. NOTE a We ca n lISC a"yllling or nothing 10 mOdify like. D/w llrse " lSu't my coaL It 's 'Wtll;II!: Ilkt! 1I111/( !. i .~ If ? h Ufllike i~ the upposlte of like. It 's unlike Sarah to be late. SI,e' !> mllal/y II C')' PIIIICWIII, H We u se excepl. (for). aporl from. with the exc ep lion of. and bIll (for) to talk 30n a bout an exception. Everyone was there except (for)lbut (Jor}/apart from james, who was ill. Everyone was there with the exception of jam es. I hat e fish. I can eat anyl/ling excepUbut fis h. I swear 10 tell th e truth, the whole truth, a nd IImhirl g bu.t lite truth. So me prepo sitions have a s imilar m eani ng to LI co njul1l;liun. 1 studied physics as well as chemistry. (= a nd I s tudi ed chemistry) 11J e barbecue was cancell ed due to the wellllle r. (= be cause the weather was bad ) Such pr epos iti ons include the following: as well as, besides, in additiun to. along wilh, fUg e ch er with> 233D iff spite oj; despite> 2350 as a result of> 2360 hecause of, due to, owing to, in view of. 0/1 a Cc(} uf1I of, cO fl sillering > 239C 216 Id iomat ic phrases with prepositions 216 Idiomatic phrases with prepositions A T here are many idiom(lt ic phrases bcginning wi th a preposition. MOSI of lh cm are without a/an or the. Here are so me examples. Abolle all we don't want any accidents. Atfirst / coul dn 't see a thing, but then my eyes adjus/.ed to the dark. I've managed lo finish this crossword at last. Of course / know you. / recogni zed you at once. I'd like to buy this picture if it's for sale. Tly to see it from my point of view . You have to pay half the cost oj the holiday in advance. Yes, / am thinking of leaving. In. fact I've resigned. Of course you can't trust the weather in Britain. / drive about len thousand miles a year on mlerage. I'll be on holiday next lJ.Jeek. / heard the news either on television or all the radio . There are so many diJJc!rcra computers on the markel. There were one or two problems, but on. the whole things wenl smootl/iy. I've been out of work, bllt J'm starlIng a new job soon. The govemmenr is under pressure to do somelhing about the problem. B In lime (fOr/lO) mean s 'early enoug h', hut on lime means ' punctu al(ly)' . Oh, good. You're back in time for tea. 1he train left Oil time at /1.23. N ute alsu in ~()ud lime ami jusl in lime. We gal back in good lime for tea. (:: with plenty of timc to spare) We gal back just in time for tea. (:: with lillIe time to spare) C In the beginning means 'at firs t' , and at the beginning of + noun phrase refers to the lime when somclhing starts . In the beginning / At fi rst the company struggled LO survive, bur /lOW it is very successJui. The studenls return to Oxford at the beginning of the academic year. /n. lhe end means 'finally', and at t.he end of + noun phrase refers to the time when some thing finishes. There were arguments, hilt in the end / finally we managed to reach an agreement. Most sllJrien.ts have jobs to gu to at the end of the course. D In t.he way means 'b locking the way', and on the rvay mcans 'on a journey". Don.'t leave your bike there. It'll he in the way. /t's a long jo urm ry . We can slOp for a meal on the way . 307 [...]... at/b}1 what happened thrilled Il l/by lhe prospect tired of walking worried about/by chis setback NOTE For 3 18 adjecti ve + preposition + gerund, > 116 225 Adjective + prepositi on 8 Some adjectives can take different prepositions, depending on the meanin g We arc angry with someone about som ethirz8 The lOurists were angry about the mix ·up over tickets Why are you angry with me? Je's not my fault We... that could stand alone as a sentence He rook 'he lift up to 'he 86 th floor A gust of wind caught him For the stru c ture of a main clause, > 4 We can use and, or, hut, and so (0 join two or more main clauses He took the lift up to the 86 th /loor, and he jumped He could KO through with il, or he could go back dow" again He jumped from the 86 th floor, but he survived It was a live show, so the host invited... I'TElJ SUI CIDE A New York painter decided to end it all by '-hrowing himself off the Empire Slate Building lIe lOok the lift up to the 86 th floor, fou nd a convenient window and jumped A gust o[wind caught him as hefell and blew him into rhe studios of NRC Television OII the 83 rd floor There was a title show gOing (J1If, so 'he interlJiewer decided to ask the would-be suicide a few questions He namiued... course more imporllHlt to lI ~e the words correctly than to worry about what (Q call th em But remember that thert:! lire differences between ,he use of adverbs and the usc of prepositions :> 2 19 2 18 The grammar of phrasal verbs A Word order Some phrasal verbs are intransiti ve, but others have an o bj ec t Inuansitive: Suddenly the lights wellt out A chair had fallen over Transitive: Someone turned... III! fell a.nd blew lIim into (h e studios of N BC Televisioll on tile 83 rd floor AmI it happened thai (h ere Wtl.'i lJ fjlle show going 0It! a( tile lime At one time some people believed lhat iI was incorrect to begin a SenlCI1CI! with lIfld, or, bm, or so ThiS anilude IS nnw less common, and you will oflen see s uch sente nces 322 2 28 Wh at comes after the ve rb? B Sub-clauses A sllb ~ clall s e cannot... 127- 1 28 Compare th e verbs in th ese finite clauses The intervieu)er decided that he l !Ollld ask him a few questions l He regrel.s now Iha t he jumped Wh en he found a co nvenient window, he threw himself our of it A finit e clause can be a mil in cl il use or a s ub ~ c1 a u se A finit e verb has a sllbject, e,g (he foun d, he Ihrew), although it is sometimes left au( after alld and or > A [ 2 28 What... looking into lhe illcident People look on this neighbourhood as very desirable We spent a couple of hours looking round the shops Here are some other verbs wh ic h combine wi th differelH pre posit ions The doctor will be calling on a nwnber of patients (:::: visiting) J'll call for you at about seven (I'll co me to yo ur home so that we can go somewhere together.) The United Nations has called for a cease-fire... the old one The old cinema has /'Jeen turned into a night club Old you lhank Daniel for helpil/g us? NOTE For more examples with vcrh ~ obJcct ~ preposition le.g t/,mlk I)11IIic/ for l1elplIIg), :> 11 58 t gerund B Co mpare these pairs of sentences You can't blame the governmem for ellery thing YOII can't blame everything un t/te gOl'ernmellt U le artist presellted the Presidelll with a portrait of the... clauses linked together like this are called 'co· ordinatc claus es' When the subject of th e two clauses is the same, we can often leave it alit, especially after and and or He took the lift up to the 86 th floor and (he) jumped We can also leave om the auxiliary verb to avoid rep eating it He could go through wilh it or (he could) go back down again We can link more than two clauses Usually and comes... + adverb before a noun a rolled-up newspaper a broklm-down c:ar 219 Differences between phrasal and prepositional verbs A Adverbs and prepositions A phrasal ve rb is a verb + adverb, e.g give away> 2 18 Adverbs include away, hack, and out A prepositional verb is a verb + preposition, e.g pay for > 222 Preposi tions include at for, from, illlO, of, and wilh l Some words ca n be ei th er an adverb or . s illp . F O/has a numb er of dirfere nt m e~ ning s. a tin of soup > 138A some of my friends> 1 68 tile elld of ,h . gallle > I:JJC our firsl sight of land > 257 We. lire differences between ,he use of adverbs an d the usc of prepositions. :> 2 19 2 18 The grammar of phrasal verbs A Word order 30B So me phra sal verbs are intr ansi tive,. Ronaldo. /l's up to you what you do nex t. You decid e. This train goes to Birmin gham via Oxford. B For has a numb er of differe IU m ea nings. Here are s om e of th em. Could