For-phrase with the infinitive

  1. My parents are anxious for me to receive a good education.
  2. The children were impatient for the bus to start.

 

Of-phrase with the infinitive

  1. It was kind of Sue to offer to help me.
  2. It is silly of Mary to give up her job when she needs the money.
  3. It is natural of the younger generation to...

 

 

Gerund as a subject

  1. It is no use crying over spilt milk.
  2. There is no denying the fact that...
  3. Eating fewer fatty foods and more fresh vegetables promotes good health.
  4. Cooperating with each other will make everything run smoothly.
  5. Handing in a book report on time is always difficult.
  6. Being here helps take my mind off things.
  7. Doing voluntary work has added a whole new dimention to my life.
  8. But life goes on, no matter what. There is no stopping it.

Infinitive as a predicativive

  1. For me the main advantage was the stress reduction.

 

Gerund as a direct object

  1. What was the film like? Was it worth seeing?
  2. It was a waste of time reading this book. It was rubbish.
  3. It is a waste of money buying things you don’t need.
  4. I had no difficulty finding a place to live.
  5. I couldn’t help crying/laughing/visiting...
  6. I don’t mind spending all day in the office.

Gerund as an indirect object

  1. I am not very good at learning languages / telling jokes
  2. I am used to doing smth.
  3. I am getting used to doing smth.
  4. She must be fed up with studying.
  5. Thanks very much for inviting me to the party.
  6. She made herself ill by not eating properly.
  7. I am looking forward to going on holiday.
  8. I have always dreamed of living in a small house by the sea. She had dreams of being an actress.
  9. Do you feel like going out tonight?
  10. The rain did not stop/prevent us from enjoying our holiday.
  11. I apologised to them for keeping them waiting.
  12. Some parents do not approve of their children watching a lot of television.
  13. to be always exposed to the danger of (meeting with an accident)
  14. to accuse smb. of doing smth. / to accuse smb. being selfish
  15. She is nervous about taking her driving test.
  16. to make a living from doing smth.
  17. ...who prided herself on demanding the best from her students, no matter how difficult the challenge was.

Gerund as a predicate

  1. To love a woman means giving up everything else.
  2. Every day is like living on the edge.

 

Participle 1

  1. Being a foreigner, she needs a visa to work in this country.
  2. Not being able to speak the local language, I had trouble communicating.
  3. Having spent nearly all our money, we couldn’t afford to stay at a hotel.
  4. Feeling tired, I went to bed early.
  5. For Thomas, being chosen as head boy at his school was the greatest honour he had ever known.

Participle 2

  1. Desined by ...the Sydney Opera House has been portrayed as a piece of sculpture.
  2. the enthusiasm called up by some high ideal
  3. Please accept our apologies for any inconvenience caused.
  4. Carefully measured checks and balances were inserted to prevent..
  5. Crushed and confused and bitterly ashamed of himself, first for having stolen..., then for having been caught, then for having been humiliated...

There is /are

  1. There is much to be said about early rising.
  2. There is something peculiarly restful in returning to work.
  3. There is no such thing as a complete happiness.
  4. Trere is nothing like escaping with an interesting book.
  5. But life goes on, no matter what. There is no stopping it.
  6. Now that the decision was made there is no going back.
  7. Now that... there is less of a need to act out...
  8. There is typically little idea of individuals having their own interests or possessing personal or unique idetities.
  9. There is no accounting for tastes.
  10. There is a low possibility of a country doing smth.

Emphatic constructions

  1. It is hard work that gives results.
  2. It is hard work that makes the money.
  3. I overslept. I didn’t get up until ten o’clock.
  4. It was not until 2005 that the construction was finished.
  5. I do think so. I do hope.
  6. Never before have I seen such a beautiful picture.
  7. I didn’t read this book. Nor did I see the film.
  8. Onlythen did I understand what had happened.
  9. No matter how hardI tried I couldn’t scrape the money.
  10. Whatever his personal shortcomings may have been, his services to...are beyond question.
  11. However, not only have mobile telephones, the Internet and air travel revolutionized our understanding of space, they have also transformed our notion of time, particularly through seemingly instantaneous information flows.

If any

  1. I have litle time, if any at all. Many, if not most, young people...

Modal verbs and related verbs

1. Every appearance ...is boundto be an event of great allure to the city’s ballet – going public.