Guess the meaning of the following idioms and fill in the gaps.

Ex.1 Fill the gaps in the sentences below using a comparative or superlative form of the word in brackets. You will need more than one word in some gaps.

1. The traffic problem in this city is much _____________ than it was two years ago. (good)

2. Walking round the city at night used to be far ________________than it is now. (dangerous)

3. People in my village are much ____________________ than in the city! (friendly)

4. The bus stop’s here. If you want to go any ________________you'll have to take a taxi. (far)

5. That's by far the _____________building I've ever seen! (ugly)

6. The longer I live in the city, the _________________ I feel. (happy)

7. The inhabitants of that city are the _______________________ people in the country. There are lots of jokes about their laziness. (hard-working)

8. There are considerably _____________ crimes in this city than there used to be. (few)

9. I was pleased that the suburbs of the city were much _____________________ than the centre. (polluted)

10. My city is definitely the ______________ place in the world! (crazy)

Ex. 2 Read this text and put the words in brackets into the correct form.

My village is in one of (1)____________________(quiet) areas of the country. Living in the city isn’t (2) __________________________ (nearly/peaceful) living here. The countryside is (3)______________________________(much/beautiful) any city could be. I think this is (4)_________________________ (beautiful) place in the world. The pace of life is (5)_________________ (slow) and people are (6) ________________________ (far/friendly) they are in the city. There's less crime so it's (7)____________________________(a lot/safe), too.

The countryside has some disadvantages, of course. It's true that work is scarce here. Jobs are (8) ________________________ (a great deal/ easy) to find in the city. And public transport is often (9) _____________________ (far/bad) in the countryside than in urban areas. My village probably has (10) ___________________ (bad) public transport in the world! People often leave the countryside because it's not lively enough for them. However, the (11) _____________(long) I live in my village, ______________________ (good) I like it.

Ex. 3 There is one mistake in each sentence of this text (10 in total). Read and correct the mistakes.

I was born in New York, one of most dangerous cities in the world. But now I live in Dublin, the friendliest city I ever went to. The longer I live here, the more I feel happy. Dublin is as most cities: it's noisy and dirty but very exciting. Of course, it has its problems: life in Dublin is getting more and more stressfuller. People don't have as much time to stop and talk than they did in the past. And the busier the city becomes, the more bad the traffic problem gets. This means that the air is much polluted than it used to be. But I don't agree with people who say that the countryside is just as exciting than the city. I love Dublin and I think living in the country must be the worse thing in the world!

Transformations

Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the word given. Do not change the word given. You must use between two and five words, including the word given.

1. This is the best song I've ever heard. as

No other song I have heard _____________________ this one.

2. Can't you do any better than this? the

Is this ______________________ do?

3. My brother spent half as much on his car as I did. twice

I spent ____________________ on my car as my brother did on his.

4. His house and mine are the same size as

His house _____________________________ mine.

5. Taking the bus to work isn't as fast as driving. faster

Driving to work ________________________ the bus to work.

6. If you eat less junk food, you'll become healthier. the

The less junk food you eat, ______________________ you'll become.

7. I never thought the flight would be so long. much

The flight _________________________ I thought it would be.

8. Her CV was more impressive than the other applicant's. less

The other applicant's CV _________________________ hers.

9. I’m sorry, but this is the fastest I can drive. any

I’m sorry, but I can’t ________________________ this.

10. Jim is a physician who works at City Hospital. as

Jim ____________________________ at City Hospital.

11. His speech was not as interesting as the other ones. the

His speech ________________________________ all.

12. The ring cost much more than I had expected. far

The ring was _________________________ I had expected.

13. The countryside is a lot less polluted than the city. more

The city ________________________ the countryside.

14. As cities get bigger, they become more exciting. the

The bigger cities _______________________________ they become.

15. Are there any flights to Athens which are cheaper than this? flight

Is this _____________________________________ Athens?

16. The train is more expensive than the coach. cheap

The train ____________________________ the coach.

17. I have never seen such a tall building before. I

This building is the ________________________ seen!

Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the word given. Do not change the word given. You must use between three and eight words, including the word given.

1. The original version of the film was superior in every way to the new version. nothing

The new version of the film __________________________________ the original version.

2. The first time I went I enjoyed myself more than I did on the second visit. good

I didn’t _________________________________________ on the second visit as I had done

on the first.

3. The critics predicted the musical would be very successful, but in fact it didn’t do very well. hit

The musical wasn’t as _____________________________ the critics had predicted it would be.

4. Like many other people, she was impressed by the sculpture. did

She thought the sculpture impressive, ___________________________________ other people.

5. She greeted him less enthusiastically than he had expected. warm

She _________________________________________________ a greeting as he had expected.

Guess the meaning of the following idioms and fill in the gaps.

as strong as an ox, has her hands full, as busy as a bee, has what it takes, as pretty as a picture, as cunning as a fox, as cool as a cucumber

1. She _________________________ to be an actress. She is talented and hard-working.

2. Janet works full-time and takes care of two children as well; she really _______________________.

3. I couldn't pick up the heavy box but Fred lifted it eas­ily — he is ________________________!

4. She's ___________________________; she fooled her opponent and won the game.

5. Vicky is ____________________________ she never panics about anything.

6. He always has a lot of work to do: he's _____________________________.

7. She was a lovely bride; she looked _____________________________________.

Answers

Ex.1

1. better; 2. more dangerous; 3. friendlier; 4. farther/further; 5. ugliest; 6. happier; 7. least hard-working; 8. fewer; 9. less polluted; 10. craziest

Ex. 2

1. the quietest; 2. nearly as peaceful as; 3. much more beautiful than; 4. the most beautiful;

5. slower; 6. far friendlier/more friendly than; 7. a lot safer; 8. a great deal easier; 9. far worse; 10. the worst; 11. longer; 12. the better

Ex. 3

1. one of the most dangerous cities in the world; 2. the friendliest city I have ever been to; 3. The longer I live here, the happier I feel; 4. Dublin is like most cities; 5. life in Dublin is getting more and more stressful; 6. People don't have as much time to stop and talk as they did in the past;

7. the busier the city becomes, the worse the traffic problem gets; 8. the airis much more polluted than it used to be; 9. the countryside is just as exciting as the city; 10. living in the country must be the worst thing in the world

Transformations

13. is much more polluted than; 14. get, the more exciting; 15. the cheapest flight to; 16. isn’t as cheap as; 17. tallest I have ever

1. is/was nothing like as good as; 2. have such a good time/have as good a time; 3. big a hit as/much of a hit; 4. as did many; 5.did not give him as warm

1. has what it takes

2. has her hands full

3. as strong as an ox

4. as cunning as a fox

5. as cool as a cucumber

6. as busy as a bee

7. as pretty as a picture

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