Have you got any typing paper? (Here the noun paper is uncountable.)

I am going out to buy a paper. (= I am going out to buy a newspaper.) Here the noun paper is countable because we are actually referring to something made of the material called paper.

Have you got any tea? (Uncountable)

Could I have two teas? (Countable)

Many abstract nouns can have both uncountable and countable uses. The uncountable form is used with a ‘general’ meaning whereas the countable form has a ‘particular’ meaning.

Don’t hurry – take your own time. (Here time is used as an uncountable noun.)

Have a nice time. (Here time is used as a countable noun.)

I had a strange experience last week. (Here experience is used as a countable noun.)

I have got enough experience for the job. (Here experience is used as an uncountable noun.)

Singular countable nouns are sometimes used as uncountables with quantifiers like much, enough, a lot of or plenty of.

She has got too much chin. (Chin is usually a countable noun, but in this case it is used as an uncountable.)

Note that we use much with uncountable nouns and many with countable nouns.

She is the most beautiful woman in the world. (NOT She is the most beautiful woman of the world.)

I am the happiest woman in the world. (NOT I am the happiest woman of the world.)

He is the best player in the team. (NOT He is the best player of the team.)

But of can be used before plural nouns and pronouns.

She is the fastest player of them all. (NOT She is the fastest player in them all.)

Of can also be used before singular quantifiers like lot and bunch.

He is the best of the lot.

Infinitives after superlatives

An infinitive structure can be used after a superlative. This has the same meaning as a relative clause.

Who is the youngest person to become the President of the US? (= Who is the youngest person who has become the President of the US?)

This structure can also be used after words like first, last and next.

She is the first woman to win the Nobel Prize for Literature. (= She is the first woman who has won the Nobel Prize for Literature.)

1. The program was really ……………………….

a) interesting b) interested

2. The film was …………………………

a) boring b) bored

3. It was a ……………………. job.

a) tired b) tiring

4. His behavior was simply ……………………….

a) disgusting b) disgusted

5. I was really …………………………. by her performance.

a) amused b) amusing

6. I was really ………………………… with him for using my computer without my permission.

a) annoyed b) annoying

7. It was a …………………….. story.

a) shocking b) shocked

8. I am very ………………………. with your results.

a) impressed b) impressing

9. He was …………………………. with his own performance.

a) pleased b) pleasing

10. I loved the novel and found the film very ………………………….

a) disappointing b) disappointed

Answers

1. The program was really interesting.

2. The film was boring.

3. It was a tiring job.

4. His behavior was simply disgusting.

5. I was really amused by her performance.

6. I was really annoyed with him for using my computer without my permission.

7. It was a shocking story.

8. I am very impressed with your results.

9. He was pleased with his own performance.

10. I loved the novel and found the film disappointing.

1. The road is getting …………………………………

a) more and more steep b) steeper and steeper c) either could be used here.

2. She is ………………………………… her mother than her father.

a) more like b) liker c) either could be used here

3. The car is running ………………………………… since it had a service.

a) more smoothly b) smoothlier c) either could be used here

4. The motorway is………………………………… than the road.

a) broader b) more broad c) either could be used here

5. Can’t you drive any …………………………………?

a) faster b) more fast c) either could be used here

6. Can you come …………………………………?

a) more early b) earlier c) either could be used here

7. The more I study, the………………………………… I learn.

a) less b) lesser c) either could be used here

8. Your accent is ………………………………… than mine.

a) bad b) worse c) worst

9. He plays ………………………………… than everybody else in the team.

a) good b) better c) best

10. You are getting …………………………………

a) fatter and fatter b) more fat and more fat c) either could be used here

11. We are going …………………………………

a) more and more slowly b) more slowly and more slowly c) either could be used here

12. The older I get, the ………………………………… I am.

a) happier b) more happy c) either could be used here

Answers

1. The road is getting more and more steep. OR The road is getting steeper and steeper.

2. She is more like her mother than her father.

3. The car is running more smoothly since it had a service.

4. The motorway is broader than the road.

5. Can’t you drive any faster?

6. Can you come earlier?

7. The more I study, the less I learn.

8. Your accent is worse than mine.

9. He plays better than everybody else in the team.

10. You are getting fatter and fatter.

11. We are going more and more slowly.

12. The older I get, the happier I am.

Ambi (on both sides): ambidextrous, ambivalent, ambiguous

Anti (against): antidote, anti-social, anti-national

Auto (self): autobiography, autocrat, automatic, autograph

Bene (well): benediction, benevolent, benefit

Bi (two, twice): bilateral, bigamy, biweekly, bisect

Circum (around): circumference, circumnavigation, circumstance, circumscribe

Co (with): cooperate, coordinate, co-existence, coalition

Contra, counter (against): contradict, contravene, controversy, counteract, counterbalance

De (down): dethrone, defame, demoralize, denationalize

Demi (half): demigod

Dis (apart): disconnect, discord, disorganize, dispassionate

Extra (beyond): extraordinary, extravagant, extraterritorial

Hyper (over): hypercritical, hypersensitive, hypertension

Mono (alone): monogamy, monopoly, monotheism, monotony

Non (not): nonviolent, nonsense

Omni (all): omnipresent, omnipotent, omnivorous, omniscient

Poly (many): polygamy, polytheism, polysyllabic

Post (after): post-war, post-script, post-mortem

Pre (before): pre-war, precaution, premature, prefix, prehistoric

Pro (for): pro-American, pro-communist

Pseudo (false): pseudo-classic, pseudonym

Re (again): return, refund, revive, research

Semi (half): semicolon, semi-final, semi-formal, semi-official

Sub (under): subconscious, sub-human, sub-caste, subordinate, subjugate

Super (over): superman, supernatural, superhuman, supervise, surpass, surcharge, surplus

Trans (across): trans-Atlantic, transcribe, transcend

Tri (three): tricolor, trinity, triangle

Ultra (beyond): ultramodern, ultraviolet

Un (not): unnatural, unbalanced

I will telephone you after I have seen Peter.

After you have completed this form, give it to the secretary.

We will not accept the offer until they have agreed to our conditions.

I will come back after I have had my lunch.

I understand that you have decided to accept the job.

Instead of the present perfect tense, we can use simple present tense in these sentences. Note that the simple present tense doesn’t put an emphasis on the completion of the action.

I will telephone you after I see Peter.

After you complete this form, give it to the secretary.

We will not accept the offer until they agree to our conditions.

A past perfect tense can be used in the subordinate clause when the verb in the main clause is in the past tense. Here the past perfect tense is used to show that one thing is completed before another starts.

After he had finished his studies, he went to the US.

He wrote his first book after he had returned from Nigeria.

The baby is…

We were …

Neither sentence expresses a complete thought. Some word or words have to be supplied to complete their meaning.

The baby is hungry.

We were shocked.

Such verbs which do not express a complete thought are called verbs of incomplete predication. The chief verb of incomplete predication is be.

The verb to be is followed by a subject complement. The subject complement may be a noun, an adjective, an adverb or adverbial phrase.

Some intransitive verbs too are followed by subject complements. Examples are: remain, look, appear, turn, sound, feel, go, run, act etc. Here also the subject complement may be a noun, an adjective, an adverb or an adverbial phrase.

The complement of the intransitive verb always describes the subject and is therefore called subject complement.

Study the following examples.

Compound: He must run fast or he will not catch the train.

Simple: He must run fast to catch the train.

Compound: The sun rose and the sky cleared.

Simple: The sun having risen the sky cleared.

Compound: He repeatedly failed but he did not give up.

Simple: In spite of his repeated failures, he did not give up.

Compound: They not only looted the shop, but also set it on fire.

Simple: Besides looting the shop, they set it on fire.

Compound: He was lazy; therefore he failed.

Simple: Being lazy he failed.

Compound: They did not have sufficient funds. They had to abandon the project.

Simple: Owing to the lack of funds, they had to abandon the project.

Compound: The sky was clear. We resumed our journey.

Simple: The sky being clear we resumed our journey.

Compound: The child found her mother absent. She began to cry.

Simple: Finding her mother absent, the child began to cry.

Compound: He not only recommended me to several employers, but lent me some money also.

Simple: Besides recommending me to several employers, he also lent me some money.

Study the following examples.

By reducing a noun clause into a phrase

A complex sentence can be converted into a simple sentence by reducing a noun clause into a noun phrase.

Complex: I know that he is an honest guy.

Simple: I know him to be an honest guy.

Complex: We could not figure out what he said.

Simple: We could not figure out the meaning of his words.

Complex: I believe that God exists.

Simple: I believe in God’s existence.

By reducing an adjective clause

Complex: Those that are helpless deserve our pity.

Simple: The helpless deserve our pity.

Complex: The statue that is made of marble was bought from Jaipur.

Simple: The marble statue was bought from Jaipur.

Complex: We saw trees that were laden with fruits.

Simple: We saw trees laden with fruits.

By reducing an adverb clause into a phrase

Complex: They took shelter under a tree because they were driven by the rain.

Simple: Driven by the rain, they took shelter under a tree.

Complex: He lost all hope because he was deceived by his own friends.

Simple: Deceived by his own friends, he lost all hope.

The patient had died before the doctor arrived.

The train had left before we reached the station.

After he had finished his studies he went to Germany.

As soon as I had put the phone down it started ringing again.

Note that the past perfect tense is not always necessary in these cases. We can usually use time conjunctions (e.g. before, after, when, as soon as) to express the idea that one action had completed before another began.

That means the sentence ‘The patient died before the doctor arrived’ means more or less the same as ‘The patient had died before the doctor arrived’. Traditional grammarians, however, insist that the past perfect tense should be used in such cases.

Two simple past tenses are preferred when we want to suggest that the first action ‘leads into’ the other. In such cases the past perfect tense should be avoided.

When I threw a stone at the dog it ran away. (NOT When I had thrown a stone at the dog it ran away.)

Here two simple past tenses are preferred because the first action leads into the second.

When I opened the window, the cat jumped out. (NOT When I had opened the window, the cat jumped out.)