4 -Unnecessary words
Unnecessary prepositions
The zuords below do not require a preposition to go with them because they have within them the meaning of the preposition.
284 Answer (= reply to). Don't say: Please answer to my question.
Say: Please answer my question. Note The noun answer takes to. His answer to my question was wrong.
285 Approach (- come near to). Don't say: Don't approach to that house.
Say: Don't approach that house.
286 Ask (= put a question to). Don't say: I asked to the teacher about it.
Say: I asked the teacher about it.
287 Attack (= go and fight against). Don't say: They attacked against the enemy.
Say: They attacked the enemy. Note W e say, to make an attack on: They marie an attack on the enemy
288 Comprise (= consist of). Don't say: The book comprises of five chapters.
Say: The book comprises five chapters. Or: The book is comprised of five chapters.
289 Enter (= go into). Don't say: We entered into the classroom.
Say: We entered the classroom. Note: W e enter into a conversation, a debate, or a discussion.
290 Finish (= come to the end of).
Don't say: I've finished from my work. / Say: I've finished my work.
291 Leave (= depart from).
Don't say: Brian left from England last week. Say: Brian left England last week.
292 Obey (= act according to).
Don't say: We should obey to our teachers. Say: We should obey our teachers.
293 Allow (to) or let (= give permission to). Don't say: The driver allowed/let to John (to) sit in the front seat. Say: The driver allowed/let John (to) sit in the front seat.
Note Permit has a similar meaning to let, 'hough it'sused in more formal situations The teacher doesn't permit us to talk in class.
294 Reach (- arrive at).
Don't say: We reached at the'school early. Say: We reached the school early.
295 Resemble (- be similar to).
Don't say: Does she resemble to her father? Say: Does she resemble her father?
Note resemblance takes to or between. She bears no resemblance father There is no resemblance between them
296 Tel! (= say to). Don't say: I told to him to come at once.
Say: I told him to come at once.
297 Behind (= at the back of). Don't say: Edward hid behind of a large tree.
Say: Edward hid behind a large tree.
298 Inside (= in the interior of). Don't srty.'The boys went inside of the room.
Say: The boys went inside the room.
299 Outside (= on the exterior of). Don't 5rty:They stood outside of the door.
Say: They stood outside the door.
300 Round (= on all sides of). Don't say: The earth goes round of the sun.
Say: The earth goes round the sun. Note. Around is similar in meaning and use to round (See Exercises 86 and 87 on page 174.)
Unnecessary articles
301 Wrong use of the with proper nouns. Don't say: The Sarah will go to the England.
Say: Sarah will go to England. Don't use the definite article with propei nouns.
Note1 Generally place the before the names of rivers, seas, oceans, bays, gulfs, mountain langes, groups of islands, andcountries or provinces consisting of an adjective anda noun. W e lay. the Nile, the Mediterranean, the Atlantic, the Say of Biscay, the Persian Gulf, the Alps, the Dodecanese, the United States, the Central Provinces of India.
302 Wrong use of the with proper nouns in the possessive, Don't say: The Euripides' tragedies are famous.
Say: Euripides' tragedies are famous. Don't use the definite aitide with proper nouns in the possessive case .
Note. If the name ends m an s or x or is difficult to pronounce with the extra syllable's weomit thefinal s Maria Caf/as'voice isdivine
303 Wrong use of the with abstract nouns.
Don't say: The bravery is a great virtue.
Say: Bravery is a great virtue. Abstract nouns, if used in a general sense, can't take the article.
Note Abstract nouns, used in a particular sense, use the article The of the Spartans was rpnowned
304 Wrong use of the with material nouns.
Don't say: The gold is a precious metal.
Say: Gold is a precious metal. Don't use <3ny article wr.h material nouns, if used in a general sense.
bravery .
302 Wrong use of the with proper nouns in the possessive, Don't say: The Euripides' tragedies are famous.
Say: Euripides' tragedies are famous. Don't use the definite aitide with proper nouns in the possessive case .
Note. If the name ends m an s or x or is difficult to pronounce with the extra syllable's weomit thefinal s Maria Caf/as'voice isdivine.
Note Material nouns, used in a particular sense, require the definite article
The coal from the Midlands i% exported to many countries
305 Wrong use of the with plural nouns used in a general sense.
Don't say: The dogs are faithful animals. / Say: Dogs are faithful animals.
Omit the definite article befoie common nouns in the plural if used in a general sense.
306 Wrong use of the with names of languages.
Don't use: Tim speaks the English very well.
Say: Tim speaks English very. well. Never use the definite article before the names of languages. Note W e can ;ay He spt-aks the English language very well
307 Wrong use of the with names of meals.
Don't say: We'll start after the breakfast.
Say: We'll start after breakfast.
Don't use the definite article before the names of meals, breakfast, lunch, dinner, or supper unless you are referring to a particular meal: The lunch thpy provided was excellent .
308 Wrong use of the with names of games.
Don't say: My favourite game is the football.
Say: My favourite game is football. Don't usean article before thenames of games like football, hockey, tennis, cricket, volley-ball, basket-ball
309 Wrong use of the with names of diseases.
Don't say: The cholera is a dreadful disease.
Say: Cholera is a dreadful disease. As a rule, don't use the definite article before the names of diseases .
Note The indefinite article is needed with common names of illnesses: I was suffering from a cold (a fever, a cough, a headache).
310 Wrong use of the with names of colours.
Don't say: The green is a beautiful colour.
Say: Green is a beautiful colour. DonT usethedefinite article before thenames ofcolours when used
as nouns.
311 Wrong use of the with the names of the senses.
Don't say: The sight is one of the five senses.
Say: Sight is one of the five senses.
Don t usean article before the names of thefive senses: sight, smeil, hearing, taste andtouch.
312 Wrong use of the with names of days and months.
Don't say: The Sunday can be a day of prayer.
The December is the last month. Say: Sunday can be a day of prayer.
December is the last month.
Don't use the definite article before thenames of days and months Note We say the Sunday before last, the December of 1940, etr .
313 Wrong use of the with man denoting the human race. Don't say: The man is born a sinner.
Say: Man is born a sinner, Use man, denoting the human race, without the definite article Also,
mankind requires no article" Disease is the enemy of mankind
314 Wrong use of the with school. Don't say: My sister goes to the school.
Say: My sister goes to school. To go to school means to bp a student, while to go to t h e school, means to visit the school. Note- Similarly, to leave school means to stop being a s'uderrt andto leave the school means t o go a w a y from the schooi premises .
315 Wrong use of the with church. Don't say: On Sunday I go to the church.
Say: On Sunday I go to church. To go to church means to go and pray, while to go to the church means to go and visit the church.
Note- Similarly, distinguish between go to bed andgo to the bed, go to prison andgo to the prison, go to market andgo to the market, go to hospital andgo to the hospital, sit at table andsitatthe table .
316 Wrong use of the with nature. Don't say: The nature is beautiful in spring.
Say: Nature is beautiful in spring. Note: Use the definite article if nature is used in other meanings: It is in the nature of a dog to be faithful .
317 Wrong use of the with society. Don't say: A thief is a danger to the society.
Say: A thief is a danger to society.
Note: Use the definite article if society is used ( » in a particular sense: The society of the Greeks was based on freedom; (2) in the sense of companionship; / enjoy the society of my friends.
318 Wrong use of the in the phrase in future (= from now on).
Don't say: You must be careful in the future.
Say: You must be careful in future.
Note: In the future means in the time to come: Nobody knows what will happen in the future.
319 Wrong use of the after whose. Don't say: The boy whose the father is ill has left.
/ Say: The boy whose father is ill has left.
Don't usethearticle after therelative determiner whose, because ittakesthe place of the article.
320 Wrong use of the indefinite article before work, etc. Don't say: Gillian has found a work at the bank.
Say: Gillian has found work at the bank. Don't usethe indefinite article before such words as work, fun, health, permission.
(See Exercise 17 on page 144.)
Have another look at ...
Definite article
As a rule, nouns in English take no article when used in a general sense, but if they're used in a particular sense the article is needed. Note the difference in the use or omission of the article:
1 With plural nouns: Horses are strong animals. The horses in the field belong to the farmer.
2 With abstract nouns: Wisdom is a great virtue. The wisdom of Solomon was famous.
3 With material nouns: Water is necessary to life. The water in the kitchen is hot.
4 With days, months, and seasons: Summer is a hot season The summer of '99 was very hot.
5 With names of languages: English is spoken all over the world. The English she speaks is not correct.
6 With names of meals: Breakfast is at eight o'clock. The breakfast I had this morning was delicious.
7 With names of colours: Blue is my favourite colour. The blue in that picture has faded
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Adverbs often confused
455 Very and Too:
(a) Very.
Don't say: It's too hot in Rome in the summer.
Say: It's very hot in Rome in the summer. (b) Too. Don't say: It's now very hot to play football. Say: It's now too hot to play football. Very simply makes theadjective c adverb stronger Too means more than enough, or so much that something else happens as a result (See Exercise 68 on page 166.) 456 Very and Much.
(a) Very. Don't say: He's a much strong man. It's a much interesting book.
Say: He's a very strong man. It's a very interesting book. (b) Much. Don't say: He's very stronger than I am. Say: He's much stronger than I am. Use very with adjectives andadverbs inthepositive, andwith present participles used as adjectives like interesting. Use much with comparatives (See Exercise 69 on page 167.) 457 Too much for Very much. Don't say: She likes the cinema too much. He's too much stronger than I am. Say: She likes the cinema very much.
He's very much stronger than I am. Use very much instead of much for greater emphasis Too much denotes an excessive quantity or degree. She ate too much, and felt ill. (See Exercise 70 on page 167.)
458 Before for Ago. Don't say: I saw your friend before two weeks.
Say: I saw your friend two weeks ago.
We useago incounting from thetime ofspeaking toapoint inthepast; half an hour ago, three days ago, four months ago, five years ago, a long time ago. W e usebefore in counting from a distant to a nearer point inthe past. Napoleon died in 1821, he hadlost the battle of Waterloo sixyears before.
Mote. When we useago, theverb isalways inthesimple past tense He came five minutes ago
459 Hardly for Hard. Don't say: She rubbed her eyes hardly.
Say: She rubbed her eyes hard. Hard means severely. Hardly means not quite or scarcely. The baby can hardly walk (See Exercise 71onpage 168.)
460 No so for Not very. Don't say: I hear that he's not so rich.
Say: I hear that he's not very rich. W e can't use not so in the sense of not very The expression He's not so rich implies a comparison- He s not so rich as you are
461 Just now r*or Presently, etc. Don't say: The messenger will arrive just now.
Say: The messenger will arrive presently.
If w e are speaking of a near and immediate future time, w e must use presently, immediately, in a minute, or soon Just now refers to present or past time, and not to future time: He's not at home just now (= at this moment). H e left just now (= a little time ago.
462 Presently for At present. Don't say: His uncle is in London presently.
Say: His uncle is in London at present. At present and presently arenotsynonymous At present means now, but
presently means soon: She will come back presently (= soon).
463 Scarcely for Rarely. Don't say: Zoe scarcely comes to see me now.
Say: Zoe rarely comes to see me now. Scarcely isn't synonymous with rarely Rarely means not often, scarcely
means not quite /had scarcely finished when he came
464 Lately for Late. Don't say: Last night I went to bed lately.
Say: Last night I went to bed late. The opposite of early is late, not lately. Lately means in recent times:
haven't been there lately.
Adjectives often confused
465 Many and Much.
(a) Many.
Don't say: My brother hasn't much books.
- Say: My brother hasn't many books. (b) Much. Don't say: Is there many dust in the room? - Say: Is there much dust in the room? Use many with plural nouns' many books or many boys. Usemuch with uncountable nouns: much water or much bread. Note: Inaffirmative sentences many andmuch aregenerally replaced bya lot (of), a great deal (of), plenty (of), a good deal (of), a good many (of), a great number (of),a large quantity (of), etc. (See Exercise 9 on page 141.)
466 Few and A Few. (a) Few.
Don't say: Although the question was easy, a few boys were able to answer it. Say: Although the question was easy, few boys were
able to answer it.
(b) A few. Don't say: Although the question was difficult, few boys were able to answer it.
Say: Although the question was difficult, a few boys were able to answer it.
Few means not many and emphasises the smallness of thenumber itis dtstingu'shecf from a few, which means at least some.
467 Little and A little. (a) Little.
Don't say: He took a little exercise and wasn't very fit.
-Say: H e took little exercise and wasn't very fit. (bj A little. Don't say: She took little exercise and felt much better.
-Say: She took a little exercise and felt much better. Little means not much andemphasises thesmallness of theamount. It's distinguished from a little which means at least some. (For sections 466-467 see Exercise 10 on page 141.) 468 Each and Every. (a) Each. Don'r say: She gave an apple to every of the children.
-Say: She gave an apple to each of the children. (b) Every. Don't say: Each child had an apple. -Say: Every child had an apple.
Use each totoneof twoor more things, „anen one by one. Never use every for two, but always for more than t w o things, taken as a group Each is more individual andspecific, butevery isthemore emphatic word
Note1 Each and every are always singular: Each (or every) one of !he twenty boys has a book
469 His and Her.
(a) His.
Don't say: John visits her aunt every Sunday.
Say: John visits his aunt every Sunday.
(b) Her.
Don't say: Ann visits his uncle every Sunday.
Say: Ann visits her uncle every Sunday.
In English, possessive adjectives (and pronouns) agree with the person who possesses, and not with the person or thing possessed When the possesso'is masculine, usehis, andwhen the possessor ;sfeminine, useher.
(See Exercise 13onpage 142.)
470 Oider (oldest) and Elder (eldest).
(a) Older, Oldest.
Don't say: This girl is elder than that one. This girl is the eldest of all
-Say: This girl is older than that one. This girl is the oldest of all. (b) Elder, Eldest. Don't say: My older brother is called John. My oldest brother is not here.
-Say: My elder brother is called John. My eldest brother is not here. Older andoldest areapplied toboth people andthings, while elderand eldest areapplied to people only, andmost frequently to related people. Note' Elder can't be followed by than Jane is older [not elder) than her sister. (See Exercise 8 on page 140 and Exercise 15 on page 143.)
471 interesting and Interested. (a) Interesting.
Don't say: I've read an interested story.
-Say: I've read an interesting story. (b) Interested. Don't say: Are you interesting in your work?
-Say: Are you interested in your work? Interesting refers to the thing which arouses interest, while interested refers to the person w h o takes an interest in the thing. (See Exercise 14 on page 143.)
472 Wounded and Injured or Hurt. Don't say: Jack was wounded in a car accident.
Say: Jack was injured in a car accident. People are injured or hurt as a result of an accident or a fight, but people are wounded m wars and baules.
473 Farther and Further. Don't say: Turn the page for farther instructions.
Say; Turn the page for further instructions.
Note: Use further to mean both greater distance and more of something We only usefarther for distances. /live a bit.farther away than you. Don't use i! to mean more. W e usefurther for both meanings in modern English
474 A for An. Don't say: A animal, a orange, a hour.
Say: An animal, an orange, an hour.
Use an instead of a before a vowel or a silent h (as in hour, heir, honest ). Before a long u or a syllable having thesound of you, we usea (notan); a union, a European (but an untie)
475 One for A (n) Don't say: Adam found one ring in the street.
Say: Adam found a ring in the street .
Don t use the numeral one instead of the indefinite articte a or an Use one only where the number is emphatic; He gave me one book instead of two .
476 Some for Any. (a) Some.
Don't say: Louis has got any milk. Say: Louis has got some milk.
(b) Any. Don't say: There aren't some books on the shelf.
Say: There aren't any books on the shelf.
We usually use some for affirmative phrases 5he's got some chicken, and a n y in negative and interrogative phrases- lan hasn't bought any food today Have you bought any food? We sometimes use s o m e in questions: Would you like some soup?
(See Exercise 12 on page 142.)
477 Less for Fewer. Don't say: They have less books than I have.
Say: They have fewer books than I have.
Less denotes amount, quantity, value, or degree, fewer denotes number. We may have less water, less food, less money, less education, but f e w e r books, fewer letters, fewer friends .
Note. W e say less than {five, si/., etc.) pounds because the pounds are considered as a sum of money and not as a number of coins.
478 This for That. Don't say: Look at this dog across the street!
-Say: Look at that dog across the street!
This is used to indicate something physically close to the speaker In the case of abstract things we use this for things which are most immediately present. This is a lovely song' I'll help you do it this time. When we talk about more than one thing we use this for the closer or more immediate and that for the further away or more remote in time If we're only talking about one thing we usually use that. What's that noise? That's a nice coat' Don't do that'
479 Latter for Later. Don't say: She got to school latter than I did.
Say: She got to school later than I did.
Later refers to time Latter refers to order and means trie second of two things lust mentioned' Alexandria and Cairo are large cities The latter has a population ot over a million. Theopposite of latter is former.
480 Last for Latter. Don't say: Sir Walter Scott and Charles Dickens are both excellent writers, but I prefer the last.
Say: Sir Walter Scott and Charles Dickens are both excellent writers, but I prefer the latter.
The latter means thesecond of twopeople or things which have been mentioned. The last refers to a series of more thantwo.
481 Last for Latest. Don't say: What's the last news from the Palace?
Say: What's the latest news from the Palace? Latest isthelast upto thepresent. Last isthefinal one. Z is the Isst fetter of the alphabet
482 Small, Big for Young, Old. Don't say: I'm two years smaller than you.
She's three years bigger than me. / Say: I'm two years younger than you. She's thpee years older than me.
If reference istoage, sayyoung orold. Small andbig usually refer to s\ze- He is big (or smalt] for his age
Note: Great refers to the importance of a person or thing: Napoleon was a great man, Homer's Iliad is a great book. Use great with words like distance, height, length, depth. There is a great distance fjerv/een fhe earth a n d (rs>? moon. Informally, use great to mean something nice or good. We watched a great concert last night.
483 High for Tall. Don't say: My elder brother is six feet high.
Say: My elder brother is six feet tall. We generally usetall with people, andit'stheopposite of short Usehigh when referring to trees, buildings, or mountains, andit'stheopposite of low
484 Beautiful for Handsome or Good-looking. Don't say: He's grown into a beautiful young man.
Say: He's grown into a handsome young man. We usually saythat a manishandsome orgood-looking, andthat a woman
is beautiful, lovely, good looking or pretty .
485 Sick or 111. Don't say: He's been sick for over a year.
Say: He's been ill for over a year. To be ill means to bein bad health To be sick means to vomit We some times .
use sick idiomatically to mean feeling ill The smell made me sick Note" W e canalso usesick before certain nouns Thesick room, a sick note,
sick leave We usetheplural noun thesick tomean illpeople Angela with ;he sick on the streets of Birmingham.
(See Exercise 11 on page 142.)
486 Clear for Clean. Don't say: You should keep your hands clear.
Say: You should keep your hands clean. Clean is the opposite of dirty Clear means transparent or unclouded:
clear water, a clear sky.
487 Angry for Sorry. Don't say: [ was angry to hear of her death.
Say: I was sorry to hear of her death.
worked Sorry is the opposite of glad. Angry means annoyed or enraged' He was angry when a boy hit him in the face
488 Nervous for Angry. Don't say: Our teacher is very nervous today.
Say: Our teacher is very angry today. Nervous means to be easily frightened or upset andcan be a temporary or
permanent condition. Angry describes someone's mood at a given moment.
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