UNIT 2.
CITY LIFE
C. Grammar
• Double comparatives
I. Choose the correct answer A, B, C or D to complete the sentences.
1. The more she practises, __________________ she becomes.
A. the greater confidence B. more confidently
C. the more confident D. the most confident
2. The more you talk about the situation, __________________.
A. it seems worse B. the worse it seems
C. the worse does it seem D. it seems the worse
3. The older you are, __________________.
A. the more you may become worried B. the more worried you may become
C. the more worry you may become D. you may become more worried
4. The more you have tried to edit the article, __________________.
A. it becomes better B. the more it has become
C. the better it becomes D. it has becomes better and better
5. The better the weather is, __________________.
A. the beaches get the more crowded B. the beaches get the most crowded
C. the most crowded the beaches get D. the more crowded the beaches get
6. __________________ you study for these exams, __________________ you will do.
A. The harder - the better B. The more - the much
C. The hardest - the best D. The more hard - the more good
7. The more wastepaper we recycle, __________________.
A. the least trees we preserve B. the most trees we preserve
C. the fewer trees we preserve D. the more trees we preserve
8. The more he talked, __________________.
A. The more I became bored B. The most bored I became
C. The more boring I became D. The more bored I became
II. Complete the sentences with a double comparison.
1. The weather is getting ____________________. (cold)
2. Nam is getting ____________________. (tall)
3. Traffic in big cities is becoming ____________________. (heavy)
4. Shopping in that mall becomes ____________________. (fun)
5. New buildings make the city ____________________. (modern)
6. Eating and travelling in this city is getting ____________________. (expensive)
7. Our neighbourhood is becoming ____________________. (popular)
8. Mai is becoming before the exam ____________________. (confident)
9. The film just got ____________________. (bad)
10. The public transportation in our city is becoming ____________________. (good)
III. Write the sentences using double comparatives based on the situations.
1. We should collect litter, and the streets become clean.
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
2. When the city has many parks, it will become green.
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
3. If there are many modern sports centres in our neighbourhood, we can have many opportunities to
train ourselves.
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
4. When the facilities in the hospital are modern, the hospital serves patients well.
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
5. When we process food waste into biogas, we can have more energy.
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
IV. Tick () the correct sentences, and rewrite the other ones, changing or adding one word.
1. The fast you try to finish your homework, the more mistakes you make.
___________________________________________________________________________________
2. The popular this area becomes, the more expensive the houses get.
___________________________________________________________________________________
3. The larger the house, the more expensive it is to heat.
___________________________________________________________________________________
4. The grass on their lawn is growing higher higher, but nobody seems interested in cutting it.
___________________________________________________________________________________
• Phrasal verbs
V. Complete the following sentences with the correct form of the phrasal verbs below.
cut down on hang out with get around
throw away come down with carry out
1. Several people have _____________________ heat rash and heat stroke this summer.
2. I don’t really know who she _____________________.
3. We had to use public transport to _____________________.
4. He was unable to _____________________ simple tasks after the accident.
5. When are you going to _____________________ those old magazines?
6. I’m trying to _____________________ the amount of coffee I drink.
VI. Complete the following sentences with the correct form of the phrasal verbs given in Exercise V.
1. More research on the subject needs to be _____________________.
2. Half of her class has _____________________ flu.
3. I am not going to _____________________ him anymore because he is bad-tempered.
4. The supermarket chain has promised to _____________________ packaging.
5. Cycling is a cheap way to _____________________.
6. American customers _____________________ around 100 billion plastic bags yearly.
D. Reading
• City problems and solutions
I. Read the text and choose the correct answers.
Cities are often seen as places of opportunity, but there are also some major drawbacks of
living in a big city. In my opinion, governments could do much more to improve city life for the
average inhabitant.
The main problem for anyone who hopes to move to a large city is that the cost of living is
likely to be much higher than it is in a small town or village. Inhabitants of cities have to pay higher
prices for housing, transport, and even food. Another issue is that urban areas tend to suffer from
social problems such as high crime and poverty rates in comparison with rural areas. Moreover, the
air quality in cities is often poor, due to pollution from traffic, and the streets and public transport
systems are usually overcrowded. As a result, city life can be unhealthy and stressful. However, there
are various steps that governments could take to solve these problems. Firstly, they could invest
money in the building of affordable or social housing to reduce the cost of living. Secondly, authorities
have the power to ban vehicles from city centres and promote the use of cleaner public transport. A
third option would be to develop provincial towns and rural areas, by moving industries and jobs to
those regions, in order to reduce the pressure on major cities. In conclusion, governments could
certainly implement a range of measures to improve the quality of life for all city residents.
1. Cities are often seen as places of opportunities, _____________.
A. so they have no problems B. but they have only one problems
C. and they have only minor problems D. but they also have some serious problems
2. People in cities spend _____________people in the country.
A. more money than B. less money than
C. no money in comparison with D. as much money as
3. All of the following are mentioned as problems in cities EXCEPT _____________.
A. pollution B. crimes C. unemployment D. transportation
4. In order to solve of the problem of housing, the government should _____________.
A. reduce house prices B. build cheap houses for the poor
C. invest money in tall buildings D. help people have better social life
5. All of the following are mentioned as solutions to pollution EXCEPT _____________.
A. offering more jobs to young people
B. moving factories out of the city
C. improving the quality of public transport
D. limiting traffic in the downtown
6. The word ‘implement’ in the last paragraph is closest in meaning to _____________.
A. get around B. hang out C. cut down D. carry out
II. Read the passage, and do the tasks that follow.
Three Things to Do in New York
There are so many things to see and do in New York, sometimes it is difficult to know where to
start. In this week’s guide, we look at three things you can’t miss when you visit the city.
Start by spending some time in Central Park. With over 25,000 trees and lots of different types
of birds, it’s easy to forget you’re in a big city. Relax and enjoy the fresh air or go for a tour in a horse
and carriage. In summer you can go out on the lake in a boat or kayak, and in winter you can go ice-
skating. After all those activities you’ll be hungry, so have lunch at the famous Tavern on the Green.
Great concerts take place in Central Park, too. Every year the New York Philharmonic Orchestra gives
a free open-air concert and there’s also the New York Shakespeare Festival at the theatre in the park.
They say that Paris has the Eiffel Tower, London has the London Eye and New York has the
Empire State Building. But many people think the best views of the city are from the ‘Top of the Rock’
- the top floor of the GE (General Electric) building, a skyscraper in the middle of the city. At 260
metres high, it’s the fourteenth tallest building in New York, and from the top you can have a fantastic
view of the city.
Many people visit the famous Statue of Liberty by ferry, but also on the way is the Immigration
Museum on Ellis island. This was the place where people first arrived from 1892 to 1954, many after a
long and difficult journey from other countries. Most of the island is closed to the general public, but
you can visit the museum and find out about the many people who arrived here. You can also go on a
tour with a guide to visit some of the old, unused buildings on the island. A very interesting day out for
everyone.
Trích nguồn Internet
Task 1. Complete the sentences with a name or a number.
1. There are more than _____________ trees in Central Park.
2. The famous restaurant in Central Park is called the _____________.
3. Every year, the New York _____________ Festival has plays in the park.
4. The top floor of the GE building is called the ‘_____________’.
5. On Ellis Island you can visit the _____________ Museum.
6. People from other countries started arriving on Ellis Island in _____________.
Task 2. Read the text again, and answer the questions.
1. Why is it ‘easy to forget you’re in a big city’ when you visit Central Park?
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
2. What can you do in Central Park in winter?
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
3. What is the GE building?
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
4. How do you get to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty?
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
5. What else, apart from the museum, can you visit on Ellis Island?
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________