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Rephrasing Exercises: Tenses & Modals

Sentences to rephrase with a similar meaning.
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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
19 views10 pages

Rephrasing Exercises: Tenses & Modals

Sentences to rephrase with a similar meaning.
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

REPHRASING

VERB TENSES

1. She started drinking too much alcohol two years ago.


She has __________________________________________________________________________________
2. They came to live in New York two years ago.
They have ________________________________________________________________________________
3. I met that famous writer a year ago.
It’s been a year ____________________________________________________________________________
4. I haven’t read a play by George Bernard Shaw for eight years.
It is _____________________________________________________________________________________
5. She hasn’t enjoyed herself so much for years.
It is years ________________________________________________________________________________
6. The last time she wrote a poem was two years ago.
She _____________________________________________________________________________________
7. The last time we saw that movie was six months ago.
We have _________________________________________________________________________________
8. I saw Frank two months ago.
I haven’t _________________________________________________________________________________
9. I have been playing the piano for twenty years.
I started _________________________________________________________________________________
10. I last had flu five years ago.
I haven’t _________________________________________________________________________________
11. I last visited London fifteen years ago.
I haven’t _________________________________________________________________________________
12. She hasn’t phoned her mother for two months.
It’s ______________________________________________________________________________________
13. I haven’t seen your wife for a long time.
It’s ______________________________________________________________________________________
14. I have never read such an interesting book.
This is the ________________________________________________________________________________
15. I haven’t seen a good film for ages.
It’s ______________________________________________________________________________________
16. It’s ages since I last visited Russia.
I _______________________________________________________________________________________
MODAL VERBS

1. It is possible that I finish work earlier than usual today.


I
________________________________________________________________________________________
2. I am not sure that she is his girlfriend.
She _____________________________________________________________________________________
3. Smoking is forbidden in hospitals.
You _____________________________________________________________________________________
4. It’s possible that her boyfriend is coming to the wedding.
Her boyfriend _____________________________________________________________________________
5. The fireman managed to rescue the child from the burning house.
The fireman was __________________________________________________________________________
6. It is possible that we’ll be together soon.
We _____________________________________________________________________________________
7. You must not smoke in here.
Smoking _________________________________________________________________________________
8. Smoking is forbidden in most restaurants.
You _____________________________________________________________________________________
9. You can’t have a bicycle.
You are __________________________________________________________________________________
10. Perhaps they only open the museum in the morning.
They ____________________________________________________________________________________
11. If you want my advice, go to the dentist!
You _____________________________________________________________________________________
12. I’m sure she’s telling lies.
She _____________________________________________________________________________________
13. I’m sure they are at home. The lights are on.
They ____________________________________________________________________________________
14. In my opinion, taking some exercise would be good for you.
You _____________________________________________________________________________________
15. If you want my advice, don’t eat so many cakes!
You _____________________________________________________________________________________
16. I am sure she knows you are here.
She _____________________________________________________________________________________
17. They don’t allow smoking in this room.
You _____________________________________________________________________________________
18. Maybe your friend will call you on your birthday.
Your friend _______________________________________________________________________________
19. He knows how to play golf.
He _____________________________________________________________________________________
20. It’s not necessary for you to make your bed.
You _____________________________________________________________________________________
PASSIVE VOICE

1. The teacher glued the pieces of the broken toy.


The pieces ________________________________________________________________________________
2. Everybody must read the instructions first.
The instructions ___________________________________________________________________________
3. The police don’t oblige the suspects to say anything.
The suspects ______________________________________________________________________________
4. People speak English all over the world.
English __________________________________________________________________________________
5. I am having my house painted now.
My house ________________________________________________________________________________
6. This story will shock you.
You _____________________________________________________________________________________
7. You should post these letters.
These letters ______________________________________________________________________________
8. The shop assistant didn’t give us the ticket.
We _____________________________________________________________________________________
9. Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928.
Penicillin _________________________________________________________________________________
10. You can make green paint by mixing blue and yellow.
Green paint ______________________________________________________________________________
11. They say this tree is over 400 years old.
This tree ________________________________________________________________________________
12. They didn’t tell me the secret.
I _______________________________________________________________________________________
13. The teenager in red has broken the window.
The window ______________________________________________________________________________
14. The teacher didn’t tell us the answer.
We _____________________________________________________________________________________
15. They have found the stolen money.
The stolen money __________________________________________________________________________
16. People consider that he is an expert on cricket.
He _____________________________________________________________________________________
17. They have given us a Roald Dahl novel.
We _____________________________________________________________________________________
18. London will fascinate you.
You _____________________________________________________________________________________
19. They will tell us the news tomorrow night.
They ____________________________________________________________________________________
20. Someone must tell her about the accident.
She _____________________________________________________________________________________
HAVE SOMETHING DONE

1. The engineer has repaired my television


I’ve _____________________________________________________________________________________
2. My kitchen is being redecorated at the moment.
I am ____________________________________________________________________________________
3. She’s getting someone to mend the windows.
She’s ____________________________________________________________________________________
4. The mechanic is going to repair her car next week.
She _____________________________________________________________________________________
5. The hairdresser cut my hair yesterday morning.
I _______________________________________________________________________________________
6. They are servicing my new car next week.
I _______________________________________________________________________________________
7. The ophthalmologist tests her eyes every year.
She _____________________________________________________________________________________
8. The hairdresser cut my hair last week.
I _______________________________________________________________________________________
9. Someone will cut your hair tomorrow.
You _____________________________________________________________________________________

GERUND/INFINITIVE

1. He made an effort to speak in English.


He tried __________________________________________________________________________________
2. She gave up going to French lessons.
She stopped ______________________________________________________________________________
3. Sharon hasn’t eaten junk food since last May.
Sharon stopped ___________________________________________________________________________
4. Steve advised me to tell Paul about it.
Steve suggested ___________________________________________________________________________
5. Beth hasn’t smoked since last December.
Beth stopped _____________________________________________________________________________
6. I was not invited and I am sorry about that.
I would like ______________________________________________________________________________
7. Will you post this letter for me, please?
Do you mind ______________________________________________________________________________
8. I forgot to phone Lisa on her birthday.
I didn’t remember _________________________________________________________________________
9. He didn’t remember to phone his wife yesterday.
He forgot ________________________________________________________________________________
10. Will you close the door when you leave, please?
Do you mind ______________________________________________________________________________
11. Please, don’t shoot.
He begged us _____________________________________________________________________________
12. Learning English is not easy.
It is _____________________________________________________________________________________
CONDITIONAL CLAUSES

1. I don’t have a computer so I can’t type the essay on English grammar.


If _______________________________________________________________________________________
2. I didn’t make a note of it in my diary, so I forgot about it.
If _______________________________________________________________________________________
3. If the tickets don’t arrive, we won’t be able to go.
Unless ___________________________________________________________________________________
4. If your friend doesn’t come before ten, he will miss the train.
Unless ___________________________________________________________________________________
5. Wendy didn’t study for her test. Therefore, she failed.
If _______________________________________________________________________________________
6. She made a lot of mistakes because she didn’t study hard for the exam.
If she ____________________________________________________________________________________
7. If you don’t review your notes tonight, you won’t do well tomorrow.
Unless ___________________________________________________________________________________
8. I have failed all my exams at the university because I didn’t study enough.
If _______________________________________________________________________________________
9. I didn’t go to the gym yesterday because my foot hurt.
If _______________________________________________________________________________________
10. If your boyfriend doesn’t arrive before eight, we will have to leave.
Unless ___________________________________________________________________________________
11. If we don’t meet this month, it will be too late.
Unless ___________________________________________________________________________________
12. I don’t know her address, so I can’t write to her.
If _______________________________________________________________________________________
13. I didn’t open the door because I didn’t know it was you.
If _______________________________________________________________________________________
14. I didn’t invite Beth. I had forgotten her telephone number.
If _______________________________________________________________________________________
15. She divorced him because he was so terrible to her.
If he ____________________________________________________________________________________
16. We didn’t visit the museum because we hadn’t time.
If we ____________________________________________________________________________________
17. She can’t come to the party because she is so busy.
If she ____________________________________________________________________________________
18. He didn’t revise for the test so he failed.
If he ____________________________________________________________________________________
19. If you don’t hurry up, you won’t get tickets for the concert.
Unless ___________________________________________________________________________________
20. You won’t understand the problem if you don’t listen carefully.
Unless ___________________________________________________________________________________
21. I don’t earn much money. It’s a pity I can’t buy a new car.
If _______________________________________________________________________________________
WISH

1. I love German. Unfortunately, I can’t speak it fluently.


I wish ___________________________________________________________________________________
2. I regretted having hit the dog on the head.
I wish ___________________________________________________________________________________
3. I would like to have more free time these days.
I wish ___________________________________________________________________________________
4. I am sorry I didn’t tell him everything.
I wish ___________________________________________________________________________________
5. I’m sorry I haven’t got a car.
I wish ___________________________________________________________________________________
6. What a pity I didn’t have time to see you last week.
I wish ___________________________________________________________________________________
7. I’m sorry I can’t speak French perfectly.
I wish ___________________________________________________________________________________
8. Mary was sorry she ate so many cakes.
Mary wished _____________________________________________________________________________
9. It’s such a pity you can’t come along!
I wish ___________________________________________________________________________________
10. I’m sorry I didn’t work hard enough last year.
I wish ___________________________________________________________________________________
11. I’m sorry we accepted the invitation.
I wish ___________________________________________________________________________________
12. I’m sorry I didn’t go shopping with you.
I wish ___________________________________________________________________________________
13. I am sorry I didn’t remember your birthday.
I wish ___________________________________________________________________________________
14. What a pity the weather was so bad last weekend.
I wish ___________________________________________________________________________________
REPORTED SPEECH

1. “We will arrest them for illegal entry in the country”, the policeman said.
The policeman said ________________________________________________________________________
2. “What time do the banks close today?”
Tim asked me _____________________________________________________________________________
3. “Why don’t we play computer games?” said Michael.
Michael suggested _________________________________________________________________________
4. She said: “Are you coming to the party on Friday?”
She asked him_____________________________________________________________________________
5. “Don’t speak so loud, please”, she said to the students.
She ___________________________________________________________________________________
“Perhaps it would be better to go out in the afternoon”, Sharon’s mother said.
Sharon’s mother recommended ______________________________________________________________
6. Mary said to us “Don’t be late.”
She told _________________________________________________________________________________
7. The teacher said to me “Wait for me outside”.
The teacher told ___________________________________________________________________________
8. “How much money have you put into the account?”, they asked.
They asked me ____________________________________________________________________________
9. “I have never seen anything so beautiful”, he said.
He said __________________________________________________________________________________
10. The teacher said: “You have to hand your papers in at the end of this class”.
The teacher said ___________________________________________________________________________
11. The trainer said: “Molly, come back to the team!”
The trainer told ___________________________________________________________________________
12. “Where did the robbery take place?” he asked.
He asked _______________________________________________________________________________
13. “Where are your brothers, Sheila?”
She asked Sheila ___________________________________________________________________________
14. “Why don’t we have dinner out tonight?” said Martin.
Martin suggested __________________________________________________________________________
15. The man said to us: “Keep off the grass!”
The man ordered __________________________________________________________________________
16. She asked me: “What time does your party start?”
She asked me _____________________________________________________________________________
17. “How much is this T-shirt?”, she asked.
She asked ________________________________________________________________________________
18. “I have read this book”, she said.
She said _________________________________________________________________________________
19. “I don’t know”, he told them.
He told them _____________________________________________________________________________
20. He told us: “Don’t make so much noise!”
He ordered _______________________________________________________________________________
21. “Let’s go to the cinema on Tuesday”, said Mary.
Mary suggested ___________________________________________________________________________
22. “Can I go to the disco?”, Tim asked his mother.
Tim asked his mother _______________________________________________________________________
RELATIVE CLAUSES

1. This is the place. We last had coffee together here.


This is ___________________________________________________________________________________
2. This is the man. His job is very dangerous.
This is ___________________________________________________________________________________
3. That man’s brother is my new English teacher.
That is the man ___________________________________________________________________________
4. My new neighbours have got a baby. Her name is Wendy.
My new neighbours ________________________________________________________________________
5. Fiona is smiling in the picture. She is my boss.
Fiona, ___________________________________________________________________________________
6. This is the man. His dog bit my brother in the park.
This is the man ____________________________________________________________________________
7. Sharon is going to marry a man. He is Eric’s brother.
The man ________________________________________________________________________________
8. Shakespeare was a famous writer. He wrote beautiful sonnets.
Shakespeare, _____________________________________________________________________________
9. Albert is coming back from hospital tomorrow. He has just broken his ankle.
Albert, ___________________________________________________________________________________
10. That woman’s husband is my boss.
That is the woman ________________________________________________________________________
11. They didn’t pay for the ring.
This is the ring ____________________________________________________________________________
12. I saw a man later. He was the president of the European Community.
The man, _______________________________________________________________________________
13. The Da Vinci Code is a best-seller. It was written by Dan Brown.
The Da Vinci Code, _________________________________________________________________________
14. I visited a village yesterday but I did not like it.
I visited a village yesterday __________________________________________________________________
CONNECTORS

1. Despite having been vaccinated she caught the flu.


Although she _____________________________________________________________________________
2. As he hadn’t behaved himself, his parents got angry with him.
His parents ______________________________________________________________________________
3. The children stayed at home because it was raining
As ______________________________________________________________________________________
4. Although Orson was over seventy, he continued to cycle to work every day.
Despite __________________________________________________________________________________
5. She needed a job, so she sent off an application form.
She sent off an application form ______________________________________________________________
6. We won’t buy that house because we don’t have enough money.
As ______________________________________________________________________________________
7. Although the weather was horrible, we went skiing.
In spite of _______________________________________________________________________________
8. Although she was ill, she visited other countries.
Despite __________________________________________________________________________________
9. She lost the race in spite of running well.
Although _________________________________________________________________________________
10. Despite the fact that it was very hot, she was wearing her winter clothes.
Although _________________________________________________________________________________
11. Although it was cold, we went to the countryside.
In spite of ________________________________________________________________________________
12. The children couldn’t go out to the playground because it was raining.
As ______________________________________________________________________________________
13. Someone knocked at the door. The dog woke up.
The dog _________________________________________________________________________________
14. In spite of her beauty, she doesn’t have a boyfriend.
Although _________________________________________________________________________________
15. We bought our tickets on the Web because it was much cheaper.
Since ____________________________________________________________________________________
16. Although he was exhausted, he managed to finish reading the novel.
Despite __________________________________________________________________________________
17. I felt really tired so I stayed at home.
I stayed __________________________________________________________________________________
18. Although she was poor, she was happy.
In spite of ________________________________________________________________________________
19. Although the weather was awful, they had a great time.
In spite of ________________________________________________________________________________
20. As it was Friday, the children stayed up late.
The children ______________________________________________________________________________
21. Despite the fact that the questions were difficult, she got a high mark in her exam.
Although _________________________________________________________________________________
COMPARATIVES AND SUPERLATIVES
1. I’m not as good at English as you are.
You _____________________________________________________________________________________
2. Albert’s drawing isn’t as good as Gerard’s.
Gerard’s drawing __________________________________________________________________________
3. I thought it would be better than that.
It’s not __________________________________________________________________________________
4. Her jokes are not as good as his.
His jokes _________________________________________________________________________________
5. Sheila is 1.55 m tall. Her brother is 1.70 m tall.
Sheila ___________________________________________________________________________________
6. Alicia swims faster than Peter.
Peter ___________________________________________________________________________________
7. The meat was better than the fish.
The fish __________________________________________________________________________________
8. Bananas are more expensive than apples.
Apples ___________________________________________________________________________________
9. Germany is richer than India.
India i___________________________________________________________________________________
10. The film is not as good as the novel.
The novel ________________________________________________________________________________
11. No other fictional secret agent is as famous as James Bond.
James Bond i______________________________________________________________________________

QUESTIONS
1. I spent my holidays in France.
________________________________________________________________________________________
2. The policeman knew where the thief was hidden.
________________________________________________________________________________________
3. My grandfather is eighty-two years old.
________________________________________________________________________________________
4. It takes me two hours to get there.
________________________________________________________________________________________
5. Where are my keys?
I wonder _________________________________________________________________________________
6. The next plane leaves at 9.45 p.m.
________________________________________________________________________________________
7. Ben drives 200 miles every day.
________________________________________________________________________________________
8. John lives next door.
________________________________________________________________________________________
9. I have English classes three times a week.
________________________________________________________________________________________
10. Gerard plays tennis twice a week.
________________________________________________________________________________________
11. “Where is the nearest cinema, please?”
Could you tell me __________________________________________________________________________
12. Mary goes swimming twice a week.
________________________________________________________________________________________
13. I have to wear a uniform whenever I work in front of the customers.
________________________________________________________________________________________
14. John bought a new Rolls Royce.
________________________________________________________________________________________
15. He visits his parents every Sunday.
________________________________________________________________________________________

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