1 It’s time

It’s (high) time + clause with verb in past tense (referring to present or future time)

It’s high time that child was in bed – it’s nearly midnight!

It’s time + infinitive

It’s time to go – it’s almost eight o’clock.

Notes:

1 High time is more emphatic, suggesting that the event is overdue. It is not generally followed by the infinitive.

2 When the infinitive is used to refer to a specific spoken to, then the expression It’s time for x to …

Must be used

It’s time for him to decide what he wants to do with his life.

NOT It’s time to decide what he wants … X

2 I’d rather

I’d rather + clause

I’d rather you didn’t tell him – he’d be upset.

(referring to future time)

I’d rather you hadn’t told him – he was upset.

(referring to past time)

I’d rather + infinitive (without to)

I’d rather tell him myself. (referring to future time)

I’d rather be anywhere than here! (referring to present time)

I didn’t enjoy the holiday at all – I’d rather have stayed at home. (referring to past time)

Note: The infinitive is only possible if both parts of the sentence are about the same person.

3 I’d prefer

I’d prefer it + if-clause

I’d prefer it if they were left on their own. (future time)

I’d have preferred it if I could have studied maths. (past time)

I’d prefer + infinitive (present or perfect)

I’d prefer to be left on my own.

UNIT 3

Participle clauses (p.46)

Participle clauses contain a participle instead of a full verb. Participles may have the following forms:

present: showing

past: shown

perfect: having shown

passive: being shown, having been shown

Present participle clauses are much more common than past participle clauses. They are used to avoid repetition and make a point more economically in written texts, and are particularly common in fiction.

However, they are not used much in spoken English.

Participle clauses can describe:

1 events happening at the same time (present participle).

Drinking his coffee slowly, he thought about the problem. (= He drank his coffee slowly and …)

2 events happening in rapid sequence (present participle).

Tearing the envelope open, he took out the letter. (= He tore the envelope open, and took out …)

3 events happening with a longer time gap between them (perfect participle)

Having retired, he found himself with time on his hands. (= When he had retired, he found …)

4 other time relations when used with an appropriate conjunction.

Before being shown round, we were welcomed by the Principal.

After finishing his speech, he took a sip of water.

Wear protective gloves when using this equipment.

On arriving, you will find someone waiting for you.

While traveling to work, she usually reads a novel.

She has been much happier since changing schools.

5 concession when used with an appropriate conjunction

She intends to go, despite it being so far.

6 cause or reason (perfect participle).

Not having had any breakfast, I was hungry. (= Because I had no had …)

(As a result of) having appeared once on television, she became a local celebrity.

Note: The present participle of state verbs such as be, have, know and live can also be used in participle clauses expressing reason.

Being a kind man, he agreed to help.

7 condition (past participle).

Left to follow his own inclinations, he would do no work at all. (= If he were left to follow …)

Note: If the subject of a participle clause is not stated, we assume it is the same as the subject of the main clause.

Feeling tired, he stopped for a cup of tea.

If the subject of the participle is different from that of the main clause, it must be stated.

The weather being perfect, we decided to go swimming.

If this is not done, the sentence may be confusing.

Kicking with all his strength, the ball went straight into the goal.

(The ball was not ‘kicking’, but we don’t know who was. This is known as a ‘dangling’ participle.)

There is more information on participle clauses in Unit 6 Language Focus: Grammar (Relative clauses).

Inversion after negative adverbials (p. 48)

Starting a sentence with a negative adverbial (e.g. at no time) or an adverbial with a negative implication

(e.g. hardly, seldom), and reversing the order of the subject and verb is a way of adding emphasis or creating a dramatic effect in English.

He was never in the slightest danger.

At no time was he ever in the slightest danger.

This structure is a feature of more formal writing, but can also be used in speech.

Expressions that can be used in this way include:

on no account in no circumstances

at no time nowhere

not once not one … /not a single …

not until … not only … but also …

never (before) rarely

seldom only now

only by chance only recently

hardly/scarcely … no sooner … than

when …

Notes:

1 If there is no auxiliary verb, do/does/did are added (as with a question).

He never once came to see her in hospital

Never once did he come to see her in hospital.

2 Hardly/scarcely … when

In this expression, when introduces a time clause.

Scarcely had we sat down when the alarm went off.

No sooner … than has a similar meaning.

No sooner had we sat down than the alarm went off.

UNIT 4

Emphasis: preparatory it (p. 60)

By using structures with the pronoun it, we can change the order of words or phrases in a sentence to highlight specific information.