Времена английского глагола в сравнении = English Tenses Compared. Пособие

Gordon: No, it was awful! The town was all right, but quite boring. The brochure described it as busy, exciting, full of nightlife. In fact, there were a few shops, one museum, one disco and one very expensive restaurant. And the beach was really crowded! On the first day, after I’d been there about half an hour, there were hundreds of people; and there was no sand, just stones. The water was filthy. It’s always dirty there! After I’d been swimming I needed a bath!

Friend: What about your hotel? That was all right, wasn’t it? Gordon: No, it wasn’t! The service was dreadful. We only got coffee in

our room after we’d telephoned reception five times. And the rooms! Well, look. I’ve just written a letter....

•Speak about a holiday you didn’t enjoy.

•Complete the text with the Past Simple or Past Perfect Simple.

On Friday, February 8th, I (have) a meeting in Leeds. I (go) to bed early the night before. I (be) tired because I (spend) the day shopping in London. I (know) that I (prepare) everything for the meeting and I (sleep) well.

On Friday morning I (leave) home at 6 a.m. I (get) to the station early — in fact the train (not / arrive). I (not / have) breakfast at home, so I (have) a cup of tea at the station before my train (come).

Later, on the train, I (take) out the letter about the meeting which I (put) in my briefcase. I (look) at the date of the meeting. I (cannot) believe it! I (make) a mistake. I (be) a month too early!

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Junior Genius

James Stoker was fifteen years old when he became the youngest fully qualified doctor in the United States. James was a genius. By the age of three he had learnt to read and write. Before his sixth birthday his father had taught him to speak three languages fluently and he could play the violin perfectly. James spent all his time reading and studying. After he had passed his school-leaving exams at the age of nine, he went to college. A year and a half later, he had finished college and started at a medical school. At the age of twelve, he didn’t know what football was, because nobody had taught him how to play. There hadn’t been time.

At fifteen, he was ready to take the final examination. On the morning of the exam, although he had been studying for 48 hours, he wasn’t tired. After the exam he walked through the park, but he didn’t arrive home until seven o’clock in the evening, very tired and very dirty. What had he been doing? his mother wondered. He had met some eight-year-olds in the park. They had been teaching him how to play football.

•Put the verbs in brackets into the correct form.

When I (enter) the house something (smell) awful. Someone (cook) and (burn) the meal. I (visit) the house once before and (meet) the family but I (not / know) what (happen) since then. The house (be) a mess. The children (play) in the living room and (leave) their toys all over the floor. Someone (leave) all the windows open. It (rain) for hours and the curtains (get) wet and dirty. I (ask) the children where their parents (be). They (tell) me that their mother (be) in hospital for the past two weeks. Their father (look after) them since then. Obviously he (do) his best, but he couldn’t do any better since he (work) all morning and (have) to leave them alone most of the day. I (have) to do something to help them.

•Use the words from the box in the Past Perfect Continuous to complete the sentences.

Jenny’s eyes were tired.

She had been reading all evening.

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1. Amanda was hot and sore. She ... in the sun. 2. Jane had oil on her hands. She... a friend’s motor bike. 3. Tom was hot and out of breath. He... in the park. 4. Ben’s clothes were dirty. He ... with Jason. 5. She was angry. She... for Mike for twenty minutes. 6. Jane was nervous. She...

a TV programme about crime. 7. Jenny had a stomach ache. She ... sour grapes. 8. Sue was tired. She ... for exams all night. 9. Mike was cold. He

... in an unheated pool. 10. Bob fell asleep. He ... to learn the Past Perfect Continuous.

• Talk about the last time a) you felt very tired b) your feet ached c) you were very wet.

What had you been doing? How long had you been doing it?

Everything Except the Weather

My old friend, Harrison, had lived in the Mediterranean for many years before he returned to England. He had often dreamed of retiring in England and had planned to settle down in the country. He had no sooner returned than he bought a fine house and went to live there. Almost immediately he began to complain about the weather, for even though it was still summer, it rained continually and it was often bitterly cold. After so many years of sunshine, Harrison got a shock. He acted as if he had never lived in England before. In the end, it was more than he could bear. He had hardly had time to settle down when he sold the house and left the country. The dream he had had for so many years ended there. Harrison had thought of everything except the weather.

• Make sentences with the adverbs hardly (scarcely) … when, no sooner

… than.

The performance had hardly begun when the lights went out. No sooner had the ship left the port than the storm began.

Days Gone By

Michael took a very special trip last month. He went back to Fullerton, his home town. Michael’s visit to Fullerton was very special to him. He was born there. He grew up there. But he hadn’t been back there since he finished high school.

He went to places he hadn’t gone to in (= for) years. He walked through the park in the center of town and remembered the days he had walked

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through that same park with his first girlfriend. He passed by the empty field where he and his friends had played baseball every day, after school. And he stood for a while in front of the movie theater and thought about all the Saturday afternoons he had spent there sitting in the balcony, watching his favorite movie heroes, and eating popcorn.

He did things he hadn’t done in a long time. He had some homemade ice cream at the ice cream shop. He rode on the merry-go-round in the park. And he went fishing at the lake on the outskirts of town. For a little while, he felt like a kid again. He hadn’t had home-made ice cream, ridden on a merry-go-round, or gone fishing since he was a young boy.

He also saw people he hadn’t seen in years. He visited several of his old neighbors who hadn’t ever moved out of the neighborhood. He said hello to the owners of the candy store near his house. And he even bumped into Mrs Hiley, his tenth-grade science teacher!

During his visit to his home town, Michael remembered places he hadn’t gone to, things he hadn’t done, and people he hadn’t seen since his childhood. Michael’s trip back to Fullerton brought back many memories of days gone by.

Notes: center амер. = centre theater амер. = theatre favorite амер. = favourite neighbor амер. = neighbour

•Make sentences with the Past Perfect in attributive clauses.

He told me about the countries he had visited.

Review of the Present and Past tenses

1. Fill in a suitable word or phrase practising present or past forms.

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10.Don’t make too much noise! The baby ....................................... .

2. Put the verbs in brackets into the correct tense.

1.A: There’s a lovely smell coming from the kitchen,

B:Yes, I (cook) biscuits.

2.A: (you / manage) to get to the bank yesterday?

B:No, it (close) by the time I (get) there.

3.A: (you / be) new to this area?

B:No, I (live) in this area for three years.

4.A: (you / enjoy) the flight?

B:Yes, but I (be) nervous because I (not / fly) before.

5.A: Where (you / be) at five o’clock yesterday?

B:I (have) a lesson.

6.A: Linda is very good at her job, isn’t she?

B:Yes. She (do) the same job for thirty years.

7.A: What (you / buy) your mother for Christmas? В: I (get) her a new jumper.

8.A: (you / find) the papers you (look for)?

B:Yes. They (be) on my desk all the time.

9.A: What (you / look for)?

B:My keys. I (lose) them.

10.A: When (you / see) Janet ?

B:While I (wait) at the bus stop yesterday morning.

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11.A: (you / make) your plans for Saturday yet?

B:Yes, I (go) to the cinema with Ed.

12.A: Why (be / Tim) so tired last night?

B:Oh, he (work) hard all day.

13.A: I (do) something really silly yesterday. В: Really, what?

A:I (get up) and (set off) for work as usual. I (drive) for an hour before I (realise) it (be) Sunday.

14.A: I (just / hear) some incredible news!

B:What?

A:Jason and Emily (get) married last week in Las Vegos. Isn’t that amazing?

15.A: (you / have) enough to eat at the party?

B:Yes. Sarah (make) a lot of food.

16.A: What (you / do) at eight o’clock last night?

B:I (watch) television. Why?

17.A: Look, it (rain) again.

B:Yes, it (rain) most days at this time of year.

18.A: Where are the children?

B:They (play) in the garden. They (get) home from school at about four and usually (go) straight out to play with their friends.

19.A: What work (your husband / do)?

B:He (teach) French and German, and this term he (teach) English as well.

20.A: I see you finally bought a new video.

B:Yes, I (try) to fix the old one for ages when I decided to buy a new one.

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21.A: Is Mr Dixon free yet?

В: No, he (be) in a meeting at the moment.

22:A: Where (you / go) for dinner on your birthday?

B:I (go) to the new Chinese restaurant in town.

23.A: I (be) tired. We (walk) all morning.

B:Let’s stop and have something to eat, then.

24.A: What time (you / leave) tomorrow?

B:Very early. At 6 o’clock in the morning.

25.A: (this coat / belong) to you?

B:No, my coat (hang) there behind the door.

26.At: Why (you / make) so much food?

B:I (expect) guests, but they phoned to say they couldn’t come.

27.A: Julia (perform) well at the concert.

B:Yes. She (practise) for months, beforehand.

28.A: I (like) your new coat.

В: Тhаnк you. I (wear) my old coat for years, so I decided to buy a new one.

29.A: (you / write) your report yet?

B:I (just / start) when you (come) in, actually.

30.A: Sorry, I (be) late.

B:Where (you / be)? I (expect) you an hour ago.

31.A: We (go) to an antique market yesterday.

B:(you / buy) anything?

32.A: I (see) this film before.

B:Me too, but I love the actor. He (play) a lot of good roles.

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A:Tom Cruise? I (meet) him, you know.

B:Really? When?

A:When I (be) in Los Angeles on holiday.

33.A: I really (not / see) what the problem is. В: No, I (not / understand) it either.

34.А: (you / be) busy at the moment?

B:Yes. I (arrange) a very important meeting.

35.A: (Bob and Sue / be) at Jeff’s party last night?

B:No, I (not / see) them, but Jim (tell) me later that they (be) on holiday.

36.A: (you / see) Carl lately?

B:No, I (not / see) him since Christmas.

37.A: (you / enjoy) the play last night?

В: No, even though I (read) good reviews of it before I (buy) the tickets.

38.A: Who (use) my car?

B:I ... .

39.A: (you / go) to the concert on Saturday night?

B:Yes. Actually, I (already / buy) the tickets.

40.A: Hello, Simon.

B:Oh! We (always / meet) each other in this supermarket.

41.A: What (you / look) at?

B:The sky. It (look) as if it’s going to rain.

42.A: Why (you / feel) this radiator?

В: It (feel) cold in here. Is the heating on?

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43.A: That famous opera singer (appear) at the opera house tonight.

B:Yes. He (appear) to be feeling better after his operation.

44.A: Chris (be) a sensible person, isn’t he?

B:Yes, but in this case he (be) rather foolish.

45.A: It’s ten o’clock. (you / give) the manager his letters?

B:Yes, and I (also / type) six reports so far this morning.

46.A: What’s that noise?

B:The people next door (have) a party.

47.A: This cake (taste) awful.

B:I (think) I (forget) to put sugar in it!

48.A: I (lose) my pen.

B:Not again! You (always / lose) your pen.

49.A: (you / do) anything last night?

B:I (go) to the gym and I (just / arrive) home when Michael (call) me. He said he (try) to call me for ten minutes before I finally (answer) the phone.

50.A: This is Mary. I don’t think you (meet).

B:Oh yes. We (know) each other well. We (be) at school together.

3. Put the verbs in brackets into the correct tense.

1.A: Hello, Mark. You (take) a long time to answer the door.

B:Sorry. I (not / hear) the bell. Come in, Tony.

A: What (you / plan) to do today?

В: Well, I (think) of going for a picnic in the country, but the weather is awful so I (change) my mind.

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A:Oh dear. Well, yesterday Mary (tell) me that she (buy) two tickets to see the Rocking Stars, but she couldn’t go to the concert. So I (buy) the tickets from her, because I (think) you’d like to go.

B:Tony, that’s brilliant! I (mean) to buy tickets for that concert,

but they (sell out) by the time I (go) to the booking office.

A:Well, it’s lucky I (see) Mary, then, isn’t it?

2.A: What (you / do) when I (call) at eight, Burt?

B:I (work) in the garden because the wind (blow down) the fence during the night.

A:Oh, (you / manage) to fix it?

B:Yes, I (do) it eventually, but it (be) very hard work. I (ask) my neighbour to help me in the end. Why (you / call) me?

A:I (want) to tell you about the factory. It (close down) yesterday.

B:I know. The company (have) problems for a long time

before they finally (decide) to close down the factory.

A:I (hope) they would change their minds about it, though. It (be) a part of the town for years.

B:Well, at least everyone who worked there (now / find) a new job. That’s good news.

3.A: Hi, Johnny. I (not / hear) from you for a long time. Where (you / be)?

B:I (start) a new job six months ago. I (be) a computer salesman

now. I (enjoy) it very much. My company (send) me abroad every few weeks. Last month I (go) to Japan – it (be) fantastic!

A:Wow! Japan! How long (you / stay) there? Tell me all about it.

B:I (stay) there for three weeks in a luxurious hotel. The company always (pay) for everything.

A:I’d love a job like yours.

B:Well actually, Jane, that (be) the reason why I (call) you now. I (need) an assistant. Last week the company (tell) me to choose someone and I immediately (think) of you.

What (you / think)?

A: When (I / start)?

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