Language focus

1. a) Underline the prefixes and suffixes in the following words. What are their meanings and functions?

commercial, uncompromising, disobedience, environmentalism, variety, various, sustainability, recycle, government, cooperatively, friendliness, multimedia, enrich, lengthen, revolutionize, transporting, interconnected, simplify, misleading, revolutionary, usage, overestimate

b) Form new parts of speech using the prefixes and suffixes

from the previous exercise.

1. Verb → Noun: accept, agree, occur, protect, waste, recruit, store

2. Adjective → Noun: aware, wise, complex, weak, reliable, creative, prosperous, punctual, real, effective, wide

c) Complete the words in each sentence with an appropriate suffix or prefix.

1. Reducing (poor) and (home) is a (prior) for the new (govern).

2. Getting profits is the (prime) aim of most (nation).

3. She worked in a (secretary) agency as a (telephone).

4. Fuel (short) can undermine the (grow) of any economy.

5. You have been (inform) that she is rather (experience) and can’t be (trust) with any (manage) work.

6. Email has (form) the way people do business.

7. The company has built an (add) factory to (large) its (operate).

8. If a company is (like) to (wide and diverse) its range of goods, it will be forced out of business.

9. All (time) (pay) should be (author) by a senior member of staff.

10. Before packing the goods measure the (deep) and (wide) of the (contain).

2. a) Change the following sentences into the passive. You should omit the agent if it is not important.

1. The Body Shop introduced new peppermint foot lotion yesterday.

2. The Soapworks factory will make new products in future.

3. The company can discontinue a product if it is not successful.

4. Detailed labels give information about how to use the product.

5. Before The Body Shop entered the American market, it had already established a strong image in the UK.

6. The Body Shop has recently added more than 30 items to its product range.

7. The Body Shop does not test its products on animals.

8. Customers may return plastic bottles for refilling.

b) Open the brackets using the verb in an appropriate passive form.

A new campaign (launch) earlier this year by the UK government aims to reduce the amount of domestic waste. Households (encourage) to recycle certain waste products and to sort others for collection at specific sites. From there they (take) to special waste treatment plants where special machinery will process them for reuse as recycled material. In Britain today we find that, in terms of weight, 35% of the total household dustbin (compose) of paper and cardboard, 22% of kitchen waste, 12% of plastics with glass, dust and ashes each representing a further 10%. There are in fact only a few items of domestic waste that cannot (recycle). However, a lot of progress could (make) to reduce the amount of kitchen waste most of which can (transform) into a useful garden fertilizer. Indeed, if more people chose to do this then the weight of the average dustbin (reduce) quite significantly. In terms of glass products, the situation is more encouraging as nearly 20% of all the glass that (use) every year in the country (take) back for recycling. Nonetheless, it is clear that the mountains of domestic waste will only decrease if efforts (make) both by individual households and local government authorities. Special equipment such as collection trucks must (purchase) and people must (make) aware of how they can contribute to improving the situation.

c) Translate the following sentences into English using passive forms.

1. Ты знаешь, что в контракт добавили еще один пункт?

2. Вся документация велась в алфавитном порядке.

3. Результаты исследования будут опубликованы через неделю.

4. В лаборатории сейчас проводится серия экспериментов.

5. Решения по управлению компанией принимаются на совете директоров.

6. К концу следующего года еще пять заводов будут приватизированы.

7. На собрании обсуждался вопрос о введении гибкого графика.

8. В прошлом году количество рабочих сократили на 20%, т.к. часть завода была механизирована.

9. 53,7% акций компании Green Plant находится в руках семьи Rodderick, а 46,3% владеют обычные акционеры.

10. Доходы вырастут, если будет проведен качественный анализ рынка.

3. Phrasal verb: to buy

Example: Customers also buy into a commitment to environmental restoration.

1. Match the phrasal verb with its meanings.

buy in buy into buy off buy out buy up

to buy a large quantity of sth to buy large amounts of sth or all of it that is available to get sth by paying money for it or to pay so to stop threatening you or blackmailing you to pay money to a business partner in order to get control of a business to buy part of a business; to start to do sth that a lot of other people are doing

2. Fill in the blanks with the phrasal verb to buy.

   1. Moves to … other companies have failed.

   2. Developers have been … old theatres and converting them into cinemas.

   3. People had to … candles during the electricity strike.

   4. Efforts to … her have failed.

   5. You don’t … all this nonsense, do you?

   6. He … himself of the army.

   7. The management has been trying to … union activists with pay offers.

   8. Villagers club together to … enough food to last through winter.

   9. In the last 5 years development agencies have … almost all land in the area.

   10. The other directors offered to … my stake.

3. Translate the following sentences into English using the phrasal verb to buy.

1. Нам обязательно надо запастись мукой, пока цены еще низкие.

2. Конкуренты «купились» на наш трюк с распродажей имущества.

3. Партнеры предложили мне выкупить мою часть акций.

4. Рабочий пригрозил все рассказать полиции – пришлось его подкупить.

5. Перед Рождеством супермаркеты всегда закупают шампанское.

6. Компания скупила все заводы в округе и стала монополистом.

7. Заместитель ужасно жадный, поэтому его легко подкупить.

8. Неужели ты купился на эту чушь?

9. Его дед выкупился из рабства и стал свободным крестьянином.

10. Криминальные элементы скупили практически все свободные и несвободные земли под Москвой.