9B Ellipsis and substitution

1 Complete the dialogue with the phrases below.

he does  I can’t  I do  I tried to  I would  I’d love to  should I  you should

Mum Did you call your grandad last night?

Alf 1
 , but I couldn’t get through. I’ll try again this afternoon.
Mum 2
 . He really wants to talk to you.
Alf I know 3
 . He said he’s got some exciting news to tell me. Do you know what it is?
Mum 4
 . And I think you’ll be very surprised by it. But I’m not sure I should tell you.
Alf Oh please do.
Mum 5
 , but 6  . I made a promise to him.
Alf Can you give me a hint?
Mum Why 7  ? It’s his news, not mine. Give him a call now.
Alf 8
if I could, but I know he’s out this morning.
Mum Well then, you’ll just have to wait until this afternoon.

2 Choose the correct reply to each question.

1 Is that your brother over there? 5 Have you passed your exams?
a I doubt it. a I don’t expect so.
b I doubt so. b I don’t expect.
2 Did she visit him yesterday? 6 Does Gregor live here?
a She might visit, but she didn’t tell me about it. a He used, but he doesn’t now.
b She might have, but she didn’t tell me about it. b He used to, but he doesn’t now.
3 Has she read your message yet? 7 How do you know Mary stole your bike?
a I don’t presume. She hasn’t replied a She admitted she did.
b I presume not. She hasn’t replied. b She admitted so.
4 Are you getting a birthday present for your grandma? 8 Did your grandad fight in the war?
a I hope to this afternoon, if I remember! a I think so.
b I hope it this afternoon, if I remember! b I think it.

3 SPEAKING   Work in pairs. Play ‘Don’t repeat it!’.

Student A: Make a question with one of the phrases below.

be at the sports centre  be on holiday  become famous  buy a new computer 

come to my party  live in France  lose your phone  see the new Jennifer Lawrence film

Student B: Reply with one of the verbs below. Avoid repeating student B’s main verb.

be afraid doubt imagine intend love might think want

A B
Do you think you’ll become famous in the future? I doubt it!

Solutions Third Edition Advanced photocopiable © Oxford University Press

   9B  Ellipsis and substitution
Aims:  To review and practise the use of auxiliaries,
modals, so and not … so to avoid repetition.
Time:  10–15 minutes
Materials:  One handout for each student

Exercise 1
• Give each student a handout and ask them to read
through the whole dialogue first for gist. Ask some
general comprehension questions if necessary: Why
does Alf’s grandad want to talk to him? (because he’s
got some exciting news) Does Alf’s mum know what the
news is? (yes, she does)
• Students complete the dialogue with the correct
phrases.
• Check answers by asking two students to read out the
dialogue and getting the rest of the class to listen and
raise their hands if they think they hear a mistake.
KEY
1  I tried to   2  You should   3  he does   4  I do  
5  I’d love to   6  I can’t   7  should I   8  I would

Exercise 2
• Students read each question and choose the correct
reply. Refer students back to the Learn this! box on
page 98 of the Student’s Book if necessary.
• Check answers with the class.
KEY
1  a  2  b  3  b  4  a  5  a  6  b  7  a  8  a

Exercise 3
• Students work in pairs to ask and answer questions,
trying to avoid repeating the main verb. Get students to
swap roles after a couple of minutes so that everyone
has an opportunity to practise the target language.
• Monitor and check that students are using auxiliaries,
modals, so and not … so correctly.

Solutions
 Third Edition Advanced photocopiable © Oxford University Press