Complete the 12 sentences below. Choose the best answer for each one.
1............... the committee failed to anticipate was the scale of the public backlash once the report was leaked.
Wrong!
Use "What" to introduce a wh-cleft that highlights the thing the committee failed to anticipate.
2Not until the final witness withdrew ............... that the case could no longer proceed.
Wrong!
Use "did the prosecution concede" because fronted "Not until" requires subject-auxiliary inversion in the main clause.
3Rarely ............... survived such a damaging inquiry with his authority intact.
Wrong!
Use "has a minister" because fronted "Rarely" requires subject-auxiliary inversion.
4Only after the archive was digitised ............... that several crucial letters had been misdated.
Wrong!
Use "did researchers discover" because fronted "Only after" requires inversion in the main clause.
5So compelling ............... that even the most sceptical board members changed their minds.
Wrong!
Use "was the evidence" in the emphatic pattern "So + adjective + be + subject".
6What made the apology convincing ............... the chief executive's willingness to accept personal responsibility.
Wrong!
Use "was" to complete the wh-cleft and link the highlighted factor to its explanation.
7Under no circumstances ............... from the secure room before the audit is complete.
Wrong!
Use "should the files be removed" because fronted "Under no circumstances" requires inversion.
8Not only ............... congestion, but it also cut emissions across the city centre.
Wrong!
Use "did the scheme reduce" because fronted "Not only" requires subject-auxiliary inversion.
9............... was the speed of the response that reassured investors after the cyberattack.
Wrong!
Use "It" to begin an it-cleft that highlights "the speed of the response".
10............... the warning, the aircraft would have entered restricted airspace.
Wrong!
Use "Had the pilot ignored" for a formal inverted third conditional meaning "If the pilot had ignored".
11Little ............... how quickly the compromise would unravel.
Wrong!
Use "did the negotiators realise" because fronted "Little" requires subject-auxiliary inversion.
12Such ............... of the storm that the harbour was closed for three consecutive days.
Wrong!
Use "was the intensity" in the emphatic pattern "Such + be + noun phrase".
Done.
Score: 0/12
Answers
- What the committee failed to anticipate was the scale of the public backlash once the report was leaked.
- Not until the final witness withdrew did the prosecution concede that the case could no longer proceed.
- Rarely has a minister survived such a damaging inquiry with his authority intact.
- Only after the archive was digitised did researchers discover that several crucial letters had been misdated.
- So compelling was the evidence that even the most sceptical board members changed their minds.
- What made the apology convincing was the chief executive’s willingness to accept personal responsibility.
- Under no circumstances should the files be removed from the secure room before the audit is complete.
- Not only did the scheme reduce congestion, but it also cut emissions across the city centre.
- It was the speed of the response that reassured investors after the cyberattack.
- Had the pilot ignored the warning, the aircraft would have entered restricted airspace.
- Little did the negotiators realise how quickly the compromise would unravel.
- Such was the intensity of the storm that the harbour was closed for three consecutive days.
