Complete the 12 sentences below. Choose the best answer for each one.
1The new policy allows staff to work from home three days a week; ..............., they do not have to commute daily.
Wrong!
"In other words" is correct because the second clause restates the first idea more simply, rather than giving a consequence.
2We are planning a phased launch, ..............., the service will open first to existing customers.
Wrong!
"that is to say" is correct because it introduces a clearer explanation of what the previous statement means.
3Please treat this not as a complaint ............... as a request for clearer information.
Wrong!
"but" is correct because the structure 'not X but Y' replaces one idea with another.
4The report describes the cuts as efficiency measures rather ............... reductions in service.
Wrong!
"than" is correct because 'rather than' introduces an alternative way of formulating the idea.
5The meeting has been postponed, ............... cancelled, so we still need to prepare the documents.
Wrong!
"as opposed to" is correct because it contrasts one interpretation with another.
6The budget is incomplete, the timetable is unrealistic, and the team is understaffed; ..............., the proposal is not ready.
Wrong!
"In short" is correct because it introduces a brief summary of the previous details.
7The director, ............... the acting director, approved the revised schedule.
Wrong!
"or rather" is correct because it corrects the previous wording to a more accurate description.
8The rule says travel must be approved by two managers; ..............., no one can make non-essential trips.
Wrong!
"in effect" is correct because it shows what the rule amounts to in practical terms.
9The archive is the organisation's memory, ..............., because it preserves decisions that would otherwise be forgotten.
Wrong!
"so to speak" is correct because it marks the phrase 'memory' as a figurative reformulation, not a literal example.
10For this project, we should define success ............... learning faster, not simply meeting the original deadline.
Wrong!
"as" is correct because 'define something as something' introduces a reformulated meaning or category.
11The software is backward-compatible; ............... old files will still open without conversion.
Wrong!
"what this means is that" is correct because it explicitly introduces the meaning of the previous statement.
12Subscription numbers have plateaued; ..............., the audience is no longer growing.
Wrong!
"to put it another way" is correct because the second clause restates the first in different words.
Exercise complete
0 out of 12
correct answers
Answers
- The new policy allows staff to work from home three days a week; In other words, they do not have to commute daily.
- We are planning a phased launch, that is to say, the service will open first to existing customers.
- Please treat this not as a complaint but as a request for clearer information.
- The report describes the cuts as efficiency measures rather than reductions in service.
- The meeting has been postponed, as opposed to cancelled, so we still need to prepare the documents.
- The budget is incomplete, the timetable is unrealistic, and the team is understaffed; In short, the proposal is not ready.
- The director, or rather the acting director, approved the revised schedule.
- The rule says travel must be approved by two managers; in effect, no one can make non-essential trips.
- The archive is the organisation’s memory, so to speak, because it preserves decisions that would otherwise be forgotten.
- For this project, we should define success as learning faster, not simply meeting the original deadline.
- The software is backward-compatible; what this means is that old files will still open without conversion.
- Subscription numbers have plateaued; to put it another way, the audience is no longer growing.