Grammar
1 Choose the correct answer.
1. Frank promised that he will take / would take photographs on the trip.
2. The shop claimed that they have / had no more Harry Potter books.
3. Bob explained that he couldn’t / can’t come that evening.
4. Dad mentioned that he was going / is going to the dentist.
5. Laura admitted that she doesn’t know / didn’t know the answer.
2 Choose the correct continuation.
1. I wondered … .
a. if Mike was still angry b. if Mike still loves me
2. Reporters asked eyewitnesses … .
a. what had they seen b. if they had seen anyone leave the building
3. My parents wanted to know … .
a. which film I was going to b. what time I will get home
4. Joe asked the doctor … .
a. when could he go back to work b. if he could go back to work
3 Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verbs in brackets.
1. The boys claimed that they ……………………… (not break) the window.
2. Rita promised that she ……………………… (take) me to the party.
3. The salesgirl asked Jenny which sweater she ……………………… (prefer).
4. Ingrid admitted that she ……………………… (cannot understand) the maths.
5. The student wanted to know if the class ……………………… (have) a test the following week.
6. Sandra wondered who ……………………… (call) her when she was out.
7. The policeman warned Alex that he ……………………… (give) him a ticket if he caught him speeding again.
8. Jack said that he ……………………… (clean) his room when his mother had come home the previous day.
9. Mr Roberts said that he ……………………… (use) the computer at that moment.
4 Choose the correct answer.
1. The doctor … Bill to get more exercise.
a. said b. told c. suggested
2. Mary … if she should buy new shoes.
a. wondered b. explained c. reminded
3. The student … that he’d cheated in the test.
a. told b. warned c. admitted
4. Two masked robbers … everyone not to move.
a. ordered b. suggested c. said
5. Betty … that the coffee was cold.
a. asked b. complained c. advised
5 Write sentences with the words below. Use the correct form of the verbs.
1. Jimmy / announced that / he / go to enter / a chess contest
2. The reporter / wanted to know / whether / we / saw / anything
3. The travel agent / asked / which flight / we / want to take
4. Ellen / argued / that / she / be / a better player than me
5. My headmistress / advised / me / apply for university
6 Complete the sentences according to the meaning of the original sentences.
1. “Let’s invite the neighbours for coffee tomorrow,” said Mrs Thomas.
Mrs Thomas suggested .
2. “Don’t walk on the grass,” said the park keeper to the children.
The park keeper told .
3. “Why do I have to go to the dentist today?” asked the little boy.
The little boy asked .
4. “I’ll never hit Johnny again,” Daniel said.
Daniel promised .
5. “We are watching the news on TV now,” her parents said.
Her parents told us .
7 Rewrite the sentences in reported speech.
1. “I ate too much at the party yesterday,” Jane said.
Jane said that .
2. “We are working on a new project now,” they said.
They said that .
3. Megan and Sophie said, “Last year we went to Italy.”
Megan and Sophie said that .
4. “I’ll take you to the cinema tomorrow,” Dad said.
Dad said that .
5. “You can’t park your car here,” said the policeman.
The policeman told us that .
8 Rewrite the questions in reported speech.
1. “Can I leave early?” Betsy asked the teacher.
2. “When will dinner be ready?” Nancy asked her mum.
3. “Why didn’t Jack come to school today?” I wondered.
4. “Have you ever been abroad?” John enquired.
9 Choose the correct reporting verb.
1. The police said / explained / ordered everyone to stand further back.
2. Our hostess invited / asked / suggested that we sit down.
3. The hotel admitted / advised / wanted to know when we would arrive.
4. Bill’s wife wondered / complained / argued if he had bought a paper.
5. Kate told / enquired / promised not to be late for the meeting.
10 Complete the sentence with the correct form of the verbs in brackets.
1. Joe reminded me ……………………… (call) him.
2. Ben warned everyone ……………………… (not ask) Billy about the accident.
3. Gary’s girlfriend suggested that they ……………………… (go) by train.
4. The vet advised Tom ……………………… (take) his dog out more often.
5. Fran recommended that we ……………………… (stay) at the Grand Beach Hotel.
11 Read the conversation and answer the questions in complete sentences. Use reported speech.
Eddie: Hi Jake, are you going to visit Guy on Friday?
Jake: I won’t be able to go on Friday. I have to help my dad. But don’t worry. I’ll visit him soon.
Eddie: OK. By the way, the hospital is very strict about visiting hours. Don’t try to visit after these hours.
Jake: Thanks for the warning.
1. What did Eddie ask Jake?
2. What was Jake’s reply?
3. What explanation did he give?
4. What did he promise?
5. What did Eddie tell Jake about the hospital?
6. What warning did he give Jake?
12 Rewrite the following sentences using the verbs below. Use each verb only once.
ordered • suggested • advised • announced • wanted to know
1. “I’m going to cut the grass after lunch,” said Bill to Annie.
Bill
2. “Let’s look at the classified ads,” said Sue’s husband.
Sue’s husband
3. “Why didn’t you warn me about the dog?” I asked the farmer.
I
4. “Leave my house at once,” the man shouted at the reporters.
The man
5. “You should apply to more than one university,” said Jill to her friend.
Jill
Vocabulary
1 Answer the questions with the words: front page • journalist • newsflash • articles • media
1. What appears inside magazines and newspapers?
2. Where is the most important news in a newspaper? on the
3. What refers to TV, radio and newspapers? the
4. What interrupts programmes? a
5. Who sometimes travels abroad in his / her work? a
2 Match the newspaper sections in A to the headlines in B.
A B
1. classified ads a.
2. business b.
3. weather c.
4. travel d.
5. fashion e.
3 Choose the correct answer.
1. Articles / Headlines are usually printed in large, eye-catching letters.
2. Countries that are not democratic don’t usually have freedom of the press / national news.
3. After the incident, the president gave information / held a press conference.
4. I watch the news on TV in order to follow current affairs / editorials.
5. All the newspapers reported the news / presented the news of the Princess’ death.
6. The Nature Channel covers the story / presents programmes about animal life.
4 Match A to B to form sentences.
A B
1. Politicians a. is reported by the media.
2. Headlines b. covers stories.
3. A reporter c. hold press conferences.
4. Editorials d. predicts the future.
5. A horoscope e. introduce articles.
6. World news f. contain opinions on the news.
5 Choose the correct answer.
1. On the front page, I read the … .
a. horoscopes b. national news c. classified ads
2. A reporter was sent to … .
a. present the programme b. hold a press conference c. cover the event
3. The man came to the police station to … .
a. broadcast live b. give an interview c. report a theft
4. The doctor … with the patient’s family.
a. covered the story b. held a conversation c. presented the news
5. TV stations … from the scene of the plane crash.
a. presented a programme b. gave an interview c. broadcast live
6 Complete the sentences with the expressions below.
give an interview • broadcast worldwide • report the news • present the news • cover the story
1. Millions of people in different countries were able to follow the event on radio and TV.
The event was ……………………………… .
2. News announcers have to speak clearly.
People who ……………………………… must speak clearly.
3. A reporter was sent to find out about the incident.
A reporter was sent to ……………………………… .
4. The winner at Wimbledon will speak to reporters.
The winner at Wimbledon will ……………………………… .
5. The media informs the public about what is happening in the world.
The main job of the media is to ……………………………… .
7 Complete the sentences with the words: give • present • broadcast • cover • report • hold
1. The owner of the jewellery shop called the police to ……………… a theft.
2. A famous scientist is going to ……………… a TV programme on genetics.
3. The young reporter hopes the film star will ……………… him an interview.
4. The local newspaper will ……………… the story of the town elections.
5. The Academy Awards ceremony is always ……………… worldwide.
6. The president of the company refuses to ……………… a conversation with anyone who doesn’t make an appointment.
8 In which section of the newspaper would you find an article about each of the topics below?
cheap holidays abroad • the possibility of rain • what the famous are wearing • the best shows in town • large companies’ profits
1. fashion ………………………………………
2. travel ………………………………………
3. weather ………………………………………
4. business ………………………………………
5. entertainment ………………………………………
9 Match A to B to form expressions.
A B
1. press a. of the press
2. front b. ads
3. freedom c. conference
4. classified d. affairs
5. current e. page
10 Complete the sentences with the expressions in the previous exercise.
1. The Secretary of Defence gave a ……………………… after meeting with foreign leaders.
2. Programmes about ……………………………………… discuss the latest political events.
3. Find out about houses for sale in the ……………………………………… section.
4. Newspapers cannot criticise the government unless there is ……………………………………… .
5. The most important news is on the ……………………………………… of the newspaper.
11 Answer the questions with the words and expressions below.
local newspaper • editorials • journalist • headlines • horoscopes • newsflash
1. Who sometimes travels the world to collect news?
a ………………………………
2. What may interrupt TV programmes?
a ………………………………
3. Where are there comments on major news stories?
in ………………………………
4. What is written in large letters?
the ………………………………
5. Where do you find predictions for the future?
in ………………………………
6. Where do you find reports on school football matches?
in the ………………………………
12 Complete the sentences with the words and expressions below.
give • current affairs • articles • reported • broadcast • media • event • press conference
Can newspapers survive the competition from other forms of (1) ……………………………… ? Four hundred years ago, when the first newspaper (2) ……………………………… the news to the public, there was no competition. The public relied on newspapers to learn about news and (3) ……………………………… . Now, radio, TV and the Internet also (4) ……………………………… the public that information. When world leaders hold a (5) ……………………………… , radio and TV can (6) ……………………………… live from the scene. They can cover the (7) ……………………………… while it is actually happening. Yet, surprisingly, many people still like to relax with a newspaper and enjoy the editorials, letters to the editor and interesting (8) ……………………………… .
13 Complete the sentences by adding a suffix (-er, -or, -ment or -ion) to the words in brackets.
1. Who was the ……………… (act) in that film? He was great.
2. I read about the film in the ……………… (entertain) section.
3. The ……………… (present) of the programme introduced the show.
4. The ……………… (photograph) took wonderful pictures.
5. According to the weatherman’s ……………… (predict), it will be cold tomorrow.
1. Dr Long presented a report on the ……………… (develop) of a new drug for cancer.
2. Leonard Bernstein was a very well-known ……………… (conduct).
3. My best friend’s father is a ……………… (bank).
4. The local art museum has an ……………… (exhibit) of paintings by Claude Monet.