A practical English Grammar is intended for intermediate（中级的） and post-intermediate students. We hope that more advanced learners and teachers will also find it useful.
The book is a comprehensive survey of structures and forms, written in clear modern English and illustrated with numerous examples. Areas of particular difficulty have been given special attention. Differences between conversational usage and strict grammatical forms are shown but the emphasis is on controversial forms.
In the fourth edition the main changes are as follows.
1. Explanation and examples have been brought up to date.
2. There is now more information on countable and uncountable nouns, attributive and predicative adjectives, adverbs of place, sentence adverbs, cleft sentences, prepositions, conjunctives, modal verbs, perfect tenses, infinitive constructions, the passive, purpose clauses and nouns.
3. Some material has been rearranged to make comparisons easier. For example, parts of chapters on can, may, must etc. are now grouped by functions; verbs of liking and preference have a chapter to themselves; suggestions and invitations have joined the chapter on commands, requests and advice.
4. The contents list now summaries every edition heading, and there is a new index containing many more entries references.
In this edition the sign “~” is frequently used to show a change of speaker in examples of dialogue. Note also that although the sign “="”" sometimes connects two words or expressions with the same meaning, it is often used more freely, e.g. to indicate a transformation from active to passive or direct to indirect speech.
We wish to thank all at Oxford University Press who have assisted in the preparation of the fourth edition. We would also like to thank Professor Egawa of Nihon University, Japan, Professor Rene Dirven of Duisburg University, West Germany and other colleagues for their friendly and helpful suggestions.
London, November 1985   A.J.T., A.VM
【小题1】The grammar book mentioned in this passage is not suitable for              .

A recent trend(趋势) in Californian restaurants shows new eating habits among those people out to have an interesting dining experience. Appetizers(开胃品)seem to be the name of the games as diners turn away from the more traditional three-course meal in favor of smaller snacks served in various types of restaurants, bars and cafes. In this way, in the course of an evening out, you might go to a restaurant for a tasty dish to eat at one end of town, to a bar with some live music at the other end, then for a coffee, and finally back to the restaurant for a further appetizer.

Reasons for this trend are the fact that so many different types of restaurants have been set up recently, each with their own particular type of food and special atmosphere, together with the increased specialty in the type of snacks being offered. Gone are the cheese sticks of the old days, when appetizers were not really taken seriously. Some favorite snacks of the moment are slices of hot pizza, creamy fish-based dishes and crispy cakes and so on.

Prices for appetizers are not equal to a full meal; however, their new popularity has meant that they are by no means as cheap as they used to be. Certainly, for that special occasion, a meal in a nice restaurant, complete with the piano performance, is hard to beat. However, if we see this trend for “butterfly eating”---moving around several different places in one evening continues, then all the traditional style restaurants may well have to provide their own appetizer bars as well!

59． How are the eating habits of the Californians changing?

A. People are dining out less.

B. Californian restaurants are becoming less popular.

C. Most people eat less than they used to.

D. A full restaurant meal is less popular.

60． All the places that serve appetizers   _   .

A. have much the same menu

B. have their own particular characteristics

C. have a bar with live music

D. are located at the end of the town

At a computer exhibition Bill Gates reportedly compared the computer industry with the auto industry and stated : “If GM had kept up with technology like the computer industry has ,we would all be driving twenty-five dollar cars that got 1,000 miles to the gallon.”

In response to ‘Bill’s comments , General Motors announced a news release stating :

If GM had developed technology like Microsoft , we would be driving cars with the following characteristics :

1. For no reason your car would crash twice a day .

2. Every time they repainted the lines on the road you would have to buy a new car .

3. Sometimes your car would die on the freeway for no reason and you would just accept this , restart and drive on .

4. Only one person at a time could use the car , unless you bought “Car95” or “CarNT” . But then you would have to buy more seats .

5. If you tried to get your car to a mechanic , you’d make a long distance call , be put on hold for three or four hours , when you finally got the mechanic , you’d to told how to fix it yourself , and the mechanic would hang up before you even tried his or her suggestions .

6. People would get excited about the “new” features in Microsoft cars , forgetting completely they had been available in other cars for many years .

7. The airbag system would say: “Are you sure”? before going off .

8. Every time GM introduced a new model car , buyers would have to learn how to drive all over again because none of the controls would operate in the same manner as the old car .

9. Microsoft cars would have a special radio/cassette player which would only be able to listen to Microsoft FM, and play Microsoft Cassettes .

10. If you couldn’t afford to buy a new car , then you could just borrow your friend’s and then copy it .

11. You’d press the “start” button to shut off the engine .

53．The purpose of writing this article is        .

       A．to state the advantages of Microsoft in making cars

       B．to inform that Microsoft will make cars in the future

       C．to compare cars made by GM with those made by Microsoft

       D．to make fun of the disadvantages of Microsoft’s products

54．It can be inferred from the passage the airbag system of the new car        .

       A．would be more safe than the old one

       B．would become useless in case of an accident

       C．would not surprise the driver by going off suddenly

       D．would remind the driver of the danger ahead of time

55．What does the writer really mean by saying “You’d press the ‘start’ button to shut off the engine”?

       A．The design of Microsoft is very funny and strange .

       B．It is better to control the engine like a computer .

       C．The engine control system requires to be improved .

       D．It is impossible to shut off the engine by pressing the “start” button .

56．The best title of this passage would be        .

      A．Characteristics of the New Cars             B．GM Should Learn from Microsoft

       C．If Microsoft Build Cars                        D．New Cars to be Made in the Future

Michelle Obama made a daring decision to return to the same designer who created her Inaugural (就职）Ball dress four years ago --- and the risk paid off.
The First Lady looked extremely attractive in a thin, sweeping, and ruby-colored dress by designer Jason Wu. She teamed the dramatic dress with heels by Jimmy Choo and a diamond ring by Kimberly McDonald.
She surprised the fashion establishment by returning to a Wu design which had been the custom made for her.
Four years ago at her first Inauguration Ball, Michelle shimmered（熠熠生辉）in an off-white, one-shouldered floor-length dress by the designer.
Wu, who was 26 at the time and had only been working in fashion for three years, saw his career take off after the First Lady's surprise decision to wear one of his dresses.
He said at the time that he was unaware she had chosen the dress and had been watching at home on his couch and eating pizza when she appeared.
After her 2013 decision, Wu told Women's Wear Daily: “Mrs Obama likes to keep her secrets. She fooled me again.”
Wu released a women's clothing and accessories（装饰品）collection at Target last year and continues to be popular with the First Lady for official engagements.
The sleeveless, cross-halter neck dress with low-cut back flattered（突出）49-year-old Michelle's arms and neat waist.
It had been created especially for her by Wu and was a departure from the dark and plain colour tone she stuck to at earlier inauguration events.
Mrs Obama's new hairstyle -- she had bangs（美发沙龙）cut on her birthday last week  had been loosely tousled（蓬松的）for the special night.
Vice-President Joe Biden's wife Jill also looked attractive in a blue silk dress by Vera Wang at the Inauguration Ball.
【小题1】What does the passage mainly talk about？

Janice Fialka showed a new documentary (纪录片) about her cognitively (认知地) disabled son at schools and seminars across the country.Everyone seemed to enjoy it，but one comment from a teacher proved her family’s investment to Fialka was a success.

“In Baltimore an early childhood teacher came up and said，‘I have to apologize to the family of a 4?year old with Down Syndrome (先天愚型)，’”Fialka said.“She said，‘I told them to be more realistic about their dreams for him.Now I have to tell them I’m sorry.’”

The story of Micah Fialka?Feldman，a 22?year?old Oakland University student，is meant to show parents，educators and the disabled anything is possible.

Fialka?Feldman wrote in an essay titled “I wanted to go to college and my dream came true”．A lot of people didn’t think he could go to college，but because family and friends believed in him he learned how to take public transportation to campus and found teachers who helped him pick the best classes.

The title of the film Through the Same Door came from a day when Fialka?Feldman，who was enrolled in a first grade special education program，told his parents he wanted to walk through the same door as the rest of the kids at his school.It led him to becoming the first student with cognitive disabilities in mainstream classrooms in Berkley.

Though he can’t read or write on his own，Fialka?Feldman reached amazing heights with the help of voice recognition computer software，tutors，and the embrace (接受) of his community.

At Berkley High School，Fialka?Feldman won the Social Studies Department Award for civic (公民的) involvement.In 2004 he received the Michigan “Yes，I Can” award for self?advocacy (自强)．

He finished high school in 2003 with a certificate of attendance，took a 10?day trip through Israel with friends last year，and enrolled at Oakland University through the Transitions Program，which is geared (使适合于) to help the disabled go from high school to college.

Fialka said he’s the happiest kid in the world.Everyone should be so happy.

1.What would be the best title for the passage?

A．Disabled Man Living His Dream

B．Nothing Is Impossible

C．Don’t Look Down Upon the Disabled

D．Through the Same Door

2.What the early childhood teacher said suggests that________.

A．disabled people should be realistic about their dreams

B．she used to believe we should not expect much from disabled people

C．she hadn’t given the 4?year old with Down Syndrome enough attention

D．the documentary about Fialka?Feldman encouraged the disabled

3.Which of the following is NOT true about Fialka?Feldman?

A．He was the first cognitively disabled student in mainstream classrooms in Berkley.

B．He went to school by public transportation and was helped to pick up classes.

C．He benefited from computer software and other people.

D．He received the “Yes，I Can” award for civic involvement and self?advocacy

4.Which of the following shows the correct order of events of Fialka?Feldman?

a．He received the Michigan “Yes，I Can” award.

b．His documentary was shown and welcomed.

c．He was enrolled in a first grade special education program.

d．He finished high school with a certificate of attendance.

e．He enrolled at Oakland University through the Transitions Program.

A．a?c?d?e?b? B．b?a?c?d?e

C．c?d?e?a?b? D．c?d?b?e?a