Impersonal Subjects - Extracurricular

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    Impersonal Subjects

    (i) Gerund as a subjectGerund subjects usually refer to an activity, in general (an unspecific one.) A gerund, ending in -ing is areduced verb form not marked by tense or person. The focus is on the activity.

    Playing tennis is an excellent exercise.

    Using a computer saves a lot of time.

    Reading English newspapers is often difficult.

    I.(to tell) _____________________________ a joke always makes people relax.

    II.(to try) _____________________________ to make people laugh often doesn't work.

    III.(to fly) _____________________________ through a joke too quickly doesn't give listeners enough time to use their

    imaginations.

    IV.(to relate) _____________________________ the joke to the audience is essential.

    V.(to win) _____________________________ laughs from an audience is a rewarding feeling.

    VI.(to be) _____________________________ a good actor helps when telling a joke.VII.(to have) _____________________________ a good memory helps a lot too.

    VIII.(to make) _____________________________ people smile is priceless.

    priceless (adj.) extremely valuable, no one can put a price on it

    (ii) Itas subject

    Case 01: It is used as an empty subject for verbs that have no real subject. This usuallyconcerns the timeor the weather.

    Its 6.30. Its raining.

    It was hot.

    Its going to be 40 C.

    Its cold.

    It will soon be supper time.

    Case 02:It is also used as subject for say, to describe what is written; for take, to describe length of time;

    It says here we have to be there an hour before;

    It takes almost an hour to get there.

    Case: 03: It is subject in expressions like it doesnt matter, its no use, its a pity its a shame;

    It doesnt really matter;

    Its no use. I cant make itwork;

    Its a pity you missed the movie.

    Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina

    Centro de Comunicao e Expresso

    Departamento de Lngua e Literatura Estrangeiras

    Cursos Extracurriculares de Idiomas

    Curso de Lngua Inglesa Nvel: 5 Turmas: G / K

    Professor: Alison Roberto Gonalves; April 20th, 2012.1

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    Its a shame you didnt come to the party.

    Case 04: Itis also used with verbs like seem, appear and lookwhen the subject is an infinitive phrase, a

    phrase with a gerund in it or a clause.

    It seemed strange to see him there.

    It appears possible that the two companies may

    merge.

    It appeared unwise to offend him.

    It looks improper to behave like that.

    01. Rewrite the following sentences. Make sure the new sentence begins with it.a) Downloading a movie takes a few minutes.

    _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    b) To watch an old Charlie Chaplin movie is wonderful.

    _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    c) Making people laugh in a silent film seems difficult.

    _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    d) To do what he did takes a lot of talent._________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    e) That some of his films have been lost is a pity.

    _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    pity (n.) a loss, a disappointment

    (iii) There/ Itas subjects

    There is used with the verbs be, seem, appearto introduce a statement about what exists or happens.

    Theres a shop at the end of the road. There seems/ appears to be a problem.Theres been a fire at school. There was nobody in the building at the time.

    Do not confuse with there meaning "location":

    There was a particularly funny joke (there = existence) _ A particularly funny joke was there (there =

    location).

    There is two-week old episode on television (there = existence) _ A two-week old episode is there,

    on television

    episode (n.) part of a television series in drama or comedy

    01. Complete the sentences below with itor there. Remember: there + to be means existence.

    1. ____________ is fun to watch a movie in the evening.2. ____________ used to be hard to get into a theater or rent and return a movie on time.

    3. Nowadays, ____________ are so many options for watching movies.

    4. ____________ movies are available online. ____________ is a big convenience.

    5. ____________ only takes a few minutes to download or "stream" a movie.

    6. Also, ____________ is convenient to receive DVDs through the mail..

    7. ____________ is a website where you can select your choices.

    8. ____________ is the best way to watch "hard to find" movies.

    used to be past routine or habit

    stream (v.) receive small amounts (bits) at a time; a flow, a current.