Mastering Urban Vocabulary and Passive Voice Structures

Urban Vocabulary and Grammar Exercises

Section 1: Word Associations

• Packed — people
• High-rise — flats
• Slums — poor
• Ran an errand — shop
• Congestion — big city
• Smashed — window
• Litter — floor

Section 2: Collocations and Prepositions

• Reason — for (d) → 2.
• Lack — of (c) → 3.
• Access — to (e) → 1.
• Break — from (b) → 5.
• Along — with (a) → 4.

Section 3: Post-War Housing in Britain

In 1945, Britain had a...

1. Housing
2. Lack of
3. Abandoned
4. Suburbs
5. Neighbourhoods
6. Built-up
7. Room for
8. Solution to

Section 4: Sentence Completion

1. Which city will hold the next Olympic Games?
2. Housing prices have increased five times faster than...
3. We will have them brought...
4. The bins in our neighbourhood should be emptied...
5. Years ago it was believed...
6. A lot of old buildings in this slum will be demolished...
7. Since when have cars been banned...
8. The missing hikers haven’t been found yet.
9. Once again, the mayor has turned down...

Section 5: Advanced Passive Voice Structures

1. Locals should be given free parking spaces in the town.
   → Free parking spaces should be given to locals in the town.
2. Have the tourists been shown the city’s historic landmarks?
   → Have the city’s historic landmarks been shown to the tourists?
3. It’s thought by many that city life is too stressful.
   → City life is thought to be too stressful by many.

Section 6: Sentence Transformations

1. A local artist designed our town’s logo.
   → Our town had its logo designed by a local artist.
2. Archaeologists believe that this used to be a Roman city.
   → It is believed that this used to be a Roman city.
3. The library displays old maps of the city.
   → Old maps of the city are displayed by the library.
4. They should build a bigger car park outside the city centre.
   → A bigger car park should be built outside the city centre.
5. Our restaurant delivered free food to the homeless.
   → Free food was delivered to the homeless by our restaurant.

Prepositions and Collocations

• 1. Effect on...
• 2. Lack of...
• 3. Make space for...
• 4. Need a break from...
• 5. Run-down buildings...
• 6. Running out of time...
• 7. Wants to put a...
• 8. Clashed with police.

Contextual Vocabulary Practice

1. Along with (8)
2. Put in charge (2)
3. Congestion (7)
4. Tempted (10)
5. Solution to (6)
6. High-rise (4)
7. Put pressure on (5)
8. Housing (1)
9. Put emphasis on (3)
10. Housing (1)

Sentence Construction

• My family moved to the suburbs because the city was too crowded.
• The shop was packed because there was a sale.
• Inequality has long existed between the rich and the poor.
• I used to have a hectic life because I worked too much.
• She’s at the shop running an errand.
• He owns properties including houses and flats.
• Abandoned buildings were demolished.

Final Text Analysis

1. Have a huge sphere built
2. Concerts will be held
3. That had been signed
4. Who protested
5. The sphere was turned
6. Fight had been won
7. Life should be preserved