MT S IM NG PHP CN

LU TRONG TOEFL

I.SUBJECT&VERBAGREEMENT
Pleaserememberthatsubjectandverbinasentencemustagree
witheachother.
Example:
Theelevatorworksverywell.(singular)
Theelevatorsworkverywell.(plural)

1.Subjectseparatedfromtheverb:
InEnglish,subjectandverbareoftenseparatedfromeachother.
Englishlearnershaveabitdifficultytodecideexactlyhowtheyare
agreedinpersonandnumber.
Example:
Theboysintheroom(isorare)watchingTV

Veryoften,ifthesubjectandverbareseparated,theywillbeseparated
byaprepositionalphrase.Theprepositionalphrasehadnoeffectonthe
verb.
Subject+[prepostionalphrase]+verb
MoreExamples:
Severaltheoriesonthissubjecthavebeenproposed.
Thestudyoflanguagesisveryinteresting.
Theviewofthesedisciplinesvariesfromtimetotime.
Thedangerofforestfiresisnottobetakenlightly.

Thefollowingexpressionsalsohavenoeffecton
theverb:
togetherwithalongwithaccompaniedbyas
wellas
Example:
Theactress,alongwithhermanagerandsome
friends,isgoingtoapartytonight.
Mr.Robbins,accompaniedbyhiswifeandchildren,
isarrivingtonight.

2.Wordsthatalwaystakesingularverbsandpronouns:

SomewordsareoftenconfusedbyEnglishlearnersasbeingplural.The
followingwordsmustbefollowedbysingularverbsandpronounsinformal
writtenEnglish.

any + singular noun

no + singular noun

some + singular noun

anybody

nobody

Somebody

anyone

noone

Someone

anything

nothing

Something

every + singular noun

each + singular noun

everybody

Each person

everyone

*either

everything

*neither

* Either and Neither are singular if they are not used with or and nor.
5

Examples:
- Everybody who has not purchased a ticket should be in this
line.
- Something is under the table.
- If either of you takes a vacation now, we will not be able to
finish the project.
- Anybody who has lost his ticket should report to the desk.
- No problem is harder to solve than this one.
- Nobody works harder than him.

Either/Neither:
Wheneitherandneitherarefollowedbyorandnor,theverbmay
besingularorplural,dependingonwhetherthenounfollowingor
andnorissingularorplural.Let'scheckoutthefollowingformulas.
neither/either+noun+nor/or+pluralnoun+pluralverb
Example:
NeitherBobnorhisfriendsaregoingtothebeachtoday.
EitherBoborhisfriendsaregoingtothebeachtoday.
neither/either+noun+nor/or+singularnoun+singularverb
Example:
NeitherJohnnorBillisgoingtothebeachtoday.
EitherJohnorBillisgoingtothebeachtoday.

3. None / No:
3.1. None can take either singular or plural verb, depending on the noun
which follows it.
none + of the + non-count noun + singular verb
Example:
None of the counterfeit money has been found.
none + of the + plural count noun + plural verb
Example:
None of the students have finished the exam yet.
3.2. No can take either a singular or plural verb depending on the noun
which follows it.
no + singular / non count noun + singular verb
Example:
No ticket is required.
no + plural noun + plural verb
Example:
No tickets are required.
8

4. Gerunds As Subjects:
If a sentence begins with {verb+ing} (gerund), the verb
must be a singular. Let's study the following examples.
Example:
- Working for him is the best choice I've made.
- Going out at night doesn't seems interesting to me.
- Not studying has cause him many problems.

5. Collective Nouns
- Many words indicating a number of people or animals are singular. The
following nouns are usually singular. In some cases they are plural if sentence
indicates that the individual members are acting separately.

congress

family

group

committee

class

organization

team

army

club

crowd

government

jury

majority*

Minority

public

* majority can be singular or plural. If it is alone it is usually singular; if it is followed

by plural noun, it is usually plural.
The majority believes that we are in no danger.
The majority of the students believe him to be innocent.
Examples of collective nouns:
- The committee has met, and it has rejected the proposal.
- The family was elated by the news.
- The crowd was wild with excitement.
- Congress has initiated a new plan to combat inflation.
- The organization has lost many members this years.
- Our team is going to win the game.

Thefollowingnounsareusedtoindicategroupsofcertainanimals.They
meanthesameasgroupandthusareconsideredsingular.
flock of birds, sheep

school of fish

herd of cattle

pride of lions

pack of dogs
Examples:
+Theflockofbirdsiscircllingoverhead.
+Theherdofcattleisbreakingaway.
+Aschooloffishisbeingattackedbysharks.

6. A Number Of / The Number Of :

A number of + plural noun + plural verb.....: mt s
The number of + plural noun + singular verb....: s
Example:
- A number of students are going to the class picnic. (a number
of = many)
- The number of the days in a week is seven.
- A number of the applicants have already been interviewed.
- The number of residents who have been questioned on this
matter is quite small.

7. Nouns are that always plural:

The following nouns are always considered plural. They can not be
singular. In order to speak of them as singular, we must say "a pair of
eyeglasses".
scissors

shorts

pants

jeans

trousers

eyeglasses

pliers

tweezers

tongs

Let's study the following examples:

- The pants are in the drawer.
- A pair of pants is in the drawer.
- The pliers were on the table.
- The pair of pliers was on the table.
- These scissors are dull.
- This pair of scissors is dull.
13

Lu:
DANHTC(S)NHNGDNGST:
NhmMnhc:physics(vtl),mathematics
(ton)....
NhmBnhtt:Measles(si),mumps(quaib).
NhmTnnc:TheUnitedStates(NcM),the
Philipines,
ChNEWS:tintc

Exercise: Choose the correct form of the verb in the following

sentences.
1. Neither Bill nor Mary (is / are) going to the play tonight.
2. Anything (is / are) better than going to another movie tonight.
3. Skating (is / are) becoming more popular every day.
4. A number of reporters (was / were) at the conference yesterday.
5. Anybody who (has / have) a fever must go home immediately.
6. Your glasses (was / were) on the bureau last night.
7. There (was / were) some people at the meeting last night.
8. The committee (has / have) already reached a decision.
9. A pair of jeans (was / were) in the washing machine this morning.
10. Each student (has / have) answered the first three questions.

15

11. Either John or his wife (make, makes) breakfast each morning.
12. After she had perused the material, the secretary decided that
everything (was / were) in order.
13. The crowd at the basketball game (was / were) wild with
excitement.
14. A pack of wild dogs (has / have) frightened all the ducks away.
15. The jury (is / are) trying to reach a decision.
16. The army (has / have) eliminated this section of the training test.
17. The number of students who have withdrawn from class this quarter
(is / are) appalling.
18. There (has / have) been too many interruptions in this class.
19. Every elementary school teacher (has / have) to take this
examination.
20. Neither Jill nor her parents (has / have) seen this movie before.

CUIUKIN
1. C th xy ra ( hin ti)
Mt ng c vin tng thng ni rng: Nu ti tr thnh
tng thng, ti s b nhim anh lm th k.
2. Gi nh, khng c tht, khng th xy ra ( hin ti)
Mt ngi khng ra ng c tng thng ni rng:
Nu ti tr thnh tng thng, ti s b nhim anh lm th k.
3. Khng xy ra, gi nh trong qu kh
Mt ngi ng c tng thng nhng khng trng c ni
rng:
Nu ti tr thnh tng thng vo nm ngoi th ti b
nhim anh lm th k.

I. FIRST CONDITIONALS
A. Form

Weusethepresentsimpletenseintheifclauseandthefuturewith
will in the main clause. We usually use a comma (,) when the if
clauseisfirst,butnotwhenthemainclauseisfirst.
If she eats all that ice cream, she will feel terrible.
If I have time, Ill phone you later.
Youll be hungry if you dont have some dinner.
They wont arrive on time if they miss the bus.

Note: We do not use will in the if clause.

If it rains, well go to the cinema.
NOT If it will rain, well go to the cinema.
.

I.FIRSTCONDITIONALS
B.Use
Firstconditionalspredicttheresultsofarealor
probableactionorevent.
Ifyougetuplate,youllmisstheappointment.
(Thereisarealchancethatyoullgetuplate.)
Wewontgoifitrains.
(Thereisarealchancethatitwillrain.)

II.SECONDCONDITIONALS
A.Form

Weusethepastsimpleformintheifclauseandwould+
infinitivewithouttointhemainclause.
Weusuallyuseacomma(,)whentheifclauseisfirst,butnot
whenthemainclauseisfirst.
IfIhadenoughmoney,Iwouldbuythathouse.
Ifyoudidnteatsomuch,youdloseweight.
Hedfeelbetterifhedidntsmokesomuch.
Theywouldntplaytennisifitwasraining.
Note:Wedonotusewouldintheifclause.
IfIhadenoughmoney
NOTIfIwouldhaveenoughmoney

II.SECONDCONDITIONALS
B.Use

Secondconditionalsdescribeunreal,unlikely,orimaginary
situations.
Ifwehadmoremoney,wedtravelbusinessclass.
Whatwouldyoudoifyousawaghost?

III.THIRDCONDITIONALS
A.Form

Weusethepastperfect(continuous)forminthe ifclause
andwouldhave+pastparticipleinthemainclause.
Weusuallyuseacomma(,)whentheifclauseisfirst,but
notwhenthemainclauseisfirst.
Ifyouhadntstudiedsohard,youwouldhavefailed.
IwouldhavepassedifIdworkedharder.
Theywouldnthavecomeiftheyhadntwantedtoseeyou.

III.THIRDCONDITIONALS
B.Use
We use third conditionals to describe something that
didnthappen,animaginarysituationinthepast.
IfIhadworkedharderIwouldhavepassedtheexam.
(Ididntworkhard,andIdidntpasstheexam.)
You wouldnt have crashed if you hadnt been driving so
fast.
(Youweredrivingtoofast,andyoucrashed.)

Withoutusingif
HadIworkedharderIwouldhavepassedtheexam.
Had you not been driving so fast, You wouldnt have
crashed.

1.Iftheyhadleftthehouseearlier,they_______(be;negative)solate
gettingtotheairportthattheycouldnotchecktheirbaggage
2.IfIfinishthedressbeforeFriday,I(give)ittomysisterforher
birthday.
3.IfIhadseenthemovie.I_______(tell)youaboutitlastnight.
4.HadBobnotinterferedinhissister`smaritalproblems,there(be)
peacebetweenthem.
5.Hewouldgiveyouthemoneyifhe_____(have)it.
6.Shewouldcallyouimmediatelyifshe_____(need)help.
7.Hadtheyarrivedatthesaleearly,they______(find)abetterselection.
8.Ifyouhaveenoughtime,please___(paint)thechairbeforeyouleave.
9.Wecouldgoforadriveiftoday_______(be)Saturday.
10.Ifshewinstheprize,itwillbebecauseshe______(write)verywell..
11.I(accept)iftheyinvitemetotheparty.
12.Ifyourmother________(buy)thatcarforyou,willyoubehappy?
13.Ifhe_____(decide)earlier,hecouldhaveleftontheafternoonflight.
14.Hadweknownyouraddress,we_______(write)youaletter.
15.Iftherooferdoesn`tcomesoon,therain_______(leak)inside.
16.Mydogalwayswakesmeupifhe______(hear)strangenoises.
17.Ifyou_______(see)Marytoday,pleaseaskhertocallme.
18.Ifhe______(get)theraise,itwillbebecausehedoesagoodjob.
19.Theteacherwillnotacceptourworkifwe______(turn)itinlate.
20.Ifhehadleftalready,he______(call)us.
21.Iftheyhadknownhim,they______(talk)tohim.
22.Hewouldunderstanditifyou______(explain)ittohimmoreslowly.
23.IcouldunderstandtheFrenchteacherifshe___(speak)moreslowly.

CCTHTHUTC
cltquacccuhitrc.
Khi c bi c, lu n cc ni dung lin quan
ncuhi.
c lt, b qua nhng t vng khng bit, c th
onngha.
Trlicccuhi.

MT S IM NG PHP CN
LU KHI THI TOEFL

Thng tin tha (redundancy)

Khng dng song song c 2 t di y trong cng mt cu:
advance forward
proceed forward
progress forward

C 3 t advance, proceed, progress u c ngha tin ln, tin v pha trc:

"to move in a forward direction". V vy forward l tha.

return back
revert back

C 2 t return, revert u c ngha: "to go back, to send back". V vy back l

tha.

sufficient enought

Hai t ny ngha nh nhau

compete together

compete = ua tranh, cnh tranh vi nhau "to take part in a contest against
others"

reason... because

Hai t ny c ngha nh nhau. Mu ng phi l "reason... that"

join together

join c ngha "to bring together", "to put together", "to become a part or a
member of..."

repeat again

repeat c ngha "to say again"

new innovation

innovation c ngha l mt tng mi "a new idea"

matinee performance

matinee = bui biu din chiu

same identical

hai t ny ngha ging nhau

two twins

twins = two brothers or sisters

the time / when

Hai t ny ngha ging nhau

the place / where

Hai t ny ngha ging nhau

Khithngtintrongcublpilplikhngcnthitthn
bgilthngtintha,cnphiloibphntha.
Vd:NgiAnhkhngdngthetimewhenmchdngmt
tronghai.
Itis(thetime/when)Igothome.
NgiAnhkhngdngtheplacewheremchdngmt
tronghai.
Itis(theplace/where)Iwasborn.

Cutrcsongsongtrongcu

Khithngtintrongmtcucaradidnglitkthccthnhphn
clitkphitngngvinhauvmttloi(nounnoun,adjective
adjective,...).Vd:
SAI

NG

Mr. Henry is a lawyer, a politician,

and he teaches.

Mr. Henry is a lawyer, a politician, and a

teacher.

Peter is rich, handsome, and many

people like him.

Peter is rich, handsome, and popular.

The cat approached the mouse slowly

and silent.

The cat approached the mouse slowly and

silently.

She like to fish, swim and surfing.

She like to fish, to swim and to surf.

She like fishing, swimming and surfing.

When teenagers finish highschool,

they have several choices: going to
college, getting a job, or the army.

When teenagers finish highschool, they have

several choices: going to college, getting a
job, or joining the army.

Tim entered the room, sat down, and

is opening his book.

Tim entered the room, sat down, and

opened his book.

Tuynhinnuthigiantrongccmnhkhcnhau
caculkhcnhauthngtcngphituntheo
qui lut thi gian. Lc cu trc cu song song v
thicaccngt(nhvddngcuibngtrn)
khng
c
p
dng.
V
d:
Sheisasenior,studieseveryday,andwillgraduatea
semesterearly.

Mtsngngt(phrasalverb)thnggp

l nhng ng t kt hp vi 1, 2 hoc i khi 3 gii t,

khi kt hp dng nh vy ng ngha ca chng thay i
hnsovinghabanu.
To break off: chm dt, ct t, on tuyt.
To bring up: nu ra, a ln mt vn
To call on: yu cu / n thm
To care for: thch / trng nom, sn sc (look after)
To check out (of/from) a library: mn sch th vin v
To check out: iu tra, xem xt.
To check out (of): lm th tc ra (khch sn, sn bay) <> check in.
To check (up) on: iu tra, xem xt.
To close in (on): tin li gn, chy li gn
To come along with: i cng vi
To count on = depend on = rely on
To come down with: mc phi mt cn bnh
To do away with = get rid of: tng kh, loi b, tr kh
To daw up = to draft: son tho (mt k hoch, mt hp ng)
To drop out of = to withdraw from: b (c bit l b hc gia chng)

To figure out: Hnh dung ra c, hiu c.

To find out: khm ph ra, pht hin ra.
To get by: Ln hi qua ngy, sng st qua c
To get through with: kt thc
To get through to: thng tin c cho ai, gi c cho (in thoi), tm
cch lm cho hiu
To get up: dy/ t chc.
To give up: b, t b
To go along with: ng vi
To hold on to: vn gi vng, duy tr
To hold up: cp / vn gi vng, vn duy tr, vn sng bnh thng,
vn dng c (bt chp sc p bn ngoi hoc s dng lu)
To keep on doing smt: vn tip tc khng ngng lm g
To look after: trng nom, sn sc
To look into: iu tra, xem xt
To pass out = to faint: ngt (ni ng t, khng dng b ng)
To pick out: chn ra, la ra, nht ra
To point out: ch ra, vch ra

To figure out: Hnh dung ra c, hiu c.

To find out: khm ph ra, pht hin ra.
To get by: Ln hi qua ngy, sng st qua c
To get through with: kt thc
To get through to: thng tin c cho ai, gi c cho (in thoi), tm
cch lm cho hiu
To get up: dy/ t chc.
To give up: b, t b
To go along with: ng vi
To hold on to: vn gi vng, duy tr
To hold up: cp / vn gi vng, vn duy tr, vn sng bnh thng,
vn dng c (bt chp sc p bn ngoi hoc s dng lu)
To keep on doing smt: vn tip tc khng ngng lm g
To look after: trng nom, sn sc
To look into: iu tra, xem xt
To pass out = to faint: ngt (ni ng t, khng dng b ng)
To pick out: chn ra, la ra, nht ra
To point out: ch ra, vch ra

To put off: tr hon, nh hon

To run across: khm ph, pht hin ra (tnh c )
To run into sb: gp ai bt ng
To see about to: lo lng, sn sc, chy vy
To take off: ct cnh <> to land
To take over for: thay th cho
to talk over: bn son, tho lun v
to try out: th nghim, dng th (sn phm)
to try out for: th vai, th ging (1 v kch, bu i biu di n)
To turn in: giao np, trnh / i ng
To watch out for: cnh gic, mt, trng chng (c ngha en
ln ngha bng)

CUHIUI(TAGQUESTION)

CUHIUI

CuhiuilmtdngcuhirtthngdngtrongtingAnh.
Mcdcutrlichocuhiuicnggingnhcutrlicho
cu hi YESNO, nhng cu hi ui c sc thi ngha ring
bit.
Cu hi ui c thnh lp sau mt cu ni khng nh hoc
phnh,cngncchbngduphy(,)vvyngitcu
hicthngtinvcutrli.Tuynhin,thngthngihi
khngchcchnlmvthngtinny.
Nungihichcchn,ttinrngmnhcthngtinvcu
trlinhngvnhithkhichmdtcuhiui,ngihis
lnging.

CUHIUI
*Nguyntcchungkhilpcuhiui:
Nucunitrcduphylcukhngnh,cuhi
uiphithphnh.
Nucunitrcduphylcuphnh,cuhiui
phithkhngnh
Cutocacuhiui:
Cuhiuigmmttrngttngngvithc
dngtrongcunitrcduphy,cNOThockhngc
NOTvmtitnhnxngtngngvichngca
cunitrcduphy.
TD: Youareafraid,aren'tyou?

Youdidn'tdoyourhomework,didyou?

CUHIUI
Cchthnhlpcuhiuichoccth
1.HintinviTOBE:
Heishandsome,isn'the?
2.Hintinvingtthng:mntrngtDOhoc
DOEStytheochng
Theylikeme,don'tthey?
Shelovesyou,doesn'tshe?
3.Thqukhnvingtthng:mntrngtDID,
qukhnviTOBE:WAShocWERE
4.Thhintihonthnhhochintihonthnhtipdin:
mntrngtHAVEhocHAS
Theyhaveleft,haven'tthey?
Therainhasstopped,hasn'tit?

CUHIUI
Cchthnhlpcuhiuichoccth

5.Thqukhhonthnhhocqukhhonthnh
tipdin:mntrngtHAD:
Hehadn'tmetyoubefore,hadhe?
6.Thtnglain:
Itwillrain,won'tit?

CUHIUI
*Nhngtrnghpcbitcnlu
** HAD BETTER: thng c vit ngn gn thnh 'D
BETTER ch cn mn tr ng t HAD lp cu hi
ui.
TD:He'dbetterstay,hadn'the?
**WOULDRATHER:thngcvitgnl'DRATHER
chcnmntrngtWOULDlpcuhiui.
TD:You'drathergo,wouldn'tyou?
**Ifthemainclauseis"Iam",tagquestionmustbe"aren't
I?
EX:Iamcominghere,aren'tI?
ViIAMNOT,cuhiuislAMInhquytc.
+Iamnotguilty,ami?

CUHIUI
Ifthemainclausehave"let's",tagquestionmustbe"
shallwe?"
TD:Let'sgotothemovies,shallwe?
Ifthemainclauseisrequest,tagquestionmustbe
"willyou?"
TD:Openthewindow,willyou?
Ifthemainclauseisinvation,tagquestionmustbe
"won'tyou?"
TD:Takeyourseat,won'tyou?
Ifthemainclausehave:"seldom,rarely,hardly,no,
without,never,...",tagquestionmustbeaffirmation.
TD:Henevergoestoschoollate,doeshe?

Trc nghim

NhnglidmctrongtingAnh

'Everyday'lamttinhttrongtingAnh.

Trc nghim

cac
t din
ta thng tin trai ngc

Trcnghimvnhngtdnhmln

Trcnghim

Mucuthchhpkhivitth

Trcnghim

Nguynnhnvahqua