Far better, slightly worse, by far the best — Workbook
1. Vocabulary gap-fill
Complete each sentence with ONE word or short chunk from the box.
- The small-square market offers great drop — cheap and honest.
- That expensive concert was drop — I'll remember it forever.
- This restaurant is nice, but honestly a bit drop for what they serve.
- The neighbourhood café is drop the famous chain, at half the price.
- For value, the industrial market is drop the other two.
- Between these two phones, both have their drop .
- drop , I'd go with the smaller company.
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5. Find and fix the mistake
Each sentence has ONE common mistake. Rewrite it in natural A2+/B1 English.
- This market is more cheaper than the supermarket.
- He is the most tall in the class.
- It's the more interesting film I've seen this year.
- She is by far friendlier than the others.
- This coffee isn't nowhere near as good as the other one.
- Today is more hot than yesterday.
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6. Combine with a contrast linker (although / but / whereas)
Join the two ideas into ONE natural sentence with a modifier.
- The central market is beautiful. It is by far the most expensive.
- The small square is friendly. Its coffee is nowhere near as good as they think.
- The industrial market is cheap. It is by far the noisiest.
- Berlin is far more organised than Rome. Rome is easily the most beautiful.
- This café is slightly cheaper than the chain. It is nowhere near as consistent.
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7. Listening — 'Comparing three cities'
Three friends compare Lisbon, Berlin and Rome. Notice the modifiers.
- Speaker 1: how does she rank the three, and by how much is her Lisbon rent cheaper than her old Berlin rent?
- Speaker 2: why does he say Rome is 'nowhere near as easy to live in as it looks'? Give one specific example.
- Speaker 3: why does she call Berlin 'the second most photogenic' rather than the most?
Show transcript
Speaker 1:Lisbon is by far the friendliest place I've ever lived. Rome is easily the most beautiful, but Berlin is considerably more organised and slightly the cheapest to actually live in. My rent here is about 25% cheaper than what I was paying in Berlin — considerably cheaper, though nowhere near as cheap as Lisbon was five years ago.
Speaker 2:Rome is nowhere near as easy to live in as it looks in the photos. Beautiful, yes, probably the most beautiful in Europe, but by far the hardest for daily errands. Posting a small package takes far longer than in Berlin, involves considerably more paperwork, and is nowhere near as predictable. I love Rome as a visitor, not as a resident.
Speaker 3:Berlin is the second most photogenic city on that list — after Rome, obviously. But Berlin is far more surprising: concrete, graffiti, small pockets of greenery. None of it is postcard-perfect, and honestly that's exactly why it's by far the most interesting to photograph once you've lived there for a few weeks.
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8. Writing — Three of a kind
Write 90–110 words comparing THREE real things you know well (three cafés, three neighbourhoods, three phones, three friends). Include: (a) TWO modified comparatives (much / far / slightly / a bit / considerably), (b) ONE modified superlative (by far / easily / the second most / the least), (c) ONE 'nowhere near as … as' phrase, and (d) ONE 'as … as' comparison. End with a sentence saying which is best AT SOMETHING — not simply 'the best'.
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9. Reflection (discursive)
Answer each in 2 full sentences.
- The writer says NONE of the three markets is 'objectively best' — each is best at ONE thing. Can you apply this idea to somewhere or someone you know?
- Speaker 2 says he 'loves Rome as a visitor, not as a resident'. Is there a place YOU love that would be much harder to actually live in? Explain honestly.
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