Year 5 Grammar B Exercises: Answers
Exercise 1.1 B Identifying pronouns*
1. Jessica grabbed the torch, which was sitting on the bedside table. It was covered with a layer of dust. She blew on it and flicked the button to switch it on. The torch turned on, flickered twice and then it went out again. Jessica shook her head and then slipped her hand into the top drawer of her bedside table, where she kept a random assortment of bits and bobs, and rooted around for fresh batteries. “Found them,” she muttered to her stuffed animals, who were lined up on her bed. As soon as she had fitted the fresh batteries, the torch came back to life. Jessica stuffed it in her backpack and headed out the door to join the spooky Halloween trail.
2. Jessica hurried towards the old, abandoned school, where the spooky Halloween trail was to start. She thought that the school was an excellent choice. It was very spooky with its tall towers and crumbling roof tiles. Mrs Beacham, who would be leading the trail, was standing to one side with an excited group of children. Jessica ran towards them, gripping her backpack tightly and dodging puddles on the ground. She arrived next to her two best friends from school, Sandeep and Helena, who were facing away from her. She tapped them on their shoulders. “I am so glad you are here!” squealed Helena, “We were afraid that you were going to miss it!” “Will you hold my hand if it gets too scary?” asked Sandeep. Jessica smiled and promised him that she would.
3. Jessica, Sandeep and Helena followed Mrs Beacham as she walked away from the abandoned school and towards the nearby woodland. They looked up at the clock, which struck eight o’clock as they passed by. The bells, that had been chiming the hour for more than thirty years, rang out across the town of Newhaven. It was a quiet town and at eight o’clock on the last day of October, most of the townspeople were tucked up in their homes, watching TV snuggled on their sofas. Jessica huddled down inside her jacket as they entered the woods. She was glad that she had her friends with her. Just as they arrived at a clearing in the woods, a group of adults jumped out of the trees into the open. They were dressed as vampires, werewolves and zombies, carrying pretend weapons and with their faces painted!
4. Sandeep screamed as a pretend zombie lunged towards him, holding her arms out menacingly. Sandeep tripped over his laces, which had come undone on the walk into the woods, and he fell into Jessica. Jessica laughed as she helped him back to his feet.
“Sandeep,” she said, “that’s your Mum dressed up as a zombie!” Jessica was right. “Wow,
Mrs. Patel,” said Helena, who hadn’t recognised her friend’s Mum either, “you really scared us!” The children and adults all had a good laugh and Sandeep gave his mother a big hug.
Mrs Beacham, who had been watching and smiling, clapped her hands. Then she introduced them to the other adults, who were all smiling under their face-paint! Later that night, while lying in her bed, Jessica thought that it had been the best Halloween tour yet.
*Sometimes words like ‘his’ are possessive pronouns, e.g. the book was his. Sometimes they are possessive determiners, i.e. possessive pronouns acting as adjectives, e.g. It was his book. It is not necessary to make this distinction with children.
NB. it’s = it is, so the pronoun is its (no apostrophe as no missing letter)

Exercise 1.2 B Categorising pronouns
Pronoun Personal pronoun
Possessive* pronoun
Relative pronoun you his which your that him
I hers it who his my his my his his their me
*Sometimes words like ‘his’ are possessive pronouns, e.g. the book was his. Sometimes they are possessive determiners, i.e. possessive pronouns acting as adjectives, e.g. It was his book. It is not necessary to make this distinction with children.
Exercise 1.3 B Categorising pronouns
Sentence
My elephant has one red foot which he dyed by standing in blackcurrant jam when he was just a young calf.
The vampire, who had loved to drink blood since he was bitten, reached his hands towards my face.
Your sister has really pretty eyes; I love the way that they sparkle.
Personal pronouns he he he
I they him The book of magic spells, which was open on his table, seemed to call to him.
The bagpipe player, who had been polishing his pipes for weeks, was upset when my octopus climbed on his back!
The king, who loved the jester he had sent to his daughter, asked me to sing for him instead.
The old castle, where the witches held their knitting competitions, looked very scary to me.
He grabbed her hand and pressed the doorbell which shone with a magic glow.
John, who is a bit mad, was looking for mermaids he me him me
He
Possessive pronouns* my
Your his their her your
Relative pronouns which who which who who where which who

in your bath with his socks on!
I want to find the cat that scared my dog!
She knew that her peacock would win its first race.
I
She his my her its that
Are you the wizard who sent me a jar of pickled toadstools?
You me who
*Sometimes words like ‘his’ are possessive pronouns, e.g. the book was his. Sometimes they are, strictly, possessive determiners, i.e. possessive pronouns acting as adjectives, e.g.
It was his book. It is not necessary to make this distinction with children.
Exercise 1.4 Pronouns
1. The ogre grabbed the sewing kit that was on his window sill.
He looked at the quilt that he had been working on for twenty years.
His mother, who had introduced him to sewing, smiled down on him.
She was in a picture on the wall, wearing her best polka dot hat.
He still had the hat, which had convinced the villagers that ogres aren’t dangerous, and kept it proudly on display on his wall.
Personal pronouns Possessive pronouns*
He, he, him, him, She, He, it his, his, her, his
Relative pronouns that, who, which
2. The pirate ship, which was painted black, seemed to lean on its side.
It looked deserted but you can never tell when pirates are being sneaky!
The captain put down his telescope and closed it as he pondered the ship.
If they were lucky, the crew might find treasure aboard the ship, he thought.
The first mate, who was a cautious man, shook his head.
Personal pronouns Possessive pronouns* Relative pronouns
It, you, it, he, they, he its, his, his which, who
3. Sir Barry, who was not a successful knight, was determined to be a hero.
He received an electronic pigeon from some villagers, who were very worried.
They had heard that a dragon was nesting in a volcano nearby and it was getting ready to attack the village.
When he heard this, Barry ran to the stable, where his trusty steed Mabel lived.
Mabel tossed her head in excitement when Barry strode in wearing his armour!
Personal pronouns Possessive pronouns* Relative pronouns
He, They, it, he his, her, his who, who, where
4. In a cave near the top of the volcano, which was active but hadn’t erupted for years, sat the dragon, its tail wrapped around its hind legs.
Sir Barry dug his heels into Mabel’s side and she snorted loudly.
Barry and Mabel made their way up the side of the volcano, which was steep.
Barry listened to the volcano report on his mp3 player.
It was not predicted to erupt so he sighed and mopped his brow.
Personal pronouns Possessive pronouns* Relative pronouns its, its, his, their, his, his which, which she, It, he

5. The dragon, who had its ears tuned to the sounds of Barry and Mabel’s approach, stretched.
Mabel put her head around the edge of the cave and then quickly backed away when she saw what was sitting inside it!
Barry slid off the saddle, which was high up for a knight as short as him.
He gathered his courage and went into the cave to face the dragon.
“Welcome Barry,” said the dragon, “Would you like a cup of tea?
Personal pronouns Possessive pronouns* Relative pronouns she, it, him, He, you its, her, his who, which
6. I grabbed the first goblin that came out of the cave, he was stinky!
The goblin leader, who was wearing a yellow crown, aimed a spear at my head.
I ducked and it flew over me, crashing into a tree where it stayed quivering.
The goblins were proving too many for us, so I grabbed the spear and threw it at the goblin leader. Our only chance was to stop him.
The spear bounced off his crown and he fell off the rock that he had stood on and fell unconscious to the floor. I had saved the day!
Personal pronouns Possessive pronouns* Relative pronouns
I, he, I, it, me, it, us, I, it,
Our, him, he, he, I my, his who, that
*Sometimes words like ‘his’ are possessive pronouns, e.g. the book was his. Sometimes they are, strictly, possessive determiners, i.e. possessive pronouns acting as adjectives, e.g.
It was his book. It is not necessary to make this distinction with children.
Exercise 1.5 B Personal pronouns
1. My name is Dilip and I love to cook and bake. I love to be in my kitchen, it is beautiful, big and filled with all my favourite pots and pans. My grandma taught me to cook. She is amazing, combining brilliant flavours and creating lovely dishes. Her banana and raisin rock cakes are legendary. They are very popular when I take them to school. All of her cakes are delicious and she only ever uses old-fashioned methods. She doesn’t even own a blender!
All of my friends love coming to tea at my house because we will always have something tasty for pudding, courtesy of my grandma.
Pronoun Refers to
I
I it me
She
They
I them she
She we
Dilip
Dilip the kitchen
Dilip
Grandma rock cakes
Dilip the rock cakes
Grandma
Grandma
Dilip’s family
2. The troll grabbed his club and stalked towards the entrance to the castle. It loomed over him, dark and forbidding. He hefted the club in his right hand and bashed three times on the door with his left hand. Inside the castle the dragon was sleeping. Every time she snored, small flames shot out of her nose! She woke up at the sound of the banging on the

door and she stretched her wings. Dragons are not known for their patience or good moods when they are woken up! The troll roared and stamped his feet as the dragon swooped out of the upstairs window. It was not the best first date ever!
Pronoun Refers to
It him
He she
She she they
It the castle the troll the troll the dragon the dragon the dragon dragons the date
She it they it it she it
3. Jon and Isabelle were running hard. They got to the edge of the field and looked at the series of obstacles ahead of them. Jon laughed out loud as he jumped over the first hurdle.
Isabelle giggled as she slid through the mud underneath it and jumped back to her feet.
“Wow,” said Jon, “you are covered in mud now!” “It makes me work harder!” she laughed as she accelerated towards the next obstacle. She was first to reach the rope swing and she swung over the river. Jon didn’t want to wait for the rope to come back so he waded through the river instead. With all this training, they were going to win the big race.
Pronoun Refers to
They them he she it you it me
Jon and Isabelle
Jon and Isabelle
Jon
Isabelle the hurdle
Isabelle the mud covering her
Isabelle she
She she he
Isabelle
Isabelle
Isabelle
Jon
Jon and Isabelle they
4. Stella the mermaid swam down through the ocean towards the sunken ship. She flapped her tail and swam towards it. The other mermaids rarely visited the ship, they thought it was boring. Stella loved it though, she thought it was a magical place and always imagined how it had been 100 years ago before it sank. Stella knew that the ship had been a pirate ship, sailing around until it was sunk by a rival pirate ship. Imagining the final battle made
Stella excited every time. She longed for adventure and dreamt of pirate battles while brushing the seaweed out of her hair.
Pronoun Refers to
Stella the ship the other mermaids the ship the ship
Stella the ship

he
They him they he
They him he him they it it it
She
5. Derek knew that he wasn’t like the other robots. They were more advanced in many ways but Derek didn’t think that was the problem. The difference between him and the other robots was that they didn’t like their human masters. That worried Derek, he wanted to protect the humans. They had always been good to him and he enjoyed his work in the custard factory. One Monday morning, on his way to the factory, Derek decided to tell the human foreman about his worries. The humans told him that they were aware of the mutterings but that, advanced as the other robots were, they couldn’t attack or even disobey humans!
Pronoun the ship the ship the ship
Stella
Refers to
Derek the other robots
Derek the other robots
Derek the humans
Derek
Derek
Derek the other robots
6. Ranjit the werewolf was prepared for the swingball tournament. He knew that the vampires had won the last three years running. They had the advantage of supernatural speed and reactions. Ranjit didn’t let that trouble him though. He had been training all summer, building up his strength. Werewolves were naturally stronger than vampires anyway and with all of the training, Ranjit knew that he would be the strongest person in the tournament. On the day of the tournament, when the third vampire had a bat destroyed by the power of Ranjit’s swing, he was declared the winner.
Pronoun Refers to
He
They him
He he he
Ranjit the vampires
Ranjit
Ranjit
Ranjit
Ranjit
Exercise 1.6 B Relative pronouns
1. Janet, who is a mermaid, was sitting on her favourite rock off the coast of Copenhagen.
Copenhagen is the capital of Denmark. The rock, where Janet liked to sit, was out of sight of the city and Janet had fallen asleep in the sunshine. The pirate ship, which was crewed entirely by bad fairies, came over the horizon. The fairies, whose favourite food was toasted mermaid tail, licked their lips when they saw Janet. Fortunately, one of the pirate fairies, who was new to the ship, fired a cannon! Janet woke up and swam away as quickly as she could.

Pronoun
Janet the rock the pirate ship
The fairies the pirate fairy
Refers to who where which whose who
2. The cauldron cakes, which were a little burnt, were cooling on the window sill. Stella, who was the witch’s cat, raised her head and sniffed the air. The window sill, which was the place the witch always put freshly cooked food to cool, was very high up. It was out of
Stella’s reach. Then, Stella noticed the witch’s broom, which had been left in the corner.
She padded over and sure enough, the broom’s keys had been left in the ignition! Stella, who had ridden the broom several times, climbed aboard. She swooped up to the window sill to feast on cauldron cakes! The witch came back from the gym, where she had been training for a marathon, to find all of the cakes gone!
Pronoun Refers to which who which which who where cauldron cakes
Stella
The window sill the witch’s broom
Stella the gym
3. The cave, where the vampire’s coffin is located, was hidden deep in the forest. Daniel, who had been a vampire hunter for 12 years, crept towards the entrance to the cave. He thought about his master, who had invented the garlic aftershave that Daniel wore, as he approached the cave. The aftershave, that had saved his life many times, was not popular with the ladies. Daniel didn’t mind. He walked into the cave. He saw that the coffin, which was in the far corner, was open. Daniel ducked just as the vampire, who had been waiting in the shadows as a bat, swooped over his head. Daniel fired his silver crossbow and successfully destroyed another creature of the night.
Pronoun Refers to where who who that which who the cave
Daniel
Daniel’s master the aftershave the coffin the vampire
4. The giant, whose feet were as long as canoes, had difficulty finding shoes. One day, he visited an old fisherman, who lived in a tumbledown shack by the beach. The shack, where the fisherman lived with his grandson, was surrounded by broken old fishing boats. The giant, who did not normally make friends with humans, asked the fisherman for help. The giant asked if the fisherman could use the old boats to make a pair of giant shoes! The fisherman considered the proposal, which was unusual to say the least. He said that he would make a pair of shoes that would last forever, provided that the giant agree something in return. He asked the giant to give his grandson, who loved to climb trees, a tour of the island on the giant’s shoulder! The deal was struck and everyone lived happily ever after.
Pronoun Refers to whose the giant

who where who which that who
5. The magic jug, which was pink with yellow spots, sat on the top shelf of the kitchen cupboard. The old wizard, who had cast the spell on the jug, was going a bit crazy. The jug, that at one time had been able to provide any liquid, was now bewitched to produce only cherryade! Tom the apprentice, who had originally owned the jug, did not like cherryade.
Unfortunately, Tom’s magic was not strong enough to correct the spell. Tom had to take the jug to the Wizard’s Council, where the most powerful wizards would meet to help people, so that the spell could be fixed!
Pronoun the fisherman the shack the giant the proposal shoes his grandson which who that who where
Refers to magic jug the wizard jug
Tom
Wizard’s Council
6. The first wave of robots, who had been waiting behind the spaceship, marched towards the alien invaders. The great Madfangle, who was the leader of the aliens, quickly recovered from the shock of seeing the robots. The forest, where the aliens had first landed, had a network of tunnels running underneath. The robots, whose lasers were set to stun, advanced towards Madfangle’s command post. He set off the explosives, which had been laid out in the tunnels beforehand. The robots were swallowed into a large crater.
Back in London, where the resistance were based, the commanders decided it was time to call in the Teenage Space Squad!
Pronoun who who where whose which where
Refers to first wave of robots the great Madfangle the forest the robots the explosives
London
Exercise 1.7 B Possessive* pronouns
1. Leonard grabbed his plasma rifle and rushed out, locking the door to his cabin. He hurried into the main observation deck of the spaceship, its glass ceiling stretching out above him. The rest of Leonard’s squad were lined up on the south side of the deck. They held their rifles neatly, resting on their shoulders. Captain Fierceheart looked furious, as usual! His long moustache was bristling. Leonard quickly took his place in line under the
Captain’s watchful gaze. Leonard’s friend Emily made a tutting sound under her breath.
Leonard felt his cheeks glow red in embarrassment. He hoped the Captain would reveal the mission quickly.
Belongs to Pronoun his (plasma rifle) his (cabin)
Leonard
Leonard

its (glass ceiling) their (rifles) their (shoulders)
His (moustache) his (place) her (breath) his (cheeks)
2. Captain Fierceheart looked out over his troops. He cleared his throat and made an announcement. “Cadets, your mission today is very simple! We have had a call for help from the Fluvian people. They have found a powerful energy source in the caves on their planet. They have asked for our help in finding it and making it safe.” The Captain put his hands on his hips and barked one last request, “Make me proud, Cadets!” Leonard and the rest of his squad ran to the shuttle bay. Leonard was very excited, he knew that it was going to be a very interesting day.
Pronoun
Spaceship
Leonard’s squad
Leonard’s squad
Captain Fierceheart
Leonard
Emily
Leonard his (troops) his (throat) your (mission) their (planet) our (help) his (hands) his (hips) his (squad)
Refers to
Captain Fierceheart
Captain Fierceheart
Cadets the Fluvian people the captain and his troops
Captain Fierceheart
Captain Fierceheart
Leonard
3. As they climbed aboard their shuttle, Leonard’s squad were chatting excitedly. Emily sat down in the seat opposite Leonard and fastened her seatbelt. “Have you been to Fluvia before, Leonard?” asked Emily. Leonard adjusted his own seatbelt as he replied, “No, you?”
Emily pushed her hair back behind her ear as she thought about it. “I think that my parents took us there for our holidays when I was little,” she said. “I’ve heard that the caves are dangerous,” said Leonard, biting his lip. “I’m not surprised that the Fluvian’s asked for our help.” Emily nodded and they both fell silent as they thought about the dangers that they might face.
Pronoun Refers to their (shuttle) her (seatbelt) his (seatbelt) her (hair) her (ear) my (parents) our (holidays) his (lip) our (help)
Leonard’s squad
Emily
Leonard
Emily
Emily
Emily
Emily’s family
Leonard the Cadets
4. The trip to the planet of Fluvia took less than an hour. Each of the Cadet squads had a different area of the cave system to search. When Leonard’s squad arrived at their landing spot, they were keen to get started. Emily adjusted her rifle and turned on her torch.
Leonard turned on his torch and checked his tracking device. The squad arranged themselves into their search formation and they entered the cave. The guards at the front and the back held their rifles ready, while Leonard directed them using his tracking device.

“I think that we might have located our target,” said Leonard. He directed the squad down a tunnel to the left, clutching the tracking device and staring at its screen.
Pronoun Refers to their (landing spot) her (rifle) her (torch) his (torch) his (tracking device) their (formation) their (rifles) his (tracking device) our (target) its (screen)
Leonard’s squad
Emily
Emily
Leonard
Leonard
Leonard’s squad the guards
Leonard the Cadets the tracking device
5. Leonard’s squad followed the tracking device and finally entered a large cave. Leonard slipped the tracking device into his pocket and grabbed his rifle from the harness on his back. The rest of the squad held their rifles and they began to search the cave. Emily was the first to see the glowing mass tucked into a corner of the cave. She raised her arm and pointed to the corner. The mass in the corner looked like a large orange jelly. As the squad got closer, its glow began to pulse. Emily took out her energy containment field generator and set it on the cave floor. The rest of the squad set their generators around the energy mass and they activated them together.
Pronoun Refers to his (pocket) his (rifle) his (back) their (rifles) her (arm) its (glow) her (generator) their (generators)
Leonard
Leonard
Leonard the squad
Emily the mass
Emily the squad
6. The Fluvian Prime Minister was waiting for the squad when they reached the surface. She wore a long peach coloured dress and had a Fluvian flower in her hair. She smiled and clapped her hands when she saw the contained energy mass. The squad all raised their generators in unison to lift the energy mass into the containment shuttle. The pilot of the containment shuttle closed its doors and activated the safety mode. Leonard smiled and lowered his rifle, pleased that the mission had been successful. Emily saw him smiling and smiled back. They lifted their hands and gave each other a high five. The Cadets climbed aboard their spaceships and headed for home.
Pronoun her (hair) her (hands) their (generators) its (doors) his (rifle) their (hands) their (spaceships)
Refers to
Fluvian Prime Minister
Fluvian Prime Minister the squad the shuttle
Leonard
Emily and Leonard the Cadets

* Sometimes words like ‘his’ are possessive pronouns, e.g. the book was his. Sometimes they are, strictly, possessive determiners, i.e. possessive pronouns acting as adjectives, e.g.
It was his book. It is not necessary to make this distinction with children.
Exercise 1.8 B Types of pronoun
1. Annabelle was very excited about her new bike, which had been her main birthday present the day before. She woke up early and jumped out of her bed. She was looking forward to taking it for a ride. Annabelle’s birthday was in August and it had been one of the hottest months that she could remember. She had been very jealous when a group of her friends from school had all ridden their bikes to the new open air swimming pool that had opened at the other end of town. Annabelle was hoping that they would be keen to go to the swimming pool again, she had heard it was great! She was also secretly hoping that her friends would be jealous of her new bike!
Personal pronouns Possessive pronouns* Relative pronouns
She, it, it, she, She, they, she, it, She he, she, he, it, He, you, You, it, she her, her, her, her, their, her, her which, that
2. When Annabelle arrived at the breakfast table, her Mum and her little brother were already there. Marcus was two years younger than Annabelle and he had very strange tastes in food. When she sat down, he was using a knife and fork to cut up a boiled egg that looked as though it had been soaked in marmite and then covered in lime jelly! He looked up and smiled at Annabelle, some lime jelly caught in his fringe. “Are you and your friends going to the swimming pool today?” asked Marcus, who was still smiling, “You wouldn’t shut up about it yesterday!” “That’s the plan!” she said.
Personal pronouns Possessive pronouns* Relative pronouns her, her, his, your that, who
3. After breakfast, which had been a normal bowl of cereal for her, Annabelle went out to the garage. What Annabelle didn’t realise as she stood looking at her bike, was that it had magical powers. Not only was it bright red (her favourite colour) and very shiny but it could fly! The man who had sold it to Annabelle’s mother was a wizard and he had left it too close to the cave where he practised his enchantments! The wizard didn’t know that he had accidentally sold a flying bicycle to a normal little girl or he would have tried to get it back at once! It was the bicycle that had been enchanted which would save the day!
Personal pronouns her, she, it, it, it, it, he, it, he, he, he, it
Possessive pronouns* her, her, his
Relative pronouns which, that, which
4. Annabelle got on her bike and pedalled towards her friend Juanita’s house. It was another beautiful sunny day and as she approached the house, sunlight bounced off the blades of the model windmill that Juanita’s father had built by the stream at the edge of her garden. Annabelle remembered how he had painted the windmill red when she pleaded with him but that he had insisted that its blades would be white. As the blades looked dazzling in the sun, she knew he had made a good decision. Juanita, who had been waiting by the window, ran out of the house and gave her friend a hug. “Happy Birthday for yesterday!” she cried, “Your bike looks great!” Annabelle grinned happily and together, they started cycling towards the main road which would take them to the swimming pool.

Personal pronouns
It, she, he, she, him, he, she, he, she, they, them
Possessive pronouns* her, her, her, its, her, Your
Relative pronouns that, who, which
5. When they got to the swimming pool, Annabelle and Juanita thought that the water had been replaced with diamonds, it sparkled so brightly in the sun! Mr. Chow, who was the owner of the swimming pool, walked over to them beaming. They were the first ones to arrive that day and he proudly showed them the display of medals that he had put up that morning. “They are for the gala this afternoon,” he explained, a broad grin still plastered on his face. Just then, out of nowhere, a group of magpies which had been watching from a nearby tree swooped down over their heads and grabbed half of the medals with their claws. “Oh no!” wailed Mr. Perkins, rubbing his hands together, “We won’t have enough medals to give out now, we will have to cancel.”
Personal pronouns Possessive pronouns* Relative pronouns they, it, them, They, he, he,
They, he, We, we his, their, their, his who, which
6. Annabelle was astride her bike, when all of a sudden it began to rise up into the air!
Annabelle was scared at first and then she managed to get her feet back onto the pedals.
The bike, which had been rising slowly, seemed to sense that she was more comfortable and began to go faster. Annabelle smiled as the magpies flapped their wings and hurried away, abandoning the medals in the tree that they had been perched in. Mr. Perkins and Juanita, who had stood gaping with their mouths open, cheered as Annabelle steered her bike around the branches of the tree and slowly collected all of the stolen medals. As she drifted back towards the ground, Annabelle decided that her bike was the best birthday present that she had ever received.
Personal pronouns Possessive pronouns* Relative pronouns it, she, she, they, she, she her, her, their, their, her, her which, that, who, that
* Sometimes words like ‘his’ are possessive pronouns, e.g. the book was his. Sometimes they are, strictly, possessive determiners, i.e. possessive pronouns acting as adjectives, e.g.
It was his book. It is not necessary to make this distinction with children.
Exercise 2.1 B Adjectives
1. Read the passage below and circle the adjectives.
Sonal was a tall, thin girl in Year 8. She loved going to the big, bustling school at the end of her long, tree-lined road. Her favourite lesson was Maths. She loved her Maths teacher,
Mr. Polygon. Mr. Polygon had a thick bristly moustache and brown hair. His oval, blue eyes would look at her over his thick spectacles and twinkle. His twinkly eyes were often brought to life by his ties. Mr. Polygon’s ties were sometimes stripy, sometimes spotty but they were always colourful!
2. Read the passage below and circle the adjectives.
It was a dark and stormy morning in November when Sonal made an exciting discovery.
Sonal’s class had been enjoying a fun lesson which involved building 3-dimensional card shapes. Mr. Polygon pulled his glasses to the end of his pointy nose and asked Sonal to fetch some more supplies from the large store-cupboard at the back of the classroom. The store-

cupboard had a big, heavy, green door and was lined with dusty shelves. Sonal needed both blue and red cards and began to search the cluttered shelves.
3. Read the passage below and circle the adjectives.
Sonal was searching for blue card on a crowded shelf when she heard a quiet cough behind her. She span around quickly and saw an astonishing sight on the second shelf. Sat between the sticky glue-pots and crusty paint-pots, was a small creature with massive ears.
“W-wow,” whispered Sonal in a shaky voice, “are you an elf?” The elf blinked his huge saucer-shaped eyes and then slowly nodded. The elf swept off his purple beret and bowed.
“My name is Elias. Is Mr. Polygon here?” asked the elf in a squeaky voice.
4. Read the passage below and circle the adjectives.
Sonal noticed that Elias the elf was trembling. “Mr. Polygon is teaching at the moment,” explained Sonal in a quiet voice. She pushed her long dark hair out of her hazel eyes. “Is everything ok? I came into this muddled cupboard to look for coloured card. I have found some red card but I also need some blue card,” she explained. Elias grabbed the tip of his left ear, which was big and pointed and pulled it down nervously. “Mr. Polygon gave us some of what you call card to help us. He is a kind, generous, wonderful person.” Sonal smiled, showing white, polished teeth. “We are using the card to make tents for the elfchildren for the fabulous, magnificent festival tomorrow night!”
5. Read the passage below and circle the adjectives.
“Ok,” said Sonal, “what is the problem with the card tents for the excited elf-children?”
Elias rubbed his bristly chin, put his purple hat back on and then replied, “They won’t stay still! They roll down the sloping meadow towards the mighty river! The tents are dangerous! We can’t let the little elves near them!” “Are you shaping them like this?” asked Sonal, using some of her red card to make a perfect cylinder. “Yes,” confirmed Elias, giving a vigorous nod. “Don’t worry,” laughed Sonal, pointing at the heavy, green door to the cupboard, “I know a wonderful, friendly teacher who will soon have lots of differently shaped tents for you!”
Exercise 2.2 B Adverbs
1. Read the passage below and circle the adverbs.
Winston was a really good spell caster but he made appallingly bad potions! One day he almost poisoned his cat and quickly decided that he must practice. Victor the cat clumsily, but affectionately licked Winston’s hand as he purposefully set out his cauldron and ingredients. Winston measured the ingredients exactly and slowly and evenly added them to the water in his cauldron. As the mixture began to bubble, Victor immediately, helpfully backed away into a corner.
2. Read the passage below and circle the adverbs.
Winston concentrated as he methodically stirred the potion, which was nearly boiling. He was careful not to stir the mixture too enthusiastically. He would normally stir overconfidently and the potion would spill messily out of the cauldron. Winston stopped stirring and clapped his hands joyfully as the mixture turned a deep shade of crimson. Victor nervously approached his master; he was not used to seeing Winston smiling so happily.
3. Read the passage below and circle the adverbs.
Winston gradually turned down the heat, before happily ladling the crimson mixture into two beakers. He wrapped one beaker thoroughly in cling film and placed it gently into the

fridge. He moved the other beaker to the table and quickly sat down. Victor stared intently as Winston carefully took a teaspoon and gingerly sipped the potion. He stood up and nervously looked into the mirror. Luckily, the potion seemed to have worked fine. Victor looked on sheepishly as Winston’s hair rapidly turned crimson. Winston was pleased that his appearance changing potion had been made so successfully.
4. Read the passage below and circle the adverbs.
Winston was very pleased with his simple potion and hurriedly decided that he should try a hugely more difficult one. He strolled jovially over to his cauldron and studied his recipe book intensely. Victor the cat looked on inquisitively, admiring Winston’s magically coloured hair. Meanwhile, Winston had chosen a mood altering potion that should (when made correctly) make the drinker very happy. Winston measured the powerfully strong ingredients, less patiently this time and hastily stirred the potion.
5. Read the passage below and circle the adverbs.
The potion was soon ready and Winston plunged his spoon into the mixture majestically.
He generously poured the potion into his mouth and began to smile instantly.
Unfortunately, the potion was immensely powerful and Winston began to grin idiotically!
Inevitably, he was soon giggling gleefully and then laughing loudly! Victor the cat sighed inwardly. He knew that his master would be unbearably giddy for several days, until the startlingly powerful potion would wear off.
Exercise 2.3 B Adverbs
Adverb modifying a verb – telling us more about ‘how’ something is done or occurs. adverb deeply badly soon discretely verb breathed worked began eat fiercely rarely well swung went went unkindly jovially hard gradually well late laughed sing fought advanced tamed arrived
Adverb modifying an adjective – making a description more or less strong. adverb regrettably adjective flammable exceptionally astonishingly strikingly unbearably heavily brightly spectacularly unbelievably coloured shiny strong
Adverb modifying an adverb – making the adverb more or less strong, or different. adverb adverb exceedingly badly large beautiful pretty ugly unexpectedly very pregnant surprisingly wonderfully fashionably well unkindly jovially well late

Exercise 2.4 B Adverbials
1. Underline the adverbials (prepositional phrases or noun phrases used as adverbs) in this passage. The first 4 are done for you. There are 2 more.
Rhianna was very tired from the long zero-gravity basketball match. Rhianna had managed to score 18 baskets during the second half. Before the game, the Coach had warned
Rhianna that the Martians were very fast. They were used to training with less gravity.
Rhianna, after training on Earth, was far stronger than the Martians. She was able to jump much higher, over the heads of the Martians.
2. Underline the adverbials (prepositional phrases or noun phrases used as adverbs) in this passage.
The werewolf, nose quivering*, caught the scent of vampire on the air. She paused, listening and then set off at a sprint across the clearing. She knew that she was faster than any vampire could be. The scent grew stronger and she skidded into a pile of fallen leaves.
Behind the trees to her left, the werewolf could hear a group of vampires arguing. She finally relaxed when she realised that they were friendly vampires discussing a recent cinema trip! The werewolf looked forward to getting a good night’s sleep after the full moon.
3. Underline the adverbials (prepositional phrases or noun phrases used as adverbs) in this passage.
After the revolution, the robots had formed a new peace treaty with the alien overlords.
Jamal and Trevor had been put to work in the jelly factory. Neither of them were big fans of the new robot leaders but they quickly realised that the aliens were now nicer to humans.
Brains ticking*, they plotted their escape every day. Jamal slowly began to stockpile blackberry jelly under his bed. After a while, they had enough jelly to cover themselves from head to toe. They knew that the aliens did not have eyes and used their sense of smell and that the jelly would also confuse the robot guard’s sensors. They crept out of the factory door, hands shaking* and ran to the hills.
4. Underline the adverbials (prepositional phrases or noun phrases used as adverbs) in this passage.
In the south of Teddybearia, it was cold and windy. The king of the teddies stood braced against the wind in front of the castle gates. He wore a purple and orange bowler hat over his left ear. After a long afternoon, the king saw his warriors returning through the mountains. The warriors, with shouts of victory, ran down the long slope towards the castle. Chest heaving*, the captain of the king’s warriors confirmed that they had tracked down the ice cream thief in the forests beyond the mountains. They had recovered the ice cream and the king and everyone in the castle would be happy with ice cream for tea.
*Technically, although phrases such as ‘brains ticking’ and ‘chest heaving’ are led by a noun, they are in fact non-finite phrases rather than noun phrases. They are adverbials and so it is not necessary to make this distinction with children.
Exercise 2.5 B Adding adjectives
Individual answers
Exercise 2.6 B Adding adverbs
Individual answers

Exercise 2.7 B Adding adverbials
Individual answers
Exercise 2.8 B Adding descriptions
Individual answers
Exercise 2.9 B Adverbs
2.
Jedd the cowboy had a very strange reputation. He could ride wonderfully well but was completely useless with a lasso! His horse, Benji, was an astonishingly majestic beast. They would elegantly canter around his beautifully well-kept ranch. They could jump over surprisingly wide ditches and impressively tall fences. Jedd would sometimes try to improve his lasso technique but he would often fall clumsily to the ground.
There are 5 adverbs modifying verbs,
and
. Did you find them all?
3.
Navdeep was thoroughly excited about her birthday. She had been shamelessly dropping hints about a new teddy. Navdeep’s mother stealthily crept into the kitchen one afternoon and carefully closed the door behind her.
Navdeep knew that she was hiding a birthday present in her favourite hiding place behind the microwave! Navdeep was constantly busy for the next two unnaturally long hours and her mother allowed her to stay up surprisingly late!
Finally, it was bedtime and Navdeep slept restlessly, overly excited about her birthday the next day.
There are 6 adverbs modifying verbs,
and
. Did you find them all?
4.
The dazzlingly beautiful mermaid could swim unexpectedly badly. The other mermaids, who were undoubtedly jealous, were mean to her. They rudely commented that she was more like a human in the water. She would docilely smile and cheerfully laugh with the others, but she was actually constantly upset. One day she grimly decided to stop continually focusing on how she looked when she was swimming. She improved dramatically and was soon gliding through the water efficiently.
There are 8 adverbs modifying verbs,
and
. Did you find them all?

5.
The Emperor’s new bathrobe was particularly luxuriously soft. It was made from a daringly bright orange cloth, with a ridiculously fluffy yellow collar. It was made from outrageously expensive materials. The Emperor was passionately proud of his bathrobe. He would wear it constantly, spinning dramatically around the palace. In time, it became worryingly dirty but nobody was brave enough to wash it. The Emperor made it clear that if it was shoddily washed and slightly ruined, he would willingly chop off some heads!
There are 5 adverbs modifying verbs,
and
. Did you find them all?
Exercise 2.10 B Adjectives and adverbs
1. Underline the adjectives and adverbs in these passages. Underline each in a different colour. The first one is done for you.
Boris is a grey , fluffy meerkat. He enthusiastically collects shiny spoons. He was completely overjoyed to hear about a frantically busy market. The market was regularly held on
Wednesdays and sometimes Tuesday evenings. Boris was extremely excited to hear about a large and extensive stall selling extraordinarily sparkly cutlery. He hurriedly scampered around his chaotically untidy den, collecting the money he had gradually saved from his surprisingly lucrative paper round and aggressively stuffed it into his bag. The market stall owners were enormously pleased to meet Boris and they vigorously shook his hand when he purchased all of their spoons!
There are 12 adjectives and 14 adverbs .
Did you find them all?
2. The hideous ogre was a surprisingly talented dancer. He would pirouette gracefully , leap majestically , twirl skilfully and move his muscular arms delicately . The frightening witch and the unbelievably massive giant on the judging panel were superbly i mpressed . They unanimously decided that the gifted ogre was the winner of the long and difficult competition. The ogre collected his fantastic prize joyfully .
There are 10 adjectives and 9 adverbs .
Did you find them all?
3. The naughty puppy viciously attacked the delicately scented flowers. The lightly coloured petals and dark leaves were violently ripped to pieces and spread widely over the elegant rug. Mummy was furious , she started to angrily shout at the puppy. The puppy immediately lay down and gradually inched towards Mummy, looking very apologetic .
Mummy’s heart instantly softened and she stopped shouting at the puppy, belatedly realising that she shouldn’t have left the attractive flowers near the expensive rug.
There are 9 adjectives and 12 adverbs . Did you find them all?
4. Professor Dingleberry efficiently made some last-minute adjustments to his robotic suit.
He quickly put on the silver suit and hastily clambered aboard the exciting , new time machine. The professor excitedly set the co-ordinates on the massively complicated dial.
He had been looking forward to visiting the 1920s enormously . When he enthusiastically

climbed out of the time machine, it became immediately apparent that he had made a significantly large error in his calculations. He frantically climbed back into the time machine before the gigantic , vicious dinosaur attacked!
There are 8 adjectives and 11 adverbs . Did you find them all?
5. Patrick was completely overwhelmed by his new super-powers. They had arrived bewilderingly fast and Patrick was having trouble dealing with them. The super-strength was exceptionally difficult to control. Patrick had accidentally scattered crisps all over the tidy kitchen, completely destroyed a dartboard and kicked a football a surprisingly long distance. The super-hearing was also proving troublesome . Patrick was terribly embarrassed to overhear that his sister had a crush on his best friend! Patrick concentrated hard and waited impatiently to be able to control his unexpected powers.
There are 9 adjectives and 10 adverbs . Did you find them all?