Grammar：By & Until
【明報專訊】Bill, MoMo, and Pat are preparing a party to celebrate the end of the test week.
Bill: MoMo and Pat, let's have the meat marinated and ready by 5 pm.
MO MO: I'll make sure to have it ready by then.
Bill: By the time the classmates arrive, the decorations will be done.
MO MO: I'll get the charcoal ready so we can start cooking by 6 pm.
Bill: Yes, let's keep grilling until the sun sets.
MO MO: By then, we'll have a feast to enjoy under the stars.
■English highway﹕
''By'' and ''until'' are two useful words for us to describe time in daily conversation.
◆By
Not later than.
E.g. I sent the mail today, so they should arrive by Friday.
(arrive on or before Friday, not later than Friday)
◆By then
To signify a specific point in time.
E.g. Karen finally got to the party at midnight, but by then all of her friends had left.
(at that specific time - at midnight)
◆Until
To say how long a situation continues.
E.g. Joe will be working until 11:30 pm.
(Joe will stop working at 11:30 pm.)
◆By the time
To indicate the timing of an event in relation to another.
E.g. By the time the guests arrive, the food will be ready.
(when the guests arrive, the food will have been prepared)
■Gear up
1. ''I will finish reading the book by Friday afternoon,'' Pat said. Which of the following is the possible specific times that Pat will finish reading the book?
A. Saturday afternoon
B. Sunday morning
C. Thursday afternoon
2. The supermarket is open from 9 am. until 9 pm. every day. Which of the following times is the supermarket open?
A. 8:59 am
B. 10 pm
C. 7 pm
(Answers on next text)
■Glossary
marinate(v) 醃泡
charcoal (n) 炭
describe (v) 形容
specific (adj) 指定的
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[Smarties' Power English 第437期]
