Grammar：''It + be'' and ''There + be''
【明報專訊】Pat and Bill are going through the photo album. Is there anything they find interesting?
Pat: Look! (1) There is a picture of my grandma and me in the album! I have lost it for quite a while!
Bill: Sweet! You look so small here. Do you remember when you took this?
Pat: Yes, (2) it was my first day in kindergarten and I cried very hard. Nana held my hand all the way to kindergarten and told me stories to cheer me up.
Bill: (3) It is fortunate of you to have had the chance to spend time with her. My grandma passed away before I was born.
Pat: Well, (4) there are still many people who love you.
Bill: You're right, and I'm grateful to have you all with me.
◆''It + be''
˙to introduce something abstract, like time and weather.
e.g. It is 7:30 pm now.
It is sunny today.
˙to bring out a topic later in the sentence.
e.g. It is John who helped us with the cleaning. → John helped us with the cleaning.
It is kind of you to give me a hand. → To give me a hand is kind.
◆''There + be''
˙describes the existence of a certain subject, or the location of a subject.
e.g. There is a problem that we need to solve right now.
There are many teenagers in the party.
■Gear up
Rewrite the sentence below with ''it + be'' or ''there + be''. Use the correct form.
(1) We have a cake and some soda in the fridge.
______________________________________
(2) The girl in the picture is my sister Lily.
______________________________________
(3) The weather will probably be hot tomorrow.
______________________________________
(Answers on next text)
■Glossary
go through (phr v) 細看
fortunate (adj) 幸運的
grateful (adj) 感恩的
existence (n) 存在
[Smarties' Power English 第271期]
Story：Is having wings a good thing? — Part II
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