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What and Such: again! - English lesson

Constructions using WHAT and SUCH: Revise lesson 110097 test. After correcting an exercise on the Forum, I have realized that a few details needed to be repeated... Here, we'll still have to express emotions and reactions in front of events.

The bases:

COUNTABLE NOUNS in the singular are preceded by the indefinite article : a /an ( Do not imitate the French word order. There is NO subject/verb inversion in English, in exclamative clauses).

- What a wonderful car your father has!

* The subject and the verb may be omitted.

- What a marvel! = What a marvel it is!

* In the plural, of course, nouns are not preceded by a/an ! (It becomes 0)

- What smart swimming suits you have, girls!

1. After WHAT and SUCH the indefinite article must be used IN FRONT OF COUNTABLES IN THE SINGULAR:

- What a cute baby! => It's such a cute baby!

- What an expensive car! => It's such an expensive car!

The two nouns used in these sentences are countables (they can be counted) AND can be put in the plural: they are countable and tangible.

2. Let's now examine abstract nouns, expressing concepts, feelings, that are 'abstract': they can neither be counted nor touched.

- What friendship you can feel between those two!
- There's such friendship between those two!

BEWARE! This rule doesn't change if one, or several adjectives are added to the abstract nouns.

- You can feel such strong and durable friendship between them that nothing will change this link.

One or several adjective(s) cannot turn an abstract noun into a concrete countable noun.

- They had lived such deep, unquestionable, unfailing love for all those years that they decided to die together.

3. Of course, it would be too simple if it weren't for the usual exceptions.... concerning uncountable nouns which must be preceded by the indefinite article:

- What a pity! What a shame! (Such a shame!)

- What a mess! (Such a mess!)

- What a nuisance! (It's such a nuisance!)

Now, you're ready... or should be... Let's go!

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1. He lives in that he stays weeks without speaking to anybody.
2. What you have told me… I’ll always remember them.
3. They’re that I’d like you not to break them.
4. What ! Every young girl wants to dance with him…
5. The lawyer defended that the culprit was condemned in the end.
6. What to say! You must apologise to her!
7. What you are! You’d deserve to be sick after …
8. I could see that I took lots of photos and filled a whole memory card.
9.What in the beggars’ eyes and that then, I didn’t have enough time and money to help them really!
10. When visiting that country, you could understand that there was and such a bad health system that the patients had no chance of being cured if not helped.

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