Page 164 - IELTS Preparation Grammar and Vocab

23 It and there

Grammar

EU Introductory it as subject

Mother: It struck me that the Conley apartment might be quite noisy with that busy road nearby.
Liz: But it's in such a lovely location. (it refers back to the noun phrase the Conley apartment)
If it's possible, I'd like toga back and look at the Canley apartment again. (it refers forward to going back and
looking at the Canley apartment again)
It's going to be hard to choose between them. (introductory it as grammatical subject)
Living in town would make it so much easier to get to work. (introductory it as grammatical object)

Introductory it as grammatical subject is commonly used:
to talk about weather, time, distance and to describe situations:
It's raining again. It's five o'clock. It's quiet in this part of town.
It's about 15 kilometres from the Conley apartment into the centre.
as an alternative to a that-, wh-, -ing or to-infinitive clause as the subject of the sentence
It's a pity that the town apartment is so small. rather than That the town apartment is so small is a pity.
Its obvious why they've been having problems selling it. rather than Why they've been having problems selling it
is obvious.
It's certainly an advantage being able to walk to work, rather than Being able to walk to work is certainly an
advantage.
It really shocked me to see how bad it was. rather than To see how bad it was really shocked me.
It is more usual to use introductory it in these contexts, although in formal language the alternative with a that-,
wh-, -ing or to-infinitive clause as subject is often used.
In writing, we don't usually use introductory k as an alternative to a noun as subject:
The town apartment is more expensive. (not' ,)
However, this is quite common in informal speech in order to clarify what is being talked about:
It'd be good to live near work, but it's more expensive, the town apartment.
We often follow introductory it with be + adjective/noun, but other patterns are possible
it + verb + to-infinitive clause It might help to run through the pros and cons.
it + verb + object + to-infinitive clause: It shocked me to see how bad it was.
it + verb + that-clause: It appears that they're having trouble selling the apartment.
k + verb + object + that-clause It struck me that the Canley apartment might be quite noisy.
In formal contexts, a common way of reporting what is said by an unspecified group of people is to use ft +
passive verb + that-clause or it + passive verb + wh-clause:
It is said that the cost of accommodation in the town centre will rise, or less formally They say that the cost of
accommodation in the town centre is going to go up.
It was explained how difficult it is to prevent flooding in the area, or less formally They explained how difficult it is
to prevent flooding in the area.

BE Introductory it as object
We can use ft as the object of a verb in a number of patterns:
verb + it + that-/if/wh-clause
I wouldn't like kil l had to get up at 6 o'clock.
I couldn't believe it when the agent said the decoration was 'in good condition:

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