Page 439 - Practical English Usage 3ed - Michael Swan, Oxford

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After certain verbs (e.g. believe, think, suppose), we use so rather than it. (For details, see 539.)
Is that tIre manager? - I believe so. (NOT ••• I believe riO.)
And personal pronouns can be dropped after prepositions in descriptive structures with have and with.
All the trees have got blossom on (them).
He was carrying a box with cups in (it).
Object pronouns are not normally used in infinitive clauses if the object of the infinitive has just been mentioned (see 284.4).
She's easy to please. (NOT She's emy t{j plettse he,..)
The pie looked too nice to eat. (NOT ••• tB6 nice tB eat it.)
The bridge wasn't strong enough to drive over. (NOT ••• tB drive (jflet' it.) This dish takes two hours to prepare.
piece- and group-words uncountable nouns: pieces
To talk about a limited quantity of something we can use a word for a piece or unit, together with of, before an uncountable noun. The most general words of this kind are piece and bit. Bit (informal) suggests a small quantity.
a piece/bitofcake/bread
some pieces/bits o f paper/wood a piece/bit o f news/information
Other words are less general, and are used before particular nouns. Some common examples:
2
a bar ofchocolate/soap
a blade ofgrass
a block ofice
a drop o f water/oil/vinegar
a grain ofsandlsalt/ricelcornltruth
an item ofinformationlnewslclothing/
furniture
a length ofmaterial
nota... of...
a loafofbread
a lump ofsugarlcoal
a slice o f bread/cake/meat
a speck o f dust
a sheet o f paper/metal/plastic a stick o f dynamite/chalk/celery a strip o f cloth/tape/land
a suit o f clothes/armour
Some words for small pieces can be used in a negative structure meaning 'no ... at all'.
There's not a grain of truth in what he says. There hasn't been a breath o f air all day. We haven't got a scrap (of food) to eat.
Re came downstairs without a stitch of clothing on. 3 pairs
Pair is used for many things that normally go in twos, and with plural nouns that refer to some two-part objects (see 524.7).
a pair ofshoes/soc/cs/ear-rings
a pair ofglasses/binoculars
a pair of trousers/jeans/pyjamas a pair ofscissors/pliers
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