Exercise 1
Read the situations and write sentences with had better or had better not. Use the words in brackets.
1 You’re going out for a walk with Tom. It looks as if it might rain. You say to Tom:
(an umbrella) We …………………….
2 Oliver has just cut himself. Ifs a bad cut. You say to him:
(a plaster) …………………….
3 You and Kate plan to go to a restaurant this evening. Ifs a popular restaurant. You say to Kate:
(reserve) We …………………….
4 Rebecca doesn’t look very well this morning- not well enough to go to work. You say to her:
(work) …………………….
5 You received your phone bill four weeks ago, but you haven’t paid it yet. If you don’t pay soon, you could be in trouble. You say to yourself:
(pay) …………………….
6 You want to ask your boss something, but he’s very busy and you know he doesn’t like to be disturbed. You say to a colleague:
(disturb) I …………………….
Answers
1
1 We’d better take an umbrella.
2 You’d better put a plaster on it.
3 We’d better reserve a table.
4 You’d better not go to work (this morning).
5 I’d better pay my phone bill (soon). / I’d better pay it (soon).
6 I’d better not disturb him.
Exercise 2
Put in had better where suitable. If had better is not suitable, use should.
1 I have an appointment in ten minutes. I ……………………. go now or I’ll be late.
2 It’s a great film. You ……………………. go and see it. You’ll really like it.
3 You ……………………. set your alarm. You’ll never wake up on time if you don’t.
4 When people are driving, they ……………………. keep their eyes on the road.
5 I’m glad you came to see us. You ……………………. come more often.
6 She’ll be upset if we don’t invite her to the party, so we ……………………. invite her.
7 These biscuits are delicious. You ……………………. try one.
8 I think everybody ……………………. learn a foreign language.
Answers
2
1 ‘d better
2 should
3 ‘d better
4 should
5 should
6 ‘d better
7 should
8 should
Exercise 3
Complete the sentences. Sometimes you need only one word, sometimes two.
1 a I have a toothache. I’d better ……………………. to the dentist.
b John is expecting you to phone him. You ……………………. better phone him now.
c ‘Shall I leave the window open?’ ‘No, you’d better ……………………. it.’
d We’d better leave as soon as possible, ……………………. we?
2 a It’s time the government ……………………. something about the problem.
b It’s time something ……………………. about the problem.
c I think it’s about time you ……………………. about other people instead of only thinking about yourself.
Answers
3
1 a go
b ‘d/had
c close/shut
d hadn’t
2 a did
b was done
c thought
Exercise 4
Read the situations and write sentences with It’s time (somebody did something).
1 You think the oil in the car needs to be changed. It hasn’t been changed for a long time.
It’s time we …………………….
2 You haven’t had a holiday for a very long time. You need one now.
It’s time I …………………….
3 You’re sitting on a train waiting for it to leave the station. It’s already five minutes late.
…………………….
4 You enjoy having parties. You haven’t had one for a long time.
…………………….
5 The company you work for has been badly managed for a long time. You think some changes should be made.
…………………….
6 Andrew has been doing the same job for the last ten years. He should try something else.
…………………….
Answers
4
1 It’s time we changed the oil in the car.
2 It’s time I had a holiday.
3 It’s time the train left.
4 It’s time 1/we had a party.
5 It’s time some changes were made. / It’s time the company made some changes.
6 It’s time he tried something else.
