Grammar Practice in Context - David Bolton, Noel Goodey 1997
73 One/Ones
Quick reference
• We use one to replace a singular noun and ones to replace a plural noun.
I’ve got a ticket. Have you got one?
I’m taking these books. Which ones are you taking?
• One/ones often come after an adjective.
We stayed in a small hotel. They stayed in a big one.
Which shoes do you want? - The brown ones.
• When we compare or select things and don’t want to repeat the noun, we use one/ones with the, this, that, which?
’I want a melon. ’ ’Which one do you want?’ ’The one in the box. ’
• We don’t normally use ones after these and those. (But if these and those are followed by an adjective we use ones.) Which jeans do you want? These? - No, those blue ones.
• We never use one to replace an uncountable noun.
What sort of music do you like? - Music I can dance to. (not One I can dance to.)
• We don’t normally use one/ones after possessive adjectives. We use possessive pronouns instead. This is my bed and that’s yours. (not your one)
• We don’t use one/ones after ’number’ words like some, any, a few, many, a lot, three, fifteen, etc.
But if there’s an adjective after these words, we must use one/ones.
Did you take many books with you on holiday? -I took some, but not a lot. But I bought two good ones while I was there. (not some ones, a lot of ones, two good)
1 Rewrite this dialogue using one/ones where possible to avoid repetition of the noun
’We went to the cinema last night.’
’Which cinema did you go to?’
’The cinema on Woodstock Road. We saw a good film.’
’Which film did you see?’
’The new film with Brad Pitt in it. And then we went to a pizza restaurant.’
’Which restaurant did you go to?’
’The restaurant opposite the cinema. And then we went to two clubs.’
’Which clubs did you go to?’
’The clubs in Walton Street.’
2 A hotel guest is complaining to the receptionist. Complete what he says using one/ones where possible + any other necessary words.
Our room is too small. We want (1) ... bigger ... And it hasn’t got a balcony. We particularly asked for (2) ... with a balcony. And the beds are very uncomfortable. We’d like more comfortable (3) ... And we’d also like a shower that works. (4) ... we’ve got doesn’t work. And we’d prefer (5) ... with hot water! And some of the towels in the bathroom are dirty. We must have (6) ... And finally, the room we’re in hasn’t got a sea view. We must have (7) ... .
3 Look at the three cars. Answer the questions about them using one/ones and each of these words/phrases once:
made in Europe
white
in the middle
on the right
black
1 Which car is British?
2 Which one is German?
3 Which one is American?
4 Which ones are smaller?
5 Which one is a Rolls Royce?
4 Read the dialogue and decide which answer, A, B, or C best fits each space.
’I’m looking for some new sports shoes.’
’White (1) ... or black (2) ...?’
’White.’
’Do you like these (3) ...?’
’No, not really. I’ve got some (4) ... like that already. I prefer those (5) ...’
’Which (6) ...?’
’The (7) ... in the window which cost £69.99.’
’Which window?’
’The (8) ... on the right.’
’Ah yes, those American (9) ... are new. You won’t see many (10) ... like those.’
1 A - В one C ones
4 A - В one C ones
7 A - В one C ones
10 A - В one C ones
2 A - В one C ones
5 A - В one C ones
8 A - В one C ones
3 А - В one C ones
6 A - В one C ones
9 A - В one C ones
5 Write a dialogue between two people at a football match in which you use one/ones as much as possible. Check your dialogue with a teacher.
Example: Which, are our seats? - The ones over there.