It, this and that in paragraphs

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from English Grammar Today

We use it, this and that to introduce further information about a topic already mentioned. However, the words have different uses.

We use it to continue to refer to the topic we are already writing or speaking about:

The heart is the central organ in our bodies. It is used to pump oxygen around the body through the bloodstream. (It refers back to The heart)

The new album by ‘The Noughts’ went on sale yesterday. It is their third album in three years and is set to become as great a success as previous releases.

Warning:

We don’t use it when we first give information about a topic, for example immediately after a chapter or section title in a text:

(b) Green application form

This must be signed by all applicants and returned by 30 November 2009.

Not: It must be signed …

We can use this to refer back to whole clauses and sentences and to previous parts of a text. This highlights the information referred to much more strongly than it. Writers often use this when a point or idea is to become an important part of the discussion that follows:

More and more people are discovering that Tai Chi is one of the most valuable forms of exercise. This has led to a big demand for classes. (This refers back to a whole sentence.)

Heavy rains and stormy conditions throughout the summer have led to severe shortages in strawberries and other soft fruits. This has led to price rises in many supermarkets and shops.

We use that in a similar way to this. However, when we use that, we distance ourselves more from the topic or from aspects of the topic:

For many traditional football supporters, it is a problem that so many young girls and women attend football matches these days. That is a sexist attitude of course.

That is also used to refer to ideas associated with another person:

The chairman apologised for the poor performance of the company and promised a better future for investors. That was a promise many people felt he could not possibly keep.

Click START below, to check if you can now use it, that and this correctly in a paragraph

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Your answers are highlighted below.

Question 1

Fill in the gap with the best word to complete the sentence below: Cycling can help to protect you from serious diseases such as stroke, heart attack, some cancers, depression, diabetes, obesity and arthritis. ___ is healthy, fun and a low-impact form of exercise for all ages.

A	It
B	That
C	This

Question 1 Explanation:

We use it to continue to refer to the topic we are already writing or speaking about. It, here, refers back to Cycling.

Question 2

Fill in the gap with the best word to complete the sentence below: I should like to make just one comment on a remark made by the noble Lord, Lord Glendevon, when he said that "one must trust the Department, once at any rate". _____ is an extremely offensive remark, and I hope the noble Lord will withdraw it before the debate is finished.

A	It
B	That
C	This

Question 2 Explanation:

We use that in a similar way to this. However, when we use that, we distance ourselves more from the topic or from aspects of the topic.

Question 3

Fill in the gap with the best word to complete the sentence below: Vince Cable, the Lib Dem Treasury spokesman, has pre-empted any number of current policy reviews by announcing that the party will not increase the existing levels of taxation and public spending. ______ has resulted in some paradoxical policy positions.

A	It
B	That
C	This

Question 3 Explanation:

We use this to refer back to whole clauses and sentences and to previous parts of a text. This highlights the information referred to much more strongly than it. Writers often use this when a point or idea is to become an important part of the discussion that follows.

Question 4

Fill in the gap with the best word to complete the sentence below: Section 1.6

______ section is applicablein the Sacramento Valley, San Francisco Bay Area, and San Joaquin Valley

A	It
B	That
C	This

Question 4 Explanation:

We don’t use it when we first give information about a topic, for example immediately after a chapter or section title in a text. Instead we use 'this'

Question 5

Fill in the gap with the best word to complete the sentence below: Elton's latest novel, Identity Crisis, provoked intense discussion and not a little hilarity at my book club. Conceived as a murder mystery/thriller, ___ also lampoons the new tribalism, identity politics, left-wing self-righteousness and right-wing prejudices.

A	it
B	that
C	this

Question 5 Explanation:

We use it to continue to refer to the topic we are already writing or speaking about. It, here, refers back to Elton's latest novel, Identity Crisis

Question 6

Fill in the gap with the best word to complete the sentence below: As beneficiaries we have not been given a chance to know how much was allocated to an item and how it has been spent. _____ has made the community very suspicious.

A	It
B	That
C	This

Question 6 Explanation:

We use this to refer back to whole clauses and sentences and to previous parts of a text. This highlights the information referred to much more strongly than it. Writers often use this when a point or idea is to become an important part of the discussion that follows.

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There are 6 questions to complete.