Purpose, Precaution and Fear – B1-B2 | Lingua Corner
ESL Lesson – B1-B2

Purpose, Precaution
& Fear

to / in order to / so that / in case / for fear of / to prevent / to avoid

Target Purpose Precaution Fear Grammar Book 4 Exercises (60 items) Speaking ~70 min

Purpose, Precaution & Fear

B1-B2 – Expressing Purpose, Precaution and Fear – Clauses of Purpose

Positive Purpose Negative Purpose so that in case for fear of / that prevent / avoid for + -ing

Quick Reference / Szybka sciagazawka

Study this summary first, then open the Grammar Book for full bilingual explanations.

Co chce wyrazic?English structurePo polsku
Zwykly cel (ta sama osoba)to / in order to / so as to + inf.zeby / aby
Cel negatywny (ta sama osoba)so as not to / in order not to + inf. | to avoid + -ingzeby nie | aby uniknac
Cel dla kogos innegoso that + osoba + can / could / wouldtak aby (ktos inny)
Przezornoscin case + osoba + Past/Present Simplena wypadek gdyby
Strach (ta sama osoba)for fear of + -ingze strachu przed
Strach (rozne osoby)for fear that + osoba + might / wouldz obawy, ze
Powstrzymanie kogosto prevent + obiekt + from + -ingzapobiec / powstrzymac
Unikanie (samemu)to avoid + -ingunikac (robienia czegos)
Funkcja przedmiotufor + -ing / for + nounsluzy do
Key tip: Does the action describe a PERSON’S goal? Use to + infinitive. Does it describe an OBJECT’S function? Use for + -ing.

Click the button below for full bilingual grammar explanations with Polish notes, golden rules and examples. / Kliknij, aby zobaczyc pelne wyjasnienia gramatyczne.

Grammar Book – Purpose, Precaution and Fear

1. Positive Purpose – zeby cos zrobic

to / in order to / so as to + infinitive

Use when BOTH verbs share the SAME subject. / Uzywaj, gdy OBA czasowniki maja TEN SAM podmiot.

Golden Rules: Always the SAME person in both parts. Always a BARE infinitive after to / in order to / so as to — never subject + verb again.
in order to is slightly more formal — great for exams. so as to is common in writing.
Zlote zasady: Zawsze ta sama osoba. Zawsze “goly” bezokolicznik po to / in order to / so as to.
WRONG: She studied hard to she pass. | RIGHT: She studied hard to pass.

She studied hard to pass. / She studied hard so as to pass. / She studied hard in order to pass.

He left early to catch the train. (Wyszedl wczesnie, zeby zdazyc na pociag.)

We arrived early in order to get good seats. (Przyjechalismy wczesnie, aby zajac dobre miejsca.)

She saved money so as to buy a new car. (Oszczedzala, w celu kupienia nowego samochodu.)

I went to the gym so as to get fit. (Poszlem/am na silownie, zeby byc w formie.)

2. Negative Purpose – zeby NIE

so as not to / in order not to + inf. | to avoid + -ing

Same subject rule applies. After avoid — ALWAYS -ing, never infinitive!

TRAP! Never say “to not do” in formal English! Nigdy nie mow “to not do” w formalnym angielskim!
so as not to = in order not to — they are 100% interchangeable!
After avoid: ALWAYS -ing (avoid waking — never avoid to wake!)
WRONG: She left early to not be late.
RIGHT: She left early so as not to be late. / in order not to be late. / to avoid being late.

She tiptoed so as not to wake the baby. = in order not to wake = to avoid waking the baby.

He spoke quietly so as not to disturb anyone. (Mowil cicho, zeby nikomu nie przeszkadzac.)

I set an alarm in order not to oversleep. = to avoid oversleeping. (Nastawil/am budzik, zeby nie zaspac.)

3. Purpose for Another Person – so that

Subject + verb + so that + subject + can/could/will/would/might + verb

Use when the TWO clauses have DIFFERENT subjects. / Uzywaj, gdy dwa zdania maja ROZNE podmioty.

Present / Future context: can / will. Past context: could / would / might.
Negative: so that … wouldn’t / couldn’t.
Formal alternative: in order that (very formal — great for essays!)
Terazniejszosc / Przyszlosc: can/will. Przeszlosc: could/would/might.

She left the door open so that the cat could come in. (Zostawila drzwi otwarte, zeby kot mogl wejsc.)

He explained slowly so that the students could understand.

I am speaking loudly so that everyone can hear me.

She wrote it down so that she wouldn’t forget it. (Zapisala, zeby nie zapomniec.)

We bought a big pizza so that nobody would be hungry.

4. Precaution – in case

Subject + verb + in case + subject + Present/Past Simple (or might)

Do something NOW because something MIGHT happen LATER. / Robisz cos TERAZ, bo cos MOZE sie wydarzyc POZNIEJ.

NEVER use “would” after in case — huge mistake! NIGDY nie uzywaj “would” po in case!
in case (precaution) vs. if (condition) — very different!
in case = you act BEFORE the event (na wszelki wypadek). if = you act ONLY IF condition is met.
WRONG: Take an umbrella in case it would rain.
RIGHT: Take an umbrella in case it rains.

Take an umbrella in case it rains. (Wez parasol, na wypadek gdyby padalo.)

She saved his number in case she needed to call him.

He charged his phone in case the battery ran out.

We booked early in case the hotel was full.

5a. Fear (same subject) – for fear of + -ing

Subject + verb + for fear of + -ing

Same subject, always gerund after “of” (it is a preposition!). / Ten sam podmiot, zawsze gerund po “of”.

“of” is a preposition — gerunds ALWAYS follow prepositions.
Never infinitive after “for fear of”! “of” to przyimek — po przyimkach zawsze gerund (-ing)!

He drove slowly for fear of having an accident. (Jechal wolno ze strachu przed spowodowaniem wypadku.)

She didn’t speak for fear of saying something wrong.

He walked slowly for fear of slipping on the ice.

They left the party early for fear of waking the neighbours.

5b. Fear (different subjects) – for fear that

Subject + verb + for fear that + subject + might / would + infinitive

Different subjects. Very formal — great for writing and exams!

They whispered for fear that someone might hear them. (Szeptali z obawy, ze ktos moze ich uslyszec.)

She didn’t tell him for fear that he would be upset.

I hid the present for fear that she might find it.

Uzywamy “for fear that” gdy DWIE ROZNE osoby sa w zdaniu. Po “for fear that” zawsze “might” lub “would” + bezokolicznik. Konstrukcja formalna — idealna na egzaminy!

6. Prevention – to prevent / to avoid

to prevent + object + from + -ing

Stop someone / something from doing something. Must include “from”!

They fenced the pool to prevent children from falling in. (Ogrodzili basen, aby zapobiec wpadaniu dzieci.)

She covered the food to prevent flies from landing on it.

to avoid + -ing (ALWAYS -ing, never infinitive!)

YOU avoid doing something yourself. / TY unikasz czegos sam/a.

She left early to avoid getting stuck in traffic. (Wyszla wczesniej, zeby uniknac korka.)

He spoke quietly to avoid waking the baby.

prevent: stops SOMEONE ELSE (prevent you from falling). avoid: you avoid it YOURSELF (avoid falling).

7. Function – for + -ing / for + noun

Object + is + for + -ing | went/stopped + for + noun | Person’s purpose: to + infinitive
WRONG: I went to the shop for buying bread.
RIGHT: I went to the shop to buy bread. (person’s purpose)
RIGHT: This knife is for cutting grapefruit. (object’s function)

This knife is for cutting grapefruit. (Ten noz sluzy do krojenia grejpfruta.)

Matches are for lighting fires.

We stopped at the bakery for bread. (for + noun)

He thanked me for helping him. (for + -ing after thank)

Exercise A — to + inf., for + -ing, or for + noun

Complete each sentence with the correct form

Use to + infinitive (person’s purpose), for + -ing (object’s function), or for + noun (going somewhere to get something). Click Check to see model answers. Kliknij Check, aby zobaczyc odpowiedzi.

Exercise 1 — Join the Sentences

Rewrite each pair as ONE sentence without changing the meaning

Przepisz kazda pare zdan jako jedno zdanie nie zmieniajac znaczenia. Use the hint. Model answers appear after Check.

Exercise 2 — Finish the Sentence

Complete the second sentence so it means the same as the first

Dokoncz drugie zdanie tak, aby mialo to samo znaczenie co pierwsze. Use the structure hint.

Exercise 3 — for fear / to prevent / to avoid

Rewrite each sentence using the structure shown in the hint

Przepisz kazde zdanie wedlug struktury podanej w podpowiedzi. Model answers shown after Check.

Speaking Practice

Your Purposes
Why do you study English? Use to / in order to.
What do you do to avoid stress?
Why did you choose your school or job?
I study English in order to…to avoid -ing
Precautions
What do you always take with you in case something goes wrong?
What did you do last holiday in case the weather was bad?
I always take… in case…I booked early in case…
Fear and Caution
Have you ever NOT said something for fear of offending someone?
Can you think of a time you were careful for fear of…?
I kept quiet for fear of…for fear that someone might…
Prevent and Avoid
What can cities do to prevent crime?
What do you do to avoid being late?
to prevent… from -ingto avoid -ing

Key Structures / Kluczowe struktury

I did it to / in order to / so as to …Zrobilem to, zeby / aby…
I did it so as not to / to avoid -ing …Zrobilem to, zeby nie / unikajac…
I did it so that he / she could …Zrobilem to, zeby on/ona mogl/mogla…
I did it in case something happened.Zrobilem to na wypadek gdyby…
I didn’t do it for fear of -ing.Nie zrobilem tego ze strachu przed…
They prevented X from -ing. / to avoid -ing.Zapobiegli… / Unikali…

Writing Task / Zadanie pisemne

Write 6-8 sentences using at least 5 different structures from this lesson.

Include / Staraj sie uzyc:

  • to / in order to (positive purpose)
  • so as not to / to avoid (negative purpose)
  • so that … could (purpose for another person)
  • in case (precaution)
  • for fear of / for fear that (fear)
  • to prevent … from / to avoid (prevention)
Topic: Write about preparing for an important event — an exam, trip, job interview, or party. What did you do, why, and what precautions did you take?