The town that painted bike lanes first: it's worth, there's no point and it's no use + -ing

Q: What does “it's no use” mean?

It's no use + -ing means doing something won't help or change anything : It's no use arguing with your spreadsheet. It was no use sending the first petition: the city said no. The -ing form follows right after it, with no of and no to . The B2 lesson The town that painted bike lanes first on edio.ai teaches it together with it's worth and there's no point .

Q: What does “it's worth” + -ing mean?

It's worth + -ing means an action is a good idea : you get something back for your time or money. It's worth cycling over the bridge: the view is great. The negative It isn't worth waiting calls it a waste, and the question is Is it worth buying an e-bike? Worth also takes a noun or it : It's worth the effort. The town that painted bike lanes first on edio.ai covers all of these.

Q: What does “there's no point” mean?

There's no point + -ing means an action has no purpose or reason : There's no point driving two blocks. In is optional, so There's no point in driving two blocks is just as correct. In the past, it's there was no point : There was no point painting the lanes until the law changed. Leona says it to Isaiah in The town that painted bike lanes first , a B2 lesson on edio.ai.

Q: What's the difference between “there's no point” and “it's no use”?

They're very close. There's no point says an action has no purpose; it's no use says it won't work or help. Often either one fits the same sentence : There's no point asking him and It's no use asking him mean almost the same. It's worth is the opposite of both. The drills in The town that painted bike lanes first on edio.ai set worth against the other two, never those two against each other.

Q: Is it “it's worth to do” or “it's worth doing”?

It's it's worth doing . All three phrases take the -ing form : It's worth cycling to work , not worth to cycle ; There's no point driving , not no point to drive ; It's no use asking , not no use of asking . Worth isn't a verb either, so It worths the effort and Does it worth…? are wrong. The chat in The town that painted bike lanes first on edio.ai is built on these slips.

Q: Where were America's first bike lanes?

In Davis, California , where bike lanes striped in July 1967 are often called the first in the country. UC Davis and many writers say so, though the sources can't rule out an older lane somewhere. One morning, a city worker loaded a marking machine, stencils and white paint into a truck and striped both sides of a street for a little less than a mile. The town that painted bike lanes first on edio.ai tells the story.

Q: How do I teach it's worth and there's no point to B2 students?

Start with choices students make every day , like driving or walking, buying or borrowing, and let them judge each one with a phrase. Then fix the form: always -ing, is before worth , and in as an option after no point . The town that painted bike lanes first on edio.ai moves from Leona's explainer and an office argument to the scheme, five drills and a commute proposal.

Q: What's a good game for practicing it's worth + -ing?

Try “Worth it or no point?” : read out short plans such as buying an umbrella in the desert or leaving early on a holiday weekend , and teams answer with a full sentence and a reason: There's no point buying an umbrella: it never rains. A wrong form loses the point. The boxes in The town that painted bike lanes first on edio.ai ask questions like Is it worth cycling to work in your town?

Q: What's good homework for it's worth and it's no use?

Good homework checks meaning as well as form : a quiz such as “It's no use asking him.” What does it mean? , gaps that give the phrase and the verb, and a sort of correct and wrong sentences. All ten homework tasks in The town that painted bike lanes first on edio.ai check themselves, ending with a nurse's commute proposal to complete with the lesson's words.

This B2 ESL lesson plan teaches it's worth, there's no point and it's no use + -ing through the 1967 bike lanes of Davis, California.

Grammar: The three phrases + -ing (There's no point driving two blocks.), It isn't worth, Is it worth…?, the past (it was worth) and worth + a noun or it: It's worth the effort.
Topic: How residents of a college town won their bike lanes and what a city needs besides paint, with words such as stripe, petition and pothole.
Activities: An explainer to read, an office argument and a reader's memo to hear, self-checking drills, a chat and a commute proposal to build and present.

What's inside

Chapter 1Warm-up: how did you get here?
- PictureUnlock
- Spin the wheel and answerSpin the wheelUnlock
- Study the words: getting aroundVocabularyTry it
- Look at the pictures and choose the wordChoose by pictureUnlock
Chapter 2Let's read: one worker, one morning, white paint
- Look at the photo: a bike lane in a college townPictureUnlock
- Read Leona's explainer on The Why DeskArticleUnlock
- Read and mark true or falseTrue or falseUnlock
- Read again and choose the correct answerQuizUnlock
Chapter 3Let's listen: two blocks by car
- Listen to Leona and IsaiahListeningTry it
- Transcript, for the teacherUnlock
- Listen and choose the correct answerQuizUnlock
- Listen to the Reader's Rebuttal: Petra's voice memoListeningUnlock
- Transcript, for the teacherUnlock
- Listen and mark true or falseTrue or falseUnlock
Chapter 4Grammar: There's no point driving two blocks
- Study the scheme: it's worth, there's no point, it's no useGrammar schemeTry it
- Choose the correct optionChoose the optionUnlock
- Fill in the gaps: use the -ing form of the verbs in bracketsFill in the gapsTry it
- Fill in the table: use the phrase + -ingFill in the tableUnlock
- Choose the correct answer: which sentence is correct?QuizUnlock
- Put the words in the correct orderUnjumbleUnlock
Chapter 5Let's talk: a better commute
- Choose the right replies: a better commuteChatTry it
- Put the parts of Leona's model proposal in the correct orderDrag and dropUnlock
- Sort the phrases into the correct columns: the parts of a proposalSort into columnsUnlock
- Choose the correct answer: which version is best?QuizUnlock
- Open a box and answer: present a better commuteOpen the boxUnlock
Chapter 6Homework
- Match the words and the meaningsMatchUnlock
- Unscramble the wordsAnagramUnlock
- Fill in the gaps with the lesson's wordsFill in the gapsUnlock
- Find the matching pairs: words and meaningsMemory gameUnlock
- Choose the correct option: new sentencesChoose the optionUnlock
- Fill in the gaps: use the phrase and the verb in bracketsFill in the gapsUnlock
- Choose the correct answer: what does it mean?QuizUnlock
- Sort the sentences into the correct columns: correct or wrong?Sort into columnsUnlock
- Choose the correct option: Leona answers PetraChoose the optionUnlock
- Drag the words into the gaps: Christine's commute proposalDrag and dropUnlock

Vocabulary

12 words and phrases from the lesson, each with a picture and audio in edio.

+9 more with pictures and audio in the lessonMore words

intersection
college town
petition
stencil
bike rack
roundabout
compact
pothole
e-bike

Grammar: it's worth, there's no point and it's no use + -ing

Three fixed phrases judge whether an action makes sense: It's worth cycling. There's no point driving two blocks. It's no use arguing. The story of a town that kept asking for bike lanes uses all three. Learners use -ing after every phrase, never to + verb, and use worth with a noun as well.

It's worth cycling. There's no point driving.

After these phrases, use the -ing form of the verb, never to + verb.

The phrases + -ing

It's worth + -ing says an action is a good idea: It's worth cycling over the bridge. It isn't worth + -ing calls it a waste of time or money. Questions begin with Is it worth: Is it worth buying an e-bike?

Phrase	Meaning	Example
It's worth + -ing	It's a good idea; you get something good back.	It's worth cycling over the bridge: the view is great.
It's not worth / It isn't worth + -ing	It's not a good use of time, money or effort.	It isn't worth waiting for the bus after midnight.
There's no point (in) + -ing	It has no purpose or reason.	There's no point driving two blocks.
It's no use + -ing	It won't help or change anything.	It's no use arguing with Isaiah's spreadsheet.
Is it worth + -ing?	a question: is it a good idea?	Is it worth buying an e-bike?

No point, no use and worth

There's no point means an action has no purpose; it's no use means it won't help or change anything. The two are close, and often both fit: There's no point asking, it's no use asking. It's worth is their opposite.

no point, no use, worth

There's no point = it has no purpose. It's no use = it won't work or help. They are very close, and often both fit. It's worth is the opposite: it's a good idea, and you get something back for your time or money.

There's no point, with or without in

After there's no point, in is optional, so both versions are correct: There's no point driving = There's no point in driving. After it's no use, there's no of: It's no use asking him.

in or no in?

After there's no point, in is optional: There's no point driving = There's no point in driving. Both are right.

Worth + a noun, and worth it

Worth also takes a noun: It's worth the effort. The view is worth the climb. Worth it can close a sentence: The hill is hard, but it's worth it. The thing can be the subject, too: Bike lanes are worth painting.

Pattern	Example
It's worth + a noun	It's worth the effort. It's worth a try.
something + is worth + a noun	The view is worth the climb.
something + is worth + -ing	Bike lanes are worth painting.
worth it (at the end)	The hill is hard, but it's worth it.

Now and in the past

For the past, change only be: It was worth trying. It wasn't worth waiting. There was no point asking. It was no use complaining. The -ing form after the phrase never changes.

Now	In the past
It's worth trying.	It was worth trying.
It isn't worth waiting.	It wasn't worth waiting.
There's no point (in) asking.	There was no point (in) asking.
It's no use complaining.	It was no use complaining.

Worth is not a verb

Worth needs a form of be in front of it: It's worth the effort, not It worths. Questions start with Is, never Does: Is it worth buying? The other slip is to + verb: It's worth cycling, not It's worth to cycle.

-ing, and worth is not a verb

After all four phrases, use -ing: It's worth cycling (not: It's worth to cycle). worth is not a verb, so it needs is / was: It's worth the effort (not: It worths). Questions start with Is: Is it worth buying? (not: Does it worth buying?)

Common mistakes

It's worth to cycle to work.
It's worth cycling to work.
-ing, not to + verb
There's no point to drive two blocks.
There's no point (in) driving two blocks.
-ing, with or without in
It's no use of asking him.
It's no use asking him.
no of: -ing right after no use
It worths the effort.
It's worth the effort.
worth is not a verb: use is

In the office and in Davis

There's no point driving two blocks.
It's no use arguing with your spreadsheet.
The hill is hard, but it's worth it.
Is it worth buying an e-bike for a short commute?
There was no point painting the lanes until the law changed.
After about two years of asking, it was worth the wait.

More lessons on this grammar: Gerunds and infinitives lessons and exercises

Try the it's worth + -ing exercises

Try them yourself: these are the same exercises your students do in edio.

What's in the lesson

21 auto-checked exercises
5 games
1 article
1 grammar scheme
1 set of word cards
2 audio clips
2 pictures
2 transcripts

The main objectives of this lesson are to:

say an action is a good idea with it's worth + -ing: It's worth cycling over the bridge: the view is great.
say an action has no purpose or won't help: There's no point driving two blocks. It's no use arguing with Isaiah's spreadsheet.
use worth with be, a noun or it: It's worth the effort. The hill is hard, but it's worth it. Not It worths
talk about the past: There was no point painting the lanes until the law changed.
propose a better commute: the problem, the idea and why it's worth trying

Lesson 11 is the third lesson of Moving people, unit 3 of English B2.1 · How the World Works. It carries the verb + -ing of B1.2 lessons 25 and 26 and the being + participle of lesson 10 into three fixed phrases. Lesson 12 closes the unit with the future in the past. Residents who kept asking for lanes, and a state law that left no point in painting them until 1967, show what was worth doing.

Students spin a wheel of questions about commutes, then learn twelve words, from stripe and carpool to roundabout and e-bike, with pictures and audio. Leona's explainer asks how Davis got its lanes and whether paint is enough, with true-or-false statements and a quiz. Leona and Isaiah argue about a bike city on Pittsburgh's hills, and Petra from California says lanes are no use without good buses; both are AI-voiced. The grammar chapter has the scheme and five self-checking drills, among them a table that rewrites sentences with each phrase. In the speaking chapter, students answer Leona's questions about their commute, order the parts of her model proposal, sort its phrases, pick the best versions and open boxes to present an idea.

All ten homework tasks check themselves: a word match, an anagram, word gaps and a memory game, then forms to choose, gaps with each phrase and a verb, a quiz on meaning, correct and wrong sentences to sort, Leona's answer to Petra and Christine's commute proposal.

Grammar:: it's worth + -ing · there's no point (in) + -ing · it's no use + -ing · worth + noun
Topic:: Davis, California · bike lanes · cycling · commuting · getting around · Pittsburgh · The Why Desk

Teaching tips

Collect real commutes first: each student says how they get to class and how long it takes. The class then judges each one: It's worth taking the bus. There's no point driving.
Ask what makes a town good for cycling before the reading. Students list ideas, then read to see which ones Davis had: flat streets, mild weather, a university and residents who kept asking.
Play the office argument twice: first for who thinks Pittsburgh could be a bike city, then for every phrase + -ing. Students write each one down: It's no use comparing hilly Pittsburgh with a flat college town.
Use Leona's proposal as a writing frame: the problem, the idea, why it's worth it, the cost and a trial month. Students write one for their school or office, then present it with the boxes.

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The whole course: English B2.1 · How the World Works

32 lessons for adults at B2 in American English, each answering one question about how the world works. The team of The Why Desk, a small online magazine in Pittsburgh, takes on one question a week, from the day a computer beat the world chess champion to eight people sealed inside Biosphere 2. Learners tell stories with narrative tenses, speculate about the past and the future, and report what experts claim. The practice exercises check themselves.See the course

Unit 1 AI and the future of work
narrative tenses, by and until, be bound to and be likely to, the future perfect
Unit 2 Health breakthroughs
the third conditional, the past perfect and past continuous passive, have something done, the passive with two objects
Unit 3 Moving people
the past perfect continuous, the passive infinitive and -ing form, it's worth and there's no point, the future in the past
1. Lesson 9Six years to the golden spikeThe past perfect continuous vs the past perfect simple
2. Lesson 10Riding a pod with no driverThe passive infinitive and the passive -ing form
3. Lesson 11 · you're hereThe town that painted bike lanes firstIt's worth, there's no point and it's no use + -ing
4. Lesson 12The highways that were supposed to take 13 yearsThe future in the past
Unit 4 Wildlife comebacks
reporting verbs with a that clause, with an object and infinitive and with -ing, verbs of perception
Unit 5 Pop culture goes global
comment adverbs, wish and if only for the present and the past, have someone do and get someone to do
Unit 6 Money and smart choices
-ever words and no matter, should have and could have, prepositions for numbers and change, it's time and would rather
Unit 7 Language and communication
must have, might have and can't have, verb prefixes and suffixes, past modals in continuous and passive forms, agreement with quantities
Unit 8 Exploring the extremes
dimension nouns, the future continuous and future perfect continuous, compound adjectives, only, even and just

Questions about this lesson

What does “it's no use” mean?

It's no use + -ing means doing something won't help or change anything: It's no use arguing with your spreadsheet. It was no use sending the first petition: the city said no. The -ing form follows right after it, with no of and no to. The B2 lesson The town that painted bike lanes first on edio.ai teaches it together with it's worth and there's no point.

What does “it's worth” + -ing mean?

It's worth + -ing means an action is a good idea: you get something back for your time or money. It's worth cycling over the bridge: the view is great. The negative It isn't worth waiting calls it a waste, and the question is Is it worth buying an e-bike? Worth also takes a noun or it: It's worth the effort. The town that painted bike lanes first on edio.ai covers all of these.

What does “there's no point” mean?

There's no point + -ing means an action has no purpose or reason: There's no point driving two blocks. In is optional, so There's no point in driving two blocks is just as correct. In the past, it's there was no point: There was no point painting the lanes until the law changed. Leona says it to Isaiah in The town that painted bike lanes first, a B2 lesson on edio.ai.

What's the difference between “there's no point” and “it's no use”?

They're very close. There's no point says an action has no purpose; it's no use says it won't work or help. Often either one fits the same sentence: There's no point asking him and It's no use asking him mean almost the same. It's worth is the opposite of both. The drills in The town that painted bike lanes first on edio.ai set worth against the other two, never those two against each other.

Is it “it's worth to do” or “it's worth doing”?

It's it's worth doing. All three phrases take the -ing form: It's worth cycling to work, not worth to cycle; There's no point driving, not no point to drive; It's no use asking, not no use of asking. Worth isn't a verb either, so It worths the effort and Does it worth…? are wrong. The chat in The town that painted bike lanes first on edio.ai is built on these slips.

Where were America's first bike lanes?

In Davis, California, where bike lanes striped in July 1967 are often called the first in the country. UC Davis and many writers say so, though the sources can't rule out an older lane somewhere. One morning, a city worker loaded a marking machine, stencils and white paint into a truck and striped both sides of a street for a little less than a mile. The town that painted bike lanes first on edio.ai tells the story.

How did Davis, California, get its first bike lanes?

Residents asked for them for about two years. After a professor and his wife wrote to the local paper, supporters petitioned the city, and the engineers, police, planners and council said no. Two candidates who wanted the lanes were then elected, and the new council said yes. A 1967 state law let cities set up lanes on local streets, and within a few months Davis had four. The town that painted bike lanes first on edio.ai covers each step.

How do I teach it's worth and there's no point to B2 students?

Start with choices students make every day, like driving or walking, buying or borrowing, and let them judge each one with a phrase. Then fix the form: always -ing, is before worth, and in as an option after no point. The town that painted bike lanes first on edio.ai moves from Leona's explainer and an office argument to the scheme, five drills and a commute proposal.

What's a good game for practicing it's worth + -ing?

Try “Worth it or no point?”: read out short plans such as buying an umbrella in the desert or leaving early on a holiday weekend, and teams answer with a full sentence and a reason: There's no point buying an umbrella: it never rains. A wrong form loses the point. The boxes in The town that painted bike lanes first on edio.ai ask questions like Is it worth cycling to work in your town?

What's good homework for it's worth and it's no use?

Good homework checks meaning as well as form: a quiz such as “It's no use asking him.” What does it mean?, gaps that give the phrase and the verb, and a sort of correct and wrong sentences. All ten homework tasks in The town that painted bike lanes first on edio.ai check themselves, ending with a nurse's commute proposal to complete with the lesson's words.

How do you practice it's worth and there's no point one-to-one?

Plan a better commute together: the student describes the trip to work or class, and the teacher asks Is it worth driving? and Is there any point waiting for the bus? The student answers, then writes a short proposal. The chat in The town that painted bike lanes first on edio.ai works without a partner: Leona collects commute ideas, and the right reply is It's worth trying, not It's worth to try.

Are there interactive exercises for it's worth, there's no point and it's no use?

Yes. This page plays three parts of The town that painted bike lanes first, a B2 lesson on edio.ai, without an account: Leona and Isaiah's argument in the office, a gap-fill with the -ing form after each phrase and Leona's chat about a better commute. Sign in for the rest.

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About this lesson

What's inside

Vocabulary

Grammar: it's worth, there's no point and it's no use + -ing

The phrases + -ing

No point, no use and worth

There's no point, with or without in

Worth + a noun, and worth it

Now and in the past

Worth is not a verb

Common mistakes

In the office and in Davis

Try the it's worth + -ing exercises

What's in the lesson

The main objectives of this lesson are to:

Teaching tips

Teach the whole lesson in edio

Start a free trial

Open the lesson

Teach it live or as homework

The whole course: English B2.1 · How the World Works

Unit 1 AI and the future of work

Unit 2 Health breakthroughs

Unit 3 Moving people

Unit 4 Wildlife comebacks

Unit 5 Pop culture goes global

Unit 6 Money and smart choices

Unit 7 Language and communication

Unit 8 Exploring the extremes

Questions about this lesson

Teach this lesson with your students