1

Prepared By :
Mr Mohamed Mesbah
Egypt – Cairo – Maadi
20105243274

English Grammar

English Grammar ................................................................................................................ 1

What is Grammar? .............................................................................................................. 6
Glossary of English Grammar Terms ................................................................................. 6
English Parts of Speech ...................................................................................................... 9
Parts of Speech Table.......................................................................................................... 9
Parts of Speech Examples................................................................................................. 10
Words with More than One Job ........................................................................................ 11
1. Verbs ............................................................................................................................. 12
What are Verbs?................................................................................................................ 12
Verb Classification............................................................................................................ 12
1. Helping Verbs ........................................................................................................... 13
2. Main Verbs................................................................................................................ 13
Helping Verbs ................................................................................................................... 14
Primary helping verbs (3 verbs).................................................................................... 14
Modal helping verbs (10 verbs) .................................................................................... 14
Verb Forms ....................................................................................................................... 15
Forms of Main Verbs ........................................................................................................ 16
Example Sentences ....................................................................................................... 17
Infinitive.................................................................................................................... 17
Base - Imperative ...................................................................................................... 17
Base - Present simple (except 3rd person singular) ................................................... 17
Base - After modal auxiliary verbs ........................................................................... 17
Past simple ................................................................................................................ 18
Past participle............................................................................................................ 18
Present participle....................................................................................................... 18
3rd person singular, present simple............................................................................ 18
Forms of Helping Verbs.................................................................................................... 18
Tenses ............................................................................................................................... 20
Simple Present Tense........................................................................................................ 20
How do we make the Simple Present Tense? ............................................................... 20
How do we use the Simple Present Tense? .................................................................. 21
Present Continuous Tense................................................................................................. 23
How do we make the Present Continuous Tense? ............................................................ 23
How do we use the Present Continuous Tense? ............................................................... 24

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 2

Present continuous tense for action happening now ..................................................... 24

Present continuous tense for the future......................................................................... 25
How do we spell the Present Continuous Tense? ............................................................. 25
Present Perfect Tense........................................................................................................ 27
How do we make the Present Perfect Tense? ................................................................... 27
Contractions with the present perfect tense .............................................................. 28
How do we use the Present Perfect Tense? ...................................................................... 28
1. Present perfect tense for experience ......................................................................... 29
2. Present perfect tense for change ............................................................................... 29
3. Present perfect tense for continuing situation........................................................... 30
For & Since with Present Perfect Tense ........................................................................... 31
Present Perfect Continuous Tense .................................................................................... 32
How do we make the Present Perfect Continuous Tense?............................................ 32
Contractions .......................................................................................................... 33
How do we use the Present Perfect Continuous Tense? ............................................... 33
1. An action that has just stopped or recently stopped.............................................. 33
2. An action continuing up to now............................................................................ 34
For and Since with Present Perfect Continuous Tense ................................................. 34
Simple Past Tense ............................................................................................................. 35
How do we make the Simple Past Tense? ........................................................................ 35
How do we use the Simple Past Tense?............................................................................ 37
Past Continuous Tense...................................................................................................... 39
How do we make the Past Continuous Tense? ................................................................. 39
How do we use the Past Continuous Tense? .................................................................... 40
Past Continuous Tense + Simple Past Tense .................................................................... 41
Past Perfect Tense ............................................................................................................. 42
How do we make the Past Perfect Tense? ........................................................................ 43
How do we use the Past Perfect Tense?............................................................................ 44
Past Perfect Continuous Tense.......................................................................................... 45
How do we make the Past Perfect Continuous Tense?................................................. 45
How do we use the Past Perfect Continuous Tense? .................................................... 46
Simple Future Tense ......................................................................................................... 48
How do we make the Simple Future Tense? ................................................................ 48
How do we use the Simple Future Tense?.................................................................... 49
No Plan...................................................................................................................... 49
Prediction .................................................................................................................. 50
Be .............................................................................................................................. 50
Future Continuous Tense .................................................................................................. 50
How do we make the Future Continuous Tense? ......................................................... 50
How do we use the Future Continuous Tense?............................................................. 52
Future Perfect Tense ......................................................................................................... 52
How do we make the Future Perfect Tense? ................................................................ 53
How do we use the Future Perfect Tense?.................................................................... 54
Future Perfect Continuous Tense...................................................................................... 55
How do we make the Future Perfect Continuous Tense? ............................................. 55
How do we use the Future Perfect Continuous Tense? ................................................ 57

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 3

Phrasal Verbs and other multi-word verbs........................................................................ 57

Phrasal Verbs .................................................................................................................... 58
Separable Phrasal Verbs ........................................................................................... 59
Prepositional Verbs........................................................................................................... 60
Phrasal-prepositional Verbs .............................................................................................. 61
English Conditionals......................................................................................................... 62
Structure of Conditional Sentences................................................................................... 63
First Conditional: real possibility...................................................................................... 63
Second Conditional: unreal possibility or dream.............................................................. 64
Third Conditional: no possibility...................................................................................... 66
Zero Conditional: certainty............................................................................................... 67
Conditionals: Summary .................................................................................................... 68
Modal Verbs (modal auxiliaries) ...................................................................................... 68
Can, Could, Be able to ...................................................................................................... 69
Can .................................................................................................................................... 69
Structure of Can ............................................................................................................ 69
Use of Can..................................................................................................................... 70
can: Possibility and Ability....................................................................................... 70
can: Requests and Orders.......................................................................................... 70
can: Permission ......................................................................................................... 71
Could................................................................................................................................. 71
Structure of Could......................................................................................................... 71
Use of Could ................................................................................................................. 72
could: Past Possibility or Ability .............................................................................. 72
could: Requests ......................................................................................................... 72
Be able to .......................................................................................................................... 72
Structure of Be able to .................................................................................................. 73
Use of Be able to........................................................................................................... 73
be able to: ability....................................................................................................... 73
Gerunds (-ing)................................................................................................................... 74
Gerunds as Subject, Object or Complement ..................................................................... 74
Gerunds after Prepositions................................................................................................ 75
Gerunds after Certain Verbs ............................................................................................. 76
Gerunds in Passive Sense.................................................................................................. 77
Questions........................................................................................................................... 78
Basic Question Structure................................................................................................... 78
Basic Question Types ....................................................................................................... 79
1. Yes/No Questions ................................................................................................. 79
2. Question Word Questions ..................................................................................... 79
3. Choice Questions .................................................................................................. 80
Tag Questions ................................................................................................................... 80
Intonation .................................................................................................................. 83
Answers to tag questions .......................................................................................... 83
Question tags with imperatives................................................................................. 84
Same-way question tags............................................................................................ 84
Subjunctive ....................................................................................................................... 85

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 4

Structure of the Subjunctive.......................................................................................... 85

Use of the Subjunctive .................................................................................................. 85
Why do we say “I were”, “he were”? ....................................................................... 86
Active Voice, Passive Voice............................................................................................. 87
Passive Voice .................................................................................................................... 88
Construction of the Passive Voice ................................................................................ 88
Use of the Passive Voice............................................................................................... 89
Conjugation for the Passive Voice................................................................................ 89
Infinitive or -ing? .............................................................................................................. 90
When to use the infinitive ............................................................................................. 91
When to use -ing ........................................................................................................... 91
Plural Verbs with Singular Subjects ................................................................................. 92
Verb Meanings with Continuous Tenses .......................................................................... 93
Verbs not Used with Continuous Tenses .......................................................................... 93
Verbs with Two Meanings................................................................................................ 94
Be and Continuous Tenses................................................................................................ 95
Used to do & Be used to ................................................................................................... 96
Used to do ......................................................................................................................... 96
Use of Used to do.......................................................................................................... 96
Be used to.......................................................................................................................... 97
Structure of Be used to.................................................................................................. 97
Use of Be used to .......................................................................................................... 98
Tenses ....................................................................................................................... 98
Going to ............................................................................................................................ 99
Structure of Going to .................................................................................................... 99
Use of Going to............................................................................................................. 99
Going to - intention................................................................................................... 99
Going to - prediction................................................................................................. 99
2. Nouns .......................................................................................................................... 100
What are Nouns?......................................................................................................... 101
Countable and Uncountable Nouns ................................................................................ 102
Countable Nouns............................................................................................................. 102
Uncountable Nouns......................................................................................................... 103
Nouns that can be Countable and Uncountable .............................................................. 104
3. Adjectives ................................................................................................................... 105
Determiners..................................................................................................................... 106
Determiners: A, An or The?............................................................................................ 107
Determiners: Each, Every ............................................................................................... 108
Determiners: Some, Any................................................................................................. 109
Adjective Order............................................................................................................... 111
Adjective Before Noun ................................................................................................... 111
Adjective After Verb....................................................................................................... 112
Comparative Adjectives.................................................................................................. 113
Formation of Comparative Adjectives............................................................................ 113
Superlative Adjectives .................................................................................................... 115
Formation of Superlative Adjectives .............................................................................. 116

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 5

Use of Superlative Adjectives......................................................................................... 117

4. Adverbs ....................................................................................................................... 118
Adverbs of Frequency..................................................................................................... 119
5. English Pronouns ........................................................................................................ 121
Personal Pronouns........................................................................................................... 121
Personal Pronouns........................................................................................................... 122
6. English Prepositions.................................................................................................... 123
English Prepositions List ................................................................................................ 123
English Preposition Rule................................................................................................. 125
Prepositions of Place: at, in, on....................................................................................... 126
Prepositions of Time: at, in, on....................................................................................... 127
7. Conjunctions ............................................................................................................... 129
Form............................................................................................................................ 130
Function ...................................................................................................................... 130
Position ....................................................................................................................... 130
Coordinating Conjunctions ............................................................................................. 130
Subordinating Conjunctions............................................................................................ 131
8. Interjections................................................................................................................. 133

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 6

What is Grammar?

Grammar is the system of a language. People sometimes describe grammar as the “rules”
of a language; but in fact no language has rules*. If we use the word “rules”, we suggest
that somebody created the rules first and then spoke the language, like a new game. But
languages did not start like that. Languages started by people making sounds which
evolved into words, phrases and sentences. No commonly-spoken language is fixed. All
languages change over time. What we call “grammar” is simply a reflection of a language
at a particular time.

Do we need to study grammar to learn a language? The short answer is “no”. Very many
people in the world speak their own, native language without having studied its grammar.
Children start to speak before they even know the word “grammar”. But if you are
serious about learning a foreign language, the long answer is “yes, grammar can help you
to learn a language more quickly and more efficiently.” It’s important to think of
grammar as something that can help you, like a friend. When you understand the
grammar (or system) of a language, you can understand many things yourself, without
having to ask a teacher or look in a book.

So think of grammar as something good, something positive, something that you can use
to find your way - like a signpost or a map.

Glossary of English Grammar Terms

Active Voice
In the active voice, the subject of the verb does the action (eg They killed the President).
See also Passive Voice.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 7

Adjective
A word like big, red, easy, French etc. An adjective describes a noun or pronoun.

Adverb
A word like slowly, quietly, well, often etc. An adverb modifies a verb.

Article
The “indefinite” articles are a and an. The “definite article” is the.

Auxiliary Verb
A verb that is used with a main verb. Be, do and have are auxiliary verbs. Can, may, must
etc are modal auxiliary verbs.

Clause
A group of words containing a subject and its verb (for example: It was late when he
arrived).

Conjunction
A word used to connect words, phrases and clauses (for example: and, but, if).

Infinitive
The basic form of a verb as in to work or work.

Interjection
An exclamation inserted into an utterance without grammatical connection (for example:
oh!, ah!, ouch!, well!).

Modal Verb
An auxiliary verb like can, may, must etc that modifies the main verb and expresses
possibility, probability etc. It is also called “modal auxiliary verb”.

2. Nouns
A word like table, dog, teacher, America etc. A noun is the name of an object, concept,
person or place. A “concrete noun” is something you can see or touch like a person or
car. An “abstract noun” is something that you cannot see or touch like a decision or
happiness. A “countable noun” is something that you can count (for example: bottle,
song, dollar). An “uncountable noun” is something that you cannot count (for example:
water, music, money).

Object
In the active voice, a noun or its equivalent that receives the action of the verb. In the
passive voice, a noun or its equivalent that does the action of the verb.

Participle
The -ing and -ed forms of verbs. The -ing form is called the “present participle”. The -ed
form is called the “past participle” (for irregular verbs, this is column 3).

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 8

Part Of Speech
One of the eight classes of word in English - noun, verb, adjective, adverb, pronoun,
preposition, conjunction and interjection.

Passive Voice
In the passive voice, the subject receives the action of the verb (eg The President was
killed). See also Active Voice.

Phrase
A group of words not containing a subject and its verb (eg on the table, the girl in a red
dress).

Predicate
Each sentence contains (or implies) two parts: a subject and a predicate. The predicate is
what is said about the subject.

Preposition
A word like at, to, in, over etc. Prepositions usually come before a noun and give
information about things like time, place and direction.

Pronoun
A word like I, me, you, he, him, it etc. A pronoun replaces a noun.

Sentence
A group of words that express a thought. A sentence conveys a statement, question,
exclamation or command. A sentence contains or implies a subject and a predicate. In
simple terms, a sentence must contain a verb and (usually) a subject. A sentence starts
with a capital letter and ends with a full stop (.), question mark (?) or exclamation mark
(!).

Subject
Every sentence contains (or implies) two parts: a subject and a predicate. The subject is
the main noun (or equivalent) in a sentence about which something is said.

Tense
The form of a verb that shows us when the action or state happens (past, present or
future). Note that the name of a tense is not always a guide to when the action happens.
The “present continuous tense”, for example, can be used to talk about the present or the
future.

Verb
A word like (to) work, (to) love, (to) begin. A verb describes an action or state.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 9

English Parts of Speech

There are thousands of words in any language. But not all words have the same job. For
example, some words express “action”. Other words express a “thing”. Other words
“join” one word to another word. These are the “building blocks” of the language. Think
of them like the parts of a house. When we want to build a house, we use concrete to
make the foundations or base. We use bricks to make the walls. We use window frames
to make the windows, and door frames to make the doorways. And we use cement to join
them all together. Each part of the house has its own job. And when we want to build a
sentence, we use the different types of word. Each type of word has its own job.

We can categorize English words into 8 basic types or classes. These classes are called
“parts of speech”.

It’s quite important to recognize parts of speech. This helps you to analyze sentences and
understand them. It also helps you to construct good sentences.

In this lesson, we have an overview of the eight parts of speech, followed by a quiz to
check your understanding:

• Parts of Speech Table

• Parts of Speech Examples
• Words with More than One Job

Parts of Speech Table

This is a summary of the 8 parts of speech. You can find more detail if you click on each
part of speech.

part of speech function or “job” example words example sentences

Verb action or state (to) be, have, do, EnglishClub.com is a

like, work, sing, web site. I like
can, must EnglishClub.com.

Noun thing or person pen, dog, work, This is my dog. He lives

music, town, in my house. We live in
London, teacher, London.
John

Adjective describes a noun a/an, the, 69, some, My dog is big. I like big
good, big, red, dogs.
well, interesting

Adverb describes a verb, quickly, silently, My dog eats quickly.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 10

adjective or adverb well, badly, very, When he is very hungry,

really he eats really quickly.

Pronoun replaces a noun I, you, he, she, Tara is Indian. She is

some beautiful.

Preposition links a noun to to, at, after, on, but We went to school on
another word Monday.

Conjunction joins clauses or and, but, when I like dogs and I like
sentences or words cats. I like cats and dogs.
I like dogs but I don’t
like cats.

Interjection short exclamation, oh!, ouch!, hi!, Ouch! That hurts! Hi!
sometimes inserted well How are you? Well, I
into a sentence don’t know.

Parts of Speech Examples

Here are some sentences made with different English parts of speech:

verb noun verb noun verb verb

Stop! John works. John is working.

pronoun verb noun noun verb adjective noun

She loves animals. Animals like kind people.

noun verb noun adverb noun verb adjective noun

Tara speaks English well. Tara speaks good English.

pronoun verb preposition adjective noun adverb

She ran to the station quickly.

pron. verb adj. noun conjunction pron. verb pron.

She likes big snakes but I hate them.

Here is a sentence that contains every part of speech:

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 11

interjection pron. conj. adj. noun verb prep. noun adverb

Well, she and young John walk to school slowly.

Words with More than One Job

Many words in English can have more than one job, or be more than one part of speech.
For example, “work” can be a verb and a noun; “but” can be a conjunction and a
preposition; “well” can be an adjective, an adverb and an interjection. In addition, many
nouns can act as adjectives.

To analyze the part of speech, ask yourself: “What job is this word doing in this
sentence?”

In the table on the right you can see a few examples. Of course, there are more, even for
some of the words in the table. In fact, if you look in a good dictionary you will see that
the word but has six jobs to do:

• verb, noun, adverb, pronoun, preposition and conjunction!

word part of speech example

work noun My work is easy.

verb I work in London.

but conjunction John came but Mary didn’t come.

preposition Everyone came but Mary.

well adjective Are you well?

adverb She speaks well.

interjection Well! That’s expensive!

afternoon noun We ate in the afternoon.

noun acting as adjective We had afternoon tea.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 12

1. Verbs

What are Verbs?

The verb is king in English. The shortest sentence contains a verb. You can make a one-
word sentence with a verb, for example: “Stop!” You cannot make a one-word sentence
with any other type of word.

Verbs are sometimes described as “action words”. This is partly true. Many verbs give
the idea of action, of “doing” something. For example, words like run, fight, do and work
all convey action.

But some verbs do not give the idea of action; they give the idea of existence, of state, of
“being”. For example, verbs like be, exist, seem and belong all convey state.

A verb always has a subject. (In the sentence “John speaks English”, John is the subject
and speaks is the verb.) In simple terms, therefore, we can say that verbs are words that
tell us what a subject does or is; they describe:

• action (Ram plays football.)

• state (Anthony seems kind.)

There is something very special about verbs in English. Most other words (adjectives,
adverbs, prepositions etc) do not change in form (although nouns can have singular and
plural forms). But almost all verbs change in form. For example, the verb to work has
five forms:

• to work, work, works, worked, working

Of course, this is still very few forms compared to some languages which may have thirty
or more forms for a single verb.

In this lesson we look at the ways in which we classify verbs, followed by a quiz to test
your understanding:

• Verb Classification
• Helping Verbs
• Main Verbs

Verb Classification

We divide verbs into two broad classifications:

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 13

1. Helping Verbs
Imagine that a stranger walks into your room and says:

• I can.
• People must.
• The Earth will.

Do you understand anything? Has this person communicated anything to you? Probably
not! That’s because these verbs are helping verbs and have no meaning on their own.
They are necessary for the grammatical structure of the sentence, but they do not tell us
very much alone. We usually use helping verbs with main verbs. They “help” the main
verb. (The sentences in the above examples are therefore incomplete. They need at least a
main verb to complete them.) There are only about 15 helping verbs.

2. Main Verbs
Now imagine that the same stranger walks into your room and says:

• I teach.
• People eat.
• The Earth rotates.

Do you understand something? Has this person communicated something to you?

Probably yes! Not a lot, but something. That’s because these verbs are main verbs and
have meaning on their own. They tell us something. Of course, there are thousands of
main verbs.

In the following table we see example sentences with helping verbs and main verbs.
Notice that all of these sentences have a main verb. Only some of them have a helping
verb.

helping verb main verb

John likes coffee.

You lied to me.

They are happy.

The children are playing.

We must go now.

I do not want any.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 14

Helping verbs and main verbs can be further sub-divided, as we shall see on the
following pages.

Helping Verbs

Helping verbs are also called “auxiliary verbs”.

Helping verbs have no meaning on their own. They are necessary for the grammatical
structure of a sentence, but they do not tell us very much alone. We usually use helping
verbs with main verbs. They “help” the main verb (which has the real meaning). There
are only about 15 helping verbs in English, and we divide them into two basic groups:

Primary helping verbs (3 verbs)

These are the verbs be, do, and have. Note that we can use these three verbs as helping
verbs or as main verbs. On this page we talk about them as helping verbs. We use them
in the following cases:

• be
o to make continuous tenses (He is watching TV.)
o to make the passive (Small fish are eaten by big fish.)

• have
o to make perfect tenses (I have finished my homework.)

• do
o to make negatives (I do not like you.)
o to ask questions (Do you want some coffee?)
o to show emphasis (I do want you to pass your exam.)
o to stand for a main verb in some constructions (He speaks faster than she
does.)

Modal helping verbs (10 verbs)

We use modal helping verbs to “modify” the meaning of the main verb in some way. A
modal helping verb expresses necessity or possibility, and changes the main verb in that
sense. These are the modal verbs:

• can, could
• may, might

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 15

• will, would,
• shall, should
• must
• ought to

Here are examples using modal verbs:

• I can’t speak Chinese.

• John may arrive late.
• Would you like a cup of coffee?
• You should see a doctor.
• I really must go now.

Semi-modal verbs (3 verbs)

The following verbs are often called “semi-modals”
because they are partly like modal helping verbs and
partly like main verbs:

• need
• dare
• used to

Verb Forms

English verbs come in several forms. For example, the verb to sing can be: to sing, sing,
sang, sung, singing or sings. This is a total of 6 forms. Not many, considering that some
languages (French, for example) have more than 30 forms for an individual verb. English
tenses may be quite complicated, but the forms that we use to make the tenses are
actually very simple! With the exception of the verb to be, English main verbs have only
4, 5 or 6 forms. To be has 9 forms. Do not confuse verb forms with tenses. We use the
different verb forms to make the tenses, but they are not the same thing.

In this lesson we look at the forms of main verbs and helping (auxiliary) verbs, followed
by a quiz to check your understanding:

• Forms of Main Verbs

• Forms of Helping Verbs

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 16

Forms of Main Verbs

Main verbs are also called “lexical verbs”.

Main verbs—except the verb “be”—have only 4, 5 or 6 forms. “Be” has 9 forms.

V1 V2 V3

present
past past present simple, 3rd
infinitive base
simple participle participle person
singular

regular (to) work work worked worked working works

(to) sing sing sang sung singing sings

(to) make make made made making makes
(to) cut cut cut cut cutting cuts

(to) do* do did done doing does

irregular (to) have* have had had having has

past past present present

infinitive base
simple participle participle simple

was,
(to) be* be been being am, are, is
were

In the above examples:

• to cut has 4 forms: to cut, cut, cutting, cuts

• to work has 5 forms: to work, work, worked, working, works
• to sing has 6 forms: to sing, sing, sang, sung, singing, sings
• to be has 9 forms: to be, be, was, were, been, being, am, is, are

The infinitive can be with or without to. For example,

to sing and sing are both infinitives. We often call the
infinitive without to the “bare infinitive”.

At school, students usually learn by heart the base, past simple and past participle
(sometimes called V1, V2, V3, meaning Verb 1, Verb 2, Verb 3) for the irregular verbs.
They may spend many hours chanting: sing, sang, sung; go, went, gone; have, had, had;

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 17

etc. They do not learn these for the regular verbs because the past simple and past
participle are always the same: they are formed by adding “-ed” to the base. They do not
learn the past participle and 3rd person singular present simple by heart—for another
very simple reason: they never change. The present participle is always made by adding
“-ing” to the base, and the 3rd person singular present simple is always made by adding
“s” to the base (though there are some variations in spelling).

• Note that “do”, “have” and “be” also function as helping or auxiliary verbs, with
exactly the same forms (except that as helping verbs they are never in infinitive
form).

Example Sentences
These example sentences use main verbs in different forms.

Infinitive

• I want to work
• He has to sing.
• This exercise is easy to do.
• Let him have one.
• To be, or not to be, that is the question:

Base - Imperative

• Work well!
• Make this.
• Have a nice day.
• Be quiet!

Base - Present simple

(except 3rd person singular)

• I work in London.
• You sing well.
• They have a lot of money.

Base - After modal auxiliary verbs

• I can work tomorrow.

• You must sing louder.
• They might do it.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 18

You could be right.

Past simple

• I worked yesterday.
• She cut his hair last week.
• They had a good time.
• They were surprised, but I was not.

Past participle

• I have worked here for five years.

• He needs a folder made of plastic.
• It is done like this.
• I have never been so happy.

Present participle

• I am working.
• Singing well is not easy.
• Having finished, he went home.
• You are being silly!

3rd person singular, present simple

• He works in London.
• She sings well.
• She has a lot of money.
• It is Vietnamese.

Forms of Helping Verbs

All helping verbs are used with a main verb (either expressed or understood*). There are
2 groups of helping verbs:

• Primary helping verbs, used mainly to change the tense or voice of the main
verb, and in making questions and negatives.
• Modal helping verbs, used to change the “mood” of the main verb.

Study the table opposite. It shows the principal forms and uses of helping verbs, and
explains the differences between primary and modal helping verbs.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 19

• Sometimes we make a sentence that has a helping verb and seems to have no
main verb. In fact, the main verb is “understood”. Look at the following examples:

• Question: Can you speak English? (The main verb speak is “expressed”.)
• Answer: Yes, I can. (The main verb speak is not expressed. It is “understood”
from the context. We understand: Yes, I can speak English.

But if somebody walked into the room and said “Hello. I can”, we would understand
nothing!

Helping Verbs

Primary Modal

(to make simple tenses, and questions

do can could
and negatives)

(to make continuous tenses, and the

be may might
passive voice)

have (to make perfect tenses) will would

shall should

must

ought (to)

“Do”, “be” and “have” as helping verbs have

exactly the same forms as when they are main Modal helping verbs are invariable.
verbs (except that as helping verbs they are They always have the same form.
never used in infinitive forms).

“Ought” is followed by the main verb

Primary helping verbs are followed by the main
in infinitive form. Other modal helping
verb in a particular form:
verbs are followed by the main verb in
its base form (V1).
• do + V1 (base verb)
• be + -ing (present participle)
• ought + to... (infinitive)
• have + V3 (past participle)
• other modals + V1 (base verb)

“Do”, “be” and “have” can also function as Modal helping verbs cannot function
main verbs. as main verbs.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 20

Tenses

The English Tense System

The links opposite are to lessons for each of the 12 basic tenses. In each lesson we look at
two aspects of the tense:

• Structure: How do we make the tense?

• Use: When and why do we use the tense?

Some lessons look at additional aspects, and most of them finish with a quiz to check
your understanding.

Many English learners worry too much about tense. If

you stopped 100 native English speakers in the street
and asked them about tense, one of them might give
you an intelligent answer—if you were lucky. The
other 99 would know little about terms like “past
perfect” or “present continuous”. And they would
know nothing about aspect, voice or mood. But they
can all speak fluent English and communicate
effectively. Of course, for ESL it helps to know about
tenses, but don’t become obsessed with them. Be like
those native speakers! Speak naturally!

Simple Present Tense

I sing

How do we make the Simple Present Tense?

subject + auxiliary verb + main verb
do base

There are three important exceptions:

1. For positive sentences, we do not normally use the auxiliary.

2. For the 3rd person singular (he, she, it), we add s to the main verb or es to the
auxiliary.
3. For the verb to be, we do not use an auxiliary, even for questions and negatives.

Look at these examples with the main verb like:

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 21

subject auxiliary verb main verb

I, you, we, they like coffee.

+
He, she, it likes coffee.

I, you, we, they do not like coffee.

-
He, she, it does not like coffee.

Do I, you, we, they like coffee?

?
Does he, she, it like coffee?

Look at these examples with the main verb be. Notice that there is no auxiliary:

subject main verb

I am French.

+ You, we, they are French.

He, she, it is French.

I am not old.

- You, we, they are not old.

He, she, it is not old.

Am I late?

? Are you, we, they late?

Is he, she, it late?

How do we use the Simple Present Tense?

We use the simple present tense when:

• the action is general

• the action happens all the time, or habitually, in the past, present and future
• the action is not only happening now
• the statement is always true

John drives a taxi.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 22

past present future

It is John’s job to drive a taxi. He does it every day. Past, present and future.

Look at these examples:

• I live in New York.

• The Moon goes round the Earth.
• John drives a taxi.
• He does not drive a bus.
• We do not work at night.
• Do you play football?

Note that with the verb to be, we can also use the simple present tense for situations that
are not general. We can use the simple present tense to talk about now. Look at these
examples of the verb to be in the present simple tense—some of them are general, some
of them are now:

Am I right?
Tara is not at home.
You are happy.
past present future

The situation is now.

I am not fat.
Why are you so beautiful?
Ram is tall.
past present future

The situation is general. Past, present and future.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 23

This page shows the use of the simple present tense to

talk about general events. But note that there are some
other uses for the simple present tense, for example in
conditional or if sentences, or to talk about the future.
You will learn about those later.

Present Continuous Tense

I am singing

We often use the present continuous tense in English. It is very different from the simple
present tense, both in structure and in use.

In this lesson we look the structure and use of the present continuous tense, follwed by a
quiz to check your understanding:

• Structure: how do we make the present continuous tense?

• Use: when and why do we use the present continuous tense?
• Spelling: how do we spell verbs with -ing for the present continuous tense?

Continuous tenses are also called progressive tenses.

So the present progressive tense is the same as the
present continuous tense.

How do we make the Present Continuous Tense?

The structure of the present continuous tense is:

subject + auxiliary verb + main verb

be base + ing

Look at these examples:

subject auxiliary verb main verb

+ I am speaking to you.

+ You are reading this.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 24

- She is not staying in London.

- We are not playing football.

? Is he watching TV?

? Are they waiting for John?

How do we use the Present Continuous Tense?

We use the present continuous tense to talk about:

• action happening now

• action in the future

Present continuous tense for action happening now

a) for action happening exactly now

I am eating my lunch.
past present future

The action is happening

now.

Look at these examples. Right now you are looking at this screen and at the same time...

...the pages are turning. ...the candle is burning. ...the numbers are spinning.

b) for action happening around now

The action may not be happening exactly now, but it is happening just before and just
after now, and it is not permanent or habitual.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 25

John is going out with Mary.

past present future

The action is happening around

now.

Look at these examples:

• Muriel is learning to drive.

• I am living with my sister until I find an apartment.

Present continuous tense for the future

We can also use the present continuous tense to talk about the future—if we add a future
word!! We must add (or understand from the context) a future word. “Future words”
include, for example, tomorrow, next year, in June, at Christmas etc. We only use the
present continuous tense to talk about the future when we have planned to do something
before we speak. We have already made a decision and a plan before speaking.

I am taking my exam next month.

past present future

!!!
A firm plan or programme
The action is in the future.
exists now.

Look at these examples:

• We’re eating in a restaurant tonight. We’ve already booked the table..

• They can play tennis with you tomorrow. They’re not working.
• When are you starting your new job?

In these examples, we have a firm plan or programme before speaking. The decision
and plan were made before speaking.

How do we spell the Present Continuous Tense?

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 26

We make the present continuous tense by adding -ing to the base verb. Normally it’s
simple—we just add -ing. But sometimes we have to change the word a little. Perhaps we
double the last letter, or we drop a letter. Here are the rules to help you know how to spell
the present continuous tense.

Basic rule Just add -ing to the base verb:

work > working

play > playing

assist > assisting

see > seeing

be > being

Exception 1 If the base verb ends in consonant + stressed vowel + consonant, double
the last letter:

s t o p
stressed
consonant consonant
vowel
(vowels = a, e, i, o, u)

stop > stopping

run > running

begin > beginning

Note that this exception does not apply when the last syllable of the base
verb is not stressed:

open > opening

Exception 2 If the base verb ends in ie, change the ie to y:

lie > lying

die > dying

Exception 3 If the base verb ends in vowel + consonant + e, omit the e:

come > coming

mistake > mistaking

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 27

Present Perfect Tense

I have sung

The present perfect tense is a rather important tense in English, but it gives speakers of
some languages a difficult time. That is because it uses concepts or ideas that do not exist
in those languages. In fact, the structure of the present perfect tense is very simple. The
problems come with the use of the tense. In addition, there are some differences in usage
between British and American English.

In this lesson we look at the structure and use of the present perfect, followed by a quiz to
check your understanding:

• Structure: how to make the present perfect tense

• Use: when and why to use the present perfect tense
• For and Since with the present perfect tense. What’s the difference?

The present perfect tense is really a very interesting

tense, and a very useful one. Try not to translate the
present perfect tense into your language. Just try to
accept the concepts of this tense and learn to “think”
present perfect! You will soon learn to like the present
perfect tense!

How do we make the Present Perfect Tense?

The structure of the present perfect tense is:

subject + auxiliary verb + main verb

have past participle

Here are some examples of the present perfect tense:

subject auxiliary verb main verb

+ I have seen ET.

+ You have eaten mine.

- She has not been to Rome.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 28

- We have not played football.

? Have you finished?

? Have they done it?

Contractions with the present perfect tense

When we use the present perfect tense in speaking, we usually contract the subject and
auxiliary verb. We also sometimes do this when we write.

I have I’ve

You have You’ve

He has He’s
She has She’s
It has It’s
John has John’s
The car has The car’s

We have We’ve

They have They’ve

Here are some examples:

• I’ve finished my work.

• John’s seen ET.
• They’ve gone home.

He’s or he’s??? Be careful! The ‘s contraction is used

for the auxiliary verbs have and be. For example, “It’s
eaten” can mean:

• It has eaten. [present perfect tense, active

voice]
• It is eaten. [present tense, passive voice]

It is usually clear from the context.

How do we use the Present Perfect Tense?

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 29

This tense is called the present perfect tense. There is always a connection with the past
and with the present. There are basically three uses for the present perfect tense:

1. experience
2. change
3. continuing situation

1. Present perfect tense for experience

We often use the present perfect tense to talk about experience from the past. We are not
interested in when you did something. We only want to know if you did it:

I have seen ET.

He has lived in Bangkok.
Have you been there?
We have never eaten caviar.
past present future

!!!
The action or state was in In my head, I have a
the past. memory now.
Connection with past: the event was in the past.
Connection with present: in my head, now, I have a memory of the event; I know
something about the event; I have experience of it.

2. Present perfect tense for change

We also use the present perfect tense to talk about a change or new information:

I have bought a car.

past present future

- +
Last week I didn’t have a
Now I have a car.
car.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 30

John has broken his leg.

past present future

+ -
Yesterday John had a good
Now he has a bad leg.
leg.

Has the price gone up?

past present future

+ -
Was the price $1.50
Is the price $1.70 today?
yesterday?

The police have arrested the killer.

past present future

- +
Yesterday the killer was
Now he is in prison.
free.
Connection with past: the past is the opposite of the present.
Connection with present: the present is the opposite of the past.

Americans do not use the present perfect tense so

much as British speakers. Americans often use the past
tense instead. An American might say “Did you have
lunch?”, where a British person would say “Have you
had lunch?”

3. Present perfect tense for continuing situation

We often use the present perfect tense to talk about a continuing situation. This is a state
that started in the past and continues in the present (and will probably continue into the
future). This is a state (not an action). We usually use for or since with this structure.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 31

I have worked here since June.

He has been ill for 2 days.
How long have you known Tara?
past present future

The situation started in the (It will probably continue

It continues up to now.
past. into the future.)
Connection with past: the situation started in the past.
Connection with present: the situation continues in the present.

For & Since with Present Perfect Tense

We often use for and since with the present perfect tense.

• We use for to talk about a period of time—5 minutes, 2 weeks, 6 years.

• We use since to talk about a point in past time—9 o’clock, 1st January, Monday.

for since
a period of time a point in past time

·
20 minutes 6.15pm

three days Monday

6 months January

4 years 1994

2 centuries 1800

a long time I left school

ever the beginning of time

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 32

etc etc

Here are some examples:

• I have been here for 20 minutes.

• I have been here since 9 o’clock.
• John hasn’t called for 6 months.
• John hasn’t called since February.
• He has worked in New York for a long time.
• He has worked in New York since he left school.

For can be used with all tenses. Since is usually used

with perfect tenses only.

Present Perfect Continuous Tense

I have been singing

How do we make the Present Perfect Continuous Tense?

The structure of the present perfect continuous tense is:

subject + auxiliary verb + auxiliary verb + main verb

have
been base + ing
has

Here are some examples of the present perfect continuous tense:

subject auxiliary verb auxiliary verb main verb

+ I have been waiting for one hour.

+ You have been talking too much.

- It has not been raining.

- We have not been playing football.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 33

? Have you been seeing her?

? Have they been doing their homework?

Contractions

When we use the present perfect continuous tense in speaking, we often contract the
subject and the first auxiliary. We also sometimes do this in informal writing.

I have been I’ve been

You have been You’ve been

He has been He’s been

She has been She’s been
It has been It’s been
John has been John’s been
The car has been The car’s been

We have been We’ve been

They have been They’ve been

Here are some examples:

• I’ve been reading.

• The car’s been giving trouble.
• We’ve been playing tennis for two hours.

How do we use the Present Perfect Continuous Tense?

This tense is called the present perfect continuous tense. There is usually a connection
with the present or now. There are basically two uses for the present perfect continuous
tense:

1. An action that has just stopped or recently stopped

We use the present perfect continuous tense to talk about an action that started in the past
and stopped recently. There is usually a result now.

I’m tired because I’ve been running.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 34

past present future

!!!
Recent action. Result now.

I’m tired [now] because I’ve been running.

• Why is the grass wet [now]? Has it been raining?

• You don’t understand [now] because you haven’t been listening.

2. An action continuing up to now

We use the present perfect continuous tense to talk about an action that started in the past
and is continuing now. This is often used with for or since.

I have been reading for 2 hours.

past present future

Action started in past. Action is continuing now.

I have been reading for 2 hours. [I am still reading now.]

• We’ve been studying since 9 o’clock. [We’re still studying now.]

• How long have you been learning English? [You are still learning now.]
• We have not been smoking. [And we are not smoking now.]

For and Since with Present Perfect Continuous Tense

We often use for and since with the present perfect tense.

• We use for to talk about a period of time—5 minutes, 2 weeks, 6 years.

• We use since to talk about a point in past time—9 o’clock, 1st January, Monday.

for since
a period of time a point in past time

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 35

20 minutes 6.15pm

three days Monday

6 months January

4 years 1994

2 centuries 1800

a long time I left school

ever the beginning of time

etc etc

Here are some examples:

• I have been studying for 3 hours.

• I have been watching TV since 7pm.
• Tara hasn’t been feeling well for 2 weeks.
• Tara hasn’t been visiting us since March.
• He has been playing football for a long time.
• He has been living in Bangkok since he left school.

For can be used with all tenses. Since is usually used

with perfect tenses only.

Simple Past Tense

I sang

The simple past tense is sometimes called the preterite tense. We can use several tenses
to talk about the past, but the simple past tense is the one we use most often.

In this lesson we look at the structure and use of the simple past tense, followed by a quiz
to check your understanding:

• Structure: how do we make the simple past tense?

• Use: how do we use the simple past tense?

How do we make the Simple Past Tense?

To make the simple past tense, we use:

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 36

• past form only

or
• auxiliary did + base form

Here you can see examples of the past form and base form for irregular verbs and
regular verbs:

V1 V2 V3
base past past participle

work worked worked The past form for all

regular
explode exploded exploded regular verbs ends in
verb
like liked liked -ed.

The past form for

go went gone
irregular irregular verbs is
see saw seen
verb variable. You need
sing sang sung
to learn it by heart.

You do not need the past

participle form to make the
simple past tense. It is shown
here for completeness only.

The structure for positive sentences in the simple past tense is:

subject + main verb

past

The structure for negative sentences in the simple past tense is:

subject + auxiliary verb + not + main verb

did base

The structure for question sentences in the simple past tense is:

auxiliary verb + subject + main verb

did base

The auxiliary verb did is not conjugated. It is the same for all persons (I did, you did, he
did etc). And the base form and past form do not change. Look at these examples with the
main verbs go and work:

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 37

subject auxiliary verb main verb

I went to school.
+
You worked very hard.

She did not go with me.

-
We did not work yesterday.

Did you go to London?

?
Did they work at home?

Exception! The verb to be is different. We conjugate the verb to be (I was, you were,
he/she/it was, we were, they were); and we do not use an auxiliary for negative and
question sentences. To make a question, we exchange the subject and verb. Look at these
examples:

subject main verb

I, he/she/it was here.

+
You, we, they were in London.

I, he/she/it was not there.

-
You, we, they were not happy.

Was I, he/she/it right?

?
Were you, we, they late?

How do we use the Simple Past Tense?

We use the simple past tense to talk about an action or a situation—an event—in the past.
The event can be short or long.

Here are some short events with the simple past tense:

The car exploded at 9.30am yesterday.

She went to the door.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 38

We did not hear the telephone.

Did you see that car?
past present future

The action is in the past.

Here are some long events with the simple past tense:

I lived in Bangkok for 10 years.

The Jurassic period lasted about 62 million years.
We did not sing at the concert.
Did you watch TV last night?
past present future

The action is in the past.

Notice that it does not matter how long ago the event is: it can be a few minutes or
seconds in the past, or millions of years in the past. Also it does not matter how long the
event is. It can be a few milliseconds (car explosion) or millions of years (Jurassic
period). We use the simple past tense when:

• the event is in the past

• the event is completely finished
• we say (or understand) the time and/or place of the event

In general, if we say the time or place of the event, we

must use the simple past tense; we cannot use the
present perfect.

Here are some more examples:

• I lived in that house when I was young.

• He didn’t like the movie.
• What did you eat for dinner?

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 39

• John drove to London on Monday.

• Mary did not go to work yesterday.
• Did you play tennis last week?
• I was at work yesterday.
• We were not late (for the train).
• Were you angry?

Note that when we tell a story, we usually use the simple past tense. We may use the past
continuous tense to “set the scene”, but we almost always use the simple past tense for
the action. Look at this example of the beginning of a story:

“The wind was howling around the hotel and the rain was pouring down. It was cold. The
door opened and James Bond entered. He took off his coat, which was very wet, and
ordered a drink at the bar. He sat down in the corner of the lounge and quietly drank
his...”

This page shows the use of the simple past tense to

talk about past events. But note that there are some
other uses for the simple past tense, for example in
conditional or if sentences.

Past Continuous Tense

I was singing

The past continuous tense is an important tense in English. We use it to say what we
were in the middle of doing at a particular moment in the past.

In this lesson we look at the structure and the use of the past continuouse tense, followed
by a quiz to check your understanding:

• Structure: how do we make the past continuous tense?

• Use: how do we use the past continuous tense?

Continuous tenses are also called progressive tenses.

How do we make the Past Continuous Tense?

The structure of the past continuous tense is:

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 40

subject + auxiliary verb BE + main verb

conjugated in simple past tense present participle

was
base + ing
were

For negative sentences in the past continuous tense, we insert not between the auxiliary
verb and main verb. For question sentences, we exchange the subject and auxiliary
verb. Look at these example sentences with the past continuous tense:

subject auxiliary verb main verb

+ I was watching TV.

+ You were working hard.

- He, she, it was not helping Mary.

- We were not joking.

? Were you being silly?

? Were they playing football?

The spelling rules for adding ing to make the past continuous tense are the same as
for the present continuous tense.

How do we use the Past Continuous Tense?

The past continuous tense expresses action at a particular moment in the past. The
action started before that moment but has not finished at that moment. For example,
yesterday I watched a film on TV. The film started at 7pm and finished at 9pm.

At 8pm yesterday, I was watching TV.

past present future

8pm

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 41

At 8pm, I was in the middle

of watching TV.

When we use the past continuous tense, our listener usually knows or understands what
time we are talking about. Look at these examples:

• I was working at 10pm last night.

• They were not playing football at 9am this morning.
• What were you doing at 10pm last night?
• What were you doing when he arrived?
• She was cooking when I telephoned her.
• We were having dinner when it started to rain.
• Ram went home early because it was snowing.

Some verbs cannot be used in continuous/progressive

tenses.

We often use the past continuous tense to “set the scene” in stories. We use it to describe
the background situation at the moment when the action begins. Often, the story starts
with the past continuous tense and then moves into the simple past tense. Here is an
example:

“ James Bond was driving through town. It was raining. The wind was blowing hard.
Nobody was walking in the streets. Suddenly, Bond saw the killer in a telephone box...”

Past Continuous Tense + Simple Past Tense

We often use the past continuous tense with the simple past tense. We use the past
continuous tense to express a long action. And we use the simple past tense to express a
short action that happens in the middle of the long action. We can join the two ideas
with when or while.

In the following example, we have two actions:

1. long action (watching TV), expressed with past continuous tense

2. short action (telephoned), expressed with simple past tense
past present future

Long action.

I was watching TV at 8pm.

8pm

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 42

You telephoned at 8pm.

Short action.

We can join these two actions with when:

• I was watching TV when you telephoned.

(Notice that “when you telephoned” is also a way of defining the time [8pm].)

We use:

• when + short action (simple past tense)

• while + long action (past continuous tense)

There are four basic combinations:

I was walking past the car when it exploded.

When the car exploded I was walking past it.

The car exploded while I was walking past it.

While I was walking past the car it exploded.

Notice that the long action and short action are relative.

• “Watching TV” took a few hours. “Telephoned” took a few seconds.

• “Walking past the car” took a few seconds. “Exploded” took a few milliseconds.

Past Perfect Tense

I had sung

The past perfect tense is quite an easy tense to understand and to use. This tense talks
about the “past in the past”.

In this lesson we look at:

• Structure: how do we make the past perfect tense?

• Use: how do we use the past perfect tense?

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 43

How do we make the Past Perfect Tense?

The structure of the past perfect tense is:

subject + auxiliary verb HAVE + main verb

conjugated in simple past tense past participle

had V3

For negative sentences in the past perfect tense, we insert not between the auxiliary verb
and main verb. For question sentences, we exchange the subject and auxiliary verb.
Look at these example sentences with the past perfect tense:

subject auxiliary verb main verb

+ I had finished my work.

+ You had stopped before me.

- She had not gone to school.

- We had not left.

? Had you arrived?

? Had they eaten dinner?

When speaking with the past perfect tense, we often contract the subject and auxiliary
verb:

I had I’d

you had you’d

he had he’d
she had she’d
it had it’d

we had we’d

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 44

they had they’d

The ‘d contraction is also used for the auxiliary verb

would. For example, we’d can mean:

• We had
or
• We would

But usually the main verb is in a different form, for

example:

• We had arrived (past participle)

• We would arrive (base)

It is always clear from the context.

How do we use the Past Perfect Tense?

The past perfect tense expresses action in the past before another action in the past. This
is the past in the past. For example:

• The train left at 9am. We arrived at 9.15am. When we arrived, the train had left.

The train had left when we arrived.

past present future

Train leaves in past at 9am.

9 9.15

We arrive in past at
9.15am.

Look at some more examples:

• I wasn’t hungry. I had just eaten.

• They were hungry. They had not eaten for five hours.
• I didn’t know who he was. I had never seen him before.
• “Mary wasn’t at home when I arrived.”
”Really? Where had she gone?”

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 45

You can sometimes think of the past perfect tense like the present perfect tense, but
instead of the time being now the time is past.

past perfect tense present perfect tense

had | have |
done | done |
>| >|

past now future past now future

For example, imagine that you arrive at the station at 9.15am. The stationmaster says to
you:

• “You are too late. The train has left.”

Later, you tell your friends:

• “We were too late. The train had left.”

We often use the past perfect tense in reported speech after verbs like said, told, asked,
thought, wondered:

Look at these examples:

• He told us that the train had left.

• I thought I had met her before, but I was wrong.
• He explained that he had closed the window because of the rain.
• I wondered if I had been there before.
• I asked them why they had not finished.

Past Perfect Continuous Tense

I had been singing

How do we make the Past Perfect Continuous Tense?

The structure of the past perfect continuous tense is:

auxiliary verb auxiliary main

subject + + +
HAVE verb BE verb

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 46

conjugated in simple present

past participle
past tense participle

had been base + ing

For negative sentences in the past perfect continuous tense, we insert not after the first
auxiliary verb. For question sentences, we exchange the subject and first auxiliary verb.
Look at these example sentences with the past perfect continuous tense:

subject auxiliary verb auxiliary verb main verb

+ I had been working.

+ You had been playing tennis.

- It had not been working well.

- We had not been expecting her.

? Had you been drinking?

? Had they been waiting long?

When speaking with the past perfect continuous tense, we often contract the subject and
first auxiliary verb:

I had been I’d been

you had been you’d been

he had he’d been

she had been she’d been
it had been it’d been

we had been we’d been

they had been they’d been

How do we use the Past Perfect Continuous Tense?

The past perfect continuous tense is like the past perfect tense, but it expresses longer
actions in the past before another action in the past. For example:

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 47

• Ram started waiting at 9am. I arrived at 11am. When I arrived, Ram had been
waiting for two hours.

Ram had been waiting for two hours when I arrived.

past present future

Ram starts waiting in past

at 9am.

9 11

I arrive in past at 11am.

Here are some more examples:

• John was very tired. He had been running.

• I could smell cigarettes. Somebody had been smoking.
• Suddenly, my car broke down. I was not surprised. It had not been running well
for a long time.
• Had the pilot been drinking before the crash?

You can sometimes think of the past perfect continuous tense like the present perfect
continuous tense, but instead of the time being now the time is past.

past perfect continuous tense present perfect continuous tense

had | | | have |
been | | | been |
doing | | | doing |
>>>> | | | >>>> |

past now future past now future

For example, imagine that you meet Ram at 11am. Ram says to you:

• “I am angry. I have been waiting for two hours.”

Later, you tell your friends:

• “Ram was angry. He had been waiting for two hours.”

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 48

Simple Future Tense

I will sing

The simple future tense is often called will, because we make the simple future tense
with the modal auxiliary will.

How do we make the Simple Future Tense?

The structure of the simple future tense is:

subject + auxiliary verb WILL + main verb

invariable base

will V1

For negative sentences in the simple future tense, we insert not between the auxiliary
verb and main verb. For question sentences, we exchange the subject and auxiliary
verb. Look at these example sentences with the simple future tense:

subject auxiliary verb main verb

+ I will open the door.

+ You will finish before me.

- She will not be at school tomorrow.

- We will not leave yet.

? Will you arrive on time?

? Will they want dinner?

When we use the simple future tense in speaking, we often contract the subject and
auxiliary verb:

I will I’ll

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 49

you will you’ll

he will he’ll
she will she’ll
it will it’ll

we will we’ll

they will they’ll

For negative sentences in the simple future tense, we contract with won’t, like this:

I will not I won’t

you will not you won’t

he will not he won’t

she will not she won’t
it will not it won’t

we will not we won’t

they will not they won’t

How do we use the Simple Future Tense?

No Plan

We use the simple future tense when there is no plan or decision to do something before
we speak. We make the decision spontaneously at the time of speaking. Look at these
examples:

• Hold on. I’ll get a pen.

• We will see what we can do to help you.
• Maybe we’ll stay in and watch television tonight.

In these examples, we had no firm plan before speaking. The decision is made at the
time of speaking.

We often use the simple future tense with the verb to think before it:

• I think I’ll go to the gym tomorrow.

• I think I will have a holiday next year.
• I don’t think I’ll buy that car.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 50

Prediction

We often use the simple future tense to make a prediction about the future. Again, there is
no firm plan. We are saying what we think will happen. Here are some examples:

• It will rain tomorrow.

• People won’t go to Jupiter before the 22nd century.
• Who do you think will get the job?

Be

When the main verb is be, we can use the simple future tense even if we have a firm plan
or decision before speaking. Examples:

• I’ll be in London tomorrow.

• I’m going shopping. I won’t be very long.
• Will you be at work tomorrow?

Note that when we have a plan or intention to do

something in the future, we usually use other tenses or
expressions, such as the present continuous tense or
going to.

Future Continuous Tense

I will be singing

How do we make the Future Continuous Tense?

The structure of the future continuous tense is:

auxiliary verb auxiliary main

subject + + +
WILL verb BE verb
present
invariable invariable
participle

will be base + ing

For negative sentences in the future continuous tense, we insert not between will and be.
For question sentences, we exchange the subject and will. Look at these example
sentences with the future continuous tense:

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 51

auxiliary auxiliary main

subject
verb verb verb

+ I will be working at 10am.

on a beach
+ You will be lying
tomorrow.

- She will not be using the car.

- We will not be having dinner at home.

? Will you be playing football?

? Will they be watching TV?

When we use the future continuous tense in speaking, we often contract the subject and
will:

I will I’ll

you will you’ll

he will he’ll
she will she’ll
it will it’ll

we will we’ll

they will they’ll

For spoken negative sentences in the future continuous tense, we contract with won’t,
like this:

I will not I won’t

you will not you won’t

he will not he won’t

she will not she won’t
it will not it won’t

we will not we won’t

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 52

they will not they won’t

We sometimes use shall instead of will, especially for

I and we.

How do we use the Future Continuous Tense?

The future continuous tense expresses action at a particular moment in the future. The
action will start before that moment but it will not have finished at that moment. For
example, tomorrow I will start work at 2pm and stop work at 6pm:

At 4pm tomorrow, I will be working.

past present future

4pm

At 4pm, I will be in the

middle of working.

When we use the future continuous tense, our listener usually knows or understands what
time we are talking about. Look at these examples:

• I will be playing tennis at 10am tomorrow.

• They won’t be watching TV at 9pm tonight.
• What will you be doing at 10pm tonight?
• What will you be doing when I arrive?
• She will not be sleeping when you telephone her.
• We ‘ll be having dinner when the film starts.
• Take your umbrella. It will be raining when you return.

Future Perfect Tense

I will have sung

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 53

The future perfect tense is quite an easy tense to understand and use. The future perfect
tense talks about the past in the future.

How do we make the Future Perfect Tense?

The structure of the future perfect tense is:

auxiliary verb auxiliary verb main

subject + + +
WILL HAVE verb
past
invariable invariable
participle

will have V3

Look at these example sentences in the future perfect tense:

subject auxiliary verb auxiliary verb main verb

+ I will have finished by 10am.

+ You will have forgotten me by then.

- She will not have gone to school.

- We will not have left.

? Will you have arrived?

? Will they have received it?

In speaking with the future perfect tense, we often contract the subject and will.
Sometimes, we contract the subject, will and have all together:

I will have I’ll have I’ll’ve

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 54

you will have you’ll have you’ll’ve

he will have he’ll have he’ll’ve

she will have she’ll have she’ll’ve
it will have it’ll have it’ll’ve

we will have we’ll have we’ll’ve

they will have they’ll have they’ll’ve

We sometimes use shall instead of will, especially for

I and we.

How do we use the Future Perfect Tense?

The future perfect tense expresses action in the future before another action in the future.
This is the past in the future. For example:

• The train will leave the station at 9am. You will arrive at the station at 9.15am.
When you arrive, the train will have left.

The train will have left when you arrive.

past present future

Train leaves in future at

9am.

9 9.15

You arrive in future at

9.15am.

Look at some more examples:

• You can call me at work at 8am. I will have arrived at the office by 8.
• They will be tired when they arrive. They will not have slept for a long time.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 55

• “Mary won’t be at home when you arrive.”

”Really? Where will she have gone?”

You can sometimes think of the future perfect tense like the present perfect tense, but
instead of your viewpoint being in the present, it is in the future:

present perfect tense future perfect tense

| will |
have | have |
done | done |
>| >|

past now future past now future

Future Perfect Continuous Tense

I will have been singing

How do we make the Future Perfect Continuous Tense?

The structure of the future perfect continuous tense is:

auxiliary auxiliary
auxiliary main
subject + verb + verb + +
verb BE verb
WILL HAVE
past present
invariable invariable
participle participle

base +
will have been
ing

For negative sentences in the future perfect continuous tense, we insert not between will
and have. For question sentences, we exchange the subject and will. Look at these
example sentences with the future perfect continuous tense:

subject auxiliary auxiliary auxiliary main

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 56

verb verb verb verb

for four
+ I will have been working
hours.

for two
+ You will have been travelling
days.

- She will not have been using the car.

- We will not have been waiting long.

? Will you have been playing football?

? Will they have been watching TV?

When we use the future perfect continuous tense in speaking, we often contract the
subject and auxiliary verb:

I will I’ll

you will you’ll

he will he’ll
she will she’ll
it will it’ll

we will we’ll

they will they’ll

For negative sentences in the future perfect continuous tense, we contract with won’t,
like this:

I will not I won’t

you will not you won’t

he will not he won’t

she will not she won’t
it will not it won’t

we will not we won’t

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 57

they will not they won’t

How do we use the Future Perfect Continuous Tense?

We use the future perfect continuous tense to talk about a long action before some point
in the future. Look at these examples:

• I will have been working here for ten years next week.
• He will be tired when he arrives. He will have been travelling for 24 hours.

Phrasal Verbs and other multi-word verbs

Phrasal verbs are part of a large group of verbs called “multi-word verbs”. Phrasal verbs
and other multi-word verbs are an important part of the English language. Multi-word
verbs, including phrasal verbs, are very common, especially in spoken English. A multi-
word verb is a verb like “pick up”, “turn on” or “get on with”. For convenience, many
people refer to all multi-word verbs as phrasal verbs. These verbs consist of a basic verb
+ another word or words. The other word(s) can be prepositions and/or adverbs. The
two or three words that make up multi-word verbs form a short “phrase”—which is why
these verbs are often all called “phrasal verbs”.

The important thing to remember is that a multi-word verb is still a verb. “Get” is a verb.
“Get up”, is also a verb, a different verb. “Get” and “get up” are two different verbs.
They do not have the same meaning. So you should treat each multi-word verb as a
separate verb, and learn it like any other verb. Look at these examples. You can see that
there are three types of multi-word verb:

single-word verb look direct your eyes in a You must look

certain direction before you leap.

multi- prepositional look after take care of Who is looking after

word verbs the baby?
verbs
phrasal verbs look up search for and find You can look up my
information in a number in the
reference book telephone directory.

phrasal- look anticipate with

I look forward to
prepositional forward pleasure
meeting you.
verbs to

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 58

In this lesson we look at the three types of multi-word verbs, including phrasal verbs,
followed by a quiz to check your understanding:

• Phrasal Verbs
• Prepositional Verbs
• Phrasal-prepositional Verbs

Like many grammar books, we divide multi-word

verbs into:

• prepositional verbs
• phrasal verbs
• phrasal-prepositional verbs

Other grammars, however, call all multi-word verbs

“phrasal verbs”.

Phrasal Verbs

Phrasal verbs are a group of multi-word verbs made from a verb plus another word or
words. Many people refer to all multi-word verbs as phrasal verbs. On these pages we
make a distinction between three types of multi-word verbs: prepositional verbs, phrasal
verbs and phrasal-prepositional verbs. On this page we look at phrasal verbs proper.

Phrasal verbs are made of:

verb + adverb
Phrasal verbs can be:

• intransitive (no direct object)

• transitive (direct object)

Here are some examples of phrasal verbs:

examples
phrasal
meaning
verbs direct
object

intransitive get up rise from bed I don’t like to get up.

phrasal
verbs break cease to He was late because his car

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 59

down function broke down.

transitive the
put off postpone We will have to put off
phrasal meeting.
verbs
turn down refuse They turned down my offer.

Separable Phrasal Verbs

When phrasal verbs are transitive (that is, they have a direct object), we can usually
separate the two parts. For example, “turn down” is a separable phrasal verb. We can
say: “turn down my offer” or “turn my offer down”. Look at this table:

transitive phrasal verbs are They turned down my offer.

separable
They turned my offer down.

However, if the direct object is a pronoun, we have no choice. We must separate the
phrasal verb and insert the pronoun between the two parts. Look at this example with the
separable phrasal verb “switch on”:

direct the
John switched on
object radio.
pronouns These are all
must go the
John switched on. possible.
between radio
the two
parts of John switched it on.
transitive
phrasal
verbs John switched on it. This is not possible.

Separable or inseparable phrasal verbs? Some

dictionaries tell you when phrasal verbs are separable.
If a dictionary writes “look (something) up”, you
know that the phrasal verb “look up” is separable, and
you can say “look something up” and “look up
something”. It’s a good idea to write
“something/somebody” as appropriate in your
vocabulary book when you learn a new phrasal verb,
like this:

• get up

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 60

• break down
• put something/somebody off
• turn sthg/sby down

This tells you whether the verb needs a direct object

(and where to put it).

Prepositional Verbs

Prepositional verbs are a group of multi-word verbs made from a verb plus another word
or words. Many people refer to all multi-word verbs as phrasal verbs. On these pages we
make a distinction between three types of multi-word verbs: prepositional verbs, phrasal
verbs and phrasal-prepositional verbs. On this page we look at prepositional verbs.

Prepositional verbs are made of:

verb + preposition
Because a preposition always has an object, all prepositional verbs have direct objects.
Here are some examples of prepositional verbs:

examples
prepositional verbs meaning
direct object

believe in have faith in the existence of I believe in God.

look after take care of He is looking after the dog.

talk about discuss Did you talk about me?

wait for await John is waiting for Mary.

Prepositional verbs cannot be separated. That means that we cannot put the direct object
between the two parts. For example, we must say “look after the baby”. We cannot say
“look the baby after”:

prepositional verbs are Who is looking after the

This is possible.
inseparable baby?

Who is looking the baby This is not

after? possible.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 61

It is a good idea to write “something/somebody” in

your vocabulary book when you learn a new
prepositional verb, like this:

• believe in something/somebody
• look after sthg/sby

This reminds you that this verb needs a direct object

(and where to put it).

Phrasal-prepositional Verbs

Phrasal-prepositional verbs are a small group of multi-word verbs made from a verb plus
another word or words. Many people refer to all multi-word verbs as phrasal verbs. On
these pages we make a distinction between three types of multi-word verbs: prepositional
verbs, phrasal verbs and phrasal-prepositional verbs. On this page we look at phrasal-
prepositional verbs.

Phrasal-prepositional verbs are made of:

verb + adverb + preposition

Look at these examples of phrasal-prepositional verbs:

examples
phrasal-prepositional
meaning
verbs direct
object

have a friendly He doesn’t get on

get on with his wife.
relationship with with

I won’t put up your

put up with tolerate
with attitude.

look forward to anticipate with pleasure I look forward to seeing you.

We have run out

run out of use up, exhaust eggs.
of

Because phrasal-prepositional verbs end with a preposition, there is always a direct

object. And, like prepositional verbs, phrasal-prepositional verbs cannot be separated.
Look at these examples:

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 62

phrasal-prepositional verbs are We ran out of fuel.

inseparable
We ran out of it.

It is a good idea to write “something/somebody” in

your vocabulary book when you learn a new phrasal-
prepositional verb, like this:

• get on with somebody

• put up with sthg/sby
• run out of something

This reminds you that this verb needs a direct object

(and where to put it).

English Conditionals

There are several structures in English that are called conditionals.

“Condition” means “situation or circumstance”. If a particular condition is true, then a

particular result happens.

• If y = 10 then 2y = 20
• If y = 3 then 2y = 6

There are three basic conditionals that we use very often. There are some more
conditionals that we do not use so often.

In this lesson, we will look at the three basic conditionals as well as the so-called zero
conditional. We’ll finish with a quiz to check your understanding.

• Structure of Conditional Sentences

• First Conditional
• Second Conditional
• Third Conditional
• Zero Conditional
• Summary

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 63

People sometimes call conditionals “IF” structures or

sentences, because there is usually (but not always) the
word “if” in a conditional sentence.

Structure of Conditional Sentences

The structure of most conditionals is very simple. There are two basic possibilities. Of
course, we add many words and can use various tenses, but the basic structure is usually
like this:

IF condition result

IF y = 10 2y = 20

or like this:

result IF condition

2y = 20 IF y = 10

First Conditional: real possibility

We are talking about the future. We are thinking about a particular condition or situation
in the future, and the result of this condition. There is a real possibility that this condition
will happen. For example, it is morning. You are at home. You plan to play tennis this
afternoon. But there are some clouds in the sky. Imagine that it rains. What will you do?

IF condition result

present simple WILL + base verb

If it rains I will stay at home.

Notice that we are thinking about a future condition. It is not raining yet. But the sky is
cloudy and you think that it could rain. We use the present simple tense to talk about the
possible future condition. We use WILL + base verb to talk about the possible future
result. The important thing about the first conditional is that there is a real possibility

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 64

that the condition will happen. Here are some more examples (do you remember the
two basic structures: [IF condition result] and [result IF condition]?):

IF condition result

present simple WILL + base verb

If I see Mary I will tell her.

If Tara is free tomorrow he will invite her.

If they do not pass their exam their teacher will be sad.

If it rains tomorrow will you stay at home?

If it rains tomorrow what will you do?

result IF condition

WILL + base verb present simple

I will tell Mary if I see her.

He will invite Tara if she is free tomorrow.

Their teacher will be sad if they do not pass their exam.

Will you stay at home if it rains tomorrow?

What will you do if it rains tomorrow?

Sometimes, we use shall, can, or may instead of will,

for example: If you are good today, you can watch TV
tonight.

Second Conditional: unreal possibility or dream

The second conditional is like the first conditional. We are still thinking about the future.
We are thinking about a particular condition in the future, and the result of this condition.
But there is not a real possibility that this condition will happen. For example, you do not
have a lottery ticket. Is it possible to win? No! No lottery ticket, no win! But maybe you
will buy a lottery ticket in the future. So you can think about winning in the future, like a
dream. It’s not very real, but it’s still possible.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 65

IF condition result

past simple WOULD + base verb

If I won the lottery I would buy a car.

Notice that we are thinking about a future condition. We use the past simple tense to talk
about the future condition. We use WOULD + base verb to talk about the future result.
The important thing about the second conditional is that there is an unreal possibility
that the condition will happen.

Here are some more examples:

IF condition result

past simple WOULD + base verb

If I married Mary I would be happy.

If Ram became rich she would marry him.

If it snowed next July would you be surprised?

If it snowed next July what would you do?

result IF condition

WOULD + base verb past simple

I would be happy if I married Mary.

She would marry Ram if he became rich.

Would you be surprised if it snowed next July?

What would you do if it snowed next July?

Sometimes, we use should, could or might instead of

would, for example: If I won a million dollars, I could
stop working.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 66

Third Conditional:
no possibility

The first conditional and second conditionals talk about the future. With the third
conditional we talk about the past. We talk about a condition in the past that did not
happen. That is why there is no possibility for this condition. The third conditional is also
like a dream, but with no possibility of the dream coming true.

Last week you bought a lottery ticket. But you did not win. :-(

condition result

Past Perfect WOULD HAVE + Past Participle

If I had won the lottery I would have bought a car.

Notice that we are thinking about an impossible past condition. You did not win the
lottery. So the condition was not true, and that particular condition can never be true
because it is finished. We use the past perfect tense to talk about the impossible past
condition. We use WOULD HAVE + past participle to talk about the impossible past
result. The important thing about the third conditional is that both the condition and result
are impossible now.

Sometimes, we use should have, could have, might

have instead of would have, for example: If you had
bought a lottery ticket, you might have won.

Look at some more examples in the tables opposite:

IF condition result

past perfect WOULD HAVE + past participle

If I had seen Mary I would have told her.

If Tara had been free yesterday I would have invited her.

If they had not passed their exam their teacher would have been sad.

If it had rained yesterday would you have stayed at home?

If it had rained yesterday what would you have done?

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 67

result IF condition

WOULD HAVE + past participle past perfect

I would have told Mary if I had seen her.

I would have invited Tara if she had been free yesterday.

Their teacher would have been sad if they had not passed their exam.

Would you have stayed at home if it had rained yesterday?

What would you have done if it had rained yesterday?

Zero Conditional: certainty

We use the so-called zero conditional when the result of the condition is always true,
like a scientific fact.

Take some ice. Put it in a saucepan. Heat the saucepan. What happens? The ice melts (it
becomes water). You would be surprised if it did not.

IF condition result

present simple present simple

If you heat ice it melts.

Notice that we are thinking about a result that is always true for this condition. The result
of the condition is an absolute certainty. We are not thinking about the future or the past,
or even the present. We are thinking about a simple fact. We use the present simple tense
to talk about the condition. We also use the present simple tense to talk about the result.
The important thing about the zero conditional is that the condition always has the same
result.

We can also use when instead of if, for example:

When I get up late I miss my bus.

Look at some more examples in the tables opposite:

IF condition result

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 68

present simple present simple

If I miss the 8 o’clock bus I am late for work.

If I am late for work my boss gets angry.

If people don’t eat they get hungry.

If you heat ice does it melt?

result IF condition

present simple present simple

I am late for work if I miss the 8 o’clock bus.

My boss gets angry if I am late for work.

People get hungry if they don’t eat.

Does ice melt if you heat it?

Conditionals: Summary

Here is a chart to help you to visualize the basic English conditionals. Do not take the
50% and 10% figures too literally. They are just to help you.

probability conditional example time

zero
100% If you heat ice, it melts. any time
conditional

50% first conditional If it rains, I will stay at home. future

second If I won the lottery, I would buy

10% future
conditional a car.

third If I had won the lottery, I would

0% past
conditional have bought a car.

Modal Verbs (modal auxiliaries)

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 69

Modal auxiliary verbs may sound difficult but in fact

they’re easy. They are invariable (no conjugation).
And the main verb is always the “bare infinitive” (the
infinitive without “to”).

Can, Could, Be able to

Have to, Must, Must not/Mustn’t

Shall versus Will

Can, Could, Be able to

Can and could are modal auxiliary verbs. Be able to is NOT an auxiliary verb (it uses
the verb be as a main verb). We include be able to here for convenience.

In this lesson we look at these three verbs, followed by a quiz to check your
understanding:

• Can
• Could
• Be able to

Can

Can is an auxiliary verb, a modal auxiliary verb. We use can to:

• talk about possibility and ability

• make requests
• ask for or give permission

Structure of Can

subject + can + main verb

The main verb is always the bare infinitive (infinitive without “to”).

subject auxiliary verb main verb

+ I can play tennis.

He cannot play tennis.

-

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 70

can’t

? Can you play tennis?

Notice that:

• Can is invariable. There is only one form of can.

• The main verb is always the bare infinitive.

The main verb is always the bare infinitive (infinitive

without “to”). We cannot say:

Use of Can
can: Possibility and Ability

We use can to talk about what is possible, what we are able or free to do:

• She can drive a car.

• John can speak Spanish.
• I cannot hear you. (I can’t hear you.)
• Can you hear me?

Normally, we use can for the present. But it is possible to use can when we make present
decisions about future ability.

A. Can you help me with my homework? (present)

B. Sorry. I’m busy today. But I can help you tomorrow. (future)

can: Requests and Orders

We often use can in a question to ask somebody to do something. This is not a real
question - we do not really want to know if the person is able to do something, we want
them to do it! The use of can in this way is informal (mainly between friends and
family):

• Can you make a cup of coffee, please.

• Can you put the TV on.
• Can you come here a minute.
• Can you be quiet!

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 71

can: Permission

We sometimes use can to ask or give permission for something:

A. Can I smoke in this room?

B. You can’t smoke here, but you can smoke in the garden.

(Note that we also use could, may, might for permission. The use of can for permission is
informal.)

Could

Could is an auxiliary verb, a modal auxiliary verb. We use could to:

• talk about past possibility or ability

• make requests

Structure of Could

subject + could + main verb

The main verb is always the bare infinitive (infinitive without “to”).

subject auxiliary verb main verb

+ My grandmother could swim.

could not
- She walk.
couldn’t

? Could your grandmother swim?

Notice that:

• Could is invariable. There is only one form of could.

• The main verb is always the bare infinitive.

The main verb is always the bare infinitive. We cannot

say:

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 72

Use of Could
could: Past Possibility or Ability

We use could to talk about what was possible in the past, what we were able or free to
do:

• I could swim when I was 5 years old.

• My grandmother could speak seven languages.
• When we arrived home, we could not open the door. (...couldn’t open the door.)
• Could you understand what he was saying?

We use could (positive) and couldn’t (negative) for general ability in the past. But when
we talk about one special occasion in the past, we use be able to (positive) and couldn’t
(negative). Look at these examples:

Past

General Specific Occasion

My grandmother could speak A man fell into the river yesterday. The police
+ Spanish. were able to save him.

My grandmother couldn’t A man fell into the river yesterday. The police
- speak Spanish. couldn’t save him.

could: Requests

We often use could in a question to ask somebody to do something. The use of could in
this way is fairly polite (formal):

• Could you tell me where the bank is, please?

• Could you send me a catalogue, please?

Be able to

Although we look at be able to here, it is not a modal verb. It is simply the verb be plus
an adjective (able) followed by the infinitive. We look at be able to here because we
sometimes use it instead of can and could.

We use be able to:

• to talk about ability

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 73

Structure of Be able to
The structure of be able to is:

subject + be + able + infinitive

be able
subject main verb adjective infinitive

+ I am able to drive.

is not
- She able to drive.
isn’t

? Are you able to drive?

Notice that be able to is possible in all tenses, for example:

• I was able to drive...

• I will be able to drive...
• I have been able to drive...

Notice too that be able to has an infinitive form:

• I would like to be able to speak Chinese.

Use of Be able to
be able to: ability

We use be able to to express ability. “Able” is an adjective meaning: having the power,
skill or means to do something. If we say “I am able to swim”, it is like saying “I can
swim”. We sometimes use “be able to” instead of “can” or “could” for ability. “Be able
to” is possible in all tenses—but “can” is possible only in the present and “could” is
possible only in the past for ability. In addition, “can” and “could” have no infinitive
form. So we use “be able to” when we want to use other tenses or the infinitive. Look at
these examples:

• I have been able to swim since I was five. (present perfect)

• You will be able to speak perfect English very soon. (future simple)
• I would like to be able to fly an airplane. (infinitive)

Be able to is not a modal auxiliary verb. We include it

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 74

here for convenience, because it is often used like

“can” and “could”, which are modal auxiliary verbs.

Gerunds (-ing)

Gerunds are sometimes called “verbal nouns”.

When a verb ends in -ing, it may be a gerund or a present participle. It is important to

understand that they are not the same.

When we use a verb in -ing form more like a noun, it is usually a gerund:

• Fishing is fun.

When we use a verb in -ing form more like a verb or an adjective, it is usually a present
participle:

• Anthony is fishing.
• I have a boring teacher.

In this lesson, we look at the different ways in which we use gerunds, followed by a quiz
to check your understanding:

• Gerunds as Subject, Object or Complement

• Gerunds after Prepositions
• Gerunds after Certain Verbs
• Gerunds in Passive Sense

Many grammarians do not like to use the expression

“gerund”. That is because there is sometimes no clear
difference between a gerund and a present participle.

Gerunds as Subject, Object or Complement

Try to think of gerunds as verbs in noun form.

Like nouns, gerunds can be the subject, object or complement of a sentence:

• Smoking costs a lot of money.

• I don’t like writing.
• My favourite occupation is reading.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 75

But, like a verb, a gerund can also have an object itself. In this case, the whole expression
[gerund + object] can be the subject, object or complement of the sentence.

• Smoking cigarettes costs a lot of money.

• I don’t like writing letters.
• My favourite occupation is reading detective stories.

Like nouns, we can use gerunds with adjectives (including articles and other
determiners):

• pointless questioning
• a settling of debts
• the making of Titanic
• his drinking of alcohol

But when we use a gerund with an article, it does not usually take a direct object:

• a settling of debts (not a settling debts)

• Making “Titanic” was expensive.
• The making of “Titanic” was expensive.

Do you see the difference in these two sentences? In one, “reading” is a gerund (noun). In the
other “reading” is a present participle (verb).

• My favourite occupation is reading.

• My favourite niece is reading.

Answer

reading as gerund
(noun) Main Verb Complement

My favourite occupation is reading.

My favourite occupation is football.

reading as present participle

Auxiliary Verb Main Verb
(verb)

My favourite niece is reading.

My favourite niece has finished.

Gerunds after Prepositions

This is a good rule. It has no exceptions!

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 76

If we want to use a verb after a preposition, it must be a gerund. It is impossible to use an

infinitive after a preposition. So for example, we say:

• I will call you after arriving at the office.

• Please have a drink before leaving.
• I am looking forward to meeting you.
• Do you object to working late?
• Tara always dreams about going on holiday.

Notice that you could replace all the above gerunds with “real” nouns:

• I will call you after my arrival at the office.

• Please have a drink before your departure.
• I am looking forward to our lunch.
• Do you object to this job?
• Tara always dreams about holidays.

The above rule has no exceptions! So why is “to” followed by “driving” in 1 and by “drive”
in 2?

1. I am used to driving on the left.

2. I used to drive on the left.

Answer

to as preposition Preposition

I am used to driving on the left.

I am used to animals.

to as infinitive Infinitive

I used to drive on the left

I used to smoke.

Gerunds after Certain Verbs

We sometimes use one verb after another verb. Often the second verb is in the infinitive
form, for example:

• I want to eat.

But sometimes the second verb must be in gerund form, for example:

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 77

• I dislike eating.

This depends on the first verb. Here is a list of verbs that are usually followed by a verb
in gerund form:

• admit, appreciate, avoid, carry on, consider, defer, delay, deny, detest, dislike,
endure, enjoy, escape, excuse, face, feel like, finish, forgive, give up, can’t help,
imagine, involve, leave off, mention, mind, miss, postpone, practise, put off,
report, resent, risk, can’t stand, suggest, understand

Look at these examples:

• She is considering having a holiday.

• Do you feel like going out?
• I can’t help falling in love with you.
• I can’t stand not seeing you.

Some verbs can be followed by the gerund form or the

infinitive form without a big change in meaning:
begin, continue, hate, intend, like, love, prefer,
propose, start

• I like to play tennis.

• I like playing tennis.
• It started to rain.
• It started raining.

Gerunds in Passive Sense

We often use a gerund after the verbs need, require and want. In this case, the gerund has
a passive sense.

• I have three shirts that need washing. (need to be washed)

• This letter requires signing. (needs to be signed)
• The house wants repainting. (needs to be repainted)

The expression “something wants doing” is British

English.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 78

Questions

What is a question?

A statement is a sentence that gives information. A question is a sentence that asks for
information.

Statement: I like EnglishClub.com.

Question: Do you like EnglishClub.com?

A written question in English always ends with a question mark:

?
In this lesson we look at basic questions in English, followed by a quiz to check your
understanding:

• Basic Question Structure

• Basic Question Types

Basic Question Structure

The basic structure of a question in English is very simple:

auxiliary verb + subject + main verb

auxiliary verb subject main verb

Do you like Mary?

Are they playing football?

Will Anthony go to Tokyo?

Have you seen ET?

Exception!
For the verb be in simple present and simple past, we do not use an auxiliary verb. We
simply reverse the positions of be and subject:

Statement: He is German.

Question: Is he German?

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 79

Basic Question Types

There are 3 basic types of question:

1. Yes/No Questions (the answer to the question is “Yes” or “No”)

2. Question Word Questions (the answer to the question is “Information”)
3. Choice Questions (the answer to the question is “in the question”)

1. Yes/No Questions
Answer
auxiliary verb subject main verb
Yes or No

Do you want dinner? Yes, I do.

Can you drive? No, I can’t.

Has she finished her work? Yes, she has.

Did they go home? No, they didn’t.

Exception! verb be simple present and simple past

Is Anne French? Yes, she is.

Was Ram at home? No, he wasn’t.

2. Question Word Questions

Answer
question word auxiliary verb subject main verb
Information

Where do you live? In Paris.

When will we have lunch? At 1pm.

Who did she meet? She met Ram.

Why hasn’t Tara done it? Because she can’t.

Exception! verb be simple present and simple past

Where is Bombay? In India.

How was she? Very well.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 80

3. Choice Questions
Answer
auxiliary
subject main verb OR In the
verb
question

Coffee,
Do you want tea or coffee?
please.

Will we meet John or James? John.

New She went to

Did she go to London or
York? London.

Exception! verb be simple present and simple past

Is your car white or black? It’s black.

Were they $15 or $50? $15.

These pages show the three basic types of question.

There are other types of question, for example tag
questions.

Tag Questions

A tag question is a special construction in English. It is a statement followed by a mini-

question. The whole sentence is a “tag question”, and the mini-question at the end is
called a “question tag”.

A “tag” is something small that we add to something

larger. For example, the little piece of cloth added to a
shirt showing size or washing instructions is a tag.

We use tag questions at the end of statements to ask for confirmation. They mean
something like: “Am I right?” or “Do you agree?” They are very common in English.

The basic structure is:

+ -
Positive statement, negative tag?

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 81

- +
Negative statement, positive tag?

Look at these examples with positive statements:

positive statement [+] negative tag [-] notes:

personal
main pronoun
subject auxiliary auxiliary not
verb (same as
subject)

You are coming, are n’t you?

We have finished, have n’t we?

You do like coffee, do n’t you?

You like coffee, do n’t you? You (do) like...

They will help, wo n’t they? won’t = will not

I can come, can ‘t I?

We must go, must n’t we?

He should try harder, should n’t he?

You are English, are n’t you? no auxiliary for

main verb be
John was there, was n’t he? present & past

Look at these examples with negative statements:

negative statement [-] positive tag [+]

personal
subject auxiliary main verb auxiliary pronoun
(same as subject)

It is n’t raining, is it?

We have never seen that, have we?

You do n’t like coffee, do you?

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 82

They will not help, will they?

They wo n’t report us, will they?

I can never do it right, can I?

We must n’t tell her, must we?

He should n’t drive so fast, should he?

You are n’t English, are you?

John was not there, was he?

Some special cases:

I am right, aren’t I? aren’t I (not amn’t I)

You have to go, don’t you? you (do) have to go...

I have been answering, haven’t

use first auxiliary
I?
treat statements with nothing, nobody etc like negative
Nothing came in the post, did it? statements

Let’s go, shall we? let’s = let us

He’d better do it, hadn’t he? he had better (no auxiliary)

Here are some mixed examples:

• But you don’t really love her, do you?

• This will work, won’t it?
• Well, I couldn’t help it, could I?
• But you’ll tell me if she calls, won’t you?
• We’d never have known, would we?
• The weather’s bad, isn’t it?
• You won’t be late, will you?
• Nobody knows, do they?

Notice that we often use tag questions to ask for information or help, starting with a
negative statement. This is quite a friendly/polite way of making a request. For example,
instead of saying “Where is the police station?” (not very polite), or “Do you know where
the police station is?” (slightly more polite), we could say: “You wouldn’t know where
the police station is, would you?” Here are some more examples:

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 83

• You don’t know of any good jobs, do you?

• You couldn’t help me with my homework, could you?
• You haven’t got $10 to lend me, have you?

Intonation

We can change the meaning of a tag question with the musical pitch of our voice. With
rising intonation, it sounds like a real question. But if our intonation falls, it sounds more
like a statement that doesn’t require a real answer:

intonation

You don’t know where my wallet is, do you? / rising real question

It’s a beatiful view, isn’t it? \ falling not a real question

Answers to tag questions

A question tag is the “mini-question” at the end. A

tag question is the whole sentence.

How do we answer a tag question? Often, we just say Yes or No. Sometimes we may
repeat the tag and reverse it (..., do they? Yes, they do). Be very careful about answering
tag questions. In some languages, an oposite system of answering is used, and non-native
English speakers sometimes answer in the wrong way. This can lead to a lot of
confusion!

Answer a tag question according to the truth of the

situation. Your answer reflects the real facts, not
(necessarily) the question.

For example, everyone knows that snow is white. Look at these questions, and the correct
answers:

correct
tag question
answer

Snow is white, isn’t it? Yes (it is). the answer is the same in
both cases - because
Snow isn’t white, is it? Yes it is! snow IS WHITE! but notice the change of
stress when the answerer does
the answer is the same in not agree with the questioner
Snow is black, isn’t it? No it isn’t!
both cases - because
Snow isn’t black, is it? No (it isn’t). snow IS NOT BLACK!

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 84

In some languages, people answer a question like “Snow isn’t black, is it?” with “Yes”
(meaning “Yes, I agree with you”). This is the wrong answer in English!

Here are some more examples, with correct answers:

• The moon goes round the earth, doesn’t it? Yes, it does.
• The earth is bigger than the moon, isn’t it? Yes.
• The earth is bigger than the sun, isn’t it? No, it isn’t!
• Asian people don’t like rice, do they? Yes, they do!
• Elephants live in Europe, don’t they? No, they don’t!
• Men don’t have babies, do they? No.
• The English alphabet doesn’t have 40 letters, does it? No, it doesn’t.

Question tags with imperatives

Sometimes we use question tags with imperatives (invitations, orders), but the sentence
remains an imperative and does not require a direct answer. We use won’t for invitations.
We use can, can’t, will, would for orders.

imperative + question tag notes:

invitation Take a seat, won’t you? polite

Help me, can you? quite friendly

Help me, can’t you? quite friendly (some irritation?)

order Close the door, would you? quite polite

Do it now, will you? less polite

Don’t forget, will you? with negative imperatives only will is possible

Same-way question tags

Although the basic structure of tag questions is positive-negative or negative-positive, it

is sometime possible to use a positive-positive or negative-negative structure. We use
same-way question tags to express interest, surprise, anger etc, and not to make real
questions.

• So you’re having a baby, are you? That’s wonderful!

• She wants to marry him, does she? Some chance!
• So you think that’s amusing, do you? Think again.

Negative-negative tag questions usually sound rather hostile:

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 85

• So you don’t like my looks, don’t you?

Subjunctive

The subjunctive is a special, relatively rare verb form in English.

Structure of the Subjunctive

The structure of the subjunctive is extremely simple. For all verbs except the past tense of
be, the subjunctive is the same as the bare infinitive (infinitive without “to”):

be (past) be (present) all other verbs (past & present)

I were I be I work
you were you be you work
he, she, it were he, she, it be he, she, it work
we were we be we work
you were you be you work
they were they be they work

The subjunctive does not change according to person

(I, you, he etc).

Use of the Subjunctive

We use subjunctives mainly when talking about events that are not certain to happen. For
example, we use the subjunctive when talking about events that somebody:

• wants to happen
• hopes will happen
• imagines happening

Look at these examples:

• The President requests that you be present at the meeting.

• It is vital that you be present at the meeting.
• If you were at the meeting, the President would be happy.

The subjunctive is typically used after two structures:

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 86

• the verbs: ask, command, demand, insist, propose, recommend, request, suggest +
that
• the expressions: it is desirable, essential, important, necessary, vital + that

Here are some examples with the subjunctive:

• The manager insists that the car park be locked at night.

• The board of directors recommended that he join the company.
• It is essential that we vote as soon as possible.
• It was necessary that every student submit his essay by the weekend.

Notice that in these structures the subjunctive is always the same. It does not matter
whether the sentence is past or present. Look at these examples:

• Present: The President requests that they stop the occupation.

• Past: The President requested that they stop the occupation.
• Present: It essential that she be present.
• Past: It was essential that she be present.

The use of the subjunctive as above is more common

in USA English than in English, where should +
infinitive is often used:

• The manager insists that the car park should

be locked at night.
• It was essential that we should vote as soon
as possible.

We usually use the subjunctive were instead of “was” after if (and other words with
similar meaning). Look at these sentences:

• If I were you, I would ask her.

• Suppose she were here. What would you say?

Why do we say “I were”, “he were”?

We sometimes hear things like “if I were you, I would go” or “if he were here, he would
tell you”. Normally, the past tense of the verb “to be” is: I was, he was. But the if I were
you structure does not use the past simple tense of the verb “to be”. It uses the past
subjunctive of the verb “to be”. In the following examples, you can see that we often use
the subjunctive form were instead of “was” after:

• if
• as if
• wish

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 87

• suppose
Formal Informal

(The were form is correct at all (The was form is possible in informal, familiar
times.) conversation.)

If I were younger, I would go. If I was younger, I would go.

If he weren’t so mean, he would

If he wasn’t so mean, he would buy one for me.
buy one for me.

I wish I weren’t so slow! I wish I wasn’t so slow!

I wish it were longer. I wish it was longer.

It’s not as if I were ugly. It’s not as if I was ugly.

She acts as if she were Queen. She acts as if she was Queen.

Note: We do not normally say “if I was you”, even

If I were you, I should tell her.
in familiar conversation.

Some fixed expressions use the subjunctive. Here are some examples:

• Long live the King!

• God bless America!
• Heaven forbid!
• Be that as it may, he still wants to see her.
• Come what may, I will never forget you.
• We are all citizens of the world, as it were.

Active Voice, Passive Voice

There are two special forms for verbs called voice:

1. Active voice
2. Passive voice

The active voice is the “normal” voice. This is the voice that we use most of the time.
You are probably already familiar with the active voice. In the active voice, the object
receives the action of the verb:

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 88

subject verb object

active >
Cats eat fish.

The passive voice is less usual. In the passive voice, the subject receives the action of the
verb:

subject verb object

passive <
Fish are eaten by cats.

The object of the active verb becomes the subject of the passive verb:

subject verb object

active Everybody drinks water.

passive Water is drunk by everybody.

Passive Voice

The passive voice is less usual than the active voice. The active voice is the “normal”
voice. But sometimes we need the passive voice. In this lesson we look at how to
construct the passive voice, when to use it and how to conjugate it.

Construction of the Passive Voice

The structure of the passive voice is very simple:

subject + auxiliary verb (be) + main verb (past participle)

The main verb is always in its past participle form.

Look at these examples:

subject auxiliary verb (to be) main verb (past participle)

Water is drunk by everyone.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 89

100 people are employed by this company.

I am paid in euro.

We are not paid in dollars.

Are they paid in yen?

Use of the Passive Voice

We use the passive when:

• we want to make the active object more important

• we do not know the active subject
subject verb object

give importance to
active object President Kennedy was killed by Lee Harvey Oswald.
(President Kennedy)

active subject
unknown
My wallet has been stolen. ?
Note that we always use by to introduce the passive object (Fish are eaten by cats).

Look at this sentence:

• He was killed with a gun.

Normally we use by to introduce the passive object.

But the gun is not the active subject. The gun did not
kill him. He was killed by somebody with a gun. In
the active voice, it would be: Somebody killed him
with a gun. The gun is the instrument. Somebody is
the “agent” or “doer”.

Conjugation for the Passive Voice

We can form the passive in any tense. In fact, conjugation of verbs in the passive tense is
rather easy, as the main verb is always in past participle form and the auxiliary verb is
always be. To form the required tense, we conjugate the auxiliary verb. So, for example:

• present simple: It is made

• present continuous: It is being made
• present perfect: It has been made

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 90

Here are some examples with most of the possible tenses:

infinitive to be washed

present It is washed.

past It was washed.

simple
future It will be washed.

conditional It would be washed.

present It is being washed.

past It was being washed.

continuous
future It will be being washed.

conditional It would be being washed.

present It has been washed.

past It had been washed.

perfect simple
future It will have been washed.

conditional It would have been washed.

present It has been being washed.

past It had been being washed.

perfect continuous
future It will have been being washed.

conditional It would have been being washed.

Infinitive or -ing?

Sometimes we need to decide whether to use a verb in its:

• -ing form (doing, singing)

or
• infinitive form (to do, to sing).

For example, only one of the following sentences is correct. Which one?

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 91

• I dislike working late. (???)

• I dislike to work late. (???)

When to use the infinitive

The infinitive form is used after certain verbs:
- forget, help, learn, teach, train
- choose, expect, hope, need, offer, want, would like
- agree, encourage, pretend, promise, recommend
- allow, can/can’t afford, decide, manage, mean, refuse

• I forgot to close the window.

• Mary needs to leave early.
• Why are they encouraged to learn English?
• We can’t afford to take a long holiday.

The infinitive form is always used after adjectives, for example:

- disappointed, glad, happy, pleased, relieved, sad, surprised

• I was happy to help them.

• She will be delighted to see you.

This includes too + adjective:

• The water was too cold to swim in.

• Is your coffee too hot to drink?

The infinitive form is used after adjective + enough:

• He was strong enough to lift it.

• She is rich enough to buy two.

When to use -ing

The -ing form is used when the word is the subject of a sentence or clause:

• Swimming is good exercise.

• Doctors say that smoking is bad for you.

The -ing form is used after a preposition:

• I look forward to meeting you.

• They left without saying “Goodbye.”

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 92

The -ing form is used after certain verbs:

- avoid, dislike, enjoy, finish, give up, mind/not mind, practise

• I dislike getting up early.

• Would you mind opening the window?

Some verbs can be followed by the -ing form or the

infinitive without a big change in meaning: begin,
continue, hate, intend, like, love, prefer, propose, start .

• It started to rain.
• It started raining.
• I like to play tennis.
• I like playing tennis.

Plural Verbs with Singular Subjects

We often use singular nouns that refer to groups of people (for example: team,
government, committee) as if they were plural. This is particularly true in English and
less true in USA English. This is because we often think of the group as people, doing
things that people do (eating, wanting, feeling etc).

In such cases, we use:

• plural verb
• they (not it)
• who (not which)

Here are some examples:

• The committee want sandwiches for lunch. They have to leave early.
• My family, who don’t see me often, have asked me home for Christmas.
• The team hope to win next time.

Here are some examples of words and expressions that can be considered singular or
plural:

• choir, class, club, committee, company, family, government, jury, school, staff,
team, union, the BBC, board of directors, the Conservative Party, Manchester
United, the Ministry of Health

But when we consider the group as an impersonal unit, we use singular verbs and
pronouns:

• The new company is the result of a merger.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 93

• An average family consists of four people.

• The committee, which was formed in 1999, is made up of four men and four
women.

Notice that this is often a question of style and logic. The important thing is to be
consistent.

Using a plural verb with singular subject is less

common in USA English.

Verb Meanings with Continuous Tenses

There are some verbs that we do not normally use in the continuous tense. And there are
other verbs that we use in the simple tense with one meaning and in the continuous tense
with another meaning.

In this lesson we look at various uses of continuous tenses, followed by a quiz to check
your understanding:

• Verbs not Used with Continuous Tenses

• Verbs with Two Meanings
• Be and Continuous Tenses

Verbs not Used with Continuous Tenses

There are some verbs that we do not normally use with continuous tenses. We usually use
the following verbs with simple tenses only (not continuous tenses):

• hate, like, love, need, prefer, want, wish

• believe, imagine, know, mean, realize, recognize, remember, suppose, understand
• belong, concern, consist, contain, depend, involve, matter, need, owe, own,
possess
• appear, resemble, seem,
• hear, see

Here are some examples:

I want a coffee. not I am wanting a coffee.

I don’t believe you are right. not I am not believing you are right.

Does this pen belong to you? not Is this pen belonging to you?

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 94

It seemed wrong. not It was seeming wrong.

I don’t hear anything. not I am not hearing anything.

Notice that we often use can + see/hear:

• I can see someone in the distance.

(not I am seeing someone in the distance.)
• I can’t hear you very well.
(not I am not hearing you very well.)

With verbs that we don’t use in the continuous tense,

there is no real action or activity. Compare “to hear”
and “to listen”. “To hear” means “to receive sound in
your ears”. There is no real action or activity by you.
We use “to hear” with simple tenses only. But “to
listen” means “to try to hear”. You make an effort to
hear. There is a kind of action or activity. We can use
“to listen” with simple or continuous tenses.

Verbs with Two Meanings

Some verbs have two different meanings or senses. For one sense we must use a simple
tense. For the other sense we can use a continuous or simple tense.

For example, the verb to think has two different senses:

1. to believe, to have an opinion

I think Ricky Martin is sexy.
2. to reflect, to use your brain to solve a problem
I am thinking about my homework.

In sense 1 there is no real action, no activity. This sense is called “stative”. In sense 2
there is a kind of action, a kind of activity. This sense is called “dynamic”.

When we use the stative sense, we use a simple tense. When we use the dynamic sense,
we can use a simple or continuous tense, depending on the situation.

Look at the examples in the table opposite:

If you have a doubt about a particular verb, ask yourself the question: “Is
there any real action or activity?”

Stative sense Dynamic sense

(no real action) (a kind of action)

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 95

Simple only Continuous Simple

I will think about this

I think she is beautiful. Be quiet. I’m thinking.
problem tomorrow.

I don’t consider that We are considering your job We consider every job
he is the right man for application and will give you our application very
the job. answer in a few days. carefully.

A good carpenter
This table measures 4 She is measuring the room for a
measures his wood
x 6 feet. new carpet.
carefully.

Does the wine taste I was tasting the wine when I I always taste wine
good? dropped the glass. before I drink it.

Mary has three Please phone later. We are having We have dinner at 8pm
children. dinner now. every day.

Be and Continuous Tenses

The verb be can be an auxiliary verb (Marie is learning English) or a main verb (Marie is
French). On this page we look at the verb be as a main verb.

Usually we use simple tenses with the verb be as a main verb. For example, we say:

• London is the capital of the UK.

(not London is being the capital of the UK.)
• Is she beautiful?
(not Is she being beautiful?)
• Were you late?
(not Were you being late?)

Sometimes, however, we can use the verb be with a continuous tense. This is when the
real sense of the verb be is “act” or “behave”. Also, of course, the action is temporary.
Compare the examples in the table opposite:

Here is the structure of the verb be in the continuous present tense:

I am being
You are being
He, she, it is being
We are being
They are being

Mary is a careful person. (Mary is John is being careful. (John is acting carefully

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 96

always careful - it’s her nature.) now, but maybe he is not always careful - we
don’t know.)

Is he always so stupid? (Is that his They were being really stupid. (They were
personality?) behaving really stupidly at that moment.)

Andrew is not usually selfish. (It is Why is he being so selfish? (Why is he acting so
not Andrew’s character to be selfish.) selfishly at the moment?)

Notice that we also make a difference between “to be sick” and “to be being sick”:

• She is sick (= she is not well)

• She is being sick (= she is vomiting)

Used to do & Be used to

These two expressions look the same, but in fact they are completely different.

In this lesson we look at the structure and use of both expressions, followed by a quiz to
check your understanding:

• Used to do
• Be used to

Used to do

We use used to do to talk about the past. It is not a tense but it is like a tense. It is a
special expression. We use the expression used to do for the past only.

Do not confuse used to do with with the expression be

used to. They have different meanings.

Use of Used to do
We use the used to do expression to talk about:

• an activity that we did regularly in the past (like a habit)

• a situation that was true in the past
I used to smoke.
//////
past present future

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 97

Look at these examples.

the past the present

She used to work in a shop. Now she works in a bank.

He used to watch a lot of TV. Now he doesn’t watch much TV.

They used to be married. Now they are divorced.

There used to be a cinema here. Now there is a supermarket here.

I didn’t use to go swimming. Now I go swimming.

Did you use to smoke?

Be used to

Be used to something
Be used to doing

Be used to is an expression. It is not a tense. If I say “I am used to Thailand”, it is like

saying “I am accustomed to Thailand.”

Do not confuse be used to with with the special

construction used to do. They have different meanings.

Structure of Be used to
The structure is:

subject + be + used to + object

main verb
subject be not used to object

+ I am used to horses.

He is not used to horses.

-
We aren’t used to horses.

? Are you used to horses?

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 98

If the object invoves a verb, we use the -ing form:

I am not used to being lied to.

He is used to working late.

We aren’t used to taking the bus.

Are you used to cooking?

Why do we use -ing for a verb after be used to?

Because we always use -ing for a verb after a
preposition - and the to is a preposition.

Use of Be used to
The be used to expression is for talking about something that is familiar to us or easy for
us. For example:

• I am used to driving on the left.

It means that it is not a problem for me to drive on the left of the road. I am Japanese. In
Japan, people drive on the left. Now I am living in the USA where people drive on the
right. Of course, I drive on the right in the USA, but when I go to Japan it is easy for me
to drive on the left because “I am used to it”.

Look at these examples.

• I am used to hard work.

• I am used to working hard.
• He is not used to New York.
• He isn’t used to living in New York.
• Are you used to fast food?
• Are you used to eating quickly?

Tenses

We can use be used to in any tense. We just conjugate the verb be in the tense that we
need. Look at these examples:

• When we lived in Bangkok, we were used to hot weather.

• I have been used to snakes for a long time.
• You will soon be used to living alone.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 99

Going to

Going to is not a tense. It is a special expression to talk about the future.

Structure of Going to
The structure is:

subject + be + going + infinitive

The verb be is conjugated (past, present or future).

subject be (not) going infinitive

+ I am going to buy a new car.

+ I’m going to go swimming.

- He is not going to take the exam.

- It isn’t going to rain.

? Are you going to paint the house?

Use of Going to
Going to - intention

We use going to when we have the intention to do something before we speak. We have
already made a decision before speaking. Look at these examples:

• Jo has won the lottery. He says he’s going to buy a Porsche.

• We’re not going to paint our bedroom tomorrow.
• When are you going to go on holiday?

In these examples, we had an intention or plan before speaking. The decision was
made before speaking.

Going to - prediction

We often use going to to make a prediction about the future. Our prediction is based on
present evidence. We are saying what we think will happen. Here are some examples:

• The sky is very black. It’s going to snow.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 100

• It’s 8.30! You’re going to miss the train!

• I crashed the company car. My boss isn’t going to be very happy!

In these examples, the present situation (black sky, the time, damaged car) gives us a
good idea of what is going to happen.

2. Nouns

It’s not easy to describe a noun. In simple terms, nouns are “things” (and verbs are
“actions”). Like food. Food (noun) is something you eat (verb). Or happiness. Happiness
(noun) is something you want (verb). Or human being. A human being (noun) is
something you are (verb).

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 101

What are Nouns?

The simple definition is: a person, place or thing. Here are some examples:

• person: man, woman, teacher, John, Mary

• place: home, office, town, countryside, America
• thing: table, car, banana, money, music, love, dog, monkey

The problem with this definition is that it does not explain why “love” is a noun but can
also be a verb.

Another (more complicated) way of recognizing a noun is by its:

1. Ending
2. Position
3. Function

1. Noun Ending

There are certain word endings that show that a word is a noun, for example:

• -ity > nationality

• -ment > appointment
• -ness > happiness
• -ation > relation
• -hood > childhood

But this is not is not true for the word endings of all nouns. For example, the noun
“spoonful” ends in -ful, but the adjective “careful” also ends in -ful.

2. Position in Sentence

We can often recognise a noun by its position in the sentence.

Nouns often come after a determiner (a determiner is a word like a, an, the, this, my,
such):

• a relief
• an afternoon
• the doctor
• this word
• my house
• such stupidity

Nouns often come after one or more adjectives:

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 102

• a great relief
• a peaceful afternoon
• the tall, Indian doctor
• this difficult word
• my brown and white house
• such crass stupidity

3. Function in a Sentence

Nouns have certain functions (jobs) in a sentence, for example:

• subject of verb: Doctors work hard.

• object of verb: He likes coffee.
• subject and object of verb: Teachers teach students.

But the subject or object of a sentence is not always a noun. It could be a pronoun or a
phrase. In the sentence “My doctor works hard”, the noun is “doctor” but the subject is
“My doctor”.

Countable Nouns, Uncountable Nouns

Why is this important? Why do some nouns have no plural?
dog/dogs, rice, hair(s)

Proper Nouns (Names) | Quiz

Do we say “Atlantic Ocean” or “the Atlantic Ocean”? Should I write “february” or
“February”?
Shirley, Mr Jeckyll, Thailand, Sony

Possessive ‘s
Adding ‘s or ‘ to show possession.
John’s car, my parents’ house

Countable and Uncountable Nouns

English nouns are often described as “countable” or “uncountable”.

In this lesson we look at:

• Countable Nouns
• Uncountable Nouns
• Nouns that can be Countable & Uncountable

Countable Nouns

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 103

Countable nouns are easy to recognize. They are things that we can count. For example:
“pen”. We can count pens. We can have one, two, three or more pens. Here are some
more countable nouns:

• dog, cat, animal, man, person

• bottle, box, litre
• coin, note, dollar
• cup, plate, fork
• table, chair, suitcase, bag

Countable nouns can be singular or plural:

• My dog is playing.
• My dogs are hungry.

We can use the indefinite article a/an with countable nouns:

• A dog is an animal.

When a countable noun is singular, we must use a word like a/the/my/this with it:

• I want an orange. (not I want orange.)

• Where is my bottle? (not Where is bottle?)

When a countable noun is plural, we can use it alone:

• I like oranges.
• Bottles can break.

We can use some and any with countable nouns:

• I’ve got some dollars.

• Have you got any pens?

We can use a few and many with countable nouns:

• I’ve got a few dollars.

• I haven’t got many pens.

“People” is countable. “People” is the plural of

“person”. We can count people. There is one person
here. There are three people here.

Uncountable Nouns

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 104

Uncountable nouns are substances, concepts etc that we cannot divide into separate
elements. We cannot “count” them. For example, we cannot count “milk”. We can count
“bottles of milk” or “litres of milk”, but we cannot count “milk” itself. Here are some
more uncountable nouns:

• music, art, love, happiness

• advice, information, news
• furniture, luggage
• rice, sugar, butter, water
• electricity, gas, power
• money, currency

We usually treat uncountable nouns as singular. We use a singular verb. For example:

• This news is very important.

• Your luggage looks heavy.

We do not usually use the indefinite article a/an with uncountable nouns. We cannot say
“an information” or “a music”. But we can say a something of:

• a piece of news
• a bottle of water
• a grain of rice

We can use some and any with uncountable nouns:

• I’ve got some money.

• Have you got any rice?

We can use a little and much with uncountable nouns:

• I’ve got a little money.

• I haven’t got much rice.

Uncountable nouns are also called “mass nouns”.

Here are some more examples of countable and uncountable nouns. When you learn a
new word, it’s a good idea to learn whether it’s countable or uncountable.

Nouns that can be Countable and Uncountable

Sometimes, the same noun can be countable and uncountable, often with a change of
meaning.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 105

Countable Uncountable

There are two hairs in my coffee! hair I don’t have much hair.

Close the curtain.

There are two lights in our bedroom. light
There’s too much light!

It’s difficult to work

Shhhhh! I thought I heard a noise. noise when there is too much
noise.

I want to draw a picture.

Have you got a paper to read? (= newspaper) paper Have you got some
paper?

Is there room for me to

Our house has seven rooms. room
sit here?

Have you got time for a

We had a great time at the party. time
coffee?

Macbeth is one of Shakespeare’s greatest works. work I have no money. I need

work!

Drinks (coffee, water, orange juice) are usually

uncountable. But if we are thinking of a cup or a
glass, we can say (in a restaurant, for example):

• Two teas and one coffee please.

3. Adjectives

An adjective is a word that tells us more about a noun. (By “noun” we include pronouns
and noun phrases.) An adjective “qualifies” or “modifies” a noun (a big dog). Adjectives

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 106

can be used before a noun (I like Chinese food) or after certain verbs (It is hard). We can
often use two or more adjectives together (a beautiful young French lady).

It is sometimes said that the adjective is the enemy of

the noun. This is because, very often, if we use the
precise noun we don’t need an adjective. For example,
instead of saying “a large, impressive house” (2
adjectives + 1 noun) we could simply say “a mansion”
(1 noun).

Determiners
the, a/an, this, some, any

Adjective Order (with Quiz)

beautiful, long, dark brown

Comparative Adjectives
richer, more exciting

Superlative Adjectives
the richest, the most exciting

Determiners

Determiners are words like the, an, my, some. They are grammatically similar. They all
come at the beginning of noun phrases, and usually we cannot use more than one
determiner in the same noun phrase.

Articles:

• a, an, the

Possessives:

• my, your, his, her, our, their

Other determiners:

• each, every
• either, neither
• any, some, no
• much, many; more, most
• little, less, least
• few, fewer, fewest
• what, whatever; which, whichever
• both, half, all

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 107

• several
• enough

A, An or The?

Each, Every

Some, Any

Some grammarians do not consider determiners as

adjectives, but give them a class of their own.

Determiners: A, An or The?

When do we say “the dog” and when do we say “a dog”? (On this page we talk only
about singular, countable nouns.)

The and a/an are called “articles”. We divide them into “definite” and “indefinite” like
this:

Articles

Definite Indefinite

the a, an

We use “definite” to mean sure, certain. “Definite” is particular.

We use “indefinite” to mean not sure, not certain. “Indefinite” is general.

When we are talking about one thing in particular, we use the. When we are talking about
one thing in general, we use a or an.

Think of the sky at night. In the sky there is 1 moon and millions of stars. So normally we
could say:

• I saw the moon last night.

• I saw a star last night.

Look at these examples:

the a, an

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 108

• The capital of France is Paris. • I was born in a town.

• I have found the book that I lost. • John had an omelette for
• Have you cleaned the car? lunch.
• There are six eggs in the fridge. • James Bond ordered a drink.
• Please switch off the TV when you • We want to buy an umbrella.
finish. • Have you got a pen?

Of course, often we can use the or a/an for the same word. It depends on the situation.
Look at these examples:

• We want to buy an umbrella. (Any umbrella, not a particular umbrella.)

• Where is the umbrella? (We already have an umbrella. We are looking for our
umbrella, a particular umbrella.)

This little story should help you understand the

difference between the and a, an:

A man and a woman were walking in Oxford Street.

The woman saw a dress that she liked in a shop. She
asked the man if he could buy the dress for her. He
said: “Do you think the shop will accept a cheque? I
don’t have a credit card.”

Determiners: Each, Every

Each and every have similar but not always identical meanings.

Each = every one separately

Every = each, all

Sometimes, each and every have the same meaning:

• Prices go up each year.

• Prices go up every year.

But often they are not exactly the same.

Each expresses the idea of ‘one by one’. It emphasizes individuality.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 109

Every is half-way between each and all. It sees things or people as singular, but in a
group or in general.

Consider the following:

• Every artist is sensitive.

• Each artist sees things differently.
• Every soldier saluted as the President arrived.
• The President gave each soldier a medal.

Each can be used in front of the verb:

• The soldiers each received a medal.

Each can be followed by ‘of’:

• The President spoke to each of the soldiers.

• He gave a medal to each of them.

Every cannot be used for 2 things. For 2 things, each can be used:

• He was carrying a suitcase in each hand.

Every is used to say how often something happens:

• There is a plane to Bangkok every day.

• The bus leaves every hour.

Verbs with each and every are always conjugated in

the singular.

Determiners: Some, Any

Some = a little, a few or a small number or amount

Any = one, some or all

Usually, we use some in positive (+) sentences and any in negative (-) and question (?)
sentences.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 110

some any example

I have some
+ money.
I have $10.

I don’t have any I don’t have $1 and I don’t have $10 and I
- money. don’t have $1,000,000. I have $0.

Do you have any

? money?
Do you have $1 or $10 or $1,000,000?

In general, we use something/anything and

somebody/anybody in the same way as some/any.

Look at these examples:

• He needs some stamps.

• I must go. I have some homework to do.
• I’m thirsty. I want something to drink.
• I can see somebody coming.
• He doesn’t need any stamps.
• I can stay. I don’t have any homework to do.
• I’m not thirsty. I don’t want anything to drink.
• I can’t see anybody coming.
• Does he need any stamps?
• Do you have any homework to do?
• Do you want anything to drink?
• Can you see anybody coming?

We use any in a positive sentence when the real sense is negative.

• I refused to give them any money. (I did not give them any money)
• She finished the test without any difficulty. (she did not have any difficulty)

Sometimes we use some in a question, when we expect a positive YES answer. (We
could say that it is not a real question, because we think we know the answer already.)

• Would you like some more tea?

• Could I have some sugar, please?

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 111

Adjective Order

There are 2 basic positions for adjectives:

1. before the noun

2. after certain verbs (be, become, get, seem, look, feel, sound, smell, taste)
adj. noun verb adj.

1 I like big cars.

2 My car is big.

In this lesson we look at the position of adjectives in a sentence, followed by a quiz to

check your understanding:

• Adjective before noun

• Adjective after certain verbs

Adjective Before Noun

We sometimes use more than one adjective before the noun:

• I like big black dogs.

• She was wearing a beautiful long red dress.

What is the correct order for two or more adjectives?

1. The general order is: opinion, fact:

• a nice French car (not a French nice car)

(“Opinion” is what you think about something. “Fact” is what is definitely true about
something.)

2. The normal order for fact adjectives is size, age, shape, colour, material, origin:

• a big, old, square, black, wooden Chinese table

3. Determiners usually come first, even though they are fact adjectives:

• articles (a, the)

• possessives (my, your...)
• demonstratives (this, that...)
• quantifiers (some, any, few, many...)

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 112

• numbers (one, two, three)

Here is an example with opinion and fact adjectives:

adjectives noun

deter- opinion fact

miner
age shape colour

two nice old round red candles

When we want to use two colour adjectives, we join them with “and”:

• Newspapers are usually black and white.

• She was wearing a long, blue and yellow dress.

The rules on this page are for the normal, “natural”

order of adjectives. But these rules are not rigid, and
you may sometimes wish to change the order for
emphasis. Consider the following conversations:

Conversation 1
A “I want to buy a round table.”
B “Do you want a new round table or an old round
table?”

Conversation 2
A “I want to buy an old table”.
B “Do you want a round old table or a square old
table?”

Adjective After Verb

We can use an adjective after certain verbs. Even though the adjective comes after the
verb, it does not describe the verb. It describes the subject of the verb (usually a noun or
pronoun).

Look at the examples opposite:

subject verb adjective

• Ram is English.
• Because she had to wait, she became impatient.
• Is it getting dark?
• The examination did not seem difficult.
• Your friend looks nice.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 113

• This towel feels damp.

• That new film doesn’t sound very interesting.
• Dinner smells good tonight.
• This milk tastes sour.

Comparative Adjectives

When we talk about two things, we can “compare” them. We can see if they are the same
or different. Perhaps they are the same in some ways and different in other ways. We can
use comparative adjectives to describe the differences.

In the example opposite, “bigger” is the comparative form of the adjective “big”:

We can use comparative adjectives when talking about two things (not three or more things).

A
The first A is bigger than the second A.

In this lesson we will look first at how we make comparative adjectives, and then at how
we use them:

• Formation of Comparative Adjectives

• Use of Comparative Adjectives

Formation of Comparative Adjectives

There are two ways to make or form a comparative adjective:

• short adjectives: add “-er”

• long adjectives: use “more”
Short adjectives

• 1-syllable adjectives
old, fast

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 114

• 2-syllable adjectives ending in -y

happy, easy

Normal rule: add “-er” old > older

Variation: if the adjective ends in -e, just add -r late > later

Variation: if the adjective ends in consonant, vowel, consonant,

big > bigger
double the last consonant

Variation: if the adjective ends in -y, change the y to i happy > happier

Long adjectives

• 2-syllable adjectives not ending in -y

modern, pleasant

• all adjectives of 3 or more syllables

expensive, intellectual

modern > more

modern
Normal rule: use “more”
expensive > more
expensive

With some 2-syllable adjectives, we can use ‘-er’ or ‘more’:

• quiet > quieter/more quiet

• clever > cleverer/more clever
• narrow > narrower/more narrow
• simple > simpler/more simple

Exception
The following adjectives have irregular forms:

• good > better

• well (healthy) > better
• bad > worse
• far > farther/further

With some 2-syllable adjectives, we can use ‘-er’ or

‘more’:

• quiet > quieter/more quiet

• clever > cleverer/more clever
• narrow > narrower/more narrow

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 115

• simple > simpler/more simple

Exception
The following adjectives have irregular forms:

• good > better

• well (healthy) > better
• bad > worse
• far > farther/further
Earth Mars

Diameter (km) 12,760 6,790 Mars is smaller than Earth.

Distance from Sun 150 228 Mars is more distant from the Sun.
(million km)

A day on Mars is slightly longer than a

Length of day (hours) 24 25
day on Earth.

Moons 1 2 Mars has more moons than Earth.

Surface temperature (°C) 22 -23 Mars is colder than Earth.

Superlative Adjectives

A superlative adjective expresses the extreme or highest degree of a quality. We use a

superlative adjective to describe the extreme quality of one thing in a group of things.

In the example opposite, “biggest” is the superlative form of the adjective “big”:

We can use superlative adjectives when talking about three or more things (not two things).

C
A is the biggest.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 116

In this lesson we will look first at how we make superlative adjectives, and then at how
we use them:

• Formation of Superlative Adjectives

• Use of Superlative Adjectives

Formation of Superlative Adjectives

As with comparative adjectives, there are two ways to form a superlative adjective:

• short adjectives: add “-est”

• long adjectives: use “most”

We also usually add ‘the’ at the beginning.

Short adjectives

1-syllable adjectives old, fast

2-syllable adjectives ending in -y happy, easy

Normal rule: add “-est” old > the oldest

Variation: if the adjective ends in -e, just add -st late > the latest

Variation: if the adjective ends in consonant, vowel,

big > the biggest
consonant, double the last consonant

Variation: if the adjective ends in -y, change the y to i happy > the happiest

Long adjectives

2-syllable adjectives not ending in -y modern, pleasant

all adjectives of 3 or more syllables expensive, intellectual

modern > the most

modern
Normal rule: use “most”
expensive > the most
expensive

With some 2-syllable adjectives, we can use ‘-est’ or ‘most’:

• quiet > the quietest/most quiet

• clever > the cleverest/most clever
• narrow > the narrowest/most narrow

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 117

• simple > the simplest/most simple

Exception
The following adjectives have irregular forms:

• good > the best

• bad > the worst
• far > the furthest

Use of Superlative Adjectives

We use a superlative adjective to describe one thing in a group of three or more things.
Look at these examples:

• John is 1m75. David is 1m80. Chris is 1m85. Chris is the tallest.

• Canada, China and Russia are big countries. But Russia is the biggest.
• Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the world.

If we talk about the three planets Earth, Mars and Jupiter, we can use superlative
adjectives as shown in the table opposite:

When we compare one thing with itself, we do not use “the”:

• England is coldest in winter. (not the coldest)

• My boss is most generous when we get a big order. (not the most
generous)

Earth Mars Jupiter

Dia- 12,760 6,790 142,800 Jupiter is the

meter (km) biggest.

Dis- Jupiter is the most

tance from Sun 150 228 778 distant from the
(million km) Sun.

Length of day Jupiter has the

24 25 10
(hours) shortest day.

Jupiter has the most

Moons 1 2 16
moons.

Surface temp. 22 -23 -150 Jupiter is the

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 118

(°C) coldest.

4. Adverbs

An adverb is a word that tells us more about a verb. An adverb “qualifies” or “modifies”
a verb (The man ran quickly). But adverbs can also modify adjectives (Tara is really
beautiful), or even other adverbs (It works very well).

Many different kinds of word are called adverbs. We can usually recognise an adverb by
its:

1. Function (Job)
2. Form
3. Position

1. Function

The principal job of an adverb is to modify (give more information about) verbs,
adjectives and other adverbs. In the following examples, the adverb is in bold and the
word that it modifies is in italics.

• Modify a verb:
- John speaks loudly. (How does John speak?)
- Mary lives locally. (Where does Mary live?)
- She never smokes. (When does she smoke?)
• Modify an adjective:
- He is really handsome.
• Modify another adverb:
- She drives incredibly slowly.

But adverbs have other functions, too. They can:

• Modify a whole sentence:

- Obviously, I can’t know everything.
• Modify a prepositional phrase:
- It’s immediately inside the door.

2. Form

Many adverbs end in -ly. We form such adverbs by adding -ly to the adjective. Here are
some examples:

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 119

• quickly, softly, strongly, honestly, interestingly

But not all words that end in -ly are adverbs. “Friendly”, for example, is an adjective.

Some adverbs have no particular form, for example:

• well, fast, very, never, always, often, still

3. Position

Adverbs have three main positions in the sentence:

• Front (before the subject):

- Now we will study adverbs.
• Middle (between the subject and the main verb):
- We often study adverbs.
• End (after the verb or object):
- We study adverbs carefully.

Adverbs of Frequency

Adverbs of Frequency answer the question “How often?” or “How frequently?” They tell
us how often somebody does something.

Adverbs of frequency come before the main verb (except the main verb “to be”):

• We usually go shopping on Saturday.

• I have often done that.
• She is always late.

Occasionally, sometimes, often, frequently and usually can also go at the beginning or
end of a sentence:

• Sometimes they come and stay with us.

• I play tennis occasionally.

Rarely and seldom can also go at the end of a sentence (often with “very”):

• We see them rarely.

• John eats meat very seldom.
100% always
usually
frequently

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 120

often
50% sometimes
occasionally
rarely
seldom
hardly ever
0% never

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 121

5. English Pronouns

Pronouns are small words that take the place of a noun. We can use a pronoun instead of
a noun. Pronouns are words like: he, you, ours, themselves, some, each... If we didn’t
have pronouns, we would have to repeat a lot of nouns. We would have to say things like:

• Do you like the President? I don’t like the President. The President is too
pompous.

With pronouns, we can say:

• Do you like the President? I don’t like him. He is too pompous.

Personal Pronouns

This summary of personal pronouns includes possessive adjectives for convenience and
comparison.

pronouns possessive
number person gender* adjectives
subject object possessive reflexive

1st m/f I me mine myself my

2nd m/f you you yours yourself your

singular m he him his himself his
3rd f she her hers herself her

n it it its itself its

1st m/f we us ours ourselves our

plural 2nd m/f you you yours yourselves your

3rd m/f/n they them theirs themselves their

* m=male f=female n=neuter

Examples:

pronoun subject She likes homework.

object The teacher gave me some homework.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 122

possessive This homework is yours.

reflexive John did the homework himself.

possessive adjective The teacher corrected our homework.

Personal Pronouns

This summary of personal pronouns includes possessive adjectives for convenience and
comparison.

pronouns possessive
number person gender* adjectives
subject object possessive reflexive

1st m/f I me mine myself my

2nd m/f you you yours yourself your

singular m he him his himself his
3rd f she her hers herself her

n it it its itself its

1st m/f we us ours ourselves our

plural 2nd m/f you you yours yourselves your

3rd m/f/n they them theirs themselves their

* m=male f=female n=neuter

Examples:

pronoun subject She likes homework.

object The teacher gave me some homework.

possessive This homework is yours.

reflexive John did the homework himself.

possessive adjective The teacher corrected our homework.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 123

6. English Prepositions

A preposition is a word governing, and usually coming in front of, a noun or pronoun
and expressing a relation to another word or element, as in:

• She left before breakfast.

• What did you come for?
(For what did you come?)

English Prepositions List

There are about 150 prepositions in English. Yet this is a very small number when you
think of the thousands of other words (nouns, verbs etc). Prepositions are important
words. We use individual prepositions more frequently than other individual words. In
fact, the prepositions of, to and in are among the ten most frequent words in English.
Here is a short list of 70 of the more common one-word prepositions. Many of these
prepositions have more than one meaning. Please refer to a dictionary for precise
meaning and usage.

• aboard
• about
• above
• across
• after
• against
• along
• amid
• among
• anti
• around
• as
• at
• before
• behind
• below
• beneath
• beside
• besides
• between
• beyond
• but
• by
• concerning
• considering

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 124

• despite
• down
• during
• except
• excepting
• excluding
• following
• for
• from
• in
• inside
• into
• like
• minus
• near
• of
• off
• on
• onto
• opposite
• outside
• over
• past
• per
• plus
• regarding
• round
• save
• since
• than
• through
• to
• toward
• towards
• under
• underneath
• unlike
• until
• up
• upon
• versus
• via
• with
• within

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 125

• without

English Preposition Rule

There is one very simple rule about prepositions. And, unlike most rules, this rule has no
exceptions.

Rule
A preposition is followed by a “noun”. It is never followed by a verb.

By “noun” we include:

• noun (dog, money, love)

• proper noun (name) (Bangkok, Mary)
• pronoun (you, him, us)
• noun group (my first job)
• gerund (swimming)

A preposition cannot be followed by a verb. If we want to follow a preposition by a verb,

we must use the “-ing” form which is really a gerund or verb in noun form.

Quick Quiz: In the following sentences, why is “to” followed by a verb? That should be
impossible, according to the above rule:

• I would like to go now.

• She used to smoke.

Here are some examples:

Subject + verb preposition “noun”

The food is on the table.

She lives in Japan.

Tara is looking for you.

The letter is under your blue book.

Pascal is used to English people.

She isn’t used to working.

I ate before coming.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 126

Answer to Quick Quiz: In these sentences, “to” is not a preposition. It is part of the infinitive (“to go”, “to
smoke”).

Prepositions of Place:
at, in, on

In general, we use:

• at for a POINT
• in for an ENCLOSED SPACE
• on for a SURFACE
at in on

POINT ENCLOSED SPACE SURFACE

at the corner in the garden on the wall

at the bus stop in London on the ceiling

at the door in France on the door

at the top of the page in a box on the cover

at the end of the road in my pocket on the floor

at the entrance in my wallet on the carpet

at the crossroads in a building on the menu

at the entrance in a car on a page

Look at these examples:

• Jane is waiting for you at the bus stop.

• The shop is at the end of the street.
• My plane stopped at Dubai and Hanoi and arrived in Bangkok two hours late.
• When will you arrive at the office?
• Do you work in an office?
• I have a meeting in New York.
• Do you live in Japan?
• Jupiter is in the Solar System.
• The author’s name is on the cover of the book.
• There are no prices on this menu.
• You are standing on my foot.
• There was a “no smoking” sign on the wall.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 127

• I live on the 7th floor at 21 Oxford Street in London.

Notice the use of the prepositions of place at, in and on in these standard expressions:

at in on

at home in a car on a bus

at work in a taxi on a train

at school in a helicopter on a plane

at university in a boat on a ship

at college in a lift (elevator) on a bicycle, on a motorbike

at the top in the newspaper on a horse, on an elephant

at the bottom in the sky on the radio, on television

at the side in a row on the left, on the right

at reception in Oxford Street on the way

Prepositions of Time:
at, in, on

We use:

• at for a PRECISE TIME

• in for MONTHS, YEARS, CENTURIES and LONG PERIODS
• on for DAYS and DATES
at in on

PRECISE MONTHS, YEARS, CENTURIES and DAYS and

TIME LONG PERIODS DATES

at 3 o’clock in May on Sunday

at 10.30am in summer on Tuesdays

at noon in the summer on 6 March

at dinnertime in 1990 on 25 Dec. 2010

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 128

at bedtime in the 1990s on Christmas Day

on Independence
at sunrise in the next century
Day

at sunset in the Ice Age on my birthday

at the moment in the past/future on New Year’s Eve

Look at these examples:

• I have a meeting at 9am.

• The shop closes at midnight.
• Jane went home at lunchtime.
• In England, it often snows in December.
• Do you think we will go to Jupiter in the future?
• There should be a lot of progress in the next century.
• Do you work on Mondays?
• Her birthday is on 20 November.
• Where will you be on New Year’s Day?

Notice the use of the preposition of time at in the following standard expressions:

Expression Example

at night The stars shine at night.

at the weekend I don’t usually work at the weekend.

at Christmas/Easter I stay with my family at Christmas.

at the same time We finished the test at the same time.

at present He’s not home at present. Try later.

Notice the use of the prepositions of time in and on in these common expressions:

in on

in the morning on Tuesday morning

in the mornings on Saturday mornings

in the afternoon(s) on Sunday afternoons

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 129

in the evening(s) on Monday evening

When we say last, next, every, this we do not also use at, in, on.

• I went to London last June. (not in last June)

• He’s coming back next Tuesday. (not on next Tuesday)
• I go home every Easter. (not at every Easter)
• We’ll call you this evening. (not in this evening)

7. Conjunctions

A conjunction is a word that “joins”. A conjunction joins two parts of a sentence.

Here are some example conjunctions:

Coordinating Conjunctions Subordinating Conjunctions

and, but, or, nor, for, yet, so although, because, since, unless

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 130

We can consider conjunctions from three aspects.

Form
Conjunctions have three basic forms:

• Single Word
for example: and, but, because, although
• Compound (often ending with as or that)
for example: provided that, as long as, in order that
• Correlative (surrounding an adverb or adjective)
for example: so...that

Function
Conjunctions have two basic functions or “jobs”:

• Coordinating conjunctions are used to join two parts of a sentence that are
grammatically equal. The two parts may be single words or clauses, for example:
- Jack and Jill went up the hill.
- The water was warm but I didn’t go swimming.
• Subordinating conjunctions are used to join a subordinate dependent clause to a
main clause, for example:
- I went swimming, although it was cold.

Position
• Coordinating conjunctions always come between the words or clauses that they
join.
• Subordinating conjunctions usually come at the beginning of the subordinate
clause.

In this lesson we will look in more detail at:

• Coordinating Conjunctions
• Subordinating Conjunctions

Coordinating Conjunctions

The short, simple conjunctions are called “coordinating conjunctions”:

• and, but, or, nor, for, yet, so

A coordinating conjunction joins parts of a sentence (for example words or independent

clauses) that are grammatically equal or similar. A coordinating conjunction shows that
the elements it joins are similar in importance and structure:

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 131

Look at these examples - the two elements that the coordinating conjunction joins are
shown in square brackets [ ]:

• I like [tea] and [coffee].

• [Ram likes tea], but [Anthony likes coffee].

Coordinating conjunctions always come between the words or clauses that they join.

When a coordinating conjunction joins independent clauses, it is always correct to place a

comma before the conjunction:

• I want to work as an interpreter in the future, so I am studying Russian at

university.

However, if the independent clauses are short and well-balanced, a comma is not really
essential:

• She is kind so she helps people.

When “and” is used with the last word of a list, a comma is optional:

• He drinks beer, whisky, wine, and rum.

• He drinks beer, whisky, wine and rum.

The 7 coordinating conjunctions are short, simple

words. They have only two or three letters. There’s an
easy way to remember them - their initials spell:

F A N B O Y S

For And Nor But Or Yet So

Subordinating Conjunctions

The majority of conjunctions are “subordinating conjunctions”. Common subordinating

conjunctions are:

• after, although, as, because, before, how, if, once, since, than, that, though, till,
until, when, where, whether, while

A subordinating conjunction joins a subordinate (dependent) clause to a main

(independent) clause:

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 132

Look at this example:

main or subordinate or
independent clause dependent clause

Ram went swimming although it was raining.

subordinating
conjunction

A subordinate or dependent clause “depends” on a

main or independent clause. It cannot exist alone.
Imagine that somebody says to you: “Hello! Although
it was raining.” What do you understand? Nothing!
But a main or independent clause can exist alone. You
will understand very well if somebody says to you:
“Hello! Ram went swimming.”

A subordinating conjunction always comes at the beginning of a subordinate clause. It

“introduces” a subordinate clause. However, a subordinate clause can sometimes come
after and sometimes before a main clause. Thus, two structures are possible:

+
Ram went swimming although it was raining.

+
Although it was raining, Ram went swimming.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 133

8. Interjections

Hi! That’s an interjection. :-)

Interjection is a big name for a little word. Interjections are short exclamations like Oh!,
Um or Ah! They have no real grammatical value but we use them quite often, usually
more in speaking than in writing. When interjections are inserted into a sentence, they
have no grammatical connection to the sentence. An interjection is sometimes followed
by an exclamation mark (!) when written.

The table shows some interjections with examples.

Interjections like er and um are also known as

“hesitation devices”. They are extremely common in
English. People use them when they don’t know what
to say, or to indicate that they are thinking about what
to say. You should learn to recognize them when you
hear them and realize that they have no real meaning.

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 134

interjection meaning example

expressing pleasure “Ah, that feels good.”

expressing realization “Ah, now I understand.”

ah
expressing resignation “Ah well, it can’t be heped.”

expressing surprise “Ah! I’ve won!”

alas expressing grief or pity “Alas, she’s dead now.”

expressing pity “Oh dear! Does it hurt?”

dear
expressing surprise “Dear me! That’s a surprise!”

“It’s hot today.” “Eh?” “I said it’s

asking for repetition
hot today.”

eh expressing enquiry “What do you think of that, eh?”

expressing surprise “Eh! Really?”

inviting agreement “Let’s go, eh?”

er expressing hesitation “Lima is the capital of...er...Peru.”

expressing greeting “Hello John. How are you today?”

hello, hullo
expressing surprise “Hello! My car’s gone!”

calling attention “Hey! look at that!”

hey
expressing surprise, joy etc “Hey! What a good idea!”

hi expressing greeting “Hi! What’s new?”

expressing hesitation, doubt or

hmm “Hmm. I’m not so sure.”
disagreement

expressing surprise “Oh! You’re here!”

oh, o expressing pain “Oh! I’ve got a toothache.”

expressing pleading “Oh, please say ‘yes’!”

ouch expressing pain “Ouch! That hurts!”

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com

 135

“Uh...I don’t know the answer to

uh expressing hesitation
that.”

uh-huh expressing agreement “Shall we go?” “Uh-huh.”

um, umm expressing hesitation “85 divided by 5 is...um...17.”

expressing surprise “Well I never!”

well
introducing a remark “Well, what did he say?”

PDF created with FinePrint pdfFactory Pro trial version http://www.fineprint.com