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1. Personal pronouns = osobne zamjenice

Pronouns - personal pronouns (I, me, you etc)

Pronouns are words we use in the place of a full noun.

We have both subject and object pronouns:

Subject Object
I me
you you
he him
she her
it it
we us
you you
they them

We use he/him to refer to men, and she/her to refer to women. When we are not
sure if we are talking about a man or a woman we use they/them.

This is Jack. He’s my brother. I don’t think you have met him.
This is Angela. She’s my sister. Have you met her before?
Talk to a friend. Ask them to help you.
You could go to a doctor. They might help you.

1.1. Subject pronouns

We use subject pronouns as subject of the verb:

I like your dress.

You are late.
He is my friend
It is raining
She is on holiday
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We live in England.
They come from London.

Warning

Remember: English clauses always have a subject:

His father has just retired. Was a teacher. > He was a

teacher.
I’m waiting for my wife. Is late. > She is late.

If there is no other subject we use it or there. We call this

a dummy subject.

1.2. Object pronouns

We use object pronouns:

• as the object of the verb:

Can you help me please?

I can see you.
She doesn’t like him.
I saw her in town today.
We saw them in town yesterday, but they didn’t see us.

• after prepositions:

She is waiting for me.

I’ll get it for you.
Give it to him.
Why are you looking at her?
Don’t take it from us.
I’ll speak to them.
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1.3. It and there

English clauses always have a subject:

His father has just retired. Was a teacher. > He was a teacher.
I’m waiting for my wife. Is late. > She is late.
Look at the time! Is half past two.> It’s half past two.

except for the imperative (see more)

Go away.
Play it again please.

If we have no other subject we use there or it.

1.3.1. There

We use there as a dummy subject with part of the verb be followed by a noun
phrase. (see Clauses, sentences and phrases):

• to introduce a new topic:

There is a meeting this evening. It will start at seven.

There has been an accident. I hope no one is hurt.

• with numbers or quantities:

There was a lot of rain last night.

There must have been more than five hundred in the audience.

• to say where something is:

There used to be a playground at the end of the street.

There are fairies at the bottom of the garden.
I wonder if there will be anyone at home.

• with an indefinite pronoun or expressions of quantity and the to-infinitive:

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There is nothing to do in the village.

There was plenty to read in the apartment
There was nothing to watch on television.
There is a lot of work to do

If we want to show the subject of the to-infinitive we use for:

There is nothing for the children to do in the village.

There was plenty for us to read in the apartment
There was nothing for them to watch on television.
There is a lot of work for you to do.

• with an indefinite pronoun or expressions of quantity and an -ing verb:

There is someone waiting to see you.

There were a lot of people shouting and waving.

We use a singular verb if the noun phrase is singular:

There is a meeting this evening. It will start at seven.

There was a lot of rain last night.
There is someone waiting to see you.

We use a plural verb if the noun phrase is plural:

There are more than twenty people waiting to see you.

There were some biscuits in the cupboard.
There were a lot of people shouting and waving.

1.3.2. It

We use it to talk about:

• times and dates:

It’s nearly one o’clock.

It’s my birthday.
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• weather:

It’s raining.
It’s a lovely day.
It was getting cold.

• to give an opinion about a place:

It’s very cold in here.

It will be nice when we get home.
It’s very comfortable in my new apartment.

• to give an opinion followed by to-infinitive:

It’s nice to meet you.

It will be great to go on holiday.
It was interesting to meet your brother at last.

• to give an opinion followed by an -ing verb:

It’s great living in Spain.

It’s awful driving in this heavy traffic.
It can be hard work looking after young children.

Using "it" to talk about people

We use it to talk about ourselves:

• on the telephone:

Hello. It’s George.

• when people cannot see us:

[Mary knocks on door] It’s me. It’s Mary.

We use it to talk about other people:

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• when we point them out for the first time:

Look. It’s Sir Paul McCartney.

Who’s that? I think it’s John’s brother.

• when we cannot see them and we ask them for their name:

[telephone rings, we pick it up] Hello. Who is it?

[someone knocks on door. We say:] Who is it?

1.4. You and they

We use you to talk about people in general including the speaker and the hearer:

You can buy this book anywhere > This book is on sale everywhere.
You can’t park here > Parking is not allowed here.
They don’t let you smoke in here > No smoking here

We use they or them to talk about people in general:

They serve good food here.

Ask them for a cheaper ticket.

… especially about the government and the authorities:

They don’t let you smoke in here.

They are going to increase taxes.
They are building a new motorway.
They say it’s going to rain tomorrow.
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2. Possessive pronouns (see possessives:- pronouns)= posvojne zamjenice

this, that, these and those

2.1. Why do we use this and these?

We use this (singular) and these (plural) as pronouns:

- to talk about people or things near us:

This is a nice cup of tea.

Whose shoes are these?

- to introduce people:

This is Janet.
These are my friends, John and Michael.

WARNING:
We don’t say These are John and Michael.
We say This is John and this is Michael.

- to introduce ourselves to begin a conversation on the phone:

Hello, this is David, Can I speak to Sally?

2.2. Why do we use that and those?

We use that (singular) and those (plural):

- to talk about things that are not near us:

What’s that?
This is our house, and that’s Rebecca’s house over there.
Those are very expensive shoes.

- We also use that to refer back to something someone said or did:

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 - Shall we go to the cinema?

- Yes, that’s a good idea.
 - I’ve got a new job.
- That’s great.
 - I’m very tired.
- Why is that?

2.3. this, these, that, those with nouns

We also use this, these, that and those with nouns to show proximity(blizina)

We use this and these for people or things near us:

We have lived in this house for twenty years.

Have you read all of these books?

… and that and those for people or things that are not near us:

Who lives in that house?

Who are those people?

3. One and ones

We use one (singular) and ones (plural) to avoid unnecessary repetition.

See those two girls? Helen is the tall one and Jane is the short one.
Which is your car, the red one or the blue one?
My trousers are torn. I need some new ones.
See those two girls. Helen is the one on the left.
Let’s look at the photographs. The ones you took in Paris.

We often use them after Which ... in questions:

You can borrow a book. Which one do you want?

There are lots of books here. Which ones are yours?
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4. Questions

4.1. Which question word to use?

We use who to ask questions about people:

Who is that?
Who lives here?
Who did you see?

We use whose to ask about possession:

Whose coat is this? [or] Whose is this coat?

Whose book is that? [or] Whose is that book?
Whose bags are those? [or] Whose are those bags?

We use what to ask questions about things:

What is that?
What do you want?

We use which to ask someone to choose something:

Which came first, the chicken or the egg?

I’ve got two books. Which do you want?

We can also use what and which with nouns:

What subjects did you study at school?

What newspaper do you read?
Which newspaper do you read – the Times or the Guardian?
Which book do you want?
Which one is yours?
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4.2. Questions with prepositions:

Questions ending in prepositions are very common in English.

After Who, Which or What we often have a preposition at the end of the sentence:

Who does this book belong to?

What are you looking for?
Which university did you go to?
What country do you come from?

5. Reflexive pronouns=povratna zamjenica

The reflexive pronouns are:

Singular: myself - yourself - himself - herself - itself

Plural: ourselves - yourselves - themselves

5.1. When we use a reflexive pronoun

We use a reflexive pronoun:

• as a direct object when the object is the same as the subject of the verb:

I am teaching myself to play the piano.

Be careful with that knife. You might cut yourself.

We can use a reflexive pronoun as direct object with most transitive(prijelazni)

verbs, but these are the most common:

Amuse blame cut dry enjoy help

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Hurt introduce kill prepare satisfy teach

Some verbs change their meaning slightly when they have a reflexive pronoun as
direct object:

 Would you like to help yourself to another drink?

= Would you like to take another drink.
 I wish the children would behave themselves.
= I wish the children would behave well.
 He found himself lying by the side of the road.
= He was surprised when he realised that he was at the side of the road.
 I saw myself as a famous actor.
= I imagined that I was a famous actor.
 She applied herself to the job of mending the lights.
= She worked very hard to mend the lights.
 He busied himself in the kitchen.
= He worked busily in the kitchen.
 I had to content myself with a few Euros.
= I had to be satisfied with a few Euros.

We do not use a reflexive pronoun after verbs which describe things

people usually do for themselves, such as wash, shave, dress:

He washed [himself] in cold water.

He always shaved [himself] before going out in the evening.
Michael dressed [himself] and got ready for the party.

We only use reflexives with these verbs for emphasis:

He dressed himself in spite of his injuries.

She’s old enough to wash herself.

• as indirect object when the indirect object is the same as the subject of the
verb:
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Would you like to pour yourself a drink.

We’ve brought ourselves something to eat.

• as the object of a preposition when the object refers to the subject of the
clause:

They had to cook for themselves.

He was feeling very sorry for himself.

Warning

But we use personal pronouns, not reflexives,

after prepositions of place...

He had a suitcase beside him.

and after with when it means "accompanied by":

She had a few friends with her.

We use a reflexive pronoun...

• with the preposition by when we want to show that someone did

something alone and/or without any help:

He lived by himself in an enormous house.

She walked home by herself.

The children got dressed by themselves.

I prepared the whole meal by myself.

• to emphasise the person or thing we are referring to:

Kendal itself is quite a small town.

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especially if we are talking about someone very famous:

Sir Paul McCartney himself sang the final song.

We often put the reflexive pronoun at the end of the clause when we are using it for
emphasis:

I baked the bread myself.

She mended(krpati, popraviti) the car herself

6. Reciprocal pronouns: each other and one another=povratna zamjenica

We use the reciprocal pronouns each other and one another when two or more
people do the same thing. Traditionally, each other refers to two people and one
another refers to more than two people, but this distinction is disappearing in
modern English.

 Peter and Mary helped one another.

= Peter helped Mary and Mary helped Peter.
 We sent each other Christmas cards.
= We sent them a Christmas card and they sent us a Christmas card.
 They didn’t look at one another.
= He didn't look at her and she didn't look at him.

We also use the possessive forms each other’s and one another’s:

They helped to look after each other’s children.

We often stayed in one another’s houses.

NOTE: We do not use reciprocal pronouns as the subject of a clause.

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7. Indefinite pronouns=neodređene zamjenice

The indefinite pronouns are:

somebody someone something

anybody anyone anything

nobody no one nothing

everybody everyone everything

We use indefinite pronouns to refer to people or things without saying exactly who
or what they are. We use pronouns ending in -body or -one for people, and
pronouns ending in -thing for things:

Everybody enjoyed the concert.

I opened the door but there was no one at home.
It was a very clear day. We could see everything.

We use a singular verb after an indefinite pronoun:

Everybody loves Sally.

Everything was ready for the party.

When we refer back to an indefinite pronoun we normally use a plural pronoun:

Everybody enjoyed the concert. They stood up and clapped.

I will tell somebody that dinner is ready. They have been waiting a long time.

We can add -'s to an indefinite pronoun to make a possessive.

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They were staying in somebody’s house.

Is this anybody’s coat?

We use indefinite pronouns with no- as the subject in negative clauses (not
pronouns with any.)

Anybody didn’t come >> Nobody came.

We do not use another negative in a clause with nobody, no one or nothing:

Nobody came.
Nothing happened.

We use else after indefinite pronouns to refer to people or things in addition to the
ones we already mentioned.

All the family came, but no one else.

If Michael can’t come we’ll ask somebody else.
So that's eggs, peas and chips. Do you want anything else?

8. Relative pronouns=odnosna zamjenica

The relative pronouns are:

Subject Object Possessive

Who who(m) whose

Which which whose

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Subject Object Possessive

That that

We use who and whom for people, and which for things.
Or we can use that for people or things.

We use relative pronouns:

• after a noun, to make it clear which person or thing we are talking about:

the house that Jack built

the woman who discovered radium
an eight-year-old boy who attempted to rob a sweet shop

• to tell us more about a person or thing:

My mother, who was born overseas, has always been a great traveller.
Lord Thompson, who is 76, has just retired.
We had fish and chips, which is my favourite meal.

But we do not use that as a subject in this kind of relative clause.

We use whose as the possessive form of who:

This is George, whose brother went to school with me.

We sometimes use whom as the object of a verb or preposition:

This is George, whom you met at our house last year.

This is George’s brother, with whom I went to school.

But nowadays we normally use who:

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This is George, who you met at our house last year.

This is George’s brother, who I went to school with.

When whom or which have a preposition the preposition can come at

the beginning of the clause...

I had an uncle in Germany, from who[m] I inherited a bit of money.

We bought a chainsaw, with which we cut up all the wood.

… or at the end of the clause:

I had an uncle in Germany who[m] I inherited a bit of money from.

We bought a chainsaw, which we cut all the wood up with.

We can use that at the beginning of the clause:

I had an uncle in Germany that I inherited a bit of money from.

We bought a chainsaw that we cut all the wood up with.

9. Determiners and quantifiers

Determiners are words which come at the beginning of the noun phrase.

They tell us whether the noun phrase is specific or general.

Determiners are either specific or general

9.1. Specific determiners:

The specific determiners are:

 the definite article: the

 possessives: my, your, his, her, its; our, their, whose
 demonstratives(pokazne zamjenice): this, that, these, those
 interrogatives(upitna zamjenica): which
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 We use a specific determiner when we believe the listener/reader knows exactly

what we are referring to:

Can you pass me the salt please?

Look at those lovely flowers.
Thank you very much for your letter.
Whose coat is this?

9.2. General determiners:

The general determiners are:

 a; an; any; another; other; what

When we are talking about things in general and the listener/reader does not know
exactly what we are referring to, we can use a uncount noun or a plural noun with
no determiner:

Milk is very good for you. (= uncount noun)

Health and education are very important. (= 2 uncount nouns)
Girls normally do better in school than boys. (= plural nouns with no
determiner)

… or you can use a singular noun with the indefinite article a or an:

A woman was lifted to safety by a helicopter.

A man climbing nearby saw the accident.

We use the general determiner any with a singular noun or an uncount

noun(nebrojiva imenica) when we are talking about all of those people or things:

It’s very easy. Any child can do it. (= All children can do it)
With a full licence you are allowed to drive any car.
I like beef, lamb, pork - any meat.

We use the general determiner another to talk about an additional person or

thing:
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Would you like another glass of wine?

The plural form of another is other:

I spoke to John, Helen and a few other friends.

9.3. Quantifiers

We use quantifiers when we want to give someone information about the number of
something: how much or how many.

9.3.1. interrogative determiners: which and what

We use "which" as a determiner to ask a question about a specific group of people

or things:

Which restaurant did you go to?

Which countries in South America have you visited?

When we are asking a general question we use "what" as a determiner:

What films do you like?

What university did you go to?

10. Indefinite article: a and an

1. We use the indefinite article, a/an, with count nouns (brojive imenice) when
the hearer/reader does not know exactly which one we are referring to:

Police are searching for a 14 year-old girl.

2. We also use it to show the person or thing is one of a group:

She is a pupil at London Road School.

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Police have been searching for a 14 year-old girl who has been
missing since Friday.

Jenny Brown, a pupil at London Road School, is described as

1.6 metres tall with short blonde hair.

She was last seen wearing a blue jacket, a blue and white
blouse and dark blue jeans and blue shoes.

Anyone who has information should contact the local police on

0800349781.

3. We do not use an indefinite article with plural nouns and uncount nouns:

She was wearing blue shoes. (= plural noun)

She has short blonde hair. (= uncount noun)

Police have been searching for a 14 year-old girl who has been
missing since Friday.

Jenny Brown, a pupil at London Road School, is described as

1.6 metres tall with short blonde hair.

She was last seen wearing a blue jacket, a blue and white
blouse and dark blue jeans and blue shoes.

Anyone who has information should contact the local police on

0800349781.

4. We use a/an to say what someone is or what job they do:

My brother is a doctor.
George is a student.
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5. We use a/an with a singular noun to say something about all things of that
kind:

A man needs friends. (= All men need friends)

A dog likes to eat meat. (= All dogs like to eat meat)

11. Definite article: the

The definite article the is the most frequent word in English.

We use the definite article in front of a noun when we believe the hearer/reader
knows exactly what we are referring to.

• because there is only one:

The Pope is visiting Russia.

The moon is very bright tonight.
The Shah of Iran was deposed in 1979.

This is why we use the definite article with a superlative adjective:

He is the tallest boy in the class.

It is the oldest building in the town.

• because there is only one in that place or in those surroundings:

We live in a small village next to (the church in our

the church. = village)

(the car that belongs to

Dad, can I borrow the car? =
our family)

When we stayed at my (the beach near my

grandmother’s house we went to
the beach every day.
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= grandmother’s house)

Look at the boy in the blue shirt (the boy I am pointing

over there. = at)

• because we have already mentioned it:

A woman who fell 10 metres from High Peak was lifted to safety by a
helicopter. The woman fell while climbing.
The rescue is the latest in a series of incidents on High Peak. In January last
year two men walking on the peak were killed in a fall.

We also use the definite article:

• to say something about all the things referred to by a noun:

The wolf is not really a dangerous animal (= Wolves are not really dangerous
animals)
The kangaroo is found only in Australia (= Kangaroos are found only in
Australia)
The heart pumps blood around the body. (= Hearts pump blood around
bodies)

We use the definite article in this way to talk about musical instruments:

Joe plays the piano really well.(= Joe can play any piano)
She is learning the guitar.(= She is learning to play any guitar)

• to refer to a system or service:

How long does it take on the train.

I heard it on the radio.
You should tell the police.
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• With adjectives like rich, poor, elderly, unemployed to talk about groups of
people:

Life can be very hard for the poor.

I think the rich should pay more taxes.
She works for a group to help the disabled.

11.1. The definite article with names:

We do not normally use the definite article with names:

William Shakespeare wrote Hamlet.

Paris is the capital of France.
Iran is in Asia.

But we do use the definite article with:

• countries whose names include words like kingdom, states or republic:

the United Kingdom; the Kingdom of Nepal; the United States; the People’s
Republic of China.

• countries which have plural nouns as their names:

the Netherlands; the Philippines

• geographical features, such as mountain ranges, groups of islands, rivers, seas,

oceans and canals:

the Himalayas; the Canaries; the Atlantic; the Atlantic Ocean; the Amazon;
the Panama Canal.

• newspapers:

The Times; The Washington Post

• well known buildings or works of art:

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the Empire State Building; the Taj Mahal; the Mona Lisa; the Sunflowers

• organisations:

the United Nations; the Seamen’s Union

• hotels, pubs and restaurants*:

the Ritz; the Ritz Hotel; the King’s Head; the Déjà Vu

*Note: We do not use the definite article if the name of the hotel or restaurant
is the name of the owner, e.g.,Brown’s; Brown’s Hotel; Morel’s; Morel’s
Restaurant, etc.

• families:

the Obamas; the Jacksons

12. quantifiers

We use quantifiers when we want to give someone information about the number of
something: how much or how many.

Sometimes we use a quantifier in the place of a determiner:

Most children start school at the age of five.

We ate some bread and butter.
We saw lots of birds.

We use these quantifiers with both count and uncount nouns:

All any enough less a lot of lots of

More most no none of some

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and some more colloquial forms:

plenty of heaps of a load of loads of tons of etc.

Some quantifiers can be used only with count nouns:

Both each either (a) few fewer neither several

and some more colloquial(uobičajeno) forms:

a couple of hundreds of thousands of etc.

Some quantifiers can be used only with uncount nouns:

a little (not) much a bit of

And, particularly with abstract nouns such as time, money, trouble, etc:, we
often use:

a great deal of a good deal of

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13. Members of groups

You can put a noun after a quantifier when you are talking about members of a
group in general…

Few snakes are dangerous.

Both brothers work with their father.
I never have enough money.

…but if you are talking about a specific group of people or things, use of the … as
well

Few of the snakes are dangerous.

All of the children live at home.
He has spent all of his money.

Note that, if we are talking about two people or things we use the
quantifiers both, either and neither:

One More than two

Two supermarkets*
supermarket supermarkets

The supermarket Both the All the

was closed supermarkets were supermarkets were
closed. closed
The supermarket
wasn't open Neither of the None of the
supermarkets was supermarkets were
I don’t think the open. open
supermarket was
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One More than two

Two supermarkets*
supermarket supermarkets

I don’t think either I don't think any of

open. of the supermarkets the supermarkets
was open. were open

*Nouns with either and neither have a singular verb.

13.1. Singular quantifiers:

We use every or each with a singular noun to mean all:

There was a party in every There were parties in all the

street. = streets.

Every shop was decorated All the shops were decorated

with flowers. = with flowers.

Each child was given a All the children were given a

prize. = prize.

There was a prize in each There were prizes in all the

competition. = competitions.

We often use every to talk about times like days, weeks and years:

When we were children we had holidays at our grandmother’s every year.

When we stayed at my grandmother’s house we went to the beach every day.
We visit our daughter every Christmas.
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BUT: We do not use a determiner with every and each. We do not say:

The every shop was decorated with flowers.

The each child was given a prize.

Possessives: nouns

We use a noun with ’s with a singular noun to show possession:

We are having a party at John’s house.

Michael drove his friend’s car.

We use s’ with a plural noun ending in -s:

This is my parents’ house.

Those are ladies’ shoes.

But we use ’s with other plural nouns:

These are men’s shoes.

Children’s clothes are very expensive.

We can use a possessive instead of a noun phrase to avoid repeating words:

Is that John’s No, it’s Mary’s No, it’s

>
car? [car]. Mary’s.

Whose coat is It’s my wife’s

> It’s my wife’s.
this? [coat].

possessives: adjectives

backnext
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Can you match these possessive adjectives to the right personal pronouns?

its, your, my, their, our, her, his

Subject Object Possessive

I me

You you

He him

She her

It it

We us

They them

We use possessive adjectives:

• to show something belongs to somebody:

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That’s our house.

My car is very old.

• for relations and friends:

My mother is a doctor.
How old is your sister?

• for parts of the body:

He’s broken his arm.

She’s washing her hair.
I need to clean my teeth.

possessives: pronouns

backnext

Can you match these possessive pronouns to the right personal pronouns and
possessive adjectives?

yours, mine, theirs, ours, hers, his, its

Possessive Possessive
Subject Object
adjectives pronouns

I me my
You you your
He him his
She her her
It it its
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Possessive Possessive
Subject Object
adjectives pronouns

We us our
They them their

We can use a possessive pronoun instead of a noun phrase:

No, it’s [my No, it’s

Is that John’s car? >
car] mine.

Is it [your
Whose coat is this? > Is it yours?
coat]?

Her coat is grey, [my Her coat is mine is

coat]is brown grey, brown.

We can use possessive pronouns after of.

We can say:

Susan is one of my friends.

or
Susan is a friend of mine.
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but not
Susan is a friend of me

or

I am one of Susan's friends.

or
I am a friend of Susan's.
but not
I am a friend of Susan

possessives: questions

backnext

We use whose to ask questions:

Pattern A Pattern B

Whose coat is this? or Whose is this coat?

Whose book is that? or Whose is that book?

Whose bags are those? or Whose are those bags?

possessives: reciprocal pronouns

"each other's" and "one another's"

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Adjectives

We use adjectives to describe nouns.

Most adjectives can be used in front of a noun…:

They have a beautiful house.

We saw a very exciting film last night.

or after a link verb like be, look or feel:

Their house is beautiful.

That film looks interesting.

adjectives: -ed and -ing

backnext

A lot of adjectives are made from verbs by adding -ing or -ed:

-ing adjectives:

The commonest -ing adjectives are:

amusing Shocking surprising frig

interesting Disappointing exciting tiri

worrying Boring terrifying ann

 34

If you call something interesting you mean it interests you.

If you call something frightening you mean it frightens you.

I read a very interesting article in the newspaper today.

That Dracula film was absolutely terrifying.

-ed adjectives:

The commonest –ed adjectives are:

annoyed bored Frightened worried

Tired closed Excited delighted

disappointed

If something annoys you, you can say you feel annoyed. If

something interests you, you can say you are interested.

The children had nothing to do. They were bored.

order of adjectives

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Sometimes we use more than one adjective in front of a noun:

He was a nice intelligent young man.

She had a small round black wooden box.
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Opinion adjectives:

Some adjectives give a general opinion. We can use these adjectives to describe
almost any noun:

Good bad Lovely strange

beautiful nice Brilliant excellent

Awful important Wonderful nasty

Some adjectives give a specific opinion. We only use these adjectives to describe
particular kinds of noun:

Food: tasty; delicious

Furniture, buildings: comfortable; uncomfortable
People, animals: clever; intelligent; friendly

We usually put a general opinion in front of a specific opinion:

Nice tasty soup.

A nasty uncomfortable armchair
A lovely intelligent animal

Usually we put an adjective that gives an opinion in front of an adjective that

is descriptive:

a nice red dress; a silly old man; those horrible yellow curtains
 36

We often have two adjectives in front of a noun:

a handsome young man; a big black car; that horrible big dog

Sometimes we have three adjectives, but this is unusual:

a nice handsome young man;

a big black American car;
that horrible big fierce dog

It is very unusual to have more than three adjectives.

Adjectives usually come in this order:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Gener Specif
al ic Siz Sha Ag Colo National Materi
opinio opinio e pe e ur ity al
n n

We use some adjectives only after a link verb:

Afraid alive Alone asleep

content glad Ill ready

Sorry sure Unable well

Some of the commonest -ed adjectives are normally used only after a link verb:
 37

annoyed; finished; bored; pleased; thrilled

We say:

Our teacher was ill.

My uncle was very glad when he heard the news.
The policeman seemed to be very annoyed

but we do not say:

We had an ill teacher.

When he heard the news he was a very glad uncle
He seemed to be a very annoyed policeman

A few adjectives are used only in front of a noun:

north northern
countless eventful
south southern
occasional indoor
east eastern
lone outdoor
west western

We say:

He lives in the eastern district.

There were countless problems with the new machinery.

but we do not say:

The district he lives in is eastern

The problems with the new machinery were countless.

Try these tasks to improve your adjective ordering.

 38

comparative and superlative adjectives

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We use comparative adjectives to describe people and things:

This car is certainly better but it’s much more expensive.

I’m feeling happier now.
We need a bigger garden

We use than when we want to compare one thing with another:

She is two years older than me.

New York is much bigger than Boston.
He is a better player than Ronaldo.
France is a bigger country than Britain.

When we want to describe how something or someone changes we can use two
comparatives with and:

The balloon got bigger and bigger.

Everything is getting more and more expensive.
Grandfather is looking older and older.

We often use the with comparative adjectives to show that one thing depends on
another:

When you drive faster it is more dangerous

> The faster you drive, the more dangerous it is.
When they climbed higher it got colder
> The higher they climbed, the colder it got.

Superlative adjectives:

We use the with a superlative:

It was the happiest day of my life.

Everest is the highest mountain in the world.
 39

That’s the best film I have seen this year.

I have three sisters, Jan is the oldest and Angela is the youngest .

intensifiers

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Intensifiers:

(Intermediate)

We use words like very, really and extremely to make adjectives stronger:

It’s a very interesting story

Everyone was very excited.
It’s a really interesting story.
Everyone was extremely excited

We call these words intensifiers. Other intensifiers are:

Amazingly exceptionally incredibly

Remarkably particularly unusually

We also use enough to say more about an adjective,

but enough comes after its adjective:

If you are seventeen you are old enough to drive a car.

I can’t wear those shoes. They’re not big enough.

Intensifiers with strong adjectives:

Strong adjectives are words like:

enormous, huge = very big

tiny = very small
brilliant = very clever
 40

awful; terrible; disgusting; dreadful = very bad

certain = very sure
excellent; perfect; ideal; wonderful; splendid = very good
delicious = very tasty

We do not normally use very with these adjectives. We do not say something is
"very enormous" or someone is "very brilliant".

With strong adjectives, we normally use intensifiers like:

utely completely totally utterly

y exceptionally particularly quite

The film was absolutely awful.

He was an exceptionally brilliant child.
The food smelled really disgusting.

mitigators

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Mitigators are the opposite of intensifiers. When we want to make an

adjective less strong we use these words:

fairly - rather - quite

By the end of the day we were rather tired.

The film wasn’t great but it was quite exciting.

and in informal English: pretty

We had a pretty good time at the party.

We call these words mitigators.

 41

Warning

Quite

When we use quite with a strong adjective it means the same

as absolutely:

The food was quite awful. = The food was absolutely

awful.
As a child he was quite brilliant. = As a child he was
absolutely brilliant.

Mitigators with comparatives:

We use these words and phrases as mitigators:

a bit - just a bit - a little - a little bit - just a little bit - rather - slightly

She’s a bit younger than I am.

It takes two hours on the train but it is a little bit longer by road
This one is rather bigger.

We use slightly and rather as mitigators with comparative adjectives in front of

a noun:

This is a slightly more expensive model than that.

This is rather bigger one than that.

Adjectives as intensifiers:

We use some adjectives as intensifiers:

absolute
total - complete
 42

utter - perfect
real

We say:

He’s a complete idiot.

They were talking utter nonsense.

… but we do not say:

The idiot was complete.

The nonsense they were talking was utter.

noun modifiers

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We often use two nouns together to show that one thing is a part of something
else:

the village church; the car door; the kitchen window; the chair leg;
my coat pocket; London residents

Warning

We do not use a possessive form for these things. We do not talk

about:

The car’s door; the kitchen’s window; the chair’s leg

We can use noun modifiers to show what something is made of:

 43

a gold watch; a leather purse; a metal box

We often use noun modifiers with nouns ending in -er and -ing:

an office worker; a jewellery maker; a potato peeler; a shopping list; a

swimming lesson; a walking holiday.

We use measurements, age or value as noun modifiers:

a thirty kilogram suitcase; a two minute rest; a five thousand

euro platinum watch; a fifty kilometre journey;

We often put two nouns together and readers/listeners have work out what they
mean. So:

 an ice bucket = a bucket to keep ice in

 an ice cube = a cube made of ice
 an ice breaker = a ship which breaks ice
 the ice age = the time when much of the Earth was covered in ice.

Sometimes we find more than two nouns together:

London office workers; grammar practice exercises

Position of noun modifiers

Noun modifiers come after adjectives:

The old newspaper seller

A tiring fifty kilometre journey

Adverbials
 44

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Why do we use adverbials?

We use adverbs to give more information about the verb.

We use adverbials of manner to say how something happens or how something is

done:

The children were playing happily.

He was driving as fast as possible.

We use adverbials of place to say where something happens:

I saw him there.

We met in London.

We use adverbials of time to say when or how often something happens:

They start work at six thirty.

They usually go to work by bus.

We use adverbials of probability to show how certain we are about something.

 Perhaps the weather will be fine.

 He is certainly coming to the party.

Try these tasks to practice your use of adverbials.

how we make adverbials

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An adverbial can be an adverb:

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He spoke angrily.
They live here.
We will be back soon.

or an adverb with an intensifier:

He spoke really angrily.

They live just here.
We will go quite soon.
We will go as soon as possible.

or a phrase with a preposition:

He spoke in an angry voice.

They live in London.
We will go in a few minutes.

where they go in a sentence

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Where do adverbials go in a sentence?

We normally put adverbials after the verb:

He spoke angrily.
They live just here.
We will go in a few minutes.

or after the object or complement:

He opened the door quietly.

She left the money on the table.
We saw our friends last night.
You are looking tired tonight.

But adverbials of frequency (how often) usually come in front of the main verb:
 46

We usually spent our holidays with our grandparents.

I have never seen William at work.

But if we want to emphasise an adverbial we can put it at the beginning of a

clause:

Last night we saw our friends.

In a few minutes we will go.
Very quietly he opened the door.

If we want to emphasise an adverb of manner we can put it in front of the main

verb:

He quietly opened the door.

She had carefully put the glass on the shelf.

Try these tasks to practice your use of placement of adverbials.

adverbs of manner

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Adverbs of manner are usually formed from adjectives by adding –ly:

bad > badly; quiet > quietly; recent > recently; sudden > suddenly

but there are sometimes changes in spelling:

easy > easily; gentle > gently

If an adjective ends in –ly we use the phrase in a …. way to express manner:

Silly > He behaved in a silly way.

Friendly > She spoke in a friendly way.
 47

A few adverbs of manner have the same form as the adjective:

They all worked hard.

She usually arrives late.
I hate driving fast.

Note: hardly and lately have different meanings:

He could hardly walk = It was difficult for him to walk.
I haven’t seen John lately = I haven’t seen John recently.

We often use phrases with like as adverbials of manner:

She slept like a baby.

He ran like a rabbit.

Adverbs of manner and link verbs

We very often use adverbials with like after link verbs:

Her hands felt like ice.

It smells like fresh bread.

But we do not use other adverbials of manner after link verbs. We

use adjectives instead:

They looked happily happy.

That bread smells deliciously delicious.

Try these exercises to practice your use of adverbials of manner.

Try these tasks to practice your use of placement of adverbials.

adverbials of place
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backnext

We use adverbials of place to describe:

Location

We use prepositions to talk about where someone or something is.

Examples:

 He was standing by the table.

 You’ll find it in the cupboard.
 Sign your name here – at the bottom of the page.
Direction

We use adverbials to to talk about the direction where someone or something

is moving.

Examples:

 Walk past the bank and keep going to the end of the street.
 The car door is very small so it’s difficult to get into.
Distance

We use adverbials to show how far things are:

Examples:

 Birmingham is 250 kilometres from London.

 We were in London. Birmingham was 250 kilometres away.

adverbials of location
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backnext
Location

We use prepositions to talk about where someone or something is:

Above among at behind below beneath

in
Beside between by in inside
between

Near next to on opposite outside over

Round through under underneath

He was standing by the table.

She lives in a village near Glasgow.
You’ll find it in the cupboard.

We use phrases with of as prepositions:

at the back at the bottom

at the top of at the end of
of of

at the front in the middle

on top of in front of
of of
 50

There were some flowers in the middle of the table.

Sign your name here – at the bottom of the page.
I can’t see. You’re standing in front of me.

We can use right as an intensifier with some of these prepositions:

He was standing right next to the table.

There were some flowers right in the middle of the table.
There’s a wood right behind our house.

adverbials of direction

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Direction

We also use prepositional phrases to talk about direction:

Across along back back to down into

Onto out of past through to towards

She ran out of the house.

Walk past the bank and keep going to the end of the street.

We also use adverbs and adverb phrases for place and direction:

Abroad away anywhere downstairs downwards

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everywhere here indoors inside nowhere

outdoors outside somewhere there upstairs

I would love to see Paris. I’ve never been there.

The bedroom is upstairs.
It was so cold that we stayed indoors.

We often have a preposition at the end of a clause:

This is the room we have our meals in.

The car door is very small so it’s difficult to get into.
I lifted the carpet and looked underneath.

adverbials of distance

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Distance

We use adverbials to show how far things are:

Birmingham is 250 kilometres from London.

Birmingham is 250 kilometres away from London.
It is 250 kilometres from Birmingham to London.

Sometimes we use a preposition at the end of a clause:

We were in London. Birmingham was 250 kilometres away.

Birmingham was 250 kilometres off.
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adverbials of time

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Adverbials of time

We use adverbials of time to say:

• when something happened:

I saw Mary yesterday.

She was born in 1978.
I will see you later.
There was a storm during the night.

• for how long :

We waited all day.

They have lived here since 2004.
We will be on holiday from July 1st until August 3rd.

• how often (frequency):

They usually watched television in the evening.

We sometimes went to work by car.

We often use a noun phrase as a time adverbial:

last one
yesterda
week/month/ye day/week/mon last Saturday
y
ar th
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next
tomorro the day after
week/month/ye next Friday
w tomorrow
ar

this the other

the day before
Today week/month/ye day/week/mon
yesterday
ar th

time and dates

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We use phrases with prepositions as time adverbials:

• We use at with:

clock times: at seven o’clock - at nine thirty - at fifteen hundred hours

mealtimes: at breakfast - at lunchtime - at teatime

… and in these phrases:

at night - at the weekend - at Christmas - at Easter

• We use in with:

seasons of the year: in spring/summer/autumn/winter - in the spring

/summer/autumn/winter
years and centuries: in 2009 -in 1998 - in the twentieth century
months: in January/February/March etc.
parts of the day: in the morning - in the afternoon - in the evening.

• We use on with:
 54

days: on Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday etc - on Christmas day - on my

birthday.
dates: on the thirty first of July - on June 15th

Note: We say at night when we are talking about all of the night:

When there is no moon it is very dark at night.

He sleeps during the day and works at night.

but we say in the night when we are talking about a short time during the night:

He woke up twice in the night.

I heard a funny noise in the night.

We use the adverb ago with the past simple to say how long before the time of
speaking something happened:

I saw Jim about three weeks ago.

We arrived a few minutes ago.

We can put time phrases together:

We will meet next week at six o’clock on Monday.

I heard a funny noise at about eleven o’clock last night.
It happened last week at seven o’clock on Monday night.

how often

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The commonest adverbials of frequency are:

Always never normally occasionally often

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Rarely seldom sometimes usually

We usually put adverbials of frequency in front of the main verb:

We often spend Christmas with friends.

I have never enjoyed myself so much.

but they usually come after the verb be:

He was always tired in the evening.

We are never late for work.

We use the adverbial a lot to mean often or frequently. It comes at the end of the
clause:

We go to the cinema a lot.

but before another time adverbial:

We go to the cinema a lot at the weekend.

We use much with a negative to mean not often:

We don’t go out much. (= We don’t go out often)

We use how often or ever to ask questions about frequency. How often comes at
the beginning of the clause:

How often do you go to the cinema?

How often have you been here?

ever comes before the main verb:

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Do you ever go to the cinema at the weekend?

Have you ever been there?

Longer frequency phrases, like every year or three times a day usually come at
the end of the clause:

I have an English lesson twice a week.

She goes to see her mother every day.

already, still, yet and no longer

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We use still to show that something continues up to a time in the past present or
future. It goes in front of the main verb:

The children still enjoyed playing games.

They are still living next door.
We will still be on holiday.

… or after the present simple or the past simple of be:

Her grandfather is still alive.

They were still unhappy.

We use already to show that something has happened sooner than it was
expected to happen. Like still, it comes before the main verb:

The car is OK. I’ve already fixed it.

It was early but they were already sleeping.

… or after the present simple or past simple of the verb be:

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It was early but we were already tired.

We are already late.

We use yet in a negative or interrogative clause, usually with perfective aspect

(especially in British English), to show that something has not happened by a
particular time. yet comes at the end of the sentence:

It was late, but they hadn’t arrived yet.

Have you fixed the car yet?
She won’t have sent the email yet.

adverbials of probability

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Adverbials of probability

We use adverbials of probability to show how certain we are about something. The
most frequent adverbials of probability are:

certainly - definitely - maybe - possibly

clearly - obviously - perhaps - probably

maybe and perhaps usually come at the beginning of the clause:

Perhaps the weather will be fine.

Maybe it won’t rain.

Other adverbs of possibility usually come in front of the main verb:

He is certainly coming to the party.

Will they definitely be there?
We will possibly come to England next year.
 58

but in after am, is, are, was, were:

They are definitely at home.

She was obviously very surprised.

how long

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We use for to say how long:

We have been waiting for twenty minutes.

They lived in Manchester for fifteen years.

We use since with the present perfect or the past perfect to say when something
started:

I have worked here since December.

They had been watching since seven o’clock in the morning.

We use from …to/until to say when something starts and finishes:

They stayed with us from Monday to Friday.

We will be on holiday from the sixteenth until the twentieth.

comparative adverbs

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We can use comparative adverbs to show change or to make comparisons:

 59

I forget things more often nowadays.

She began to speak more quickly.
They are working harder now.

We often use than with comparative adverbs

I forget things more often than I used to.

Girls usually work harder than boys.

Intensifiers:

We use these words and phrases as intensifiers with these patterns:

much - far - a lot - quite a lot - a great deal - a good deal - a good bit - a fair
bit

I forget things much more often nowadays.

Mitigators:

We use these words and phrases as mitigators:

a bit - just a bit - a little - a little bit - just a little bit - slightly

She began to speak a bit more quickly

superlative adverbs

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We can use superlative adverbs to make comparisons:

His ankles hurt badly, but his knees hurt worst.

It rains most often at the beginning of the year.

Intensifiers:
 60

When we intensify a superlative adverb we often use the in front of the adverb, and
we use these words and phrases as intensifiers:

easily - much - far - by far

Nouns

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This Nouns sections brings together information about

 Nouns - count nouns

 Nouns - uncount nouns
 Nouns - count/uncount nouns - common problems
 Nouns - Proper nouns

count nouns

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Count nouns have two forms: singular and plural.

Singular count nouns refer to one person or thing:

a book; a teacher; a wish; an idea

Plural count nouns refer to more than one person or thing:

books; teachers; wishes; ideas

Singular count nouns

Singular count nouns cannot be used alone. They must have a determiner:
 61

the book; that English teacher; a wish; my latest idea

Plural forms

We usually add –s to make a plural noun:

book > books; school > schools; friend > friends

We add -es to nouns ending in –ss; -ch; -s; -sh; -x

class > classes; watch > watches; gas > gases; wish > wishes; box > boxes

When a noun ends in a consonant and -y we make the plural in -ies...

lady > ladies; country > countries; party > parties

…but if a noun ends in a vowel and -y we simply add -s:

boy > boys; day > days; play > plays

Some common nouns have irregular plurals:

Man > men; woman > women; child > children; foot > feet;
person > people

Plural count nouns do not have a determiner when they refer to people or things
as a group:

Computers are very expensive.

Do you sell old books?

uncount nouns

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Some nouns in English are uncount nouns.

We do not use uncount nouns in the plural and we do not use them with the
indefinite article, a/an.

We ate a lot of foods > We ate a lot of food

We bought some new furnitures > We bought some new furniture
That’s a useful information > That’s useful information

We can use some quantifiers with uncount nouns:

He gave me some useful advice.

They gave us a lot of information.

Uncount nouns often refer to:

 Substances: food; water; wine; salt; bread; iron

 Human feelings or qualities: anger; cruelty; happiness; honesty; pride;
 Activities: help; sleep; travel; work
 Abstract ideas: beauty; death; fun; life

Common uncount nouns

There are some common nouns in English, like accommodation, which are
uncount nouns even though they have plurals in other languages:

bagga equipme furnitu homewo informati

Advice
ge nt re rk on

knowled luggag machine

money news traffic
ge e ry
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Let me give you some advice.

How much luggage have you got?

If we want to make these things countable, we use expressions like:

a piece pieces a bit bits an item items

of... of... of... of... of... of...

Let me give you a piece of advice.

That’s a useful piece of equipment.
We bought a few bits of furniture for the new apartment.
She had six separate items of luggage.

but we do not use accommodation, money and traffic in this way.

common problems with count/uncount nouns

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1: Uncount nouns used as count nouns

Although substances are usually uncount nouns...

Would you like some cheese?

Coffee keeps me awake at night.
Wine makes me sleep.

... they can be also used as count nouns:

I’d like a coffee please. I’d like a [cup of] coffee.

=
 64

May I have a white wine. May I have a [glass of] white wine.
=

They sell a lot of [different kinds of]

They sell a lot of coffees.
= coffee.

I prefer [different kinds of] white wine to

I prefer white wines to red.
= red.

They had over twenty cheeses on They had over twenty [types of] cheese
sale. = on sale.

This is an excellent soft cheese. This [kind of] soft cheese is excellent.
=

2: Some nouns have both a count and an uncount form:

We should always have hope.

George had hopes of promotion.
Travel is a great teacher.
Where did you go on your travels?

3: Nouns with two meanings

Some nouns have two meanings, one count and the other non count:
 65

His life was in danger.

There is a serious danger of fire.

Linguistics is the study of language.

Is English a difficult language?

It’s made of paper.

The Times is an excellent paper.

Other words like this are:

business death industry marriage power property

Tax time victory use work

4: Uncount nouns that end in -s

Some uncount nouns end in -s so they look like plurals even though they are
singular nouns.

These nouns generally refer to:

Subjects of study: mathematics, physics, economics, etc.

Activities: gymnastics, athletics, etc.

Games: cards, darts, billiards, etc.

Diseases: mumps, measles, rabies, etc.

 66

Economics is a very difficult subject.

Billiards is easier than pool or snooker.

5: Group nouns

Some nouns, like army, refer to groups of people, animals or things, and we can
use them either as singular nouns or as plural nouns.

Army audience committee company crew enemy

Family flock gang government group herd

Media public regiment staff team

We can use these group nouns either as singular nouns or as plural nouns:

 My family is very dear to me.

I have a large family. They are very dear to me. (= The members of my family…)
 The government is very unpopular.
The government are always changing their minds.

Sometimes we think of the group as a single thing:

 The audience always enjoys the show.

 The group consists of two men and three women.

Sometimes we think of the group as several individuals;

 The audience clapped their hands.

 The largest group are the boys.
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The names of many organisations and teams are also group nouns, but they
are usually plural in spoken English:

 Barcelona are winning 2-0.

 The United Oil Company are putting prices up by 12%.

6: Two-part nouns

A few plural nouns, like binoculars, refer to things that have two parts.

glasses jeans knickers pincers pants pliers

pyjamas scissors shorts spectacles tights trainers

trousers tweezers

These binoculars were very expensive

Those trousers are too long.

To make it clear we are talking about one of these items, we use a pair of …

I need a new pair of spectacles.

I’ve bought a pair of blue jeans.

If we want to talk about more than one, we use pairs of … :

We’ve got three pairs of scissors, but they are all blunt.
I always carry two pairs of binoculars.

proper nouns
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Names of people, places and organisations are called proper nouns. We spell
proper nouns with a capital letter:

Mohammed Ali; Birmingham; China; Oxford University, the United Nations

We use capital letters for festivals:

Christmas; Deepawali; Easter; Ramadan; Thanksgiving

We use a capital letter for someone’s title:

I was talking to Doctor Wilson recently.

Everything depends on President Obama.

When we give the names of books, films, plays and paintings we use capital letters
for the nouns, adjectives and verbs in the name:

I have been reading ‘The Old Man and the Sea’.

Beatrix Potter wrote ‘The Tale of Peter Rabbit’
You can see the Mona Lisa in the Louvre.

Sometimes we use a person’s name to refer to something they have created:

Recently a Van Gogh was sold for fifteen million dollars.

We were listening to Mozart.
I’m reading an Agatha Christie.

Verbs

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Verbs in English have four basic parts:

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Base form -ing form Past tense Past participle

Work working worked worked

Play playing played played

Listen listening listened listened

Most verbs have past tense and past participle in –ed (worked, played, listened).
But many of the most frequent verbs are irregular.

 irregular verbs
 question forms
 verb phrases
 present tense
 past tense
 perfective aspect
 continuous aspect
 active and passive voice
 to + infinitive
 -ing forms
 talking about the present
 talking about the past
 talking about the future
 verbs in time clauses and if clauses
 70

 wishes and hypotheses

 the verb be
 link verbs
 delexical verbs like have, take, make and give
 Modal verbs
 double object verbs
 phrasal verbs
 reflexive and ergative verbs
 verbs followed by to + infinitive
 verbs followed by -ing clauses
 verbs followed by that clause

irregular verbs

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Most verbs have past tense and past participle in –ed ( worked, played, listened).
But many of the most frequent verbs are irregular:

Base form Past tense Past participle

was/were been
be began begun
begin broke broken
break brought brought
bring bought bought
buy built built
build chose chosen
choose came come
come cost cost
cost cut cut
cut did done
do drew drawn
draw drove driven
drive ate eaten
eat felt felt
feel found found
got got
 71

Base form Past tense Past participle

find
get gave given
give went gone
go had had
have heard heard
hear held held
hold kept kept
keep knew known
know left left
leave led led
lead let let
let lay lain
lie lost lost
lose made made
make meant meant
mean met met
meet paid paid
pay put put
put ran run
run said said
say saw seen
see sold sold
sell sent sent
send set set
set sat sat
sit spoke spoken
speak spent spent
spend stood stood
stand took taken
take taught taught
teach told told
tell thought thought
think understood understood
understand wore worn
wear won won
win wrote written
write

question forms

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 72

We make questions by:

1: moving an auxiliary to the front of the clause:

Everybody is watching >> Is everybody watching?

They had worked hard >> Had they worked hard?

He's finished work >> Has he finished work?

Everybody had been working Had everybody been

>>
hard working hard?

He has been singing >> Has he been singing?

English is spoken all over the Is English spoken all over

>>
world the world?

The windows have been Have the windows been

>>
cleaned cleaned?

2: … or by moving a modal to the front of the clause:

They will come >> Will they come?

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He might come >> Might he come?

They will have arrived by Will they have arrived by

>>
now now?

She would have been Would she have been

>>
listening listening?

The work will be finished Will the work be finished

>>
soon soon?

They might have been Might they have been

>>
invited to the party invited to the party?

3: The present simple and the past simple have no auxiliary. We make questions
by adding the auxillary do/does for the present simple or did for the past simple:

They live here >> Do they live here?

John lives here >> Does John live here?

Everybody laughed >> Did everybody laugh?

verb phrases
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The verb phrase in English has the following forms:

1) a main verb:

Verb

We are here.
I like it
Everybody saw. the accident
We laughed.

The verb may be in the present tense (are, like) or the past tense (saw, laughed). A
verb phrase with only a main verb expresses simple aspect

2) an auxiliary verb ("be") and a main verb in –ing form:

Auxiliary "be" Verb (-ing)

Everybody is watching
We were laughing
 75

A verb phrase with "be" and –ing expresses continuous aspect.

3) an auxiliary verb ("have") and a main verb with past participle:

Auxillary Verb (past

"have" participle)

They have enjoyed themselves.

Everybody has worked hard.
He had finished work.

A verb with "have" and the past participle expresses perfect aspect. A verb
with have/has expresses present perfect, and a verb with had expresses past
perfect.

4) an auxiliary verb ("have" + "been") and a main verb in the –ing form:

Auxiliary "have" + "been" Verb (-ing)

Everybody has been working hard

He had been singing
 76

A verb with "have" and "been" and the present participle expresses perfect
continuous aspect. A verb with have/has expresses present perfect continuous,
and a verb with had expresses past perfect continuous.

5) a modal verb (can, could, may, might, must, shall, should, will, would) and
a main verb:

Modal Verb Main verb

They will come.

He might come.

6) We can use modal verbs with the auxiliaries "be", "have", and "have been":

Modal Auxiliary Verb

They will be listening

He might have arrived
She must have been listening

present tense

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 77

There are two tenses in English – past and present.

The present tenses in English are used:

 to talk about the present

 to talk about the future
 to talk about the past when we are telling a story in spoken English or when we are
summarising a book, film, play etc.

There are four present tense forms in English:

Present simple: I work

Present continuous: I am working

Present perfect: I have worked

Present perfect continuous: I have been working

We use these forms:

 to talk about the present:

He works at McDonald’s. He has worked there for three months now.

He is working at McDonald’s. He has been working there for three months
now.
London is the capital of Britain.

 to talk about the future:

 78

The next train leaves this evening at 1700 hours.

I’ll phone you when I get home.
He’s meeting Peter in town this afternoon.
I’ll come home as soon as I have finished work.
You will be tired out after you have been working all night.

 We can use the present tenses to talk about the past...

present simple

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The present tense is the base form of the verb: I work in London.
But the third person (she/he/it) adds an -s: She works in London.

Use

We use the present tense to talk about:

 something that is true in the present:

I’m nineteen years old.

He lives in London.
I’m a student.

 something that happens again and again in the present:

I play football every weekend.

We use words like sometimes, often. always, and never (adverbs of

frequency) with the present tense:

I sometimes go to the cinema.

She never plays football.

 something that is always true:

 79

The adult human body contains 206 bones.

Light travels at almost 300,000 kilometres per second.

 something that is fixed in the future.

The school term starts next week.

The train leaves at 1945 this evening.
We fly to Paris next week.

Questions and negatives

Look at these questions:

Do you play the piano?

Where do you live?
Does Jack play football?
Where does he come from?
Do Rita and Angela live in Manchester?
Where do they work?

 With the present tense, we use do and does to make questions. We use does for
the third person (she/he/it) and we use do for the others.

We use do and does with question words like where, what and why:

But look at these questions with who:

Who lives in London?

Who plays football at the weekend?
Who works at Liverpool City Hospital?
 80

Look at these sentences:

I like tennis, but I don’t like football. (don’t = do not)

I don’t live in London now.
I don’t play the piano, but I play the guitar.
They don’t work at the weekend.
John doesn’t live in Manchester. (doesn’t = does not)
Angela doesn’t drive to work. She goes by bus.

 With the present tense we use do and does to make negatives. We use does not
(doesn’t) for the third person (she/he/it) and we use do not (don’t) for the others.

present continuous

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The present continuous tense is formed from the present tense of the verb be and
the present participle (-ing form) of a verb:

Use

1. We use the present continuous tense to talk about the present:

 for something that is happening at the moment of speaking:

I’m just leaving work. I’ll be home in an hour.

Please be quiet. The children are sleeping.

 for something which is happening before and after a given time:

At eight o’clock we are usually having breakfast.

When I get home the children are doing their homework.

 for something which we think is temporary:

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Michael is at university. He’s studying history.

I’m working in London for the next two weeks.

 for something which is new and contrasts with a previous state:

These days most people are using email instead of writing letters.
What sort of clothes are teenagers wearing nowadays? What sort of
music are they listening to?

 to show that something is changing, growing or developing:

The children are growing quickly.

The climate is changing rapidly.
Your English is improving.

 for something which happens again and again:

It’s always raining in London.

They are always arguing.
George is great. He’s always laughing.

Note: We normally use always with this use.

2. We use the present continuous tense to talk about the future:

 for something which has been arranged or planned:

Mary is going to a new school next term.

What are you doing next week?

3. We can use the present continuous to talk about the past:

 When we are telling a story:

 When we are summarising the story from a book, film or play etc.:
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present perfect

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The present perfect is formed from the present tense of the verb have and
the past participle of a verb:

The present perfect continuous is formed with have/has been and the -ing form of
the verb:

Use

We use the present perfect tense:

 for something that started in the past and continues in the present:

They’ve been married for nearly fifty years.

She has lived in Liverpool all her life.

Note: We normally use the present perfect continuous for this:

She has been living in Liverpool all her life.

It’s been raining for hours.

 for something we have done several times in the past and continue to do:

I’ve played the guitar ever since I was a teenager.

He has written three books and he is working on another one.
I’ve been watching that programme every week.

We often use a clause with since to show when something started in the past:

They’ve been staying with us since last week.

I have worked here since I left school.
I’ve been watching that programme every week since it started.

 when we are talking about our experience up to the present:

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Note: We often use the adverb ever to talk about experience up to the
present:

My last birthday was the worst day I have ever had.

Note: and we use never for the negative form:

Have you ever met George?

Yes, but I’ve never met his wife.

 for something that happened in the past but is important at the time of speaking:

I can’t get in the house. I’ve lost my keys.

Teresa isn’t at home. I think she has gone shopping.
I’m tired out. I’ve been working all day.

past tense

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There are two tenses in English – past and present.

The past tense in English is used:

 to talk about the past

 to talk about hypotheses – things that are imagined rather than true.
 for politeness.

There are four past tense forms in English:

Past simple: I worked

Past continuous: I was working

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Past simple: I worked

Past perfect: I had worked

Past perfect continuous: I had been working

We use these forms:

 to talk about the past:

He worked at McDonald’s. He had worked there since July..

He was working at McDonald’s. He had been working since July.

 to refer to the present or future in conditions:

He could get a new job if he really tried.

If Jack was playing they would probably win.

and hypotheses:

It might be dangerous. Suppose they got lost.

I would always help someone who really needed help.

and wishes:

I wish it wasn’t so cold.

 In conditions, hypotheses and wishes, if we want to talk about the past, we

always use the past perfect:
 85

I would have helped him if he had asked.

It was very dangerous, What if you had got lost?
I wish I hadn’t spent so much money last month.

 We can use the past forms to talk about the present in a few polite expressions:

Excuse me, I was wondering if this was the train for York.
I just hoped you would be able to help me.

past simple

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Forms

With most verbs the past tense is formed by adding -ed:

call >> called; like >> liked; want >> wanted; work >> worked

But there are a lot of irregular past tenses in English. Here are the most common
irregular verbs in English, with their past tenses:

infinitive irregular past

be was/were
begin began
break broke
bring brought
buy bought
build built
choose chose
come came
cost cost
cut cut
do did
draw drew
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infinitive irregular past

drive drove
eat ate
feel felt
find found
get got
give gave
go went
have had
hear heard
hold held
keep kept
know knew
leave left
lead led
let let
lie lay
lose lost
make made
mean meant
meet met
pay paid
put put
run ran
say said
sell sold
send sent
set set
sit sat
speak spoke
spend spent
stand stood
take took
teach taught
tell told
think thought
understand understood
wear wore
win won
write wrote

Use
 87

We use the past tense to talk about:

 something that happened once in the past:

I met my wife in 1983.

We went to Spain for our holidays.
They got home very late last night.

 something that happened again and again in the past:

When I was a boy I walked a mile to school every day.

We swam a lot while we were on holiday.
They always enjoyed visiting their friends.

 something that was true for some time in the past:

I lived abroad for ten years.

He enjoyed being a student.
She played a lot of tennis when she was younger.

 we often use phrases with ago with the past tense:

I met my wife a long time ago.

Questions and negatives

We use did to make questions with the past tense:

When did you meet your wife?

Where did you go for your holidays?
Did she play tennis when she was younger?
Did you live abroad?

But look at these questions:

Who discovered penicillin?

Who wrote Don Quixote?
 88

For more on these questions see question forms

We use didn’t (did not) to make negatives with the past tense:

They didn’t go to Spain this year.

We didn’t get home until very late last night.
I didn’t see you yesterday.

past continuous

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The past continuous is formed from the past tense of be with the -ing form of the
verb:

We use the past continuous to talk about the past:

 for something which continued before and after another action:

The children were doing their homework when I got home.

Compare:

I got home. The children did their homework.

and
The children did their homework when I got home.

As I was watching television the telephone rang.

This use of the past continuous is very common at the beginning of a story:

The other day I was waiting for a bus when …

Last week as I was driving to work …
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 for something that happened before and after a particular time:

It was eight o’clock. I was writing a letter.

Compare:

At eight o’clock I wrote some letters.

In July she was working in McDonald’s.

 .to show that something continued for some time:

My head was aching.

Everyone was shouting.

 for something that was happening again and again:

I was practising every day, three times a day.

They were meeting secretly after school.
They were always quarrelling.

 with verbs which show change or growth:

The children were growing up quickly.

Her English was improving.
My hair was going grey.
The town was changing quickly.

past perfect

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We use the verb had and the past participle for the past perfect:

I had finished the work.

She had gone .
 90

The past perfect continuous is formed with had been and the -ing form of the
verb:

I had been finishing the work

She had been going.

The past perfect is used in the same way as the present perfect, but it refers to a
time in the past, not the present.

We use the past perfect tense:

 for something that started in the past and continued up to a given time in the past:

When George died he and Anne had been married for nearly fifty years.
She didn’t want to move. She had lived in Liverpool all her life.

We normally use the past perfect continuous for this:

She didn’t want to move. She had been living in Liverpool all her life.
Everything was wet. It had been raining for hours.

 for something we had done several times up to a point in the past

and continued to do after that point:

He was a wonderful guitarist. He had been playing ever since he was a

teenager.
He had written three books and he was working on another one.
I had been watching the programme every week, but I missed the last
episode.

We often use a clause with since to show when something started in the past:

They had been staying with us since the previous week.

I was sorry when the factory closed. I had worked there since I left school.
I had been watching that programme every week since it started, but I missed
the last episode.

 when we are reporting our experience and including up to the (then) present:
 91

My eighteenth birthday was the worst day I had ever had.

I was pleased to meet George. I hadn’t met him before, even though I had met
his wife several times.

 for something that happened in the past but is important at the time of reporting:

I couldn’t get into the house. I had lost my keys.

Teresa wasn’t at home. She had gone shopping.

We use the past perfect to talk about the past

in conditions, hypotheses and wishes:

I would have helped him if he had asked.

It was very dangerous. What if you had got lost?
I wish I hadn’t spent so much money last month.

perfective aspect

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We use the present perfect to show that something has continued up to the
present

They’ve been married for nearly fifty years.

She has lived in Liverpool all her life.

… or is important in the present:

I’ve lost my keys. I can’t get into the house.

Teresa isn’t at home. I think she has gone shopping.

We use the present perfect continuous to show that something has been
continuing up to the present:

It’s been raining for hours.

We’ve been waiting here since six o’clock this morning.
 92

We use the past perfect to show that something continued up to a time in the
past:

When George died he and Anne had been married for nearly fifty years.

... or was important at that time in the past:

I couldn’t get into the house. I had lost my keys.

Teresa wasn’t at home. She had gone shopping.

We use the past perfect continuous to show that something had been continuing
up to a time in the past or was important at that time in the past:

Everything was wet. It had been raining for hours.

He was a wonderful guitarist. He had been playing ever since he was a
teenager.

We use will with the perfect to show that something will be complete at some
time in the future:

In a few years they will have discovered a cure for the common cold.
I can come out tonight. I'll have finished my homework by then.

We use would with the perfect to refer to something that did not happen in the
past but would have happened if the conditions had been right:

If you had asked me I would have helped you.

I would have helped you, but you didn’t ask me.
You didn’t ask me or I would have helped you.

We use other modals with perfective aspect when we are looking back from a
point in time when something might have happened, should have happened or
would have happened.

The point of time may be in the future:

We’ll meet again next week. We might have finished the work by then.
I will phone at six o’clock. He should have got home by then.
 93

the present:

It’s getting late. They should have arrived by now.

He’s still not here. He must have missed his train.

or the past:

I wasn’t feeling well. I must have eaten something bad.

I checked my cell phone. She could have left a message.

continuous aspect

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Both tenses have a continuous form. These continuous tenses are formed with the
verb be and the –ing form of the verb:

We use continuous aspect:

 for something happening before and after a given time.

He’s getting on the train. [before and after the moment of speaking]
It was quarter past ten. We were watching the news on television.

 for something continuing before and after another action:

Mother will be cooking the dinner when we get home.

We were waiting for the bus when it started to rain.

 for something continuing for some time:

Everybody will be waiting for us.

They had been working hard all day.

 for something happening again and again:

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They’ve been doing that every day this week.

The children were always shouting.
He will be practising the piano every night.

 for something temporary:

We are renting an apartment until our house is ready..

He was working in a garage during the vacation.

 for something new:

We have moved from Birmingham. We’re living in Manchester now.

He had left university and was working in his father’s business.

 to describe something changing or developing:

Everything has been getting more difficult.

He was growing more bad-tempered every day.

active and passive voice

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Transitive verbs have both active and passive forms:

active passive

The lion was killed by the

The hunter killed the lion. >>
hunter.
 95

active passive

Someone has cleaned the The windows have been

>>
windows cleaned

The passive forms are made up of the verb be with a past participle:

past
be
participle

all over the

English is spoken
world

The
have been cleaned
windows

Lunch was being served

The work will be finished soon

might have
They invited to the party
been

We sometimes use the verb get to form the passive:

 96

Be careful with the glass. It might get broken.

Peter got hurt in a crash.

If we want to show the person or thing doing the action we use by:

She was attacked by a dangerous dog.

The money was stolen by her husband.

We can use the indirect object as the subject of a passive verb:

active passive

I gave him a book for his He was given a book for

>>
birthday his birthday.

Someone sent her a cheque She was sent a cheque for

>>
for a thousand euros a thousand euros.

We can use phrasal verbs in the passive:

active passive

They called off the meeting. >> The meeting was called off.

His grandmother looked He was looked after by his

>>
after him. grandmother.
 97

active passive

They will send him away to He will be sent away to

>>
school. school.

Some verbs very frequently used in the passive are followed by the to-infinitive:

be supposed to be expected to be asked to

be scheduled to be allowed to be told to

John has been asked to make a speech at the meeting.

You are supposed to wear a uniform.
The meeting is scheduled to start at seven.

to + infinitive

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We use the to-infinitive:

• to express purpose (to answer "Why...?"):

He bought some flowers to give to his wife.

He locked the door to keep everyone out.

We sometimes say in order to or in order not to:

 98

We set off early in order to avoid the traffic.

They spoke quietly in order not to wake the children

… or we can say so as to or so as not to:

We set off early so as to avoid the traffic.

They spoke quietly so as not to wake the children.

• after certain verbs (see verbs followed by infinitive), particularly verbs

of thinking and feeling:

choose, decide, expect, forget, hate, hope, intend, learn, like,

love, mean, plan, prefer, remember, want, would like, would love

… and verbs of saying:

agree, promise, refuse

They decided to start a business together.

Remember to turn the lights out.

Some verbs are followed by a direct object and the infinitive(see verbs followed by
infinitive):

advise, ask, encourage, invite, order, persuade, remind, tell, warn,

expect, intend, would prefer, want, would like

She reminded me to turn the lights out.

He encouraged his friends to vote for him.

• after certain adjectives.

Sometimes the to-infinitive gives a reason for the adjective:

 disappointed
 glad
 sad
 happy
 99

 anxious
 pleased
 surprised
 proud
 unhappy

We were happy to come to the end of our journey

= We were happy because we had come to the end of our journey
John was surprised to see me
= He was surprised because he saw me

Other adjectives with the to-infinitive are:

 able
 unable
 due
 eager
 keen
 likely
 unlikely
 ready
 prepared
 unwilling
 willing

Unfortunately I was unable to work for over a week.

I am really tired. I’m ready to go to bed.

We often use the to-infinitive with these adjectives after it to give opinions:

 difficult
 easy
 possible
 impossible
 hard
 right
 wrong
 kind
 100

 nice
 clever
 silly
 foolish

It’s easy to play the piano, but it’s very difficult to play well.
He spoke so quickly it was impossible to understand him.

We use the preposition for to show who these adjectives refer to:

 difficult
 easy
 possible
 impossible
 hard

It was difficult for us to hear what she was saying.

It is easy for you to criticise other people.

We use the preposition of with other adjectives:

It’s kind of you to help.

It would be silly of him to spend all his money.

• As a postmodifier (see noun phrases) after abstract nouns like:

 ability
 desire
 need
 wish
 attempt
 failure
 opportunity
 chance
 intention
 101

I have no desire to be rich.

They gave him an opportunity to escape.
She was annoyed by her failure to answer the question correctly.

• We often use a to-infinitive as a postmodifier after an indefinite pronoun

(See indefinite pronouns):

When I am travelling I always take something to read.

I was all alone. I had no one to talk to.
There is hardly anything to do in most of these small towns.

-ing forms

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We can use the -ing form of the verb:

• as a noun:

I love swimming.
Swimming is very good for your health.
You can get fit by swimming regularly.

-ing nouns are nearly always uncount nouns

 as an adjective:

The main problem today is rising prices.

That programme was really boring.
He saw a woman lying on the floor.

Because the -ing noun or adjective is formed from a verb it can have any of
the patterns which follow a verb, for example:

 ... an object:
 102

I like playing tennis.

I saw a dog chasing a cat.

 ... or an adverbial:

You can earn a lot of money by working hard.

There were several people waiting for the bus.

 ... or a clause:

I heard someone saying that.

The -ing noun can be used:

 as the subject of a verb:

Learning English is not easy.

 as the object of a verb:

We enjoy learning English.

Common verbs followed by an -ing object are:

admit like hate start avoid

suggest enjoy dislike begin finish

 as the object of a preposition

Some people are not interested in learning English.

The -ing adjective can come:

 103

 in front of a noun:

I read an interesting article in the newspaper today.

We saw a really exciting match on Sunday.

The commonest –ing adjectives used in front of the noun are

amusing interesting worrying shocking disappointing

boring surprising exciting terrifying frightening

tiring annoying

 after a noun:

Who is that man standing over there?

The boy talking to Angela is her younger brother.

 and especially after verbs like see, watch, hear, smell etc.

I heard someone playing the piano.

I can smell something burning.

talking about the present

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1. We use the present simple:
 104

 to talk about something happening regularly in the present:

The children come home from school at about four.

We often see your brother at work.

 to talk about something happening continually in the present:

They live next door to us.

He works for the Post Office.

 to talk about things which are generally true:

Water boils at 100 degrees Celsius.

The Nile is the longest river in Africa.

2. We use the present continuous:

 to show that something in the present is temporary:

We are living in a rented flat at present.

My wife usually goes in to the office, but she is working at home today.

 for something happening regularly in the present before and after a given time:

I’m usually getting ready for work at eight o’clock.

When I see George he’s always reading his newspaper.

 for something happening before and after the moment of speaking:

I can’t hear you. I’m listening to my iPod.

Be quiet. The children are sleeping.

3. We use modal verbs

 to talk about the present when we are not sure of something:

I don’t know where Henry is. He might be playing tennis.

Who’s knocking at the door? I don’t know. It could be the police.
 105

talking about the past

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1 Talking about past events and situations:

We use the past simple:

 when we are talking about an event that happened at a particular time in the past

We arrived home before dark

The film started at seven thirty.

 when we are talking about something that continued for some time in the past

Everybody worked hard through the winter.

We stayed with our friends in London.

When we are talking about something that happened several times in the past we
use

 the past simple:

Most evenings we stayed at home and watched DVDs.

Sometimes they went out for a meal.

 … or used to

Most evenings we used to stay at home and watch DVDs.

We used to go for a swim every morning.

 ... or would

Most evenings he would take the dog for a walk.

They would often visit friends in Europe.

WARNING: We do not normally use would with stative verbs.

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We use the past continuous:

 when we are talking about something which happened before and after a
given time in the past

It was just after ten. I was watching the news on TV.

At half-time we were losing 1-0.

 when we are talking about something

happening before and after another action in the past:

He broke his leg when he was playing rugby.

She saw Jim as he was driving away.

2 The past in the past

When we are looking back from a point in the past to something earlier in the
past we use the past perfect:

Helen suddenly remembered she had left her keys in the car.
When we had done all our shopping we caught the bus home.
They wanted to buy a new computer, but they hadn’t saved enough money.
They would have bought a new computer if they had saved enough money.

3 The past and the present:

We use the present perfect:

 when we are talking about the effects in the present of something that happened
in the past:

I can’t open the door. I’ve left my keys in the car.

Jenny has found a new job. She works in a supermarket now.

 When we are talking about something that started in the past and still goes on:

We have lived here since 2007. (and we still live here)

I have been working at the university for over ten years.
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4 The future in the past

When we talk about the future from a time in the past we use:

 would as the past tense of will

He thought he would buy one the next day.

Everyone was excited. The party would be fun.

 was/were going to

John was going to drive and Mary was going to follow on her bicycle.
It was Friday. We were going to set off the next day.

 the past continuous:

It was September. Mary was starting school the next week.

We were very busy. The shop was opening in two weeks time.

talking about the future

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1. When we know about the future we normally use the present tense.

 We use the present simple for something scheduled or arranged:

We have a lesson next Monday.

The train arrives at 6.30 in the morning.
The holidays start next week.
It is my birthday tomorrow.

 We can use the present continuous for plans or arrangements:

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I’m playing football tomorrow.

They are coming to see us tomorrow.
We’re having a party at Christmas.

2. We use will to talk about the future:

 When we make predictions:

It will be a nice day tomorrow.

I think Brazil will win the World Cup.
I’m sure you will enjoy the film.

 To mean want to or be willing to:

I hope you will come to my party.

George says he will help us.

 To make offers and promises:

I'll see you tomorrow.

We'll send you an email.

 To talk about offers and promises:

Tim will be at the meeting.

Mary will help with the cooking.

3. We use (be) going to:

 To talk about plans and intentions:

I’m going to drive to work today.

They are going to move to Manchester.

 When we can see that something is likely to happen:

Be careful! You are going to fall.

Look at those black clouds. I think it’s going to rain.
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4. We often use verbs like would like, plan, want, mean, hope, expect to talk
about the future:

What are you going to do next year? I’d like to go to University.

We plan to go to France for our holidays.
George wants to buy a new car.

5. We use modals may, might, and could when we are not sure about the future:

I might stay at home tonight, or I might go to the cinema.

We could see Mary at the meeting. She sometimes goes.

6. We can use should if we think something is likely to happen:

We should be home in time for tea.

The game should be over by eight o’clock.

7. Clauses with time words:

In clauses with time words like when, after, and until we often use a present
tense form to talk about the future:

I’ll come home when I finish work.

You must wait here until your father comes.
They are coming after they have had dinner.

8. Clauses with if:

In clauses with if we often use a present tense form to talk about the future:

We won’t be able to go out if it rains.

If Barcelona win tomorrow they will be champions.

WARNING: We do not normally use will in clauses with if or with time words:

I’ll come home when I will finish work.

We won’t be able to go out if it will rain rains.
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But we can use will if it means a promise or offer:

I will be very happy if you will come to my party.

We should finish the job early if George will help us.

9. We can use the future continuous instead of the present continuous or going
to for emphasis when we are talking about plans, arrangements and intentions:

They’ll be coming to see us next week.

I will be driving to work tomorrow.

verbs in time clauses and if clauses

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Verbs in time clauses and conditionals follow the same patterns as in other
clauses except:

 In clauses with time words like when, after, until we often use the present
tense forms to talk about the future:

I’ll come home when I finish work.

You must wait here until your father comes.
They are coming after they have had dinner.

 in conditional clauses with if or unless we often use the present tense forms to
talk about the future:

We won’t be able to go out if it is raining.

If Barcelona win tomorrow they will be champions.
I will come tomorrow unless I have to look after the children.

 We do not normally use will in clauses with if or with time words:

I’ll come home when I will finish work.

We won’t be able to go out if it will rain. rains.
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It will be nice to see Peter when he will get home gets home.
You must wait here until your father will come comes.

 but we can use will if it means a promise or offer:

I will be very happy if you will come to my party.

We should finish the job early if George will help us.

"if" clauses and hypotheses

Some clauses with if are like hypotheses so we use past tense forms to talk about
the present and future.

We use the past tense forms to talk about the present in clauses with if :

 for something that has not happened or is not happening:

He could get a new job if he He cannot get a job

=
really tried because he has not tried.

If Jack was playing they Jack is not playing so they

=
would probably win will probably not win.

If I had his address I could I do not have his address

=
write to him so I cannot write to him.

We use the past tense forms to talk about the future in clauses with if:

 for something that we believe or know will not happen:

We would go by train if We won’t go by train

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because it is too
it wasn’t so expensive =
expensive.

I would look after the children I can’t look after the

for you at the weekend if children because I will
=
I was at home not be at home.

 to make suggestions about what might happen:

If he came tomorrow we could borrow his car.

If we invited John, Mary would bring Angela.

When we are talking about something which did not happen in the past we use
the past perfect in the if clause and a modal verb in the main clause:

If you had seen him you You did not see him so you
could have spoken to him = could not speak to him

You could have stayed with You couldn’t stay with us

us if you had come to because you didn’t come to
=
London London.

If we hadn’t spent all our

We have spent all our money
money we could take a
= so we can’t take a holiday
holiday.
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If I had got the job we I did not get the job so we are
would be living in Paris = not living in Paris.

If the main clause is about the past we use a modal with have:

You did not see him so

If you had seen him you
you could not speak to
could have spoken to him. =
him.

You couldn’t stay with us

You could have stayed with us
because you didn’t come
if you had come to London. =
to London.

If you had invited me I You didn’t invite me so I

might have come. = didn’t come.

If the main clause is about the present we use a present tense form or a modal
without have:

If I had got the job

I did not get the job so we
we would be living in Paris
= are not living in Paris now.
now.
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If you had done your You did not do your

homework you would homework so you do not
=
know the answer. know the answer.

wishes and hypotheses

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Wishes

We use past tense forms to talk about wishes:

 We use past tense modals would and could to talk about wishes for the future:

I don’t like my work. I wish I could get a better job.

That’s a dreadful noise. I wish it would stop.
I always have to get home early. I wish my parents would let me stay out
later.

 We use past tense forms to talk about wishes for the present:

I don’t like this place. I wish I lived in somewhere more interesting.

These seats are very uncomfortable. I wish we were travelling first class.
Everyone wishes they had more free time.
John wishes he wasn’t so busy.
I wish it wasn’t so cold.

 We use the past perfect to talk about wishes for the past:

I wish I had worked harder when I was at school.

Mary wishes she had listened to what her mother told her.
I wish I hadn’t spent so much money last month.
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Hypotheses (things that we imagine)

When we are talking about hypotheses:

 We use present tense forms after phrases like what if, in case and suppose to
talk about the future if we think it is likely to happen:

Those steps are dangerous. Suppose someone has an accident.

We should leave home early in case we are late.

 We use a past tense form to talk about the future after suppose and what if to
suggest something is not likely to happen:

It might be dangerous. Suppose they got lost.

What if he lost his job. What would happen then?

 We use modals would, could for a hypothesis about the future:

We can’t all stay in a hotel. It would be very expensive.

Drive carefully. You could have an accident.

 We use would in the main clause and the past in a subordinate clause to talk
about the imagined future:

I would always help someone who really needed help.

I would always help someone if they really needed it.

 We use modals with have to talk about something that did not happen in the
past:

I did not see Mary, or I might have spoken to her.

It’s a pity Jack wasn’t at the party. He would have enjoyed this party.
Why didn’t you ask me. I could have told you the answer.

the verb be
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The verb be has the following forms:

I am We are
Present simple: Affirmative You are You are
He/She/It is They are

Am I? Are we?
Question form: Are you? Are you?
Is he/she it? Are they?

We are not/aren
I am not/ I’m not
You are not/aren
Negative: You are not/ aren’t
They are not/are
He/She/It is not/ isn’t

I was We were
Past simple You were You were
He/She/It was They were

The past participle: been.

Present perfect: has/have been

Past perfect: had been

The verb be is used in the following patterns:

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1. with a noun:

My mother is a teacher.
Bill Clinton was the president of the US.

2. with an adjective:

This soup is very tasty.

The children were good.

2.1 with the -ing form to make the continuous aspect

We were walking down the street.

Everything was wet. It had been raining for hours.

2.2 with the -ed form to make the passive voice

The house was built in 1890.

The street is called Montagu Street.
This car was made in Japan.

3. with a prepositional phrase:

John and his wife are from Manchester.

The flowers are on the table.

link verbs

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Some verbs are followed by either a noun or an adjective:

She was a good friend. = N+V+N

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She was very happy. = N + V + Adj.

He became headmaster. = N+V+N

He became angry. = N + V + Adj.

These verbs are called link verbs. Common verbs like this are:

 be
 become
 appear
 feel
 look
 remain
 seem
 sound

She seemed an intelligent woman.

She seemed intelligent.
He looked hungry.
He looked a good player.

After appear and seem we often use to be:

She appeared to be an intelligent woman.

He seemed to be angry.

Some link verbs are followed by an adjective. Common verbs like this are:

 get
 go
 grow
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 taste
 smell

He got hungry in the evening.

She grew stronger every day.

delexical verbs like have, take, make and give

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Delexical verbs:
have, take, make, give, go and do

We often use common verbs like have and take with nouns like a shower, a drink:

I took a shower. = I showered.

She had a drink. = She drank something.

We call these delexical verbs because the important part of the meaning is
taken out of the verb and put into the noun.

We often put adjectives in front of the noun:

I took a cold shower.

She had a nice, refreshing drink.

The verbs used most frequently in this way are:

have take make give

have

We use have with:

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Food and drink: a meal, breakfast, lunch, dinner, a snack, a cup of tea
Talking: a chat, a conversation, a discussion, a talk
Washing: a bath, a shower, a wash, a scrub
Resting: a break, a holiday, a rest
Disagreeing: an argument, a dispute, a fight, a quarrel

I had a good breakfast before I left home.

We had a long talk about the problem.
The kids should have a bath before they go to bed.
She generally had a short holiday in July or August.
They had a serious quarrel about their father’s will.

We also use have with nouns formed from verbs:

I think you should have a look at this.

She had a bite of the cake.
I’m thirsty. I’m going to have a drink of water.
I had a listen to that new CD in the car.
They are going to have a swim.

Modal verbs

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The modal verbs are:

can could

may might

shall should
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will would

We use modal verbs to show if we believe something is certain, probable or possible

(or not). We also use modals to do things like talking about ability, asking
permission making requests and offers, and so on.

 certain, probable or possible

 ability, permission, requests and advice
 modals + have
 can, could and could have
 may, might, may have and might have
 can or could
 will or would
 will have or would have

certain, probable or possible

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The modal verbs are can, could, may, might, shall, should, will and would.

The modals are used to show that we believe something is certain, probable or
possible:

Possibility:

We use the modals could, might and may to show that something is possible in
the future, but not certain:
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They might come later. (= Perhaps/Maybe they will come later.)

They may come by car. (= Perhaps/Maybe they will come by car.)
If we don’t hurry we could be late. (= Perhaps/Maybe we will be late)

We use could have, might have and may have to show that something was
possible now or at some time in the past:

It’s ten o’clock. They might have arrived now.

They could have arrived hours ago.

We use the modal can to make general statements about what is possible:

It can be very cold in winter. (= It is sometimes very cold in winter)

You can easily lose your way in the dark. (= People often lose their way in the
dark)

We use the modal could as the past tense of can:

It could be very cold in winter. (= Sometimes it was very cold in winter.)

You could lose your way in the dark. (= People often lost their way in the dark)

Impossibility:

We use the negative can’t or cannot to show that something is impossible:

That can’t be true.

You cannot be serious.

We use couldn’t/could not to talk about the past:

We knew it could not be true.

He was obviously joking. He could not be serious.

Probability:

We use the modal must to show we are sure something to be true and we have
reasons for our belief:
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It’s getting dark. It must be quite late.

You haven’t eaten all day. You must be hungry.

We use must have for the past:

They hadn’t eaten all day. They must have been hungry.
You look happy. You must have heard the good news.

We use the modal should to suggest that something is true or will be true in the
future, and to show you have reasons for your suggestion:

Ask Miranda. She should know.

It's nearly six o'clock. They should arrive soon.

We use should have to talk about the past:

It's nearly eleven o'clock. They should have arrived by now.

ability, permission, requests and advice

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The modal verbs are can, could, may, might, shall, should, will and would.

The modals are used to do things like talking about ability, asking permission
making requests, and so on.

Ability:

We use can to talk about someone’s skill or general abilities:

She can speak several languages.

He can swim like a fish.
They can’t dance very well.
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We use can to talk about the ability to do something at a given time in

the present or future:

You can make a lot of money if you are lucky.

Help. I can’t breathe.
They can run but they can’t hide.

We use could to talk about past time:

She could speak several languages.

They couldn’t dance very well.

We use could have to say that someone had the ability/opportunity to do

something, but did not do it:

She could have learned Swahili, but she didn’t have time.
I could have danced all night [but didn't].

Permission:

We use can to ask for permission to do something:

Can I ask a question, please?

Can we go home now.

could is more formal and polite than can:

Could I ask a question please?

Could we go home now?

may is another more formal and polite way of asking for permission:

May I ask a question please?

May we go home now?

We use can to give permission:

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You can go home now if you like.

You can borrow my pen if you like.

may is a more formal and polite way of giving permission:

You may go home now, if you like.

We use can to say that someone has permission to do something:

We can go out whenever we want.

Students can travel free.

may is a more formal and polite way of saying that someone has permission:

Students may travel free.

Instructions and requests:

We use could you and would you as polite ways of telling or asking someone to do
something:

Could you take a message please?

Would you carry this for me please?
Could I have my bill please?

can and will are less polite:

Can you take a message please?

Will you carry this for me please?

Suggestions and advice:

We use should to make suggestions and give advice:

You should send an email.

We should go by train.

We use could to make suggestions:

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We could meet at the weekend.

You could eat out tonight.

We use conditionals to give advice:

Dan will help you if you ask him.

Past tenses are more polite:

Dan would help you if you asked him.

Offers and invitations:

We use can I… and to make offers:

Can I help you?

Can I do that for you?

We can also use shall I …

Shall I help you with that?

Shall I call you on your mobile?

We sometime say I can ... or I could ... or I’ll (I will) ... to make an offer:

I can do that for you if you like.

I can give you a lift to the station.
I’ll do that for you if you like.
I’ll give you a lift to the station.

We use would you like (to) ... for invitations:

Would you like to come round to morrow?

Would you like another drink?

We use you must or we must for a very polite invitation:

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You must come round and see us.

We must meet again soon.

Obligation and necessity

We use must to say that it is necessary to do something:

You must stop at a red light.

Everyone must bring something to eat.
You can wear what you like, but you must look neat and tidy.
I’m sorry, but you mustn’t make a noise in here.

We use had to for this if we are talking about the past:

Everyone had to bring something to eat.

We could wear what we liked, but we had to look neat and tidy.

modals + have

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We use a modal verb with have and the past participle:

Subject Modal Have Past Participle

They will have arrived by now

You might have seen the film

Jack and Jill would have been late

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We use a modal verb with have to refer back:

 … from a point of time in the past:

We were very worried. Someone might have taken the car.

 … from the present

It is nearly eight o’clock. They will have arrived by now.

 …or from the future:

We won’t eat until they arrive. They might not have had supper.

 or to refer to past time:

You should have helped her when she asked.

They might have got lost. Nobody knows where they are.

can, could and could have

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Questions and negatives:

We make questions by putting the subject after can/could:

Can I …? Can you …? Could I … Could you …? and so on.

The negative form is can’t in spoken English and cannot in written English.
We sometimes say cannot, but it is very emphatic.

The negative form of could is couldn’t in spoken English and could not in written
English.
We sometimes say could not.

We use can and can’t :

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 To talk about ability:

Maria can speak four languages.

I can’t swim, but my sister can.

 To say that something is possible or impossible:

Learning English can be difficult [= Learning English is sometimes difficult.]

Children can be very naughty [= Children are sometimes very naughty.]
It’s still light. It can’t be bedtime.

 For requests and refusals of requests

Can I go home now?

You can go whenever you like.
You can borrow the car today, but you can’t have it tomorrow.

 To offer to help someone:

Can I help you?

Can I carry that bag for you?

We use could and couldn’t as the past tense of can/can’t:

 To talk about ability:

I could run very fast when I was younger.

She couldn’t get a job anywhere.

 To say that something was possible or impossible:

Our teacher could be very strict when we were at school. [= Some teachers
were very strict.]
People could starve in those days. [= People sometimes starved.]
You couldn’t use computers in the nineteenth century.

 To make a polite request:

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Could I go now please?

Could you lend me a dictionary please?

 To make a polite offer:

Could I give you a lift?

I could carry that for you.

We use could have:

 to show that something is possible now or was possible at some time in the past:

It’s ten o’clock. They could have arrived now.

They could have arrived hours ago.

may, might, may have and might have

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Questions and negatives:

We make questions by putting the subject after may/might:

May I …? Could I … Might I …? Etc.

The negative forms are may not and might not..

We use may:

 when we are not sure about something:

Jack may be coming to see us tomorrow.

Oh dear! It’s half past ten. We may be late for the meeting.
There may not be very many people there.

 to make polite requests:

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May I borrow the car tomorrow?

May we come a bit later?

When we use may not for a refusal it is emphatic:

You may not!

You may not borrow the car until you can be more careful with it.

We use might:

• when we are not sure about something:

I might see you tomorrow.

It looks nice, but it might be very expensive.
It’s quite bright. It might not rain today.

• As the past tense of may for requests:

He asked if he might borrow the car.

They wanted to know if they might come later.

• For very polite requests:

Might I ask you a question?

Might we just interrupt for a moment?

We use may have and might have to show that something has possibly happened
now or happened at some time in the past:

It’s ten o’clock. They might have arrived now.[= Perhaps they have arrived]
They may have arrived hours ago. [= Perhaps they arrived hours ago.]

can or could

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Possibility

We use the modal can to make general statements about what is possible:

It can be very cold in winter. (= It is sometimes very cold in winter)

You can easily lose your way in the dark. (= People often lose their way in the
dark)

We use could as the past tense of can:

It could be very cold in winter. (=Sometimes it was very cold in winter.)

You could lose your way in the dark. (=People often lost their way in the dark)

We use could to show that something is possible in the future, but not certain:

If we don’t hurry we could be late. (=Perhaps/Maybe we will be late)

We use could have to show that something is/was possible now or at some time in
the past:

It’s ten o’clock. They could have arrived now.

They could have arrived hours ago.

Impossibility:

We use the negative can’t or cannot to show that something is impossible:

That can’t be true.

You cannot be serious.

We use couldn’t/could not to talk about the past:

We knew it could not be true.

He was obviously joking. He could not be serious.

Ability:

We use can to talk about someone’s skill or general abilities:

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She can speak several languages.

He can swim like a fish.
They can’t dance very well.

We use can to talk about the ability to do something at a given time in

the present or future:

You can make a lot of money if you are lucky.

Help. I can’t breathe.
They can run but they can’t hide.

We use could to talk about past time:

She could speak several languages.

They couldn’t dance very well.

Permission:

We use can to ask for permission to do something:

Can I ask a question, please?

Can we go home now?

could is more formal and polite than can:

Could I ask a question please?

Could we go home now?

We use can to give permission:

You can go home now if you like.

You can borrow my pen if you like.

We use can to say that someone has permission to do something:

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We can go out whenever we want.

Students can travel free.

Instructions and requests:

We use could you and as a polite way of telling or asking someone to do

something:

Could you take a message please?

Could I have my bill please?

can is less polite:

Can you take a message please?

Offers and invitations:

We use can I … to make offers:

Can I help you?

Can I do that for you?

We sometimes say I can ... or I could ... to make an offer:

I can do that for you if you like.

I can give you a lift to the station.

will or would

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We use will:

 to talk about the future – to say what we believe will happen

 to talk about what people want to do or are willing to do
 to make promises and offers
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would is the past tense form of will. Because it is a past tense it is used:

 to talk about the past.

 to talk about hypotheses – things that are imagined rather than true.
 for politeness.
Beliefs

We use will

 to say what we believe will happen in the future:

We'll be late.
We will have to take the train.

We use would as the past tense of will:

 to say what we believed would happen:

I thought I would be late …… so I would have to take the train.

Offers and promises

We use I will or We will to make offers and promises:

I’ll give you a lift home after the party.

We will come and see you next week.

Willingness
 to talk about what people want to do or are willing to do:

We’ll see you tomorrow.

Perhaps dad will lend me the car.

We use would as the past tense of will:

 to talk about what people wanted to do or were willing to do:

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We had a terrible night. The baby wouldn’t go to sleep. He kept waking up

and crying.
Dad wouldn’t lend me the car, so we had to take the train.

 to talk about something that we did often in the past because we wanted to do it:

When they were children they used to spend their holidays at their
grandmother’s at the seaside. They would get up early every morning and
they’d have a quick breakfast then they would run across the road to the
beach.

Conditionals

We use will in conditionals with if and unless to say what we think will happen in
the future or present:

I’ll give her a call if I can find her number.

You won’t get in unless you have a ticket.

We use would to talk about hypotheses, about something which is possible but not
real:

 to talk about the result or effect of a possible situation:

It would be very expensive to stay in a hotel.

 in conditionals with words like if and what if. In these sentences the main verb is
usually in the past tense:

I would give her a call if I could find her number.

If I had the money I'd buy a new car.
You would lose weight if you took more exercise.
If he got a new job he would probably make more money.
What if he lost his job. What would happen then?

We use conditionals to give advice:

Dan will help you if you ask him.

 137

Past tenses are more polite:

Dan would help you if you asked him.

Phrases with would:

 would you…, would you mind (not) -ing, for requests:

Would you carry this for me please?

Would you mind carrying this?
Would you mind not telling him that?

 would you like ...; would you like to ..., for offers and invitations:

Would you like to come round to morrow?

Would you like another drink?

 I would like …; I’d like … (you)(to) ..., to say what we want or what we want to do:

I’d like that one please.

I’d like to go home now.

 I’d rather… (I would rather) to say what we prefer:

I’d rather have that one.

I’d rather go home now.

 I would think, I would imagine, I'd guess, to give an opinion when we are not
sure or when we want to be polite:

It’s very difficult I would imagine.

I would think that’s the right answer.

will have or would have

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We use the perfective will have when we are looking back from a point in time
when something will have happened.

By the end of the decade scientists will have discovered a cure for influenza.
I will phone at six o’clock. He will have got home by then.

or looking "back" from the present:

Look at the time. The match will have started.

It’s half past five. Dad will have finished work.

We use would have as the past tense form of will have:

I phoned at six o’clock. I knew he would have got home by then.

It was half past five. Dad would have finished work.

We use would have in past conditionals to talk about something that did not
happen:

If it had been a little warmer we would have gone for a swim.

He would have been very angry if he had seen you.

double object verbs

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1. Some verbs have two objects –an indirect object and a direct object:

Subject Verb Indirect object Direct object

My wife sent me an email

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He brought his mother some flowers

He cooked all his friends a delicious meal

These clauses have the structure: V + N (indirect object) + N (direct object)

2. We can use a prepositional phrase with to or for with an indirect object:

Subject Verb Direct object Prepositional phrase

My wife sent an email to me

He brought some flowers for his mother

He cooked a delicious meal for all his friends.

These clauses have the structure : V + N (direct object) + Prepositional phrase

(indirect object)

3. Common verbs with for and an indirect object are:

 book
 buy
 get
 cook
 140

 keep
 bring
 make
 pour
 save
 find

They booked a table for me at the restaurant.

We made toys for all the children.

4. Common verbs with to and an indirect object are:

 give
 lend
 offer
 pass
 post
 read
 sell
 send
 show
 promise
 tell

He gave his programme to the man sitting next to him.

They sent Christmas cards to all their customers.

5. If the indirect object is a long phrase we normally use to or for:

He showed his ticket to the policeman standing by the door.

We kept something to eat and drink for all the people who arrived late.

6. If the indirect object is a pronoun we normally use the N + V + N + N pattern:

I poured him another drink.

Their mother read them another story.
 141

phrasal verbs

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Some verbs are two part verbs (see Clauses, Sentences and Phrases). They consist
of a verb and a particle:

 grow + up
>> The children are growing up.

Often this gives the verb a new meaning:

 take + after
>> She takes after her mother
= She looks like her mother, or She behaves like her mother.
 count + on
>> I know I can count on you
= I know I can trust you, or I know I can believe you.

Some transitive two part verbs (see Clauses, Sentences and Phrases) have only
one pattern:

N (subject) + V + p + N (object)

[Note: N = noun; V = verb; p = particle]

N (Subject) Verb Particle N (Object)

She takes after her mother

I can count on you
My father comes from Madrid

Some transitive two part verbs (see Clauses, Sentences and Phrases) are phrasal
verbs. Phrasal verbs have two different patterns:
 142

• The usual pattern is: N + V + N + p

N
Verb (N) Object Particle
(Subject)

gave the money

She back
knocked the glass
He over
will be our friends and
We behind
leaving neighbours

• But sometimes these verbs have the pattern: N (subject) + V + p + N (object)

N
Verb Particle N (Object)
(Subject)

gave the money

She back
knocked the glass
He over
will be our friends and
We behind
leaving neighbours

When the object is a personal pronoun,these verbs always have the pattern:

N + V +N + p:

 She gave back it

>> She gave it back
 He knocked over it
>> knocked it over
 We will be leaving behind them
>> We will be leaving them behind
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• Phrasal verbs are nearly always made up of a transitive verb and

a particle. Common verbs with their most frequent particles are:

bring: about, along, back, forward, in, off, out, round, up

buy: out, up

call: off, up

carry: off, out

cut: back, down, off, out, up

give: away, back, off

hand: back, down, in, on out, over, round

knock: down, out, over

leave: behind, out

let: down, in, off, out

pass: down, over, round

 144

point: out

push: about, around, over

across, away, down, forward, off, on, out, through,

put:
together, up

read: out

set: apart, aside, back, down

shut: away, in, off, out

take: apart, away, back, down, in, on, up, over

think: over, through, up

reflexive and ergative verbs

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Reflexive verbs

1 The reflexive pronouns (see pronouns) are:

Singular: myself; yourself; himself; herself; itself

 145

Plural: ourselves; yourselves; themselves

We use a reflexive pronoun after a transitive verb (see Clauses, Sentences and
Phrases) when the direct object is the same as the subject of the verb:

I am teaching myself to play the piano.

Be careful with that knife. You might cut yourself.

These are the verbs most often found with reflexive pronouns:

 cut
 dry
 enjoy
 hurt
 introduce
 kill
 prepare
 teach

Some verbs change their meaning slightly when they have a reflexive pronoun as
direct object:

 amuse
 apply
 busy
 content
 behave
 blame
 distance
 express
 find
 help
 see
 146

Would you like to help Would you like to take another

=
yourself to another drink? drink?

I wish the children would I wish the children would

=
behave themselves. behave well.

He was surprised when he

He found himself lying by
= realised that he was at the side
the side of the road.
of the road.

I saw myself as a famous I imagined that I was a famous

=
actor. actor.

She applied herself to the She worked very hard to mend

=
job of mending the lights. the lights.

He busied himself in the He worked busily in the

=
kitchen. kitchen.

I had to content myself I had to be satisfied with a few

=
with a few Euros. Euros.

The verb enjoy always has an object:

We all enjoyed the party.

I really enjoyed my lunch.

If enjoy has no other object, we use a reflexive pronoun:

 147

They all enjoyed  They all enjoyed themselves.

I really enjoyed  I really enjoyed myself.

NOTE: We do not use a reflexive pronoun after verbs which describe things
people usually do for themselves:

He washed in cold water.

He always shaved before going out in the evening.
Michael dressed and got ready for the party.

We only use reflexives with these verbs for emphasis:

He dressed himself in spite of his injuries.

She’s old enough to wash herself.

Ergative verbs

1. Ergative verbs are both transitive and intransitive:

Peter closed the door Transitive: N + V + N

The door closed Intransitive: N + V

I boiled a pan of water Transitive: N + V + N

The pan boiled Intransitive: N + V

2. Common ergative verbs are:

 begin
 break
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 change
 close
 drop
 crack
 dry
 end
 finish
 grow
 improve
 increase
 move
 open
 shake
 start
 stop
 tear
 turn

I broke the glass.

I dropped the glass and it broke.

The referee blew his whistle and started the match.

The match started at 2.30.

We grew some tasty potatoes.

The potatoes were growing well.

The wind shook the trees.

The trees shook in the wind.

3. Many verbs to do with cooking are ergative verbs:

 bake
 boil
 cook
 defrost
 freeze
 melt
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 roast

You should roast the meat at 200 degrees centigrade.

The meat was roasting in a hot oven.

I always defrost meat before I cook it.

I am waiting for the meat to defrost.

Melt the chocolate and pour it over the ice cream.

The chocolate was melting in a pan.

4. Verbs to do with vehicles are often ergative:

 back
 crash
 drive
 fly
 reverse
 run
 sail
 start
 stop

I’m learning to fly a plane.

The plane flew at twice the speed of sound.

He crashed his car into a tree.

His car crashed into a tree.

5. We use some ergative verbs with only a few nouns:

 catch: dress, coat, clothes, trousers etc.

 fire : Gun, pistol, rifle, rocket.
 play: guitar, music, piano, violin, CD, DVD etc.
 ring: bell, alarm
 150

She caught her dress on a nail.

Her dress caught on a nail.

He fired a pistol to start the race.

A pistol fired to start the race.

verbs followed by to + infinitive

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1 Some verbs are followed by the to-infinitive:

I decided to go home as soon as possible.

We all wanted to have more English classes.

Common verbs followed by the to-infinitive are:

Verbs of thinking and feeling:

 choose
 decide
 expect
 forget
 hate
 hope
 intend
 learn
 like
 love
 mean
 plan
 prefer
 remember
 would like
 would love

Verbs of saying:

 agree
 151

 promise
 refuse

Other common verbs are:

 arrange
 attempt
 fail
 help
 manage
 tend
 try
 want
2 Some verbs are followed by a noun and the to-infinitive:

She asked him to send her a text message.

He wanted all his friends to come to his party.

Common verbs with this pattern are:

Verbs of saying:

 advise
 ask
 encourage
 invite
 order
 persuade
 remind
 tell
 warn *

*Note: The verb warn is normally used with not

The police warned everyone not to drive too fast.

Verbs of wanting or liking:

 expect
 152

 intend
 would
 prefer
 want
 would like

Other verbs with this pattern are:

 allow
 enable
 force
 get
 teach
3. Passive infinitive

Many of these verbs are sometimes followed by a passive infinitive

(to be + past participle):

I expected to be met when I arrived at the station.

They wanted to be told if anything happened.
I don’t like driving myself. I prefer to be driven.

verbs followed by -ing clauses

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Common verbs followed by –ing nouns are:

Verbs of liking and disliking:

 detest
 dislike
 enjoy
 hate
 fancy
 like
 love
 153

I love swimming but I hate jogging.

They always enjoyed visiting their friends.
A: Do you fancy going for a walk?
B: I wouldn’t mind

Phrases with mind:

 wouldn’t mind (= would like)
 don’t mind (= I am willing to)
 would you mind (= will you please…?)

I wouldn’t mind having some fish and chips.

I don’t mind waiting for a few minutes.
Would you mind holding this for me?

Verbs of saying and thinking:

 admit
 consider
 deny
 imagine
 remember
 suggest

Our guide suggested waiting until the storm was over.

Everyone denied seeing the accident.

Other common verbs are:

 avoid
 begin
 finish
 keep
 miss
 practise
 risk
 start
 stop

I haven’t finished writing this letter.

Let’s practise speaking English.
 154

Passive form of -ing

Many of these verbs are sometimes followed by the passive form of -ing: being +
past participle

I don’t like being interrupted.

Our dog loves being stroked under the chin.

Noun + -ing clause

Some verbs are followed by a noun and an -ing clause:

Verbs to do with the senses:

 see
 watch
 hear
 smell
 listen to
 etc.

We saw everybody running away.

I could hear someone singing.

Other common verbs:

 catch
 find
 imagine
 leave
 prevent
 stop

I caught someone trying to break into my house.

We couldn’t prevent them getting away.
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verbs followed by that clause

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With "that"

We can use clauses with that:

• after verbs of thinking:

 think
 believe
 expect
 decide
 hope
 know
 understand
 suppose
 guess
 imagine
 feel
 remember
 forget

I hope that you will enjoy your holiday.

She didn’t really think that it would happen.
I knew that I had seen her somewhere before.

• after verbs of saying:

 say
 admit
 argue
 reply
 agree
 claim
 deny
 mention
 answer
 156

 complain
 explain
 promise
 suggest

They admitted that they had made a mistake.

She argued that they should invest more in the business.
The children complained that they had nothing to do.

Note: tell and some other verbs of saying must always have a direct object (see
clauses, sentences and phrases):

 tell
 convince
 persuade
 inform
 remind

We tried to tell them that they should stop what they were doing.
The police informed everybody that the danger was over.

• as postmodifiers after nouns to do with thinking or saying:

 advice
 belief
 claim
 feeling
 argument
 hope
 promise
 report
 guess
 opinion
 idea

He made a promise that he would do all he could to help.

I had a funny feeling that something was wrong.
 157

• after some nouns to say more about the noun:

 fact
 advantage
 effect
 possibility
 chance
 danger
 evidence
 problem
 difficulty

She pointed out the danger that they might be left behind.
There was a chance that we would succeed

Note: We often use a that clause to define one of these nouns after the
verb be :

 danger
 problem
 chance
 possibility
 fact

The danger is that we will be left behind.

The fact is that it is getting very late.

• after some adjectives which describe feelings to give a reason for our feelings:

 pleased
 sorry
 happy
 unhappy
 sad
 excited
 glad
 disappointed
 afraid
 158

I am sorry that you can’t come.

Everybody was pleased that the danger was past.
It is lucky that you were able to drive us home.

No "that"

NOTE: We can always use a clause without the word that:

They admitted [that] they had made a mistake.

The police informed everybody [that] the danger was over.
I am sorry [that] you can’t come.
There was chance [that] we would succeed.

Clause, phrase and sentence

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The basic unit of English grammar is the clause:

[An unlucky student almost lost a 17th century violin worth almost
£200,000]

[when he left it in the waiting room of a London station.]

[William Brown inherited the 1698 Stradivarius violin from his mother]

[and had just had it valued by a London dealer at £180,000.]

Clauses are made up of phrases:

[An unlucky student] + [almost lost] + [a 17th century violin worth almost
£200,000]

[when] + [he] + [left] + [it] + [in the waiting room of a London station.]
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[William Brown] + [inherited] + [the 1698 Stradivarius violin] + [from his

mother]

[and] [had just had it valued] + [by a London dealer] + [at £180,000.]

We can join two or more clauses together to make sentences.

An unlucky student almost lost a 17th century violin worth almost £200,000
when he left it in the waiting room of a London station.

William Brown inherited the 1698 Stradivarius violin from his mother and had
just had it valued by a London dealer at £180,000.

 clause structure
 verb patterns
 noun phrase
 verb phrase
 adverbial phrases
 prepositional phrases
 sentence structure
 adjective phrases

clause structure

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All clauses in English have at least two parts: a noun phrase and a verb phrase:

Noun phrase Verb phrase

 160

(subject)

The children laughed

All the people in the were
bus watching

But most clauses have more than two parts:

Noun phrase Verb

(subject) phrase

laughed
The children
wanted a new
John
are bicycle
All of the girls
learning English
This soup
tastes awful
Mary and the family
were driving to Madrid in a
She
put the flowers vase

The first noun phrase is the subject of the sentence:

The children laughed.

John wanted a new bicycle.
All the girls are learning English.
She put the flowers in the vase.

English clauses always have a subject:

His father has just retired. Was a teacher. He was a teacher.

I’m waiting for my wife. Is late. She is late.

… except for the imperative which is used to give orders:

Stop!
Go away.

… and for "soft imperatives" like invitations and requests:

 161

Please come to dinner tomorrow.

Play it again please.

If we have no other subject we use "there" or "it" as subject. We call this a ‘dummy
subject’:

There were twenty people at the meeting..

There will be an eclipse of the moon tonight.

It’s a lovely day.

It’s nearly one o’clock.
I have toothache. It hurts a lot.

verb patterns

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The structure of the clause depends on the verb. For example:

 An intransitive verb has the structure: N(=noun) + V(=verb): (John) + (smiled).

 A transitive verb has the structure: N + V + N: (We) + (had been playing) + (football)
 A link verb has the structure: N + V + Adj : (She) + (looked) + (happy)
 A phrasal verb has the structure: N + V + p + N (She) + (gave) +(back) + (the money)
or
N + V + N + p (She) + (gave) + (the money) + (back)

intransitive verbs

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Intransitive verbs have the pattern N + V (noun + verb). The clause is complete
without anything else:
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Noun Phrase (Subject) Verb Phrase

John smiled
Nothing happened
The baby was sleeping

(John) (smiled).
(Nothing) (has happened).
(The baby) (was sleeping).

transitive verbs

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Transitive verbs have a noun phrase as object:

Noun phrase Noun phrase

Verb phrase
(Subject) (Object)

wanted
John a new bicycle.
had been
We football.
playing
Some of the children English.
are learning

This pattern is N + V + N (noun + verb + noun).

link verbs

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Some verbs are followed by an adjective phrase. The adjective phrase is called the
complement:
 163

Noun phrase Verb Adjective phrase

(Subject) phrase (complement)

I am feeling hungry
Everyone looked very happy
This soup tastes awful
The milk has gone sour

This pattern is N + V + Adj (noun + verb + adjective phrase).

These verbs are called link verbs.

Some link verbs (for example be; become; seem) can have a noun phrase as a
complement:

Noun phrase Verb Noun phrase

(Subject) phrase (complement)

Our neighbour was a strange man

He became a geologist
She seems a nice girl

This pattern is N + V + N (noun + verb + noun).

double object verbs

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Some verbs, like give and bring can have two different patterns after them:

Noun
Noun Phrase Verb Phrase Prepositional
(Subject) Phrase (Direct phrase
object)

She gave some money to the old man

 164

for the
They brought a lot of food
animals

>>>> <<<<

Noun
Noun Phrase
Noun Phrase Verb Phrase
(Direct
(Subject) Phrase (Indirect
object)
object)

She gave the old man some money

They brought the animals a lot of food

These verbs are called double object verbs. When we have two noun phrases after
the verb the first noun phrase is the indirect object and the second noun phrase is
the direct object.

verbs with -ing forms

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Some transitive verbs can have a noun phrase as an object:

Everybody likes good food.

George considered the problem.

or the –ing form of the verb:

Everybody likes eating.

George considered starting again.

Note: we suggest that you read about Verbs with to + infinitive before doing
this activity.
 165

verbs with to + infinitive

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Some verbs have the pattern N + V + to+infinitive:

They agreed to help.

We decided to go.

Some verbs have the pattern N + V + N + to+infinitive:

She told him to go home.

They advised us to wait.

Note: we suggest that you read about Verbs with -ing forms before doing this
activity.

reporting verbs with that, wh- and if clauses

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Reporting verbs with that clauses:

Some verbs introduce a report, an idea or a summary. These verbs have the
pattern:

N + V + (that) + clause

When we want to say what someone says or thinks we can use a clause with that;

He said that I had to see a doctor.

I thought that he was being silly.
 166

We can leave out the word that:

He said I had to see a doctor.

I thought he was being silly.

With some verbs we can mention the hearer as the object of the verb:

She reminded him that it was time to go.

He told me he was a friend of yours.

These verbs have the pattern;

N + V + N + (that) + clause.

Reporting verbs with wh- and if clauses

Some verbs introduce summaries, reports, questions or problems:

She explained what we had to do.

He asked if I was ready
I didn’t know what to do.

These verbs have the pattern:

N + V + wh- + clause:
She wondered where she was.

or

N + V + if + clause:
Ken asked if we wanted to go.

With some verbs we can mention the hearer as the object of the verb:

She asked me if I was ready.

He told me what I had to do.

These verbs have the pattern:

 167

N + V + N + wh- + clause:
I told them what he was doing.

or

N + V + N + if + clause:
Ken asked us if we wanted to go.

two- and three-part verbs

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Two part verbs

Some verbs consist of two words – a verb and a particle (p). These verbs have a
number of patterns:

Peter came in. (N + V + p)

He took out his diary. (N + V + p + N)
He gave the money back. (N + V + N + p)

Phrasal verbs

Some transitive two part verbs are phrasal verbs. They have two different patterns.

N+V+N+p

She gave the money back

He knocked the vase over
We will be leaving our friends behind

or

N+V+p+N
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She gave back the money

He knocked over the vase
We will be leaving behind our friends.

When the object is a pronoun these verbs always have the first pattern N + V +N +
p:

She gave it back

He knocked it over
We will be leaving them behind

Three part verbs

Some verbs are made up of three parts – a verb and two particles. They have the
pattern:

N + V + p + p + N:

His girl friend walked out on him.

She soon caught up with the other runners
Children should look up to their parents.

verb patterns - adverbials

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A clause often has one or more adverbial phrases:

 The children laughed happily.

(N + V + Adv)
 All the girls are learning English at school in the second year.
(N + V + Adv + Adv)
 Last year Mary and the family were driving to Madrid in an old bus.
(Adv + N + V + Adv + Adv)
 She put the flowers carefully in a vase.
(N + V + N + Adv + Adv)
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clauses: short forms

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A: Short forms as answers

1. We often use short forms to answer questions. Usually we repeat the first
word of the verb phrase:

A: Can you come round tomorrow?

B: Yes, I can/ No I can’t.

A: Have you seen Jack lately?

B: Yes, I have/No I haven’t.

A: Do you like living here?

B: Yes, I do/ No I don’t.

Sometimes we change the modal verb: (see Verb Phrase)

A: Will you come?

B: Yes, we might.

A: Do you think they might come?

B: Yes, I think they will.

2. We often use verbs like think, suppose, expect and hope, to answer questions.

 when the answer is yes we add so (I expect so, I hope so, etc.).
 if the answer is no we say I don’t think so, I don’t suppose so, etc..
 but with hope we say I hope not.

A: Can you come tomorrow?

B: I hope so.
 170

A: Will they be at home?

B: I expect so.

A: Is Amsterdam the capital of the Netherlands?

B: I don’t think so.

A: Do you think it’s going to rain?

B: I hope not.

3. We often use adverbials of

probability like perhaps, probably, possibly, maybe, definitely and certainly a
s short answers:

A: Do you think it’s going to rain?

B: Yes, possibly.

A: Can you come round tomorrow?

B: Definitely!

When the answer is negative we put not after the adverbial:

A: Do you think it’s going to rain?

B: Probably not.

A: Can you come round tomorrow?

B: Maybe not.

4. We can use short forms to agree or disagree with what someone says. Usually
we use the first word in the verb phrase:

A: It’s a lovely day.

B: Yes, it is.

A: I think they might have missed their train.

B: Yes, I think they might.

A: The children will be coming to see us next week.

B: No they won’t. They are going to their grandparents.
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Sometimes we change the modal:

A: The children will be coming to see us next week.

B: Yes, they might.

A: The children might be coming to see us next week.

B: No they won’t. They are going to their grandparents.

We use do/does//don’t/doesn’t to agree or disagree with a statement in the

present simple form:

A: Your grandmother looks very well.

B: Yes, she does.

A: I think Jack lives here.

B: No he doesn’t

…and we use did/didn’t for past simple:

A: Everybody really enjoyed the trip.

B: Yes, they did.

A: The children went to Malaysia last year.

B: No they didn’t. They went to Singapore.

5. We sometimes put a short tag at the end of a comment. We use a Yes/No

question form for the tag. If the comment is affirmative we normally use
a negative tag:

A: It’s a lovely day.

B: Yes, it is, isn’t it.

A: Your grandmother looks very well.

B: Yes, she does, doesn’t she.

A: Everybody really enjoyed the trip.

B: Yes, they did, didn’t they.
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If the comment is negative we normally use an affirmative tag:

A: They didn’t seem to enjoy the trip very much.

B: They didn’t, did they.

A: It’s not a very nice day.

B: No, it isn’t, is it.

A: They haven’t done much.

B: No, they haven’t, have they.

6. Sometimes we put a tag on the end of a statement:

It’s a lovely day, isn’t it?

Your grandmother looks very well, doesn’t she?
They haven’t done much, have they?
They all seemed to enjoy the trip, didn’t they?

7 We use affirmative tags with so and neither or nor to add to what someone has
said.

We use so to add to an affirmative:

A: John is working in Barcelona.

B: And so is Maria [= Maria is working in Barcelona, too.]

A: I love Indian food.

B: So do I = [I love Indian food, too.]

A: They’ve just bought a new computer.

B: Really? So have we. [= We have also bought a new computer.]

We use neither or nor to add to a negative:

A: I don’t smoke any more.

B: Neither do I. [= I also don’t smoke]
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A: They haven’t written to us for ages.

B: Nor has Peter. [= Peter hasn’t written to us for ages, too.]

A: We won’t be taking a holiday this year.

B: Neither will we. [= We also won’t be taking a holiday this year.]

A: I never have time for breakfast.

B: Nor have I. [= I am as busy as you]

relative clauses

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1. The relative pronouns:

The relative pronouns are:

Subject Object Possessive

who whom, who whose

which which whose

that that

We use who and whom for people, and which for things.
We use that for people or things.
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We use relative pronouns to introduce relative clauses, which tell us more about
people and things.

2. Relative clauses to postmodify a noun

We use relative clauses to postmodify a noun - to make clear which person or thing
we are talking about. In these clauses we can have the relative
pronoun who, which, whose or that

 as subject (see Clauses Sentences and Phrases)

Isn’t that the woman who lives across the road from you?
The police said the accident that happened last night was unavoidable
The newspaper reported that the tiger which killed its keeper has been put
down.

WARNING:
The relative pronoun is the subject of the clause.
We do not repeat the subject:

*The woman who [she] lives across the road…

*The tiger which [it] killed its keeper …

 as object of a clause (see Clauses, Sentences and Phrases)

Have you seen those people who we met on holiday?

You shouldn’t believe everything that you read in the newspaper.
The house that we rented in London was fully furnished.
The food was definitely the thing which I enjoyed most about our holiday.

- Sometimes we use whom instead of who when the relative pronoun is

the object:

Have you seen those people whom we met on holiday?

- When the relative pronoun is object of its clause we sometimes leave it out:
 175

Have you seen those people we met on holiday?

You shouldn’t believe everything you read in the newspaper.
The house we rented in London was fully furnished.
The food was definitely the thing I enjoyed most about our holiday.

WARNING:
The relative pronoun is the object of the clause.
We do not repeat the object:

Have you seen those people who we met [them] on holiday?

The house that we rented [it] in London was fully furnished.
The food was definitely the thing I enjoyed [it] most about our holiday.

 as object of a preposition. When the relative pronoun is the object of a preposition

we usually put the preposition after the verb.:

You were talking to a woman >>> Who was the woman who you were talking
to?
My parents live in that house >>> That’s the house that my parents live in.
You were talking about a book. I haven’t read it. >>> I haven’t read the
book which you were talking about.

- When the relative pronoun is the object of a preposition we usually leave it

out:

Who was the woman you were talking to?

That’s the house my parents live in.

- Sometimes we use whom instead of who:

Who was that woman whom you were talking about.

- When we use whom or which the preposition sometimes comes at the

beginning of the clause:

I haven’t read the book about which you were talking.

- We can use the possessive form, whose, in a relative clause:

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I always forget that woman’s name >>> That’s the woman whose name I
always forget.
I met a man whose brother works in Moscow.

3. Times and places

We also use when with times and where with places to make it clear which time
or place we are talking about:

England won the world cup in 1996. It was the year when we got married.
I remember my twentieth birthday. It was the day when the tsunami
happened.
Do you remember the place where we caught the train?
Stratford-upon-Avon is the town where Shakespeare was born.

... but we can leave out the word when:

England won the world cup in 1996. It was the year we got married.
I remember my twentieth birthday. It was the day the tsunami happened.

4. Giving additional information

We use who, whom, whose, and which (but not that) in relative clauses to tell us
more about a person or thing.

 as subject (see Clauses, Sentences and Phrases)

My uncle, who was born in Hong Kong, lived most of his life overseas.
I have just read Orwell’s 1984, which is one of the most frightening books
ever written.

WARNING:
The relative pronoun is the subject of the clause.
We do not repeat the subject:

My uncle, who [he] was born in Hong Kong, lived most of his life overseas.
I have just read Orwell’s 1984, which [it] is one of the most frightening books
ever written.
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 as object (see Clauses, Sentences and Phrases)

We saw the latest Harry Potter film, which we really enjoyed.

My favourite actor is Marlon Brando, who I saw in “On the Waterfront”.

- we can use whom instead of who as object:

My favourite actor was Marlon Brando, whom I saw in “On the Waterfront”.

WARNING:
The relative pronoun is the object of the clause.
We do not repeat the object:

We saw the latest Harry Potter film, which we really enjoyed [it].
My favourite actor is Marlon Brando, who I saw [him] in “On the Waterfront”.

 as object of a clause :

He finally met Paul McCartney, whom he had always admired.

We are going back to Venice, which we first visited thirty years ago.

We can also use who as the object.

He finally met Paul McCartney, who he had always admired.

WARNING:
The relative pronoun is the object of the clause.
We do not repeat the object:

He finally met Paul McCartney, whom he had always admired [him].

We are going back to Venice, which we first visited [it] thirty years ago.

 as object of a preposition:

He decided to telephone Mrs. Jackson, who he had read about in the

newspaper.
That’s the programme which we listened to last night.
 178

- We sometimes use whom instead of who:

He decided to telephone Mrs. Jackson, whom he had read about in the

newspaper.

- The preposition sometimes comes in front of the relative

pronoun whom or which:

He decided to telephone Mrs. Jackson, about whom he had read in the

newspaper.
That’s the programme to which we listened last night.

5. Quantifiers and numbers with relative pronouns

We often use quantifiers and numbers with relative pronouns:

many of whom - most of whom - one of which - none of whom

some of which - lots of whom - two of which - etc.

We can use them as subject, object or object of a preposition.

She has three brothers two of whom are in the army.

I read three books last week, one of which I really enjoyed.
There were some good programmes on the radio, none of which I listened to.

6. Using "which" to give more information

We often use the relative pronoun which to say something about a clause:

He was usually late, which always annoyed his father.

We’ve missed our train, which means we may be late.

reporting: reports and summaries

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Many teachers and learners think that tense forms in reported speech are complex.

In fact, "reported speech" follows exactly the same rules as the rest of the language.

1. When we report what people say or think we use:

 clauses with that:

Everybody knew that it was Henry’s birthday tomorrow.

She explained that she would do as much as she could to help.

but we can leave out the word that:

Everybody knew it was Henry’s birthday tomorrow.

She explained she would do as much as she could to help.

 wh-clauses (see Wh-clauses) and clauses with if (see note in Wh-Clauses)

He was asked what he had been doing the previous night.

She explained why she went by train rather than by car.

 to-infinitives:

We all agreed to do as much as we could.

Who told you to come?

2. We very rarely try to report exactly what someone has said. We usually give
a summary:

Mary: Oh dear, we’ve been walking for hours. I am exhausted. I don’t think I
can go any further. I really need to stop for a rest.
Peter: Don’t worry. I’m not surprised that you’re tired. I’m tired too. I’ll tell you
what. I’ll see if I can find a place to sit down, and then we can stop and have
our picnic.
>>>
When Mary complained that she was tired out after walking so far, Peter said
they could stop for a picnic.
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3. Tense forms in reports and summaries.

When we are reporting what people say or think in English we need to remember:

 that the tense forms in reports and summaries are the same as in the rest of the
language:

This is a letter that Andrew Brown wrote ten years ago:

I am twenty-two years old and I am at University studying

engineering. I take my final exams next month and I will
finish university in July.

I want to take a year off and travel round the world. I will
need to make some money while I am travelling so I would
like to learn to teach English as a second language so that
I can make some money while I am abroad. A friend of
mine has recommended your course very highly. She
also gave me some details, but I would like to ask a few more
questions.

What courses do you have in the summer and when do they

start? How much do the courses cost? Is there an
examination at the end?

I look forward to hearing from you.

Regards,

Andrew Brown.

If you were telling a story about Andrew might write something

like this.:
When Andrew was 22 he was an engineering student in his
last month at the university. He wanted to travel abroad after
he had finished his course at the university, but he would
need to earn some money while he was abroad so he
wanted to learn to teach English as a foreign language. A
friend had recommended a course but Andrew needed more
information. So he wrote to the school and asked them when
their courses started and how much they were. He also
wanted to know if there was an examination at the end of the
course.
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You would use past tense forms to talk about something that
happened ten years ago.

If you were reporting or summarising what Andrew wrote you

might start off by saying:

Andrew told me that when he was 22 he was an engineering

student in his last month…

... and you could go on in the same way. You would use past
tense forms to talk about something which happened ten years
ago. So tense forms in reports and summaries in English are the
same as in the rest of the language.

 Sometimes you have to choose between a past tense form and a present
tense form.

If you are talking about the past but you mention something that is still true you
could use a present tense form to show you agree that it is true:

John said he had stayed at the Shangri-la because it is the most

comfortable hotel in town.
Mary said she enjoyed the film because Robert de Niro is her favourite
actor.
Helen said she loves visiting New York.

... or a past tense form:

John said he had stayed at the Shangri-la because it was the most
comfortable hotel in town.
Mary said she enjoyed the film because Robert de Niro was her favourite
actor.
Helen said she loved visiting New York,

 If we are talking about something that everybody knows is true we normally use
a present tense:
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Michael said he had always wanted to climb Everest because it is the highest
mountain in the world.
Mary said she loved visiting New York because it is such an exciting city.

4. to-infinitives in reports and summaries:

We often use the to-infinitive after verbs of thinking and feeling to report or
summarise actions:

decide - hope - intend

 “I think I will start all over again” >>>

He decided to start all over again.
 “I am going to write to the newspaper about it” >>>
She intended to write to the newspaper about it.

… and verbs of saying:

agree - promise - refuse

 “I can do the shopping for you if you like” >>>

He agreed to do the shopping for me.
 I’m sorry. I would love to help you but I’m afraid I can’t >>>
She refused to help me.

After some verbs we use a direct object and the infinitive (see verbs followed by
infinitive):

advise - ask - encourage - invite - order - remind - tell - warn -

expect - intend - want - would like - would prefer

 “I think you should turn the lights out now” >>>

She reminded me to turn the lights out.
 “Be very careful, children. The sea can be very dangerous so please don’t go in the
water.” >>>
She warned the children not to go in the water.
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verbs - questions and negatives

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1. Yes/No questions

Yes/No questions are questions to which the answer is Yes or No

Look at these statements:

They are working hard.

They will be working hard.
They had worked hard.
They have been working hard.
They might have been working hard.

We make Yes/No questions by putting the subject, they, after the first part of the
verb:

Are they working hard?

Will they be working hard?
Had they worked hard?
Have they been working hard?
Might they have been working hard?

2. Negatives

We make negatives by putting not after the first part of the verb:

They are not working hard

They will not be working hard
They had not worked hard
They have not been working hard
They might not have been working hard

In spoken English we often reduce not to n’t:

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They aren’t working hard.

They won’t be working hard
They hadn’t been working hard
etc.

wh- clauses

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Wh-words are what, when, where, who, which, why and how.

We use clauses with a wh- word:

 In wh-questions (see Questions and Negatives):

What are you doing?

Who ate all the pies?
Why did you do that?

 after verbs of thinking:

know - understand - suppose - remember - forget - wonder

I know where you live.

She couldn’t remember who he was.
John wondered what was going to happen next.

NOTE: We also use clauses with if

I wonder if we’ll see Peter.

She couldn’t remember if she had posted the letter.

 after verbs of saying:

ask - say - admit - argue - reply - agree - mention - explain - suggest

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I asked what she wanted.

He tried to explain how the accident had happened.
She wouldn’t admit what she had done.
Did he say when he would come?

tell and some other verbs of saying must always have a direct object (see
clauses, sentences and phrases):

tell - remind

We tried to tell them what they should do.

She reminded me where I had left the car.

 after some verbs of thinking and saying we use wh-words and the to-infinitive:

We didn’t know what to do.

We will ask when to set off.
Nobody told me what to do.
Can anyone suggest where to go for lunch?

NOTE: We use the to-infinitive:

-- When the subject of the to-infinitive is the same as the subject of the main
verb:

He didn’t know what to do >>> He didn’t know what he should do

We will ask when to set off >>> We will ask when we should set off

-- When the subject of the to-infinitive is the same as the person spoken to:

Nobody told me what to do. >>> Nobody told me what I should do.
Can anyone suggest where to go for lunch? >>> Can anyone suggest [to us]
where we should go for lunch.

 after some nouns to say more about the noun:

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Is there any reason why I should stay?.

Do you remember the day when we went to Edinburgh.
That was the town where I grew up.

We often use a wh-clause after is:

I missed my bus. That’s why I was late.

This is where I live.
That’s what I thought.
Paris – that’s where we are going for our holidays.

noun phrase

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Noun Phrases

Often a noun phrase is just a noun or a pronoun:

People like to have money.

I am tired.
It is getting late.

or a determiner and a noun …:

Our friends have bought a house in the village.

Those houses are very expensive.

… perhaps with an adjective:

Our closest friends have just bought a new house in the village.

Sometimes the noun phrase begins with a quantifier:

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All those children go to school here.

Both of my younger brothers are married
Some people spend a lot of money.

Numbers:

Quantifiers come before determiners, but numbers come after determiners:

My four children go to school here. (All my children go to school here.)

Those two suitcases are mine. (Both those suitcases are mine)

So the noun phrase is built up in this way:

Noun: people; money

Determiner + noun: the village, a house, our friends; those houses
Quantifier + noun: some people; a lot of money
Determiner + adjective + noun: our closest friends; a new house.
Quantifier + determiner + noun: all those children;
Quantifier + determiner + adjective + noun: both of my younger brothers

The noun phrase can be quite complicated:

a loaf of nice fresh brown bread

the eight-year-old boy who attempted to rob a sweet shop with a pistol
that attractive young woman in the blue dress sitting over there in the corner

prepositional phrases

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A prepositional phrase is made up of a preposition and a noun phrase. We use

prepositional phrases for many purposes, for example:

- as adverbials of time and place:

We will be back in a few days.

They drove to Glasgow
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.- as a postmodifier in a noun phrase:

Helen is the girl in the red dress

We’ve got a new television with a thirty one inch screen.

- to show who did something:

The lion was killed by the hunter

I saw a wonderful painting by Van Gogh

- with double object verbs like give and get:

We gave five pounds to the woman on the corner.

They got a drink for me.

- after certain verbs, nouns and adjectives:

The book belongs to me.

I had an argument with my brother.
I feel sorry for you.

sentence structure

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Simple sentences:

A simple sentence has only one clause:

The children were laughing.

John wanted a new bicycle.
All the girls are learning English.

Compound sentences:

A compound sentence has two or more clauses:

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(We stayed behind) and (finished the job)

(We stayed behind) and (finished the job), then (we went home)

The clauses in a compound sentence are joined by co-ordinating conjunctions:

John shouted and everybody waved.

We looked everywhere but we couldn’t find him.
They are coming by car so they should be here soon.

The common coordinating conjunctions are:

and – but – or – nor – so – then – yet

Complex sentences:

A complex sentence has a main clause and one or more adverbial clauses.
Adverbial clauses usually come after the main clause:

Her father died when she was very young

>>>
Her father died (main clause)
when (subordinating conjunction)
she was very young (adverbial clause)

She had a difficult childhood because her father died when she was very
young.
>>>
She had a difficult childhood (main clause)
because (subordinating conjunction)
her father died (adverbial clause)
when (subordinating conjunction)
she was very young (adverbial clause).

Some subordinate clauses can come in front of the main clause:

Although a few snakes are dangerous most of them are quite harmless
>>>
Although (subordinating conjunction)
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some snakes are dangerous (adverbial clause)

most of them are harmless (main clause).

A sentence can contain both subordinate and coordinate clauses:

Although she has always lived in France, she speaks fluent English because
her mother was American and her father was Nigerian
>>>
Although (subordinating conjunction)
she has always lived in France (adverbial clause),
she speaks fluent English (main clause)
because (subordinating conjunction)
her mother was American (adverbial clause)
and (coordinating conjunction)
her father was Nigerian (adverbial clause).

There are seven types of adverbial clauses:

Common conjunctions

Contrast
although; though; even though; while;
clauses

Reason clauses because; since; as

Place clauses where; wherever; everywhere

Purpose clauses so that; so; because + want

Result clauses so that; so … that; such … that

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Common conjunctions

when; before; after; since; while; as; as soon

Time clauses
as; by the time; until

Conditional
if; unless; provided (that); as long as
clauses

Adjectives & Prepositions

Adjectives & Prepositions

Some adjectives go with certain prepositions. There is no real pattern – you need to
learn them as you meet them. Here are some examples but remember that there are
many other adjective + preposition combinations that are not covered here.

With ‘at’

 I’m quite good at English but I’m bad at maths and I’m terrible at physics.

With ‘for’

 Jogging is good for your health but smoking is bad for you.
 The town is famous for its cheese.

As well as ‘good for’, ‘bad for’ and ‘famous for’ we also say ‘qualified for’ ‘ready
for’, ‘responsible for’, ‘suitable for’ and several others.
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With ‘of’

I’m perfectly capable of doing it myself, thank you.

I’m very fond of this old sweatshirt.

As well as ‘capable of’ and ‘fond of’ we also say ‘aware of’, ‘full of’, ‘tired of’ and
several others.

With ‘with’

 We’re very pleased with your progress.

 You’re not still angry with me are you?

As well as ‘pleased with’ and ‘angry with’ we also say ‘bored with’, ‘delighted
with’, ‘satisfied with’ and several others.

With ‘to’

 She’s the one who’s married to a doctor, isn’t she?

 You’ll be responsible to the head of the Finance department.

Notice that you can be responsible for something but responsible to someone.

Other common adjective + preposition combinations include ‘interested in’ and

‘keen on’. It’s a good idea to make a note of new combinations in your vocabulary
notebook as you meet them. Remember too that a preposition is followed by a noun
or a gerund (‘ing’ form).
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Adjectives (gradable / non-gradable)

Gradable / Non-gradable adjectives

Adjectives can be either gradable or non-gradable

Gradable

Gradable adjectives are adjectives like ‘cold’ ‘hot’ and ‘frightened’. You can be very
cold or a bit cold. Gradable adjectives show that something can have
different degrees.

Non-gradable

Non-gradable adjectives are adjectives like ‘married’ or ‘wooden’. You can’t be very
married or a bit married. Non-gradable adjectives do not have different degrees.

Adjectives like ‘terrifying’, ‘freezing’ ‘amazing’ are also non-gradable adjectives.

They already contain the idea of ‘very’ in their definitions – ‘freezing’ means ‘very
cold’ etc.

Using adverbs of degree

When we use adverbs of degree to modify adjectives we usually have to use different
adverbs for gradable and non-gradable adjectives.

 NOT I’m completely hot.

 NOT It was very fantastic!

With gradable adjectives

 It’s a bit cold in here. Shall I turn the fire on?

 He’s very interested in history. Why don’t you buy him a history book?
 This exercise is really difficult. I don’t know any of the answers.
 I’m extremely tired. I’m going to bed.
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The adverbs a bit, very, really, extremely and quite can all be used with gradable
adjectives.

With non-gradable adjectives

 It’s absolutely freezing in here. Shall I turn the fire on?

 He’s completely fascinated by history. Why don’t you buy him a history book?
 This exercise is absolutely impossible.
 That film is really terrifying. Don’t go and see it on your own.

The adverbs absolutely and completely can be used with non-gradable adjectives.

Notice that really can be used with both gradable AND non-gradable adjectives.

NOTE: There are other adverbs of degree that we haven’t covered in this section.
The ones included here are some of the most common.

Adjectives ending in -ed and –ing

-ed and –ing adjectives

Adjectives that end ‘-ed’ (e.g. ‘bored’, ‘interested’) and adjectives that end ‘-ing’ (e.g.
‘boring’, ‘interesting’) are often confused.

-ed adjectives

Adjectives that end ‘-ed’ describe emotions – they tell us how people feel about
something.

 I was very bored in the maths lesson. I almost fell asleep.

 He was surprised to see Helen. She’d told him she was going to Australia.
 Feeling tired and depressed, he went to bed.

-ing adjectives
 195

Adjectives that end ‘-ing’ describe the thing that causes the emotion – a boring
lesson makes you feel bored.

 Have you seen that film? It’s absolutely terrifying.

 I could listen to him for hours. He’s one of the most interesting people I’ve ever met.
 I can’t eat this! It’s disgusting! What is it?

Remember that people can be boring but only if they make other people feel bored.

 He talks about the weather for hours. He’s so boring.

 NOT I was very boring at the party so I went home.

Here are some more adjectives that can have both an ‘-ed’ and an ‘-ing’ form

 amused
 amusing
 annoyed
 annoying
 confused
 confusing
 disappointed
 disappointing
 excited
 exciting
 exhausted
 exhausting
 frightened
 frightening
 satisfied
 satisfying
 shocked
 shocking

Articles 1
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There are lots of rules about the use of articles. Here we’ll concentrate on 3 golden
rules. Most mistakes with articles are made through breaking one of these rules.

1. When we say what people’s jobs are, we use a/an

 She’s an architect.
 He’s a doctor.
 My grandfather was a teacher.

2. Singular, countable nouns always have an article – a/an or the – or another

determiner (my, your, this, that etc.)

Remember that we use the indefinite article - a/an - when we talk about something
that is not definite.

 I saw a good film yesterday. The listener doesn’t know which film.
 There’s a man at the door. We don’t know who the man is.
 Do you want a drink? It’s not a particular drink.

… and we use the definite article - the – when we talk about something more
certain.

 I’m going to take the dog for a walk. The dog is a pet – it’s not just any dog.
 Have you seen the car key? Speaker and listener know which car. It’s not just any
car.
 They live in the house opposite ours. There’s only one house opposite. It’s not any
house.

3. When we talk about things in general we usually use a plural noun or an

uncountable noun with no article.

 Birds eat worms. NOT The birds eat the worms.

 Water flows downhill.
 Kangaroos live in Australia.

BUT We went to the zoo and saw the kangaroos. These are particular kangaroos –
not kangaroos in general.
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There are many other rules about articles but remembering these 3 golden rules
will reduce the number of mistakes you make.

Articles 2

In Articles 1 we looked at the 3 golden rules of articles:

1. People’s jobs have a/an. He’s an architect.

2. Singular countable nouns have an article. That’s the woman I met last week.
3. Things in general – no article. Cats like mice.

Here we look at some other rules for the use of articles.

Special places

 My son’s at university but my daughter still goes to school.

 He was sent to prison for 10 years.
 Now that winter’s here I find it difficult to get out of bed.
 I go to work by bus but I go home on foot.

In expressions with a number of places there is no article after a preposition.

These places include: to/at school, to/at university/college, to/in church, to/in/out
of prison, to/in hospital, to/in/out of bed, to/at work, at home.

NOTE: While we say ‘go to school’ and ‘go to work’ etc, the expression ‘go home’ has
neither ‘the’ nor ‘to’.

Transport

 I go to work by bus but I go home on foot.

 I hate travelling by train.
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Modes of transport (by bus, by train, by car, by plane, by bicycle) don’t have an
article. Notice that on foot is different.

Geography

No article – continents (Africa, Asia etc.) countries (France, Germany, Slovakia

etc - but the Slovak Republic, the United States, the United Kingdom) towns &
cities (Bratislava, London etc.) lakes (Lake Victoria, Lake Balaton
etc.) universities (Oxford University, Nitra University etc.)

With ‘the’ – seas & oceans (the Atlantic, the Mediterranean etc.) mountain
ranges (the Himalayas, the Tatras) rivers (the Amazon, the Danube etc.)

Other expressions

 I don’t watch television very often but I listen to the radio all the time.
 I’ve got a headache.
 I’ve got a stomach-ache
 I’ve got a cold.

BUT

 I’ve got ‘flu.

 I’ve got earache.
 I’ve got toothache.

Other illnesses have no article.

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Adjectives and prepositions

Do you know how to use adjectives with prepositions like interested in or similar to?

Look at these examples to see how adjectives are used with prepositions.

I'm interested in the idea.

My jacket is similar to yours.
She's brilliant at maths.
My neighbour is angry about the party.

Try this exercise to test your grammar.

Grammar test 1

Read the explanation to learn more.

Grammar explanation
Some adjectives go with certain prepositions. There are no grammatical rules for which preposition is used
with which adjective, so it's a good idea to try to learn them together. To help you do this, write new
vocabulary in your notebook in a sentence or phrase.

However, there are some patterns that can help you. Let's look at them first. Remember that a preposition is
followed by a noun or a gerund (-ing form).

With at

We use at with adjectives like good/bad/amazing/brilliant/terrible, etc. to talk about skills and abilities.

He's really good at English.

She's amazing at the piano.
They're terrible at organising anything.
I'm not very good at drawing.

With about

We often use about with adjectives of feelings like angry/excited/happy/nervous/sad/stressed/worried, etc.

to explain what is causing that feeling.
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I'm angry about the decision.

He's nervous about the presentation.
She's excited about the new job.
They were worried about the exam.

With of

However, sometimes we use of with feelings.

She was afraid of telling her mum.

I'm frightened of having an accident.
He's scared of flying.
You should be proud of your progress.

With to

We can use to to show the connection between people or things.

He's married to the director.

I'm addicted to my phone.
I'm allergic to nuts.
It's similar to the old one.

We can also use to to talk about someone's behaviour towards someone else.

They were really friendly to me.

Was he nice to you?
He is always polite to everyone.
She was very rude to the waitress.

Here are some other useful adjectives with prepositions.

With for

Exercise is good for you.

Stress is bad for you.
The town is famous for its cheese.
I'm responsible for the financial side of the business.

With in

She's interested in the project.

They want someone who's experienced in design.
I didn't want to get involved in the argument.
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Adjectives ending in '-ed' and '-ing'

Do you need more help with your English? Take an online English course.

Do you know the difference between bored and boring?

Look at these examples to see how adjectives ending in -ed and -ing are used.

I was really bored in that presentation.

That was a really boring presentation.

Try this exercise to test your grammar.

Grammar test 1

Read the explanation to learn more.

Grammar explanation
Adjectives that end in -ed (e.g. bored, interested) and adjectives that end in -ing (e.g. boring, interesting)
are often confused.
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-ed adjectives

Adjectives that end in -ed generally describe emotions – they tell us how people feel.

I was so bored in that lesson, I almost fell asleep.

He was surprised to see Helen after all those years.
She was really tired and went to bed early.

-ing adjectives

Adjectives that end in -ing generally describe the thing that causes the emotion – a boring lesson makes you
feel bored.

Have you seen that film? It's really frightening.

I could listen to her for hours. She's so interesting.
I can't sleep! That noise is really annoying!

Here are some adjectives that can have both an -ed and an -ing form.

annoyed annoying

bored boring

confused confusing

disappointed disappointing

excited exciting

frightened frightening

interested interesting
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surprised surprising

tired tiring

worried worrying