english grammar part 2
TRANSCRIPT
English Grammar part 2
Grandmother says... Carrots, Eggs, or Coffee; "Which are you?"
A young woman went to her grandmother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved a new one arose.
Her grandmother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water. In the first, she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs andthe last she placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil without saying a word.
In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her granddaughter, she asked, "Tell me what do you see?"
Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied.
She brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they got soft. She then asked her to take an egg and break it.
After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg.
Finally, she asked her to sip the coffee. The granddaughter smiled, as she tasted its rich aroma. The granddaughter then asked. "What's the point, grandmother?"
Her grandmother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity--boiling water--but each reacted differently.
The carrot went in strong, hard and unrelenting. However after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior. But, after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened.
The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water they had changed the water.
"Which are you?" she asked her granddaughter.
"When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?"
Think of this: Which am I?
Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity, do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength?
Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat? Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff?
Does my shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and a hardened heart?
Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavor. If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you.
When the hours are the darkest and trials are their greatest do you elevate to another level?
---AUTHOR UNKNOWN —
GrammarGrammar is the way in which words are put together to form proper sentences. In linguistics, grammar is the set of structural rules governing the composition of clauses, phrases, and words in any given natural language. The term refers also to the study of such rules, and this field includes morphology, syntax, and phonology, often complemented by phonetics, semantics, and pragmatics.
Grammar vocabulary:
Look/see/watch
Gonna lotsaWannaGotta sortaHafta kindaCouldaShouldaWouldamusta
Rules of Grammar
Key Rules
1. Use Active VoiceEvery human language starts an active sentence with the subject, or the "doer." In English, the verb (what's being done) follows the subject. If there is an object (the receiver of the action), it comes after the verb. The formula looks like this:S+V+O. This rule is the foundation of the English language.Here are some examples:•Mary walked the dog.•The dog liked Mary.•I did not like the dog.
2. Link Ideas with a ConjunctionSometimes you want to link two ideas with a second S+V+O combination. When you do, you need a coordinating conjunction. The new formula looks like this:S+V+O, COORDINATING CONJUNCTION+S+V+O
3. Use a Comma to Connect Two Ideas As OneFANBOYS are used when connecting two ideas as one in a single sentence, but don't forget the comma.For example:I do not walk Mary's dog, nor do I wash him.Mary fed her dog, and I drank tea.Mary feeds and walks her dog every day, but the dog is still hyperactive.
4. Use the Simple Present Tense for Habitual ActionsThe simple present is the tense you use for any habitual action. The things you always do or do every Tuesday are described with the simple present, which just means you pick the first form of any verb.Mary likes dogs.I don't walk Mary's dog.Mary and I drink tea every Tuesday together.
5. Use the Present Progressive Tense for Current ActionThe present progressive tense is for anything that is happening right now. All of the progressive tenses are easy to spot because their verbs always end with "-ing" and get a helping verb. A helping verb is just so we know who and when we're talking about. In the present progressive, the helping verbs are the present tense conjugations of "to be."I am drinking green tea.The barking dogs outside are driving me crazy.Mary is playing with her hyperactive dog.
6. Add "ed" to verbs for the Past TenseWhen we talk about the past, we have to add an "-ed" to regular verbs to make the second form. Irregular verbs are tricky and have their own sets of rules. Drink, for example, turns to "drank." Most of the time, though, "-ed" will do.I drank a lot of gree tea yesterday, but Mary didn't.The dogs stopped barking two seconds ago, and I am feeling better.Mary played fetch with her hyperactive dog.
infinitive simple past past participlebe was/were beenbear bore borne/born (AE)beat beat beatenbecome became becomebegin began begunbend bent bentbet* bet betbid bid, bade bid, biddenbind bound boundbite bit bittenbleed bled bledblow blew blownbreak broke brokenbreed bred bredbring brought broughtbroadcast broadcast broadcastbuild built builtburst* burst burstbust* bust bust
Irregular verbs
buy bought bought
cast cast cast
catch caught caught
choose chose chosen
cling clung clung
come came come
cost cost cost
creep crept crept
cut cut cut
deal dealt dealt
dig dug dug
dive dived/dove(AE) dived
do did done
draw drew drawn
cost cost cost
creep crept crept
cut cut cut
deal dealt dealt
dig dug dug
dive dived/dove(AE) dived
do did done
draw drew drawn
drink drank drunk
drive drove driven
eat ate eaten
fall fell fallen
feed fed fed
Use Perfect Tenses
Use Present Perfect for the Unfinished Past
The present perfect can be confusing for some, but it is one of the most important rules of grammar. When people talk about things that have already happened but consider the time in which they occurred to be unfinished, they use the third form of the verb with a helping verb. The helping verb for the present perfect is the present tense conjugation of "to have."I have drunk three cups of green tea today.Mary's hyperactive cur dog has bitten me three times so far.Mary has walked her hyperactive poodle 100 times this week.
Use Present Perfect Progressive for Unfinished Action and Past
When the action as well as the time is considered unfinished, the verb loads up on third form helping verbs ("to be" and "to have") and changes to the progressive form.Western countries have been waging wars in the Middle East for thousands of years.I have been drinking tea all day.Mary's dog has been barking like crazy since it was born.
Use Past Perfect for the First of Two Past Actions
When two things happen in the past, we have to mark which one happened first. The one that happened first changes to third form and gets the helping verb, "had."By the time I drank one cup of green tea, Mary's dog had barked a million times.I had not yet eaten breakfast when Mary walked her dog.Mary couldn't stop laughing; her dog had bitten me again.