inglés - guía gramatical - english grammar guide

ENGLISH

Mauricio Arango Bustamante

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English: Grammar Mauricio Arango Bustamante

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This document is only a compilation of all Grammar Notes I take during my

studies of the English Language. I decided to share this Notes to other

students who need an easy and practical resource to let them remember or

consult any Grammar reference. Please remember that this is not an

English course, it-s just a grammar and linguistic resume designed to

students with any knowledge of the language. You are able to use it and

print it, but do not commercialized it. All information was extracted from

my English lessons, books I used along my studies and some internet

resources. Hope it would help all of you on your learning goals!


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Index

INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................. 4

1. BASIC VOCABULARY .............................................................................................................. 5

2. VERB TO BE: PRESENT TENSE ................................................................................................ 6

3. THE ARTICLE .......................................................................................................................... 8

4. GENDER AND NUMBER ......................................................................................................... 9

5. DEMOSTRATIVE PRONOUNS ............................................................................................... 11

6. THERE IS/ THERE ARE .......................................................................................................... 12

7. THE POSSESSIVE CASE ......................................................................................................... 13

8. USE OF ADJECTIVES ............................................................................................................. 14

9. THE COMPARISON OF ADJECTIVES ..................................................................................... 15

10. SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE .................................................................................................. 18

11. PRESENT PROGRESIVE TENSE .......................................................................................... 20

12. VERBS CONJUGATION ..................................................................................................... 21

13. SIMPLE PAST TENSE ......................................................................................................... 22

14. PAST PROGRESIVE TENSE ................................................................................................ 23

15. PRESENT PERFECT TENSE ................................................................................................ 24

16. PRESENT PERFECT PROGRESSIVE TENSE ......................................................................... 25

17. PAST PERFECT TENSE ....................................................................................................... 26

18. PAST PERFECT PROGRESSIVE TENSE ............................................................................... 27

19. GOING TO – FUTURE TENSE ............................................................................................ 28

20. FUTURE SIMPLE TENSE .................................................................................................... 29

21. FUTURE PROGRESSIVE TENSE ......................................................................................... 30

22. FUTURE PERFECT TENSE .................................................................................................. 31

23. FUTURE PERFECT PROGRESSIVE TENSE .......................................................................... 32

24. CONDITIONAL SIMPLE TENSE .......................................................................................... 33

25. CONDITIONAL PROGRESSIVE TENSE............................................................................... 34

26. CONDITIONAL PERFECT TENSE ........................................................................................ 35

27. CONDITIONAL PERFECT PROGRESSIVE TENSE................................................................. 36

28. COMANDS: IMPERATIVE TENSE ...................................................................................... 37


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29. USE OF ADVERBS ............................................................................................................. 38

30. PERSONAL PRONOUNS .................................................................................................... 44

31. MODAL VERBS ................................................................................................................. 45

32. REQUESTS AND ADVICES ................................................................................................. 50

33. CONDITIONAL SENTENCES - IF ........................................................................................ 51

34. QUESTIONS ...................................................................................................................... 52

35. QUANTIFIERS ................................................................................................................... 54

36. THE PASSIVE VOICE ......................................................................................................... 57

37. REPORTER SPEECH .......................................................................................................... 58

38. RELATIVE PRONOUNS ...................................................................................................... 59

39. MULTI-WORDS VERBS ..................................................................................................... 60

40. USE OF PREPOSITIONS .................................................................................................... 62

41. USE OF CONJUCTIONS .................................................................................................... 65

42. USE OF BOTH, NEITHER AND EITHER ............................................................................. 69

43. USE OF SO AND SUCH ..................................................................................................... 70

44. USE OF AS ....................................................................................................................... 71

45. USE OF CLAUSES ............................................................................................................. 72

46. USE OF GERUND, INFINITIVE AND PARTICIPLE ............................................................... 75

ANEX............................................................................................................................................ 80

I. THE TIME ............................................................................................................................. 80

II. THE NUMBERS ..................................................................................................................... 81

III. BRITISH – AMERICAN SPELLING DIFFERENCES ................................................................ 82

IV. ABREVIATIONS IN BUSINESS ENGLISH ............................................................................. 82

V. PHRASAL VERBS ................................................................................................................... 83

VI. GRAMMAR TENSES TABLE ............................................................................................... 84

VII. ENGLISH PHONOLOGY ..................................................................................................... 85

VIII. COOKIE CUTTER ESSAY .................................................................................................... 86

IX. VERBS LIST ....................................................................................................................... 88

X. INTERNACIONAL PHONETIC ALPHABET (I.P.A) .................................................................... 92

INTERESTING SITES ............................................................................................................ 94


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INTRODUCTION

English is a West Germanic language that was first spoken in early medieval England and is now the most widely used language in the world. It is spoken as a first language by the majority populations of several sovereign states, including the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Australia, Ireland, New Zealand and a number of Caribbean nations; and it is an official language of almost 60 sovereign states. It is also widely learned as a second language and is an official language of the European Union, many Commonwealth countries and the United Nations, as well as in many world organisations.

Approximately 375 million people speak English as their first language. So today it’s probably the third largest language by number of native speakers, after Mandarin Chinese and Spanish. However, when combining native and non-native speakers it is probably the most commonly spoken language in the world. English is the primary language in Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, the British Indian Ocean Territory, the British Virgin Islands, Canada, the Cayman Islands, Dominica, the Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Grenada, Guam,Guernsey, Guyana, Ireland, the Isle of Man, Jamaica, Jersey, Montserrat, Nauru, New Zealand, Pitcairn Islands, Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Singapore, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Trinidad and Tobago, the Turks and Caicos Islands, the United Kingdom and the United States. In some countries where English is not the most spoken language, it is an official language; these countries include Botswana,Cameroon, the Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Gambia, Ghana, Hong Kong, India, Kenya, Kiribati, Lesotho, Liberia, Malta, theMarshall Islands, Mauritius, Namibia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Palau, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines (Philippine English), Rwanda, Saint Lucia, Samoa, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, the Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Sudan, South Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Also there are countries where in a part of the territory English became a co-official language, e.g. Colombia's San Andrés y Providencia and Nicaragua's Mosquito Coast. This was a result of the influence of British colonisation in the area. English is one of the 11 official languages that are given equal status in South Africa (South African English). It is also the official language in current dependent territories of Australia (Norfolk Island, Christmas Island and Cocos Island) and of the United States (American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico (in Puerto Rico, English is co-official with Spanish), and the US Virgin Islands), and the former British colony of Hong Kong.


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1. BASIC VOCABULARY

1.1 Greeting

Hello Hola please Por favor hi Hola Thanks Gracias Good morning Buenos días Thank you Gracias a ti Good afternoon Good evening Good night

Buenas tardes Buenas tardes Buenas noches

You’re welcome Welcome See you later

De nada Bienvenido Hasta pronto

Goodbye Adiós How are you? Cómo estás? bye chau Nice to meet you Un gusto conocerlo

How are you?

Fine thanks. And you?

What’s your name? My name is...

How old are you? I’m..... Years old.

See you later.

bye

1.2 Personal Pronouns:

Singular Plural 1º Person I We 2º Person You You 3º Person He

She it

they

1.3 Days of the week:

Sunday Domingo Monday Lunes Tuesday martes Wednesday Miércoles Thursday Jueves Friday Viernes Saturday sábado


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2. VERB TO BE: PRESENT TENSE

The Verb to be is used to express a description of a being, precedence, nationality, feelings, and characteristics of someone or something.

2.1 Forms of the Verb to Be: The Verb to be changes depending on the subject or personal pronoun:

First Person singular ----- am Third Person singular ---- is Plural ----- are

2.2 Sentence Structure:

Affirmative Form: Subject + Verb to Be + Complement

- In the negative form the word “not” is added in the sentence after the verb to be.

Negative Form: Subject + Verb to Be + not + Complement - And in the interrogate sentence the verb to be is located at the beginning of the

sentence:

Interrogative Form: Verb to Be + Subject + Complement ? Interrogative-Negative Form: Verb to Be + Subject + (not) + Complement ?

Verb to Be-‘nt + Subject + Complement?

Affirmative

I Am From Peru. In the garden. Here Strong From Greece.

You We They

Are

He She It

is

Negative

I Am not From Peru. In the garden. Here Strong From Greece.

You We They

Are not (Aren’t)

He She It

Is not (isn’t)

Interrogative

Am I From Peru? In the garden? Here? Strong? From Greece?

Are

You We

They

is

He She It

Interrogative - Negative

Am I not From Peru? In the garden? Here? Strong? From Greece?

Are

You We

They

Not

Is

He She It

not


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2.3 Contractions:

The verb to be could be added to the pronoun or the subject: I am I’m

You are you’re We are we’re They are they’re He is he’s She is she’s It is it’s

You are from Peru. ------------ you’re from Peru.

He is in the kitchen. ------------ He’s in the kitchen.

Maria is happy ------------ Maria’s happy

They are good friends. ------------ They’re good friends.

The verb to be and the word “not” can be contracted (are usually used in colloquial spoken).

Am not Are not -- aren’t

Is not --- isn’t

I am not I’m not You are not you’re not / you aren’t We are not we’re not/ we aren’t They are not they’re not / they aren’t He is not he’s not/ he isn’t She is not she’s not / she isn’t It is not it’s not/ it isn’t

You’re not from Peru / you aren’t from Peru.

He isn’t in the kitchen.

Mary isn’t happy.

They’re not good friends.

2.4 Interrogation and short answers:

Are you from Greece? Yes, I am / no, I’m not.

Is she a teacher? Yes, she is / no, she isn’t.

Are you drivers? Yes, we are / no, we aren’t. *** When the interrogative-negative form is used, you can use the contracted form of the negative with the verb to be, the contracted word should go at the beginning of the question:

Are you not from Greece? ---- Aren’t you from Greece? Is he not in the kitchen? ---- isn’t he in the kitchen?


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3. THE ARTICLE

3.1 Indefinite Article: “A” and “an” are used before nouns that introduce something or someone you have not mentioned before. They are also used when talking about your profession or when the nouns identify may be irrelevant or hypothetical.

He is a dentist.

I am a taxi driver.

This is an apple.

He isn’t a doctor.

My mother is a nurse.

It is an onion.

That is a book.

*** Note that when the substantive begins with a consonant “a” is used. But when the substantive begins in a vowel “an” is used.

This is a banana, but this is an apple.

3.2 Definite Article: The definitive article is used when:

- You know that the listener knows or can work out what particular person/thing you are talking about or when you have already mentioned the thing you are talking about.

You are the teacher

he is the best doctor in this hospital

The book is broken.

- To talk about geographical points on the globe. talk about rivers, oceans and seas: The North pole, the Nile, the Pacific.

- Before certain nouns when we know there is only one of a particular thing:

The sun, the moon, the river, the world.

The world is amazing.

I like to see the sun.

The Nile is the most famous river in Egypt. *** We don’t use articles when we talk about things in general, sports, proper nouns, name of countries (except if contains the words: state(s), kingdom, republic, union).

Inflation is rising.

My son plays football.

Maria is with Jane now.

Coffee is bad for you

Italy, Mexico, and Hungary but: The UK, the USA, and the European Union.

Indefinite Definite

a / an the


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4. GENDER AND NUMBER

4.1 Gender: unlike most other languages, all nouns in English are neuters; it means that a noun is the same for both masculine and feminine. Applies the distinction of Masculine and Feminine only to the names of persons and animal.

4.2 Number: Nouns can be divide in countable nouns and uncountable nouns:

4.2.1 Countable Nouns: is a common noun that can be modified by a numeral and that

occurs in both singular and plural form.

a) Singular: describes about one noun Lion, boy, chair, dress. House, the Nile, a river.

b) Plural: two or more nouns. (see the numbers)

Rules Examples

Singular + s Car - cars hat - hats Lamp – lamps cup - cups day - days pencil – pencils boy - boys book – books

Words with –x, -ch, - s ending. “es” is added.

Box – boxes bus - buses Sandwich – sandwiches kiss- kisses

Words with “consonant + y” ending. “y” is dropped by an “i”, and then “es” is added.

City - cities Lady - ladies

Words with –f, -fe, ending, the last letter is dropped by “-ves”

Thief – thieves Wife – wives Shelf- shelves

Irregular nouns Man – men woman – women Person – people foot – feet Child - children tooth - teeth

WORDS WITH TWO GENDERS

Masculine Feminine

Man Boy

Brother Father Actor Duke King God

Emperor Governor

Lion host

Woman Girl

Sister Mother Actress Duchess Queen

Goddess Empress

Governess Lioness Hostess


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Examples:

My dog is hungry My dogs are hungry.

I want an orange. I want some oranges.

The bottle can break. Bottles can break.

There is one person here. There are three people here.

I get some dollars

I like apples.

I haven’t got any pen.

I have four dogs.

Where is my bottle

A dog is an animal.

4.2.2 Uncountable Nouns: Uncountable nouns are substances, concepts etc. that we cannot divide into separate elements. We cannot "count" them. They don’t use indefinite article, and are used in singular.

Music, art, love, happiness Advice, information, news

Furniture, luggage Rice, sugar, butter, water

Electricity, gas, power Money, currency

This new is very important.

Your luggage looks heavy.

A grain of rice.

I’ve got some money.

Have you got any rice? ***For specify quantity, much and little can be used for uncountable nouns, while “many” and “few” are used for countable nouns: A few days ago - we has many friends We don’t have much money – we have little money. (See quantifiers)


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5. DEMOSTRATIVE PRONOUNS

A demonstrative pronoun represents a thing or things specifying its distances to the speaker:

near in distance or time (this, these)

far in distance or time (that, those)

5.1 near demonstrative pronouns: This/ these

this is a student

this is an onion

These policemen are old.

This university is big

This tastes good.

These are bad times. 5.2 Far demonstrative pronouns: That/ those

That’s an apple

That house is white

Those guys are Peruvians.

That is beautiful.

Look at that!

Can you see those?

near far

singular this that

plural these those


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6. THERE IS/ THERE ARE

We use There is / There are to say that something exists (or does not exist), when we talk about something for the first time. (Instead of It, that is used for a particular thing, fact, situation, etc.) The real subject usually comes after there is / there are.

6.1 Structure: it’s used like taking into account the structure of the verb to be (See verb to Be)

a) Use "There is" (there’s) for singular nouns and things you cannot count.

There is a swimming pool

There is a ghost in the room.

There’s oil in the pavement.

There’s ice on the lake.

b) Use "There are" for plural nouns; that is to say, we use there are with a plural subject.

There are two discos.

There are two parks in my neighbourhood.

There are six hundred students in this school.

There’re four windows in my room.

c) To say the opposite, (the negative form of this structure), use isn't (is + not) or aren't (are + not)

There isn’t a telephone in the kitchen.

There isn’t a balcony.

There aren’t chairs in my room.

There aren’t two pictures on the wall.

d) To make questions, (to ask whether something exists or it doesn't) just change the order of there is and there are, like in the interrogative form of the verb to be.

Is there a swimming pool here?

Are there two parks in your neighbourhood?

Isn’t there a telephone in the kitchen?

Aren’t there two pictures on the wall?

e) It can be used with adverbs like some, any, much and many: (See quantifiers)

There’s some water in the bottle.

There isn’t any apple.

There is much money there.

There are many people here.


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7. THE POSSESSIVE CASE

The possessive case is used to show ownership or possession. 7.1 Structure and Rules:

POSSSESSSIVE + OF (THE) + POSSESSOR = POSSESSOR’S POSSESSIVE

The notebook of Mary - Mary’s notebook.

The book of the student - student’s book.

The mother of the bride – bride’s mother.

a) The possessive pattern ('s) is generally used when indicate a relation of ownership or association with a person, rather than a thing:

A man’s opinion.

Mr. Jone’s house.

Carl and Robert’s dog.

b) Plural nouns, and proper nouns that end in " s " take an apostrophe at the end ( ' ):

The teachers’ handout (the handout of the teachers).

The students’ handout. (the handout of the students)

Charles’ job is online. (the job of Charles is online)

7.2 Possessive adjectives: They are used to describe possession of a personal pronoun.

His garden is beautiful.

My umbrella is not new.

Her new book is in her briefcase.

Your breakfast is on your table.

My room is very big.

Their new car is really cool. ***You should still use the genitive case when talking about things that belong to other things:

The door of the car.

The content of the website.

The top of the page.

Personal P. Possessive

I You He She It

We You (p.)

They

My Your His Her Its

Our Your Their


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8. USE OF ADJECTIVES

It is used to describe the person or the thing we are talking about. Adjectives are neuter, it means, they have no gender and are always singular. 8.1 Rules:

a) Adjectives are located before the verb to be in the sentence:

The house is big. - It’s difficult to understand.

My room is small. - The water is safe to drink.

All these houses are beautiful. - It was nice of you to take me to the station.

Those boys were nice with me. - It’s silly of Mary to give up her job.

b) Adjectives could go behind the substantive:

A nice house.

He is a good student.

c) When there are two or more adjectives, they should be located according to this order: size – quality – shape – age – colour – origin – material – ing adjective) + NOUN

A tall young man. - A large wooden table.

Your friend seems very nice. - An old white cotton shirt.

A large round table. - A long black dress.

First two days. - Next few weeks.

d) Adjectives could be located after some verbs: be, become, seem, look, feel, sound, smell, taste.

You look tired. - be careful, be quite.

Your friend seems very nice. - The dinner smells good.

The tea tastes a bit strange. - I’m tired and I’m getting hungry.

e) Some adjectives could end in –ing, and –ed: ( See the participle) -ING: when describes the topic that is talked about - ED: when describes what the person feels about a certain topic.

My job is boring Julia thinks politics is very interesting. The news was shocking. The film was disappointing. My job is depressing. Work is tiring. My job is satisfying

I’m bored with my job. Julia is very interested in politics. We were very shocked when we heard the news. I was disappointed with the film. My job makes me feel depressed. I’m tired with the work. I’m not satisfied with my job.


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9. THE COMPARISON OF ADJECTIVES

9.1 Degrees of comparison:

a) Use of Positive degree:

- It’s the simple degree, and use the adjective in its original shape.

This is a small house.

The test was very difficult.

- Can also Express equality between two nouns, using the structures: as .... as / so …. as (tan… como) not as …. as / not so …. as (no tan… como)

the same as….

Billy is as clever as that boy. My book is as interesting as yours.

Your class is not as good as mine.

It’s not warm but it isn’t as cold as yesterday.

Their house is three times as big as ours.

Tom is the same age as George.

I’ll have the same as you.

b) Use of Comparative degree: It’s used to express differences (more or less than) between two nouns. And it used the pattern: Noun 1 + Comparative + than + Noun 2

o When the adjective is monosyllabic and in some cases two-syllable, (-er) it’s

added at the end of the adjective: Tall- taller, quick – quicker, old – older

o If the one-syllable adjective ends with an e, just add –r for the comparative:

Large – larger, wise – wiser.

POSSITIVE (adjetivo normal)

COMPARATIVE (mas/ menos... que)

(adj-er / more + adj)

SUPERLATIVE (EL más/ El menos... )

(the adj-est / the most + adj)

Small Big

Pretty Easy

Cheap Expensive Difficult

Smaller Bigger

Prettier Easier

Cheaper More expensive

More difficult

The smallest The biggest

The prettiest The easiest

The cheapest The most expensive

The most difficult


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o If the one-syllable adjective ends with a single consonant with a vowel before it,

double the consonant and add –er :

Big – bigger, thin – thinner, fat – fatter

o If the two-syllable adjectives ends with –y, change the y to i and add –er:

Happy – happier, busy – busier, angry - angrier

o For adjectives with three syllables or more, you form the comparative with more

Generous – more generous, intelligent – more intelligent.

Examples:

They arrived earlier than her.

Can you walk a bit faster?

You’re older than me. (than I am)

Last night I went to bed earlier than usual.

The exam was more difficult than we expected.

Max is more careful than Mike.

You are taller than me.

He eats quicker than me.

o For express less than, it’s used less (for uncountable nouns) and fewer (for

countable nouns) and then the adjective in its original form.

Candy is less tall than Hortencia.

Arequipa has fewer tall buildings than New York.

c) Use of Superlative degree: It’s used to express the maximum amount of an adjective: the most or the least + adjective + (noun).

o When the adjective is monosyllabic and in some cases two-syllable, (-est) it’s

added at the end of the adjective: Tall- tallest, quick – quickest, old – oldest

o If the one-syllable adjective ends with an e, just add –st for the superlative:

Large – largest, wise – wisest.

o If the one-syllable adjective ends with a single consonant with a vowel before it,

double the consonant and add –est:

Big – biggest, thin – thinnest, fat – fattest

o If the two-syllable adjectives ends with –y, change the y to i and add –est:

Happy – happiest, busy – busiest, angry - angriest


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o For adjectives with three syllables or more, you form the superlative with “the

most”

Generous – the most generous, intelligent – the most intelligent.

Examples:

Yesterday was the hottest day of the year.

She is one of the nicest people I know.

This hotel is the cheapest in town.

This is the longest river in the world.

The book you lent me was the most interesting I ever read.

Of the three students, Max is the oldest.

May is the most thoughtful person I’ve ever met.

Of all the people I know, Max is the most intelligent.

o For express less than, it’s used the least and then the adjective in its original form.

Candy is the least tall student in the class.

This book is the least interesting book of all the library.

d) Irregular adjectives:

Positive Good Bad

Much Little

far

Comparative Better Worse More Less

Further / farther

Superlative Best

Worst Most Least

furthest

He is a good teacher.

He is better than me

He is the best student in the classroom.

He is a bad teacher.

He is worse than me

He is the worst student in the classroom.

He has much money

He has more money than me

He has less money than me.


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10. SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE Use the Simple Present to express the idea that an action is repeated or usual. The action can be a habit, a hobby, a daily event, a scheduled event or something that often happens. It can also be something a person often forgets or usually does not do.

The simple present tense shows the next structure:

[Subject + Verb + Rest] 10.1 Structure form:

a) Affirmative Form:

o The Simple present tense shows the verb in the infinite form, but for the third singular person in an affirmative sentence, a letter –s is added at the end of the verb: (See Verbs List)

I make – she makes You love – he loves We run - it runs

o Verbs ending in a sibilant s,z, ch, or vowel -o preceded by a consonant, we add -es to the infinitive:

I watch – she watches I pass – he passes I go – he goes

o Verbs ending in 'y' preceded by a vowel (a, e, i, o, u): Add –s, but verbs ending in 'y' preceded by a consonant: Change 'y' to 'i' and add 'es': I play – he plays I carry – he carries You pay – he pays I hurry – he hurries

b) Negative Form: It’s used the auxiliary “do not (don’t)” before the verb. And “does not (doesn’t) for the third singular person before the verb without s.

[Pronoun + don’t / do not + Verb + Rest]

3º Person Singular: [Pronoun + doesn’t / does not + Verb + Rest]

c) Interrogative Form: It’s used the auxiliaries do and does respectively at the beginning

of the sentence.

[Do / does + Pronoun + Verb + Rest]

***When the auxiliary DOES appear in the sentence, the verb is used in the infinite form, without using the –s, -es ending.


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10.2 Grammar Table

*** Simple Present tenses is usually used with some adverbs before the verbs: often, usually, sometimes, never, always, and occasionally. And with some adverbs that should be located at the end of the sentence: on Sundays, twice a month, every day, every weekend, etc.

I often play tennis.

I never go to bed early.

He always goes to school by car.

My mother sometimes cooks lunch.

They never come here on Mondays.

I go to school every morning.

The girls play volleyball on Sundays.

She washes her hair every day.

I don’t like to play tennis.

She doesn’t understand my language.

Do you live in Venezuela? Yes, I do No, I don’t.

Does she live in Argentina? Yes, she does. No, she doesn’t.

Affirmative

I You We They

play watch

eat drink

Football. TV. Hamburgers. Coffee.

He She It

Plays watches

eats drinks

Negative

I You We They

do not / (don’t)

Live in London. Work in a factory. Play volleyball. Drink tea.

He She It

does not /

(doesn’t)

Interrogative

Do

I Collect stamps? Watch TV? Have lunch at school? Listen to music?

You We

They

does

He She It


Don’t (Do)

I (Not)

Read magazines? Go to bed early? Type five letters?

You We

They

Doesn’t

(does)

He She It

(not)


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11. PRESENT PROGRESIVE TENSE

The Present Progressive is used when we talk about something which is happening now;

actions happening around the moment of speaking; temporary actions and repeated actions

which are irritating to the speaker.

11.1 Structure form: The present progressive is formed by the verb to be followed by the main verb in its gerund form (-ING) (See The Rules of Gerund)

[Subject + verb to be + Verb - ing + Rest]

*** the verb to be in a progressive tense should change according to the pronoun into: am, is, are. In the

same way, it has the same rules for negation and contractions.

She is listening to the radio. – She’s listening to the radio.

He is not playing tennis. - He isn’t playing tennis. / He’s not playing tennis.

Is he not playing tennis? - Isn’t he playing tennis?

11.2 Grammar Table

*** Present Progressive s is usually used with words such: now, at the moment, look!, listen!. Right now.

She is listening to the radio right now.

His father is working in Rome now.

My friend is preparing his exam.

Look! He’s reading the news.

I’m not having lunch at the moment.

He isn’t playing tennis.

Is he doing his homework? No, he isn’t

Isn’t he doing his homework? Yes, he is.

Affirmative

I Am Having a shower. Washing up. Waiting for the bus. Working at the office. Reading a book.

You We They

Are

He She It

is

Negative

I Am not Cleaning the car. Having fun. Watching TV. Paying football. Working in Mexico.

You We They

Are not (Aren’t)

He She It

Is not (isn’t)

Interrogative

Am I Playing the guitar? Ironing the clothes? Crying? Working at the office? Reading a magazine?

Are

You We

They

is

He She It


Am I not Working now? Playing? Writing a letter? Singing in English? Watching a movie?

Aren’t (are)

You We

They

(Not)

Isn’t (is)

He She It

(not)


21

12. VERBS CONJUGATION

Verbs in English have only 3 forms:

- Infinitive: It is the original form of the verb and is used for the simple present tense,

future tense and simple conditional tense.

- Simple Past: It is used in the simple past tense.

- Past Participle: It is used in the perfect tenses, and is usually preceded by an auxiliary

verb.

*** Conjugations of simple past and are only used in a positive sentence, when there’s a negation or appears the auxiliary verb (in an interrogative sentence), the verb should go in the infinitive verb.

12.1 Regular Verbs: Those verbs that in simple past or past participle, its conjugation is

formed adding –ED at the end of the verb. Work – worked talk – talked Open – opened walk - walked

o When the verb ends in “l” or consonant after short, stressed vowel at the end of

the word, it’s added a double consonant: Stop – stopped swap – swapped travel - travelled

o One –e at the end of the verb, add only -d:

Love – loved save - saved

o verbs ending in 'y' preceded by a vowel (a, e, i, o, u): Add –ed Play - played

verbs ending in 'y' preceded by a consonant: Change 'y' to 'i' Then add –hurry –

hurried carry – carried

12.2 Irregular Verbs: when the form of the verb changes: (See Verbs List)

infinitive simple past past participle

be was/were Been

do did Done

go went Gone

have had Had

know knew Known

leave left Left

make made Made

sit sat Sat

tell told Told

understand understood Understood

write wrote Written


22

13. SIMPLE PAST TENSE The Simple Past Tense is used to talk about actions or situations in the past. An action finished in the past or series of completed actions in the past.

13.1 Structure form: The simple Past Tense is formed using the verb in its past conjugation. In the case of a negative or interrogative sentence, it’s used the auxiliary verb “did” (past form of do/does) and the verb goes on its infinitive form.

Affirmative: [Subject + verb (Past) + Rest] Negative: [Subject +did not/ didn’t + verb + Rest] Interrogative: [Did / (didn’t) + Subject + verb + Rest]

13.2 Grammar Table

*** The Past Simple tense s is usually used with words such: last.., yesterday, before, ago.

I played football yesterday.

I didn’t wash the dishes last night.

Did you travel to Scotland two years ago? 13.3 Use of Verb to be in the Past tense: It uses the same rules than in the Present tense.

(See verb to be)

I / He/ She / It ---- was (‘s) / was not (wasn’t) You/ We/ They ---- were (‘re) / were not (weren’t)

I was at school - I wasn’t at school.

You were at home - you weren’t at home.

My grandfather was a teacher.

Was he on holiday? Yes, he was.

Were they at the disco? No they weren’t. They’re at the cinema.

Affirmative

I Watched

Played Went Did had

TV Tennis yesterday. To the cinema. Some homework. A Lunch with Jane.

You We They

He She It

Negative

I

Did not (didn’t)

Watch TV Play tennis Go to the cinema Do some homework. Have a lunch with Jane.

You We They

He She It

Interrogative

Did

I Watch the film? Work yesterday? Go to the stadium? Have homework? Get married?

You We

They

He She It


Didn’t (did)

I (not)

Watch the film? Work yesterday? Go to the stadium? Have homework? Get married?

You We

They

He She It


23

14. PAST PROGRESIVE TENSE

The Past Progressive Tense is used when an action was in progress in a special time in the past, or when two actions were happening at the same time. 14.1 Structure form: The present progressive is formed by the verb to be in the past

followed by the main verb in its gerund form (-ING) (See The Rules of Gerund)

[Subject + verb to be in Past + Verb - ing + Rest]

*** the verb to be in a progressive tense should change according to the pronoun into: was,

were. In the same way, it has the same rules for negation and contractions.

She was listening to the radio. – She’s listening to the radio.

He was not playing tennis. - He wasn’t playing tennis. / He’s not playing tennis.

were they not playing tennis? - weren’t they playing tennis?

14.2 Grammar Table

*** The Past Progressive Tense is usually used with words such: when, while

While we were watching TV, Ana was surfing the internet.

The ladies were taking when the accident happened.

She was listening to the radio

His father was working in Rome now.

My friends were preparing his exam.

Was he doing his homework? No, he wasn’t

Weren’t they doing his homework? Yes, they were.

Affirmative

I Was Walking home. Studying at school. Enjoying on holidays. Going to London. Reading a book.

You We They

were (‘re)

He She It

Was (‘s)

Negative

I Was not/ (wasn’t)

Taking a shower. Walking to school Doing homework. Watching TV. Working in Mexico.

You We They

were not (weren’t)

He She It

Was not (wasn’t)

Interrogative

Was I Going to the disco? Enjoying the weekend? Crying? Travelling to Europe? Reading a magazine?

were

You We

They

was

He She It


was I not Working now? Playing? Writing a letter? Singing in English? Watching a movie?

weren’t (were)

You We

They

(Not)

wasn’t (was)

He She It

(not)


24

15. PRESENT PERFECT TENSE

The Present Perfect tense is used for actions in the past that has something to do with the present, recently completed actions. It’s also used to mention a result of an action in the past is important in the present, or a state beginning in the past and still continuing. 15.1 Structure form: is formed by the auxiliary verb “have” or “has” (for the third singular

person followed by the verb in past participle. (See verbs list)

[Pronoun + have/ has + Verb past participle + Rest] 15.2 Contractions:

HAVE / ‘VE ------ HAVE NOT / HAVEN’T / ‘VE NOT (3 P. Sing.) HAS / ‘S ------ HAS NOT / HASN’T / ‘S NOT

I have cleaned my room / I’ve cleaned my room (yo he limpiado mi cuarto) I have not cleaned my room / I haven’t cleaned my room /I’ve not cleaned my room.

He has cleaned my room / he’s cleaned my room (él ha limpiado mi cuarto) He has not cleaned my room / he hasn’t cleaned my room /he’s not cleaned my room.

15.3 Grammar Table

*** The Present Perfect is usually used with words such: just, yet, never, ever, already, so far, up to now, since, for, recently.

I’ve just cleaned my room.

You’ve recently been in Italy.

She hasn’t gone yet.

Have you ever eaten this fruit? No, I haven’t

Has Mary travelled to Italy? Yes, she has.

Negative

I You We

They

have not (haven’t)

Driven the car. Painted this wall. Gone to the concert. Seen her. Cleaned the house.

He She It

has not (hasn’t)

Affirmative

I You We

They

Have (‘ve)

Found thirty records. Got two sisters. Bought a dog. Stopped the car. Studied Spanish.

He She It

has (‘s)

Interrogative

Have

I You We

They

Gone to the club? Ever been there? Got a dog? Ever eaten fish? Stopped the car?

Has

He She It


Haven’t

(have)

I You We

They

(Not)

Gone to the club? Ever been there? Got a dog? Ever eaten fish? Stopped the car?

hasn’t (has)

He She It

(not)


25

16. PRESENT PERFECT PROGRESSIVE TENSE

The Present Perfect Progressive tense is used for actions beginning in the past and still continuing (focus is the action), mostly with since (point of time) or for (period of time). 16.1 Structure form: is formed by the auxiliary verb “have” or “has” followed by the verb to

be in past participle “been” and the verb in gerund. (See Gerund)

[Pronoun + have/ has + been + Verb -ing + Rest]

I have been looking. – I’ve been looking (yo he estado mirando)

He has been studying - he’s been studying.

(él ha estado estudiando)

16.2 Grammar Table

*** The Present Perfect Progressive is usually used with words such: all day. The whole day, since, for

I have been looking for him all day.

He has been studying all night.

I’ve been waiting for you for three hours.

She has been watching too many videos.

I haven’t been doing an exercise.

I have been visiting him in Canada.

Have you been studying? No, I haven’t.

Has Paul been studying? Yes, he has.

Negative

I You We

They

have not (haven’t)

Been

Studying hard. Climbing the hair. Watching TV. Washing clothes. He

She It

has not (hasn’t)

Affirmative

I You We

They

Have (‘ve)

Been

Preparing a lesson. Working. Doing homework. Cleaning the house He

She It

has (‘s)

Interrogative

Have

I You We

They

Been

Preparing a lesson? Working? Doing homework? Washing clothes?

Has He She It


Haven’t

(have)

I You We

They

(Not)

Been

Playing tennis? Working? Watching TV? Washing clothes?

hasn’t (has)

He She It

(not)


26

17. PAST PERFECT TENSE The Past Perfect tense is normally used with the simple past. When two past actions are combined - the first action, which was completed before the second one began, is put into Past Perfect.

“When Sarah arrived to the party, Paul had already gone home” (Cuando Sarah llegó a la fiesta, Paul ya se había ido a casa.)

17.1 Structure form: is formed by the auxiliary verb “had” followed by the verb in past

participle.

[Subject + had + Verb past participle + Rest] 17.2 Contractions:

HAD / ‘D ------ HAD NOT / HADN’T / ‘D NOT

He had learned / he‘d learned (él había aprendido) He had not learned / he hadn’t learned/ he’d not learned ( él no había aprendido)

17.3 Grammar Table

*** The Past Perfect is usually used with words such: already, just, and never. And is usually used with a simple past sentence.

I had finished my homework.

They had already travelled around the world.

The bike was new, I’d bought it.

The match had started before he arrived. – the match started when he arrived

After Mary had gone home it started t to rain.

Had you gone to the club? No, I hadn’t / yes, I had.

Negative

I You We

They

had not (hadn’t)

Driven the car. Painted this wall. Gone to the concert. Seen her. Cleaned the house.

He She It

Affirmative

I You We

They

Had (‘d)

Fixed the machine. Got two sisters. Bought a dog. Stopped the car. Studied Spanish.

He She It

Interrogative

Had

I You We

They

Gone to the club? Been In London? Got a dog? Cleaned it? Stopped the car?

He She It


Hadn’t (had)

I You We

They

(Not)

Gone to the club? Been In London? Got a dog? Cleaned it? Stopped the car?

He She It


27

18. PAST PERFECT PROGRESSIVE TENSE The Past Perfect Progressive Tense is used to express how long something had been happening before something else happened. Is also used to express a cause of something happened in the past. 18.1 Structure form: is formed by the auxiliary verb “had” followed by the verb to be in past

participle “been” and the verb in gerund. (See Gerund)

[Subject + had + been + Verb -ing + Rest]

I had been looking. – I’d been looking (yo había estado mirando)

He had not been studying - he hadn’t been studying. – He’d not been studying.

(él había estado estudiando)

18.2 Grammar Table

*** the Past Perfect Continuous is usually used with words such: how long, since, for.

I had been watching TV.

He had been talking to you.

I had been waiting for Susan for two hours when she arrived.

They had been talking for over an hour before Tony arrived.

She had been working at that company for three years when it went out of business.

How long had you been waiting to get on the bus?

Jason was tired because he had been jogging.

He was tired because he had been exercising so hard.

Had you been studying? No, I hadn’t./ Yes, I had.

Negative

I You We

They

had (hadn’t)

Been

Studying hard. Climbing the hair. Watching TV. Washing clothes. He

She It

Affirmative

I You We

They

Had (‘d)

Been

Feeling well. Playing basketball. Doing homework. Cleaning the room. He

She It

Interrogative

Had

I You We

They

Been

Preparing a lesson? Crying? Doing something? Washing clothes? He

She It


Hadn’t (had)

I You We

They

(not)

Been

Playing? Feeling well? Watching TV? Washing clothes?

He She It


28

19. GOING TO – FUTURE TENSE

The Going to-Future is used to express planned actions in the future, or if you are certain that something is going to happen in a nearly future. 19.1 Structure form: It’s formed by the verb to be, followed by “going to” and the verb in

infinitive.

[Subject + verb to be + going to + Verb + Rest]

She is going to be a nurse (Ella va a ser una enfermera)

*** the verb to be in a progressive tense should change according to the pronoun into: am, are,

is. In the same way, it has the same rules for negation and contractions. (See verb to be)

We are going to sing at the party. – we’re going to sing at the party

He is not going to play. - He isn’t going to play. / He’s not going to play tennis.

19.2 Grammar Table

I feel terrible; I think I’m going to be sick.

He’s going to clean the windows later.

Are you going to drink coffee? No, I’m not / yes, I am.

We’re not going to take the bus; we are going to go by car.

*** Going to can be used for express situation in the past, using the verb to be in its past conjugation.

I thought it was going to rain, but then the sun came out.

He was going to do it, but he changed his mind.

We were going to travel by train but then we decided to go by car.

Affirmative

I Am (‘m)

Going to

Study Spanish. Dance. Type a letter. Work today.

You We They

are (‘re)

He She It

is

(‘s)

Negative

I am not (‘m not)

Going to

Take a shower. Walk to school Do homework. Watch TV. Work in Mexico.

You We They

are not (aren’t)

He She It

Is not (isn’t)

Interrogative

Am I Going to

Study Spanish? Dance? Type a letter? Work today’

are

You We

They

is

He She It


Am I not Going to

Work now? Play? Write a letter? Sing a song? Watch TV?

aren’t (are)

You We

They

(not)

isn’t (is)

He She It


29

20. FUTURE SIMPLE TENSE The Future simple tense is used to express future actions happen without the speaker's intention; Predictions, assumptions (I think, I hope, I'm sure, I'm afraid); Spontaneous actions (not planned). 20.1 Structure form: is formed by the auxiliary verb “will”

[Subject + Will + Verb + Rest] 20.2 Contractions:

WILL/ ‘LL ------ WILL NOT / WON’T 20.3 Grammar Table

I will take a holiday in the space.

The headmaster will close the old gym.

We won’t play handball tomorrow.

The sun will shine tomorrow.

I think Sue will arrive in Paris at 6 am.

Will they go to Rome next summer? Yes, they will/ No, they won’t *** In British English people sometimes use shall instead of will in the first person singular and plural. The contraction of shall is (‘ll) and it’s negated as: shall not/ shan’t.

I shall be tired this evening.

We’’ll go tomorrow.

We shan’t open the window.

Shall we go? No, you won’t.

I’ll shut the door.

Negative

I You We

They

will not (won’t)

Play football. Be tired. Go to school. Try a new game. He

She It

Affirmative

I You We

They

Will (‘ll)

Travel to the moon. Live in Europe. Take a holiday. Go tomorrow. He

She It

Interrogative

Will

I You We

They

Travel to the moon? Live in Europe? Take a holiday? Go tomorrow? He

She It


Won’t (will)

I You We

They

(not)

Travel to the moon? Live in Europe? Take a holiday? Go tomorrow?

He She It


30

21. FUTURE PROGRESSIVE TENSE The Future progressive tense is used when an action will be in progress at a certain time in the future, and this action has begun before the certain time, and when something happens because it normally happens. 21.1 Structure form: is formed by the auxiliary verb “will” followed by “be” and the main

verb in gerund. (See Gerund)

[Subject + Will + be + Verb-ing + Rest] She will be working tomorrow

(Ella estará trabajando mañana)

21.2 Contractions: The same rules than in the future simple tense. (See Future Simple tense)

21.3 Grammar Table

I will be playing basketball next Sunday.

I will be going to the disco on Saturday night.

They ‘ll be working

They won’t be playing cards.

Will you be singing in your Spanish class? Yes, I will/ No, I won’t.

When I come to school, the other kids will be waiting for me.

Negative

I You We

They

will not be (won’t be)

Playing football. Singing tonight Going to school. Trying a new game. He

She It

Affirmative

I You We

They

Will be (‘ll be)

Singing tomorrow. Eating ice cream. Travelling next week. Going tomorrow. He

She It

Interrogative

Will

I You We

They

Be

Singing tomorrow? Eating ice cream? Travelling? Going tomorrow? He

She It


Won’t (will)

I You We

They

Be (not be)

Singing tomorrow? Eating ice cream? Travelling? Going tomorrow? He

She It


31

22. FUTURE PERFECT TENSE The Future perfect tense is used when something will already have happened before a certain time in the future. 22.1 Structure form: is formed by the auxiliary verb “will” followed by “have” and the main

verb in past participle.

[Subject + Will + have + Verb-past participle + Rest]

She will have written the letter by tomorrow (Ella habrá escrito la carta para mañana.)


22.3 Grammar Table

I will have played basketball next Sunday.

I will have gone to the disco on Saturday night.

They‘ll have worked.

For that moment, He won’t have finished his homework.

Will they have finished school? Yes, they will/ no, they won’t.

Negative

I You We

They

will not have (won’t have)

Played football. Gone. Finished school. Tried a new game. He

She It

Affirmative

I You We

They

Will have (‘ll have)

Worked. Gone. Finished school. Took the bus He

She It

Interrogative

Will

I You We

They

have

Worked? Gone’ Finished school? Took the bus? He

She It


Won’t (will)

I You We

They

have (not

have)

Played football? Gone? Finished school? Tried a new game? He

She It


32

23. FUTURE PERFECT PROGRESSIVE TENSE

The Future perfect tense is used when something that will already begin and will be continuing in the future. 23.1 Structure form: is formed by the auxiliary verb “will” followed by “have been” and the

main verb in gerund. (See Gerund)

[Subject + Will + have + been + Verb-gerund + Rest]

I will have been swimming for an hour by 6:30 (yo habré estado nadando por una hora a las 6:30.)


23.3 Grammar Table

They won’t have been earning money.

I will have been taking the bus, when he arrives.

I will have been running for two hours.

Will you have been working? Yes, I will. / no, I won’t

Affirmative

I You We

They

Will have been (‘ll have been)

Working. Studying. Taking the bus.

He She It

Negative

I You We

They

will not have been (won’t have been)

Working. Studying. Taking the bus

He She It

Interrogative

Will

I You We

They

Have been

Working? Studying? Taking the bus?

He She It


Won’t (will)

I You We

They

Have been (not have been)

Working?

Studying? Taking the bus?

He She It


33

24. CONDITIONAL SIMPLE TENSE The Conditional simple tense is used to express that something might happen, and it’s also used in the main clause in type II of conditional sentences. (See conditional sentences.) 24.1 Structure form: is formed by the auxiliary verb “would”

[Subject + Would + Verb + Rest]

I would fly to Sydney if I had the money. (yo volaría a Sidney si tuviera el dinero.

24.2 Contractions:

WOULD/ ‘D ------ WOULD NOT / WOULDN’T 24.3 Grammar Table

If I were you, I would help him.

I would help you to study, but I have no time.

They would buy a computer, if it weren’t so expensive.

If I had time, I’d go to your party.

Would you like to go? Yes, I would/ no, I wouldn’t

Negative

I You We

They

would not (wouldn’t)

Play football. Be tired. Try a new game. He

She It

Affirmative

I You We

They

Would (‘d)

Eat this cake. Go to the part. Like it. He

She It

Interrogative

Would

I You We

They

Travel to the moon? Live in Europe? Take a holiday? Go tomorrow? He

She It


Wouldn’t (would)

I You We

They

(not)

Travel to the moon? Live in Europe? Take a holiday? Go tomorrow?

He She It


34

25. CONDITIONAL PROGRESSIVE TENSE The Conditional Progressive Tense is used to express that something might happen, and it emphasize a plan or prediction in the same way of “going to”, and it’s also used in the main clause in type II of conditional sentences. (See conditional sentences.) 25.1 Structure form: is formed by the auxiliary verb “would” followed by “be” and the main

verb in gerund. (See Gerund)

[Subject + Would + be + Verb-ing + Rest]

He would be working (El estaría trabajando)

25.2 Grammar Table

I am busy next week. If I had time, I would be coming to your party.

If I were going to Fiji next week, I would be taking my scuba diving gear with me

They‘d be working.

They wouldn’t be living in New York..

Would you be singing in your Spanish class? Yes, I would/ No, I wouldn’t.

Negative

I You We

They

would not be (wouldn’t be)

Playing football. Singing tonight Going to school. Trying a new game. He

She It

Affirmative

I You We

They

Would be (‘d be)

Singing tomorrow. Eating ice cream. Travelling next week. Going tomorrow.

He She It

Interrogative

Would

I You We

They

Be

Singing ? Eating ice cream? Travelling? Going tomorrow? He

She It


Wouldn’t (would)

I You We

They

Be (not be)

Singing? Eating ice cream? Travelling? Going tomorrow? He

She It


35

26. CONDITIONAL PERFECT TENSE The Conditional Perfect Tense is used to express that something might have happen, and it’s also used in the main clause in type III of conditional sentences. (See conditional sentences.) 26.1 Structure form: is formed by the auxiliary verb “would” followed by “have” and the

main verb in past participle.

[Pronoun + Would + have + Verb-past participle + Rest]

She would have written the letter (Ella habría escrito la carta)

26.2 Grammar Table

I would have told him the truth.

I would have phoned you, if you haven’t switched your mobile off.

I would have passed the exam.

Would you have gone? Yes, I would / no, I wouldn’t.

Negative

I You We

They

would not have (wouldn’t have)

Played football. Gone. Finished school. Tried.

He She It

Affirmative

I You We

They

would have (‘d have)

Called you. Passed the exam. Arrived at time. He

She It

Interrogative

Would

I You We

They

have

Worked? Gone’ Finished school? Took the bus? He

She It


Wouldn’t (would)

I You We

They

have (not have)

Played football? Gone? Finished school? Tried? He

She It


36

27. CONDITIONAL PERFECT PROGRESSIVE TENSE The Conditional Perfect Progressive Tense is used to express that something might have happened in the past, and it’s also used in the main clause in type III and I of conditional sentences. (See conditional sentences.) 27.1 Structure form: is formed by the auxiliary verb “would” followed by “have been” and

the main verb in gerund. (See Gerund)

[Subject + would + have + been + Verb-gerund + Rest]

I would have been swimming for an hour. (yo habría estado nadando por una hora a las 6:30.)

27.2 Grammar Table

They wouldn’t have been earning money.

I would have been coming to the party, if I had had a car.

Maria would have been singing if there had been more people in the church.

Would you have been working? Yes, I would. / no, I wouldn’t

Affirmative

I You We

They

Would have been (‘d have been)

Working. Studying. Taking the bus. He

She It

Negative

I You We

They

would not have been (wouldn’t have been)

Working. Studying. Taking the bus.

He She It

Interrogative

Would

I You We

They

Have been

Working? Studying? Taking the bus? He

She It


Wouldn’t (would)

I You We

They

Have been (not have been)

Working?

Studying? Travelling? He

She It


37

28. COMANDS: IMPERATIVE TENSE The imperative is used for express orders or to make exclamations. 28.1 Structure form:

a) For the second person singular and plural (to you), the verbs goes in the infinitive form:

Hurry!

Wait!

Stop please!

Study more!

Come here, please.

b) For the first person plural (to us), the imperative is expressed adding “let us” (let’s)

before the verb in infinitive:

Let’s pay attention

Let’s not go to the party.

Let’s go by taxi, shall we? Yes, let’s

c) For the third person in imperative, it’s added “let” with the object pronoun before the verb in infinitive: (See the pronouns)

Let him pay attention

Let them go to the party.

Let her go by taxi.

Let it be. 28.2 Negation: the imperative is negated using the present simple negation (don’t): (See

simple present tense)

Don’t stop!

Don’t Wait!

Don’t let her go by taxi!

Don’t let it be.

If the imperative of the third person is negated, “not” is added after “let’s” and before the verb.

Let’s not ask the teacher.

Let’s not go by taxi.

Let’s not play here.


38

29. USE OF ADVERBS Adverbs tell us in what way someone does something, it means, the adverb is the word that changes or qualifies the meaning of a verb, adjective or another adverb. Most of the adverbs are located before the verb, but after the auxiliary verb. There are some exceptions that can be located at the beginning or at the end of the sentence such: afterwards, later, yet, most of the adverbs of place and of manner. 29.1 Types of adverbs:

a) Adverbs of frequency:

Always usually now rarely Never often ever seldom Hardly generally sometimes hardly ever Normally regularly once twice Afterwards up until then later the moment

I always play the piano.

He usually gets here earlier.

I’m watching TV now.

I’ve never gone.

I often run on the park.

Have you ever been in Quito?

I could hardly say no.

It’s generally admitted that governments are necessary.

He sometimes goes out on Fridays.

She normally wears black.

I regularly play the guitar.

I’ve seen a white tiger once.

I’d think twice before doing it.

Afterwards, we laughed about it, but it wasn’t funny at the time.

Up until then, I had never lost anything important.

We will talk later.

Well, I will think we’re Ok for the moment. ***The negative adverbs (never, never before, rarely, hardly ever, and seldom) can be placed at the beginning of the sentences to give additional emphasis. The sentence should have the auxiliary verb in a positive form: Neg. Adv. + auxiliary + subject + verb.

Hardly ever has my cousin worked.

Seldom do street dogs eat well.

Rarely did she sing in front of people.


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b) Adverbs of manner:

slowly immediately honestly finally carefully nervously beautifully easily patiently suddenly only really actually intentionally successfully alone together accidentally

She speaks slowly.

I'll send you a cheque immediately the goods arrive

I don’t know, and I honestly don’t care

Finally, we get the best grade.

You have to drive carefully.

People are nervously watching the conflict in the Middle East.

She was beautifully dressed.

Bread is easily obtained.

More than 300 people are patiently waiting in a line.

Suddenly the lights went off and we couldn’t see anymore

Bill must be tired. He slept only three hours last night

Do you really love Paul?

Actually, it was Anne who told me the truth.

he intentionally set the building on fire.

We did it successfully.

Jane brought up three children all alone.

They lived together for two years and then got married

Oh, I apologize; I accidentally dented your car.

c) Adverbs of place:

here near behind forward there far above backwards over there close anywhere ahead overseas nearby all over abroad

I’m here.

We are getting near from Christmas.

I was attached from behind.

Slowly, the train moved forward away from the station.

Can you go there?

The school is far from here.

We were flying above the clouds.

The two kids were quarreling and one of them fell backwards.

She is walking over there.

We are close to the next town.

We never go anywhere together.

Please walk ahead and I’ll follow you.

Mr. Thomson does business in his country and overseas.

Is there any drugstore nearby? I need to buy medicines.

After hearing the fire alarm, people moved frantically all over the building.

The actress had lived abroad for two years before she returned.


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d) Adverbs of time:

then eventually just yesterday already still (pos.) now today late yet (neg) not yet tomorrow nowadays currently no longer again soon recently thereafter not any more

It was then that I remembered.

I eventually go to the shops.

I’m just writing my homework.

I went yesterday.

I’ve already been to the shops.

I’m still here \ I’m not here yet.

We are going to go to the cinema today.

Better late than never.

“Have you finished?” “No, not yet.”

We got married a year ago tomorrow.

Nowadays, people use less fat in cooking.

he currently lives in New Zealand,

They no longer live in this city.

Try again later.

They are coming soon after eight.

I haven't seen him recently.

They lived happily thereafter.

Melissa doesn't see Oscar any more.

e) Adverbs of certainty and possibility:

undoubtedly obviously reportedly of course clearly unquestionably supposedly certainly surely apparently possibly indeed potentially probably unfortunately maybe / perhaps

Undoubtledly he is the best student of the class.

We obviously knew that.

the minister had reportedly agreed to it

Of course, I will need to know where you are going

It’s clearly impossible.

Bulgaria's place is unquestionably inside the Eurozone.

Supposedly, it can be possible.

it certainly is hot today

Surely you don't believe that!

Apparently he crashed his car.

I couldn't possibly eat any more

This is indeed a remarkable discovery.

Bulgaria could potentially join the eurozone within five years

I probably travel to Europe.

Unfortunately we didn’t pass the exam.

Maybe he was right.

Perhaps he was right


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f) Adverbs of order:

first initially lastly at first in the first place in the end first of all finally eventually

He came first in the exam.

Initially he checked the microphone.

Lastly, let me summarize the main points of my presentation

At first I liked the book but then it got very boring.

First of all, I'll introduce myself.

We finally made it home after midnight.

The plane eventually departed two hours late.

g) Adverbs of Degree:

almost entirely extremely not at all nearly quite greatly even enough really badly even more – even less strongly very partially altogether too mainly pretty quite / fairly/ rather

I almost won the competition.

I'm not entirely surprised

it's extremely unlikely

it’s not true at all.

I'm nearly ready

I’m quite boring for him.

I would greatly appreciate your help

I'm freezing even with a scarf and gloves.

It’s enough for me.

The man drove really badly.

When the truth was disclosed, I liked her even more.

I strongly disagree.

She’s very tall

Norman is partially right.

The seminar was attended by 300 participants altogether.

He apologized too.

This law firm has mainly foreign clients.

The weather is pretty cold today.

*** “quite” is less than “very” but more than “a little”, is used with positive ideas, used in the same way as: very, really, pretty, too and completely.

It’s quite cold; you’d wear your coat.

She was quite different from what I expected.


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*** “rather / fairly” are similar to quite, rather (unfavourable) is used for negative ideas, and fairly (favourable) is used with positive ideas.

The soup is fairly hot. (favourable)

The soup is rather hot. (unfavourable)

*** “Enough” goes after adjectives and other adverbs, but before a noun. It’s opposite is “too”

He didn’t get the job because he wasn’t experienced enough.

This shirt is too big for me, I need a smaller size.

She’s not old enough to get married.

She’s too young to get married. *** “Too” means “also”, too goes at the end of the sentence, while also goes before the adjective.

This method is easy and practical too.

This method is easy and also practical.

29.2 Adverbs with LY ending: Adverbs with –ly ending are formed by adjectives:

Quick ---- quickly serious ---- seriously careful ----carefully quiet ---- quietly bad ---- badly

*** the are adverbs that are irregular like:

good ---- well bad ------ wrong

29.3 Rules:

a) adverbs with –ly ending, generally are used with the next form: [Verb + (object) + Adverb]

You never take me seriously.

She speaks English perfectly.

Tom looked at me sadly.

Tom drove carefully along the narrow.

b) Verb + Adverb + adjective:

It’s a reasonably cheap restaurant.

The food is extremely good.

It’s really awesome.

The weather is quite cold.


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c) Adverbs + verbs: some adverbs go before the verb, but after the auxiliary verb.

I never remember his name.

Your car has probably been stole.

Ann doesn’t usually smoke.

I probably won’t see you \ I will probably not see you.

I almost fell as I was going down the stairs.

He is still here.

He’s already finished.

d) Some adverbs can go at the beginning of the sentence, before and after the verb:

Clearly the internet is an important new means of communication.

The internet clearly is an important new means of communication.

The internet is clearly an important new means of communication.

*** if there are more than one adverb in the sentences, the order should be manner – place. Time:

Peter sang the song happily in the bathroom yesterday evening.


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30. PERSONAL PRONOUNS

Subject Object possessive Reflexive

I You We

They He She It

You (plural)

Me You Us

Them Him Her It

you

Mine Yours Ours

Theirs His

Hers Its

Yours

Myself Yourself

Ourselves Themselves

Himself Herself Itself

yourselves

30.1 Subject: when the pronoun is the subject of the sentence.

He plays the piano

She doesn’t study at that school.

We didn’t see your cousin last Saturday.

30.2 Object: when the pronoun is the object of the sentence, and it goes always next to the verb: (Pattern: direct object + to + indirect object).

She was talking to me.

I tell her about the news.

You have to give him the book.

I want to try it.

I recommended it to them.

*** With verbs such as allow, ask, cause and cost, the pattern: indirect object + direct object is used:

The boots Cost him a hundred dollars. 30.3 Possessive: It indicates the possession, it goes after the verb, but if there’s the noun

possessed, its used the form: noun + of + pronoun. It gives a similar connotation as the possessive adjectives (see the possessive case)

Those books are yours. = those are your books.

It is the cat of hers. = it’s hers cat.

He is a friend of mine. = he is my friend. 30.4 Reflexive: when the action is made by or for oneself.

He cut himself when he was showing.

We’ll pay for ourselves.

She lives by herself.

Tom himself went to New York.

I asked to myself. *** The reflexives pronouns can be used instead of the structure on + object pronoun + own:

She lives by herself = she lives on her own.

I asked to myself = I asked on my own.


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31. MODAL VERBS Modal verbs are used in the same way than auxiliary verbs, they have no conjugation, and are always used in the present form:

You may go - you may not go\ - may you go? You mayn’t go 31.1 May: (poder) it’s used for express permission, generally it’s used in questions:

31.2 Might: (poder) it’s used for express permission like “may”, but might is less possible than may.

31.3 Should: (debería) it’s used when the speaker gives a suggestion or opinion, it can be

used in the past followed by have and the verb in the past participle.

Affirmative – Negative

I You We They He She It

May \

May not (mayn’t)

Be true. Have it Stay here. Any time. Play football

Interrogative

May

I You We

They He She It

Stay here? Watch TV? Have lunch at school? Listen to music? Play football?



Might \

Might not (mightn’t)

Be true. Know. Drive the truck. Offer me benefits

Interrogative

Might

I You We

They He She It

Stay here? Help him? Listen to music? Offer his car?

Interrogative

Should

I You We

They He She It

Stay here? Pass the exam? Have done it? Tell the truth?



should \

should not (shouldn’t)

Pass the exam. Be difficult to find. Have done it. Have been listening to.


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31.4 Ought to: (debería) it’s used in the same way than should. It’s used for advice and obligation, and it can be used for express actions in the past (have + past part.)

31.5 Must: (deber) it’s used for express obligation or prohibition.

31.6 Need not: (no es necesario) it’s used for express “not necessary”, it is the negation of

the verb need. And its contraction is needn’t.

We need not hurry = we don’t need to hurry.

We needn’t wash it = we don’t need to wash it.

I needn’t go to the supermarket = I don’t need to go to the supermarket.

In the past tense we can use this to options: Didn’t need: it was not necessary. Needn’t have done: I did something but now I see that it was not necessary.

We didn’t need to get up early, so I didn’t.

I needn’t have got up so early, I could have stayed in bed longer.

Affirmative - Negative


Ought to \

Ought not to

Go bed early. Pass the exam. Have come to the party. Have been here an hour ago. Drive carefully when weather is bad.



Must \

Must not (musn’t)

Increase the incomes Turn right here. Learn by heart. Be hurry.

Interrogative

Must

I You We

They He She It

Increase the incomes? Turn right here? Learn by heart? Be hurry?


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31.7 Have to: (tener que) it express obligation, an order, it’s also used as a verb, goes followed by any auxiliary of time and it has conjugations.

I have to stay in bed all day.

You don’t have to turn right there.

I had to go to the hospital.

Karen won’t have to work on Saturday. “Have (not) got to” can be used instead of “have to”:

I’ve got to work tomorrow – I have to work tomorrow.

Ann hasn’t got to go – Ann doesn’t have to go.

When has Ann got to go? – When does Ann have to go?

“Have something done” we used it to say that we arrange for somebody else to do something for us.

Sarah is having her hair cut = Sarah is cutting her hair.

Sue is having a photograph taken = Sue is taking a photograph.

Jim had the roof repaired yesterday.

How often do you have your car serviced?

31.8 Can: (poder) it’s used for expressing possibility or ability. It’s also used to express permission in the present tense.

Negation: can be in the next three forms: Can not / cannot/ can’t



can \

cannot (can’t)

Take good photos. Swim. Dance. Speak English Play tennis

Interrogative

can

I You We

They He She It

Stay here? Help him? Listen to music? Offer his car? Run faster than Tom?


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31.9 Could: (podia/ podría) a) It’s the past form of the verb can. It’s used to express ability or possibility in the

past. To express permission to do something in the past. It’s also used to express a polite request, offer and suggestion.

b) It’s used to express a polite question, having the same meaning as “may”

c) “Could do”: it’s used to express something that can be possible now or in the future.

I’m so tired; I could sleep for a week.

The phone is ringing, it could be Tim.

d) “Could have done”: it’s used to express something that could be possible in the past, but it didn’t happen.

I was so tired; I could have slept for a week.

The situation was bad, but it could have been worse. 31.10 Used to: (suele/ solía) it’s used to express something that happened regularly, but it

doesn’t happen anymore. It’s negate with didn’t (See Simple Past Tense)

I used to play tennis, but I don’t do it anymore.

I didn’t use to play tennis.

I used to live alone.

*** For the present, the verb to be is added before used to:

I used to live alone. ---- I’m used to live alone.

My brother is used to play the guitar every day before going school.



could \

Could not (couldn’t)

Imagine. Hurt them. Understand the lesson. Go to the cinema.

Interrogative

could

I You We

They He She It

Use the phone? Borrow your bike? Wait a moment, please? Visit Grandma at the weekend?


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31.11 Be able to: (ser capaz de/ poder ) it’s used to express ability to do something in the

present, it has the same meaning than can: “be able to” is used modifying the verb to be depending on the subject, and it can be conjugated in all the tenses, and can be used with other modal verbs.

PRESENT: I’m able to sleep

PAST: I was able to sleep.

FUTURE: he will be able to learn it.

PRESENT PERFECT: I haven’t been able to sleep recently.

PAST PERFECT: I hadn’t been able to sleep well.

MIGHT: Tom might be able to come tomorrow.

CONDITIONAL: He would be able to talk with me.

The negation can be in the verb to be (in the case of the sentence is in the present or past tense) or in the auxiliary verb:

I can’t sleep - I’m not able to sleep. I couldn’t sleep - I wasn’t able to sleep. I haven’t been able to sleep recently.

31.12 Be Allowed to: (ser capaz de/ poder ) it’s used to express permission to do something in the present, it has the same meaning than can. “Be allowed to” is used modifying the verb to be depending on the subject, and it can be conjugated in all the tenses, and can be used with other modal verbs.

PRESENT: I’m allowed to sleep

PAST: I was allowed to sleep.

FUTURE: he will be allowed to do it.

PRESENT PERFECT: I haven’t been allowed to sing recently.

PAST PERFECT: I hadn’t been allowed to drive.

MIGHT: Tom might be allowed to come tomorrow.

CONDITIONAL: He would be allowed to talk with the teacher.

The negation can be in the verb to be (in the case of the sentence is in the present or past tense) or in the auxiliary verb:

I can’t sleep - I’m not allowed to sleep. I couldn’t sleep - I wasn’t allowed to sleep.

I haven’t been allowed to sing recently.


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32. REQUESTS AND ADVICES

32.1 Requests:

a) Could You: (possibility)

Could you please tell me the time?

Could you possibly give her that message?

b) Will/ Would You: (possibility)

Would you please count your change?

Will you please count your change?

Would you please answer this question?

Will you please count your change?

c) Perhaps would you: (quizas podrías)

Perhaps would you let me know when your new stock arrives?

Perhaps would you let me take this opportunity?

d) Would You Mind + gerund:

Would you mind buying cigarettes for me?

Would you mind helping me with this luggage? 32.2 Advices:

a) You had better + infinitive: (sería mejor que tu)

You had better drink softdrink.

You had better type your assignment.

b) If I were You I would/should + infinitive: (si fuera tú, yo…)

If I were you I would go around the world.

If I were you I’d buy useful things.

c) It’s time you + simple past :

It’s time you got a good job.

It’s time you wrote clearly.

d) Would rather + verb. (preferir)

He would rather read than to talk.

I would rather go by air.

Would you like a drink? I’d rather have a cup of tea. (I’d prefer a cup of tea)


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33. CONDITIONAL SENTENCES - IF

33.1 Type I: Real Condition

If Clause Main Clause

Simple Present

Infinitive Will-future

Modal + infinitive

If I study, I will pass the exams. ( I will pass the exams, if I study)

If you see John tonight, tell him to e-mail me.

If Ben gets up, he can catch the bus. 33.2 Type II: Unreal Condition (si tuviera, haria…)


Simple past

Would + Infinitive could + Infinitive Might + infinitive

If I studied, I would pass the exams.

If I studied, I could pass the exams.

If I studied, I might pass the exams. 33.3 Type III: Unreal Condition (si tuviera, habría hecho…)


Past Perfect

Would + have + past participle could + have + past participle Might + have + past participle

If I had studied, I would have passed the exams.

If I had studied, I could have passed the exams.

If I had studied, I might have passed the exams. *** Sometimes, Type II and Type III can be mixed:

If I had taken an aspirin, I would not have a headache now.

If I had known that you are going to come, I would be in then.

If she had enough money, she could have done this trip to Hawaii.

If I were you, I would be spending my vacations in Seattle.

If I were taking this exam next week, I would be high-strung.

*** There words that can replace IF: when (it will happen), in case, as long as, on condition that, supposing that, unless, assuming that, provided that.

When I’m in Paris, I’ll visit you.

When you freeze water, it expands.

I need painkillers, in casa I’m in severe pain.

I got you a pizza, just in case you were hungry.


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34. QUESTIONS

34.1 Yes/ No Questions Form: The Auxiliary verb or modal verb is located at the beginning

of the sentence.

[Auxiliary + subject + verb + rest?] The short answers should be in the structure:

- Yes, subject + auxiliary - No, subject + auxiliary + not

Do you live here? Yes, I do.

Does he often drive? No, he doesn’t.

Have you ever been in the US? Yes, I have.

Would you prefer it? Yes, I would.

Can’t you play the guitar? No, I can’t

Can you not play the guitar? Yes, I can/ no, I can’t.

When the verb to be is used in the present or in the past, it should go at the beginning of the sentence.

Are you Mexican? Yes, I am.

Were you going to the office? No, I wasn’t.

Aren’t you Mexican? / are you not a Mexican? No, I’m not. 34.2 Question Tags: Short questions for confirmation or agreement. When the statement is

in positive, the question goes in negative, but if the main clause is negative, the question then, goes in positive.

Peter helped you, didn’t he?

We shall invite her, shan’t we?

You didn’t see him, did you?

She doesn’t work in, does she?

*** If the sentence has positive adverbs, then the question should go in negative:

She always plays football, doesn’t she?

He never went to Europe before, did he?

*** If the sentence has positive adverbs, then the question should go in negative:

She always plays football, doesn’t she?

He never went to Europe before, did he?

*** For the imperative, Will is used:

Don’t open the door, will you?


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34.3 Question Words: Question words goes at the beginning of the question, followed by

the auxiliary verb.

QUESTION WORD

ANSWER EXAMPLE

Why Reason Por qué Why are you typing many letters? Because I have many friends.

When Time Cuando When does he go to the club? He goes to the club on weekends.

Where Place Dónde Where have you been recently? I have been in Scotland recently.

Who Person as the subject

Quien Who is drinking a lot of water these days? Mary is. Who likes to drink juice? John likes.

Whom/ Who

Person as the object

A quien Whom did they see at the church? They saw Tom and me at the church.

Whose Person or being in possessive

De quien

Whose car does she drive? She drives her husband’s car. Whose motorcycle did the mechanic fix? He fixed Mr. Pando’s car.

What the object (noun) or a verb

Qué What is he doing? He is writing a letter. What will Herbert go to Lima for? Herbert go to Lima for buying.

How Description of the action or the being. It can be also used with adverbs of frequency.

Cómo, cúan, que tan

How does she study? She studies underlining the most important. How often do you go to the market? I go to the market twice a week.

Which specification Cuál Which book do you have? I have the red one.

***” How” can be followed by some adjectives

How tall are you? I’m 1.96 meters.

How fast do you drive? 34.4 Indirect questions: When it’s introduced with modal verbs:

Where is the hospital? Can you tell me where the hospital is?

Why did the nurse speak so rudely? Have you any idea why the nurse spoke so rudely?


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35. QUANTIFIERS

35.1 No/ None: It gives a negative meaning to a positive sentence. Both words goes after

the verb but, None is used when the noun doesn’t appear in the sentence.

I don’t have lemons - I have no lemons - I have none.

I didn’t earn money - I earned no money - I earned none.

There aren’t cars there - there are no cars there - there’s none there. 35.2 Some/ Any:

a) Some: (algún, alguno, algo de) it’s used in positive sentences. It’s also used in interrogative sentences for asking permission.

b) Any: (ningún, ninguno, algún) it’s used in negative and interrogative sentences. And the noun goes always in singular. It’s also used to affirm something about a noun in general.

We have some lemons - we don’t have any lemon.

I earned some money - I didn’t earn any money.

There are some cars there - there isn’t any car there.

Would you like some coffee?

I need some books.

Do you have any question?

I don’t have any question.

Any fool can do that.

Take any of these bottles.

35.3 Compounds of Some/ Any: there are used with the same rules mentioned before.

They refer to people, one person, place, time, and things.

I see someone coming.

I don’t see anyone coming.

There’s no one here.

Everyone wants to come to the party.

Somebody is coming.

She will know, if anybody does.

There was nobody there

Someone Anyone No one everyone

Somebody Anybody Nobody Everybody

Somewhere Anywhere Nowhere everywhere

Someplace Anyplace No place everyplace

Sometime Anytime No time Every time

Something Anything Nothing Everything


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There’s everybody here.

They go everywhere by car.

You can’t go anywhere.

We have nowhere to go.

No matter the place, everywhere is good for me.

We can do something for him.

Do you want anything from the shop?

There’s nothing in the room.

Everything is very quiet.

Someday somehow someway Sometimes anyhow anyway

Someday I will go to Europe.

Jan looked at the cliff, she was determined to scale it somehow or other.

He sometimes goes out on Fridays.

I do exercises sometimes.

I’m going anyway. 35.4 Other adverbs: adverb + of + Object

A half of none of each of A Lot of lots of plenty of The rest of several all of

A half of schools today teaches English as second language.

None of them wants to talk with us.

We talked with each of them.

He has a lot of friends. / he has lots of friends.

There was plenty of food on the table.

I will take the rest of the money.

Several people were hurt.

I really like all of them. 35.5 Quantifiers for countable and uncountable nouns:

Uncountable Countable Mucho Poco Algunos Un poco de Una gran cantidad La mayoría Una gran parte

much Little

a little a bit of

a large amount of a large quantity of

a great deal

Many Few

A few A number of

A great number of A majority of

A large number of

There’ too much sugar on the table.

We don’t have many friends.


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There were too many people at the party.

How many cigarettes do you smoke?

He has little money.

He has few friends.

We’ve got a little time before the train leaves.

I went to Chicago a few days ago.

we had a bit of difficulty finding a hotel

He has a large amount of money.

He has a great number of interesting books in his bedroom.

The ship was only carrying a large quantity of mangoes.

A majority of her books are in Russian.

We spent a great deal of time.

We bought a large number of goods. 35.6 Quantifiers to speak about group of people in general: always comes before a noun.

All (100%) quite a few (20-50%) The majority of (80-100%) hardly any (>15%) Most (51-80%) almost no one (1-10%) About half (49-51%) no one (0%)

All the cinemas are closed today.

The majority of the party wants reform.

Most business professionals are worried about the economy.

About a half of the population wants reform.

Quite a few (of the) people here are concerned about crime.

There were hardly any cars on the roads on New Year's day.

Almost no one I know is really interested in politics.

No one believes on him.

***“All” when it goes with pronoun could be used as: all of + Pr. / Pr. + all

All of you are good singers. / You all are good singers.

You can stay with all of them. / You can stay with them all.


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36. THE PASSIVE VOICE In active voice the subject is who do the action, but in the passive voice, the subject is passive because he receives the action. It’s formed with the verb to be in the verbal tense that we are talking about (the same tense as in the active voice) and the main verb in its participle form. (See the participle) Active Voice subject + verb + object Passive Voice Object + verb to be + Past participle + by subject

A.V: they buy a new car. P.V: the car is bought by them.

A.V: he painted five pictures. P.V: five pictures were painted by him.

A.V: someone broke into the pet shop P.V: the pet shop was broken into.

A.V: she will write the book. P.V: the book will be written by her.

A.V: you have written a sentence. P.V: a sentence has been written by you.

A.V: you would do the homework. P.V: the homework would be done by you.

In the present continuous, the structure of the passive voice is: Active Voice subject + verb to be+ verb-ing + object Passive Voice Object + verb to be + being + Past participle + by subject

A.V: he is writing a newspaper P.V: a newspaper is being written by him.

A.V: they were cleaning the car. P.V: the car was being cleaned by them.

A.V: they are clearing forests so that the land can be developed. P.V: forests are being cleared so that the land can be developed.

Question in the passive:

Is the test written?

Where is the test written?

Were the students taught at home? No, they weren’t.

Will the house be built?

Has the house been built?


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37. REPORTER SPEECH It’s given the same meaning but from a different speaker. In the reported speech, we beginning using said (said to + object) or told (told + object) and the verb changes in the next way:

Direct Speech Reporter Speech

Simple Present Simple Past

Simple Past Present Perfect

Past Perfect Past Perfect

will would

Progressive forms

am/are/is was/were

was/were has been had been

had been

“I never eat meat” he says he said that he never ate meat.

“I’m waiting for Ann” he says he said that he was waiting for Ann.

“I took it home with me” he said that he had taken it home with him.

“I have found a flat” he said that he had found a flat.

“Ann will be in Paris on Monday” he said that Ann would be in Paris on Monday.

“She was ill” he told me that she had been ill.

“I may work in the garden” Peter said that he might work in the garden.

“I can work in the garden” Peter said that he could work in the garden. 37.1 Questions in Reported Speech: in questions we use the verb “asked” and then the

order of the words like if it were a positive sentence.

He said “where’s the station” he asked where the station was.

“Why didn’t you put on the brake he asked why you hadn’t put on the Brake?

*** When there’s no question word, we can use “if” or whether”

“Is anyone there” he asked he asked if anyone was there. 37.2 Immediately Reported Speech: it’s used for general truths (when the sentence is in

present) and with commands. The Reported speech goes in present as well:

Susan: “I work in an office” Susan says she works in an office.

Steven is going to be fired” I just heard that Steven is going to be fired.

“Do it!” my friend told me to do it. “Don’t say anything! My father told me not to say anything

*** In reported speech demonstrative words and time words are used in this way:

Today – that day now- then this- that A week ago – a week before tomorrow- the next day here – there Yesterday – a day before next weekend – the following week.


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38. RELATIVE PRONOUNS

Who (used for people) That / which (general pronoun, used for things and people)

Whom Whose where

38.1 Defining relative clauses: they describe to the noun precedent to differentiate it from

other nouns.

The man who robbed you has been arrested.

The woman who lives next door is a doctor.

The buildings that are being built will be sold.

The chair which I was sitting suddenly broke.

Have you found the keys that you lost?

We saw some people whose car had broken down.

I met a man whose sister knows you.

The hotel where we stayed wasn’t very clean.

a) Use of relative pronouns in defining relative clauses:

o Subject (required):

Professionals who used to commute to their jobs are now working from home.

o Object (optional):

An herbal therapist is a health professional (that/which) more and more people are consulting.

o Object of preposition(required):

My herbal therapist is the health professional, to whom I speak must often.

o possession(required):

Parents whose children are not doing well in traditional schools are turning to homeschooling as a solution.

38.2 Non-defining relative clauses: they go after a defined verb, but there’s extra

information about it.

My brother John, who lives in London, is a doctor.

Colin told me about his new job, which he’s enjoying very much.

Amy, whose car had broken down, was in a very bad mood.

John, who speaks French and Italian, works as a tourist guide.

It can be also used to make a comment about an entire sentence.

People need a quick and easy way to cook food, which is / that’s why the microwave has been so successful.

Seat belts are now required in all vehicles, which means fewer people die in traffic accidents.


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39. MULTI-WORDS VERBS There is in English a large group of verbs called "multi-word verbs". A multi-word verb is a verb like "pick up", "turn on" or "get on with". For convenience, many people refer to all multi-word verbs as phrasal verbs. These verbs consist of a basic verb + another word or words. The other word(s) can be prepositions and/or adverbs. The two or three words that make up multi-word verbs form a short "phrase" - which is why these verbs are often all called "phrasal verbs".

Verb Meaning Example

single-word verb look direct your eyes in a certain direction

You must look before you leap.

multi-word verbs

phrasal verb look up search for and find information in a reference book

You can look up my number in the telephone directory.

prepositional verb

look after take care of Who is looking after the baby?

phrasal-prepositional verb

look forward to

anticipate with pleasure

I look forward to meeting you.

39.1 Phrasal Verbs: Phrasal verbs are a group of multi-word verbs made from.

[Verb + Adverb]

I don’t like to get up early.

He was late because his car broke down.

We will have to put off.

They turned down my offer.

Most of the phrasal Verbs are intransitives; it means that they don’t have a direct object next to them:

What time do you get up? The plane took off and rose into the sky.

When a phrasal Verb is transitive (has an direct object) then we can usually separate the two parts, and put the direct object between both words.

They turned down my offer. They turned my offer down.

John switched on the radio. John switched the radio on.

He cut down the tree. He cut the tree down.


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However, when we use a pronoun in place of the subject, it must come between the verb and the particle in separable multi-word verbs.

Can you turn it down please? Can you turn down it please? is NOT possible.

39.2 Prepositional Verbs: They are another type of multi-words Verbs that are made from:

[Verb + Preposition]

Because a preposition always has an object, all prepositional verbs have direct object, but they cannot be separated, so the object should come always after the preposition:

I believe in God.

He is looking after the dog.

Did you talk about me?

John is waiting for Mary.

Who looks after the baby when you’re at work?

39.3 Phrasal Prepositional Verbs: This type of multi-words Verbs that are made by three words:

[Verb + Adverb + Preposition]

Because phrasal-prepositional verbs end with a preposition, there is always a direct object. And, like prepositional verbs, phrasal-prepositional verbs cannot be separated.

He doesn’t get on with his wife.

I won’t you put up with your attitude.

I look forward to seeing you.

We have run out of it.

Who came up with that idea?

I don’t know how you put up with it.


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40. USE OF PREPOSITIONS Prepositions are short words (on, in, to) that usually stand in front of nouns (sometimes also in front of gerund verbs) 40.1 Prepositions of Time:

English Usage Example

on days of the week on Monday

in months / seasons time of day year after a certain period of time (when?)

in August / in winter in the morning in 2006 in an hour

at for night for weekend a certain point of time (when?)

at night at the weekend at half past nine

since from a certain point of time (past till now) since 1980

for over a certain period of time (past till now) for 2 years

As from / as of

From a certain point of time (past till now). Since

They will be living here as from Saturday.

ago a certain time in the past 2 years ago

before earlier than a certain point of time before 2004

After Next to a certain point of time She went to bed after dinner

to telling the time ten to six (5:50)

About/ around

Approximately They promised to be here about Friday

past telling the time ten past six (6:10)

to / till/ until

marking the beginning and end of a period of time

from Monday to/till Friday

till/ until How long something is going to last He is on holiday until Friday.

by in the sense of at the latest up to a certain time

I will be back by 6 o’clock. By 11 o'clock, I had read five pages.

Beyond More time than The workers shouldn’t work beyond five o’clock.

during A period of time I felt asleep during the film.

while In a period of time We met a lot of people while we were on holidays.

over A period of time We saw him over the weekend.

*** Differences between on time/ in time and at the end/ in the end:

On time = punctual, at the planned time

The train left on time.

Be on time, don’t be late.

In time = (for do something, soon enough)

Will you be home in time for dinner?

I want to get home in time to see the match.

At the end = at the time when something ends. (also at the beginning)

At the end of the month.

All the players shook hands at the end of the match.

In the end = finally, when we say that the final result of a situation was. (also at first)

In the end we sold it and bought another.

He didn’t go anywhere in the end.


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40.2 Prepositions of Place (Position and Direction):


in room, building, street, town, country Book, paper etc. car, taxi picture, world

in the kitchen, in London in the book in the car, in a taxi in the picture, in the world

at meaning next to, by an object for table for events place where you are to do something typical (watch a film, study, work)

at the door, at the station at the table at a concert, at the party at the cinema, at school, at work

on Attached for a place with a river being on a surface for a certain side (left, right) for a floor in a house for public transport for television, radio

the picture on the wall London lies on the Thames. on the table on the left on the first floor on the bus, on a plane on TV, on the radio

From Since some place I took a bus from Miami to here

by, next to,beside

left or right of somebody or something Jane is standing by / next to / beside the car.

under on the ground, lower than (or covered by) something else

the bag is under the table

below lower than something else but above ground

the fish are below the surface

beneath Lower (it’s used for abstract things) He would think it beneath him to tell a lie.

underneath Lower Miners work underneath the ground.

Among/ between

In middle of, in midst of I like being among people This is between you and me.

over covered by something else meaning more than getting to the other side (also across) overcoming an obstacle

put a jacket over your shirt over 16 years of age walk over the bridge climb over the wall

above higher than something else, but not directly over it

a path above the lake

across getting to the other side (also over) getting to the other side

walk across the bridge swim across the lake

upon higher than something else Bill was eating with his elbows upon the table

through something with limits on top, bottom and the sides

drive through the tunnel

to movement to person or building movement to a place or country for bed

go to the cinema go to London / Ireland go to bed

Around Turning of something The earth moves around the Sun.

Round Turning of something The shop is round the corner There’re many reports round the actress.

Against In opposition to Why is that table against the wall?


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On top of Above, higher than something else The missing book was on top of the fridge.

Opposite In opposition to My house is opposite the church

At the bottom of

At the base of There is a small cabin at the bottom of the mountain

towards movement to person or building Billy ran towards his mother when he saw her.

into enter a room / a building go into the kitchen / the house

behind At the back of something The girl sat behind you.

After Movement behind something The cat runs after the mouse.

Close to/ near

Near Our house is close to yours.

Away from To move far of something The plane flew away from the city

Along By, crossing all the place I walk along the street every day.

In front of Face to face Our house in front of yours.

beside Next to Sit beside me please.

Inside Into something The children were playing inside the house.

outside Out of something The dog sleeps outside the house.

40.3 Other Prepositions:


from who gave it a present from Jane

of who/what does it belong to what does it show

a page of the book the picture of a palace

by who made it a book by Mark Twain

on walking or riding on horseback entering a public transport vehicle

on foot, on horseback get on the bus

in entering a car / Taxi get in the car

off leaving a public transport vehicle get off the train

out of leaving a car / Taxi get out of the taxi

by rise or fall of something travelling (other than walking or horseriding)

prices have risen by 10 percent by car, by bus

at for age she learned Russian at 45

about for topics, meaning what about we were talking about you

for Result of This machine is for peeling tomatoes.

besides In addition to He told no one besides his wife


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41. USE OF CONJUCTIONS 41.1 Copulative conjunctions: Are those that join something to what has been mentioned

before.

He played the guitar and sang wonderful songs.

Mary plays not only the guitar but also the violin.

She is not only beautiful but very intelligent as well.

Many politicians desire both money and power.

I had no sooner gotten into the bathtub than the telephone rang.

As soon as I wake up, I brush my teeth.

41.2 Disjunctive conjunctions: to express selection

We'd better leave right now or we'll miss our bus

Either you shut your mouth and listen or you leave the class.

The musician neither played the piano well nor sang good songs.

We must decide whether to go there today or tomorrow.

We have to hurry up, or else we'll miss our bus.

You'll have to hurry up, otherwise you'll be late. 41.3 Conditional conjunctions: They express a condition to do something

If I see him, I'll give him the message.

I wonder whether she really wants to do that.

You won't pass the exam unless you study harder.

We’ll be late except if we hurry.

We'll go fishing this afternoon, provided it doesn't rain.

You can borrow my car providing you return it today.

You can stay here as long as you work hard.

Call this phone number in case you get lost.

And not only...but also... not only...but...as well both...and... No sooner...than... As soon as

y No solo...sino también... no solo...sino...también tanto...como... / ambas cosas Apenas...cuando... Tan pronto

or either… or neither… nor… whether… or… or else.. otherwise

o o...o... no...ni... si...o... o sino. de otro modo

if whether unless / except if provided/ providing (that) as long as / so long as in case

si si a no ser que siempre que, mientras siempre que, mientras en caso de que


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41.4 Concessive conjunctions: They are used to express an objection of what was said.

Although Jack is not very tall, he is excellent at basketball.

She decided to go to work, though she was not feeling well.

Even thought I was very tired, I couldn’t sleep.

I will finish the project by tomorrow, even if I have to work all night.

They will not finish on time, even if they hurry up.

Despite his bad reputation, the politician won the elections.

It was a great match in spite of the bad the weather.

They decided to finish the project, regardless of the cost. 41.5 Conclusive conjunctions: They are used to express an objection of what was said.

I don't know her phone number, therefore I can't call her.

Frank was raised in a farm, hence his ability to ride horses.

She hadn't eaten for days and thus felt very weak.

She was a little fat, so she decided to go on a diet

They argued all the time, consequently they eventually got divorced. 41.6 Continuative conjunctions: They are used to give a continuation to the idea that is

being expressed.

If it is not here, then it's lost.

Soccer is a good sport; moreover, it is very easy to learn.

I don’t want stay here; furthermore, I have things to do

I don't like that house; besides, it's too expensive for me.

Mrs. Baker had a great interest in literature, in addition to her interest in music.

although / though / even though even if not even if despite / in spite of regardless of

aunque incluso si ni siquiera si a pesar de sin importar, sin que importe

therefore hence thus so consequently

por lo tanto de ahí por lo tanto entonces por lo tanto, en consecuencia

then moreover furthermore besides

in addition to

entonces además además además además de


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41.7 Adversative conjunctions: They add a negation, or an opposite phrase to the idea

mentioned before.

He spoke clearly, but I didn't understand him.

They were not having fun; however they stayed until the party was over.

It was very stormy; nevertheless we went fishing.

He was a very good swimmer; even so, he drowned.

He wanted to reply to that accusation, yet he didn't.

He cannot speak very well; still he understands everything.

I was invited to a party on Saturday, but went to bed instead.

The boy is not dumb; on the contrary, he's very smart for his age.

People in my country don’t eat out except for a special occasion. 41.8 Causal conjunctions: They add a clause, showing that it is the cause of the other clause.

The baby is crying because he is hungry.

We'll have to stay home, for it is raining outside.

They stayed in because of the bad weather.

He won't understand, since he doesn't speak English.

She failed to pass the exam, as she made many mistakes.

The unemployment was high due to the economic crisis.

They had a delay owing to the traffic jam.

I enrolled in a cooking class in order to learn to cook.

I purchased a video course on public speaking so that I could learn to give better speeches.

but however nonetheless / nevertheless yet / even so still instead on the contrary except for

pero sin embargo sin embargo sin embargo, aun así sin embargo en su lugar, en lugar de ello por el contrario excepto por

because for because of since as due to / owing to in order to so that

porque porque debido a puesto que puesto que debido a para, con el fin de así


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41.9 Comparative conjunctions: they are used when two sentences have a comparison grade, differences or similarities.

He performed the operation exactly as he was told.

His car is as fast as mine.

They are not as good as you think.

She was not so beautiful as her mother.

They treat me as if they didn't know me.

Bill started to spend money as though he had won the lottery.

Learning English is more difficult than most people think.

They started to have more problems than they expected.

Unlike Americans, people in my country study English.

In contrast to Americans, people in my country study English. 41.10 Functional conjunctions: they are used to express finality, an objective or propose.

George knew he had to wake up early so he went to bed at 8pm.

He gave her a present so that she would feel better.

We moved the table so as to have more space for dancing.

He took a nap so as not to be too tired for the party.

They left early in order to arrive in time for the movie.

As as…ass not as…as… not so … as… as if/ as though than unlike in contrast to

como tan...como No tan..como no tan...como como si que a diferencia de a diferencia de

so so that so as to so as not to in order to

entonces para que para que, de manera que para no para

http://www.shertonenglish.com/resources/es/connectors/connectors-comparative.php#as_as

http://www.shertonenglish.com/resources/es/connectors/connectors-comparative.php#as_though


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42. USE OF BOTH, NEITHER AND EITHER

Both = ambos (los dos) neither = ninguno (de los dos) either = cualquiera (de los dos)

We use both/ neither/ either for talk about two things. Both always goes before the noun in plural, while neither and either goes before the noun in singular:

Both restaurants are very good.

Neither restaurant is expensive.

We can go to either restaurant, I don’t mind. *** Either is used for positive ideas, while neither is used in negative ideas.

42.1 Both of / neither of / either of/

When we use both/neither / either + of. You always need to use the, these, those, or an object pronoun. (You cannot say both of restaurants; you should say both of the restaurants.

Both of the restaurants are very good.

Neither of the restaurants we went to was expensive.

I haven’t been to either of those restaurants.

Can either of you speak Spanish?

42.2 Both..and / neither..nor / either..or/

a) Both … and:

I was both tired and hungry when I arrived home.

Both Ann and Tom were late.

b) neither … nor:

Neither Liz nor Robin came to the party.

He mentioned neither the flooding nor the landslide.

c) Either … or:

Either you apologise or I’ll never speak to you again.

I’m not sure where he’s from, he’s either Spanish or Italian.

*** In the case that the noun is more than two, we use any, none, and all.

You can stay with either of them – you can stay with any of them.

Neither of them had any rooms. - None of them had any rooms.

Both of them were full - all of them were full.


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43. USE OF SO AND SUCH

The words so and such make of an adjective or adverb stronger. Such is generally used to give emphasis to the noun or topic we are taking about. 43.1 Patterns:

So + adjective / adverb

Such + (a) + (adjective) + noun

Such: is followed by a noun that is usually modified by an adjective. Such a hard day So: s followed by an adverb or adjective. She’s so pretty

So stupid such a story / such a stupid story

So nice such people / such nice people

I like Tom and Ann, they are so nice.

I like Tom and Ann, they are such nice people.

The book was so good, that I couldn’t put it down.

It was such a good book, that I couldn’t put it down. *** So and such are also used with the meaning of “like this”:

I didn’t expect it so warm.

The house was so untidy, I’ve never seen such a mess. 43.2 Such… that and So… that. Are used to add information or an explanation about the

topic as in the relative clauses.

Many TV programs show so much violence that people are becoming desensitized to it.

Television news reporting is so superficial that people are forced to get in-depth information elsewhere.

Sports broadcasts attract such huge audience that TV Stations can charge large amounts for advertising.


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44. USE OF AS 44.1 General Use:

a) “as” sometimes means because:

As it was a public holiday, all the shops were shut. (Because it was a public...)

As they live near us, we see them quite often. b) We can use it when two things happen at the same time

The thief was seen as he was climbing over the wall.

George arrived as Sue left. 44.2 Use of as and Like

Like = similar to, the same as, such as As = before a subject + verb.

It’s raining again, I hate weather like this.

I left everything as I found it.

Brenda as the manager, she has to make many important decisions. (in her position as manager)

Mary like the manager, she also has to make many important decisions (similar to the manager.

During the war our house was used as a hospital.

Everyone is ill at home; our house is like a hospital. 44.3 Use of As if, as though, as/the way, and like:

a) As if and as though often introduce clauses that describe behaviours or feelings.

I fell as if/ as though there is never enough time in the day.

He usually talks as if/ as though he was my father.

My brother sometimes acts as if/ as though he’s totally crazy.

b) As, and the way, introduce clauses that express a comparison.

The bird doesn’t fly as/ the way it used to.

Misti isn’t covered with snow as/the way it used to be.

c) In colloquial English, the word like can be used.

I feel like is never enough time in the day.

The bird doesn’t fly like it used to.


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45. USE OF CLAUSES 45.1 Non clauses after be: the relative clause is optional.

An advantage of having a brother is (that) you always have someone to help you.

The best thing about having brothers is (that) you’re never lonely.

A problem with having lots of brothers is (that) you don’t get a very big allowance. 45.2 Adjectives of emotion + past time clauses: they are used to describe something you

are happy you did or didn’t do.

I’m glad (that) I grew up in an international city.

I’m thankful (that) I had the opportunity to go to colleague.

I’m really happy that I took this class. 45.3 Non clauses introduced by it: it refers to the clauses that follow.

It’s sad that kids today don’t respect their elders.

It’s a shame that people focus so much on the past.

It’s also likely that there are other influences, such as his or her friends. 45.4 Non clauses introduced by verbs: Are used to describe hopes and beliefs.

I hope that schools will do something about teaching respect.

I believe that there’s nothing we can learn from the past.

I hope that people will spend more money on education. 45.5 Non clauses containing relative clauses: they can function like nouns when introduced

with something. It can also occur with clauses beginning with when, how, why, etc.

Something that really bothers me is people who talk loudly during a movie.

One thing that annoys me is when my neighbours have louds parties late at night.

The thing I can’t understand about people with dogs is why they allow them to bark at night.

45.6 Non clauses beginning with question words, whether and if:

Why aren’t there more youth centres? I don’t know why there aren’t more youth centres.

Why do stores close so early? Why stores close so early is something I don’t understand.

Use If, whether or whether or not for yes.no question.

Are they going to build more parking garages? I wonder if they are going to build more parking garages. I wonder whether they are going to build more parking garages. I wonder whether or not they are going to build more parking garages.


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45.7 Reporting clauses: They are used to report tat someone says or think: verb + (that). It’s commonly used with the verbs: admit, agree, assume, claim, explain, report, say, feel, doubt, and believe.

In many countries, people believe (that) breaking a mirror brings you bad luck.

Not many people like to admit (that) they are superstitious.

I doubt (that) there some truth behind every superstition.

You can use a passive form of a reporting verb. Notice that the agent is often omitted and understood to be “some” or “many people”:

It’s reported that a woman from Spain receives messages from her dead husband.

It’s believed that a cow in Cambodia has cured over one hundred people.

It was once believed that the earth was flat.

It has been claimed by many people that the cow had extraordinary powers.

45.8 Cleft sentences: Affirmative sentences beginning with “what”:

What I notice first is people eyes = I notice people’s eyes.

What I generally listen to is people’s accent.

What I like to do is listen to people’s voice.

45.9 Reduced relative clauses: the relative pronoun can also be dropped and changed by

the verb with –ing.

Anyone who wants to be successful has to work hard. Anyone wanting to be successful has to work hard.

A person, who works as an inventor, shouldn’t have a big family.

A person working as an inventor shouldn’t have a big family.

45.10 Non clauses:

Whoever = the person who/ anyone/ everyone who Whatever = anything that/ everything that Whenever = at any time Wherever = in any place

Some animals will bond permanently with whoever spends time with them when they are young.

The international community should do whatever is necessary.

Whenever I go away, my dog misses me.

My cat follows me wherever I go.


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45.11 Non clauses with double comparatives: the first clause expresses a condition for the second clause: the more/the les s + adj/verb; the more/the les s + adj/verb

The less realistic a painting is, the more it fascinates me.

The more you learn about art, the more you appreciate it.

The more we listen to music, the more relaxed we feel.

The earlier you start the better. 45.12 Verbs in the subjunctive: The subjunctive uses the base form of the verb (without

conjugation). Some verbs and expressions are followed by the subjunctive

Verbs used before the subjunctive: Demand recommend propose Insist request suggest

Jim’s brother suggested that he stop spending so much money.

His daughter proposed that he keep a list of weekly expenses.

Expressions used before the subjunctive: It’s crucial it’s imperative It’s essential it’s important It’s necessary itss vital

It’s necessary that couples discuss financial problems openly.

It’s necessary for couples discuss financial problems openly.


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46. USE OF GERUND, INFINITIVE AND PARTICIPLE 46.1 Gerund: It’s used as a noun and a verb in a progressive tense. It’s formed by the verb

in infinitive and adding –ING at the end: Walk - walking stand - standing Drink – drinking read - reading Sing – singing go - going

When the word ends in a consonant after a short, stressed vowel at the end of the word, we put a double the consonant.

sit – sitting

put - putting

If the consonant is not stressed, we do not double it:

Benefit - benefiting (Here we stress the first 'e', not the 'i'.)

In British English we double one -l at the end of the word: Travel – travelling

When there’s one –e at the end, we leave out the –e: (exception: see – seeing)

Write – writing

take - taking

Verbs that end in –ie, change “ie” to “y”: lie – lying

Verbs that end in –c, change “c” to “ck”: picnic – picnicking

a) Gerund after an adjective + preposition:

We are excited about making our own film.

Sandy is famous for singing songs.

She is glad about getting married again.

Are you interesting in writing poems.

I’m tired of waiting for you.

b) Gerund after a noun + preposition:

He has difficulty in sending SMS.

There’s no interest in writing letters.

He has the problem of swimming too slow.

c) Gerund after a verb + preposition

I agree with playing darts.

Do you concentrate on reading or writing?

They feel like going to bed.

Frank thinks of playing chess.

The girls insist on going out with Mark.


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d) Gerund after special verbs:

admit He admitted having driven too fast.

avoid They avoid going on holiday on Saturdays.

carry on If we carry on sleeping so badly, we may need help.

consider Ralph is considering buying a new house.

delay I delayed telling Max the news.

deny She denies reading the book.

dislike We dislike reading poems.

can't help He couldn't help falling in love with her.

enjoy I enjoy playing chess.

finish They finished working in the garden.

give up Susan gives up playing ice-hockey.

imagine He imagined driving a new car.

include Your responsibility includes taking reservations on the phone.

involve The project will involve growing plants.

justify I cannot justify paying $100 for this ticket.

keep (on) They keep on running.

mention Did Alex ever mention playing baseball?

mind I don't mind sleeping on the couch.

miss They miss playing with their friends.

practise She practised playing hockey.

regret* Do you regret having mentioned it?

risk You risk catching a cold.

suggest She suggested flying to Cairo.

e) Gerund after this special verbs:

to be busy He is busy reading the paper.

couldn't help She couldn't help eating another apple.

don't mind I don't mind telling them my opinion.

feel like We feel like having a cup of tea.

how about How about walking home instead of taking the car?

it's (no) good It's no good talking to this girl.

it's no use It's no use talking to the headmaster.

spend one's time They spend their time reading.


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there's no There's no cheating anymore.

there's no point There's no point in complaining further.

what about What about going to the zoo?

worth The book is worth reading.

f) Gerund after the next prepositions:

after After having a shower, I waited for Steven.

before The tablet must not be taken before getting up in the morning.

by I manage it by working much longer than 40-hour weeks.

in spite of In spite of studying a lot he didn't pass the exams.

on She insisted on calling her sister.

without He told the joke without laughing.

46.2 Infinitive: It’s the main form of a verb, it has no conjugation.

46.2.1 Infinitive with To:

a) After “the first”, “the last”, “the next” and adjectives:

He’s the next to get the passport.

I’m happy to be here.

It’s better not to smoke.

Peter was the last to watch the film.

b) After some verbs (learn, agree, choose, remember, forget, promise, want, regret, hope, etc.).

I learn to drive car.

I want you to help me.

I want to help you.

I forgot to pay the count.

c) After question words:

I don’t know what to say.

Can you tell me how to get to the bus stop?

46.2.2 Infinitive without To:

a) When the infinitive goes after auxiliary verbs or modal verbs.

We should sing a song.

I don’t know.

I may flight to Africa this summer.

You mustn’t smoke here.


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b) when the infinitive goes after a verb of perception (including let and make) + direct object (except want)

She feels the rain fall on her face.

They saw him climb the tree.

He watched the thieves steal the car.

I heard Peter sing a song.

Let her go to the party.

She makes me clean the house.

*** There are some verbs that can be used with both infinitive and gerund:

Gerund Gerund & Infinitive

Enjoy Dislike Don’t mind avoid

Like begin Love finish Hate prefer Can’t stand start

He began talking = he began to talk

She loves painting = she loves to paint.

They like swimming = they like to swim.

They enjoy reading books.

46.2.3 Infinitive and gerund phrases:

It ‘s + adjective + infinitive = gerund + object + be + adjective

It’s impolite to ask about the age = Asking about the age is impolite.

It’s boring to hear her stories = hearing her stories is boring. 46.3 Participle: it has two forms:

Present participle verb – ing Past participle verb- ed /

*** for see the rules of the present participle see the Gerund. And for the see the rules for the past participle see the verbs conjugation. Or see the verb list.

a) Use of the Present participle:

In progressive tenses:

He is reading a book.

He was reading a book.

When the verb is used as the subject of the sentence:

Reading books is fun.

Going to Texas they expected a better job.

Having confidence I yourself, you’ll overcome obstacles.

Being pessimist, you don’t achieve your goals.


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After verbs of perception (see, watch, hear, listen to, smell, feel)

I saw him reading.

I heard somebody screaming.

I saw the man coming to the shop.

After verbs of “rest” and “movement” (run, go, come, stay, stand, lie, sit)

He sat reading in the corner.

She goes walking under the rain.

Why do you stay sleeping here?

The boy came reading out of the room.

As an adjective that describes the topic we are talking about:

My job is boring.

This was an exciting race.

My job is depressing.

b) Use of the Past participle: Used To express shorten relative clauses:

The cars produced in Japan are nice.

The car washed yesterday is blue.

In Perfect tenses:

He has forgotten his pencil.

I had known the truth before you know.

He has broken my heart.

In the Passive Voice:

A house is built.

The news was written on the newspaper yesterday.

A new car is bought by them.

After the verb “have”:

Having read the book, the boy came out of the room.

I have my clothes washed.

He had his car washed.

As an adjective that describes what the subject feels about the topic:

I’m bored with my job.

My job makes me depressed.

We were very shocked when we heard the news.

When the verb acts as an adjective

Look at the washed car.

Look at that drunk person.


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ANEX

I. THE TIME

1. The Months

2. The days of the Week

3. What time is it?

4:00 it’s four o’clock.

3:00 it’s three o’clock

2:10 it’s ten past two

3:20 it’s twenty past three.

1:15 it’s quarter past one.

10:45 it’s quarter to eleven.

9:50 it’s ten to ten.

7:30 it’s half past seven.

4. The Date: Rule: day – month - year

I was born in 1999. (Use in with the year.)

I was born in August. (Use in with the month.)

I was born on 12th May, 2000. (Use on in the complete date.)

January July

February August

March September

April October

May November

June December

Monday Friday

Tuesday Saturday

Wednesday Sunday

Thursday


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II. THE NUMBERS

Cardinal numbers Ordinal numbers

0 oh, zero, nil, love, nought * ---

1 one 1st

first

2 two 2nd

second

3 three 3rd

third

4 four 4th

fourth

5 five 5th

fifth

6 six 6th

sixth

7 seven 7th

seventh

8 eight 8th

eighth

9 nine 9th

ninth

10 ten 10th

tenth

11 eleven 11th

eleventh

12 twelve 12th

twelfth

13 thirteen 13th

thirteenth

14 fourteen 14th

fourteenth

15 fifteen 15th

fifteenth

16 sixteen 16th

sixteenth

17 seventeen 17th

seventeenth

18 eighteen 18th

eighteenth

19 nineteen 19th

nineteenth

20 twenty 20th

twentieth

21 twenty-one 21st

twenty-first

30 thirty 30th

thirtieth

40 forty

50 fifty

60 sixty

70 seventy

80 eighty

90 ninety

100 a/one hundred

1,000 a/one thousand

10,000 ten thousand

100,000 a/one hundred thousand

1,000,000 a/one million

1,000,000,000 a/one billion


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III. BRITISH – AMERICAN SPELLING DIFFERENCES

British English American English Example (British - American)

1 words ending in -re change to –er centre - center metre - meter

2 words ending in -our change to –or colour - color

3 words ending in -ogue change to –og catalogue - catalog

4 words ending in -ise/ize ending only in –ize realise/realize - realize

5 final -l doubled after short vowel

- l not always doubled after a short vowel

travelled - traveled modelling - modeling

6 words ending in -ence change to –ense defence - defense licence - license

IV. ABREVIATIONS IN BUSINESS ENGLISH

a/c - acct. Account

attn. (for the) attention (of)

B/E bill of exchange

B/L bill of lading

cc carbon copy

cf. Compare

cfr. cost and freight

cif cost, insurance, freight

cip carriage and insurance paid to

C/N credit note

c/o care of

cod cash on delivery

Corp. Corporation

cpt carriage paid to

cwo cash with order

D/A documents against acceptance

DDP delivery duty paid

DN debit note

D/P documents against payment

enc(s) enclosure(s)

EXW ex works


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FOB free on board

for free on rail

Inc Incorporated (US)

L/C letter of credit

Ltd Limited

p&p postage and packing

p.p. * on behalf of

pto please turn over

re with reference to, regarding

RRP recommended retail price

SAE stamped addresses envelope

VAT Value Added Tax

ZIP (code) zone of improved delivery (US)

V. PHRASAL VERBS

Ask for Exigir, pedir Get ready Prepararse

Back away Retroceder Get up Levantarse

Be back Regresar Give back Devolver

Be over Estar terminando Give up Renunciar

Blow out Apagar soplando Go away Irse

Break down Derribar, desmayarse Go down Hundirse

Bring up Educar Hand out Entregar

Burn down Quemarse Keep on Continuar

Call for Recoger, requerir Mix up Mezclar

Carry on Continuar Pick out Escoger

Clear away Ordenar Point out Indicar

Ring up Llamar por teléfono Pull down Demoler

Set up Comenzar un negocio Stand by Continuar ayudando

Find out Investigar Take in Entender

Get away Escapar Take off Despegar

Get on Subir, realizar Close down Salir de un negocio

Get out salir Make up inventar

Sorry, I’m late, the car broke down.

The bus was full, we couldn’t get on.

I was very tired this morning, I couldn’t get up.

Sally is leaving tomorrow and coming back on Saturday.

It was my first sight, I was nervous as the plane took off.


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VI. GRAMMAR TENSES TABLE

TENSE EXAMPLE TENSE EXAMPLE

Simple Present (do/ does)

I play soccer. I don’t play soccer. Do you play soccer?

Simple Past (did)

I played soccer. I did not play soccer. Did you play soccer?

Present Progressive (be + v-ing)

I am playing soccer. I am not playing soccer. Are you playing soccer?

Past Progressive (was/were + v-ing)

I was playing soccer. I was not playing soccer. Were you playing soccer?

Present Perfect (Have/has + v. p.part.)

I have played soccer. I have not played soccer. Have you played soccer?

Past Perfect (Had + v. p.part.)

I had played soccer. I had not played soccer. Had you played soccer?

Present perfect Progressive (have/has been + v. ing)

I have been playing soccer. I have not been playing soccer. Have you been playing soccer?

Past perfect Progressive (had been + v. ing)

I had been playing soccer. I had not been playing soccer. Had you been playing soccer?

Simple Future (will)

I will play soccer. I will not play soccer. Will you play soccer?

Simple Conditional (would)

I would play soccer. I would not play soccer. Would you play soccer?

Future Progressive (will be + v. ing)

I will be playing soccer. I will not be playing soccer. Will you be playing soccer?

Conditional Progressive (would be + v. ing)

I would be playing soccer. I would not be playing soccer. Would you be playing soccer?

Future Perfect (will have/has + v. p.part)

I will have played soccer. I will not have played soccer. Will you have played soccer?

Conditional Perfect (would have/has + v. p.part)

I would have played soccer. I would not have played soccer. Would you have played soccer?

Future Perfect Progressive (will have/has been + v. ing)

I will have been playing soccer. I will not have been playing soccer. Will you have been playing soccer?

Conditional Perfect Progressive (would have/has been + v. ing)

I would have been playing soccer. I would not have been playing soccer. Would you have been playing soccer?

Going to - Future (be + going to)

I am going to play soccer. I am not going to play soccer. Are you going to play soccer?


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VII. ENGLISH PHONOLOGY

1. Consonants:

/kw/ Quiet /kw/ quite /kw/ Quack /kw/ quota /kw/ /chr/ /jr/ train /chrain/ drop /jrop/

2. Short Vowels: ă, ě, ĭ, ŏ, ŭ

/ ăpe/ ănt

3. Long Vowels: a, e, i, o ,u

Eat / et/ bet /b ět/

Kite /kit/ kit /kĭt/

Cough /cof/ bought / bot/

Thought /zot/ through /zru/

-tion, cion (/shun) nation (nashun)

4. Schwa: it’s an unstressed syllable. Sounds like /uh/

Vibrating Sounds Non-vibrating Sounds

Mob/ bit /b/ Plasives sound

/p/ Mop/ pit

Mad/dip /d/ /t/ Mat/ tip

Vile/save /v/ Fricative /f/ File/ safe

Good/bag /g/

Velar

/k/ Could/ back

Zip/faze /z/ /s/ Sip/ face

Jar/ badge /j/ ----

---- /ch/ /sh/ Chip/ ship

Ryan/ bar /r/ ---

Am/ an /m/ /n/ Nasal /h/ hat


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VIII. COOKIE CUTTER ESSAY

Intro Restate topic (question, gerund)

Attention getter (anecdote, statistics, historical events, quotes)

Thesis sentence (states your opinion: I firmly believe/ given such consequences…/ I believe/ I am of the opinion that/ according to my personal beliefs

Body Main idea with a topic sentence (support the thesis sentence)

Supporting details (support main idea) X3 paragraphs

Conclusion Restate your thesis.

Summarise main ideas (as we had seen)

Global statement: use 1st and 2nd conditional

TOPIC:

“We should reduce global warming even if it means people will lose their jobs, and prices will

rice.”

INTRO:

1. Restate Topic.

Fighting global warming is everyone’s responsibility, but do we think it should

negatively impact people jobs, prices of goods and world economies?

2. Attention getter:

In the early 1900’s the local industry was growing strong. People had jobs, economies

were strong and the relative prices of goods were reasonable. The only downside was

that we started polluting the earth with an influx of factories.

3. Thesis sentence:

I strongly disagree with combating global warming if it will be irrevocably detrimental

to jobs, economies and prices of goods.


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BODY:

1. Main idea/ Topic sentence (why “thesis sentence”)

To save the planet is one thing. But to ruin people’s live is another. We should never

disrupt the delicate economies of countries.

2. Supporting details:

When Thailand decided to eliminate the factories in their country, nobody had a job.

Since nobody had a job they couldn’t stimulate the economy. They effectively reduced

pollution, but starvation became prominent.

CONCUSION: No new information

1. Restate thesis:

I find it completely unacceptable if it negatively impacts jobs, economies and prices of

good.

2. Summarise main idea:

As we have seen the disruption of economies has the potential to send a country into

famine. In addition to famine, unemployment rates will be sky high and this will grave

effects on economic relations.


88

IX. VERBS LIST

1. Regular verbs: verbs with regular form just add an –ed at the end in the past and past participle forms.

a) If the base form of the verb ends in a vibrating sound (b, h, l, m, n, r, v, w, y, z), -ed

sounds like /d/:

b) If the base form of the verb ends in a non- vibrating sound (c, ch, f, k, p, s, sh, ch, x, -ed sounds like /t /:


ask asked asked

dress dressed dressed

finish finished finished

fix fixed fixed

guess guessed guessed


achieve achieved achieved

admire admired admired

answer answered answered

believe believed believed

carry carried carried

change changed changed

enjoy enjoyed enjoyed

enter entered entered

explain explained explained

enter entered entered

happen happened happened

play played played

prefer preferred preferred

open opened opened

prepare prepared prepared

receive received received

remember remembered remembered

repair repaired repaired

return returned returned

share shared shared

smile smiled smiled

survive survived survived

stay stayed stayed

try tried tried

improve improved improved


89

like liked liked

look at looked at looked at

miss missed missed

notice noticed noticed

pass passed passed

practise practised practised

pronounce pronounced pronounced

stop stopped stopped

talk talked talked

walk walked walked

wash washed washed

watch watched watched

wish wished wished

work worked worked

a) If the base form of the verb ends in a /d/ or /t/ sound, -ed sounds like /did/ or /tid/. We also add an extra syllable.


accept accepted accepted

add added added

attend attended attended

avoid avoided avoided

dictate dictated dictated

elect elected elected

graduate graduated graduated

intend intended intended

invent invented invented

land landed landed

need needed needed

paint painted painted

provide provided provided

recommend recommended recommended

repeat repeated repeated

start started started

visit visited visited

wait for waited for waited for

want wanted wanted


90

2. Irregular verbs:



be was/were been

fling flung flung

bear bore borne/born (AE)

fly flew flown

beat beat beaten

forbid forbade, forbad

forbidden

become became become

forecast* forecast forecast

begin began begun

forget forgot forgotten

bend bent bent

forsake forsook forsaken

bet* bet bet

freeze froze frozen

bid bid, bade bid, bidden

get got got, gotten (AE)

bind bound bound

give gave given

bite bit bitten

grind ground ground

bleed bled bled

go went gone

blow blew blown

grow grew grown

break broke broken

hang hung hung

breed bred bred

have had had

bring brought brought

hear heard heard

broadcast broadcast broadcast

hide hid hidden

build built built

hit hit hit

burst* burst burst

hold held held

bust* bust bust

hurt hurt hurt

buy bought bought

keep kept kept

cast cast cast

know knew known

catch caught caught

lay laid laid

choose chose chosen

lead led led

cling clung clung

leave left left

come came come

lend lent lent

cost cost cost

let let let

creep crept crept

lie lay lain

cut cut cut

light* lit lit

deal dealt dealt

lose lost lost

dig dug dug

make made made

dive dived/dove(AE) dived

mean meant meant

do did done

meet met met

draw drew drawn

pay paid paid

drink drank drunk

prove* proved proven

drive drove driven

put put put

eat ate eaten

quit* quit quit

fall fell fallen

read read read

feed fed fed

rid rid rid

feel felt felt

ride rode ridden

fight fought fought

ring rang rung

find found found

rise rose risen

flee fled fled

run ran run


91



say said said

steal stole stolen

see saw seen

stick stuck stuck

seek sought sought

sting stung stung

sell sold sold

stink stank, stunk stunk

send sent sent

stride strode stridden

set set set

strike struck struck

sew* sewed sewn

string strung strung

shake shook shaken

strive strove striven

shear* sheared shorn

swear swore sworn

shed shed shed

sweep swept swept

shine shone shone

swell* swelled swollen

shoot shot shot

swim swam swum

show* showed shown

swing swung swung

shut shut shut

take took taken

sing sang sung

teach taught taught

sink sank sunk

tear tore torn

sit sat sat

tell told told

slay slew slain

think thought thought

sleep slept slept

thrive* throve thrived

slide slid slid

throw threw thrown

sling slung slung

thrust thrust thrust

slink slunk slunk

tread trod trodden, trod

slit slit slit

understand understood understood

sow sowed sown

wake* woke woken

speak spoke spoken

wear wore worn

speed* sped sped

weave wove woven

spend spent spent

weep wept wept

spin spun spun

wet* wet wet

spit spat, spit spat, spit

win won won

split split split

wind wound wound

spread spread spread

wring wrung wrung

spring sprang sprung

write wrote written

stand stood stood


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X. INTERNACIONAL PHONETIC ALPHABET (I.P.A)


93


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INTERESTING SITES Learn English Online Course http://www.learnenglish.de/ Englisch Hilfen Learning English Online Course (English version) http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/ English Club http://www.englishclub.com/ English Grammar Online for You http://www.ego4u.com/ Shreton English (in Spanish) http://www.shertonenglish.com/resources/es/adverbs.php English for everyone http://www.englishforeveryone.org/

http://www.learnenglish.de/

http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/

http://www.englishclub.com/

http://www.ego4u.com/

http://www.shertonenglish.com/resources/es/adverbs.php

http://www.englishforeveryone.org/

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