Adjective or adverb?
The planes couldn’t take off due to the bad weather. (‘ bad ‘is an adjective)
Adjectives ( careful/quick) tell us something about the noun (somebody or something) . We use adjectives before nouns .
John is a careful driver .
They didn’t come because of the heavy storm .
I was admiring the beautiful flowers.
Adverbs (quikly/carefully etc ) tell us about a verb ( how somebody does something or how something happens)
Alice drove carefully along the narrow street.
My brother didn’t go out because it was snowing heavily.
The cat was walking silently .
PLEASE COMPARE !
She speaks perfect English . -Here ‘perfect’ is an adjective because it describes the noun ‘English’.
She speaks English perfectly . Here ‘perfectly’ is an adverb because it describes the verb ‘speak’.
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THE USE OF PREPOSITIONS IN /ON/TO/AT
A 1.We usually use ‘ IN‘ with spaces :
- in a room / in a building They live in a small room .
- in a garden / in a park The children are playing in the garden .
We are walking in the park .
2. We use ‘IN‘ with bodies of water
- in the water The fish is swimming in the water .
- in the sea /in a river The boat is sailing in the Atlantic Ocean.
3. We use ‘IN‘with lines
- in a row / in a line The students are waiting quietly in a row.
- in a queue
B 1. We use ‘ON‘ with surfaces
- on the ceiling / on the wall / on the floor There are some beautiful carpets on the floor.
- on the table The book is on the table .
2. We use ‘ON’ with small islands I stayed on Maui .
3. We usually use ‘ ON ‘ with directions
- on the left The house is on the left side of the river .
- on the right
- straight on
C 1. We use ‘TO’ with movement from one place to another
- I went to school .
- Did you go to work?
- Let’s go to the shopping mall .
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WILL / SHALL
‘What would you like to drink?’ ‘I’ll have a cup of coffee, please.’
I will/I’ll
We use I’ll ( I will ) when we have just decided to do something. When we say‘I ‘ll dosomething’ , we actually announce our decision.
CONTRACTIONS: I will – I’ll
I will not – I won’t
Example!
1.I have left the window open. I’ll just go and close it.’
2.‘What would you like to drink?’ ‘I’ll have a lemonade, please.’
3.‘Did you call Elisabeth?’ ‘I’ll call her now.’
RULE!
We cannot use the Present Simple in the following sentences:
It is NOT correct to say : ‘I go and close the window.
CORRECT : I’ll go and close the window.
The negative of ‘ I will” is ‘I won’t.
Example. I understand you’re busy so I won’t stay long.
RULE! We DON’T use ‘will’ for something we decided before. Example . I am not going on holiday next week. Are you coming with us ?
Shall I…?/Shall we…?
‘ Shall ‘ is mostly used in the questions . We use ‘Shall I…?/Shall we…?’ to ask somebody’s opinion(especially in offers or suggestions).
1. Shall I open the door? (=Do you want me to open the door?)
2. I lost all my documents. What shall I do?(=What do you advice me to do?)
COMPARE ! Shall I…? and will you…?
Shall I close the window? (= Do you want me to to close it?)
Will you open the door? (= I want you to open it.)
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We use the present continuous for the future for personal arrangements .
This is my schedule for next week.
Monday I am going to school.
Tuesday I am travelling to Venice.
Saturday I am attending a business meeting.
RULE! In all these examples , I have already decided and arranged to do these things.
I am doing something tomorrow= it is something arranged and I have decided to do it.
Paul isn’t going to play tennis next Sunday. He has hurt his arm.
A. What are you going to do on Saturday? ( Not: ‘ What do you do on Saturday?”
B. I am visiting my aunt .
We use the present simple when we talk about timetables , programmes etc ( for public transport , cinemas etc) :
- Our train leaves at 1:30 , so I need to be at the station by 11.30 .
- What time does the concert start this evening?
We can also use the present simple to talk about people if their plans are fixed like a time table .
- I start my lesson on Monday .
- What time do you finish your class tomorrow?
PRACTICE!
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Past Perfect vs Past Perfect Continuous (part II)
When we reached the mountains it had been snowing for 3 days .
The past perfect continuous is formed by using the auxiliary had been+ing form of the verb ( had been working ) .
AFFIRMATIVE : I/you/he/she/it/we/they had been working .
NEGATIVE :I/you/he/she/it/we/they had not( hadn’t) been working.
INTERROGATIVE :Had I/you/he/she/it/we/they been working ?
When do we use Past Perfect Continuous ?
We use Past Perfect Continuous to talk about in the pathe duration of an activity up to a point in the past.
COMPARE !
We use the Present Perfect Continuous to talk about how long an activity had been going on up to the present .
Example. I have been working here for three months. ( I am still working here now .)
We use the Past Perfect Continuous to talk about the duration of an activity up to a point in the past .
Example . When I left my last job , I had been working there for four years. ( I started in 1990 and I left in 1994 ).
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PRACTICE!
Present Perfect vs Present Perfect Continuous(part I)
- When I arrived home the party had already finished.
We form past perfect with had + past participle
I/you/he/she/it/we/they had worked .
I/you/he/she/it/we/they had not( hadn’t ) worked.
Had I/you/he/she/it/we/they worked?
CONTRACTIONS
had = ‘d had not = hadn’t
Some verbs are ‘ regular’ , other verbs are ‘irregular’ :
- The past participle of regular verbs has an -ed ending ( example: clean –cleaned , play–played )
When we add -ed to verbs , there are sometimes changes in spelling ( example : stop–stopped) .
- Irregular verbs have different past participle forms ( eg. know –knew , sit–sat )
When do we use past perfect simple?
1. When we are talking about the past , sometimes when we refer back to an earlier past .
EARLIER PAST ————————————- PAST
2. We use the past perfect ( eg. she had left ) to talk about something which had happend before the past time we are thinking about ( when I called ).
EXAMPLES . We arrieved at the party at 9:00 , but the show had started at 8:00 .
I couldn’t understand why Simon hadn’t returned the books .
THEY HAVE BEEN FLYING ALL DAY .
We form the present perfect contiuous with have/has been + ….ing .
| AFFIRMATIVE | NEGATIVE | INTERROGATIVE |
| I have been working | I haven’t been working | Have I been working? |
| He/she/it has been
working |
He /she/it hasn’t been working | Has he been working? |
| You/we/they have been working | You/we/they haven’t been working | Have they been working? |
CONTRACTIONS
have=’ve have not=haven’t
has=’s has not= hasn’t
WHEN DO WE USE PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS ?
Sentences with present perfect contiuous connect the present and the past .
- We usually use the present perfect continuous to talk about something that started in the past and has been in progress up to the present .
We can say how long with since and for .
We use since when we give the beginning of the time ( for example since Tuesday) .
EXAMPLE . It’s been snowing since Tuesday .
We use for when we give the length of time.
EXAMPLE . It’s been snowing for three days .
2. We use present perfect continuous when an action has been in progress up to the recent past , especially when the action has results in the present .
EXAMPLE . It has been snowing .( Explanation . It isn’t snowing now , but there is snow on the ground .)
REMEMBER!
- We use present perfect mostly for finished actions but the results are shown in the present Example . I’ve witten to John , so he knows everything .
We also use the present perfect to say how much or how often.
Example . I’ve traveled to nine countries this year .
2. We use the present perfect continuous ( progressive) mostly for unfinished actions continuing up to now . We mostly use it to say how long .
Example . The children have been playing all day .
The present perfect progressive can also be used for longer , more permanent situations . However , we often prefer a simple present perfect, especially when we are talking about unchanging states rather than actions.
Example . He‘s been standing here for hours . – Present perfect progressive
The castle has stood on this hill for 900 years . – Present perfect simple
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VERB TENSES–Present Continuous vs Present Simple
We use Present Simple to talk about
- something is true in general
- something happens all the time or repeatedly
FORMS OF THE PRESENT CONTINUOUS : verb “to be” + ing
I am ( I’m) reading
he/she/it is doing
we/you/they are working
A. Moment of speaking . We use present continuous to talk about an activity taking place at the moment of speaking : Example: Please don’t disturb me. I’m trying to work.
B. Current activities . We use present continuous to talk about actions or activities that are taking place over a period of time( even if they are not taking place precisely at the moment of speaking) .
Example : I am reading a very interesting book at the moment. It’s an adventure book. Explanation I am not reading the book at the moment of speaking ; I have started it but I haven’t finished it . I am in the middle of reading it.
C. Temporary situations . We also use present continuous to indicate that an action or activity is temporary rather than permanent .
Example : Mrs. Parker organizes our parties. ( Here we use Present Simple because this is generally true)
Mrs. Parker is away on vacation , so I am organizing them.
(Here the Present Continuous is used because this is true only for a limited time.)
PRACTICE!
VERB TENSES -PRESENT TENSES –Present Simple
We use Present Simple to talk about things in general . We use it to say that
- something happenns all the time or reapeatedly ,
- something is true in general
Examples:
I usually sleep late at weekends.
The shop opens at 7.30 in the morning .
Remember!
I work He works
We work She works
You work It works
They work
Practice!
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