Category: Grammar

Level: Beginner-Intermediate

1. Adjectives before nouns
When adjectives come in a noun phrase they are normally immediately before the noun.
Example:
She has a beautiful bag.
I have a funny friend.

2. Adjectives used only in front of nouns
Some adjectives are only used in front of nouns (southern, northern, western, eastern; indoor, outdoor; digital).
Example:
I live in northern Spain.
She doesn’t have a digital camera.
I need to put an outdoor light near the porch.

3. After something, everything, etc.
Example:
I saw something interesting this morning.
Let’s go somewhere quiet.

4. Adjectives after condition verbs ‘be‘
Adjectives are used to describe the condition of things and people, etc.
Example:
I am asleep.
She is very tall.
He is handsome.

5. Subject + Verb + Object + Adjective
Example:
He makes me happy.
The movie made me laugh.

Level: Intermediate-Advanced

The to-infinitives are typically used after some adjectives:

able                       She will be able to cope with her current situation at home.

unable                  She was unable to make it on time for her flight.

anxious                 Alex is anxious to open his presents.

due                        The wedding is due to be held next spring.

eager                    Everyone on the team seemed very eager to meet their new coach.

keen                      Mary was very keen to start working on the new project as soon as possible.

likely                      I’m likely to forget to take my medicine so please do remind me.

unlikely                 It’s unlikely to rain today. It is very sunny.

ready                    She is ready to deliver her speech in the assembly tomorrow.

prepared             Are we prepared to suffer the consequences of global warming?

willing                   If you’re willing to travel a lot for work, then the job is yours.

unwilling              Her friends are unwilling to lend her some cash.

The to-infinitives are likewise used when telling a reason for the adjective:

amazed                We are often amazed to see that these creatures really do exist.

delighted             I’m delighted to do this favor for you.

disappointed     She was quite disappointed to find out she didn’t get her dream role.

glad                        The students are glad to have finished the semester.

happy                   They are happy to come to an agreement.

pleased                 Ella’s grandparents are delighted to know that she’s staying with them.

proud                    His therapist is proud to say that he helped him a lot with his rehabilitation.

relieved               The whole family is relieved to know he is out of danger after his brain surgery.

sad                         They were all sad to hear he had left his job.

sorry                     Her son was so sorry to disappoint her.

surprised             My mother was surprised to see me cleaning my room.

unhappy              She seemed unhappy to be leaving her current post as their team leader.

It + be followed by an adjective is used when expressing opinions:

clever                    They thought it was clever to park by the side of the road, but it wasn’t.

difficult                 It happened so fast that it was impossible to see her attacker.

easy                       It’s easy to use this program, but it’s very difficult to learn at first.

foolish                  Luke thinks it’s foolish to save money for the future.

hard                       With this much information, it is hard to finish the data entry quickly.

kind                       It’s kind to lend your ear to someone who is going through a tough time.

nice                        It would be nice to go back to my hometown this weekend.

possible               It’s possible to ask your boss for a pay raise.

impossible          It’s quite impossible to hear what she’s saying with all this noise.

right                       It is only right to stand up against bullies.

wrong                   It is wrong to say mean things to your friends.

silly                         His wife thinks it is silly not to accept this job offer.

The to-infinitives are also used with the following adjectives when expressing opinions about people:

clever                    It was clever of them to come up with this concept.

foolish                  It was foolish of her to refuse such an offer.

kind                       It is kind of her to volunteer at their local retirement home.

nice                        It’s nice of them to help out.

right                       It would be right of him to go on this trip.

wrong                   It was wrong of them to take the bribe.

silly                         It was silly of the dog to eat the chocolates on the countertop.

The preposition for is used when demonstrating who is being referred to by these adjectives:

difficult                 It was difficult for them to hear about their mother’s illness.

easy                       It is easy for her boss to manage the team.

hard                       It was hard for him to admit his mistakes.

possible               It is possible for us to fail on this mission again.

Impossible          It was impossible for him to pay his debts.

The preposition of is used for other adjectives:

It’s sweet of you to remember my birthday.

It would be irresponsible of him to drink and drive.

Level: Intermediate-Advanced

The to-infinitives are used as postmodifier after abstract nouns such as ability, attempt, wish, chance, refusal, desire, opportunity, failure, and need.

ability              An effective speaker has the ability to explain things clearly and concisely.

attempt           He attempted to apply for a job but he did not get hired.

chance            All he wanted was a chance to play in the finals.

desire              He expressed a desire to speak before the public.

failure              This bankruptcy is largely due to the company’s failure to cut spending.

need                There is no need to bring more food to the picnic.

opportunity    The students are just grateful for the opportunity to learn from their teacher.

refusal             His refusal to make amends with his ex-wife upset his children.

wish                 I just wish to express my sincere gratitude for what you did for me today.

The to-infinitives are also often used as a postmodifier after indefinite pronouns:

Do you have something to say?
I had no one else to turn to.
There is hardly anything to see in this dark room.

Level: Intermediate-Advanced

PREMODIFIERS

Typically, a noun phrase consists of a noun or a pronoun while noun phrases also include:

Determiners      These shoes are very colorful.

Quantifiers         She’s worked in many companies.

Numbers             The company has about a hundred subsidiaries across the world.

Adjectives           She is one of my oldest friends.

These parts are called premodifiers as they are placed before the noun.

Premodifiers are used in this order:

determiners and quantifiers > numbers > adjectives + NOUNS

Examples:

The        three                                     ideas                     >             The three ideas

Our                        brilliant                 ideas                     >             Our brilliant ideas

Three    brilliant                 ideas                     >             Three brilliant ideas

These     three      brilliant                 ideas                    >             These three brilliant ideas

Some                    brilliant                 ideas                     >             Some brilliant ideas

All those three    brilliant                 ideas                     >             All those three brilliant ideas

Their many         brilliant                 ideas                     >             Their many brilliant ideas

Postmodifiers

Postmodifiers are the parts found after the noun.

Postmodifiers can be prepositional and -ing phrases, relative and that clauses, or to infinitives.

• prepositional phrases:

a company with a social corporate responsibility programs
that girl in that pink floral dress
the building at the end of the block

• –ing phrases :

the clothes hanging over there
the employee having a meeting with the client

• relative clauses :

the project she worked on for a year
the closet that my father assembled
the manager who proposed this initiative
an twenty-year-old lad who came by this morning 

• that clauses. This is commonly placed after nouns such as idea, fact, belief, suggestion:

They’re still not satisfied with their record, in spite of the fact that they won the competition.
Carla got the impression that her new team didn’t support her.
There was a suggestion that the public library should be renovated.

• to infinitives :

She’s got no conferences to attend.

These infinitive postmodifiers are common after indefinite pronouns and adverbs:

We should think of something to do.
They have nowhere to go.

It is also possible to have more than one postmodifier:

a fifty-year old CEO with a degree which he received from Harvard
those students on the field playing football

Level: Intermediate-Advanced

Generally, some is used in positive sentences while any is used in negative sentences.

Any is also used when the meaning in the sentence is negative.

They fired without any warning. (They didn’t give a warning before firing.)

She refuses to do anything. (She doesn’t do anything.)

Hardly anybody noticed the new signage. (Almost nobody noticed)

Some and any are both used in questions to talk about someone or something that you know exists

Are you waiting for somebody?

Do you know anybody here?

Some is used in questions to offer something or ask for things.

Would you like some coffee?

Can I have some money, please?

Any is used in most questions especially when you don’t know if that person or thing exists.

Do you have any equipment?

I can’t find my mobile phone. Has anybody seen it?

Any is often used after if.

If there are any questions, please raise your hands.

If anyone calls, tell them I’m out of the office.

Let me know if there’s anything I can do for you.

Any is used if the idea of if is implied in the sentence.

We are truly sorry for any inconvenience this issue caused you. (if the issue caused any inconvenience).

Anyone who wishes to take on this project, please see me in my office. (if there is anyone)

Any can be used to mean “it doesn’t matter which”.

You can choose any color. They all look good on you anyway.

Which flight schedule should we book? – I don’t care. Any schedule is fine with me.

Compare: something and anything:

A: I’m bored. I want to do something.

B: What would you like to do?

A: It doesn’t matter. Anything. (=something, but it doesn’t matter what)

Somebody/someone/anybody/anyone are singular words.

Someone was asking for you earlier but you were out for lunch.

Across the world, when somebody becomes of age, they celebrate it with a big party.

There wasn’t anybody/anyone in the conference room.

However, use them/they/their after somebody/someone/anybody/anyone.

Someone left their laptop in the break room. (=his or her laptop)

If anybody wants to go home early, they can. (=he or she can)

Two of the most confusing words in the English language is ‘as’ and ‘like’. This is because both are used to compare actions or situations. However, it is important to note some significant differences.

USES OF ‘AS’

• to talk about job or function

I worked as a marketing specialist for 4 years after graduating from the university.
She used her credit card as a key to unlock her door.

• to make comparisons (as adjective as)

You always have to be as efficient as all your other colleagues.
It’s as good as it gets.

• to make comparisons (as conjunction followed by an independent clause)

Claire attended Harvard University, as her mother had before her.
He’s a talented musician, as most of his friends are.

USES OF ‘LIKE’

• preposition followed by a noun or a pronoun

She slept like a baby all night.
All of my friends are much like her.
His children talk just like their mother.

• to make comparisons (Like and As if/As though)

She looks as if she’s been to war.
They danced as though no one’s watching.
It looks like your bag handle’s going to break.

Some expressions that use ‘as’:

As you know, our boss is going to be on leave for two weeks.
They tried using the application as you suggested but the result still wasn’t good.
As we agreed, the team will be attending the training all week.
Our competitor’s proposal is the same as ours!

Some verbs cannot be used in the progressive tenses. They are called non-action verbs.
Non-action verbs often point to emotions, relationships, senses, or thoughts.

The most common non-action verbs are:

•adore – I adore those shoes!
•agree – She agrees with his thoughts on the story.
•appear – He appears to be sad.
•appreciate – I appreciated your help very much.
•astonish – We were astonished at how much she had aged.
•be – Who is he supposed to be?
•believe – Do you believe me now?
•belong – He doesn’t belong to this world.
•concern – This is an issue that should concern everyone.
•consist – The cake consists of raw eggs, milk, and vanilla extract.
•contain – Each large crate contains 12 boxes.
•cost – The trip will cost you $1000.
•deny – Did you deny your love for him?
•depend – We are depending on you.
•deserve – You deserve a holiday.
•detest – I detest any kind of cruelty.
•disagree – I disagree with you about that.
•dislike – I dislike the idea.
•doubt – He may come back tomorrow with the money, but I doubt it.
•equal – 16 ounces equals one pound.
•feel – I feel happy.
•fit – The refrigerator won’t fit in our kitchen.
•hate – Kelly hates her teacher.
•have – I have a problem.
•hear – Can you hear me?
•imagine – Can you imagine how it feels to be blind?
•impress – She impressed us with her sincerity.
•include – The hotel room charge includes breakfast.
•involve – The accident involved two cars and a truck.
•know – I know what you did.
•lack – If you lack anything, ask for it.
•like – I like you.
•loathe – I loathe doing housework.
•look – I look fat in the picture.
•love – I love shopping.
•matter – It doesn’t matter.
•mean – What do you mean?
•mind – I don’t mind.
•need – I don’t need my phone.
•owe – He owes her an apology.
•own – Their family owns this house.
•please – You can’t please me.
•possess – She possesses an unusual talent.
•prefer – I prefer coffee over tea.
•promise – I promise, I’m not lying.
•realize – Suddenly I realized (that) I was lost.
•recognize – I didn’t recognize you.
•remember – Do you remember me?
•resemble – You resemble your mother very closely.
•satisfy – I am not really satisfied with the job you did.
•see – Can you see what is happening?
•seem – You seem nervous.
•smell – Just smell this perfume!
•sound – You sound great!
•suppose – I suppose you’re right.
•surprise – The news surprised everyone.
•taste – The food tastes good.
•think – Everybody thinks she’s the best dancer.
•understand – I don’t understand you.
•want – I want to eat.
•weigh – I weigh 120 pounds.
•wish – I wish for a new car.

Level: Beginner-Intermediate

Form of Article “the”

The definite article “the” is the most frequently used word in English.

We use the definite article in front of a noun when the speaker believes that the listener already knows what he is referring to.

Uses of the article “the”

The definite article ‘the’ is used in the following cases:

• because there is only one

The sun is very bright.
Who is the president of Spain?

• because there is only one in that context

My family lives in a house next to the church. (= the church in our town)
Mom, can I borrow the car? (= the family’s car)

• because it has already been mentioned

A young man tried to rob a jewelry shop in Tampa. The man used a big rock to smash the windows of the shop.

• with a superlative adjective

He is the tallest kid in our class.
It is the oldest house in the village.

• to talk about musical instruments and dances

Jerry plays the guitar really well.
Can you do the foxtrot?

• to refer to a system or service

How long does it take on the train?
She heard it on the radio.

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

the United Kingdom
the People’s Republic of China

• with countries which have plural nouns as their names

the Netherlands
the Philippines

• with geographical features, such as canals, oceans, groups of islands, seas, rivers, and mountain ranges

the Amazon
the Himalayas

• with works of art or well-known buildings

the Mona Lisa
the Empire State Building

• We do not use the definite article with names.

Robert Downey Jr. played Iron Man.
Madrid is the capital of Spain.
Japan is in Asia.

Other English grammar lessons can be found here.

We use quantifiers such as much, many, little, few, a lot and plenty when we want to give someone information about the number of something.

Much can be used ONLY with noncount nouns:
Examples:
How much money do you have?
There isn’t much coffee left.

We can use a lot of or lots of with both count and non-count nouns:
Examples:
We have lots of time.
Jerry has lots of friends.
There was a lot of food.

Plenty of is a colloquial form which can also be used with both count and non-count nouns:
Examples:
We have plenty of time.
Joe has plenty of friends.
There was plenty of food.

Many and a few can be used ONLY with count nouns:
Examples:
She asked too many questions.
The crowd was silent for a few minutes after the play ended.

Remember:

We put a noun directly after a quantifier when we talk about members of a group in general.
Examples:
Few snakes are dangerous.
You can learn many things from books.

But if we are talking about members of a particular group, we also use “of the”.
Examples:
Few of the snakes in this zoo are dangerous.
Many of the kids played in the park.

Take a look at the following forms in active and passive.

• After will, can, must, going to, want to, etc.

active: eat => Somebody will eat the cake later.

passive: be eaten => The cake will be eaten later.

Examples:

Her lies are getting more and more serious. Something must be said to her.
The criminal is very elusive he can’t be caught.
He asked everyone to leave. He wanted to be left alone.

• After should have, might have, would have, seem to have, etc.

active: eaten => Somebody might have eaten the cake.

passive: been eaten => The cake might have been eaten.

Examples:

If you had locked the door, nothing would have been stolen.
The casino will not be opened until further notice.
The impact of the typhoon is devastating. Something must be done to help the victims.

• Present Perfect

active: has/have eaten => The cake is delicious. Somebody has eaten it.

passive: has/have been eaten => The cake is delicious. It has been eaten.

Examples:

I heard their wedding has been canceled.
Have you ever been arrested by the police?
She doesn’t take no for an answer. She has not been turned down.

• Past Perfect

active: had eaten => The cake was delicious. Somebody had eaten it.

passive: had been eaten => The cake was delicious. It had been eaten.

Examples:

The fruits weren’t ripe enough. They had been picked too soon.
This book was bought a year ago but it hadn’t been read.
Their house was very old but had not been renovated.

• Present Continuous

active: is/are/am eating => Somebody is eating the cake at the moment.

passive: is/are/am being eaten => The cake is being eaten at the moment.

Examples:

Her boyfriend isn’t faithful. She is being cheated on.
She is being kept alive by a machine.
The elderly people are being taken care of in this facility.

• Past Continuous

active: was/were eating => Somebody was eating the cake.

passive: was/were being eaten => The cake was being eaten when she arrived.

Examples:

She wasn’t being trained properly.
The dishes weren’t being washed thoroughly.
His car wasn’t being repaired.