Category: Grammar

Phrasal Verbs (Splitting)

Some verbs are two part verbs .They consist of a verb and a particle:

• grow + up
  The children are growing up.

Often this gives the verb a new meaning:

• take + after
  She takes after her mother
  = She looks like her mother, or She behaves like her mother.
• count + on
  I can always count on my friend.
  = I know I can trust him, or I know I can believe him.

Some transitive (verbs with object) two part verbs have only one pattern:

N (subject) + V + p + N (object)

[Note: N = noun; V = verb; p = particle]

Some transitive two part verbs are phrasal verbs. Phrasal verbs have two different patterns:

• The usual pattern is:N + V + N + p

• But sometimes these verbs have the pattern:

N (subject) + V + p + N (object)

When the object is a personal pronoun, these verbs always have the pattern:

N + V +N + p:

• She put away it.

She put it away.

• He turned off them.

He turned them off.

• Dad will pick up her.

My dad will pick her up.

• Phrasal verbs are nearly always made up of a transitive verb and a particle. Common Separable verbs with their most frequent particles are:

The Narrative tenses are the grammatical structures that you use when telling a story, or talking about situations and activities which happened at a defined past time.

When narrating past events, DO NOT mix past and present tenses (avoid using the present perfect and present simple), as these will confuse the reader/listener about when things really happened.

Here are the most common narrative tenses and how they are used:

A. The Simple Past Tense.

The past simple is used

•  to express a completed action at a definite time in the past. The separate events which occur in sequence in a narrative are expressed using this tense.

Ex.    I woke up (1) at 8am, took a shower (2) and had some breakfast (3). I left for work (4) at 8am.

*The past simple is the most common tense after ‘When?’ in questions.

•   to express past habits.

Ex. I went to school in Canada until my family moved to the U.S.

NOTE: 

Used to + verb

is often used to express past habits and states that happened in the past, but do not happen now. Used to can not be used for actions which only occurred once.

Ex.       I used to work for IBM. (I don’t work for them now)

I didn’t use to like living in China. (I do like it now)

Where did you use to go for lunch? (You don’t go there now)

Would (+ adverb of frequency) + verb can be used to express past habits which do not happen now.

Ex.     My grandfather would always read the newspaper at breakfast time. (He doesn’t do it now)

Using ‘would’ instead of ‘used to’ often gives an idea of nostalgia. However, if the adverb of frequency is stressed, it can give the idea that the habit was annoying.

Ex.     My mother would never let me do what I wanted to do.

NOTE:  ‘WOULD’can not be used in past states.

Ex.  I would live in Canada. (wrong)

B. The Past Continuous Tense. As with all continuous tenses, the past continuous gives the idea of activity and duration.

The past continuous is used:

•  To describe the situation in which the events of the narrative occurred.

Ex.  When I woke up at 8am (1) the sun was shining (2) and the birds were singing (2). I had a shower (3), ate some breakfast (4) and left for work at 9am. (5)

•  to express an activity in progress at a time in the past.

Ex. What were you doing (1) when I called (2) you?

•  the past continuous also expresses the idea of

1. An interrupted activity

Ex.  She was reading a book  when the door bell rang. (She read a book = she finished it)

2. An unfinished activity

Ex. I was reading the book you lent me. (I read the book… = I finished reading the whole book)

 3. A repeated action

Ex. They were shooting at the enemy. (They shot…. = They fired the gun one time only)

4. A temporary situation

Ex. She was standing on the corner waiting for a bus. ( She stood on the corner. = Permanent situation)

C. The Past Perfect Simple Tense.

he past perfect simple is used

•  to show that an action or situation happened BEFORE the events in the narrative described in the simple past.

Ex. When I woke up at 8am (1), the sun was shining and the birds were singing. I had slept (2) really well the night before. I had a shower (3), ate some breakfast (4) and left for work at 9am.

NOTE:  If the subject of two verbs is the same, you don’t have to repeat the ‘had’ auxiliary.

Ex..     When I arrived, he had finished his lunch and left the room.

• Making a narrative more interesting to read.

It is generally seen as bad literary style to have too many verbs in the same tense. In English it is always best to avoid repetition where possible.

This same sentence could be improved for dramatic effect by using the past perfect simple.

E.g. I woke up at 8am and left for work after I’d had a shower and eaten some breakfast.

*CONJUNCTIONS (After, As soon as, Before, By the time, Once, till, When, Unless, Until)

With these conjunctions of time, the past perfect shows that the first action MUST BE COMPLETED before the second action begins, otherwise the past simple is used.

Ex.     After….she finished, they left / she had finished, they left. (She had to finish first)

            As soon as…we arrived she said “hello”. / I had done it, I sent it to her. (I had to do it first)

She wouldn’t sign the contract  before…. seeing it / she had seen it. (She had to see it first)

They wouldn’t go unless….she came with them / they had seen it was safe.

(It was important to finish checking that it was safe before going)

D. The Past Perfect Continuous Tense.

•  The past perfect continuous is used for longer activities that were happening continuously up until a specified time in the past.

Ex. He looked very tired (1), he had been working very hard (2) over the past three weeks.

As with the past continuous, the past perfect continuous can show the following:

• Unfinished activity

Ex.     He hadn’t heard the telephone ring because he’d been reading.

•  Repeated activity

Ex.    I was tired. I’d been cleaning  the house all day.

*With the past perfect simple, the focus is on the completed activity.

Ex. He had written three letters that morning.

He had delivered twelve parcels today.

E. The Future in the Past.

The future in the past is used to look into the future from a point of time in the past. However, this “future” event still occurred at a time before the present time.

Ex. I woke up (1) at 8am yesterday. I was meeting my boss (2) at ten o’clock that morning, so I wouldn’t be able to have lunch (3) with Susan. I wasn’t going to get home (4) again until late that night.

*Depending on the situation, the following tenses are used in the future in the past:

The past simple (a timetabled event)                     The past continuous (an arrangement)

would (a prediction)                                                     was going to (a plan)

would be doing (an action at a specific time)         would have done (action completed before

a specified time)

More examples:

• (The phone rings)
  Ben: I‘ll get it!
  (‘I’m going to get it’ is very strange, because it makes us think that Ben knew the phone was going to ring before it did).

• I‘m going to go on trip next week.
  (‘I’ll go on trip next week’ makes it sound like you’ve only just decided at that minute. Of course, this is possible, but normally we plan our trip more in advance!).

Prepositions of Place

Comparatives and Superlatives

COMPARATIVE ADJECTIVES

Comparative adjectives are used to compare differences between the two objects they modify (larger, smaller, faster, higher). They are used in sentences where two nouns are compared, in this pattern:

Noun (subject) + verb + comparative adjective + than + noun (object).

The second item of comparison can be omitted if it is clear from the context (final example below).

EXAMPLES

• My garden is larger than hers.
• This book is thicker than the one I bought.
• Your dog runs faster than Tom’s dog.
• Birds fly higher than ducks.
• Peter and John are both my friends, but I like Peter better. (“than John” is understood)

SUPERLATIVE ADJECTIVES

Superlative adjectives are used to describe an object which is at the upper or lower limit of a quality (the tallest, the smallest, the fastest, the highest). They are used in sentences where a subject is compared to a group of objects.

Noun (subject) + verb + the + superlative adjective + noun (object).

The group that is being compared with can be omitted if it is clear from the context (final example below).

EXAMPLES

• This building is the tallest one in our city.
• This is the smallest book I’ve ever seen.
• Your horse ran the fastest of any horses in the race.
• We all threw our rocks at the same time. My rock flew the highest. (“of all the rocks” is understood)

FORMING REGULAR COMPARATIVES AND SUPERLATIVES

Forming comparatives and superlatives is easy. The form depends on the number of syllables in the original adjective.

ONE SYLLABLE ADJECTIVES

Add -er for the comparative and -est for the superlative. If the adjective has a consonant + single vowel + consonant spelling, the final consonant must be doubled before adding the ending.

TWO SYLLABLES

Adjectives with two syllables can form the comparative either by adding -er or by preceeding the adjective with more. These adjectives form the superlative either by adding -est or by preceeding the adjective with most. In many cases, both forms are used, although one usage will be more common than the other. If you are not sure whether a two-syllable adjective can take a comparative or superlative ending, play it safe and use more and most instead. For adjectives ending in y, change the y to an i before adding the ending.

THREE OR MORE SYLLABLES

Adjectives with three or more syllables form the comparative by putting more in front of the adjective, and the superlative by putting most in front.

IRREGULAR COMPARATIVES AND SUPERLATIVES

These very common adjectives have completely irregular comparative and superlative forms.

EXAMPLES

• Today is the worst day of my life.
• She plays badminton better than I do.
• This is the least expensive coat in the store.
• This shirt is less expensive than that one.
• I jog pretty far yesterday, but I jogged even farther

Adjectives and Adverbs

Adjectives

We use adjectives to describe nouns and pronouns.  Adjectives can come before nouns or after linking verbs.

Before the noun:

He bought a brand new car.

What a brilliant story!

After a linking verb :

He seems disappointed.

Dogs are loyal.

The skyscrapers became old.

(Note:  Linking verbs are verbs like ‘be’, ‘become’ and ‘seem’ which are not actions but instead link the subject to an adjective, noun or phrase that gives us more information about the subject.)

We make the comparative and superlative of adjectives by adding either ‘-er / -est’ or using ‘more / most’.

She is smart.

She is smarter than her sister.

She is the smartest person in the class.

• Adverbs are used to describe verbs, adjectives or other adverbs. They are often (but not always) made by adding ‘ly’ to the adjective.

I type slowly (‘slowly’ tells us about the verb ‘walk’).

They worked  quickly.

We make the comparative and superlative forms of adverbs by using ‘more / most’.

She dances gracefully.

She dances more gracefully than her friend.

She dances most gracefully in the class.

• Adverb or Adjective?It’s important to remember to use an adjective after a linking verb. However, this can be tricky as some verbs can be used as both normal verbs and as linking verbs :

• She tasted the hot soup carefully. (Here we are talking about the action of ‘tasting’  and using taste as a normal verb, so we need an adverb.)
• The soup tastes  good. (Here we are using ‘taste’ as a linking verb, to describe the soup. We    can replace ‘tastes’ with ‘is’ and the sentence still makes sense. So, we need an adjective.)

• Irregular formsNormally, we make an adverb by adding ‘ly’ to an adjective.

This is a quiet room. (adjective)          She spoke quietly (adverb)

This juice is bad. (adjective)                   He sings badly (adverb)

If the adjective ends in ‘y’, we change ‘y’ to ‘i’ and add ‘ly’. If the adjective ends in ‘le’, we drop ‘e’ and add ‘y’.

He looks very happy. (adjective)            They danced happily. (adverb)

It’s  a gentle dog. (adjective)                  She stroked the dog gently. (adverb)

• However, there are some exceptions:

adjective                                   adverb

That’s a fast car.                                      She drives fast.

She was early for our appointment.      She arrived early.

He is always late.                                    He got up late this morning.

(‘lately’ is also an adverb but means “recently)

The story is good.                                     She did well on the exam.

Math is hard.                                           She studies hard.

(‘hardly’ is also an adverb, but means ‘almost none’)

• There are also some adjectives that end in ‘ly’ and don’t have an adverb form. Instead we use ‘in a —way’. These are friendly, lovely, lonely, lively, and silly.

He talked to me in a friendly way.

• Good / well‘Well’ can be confusing because it is both the adverb form of ‘good’, and an adjective that means ‘healthy and fine’.

My grandmother is well (‘well’ is an adjective that means ‘healthy and fine’).

She did the work well (‘well’ is an adverb meaning ‘in a good way’).

• Of course, we also use ‘good’ as an adjective.

This  dish is good!

He can speak good Japanese.

• Hard / hardly‘Hard’ is both an adjective and an adverb.

The bed is hard. (= adjective, meaning ‘not soft’ or ‘difficult’).

He works hard. (= adverb, meaning ‘with a lot of effort’).

‘Hardly’ is also an adverb, but it means ‘almost nothing’ or ‘almost none’.

She hardly works. (= She does almost no work).

We have hardly any money. (= We have almost no money).

• Late / lately‘Late’ is an adjective and an adverb. There is also an adverb ‘lately’, which means ‘recently’.

I’m late. (= adjective, meaning ‘not on time’).

He arrived late. (= adverb, meaning ‘not on time’).

I’ve been working a lot lately. (= an adverb meaning ‘recently’).

Present  Perfect

FORM :  has/have +  past participle of the verb

Use

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

They’ve known each other for nearly twelve years.
He has lived in Madrid all his life.

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

I’ve studied English ever since I was a eight.
He has traveled to different countries and he is traveling again soon.

We often use a clause with since to show when something started in the past:
I have worked here since I left school.

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

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

My last trip was the worst vacation I have ever had.

Note: and we use never for the negative form:

Have you ever met Alice?
Yes, but I’ve never met her husband.

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

I can’t get in the house. I’ve lost my keys.
Peter isn’t at home. I think he has gone shopping.

•  We use the present perfect of be when someone has gone to a place and returned:

A: Where have you been?
B: I’ve just been out to the store.

A: Have you ever been to New York?
B: No, but I’ve been to Las Vegas.

• But when someone has not returned we use have/has gone:

A: Where is Martha? I haven’t seen her for weeks.
B: She’s gone to Spain for a week. She’ll be back tomorrow.

1. We often use the present perfect with time adverbials which refer to the recent past:

              just; only just; recently;

Scientists have recently discovered a cure for this type of illness.
My cousins have just gotten back from our trip.

• or adverbials which include the present:

            ever (in questions); so far; until now; up to now; yet (in questions and negatives)

       Have you ever eaten Indian food?
       Where have you been up to now?
       Have you finished your  project yet?
No, so far I’ve only done half of it.

Possessive – ’s

• We use apostrophes (’s), also called possessive – ’s, as a determiner to show that something belongs to someone or something:
  • Is this Maria’s bag?
  • Dubai’s buildings and structures are absolutely amazing.
• We can also use it in complex noun phrases (underlined):
  • Ben is her youngest daughter’s husband.
• We can use two possessive –’s constructions in the same noun phrase:
  • We went to Peter’s father’s farmhouse.
• We also use possessive’s to talk about time and duration:
  • Is that yesterday’s paper?
  • My family and I had two week’s vacation in Europe.

Rules for using possessive – ’s/s’

• We use’s after a singular noun and  ’ after a plural noun.

Compare

• We use ’s with irregular plural nouns (e.g. children, men, people, women):
  • The children’s parents support them well.
  • The government  protects women’s rights.
• The rules for the pronunciation of a noun with’s are the same as the rules for pronunciation of plural forms of nouns.

Compare

• When a first or second name ends in -s, we can either add ’ or ’s. It is more common to use ’ than ’s. When we speak, we usually pronounce the final part of the word as /zɪz/ or /sɪz/:

ex. Is that James’car? (or Is that James’s car?) (both usually pronounced /ˈdʒeɪmzɪz/)

    I love Keats’ poetry.(or I love Keats’s poetry.) (both usually pronounced /ˈki:tsɪz/

• With compound nouns, we add’s to the final noun:

 ex. My brother-in-law’s friend was introduced to us.  Not: My brother’s-in-law friend

• We don’t usually use the possessive’s with things:

        ex. the door handle  Not: the door’s handle

             the shop window  Not: the shop’s window

            the kitchen table  Not:the kitchen’s table

Spoken English:

• When we talk about places which are familiar to the speaker and the listener, we sometimes don’t use the noun after possessive’s:

         the hairdresser’s salon – the hairdresser’s

        the dentist’s clinic – the dentist’s

       We had to take our dog to the vet’s for some vaccines.  (the same as: We had to take our dog to the vet’s clinic for some vaccines.)

      Do you go shopping in Marks and Spencer’s?

      We decided to go to Eric’s after school. ( the same as: We decided to go to Eric’s house after school.)

• In short answers, we can omit the noun if it is not necessary to repeat it:

       A: Is that your car?

       B: No, it’s Sandra’s.

• We use possessive’s with words such as one, anyone, someone, anybody, somebody:

         It’s essential to be aware of  one’s rights.

         Is this  someone’s umbrella?

• When we use  else with these words, the ’s is added to else:

         Why didn’t you come?   Everyone else’s husband was there

Phrasal Verbs

Some verbs are two part verbs . They consist of a verb and a particle:

• find + out  (to discover)
  >> The police found out the hiding place of the criminal. (Often this gives the verb a new meaning.)

• take + after (to resemble ; to look like)
  >> She takes after her mother.
• count + on (to rely on; trust ; depend on)
  >> I can  always count on my best friend.

Some transitive two part verbs have only one pattern:

N (subject) + V + p + N (object)

[Note: N = noun; V = verb; p = particle]

Some transitive two part verbs are phrasal verbs. Phrasal verbs have two different patterns:

• The usual pattern is: N + V + N + p

• But sometimes these verbs have the pattern: N (subject) + V + p + N (object)

When the object is a personal pronoun, these verbs always have the pattern:

N + V +N + p:

• She gave back it
  >> She gave it back
• He knocked over it
  >> knocked it over
• We will be leaving behind them
  >> We will be leaving them behind
• Phrasal verbs are nearly always made up of a transitive verb and a particle. Common verbs with their most frequent particles are: