Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Zbirka Grammar Practice PDF
Zbirka Grammar Practice PDF
1 The Article...3
2 Nouns.....10
3 Pronouns....14
4 Adjectives..20
5 Verbs (The English Tenses)...24
6 Modal verbs...54
7 Passive voice..62
8 Direct and indirect speech..67
9 Conditional clauses....72
10 Time clauses...78
11 Relative clauses..80
12 Hypothetical meaning (Subjunctive)..87
13 Participle...91
14 Infinitive.95
15 Gerund99
16 Adverbs.102
PREDGOVOR
Autor
2
1 The Article
1.1 The words a/an and the are called articles: a/an is the indefinite article, and the
the definite article.
The form a is used before a word beginning with a consonant, or a vowel with a
consonant sound:
a woman a dog a one-way street
The form an is used before words beginning with a vowel: a, e, i, o, u or words
beginning with a mute h:
an apple an egg an orange an island
an umbrella an hour
A/an is the same for all genders:
a man a woman a duke a duchess
an actor an actress a car
The is the same for singular and plural and for all genders:
The girl the boy
The man the woman
The book the books
1
Use of definite and indefinite article is given in: Thompson, A.J., and Martinet, A.V.(1987:15-24)
3
in some exclamations before singular nouns:
What a day! Such a lovely dress!
It was such a boring evening!
in front of Mr./Mrs./Miss followed by someones surname when that person is a
stranger to the speaker:
a Mr. Jones, a Mrs. Taylor
4
I like New York in spring.
We all gather at Easter/on Boxing Day.
Johns birthday is in September.
before the names of sports
They play basketball and football at school.
before the names of streets, parks, squares, bridges and airports
Gazela Bridge, Central Park, Republic Square, Victoria Station,
Barajas Airport, Wall Street
with words like cook, nurse, postman, teacher when they have the meaning
our cook/postman
Look what postman has brought, a letter for you!
Since they have the function of names here, the omission of the article is natural.
5
The dog is man's best friend.
before the names of musical instruments used in general sense:
Mrs. Robinso plays the piano.
before the superlatives used attributively
This is the funniest story I have ever heard.
before adjectives used as nouns denoting a whole class
the rich the poor the black the white
before the group of people belonging to the same nationality and the family name
when we refer to the whole family:
the Italians, The Dutch,
The Simpsons live in Chicago.
before the names of the daily newspapers:
The Times, the Guardian, the Telegraph, The Politika
before mass and abstract nouns when they are not used in general sense, but in
particular situations
The cheese I bought this morning smells odd.
The love of Romeo and Juliet was immortal.
Exercises
6
Excuse me, please. Can you tell me how to get to ____ airport?
5. Are you going away next week? No, ____ week after next.
Im going away for ____ week in September.
Gary has a part-time job. He works three mornings ____ week.
D Fill in the gaps in the following dialogue with a, an, the or (-) if no article is
needed:
E Fill in the gaps with the appropriate article (a, an, the) where necessary:
1. There was ____ knock on ____ door.I opened it and found ____ small dark man
in ____ blue overcoat and ____ woollen cap.
2. He said he was ____ emplyee of ____ gas company and had come to read ____
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meter.
3. But I had ____ suspicion that he wasnt speaking ____ truth because ____ meter
readers usually wear ____ peaked caps.
4. However, I took him to ____ meter, which is in ____ dark corner under ____stairs
(____ meters are usually in ____ dark corners under ____ stairs).
5. I asked if he had ____ torch; he said he disliked torches and always read ____
meters by ____ light of ____ match.
6. I remarked that if there was ____ leak in ____ gas-pipe there might be ____
explosion while he was reading ____ meter.
7. He said, As ____ matter of ____ fact, there was ____ explosion in ____ last
house I visited; and Mr. Smith, ____ owner of ____ house, was burnt in ____
face.
8. Mr. Smith was holding ____ lighted match at ____ time of ____ explosion.
9. To prevent ____ possible repetition of this accident, I lent him ____ torch.
10. He switched on ____ torch, read ____ meter and wrote ____ reading down on
____ back of ____ envelope.
11. I said in ____ surprise that ____ meter readers usually put ____ readings down in
____ book.
12. He said that he had had ____book but that it had been burnt in ____ fire in ____
Mr. Smiths house.
13. By this time I had to come to ____ conclusion that he wasnt ____ genuine meter
reader; and ____ moment he left ____ house I rang ____ police.
14. Are John and Mary ____ cousins?
No, they arent ____ cousins; they are ____ brother and ____ sister.
15. ____ fog was so thick that we couldnt see ____ side of ____ road. We followed
____ car in front of us and hoped that we were going ____ right way.
16. I cant remember ____ exact date of ____ storm, but I know it was ____ Sunday
because everybody was at ____ church. On ____ Monday ____ post didnt come
because ____ roads were blocked by ____ fallen trees.
17. Peter thinks that this is quite ____ cheap restaurant.
18. A: Theres been ____ murder here. B: Wheres ____ body?
A: There isnt ____ body. B: Then how do you know theres been ____
murder?
19. Number ____ hundred and two, ____ house next door to us, is for sale.
Its quite ____ nice house with ____ big rooms. ____ back windows look out on
____ park.
20. I dont know what ____ price ____owners are asking. But Dry and Rot are ____
agents. You could give them ____ ring and make them ____ offer.
21. ____postmans little boy says that hed rather be ____ dentist than____doctor,
because ____ dentists dont get called out at ____ night.
22. Just as ____ air hostess (there was only one on the plane) was handing me ____
cup of ____ coffee ____ plane gave ____ lurch and ____ coffee went all over
____ person on ____ other side of ____ gangway.
23.There was ____ collision between ____ car and ____ cyclist at ____ crossroads
near ____ my house early in ____ morning. ____cyclist was ____taken to hospital
with ____ concussion. ____ driver of ____ car was treated for ____ shock.____
witnesses say that ____ car was going at ____ seventy miles ____ hour.
24. Professor Jones, ____ man who discovered ____ new drug that everyone is
talking about, refused to give ____ press conference.
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25. Were going to ____ tea with ____ Smiths today, arent we? Shall we take ____
car? We can go by ____ car if you wash ____ car first. We cant go to ____Mrs
Smiths in ____ car all covered with ____ mud.
26. He got ____ job in ____ south and spent ____ next two years doing ____ work he
really enjoyed.
9
2 Nouns
2.3 There are two grammatical numbers in English: singular, to denote one, and
plural, to denote more than one. Only countable nouns can be used in the plural2.
Nouns ending in y following a consonant form their plural by dropping the y and
adding -ies:
baby, babies country, countries fly, flies, lady, ladies
Twelve nouns ending in f or fe drop the f or fe and add -ves. These nouns are calf,
half, knife, leaf, life, loaf, self, sheaf, shelf, thief, wife, wolf:
loaf, loaves wife, wives
Other words ending in f or fe add s in the ordinary way:
2
On plural of nouns, see Thompson, A.J., and Martinet, A.V.(1987:25-28). and Grba, G. i
Radovanovi, K., (1996:64).
10
cliff, cliffs safe, safes
Some words have the same form for singular and plural:
sheep, swine, deer, fish
We have the unchanged plural in some words showing number and measurement or
weight:
two dozen eggs; three hundred pounds; four thousand people;
But these words take s when they have no numeral in front of them,
e.g. dozens of eggs, hundreds of pounds; thousands of books;
Some nouns are never used in the singular, e.g. the names of
-articles of dress: trousers, pants, pajamas, shorts, drawers, clothes
-tools and instruments consisting of two parts: scissors, pliers, spectacles, glasses
-names of diseases: measles, mumps
-names of some games: billiards, cars, dominoes, draughts, bowls
2.4 Grammatical case is the relation in which one noun or pronoun stands to some
other word in the sentence, or the form of the noun or pronoun which shows that
relation. In modern English there is only one case ending for nouns, the possessive (or
genitive).
The possessive form of the noun (also called the Saxon Genitive) is formed as
follows:
for singular nouns, by adding s
The girls book
Toms bicycle
Orvells novels
With some names, mostly classical ones, ending in s, we use only the apostrophe:
Sophocles plays Hercules labours
for plural nouns ending in s by adding apostrophe only:
The boys bicycle
The soldiers horses
for plural noun not ending in s by adding -s
The mens room
The womens hats
The childrens toys
Exercises:
11
A Classify the nouns in bold into: a) concrete, b) abstract, c) common or d) proper:
B Give the plural forms of these nouns, and read them out:
F In each group of nouns, pick out one that is different from the others and give the
reason for your choice.
12
1. boxes, trousers, flowers, names
2. children, trees, lice, mice
3. pajamas, books, pants, shorts
4. goats, sheep, deer, swine
5. teeth, geese, pages, men,
6. countries, flies, days, lorries
7. oxen, ducks, feet, women
3 Pronouns
13
3.1 A pronoun is a word used instead of a noun. Pronouns may be classified into the
following:
personal possessive demonstrative
reflexive interrogative indefinite
relative
Pronouns may show number, person, gender and case. The table of personal pronouns
illustrates this3.
singular plural
nominative objective nominative objective
1st person I me we us
2nd person you you you you
3rd person he him
she her they them
it it
In addition to the possessive case, there are two cases in English, the nominative case
and the objective case. The form of nouns in English is the same, no matter whether
they are in the nominative case or in the objective case. The case of nouns is shown
by word order, i.e. the position of that noun within a sentence. But some pronouns are
inflected to show case.
3.2 Unlike possessive adjectives, which can be used only before a noun, the
possessive pronouns may stand alone. Here is the list of possessive adjectives and the
corresponding possessive pronouns4:
3
The table is taken from Eckersley, C.E. and Eckersley, J.M., (1963:97).
4
On possessive pronouns, see Eckersley, C.E. and Eckersley, J.M., (1963:108).
14
This is my brother and these are my sisters.
My seat was next to that of the Mayor.
Just compare Chopins waltzes with those of today.
These pronouns, besides taking the place of a noun, suggest the idea of a
position with regard to the speaker, this (these) being nearer in space or time, that
(those) being more distant.
There is this seat here, near me, ot there is that one in the fifth row. Which will
you have, this or that?
Such is a demonstrative pronoun or a demonstrative adjective. It is an
adjective in sentences like this:
I had such a busy week.
You mustnt allow such things to happen.
It is pronoun in:
Franz is the captain of the team, and, as such, must decide who is to beat first.
Such is life!
3.4 The reflexive pronouns5 are formed by adding self (plural selves) to the
possessive adjectives of the first and second person, and to the objective case form of
the personal pronouns of the third person. The forms are:
singular plural
1st person myself ourselves
2nd person yourself yourselves
3rd person himself
herself themselves
itself
oneself -
The emphasizing -self pronouns have exactly the same form as the reflexive
pronouns but their function is different. They are always strongly stressed and they
are used for the sake of emphasis. The emphasizing pronoun can get after the word for
which it stands, but it is usually placed at the end of the sentence:
I saw him do it myself.
The president piloted the plane himself.
You all know what you should do yourselves.
In these sentences the emphasizing pronouns could be omitted without
destroying the sense of the sentence.
5
On refexive pronouns, see Eckersley, C.E. and Eckersley, J.M.(1963:113).
15
Sometimes emphasizing pronouns have the meaning alone or without help,
in which case they generally have by with them:
This is a machine that works by itself.
Dont you feel lonely living here all by yourself?
3.5 The Interrogative pronouns are who (whom, whose), which, what. They are
used in forming questions and they always precede the verb:
Who brought this letter?
Which do you prefer, coffee or tea?
What have they said about the meeting?
Whose is that car?
Who(m) did they see?
The interrogative pronouns are invariable for gender and number. Who is used
only for persons. It may be singular or plural and may be used to stand for a
masculine noun or a feminine one:
Who broke the window? Tom did.
Who will send this letter for me? Sally will.
Who is the nominative form, and the objective form is whom:
Who(m) did you see? I saw Sally.
To whom did you give the letter? Or Who did you give the letter to?
Whom is the literary form and is preferred in writing. In conversation it is generally
replaced by who. Whose is the possessive case.
Whose are these gloves and whose is this umbrella?
Which is used for things and persons, singular or plural, subject or object. It
has no possessive case. It is used to present a choice from a limited number:
Which of you boys can do this exercise?
Which of these streets leads to the main square?
3.6 Indefinite pronouns are: some (-thing, -body, -one), any (-thing, -body, -one),
all, one, none, no (-thing, -body, -one), every (-thing, -body, -one), other, another,
much, less, (a) few, (a) little, enough, each, either, neither. Many of these words can
also be used adjectively as determinatives:
Have you got any matches? (adjective). Ask John if he has any. (pronoun)
I wish I had some red roses. (adjective). I shall try to grow some next year.
(pronoun)
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(possessive), which, that, what. They have the same forms for singular or plural,
masculine or feminine.
Who, whom and whose are used for persons:
The man who said that was my brother.
He is one of the men whom I can trust.
This is a man whose wife lives in Chicago.
Which is a relative pronoun used only for things or animals:
The current, which is very rapid, makes the river dangerous.
The letter which was sent five days ago has finally arrived.
But if the animal is named, it is thought of as a person and the pronoun who could
be used:
Our dog Jack, who had been lost for two days, was found and brought home
by a policeman.
With collective nouns denoting persons, which is used if the noun is regarded as
singular, who(m) if it is regarded as plural:
The Manchester team, which played so well last season, has done badly this
season. The team, who are just getting their tickets, will meet on the platform
at 5.30.
Which is used when the antecedent is a whole sentence:
He invited us to dinner, which was very kind of him.
That may be used to refer to the nominative or objective case, singular or plural,
persons or things:
They live in a house that was built in the 19th century
Do you have everything that you need?
What is used when the antecedent is not expressed. It is a relative pronoun and an
antecedent in one word:
Tell me what you need to know.
Exercises:
A Complete the sentences using myself/yourself etc. + the following verbs in the
correct form:
17
1. Julia had a great holiday. She enjoyed herself.
2. Its not my fault. You cant blame _________.
3. What I did was really bad. Im ashamed of ____________.
4. Weve got a problem. I hope you can help ____________.
5. Can I take another biscuit? Of course. Help ______________!.
6. You must meet Sally. Ill introduce ____________ to her.
7. Dont worry about us. We can look after _______________.
8. I gave them a key to our house so that they could let _____________ in.
9. I didnt want anybody to see the letters, so I blamed ______________.
C Write new sentences with the same meaning. Change the underlined words and
use the structure: double possessive:
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7. Now they are ____ under the table!
8. One mans meat is ____s poison.
9. ____ must look after himself.
1. Which sweater will you have, the green one or the blue?
2. My brother has three children and my sister two ones.
3. We see us twice a week.
4. Mary has any friends but her sister has nothing.
5. None of the two boys is suitable for this post.
6. Both of these boys is unsuitable for this post.
I Complete the following sentences and justify your choice of the words you use. If
more than one word can be used, explain the meaning:
4 Adjectives
19
4.1 The traditional definition of an adjective is a word used to describe or give more
information about a noun or a word that qualifies a noun, adds to its meaning6. The
noun house can be used to signify any house. The big house tells more about the
house.
4.3 Both present participles and past participles can be used as adjectives. Present
participle adjectives like interesting, amusing, boring, shocking are active and mean
having this effect. Past participle adjectives like interested, amused, bored, shocked
are passive and mean affected in that way.
The lecture was boring.
The pupils were bored.
The scene was shocking.
The visitors were shocked.
4.4 Adjectives in English have the same form for singular and plural, masculine and
feminine nouns:
A bad boy bad boys
A bad girl bad girls
The exceptions are the demonstrative adjectives this and that, which change into
these and those before plural nouns:
this car these cars
that machine those machines
6
The definition is given in C.E.Eckersley and J.M.Eckersley, (1963:64).
7
This division is given in A.J.Thompson and A.V.Martinet (1987:33).
20
Most adjectives can be used attributively or predicatively. But some, especially those
that begin with a-, can only be used predicatively:
asleep, afraid, awake, alone, aware, alive, afloat, ashamed, content, exempt,
unable
With most two-syllable adjectives that have their stress on the first syllable and
adjectives with more than two syllables the comparative and superlative degrees are
formed in the following way:
21
beautiful more beautiful the most beautiful
surprising more surprising the most surprising
splendid more splendid the most splendid
Exercises
8
The table is taken from C.E.Eckersley and J.M.Eckersley, (1963:72)
9
The exercises A, B, C, and D are taken from Murphy, R. (2005:213-217)
22
B Complete the sentences using as...as + the following:
bad comfortable fast long often quietly soon well well-qualified
D Use the words in brackets in the correct form to complete the sentences:
23
5 Verbs
Usage
The auxiliary verbs are used with lexical verbs:
- to form the continuous and perfect tenses
I am working. I have worked.
- to form the passive voice:
He is seen. He was seen.
- to form the negative and interrogative in the simple present and past tenses:
I dont have a car. Did he leave a message?
- in short answers:
Do you have a car? No, I dont.
- with neither/nor or so in short answers:
I dont have much time. Neither do I.
I bought the book. So did I.
English verbs have the following qualities11: tense (The Present Tense, The
Present Perfect, The Past Tense, The Past Perfect, The Future Tense, The Future
Perfect), voice (active and passive), mood (indicative, subjunctive and imperative),
number (singular and plural), person (the first, second and third) and aspect
(progressive, non-progressive).
10
On classes of verbs, as well as auxiliary verbs see A.J.Thompson and A.V.Martinet, (1987:105, 109).
11
On the qualities of verbs see A.J.Thompson and A.V.Martinet, (1987:105-116) and C.E.Eckersley
and J.M.Eckersley, (1963:143-230)
24
All verbal forms in English could also be divided into finite and non-finite
12
forms . The verbs that can form the predicate by themselves are finite verbs. The
latter are infinitives, participles, and gerunds. They do not have the qualities of person
and number. Besides their verb qualities, they also have some qualities of nouns,
adjectives and adverbs. They will be discussed in a separate chapter.
Contractions:
The verb do is normally contracted in the negative and negative interrogative:
I dont play, she doesnt play, dont you play? dont they play?
25
He always works at week-ends.
Our dog barks a lot at night.
It is also used:
to express permanent truths:
The Sun rises in the East.
for future formal arrangements, i.e. for a planned future action or series of actions,
particularly when they refer to a journey:
We leave the hotel at 10.00 next Tuesday and arrive in Paris at 13.00.
We spend two hours at the Eifel Tower and leave again at 15.00
by radio commentators at sport events or for dramatic narrative. This is
particularly useful when describing the action of a play or an opera:
Ronaldo moves up to the net.
When the curtain rises, Julie is writing at her desk. Suddenly the
window opens and a masked man enters.
for instructions:
First you press the red button.
in certain time clauses instead of a future form:
Well call her when you come.
in type 1 conditional sentences:
If I see him Ill tell him about it.
in newspaper headlines:
BRITAIN MOVES HIGHER IN BRIBERY LEAGUE
FASHION VICTIM FIGHTS BACK
Form
The present continuous tense is formed with the present tense of the auxiliary verb be
and the present participle:
Affirmative Interrogative Negative
I am playing Am I playing? I am not studying.
You are playing Are you playing? You are not playing.
He/she/it is playing Is he/she/it playing? He/she/it is not playing.
We are playing Are we playing? We are not playing.
You are playing Are you playing/ You are not playing.
They are playing Are they playing? They are not playing.
Negative interrogative is also possible: Are you not playing? Isnt he playing?
Contractions
The verb be can be contracted in the following way:
Affirmative Negative Negative interrogative
Im playing Im not playing Arent I playing?
Youre playing Youre not / you arent Arent you playing?
Hes playing playing Isnt he playing?
Hes not / he isnt playing
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for an action happening about this time but not necessarily at the moment of
speaking:
He is Learning French.
Jane is taking guitar lessons.
for informal plans for the near future, with a future time reference and generally
with verbs of movement (come, arrive, leave, visit). Here we are talking about
definite arrangement in the near future and this is the most usual way of
expressing ones immediate plans:
I am leaving tomorrow morning.
Are you doing anything tomorrow evening? Yes, I am going out with Jane.
for repeated actions with adverbs like always, forever; usually when the frequency
annoys the speaker:
Youre always doing stupid things!
He is always losing things: keys, money
for temporary situations or actions that may not be in progress at the moment of
speaking.
They are working in Budapest at the moment.
for polite enquiries:
Im wondering if you could do me a favour.
Some verbs (often called verbs of perception) are generally not used in the
continuous tenses13 and have only one present tense, the simple present. These verbs
can be grouped as:
-verbs of the senses: appear, feel, hear, look, see, smell, notice, observe,
resemble, seem, taste
-verbs expressing feelings and emotions: admire (respect), adore, appreciate
(value), desire, detest, dislike, fear, hate, love, like, mind (care), prefer, respect, value,
want, wish
-verbs of mental activity: agree, appreciate (understand), assume, believe,
detest, expect (think), feel (think), forget, forgive, know, matter, mean, need, perceive,
realize, recognize, remember, see (understand), suppose, think (have an opinion),
trust (believe, have confidence in), understand, wonder
-verbs of possession: belong to, owe, own, possess
A few of the above verbs, however, may be used in a continuous tense when
expressing certain ideas. These are feel, smell, taste, see, think, be and have.
Feel when followed by an adjective may indicate the subjects emotions or physical
or mental condition, e.g. angry/pleased, happy/sad, hot/cold, tense/relaxed,
nervous/confident. In that case it is used in the simple tenses but can also be used in
the continuous:
Do you still feel hungry?
You can never tell what he's feeling.
Stop exercising if you feel any pain.
Feel meaning touch can be used in the continuous:
The nurse was feeling his forehead to see if he had a fever.
13
This division is given in A.J.Thompson and A.V.Martinet, (1987:156) and Grba, G. i Radovanovi,
K.,(1995:40).
27
He was feeling for the gun in his pocket.
Smell is not used in the continuous form when it means to notice or recognize a
particular smell/scent/odour, but it can be used with smell meaning sniff at
Smell these roses - aren't they lovely? (They have a nice smell.)
Do you smell smoke?
Shes smelling the flowers. (Shes using her nose.)
Taste
As a link verb, taste is not used in the continuous:
This coffee tastes bitter. (has a bitter taste)
She was tasting the cream to see if it was sweet enough. (She is putting a
spoonful in her mouth.)
See
See can be used in the continuous when it means meet by appointment (usually for
business), date someone or when it means visit:
I am seeing my solicitor this morning.
They are seeing the sights with one of our guides.
My daughter is seeing an older man. I dont like that.
Think can be used in the continuous when no opinion is given or asked for:
What are you thinking about? (What is going on in your mind?)
I am thinking about the play we saw last night.
When opinion is expressed, the verb think is used in the simple present:
I think they will come (I believe this).
What do you think about this programme?
Verbs be and have, when expressing permanent state or possession, are used in the
simple tense. But when they express a temporary situation, can be used in the
continuous:
She is clever. (permanent state)
Now you are being silly. (temporary state)
He has a nice house. (possession)
He is having breakfast. (temporary situation)
We are having nice weather this week. (temporary situation)
Dear Karen,
Im having / I have a great time here in England. My university term isnt
starting / doesnt start until the autumn, so Im taking / take the opportunity to
improve my English. Im staying / stay with some English friends who are owning /
own a farm. On weekdays Im catching / I catch a bus into Torquay to go to language
classes. Im making / I make good progress, I think. My friends say / are saying my
pronunciation is much better than when I arrived, and Im understanding / I
understand almost everything now. At weekends Im helping / I help on the farm. At
the moment theyre harvesting / they harvest the corn and theyre needing / they need
28
all the help they can get. Its quite hard work, but Im liking / I like it. And Im
developing / I develop some strong muscles!
Do you come / Are you coming to visit me at Christmas? Im spending / I
spend the winter holiday here at the farm. My friends are wanting / want to meet you
and theres plenty of space. But you must bring your warmest clothes. Its getting ? It
gets very cold here in the winter.
Let me know as soon as youre deciding / you decide. And tell me what youre
doing / you do these days.
Do you miss me?
Love,
Paul
B Supply the correct form of the verbs in brackets, either simple present or present
continuous tense
C Read the Trekking Journal and supply the correct tense of the verbs in brackets:
Today (be) __________ the second day of my trek around Mount Annapurna. I am
exhausted and my legs (shake) __________; I just hope I am able to complete the
trek. My feet (kill, really) __________ me and my toes (bleed) __________, but I
(want, still) __________ to continue.
Nepal is a fascinating country, but I have a great deal to learn. Everything (be)
__________ so different, and I (try) __________ to adapt to the new way of life here.
I (learn) __________a little bit of the language to make communication easier;
29
unfortunately, I (learn, not) __________ foreign languages quickly. Although I
(understand, not) __________ much yet, I believe that I (improve, gradually)
_____________.
Right now, Liam (sit) with the owner of the inn. They (discuss) __________ the
differences between life in England and life in Nepal. I (know, not) __________the
real name of the owner, but everybody (call, just) __________ him Tam. Tam (speak)
__________English very well and he (try) __________ to teach Liam some words in
Nepali. Every time Tam (say) __________a new word, Liam (try) __________to
repeat it. Unfortunately, Liam (seem, also) __________to have difficulty learning
foreign languages. I just hope we don't get lost and have to ask for directions.
D Choose the right tense: the present simple or present continuous tense:
30
The Present Perfect Tense is used:
to state a present result of a past action. The time may be unspecified:
I have washed my hair. (My hair is clean now.)
But often a time reference is given:
-recent time like just, lately, recently, already, yet:
He has just arrived (He is here now)
-an unfinished period that includes the present: today, this morning/after-
noon/week, etc.
Have you heard the weather forecast today?
-or indicating repetition: several times, often:
Ive seen him several times at the university.
to describe states and actions which began in the past and lasted up until now:
-with since/for:
I havent had anything to eat since breakfast.
I havent had anything to eat for three hours.
Sometimes time is measured from a past action:
He hasnt been to football practice since he hurt his wrist.
-with time references like before (now) ever, never, up till now, so far:
Have you ever visited San Francisco?
American English often uses the Simple Past tense with ever, never, already
and yet instead of the Present Perfect:
Did you ever see such a thing?
He just went out.
in Time clauses instead of a future form:
Ill ask him as soon as he has finished.
5.3.4 The Present Perfect and The Simple Past Tense compared:
The present perfect (on of the present tenses) tells us about the situation now:
I have lost my key meaning that I dont have my key now. The past simple tells us
only something about the past. If somebody says Se lost her keys they dont tell us
whether she has the keys now or not. They only tell us that she lost her keys at some
time in the past.
We use the present perfect for new or recent happenings:
Ive repaired the TV. Its working OK now.
We use the past simple for things that are not recent or new:
Mozart was a composer. He wrote more than 600 pieces of music.
We use the present perfect to give new information. But if we continue to talk about
it, we normally use the past simple:
A: Ow! Ive burnt myself.
B: How did you do that?
A: I picked up a hot dish.
31
Exercises: (The Present Perfect and The Simple Past Tense)
A14 Are the underlined parts of these sentences right or wrong? Correct them where
necessary:
B Put the verb into the correct form, present perfect or past simple:
1 I dont know where Lisa is. Have you seen (you/see) her?
2 When I _______________ (get) home last night, I ______________ (be) very tired and
3 _______________ (go) straight to bed.
4 A: ________________ (you/finish) painting the bedroom?
B: Not yet. Ill finish it tomorrow.
5 George _________________ (not/be) very well last week.
6 Mr. Clark ________________ (work) in a bank for 15 years. Then he gave it up.
7 Molly lives in Dublin. She ________________ (live) there all her life.
8 I dont know Carols husband. I _________________ (never/meet) him.
9 A: Is Martin here? B: No, he _______________ (go) out.
A: When exactly ________________ (he/go) out? B: About ten minutes ago.
C Put the verb into the correct form, present perfect or past simple:
1 It stopped raining for a while, but now its raining again. (stop)
2 The town is very different now. It has changed a lot (change)
3 I did German at school, but I ____________ most of it now. (forget)
4 The police _____________ three people, but later they let them go. (arrest)
5 What do you think of my English? Do you think it ________________? (improve)
6 A: Are you still reading the paper?
B: No, I ______________ with it. You can have it. (finish)
7 I _______________ for a job as a tourist guide, but I wasnt successful. (apply)
8 Wheres my bike? It _________________ outside the house, but its not there now. (be)
9 Look! Theres an ambulance over there. There _____________ an accident. (be)
10 A: Have you heard about Ben? He _____________ his arm. (break)
B: Really? How ________ that _________? (happen)
A: He ________________ off a ladder. (fall)
14
The exercises A, B and C are taken from Murphy R.(2005:29-31)
32
D Put the verbs in brackets into the right form, the past simple or the present perfect
tense15:
1. He (sweep) the balcony yesterday, and its already dirty.
2. A long time ago people (think) that the sun (go) round the earth.
3. The oil tanker just (sink).
4. He ever (lie) to you?
5. How tall you (grow)!
6. They (be) here since two oclock.
7. She (walk) to work every day last month.
8. When I last (see) him, he was looking for his dog in the park.
9. She (wear) a beautiful blue dress at the opening night yesterday.
10. Paul: I (play) football since I (be) five years old.
Tom: You (play) since you (come) to England?
Paul: Oh yes. I (play) quite a lot. I (join) a club the day after I (arrive).
11. I just (hear) that Peter is in Australia.
Oh, you (not know)? He (fly) out at the beginning of the month.
You (hear) from him? Does he like the life?
Yes, I (get) a letter last week. He (tell) me about his job. But je (not say)
whether he (like) the life or not. Perhaps its too soon to say. He only
(be) there three weeks.
12. Old Ben (sell) newspapers just inside the station entrance, and my father
always (buy) his evening paper from him as he (leave) the station on his way home.
But one day my father (arrive) home without his paper. Ben (not be) there this
evening, he (say). I hope he (not be taken) ill.
13. Tom (meet) Paul at lunch time and (say), I (not see) you at the bus stop this
morning. You (miss) the buss?
I (not miss) it, (reply) Paul. I (not miss) a bus for years. But this morning George
(give) me a lift.
14. I last (drink) champagne at my brothers wedding.
15. She (not feel) well for some time.
16. Justin and I are friends. I (know) him since I (be) a freshman a high school.
17. This is the first time I (eat) frogs.
18. When you (meet) this beautiful girl? I (meet) her two days ago.
19. Well, one thing is certain. Your English (improve) since you (start) to do
grammar exercises.
20. I (meet) Doris in August, but I (not see) her since.
21. Since the term (begin) , we (have) five tests.
22. Have you got a bandage or a band-aid? I (cut) my foot. How it (happen)? I
(step) on a piece of glass.
Form
The Present Perfect Continuous Tense is formed by the present perfect of the verb to
be and the present participle.
15
The exercise is adapted from A.J. Thompson and A.V. Martinet, Exercises 2, (1987:87).
33
Affirmative I have been watching, he has been watching
interrogative Have you been watching? Has he been
watching?.
Negative I have not/havent been watching
Negative interrogative Have I not/havent I been watching
It is used
to emphasize that an action has been in progress throughout a period which began
in the past and lasted up till now or is still continuing:
I have been working in this school for five years.
How long have you been playing basketball?
to refer to a past activity which is related to the present because of its results:
You have been fighting again. (Your suit is torn, you have bruises on your
face.)
Mary has been crying. (Her eyes are red.)
We understand that the activity has recently finished.
With some verbs like expect, hope, lie, look, live, rain, sleep, snow, stay, study,
learn, wait, work, sit, stand, lie, play, want there is often little or no difference
between sentences in simple or continuous tense. Thus an action which began in the
past and is still continuing or has just finished can be expressed by either the present
perfect simple or the present perfect continuous tense:
I have worked in this school for five years.
I have been working in this school for five years.
In other cases there is a difference in meaning:
He has been selling his house for months. (action incomplete)
He has sold his house. (action complete)
Certain groups of verbs are generally not found in the continuous tenses, although
this depends on the meaning of the verb:
be, know, own, understand, want, care, prefer, hate, like, believe, mean,
have (possession), see (perception)
For example: I have had this video recorder for five years. (have = possession)
I have been having dinner. (Activity can be expressed in the
continuous)
I have seen Mary today. (see=perception)
I have been seeing Mary. (Ive been meeting Mary).
There is a difference in the simple present perfect and an action in the present
perfect continuous:
a) Ive polished the car. means that the job has been completed
b) Ive been polishing the car. shows how I have spent the last hour or
two. It does not necessarily mean that the job has been completed.
34
Exercises (The Present Perfect Continuous Tense)
A For each situation, write two sentences using the words in brackets16:
1. Tom started reading a book two hours ago. He is still reading it and now hw is on page 53.
(read/for two hours) He has been reading for two hours.
(read/53 pages so far) He has read 53 pages so far.
2. Rachel is from Australia. She is travelling round Europe at the moment. She began her
3. trip three months ago.
(travel / for three months) She __________________________________________
(visit / six countries so far) _____________________________________________
3. Patrick is a tennis player. He began playing tennis when he was ten years old. This year he
is national champion again for the fourth time.
(win / the national championships / four times) _____________________________
(play / tennis since he was ten) __________________________________________
4. When they left college, Lisa and Sue started making films together. They still make films.
(make/five films since they left college) They ______________________________
(make/films since they left college) ______________________________________
Put the verbs in brackets in the Present Perfect Continuous tense. Match the
sentence with one of the comments on the left.
1. Bud has got cuts and bruises on his face. a. He (fight) again.
2. Fionas eyes are red. b. The children (eat) them all `
afternoon.
3. Kenneth has a bad cough. c. She (cry).
4. The whole town is covered with snow. d. He (smoke) too much.
5. There are few biscuits left. e. It (snow) for some time.
6. Laura doesnt talk much. f. Something (bother) her.
7. My computer is switched on. g. Somebody (use) it.
8. The whole region is flooded. h. What you (do)?
9. Kirk is completely exhausted i. It (rain) hard for days.
10.You look tired. j. He (practice) weight lifting for
hours.
C Complete the sentences with the present perfect or the present perfect continuous
tense of the verbs in brackets. The adverbs in italics should be put in the right
position18:
1. I ____________ (write) the letter, so perhaps you would post it for me.
2. For the last two years, he ____________ (write) a history of the Civil War.
3. A: What you ____________(do) for the last half hour? B: I ____________(sit)
here working at this problem.
4. We always ____________ (live) in a bungalow, so it will seem strange when we
move into a house.
16
The exercise is taken from Murphy, R. (2005:21)
17
The exercise is taken from Grba G., K Radovanovic, (1995:57)
18
The exercise is taken from B.D. Graver (1988:81)
35
5. How you ____________ (keep)? Well, I hope.
6. You look very upset. What _____________ (happen)?
7. He shouldnt drive this evening. He ____________ (drink).
8. Id better not drive. I already ____________ (drink) quite a lot.
9. The meat must be nearly ready. It ____________ (cook) for nearly an hour.
10. You ____________ (not finish) that book yet? You ____________ (read) it for
more than a week.
11. I wonder if John ____________ (forget) my number. I ____________ (expect)
him to call for the past two hours.
12. Im sorry were late. You ____________ (wait) long?
13. A: How long ____________ (know) you the truth? B: I only just ____________
(find out), but I ____________ (find out) a lot of other things recently.
14. If he ____________ (ask) me that question once, he ____________ (ask) me
dozen times.
D Put the verbs in brackets into the right tense, either the present continuous or the
present perfect continuous tense19:
1. It (rain) all week. I hope it stops by Saturday because I want to go to the beach.
2. A: Where is Gary?
B: He (study, at the library) for his German test on Wednesday. In fact, he (review)
for the test every day for the last week.
3. You look really great! (You, exercise) at the fitness center ?
4. Frank, where have you been? We (wait) for you since 1 P.M..
5. A: What is that sound?
B: A car alarm (ring) somewhere down the street. It (drive) me crazy - I wish it
would stop! It (ring) for more than twenty minutes.
6. Joseph's English (improve, really), isn't it? He (watch) American television
programs and (study) his grammar every day since he first arrived in San Diego.
Soon he will be totally fluent.
7. A: You look a little tired. (You, get) enough sleep lately?
B: Yes, I (sleep) relatively well. I just look tired because I (feel) a little sick for the
last week.
A: I hope you feel better soon.
B: Thanks. I (take, currently) some medicine, so I should feel better in a couple of
days.
Form
The simple past tense in regular verbs is formed by adding ed to the infinitive:
Infinitive: to play
Simple past: played
The same form is used for all persons: I played, you played, he/she/it played
19
The exercise is taken from www.englishpage.com ,Verb Tense Tutorial.
36
The interrogative of regular and irregular verbs is formed with did + subject +
infinitive:
Did I play? Did you play?....
The negative of regular and irregular verbs is formed with did not (didnt) + the
infinitive:
I did not / didnt play
You did not/didnt play
Negative interrogative is also possible:
Did you not/ didnt you play?
Irregular verbs vary considerably in their simple past form, for example:
the infinitive: to bring, to come, to write, to sing
simple past: brought, came, written, sang
Therefore, the simple past tense of each irregular verb must be learnt separately. Yet,
there are some similarities in the past tense forms of some verbs, i.e. some similarities
in changing patterns. So it is easier for the students to memorize them if they are
grouped according to their past tense (also past participle) forms, for example:
37
after wish and if only to express wishful thinking about the present
I wish I knew what was going on. If only we had more time!
In type 2 conditional sentences
If I knew, I would tell you.
Form
The past continuous tense is formed by the past tense of the verb to be and the present
participle:
Affirmative Interrogative Negative
I was watching was I watching? I was not watching
you were watching were you watching? you were not watching
he/she/it was watching was he/she/it watching? he/she/it was not watching
we were watching were we watching? we were not watching
you were watching were you watching? you were not watching
they were watching were they watching? they were not watching
Negative contractions: I wasnt watching; you werent watching
Negative interrogative: was he not/wasnt he watching?
38
Exercises (The Simple Past and Past Continuous Tense)
Thomas Edison started / was starting work on the railway when he was twelve,
selling newspapers and snacks. There were long periods with nothing for him to do so
he built / was building himself a little laboratory in the luggage van where he could
carry out experiments when he didnt sell / wasnt selling things to passengers.
Another way that he occupied / was occupying himself was by reading. He joined a
library and read / was reading every single book in it. One day, when he waited / was
waiting at the station he noticed / was noticing a small boy who played / was playing
by the track, unaware that a train approached / was approaching. Edison ran / was
running out and grabbed / was grabbing the child just in time. The childs father was
so grateful that he offered / was offering to teach Edison to be a telegraph operator.
Edison accepted the offer and soon he had / was having regular lessons. After a year,
he was good enough to get a job in the telegraph office. He continued to read and
experiment, whenever he had / was having time. At twenty-one he left / was leaving
the telegraph office to devote all his time to being an inventor. He went / was going
on to invent the electric light bulb, the phonograph and the movie camera.
B What were you doing at these times? Write the sentences using either the past
continuous or the past simple tense. The first two have been done as the examples for
you20:
C Put the verbs in brackets into the correct form, either simple past or past
continuous:
20
The exercises B and C are taken from Murphy, R. (2005:13).
39
(follow) me. I was scared and I ________________ (start) to run.
9 When Bob was a small boy, he ______________ (want) to be a pilot.
D Complete the following paragraphs with suitable verbs. Use either the past simple
or past continuous tense:
John Blake was born in London in 1969. He went to work in France when he
was nineteen. While he (2) ____________ in a restaurant in Paris, he (3)
____________ Luisa, an Italian student. He (4) ____________ her to marry him, but
she wouldnt. Heartbroken, he (5) ____________ to England. Three years later, John
(6) ____________ along a street in London when he (7) _____________ Luisa. She
(8) ___________ London with a friend called Maria. When John and Maria (9)
____________ , they fell in love at first sight, and got married the following year.
I had a terrible time last Saturday. It was rather cold, but quite sunny, so after
lunch I (1) walked into town. I (11) ____________ to buy a pullover. I (12)
______________ in the window of a clothes shop when someone (13)
_____________ my wallet. While I (14) _______________ home, it (15)
_______________ to rain and I arrived home cold and miserable. I (16)
_______________ to have a hot bath. I (17) _______________ ready to have my bath
when the doorbell (18) _______________. It was a salesman and it took me several
minutes to get rid of him. Unfortunately, all the time he (19) ________________ to
me the water (20) _______________. You can imagine the state of the bathroom!
Form
The Past Perfect Tense is formed with the past tense of the verb have: had and the
past participle:
Affirmative I had played, Youd played, Hed played
Interrogative Had he played? Had they played?
Negative I had not played, you hadnt played
Negative interrogative Had you not/ hadnt you played?
40
after wish and if only to express wishful thinking about the past:
I wish I hadnt stayed so long at the party last night.
If only we hadnt forgotten out passports!
in Type 3 conditionals
If she had studies harder, she would have passed the test.
Note: We generally try to avoid having a succession of verbs in the Past Perfect in
a single sentence:
We heard that our friends had lost their way in town and drove into a petrol
station to ask for directions.
Form
The past perfect continuous tense is formed with the past perfect of the verb to be:
had been and the present participle:
Affirmative I had been watching
Interrogative Had you been watching?
Negative You had not/hadnt been watching
Negative interrogative Had you not / hadnt you been watching?
It is not used with verbs which are not normally used in the continuous forms, except
with want and sometimes wish21
The boy was delighted with his new knife. He had been wanting one for a long
time.
This tense has no passive forms.
The past perfect continuous has the same relation to the past perfect as the present
perfect continuous has to the present perfect. The Past Perfect Continuous tense is
used
to emphasize that one action had taken place earlier than another and that the
earlier action had been happening
a) continuously: He had been practicing when we arrived,
b) repeatedly: I had not been sleeping well, so I went to see a doctor.
in reported speech
She told me she had been studying all morning.
in Type 3 conditionals
If you had been wearing a warm coat, you wouldnt have caught cold.
Exercises
21
Underlined by A.J.Thompson and A.V. Martinet, (1987:179).
41
6. We didnt know they (choose) Peter for a TV quiz.
7. It was my first time in an airplane. I was very nervous because I never (fly)
before.
8. We didnt leave until we (finish) our work.
9. I couldnt enter because I (lose) my door key.
10. He (send) me a cheque, I went to the bank to cash it.
B22 Supply the suitable form of the verbs in brackets, either the past perfect or the
past perfect continuous tense:
I'm sorry I left without you last night, but I told you to meet me early because the
show started at 8:00. I ________________ (try) to get tickets for that play for
months, and I didn't want to miss it. By the time I finally left the coffee shop where
we were supposed to meet, I ______________ (have) five cups of coffee and I
_______________ (wait) over an hour. I had to leave because I ______________
(arrange) to meet Kathy in front of the theatre.
When I arrived at the theater, Kathy ______________ (pick, already) up the tickets
and she was waiting for us near the entrance. She was really angry because she
________________ (wait)
for more than half an hour. She said she _________________ (give, almost) up and
_________________ (go) into the theater without us.
Kathy told me you _______________ (be) late several times in the past and that she
would not make plans with you again in the future. She mentioned that she
________________ (miss) several movies because of your late arrivals. I think you
owe her an apology. And in the future, I suggest you be on time! several movies
because of your late arrivals. I think you owe her an apology. And in the future, I
suggest you be on time!
C Supply the suitable form of the verbs in brackets: the past simple tense, present
perfect or past perfect:
22
The exercises B and C are taken from www.englishpage.com , Verb Tense Tutorial.
42
he _________ (lose) so much weight and __________ (grow) a beard. He looked
totally different!
7. The Maya established a very advanced civilization in the jungles of the Yucatan;
however, their culture _________ (disappear, virtually) by the time Europeans first
_________ (arrive) in the New World.
8. I _________ (visit) so many beautiful places since I __________ (come) to Utah.
Before moving here, I _________ (hear, never) of Bryce Canyon, Zion, Arches or
Canyon lands.
D Put the verbs in brackets into the right tense, continuous or non-continuous23:
E24 Supply the right tense of the verbs in brackets, the Past Simple, Present Perfect
or Past Perfect tense:
1. When I (arrive) home last night, I discovered that Jane (prepare) a beautiful candle-
lit dinner.
2. Since I began acting, I (perform) in two plays, a television commercial and a TV
drama. However, I (speak, never even) publicly before I came to Hollywood in 1985.
3. By the time I got to the office, the meeting (begin, already) without me. My boss
(be) furious with me and I (be) fired.
4. When I (turn) the radio on yesterday, I (hear) a song that was popular when I was in
high school. I (hear, not) the song in years, and it (bring) back some great memories.
5. Last week, I (run) into an ex-girlfriend of mine. We (see, not) each other in years,
and both of us (change)
a great deal. I (enjoy) talking to her so much that I (ask) her out on a date. We are
getting together tonight for dinner.
6. When Jack (enter) the room, I (recognize, not) him because he (lose) so much
weight and (grow) a beard. He looked totally different!
7. The Maya established a very advanced civilization in the jungles of the Yucatan;
however, their culture (disappear, virtually) by the time Europeans first (arrive) in the
23
The exercise is taken from www.englishpage.com, Verb Tense Tutorial
24
Taken from www.englishpage.com, Verb Tense Tutorial
43
New World.
8. I (visit) so many beautiful places since I (come) to Utah. Before moving here, I
(hear, never) of Bryce Canyon, Zion, Arches or Canyonlands.
There are several ways of expressing future in English. They are listed below:
Form
The Future Simple is formed with will/shall and the infinitive
Affirmative Interrogative Negative
I will/Ill play / I shall play Shall I play? I will not/wont play/
You will/youll play Will you play? I shall not /I shant play
He will play Will he play? You will not/you wont play
We will play/well play/we shall play Shall we play? He will not/he wont play
You will play Will they play? We will not/wont play/we shall
They will play Will they play? not play /we shant play
You will not/ wont play
They will not/wont play
44
in Type 1 conditionals and time clauses
If he decides to go, hell let us know.
When it gets warmer the snow will start to melt.
in newspapers and news broadcasts, for formal announcements of future plans and
for weather forecasts. In conversation such statements would normally be
expressed by the present continuous or be going to form.
Newspapers: The President of the company will give a press release
tomorrow.
Sunny weather will persist in coastal areas.
Note25: The general rule of shall for the 1st person singular and plural and will for the
rest applies to British English. American English prefers will for all persons.
Form
This tense is made up of the future simple of to be and the present participle. In the
first person, will is more usual than shall, except in the interrogative:
Affirmative I/we will/shall be working
He/she/it/you/they will be working
Interrogative Shall/will I/we be working?
will he/she/it/you/they be working?
Negative I/we will/shall not be working
He/she/it/you/they will not be working
Negative interrogative will he not/wont he be working?
25
This is underlined by Grba, G. and Radovanovic, K. (1995:62).
45
The Future Continuous tense is used
for actions that will be taking place and continuing at some point in future time:
At one oclock Ill be having lunch.
There is a suggestion of probability here. Sometimes we know a persons habits so
well that we can almost say with certainty what he or she will be doing at a given time
in the future:
Mother will be coming to visit us for Christmas.
for future arrangements:
He will be leaving at five.
for polite questions:
Will you be seeing Mary tomorrow morning?
Note: In all these cases the Future Simple can be used, but the continuous tense
emphasizes continuity.
Exercises
A Put the verbs in brackets into the right form, either future simple or future
continuous tense26:
2. Ted: When we get to the party, Jerry (watch) TV, Sam (make) drinks, Beth (dance)
by herself, and Thad (complain) about his day at work.
Robin: Maybe, this time they won't be doing the same things.
Ted: I am absolutely positive they (do) the same things; they always do the same
things.
3. Florence: Oh, look at that mountain of dirty dishes! Who (wash) all of those?
Jack: I promise I (do) them when I get home from work.
Florence: Thanks.
Jack: When you get home this evening, that mountain will be gone and nice stacks of
sparkling clean dishes (sit) in the cabinets.
4. Doug: If you need to contact me next week, I (stay) at the Hoffman Hotel.
Nancy: I (call) you if there are any problems.
Doug: This is the first time I have ever been away from the kids.
Nancy: Don't worry, they (be) fine.
5. Samantha: Just think, next week at this time, I (lie) on a tropical beach in Maui
drinking Mai Tai's and eating pineapple.
Darren: While you are luxuriating on the beach, I (stress) out over this marketing
project. How are you going to enjoy yourself knowing that I am working so hard.
Samantha: I 'll manage somehow.
26
www.englishpage.com, Verb Tense Tutorial
46
Darren: You're terrible. Can't you take me with you?
Samantha: No. But I (send) you a postcard of a beautiful, white-sand beach.
Darren: Great, that (make) me feel much better.
Form
The Future Perfect Tense is formed with will/shall and perfect infinitive
It is usually used
with a time expressions beginning with by: by then, by that time, by the end of
the year, i.e. for actions that will have finished by or before a certain time in the
future:
They will have completed their French course by next spring.
When I leave school next June, I will have had English classes for eight years.
How many English books will you have read by that time?
Exercises
This tense can be used with a time expression for a definite future arrangement,
timetables, itineraries and schedules:
Catharine starts school on Monday.
The championship ends on August 29th.
The plane takes off at 5:30.
We leave at six, arrive in Dublin at ten and take the plane on
Although the present continuous can be used for definite future arrangements, the
present simple sounds more formal.
27
The exercise is adapted from Grba, G. and Radovanovic K, (1995:66).
47
Exercises
A Put the verbs in brackets into the right form, either simple present or future simple
tense:
1. Today after I (get) out of class, I (go) to a movie with some friends.
2. When you (arrive) in Stockholm, call my friend Gustav. He (show) you around the
city and help you get situated.
3. A: Do you know what you want to do after you (graduate)?
B: After I (receive) my Master's from Georgetown University, I (go) to graduate
school at UCSD in San Diego. I (plan) to complete a Ph.D. in cognitive science.
4. If it (snow) this weekend, we (go) skiing near Lake Tahoe.
5. Your father (plan) to pick you up after school today at 3:00 o'clock. He (meet) you
across the street near the ice cream shop. If something happens and he cannot be
there, I (pick) you up instead.
6. If the people of the world (stop, not) cutting down huge stretches of rain forest, we
(experience) huge changes in the environment during the twenty-first century.
7. If Vera (keep) drinking, she (lose, eventually) her job.
8. I promise you that I (tell, not) your secret to anybody. Even if somebody (ask) me
about what happened that day, I (reveal, not) the truth to a single person.
9. She (make) some major changes in her life. She (quit) her job and go back to
school. After she (finish) studying, she (get) a better paying job and buy a house.
She is going to improve her life!
10. Tom (call) when he (arrive) in Madrid. He (stay) with you for two or three days
until his new apartment (be) available.
The present continuous can express a definite arrangement in the near future:
I am taking an exam in October. (this implies that I have entered for it)
When using this tense as a future form time must be mentioned, as other wise there
may be confusion between present and future. Also, future cannot be expressed in this
way with the verbs not normally used in the continuous form:
I am meeting him tonight but I will know tonight. Not I am knowing tonight.
This form, be going to + the full infinitive, is used to express intention and prediction.
When it expresses the speakers intention to perform a certain action it is always
premeditated and there is the idea that some preparation for the action has been made.
I am going to meet Tom at the station at six.
But there is a difference between this form and present continuous when they express
future. While
I am meeting Tom at the station
implies that Tom and the speaker have made an arrangement to meet, in the
example:
I am going to meet Tom at the station at six.
48
means that this is the speakers intention only and that Tom may get a
surprise.
When it is used for prediction, this form expresses the speakers feeling of
certainty. The time may not be mentioned, but the action is expected to happen in the
near or immediate future:
Look at the sky! Its going to rain.
Listen to the wind. Were going to have big waves on the beach.
A Put the verbs in brackets into the right form, either future simple or be going to
form28:
B Put the verbs in brackets into the right form, either future simple or be going to
form29:
28
Adapted from www.englishpage.com, Verb Tense Tutorial.
29
Exercises B, C and D are taken from www.englishpage.com, Verb Tense Tutorial.
49
this photograph as a model.
6. Michael: Do you think the Republicans or the Democrats (win) the next election?
Jane: I think the Republicans (win) the next election.
John: No way! The Democrats (win).
7. Susan: We (go) camping this weekend. Would you like to come along?
Sam: That sounds great, but I don't have a sleeping bag.
Susan: No problem. I (lend) you one. My family has tons of camping gear.
8. Barbara: I (buy) a new car this weekend, but I'm a little worried because I don't
really know much about cars. I'm afraid the salesman (try) to take advantage of me
when he sees how little I know.
Dave: I used to work for a mechanic in high school and I know a lot about cars. I (go)
with you to make sure you are not cheated.
9. Gina: Fred and I (visit) Santa Fe next summer. Have you ever been there?
Margaret: My family lives in Santa Fe! I (give) you my parents' phone number. When
you get to Santa Fe, just call them and they (give) you a little tour of the town. They
can show you some of the sights that most tourists never see.
10. Pam: Can you see my future in the crystal ball? What (happen) next year?
Fortune Teller: You (meet) a man from the East Coast, perhaps New York or maybe
Boston. You (marry) that mystery man.
Pam: Forget the man! I want to know if I (get) a new job.
50
C Put the verbs in brackets into the right form: the simple present, future simple,
present continuous or future continuous tense:
1. Right now I am watching T.V. Tomorrow at this time, I (watch) __________ T.V.
as well.
2. Tomorrow after school, I (go)__________ to the beach.
3. I am going on a dream vacation to Tahiti. While you (do) __________ paperwork
and (talk) __________ to annoying customers on the phone, I (lie) __________ on a
sunny, tropical beach. Are you jealous?
4. We (hiding) __________ when Tony (arrives) __________ at his surprise party. As
soon as he opens the door, we (jump) __________ out and (scream) __________ ,
"Surprise!"
5. We work out at the fitness centre everyday after work. If you (come) __________
over while we (work) __________ out, we will not be able to let you into the house.
Just to be safe, we (leave) __________ a key under the welcome mat so you will not
have to wait outside.
6. While you (study) __________ at home, Magda (be) __________ in class.
7. When I (get) __________ to the party, Sally and Doug (dance) __________ , John
(make) __________ drinks, Sue and Frank (discuss) __________ something
controversial, and Mary (complain) __________ about something unimportant. They
are always doing the same things. They are so predictable.
8. When you (get) __________off the plane, I (wait) __________ for you.
9. I am sick of rain and bad weather! Hopefully, when we (wake) __________ up
tomorrow morning, the sun (shine) __________ .
10. If you (need) __________ to contact me sometime next week, I (stay)
__________ at the Sheraton in San Francisco.
D Cumulative Verb Tense Review: put the verbs in brackets into the right form30:
30
Taken from www.englishpage.com, Cumulative verb tense review, Verb tense practice test
51
12. It (rain) all week. I hope it stops by Saturday because I want to go to the beach.
13. Listen Donna, I don't care if you (miss) the bus this morning. You (be) late to
work too many times. You are fired!
14. I am sick of rain and bad weather! Hopefully, when we (wake) up tomorrow
morning, the sun (shine).
15. I have not traveled much yet; however, I (visit) the Grand Canyon and San
Francisco by the time I leave the United States.
16. I (see) many pictures of the pyramids before I went to Egypt. Pictures of the
monuments are very misleading. The pyramids are actually quite small.
17. In the last hundred years, traveling (become) much easier and very comfortable. In
the 19th century, it (take) two or three months to cross North America by covered
wagon. The trip (be) very rough and often dangerous. Things (change) a great deal
in the last hundred and fifty years. Now you can fly from New York to Los
Angeles in a matter of hours.
18. Joseph's English (improve, really), isn't it? He (watch) American television
programs and (study) his grammar every day since he first arrived in San Diego.
Soon he will be totally fluent.
19. When I (arrive) home last night, I discovered that Jane (prepare) a beautiful
candle-lit dinner.
20. If you (need) to contact me sometime next week, I (stay) at the Sheraton in San
Francisco.
E Cumulative Verb Tense Review: put the verbs in brackets into the right form31:
31
Taken from www.englishpage.com, Cumulative verb tense review, Verb tense final test
52
taught by Mr. Tanzer.
53
6 Modal verbs
Modal or defective verbs are a group of verbs that have certain characteristics
which they, and they only possess and which distinguish them from all other verbs.
Modals are: can, could, may, might, shall, should, will, would, must, need, dare,
used to, ought to. They are all followed by the infinitive of some other verb, they
form the interrogative by means of inversion and they form negative forms by adding
not.
54
something in a specific situation or that some action was successfully completed at
one specific moment, we use was/were able to or managed to:
Having practiced daily, Barry was able to (managed to) win the race.
The fire was spreading so quickly that at that moment, but luckily all the
people managed to escape.
55
possibility (expresses less of a possibility than may)
This is what I believe to be the truth. Of course, I might be wrong.
It might rain, but I think we can go on with the game outside.
The modal MUST is used to express:
A necessity or obligation
You must be in your office before nine in the morning.
Dont tell anybody what I said. You must keep it a secret.
Prohibition
You mustnt go out without a coat.
You must keep it a secret. You mustnt tell anybody else.
Since must has no infinitive or participial forms, we use the phrase have to:
We had to wait for ages. (It was necessary for us to wait)
He has had to wear glasses for several years.
They will have to do the test again.
The phrase have to expresses external obligation or necessity to do something. But,
we use must to give our own opinion (for example, to say what we think is necessary,
or to recommend someone to do something, i.e. must expresses obligation or
compulsion from the speakers viewpoint).
I havent spoken to Mary for ages. I must phone her. (I say this is necessary)
Mark is a really nice person. You must meet him ( I recommend this)
We use have to (not must) to say what someone is obliged to do. The speaker is not
giving his/her opinion:
I have to work from 8.30 to 5.30 every day. (a fact, not an opinion)
Jane has to travel a lot for her work.
The difference in meaning between must and have to can be easily seen in the
following examples:
You must go now. ( Its late and I want to go to bed.)
What a pity you have to go now. (Its time for you to catch your train.)
He must stay the night. (I/we press him to do so.)
He has to stay the night. (He cant get back tonight, there are no trains.)
Must is often used in written rules and instructions:
Applications for the job must be received by 18 May.
(exam instructions) You must write your answers in ink.
The verb NEED can be used both as a lexical (full) verb and a modal. In both cases it
expresses:
necessity / obligation
Need I sign my name? (Is it necessary?)
absence of necessity or obligation
She neednt do any extra work. (It isnt necessary)
When used as a lexical or full verb, need has the usual negative and question
forms:
56
I need to see you right away. Do they need to buy food?
He doesnt need to go yet.
But in the interrogative and negative forms it can also appear as a modal:
He neednt telephone. Need you make so much noise?
Besides its usage in conditional sentences and reported speech, the modal SHOULD
can express:
a duty or obligation
I should tidy my room one of these days.
You shouldnt talk to your father like that.
Should is not as strong as must or have to. So when we say: You should apologize,
we mean it would be a good thing to do, but its up to you to decide.
probability
He should be in his office by this time. (but the speaker is less certain than
when he uses must)
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suggestion
You look tired. You should go to bed.
If you dont feel well, you should see the doctor.
someones expectations
Shes been studying hard for the exam, so she should pass.
(I expect her to pass)
There are plenty of hotels in the town. It shouldnt be difficult to find
somewhere to stay. (I dont expect it to be difficult).
Besides its usage in conditional sentences and reported speech, the modal WOULD
can be used to:
express willingness:
Would you mind not smoking in here? (Are you willing ?)
make polite suggestions and requests
Would you like something to drink?
Would you be so kind as to remove your hat? I cant see the stage.
Express habitual activity in the past
When we were kids, my brother would take me to all sorts of places, and we
would always be together. (He did that every time).
The construction used to with the infinitive also refers to the repeated past activity,
but it implies that the activity no longer happens:
She used to visit us quite often when she lived in the neighbourhood.
Would is used after wish and if only to express wishful thinking about the future:
I wish he would stop being such a nuisance!
If only she would come on time!
A duty or obligation (more of an obligation than should but less than must):
You ought to be careful when coming back home alone. (This is good advice.)
Possibility
Tom and his wife ought to be on their honeymoon by now. They got married
last Sunday and went to some islands. (This is possible)
The verb DARE can be used both as a lexical (full) verb with the usual negative and
interrogative forms, but it could also be used as a modal:
She doesnt dare to go out alone. Does she dare go out alone?
She dare not go out alone. Dare she go out alone?
In both cases dare means to have the courage to do something.
The verb USED TO has only one form, the past tense. It is used to contrast past and
present, to express something that existed or was done in the past (generally a
repeated action), but no longer exists or is done now:
That is the house where we used to live. (but we dont live there any longer)
He used to smoke fifty cigarettes a day. (but he doesnt do so now)
58
Exercises
A Complete the sentences using can or be able to. Use can if possible; otherwise use
be able to:
59
3 A: Who was the man we saw with Anna yesterday?
B: Im not sure. It may ________ her brother.
4 A: What are those people doing by the side of the road?
B: I dont know. They might _____________ for a bus.
5 Do you have a stamp? No, but ask Simon He may ___________ one.
E Complete the sentences using might be able to or might have to + a suitable word:
1. I cant help you, but why dont you ask Jane? She might be able to help you.
2. I cant meet you this evening, but I ________________________ you tomorrow.
3. Im not working on Saturday, but I ________________________ on Sunday.
4. I can come to the meeting, but I ________________________ before the end.
1. I dont want anyone to know about our plan. You mustnt tell anyone.
2. Richard doesnt have to wear a suit to work, but he usually does.
3. I can stay in bed tomorrow morning because I __________________ go to work.
4. Whatever you do, you ___________________ touch that switch. Its very
dangerous.
5. Theres a lift in the building, so we __________________ climb the stairs.
6. You _________________ forget what I told you. Its very important.
7. Sue __________________ get up early, but she usually does.
8. Dont make so much noise. We _____________________ wake the children.
9. I _____________________ eat too much. Im supposed to be on a diet.
10. You _____________________ be a good player to enjoy a game of tennis.
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6. Theres plenty of time for you to make up your mind. You _____________ decide
now.
7. You ____________ wash those tomatoes. Theyve already been washed.
8. This is a valuable book. You _____________ look after it carefully and you
____________ lose it.
9. A: What sort of house do you want to buy? Something big?
B: Well, it ______________ be big thats not so important. But it _______________
have a nice garden thats essential.
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7 Passive Voice
If the person or thing denoted by the subject of a sentence is the doer of the
action, then that form of the verb is the active voice:
The boy broke the window. (active voice)
If the person or thing denoted by the subject of a sentence is the receiver or sufferer of
the action, than the form of the verb is the passive voice:
The window was broken by the boy. (passive voice)
The passive voice is formed by the appropriate tense of the verb to be and the past
participle of the main verb.
active passive:
BE + past participle
of the main verb
infinitive to make to be made
the present simple tense John makes it. It is made.
the present Continuous Tense John is making it. It is being made.
the past simple tense John made it. It was made.
the past continuous tense John was making it. It was being made.
the present perfect tense John has made it. It has been made.
the past perfect tense John had made it. It had been made.
the future tense John will make it. It will be made.
modals in the passive John could make it. It could be made.
The passive voice is not merely a transformation from the active voice, able to
replace it without any change of meaning. There is a difference of emphasis. When
we want to emphasize the performer of the action, we generally use the active voice;
when we want to emphasize the action, or the receiver of the action, we use the
passive voice. For example in the sentence:
John is rewriting the text.
Our interest is on John, and the sentence could be an answer to the question: What is
John doing?
On the other hand, in the sentence:
The text is being rewritten by John.
The emphasis is on the text and the fact that it is being rewritten. Thus, this sentence
could be an answer to the question: What is happening to the text? We are also not
concerned with who is doing it and the agent could easily be omitted. This is
particularly the case when the agent is vague, unimportant or unknown. For example,
in turning the following sentence from active to passive voice:
People in Japan make good cars.
The answer should be:
Good cars are made in Japan. NOT
Good cars are made in Japan by people.
62
They may cancel my trip to New York.
My trip to New York may be cancelled.
We use the construction have something done to say that we arrange for somebody
else to do something for us. Thus, there is a difference in meaning in
Tom repaired the gate. , meaning that he did it himself, whereas in the
sentence:
Tom had the gate repaired. It is clearly indicated that he arranged for
somebody else to repair it. We should be careful with the word order, because the past
participle comes after the object in this construction:
We can also say get something done, instead of have something done
mostly in informal spoken English:
I really think you should get your hair cut shortly, Bob!
Sometimes the construction have/get something done is used to denote the
action that happens to somebody or their belongings without their will, i.e. they have
not arranged for this to happen:
They got all their money stolen while they were on holiday in Barcelona.
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Exercises:
A Complete the sentences using one of these verbs in the correct form, present or
past:
cause damage hold invite make
overtake show surround translate write
1. Many accidents are caused by dangerous driving.
2. Cheese ____________________ from milk.
3. The roof of the building ___________________________ in a storm a few days
ago.
4. You ____________________________ to the wedding. Why didnt you go?
5. A cinema is a place where films __________________.
6. In the United States, elections for president ____________________ every four
years.
7. Originally the book _______________________ in Spanish, and a few years ago it
____________________ into English.
8. Although we were driving quite fast, we ____________________ by a lot of other
cars.
9. You cant see the house from the road. It ____________________ by trees.
B Rewrite these sentences. Instead of using somebody, they, people etc., write a
passive sentence:
1. Somebody cleans these offices every day. The offices are cleaned every day.
2. They cancelled all the flights because of the fog. All .
3. People dont use this road much. This road.
4. Somebody accused John of stealing money. John .
5. How do people learn languages? How
6. Somebody warned the tourists not to go a guide. The tourists.
C Make sentences from the words in brackets. Sometimes the verb is active,
sometimes passive:
1. Theres somebody behind us. (I think /we/ follow) I think were being followed.
2. The room looks different. (you / paint / the walls?) Have you painted the walls?
3. My umbrella has disappeared. (it /steal!) It _______________________________.
4. Sally gets a higher salary now. (she / promote) She ________________________.
5. We cant use our office at the moment. (it /redecorate) It_____________________.
6. I wonder how Jane is these days. ( I / not / see /for ages)_____________________.
7. The photocopies broke down yesterday, but now its OK. (it/work/again; it/repair).
It _____________________. It ______________________________.
D Write the sentences in another way, beginning with the words provided:
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3. Toms colleagues gave him a present when he retired.
Tom ________________________________________
4. Nobody informed us about the meeting.
We _________________________________________
5. How much will they pay you or the work?
How much will you ____________________________
6. Has anybody told you what to do?
Have you ____________________________________
1. They was a car crash at the crossroads yesterday morning, but luckily nobody got
killed.
2. These tennis courts dont __________________ very often. Not many people want
to play.
3. I used to have a bicycle, but it ___________ a few months ago.
4. You work hard, but you dont ________________ very much, do you?
5. Last night I ____________________ by the police as I was driving home. They
were looking for someone.
6.xPlease pack these things very carefully. I dont want them to
____________________.
7 People often want to know what my job is. I often ____________________
that question.
F Write these sentences in another way, beginning as shown. Use the underlined
word each time:
1. It is expected that the strike will end soon. The strike is expected to end soon.
2. It is expected that the weather will be good tomorrow.
The weather is ________________________________________
3. It is believed that the thieves got in through a window in the roof.
The thieves ___________________________________________
4. It is thought that the prisoner escaped by climbing over a wall.
The prisoner __________________________________________
5. It is reported that the building has been badly damaged by the fire.
The building __________________________________________
6. It is said that the company is losing a lot of money.
The company _________________________________________
7. It is believed that the company lost a lot of money last year.
The company _________________________________________
65
G Use the words in brackets to complete the sentences. Use the structure have
something done:
1. We are having the house painted (the house / paint) at the moment.
2. I lost my key. Ill have to _________________________ (another key / make)
3. When was the last time you ________________________ ( your hair / cut)?
4. This coat looks dirty. You must _______________________ (it / clean).
5. If you want to wear earrings, why dont you __________________________ (your
ears / pierce)?
6. Gary was in a fight last night. He _______________________ (his nose / break)
7. Did I tell you about Jane? She ___________________________ (her handbag /
steal) last week.
H Rewrite the following sentences using the correct form of have + an object + the
past participle of an appropriate verb:
66
8 Direct and Indirect Speech
Statements in Indirect Speech have the same meaning as in Direct Speech, but
they are only given in a different form from those originally spoken. When turning
direct statements into indirect ones a change may occur in
a) punctuation
b) pronouns
c) the conjunction that may appear joining direct statements and indirect forms:
If the reporting verb is in the repent or future tenses there is no change of tense in the
reported words:
I know this is our great chance.
Ann says (that) she knows this is our great chance.
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When a direct Command is turned into an indirect one, the following changes
occur:
-the verbs used are: order, command, tell, ask, request;
-a direct object representing the person ordered is introduced;
-the imperative form of the verb in the direct command becomes the corresponding
infinitive;
Go away! He orders us to go away.
OFFICER: (to soldiers): Fire!
The officer commands the soldiers to fire.
When the reporting verb is in the past tense, all the verbs in direct speech are changed
to their corresponding past form. There are also changes of other parts of speech
(pronouns, adverbs).
Are you coming with us tomorrow?
Tom asked Ann if she was coming with them the next day.
The guests left yesterday.
The receptionist said that the guests had left the day before.
When the reporting verb is in the past tense (He said that) all the verbs in
direct speech are generally (but not always) replaced by corresponding verbs in the
past tense. The changes are:
Tense Tense
PRESENT SIMPLE PAST SIMPLE
PRESENT CONTINUOUS PAST CONTINUOUS
PRESENT PERFECT PAST PERFECT
becomes
PAST SIMPLE PAST PERFECT
FUTURE TENSE FUTURE IN THE PAST
shall and will should and would
Examples:
Direct Indirect
I write home every week. She said that she wrote home every week.
I am going to the supermarket. He said that he was going to the
supermarket.
We have just arrived. She said they had just arrived.
I wrote a letter to my brother. She said that she had written a letter to her
brother.
They will join us on Friday. He said that they would join them on
Friday.
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next week/year the following week/year
yesterday the day before
last month / year the month /year before
here there
(two weeks) ago (two weeks) before
this/these that/those
now immediately /then
For example:
I saw the boy here in this room today.
He said that he had seen the boy there, in that room that day.
I spoke to them yesterday.
He said that he had spoken to them the day before.
In some cases verbs do not change their tense when they are put into reported speech:
verbs in past tenses after wish, would rather, as if, as though, its time
I wish you were here.
He said (that) he wished you were there.
Its time we took some serious measures.
She said (that) it was time they took some serious measures.
the verbs might, could, should, ought to, had better, used to:
He might come today. She said (that) he might come that day.
We had better leave now She said (that) they had better leave then.
It is not always necessary to change the verb in reported speech. If you report
something and the situation hasnt changed, you do not need to change the verb to
the past:
Paul said: My new job is very interesting.
Paul said that his new job is very interesting.
(The situation hasnt changed. The job is still interesting.)
You can also change the verb to the past:
Paul said that his new job was very interesting.
Exercises
A Put the following sentences into Reported Speech, introducing them with a verb in
the Present, present Perfect, or Future Tenses:
69
4. I have been shopping all the morning.
5. You can do it if you try.
6. We are living in another house now.
B Put the following sentences into Reported Speech, introducing them with a verb in
the Past Tense:
C Put the following sentences into Reported Speech, introducing them with a verb in
the Past Tense:
70
8. Wash your face! (mom said)
E Complete the sentences with say or tell (in the correct form):
G Now choose one of these to complete each of the sentences below. Use reported
speech.
1. Bill was taking a long time to get ready, so I told him to hurry up.
2. Sarah was driving too fast, so I asked _____________________.
3. Sue was nervous about the situation. I told _________________.
4. I couldnt move the piano alone, so I ______________________.
5. The customs officer looked at me suspiciously and ___________.
6. Tom was going to the shop, so I __________________________.
7. The man started asking me personal questions, so I ___________.
8. John was very much in love with Mary, so he _______________.
9. I didnt want to delay Helen, so I _________________________.
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9 Conditional Clauses
Conditional Clauses are complex sentences which show the condition under
which some action in the main clause is realized. A conditional sentence contains an
(subordinate) adverbial if clause, which states the condition, and a main clause
which indicates the result of the condition. The conjunctions and phrases these
subordinate clauses begin with are: if, unless, if not, in case (that), on condition (that),
supposing, provided, whether or, as long as. The conditional clauses are classified
into three types: Real, Potential and Unreal Conditional.
If the main idea of the conditional clause is to express a habit which is the
result of some conditions, both the main and subordinate clause contain the Present
Simple tense:
Exercises
1. If she has classes in the morning, he (go) to his karate club in the afternoon.
2. If it is very cold, Jake (light) a fire in the fireplace.
3. They (take) a bus if they want to go downtown.
4. If it is a warm day, Ann (wear) only a light jacket.
5. Betty (make) herself a snack at noon if her mother is not a t home.
6. If the team goes on tour, the fans (like) to see the players off.
7. The spectators (cheer) enthusiastically if their team scores a goal.
Sometimes the main clause contains the imperative instead of the Future Tense:
If it snows, be sure to wear your boots.
If you are late to work, take a taxi.
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In Type 1 conditionals, will comes in the main clause, not in the if-clause, but there is
an exception when we wish to be very polite:
be, bring, buy, feel, give, go, have, need, remember, see, stay, tell, throw, wait
1. If the shop is closed, ____ to the drugstore.
2. If you know anything about it, please ____ me.
3. If you are going to the kitchen, ____ me a plate.
4. ____ me a drink, if you have the money.
5. Lets ____ at home if you (not) ____ like going to the fair.
6. Lend him some money, if he ____ it.
7. If it is out of date, ____it away.
8. If you see Jane, ____ me to her.
9. If you see Jane, ____ her my love.
10. (not) ____ so stubborn if you want people to cooperate with you.
When the condition (if clause) seems less likely, or you want to be more
polite, should can be used.
If he should call, Ill arrange a meeting with him .
If you should see Mary, please tell her to give me a ring..
Should = by any chance
If is frequently omitted:
Should he come, Ill arrange a meeting with him.
Should you see Mary, please tell her to give me a ring.
Clauses beginning with unless (if not) are also a kind of conditional.
Unless is stronger than if not, almost a kind of threat. The main clause is often in
the negative:
I wont write unless you write first.
73
1. If you dont have a visa, you cant enter this country.
2. We wont hold a meeting if he doesnt come.
3. Nobody will speak to you if you dont apologize.
4. I shall forget it if I dont write it down.
5. The bank wont give you a loan if you dont have an account with them.
6. They wont give you the job if you dont know the language.
7. He cant wake up on time if he doesnt set his alarm clock.
Type 2 conditionals are also called potential conditionals because they describe
something that is possible, but not probable, the result of unlikely circumstances.
These sentences make a hypothesis which may be contrary to the fact in the present
with the past tense in the if clause and the conditional present in the main clause.
They have present or future time reference.
Exercises:
74
4. If he (not spend) so much money, he would have some at the end of the moth.
5. I would talk to him if he (apologize).
6. What would happen if I (touch) this button?
7. What would you do if someone (break) into your flat?
8. If you (go) by plane, how long would it take to get to Dublin?
9. Would the staff be happy if they (get) a rise in salary?
10. English (be) easier to speak if it (not have) irregular verbs.
11. I (buy) a new computer program if I (can) afford it.
12. If I (be) s member of the jury, I (choose) Miss Taiwan as Miss Universe.
B Put the verbs in brackets into the right tense. The following example will help you:
Would comes in the main clause as well as in the if-clause in the following cases:
1. if you want to be very polite:
If you would let us know immediately, we would be most obliged.
2. to express annoyance or a strong wish
If only you wouldnt be so rude, we wouldnt have so many complaints about
your work.
You would like Chinese food if only you would try it.
C Make the following sentences sound more polite. The following example will help
you:
If you help me, Ill be grateful
If you would help me, I would be grateful.
75
Unreal Conditional - Type 3
Type 3 conditionals are also called unreal conditional because they describe
something that never happened, the result of circumstances that never existed. Thus
they have the past time reference.
If you had come on time, the boss wouldnt have got angry.
If he had only tried harder, he should have succeeded.
If she had tried once more, she could have persuaded him to join us.
If I had been careful, I might not have fallen in love with the wrong person .
In a literary style, if can be omitted from the condition, so that the inversion is used
Had he only tried, he would have succeeded.
Had they known, they never would have made such a mistake.
Conditional can be introduced with other conjunctions besides if: even if, on
(the) condition that, provided (providing) that, suppose, supposing:
Exercises
1. If you (not tell) anyone else, Ill let you in on a secret. (provided that)
2. I cant go to the party if I (find) something suitable to wear. (even if)
3. I could do the crossword puzzle if I (have) a good dictionary. (provided that)
4. You cant have another helping of ice cream if there (be) enough to go around.
(even if)
5. We could redecorate our room if the shop (supply) all the wall paper we chose.
(on the condition that)
6. If you (lose) all your money, what would you do? (supposing)
7. If you (feel) ill, would you have gone to the concert? (suppose)
8. He can get an interpreters job if he (study) the language. (provided that)
9. Would you get a good mark if you (make) several spelling mistakes. (even if)
10. If I (be) short of money, would you lend me some? (supposing)
76
4. You didnt explain it to him. He (understand) if you (explain) it to him.
5. You didnt tell me you were coming. If you (tell) me you were coming, I (prepare)
dinner for you.
6. I liked the area where I lived. If I (not like) the area where I lived, I (move).
7. He stopped gambling. If he (not stop) gambling, he (lose) everything he had.
1. If John had driven that car, he (not do) ________ a thing like that.
2. It your mother were very old, she (not live) _______ alone.
3. If you went to the house, no doubt you (find) ________ him in the library.
4. If that man crosses my threshold, I (strike) ________ him across the face.
5. If we (be) _______ in doubt, he would explain it to us again.
6. If I had been sure you were still listening to those old records, I (not throw)
________ them away.
7. If it starts raining we (be) _______ compelled to take shelter.
8. We (be) _______ most grateful if you would sign the contract with us.
9. If it hadnt been for my wife, I (be) _______ asleep when the thief broke in.
77
10 Time Clauses
Adverbial clauses of time are introduced by whenever, when, as, as soon as,
as long as, by the time (that), before, while, after, (not) until, till, the moment, the
day, the time, the month, the year, immediately, now (that). An adverbial clause of
time tells us when something happens. If a time clause refers to the future, we use a
present or present perfect form:
Time clauses can be shortened by using a participle if the subject of the time
clause and the main clause are the same:
the present participle is used to denote two simultaneous actions:
As he was typing the letter, he realized there was somebody in the office.
Typing the letter, he realized there was somebody in the office.
the perfect participle is used to denote earlier action:
After he had done everything he was expected to, John sat down to rest.
Having done everything he was expected to, John sat down to rest.
In adverbial clauses of time referring to future, we use, as it is already said
above, we use one of the present tenses. In some sentences, there may be little
difference in meaning between the present simple and the present perfect in the time
clause:
I shall leave as soon as the meeting ends/has ended.
In other cases, however, there could be difference in meaning32. Thus the sentence
Come over and see us when our guests leave. suggests that the arrival of one
set of visitors will coincide with the leaving of the other, whereas the sentence
Come over and see us when our guests have left. clearly indicates that our
guests will no longer be with us when our visitors come.
Exercises
A Rewrite the sentences, using the imperative or a future form in one clause, and the
present perfect in the other33:
32
The difference in meaning is underlined by B. D. Graver,(1988:82-83).
33
The exercise is taken from B. D. Graver, Advanced English Practice, (1988), p.83.
78
2. (Not start) on Section 2 until you (complete) all the questions in Section 1.
________________________________________
3. (Not make up) your mind until you (have) a chance to give the matter some
thought. ____________________________________
4. I (be) ready for some lunch by the time I (finish) digging the garden.
________________________________________
5. Were going to Scotland next summer. It (be) the first time we (spend) a holiday
there. ______________________________________
6. You (get) used to our methods when you (work) here a bit longer. And once you
(get) used to our methods, you (find) the job a lot easier.
_______________________________________
7. As soon as we (trash out) this problem we (be able) to go ahead.
________________________________________
8. Please (not turn on) your mobile phone until after the plane (land).
________________________________________
34
The exercise is taken from G. Grba, K. Radovanovic, Better English 2, p.215.
79
11 Relative clauses
People Things
Subject who, (that) that (which)
Object (that) (that)
Preposition (that)preposition (that)preposition
Possessive whose of which (whose)
People Things
subject ,who, , which,
object , whom, ,which,
preposition ,preposition + whom, ,preposition + which,
(,who preposition) (,whichpreposition)
possessive , whose ,of which,
(,whose),
35
The table is taken from G. Grba, K. Radovanovic, (1995:210).
36
The table is taken from G. Grba, K. Radovanovic, Better English (1995:211).
80
Exercises
A Add the missing relative pronoun. Note that defining relative clauses are never
preceded by a comma in writing37:
B Link the sentences with a defining relative clause, omitting who or which where
possible:
37
The exercises B and C are taken from Thompson and Martinet, Exercises 2, (1987:92).
81
4. The girl.works in the box-office is my sister.
5. Im afraid thats all .Ive got.
6. The paint on the seat . you are sitting on is still wet.
7. The ties. my boy-friend wears are awful.
8. Any man . listens to you is a fool.
9. The old gentleman. lives across the road has got married for the fifth time.
10. The horse.you were telling me about yesterday came in last.
11. The man .you see at the desk is the secretary.
12. The girl. mother I was talking to has left the room.
13. This is the room. I first met my wife in.
14. All the people.I have ever met have disliked him.
15. Any paper. you read will give the same story.
Dear Carol,
Im having a great time here in Canada. It really is a beautiful country. Ive
got a room with a family. Im enclosing a photo of them _____ I took last week.
The girl _____ is holding the dog is the daughter, Tina. The mother is called
Sarah. Shes the one _____ is sitting on the left. Her husband, Roy, is the man in the
dark jacket. The boy _____ is sitting on the right is their thirteen-year-old son,
Dominic. Their other son, Richard, is standing between Tina and Roy. The dog is
called Rufus. Have you ever met a dog _____ liked ice cream? This one does. The
park _____ I took the photograph is quite near their house. Its beautiful round there!
E Use the chart below to write sentences about your stay in New York: non-defining
relative clauses with which and where:
82
1 Yesterday O went to Alfredos, which is an Italian restaurant in Uptown Manhattan.
2 ___________________________________________________________________
3 ___________________________________________________________________
4 Tomorrow Im going to Bloomingdales, which is a department store on Lexington
Avenue.
5 ___________________________________________________________________
6 ___________________________________________________________________
7 Last Saturday evening I went to a club in SoHo called The Factory, where you can
listen.
8 ___________________________________________________________________
9 ___________________________________________________________________
F Add the missing relative. Note that non-defining relative clauses are separated in
writing by a comma38:
1. The Pope, I had never heard before, spoke on the wireless last night.
2. He met my mother, from he got the news of my marriage.
3. The teacher in the next class, name I can never remember, makes a lot of noise.
4. The elephant, .is an animal that never that never forgets, lives more than a
hundred years.
5. My wife, toyou were speaking just now, wants you to come to dinner.
6. He is a famous scientist, aboutmany books have been written.
7. The chief of police, work is very important, takes care of the public safety.
8. Geometry, about I know nothing, seems a very dull subject.
9. The King, life has been devoted to his country, deserves his popularity.
10. My bank manager, withI was speaking yesterday, is concerned about the state
of my account.
11. Beethoven, music you have just been listening to, was one of the worlds finest
composers.
12. Your eldest son, I happened to meet just now, has become a remarkably
handsome boy.
13. The lark, has a very sweet song, builds its nest on the ground.
14. Chess, .is a very old game, is difficult to play.
15. Mme Curie, discovered radium, is one of the greatest women of our age.
G Look at the information given about the following people and join two facts with
a who clause to make a sentence.
38
Taken from Thompson and Martinet, Exercises 2, (1987:94).
83
4. MARGARET MEAD (1901 1978)
An anthropologist. Became famous through her studies of people in different
cultures.
5. MARTIN LUTER KING (1929 1968)
A black clergyman and civil rights leader. Won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964.
6. MARGARET BOURKE-WHITE (1904 1971)
The first woman photo journalist. Took photographs all over the world for Life
magazine.
1. Frank Lloyd Wright, who was an architect, designed the Guggenheim Museum in
New York.
2. Ernest Hemingway, .
3. George Gershwin,
4. Margaret mead,
5. Martin Luther King, .
6. Margaret Bourke-White, .
1. I dont like stories who have unhappy endings. stories that have
2. What was the name of the person who phoned you? Ok
3. Wheres the nearest shop who sells newspapers? ______________
4. The driver which caused the accident was fined 500. ______________
39
Taken from Thompson and Martinet, Exercises 2,(1987:93).
40
The exercise is taken from R.Murphy, (2005:185).
84
5. Do you know the person that took these photographs? ______________
6. We live in a world what is hanging all the time. ______________
7. Dan said some things about me that were not true. ______________
8. What was the name of the horse it won the race? ______________
J Put in that or what where necessary. If the sentence is already complete, leave the
space empty41:
1. I gave her all the money __-___ I had. (all the money that I had is also correct)
2. Did you hear what they said?
3. They gave their children everything ______ they want.
4. Tell me _____ you want and Ill try to get it for you.
5. Why do you blame me for everything _____ goes wrong?
6. I wont be able to do much, but Ill do _____ I can.
7. I wont be able to do much, but Ill do the best _____ I can.
8. I dont agree with _____ youve just said.
9. I dont trust him. I dont believe anything _____ he says.
K Complete each sentence using a relative clause with a preposition. Choose from
the box42:
We went to a party last night you can rely on Gery we were invited to a wedding
I work with some people I applied for a job you told me about a hotel
You were looking for some I saw you with a man
books
L Read the information and complete each sentence using either relative defining
or non-defining clause. Use commas where necessary43:
41
The exercise is taken from R.Murphy, (2005:187).
42
The exercise is taken from R.Murphy, (2005:187).
43
The exercise is taken from R.Murphy, (2005:191).
85
4. I was looking for a book this morning. Ive found it now.
Ive found _______________________________.
5. London was once the largest city in the world, but the population is now falling.
The population of London ______________________________________.
6. A job was advertised. A lot of people applied for it. Few of them had the necessary
qualifications.
Few of _________________________________.
7. Amy has a son. She showed me a photo of him. Hes a policeman.
Amy showed me _________________________.
86
12 Hypothetical meaning (Subjunctive)
Subjunctive is used to express the imaginary situations, states and actions like
wishes, suppositions, doubts, fears etc. There are three Subjunctive forms of the
verb44: The Present Subjunctive, the Past Subjunctive and the Past Perfect
Subjunctive.
The Present Subjunctive of all verbs other than the verb to be is identical with
the Simple Present Tense Indicative, except that the third person singular form is the
same as in all the other persons (i.e. without the s ending). The Present Subjunctive
form of to be is be for all persons.
The Past Subjunctive is identical with the Simple Past Tense Indicative, except
that the verb to be has were for all persons.
The Past Perfect Subjunctive is identical in form with the Past Perfect
Indicative.
The subjunctive forms are used in small number of constructions. The Present
Subjunctive is used:
- to express a wish or a prayer:
God save the Queen.
Heaven forbid that
Heaven help us.
Be that as it may
- after verbs expressing a will or wish for the future, and after verbs like propose,
suggest, ask, request, order, insist, command, demand etc. This is mainly in very
formal English, especially in legal English:
It is our wish that he do what he pleases.
I propose that the Secretarys resignation be accepted.
The King ordered that the man be released.
In this case the subjunctive is often replaced by the construction should + the
infinitive:
It is our wish that he should do what he pleases.
I propose that the Secretarys resignation should be accepted.
44
The subjunctive is described in C.E.Eckersley and J.M.Eckersley (1963:226-228).
87
He ran as if his life depended on it.
Its time we went home.
The Past Subjunctive is usually concerned with present time, the past tense is
used for something unreal or wished-for now.
Its a lovely day, I wish I were at the seaside now.
The Past Perfect Subjunctive is used to speak of the past time, i.e. when the
supposition or wish was all in the past:
If only I had know the answer yesterday!
It was a lovely day yesterday. I wish I had been at the seaside then.
Exercises:
A Wishful thinking about the present: complete the following sentences by choosing
the correct form of the verb in brackets:
B Wishful thinking about the past: use the information given to make wishes or
regrets:
88
D Imagine you are in these situations. For each situation, write a sentence with
I wish45:
1. Youve eaten so much and now you feel sick.
You say: I wish I hadnt eaten so much.
2. There was a job advertised in newspaper. You decided not to apply for it. Now you
regret that. You say: I wish ________________________
3. When you were younger, you never learned to play a musical instrument. Now you
regret this.
You say: _____________________________
4. You have invited too many people to the party. Now you think youre going to be
exhausted because there is nobody to help you prepare the food.
You say: _____________________________
5. You havent booked the tickets for your favourite concert in advance. Now you
realize they are all sold out.
You say: ____________________________.
45
The exercise is taken from R.Murphy, (2005:81).
46
The exercise is taken from R.Murphy, (2005:71).
47
Taken from Thompson and Martinet, Exercises 2, (1987:95)
89
G Fill in the gaps in the following sentences with a correct form of the verbs in
brackets. In some of the sentences there is more than one possibility:
1. I wish I ______ (study) harder. The exam is tomorrow and Ive only revised half
the course.
2. We wish you ______ (come) for Christmas. The rest of the family will all be here.
3. I wish I ______ (can/drive) a car.
4. I wish I ______ (have) a faster computer.
5. I wish you ______ (not do) that. It drives me crazy.
6. I wish you ______ (be) here. Youd love it!
7. I wish you ______ (tell) me the answer. Ill never guess.
8. I wish I ______ (know) more vocabulary. I keep forgetting the words for things.
9. If only I ______ (not do) that. Ill regret it for the rest of my life.
10.If only I ______ (can afford) that dress. It rally suits me.
11.Id rather we ______ (we/stay) at home tonight. Im a bit tired.
12.Id rather you ______ (not lend) him that book. It was a present from my
grandfather.
13.Its time you ______ (leave) for the airport. You have to check in two hours before
the time on your ticket.
14.Just suppose someone ______ (recognize) you. Theyll probably have reported you
to the police.
15.Suppose we ______ (arrive) a bit earlier. Then well be able to help Mary with the
food.
H Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence.
Use the word in bold and other words48:
48
Taken from Thompson and Martinet, Exercises 2, (1987:97)
90
13 Participles
49
The table and the use of participles are given in G.Grba, K.Radovanovic, (1995:83, 84).
91
to replace a main clause when two actions by the same subject occur
simultaneously, it is possible to express one of them by present participle/past
participle:
She walked away. She was smiling as she went. She walked away smiling.
He enters. He is accompanied by his friend. He enters accompanied by his
friend.
The perfect participle is used with two actions with the same subject, one
immediately following the other:
Having done all his work, he turned off the light and left the office.
In this case the perfect participle emphasizes that the first action is complete
before the second one starts.
in the absolute participle construction, in which the participle does not refer to the
subject of the main clause but has its own subject:
The holidays being over, we must get back to our studies.
Their homework done, the kids decided to go out and play.
in the causative use of have, i.e. have + object + past participle construction:
She had her hair cut last week.
When will you have the TV set repaired?
Exercises
A Complete the following sentences using the participles of the following verbs50:
follow, train, leave, expect, fascinate, boil, close, plan, increase, fry, take, do, know
50
The exercise is taken from G.Grba, K.Radovanovic (1995:83).
92
B Complete the following sentences with the appropriate form of the verb in brackets
Here, the past participle is used as an adjective51.:
C Complete the sentences for each situation. Use the word in brackets + -ing or-ed52:
D Make one sentence from two. Complete the sentences with an ing clause53:
51
The exercise is taken from G.Grba, K.Radovanovic (1995:85).
52
The exercise is taken from R.Murphy, (2005:197).
53
The exercises D and F are taken from R.Murphy, (2005:195).
93
E Make one sentence from two, beginning as shown. Each time make an ed clause.
94
14 Infinitive
Infinitives belong to the non-finite verb forms, together with participles. The forms of
infinitive are given in the following table54:
present infinitive to do
present continuous infinitive to be doing
perfect infinitive to have done
perfect continuous infinitive to have bee doing
present infinitive passive to be done
perfect infinitive passive to have been done
The perfect infinitive is formed of the verb to have and past participle:
to have worked, to have spoken
54
The table is taken from Thompson and Martinet, (1987:212).
55
The list is taken from Thompson and Martinet, (1987:214).
95
It is used56
with was/were to express unfulfilled plan or arrangement:
The house was to have been ready today. (but it isnt)
with should, would, might and could to form the perfect conditional:
If I had seen her I would have invited her.
with should and ought to express an unfulfilled obligation, or, in the negative, a
wrong or foolish action:
We should have invited her. (but we didnt)
I shouldnt have lied to them.
with could to express past unused ability or past possibility:
I could have made a lot of money. (but I didnt)
with might/could to indicate the speakers indignation or annoyance at the non-
performance of an action:
He might have told me! (I am annoyed that he didnt tell me)
with may/might in speculations about past actions:
He may/might have left. (It is possible that he (has) left)
with cant/couldnt to express negative deduction:
He cant/couldnt have moved the piano himself.
with must to express affirmative deduction:
He must have come this way, here are his footprints.
with neednt to express an unnecessary past action
You neednt have read that book. It was not on the reading list.
Exercises
1. The boys were happy ____ (take) to the lake for a swim. (present, passive)
2. They were lucky ____ (forgive) for their rude behaviour. (present, passive)
3. They were delighted ____ (see) each other again. (present, active)
4. We expect ____ (see) our friend next weekend. (continuous)
5. Joan was delighted ____ (obtain) a new job so soon. (perfect, active)
6. We hope ____ (spend) a week or so in the mountains. (continuous)
7. She must ____ (warn) about the danger of pickpockets. (present, passive)
8. They could ____ (leave) earlier but they werent ready. (perfect)
9. We plan ____ (travel) in Europe next summer. (continuous)
10.He should ____ (punish) for misconduct. (perfect, passive)
11.She made the children ____ (practice) the song again. (present, active)
12.I might ____ (go) to the rock concert tonight. (continuous)
13.They are ____ (bring) money for the excursion. (present, active)
14.They were proud ____ (select) for the basketball team. (perfect passive)
56
The use is given in Thompson and Martinet, (1987:226, 227).
57
The exercises from A to E are taken from G.Grba, K.Radovanovic (1995:87-97).
96
B Use the adjectives from the box with the given verbs to complete the sentences.
Here is an example: I was sorry to hear that you were ill.
C Make sentences using the words in brackets. The first one has been don for you:
D Use the following words to complete these sentences. The first one has been done
for you:
first man/walk last person/see last one/ leave
first person/ complain first skier/reach last/arrive
first/help first student/finish
97
3. The police drove faster. They wanted to catch up with the other car.
4. Norma typed very slowly. She didnt want to make any mistakes.
5. He made a fire in the stove. He wanted to heat the room.
6. They took their vacation in September. They wanted to avoid the crowds.
7. He made a fire in the stove. He wanted to heat the room.
8. You must stay at home with the flu. You dont want to get any complications.
9. The Browns stopped at the roadside caf. They needed to have a rest and some
refreshment.
F After the modals the present infinitive refers to present time, and the perfect
infinitive refers to past time. Use the suitable modal and the perfect infinitive of the
verbs in brackets in the following sentences. In some cases more than one answer is
possible:
98
15 Gerund
Form:
present perfect
active taking having taken
passive being taken having been taken
Some verbs can be followed by an infinitive or a gerund: begin, bear (cant bear),
continue, forget, hate, intend, like, love, learn, need, omit, prefer, regret, remember,
stop, start, try.
In some cases, generally verbs expressing feelings (like, live, hate) there is very
little difference in meaning, only that the infinitive suggests momentary action while
the gerund suggests continuing action59:
I like singing I like to sing.
I love dancing I love to dance.
In other cases there is considerable difference:
I remember going to the post office. (I did this)
Remember to go to the post office. (you should do this)
Ill never forget dancing with him. (I danced with him)
Dont forget to dance with him. (You should dance with him)
She stopped talking. (She was no longer talking)
She stopped to talk with her neighbour. (She stopped what she was
58
The use of gerund is given in G.Grba, K.Radovanovic (1995:100).
59
This difference in meaning is given in G.Grba, K.Radovanovic (1995:108).
99
doing so she could talk.)
I now regret having been so unkind. (I was unkind)
We regret to inform you that your son has had an accident. (A polite
way of giving bad news)
Exercises
A Gerund is used after certain verbs followed by prepositions. Some of these verbs
are: accuse of, approve of, apologize for, congratulate on, decide against, dream of,
forgive for, insist on, object to, prevent from, stop from, succeed in, suspect of, think
about/of, warn against. Complete the following sentences using gerund.
C Join the following pairs of sentences using a gerund with or without the possessive
form of a personal pronoun as necessary:
100
3. He is always late. I dont mind it.
4. They treated us well. We never forgot it.
5. I get up early. I never like it.
6. He helped me. I appreciate it.
7. He always gets to class late. She doesnt approve of it.
8. She stayed up late. They objected to it.
9. I fell off my chair. Can you imagine this?
10.I go out alone at night. My parents dislike this.
11.He got into trouble. We were afraid of this.
12.Please excuse me. I am late.
60
The exercise is taken from R.Murphy, (2005:113).
101
16 Adverbs
Adverbs, like adjectives, are modifiers. They modify or add to the meaning of verbs,
adjectives or other adverbs, for example:
He drives quickly. (modifying a verb)
His work isnt good enough. (modifying an adjective)
She plays extremely well. (modifying an adverb)
Some adverbs are single words: yet, down, too, then; some are derived from adjectives
by the addition of a sufix: quickly, smoothly, carefully; and again some others are
formed from two words: anywhere, however, sometimes.
Adverbs are classified according to their meaning61, i.e. according to the way
in which they answer questions asking when, where, how an action is done into:
adverbs of manner (they express how an action is done)
She did it perfectly.
Every soldier fought bravely.
adverbs of time (expressing when an action is/was/will be done)
Ill do it tomorrow.
We met years ago.
Adverbs of time commonly used are: after(wards), already, before, immediately,
late(ly), once, presently, shortly, soon, still, today (romorrow, tonight), when,
yesterday, yet.
Adverbs of frequency also belong to adverbs of time: always, often, frequently,
sometimes, occassionally etc. These adverbs answer the question how often.
adverbs of place (expressing where an action is/was/will be done)
Ill be waiting here.
Ive looked everywhere for my umbrella.
adverbs of degree (answering the question to what degree/extent)
Are you quite sure we are on the right track?
Thats all right.
Adverbs of degree are not generally used with verbs; they are used with adjectives or
other verbs: very good, quite sure, all right, tooquickly, nearly there...
interrogative adverbs, which are used in questions:
How did you get there?
Why did she say that?
adverbs of quantity, amount and number
Helen knows little about it.
She has won the championship twice.
relative adverbs (when they are used to introduce a clause)
I remeber the day when she told me she was leaving.
That is the room where he used to paint during summer months.
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This classification is given by C.E. Eckersley and J.M. Eckersley (1963: 252).
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adverbs of more than one syllable form their comparative by using more , and
their superlative by most:
quickly more quicly most quickly
carefully more carefully most carefully
some adverbs have irregular comparison:
well better best
little less least
much more most
badly worse worst
far farther farthest (of distance only)
further furthest (used more widely)
Many adverbs do not have degrees of comparison, for example: here, there, now,
then, once, very etc.
With verbs like taste, smell, feel an adjective, not and adverb is used:
The milk tastes sour. The rose smells sweet. The fur feels soft.
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The two tables come from C.E. Eckersley and J.M. (1963: 255-259).
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Exercises adverbs
clear, early, fair, slow, fast, high, hard, late, loud, wide
1. The ____ bird catches the worm.
2. ____ weve had a serious of natural disasters.
3. Drive ____ if you dont want to have an accident.
4. Can a sparrow fly as ____ as an eagle?
5. Chuck was taken off the team beacuse he didnt play ____.
6. If you want me to understand you must speak more ____ .
7. On ____ days I can____ see the planes on the airfield.
8. Mary had ____ any money left when she finished shopping.
9. We need employees who are ____ trained and reliable.
10 The skiers were coming down the slope ____ . We got out of the way quickly.
11Keep ____ of the machinery. You might get hurt.
12If you want to succeed, you must try ____ .
13 Youre never on time. You always come ____.
14We could ____ walk when our feet sank deep into the snow.
B64 Read the sentences and circle the right form, adverb or adjective:
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The exercise is taken from Grba, G. and Radovanovic, K. (1995:146).
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The exercise is taken from www.englishpage.com
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the fire.
11. We (gradual/gradually) noticed changes in Diane's personality; she became
(quiet/quietly) and withdrawn from her friends and family. We finally realized that
we had to do something about her drinking problem before it was too late.
12. Nicole grew (tired/tiredly) from the hours of overtime at work. It became quite
(obvious/obviously) that she needed a long vacation.
13. The tomato plants grew (quick/quickly) in the rich soil. Mrs. Burdon intended to
use the home grown tomatoes to make her (delicious/deliciously) tempting
lasagna.
14. Mr. Reed (generous/generously) donated $1,000,000 to the law school's
scholarship fund. With this money, they will be able to help low-income students
cope with the (increasing/increasingly) cost of education.
15. Tim is (good/well) known for his sense of humor. Last Saturday, when he told the
joke about the fireman and the school teacher, everybody there started laughing
(uncontrollable/uncontrollably).
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REFERENCES
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