Video A

Introduction to answering No to questions with Have Never Been + Noun, Adj, Prep.
Phrase

Hello and welcome

to your MES eLesson.
I'm Natalie.
Today you’re going
to learn
the what, the how and the when of answering
Have Never Been questions negatively
by using
Have Never Been + Noun, Adjective or Prepositional Phrase.
Let’s start with “WHAT.” <What are negative
Have Never Been + Noun, Adjective and Prepositional Phrase statements and
answers used for?>

They are used to

talk about something
that did not happen
before now, at
an non-specific time
in the past, for example,

“I’ve never been to Hong Kong before”.

This example means

that you have never had
the experience in your lifetime.
We use “never” for emphasis.

Good. Now, let’s learn “HOW.” <How do you use negative Have Never Been + Noun, Adj,
Prep. Phrase statements and answers?>
<1. Know your conjugation>
First, know how
to conjugate
“have” + “never” + “been”,
using contractions.
If you want to talk about yourself, please repeat:

No, I’ve never been

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If you want to talk about me,
No, you’ve never been
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If you want to talk about Sean,
No, he’s never been
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If you want to talk about Josie,
No, she’s never been
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If you want to talk about us,
No, we’ve never been
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-
If you want to talk about them,
No, they’ve never been
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It’s very important
to memorize this
conjugation fluently
before you start
practicing Video B.

<2. Know your nouns, adjectives, and prepositional phrases>

Next, know your nouns, adjectives and
prepositional phrases,
and really study your vocabulary.
For example,
I’ve never been:
a successful singer.
wiped out.
out of touch.

<3. Know how to build a statement or answer>

Finally, to build a more specific answer,
you can use a time reference, for example,
“I’ve never been to Seoul Station before.”
However, you can only use “before,” “during” “while”
and “after”
as time references
with Have Never Been.

You can also use a prepositional phrase, for example;

“I’ve never been to Seoul Station during rush hour”.

So, finally, <when do you use negative Have Never Been + Noun, Adj, Prep. Phrase
statements and answers?>

You use them to talk

about lack of experience
and
share interesting
information about the past.
Excellent!
<motion> Quick Review
Now, let’s review!
First, <What are negative Have Never Been + Noun, Adjective, Prep. Phrase statements and
answers used for?>
They are used for
talking about past experiences that did not ever happen.
Second, <How do you use negative Have Never Been + Noun, Adjective, Prepositional
Phrase statements and answers?>

You use them by

knowing the conjugation
of Have been,
and building a
more specific
statement or answer
with the
vocabulary,
prepositional phrases,
and time references.

Third, <When do
you use negative Have Never Been + Noun, Adjective, Prepositional Phrase statements or
answers?>

You use
them to talk about the past and also to show interest
in people’s experiences.

Well done! Let’s move

on to Video B to really practice making a
variety of
your own statements and answers!
Remember to
keep on reviewing your vocabulary.
I'm Natalie and
I look forward to
seeing you soon.

Video B

Practicing answering No with Have Never Been + Noun, Adj, Prep. Phrase.

Hi and welcome back

to your MES eLesson.
I’m Natalie.
Now that
you understand
the concept of
answering questions negatively with
Have Never Been + Noun, Adjective,
Prepositional Phrase,
let’s really practice.
Before we begin,
let's review the
conjugation that you
learned in Video A.
Please repeat after
me and remember to
focus on your
pronunciation and conversation speed.

No, I’ve never been

-
-
Good, let’s do it faster.
No, I’ve never been
-
-
Excellent.
No, you’ve never been
-
-
Good, let’s speed it up again.
No, you’ve never been
-
-
Good, that’s the speed
you should use in order
to speak fluently.
Let’s continue.
No, he’s never been
-
-
No, she’s never been
-
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No, we’ve never been
-
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No, they’ve never been
-
-
Great! You need to memorize
this conjugation
for fluency.
Let’s move on.
Let’s build
a full answer with
the prepositional phrase
"on a blind date.”
Please repeat after me.

No, I’ve never been on a blind date.

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No, you’ve never been on a blind date.
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Now, let’s work on your speed and do that one again.

No, you’ve never been on a blind date.

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He’s never been on a blind date.
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Excellent, now let’s add
the preposition “before”. Please repeat.

No, she’s never been on a blind date before.

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No, we’ve never been on a blind date before.
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No, they’ve never been on a blind date before.
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Great! Let’s start practicing.
This time, let’s
practice changing the
subject and
using the same
prepositional phrase
“on a blind date” plus
"before".
Please read and
listen first, and then
answer the question.

Have you ever been on a blind date before?

Please answer.
-
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Good job! <motion> Remember you have to
work on your speed.
Please repeat:

No, I’ve never been on a blind date before.

-
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Has Hillary?
-
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No, she’s never been on a blind date before.
Please repeat.
-
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Good job. Now let’s practice changing to the adjective “fired”.

<motion> Have you ever been fired before?

Please answer.
-
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Excellent! No, I’ve never been fired before. Please repeat.
-
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Good! Has Nate?
Please answer.
-
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No, he’s never been fired before. Please repeat.
-
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Great! Have you ever been a substitute teacher before?
-
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Good! Remember to
work on your intonation. Please repeat.

No, I’ve never been a substitute teacher before.

-
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What about your cousin, Danny?
-
-
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Good! No, he’s never been a substitute teacher before. Please repeat again.
-
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Great! Now let’s
make a more specific question by adding a new prepositional phrase.

Have you ever been a substitute teacher for a middle school before?
Please answer.
-
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Very nice! No, I’ve never been a substitute teacher
for a middle school before.

Please repeat.
-
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Great! Has your friend, Kathleen, ever been guilty
of slacking off at work?
-
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No, she’s never been guilty of slacking off at work. Please repeat.
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Great job! Let’s practice with the noun “an appeaser”
plus the prepositional
phrase
“to the management.”

Has Merry ever been an appeaser to the management?

-
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No, he’s never been an appeaser to the management.
Please repeat.
-
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Good. Now let’s practice some modern English.
“an appeaser” can also
be said as
“a yes man.”
Remember, speed
and intonation
are important when
you use slang!
Ready?

Has Merry ever been a yes man to the management?

Please answer.
-
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No, he’s never been a yes man to the management. Please repeat.
-
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Follow my intonation, repeat after me:
He’s never been a yes man to the management.
-
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Excellent. Now let's try
using another prepositional
phrase.

Have you ever been a yes man in order to get a promotion? Please answer.
-
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No, I’ve never been a yes man in order to get a promotion. Please repeat.
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Let's try a prepositional phrase.
Has Ernest ever been a bore in a group?
Please answer.
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No, he’s never been a bore in a group. Please repeat.
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Great! Let’s learn the slang
for “a bore”:
“a drag” and change
the prepositional phrase.
Ready?

Have Karen and Juliet ever been drags during a party?

Please answer.
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No, they’ve never been drags during a party. Please repeat.
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Great! Let’s use the
adjective
“unable to speak” and change the prepositional
phrase again.

Has Kathy ever been unable to speak at a presentation?

Please answer.
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Good work! No, she’s never been unable to speak at a presentation.
Please repeat.
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Great! So, for the last one,
let’s learn the slang
for “unable to speak:” “tongue-tied.” Ready?

Has Kathy ever been tongue-tied in front of a crowd?

Please answer.
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Well Done! No, she’s never been tongue-tied in front of a crowd.
Please repeat.
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Great! Please practice
with this video until
you are able to answer
questions fluently!

Remember, by changing
the prepositional phrases and time references
on your own,
you will be able to speak fluent English.