Pages

Monday, 21 October 2024

Grammar - Adverbs of frequency



USES:

They are used to say how often an action is done.

POSITION:

They go AFTER the verb to be but BEFORE other verbs.










Links to exercises: 






Tuesday, 14 May 2024

Future Simple





Will and shall are two modal verbs used to show the future tense .
  • Shall is used to indicate a promise or a threat , while will can be used for making promises or threats
  • Both help in talking about present, as well.

Future simple with “ Will “


The most basic and common form used to express the future is ‘will’. The structure of ‘will’ is easy because it is the same for all subjects and you don’t need to change anything about the verb.


Future simple with “ shall”
We can also use “shall” to create the future simple tense . However, we typically only use “shall” with the “I” and “we” forms. We rarely use shall with “you,” “he,” “she,” “it,” and “they .” The structure of ‘shall’ is the same like ‘will’, you don’t need to change anything about the verb.

Examples :
• I shall be there soon.
• We shall not arrive before noon.
• What shall we do today ?
• Shall we take the bus or drive?
• It’s cold. Shall I close the window?


ATTENTION:

In Simple Future Tense, we do not add any suffixes like –s, ed, etc. at the end of the verbs. We use will/shall as an auxiliary verb with first forms of the verbs after the subjects. (For “will” and “shall” without separating the subjects as singular or plural – the rule applies to all subjects in the same way)

CONTRACTIONS:

For “WILL”;

will –> ‘ll    Ex: I‘ll come back.

will not –> won’t   Ex: I won’t study.

For “SHALL”

shall not –> shan’t  Ex: We shan’t make any agreement.


FUTURE TENSE WITH “SHALL”

The use of shall as an auxiliary verb has been greatly reduced in recent times. We see it only in formal writings. However, we can use or see “shall” as stated below.

Shall” is mainly used to make an offer and a suggestion or to ask for advice with subjects “I“ and “We”in questions.

Examples:

  • Shall I open the window? ( offer )
  • Shall we go to the theatre tonight? ( suggestion )
  • What shall I wear? ( advice )
  • What shall I tell her? ( advice )


Saturday, 6 April 2024

Difference between if I was and if I were

 




I was

PAST

We use “I was” or “If I was” when we talk about real things that actually happened in the past.



Examples:

  1.  When I was 10 years old, I used to play soccer every day.
  2.  I was really happy to hear that you passed your test yesterday.
  3.  My high school teachers would give me extra homework if I was late for class.
  4.  I apologize if I was rude. I didn’t mean it.
  5.  I’m very sorry if I wasn’t clear enough.

I were



HYPOTHETICAL SITUATIONS & WISHES

We use the phrase “If I were” when we want to talk about unreal or hypothetical situations (second conditional). We also use it when we are wishing for something. It’s called the subjunctive mood.

SECOND CONDITIONAL
  1. If I were rich, I would buy a house in Dubai.
  2. If I were you, I wouldn’t do that.
  3. I wouldn’t work every day if I weren’t a police officer.
  4. I would be more active if I were younger.
  5. If he were taller, he could play basketball.


NOTE: with heshe and it we can use was (instead of were) in informal speaking

Example: If she was here, she’d know what to do.

WISH
  1.  I wish I were able to run 20 km
  2.  I wish I were a doctor.
  3.  I wish I were 20 years old again.
  4.  She wishes she were a top model.
  5.  He wishes he were richer.








Second Conditional




We use the second conditional to talk about hypothetical or imaginary situations in the present or future.

In the if-clause we use simple past or past continuous.

In the other clause (consequence/result), we can use wouldcould or might.


Form: IF + SUBJECT + PAST SIMPLE,  WOULD + INFINITIVE VERB

 "IF   I    WON    A FREE PLANE TICKET, I WOULD   GO TO JAPAN"

-Negative: IF + SUBJECT + DIDN'T + INFINITIVE, WOULD(N'T) + INFINITIVE VERB

   "IF I DIDN'T WORK SO MUCH, I WOULDN'T BE SO TIRED"

-Questions: IF + SUBJECT PAST SIMPLE, (QUESTION WORD) WOULD + SUBJECT + INFINITVE

   "IF YOU COULD TRAVEL ANYWHERE, WHERE WOULD YOU GO?"

For the verb be, we usually start our sentence with If + subject + were

For examples:

If I were rich, I’d buy a Ferrari

If he werewas rich, he’d buy a Porsche.

When we want to give advice, we always use If I were …

Examples:

If I were you, I wouldn’t go there.

If I were you, I’d travel to Brazil instead of Australia.


Things to note!

-Past simple ALWAYS follows 'IF'

-You can change the order of the clauses e.g.

"I would go to Japan if I won a free plane ticket"

-'COULD' can replace 'WOULD' to make the situation less probable







First Conditional








Do these exercises:

Exercise 1: Match the condition and the results to create conditional sentences.
Exercise 2: Read the sentences and choose the best option.
Exercise 3: Fill in the gaps with the right option.
Exercise 4: Choose the right option.
Exercise 5: Complete the sentences using FUTURE or PRESENT SIMPLE.
Exercise 6: Complete the sentences using FUTURE or PRESENT SIMPLE.
Exercise 7: Complete the sentences using PRESENT SIMPLE and FUTURE.-