Tag questions

A tag question is a question added at the end of a sentence. A tag question following an affirmative statement generally has the form of a negative question, with the meaning: Isn't that true? In some languages, such tag questions are invariable. However, in English, tag questions vary, depending on the verbs and subjects of the preceding statements.

In the following examples, the tag questions are underlined. Contractions are usually used in negative tag questions. For example:

Affirmative statement

Are you not awake?
I am awake.
You are awake.
She is awake.
We are awake.
They are awake.

Affirmative statement with tag question

Aren't you awake?
I am awake, am I not?
You are awake, aren't you?
She is awake, isn't she?
We are awake, aren't we?
They are awake, aren't they?


These examples illustrate how the subjects and verbs of the preceding statements are repeated in tag questions. For instance, in the first example, the subject I and the verb am are repeated in the tag question. In the second example, the subject you and the verb are are repeated in the tag question.

In spoken English, the expression aren't I? is often used as a tag question. However, this is not considered to be grammatically correct in formal, written English.

The use of All, Both and Each

In addition to being used as attributive adjectives and as pronouns followed by of, the words all, both and each can also be used in apposition. A word used in apposition immediately follows the subject of a verb, or the object of a verb or preposition, and refers to the same thing as the subject or object. In the following examples, the words in apposition are printed in bold type.
e.g. We both wondered what would happen next.
The boys all looked forward to seeing the circus.
I sent them each an invitation.

In the first two examples, both and all are used in apposition to the subjects we and the boys. In the third example, each is used in apposition to the object them.

Words used in apposition can be referred to as appositives. Like relative clauses, appositives can be defining or non-defining. Non-defining appositives must be preceded and followed by commas.

e.g. Our leader, Tom Smith, was prepared for any emergency.
In this example Tom Smith is a non-defining appositive, in apposition to our leader.

Defining appositives such as all, both and each are not preceded and followed by commas.

e.g. We each have our own ideas.
In this example, the defining appositive each is in apposition to we. It should be noted that although each is singular, the verb have must be plural to agree with the subject we.

When used in clauses with auxiliary verbs or with the Simple Present or Simple Past of the verb to be, all, both and each generally follow the first auxiliary or the verb to be, rather than being used in apposition to the subject of the verb.

e.g. The boys had all been looking forward to seeing the circus.
We are both very happy to see you.
In the first example, all follows the first auxiliary had. In the second example, both follows the Simple Present of the verb to be.

Reading Practice (1)

The pioneers of the teaching of science imagined that its
introduction into education would remove the conventionality,
artificiality, and backward-lookingness which were characteristic;
of classical studies, but they were gravely disappointed. So, too, in
5 their time had the humanists thought that the study of the classical
authors in the original would banish at once the dull pedantry and
superstition of mediaeval scholasticism. The professional
schoolmaster was a match for both of them, and has almost
managed to make the understanding of chemical reactions as dull
10 and as dogmatic an affair as the reading of Virgil's Aeneid.
The chief claim for the use of science in education is that it
teaches a child something about the actual universe in which he is
living, in making him acquainted with the results of scientific
15 discovery, and at the same time teaches him how to think logically
and inductively by studying scientific method. A certain limited
success has been reached in the first of these aims, but practically
none at all in the second. Those privileged members of the
community who have been through a secondary or public school
20 education may be expected to know something about the
elementary physics and chemistry of a hundred years ago, but they
probably know hardly more than any bright boy can pick up from
an interest in wireless or scientific hobbies out of school hours.
As to the learning of scientific method, the whole thing is palpably
25 a farce. Actually, for the convenience of teachers and the
requirements of the examination system, it is necessary that the
pupils not only do not learn scientific method but learn precisely
the reverse, that is, to believe exactly what they are told and to
reproduce it when asked, whether it seems nonsense to them or
30 not. The way in which educated people respond to such quackeries
as spiritualism or astrology, not to say more dangerous ones such
as racial theories or currency myths, shows that fifty years of
education in the method of science in Britain or Germany has
produced no visible effect whatever. The only way of learning the
35 method of science is the long and bitter way of personal
experience, and, until the educational or social systems are altered
to make this possible, the best we can expect is the production of a
minority of people who are able to acquire some of the techniques
of science and a still smaller minority who are able to use and
40 develop them.
Adapted from: The Social Function of Science, John D Bernal (1939)


1. The author implies that the 'professional schoolmaster' (line 7) has
A. no interest in teaching science
B. thwarted attempts to enliven education
C. aided true learning
D. supported the humanists
E. been a pioneer in both science and humanities.

2. The author’s attitude to secondary and public school education in the sciences is
A. ambivalent
B. neutral
C. supportive
D. satirical
E. contemptuous

3. The word ‘palpably’ (line 24) most nearly means
A. empirically
B. obviously
C. tentatively
D. markedly
E. ridiculously

4. The author blames all of the following for the failure to impart scientific method through the education system except
A. poor teaching
B. examination methods
C. lack of direct experience
D. the social and education systems
E. lack of interest on the part of students

5. If the author were to study current education in science to see how things have changed since he wrote the piece, he would probably be most interested in the answer to which of the following questions?
A. Do students know more about the world about them?
B. Do students spend more time in laboratories?
C. Can students apply their knowledge logically?
D. Have textbooks improved?
E. Do they respect their teachers?

6. Astrology (line 31) is mentioned as an example of
A. a science that needs to be better understood
B. a belief which no educated people hold
C. something unsupportable to those who have absorbed the methods of science
D. the gravest danger to society
E. an acknowledged failure of science

7. All of the following can be inferred from the text except
A. at the time of writing, not all children received a secondary school education
B. the author finds chemical reactions interesting
C. science teaching has imparted some knowledge of facts to some children
D. the author believes that many teachers are authoritarian
E. it is relatively easy to learn scientific method

"Rather"

A) We use rather as an adverb of degree:

Modifying an adjective:

• The film was rather good.


Modifying an adverb:

• It happened rather quickly.


Notes:

1. It is stronger than fairly, but not as strong as very.

2. It can modify a noun, often coming before the article:

3. It's rather a problem.

4. It can modify some verbs: I rather like it.

B) To express preference

Rather than:

Rather than is normally used to compare parallel structures:

• Let's take the train rather than the bus.

• Rather you than me!

• I decided to write rather than email.


Would rather:

Would rather + infinitive without 'to':

• I'd rather leave now.

Would rather + pronoun + past tense:

• I'd rather he came early.

Used to

Used to do

We use 'used to' for something that happened regularly in the past but no longer happens.

•I used to smoke a packet a day but I stopped two years ago.
•Ben used to travel a lot in his job but now, since his promotion, he doesn't.
•I used to drive to work but now I take the bus.
We also use it for something that was true but no longer is.

•There used to be a cinema in the town but now there isn't.
•She used to have really long hair but she's had it all cut off.
•I didn't use to like him but now I do.

'Used to do' is different from 'to be used to doing' and 'to get used to doing'

to be used to doing

We use 'to be used to doing' to say that something is normal, not unusual.

•I'm used to living on my own. I've done it for quite a long time.
•Hans has lived in England for over a year so he is used to driving on the left now.
•They've always lived in hot countries so they aren't used to the cold weather here.

to get used to doing

We use 'to get used to doing' to talk about the process of something becoming normal for us.

•I didn't understand the accent when I first moved here but I quickly got used to it.
•She has started working nights and is still getting used to sleeping during the day.
•I have always lived in the country but now I'm beginning to get used to living in the city.

Say or Tell?

Say and tell have similar meanings. They both mean to communicate verbally with someone. But we often use them differently.

The simple way to think of say and tell is:

* You say something
* You tell someone something

More Examples:
You say something
You tell someone something
Ram said that he was tired.
Ram told Jane that he was tired.
Anthony says you have a new job.
Anthony tells me you have a new job.
Tara said: "I love you."
Tara told John that she loved him.

But, of course, it is not always so easy. Here are a few rules to help you.

Personal object
We usually follow tell with a personal object (the person that we are speaking to). We usually use say without a personal object:

* She told me that she loved John.
* She said that she loved John.
* He told everybody that he had to leave.
* He said that he had to leave.

Say "to someone"
With say, we sometimes use "to someone":

* He said to me that he was tired.
* Tara said to Ram that he had done very well.
* Anthony said to her, "I hope you come soon."
* "I'd like to sleep," she said to him quietly.

Direct speech
We can use say with direct speech. We use tell only with direct speech that is an instruction or information:

* Amanda said, "Hello John. How are you?"
* "That's great'" she said.
* He told her: "Open the door quietly."
* She told me, "I have never been to England."

We can use say with direct questions, but we cannot use tell:

* She said: "Do you love me?"
* The policeman said to the prisoner, "Where were you at 8pm?"

Reported speech
We can use say and tell to talk about reported information:

* She said that it was raining.
* She told me that she would call at 2pm.

We cannot use say or tell to talk about reported questions. We must use ask (or a similar verb):

* She asked if I had ever been there.
* They asked what I wanted to eat.
* She asked where he lived.
* He asked if she wanted to go home.

Orders, advice
We use tell + object + infinitive for orders or advice:

* She told him to sit down.
* They told me not to wait.
* Tell Neil to have a holiday and forget her.

Phrases
Here are a few fixed phrases with tell. We cannot use say with these phrases:

* tell (someone) a story
* tell (someone) a lie
* tell (someone) the truth
* tell the future (= to know what the future will bring)
* tell the time (= know how to read a clock)

Right and wrong
Read these examples of correct and incorrect usage:

Causative Verbs

When a subject does not do a work himself/herself, and takes the help of some other person or force that person to do that work, then we need to form a sentence with the help of a causative verb.

1. GET
Use get according to tense, B. Place object after the causative verb, C. Main verb always in 3rd form::

CV + Object + V 3rd (main verb).

1. I have got the sums solved.
2. She will get the letter written by Ravi.
3. Are you getting your house pained?

2. MAKE
Use make according to tense, 2. Object is the person who is compelled, 3. Main verb always in first form::

CV + Object + V 1st form (main verb)

1. He made me laugh.
2. She made the children clean the room.
3. Who is making her cry?
4. Please don't make him tell a lie.

3. HELP
Use help according to tense, 2. Object is the person who is helped, 3. Main verb always in first form::

CV + Object + V 1st form (main verb).
(In these sentences a person is helped to do a certain things).

1. Help the guests wash their hands.
2. She helped the children do the work.

4. HAVE

(Same as get in use and meaning)

1. I have had the sums solved.
2. He will have the letter written by Merry.
3. They had the tiger killed by the hunter.

5. KEEP

CV + Object (person) + V 1st form + ing.
There is generally a period of time in these sentences.

1. They kept her washing the clothes for 2 hours. (They compelled her to wash the clothes for 2 hours)
2. Did you kept him waiting for one hour?

6. CAUSE

CV + Object (person) + V 1st form.
Instead of a person there are circumstances, things etc. which compel a person to do a certain thing.

1. Fatigue caused him to sleep. (Due to fatigue he slept)
2. Does poverty cause people to commit crime?

Preposition Usage

* Place (in, on, under, over, near, beside, etc.)

“Your book is on the table.”

* Direction (to, toward, into, through, etc.)

“The football player ran through the stadium to the other end.”

* Time (in, on, at, etc.)

“We can meet at five o’clock.”

* Agent (by)

“This book was written by a famous author.”

* Instrument (by, with)

“I heard the news by television. (Communication)

“She came by bus.” (Transportation)

“He opened the door with a key.” (Instrument or tool)

TIP:

We use by + no article for communication and transportation.

Examples: by phone, by radio, and by bus, by car

* Accompaniment (with)

“I like spaghetti with white sauce.”

“Mrs. Vajiona went to Thassos Island with her husband Georgios.”

* Purpose (for)

“He went to the store for milk and bread.

TIP:

Never, Never use for + verb + ing to express the purpose of the verb.

Example: “He went to the store for buying milk and bread.” This is wrong usage and a common mistake!

* Partition / Possession (of)

“They painted the front of the building white and green.”

“He broke the top of the table with his fist.”

* Measure (by, of)

“We buy our olive oil by the 16 kilo container.”

“Please buy a quart of milk from the market.”

* Similarity (like)

“Mary walks like her mother.”

* Capacity (as)

“Bill worked as a fireman until a year ago.”

Glossary of English Grammatical Terms - 3

Preposition
Prepositions indicate relationships between different parts of the sentence. Common prepositions are:

from, toward, in, about, over, above, under, at, below

Examples:
Clouds are over the earth and below the moon.
John went toward the mountain at 3:00 O'clock.

Pronoun
Pronouns are words used instead of a noun.

Demonstrative pronouns are this, that, and such.

Example:
That is pretty.

Pronouns like who and which are interrogative pronouns when they introduce questions.

Example:
Which is pretty?

Pronouns like who and which are called relative pronouns when they introduce clauses.

Example:
The flower, which is on the table, is pretty.

Indefinite pronouns are each, either, some, any, many, few, and all.

Example:
Some are pretty.

Direct Object & Indirect Object

few English verbs, such as to describe, to distribute, to explain and to say, can take an indirect object only when the indirect object is preceded by a preposition. In the following examples, the direct objects are printed in bold type, and the indirect objects are underlined.
e.g. He described his experiences to the reporters.
They distributed the leaflets to their friends.
We explained the situation to the participants.
She said something to her teacher.

These verbs cannot take an indirect object which immediately follows the verb. One reason for this may be to avoid creating sentences which are ambiguous or confusing. For instance, a sentence which began with the words He described the reporters... would create the impression that it was the reporters who were being described. When the reporters is preceded by the preposition to, there is no ambiguity.

Indirect objects

In addition to taking direct objects, some verbs also take indirect objects. In the following examples, the direct objects are printed in bold type, and the indirect objects are underlined.
e.g. We gave the child a toy.
I sent the man the information.

In these examples, the words child and man are said to be the indirect objects of the verbs gave and sent. Indirect objects refer to things which receive indirectly the actions described by the verbs. In the above examples, the words toy and information are the direct objects of the verbs.

Indirect objects usually refer to living things.

It is possible for a sentence containing an indirect object to be rewritten by placing a preposition before the indirect object. When this is done, the original indirect object can be regarded either as the indirect object of the verb, or as the object of the preposition.

For example, the sentence We gave the child a toy, can be rewritten as follows:
We gave a toy to the child.
In the rewritten sentence, child can be regarded either as the indirect object of the verb gave, or as the object of the preposition to.

The following examples illustrate the position of the indirect object in a sentence. The direct object, toy, is printed in bold type, and the indirect object, child, is underlined.
e.g. We gave the child a toy.
We gave a toy to the child.

When an indirect object is not preceded by a preposition, the indirect object must be placed before the direct object. Thus, in the sentence We gave the child a toy, the indirect object child is placed before the direct object toy.

However, when an indirect object is preceded by a preposition, the indirect object must be placed after the direct object. In the sentence We gave a toy to the child, the indirect object child is preceded by the preposition to. Therefore, the indirect object, child is placed after the direct object toy.

The object which is placed last in a sentence tends to receive greater emphasis than the object which is placed first. Thus, the word order of a sentence can be varied in order to give greater emphasis to one object or the other. For instance, in the sentence We lent the teacher a book, the direct object book is slightly emphasized. However, in the sentence We lent a book to the teacher, the indirect object teacher is emphasized.

Direct objects

Most of the verbs examined so far have been in the Active Voice. When a verb is in the Active Voice, the subject of the verb refers to the person or thing performing the action described by the verb; and the object of the verb refers to the person or thing receiving the action described by the verb.

In the following examples, the objects of the verbs are printed in bold type.
e.g. He read the book.
I did not see the balloon.
They ate the potatoes quickly.
She rode her bicycle along the sidewalk.
Do we understand it?

In these sentences, the verbs read, did see, ate, rode and do understand are in the Active Voice; and the words book, balloon, potatoes, bicycle and it are the objects of the verbs. These objects are said to be direct objects, because they refer to things which receive directly the actions described by the verbs.

"Do" or "Make"

The two verbs 'do' and 'make' are often confused. The meanings are similar, but there are differences.

'Do' for Activities

Use the verb 'do' to express daily activities or jobs. Notice that these are usually activities that produce no physical object.

do homework
do housework
do the ironing
do the dishes
do a job

'Do' for General Ideas

Use the verb 'do' when speaking about things in general. In other words, when we do not exactly name an activity. This form is often used with the words 'something, nothing, anything, everything, etc.'

I'm not doing anything today.
He does everything for his mother.
She's doing nothing at the moment.

Important Expressions with 'Do'

There are a number of standard expressions that take the verb 'do'. These are standard collocations (verb + noun combinations) that are used in English.

do one's best
do good
do harm
do a favour
do business

'Make' for Constructing, Building, Creating

Use 'make' to express an activity that creates something that you can touch.

make food
make a cup of tea / coffee
make a mess

Important Expressions with 'Make'

There are a number of standard expressions that take the verb 'make'. In a number of cases the verb 'do' seems more appropriate. These are standard collocations (verb + noun combinations) that are used in English.

make plans
make an exception
make arrangements
make a telephone call
make a decision
make a mistake
make noise
make money
make an excuse
make an effort

Determiners

Determiners are words that are used with nouns to clarify the noun. They can clarify:

* to define something or someone
* to state the amount of people, things or other nouns
* to state possessives
* to state something or someone is specific
* to state how things or people are distributed
* to state the difference between nouns
* to state someone or something is not specific

There are different types of determiners. There type of determiner depends on the type of noun. Singular nouns always need a determiner. Plural nouns the determiner is optional. Uncountable nouns the determiner is also optional.

There are about 50 different determiners in the English language they include:

* Articles: a, an, the
* Demonstratives: this, that, these, those, which etc.
* Possessives: my, your, our, their, his, hers, whose, my friend's, our friends', etc.
* Quantifiers:few, a few, many, much, each, every, some, any etc.
* Numbers: one, two, three, twenty, forty
* Ordinals: first, second, 1st 2nd, 3rd, last, next, etc.

Positive Statements & Negative Statements

Positive statements don't have to have a positive meaning. It is possible to have a sentence that is positive grammatically with a negative connotation.

Example:
* I know you you will fail your test.
* We forgot to do our homework.

Negative states are statements that contain the word(s) not, don't, can't etc. Negative statements can be grammatically negative with a positive connotation.

Example:
* I know you didn't fail your test.
* We did not forget to do our homework

Difference between "That" & "Which"

That - "That" is used with restrictive phrases.

Restrictive phrases are phrase. that are essential to the sentence.

Which - "Which" is used with nonrestrictive phrases.

Nonrestrictive phrases are phrases that state non essential information. A phrase is considered nonrestrictive phase if the phase can be omitted from the sentence.

Examples:
* The shirt that you lent me is in my bag.
* The shirt, which is red, is in my bag.
* The house that I wanted to buy has been sold.
* The house, which I didn't want to buy, has been sold.
* The food store that I go to all the time is closed today.
* The store, which is near my house, is not open today.

Glossary of English Grammatical Terms - 2

Article
English has three articles:

•the - The "definite" article refers to specific objects.
•a, an - The "indefinite" articles refer to unspecified members of a class. The article "a" is used before a word starting with a consonant sound and "an" is used before a word starting with a vowel sound.

Examples:
"the mouse", "a mouse", "an orange mouse",
"an honor" (H is silent), "a horse" (H is aspirated).

Auxiliary Verb
Auxiliary verbs are used with other verbs to express moods or tense.
Common auxiliary verbs are:
will, would, may, might, shall, should, can, could, must

Examples:
"Mary will sing.",
"Mary can sing."

Consonants and Vowels

English uses 26 letters: ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

AEIOU are vowels.

BCDFGHJKLMNPQRSTVWXYZ are consonants.

Interjections
Interjections express strong feeling or emotion and have no grammatical relation to any other word in a sentence.
Some common interjections are: Oh, Alas, Aha, Bah, Whew.

Examples:
"Aha! I found it!".

Glossary of English Grammatical Terms - 1

This glossary provides definitions and examples of basic components of English grammar.

Action Verb
Action verbs specify the action performed by the subject.

Examples:
"John ran to the store."
"Mary swims very well."

Adjective
Adjectives modify nouns and have three forms or degrees:

* Positive - new
* Comparative - newer
* Superlative - newest

Adverbial Particle
Adverbial particles are prepositions that are considered part of the verb because they change the meaning of the verb. Some verbs allow one or more words between the verb and the particle.

Example:
"Turn off the lights.",
"Turn the lights off."

Adverb
Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs.

Example:
"Mary walks gracefully".
"She is very pretty".

Usage of "During, In and For"

During, In and For

During means from the beginning to the end of a particular period of time.

It rained during the night.

There was not even a whisper during the whole service.

During can also be used to talk about things that happened continuously or several times between the beginning and the end of a period of time.

I used to visit him during my stay in Boston.

The baby woke up several times during the night.

During and For

During is used to say when something happens; for is used to say how long it lasts.

It rained for three hours.

It rained during the night.

I was sleeping during the service.

The service lasted for more than three hours.

I don't remember the exact date, but it was during the winter.

During and In

We use both during and in to say that something happens inside a particular period of time.

I woke up during/in the night.

It rained during/in the week.

We prefer during when we stress that we are talking about the whole of the period. In cannot be used like this.

There was not even a whisper during the whole service. (NOT … in the whole service.)

We were on holiday during the whole of May.

What is a morphological process?

Definition: A morphological process is a means of changing a stem to adjust its meaning to fit its syntactic and communicational context.

Here are some kinds of morphological processes:

1.What is affixation?
2.What is prefixation?
3.What is suffixation?
4.What is circumfixation?
5.What is infixation?
6.What is modification?
7.What is reduplication?

Note: The process suppletion, though not strictly morphological, typically encodes the same type of information as the above morphological processes. It is often discussed in conjunction with them.