1. Simple Present Forms

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The simple present is just the base form of the verb.

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• Statement: You speak English. 

• Question: Do you speak English? 

• Negative: You do not speak English.

 

In the third person singular, -s or -es is added.

 

Questions are made with does and negative forms are made with does not.

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• Statement: He speaks English.

• Question: Does he speak English?

• Negative: He does not speak English.

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Simple Present Uses

We use present simple for 3 three reasons.

 

1.1 Repeated Actions

 

We use the simple present to express the idea that an action is repeated or usual. The action can be a habit, a hobby, a daily event, a scheduled event or something that often happens. It can also be something a person often forgets or usually does not do.

 

Examples:

• I play football.

• She does not play tennis.

• Does he play rugby?

• The train leaves every morning at 9 AM.

• The train does not leave at 8 AM.

• When does the train usually leave?

• She always forgets her keys.

• He never forgets his hat.

• Every year, we celebrate Christmas.

• Does the Sun circle the Moon? 

 

 

1.2 Facts or Generalisations

 

The simple present can also indicate the speaker believes that a fact was true before, is true now, and will be true in the future. It is not important if the speaker is correct about the fact. It is also used to make generalisations about people or things.

 

Examples:

• Cats don't like potatoes.

• Birds do like seeds.

• Do cows like milk?

• New York is in America.

• Paris is not in the United Kingdom.

• Glasses are made of glass and plastic.

• Carrots are not made of wood.

 

 

1.3 Scheduled Events in the Near Future

 

Speakers occasionally use simple present to talk about scheduled events in the near future. This is most commonly done when talking about public transportation, but it can be used with other scheduled events as well.

 

Examples:

• The train leaves tonight at 6 PM.

• The bus does not arrive at 11 AM, it arrives at 11 PM.

• When do we board the plane?

• The party starts at 8 o'clock.

• When does class begin tomorrow?

 

1.4 Now (Non-Continuous Verbs)

 

Speakers sometimes use the simple present to express the idea that an action is happening or is not happening now. This can only be done with non-continuous verbs and certain mixed verbs.

 

Examples:

• I am here now.

• She is not here now.

• He needs help right now.

• He does not need help now.

• He has his passport in his hand.

• Do you have your passport with you?

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1.5 Present Simple: Be

Examples:

Positive:

I am (I’m) from England.

You / We / They are You’re / We’re / They’re  from France.

He / She / It is / He’s / She’s / It’s from Spain.

 

Examples:

Negative:
I am not (I’m not) married. 

you / we / they are not

he / she / it  is not

You’re not / You aren’t

We’re not / We aren’t

They’re not / They aren’t

He isn’t / He’s not

She isn’t / She’s not

It isn’t / It’s not

 

Examples:

Question:

Am I beautiful?

Are you / we / they a teacher?

Is he / she / it tall?

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1.6 Present Simple: Positive

Use the present simple for things that happen regularly or things that are generally true.

 

I / you / we / they work

he / she / it works

 

Examples:

I work in a bank.

He works at the university.

We work every day.

My sister works at the hospital.

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1.6.1 For verbs that end in consonant + –y, we remove the –y and add –ies:

 

I study English at school.

Dana studies English at school.

Bill studies English at school

 

Other verbs like this include: cry, try, fly, carry

 

1.6.2 For verbs that end in -o, -sh, -s, -ss, -ch, -x, we add -es.

 

They go to English class on Wednesday.

She goes to cooking class on Saturday.

 

Other verbs like this include: watch, kiss, teach, fix

 

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1.7 Present Simple: Negative

Use the present simple negative for things that are not generally true.

 

I / you / we / they  don’t like

he / she / it doesn't like

 

Examples:

I don't like coffee.

John doesn't like pizza.

John and David don't like milk.

My mother doesn't like to travel.

 

Common Errors

1.7.1 In the present simple negative, do not add -s:

 

George doesn't likes to dance.

Marta doesn't like to dance.

 

1.7.2 Other common errors:

 

Peter no like bananas.

Peter not like bananas.

Peter doesn’t like bananas.

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1.8 Present Simple: Questions 

Use present simple questions to ask about things that happen regularly or things that are generally true.

 

Do I / you / we / they live in a city?

Does he / she / it live in a city?

 

Examples:

Do you live in Brazil?

Does Adam live in England?

Do they live in a big house?

Does she live near the beach?

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Common Errors

 

1.8.1 In questions, don't use -s:

 

Does she lives close to the beach?

Does she live close to the beach?

 

1.8.2 Don’t forget DO or DOES:

 

Clara live in a big city?

Does Clara live in a big city?

        

1.9 Present Simple: Answering Yes/No Questions

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Do you have a dog? Yes, I do. / No, I don't

Do I look fat in these jeans? Yes you do. / No, you don’t!

Does John speak Italian? Yes, he does. / No, he doesn't.

Does she like rock music? Yes, she does. / No, she doesn’t.

Do we watch too much TV? Yes, we do. / No, we don’t.

Do they understand English? Yes, they do. / No, they don't.

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1.10 Frequency adverbs

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100%                                                                                                                                                      0%

            Always / Usually / Normally / Often / Sometimes / Occasionally / Hardly ever /  Never

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2. Future

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2.1 Will

This is used to talk about predictions in general. The structure we use is: subject + will + verb + complements. Example: In the future, all cars will use electricity.

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2.1.1Predictions & Forecasts

Examples:

I think she will win Wimbledon

The weather will be perfect all week.

 

2.1.2 Spontaneous Decisions

Examples:

Yes. I'll marry you!

 

2.1.3 Offers / Promises

Examples:

I’ll help you plan the party.

I’ll see you tomorrow.

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2.2 SHALL

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Shall is not used very much nowadays and mostly in formal speech and some legal documents.

 

Nowadays, the most common use of shall in everyday English is in questions that serve as offers or suggestions:

 

"Shall I ...?" or "Shall we ...?"

 

Situations where Shall is still occasionally used:

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2.2.1. Suggestion

Notice how each of these can easily be replaced by should.

Examples:

• Shall I get a pizza for dinner tonight?

• Shall we take a taxi home?

• It's cold. Shall I close the window?

• Shall we go now?

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2.2.2. Offers / Volunteering to do something

Examples:

• That bag looks heavy. Shall I carry it for you?

• Shall I wait for you?

• I shall make the arrangements for you.

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2.2.3. Instructions (asking for or giving)

Examples:

• What shall I do with your mail when it arrives?

• I shall meet you there at 7.

• You shall not pass! (said Gandalf to the Balrog in Lord of the Rings)

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2.2.4. Promises

Examples:

• You shall be the first person to know. (= I promise that you will be the first person)

• I shall get you a new bike for your birthday.

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2.2.5. Confirmation (Statement of Fact)

Notice how each of these can easily be replaced by will.

Examples:

• I shall turn 30 next week.

• We shall know the results of the exam next week.

• I shall meet you there at 7.

 

2.3 Going to 

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This is used to talk about future actions where something is already planned or decided. The structure we use is: subject + to be + going to+ verb + complements.

 

Example:

I am going to bring some food.

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2.3.1 Intentions

Examples:

• I’m going to read war and peace this weekend

 

2.3.2 Previously Made Decisions

Examples::

• We’re going to get married but we don’t know when.

 

2.3.3 Something that is likely to happen

Examples:

• Look at those clouds - It's going to rain.

• Watch what you’re doing - you’re going to fall over.

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2.4 Present Continuous

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We use the Present Continuous:

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2.4.1 Actions happening at the moment of speaking.

Examples:

• She's watching TV at the moment.

• Are you listening?

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2.4.2 Future arrangements.

Examples:

• I'm going to the zoo tomorrow.

• I'm not going to the party on Saturday.

 

2.4.1 Arrangements & Plans

Examples:

• We’re getting married in Spain on July 24th.

• I’m having coffee with my boss tomorrow.

• I’m meeting my accountant tomorrow at 10 am

• They’re flying to Australia tomorrow.

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Present Continuous: Negative

Examples:

I am not working.                                 (I’m not)

You / We / They are not working.       (aren’t)

He / She / It is not working                 (isn’t)
 

Examples:

I am not working at the moment.

She is not wearing a hat today.

You are not listening to the teacher.

Pete and Jan are not watching TV.

There are two ways to use contractions:

She’s not wearing a hat today.

She isn’t wearing a hat today.

You’re not listening to the teacher.

You aren’t listening to the teacher.

 

Both forms are OK!

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Present Continuous: Questions

 

Am I working?

Are you / we / they working?

Is he / she / it working?

 

Examples:

 Are you writing a letter?

 Is Pedro sleeping right now?

 Are the children playing a game or reading a book?

 Is the computer working?

 

You can put a question word at the beginning:

 

What are you doing?

I’m writing an email.

Where is Sarah going?

She’s going to the store.

Who are they talking to?

They’re talking to the teacher.

Why is he running?

Because he’s late for work.

 

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Present Simple or Present Continuous

 

Present simple for things that happen in general or regularly.  

 

Present continuous for things happening now, at the moment, or

current/temporary projects.

 

I work from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM every day.

Mark studies English every Tuesday night.

We usually go to Europe in the summer.

They always talk to their boss in the morning.

I’m currently working on a new project.

Mark is studying the present continuous this week.

Right now, we’re going to the supermarket.

It’s 9:00 AM. They’re talking to him now.

 

Does it usually rain in the winter?  No, but it’s raining at the moment. Take an umbrella.

 

Words that are often used with the present simple or continuous:

 

With present simple: always, usually, often, sometimes, never, every (day /night /Monday /summer /year)

With present continuous: now, right now, at the moment, currently, this week/month/year, today

 

2.5 Present Simple

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Generally, we use the Present Simple to talk about routines or habits, facts or things that always happen.

Examples:

• Does water boil at 100 ºC?

• I always have orange juice for breakfast.

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2.5.1 Timetables

We use it for Bus timetables, Train timetables, Movie timetables and Flight timetables

Examples:

• The train leaves at 10:00

• The movie starts at 10:15

 

2.5.2 Scheduled / Repeated Events

Examples:

• It’s my birthday tomorrow.

• It is Christmas next week!

• I have a German class next week.

• He has a job interview in a fortnight.

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2.6 Gerund

 

Gerunds after verbs

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Some verbs used to talk about likes and dislikes are followed by a gerund.

Example: We love dancing.

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Use of the gerund

 

The gerund is used to create a noun from a verb.

Example: Learning English is fun.

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3. Past Simple

We use the Past Simple for actions which happened and finished in the past.

Examples:

We played football yesterday.

Did you win?

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The regular Past Simple

To form the Past Simple of regular verbs, we add -ed to the infinitive.

Examples:

play - played

paint - painted

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If the verb already ends in -e, we just add -d.

Examples:

arrive - arrived

describe - described

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But for negative sentences we use the infinitive.

Example:

He played tennis, but he didn't play well.

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Past Simple

With most verbs the past tense is formed by adding -ed:

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call >> called;      like >> liked;      want >> wanted;      work >> worked 

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We use the past tense to talk about:

Something that happened once in the past:

Examples:

I met my wife in 1983.

We went to Spain for our holidays.

They got home very late last night.

 

Something that happened again and again in the past:

Examples:

When I was a boy I walked a mile to school every day.

We swam a lot while we were on holiday.

They always enjoyed visiting their friends.

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Something that was true for some time in the past:

Examples:

I lived abroad for ten years.

He enjoyed being a student.

She played a lot of tennis when she was younger.

 

We often use phrases with ago with the past tense:

I met my wife a long time ago.

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Questions and negatives

We use did to make questions with the past tense:

Examples:

When did you meet your wife?

Where did you go for your holidays?

Did she play tennis when she was younger?

Did you live abroad?

But look at these questions:

Who discovered penicillin?

Who wrote Don Quixote?

 

We use didn’t (did not) to make negatives with the past tense:

Examples:

They didn’t go to Spain this year.

We didn’t get home until very late last night.

I didn’t see you yesterday. 

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Past Simple Expressions

 

four years ago:        hace cuatro años

in 1995:                    en 1995

in summer:        .     en verano

last night:                anoche

last week:                la semana pasada

the day before yesterday:               antes de ayer

three months ago:                           hace tres meses

when I was born:                              cuando yo nací

when they left school:                     cuando salieron de la escuela

yesterday:                                         ayer

 

4. Past Continuous

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The past progressive puts emphasis on the course of an action in the past.

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                                              Positive                              Negative                               Question

I / He / She / It                     I was speaking.                 I was not speaking.              Was I speaking?

You / We / They                   You were speaking.          You were not speaking.        Were you speaking?

 

Exceptions in Spelling

Exceptions in spelling when adding ing

Example

Final e is dropped (but: ee is not changed).   come – coming.  (but: agree – agreeing)

After a short, stressed vowel, the final consonant is doubled sit – sitting

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l as final consonant after a vowel is doubled (in British English)

 

travel – travelling

final ie becomes y

lie – lying

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5. Like + ing

Likes

To talk about things we like, we can use verbs such as like, enjoy, love or adore.

Examples:

I love the sun.

She likes the snow.

 

To talk about activities we like, we can use the same verbs followed by a gerund (verb + -ing).

Examples:

I enjoy playing tennis.

He loves swimming in the sea.

 

Dislikes

To talk about things we do not like, we can use verbs such as dislike or hate.

Examples:

She dislikes the snow.

I hate rainy days.

 

To talk about activities we do not like, we can use the same verbs followed by a gerund (verb + -ing).

Examples:

I dislike playing rugby.

He hates doing homework.

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6. Imperatives

The imperative

Use of the imperative

The imperative is used to give commands and orders.

Examples:

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Close your books!

Be quiet!

Don't run in the corridor!

The structure of the imperative

 

The imperative has the same form as the infinitive without to.

Example: Turn right at the traffic lights.

To make a negative imperative, we place do not (or don't) before the infinitive.

Examples:

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Don't talk in class!

Do not talk in class!

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7. So/such...that

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We use "so" (so, so, then) and "such" (like, such, so, so, so much) to add emphasis, to show extreme feelings or to give an opinion about something. 

The difference between the two is in how we use them in sentence structure.

 

So

so + adjective/adverb (tan + adjetivo/adverbio)

We use "so" with adjectives or adverbs to show extreme feelings or effects. In these cases, the adjective or adverb goes directly after "so" in the sentence.

 

Examples:

I have been working since 7 this morning. I’m so tired!

Why are you driving so fast?

Kate is so beautiful. I can’t believe she’s single!

My daughter studied so hard for her exam.

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so + quantifier + noun 

We can use the quantifiers ("many", "much", "little", etc.) with "so" to indicate extremes in quantity, but it is necessary to remember the rules for the uses of quantifiers and countable and uncountable, singular and plural (for more information, see the lesson on quantifiers.) These are the only cases in which "so" is used with a noun. "So much" or "so many" can also be translated as "tanto" or "tantos" in Spanish.

 

Examples:

Teresa has so many talents!

With three kids and a full-time job, my sister has so little free time.

I have so few memories of my childhood.

The children watch so much television.

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so + that (tan + que)

We can use "so" with "that" to show results or consequences. In general, the use of "that" is optional.

 

Examples:

The music was so loud that I couldn’t hear my own voice.

He was driving so fast that he had an accident.

My son studied so hard that he received the best grade in the class.

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Such

such + adjective + noun 

As with "so", we use "such" with adjectives to show extremes. Unlike "so", "such" is followed by an adjective plus a noun. Sentences that use "such" for emphasis can be translated as "¡Que!" in Spanish (see the third example).

 

Examples:

I am so lucky. I have such wonderful friends!

That is such a pretty dress! You should wear it more often.

It is such a beautiful day.

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such + that 

As with "so", we can use "such" with "that" to show extremes that end in a result. In general, the use of "that" is optional.

 

Examples:

It was such a beautiful day that we decided to go to the beach.

Dave has such a small car that he doesn’t have to spend much money on gas.

It was such a good meal that we made it again the next night.

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such + judgmental noun 

With critical nouns, the use of "such" gives emphasis.

 

Examples:

I have never liked Andy. He is such a jerk!

You are such a clown! Are you ever serious?

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such + noun (such + noun)

When "such" is followed directly by a noun, "such" means "such" or "a type of".

 

Examples:

I have never seen such architecture before.

We very rarely listen to such music.

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8. Too/(not)enough

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"Enough" and "too" are used as qualifiers with adjectives, adverbs and nouns to indicate a degree of quantity.
Enough "Enough" is an adjective used to indicate sufficient or equal to what is necessary. It can be used with other adjectives, adverbs or nouns.

1. With adjectives and adverbs:

adjective/adverb + "enough."

Examples:
Heather is old enough now to make her own decisions.
Victor doesn't speak English well enough for the job.
The apartment is big enough for three people.
Ben runs fast enough to win the race.
We aren't working hard enough! We are never going to finish this project.

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2. With nouns:

"enough" + noun.

Examples:
I don't have enough time to finish all this work!
Is there enough wine for everyone to try?
Don't worry, they have enough space in the car for all of us.

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Note: We can replace "enough" with "the" to indicate the same thing.

Compare the examples above and below.

Examples:
I don't have the time to finish all this work!
Don't worry, they have the space for all of us.

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Note: We can also use "enough" without a noun when it is clear what we are referring to.

Examples:
Would you like some more coffee? No, I've had enough, thank you.
Do you have enough to pay for this?

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3. We can use "enough" with an adjective and a noun,

but the sense of the sentence changes with the position of "enough".

Examples:
Is there enough hot water}?
Is there hot enough water?

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4. "Enough of"
"enough of" + determiner [article or pronoun].

Examples:
I've been in enough of these situations to know better!
We've had enough of your complaints. Don't you have anything positive to say?
Michael has studied enough of the possibilities to make a good decision.

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Too (Too much)

"Too" is an adverb indicating that there is more than enough.

 

With an adjective or an adverb:

"too" + adjective/ adverb.

Examples:
You are too young to understand.
Claire is too irresponsible to have a dog.
It's too early to go to bed.

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Note: We can use "enough" in a negative sentence to indicate that something is not enough. Compare the examples above with the examples below.

Examples:
 
You are not old enough to understand.
Claire is not responsible enough to have a dog.

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2. When we use "too" with nouns, we use the expressions "too many" or "too much".

"too many" + countable noun
"too much" + uncountable noun.

Examples:
 
There are too many students in the classroom.(There are too many students for this class.).
Is there too much sugar in your coffee?

My daughter has too many shoes, she doesn't need any more!

There is too much work for just one person!

 

3. "Too much of" or "Too many of".

"too many of" + determiner + countable noun
"too much of" + determiner + uncountable noun.

Examples:
His problem is that he spends too much of his time playing video games!
That's enough. You have already eaten too many of the chocolates!

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9. Used to and Would

The verb "use" means "to use" or "to utilize". However, when we use this verb in the simple past, plus the preposition "to", as a modal verb, the meaning changes. In addition, "used to" can be used as an adjective. Below is an explanation of the different uses.

We use the modal verb "used to" to indicate something that happened or happened in the past in a habitual way. Also, it is used for something that used to be true but is no longer true. As with the other modal verbs, "used to" is followed by the base form of the verb (the infinitive without "to").

1. Affirmative Sentences
Subject + "used to" + verb....

Examples:
We used to go to the beach every summer when I was young

(When I was young we used to go to the beach every summer).

He used to smoke a pack of cigarettes a day, but he quit last year.

I used to like mushrooms, but not anymore.

There used to be a great restaurant here, but it closed a few years ago.

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2. Negative Sentences (Negative sentences)
Subject + "didn't" + "use to" + verb...

Examples:
I didn't use to like mushrooms, but now I do.
Food didn't use to be so expensive.
We didn't use to go away on holiday very often when I was young.

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3. Interrogative Sentences (Interrogative sentences)
Did + subject + "use to" + verb...?

Examples:
Didn't he use to smoke a lot?
Did you use to live here before?
Did they used to go to the beach in the summers?

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Note: We do not use "used to" for habitual actions in the present. Instead of this modal verb, we use an adverb like "usually" or "normally" for example.

Examples:
We usually go to the beach every summer.
He normally smokes a pack of cigarettes every day.
They usually play football on the weekends.

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Note: You can also use the modal verb "would" for repeated events or actions in the past. But note that you can only use it with actions, not with states or habits.

 

You also cannot use "would" in the negative. For information on the other uses of "would" see the lessons on conditional sentences and modal verbs.

Examples:
When I was young, we would go to the beach every summer.
At the university, they would play football every weekend.

He would smoke a lot.
When I was young we wouldn't go to the beach every summer.
To be used to (To be used to)

When "used to" is used as an adjective it means "to be used to". It is used for things that are familiar, normal or common and can be used in any verb tense. When "to be used to" is followed by a verb, the verb has to be in the gerund ("-ing").

Examples:
 
She's used to living alone.
We weren't used to traveling a lot.
I'm not used to this cold weather.

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Note: When we use the verb "get" instead of "be" it indicates the process of becoming familiar with something. See the lesson on the verb to get for more information on this verb.

Examples:
They divorced over 2 years ago. She has gotten used to living alone.
With this new job I am getting used to traveling a lot.
You need to get used to this cold weather if you are going to live here.

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10. Present Perfect

 

How To Form The Present Perfect

 

PRESENT PERFECT POSITIVE

 

SUBJECT                        +     HAVE / HAS      +                     PAST PARTICIPLE

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I / You / We / they       +    have                 +                  written

He / She / It                 +    has                    +                  written

 

Note: In spoken English, it’s common to use the contraction:

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I’ve written three books.

We’ve already seen that movie

Barbara’s forgotten her cell phone.

He’s just woken up.

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In this case, he’s, she’s, Barbara’s, etc. mean he has, she has, and Barbara has,  not he is, she is, or Barbara is.

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PRESENT PERFECT NEGATIVE

 

SUBJECT                         HAVEN'T / HASN'T                 PAST PARTICIPLE

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I / You / We / they           haven't                                      written

He / She / It                     hasn't                                         written

 

Examples:

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I haven’t seen John this week.

Mary hasn’t come to class for the past two days.

 

PRESENT PERFECT QUESTIONS

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HAVE / HAS                  SUBJECT                                         PAST PARTICIPLE

Have                            I / You / We / they                    finished.    ?

Has                              He / She / It                               finished.   ?

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Examples:

Have you finished the project yet?

Has George ever been to New York?

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How to answer present perfect questions:

Have you been to London?

Yes, I have. / No, I haven’t.

Has Alex met Miriam yet?

Yes, he has. / No, he hasn’t.

Have the results of the election been announced?

Yes, they have. / No, they haven’t.

What Is The Past Participle?

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The past participle form of the verb describes a completed action or state.

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For regular verbs, the past participle is the same as the simple past:

I worked (simple past) all day yesterday.

I’ve worked (past participle) here since August.

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This is also the case for many irregular verbs:

He sold (simple past) his car last week.

He’s sold (past participle) 200 books so far.

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However, some irregular verbs’ past participles are different from their simple past form:

We wrote (simple past) an article for the newspaper.

We’ve written (past participle) for many famous publications.

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Many of these irregular past participles end in –n:

   

Infinitive        Simple Past            Past Participle

be                    was / were                been

break               broke                        broken

choose            chose                        chosen

do                    did                            done

drive                drove                        driven

eat                   ate                             eaten

fall                    fell         .                   fallen

fly                     flew                           flown

forget               forgot                       forgotten

give                  gave                         given

go                     went                         gone

know                 knew                        known

see                    saw                           seen

show                 showed                    shown

speak                spoke                       spoken

steal                  stole             .           stolen

take                   took                         taken

wear                  wore                        worn

write                  wrote                       written

 

Other irregular past participles have a change in the vowel:

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Infinitive        Simple Past            Past Participle

become.          became.                   become

begin.              began.                      begun

come.              came.                        come

drink.               drank.                        drunk

ring.                 rang.                          rung

run .                 ran.                             run

sing.                 sang.                          sung

swim.                swam.                        swum

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11. Verbs + Prepositions

Verb and preposition collocations are groups of words made up of a verb followed by a preposition: Subject + verb + preposition + … They are used to convey a specific meaning, but there are not fix rules about their formation, so we have to learn them by heart.

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Verbs with Prepositions: TO

Learn useful verb collocations with the preposition TO in English.

• Adapt to

• Add to

• Agree to

• Apologize to

• Belong to

• Consent to

• Devote to

• Happen to

• Lead to

• Listen to

• Object to

• React to

• Refer to

• Reply to

• Speak to

• Talk to

• Turn to

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Verbs + Prepositions: FOR

List of common verbs followed by the preposition FOR.

• Admire for

• Apologize for

• Apply for

• Ask for

• Blame for

• Care for

• Excuse for

• Head for

• Long for

• Pay for

• Pray for

• Prepare for

• Scold for

• Search for

• Vote for

• Wait for

• Wish for

• Work for

Verbs + Prepositions: FROM

List of useful verb preposition collocations in English – the preposition FROM.

• Abstain from

• Borrow from

• Escape from

• Graduate from

• Hide from

• Infer from

• Prevent from

• Prohibit from

• Protect from

• Recover from

• Rescue from

• Resign from

• Retire from

• Save from

• Separate from

• Stem from

• Suffer from

Verbs with Prepositions: ON

Learn common verb preposition combinations with the preposition ON in English.

• Agree on

• Base on

• Be on

• Blame on

• Comment on

• Concentrate on

• Congratulate on

• Count on

• Depend on

• Elaborate on

• Impose on

• Insist on

• Play on

• Pride on

• Rely on

• Work on

Verb Preposition Collocations: AT

• Aim at

• Arrive at

• Glance at

• Guess at

• Hint at

• Laugh at

• Look at

• Marvel at

• Peer at

• Point at

• Smile at

• Stare at

• Wink at

Verb + Preposition: ABOUT

Learn common verb collocations with the preposition ABOUT.

• Argue about

• Ask about

• Be about

• Boast about

• Care about

• Concern about

• Decide about

• Dream about

• Forget about

• Know about

• Laugh about

• Protest about

• Think about

• Worry about

Verbs + Prepositions: WITH

Learn frequently used prepositions after verbs – the preposition WITH.

• Acquaint with

• Agree with

• Associate with

• Charge with

• Clutter with

• Coincide with

• Collide with

• Compare with

• Comply with

• Confront with

• Confuse with

• Cover with

• Cram with

• Deal with

• Discuss with

• Help with

• Tamper with

• Trust with

Verbs with Prepositions: IN

Learn useful preposition collocations with verbs – IN in English.

• Absorb in

• Arrive in

• Be engrossed in

• Believe in

• Confide in

• Implicate in

• Involve in

• Participate in

• Result in

• Specialise in

• Succeed in

• Trust in

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12. Countable and Uncountable

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Countable nouns are things we can count – for example, cats:

 Example: 

My brother has a cat.

My sister has two cats.

My friend has three cats.

 

Other examples of countable nouns:

 

Things - book, table, computer, banana, shirt, television, house.

People - man, woman, child, friend, sister, uncle, teacher, boss.

 

 

Uncountable nouns are words that we can’t count, or can’t divide into separate parts:

 

 Liquids and some foods - water, butter, rice, flour, milk

 Ideas and concepts - love, fun, work, money, peace, safety

 Information - advice, information, news, knowledge

 Categories - music, furniture, equipment, jewelry, meat

 

Don’t add -s to make uncountable nouns plural:

 

I need some informations about the course.

I need some information about the course.

 

You can use other words to help quantify uncountable nouns:

 

She bought three bottles of wine and five boxes of rice.

He gave me two pieces of advice: eat less and exercise more.

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