English Grammar Rules

1Parts of speech

Every word in a sentence does a job, and the parts of speech are the names of those jobs. Traditional grammar counts eight: nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions and interjections. Modern grammars add a ninth, the determiners (words like the, my and some), which this reference treats separately because they follow their own rules.

A word belongs to a part of speech because of what it does in a particular sentence, not because of what it looks like. Light is a noun in Turn on the light, a verb in Light the candle and an adjective in a light jacket. When you are unsure what a word is, ask what it is doing.

1.1NounsA1

A noun names a person (doctor), a place (Berlin), a thing (spoon), an animal (horse), a quality (honesty), an activity (swimming) or an idea (justice). Nouns are the subjects and objects of sentences, and they follow determiners such as the, a and my.

Types of nouns

Countable and uncountable nouns

Countable nouns take a/an in the singular and -s in the plural. Uncountable nouns have no plural, never take a/an, and are measured with words like some, much, a little or a unit such as a piece of, a cup of or a bit of.

• I need some advice. / She gave me a piece of advice. / She gave me two pieces of advice.
• How much information do you have? / We have a lot of furniture.

Common uncountable nouns that are countable in many other languages: advice, information, news, furniture, luggage, baggage, equipment, homework, housework, research, progress, knowledge, evidence, traffic, weather, money, bread, music, software, hair, work (a job), travel, accommodation (BrE), behavior, fun, luck, happiness.

Some nouns are countable with one meaning and uncountable with another: a glass (for drinking) / glass (the material); a paper (a newspaper or an essay) / paper (the material); a chicken (the bird) / chicken (the meat); an experience (an event) / experience (knowledge from practice); a hair (one strand) / hair; a time (an occasion) / time; a coffee (a cup) / coffee.

• Incorrect: She gave me many informations and an advice.
• Correct: She gave me a lot of information and some advice.
• Incorrect: We bought new furnitures. The news are good.
• Correct: We bought new furniture. The news is good.

Forming the plural

Collective nouns

A collective noun (team, family, staff, government, audience, committee, class, crew, jury, police) names a group. In American English the group is almost always treated as singular: The team is winning. In British English it can be singular when the group acts as one unit and plural when the members act as individuals: The team is the best in the league / The team are arguing among themselves. Police and people are always plural: The police are here.

Nouns that describe other nouns

A noun can act as a modifier in front of another noun: a coffee cup, a car door, a history teacher, the kitchen window. The first noun stays singular even when the idea is plural: a shoe shop (a shop that sells shoes), a three-hour meeting, a ten-dollar bill, a five-star hotel.

Gender and nouns

English nouns have no grammatical gender. A few pairs still exist (actor/actress, waiter/waitress, hero/heroine), but modern usage increasingly prefers one neutral word for everyone: actor, server, firefighter, police officer, flight attendant, chair or chairperson, humankind.

1.2PronounsA1

A pronoun stands in for a noun or a noun phrase so that you do not have to repeat it: Maria lost Maria’s keys becomes Maria lost her keys. The noun a pronoun refers to is its antecedent, and the two must match in number and person.

Personal, possessive and reflexive pronouns

Subject pronouns perform the action; object pronouns receive it or follow a preposition. The trap is the compound subject or object: test it by removing the other person.

• Incorrect: Me and my brother went to the game.
• Correct: My brother and I went to the game. (I went, not me went)
• Incorrect: This is a secret between you and I.
• Correct: This is a secret between you and me. (between me, not between I)
• Incorrect: They invited my wife and I to dinner.
• Correct: They invited my wife and me to dinner. (They invited me)

After than and as, both forms are used: She is taller than I (am) is formal; She is taller than me is normal in everyday English. After the verb be, It’s me and This is her are standard in speech; It is I survives only in very formal writing.

Possessive determiners (my, your, his, her, its, our, their) come before a noun; possessive pronouns (mine, yours, his, hers, ours, theirs) replace the noun phrase: This is my coat. This coat is mine. None of them takes an apostrophe: its is possessive, it’s means it is or it has.

Reflexive pronouns are used when the subject and the object are the same person (She cut herself), after some verbs and expressions (enjoy yourself, help yourself, behave yourself, by myself) and for emphasis (I spoke to the manager myself). They are not a polite replacement for me or I.

• Incorrect: Please send the report to myself or Dr. Kane.
• Correct: Please send the report to me or Dr. Kane.
• Incorrect: He blamed hisself. They did it theirselves.
• Correct: He blamed himself. They did it themselves.

Other kinds of pronoun

Indefinite pronouns ending in -one, -body and -thing, and the words each, either, neither, another and one, are singular: Everyone has arrived. Neither of them is ready. Both, few, many and several are plural. All, any, most, none and some take the number of the noun they refer to: Most of the cake is gone. Most of the guests are here.

Agreement and clear reference

A pronoun must agree with its antecedent: The students handed in their essays. For a single person of unknown or unspecified gender, singular they is now standard in all but the most formal writing: Every passenger should keep their ticket. He or she is a formal alternative; he alone is no longer used for everyone.

Make sure every pronoun points to one clear noun. If a sentence contains two possible antecedents, repeat the noun.

• Incorrect: When Tom spoke to Ali, he was angry. (Who was angry?)
• Correct: Tom was angry when he spoke to Ali.
• Incorrect: The report was late and the data was wrong, which annoyed the client. (What annoyed the client?)
• Correct: The report was late and the data was wrong; both problems annoyed the client.

1.3DeterminersA1

A determiner comes at the start of a noun phrase and tells you which thing or how many things the noun refers to. Most singular countable nouns need one: you cannot say I bought car; you need a car, the car, my car or this car.

Determiners can combine in a fixed order: a predeterminer (all, both, half, double, such, what), then a central determiner (an article, demonstrative or possessive), then a postdeterminer (a number or a word like many, few, other, next, last): all my three brothers, both these ideas, half the first lesson, the next two weeks, such a lovely day.

Quantifiers with countable and uncountable nouns

*Each and every are used with a singular noun. **Less is used with uncountable nouns; with plural nouns the careful choice is fewer: fewer mistakes, less noise.

• Many people came, but there wasn’t much food.
• We have a few tickets left. (some, enough) / We have few tickets left. (almost none)
• There’s a little time. (some) / There’s little time. (almost none)

Some and any. Use some in positive statements and in offers and requests (Would you like some tea? Can I have some water?); use any in questions and negatives (Is there any milk? There isn’t any milk). In a positive sentence, any means “it doesn’t matter which”: Take any seat you like.

Each and every. Both go with a singular noun and verb. Each looks at the members of a group one by one and can be used for two or more; every looks at the group as a whole and needs three or more: She held a bag in each hand. Every seat was taken. Only each can be followed by of: each of us (not every of us).

• Incorrect: There are less people here than yesterday.
• Correct: There are fewer people here than yesterday.
• Incorrect: I don’t have some money. Every of the rooms is clean.
• Correct: I don’t have any money. Every room is clean. / Each of the rooms is clean.

1.4Articles: a, an and theA1

Articles are the most frequent words in English and the most common source of mistakes for learners whose first language has none. There are three choices: the indefinite article a/an, the definite article the, and no article at all.

When to use a / an

• With a singular countable noun mentioned for the first time: I saw a fox in the garden.
• To mean “one of a kind”: She’s a doctor. He’s an Australian. That’s a good idea.
• In rates and frequencies: twice a week, $20 an hour, 60 miles an hour.
• After what, such and quite with singular countable nouns: What a day! It was such a surprise.

When to use the

• When both speaker and listener know which one is meant, or it has already been mentioned: I saw a fox. The fox was eating our apples.
• When there is only one: the sun, the internet, the president, the kitchen (the only one in this house).
• With superlatives and ordinal numbers: the best, the first, the only, the same.
• With a singular noun representing a whole class: The tiger is endangered. (formal) / Tigers are endangered.
• With adjectives used as nouns for groups: the rich, the elderly, the unemployed.
• With rivers, seas, oceans, deserts, mountain ranges, island groups, and countries whose names are plural or contain a common noun: the Nile, the Atlantic, the Sahara, the Alps, the Philippines, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands.
• With musical instruments, newspapers, hotels, movie theaters, theaters, museums and ships: play the piano, The Times, the Hilton, the British Museum, the Titanic.
• With decades, centuries and periods: the 1990s, the twentieth century, the Middle Ages.

When to use no article

• Plural and uncountable nouns in general statements: Cats are independent. Information is power. I love music.
• Most names of people, cities, countries, continents, streets, languages, meals, sports, academic subjects and days: Maria, Rome, Japan, Africa, Oxford Street, Spanish, breakfast, tennis, chemistry, Friday.
• Institutions used for their purpose: go to school, be in bed, be at work, go to church, be in prison, go to hospital (BrE; AmE go to the hospital). Compare the building: The school is on Hill Road. He went to the prison to visit his brother.
• Means of transport and communication with by: by car, by train, by email, by phone (but on foot, in the car, on the bus).
• Fixed pairs and expressions: at home, at night, at noon, from head to toe, day after day, side by side.

• Incorrect: My sister is teacher. I like the music. The life is short.
• Correct: My sister is a teacher. I like music. Life is short.
• Incorrect: She lives in the Germany, but she was born in United States.
• Correct: She lives in Germany, but she was born in the United States.
• Incorrect: He goes to the work by the bus. It is a important meeting.
• Correct: He goes to work by bus. It is an important meeting.

1.5AdjectivesA1

An adjective describes or limits a noun or pronoun: a red car, three cars, Italian food, She is tired. English adjectives never change form for number or gender: a tall boy, tall girls.

Position

Most adjectives can stand before a noun (attributive: a quiet street) or after a linking verb such as be, seem, look, feel, become (predicative: The street is quiet). A few are used in only one position.

• Only after a verb: afraid, alike, alive, alone, asleep, awake, aware, content, glad, ill, well — The baby is asleep (not the asleep baby; say the sleeping baby).
• Only before a noun: main, mere, utter, former, latter, elder, chief, sole, indoor, outdoor — the main reason (not the reason is main).
• After indefinite pronouns and measurements: something strange, nobody new, two meters tall, ten years old.

Order of adjectives

When several adjectives describe one noun, they follow a usual order: opinion, size, age, shape, color, origin, material, purpose. In practice, more than three adjectives in a row sounds unnatural.

• Incorrect: a wooden beautiful old table; a red big balloon
• Correct: a beautiful old wooden table; a big red balloon

Adjectives of the same type before a noun are separated by commas (a cold, wet, miserable day); adjectives of different types are not (a small wooden box). See commas between adjectives.

Comparatives and superlatives

The comparative compares two things (taller than); the superlative picks one out of three or more (the tallest of all).

• Comparison: Gold is more expensive than silver. This road is less busy than the highway.
• Equality: She is as tall as her father. It isn’t as cold as yesterday.
• Degree: much / far / a lot / a little / slightly cheaper; by far the best; the sooner, the better.
• Superlatives usually take the and are often followed by in (places, groups) or of (periods, groups of items): the tallest building in the city, the best day of my life.

• Incorrect: This exercise is more easier. He is the most tallest in the class.
• Correct: This exercise is easier. He is the tallest in the class.
• Incorrect: My car is more faster than yours. It’s the better of all the three.
• Correct: My car is faster than yours. It’s the best of the three.

Adjectives ending in -ed and -ing

Participle adjectives come in pairs. The -ing form describes the cause of a feeling; the -ed form describes the person who has the feeling: The lecture was boring, so the students were bored. Common pairs: interesting/interested, exciting/excited, surprising/surprised, tiring/tired, confusing/confused, embarrassing/embarrassed, frightening/frightened, relaxing/relaxed, annoying/annoyed, disappointing/disappointed.

• Incorrect: I am boring in this class. The film was very excited.
• Correct: I am bored in this class. The film was very exciting.

Other things to know

• Proper adjectives keep their capital letter: French wine, Shakespearean drama, Victorian houses.
• Compound adjectives before a noun are hyphenated: a well-known writer, a part-time job, a ten-year-old girl, an up-to-date list (but The writer is well known. The girl is ten years old.). See the hyphen.
• Extreme (non-gradable) adjectives such as freezing, boiling, exhausted, furious, enormous, terrible, perfect, delicious already mean “very”; strengthen them with absolutely or completely, not very: absolutely delicious, not very delicious.
• Adjectives are often followed by a fixed preposition: afraid of, good at, interested in, famous for. See dependent prepositions.

1.6AdverbsA2

An adverb modifies a verb (She sings beautifully), an adjective (very tall), another adverb (quite slowly) or a whole sentence (Fortunately, nobody was hurt). Adverbs answer the questions how? when? where? how often? how much?

Forming adverbs

Most adverbs of manner are formed by adding -ly to an adjective: quick → quickly, careful → carefully. Spelling changes: happy → happily, gentle → gently, true → truly, full → fully, basic → basically, public → publicly, whole → wholly.

Some adverbs have the same form as the adjective: fast, hard, late, early, daily, weekly, straight, high, low, deep, near, right, wrong, far, long — a fast car / drive fast; a hard job / work hard. Note the pairs with different meanings: hard (with effort) / hardly (almost not); late (not on time) / lately (recently); high (at a height) / highly (very); near (close) / nearly (almost). The adverb of good is well: She is a good swimmer. She swims well.

Types of adverb

Where adverbs go

• Frequency adverbs go before the main verb but after be and after the first auxiliary: She often works late. She is often late. She has never been late. Longer expressions (every day, twice a week) go at the end.
• Manner adverbs usually go after the verb and its object, never between them: He speaks English fluently (not He speaks fluently English).
• Place and time adverbs go at the end (place before time) or, for emphasis, at the beginning: We met at the station yesterday. Yesterday we met at the station.
• When several come together at the end, the usual order is manner, place, time: She worked hard at the office yesterday.
• Degree adverbs go before the word they modify, except enough, which follows an adjective or adverb: very good, too fast, good enough, fast enough.
• Focusing adverbs go directly before the word they focus on; moving them changes the meaning: Only I saw Ana (nobody else saw her) / I saw only Ana (nobody else).
• Linking adverbs connect sentences and are set off with commas: It rained all day. However, we enjoyed the trip. They are not conjunctions: two clauses joined by however need a semicolon or a period, not a comma (see the semicolon).

Comparison of adverbs

Adverbs that have the same form as an adjective take -er/-est (harder, faster, later, earlier); -ly adverbs take more/most (more carefully, most quickly); irregular: well → better → best, badly → worse → worst, far → farther/further → farthest/furthest, little → less → least, much → more → most.

• Incorrect: He drives very good. She sings beautiful. I feel badly about it.
• Correct: He drives very well. She sings beautifully. I feel bad about it. (feel is a linking verb, so it takes an adjective)
• Incorrect: I always am tired on Mondays. She speaks very well French.
• Correct: I am always tired on Mondays. She speaks French very well.
• Incorrect: This is a very unique design. It is enough big.
• Correct: This is a unique design. It is big enough.

1.7VerbsA1

A verb says what the subject does (run, write), what happens to it (fall, break) or what state it is in (be, seem, know). Every complete sentence has at least one verb, and the verb is the word that carries tense: walk / walked, is / was. Chapter 2 covers verb forms, tenses, modals and the passive in detail; this section introduces the kinds of verb.

Main verbs and auxiliary verbs

A main verb carries the meaning (She sings). An auxiliary (helping) verb combines with a main verb to form tenses, questions, negatives and the passive. The primary auxiliaries are be, have and do; the modal auxiliaries are can, could, may, might, must, shall, should, will, would.

• She is singing. They have finished. Do you smoke? He didn’t come. The song was written in 1965. You should rest.

Action, linking and stative verbs

• Action (dynamic) verbs describe something that happens: jump, eat, build, think about, grow.
• Linking verbs join the subject to a word that describes or renames it: be, become, seem, appear, feel, look, sound, smell, taste, get, grow, remain, stay, turn. They are followed by an adjective or a noun, not an adverb: The soup tastes good. He became a lawyer. It seems strange.
• Stative verbs describe states, not actions, and are not normally used in continuous tenses: know, believe, understand, remember, mean, want, need, prefer, like, love, hate, own, belong, contain, consist, seem, matter, depend, deserve. I know the answer (not I am knowing).

Some verbs have a stative meaning and an action meaning: I think you’re right (opinion) / I’m thinking about the offer (mental activity); She has two cars (possession) / She is having lunch (activity); The soup tastes salty / The chef is tasting the soup; I see what you mean / I’m seeing the doctor tomorrow; He is rude (character) / He is being rude (behavior right now).

Transitive and intransitive verbs

A transitive verb needs an object to complete its meaning: She bought a bike (She bought is incomplete). An intransitive verb has no object: He arrived. The baby slept. Many verbs can be both: She reads novels. She reads every night. Some verbs take two objects: He gave her a present (see objects and complements). Only verbs with an object can be made passive, and the object of a preposition counts: The bike was bought. The matter was looked into. But never It was arrived.

Regular and irregular verbs

Regular verbs form the past simple and the past participle with -ed: walk, walked, walked. About 200 common verbs are irregular and must be learned: go, went, gone; write, wrote, written; put, put, put. The irregular verb table lists the ones you need most.

Phrasal verbs

A verb plus a particle (up, off, out, on, down, in, away, over, back) often has a new meaning: give up (stop trying), look after (take care of), turn down (refuse). See phrasal verbs for the rules on word order.

1.8PrepositionsA1

A preposition links a noun, pronoun or -ing form to the rest of the sentence and shows a relationship of place, time, direction, cause or manner: the book on the table, at six o’clock, a gift from my aunt, interested in learning. The word after a preposition is its object and takes the object form: with him, between you and me.

At, on and in for time

No preposition is used before last, next, this, every, yesterday, tomorrow, today and tonight: We met last week. See you next Monday. Call me tomorrow.

At, on and in for place

• at — a point or an address: at the door, at the bus stop, at the top, at home, at work, at school, at the airport, at 10 Downing Street, at a party, at the dentist’s.
• on — a surface or a line: on the table, on the wall, on the floor, on page 12, on the coast, on the second floor, on the bus / train / plane / ship, on the left, on TV.
• in — an enclosed space or an area: in the box, in the room, in the garden, in a car / taxi, in the city, in Spain, in the sky, in bed, in hospital (BrE), in the picture, in the newspaper.

Prepositions that are often confused

• for + a length of time, since + the starting point, during + a named period, ago after a period: for two years, since 2022, during the summer, two years ago.
• by = no later than; until = up to that time: Finish it by Friday. I worked until midnight.
• between for two (or several clearly separate) items; among for a group: between the two houses, among the trees.
• above / below = higher or lower; over / under = covering, directly above or below, or more or less than: the picture above the sofa, over 100 people, under the bridge.
• across = from one side to the other of a surface; through = inside a space from one end to the other: across the road, through the tunnel.
• made of (the material is still visible) / made from (the material has changed): a table made of wood, wine made from grapes.

Prepositions at the end of a sentence

In questions and relative clauses the preposition usually goes at the end: What are you looking at? the house I grew up in. Putting it first is possible in formal style (To whom are you speaking? the house in which I grew up), but never before that, and in everyday English it sounds stilted: At what are you looking? The old rule that a sentence must never end with a preposition is not a rule of English (see grammar myths).

• Incorrect: She is married with a doctor. We discussed about the plan.
• Correct: She is married to a doctor. We discussed the plan.
• Incorrect: I arrived to London in Monday. I have lived here since three years.
• Correct: I arrived in London on Monday. I have lived here for three years.
• Incorrect: Can you explain me the rule? He entered into the room. Listen me!
• Correct: Can you explain the rule to me? He entered the room. Listen to me!

Many verbs, adjectives and nouns are followed by a fixed preposition (depend on, good at, reason for). They are listed under dependent prepositions.

1.9ConjunctionsA2

A conjunction joins words, phrases or clauses. There are three kinds, and the kind decides the punctuation.

Coordinating conjunctions

The seven coordinating conjunctions, remembered as FANBOYS (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so), join elements of equal rank: two nouns, two phrases or two independent clauses.

• Words and phrases, no comma: tea or coffee; tired but happy; in the morning and in the evening.
• Two independent clauses, comma before the conjunction: I wanted to go, but it was too late. She studied hard, so she passed.
• No comma when the second part has no subject of its own: She opened the door and walked in.
• For (meaning because) and nor are formal: He stayed home, for he was ill. She doesn’t smoke, nor does she drink. (Note the inversion after nor.)

Subordinating conjunctions

A subordinating conjunction introduces a dependent clause and shows how it relates to the main clause. When the dependent clause comes first, a comma separates it from the main clause; when it comes second, there is usually no comma.

Correlative conjunctions

Correlative conjunctions work in pairs: both … and, either … or, neither … nor, not only … but also, whether … or, as … as, no sooner … than, rather … than. The words after each half should have the same grammatical form (see parallelism), and with either … or and neither … nor the verb agrees with the nearer subject.

• She speaks both French and German. Neither the manager nor the employees were informed. Not only did he apologize, but he also paid for the damage.

Conjunctions and the words that look like them

• However, therefore, moreover, nevertheless, consequently, otherwise, meanwhile, furthermore, instead, thus, hence are adverbs, not conjunctions. They cannot join two clauses with a comma alone: It was late; however, we kept working. / It was late. However, we kept working.
• Because is followed by a clause; because of by a noun: because it rained / because of the rain. In the same way: although it was expensive / despite (in spite of) the price.
• So (result) and so that (purpose): It was raining, so we stayed in. We stayed in so that we wouldn’t get wet.
• Like is a preposition (She sings like an angel); before a clause, careful writers use as or as if: Do as I say. It looks as if it will rain.

• Incorrect: Although it was raining, but we went out.
• Correct: Although it was raining, we went out. / It was raining, but we went out.
• Incorrect: Despite it was expensive, I bought it. Because of it rained, we stayed home.
• Correct: Although it was expensive, I bought it. Because it rained, we stayed home.
• Incorrect: I was tired, therefore I went to bed.
• Correct: I was tired, so I went to bed. / I was tired; therefore, I went to bed.

1.10InterjectionsA2

An interjection is a word or short phrase that expresses a sudden feeling or reaction, or that manages a conversation. It stands apart from the grammar of the sentence and is usually followed by an exclamation mark or a comma.

• Ouch! That hurt. Well, I suppose we could try. Oh, I didn’t see you there.

Interjections belong to speech, dialogue and informal messages. In formal writing, express the feeling in words instead: Unfortunately, the proposal was rejected rather than Alas! The proposal was rejected.

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2Verbs and tenses

The verb is the engine of the English sentence. It tells you when something happens (tense), whether it is complete or in progress (aspect), whether the subject acts or is acted on (voice), and how sure or how obliged the speaker is (modal verbs and mood). This chapter takes those systems one at a time, with the forms, the uses and the mistakes that matter most.

2.1Verb forms and spelling rulesA1

Every English verb except be has five forms. Regular verbs make the past simple and the past participle with -ed; irregular verbs have their own forms for those two.

Spelling the -s form

• Add -s: works, plays, sees, runs.
• Add -es after -s, -ss, -sh, -ch, -x, -z and -o: passes, washes, watches, fixes, buzzes, goes, does.
• Consonant + -y becomes -ies: study → studies, try → tries, carry → carries (but vowel + y: plays, enjoys).
• Irregular: have → has, be → is.

Spelling the -ing form

• Drop a silent -e: make → making, write → writing, come → coming (but keep -ee, -ye, -oe: see → seeing, dye → dyeing, canoe → canoeing; and be → being).
• -ie becomes -ying: lie → lying, die → dying, tie → tying.
• Double the final consonant of a stressed syllable that ends in one vowel + one consonant: run → running, stop → stopping, swim → swimming, begin → beginning, prefer → preferring, admit → admitting. Do not double when the last syllable is unstressed (open → opening, visit → visiting, listen → listening), after two vowels (rain → raining), or for w, x, y (snow → snowing, fix → fixing, play → playing). British English doubles a final -l whatever the stress: travelling, cancelling (AmE traveling, canceling).

Spelling the -ed form

• Add -ed: work → worked, play → played, rain → rained.
• Add only -d after -e: love → loved, hope → hoped, agree → agreed.
• Consonant + -y becomes -ied: study → studied, try → tried, cry → cried (vowel + y: played, enjoyed, stayed; irregular: pay → paid, say → said, lay → laid).
• Double the final consonant by the same rule as for -ing: stop → stopped, plan → planned, prefer → preferred, admit → admitted; BrE travelled, cancelled.

Pronouncing -ed

The ending is pronounced /t/ after a voiceless sound (worked, stopped, washed, laughed), /d/ after a voiced sound (played, cleaned, loved, agreed) and /ɪd/ as an extra syllable after t or d (wanted, needed, started, decided). A few adjectives keep the extra syllable: naked, wicked, learned (scholarly), beloved, aged (very old).

2.2Auxiliary verbs: be, have and doA1

Be, have and do can be main verbs (I am tired. She has a car. We did our best) and auxiliary verbs that build tenses, questions and negatives. Be is the only verb with different present forms for different persons (am, is, are); have and do have irregular third-person forms, has and does.

Questions and negatives

If the sentence already contains be, have (as an auxiliary) or a modal, that verb moves in front of the subject for a question and takes not for a negative. If the only verb is a main verb in the present or past simple, add do / does / did, and the main verb returns to its base form.

• Incorrect: Does she likes jazz? He didn’t went home. Do you can swim?
• Correct: Does she like jazz? He didn’t go home. Can you swim?
• Incorrect: I no have time. They not came.
• Correct: I don’t have time. They didn’t come.

Short answers and emphasis

Short answers repeat the auxiliary, not the main verb: Do you like it? — Yes, I do. / No, I don’t. Has he called? — Yes, he has. Will they come? — No, they won’t. With be, repeat be: Are you ready? — Yes, I am. (Never contract a positive short answer: not Yes, I’m.) Stressed do adds emphasis or contradiction: I do understand. She did warn you.

Have got

In British English, have got is the everyday way to talk about possession, relationships and illness in the present: I’ve got a new phone. Have you got any brothers? She hasn’t got a cold. American English prefers have with do: I have a new phone. Do you have any brothers? Have got is only used in the present; for other tenses use have: I had a car (not I had got a car).

Contractions

In speech and informal writing, auxiliaries contract with the subject or with not: I’m, you’re, he’s, she’s, it’s, we’re, they’re; I’ve, you’ve, he’s (= he has), we’d (= we had or we would), I’ll, she’ll; isn’t, aren’t, wasn’t, weren’t, haven’t, hasn’t, hadn’t, don’t, doesn’t, didn’t, won’t, wouldn’t, can’t, couldn’t, shouldn’t, mustn’t, needn’t. Ain’t is non-standard. In formal writing, use the full forms.

2.3The present tensesA1

Present simple

• Habits and routines: I drink coffee every morning. She never eats meat.
• Facts and general truths: Water boils at 100 °C. The Earth goes around the Sun.
• Permanent situations: He lives in Lisbon. They work for a bank.
• Timetables and scheduled events in the future: The train leaves at 6:40. The course starts in September.
• States, thoughts and feelings (stative verbs): I know him. She wants a new job. It belongs to me.
• Instructions, commentaries, headlines and stories told in the present: First you add the flour. He shoots — he scores! Prime Minister resigns.
• Signal words: always, usually, often, sometimes, rarely, never, every day, on Mondays, once a week.

Present continuous (progressive)

• Actions in progress now: Be quiet — the baby is sleeping. What are you doing?
• Temporary situations around now: I’m staying with friends until I find an apartment. She’s reading a great novel.
• Changing and developing situations: Prices are rising. The climate is getting warmer.
• Fixed future arrangements: We’re flying to Rome on Friday. I’m meeting Ana at six.
• Repeated behavior that annoys the speaker, with always: He’s always losing his keys.
• Signal words: now, right now, at the moment, currently, today, this week, these days, Look! Listen!

Stative verbs (know, like, want, need, believe, own, belong, seem) are not used in the continuous: I want a coffee, not I am wanting. See stative verbs.

Present perfect

• A past action with a result now: I’ve lost my keys (so I can’t get in). She’s broken her arm.
• Life experience, the time not stated: Have you ever been to Japan? I’ve never eaten sushi.
• Situations that began in the past and continue now, with for and since: We’ve lived here for ten years. He’s worked there since 2019.
• Actions in a period that is not finished: I’ve had three coffees today. She’s called twice this week.
• Recent events and news: The president has resigned. I’ve just seen Tom.
• Signal words: ever, never, just, already, yet, recently, lately, so far, up to now, for, since, today, this week.

Been and gone. She has gone to Paris means she is there now; She has been to Paris means she went and came back.

Present perfect continuous

• An activity that started in the past and is still going on, with emphasis on duration: I’ve been waiting for an hour. It’s been raining since lunchtime.
• A recent activity whose effects you can see: You’ve been running! (You’re out of breath.) Someone’s been eating my sandwich.
• Signal words: for, since, how long, all day, lately, recently.

• Incorrect: I am living here since five years. I have seen him last week.
• Correct: I have lived (have been living) here for five years. I saw him last week.
• Incorrect: I am knowing the answer. She has been knowing him for years.
• Correct: I know the answer. She has known him for years.
• Incorrect: He works here since 2020. Have you ever went to Rome?
• Correct: He has worked here since 2020. Have you ever been to Rome?

2.4The past tensesA1

Past simple

• Completed actions at a known or implied time: I met her in 2018. We moved last year.
• A sequence of events in a story: She opened the door, switched on the light and screamed.
• Past habits and states (also used to): He smoked when he was young. I used to live by the sea.
• Signal words: yesterday, last night, last week, in 2010, two days ago, when, then, at that time.

Past continuous

• An action in progress at a moment in the past: At eight o’clock I was having dinner.
• Background to a shorter past action (the interrupted action): I was cooking when the phone rang. While she was driving home, it started to snow.
• Two actions in progress at the same time: He was reading while I was working.
• Setting the scene in a story: The sun was shining and the birds were singing.
• Polite or tentative requests: I was wondering if you could help me.

Past perfect

• The earlier of two past events — the “past before the past”: When I arrived, the film had already started. She couldn’t pay because she had lost her wallet.
• With by the time, already, just, never, before, after, until: By the time we got there, everyone had gone home.
• In reported speech (backshift), the third conditional and wishes about the past: He said he had seen the report. If I had known, I would have come. I wish I had studied harder.

When before or after makes the order clear, the past simple is also correct: After he (had) finished, he left. Do not use the past perfect simply because something happened a long time ago.

Past perfect continuous

• The duration of an activity up to a point in the past: She had been working there for ten years when the factory closed.
• The cause of a past situation: He was exhausted because he had been running. The ground was wet; it had been raining.

Used to, would and be used to

• used to + base form: past habits or states that are no longer true. I used to play tennis. There used to be a movie theater here. Negative and question with did: I didn’t use to like fish. Did you use to live here?
• would + base form: repeated past actions (not states) in descriptions of the past. Every summer we would go to the lake. (Not We would live by the lake: states need used to.)
• be / get used to + noun or -ing: to be or become accustomed to something, in any tense. I’m used to getting up early. You’ll get used to the noise.

• Incorrect: I didn’t went to the party. Did you saw the game?
• Correct: I didn’t go to the party. Did you see the game?
• Incorrect: When I was a child I was playing football every day.
• Correct: When I was a child I played (used to play) football every day.
• Incorrect: She told me she has seen the film before. I didn’t used to like coffee.
• Correct: She told me she had seen the film before. I didn’t use to like coffee.

2.5Talking about the futureA2

English has no single future tense. It uses several forms, and the choice depends on whether the future event is a prediction, a plan, an arrangement or a timetable.

Will

• Predictions and beliefs about the future: It will be cold tomorrow. I think she’ll win.
• Decisions made at the moment of speaking: The phone’s ringing — I’ll get it.
• Promises, offers, requests and refusals: I’ll help you. Will you open the window? The car won’t start.
• Facts about the future: The sun will rise at 6:12.
• Shall is used in British English for offers and suggestions with I and we: Shall I open it? Shall we go?

Be going to

• Intentions and plans already decided: We’re going to paint the kitchen this weekend.
• Predictions based on present evidence: Look at those clouds — it’s going to rain. She’s going to have a baby.

Present continuous and present simple for the future

• The present continuous for arrangements with a time and place, usually involving other people: I’m seeing the dentist at ten. They’re getting married in June. (I will see the dentist at ten is possible, but it sounds like a decision rather than an appointment.)
• The present simple for timetables and schedules: The plane lands at 9:45. The exam is on Monday.

Future continuous, future perfect and future perfect continuous

• Future continuous (will be + -ing): an action in progress at a future time, or something expected to happen in the normal course of events. This time tomorrow I’ll be lying on a beach. I’ll be seeing him at the meeting anyway. Also for polite questions about plans: Will you be using the car tonight?
• Future perfect (will have + past participle): an action completed before a future point. By 2030 they will have built the new line. She’ll have finished by the time you arrive.
• Future perfect continuous (will have been + -ing): duration up to a future point. In May I will have been working here for twenty years.

Other ways of referring to the future

• be about to (very soon): Hurry, the film’s about to start.
• be due to (scheduled): The train is due to arrive at 8:15.
• be to (formal arrangements and instructions): The president is to visit Japan in May. You are not to leave this room.
• be likely to, be bound to, be sure to (probability): Prices are likely to rise.
• Future in the past, with would or was going to: He said he would call. I was going to phone you, but I forgot.

• Incorrect: I’ll call you when I will get home. If it will rain, we’ll stay in.
• Correct: I’ll call you when I get home. If it rains, we’ll stay in.

2.6The twelve tenses at a glanceB1

Strictly speaking, English has two tenses, present and past, which combine with four aspects (simple, continuous, perfect, perfect continuous) and with will for the future. For learning purposes the result is usually presented as twelve tenses. Here they are together, with the form, the main use and the typical signal words.

pp = past participle. The present participle is the -ing form.

2.7Modal verbsA2

The modal verbs are can, could, may, might, must, shall, should, will and would. They add a meaning such as ability, permission, possibility, obligation or prediction to the main verb, and they all follow the same grammar.

• Incorrect: She cans swim. I can to help. He must to go. You will can do it.
• Correct: She can swim. I can help. He must go. You will be able to do it.

What the modals mean

Must and have to. Must expresses the speaker’s own authority or a strong recommendation (You must read this book); have to expresses an outside obligation such as a rule or a timetable (I have to be at work by eight). In the negative they are different words: mustn’t = it is forbidden; don’t have to = it is not necessary. Must has no past or future; use had to and will have to.

Degrees of certainty. From most to least certain: must / will (certain) → should / ought to (probable) → may → might / could (possible). Can’t is the negative counterpart of must: That can’t be Sue (I am sure it is not). Can is used for general possibility, not a specific chance: It can be cold in April (in general); It may be cold tomorrow (specific).

Modals in the past: modal + have + past participle

For a single past achievement, use was able to or managed to, not could: The fire spread quickly, but everyone was able to escape (not could escape). Could is fine for general past ability (She could swim at five) and in the negative (I couldn’t open the door).

Semi-modals

Have to, have got to, need to, ought to, be able to, be allowed to, be supposed to, had better, used to and dare express modal meanings but behave (wholly or partly) like ordinary verbs: She has to leave. Do you have to go? We ought to apologize. You’d better not be late (had better takes the base form, no to).

• Incorrect: You mustn’t pay; it’s free. (meaning: it isn’t necessary)
• Correct: You don’t have to pay; it’s free.
• Incorrect: I would of helped. She must has left. You had better to go.
• Correct: I would have helped. She must have left. You had better go.
• Incorrect: I could pass the exam last week, so I’m happy. (a single achievement)
• Correct: I was able to pass (managed to pass) the exam last week.

2.8The passive voiceB1

In an active sentence the subject does the action: The chef cooked the meal. In a passive sentence the subject receives the action, and the doer, if mentioned at all, follows by: The meal was cooked by the chef.

When to use the passive

• The doer is unknown, unimportant or obvious: My car was stolen last night. The suspect was arrested. Rice is grown in Asia.
• The action or its receiver matters more than the doer: The bridge was completed in 1932.
• Formal, scientific and official writing: The samples were heated to 80 °C. Applications must be submitted by Friday.
• To keep the topic of a text in subject position: Marie Curie was born in Warsaw. She was awarded two Nobel Prizes.
• To avoid saying who is responsible, tactfully or evasively: Mistakes were made.

Mention the agent with by only when it adds information: The novel was written by a teenager (interesting) but The thief was arrested (not by the police — obvious).

Special cases

• Two objects, two passives: They gave her a prize → She was given a prize / A prize was given to her. Starting with the person is more common.
• Reporting verbs (say, think, believe, know, report, expect): People say he is rich → It is said that he is rich / He is said to be rich.
• Get + past participle is an informal passive for events, often unwelcome ones: He got fired. We got caught in the rain.
• Have / get something done (causative): someone else does it for you. I had my hair cut. We’re getting the roof repaired.
• Verbs with no passive: intransitive verbs (happen, arrive, die, sleep, occur, exist) and most stative verbs of possession and fit (have, lack, fit, suit, resemble): The accident happened at noon, never was happened.

• Incorrect: The accident was happened yesterday. The letter was send last week.
• Correct: The accident happened yesterday. The letter was sent last week.
• Incorrect: English is speak all over the world. The problem is being discuss now.
• Correct: English is spoken all over the world. The problem is being discussed now.

2.9Mood: indicative, imperative and subjunctiveB2

The mood of a verb shows the speaker’s attitude to what is said: is it a fact, a command or something imagined?

The indicative

The indicative is the normal mood of statements and questions about facts and opinions. Almost every verb in this reference is in the indicative: She lives here. Does she live here? She didn’t live here.

The imperative

The imperative gives commands, instructions, invitations, warnings and advice. It uses the base form of the verb with no subject (the subject you is understood).

• Close the door. Turn left at the lights. Have a seat. Be careful!
• Negative with don’t: Don’t touch that. Don’t be late.
• Including the speaker with let’s: Let’s go. Let’s not argue.
• Emphatic or polite with do: Do sit down. Do be quiet.
• Softened with please, a question tag or just: Please wait here. Pass the salt, would you? Just leave it on the desk.
• With always and never: Always check your work. Never give up.

The subjunctive

The subjunctive is used for things that are wished, demanded, suggested or imagined rather than real. Modern English keeps it in three places.

• The base form after verbs and adjectives of demand, suggestion and necessity (suggest, recommend, insist, demand, request, propose, require, ask, advise; it is essential / important / vital / necessary / crucial that): I suggest that he leave early. The doctor insisted that she rest. It is essential that every visitor be registered. There is no -s, no does, and be stays be; the negative is not + base form: They asked that he not be disturbed. This use is normal in American English; British English often prefers should: I suggest that he should leave early.
• Were for unreal present situations after if, as if, as though, wish, suppose and would rather: If I were you, I’d accept. I wish it were Friday. He talks as if he were the boss. In conversation If I was you is common, but were is expected in careful writing.
• Fixed expressions: God save the King. Long live the Queen. Be that as it may. So be it. Far be it from me to complain. If need be. Come what may. Suffice it to say. Heaven forbid.

• Incorrect: It is important that she is on time. I recommend that he takes the train. (an error in American English; accepted in informal British English)
• Correct: It is important that she be on time. I recommend that he take (should take) the train.

2.10ConditionalsA2

A conditional sentence has two parts: the if-clause (the condition) and the main clause (the result). The tenses you choose show how real or unreal the condition is. Either clause can come first; when the if-clause comes first, it is followed by a comma.

The zero conditional

Both clauses in the present simple. If means whenever and can be replaced by when: If (when) you press this button, the machine stops. If I don’t sleep, I get headaches. Also used for instructions: If the light flashes, call a technician.

The first conditional

A present tense in the if-clause (not will) and a future form, a modal or an imperative in the main clause.

• If you study, you’ll pass. If she’s finished the report, she can go home. If you see Tom, give him this.
• Unless = if … not: You’ll miss the bus unless you hurry.
• Other conjunctions: as long as, provided (that), on condition that, in case, even if, whether or not, only if, supposing (that): Take an umbrella in case it rains. You can borrow it as long as you return it by Friday.
• If … should or should + inversion makes the condition sound less likely (formal): If you should need anything, call me. Should you need anything, call me.

The second conditional

Past simple in the if-clause, would / could / might + base form in the main clause. The past tense does not refer to past time; it shows that the situation is imaginary, unlikely or impossible now.

• If I won the lottery, I’d buy a boat. If we lived nearer, we could visit more often. What would you do if you were me?
• Advice: If I were you, I’d see a doctor. (Were is used for all persons in careful English.)

The third conditional

Past perfect in the if-clause, would / could / might have + past participle in the main clause, for imagining a different past and its different result. It often expresses regret or criticism.

• If you had told me, I would have helped. If she hadn’t missed the train, she might have arrived on time. We could have won if we’d played better.

Mixed conditionals

• A past condition with a present result: If I had studied medicine, I would be a doctor now.
• A present condition with a past result: If I weren’t so shy, I would have spoken to her at the party.

Inversion in formal conditionals

In formal writing, if can be dropped and the auxiliary moved in front of the subject: Were I rich, I would retire. Had we known, we would have waited. Should you require assistance, please ask.

Wishes and regrets

• Incorrect: If I will see him, I will tell him. If it would rain, we would stay in.
• Correct: If I see him, I will tell him. If it rained, we would stay in.
• Incorrect: If I had money, I will buy a car. If I would have known, I would have come.
• Correct: If I had money, I would buy a car. If I had known, I would have come.
• Incorrect: I wish I have a bigger flat. I wish I would be taller.
• Correct: I wish I had a bigger flat. I wish I were taller.

Practice: Type 1, 2 and 3 conditionals exercise · Mixed conditionals exercise

2.11Reported speechB1

Direct speech repeats the exact words, inside quotation marks: She said, “I am tired.” Reported (indirect) speech gives the content without the exact words, usually after that: She said (that) she was tired. When the reporting verb is in the past, three things change: the tense, the pronouns and the words for time and place.

Tense changes (backshift)

No backshift is needed when the reporting verb is in the present (She says she’s tired), when the statement is still true (He said the Earth goes around the Sun. She told me she lives in Rome — if she still does), or when reporting immediately after the words were spoken.

Pronouns, time and place

• “I’ll see you here tomorrow,” he said. → He said he would see me there the next day.

Reporting questions

Reported questions use statement word order, no do / does / did, and no question mark. Yes/no questions are introduced by if or whether; wh-questions keep their question word.

• “Where do you live?” → She asked me where I lived.
• “Are you tired?” → He asked if I was tired.
• “What time does the train leave?” → They wanted to know what time the train left.

Reporting commands, requests and advice

Use tell, ask, order, advise, warn, remind, invite, encourage + object + (not) to + base form.

• “Wait here.” → He told me to wait there.
• “Please don’t shout.” → She asked us not to shout.
• “You should see a doctor.” → He advised me to see a doctor.

Say, tell and other reporting verbs

Say is not followed by a person as object (She said that…, She said to me that…); tell needs one (She told me that…). Other reporting verbs each have their own pattern.

• Incorrect: She said me that she was busy. He told that he would come.
• Correct: She told me that she was busy. He said that he would come.
• Incorrect: She asked me where did I live. He asked if was I ready.
• Correct: She asked me where I lived. He asked if I was ready.
• Incorrect: He suggested me to take a taxi. She said to not worry.
• Correct: He suggested (that I) take a taxi. / He suggested taking a taxi. She told me not to worry.

2.12Gerunds and infinitivesB1

Both forms let a verb do the work of a noun. The gerund is the -ing form (swimming); the infinitive is to + base form (to swim) or, after certain verbs, the base form alone (the bare infinitive: swim). Which one you need depends mostly on the word that comes before.

Where the gerund is used

• As a subject or complement: Smoking is banned. My hobby is painting.
• After prepositions, always: interested in learning, before leaving, good at drawing, without asking, thank you for coming. This includes to when it is a preposition: look forward to seeing you, used to getting up early, object to paying.
• After certain verbs: admit, avoid, consider, delay, deny, dislike, enjoy, fancy, finish, give up, imagine, involve, keep (on), mention, mind, miss, postpone, practice, put off, recommend, risk, suggest, can’t help, can’t stand, feel like, it’s no use, it’s (not) worth. I enjoy cooking. She avoided answering. Would you mind waiting?
• In signs and short instructions: No parking. No smoking.

Where the infinitive is used

• To express purpose: I came to help. She’s saving to buy an apartment. (Not for to help; for + -ing describes the purpose of a thing: a knife for cutting bread.)
• After adjectives: happy to see you, easy to use, too tired to think, old enough to vote, and after it is + adjective: It’s hard to say.
• After certain verbs: afford, agree, aim, appear, arrange, ask, choose, decide, deserve, expect, fail, happen, hope, learn, manage, need, offer, plan, prepare, pretend, promise, refuse, seem, tend, threaten, want, wish, would like. We decided to leave. She seems to know.
• After verb + object: advise, allow, ask, encourage, expect, force, invite, order, persuade, remind, teach, tell, want, warn, would like. They asked me to wait. I want you to listen.
• After question words and nouns: I don’t know what to do. the decision to leave, the first person to arrive, nothing to eat.

Verbs that take both forms

After begin, start, continue, like, love, hate, prefer, bother, intend and can’t bear, either form is possible with little change in meaning: It started to rain / raining. (After would like, would love, would prefer, only the infinitive: I’d like to go.) With the following verbs the meaning changes.

The bare infinitive

The base form without to is used after modal verbs (can go, must stay), after let, make and help (Let me go. She made us wait. Help me carry this — help also takes to), after had better and would rather (You’d better leave. I’d rather stay), after why (not) (Why wait? Why not ask her?), and after verbs of perception (see, hear, watch, feel, notice) + object for a complete action: I saw him leave (the whole event) versus I saw him leaving (in progress). In the passive, make takes to: We were made to wait.

Perfect and passive forms

The perfect infinitive (to have + past participle) and the perfect gerund (having + past participle) refer to an earlier time: She seems to have forgotten. He denied having seen the file. Passive forms: to be done, being done: Nobody likes being told what to do.

• Incorrect: I enjoy to read. She suggested me to go. We look forward to meet you.
• Correct: I enjoy reading. She suggested going. We look forward to meeting you.
• Incorrect: He wants that you come. They made me to sign. It’s worth to visit.
• Correct: He wants you to come. They made me sign. It’s worth visiting.
• Incorrect: I stopped to smoke last year. (meaning: I gave it up)
• Correct: I stopped smoking last year.

2.13Phrasal verbsB1

A phrasal verb is a verb plus one or two particles (an adverb or a preposition such as up, out, off, on, in, down, away, back, over, through) whose combined meaning is often different from the meaning of the parts: give up means “stop trying,” look after means “take care of,” put up with means “tolerate.” They are very common in speech and informal writing; formal English often prefers a single verb (postpone for put off, discover for find out, tolerate for put up with).

Four types, and where the object goes

• Incorrect: Can you pick up me at six? Turn on it, please. She looks her brother after.
• Correct: Can you pick me up at six? Turn it on, please. She looks after her brother.

Fifty phrasal verbs you need

2.14Subject–verb agreementA2

The rule is simple; the difficulty is finding the real subject. These are the cases that cause trouble.

1. Words between the subject and the verb do not change the agreement. The box of chocolates is empty. The results of the survey were surprising. The manager, together with her assistants, has arrived. (Together with, as well as, along with, in addition to and including do not make a subject plural.)
2. Subjects joined by and are plural — Tom and Ana are here — unless the two words form one idea or refer to one person: Fish and chips is my favorite meal. The founder and CEO was present. After each or every, the verb is singular: Every boy and girl has a ticket.
3. With or, nor, either … or, neither … nor, the verb agrees with the nearer subject. Neither the teacher nor the students were ready. Either the students or the teacher is mistaken.
4. Indefinite pronouns in -one, -body, -thing and the words each, either, neither, one, another are singular. Everyone has left. Each of the players receives a medal. Neither of them is wrong. Both, few, many, several are plural. None takes a singular verb for an uncountable noun and either a singular or a plural verb for a plural noun: None of the milk was left. None of the players was / were injured.
5. Collective nouns (team, family, staff, committee, government) are singular in American English and singular or plural in British English depending on whether the group acts as one unit or as individuals. See collective nouns.
6. After there is / there are, the verb agrees with the noun that follows. There is a problem. There are three problems. (In speech, There’s three problems is common but not standard.)
7. Amounts of money, time, distance and weight treated as one unit are singular. Ten dollars is too much. Three hours was enough. Five miles is a long walk.
8. Titles, names of organizations and countries with plural form are singular. Great Expectations is a long novel. The United Nations has 193 members. The Netherlands is flat.
9. Nouns that end in -s but are singular take singular verbs: The news is good. Mathematics is hard. Measles is contagious. Politics, economics, statistics are singular as subjects of study and plural when they mean practical details: Statistics is a branch of mathematics. The statistics are alarming.
10. Plural-only nouns take plural verbs: The scissors are sharp. My trousers are torn. With a pair of, the verb is singular: A pair of scissors is on the desk.
11. A number of is plural; the number of is singular. A number of students were absent. The number of students has fallen. In the same way: a lot of, lots of, plenty of, most of, some of, half of, a percentage of and fractions agree with the noun after of: Half of the cake is gone. Half of the guests have gone. Most of the work is done.
12. In a relative clause, the verb agrees with the noun the pronoun refers to. She is one of the students who work hardest (several students work hard). She is the only one of the students who works on Sundays (only she does).
13. When the subject comes after the verb, find it first. Here comes the bus. On the hill stand two old oaks. What are the reasons?
14. A gerund, an infinitive or a clause as subject is singular. Swimming is good exercise. To err is human. What she said was true.
15. People, police, cattle, staff (BrE) are plural. The police have arrived. Many people think so.
16. More than one and many a take a singular verb despite their meaning: More than one mistake was found. Many a student has failed.
17. Latin and Greek plurals: criteria, phenomena, bacteria, media are plural (The criteria are clear); data is plural in scientific writing (The data were collected) and increasingly singular in everyday use (The data is stored here). Choose one and be consistent.
18. Adjectives used as nouns for groups are plural: The rich get richer. The injured were taken to the hospital.

• Incorrect: The list of names are on the desk. Everybody have arrived. There is many reasons.
• Correct: The list of names is on the desk. Everybody has arrived. There are many reasons.
• Incorrect: He don’t know. My family are small. (AmE) The news were shocking.
• Correct: He doesn’t know. My family is small. The news was shocking.
• Incorrect: One of my friends live in Oslo. Neither of the answers are correct.
• Correct: One of my friends lives in Oslo. Neither of the answers is correct.

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3Sentence structure

A sentence is a group of words with a subject and a verb that expresses a complete thought. This chapter builds the sentence up from its parts — subject, verb, objects, complements, phrases and clauses — and then looks at the kinds of sentence English makes from them and the structural errors that give writers the most trouble.

3.1Subject and predicateA1

Every sentence has two parts. The subject is who or what the sentence is about; the predicate is everything that is said about the subject, and it always contains the verb.

• The simple subject is the main noun or pronoun (man); the complete subject includes its modifiers (the old man next door). A compound subject has two or more parts joined by and or or.
• To find the subject, find the verb and ask who or what? before it: grows — who grows? — the old man next door.
• In commands the subject is you, understood but not written. In questions the subject comes after the first auxiliary: Has the package arrived? After there and here it follows the verb: There are two options.

English needs the subject to be written, even when it is obvious or empty: It is raining. It is important to be early, not Is raining or Is important to be early. See dummy subjects.

3.2Objects and complementsA2

Many verbs need something after them to complete the sentence. That something is an object or a complement.

Two ways to place an indirect object

An indirect object can come before the direct object with no preposition, or after it with to or for: He gave her the keys = He gave the keys to her. She bought me a coffee = She bought a coffee for me. When the direct object is a pronoun, use the preposition: He gave it to her (not He gave her it).

• Verbs with to: give, send, show, tell, lend, offer, pay, teach, write, bring, pass, hand, read, sell, throw.
• Verbs with for: buy, make, cook, get, find, save, book, build, order.
• Verbs that must have to before the person: explain, suggest, describe, say, announce, demonstrate, introduce, mention, recommend, report, propose, admit. She explained the rule to us, never explained us the rule.

The five basic sentence patterns

• Incorrect: Can you explain me this? She suggested me a good book. He said me the truth.
• Correct: Can you explain this to me? She suggested a good book to me. He told me the truth.

3.3PhrasesA2

A phrase is a group of words that works as a single unit but does not have both a subject and a finite verb. Phrases are named after their most important word, or after the kind of job they do.

3.4ClausesA2

A clause is a group of words with its own subject and verb. An independent (main) clause can stand alone as a sentence: She enjoys reading. A dependent (subordinate) clause also has a subject and a verb, but it begins with a word that makes it incomplete on its own: although she was tired, that he was right, which I bought yesterday. A dependent clause must be attached to an independent clause.

Three kinds of dependent clause

Punctuating clauses

• Adverb clause first: comma. If it rains, we’ll stay in. Adverb clause second: usually no comma. We’ll stay in if it rains.
• Noun clauses take no comma: She said that she was leaving.
• Relative clauses take commas only when they add extra, non-essential information: see relative clauses.
• Two independent clauses need a comma and a coordinating conjunction, a semicolon, or a period between them: see run-on sentences.

Reduced clauses

When the subject of a dependent clause is the same as the subject of the main clause, the clause can often be shortened to a participle phrase: While I was walking home, I saw a fox → Walking home, I saw a fox. Because he was exhausted, he went to bed → Exhausted, he went to bed. The man who is standing there → the man standing there. If the subjects are different, keep the full clause (see dangling modifiers).

3.5Simple, compound, complex and compound-complex sentencesB1

Sentences are classified by the number and kind of clauses they contain. Good writing mixes all four types; a long run of simple sentences sounds childish, and a long run of complex ones is tiring to read.

3.6Statements, questions, commands and exclamationsA1

Exclamations are built with what + noun phrase or how + adjective/adverb, and the subject and verb (if any) come at the end: What a lovely garden (this is)! How quickly the time passes! With an uncountable or plural noun there is no a: What nice weather! What beautiful flowers!

• Incorrect: What a nice weather! How it is beautiful!
• Correct: What nice weather! How beautiful it is!

3.7Word orderA1

English has very few endings to show who does what to whom, so word order carries the meaning. The basic order of a statement is subject – verb – object, and it hardly ever changes: The dog bit the man and The man bit the dog are different events.

• Subject before verb, object after: She speaks three languages.
• Do not separate the verb from its object: I like football very much, not I like very much football.
• Indirect object before direct object: He gave his sister the keys (or the keys to his sister).
• Adjectives before the noun (see adjective order): a small black cat.
• Place before time at the end of a sentence: I went to Paris last year, not I went last year to Paris.
• Frequency adverbs before the main verb but after be: She always arrives early. She is always early. See adverb position.
• Time expressions at the end, or at the beginning for emphasis: We met them yesterday. Yesterday we met them.
• Questions move an auxiliary before the subject; indirect questions keep statement order (see questions).

• Incorrect: I like very much this song. Always she is late. He explained very well the problem.
• Correct: I like this song very much. She is always late. He explained the problem very well.
• Incorrect: I went last summer to Greece. She gave to me the book.
• Correct: I went to Greece last summer. She gave me the book. / She gave the book to me.

3.8QuestionsA1

Yes/no questions

Move be, an auxiliary or a modal in front of the subject. If there is none, add do / does / did and put the main verb in the base form.

• Is she at home? Have you finished? Can he drive? Do you like tea? Does it work? Did they call?

Wh-questions

The question word (who, whom, whose, what, which, where, when, why, how, and how much / many / long / often / far / old) comes first, followed by the same inversion.

• Where do you live? Why didn’t she come? How long have you been waiting? Which bus goes to the station?
• When the question word is the subject, there is no inversion and no do: Who called you? (answer: Ana called me) — compare Who did you call? (answer: I called Ana). What happened? Which team won?
• A preposition usually goes at the end: What are you looking at? Who did you go with? Formal: With whom did you go?

Indirect questions

After an introduction such as Could you tell me…, Do you know…, I wonder…, I’d like to know…, the question keeps statement word order, with no do / does / did. Yes/no questions use if or whether.

• Where is the station? → Could you tell me where the station is?
• Does the shop open on Sundays? → Do you know if the shop opens on Sundays?
• What time did they leave? → I wonder what time they left.

Question tags

A short question added to a statement, to check or to invite agreement. A positive statement takes a negative tag, and a negative statement takes a positive tag. The tag repeats the auxiliary or be; with no auxiliary, it uses do.

• It’s cold, isn’t it? You haven’t seen my keys, have you? She can swim, can’t she? They live here, don’t they? He didn’t call, did he?
• Special cases: I’m right, aren’t I? Let’s go, shall we? Open the window, will you? Don’t be late, will you? There’s a problem, isn’t there? Nobody came, did they?

Negative questions

Negative questions express surprise, check something the speaker believes, or make suggestions: Didn’t you see the sign? Isn’t it beautiful? Why don’t we take a break?

• Incorrect: Where you are going? What means this word? You like coffee?
• Correct: Where are you going? What does this word mean? Do you like coffee?
• Incorrect: Do you can swim? Why he didn’t come? Who did call you?
• Correct: Can you swim? Why didn’t he come? Who called you?
• Incorrect: Could you tell me where is the bank? I wonder what time is it.
• Correct: Could you tell me where the bank is? I wonder what time it is.

3.9NegativesA1

To make a verb negative, put not after be, an auxiliary or a modal; with any other verb in the present or past simple, add do / does / did + not. In speech and informal writing, not contracts to n’t.

• She is not here. They haven’t arrived. You mustn’t touch it. I don’t smoke. He doesn’t agree. We didn’t go.
• Negative imperatives: Don’t move. Don’t be silly.

Other negative words

No, none, nobody, no one, nothing, nowhere, never, neither, nor make a sentence negative on their own, so the verb stays positive. Hardly, scarcely, barely, seldom and rarely are also negative in meaning.

• Incorrect: I don’t know nothing. She didn’t see nobody. We can’t hardly wait.
• Correct: I don’t know anything. / I know nothing. She didn’t see anybody. / She saw nobody. We can hardly wait.

• No + noun is a stronger form of not any: There is no milk. = There isn’t any milk.
• Not … either, neither … nor and the short replies Neither do I / Nor do I (agreeing with a negative) and So do I (agreeing with a positive).
• No longer / not … anymore: She no longer works here. She doesn’t work here anymore.
• Not yet, not at all, not even, not only: I haven’t finished yet. He didn’t even say thank you.
• With think, believe, suppose, expect, English usually negates the first verb: I don’t think he’s coming rather than I think he isn’t coming.
• Negative prefixes make opposites without not: unhappy, impossible, illegal, irregular, dishonest, non-smoker.

3.10Relative clausesB1

A relative clause gives information about a noun without starting a new sentence. It begins with a relative pronoun (who, whom, whose, which, that) or a relative adverb (where, when, why).

Defining and non-defining clauses

A defining (restrictive) clause identifies which person or thing you mean; the sentence would not make sense without it. It takes no commas, and that can be used. A non-defining (non-restrictive) clause adds extra information about a noun that is already identified; it is separated by commas, and that cannot be used.

• Defining: The students who passed the exam will get a certificate. (only those students)
• Non-defining: The students, who passed the exam, will get a certificate. (all the students; they also passed)
• Defining: My sister who lives in Paris is a doctor. (I have more than one sister)
• Non-defining: My sister, who lives in Paris, is a doctor. (I have one sister)

Leaving out the relative pronoun

In a defining clause, the relative pronoun can be left out when it is the object of the clause: The book (that) I ordered has arrived. The man (who) you spoke to is my boss. It cannot be left out when it is the subject: The man who spoke to you is my boss. In non-defining clauses it is never left out.

Prepositions in relative clauses

In everyday English the preposition goes at the end: the house (that) I grew up in; the people (who) I work with. In formal English it goes before whom or which: the house in which I grew up; the people with whom I work. Never combine the two: not the house in which I grew up in.

Which referring to a whole clause

In a non-defining clause, which can refer to the whole of the previous statement: She passed the test first time, which surprised everyone.

Reduced relative clauses

A defining clause can be shortened to a participle: the man standing by the door (= who is standing); the letters written by Keats (= which were written); the first person to arrive (= who arrived).

• Incorrect: The man who he lives next door is a chef. The book that I read it was great.
• Correct: The man who lives next door is a chef. The book that I read was great.
• Incorrect: Paris, that is the capital of France, is beautiful. The friend which I visited lives in Rome.
• Correct: Paris, which is the capital of France, is beautiful. The friend who I visited lives in Rome.
• Incorrect: This is the office where I work in. She is the person which helped me.
• Correct: This is the office where I work. / the office (that) I work in. She is the person who helped me.

3.11Misplaced and dangling modifiersB2

A modifier is a word, phrase or clause that describes another part of the sentence. Readers attach a modifier to the nearest word that fits, so a modifier in the wrong place produces an unintended, often comic, meaning.

Misplaced modifiers

The modifier is too far from the word it describes. Move it next to that word.

• Incorrect: She served sandwiches to the children on paper plates. (children on plates?)
• Correct: She served the children sandwiches on paper plates.
• Incorrect: He almost drove his kids to school every day. (he nearly did, but never actually drove them?)
• Correct: He drove his kids to school almost every day.
• Incorrect: We saw a deer on the way to work with huge antlers.
• Correct: On the way to work, we saw a deer with huge antlers.

Watch the focusing adverbs only, just, even, almost, nearly and merely: they describe the word right after them. I only drink coffee in the morning (I do nothing else) is usually meant as I drink coffee only in the morning.

Squinting modifiers

The modifier sits between two words and could describe either: Students who study often get good grades. Does often go with study or with get? Move it: Students who often study get good grades / Students who study get good grades more often.

Dangling modifiers

The word the modifier is meant to describe is not in the sentence at all. This happens most with participle phrases and infinitives at the start of a sentence: the phrase is read as describing the subject of the main clause, so the subject must be the person or thing that performs the action in the phrase.

• Incorrect: Running to catch the bus, the rain started pouring. (the rain was running?)
• Correct: Running to catch the bus, I got caught in the rain. / As I was running to catch the bus, the rain started pouring.
• Incorrect: Having finished the exam, the pizza was ordered.
• Correct: Having finished the exam, we ordered a pizza.
• Incorrect: To improve your writing, grammar must be studied.
• Correct: To improve your writing, you must study grammar.
• Incorrect: At the age of six, my family moved to Canada.
• Correct: When I was six, my family moved to Canada.

To fix a dangling modifier, either make the subject of the main clause the doer of the action (Walking home, I saw…) or turn the phrase into a clause with its own subject (While I was walking home, the rain started).

3.12ParallelismB2

• Incorrect: She likes hiking, to swim and biking.
• Correct: She likes hiking, swimming and biking.
• Incorrect: The manager is responsible for writing reports, overseeing projects and team supervision.
• Correct: The manager is responsible for writing reports, overseeing projects and supervising the team.
• Incorrect: The job requires patience, being flexible and that you communicate well.
• Correct: The job requires patience, flexibility and good communication.
• Incorrect: He not only plays the piano but also the violin.
• Correct: He plays not only the piano but also the violin.
• Incorrect: Reading a book is better than to watch television.
• Correct: Reading a book is better than watching television.

In a list of bullet points, start every item the same way (all verbs, all nouns, all full sentences) and punctuate them all alike.

3.13Fragments, run-on sentences and comma splicesB1

Sentence fragments

A fragment is a group of words punctuated as a sentence that is missing a subject, a verb or a complete thought. The most common fragments are a dependent clause on its own, a phrase on its own, and an -ing form without an auxiliary.

• Incorrect: Because I was tired.
• Correct: I went to bed early because I was tired.
• Incorrect: A beautiful city with a long history.
• Correct: Prague is a beautiful city with a long history.
• Incorrect: The students waiting outside the hall.
• Correct: The students were waiting outside the hall.
• Incorrect: For example, the price of petrol.
• Correct: Some costs have risen sharply, for example the price of petrol.

Fix a fragment by attaching it to the sentence next to it or by adding the missing subject or verb. Deliberate fragments are acceptable in informal writing, advertising and dialogue for effect (No way. Not today.), but not in academic or business writing.

Run-on sentences and comma splices

A run-on (fused sentence) joins two independent clauses with nothing between them. A comma splice joins them with only a comma. Both are errors, however long or short the clauses are.

• Incorrect: I love to write it is my favorite hobby. (run-on)
• Incorrect: I love to write, it is my favorite hobby. (comma splice)
• Correct: I love to write. It is my favorite hobby.
• Correct: I love to write; it is my favorite hobby.
• Correct: I love to write, and it is my favorite hobby.
• Correct: I love to write because it is my favorite hobby.

There are four fixes: a full stop, a semicolon, a comma plus a coordinating conjunction (and, but, or, so, yet, for, nor), or turning one clause into a dependent clause with a subordinating conjunction (because, although, when, if). A linking adverb such as however, therefore or then does not join clauses; it needs a semicolon or a period before it: It was raining; however, we went out, not It was raining, however we went out.

More: 100 examples of comma splices and fixes

3.14There is, there are and it isA2

English sentences must have a subject, so when there is no real one, there or it fills the gap.

There + be: saying that something exists

Use there is / there are (and there was / were, there has been, there will be, there might be) to introduce something for the first time. The verb agrees with the noun that follows.

• There is a café on the corner. There are two problems with this plan. There was nobody at home. There has been an accident. Is there any milk? There’s no need to shout.

It as an empty subject

• Time, weather, distance and temperature: It’s five o’clock. It’s raining. It’s ten miles to the coast. It’s 30 degrees.
• Identifying people: Who is it? — It’s me. It’s the mail carrier.
• As a preparatory subject for an infinitive or a clause: It is nice to see you. It’s true that she left. It seems that nobody knows. It takes an hour to get there.

• Incorrect: Is a problem with the engine. Is raining. Is important to arrive early.
• Correct: There is a problem with the engine. It is raining. It is important to arrive early.
• Incorrect: It is a lot of noise outside. It has three rooms in the flat.
• Correct: There is a lot of noise outside. There are three rooms in the flat. / The flat has three rooms.
• Incorrect: There is many reasons. Have a shop near here?
• Correct: There are many reasons. Is there a shop near here?

3.15Emphasis, fronting and inversionC1

English can move parts of a sentence out of their normal position to give them emphasis. These structures are common in formal writing, speeches and literature.

Cleft sentences

• It-cleft: It was Maria who found the error. It was in 2012 that we first met. It’s the noise that I can’t stand.
• What-cleft: What I need is a vacation. What he did was (to) call the police. All I want is some peace.
• Other clefts: The reason I left was that I was bored. The person who helped most was my aunt. The place where we met was a bookstore.

Inversion after negative and restrictive adverbials

When a sentence begins with a negative or restrictive expression, the auxiliary (or do) moves in front of the subject, as in a question.

• Never have I seen such a mess. Rarely does he admit a mistake. Seldom had they been so happy.
• Not only did she win, but she also broke the record. Not until midnight did the guests leave. No sooner had we sat down than the phone rang. Hardly had I arrived when it started to rain.
• Only then did I understand. Only after the meeting did we realize. Under no circumstances should you open this door. At no time was the public in danger. Little did he know what awaited him. On no account must this be repeated.

Other inversions

• After so and such: So loud was the music that the walls shook. Such was the demand that tickets sold out in an hour.
• After place adverbials with verbs of position and movement: Here comes the bus. On the table lay a letter. Out of the house ran a small dog.
• In conditionals without if: Had I known, I would have waited. Were she here, she’d agree. Should you need help, call us.
• Agreement: So do I. Neither can she. Nor was it cheap.

Fronting and emphatic forms

• Fronting an object or complement for contrast: The red one I like; the blue one I can’t stand. Strange though it may seem, he was right.
• Emphatic do: I do hope you’ll come. She did warn us.
• Emphatic reflexives and intensifiers: I built it myself. That is the very book I meant. I don’t like it at all. Whatever happens, stay calm.

3.16Avoiding repetition: ellipsis and substitutionC1

Fluent English leaves out words that can be understood from the context (ellipsis) and replaces repeated words with short substitutes (substitution). Learners who repeat everything sound stiff; these patterns are what make speech and writing natural.

• Leaving out a repeated verb phrase after an auxiliary: I can’t swim, but my sister can. She said she’d call, and she did. Have you finished? — Not yet, but I will.
• Leaving out a repeated subject or verb in coordinated clauses: He came in and (he) sat down. Ana ordered fish and Tom (ordered) steak.
• Leaving out the infinitive after to: You can leave if you want to. I’d love to.
• Leaving out words at the start of informal sentences: (I) Hope you’re well. (Do you) Want a coffee? (It) Sounds good.
• one / ones for a countable noun: Which cake? — The chocolate one. I prefer the red ones.
• so / not for a clause: Is he coming? — I think so. / I hope not. I’m afraid so.
• do so, do it, do that for a verb phrase: She asked me to sign the form, and I did so.
• the same, such, there, then: I’ll have the same. We met in Rome, and we went back there last year.

↑ Back to the index

4Punctuation

Punctuation does for writing what pauses, pitch and stress do for speech: it shows where one idea ends and the next begins, what belongs together and what is an aside. The table lists every mark and its main job; the sections that follow give the full rules. Two marks have two names: the dot that ends a sentence is a period in American English and a full stop in British English, and the exclamation mark is also called an exclamation point in American English. This reference says period and exclamation mark.

4.1Period / full stopA1

• Ends a statement or a mild command: She went to the store. Please close the door.
• Ends an indirect question: He asked where I lived. (not a question mark)
• Marks abbreviations: etc., e.g., i.e., a.m., p.m., Jan., Prof., Inc. American English also uses a period after Mr., Mrs., Ms., Dr., St.; British English usually omits it when the abbreviation ends with the last letter of the word: Mr, Mrs, Dr, St. Acronyms have no periods: NASA, BBC, UN, USA (AmE also U.S.).
• Decimal point: 3.14, $9.99.
• Only one period at the end of a sentence, even after an abbreviation: We left at 6 p.m. (not p.m..)
• One space after a period, never two.

4.2CommaA2

The comma is the most used and most misused mark. It separates parts of a sentence so that the reader groups the words correctly. It does not simply mark a pause for breath.

Use a comma

1. Between items in a list of three or more: I bought apples, oranges and bananas. The comma before the final and (the Oxford or serial comma: apples, oranges, and bananas) is standard in American English and optional in British English. This reference follows the house style of EnglishGrammar.org and leaves it out; whichever you choose, use it when it prevents misreading (I’d like to thank my parents, Oprah and God reads differently from my parents, Oprah, and God), and be consistent. More: The Oxford comma.
2. Before a coordinating conjunction (and, but, or, so, yet, for, nor) that joins two independent clauses: She was tired, but she finished her work. It was late, so we took a taxi. No comma when the second part has no subject of its own: She was tired but finished her work.
3. After an introductory word, phrase or clause: However, the plan failed. After the meeting, we went to lunch. If it rains, the game will be canceled. To be honest, I forgot. A very short introductory phrase needs no comma: In 2020 we moved.
4. Around non-essential (non-defining) information — a clause, phrase or appositive that could be removed without changing who or what is meant: My brother, who lives in New York, is visiting. The Eiffel Tower, built in 1889, is 330 meters tall. Our teacher, Mrs. Green, is retiring. Do not use commas around essential information: The brother who lives in New York is visiting (as opposed to another brother). See relative clauses.
5. Between coordinate adjectives that each describe the noun separately and could be joined by and: a long, boring film; a cold, wet, windy day. No comma between cumulative adjectives: a big red car; an old wooden box (you would not say a big and red car).
6. Around interrupting words and phrases: The result, of course, was a disaster. The train, however, was late. You will, I hope, agree.
7. With direct address: Thank you, Maria. Let’s eat, Grandma. (Without the comma, Grandma is on the menu.)
8. Before and after a quotation that is introduced by a verb of speaking: She said, “I’ll be there soon.” “I’ll be there soon,” she said.
9. In dates, addresses and large numbers: July 4, 2026, was a Saturday (AmE style; BrE 4 July 2026 takes no commas); Paris, France; 12 Elm Street, Oxford; 1,250,000.
10. With question tags and contrasts: It’s cold, isn’t it? The room was cool, not cold. He worked hard, unlike his brother.
11. To prevent misreading: Outside, the children were playing. Soon after, the rain stopped.

Do not use a comma

• Incorrect: Between the subject and its verb: The man in the gray coat, is my uncle.
• Correct: The man in the gray coat is my uncle.
• Incorrect: Between a verb and its object or complement: She said, that she was tired. The problem is, money.
• Correct: She said that she was tired. The problem is money.
• Incorrect: Around a defining relative clause: Students, who cheat, will be expelled. (this says all students cheat)
• Correct: Students who cheat will be expelled.
• Incorrect: Between two independent clauses with no conjunction (a comma splice): I came home, it was late.
• Correct: I came home; it was late. / I came home, and it was late.
• Incorrect: Before a dependent clause that follows the main clause: We stayed inside, because it was raining.
• Correct: We stayed inside because it was raining. (a comma is used only when the clause is clearly an afterthought or adds a contrast: I’ll help, although I’m busy)
• Incorrect: Between only two items joined by and: I bought apples, and bananas.
• Correct: I bought apples and bananas.
• Incorrect: After a coordinating conjunction: It was late but, we kept going.
• Correct: It was late, but we kept going.

More: Common comma errors

4.3SemicolonB2

• Between two independent clauses that are closely related and not joined by a conjunction: She loves reading; her favorite genre is science fiction. The shop was closed; we went home. Each side must be able to stand as a complete sentence.
• Before a linking adverb (however, therefore, moreover, nevertheless, consequently, otherwise, for example, in fact) that joins two clauses, with a comma after the adverb: It rained all day; however, the game went ahead. He forgot his passport; consequently, he missed the flight.
• Between items in a list when the items themselves contain commas: We visited Paris, France; Rome, Italy; and Berlin, Germany. The committee includes Dr. Ruiz, the dean; Ms. Patel, the registrar; and two students.

• Incorrect: We bought; eggs, milk and bread. The reasons are; cost and time.
• Correct: We bought eggs, milk and bread. The reasons are cost and time. (a list after a complete sentence takes a colon, not a semicolon)
• Incorrect: Although it was late; we kept working.
• Correct: Although it was late, we kept working. (a dependent clause is not joined with a semicolon)
• Incorrect: It was late; But we kept working.
• Correct: It was late, but we kept working. (no capital after a semicolon; no semicolon before a coordinating conjunction in a short sentence)

4.4ColonB2

A colon points forward: what follows explains, lists or illustrates what came before. The words before the colon should form a complete sentence.

• Introducing a list: She brought three things: a book, a pen and a notebook.
• Introducing an explanation or an example: There is one problem: we have no money. He had a simple rule: never lend to friends.
• Introducing a quotation, especially a long or formal one: Remember the saying: “Practice makes perfect.”
• Between two clauses when the second explains the first: I knew why she was late: the trains were on strike.
• Other uses: times in American English (9:30; BrE often 9.30), ratios (2:1), titles and subtitles (Grammar: A Short Guide), after the greeting in a formal American business letter (Dear Dr. Lee:), and in references (Genesis 1:1).

• Incorrect: The ingredients are: flour, eggs and milk. You will need: a passport.
• Correct: The ingredients are flour, eggs and milk. / You will need the following: a passport, a visa and two photos.
• Incorrect: We visited many countries, such as: France, Spain and Italy.
• Correct: We visited many countries, such as France, Spain and Italy. (no colon after such as, including, for example or a verb)

After a colon, British English uses a lower-case letter; American English capitalizes the first word when it begins a complete sentence or a quotation, and some style guides capitalize always. Follow one style.

4.5ApostropheA2

The apostrophe does exactly two jobs: it shows possession and it marks missing letters in contractions. It never makes a plural.

Possession

Contractions

The apostrophe stands exactly where letters are missing: do not → don’t, it is → it’s, they are → they’re, I would / I had → I’d, will not → won’t, of the clock → o’clock, rock and roll → rock ’n’ roll, 1990s → ’90s. Contractions are normal in speech and informal writing; in formal writing use the full forms.

Its and it’s, whose and who’s

• The dog wagged its tail. It’s going to rain. Whose coat is this? Who’s coming tonight?

Never for plurals

• Incorrect: Apple’s for sale. Two coffee’s, please. The 1990’s. CD’s and DVD’s. The Smith’s live here.
• Correct: Apples for sale. Two coffees, please. The 1990s. CDs and DVDs. The Smiths live here.
• Incorrect: The cat licked it’s paws. Your late. Who’s book is this?
• Correct: The cat licked its paws. You’re late. Whose book is this?
• Incorrect: The girl’s are outside. (meaning more than one girl)
• Correct: The girls are outside. The girls’ coats are on the chair.

The only plurals that take an apostrophe are single letters and symbols, for readability: mind your p’s and q’s, dot the i’s.

More: Its vs. it’s: the apostrophe trap

4.6Quotation marksB1

Direct speech and quotations

• Put the exact words inside the marks; the speech verb is separated by a comma: She said, “I will be there soon.” “I will be there soon,” she said. “I will,” she said, “be there soon.”
• Begin each new speaker’s words on a new paragraph.
• The first word of a quoted sentence is capitalized; a quotation that continues after an interruption is not: “If you leave now,” he said, “you’ll catch the train.”
• A question mark or exclamation mark that belongs to the quotation replaces the comma: “Are you ready?” she asked. “Stop!” he shouted. (not “Stop!,” he shouted)
• A quotation inside a quotation takes the other kind of mark. AmE: “She called it ‘a triumph,’” he said. BrE: ‘She called it “a triumph”,’ he said.
• No quotation marks for reported speech: He said that he was tired (not He said that “he was tired”).
• Long quotations (more than about forty words) are usually set as an indented block without quotation marks.

Titles and special uses

• Titles of short works — articles, poems, songs, short stories, episodes, chapters: Have you read “The Road Not Taken”? Titles of long works — books, films, newspapers, albums, plays — are in italics: Hamlet, The New York Times.
• Words discussed as words, or used in an unusual, ironic or borrowed sense (so-called “scare quotes”): The word “data” is plural in origin. Their “luxury” hotel had no hot water. Use scare quotes sparingly; they do not add emphasis.

• Incorrect: She said that “she would come later”. “Where are you going”? he asked.
• Correct: She said that she would come later. / She said, “I’ll come later.” “Where are you going?” he asked.
• Incorrect: We sell “fresh” fish. (meant as emphasis)
• Correct: We sell fresh fish. (quotation marks suggest the fish is not fresh at all)

4.7Question markA1

• After a direct question: Are you coming to the party? What time is it?
• After a question tag: You’re coming, aren’t you?
• Not after an indirect question: She asked whether I was coming.
• A polite request in question form may end with a period: Would you please send the file by Friday. (both are acceptable)
• In brackets to show uncertainty about a fact: Geoffrey Chaucer (1343?–1400).
• Never combine it with a comma or a period; ?! and multiple marks (???) belong only to informal messages.

4.8Exclamation markA1

• After exclamations, strong commands and interjections: What a surprise! Watch out! Ouch!
• It replaces the comma before a speech verb: “Help!” she cried.
• In formal and business writing, use it rarely or not at all; one exclamation mark is always enough. Strong feeling is better shown by the words themselves.

4.9HyphenB2

The hyphen (-) joins words or parts of words. It is shorter than a dash and has no spaces around it.

• Compound adjectives before a noun: a well-known actor, a part-time job, a ten-year-old boy, an up-to-date list, a state-of-the-art lab, a long-term plan, a high-quality product. After the noun, no hyphen: The actor is well known. The boy is ten years old. The plan is long term.
• No hyphen after an adverb ending in -ly: a highly paid job, a newly built house.
• Numbers from twenty-one to ninety-nine, and fractions written in words: forty-two, two-thirds, a two-thirds majority. (British style often drops the hyphen when the fraction is a noun: two thirds of the class.)
• Prefixes: before a capital letter or a number (anti-European, pre-1990, mid-July), with ex- and self- (ex-husband, self-esteem), and when the hyphen prevents a misreading or a doubled vowel (re-cover a sofa versus recover from illness; re-enter, co-operate — AmE usually reenter, cooperate). Most prefixes are closed up: unhappy, prearrange, misread, nonsense, subway.
• Compound nouns vary: some are one word (bookcase, toothbrush), some two (ice cream, post office), some hyphenated (mother-in-law, check-in, T-shirt). Dictionaries disagree; pick one and keep to it.
• Suspended hyphens when two compounds share a word: first- and second-year students; pre- and post-war.
• Line breaks: a word split at the end of a line is divided between syllables.

• Incorrect: a twenty five year old woman; a well known-writer; a highly-skilled worker
• Correct: a twenty-five-year-old woman; a well-known writer; a highly skilled worker

4.10DashesB2

There are two dashes, and both are longer than a hyphen.

• The em dash (—) marks an interruption, an aside or a summing-up, more dramatically than commas or parentheses: She opened the box—and screamed. Three people—Tom, Ana and I—knew the truth. Family, friends, work—everything seemed to be going wrong. American style closes it up (no spaces); British style often uses a spaced en dash instead: She opened the box – and screamed. Use at most one pair in a sentence.
• The en dash (–) means “to” or “and” in ranges and connections: pages 10–20, 2019–2024, Monday–Friday, the London–Paris train, a parent–teacher meeting, a 3–1 win. It is not used after from or between: from 2019 to 2024, between 10 and 20.
• On a keyboard: em dash — Alt+0151 (Windows), Option+Shift+Hyphen (Mac); en dash – Alt+0150, Option+Hyphen. Most word processors convert two hyphens (--) to a dash automatically.

4.11Parentheses and bracketsB2

• Parentheses (round brackets) enclose extra information, asides, abbreviations, dates and references: The results (see Table 2) were clear. The World Health Organization (WHO) agreed. Jane Austen (1775–1817) wrote six novels.
• If the words in parentheses are inside a sentence, the period goes outside: We left early (it was raining). If they form a separate sentence, the period goes inside: We left early. (It was raining.)
• A sentence must still make sense if the parentheses are removed.
• Square brackets show words added or changed inside a quotation, and the word [sic] to show that an error was in the original: She said that “[the team] had done their best.” The report refers to “the principle [sic] cause.” They are also used for parentheses inside parentheses.

4.12EllipsisB2

• Three dots (…) show that words have been left out of a quotation: “The committee … rejected the proposal.” Use a space on each side; if the omission comes at the end of a sentence, American style adds the period (four dots).
• In dialogue and informal writing, an ellipsis shows hesitation or trailing off: “I thought you said… never mind.”
• Do not use an ellipsis to show that a list continues (use etc. or and so on) or to create suspense in formal writing.

4.13SlashB2

• Alternatives: yes/no, on/off, his/her. In formal prose, prefer or; and/or is best avoided.
• Per: 60 km/h, $10/hour.
• Fractions and dates in notes: 1/2, 10/18/2026 (AmE) or 18/10/2026 (BrE).
• Line breaks in quoted poetry, with spaces: “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? / Thou art more lovely and more temperate.”
• No spaces around a slash between single words.

4.14Capital lettersA1

• Incorrect: i met the french teacher on monday in spring. We visited the president, Dr. ruiz, and the South coast.
• Correct: I met the French teacher on Monday in spring. We visited President Ruiz and the south coast.

Do not write whole words in capitals for emphasis in ordinary prose; it reads as shouting. Use italics or rephrase.

4.15Numbers, dates and timesB1

• Words or figures? In ordinary prose, spell out numbers from one to nine (some styles: to ninety-nine) and use figures from 10 upward: three cats, 12 students, 250 people. Always use figures with units, percentages, decimals, money, ages in technical writing, page numbers and dates: 5 km, 30%, 2.5, $40, page 7, October 18.
• Never start a sentence with a figure: Twenty people came, not 20 people came; or rewrite: There were 20 people.
• Thousands take a comma in English (1,000; 2,500,000); the decimal mark is a point (3.5), never a comma.
• Dates: BrE 18 October 2026 (day–month–year, no commas; numeric 18/10/2026); AmE October 18, 2026 (numeric 10/18/2026). The international form 2026-10-18 avoids confusion. Ordinals are usually not written in dates: 18 October, not 18th October (but spoken as “the eighteenth of October”).
• Times: AmE 9:30 a.m., 6 p.m.; BrE 9.30 am, 6 pm; 24-hour clock 21:30. Write noon and midnight rather than 12 p.m. and 12 a.m., which confuse readers.
• Decades and centuries: the 1990s (no apostrophe), the ’90s, the twenty-first century or the 21st century.
• Percentages and money: 25% or 25 percent (BrE per cent); $5, £5, €5 (symbol before the figure); five euros, ten dollars in words.
• Ranges with an en dash: pages 12–15, 1990–1995; with from … to or between … and in words.
• Plurals of figures take no apostrophe: the 1980s, two 7s, temperatures in the 30s.

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5Usage and common errors

Grammar rules explain how sentences are built; usage is about the choices that trip up even fluent writers — words that sound alike, prepositions that must be learned one by one, the differences between British and American English, and the “rules” that were never real rules. This chapter collects the errors that appear most often in the exercises on this site, with the fix for each one.

5.1Commonly confused wordsA2

The first table covers words that sound the same or nearly the same; the second covers words that are confused because their meanings are close. Each entry gives the meaning and an example.

Words that sound alike

Words with similar meanings

More: 100 commonly confused English words · Their vs. there vs. they’re

5.2Forty common mistakes and how to fix themA2

These are the errors that learners at every level make most often. Each one is shown wrong and right, with the rule behind it.

5.3Prepositions after verbs, adjectives and nounsB1

Many words are followed by a fixed preposition that has to be learned with the word. There is no rule; there is only the list. These are the combinations that appear most often.

Verb + preposition

• agree with a person, on / about a subject
• apologize to someone for something
• apply for a job, to a company
• approve of
• arrive at a place, in a city or country
• ask for (request), ask about (inquire)
• believe in
• belong to
• blame someone for something
• care about (think important), care for (look after)
• complain to someone about something
• concentrate on
• congratulate someone on
• consist of
• depend on
• die of (a disease), die from (an injury)
• dream of / about
• explain something to someone
• insist on
• laugh at
• listen to
• look at (direct your eyes), look for (search), look after (care for)
• object to
• participate in
• pay for something, pay someone for something
• prefer A to B
• prevent someone from
• protect someone from / against
• rely on
• remind someone of
• search for
• smile at
• succeed in
• suffer from
• thank someone for
• think about (consider), think of (have an opinion; remember)
• wait for
• worry about

Some verbs take no preposition although their equivalents in other languages do: discuss, enter, answer, approach, attend, lack, marry, reach, resemble: We discussed the plan. She entered the room. He married Ana. Call me when you reach the hotel.

Adjective + preposition

• afraid of
• angry with a person, about a thing
• annoyed with / about
• anxious about
• ashamed of
• aware of
• bad / good at
• bored with
• capable of
• different from (BrE also to; AmE also than)
• disappointed with / in a person, with / at a result
• excited about
• famous for
• fond of
• full of
• guilty of
• interested in
• jealous of
• keen on
• kind / nice / polite / rude to
• married to
• nervous about
• pleased with
• proud of
• responsible for
• satisfied with
• similar to
• sorry for / about something, sorry for a person
• surprised at / by
• tired of
• typical of
• used to
• worried about

Noun + preposition

• access to
• advantage / disadvantage of
• answer to
• attitude to / toward(s)
• cause of
• demand for
• difference between
• effect / influence / impact on
• example of
• increase / decrease / rise / fall in
• interest in
• invitation to
• knowledge of
• lack of
• need for
• reason for
• relationship with a person, between two things
• reply to
• respect for
• solution to
• trouble with

5.4British and American EnglishB1

British and American English are the same language with a few systematic differences in spelling, grammar, punctuation and vocabulary. Neither is more correct; what matters is to choose one and be consistent within a text. (Australian, Canadian, Irish and other varieties mostly follow British spelling with some American features.)

Spelling

Grammar

Punctuation and format

• Quotation marks: BrE often single ‘ ’, AmE double “ ”; commas and periods inside the closing mark in AmE, by logic in BrE. See quotation marks.
• Abbreviations: BrE Mr, Dr, St; AmE Mr., Dr., St.
• Dates: BrE 18 October 2026; AmE October 18, 2026. Times: BrE 9.30 pm; AmE 9:30 p.m.
• The serial (Oxford) comma is standard in AmE and optional in BrE.

Vocabulary

A few of the many pairs: flat / apartment, lift / elevator, holiday / vacation, autumn / fall, queue / line, lorry / truck, biscuit / cookie, petrol / gas, rubbish / trash, football / soccer, trousers / pants, mobile phone / cell phone, post / mail, CV / résumé, film / movie, shop / store, chips / fries, crisps / chips, pavement / sidewalk, underground / subway, timetable / schedule, maths / math, full stop / period, brackets / parentheses, car park / parking lot, motorway / highway, bonnet / hood, boot / trunk, nappy / diaper, torch / flashlight, zed / zee.

5.5Formal and informal EnglishB2

Grammatically correct English can still be wrong for the situation. Informal English is right for messages to friends, most social media and conversation; formal English is expected in essays, reports, applications, business letters and most emails to people you do not know. The main markers are listed below.

• Incorrect: Hey, can’t make it Fri, got loads of stuff on. Let’s do it another time, ok? (to a client)
• Correct: Dear Ms. Okafor, / Unfortunately, I am unable to attend on Friday because of a prior commitment. Could we arrange another date? / Sincerely, …

Formal does not mean long-winded. The best formal writing is plain: short words, active verbs and sentences that make one point each. See 100 writing rules every educated adult should know.

5.6Grammar mythsB2

Some “rules” taught in schools were invented by eighteenth- and nineteenth-century grammarians on the model of Latin, and good writers have ignored them ever since. Knowing which rules are real saves you from awkward sentences written to obey rules that do not exist.

5.7A proofreading checklistB1

Read your text once for each item below. Reading aloud, or reading from the last sentence to the first, makes errors easier to see.

1. Verbs: Does every verb agree with its subject? Is the tense right for the time words in the sentence?
2. Sentences: Is every sentence complete? Are any two sentences joined by only a comma?
3. Articles and plurals: Does every singular countable noun have a, an, the or another determiner? Have any uncountable nouns been made plural?
4. Pronouns: Is it clear what every it, this, they and which refers to? Subject or object form in the right place?
5. Prepositions: Check the ones after verbs and adjectives against the list.
6. Modifiers: Is every descriptive phrase next to the word it describes? Does each opening -ing phrase describe the subject?
7. Parallel structure: Are items in lists and pairs in the same form?
8. Apostrophes: its or it’s? No apostrophes in plurals?
9. Commas: After introductory phrases and around non-essential information; none between subject and verb.
10. Confused words: their / there / they’re, affect / effect, than / then, lose / loose.
11. Capital letters: Names, days, months, languages, nationalities and the first word of every sentence.
12. Consistency: One spelling system (British or American), one quotation style, one way of writing dates and numbers.

Then run the text through the free grammar checker as a final check.

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6Quick reference

The tables and lists in this chapter are the ones you will come back to: the irregular verbs, the spelling rules and the words most often misspelled, and a glossary of the grammatical terms used throughout this reference.

6.1Irregular verbsA1

The past simple and past participle of the most common irregular verbs. Where British and American English differ, both forms are given. Verbs marked “same” have one form for all three.