PRESENTThere are four present tenses in English. Use the present
tense to talk about something that is going on now or that is true
now and any time. Simple present to express habits and general
truths. Present continuous to talk about an action happening now.
Present perfect for repeated actions actions where the time is not
important and actions that began in the past but are not finished
yet. Present perfect continuous to talk about ongoing actions where
both the process and the result areimportant.NOUNSUsing nouns
correctly in English is relatively simple, with standard rules and
only a few exceptions. Use these pages to learn about the English
grammar rules for gender, plurals, countable and uncountable nouns,
compound nouns, capitalization, nationalities, and forming the
possessive.NOUNS IN ENGLISH endered nouns Singular and plural nouns
including irregular plural nouns !ountable and uncountable nouns
"efinite pronouns #ndefinite pronouns !ompound nouns !apitalization
rules for nouns Nationalities in English $orming the possessiveNOUN
EN"E%Nouns answer the &uestions "What is it?" and "Who is it?"
'hey give names to things, people, and places.EXAMPLES dog bicycle
(ary girl beauty $rance world#n general there is no distinction
between masculine, feminine in English nouns. )owever, gender is
sometimes shown by different forms or different words when
referring to people or animals.EXAMPLESMasculine Feminine Gender
neutralman woman personfather mother parentboy girl childuncle
aunthusband wife spouseactor actressMasculine Feminine Gender
neutralprince princesswaiter waitress serverrooster hen
chickenstallion mare horse(any nouns that refer to people*s roles
and +obs can be used for either a masculine or a feminine
sub+ect,li,e for example cousin, teenager, teacher, doctor,
student, friend, colleagueEXAMPLES (ary is my friend. She is a
doctor. -eter is my cousin. )e is a doctor. .rthur is my friend. )e
is a student. /ane is my cousin. She is a student.#t is possible to
ma,e the distinction for these neutral words by adding the words
male or female.EXAMPLES Sam is a female doctor. No, he is not my
boyfriend, he is +ust a male friend. # have three female cousins
and two male cousins.#nfre&uently, nouns describing things
without a gender are referred to with a gendered pronoun to show
familiarity. #t is also correct to use the gender0neutral pronoun
1it2.EXAMPLES # love my car. She 1the car2 is my greatest passion.
$rance is popular with her 1$rance*s2 neighbours at the moment. #
travelled from England to New 3or, on the 4ueen Elizabeth5 she 1the
4ueen Elizabeth2 is a great ship.S#NU6.% .N" -6U%.6 NOUNS%EU6.%
NOUNS(ost singular nouns form the plural by adding
-s.EXAMPLESSingular Pluralboat boatshouse housescat catsriver
rivers. singular noun ending in s, x, z, ch, sh ma,es the plural by
adding-es.EXAMPLESSingular Pluralbus buseswish wishesSingular
Pluralpitch pitchesbox boxes. singular noun ending in a consonant
and then y ma,es the plural by dropping the y and
adding-ies.EXAMPLESSingular Pluralpenny penniesspy spiesbaby
babiescity citiesdaisy daisies#%%EU6.% NOUNS'here are some
irregular noun plurals. 'he most common ones are listed
below.EXAMPLESSingular Pluralwoman womenman menchild childrentooth
teethfoot feetperson peopleleaf leavesmouse micegoose geesehalf
halvesknife kniveswife wiveslife liveself elvesSingular Pluralloaf
loavespotato potatoestomato tomatoescactus cactifocus focifungus
funginucleus nucleisyllabus syllabi/syllabusesanalysis
analysesdiagnosis diagnosesoasis oasesthesis thesescrisis
crisesphenomenon phenomenacriterion criteriaSingular Pluraldatum
dataSome nouns have the same form in the singular and the
plural.EXAMPLESSingular Pluralsheep sheepfsh fshdeer deerspecies
speciesaircraft aircraft#%%EU6.% 7E%89NOUN .%EE(EN'Some nouns have
a plural form but ta,e a singular verb.Plural nouns used with a
singular verb Sentencenews The news is at 6.30 p.m.athletics
thletics is good for young people.Plural nouns used with a singular
verb Sentencelinguistics !inguistics is the study of language.darts
"arts is a popular game in #ngland.billiards $illiards is played
all over the world.Some nouns have a fixed plural form and ta,e a
plural verb. 'hey are not used in the singular, or they have a
different meaning in the singular. Nouns li,e this include:
trousers, jeans, glasses, savings, thanks, steps, stairs, customs,
congratulations, tropics, wages, spectacles, outskirts, goods,
witsPlural noun with plural verb Sentencetrousers %y trousers are
too tight.&eans 'er &eans are black.glasses Those glasses
are his.!OUN'.86E .N" UN!OUN'.86E NOUNS#t*s important to
distinguish between countable and uncountable nouns in English
because their usage is different in regards to both determiners and
verbs.!OUN'.86E NOUNS!ountable nouns are for things we can count
using numbers. 'hey have a singular and a plural form. 'hesingular
form can use the determiner ;a; or ;an;. #f you want to as, about
the &uantity of a countable noun, you as, ;)ow manyeith is
loo,ing for so!ewhere to live. 'here is "owhere as beautiful as
-aris.Any and the indefinite pronouns formed with it can also be
used in affirmative sentences with a meaning that is close to
every: whichever person, whichever place, whichever thing,
etc.EXAMPLES 'hey can choose a"ythi"g from the menu. 3ou may invite
a"ybody you want to your birthday party. =e can go a"ywhere you*d
li,e this summer. )e would give a"ythi"g to get into Oxford. $ido
would follow you a"ywhere.NE.'#7E SEN'EN!ESNegative sentences can
only be formed with the indefinite pronouns that include
any.EXAMPLES # don*t have a"ythi"g to eat. She didn*t go a"ywhere
last wee,. # can*t find a"yo"e to come with me.(any negative
sentences that include an indefinite pronoun with any can be turned
into affirmative sentences with a negative meaning by using an
indefinite pronoun with no. )owever, there is a change in meaning
with this transformation: the sentence that includes an indefinite
pronoun withno is stronger, and can imply emotional content such as
definsiveness, hopelessness, anger, etc.EXAMPLES # don*t ,now
a"ythi"g about it. F neutral # ,now "othi"g about it. F defensive #
don*t have a"ybody to tal, to. F neutral # have "obody to tal, to.
F hopeless 'here wasn*t a"ythi"g we could do. F neutral 'here was
"othi"g we could do. F defensive9angryNE.'#7E 4UES'#ONS#ndefinite
pronouns with every, some, and any can be used to form negative
&uestions. 'hese &uestions can usually be answered with a
;yes; or a ;no;-ronouns formed with anyand every are used to form
true &uestions, while those with some generally imply a
&uestion to which we already ,now or suspect the
answer.EXAMPLES #s there a"ythi"g to eat< "id you go a"ywhere
last night< #s e%eryo"e here< )ave you loo,ed e%erywhere and
& still do.( 3n action performed during a period that has not
yet finished. &hehas beento the cinema twice this week '>
and the week isn%t o$er yet.( 3 repeated action in an unspecified
period between the past and now. 1e have visited 2ortugal several
times. 3n action that was completed in the $ery recent past
expressed by !/ust!. ! have just finished my work. 3n action when
the time is not important. He has read "1ar and 2eace". '> the
result of his reading is important(*ote: 4hen we want to gi$e or
ask details about when where who we use the simple past. Read more
about choosing between the present perfect and the simple past
tenses."+,$-'% %,"*,&D $' ,1& )"%, "'D +-',$'0$'5 $'
,1& )*&%&', They haven't lived here for years. She has
worked in the bank for fi$e years. 4e have had the same car for ten
years. 1ave you played the piano since you were a child*#1&'
,1& ,$.& )&*$-D *&3&**&D ,- 1"% '-,
3$'$%1&D $ have worked hard this week. &t has rained a lot
this year. 4e haven't seen her today."+,$-'% *&)&",&D
$' "' 0'%)&+$3$&D )&*$-D 4&,#&&' ,1&
)"%, "'D '-#. They have seen that film six times &t has
happened se$eral times already. She has visited them fre!uently. 4e
have eaten at that restaurant many times."+,$-'% +-.)/&,&D
$' ,1& 6&*! *&+&', )"%, (+20%,) 1ave you just
finished work* & have just eaten. 4e have just seen her. 1as he
just left*#1&' ,1& )*&+$%& ,$.& -3 ,1&
"+,$-' $% '-, $.)-*,"', -* '-, 7'-#' Someone has eaten my soupE
1ave you seen % 4hen the police !uestioned him Fohn told them he
had been working late in the office that night.;6R,&N< T+E
P3ST PER;EBT B6NT&NU6USThe past perfect continuous is composed
of two elements A the past perfect of the $erb to be (6had been ?
the present participle (base+ing.#ub/ect had been verb + ing&
had been walking)ffirmativeShe had been trying*egativeShe hadn%t
been sleepingInterrogative+ad you been eating*Interrogative
negative+adn%t they been li$ing*'2 %3Y, .)#' .,0F,1'
12*'I*323#)ffirmative *egative InterrogativeI had been buying &
hadn%t been buying +ad & been buyingYou had been buying /ou
hadn%t been buying +ad you been buying#he had been buying She
hadn%t been buying +ad she been buying(e had been buying 4e hadn%t
been buying +ad we been buying'hey had been buying They hadn%t been
buying +ad they been buying;UTUREThere are a number of different
ways of referring to the future in English. &t is important to
remember thatwe are expressing more than simply the time of the
action or e$ent. 6b$iously any %future% tense will always refer to
a time %later than now% but it may also express our attitude to the
future e$ent.3ll of the following ideas can be expressed using
different tenses" Simple prediction" There will be snow in many
areas tomorrow. 3rrangements" I!m meeting Fim at the airport. Plans
and intentions" (e!re going to spend the summer abroad. TimeAtabled
e$ents" The plane takes off at L a.m. Prediction based on present
e$idence" & think it!s going to rainE 4illingness" (e!ll give
you a lift to the cinema. 3n action in progress in the future" This
time next week I!ll be sun+bathing. 3n action or e$ent that is a
matter of routine" You!ll be seeing Fohn in the office tomorrow
won%t you* 6bligation" /ou are to travel directly to -ondon. 3n
action or e$ent that will take place immediately or $ery soon" The
train is about to leave. Pro#ecting oursel$es into the future and
looking back at a completed action" 3 month from now he will have
finished all his exams.&t is clear from these examples that
se$eral tenses are used to express the future. The future tense
section shows the form and function of each of these uses of future
tenses.There are four future $erb tenses in English. Simple future
tense ;uture continuous tense ;uture perfect tense ;uture perfect
continuous tenseThere are also se$eral other ways to talk about the
future without using a future $erb tense. Using the present
continuous to talk about future arrangements Using the simple
present to talk about scheduled e$ents Using CgoingC to talk about
the future ;uture obligations The immediate future5)%B!# :@T@8#
T#45#;UNBT&6NS 6; T+E S&,P-E ;UTURE TENSEThe simple future
refers to a time later than now and expresses facts or certainty.
&n this case there is no %attitude%.'he simple future is used:
To predict a future e$ent"&t will rain tomorrow. 4ith & or
4e to express a spontaneous decision"I!ll pay for the tickets by
credit card. To express willingness" I!ll do the washingAup.e!ll
carry your bag for you. &n the negati$e form to express
unwillingness"The baby won!t eat his soup.& won!t leave until
&%$e seen the managerE 4ith & in the interrogati$e form
using CshallC to make an offer"#hall I open the window* 4ith we in
the interrogati$e form using CshallC to make a suggestion"#hall we
go to the cinema tonight* 4ith & in the interrogati$e form
using CshallC to ask for ad$ice or instructions"4hat shall I tell
the boss about this money* 4ith you to gi$e orders"/ou will do
exactly as & say. 4ith you in the interrogati$e form to gi$e an
in$itation"(ill you come to the dance with me*(ill you marry
me**ote:&n modern English will is preferred to shall. Shall is
mainly used with I and we to make an offer or suggestion or to ask
for ad$ice 'see examples abo$e(. 4ith the other persons 'you he she
they( shall is only used in literary or poetic situations e.g.
)1ith rings on her fingers and bells on her toes, &he shall
have music wherever she goes.);6R,&N< T+E S&,P-E
;UTUREThe simple future tense is composed of two parts" will 4
shall ? the infiniti$e without to#ub/ect will infinitive without
to)ffirmative& will go& shall go*egativeThey will not
seeThey won%t seeInterrogative4ill she ask*Interrogative
negative4on%t they try*+-',*"+,$-'%& will > &%ll4e will
> we%ll/ou will > you%ll+e will > he%llShe will >
she%llThey will > they%ll4ill not > won%tThe form Cit willC
is not normally shortened.T6 SEE" S&,P-E ;UTURE
TENSE)ffirmative *egative Interrogative Interrogative *egativeI
will see & won%t see 4ill & see* 4on%t & see*DI shall
see DShall & see*You will see /ou won%t see 4ill you see* 4on%t
you see*e will see +e won%t see 4ill he see* 4on%t he see*(e will
see 4e won%t see 4ill we see* 4on%t we see*D(e shall see DShall we
see*'hey will see They won%t see 4ill they see* 4on%t they
see*:@T@8# 3A4T)4@A@5;6R,The future continuous is made up of two
elements"the simple future of the verb !to be! + the present
participle 9base+ing:#ub/ect simple future of the verb !to be!
present participle/ou will be watching& will be staying,- %,"!,
30,0*& +-',$'0-0%)ffirmative *egative Interrogative *egative
Interrogative& will be staying. & won%t be staying. 4ill
& be staying* 4on%t & be staying*/ou will be staying. /ou
won%t be staying. 4ill you be staying* 4on%t you be staying*+e will
be staying. +e won%t be staying. 4ill he be staying* 4on%t he be
staying*She will be staying. She won%t be staying. 4ill she be
staying* 4on%t she be staying*&t will be staying. &t won%t
be staying. 4ill it be staying* 4on%t it be staying*4e will be
staying. 4e won%t be staying. 4ill we be staying* 4on%t we be
staying*They will be staying. They won%t be staying. 4ill they be
staying* 4on%t they be staying*;UNBT&6NSThe future continuous
refers to an unfinished action or e$ent that will be in progress at
a time later than now. The future continuous is used for !uite a
few different purposes.The future continuous can be used to pro#ect
oursel$es into the future.,-)M.L,# This time next week I will be
sun+bathing in 9ali. 9y Bhristmas I will be skiing like a pro. Fust
think next ,onday you will be working in your new #ob.The future
continuous can be used for predicting or guessing about future
e$ents.,-)M.L,# e!ll be coming to the meeting & expect. &
guess you!ll be feeling thirsty after working in the sun. You!ll be
missing the sunshine once you%re back in England.&n the
interrogati$e form the future continuous can be used to ask
politely for information about the future.,-)M.L,# (ill you be
bringing your friend to the pub tonight* (ill ;im be coming with
us* (ill she be going to the party tonight* (ill I be sleeping in
this room*The future continuous can be used to refer to continuous
e$ents that we expect to happen in the future.,-)M.L,# &%ll be
seeing Fim at the conference next week. 4hen he is in 3ustralia he
will be staying with friends. I!ll be eating with Fane this e$ening
so & can tell her.4hen combined with still the future
continuous refers to e$ents that are already happening now and that
we expect to continue some time into the future.,-)M.L,# &n an
hour I!ll still be ironing my clothes. Tomorrow he!ll still be
suffering from his cold. Next year will she still be wearing a si5e
six* (on!t stock prices still be falling in the morning*
Unfortunately sea levels will still be rising in :0 years.:@T@8#
B#8:#3T;6R,The future perfect is composed of two elementsthe simple
future of the verb They laughed as they went out into the snow.
4ropping the gun she put her hands in the air. > She dropped the
gun and put her hands in the air. .utting on his coat he left the
house. > +e put on his coat and left the house.,1&
)*&%&', )"*,$+$)/& ,- &:)/"$' " *&"%-'The
present participle can be used instead of a phrase starting with
as, since or because. &n this usage the participial phrase
explains the cause or reason for an action.,-)M.L,# Feeling hungry
he went into the kitchen and opened the fridge. %eing poor he
didn%t spend much on clothes. 6nowing that his mother was coming he
cleaned the flat. +e whispered thinking his brother was still
asleep.;#8@4"The gerund looks exactly the same as a present
participle but it is useful to understand the difference between
the two. The gerund always has the same function as a noun
'although it looks like a $erb(. Someuses of the gerund are co$ered
on this page. 3 separate page deals with $erbs that are followed by
the gerund.,1& 5&*0'D "% ,1& %042&+, -3 ,1&
%&',&'+&,-)M.L,# ,ating people is wrong. unting tigers
is dangerous. Flying makes me ner$ous. %rushing your teeth is
important. #moking causes lung cancer.,1& 5&*0'D "% ,1&
+-.)/&.&', -3 ,1& 6&*4 ',- 4&',-)M.L,# 6ne of
his duties is attending meetings. The hardest thing about learning
English is understanding the gerund. 6ne of life%s pleasures is
having breakfast in bed.,1& 5&*0'D "3,&*
)*&)-%$,$-'%The gerund must be used when a $erb comes after a
preposition. This is also true of certain expressions ending in a
preposition for example the expressions in spite of K there"s no
point in.,-)M.L,# Ban you snee5e without opening your mouth* She is
good at painting. She a$oided him by walking on the opposite side
of the road. 4e arri$ed in ,adrid after driving all night. ,y
father decided against postponing his trip to +ungary. There%s no
point in waiting. &n spite of missing the train we arri$ed on
time.,1& 5&*0'D "3,&* )1*"%"/ 6&*4%Phrasal $erbs
are composed of a verb + preposition or adverb.,-)M.L,# 4hen will
you give up smoking* She always puts off going to the dentist. +e
kept on asking for money. Fim ended up buying a new T@ after his
old one broke.There are some phrasal $erbs that include the word
CtoC as a preposition for example to look forward to, to take to,
to be accustomed to, to get around to, 8 to be used to. &t is
important to recognise that the wordCtoC is a preposition in these
cases because it must be followed by a gerund. &t is not part
of the infiniti$e form of the $erb. /ou can check whether CtoC is a
preposition or part of the infiniti$e. &f you can put the
pronoun CitC after the word CtoC and form a meaningful sentence
then the word CtoC is a preposition and must be followed by a
gerund.,-)M.L,# & look forward to hearing from you soon. &
look forward to it. & am used to waiting for buses. & am
used to it. She didn%t really take to studying English. She didn%t
really take to it. 4hen will you get around to mowing the grass*
4hen will you get around to it*,1& 5&*0'D $' +-.)-0'D
'-0'%&n compound nouns using the gerund it is clear that the
meaning is that of a noun not of a continuous $erb. ;or example
with the word Cswimming poolC it is a pool for swimming in it is
not a pool that is swimming.,-)M.L,# & am gi$ing Sally a
driving lesson. They ha$e a swimming pool in their back yard. &
bought some new running shoes.,1& 5&*0'D "3,&* %-.&
&:)*&%%$-'%The gerund is necessary after the expressions
can"t help, can"t stand, to be worth, 8 it"s no use.,-)M.L,# She
couldn!t help falling in lo$e with him. & can!t stand being
stuck in traffic #ams. &t%s no use trying to escape. &t
might be worth phoning the station to check the time of the
train.)4:)4)T)C#;6R,&N< T+E &N;&N&T&@EThe
infiniti$e is the base form of a $erb. &n English when we talk
about the infiniti$e we are usually referring to the present
infiniti$e which is the most common. There are howe$er four other
forms of the infinititi$e" the perfect infiniti$e the perfect
continuous infiniti$e the continuous infiniti$e K the
passi$einfiniti$e.The infiniti$e has two forms" the to+infinitive
> to ? base the =ero infinitive > baseThe present infiniti$e
base is the $erb form you will find in a dictionary.'o+infinitive
>ero infinitiveto sit sitto eat eatto ha$e ha$eto remember
rememberThe negati$e infiniti$e is formed by putting not in front
of any form of the infiniti$e.,-)M.L,# & decided not to go to
-ondon. +e asked me not to be late. &%d like you not to sing so
loudly. &%d rather not eat meat. & might not
come$;UNBT&6NS 6; T+E T6A&N;&N&T&@EThe
toAinfiniti$e is used in many sentence constructions often
expressing the purpose of something or someone%s opinion about
something. The toAinfiniti$e is used following a large collection
of different $erbs as well. See this page about $erbs followed by
infiniti$es.,1& ,-;$'3$'$,$6& ,- $'D$+",& ,1&
)0*)-%& -* $',&',$-' -3 "' "+,$-'&n this case to has
the same meaning as in order to or so as to.,-)M.L,# She came to
collect her pay che!ue. The three bears went to find firewood.
& am calling to ask you about dad. /ou sister has gone to
finish her homework.,1& ,-;$'3$'$,$6& "% ,1&
%042&+, -3 ,1& %&',&'+&This is a formal usage
and is far more common in written English than spoken,-)M.L,# 'o be
or not to be that is the !uestion. 'o know her is to lo$e her. 'o
visit the CTo be bornC is an passi$e form and is most commonly used
in the past tense. +owe$er in some cases the present or future
tense is appropriate.,-)M.L,# & was born in 81J7. 4here were
you born* 3round 800 babies are born in this hospital e$ery week.
4e don%t know on exactly which day the baby will be born.Sometimes
the passi$e is formed using the $erb to get or to have instead of
the $erb to be. 3 separate pagedeals with these alternati$e ways to
form the passi$e $oice!T#84T)C# DF5 TA :A8% T'# B55)C# CA)3#/ou can
form sentences that are passi$e in meaning but not in form by using
the $erbto get or the $erb tohave in place of the $erb to be. These
constructions often describe situations where we want someone
elseto do something for us or where we are going to hire someone
else to do something for us. The sub#ect is acti$e but he is only
doing the CgettingC. &t is the unnamed person who is gotten who
will perform the action of the main $erb in the sentence. That
second person is not explicit in the sentence when the sentence has
a passi$e meaning. 4e are more interested in the result of the
acti$ity than in the person that performs the acti$ity.,-)M.L,#
& must get my hair cut$ & must have my hair cut. 4hen are
you going to get that window mended* 4e%re having the house
painted.This type of construction can refer to the completion of an
acti$ity especially if a time expression is used.,-)M.L,# 4e%ll get
the work done as soon as possible. &%ll get those letters typed
before lunchtime. She said she%d have my lunch delivered by noon.
/ou should have your roof repaired before next winter.&f the
$erb refers to something unwanted it has the same meaning as a
passi$e sentence.,-)M.L,# Fim had his car stolen last night. Fim%s
car was stolen. They had their roof blown off in the storm. Their
roof was blown off in the storm.0%$'5 >,- '&&D> $'
)"%%$6& +-'%,*0+,$-'%/ou can also use the $erb to need followed
by the gerund in an acti$e construction with a passi$e meaning. The
important thing in our minds in these sentences is the person or
thing that will experience the action not the person performing the
action.,-)M.L,# The ceiling needs painting. The ceiling needs to be
painted. ,y hair needs cutting. ,y hair needs to be cut. That
faucet needs fi"ing. That faucet needs to be fi"ed.