Relative pronouns introduce relative clauses.
The most common relative pronouns are who,
whose, which, that. The relative pronoun we use depends on what we are referring to and the
type of relative clause.
We use who in relative clauses to refer to people, and sometimes to pet animals. We
use it to introduce defining and non-defining relative clauses:
I think there’d be a lot of children who’d love to have a climbing wall in school
We usually use whose as a relative pronoun to indicate possession by people and
animals. In more formal styles we can also use it for things.
We use which in relative clauses to refer to animals and to things. We use it to introduce
defining and non-defining relative clauses. We always use which to introduce relative
clauses when they refer to a whole sentence or clause:
You need to tick the box which says yes
We use that instead of who, whom or which in relative clauses to refer to people,
animals and things. We use it to introduce defining clauses only. That is more informal
than who, whom or which:
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The present perfect continuous is used to refer to an unspecified time between 'before now' and 'now'.
The speaker is thinking about something that started but perhaps did not finish in that period of time.
He/she is interested in the process as well as the result, and this process may still be going on, or
may have just finished.
ACTIONS THAT STARTED IN THE PAST AND CONTINUE IN THE PRESENT
She has been waiting for you all day (= and she's still waiting now).
I've been working on this report since eight o'clock this morning (= and I still haven't finished it).
They have been travelling since last October (= and they're not home yet).
ACTIONS THAT HAVE JUST FINISHED, BUT WE ARE INTERESTED IN THE
RESULTS
She has been cooking since last night (= and the food on the table looks delicious).
It's been raining (= and the streets are still wet).
Someone's been eating my chips (= half of them have gone).
FORMING THE PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS
The present perfect continuous is made up of two elements: the present perfect of the verb 'to
be' (have/has been), and the present participle of the main verb (base+ing)
Subject has/have been base+ing
She has been swimming
Passive Voice: Present Simple
English has two voices: active and passive. The active voice is used when the
subject of the sentence does the action. In the example, A is the subject and B
is the object.
For example: My mom sings that song.
AB
The passive voice is used when we focus on the object of the sentence. In the
example, B becomes the subject.
For example: That song is sung by my mom.
BA
When it is important to know who does the action, we use by. The noun that
follows by is called the “agent.” My mom was the subject in the active
sentence, but it becomes the agent in the passive sentence.
Sometimes, when the agent is unknown, or unimportant to the meaning of the
sentence, we do not use by.
For example: This sweater is made in China.
We form the passive with be + past participle (3rd form of the verb).
In the present simple, the passive is: am / is / are + past participle (3rd form of
the verb).
Remember!
1. The past participle always stays the same. Only the form of be changes.
2. The subject and verb must always agree in number.
A modal is a type of auxiliary (helping) verb that is used to express: ability, possibility, permission
or obligation. Modal phrases (or semi-modals) are used to express the same things as modals, but
are a combination of auxiliary verbs and the preposition to. The modals and semi-modals in English
are:
1. Can/could/be able to
2. May/might
3. Shall/should
4. Must/have to
5. Will/would
The simple present tense is one of several forms of present tense in English. It is used to
describe habits, unchanging situations, general truths, and fixed arrangements. The simple
present tense is simple to form. Just use the base form of the verb: (I take, you take, we take, they take)
The 3rd person singular takes an -s at the end. (he takes, she takes)
THE SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE IS USED:
To express habits, general truths, repeated actions or unchanging situations, emotions and
wishes:
I smoke (habit); I work in London (unchanging situation); London is a large city (general
truth)
To give instructions or directions:
You walk for two hundred meters, then you turn left.
To express fixed arrangements, present or future:
Your exam starts at 09.00
To express future time, after some conjunctions: after, when, before, as soon as, until :
He'll give it to you when you come next Saturday.
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Present Continuous Tense
Examples
The present continuous tense is used for actions happening now or for an action that is
unfinished. This tense is also used when the action is temporary.
How to Form the Present Continuous Tense
The present continuous tense is formed with the subject plus the present particle form (-ing) of
the main verb and the present continuous tense of the verb to be: am, is, are.
One simple example of this tense is: He is swimming. "He" is the subject, "is" is the present tense
of the verb to be and "swimming" is the present participle verb form. Some other forms of this
verb tense are:
I am singing at church today.
The boys are playing ball after school
DEFINITION OF THE SIMPLE PAST TENSE
The simple past tense, sometimes called the preterite, is used to talk about a completed action in a
time before now. The simple past is the basic form of past tense in English. The time of the action can
be in the recent past or the distant past and action duration is not important.
EXAMPLES
John Cabot sailed to America in 1498.
My father died last year.
He lived in Fiji in 1976.
We crossed the Channel yesterday.
FORMING THE SIMPLE PAST TENSE
PATTERNS OF SIMPLE PAST TENSE FOR REGULAR VERBS
Affirmative
Subject + verb + ed
I skipped.
Negative
Subject + did not + infinitive without to
They didn't go.
Interrogative
Did + subject + infinitive without to
Did she arrive?
Interrogative negative
Did not + subject + infinitive without to
Didn't you play?
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PAST CONTINUOUS
TENSE
FUNCTIONS OF THE PAST CONTINUOUS
The past continuous describes actions or events in a time before now, which began in the past and
is still going on at the time of speaking. In other words, it expresses an unfinished or incomplete
action in the past.
It is used:
Often, to describe the background in a story written in the past tense, e.g. "The sun was
shining and the birds were singing as the elephant came out of the jungle. The other
animals were relaxing in the shade of the trees, but the elephant moved very quickly. She was
looking for her baby, and she didn't notice the hunter who was watching her through his
binoculars. When the shot rang out, she was running towards the river..."
to describe an unfinished action that was interrupted by another event or action, e.g. "I was
having a beautiful dream when the alarm clock rang."
to express a change of mind: e.g. "I was going to spend the day at the beach but I've decided
to get my homework done instead."
with 'wonder', to make a very polite request: e.g. "I was wondering if you could baby-sit for me
tonight."
FORMING THE PAST CONTINUOUS
The past continuous of any verb is composed of two parts : the past tense of the verb "to be"
(was/were), and the base of the main verb +ing.
CONDITIONAL
Conditional tenses are used to speculate about what could happen, what might have happened, and what
we wish would happen. In English, most sentences using the conditional contain the word if. Many
conditional forms in English are used in sentences that include verbs in one of the past tenses. This usage
is referred to as "the unreal past" because we use a past tense but we are not actually referring to
something that happened in the past. There are five main ways of constructing conditional sentences in
English. In all cases, these sentences are made up of an if clause and a main clause. In many negative
conditional sentences, there is an equivalent sentence construction using "unless" instead of "if".
Conditional sentence Usage If clause verb Main clause verb
type tense
Zero General truths Simple present Simple present
Type 1 A possible condition and its probable result Simple present Simple future
Type 2 A hypothetical condition and its probable result Simple past Present condition
conditional
Type 3 An unreal past condition and its probable result in Past perfect Perfect conditiona
the past
Mixed type An unreal past condition and its probable result in Past perfect Present contdition
the present
THE ZERO CONDITIONAL
The zero conditional is used for when the time being referred to is now or always and the situation
is real and possible. The zero conditional is often used to refer to general truths. The tense in both
parts of the sentence is the simple present. In zero conditional sentences, the word "if" can usually be
replaced by the word "when" without changing the meaning.
If clause Main clause
If + simple present simple present
If this thing happens that thing happens.
If you heat ice it melts.
If it rains the grass gets wet.
Read more about how to use the zero conditional.
TYPE 1 CONDITIONAL
The type 1 conditional is used to refer to the present or future where the situation is real. The type 1
conditional refers to a possible condition and its probable result. In these sentences the if clause is in the
simple present, and the main clause is in the simple future.
If clause Main clause
If + simple present simple future
If this thing happens that thing will happen.
If you don't hurry you will miss the train.
If it rains today you will get wet.
Read more about how to use the type 1 conditional.
TYPE 2 CONDITIONAL
The type 2 conditional is used to refer to a time that is now or any time, and a situation that is unreal.
These sentences are not based on fact. The type 2 conditional is used to refer to a hypothetical condition
and its probable result. In type 2 conditional sentences, the if clause uses the simple past, and the main
clause uses the present conditional.
If clause Main clause
If + simple past present conditional or present continuous conditional
If this thing happened that thing would happen. (but I'm not sure this thing will happen) OR
that thing would be happening.
If you went to bed earlier you would not be so tired.
If clause Main clause
If it rained you would get wet.
If I spoke Italian I would be working in Italy.
Read more about how to use the type 2 conditional with the present conditional and how to use the
present continuous conditional in type 2 conditional sentence.
TYPE 3 CONDITIONAL
The type 3 conditional is used to refer to a time that is in the past, and a situation that is contrary to
reality. The facts they are based on are the opposite of what is expressed. The type 3 conditional is used
to refer to an unreal past condition and its probable past result. In type 3 conditional sentences, the if
clause uses the past perfect, and the main clause uses the perfect conditional.
If clause Main clause
If + past perfect perfect conditional or perfect continuous conditional
If this thing had happened that thing would have happened. (but neither of those things really happen
that thing would have been happening.
If you had studied harder you would have passed the exam.
If it had rained you would have gotten wet.
If I had accepted that promotion I would have been working in Milan.
Past perfect tense
The past perfect refers to an event that was completed at some point in the past before something
else happened. It is formed by combining the auxiliary verb had with the past participle of the
main verb.
Form of the past perfect simple:
Had Past Participle Form
Affirmative Negative Interrogative
I had worked. I had not worked. had I worked?
You had worked. You had not worked. had you worked?
NOTE:
I had not worked = I hadn't worked
I had worked = I'd worked
Use of the past perfect simple:
Use the past perfect tense to show an action that was completed prior to another action that
took place in the past.
Examples:
He had learned Spanish before he went to Spain.
President Lincoln had attended the theater before his assassination in 1865.
They had had lunch when I arrived.
She passed the exam because she had worked very hard.
The past perfect continuous tense (also known as the past perfect progressive
tense) shows that an action that started in the past continued up until another
time in the past. The past perfect continuous tense is constructed using had been
+ the verb’s present participle (root + -ing).
Unlike the present perfect continuous, which indicates an action that began in the
past and continued up to the present, the past perfect continuous is a verb
tensethat indicates something that began in the past, continued in the past, and
also ended at a defined point in the past.
He had been drinking milk out the carton when Mom walked into the kitchen.
I had been working at the company for five years when I got the prom