More about Grammar

A.Using the Past Continuous with the Simple Past Tense

The past continuous tense uses:

was/were + (verb) + ing
was eating or were going

It is used to show something that happened in the past and continued for a while. For example:

From 8:00 to 8:30 I was taking a bath.

We use the past continuous tense with the simple past tense when we want to show that one thing happened in the middle of another thing.

I was taking a bath and the telephone rang.

During a period of time (8:00-8:30) I was taking a bath. At one time (let's say 8:17) someone called on the telephone.

We can also connect the past continuous and simple past together by using the words when, while, and as.

When I was taking a bath, the telephone rang.
The telephone rang when I was taking a bath.

While I was taking a bath, the telephone rang.
The telephone rang while I was taking a bath.

As I was taking a bath, the telephone rang.
The telephone rang as I was taking a bath.

Notice if you use when, while, or as at the beginning of the sentence, you need to put a comma (,) after the phrase.


B.Have you ever...?

Ever means from the time you were born until now. Except for rare exceptions, it can only be used in questions and to answers with a no.

It is used with have or had + a past participle.

Example:

Have you ever eaten a frog?

Has she ever gone to Australia?

When you answer the question, a yes answer will use have/has + past participle.

Have you ever seen a whale?

Answer:

Yes, I have seen a whale. or Yes, I have.

If you answer the question with a no, you will need to use

haven't /hasn't + ever + past participle or

have /has + never + past participle

(both of these have the same meaning)

Example:

Have you ever seen a whale?

Answer:

No, I haven't ever seen a whale. or
No, I've never seen a whale. or
No, I haven't.

C.Using because to connect sentences

Look at this sentence:

Alice went shopping.

Why?

She needed to buy bread.

Now let's use because to put the two sentences together.

Alice went shopping because she needed to buy bread.

We can also say it another way:

Because she needed to buy bread, Alice went shopping.

Notice that when you use because at the beginning of the sentence, you must use a comma (,) after the first part (which is called the adverb clause.)

One more:

I like butterflies. Why? They are pretty.

I like butterflies because they are pretty.
Because they are pretty, I like butterflies.

D.Using Parallel Verbs

When speaking and writing in English, we sometimes use more than one verb to describe what is happening. For example:

Thomas speaks and studies English.

The important thing to remember is- when the subject does two or more things, the verbs use the same tense. More examples:

Thomas spoke and studied English.

Thomas will speak and (will) study English.

Thomas can speak and (can) study English.

Thomas is speaking and (is) studying English.

If the verb has a helping verb (like will, can, is, are, etc.) you must use it before the first verb but you may or may not use it after. It is your choice. Usually it is not used.

E.Using wish to talk about the past

(If you want to see how to use wish in the present tense, click here)

This form is used when right now you are thinking about or wishing that something in the past happened differently. You think about something that cannot be changed, almost like a dream or a regret.

use wish (that) + subject + had (not) + past participle

Examples:

I wish I had gone to Australia last year. (Now you regret you didn't go to Australia last year.)

James wishes he had studied harder. (Now you wish you studied more before.)

The students wish their teacher hadn't given them homework. (Now the students feel bad that their teacher gave homework before.)

Alice wishes she hadn't eaten so much pie. (Now Alice feels sick. She wonders why she ate so much pie before.)

F.Past Participles

present, past, past participle

be, was or were, been
sing, sang, sung
drink, drank, drunk
do, did, done
go, went, gone
make, made, made
find, found, found
talk, talked, talked
eat, ate, eaten
swim, swam, swum
read, read, read
write, wrote, written
give, gave, given

Now let's practice the past participle by using the present perfect tense. It shows something that started in the past, but continues until now.

has/have (not) + past participle

Examples:

She has done her homework.

They have gone for a walk.

Julia hasn't eaten anything today.

The men haven't talked about the women.

G.Very vs. Too

Look at the two sentences. How are they different?

A: It is very hot.
B: It is too hot.

A is a simple statement- It's HOT!

But B shows some difficulty, like maybe because it is so hot, I feel terrible. Or because it is so hot, no one is happy.

Here are some more...

C: Lisa is very tall.
D: Lisa is too tall.

C is a simple statement. Wow! Lisa is a tall girl.

But D has a negative feeling. Perhaps because Lisa is tall, she hits her head on the ceiling. Or maybe she is so tall, she can't get a date or has no friends.

So remember, using too shows that there is a problem with the situation.

H.Use to/ Used to

There is a little confusion on how to use the words use to and used to. One reason for the confusion is that it is sometimes used as a verb, and sometimes used as an adjective. The other reason is because it seems like the tense changes. It's really quite simple when you look at it.
Used as an adjective. Use to be + used to. This means to be accustomed to. For example- I can study with the TV on. I am used to it. It means I am accustomed, adjusted, or don't mind having the TV play while I'm studying.

Or another example- Tim had a hard time living in Tokyo. He wasn't used to so many people. Tim didn't have experience being with big crowds of people before.

Used as a verb. Use to + verb is a regular verb and means something that happened but doesn't happen any more. It uses -ed to show past tense. But since it always means something that happened in the past, it should always use past tense. For example- I used to go to school in Paris. (I went to school there before, but now I don't.) Or, When Joshua was a child, he used to climb trees. (Now he doesn't climb trees.)

Remember, we always use this word when talking about the past. So when do you use use to without the d at the end? When the base form of the verb is used. Look at these examples- She didn't use to swim before noon. (Now she does swim before noon.) Or Did your father use to ride a horse? In these cases the past tense is shown with the did and didn't.

I.Tag Questions

A tag question is one where a statement is made, but the speaker wants a response from the listener. Like- Today's lesson is hard, isn't it? or The kids can't sing that song, can they?

First of all, to understand tag questions, you need to know about affirmative and negative sentences.

Do you know what an affirmative sentence is? It is like this: Mary is at home. or The students work hard.

Do you know what a negative sentence is? It is like this: Mary isn't at home. or The students don't work hard.

Then, you need to know that if the sentence is affirmative, the tag will be negative. And if the sentence is negative, the tag will be positive.

And finally, you need to think about the kind of verb used in the sentence. Does it use a modal, like can or will or a form of to be? Your tag question will follow the verb in the sentence. If it is a regular verb, don't forget it uses do, don't, does, doesn't when a question is asked.

Examples

Affirmative Sentence/ Negative Tag

Toshi likes fishing, doesn't he?
Susan is sick today, isn't she?
Mike can play the piano, can't he?
You will go there, won't you?

Negative Sentence/ Affirmative Tag

Andrew doesn't study much, does he?
The dogs aren't hungry, are they?
She can't cook, can she?
You won't see her, will you?

J.Using either, neither and too

Look at the sentences below. A is the speaker. B answers, and sometimes
a third person C answers after B.
When you agree with the speaker...

A: I like ice cream. B: Me, too. or I do, too. or So do I.

A: I can play the piano. B: Me, too. or I can, too. or So can I.

A: I am hungry. B: Me, too. or I am, too. or So am I.

A: I don't like hamburgers. B: Me, either. or Neither do I.

A: I can't cook. B: Me, either. or Neither can I.

A: I'm not tired. B: Me either. or Neither am I.

In the sentences above, a third person (C) would say the same thing as the second person (B)

When you don't agree with the speaker...

A: I love fried fish. B: I don't. C: I don't either. or Neither do I.

A: I am tall. B: I'm not. C: I'm not either. or Neither am I.

A: I can sing. B: I can't. C: I can't either. or Neither can I.

A: I don't like chocolate. B: I do. C: I do, too.

A: I'm not Canadian. B: I am. C: I am, too.

A: I can't speak English. B: I can. C: I can, too.

Note- there may be a few other possible ways to answer these questions.