Saturday, April 25, 2015

Going to

There is no one 'future tense' in English. There are 4 future forms. The one which is used most often in spoken English is 'going to', not 'will'.
We use 'going to' when we want to talk about a plan for the future.
  • I'm going to see him later today.
  • They're going to launch it next month.
  • We're going to have lunch first.
  • She's going to see what she can do.
  • I'm not going to talk for very long.
Notice that this plan does not have to be for the near future.
  • When I retire I'm going to go back to Barbados to live.
  • In ten years time, I'm going to be boss of my own successful company.
We use 'going to' when we want to make a prediction based on evidence we can see now.
  • Look out! That cup is going to fall off.
  • Look at those black clouds. It's going to rain soon.
  • These figures are really bad. We're going to make a loss.
  • You look very tired. You're going to need to stop soon.
We can replace 'going to go' by 'going'.
  • I'm going out later.
  • She's going to the exhibition tomorrow.

Friday, April 24, 2015

Past Review 2

We can use the past simple to talk about actions and states which we see as completed in the past.
    • I left school when I was sixteen.
    • I was very happy then.
    • He told me all about his childhood.
We can use the past continuous to talk about past events which went on for a period of time.
    • While I was driving home, Peter was trying desperately to contact me.
    • I was thinking about him last night.
    • I was walking in the street when I suddenly fell over.
We can use the present perfect when we want to look back from the present to the past.
    • I've broken my watch so I don't know what time it is.
    • She hasn't arrived yet.
    • We've been to Singapore a lot over the last few years.
    • Have you ever been to Argentina?
The Present Perfect Continuous can be used to talk about an action or actions that started in the past and continued until recently or that continue into the future.
    • You look tired. Have you been sleeping properly?
    • I've been waiting for him for 30 minutes and he still hasn't arrived.
    • He's been phoning me all week for an answer.

Saturday, April 18, 2015

Past Review 1

We can use the past simple to talk about actions and states which we see as completed in the past.
    • I left school when I was sixteen.
    • I was very happy then.
    • He told me all about his childhood.
We can use the past continuous to talk about past events which went on for a period of time.
    • While I was driving home, Peter was trying desperately to contact me.
    • I was thinking about him last night.
    • I was walking in the street when I suddenly fell over.
We can use the present perfect when we want to look back from the present to the past.
    • I've broken my watch so I don't know what time it is.
    • She hasn't arrived yet.
    • We've been to Singapore a lot over the last few years.
    • Have you ever been to Argentina?
The Present Perfect Continuous can be used to talk about an action or actions that started in the past and continued until recently or that continue into the future.
    • You look tired. Have you been sleeping properly?
    • I've been waiting for him for 30 minutes and he still hasn't arrived.
    • He's been phoning me all week for an answer.

Friday, April 17, 2015

Past Perfect Continuous

We use the past perfect continuous to look back at a situation in progress.
  • It was a good time to invest. Inflation had been falling for several months.
  • Before I changed jobs, I had been working on a plan to reduce production costs.
  • We had been thinking about buying a new house but then we decided to stay here.
We use it to say what had been happening before something else happened.
  • It had been snowing for a while before we left.
  • We had been playing tennis for only a few minutes when it started raining.
  • He was out of breath when he arrived because he had been running.
We use it when reporting things said in the past.
  • She said she had been trying to call me all day.
  • They said they had been shopping.
  • I told you I had been looking for some new clothes.

Saturday, April 11, 2015

Past Perfect

We use the past perfect simple to talk about what happened before a point in the past. It looks back from a point in the past to further in the past.
  • I hadn't known the bad news when I spoke to him.
  • I checked with the supplier and they still hadn't received the contract.
  • She had already told him before I got a chance to give him my version.
  • The company has started the year well but was badly hit by the postal strike.
The past perfect simple is often used when we report what people had said/thought/believed.
  • He told me they had already paid the bill.
  • He said he believed that John had moved to Italy.
  • I thought we had already decided on a name for this product.
can get a lift home with him.

Friday, April 10, 2015

Past Simple or Present Perfect

(Remember that British and American English have different rules for the use of the present perfect. The comments and the exercises here refer to correct grammar for British English. In American English, it is often considered acceptable to use the past simple in some of these examples.)
The past simple is used to talk about actions in the past that have finished. It talks about 'then' and definitely excludes 'now'.
The present perfect simple to look back on actions in the past from the present. It always includes 'now'.
These sentences are in the past with no connection to the present.
  • I first got to know him 10 years ago.
  • I started work here in 1989.
  • I had too much to eat at lunchtime.
Now look at these same situations seen from the present.
  • I've known him for 10 years.
  • I've worked here since 1987.
  • My stomach hurts. I've eaten too much.
We use time expressions like 'yesterday', 'ago', 'last year', 'in 1999' with the past simple.
  • We spoke to him yesterday.
  • He came in a few moments ago.
  • We made our last purchase from them over a year ago.
  • She joined the company in 1999.
We use time expressions like are 'ever', 'never', 'since' with the present perfect.
  • I've never seen so many people here before.
  • Have you ever been more surprised?
  • I've done a lot since we last talked about it.

Saturday, April 4, 2015

Present Perfect Simple or Continuous

Often there is very little difference between the present perfect simple and the present perfect continuous. In many cases, both are equally acceptable.
  • They've been working here for a long time but Andy has worked here for even longer.
  • I've lived here for 10 years and she has been living here for 12 years.
To emphasize the action, we use the continuous form.
  • We've been working really hard for a couple of months.
  • She's been having a hard time.
To emphasize the result of the action, we use the simple form.
  • I've made fifteen phone calls this morning.
  • He's written a very good report.
Look at the difference in these examples.
  • I've been reading this book for two months but I've only read half of it. It's very difficult to read.
  • She's been trying to convince him for 20 minutes but she hasn't managed to yet.
  • They've been talking about this for month and they still haven't found a solution.
When an action is finished and you can see the results, use the continuous form.
  • The phone bill is enormous. You've been calling your boyfriend in Australia, haven't you?
  • You're red in the face. Have you been running?
When you use the words 'ever' or 'never', use the simple form.
  • I don't know them. I've never met them.
  • Have you ever heard anything so strange in your life

Friday, April 3, 2015

Present Perfect Continuous

This tense is used to talk about an action or actions that started in the past and continued until recently or that continue into the future:
We can use it to refer to an action that has finished but you can still see evidence.
  • Oh, the kitchen is a mess. Who has been cooking?
  • You look tired. Have you been sleeping properly?
  • I've got a a stiff neck. I've been working too long on computer.
It can refer to an action that has not finished.
  • I've been learning Spanish for 20 years and I still don't know very much.
  • I've been waiting for him for 30 minutes and he still hasn't arrived.
  • He's been telling me about it for days. I wish he would stop.
It can refer to a series of actions.
  • She's been writing to her regularly for a couple of years.
  • He's been phoning me all week for an answer.
  • The university has been sending students here for over twenty years to do work experience.
The present perfect continuous is often used with 'since', 'for', 'all week', 'for days', 'lately', 'recently', 'over the last few months'.


    • I've been wanting to do that for ten years.
    • You haven't been getting good results over the last few months.
    • They haven't been working all week. They're on strike
    • He hasn't been talking to me for weeks.
    • We've been working hard on it for ages.
    • I've been looking at other options recently.
    • He's been working here since 2001.