english 4 fun

Compound nouns

2007-08-24T03:25:00.000-07:00

Compound noun are those nouns which consist of two (wallpaper, blackboard), three (brother-in-law) or more parts. Such parts can be two nouns (e.g. wallpaper, raincoat), a noun with a verb (e.g. typewriter) as well as an adjective with a noun (e.g. blackboard).

It also quite common to see the gerund form (-ing) connected to a noun, as in a frying pan, a dining-room or a noun with the gerund form (e.g sightseeing). Some nouns can be used as an adjective:

a car key
a toy shop
a table leg
etc.

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Inversion of the verb after certain adverbs

2007-07-17T08:51:00.000-07:00

In this article, we're going to have a look at inversion that sometimes takes place with certain adverbs and adverb phrases, mostly with a negative or restrictive sense. Such adverbs (adverb phrases) can be placed first in a sentence or clause for emphasis. They are then followed by the interrogative (i.e. inverted ) form of the verb.

The most important of these adverbs include:

hardly ever
never
scarcely ever
only by
in no circumstances
only in this way on no account
hardly . . . when
only then/when no sooner . . . than
scarcely . . . when
not only
seldom
nowhere
not till
so
neither/nor

Examples of how to use them:

I had never before been to lie. =
Never before had I been asked to lie.
a) / haven't got any money.
b) Neither/Nor have I.
They not only rob you, they smash everything too. =
Not only do they rob you, they smash everything too.
She became so depressed that. . . =
So sepressed did she become that. . .
This switch must not be touched on any account. =
On no account must this switch be touched.
Mike didn't realize how difficult how situation was till he received the letter. =
Not till he received the letter did he realize how difficult his situation was.

Also note that a second negative verb in a sentence can sometimes be expressed by nor with inversion:

She had no friends and didn't know anyone who could help her. =
She had no friends, nor did she know anyone who could help her.

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Inversion of Word Order for Emphasis

2007-07-17T08:49:00.000-07:00

Inversion not only can be used to form questions and conditional sentences. Also, we can use inversion for emphasis.

Little did she know how much work was left.
On no account must you sleep at school.
Never should you remember who's your boss.
Only then can you belong to me.
Here comes the sun.

All these structure are rather literary, which means there are more likely to appear in books.

Read further

You can check your understading here.

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Be going to form

2007-07-17T08:46:00.000-07:00

Be going to is another form to express the future. We mainly use it to talk about planned actions and to make predictions.

Note:

The be going to form is very similar to the Future Simple. Keep in mind though that the Future Simple can't be used for future arrangements.

Use

Planned actions (Use 4) - like in the Present Continuous
Prediction (Use 3)

*Sometimes you may encounter the form gonna, which is an abbreviation of going to.
Gonna is informal so be careful while using it!

Form

In positive sentences:

Subject	+	Auxiliary verb	+	Auxiliary verb	+	Verb
I/a dog etc.	+	is/are	+	going to	+	go/take etc.

This team is definitely going to win the competition. (Use 3)

I'm going to visit my grandma next week. (Use 4)

Sheila is going to give birth in a couple of weeks. (Use 3)

In questions:

Auxiliary verb	+	Subject	+	Auxiliary verb	+	Verb
is/are	+	I/a dog etc.	+	going to	+	go/take etc.

Is he going to apologise to Mary for his behavior? (Use 4).

Is the USA going to close down military bases in Western Europe? (Use 3 or Use 4)

In negative sentences:

Subject	+	Auxiliary verb	+	Auxiliary verb	+	Verb
I/a dog etc.	+	isn't/aren't	+	going to	+	go/take

The Government is not going to lower the taxes (Use 4 or Use 3).

"Record is not going to change me" says Mark. (Use 3)

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If + were or if + was

2007-07-17T08:45:00.000-07:00

That's a question many ESL students ask. The answer is: usually either were or was can be used, the former being more likely in formal English

"If she was/were offered the job she'd take it."

"If Tom was/were here he'd know what to do."

But were is a little more usual than was in the advice form If I were/ was you I would/should . . . :

"If I were you I would wait a bit," he said.

Were is also more usual in the infinitive construction:

If Peter were/was to apply for the post he 'd get it.

However: Were, not was, is used when the auxiliary is placed first:
"Were I Tom I would refuse."
When if means "since" was cannot be replaced by were, were can replace was after if only and wish.

Note: if + subject + auxiliary can be replaced in formal English by inversion of auxiliary and subject with if omitted:

If he had known . . . = Had he known . . .
If I were in his shoes . . . = Were I in his shoes . . .
If you should need anything . . . = Should you need anything. . .

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Countable and Uncountable Nouns Definition

2007-07-17T08:43:00.000-07:00

In the English language there are two types of a noun: countable and uncountable.

The countable nouns are those nouns that can exist both separately and in group or, in other words, those which you can count, like:

a book, a dog
an american, an apple
a girlfriend

Singular nouns must be preceded by the indefinite article "a" (before words beginning with a consonant) - e.g. a book or "an" (before words beginning with a vowel) - e.g. an American.

If a noun is plural we don't use any indefinite articles.

books, dogs
americans, apples
girlfriends
I like eating apples

Both in plurals and singulars definite article"the" may appear.

Do you remember the restaurant I told you about yesterday?
It turned out that the panes were shattered.

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Subordinate Clauses

2007-07-17T08:40:00.000-07:00

A sentence can contain a main clause and one or more subordinate clauses. A subordinate clause is a group of words containing a subject and verb and forming part of a sentence:

We knew that the man was was dangerous.
He told me his secret because he trusted me.
They did better at the exams than we did.
This is the vase that I bought in China.

In the examples above the subordinate clauses are in bold type.

It is not necessary for you to make a detailed study of clauses or even to be able to recognize the different kinds of clause, but it is necessary to learn to know which is the main verb of a sentence.

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Auxiliary Verbs

2007-07-17T08:38:00.001-07:00

Auxiliary (=helping) verbs don't mean anything when they are alone, however in sentence they help complete the form and meaning of main verbs. The most common auxiliary verbs are be, have, do.

There are two verbs in each of these sentences:

I	have	lost	my keys.
She	can't	come	to the party.
The hotel	was	built	ten years ago.
Where	do	you	live?

In these examples have/can't/was/do are auxiliary verbs.

OK. So you know what auxiliary verbs are. But when and how can they be used?

Yes, I do, etc.

You can use an auxiliary verb (without the rest of the sentence) when you don't want to repeat something:

"Have you locked the door?" "Yes, I have." (= I have locked the door)
George wasn't working but Janet was. (= Janet was working)
She could lend me the money but she won't. (= she wo't lend me the money)
"Are you angry with me" "Of course I'm not." (= I'm not angry)

Use do/does/did for the present and past simple:

"Do you like onions?" "Yes, I do." (= I like onions)
"Does Mark smoke?" "He did but he doesn't any more."

Polite interest

Apart from that, phases such as: have you? / isn't she? / do they? etc. can be used to show polite interest in what somebody has said:

"I"ve just met Simon." "Oh, have you? How is he?"
"Liz isn't very well today." "Oh, isn't she? What"s wrong with her?"
"It rained every day during our holiday." "Did it? What a pity!"

Sometimes we use these "short question" to show surprise:

"Jim and Nora are getting married." "Are they? Really?"

We use auxiliary verbs with so and neither:

"I'm feeling tired." "So am I." (= I'm feeling tired too)
"I never read newspapers" "Neither do I." (= I never read newspapers either)
Sue hasn't got a car and neither has Martin.

Note the word order after so and neither (verb before subject):

I passed the exam and so did Tom. (not "so Tom did")

You can use nor instead of neither:

"I can't remember his name." "Nor can I." or "Neither can I."

You can also use "...not...either":

"I haven't got any money." "Neither have I." or "Nor have I." or I haven't either."

I think so /I hope so etc.

After some verbs you can use so when you don't want to repeat something:

"Are those people English?" "I think so." ( I think they are English)
"Will you be at home tomorrow morning?" "I expect so." (= I expect I'll be at home...)
Do you think Kate has been invited to the party?" "I suppose so." You can also say I hope so, I guess so and I'm afraid so.

The usual negative forms are:

I think so /I expect so	I don't think so / I don't expect so
I hope so / I'm afraid so /I guess so	I hope not / I'm afraid not / I guess not
I suppose so	I don't suppose so or I suppose not
"Do you think it's going to rain?"	"I think so. / I don't think so."
"Is that woman American?"	"I hope so. / I hope not." (not "I don't hope so")

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Position of Adverbs of Frequency

2007-07-17T08:36:00.000-07:00

The postion of adverbs of frequency is often very tricky. However there are several good rules that you can follow. Let's divide adverbs of frequency into two groups.

a) always, continually, frequently, occasionally, often, once, twice, periodically, repeatedly, sometimes, usually etc.

b) ever, hardly ever, never, rarely, scarcely ever, seldom

Adverbs in both the above groups are normally placed:

1. After the simple tenses of to be:

He is always in time for meals.

2. Before the simple tenses of all other verbs:

They sometimes stay up all night.

With compound tenses, they are placed after the first auxiliary, or, with interrogative verbs, after auxiliary + subject:

He can never understand.
You have often been told not to do that.
Have you ever ridden a camel?

Exceptions:

a) used to and have to prefer the adverb in front of them:

You hardly ever have to remind him; he always remembers.

b) Frequency adverbs are often placed before auxiliaries when these are used alone, in additions to remarks or in answers to questions:

"Can you park your car near the shops?" "Yes, I usually can.
I know I should take exercise, but I never do and when

In a compound verb, the auxiliary is stressed:

I never can remember. She hardly ever has met him.

Similarly when do is added for emphasis:

I always do arrive in time!

But emphasis can also be given by stressing the frequency adverb and leaving it in its usual position after the auxiliary:

You should always check your oil before starting.

Adverbs in group (a) above can also be put at the beginning or end of a sentence or clause.

Exceptions

always is rarely found at the beginning of a sentence/clause except with imperatives.

often, if put at the end, normally requires very or quite: Often he walked. He walked quite often.

Adverbs in group (b) above, hardly ever, never, rarely etc. (but not ever alone), can also be put at the beginning of a sentence, but inversion of the following main verb then becomes necessary:

Hardly/Scarcely ever did they manage to meet unobserved. (Inversion of Word Order for Emphasis)

hardly/scarcely ever, never, rarely and seldom are not used with negative verbs.

never, ever

never is chiefly used with an affirmative verb, never with a negative. It normally means "at no time":

He never saw her again. I've never eaten snails.
They never eat meat, (habit)
I've never had a better flight.

(For never + comparative) never + affirmative can sometimes replace an ordinary negative:

I waited but he never turned up. (He didn't turn up) never + interrogative can be used to express the speaker's surprise at the non-performance of an action:

Has he never been to Japan? I'm surprised, because his wife is Japanese.

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