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On, at, and in

Average: 4.3 (52 votes)

A preposition links a noun, pronoun or noun phrase to some part of the sentence. Prepositions are always difficult to learn therefore you should practise using the prepositions with the correct phrases or nouns.

Here are few examples of on, at, or in:

On

On – to show a surface of something
I put my phone on the table.
Don’t leave any important papers on your desk.

Beginner Comparatives and Superlatives

Average: 3.8 (23 votes)

Comparative adjectives compare two things. Superlative adjectives compare more than two things.

Forming comparatives and superlatives:

One syllable (part)

Adjectives that have only one syllable (part) or adjectives that end in 'y' use ‘er’ to form comparatives and 'est' to form superlatives. For adjectives that end in 'y' change the 'y' to 'i' before adding 'er' or 'est'.

Active and Passive

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Verbs are either in the active voice or in the passive voice. In the active voice the relationship between the verb and the subject is clear:
The company gave Paul a car.
This sentence is active. The company (subject) gave (verb)

In the passive the subject of the sentence is not the 'doer'; the person doing the action.
Paul was given a company car.

Adverbs for Beginners

Average: 3.6 (42 votes)

Adverbs modify (change) a verb, an adjective, or another adverb.

An adverb tells us more about a verb in a sentence.
Peter runs fast.
They listened carefully to the speech.
I usually go out on Saturdays.
She spoke well.

An adverb can describe an adjective in a sentence..
The day was very surprising.
The cake was really tasty.
The film was absolutely amazing.

Perfect Tenses for Beginners

Average: 3.7 (35 votes)

The Present perfect can be used to describe an action that starts in the past and finishes in the present.
The Present perfect is formed with have/has + past participle.

The Past perfect describes an action that started in the past and finished in another point in the past.
The Past perfect is formed with had + past participle.

Gerunds – the 'ing' form

Average: 3.7 (40 votes)

A gerund is formed by adding ‘ing’ to the end of a verb. This form is like a noun.

I like listening to music.
Watching TV is not always good for you.
Doing exercise is important.
I spent the whole morning studying.
My hobby is playing the guitar.
They enjoy partying.

In each of the sentences above the –ing form is a noun not a verb.

The gerund can have a possessive noun or pronoun before it.

Elementary: Infinitives

Average: 4.3 (14 votes)

An infinitive is a verb combined with the word to. Most often, an infinitive acts as a noun in the sentence. Less frequently, it acts as an adjective or an adverb.

Continuous Tenses

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The continuous tense shows an action that is, was, or will be in progress at a certain time. The continuous tense is formed with the verb ‘be’ + -ing form of the verb.

The Present continuous can be used to show an action which is happening at the time of speaking.
I am having dinner at the moment.

Simple tenses of verbs

Average: 3.4 (489 votes)

The main function of a verb is to indicate when the action happens. There are three main verb tenses; past, present and future. Each tense is divided into; simple, continuous, perfect and perfect continuous.

In this lesson we are looking at the simple tenses in the past, present and future.

The present tense of a verb is the 'original' form. The past tense can have different patterns. The future simple is formed with 'will'.

Here are some verbs used in the past, present and future tenses:

Verbs that show actions

Average: 3.4 (33 votes)

Verbs that show actions or 'action verbs' are the most used verbs.
Action verbs take 's' in the third person when they are singular verbs:
He lives in Athens.
She works in the city.
It rains a lot in February.

Negative sentences need 'do not', 'does not', or 'did not'.
He does not live in Athens.
She does not work in the city.
It does not rain in August.
It did not rain in June.