Grammar X (Indefinite and Definite Articles)

Indefinite and Definite Articles

The words a, an, and the are special adjectives called articles.

Indefinite Articles—a, an

an—used before singular count nouns beginning with a vowel (a, e, i, o, u) or vowel sound:

• an apple, an elephant, an issue, an orange

a—used before singular count nouns beginning with consonants (other than a, e, i, o, u):

• a stamp, a desk, a TV, a cup, a book

Definite Article—the

Can be used before singular and plural, count and non-count nouns

1. Indefinite Article (a, an)

Used before singular nouns that are unspecified:

• a pencil
• an orange

Used before number collectives and some numbers:

• a dozen
• a gallon

Used before a singular noun followed by a restrictive modifier:

• a girl who was wearing a yellow hat

Used with nouns to form adverbial phrases of quantity, amount, or degree:

• I felt a bit depressed.

2. Definite Article (the)

Used to indicate a noun that is definite or has been previously specified in the context:

• Please close the door.
• I like the clothes you gave me.

Used to indicate a noun that is unique:

• Praise the Lord!
• The Columbia River is near here.

Used to designate a natural phenomenon:

• The nights get shorter in the summer.
• The wind is blowing so hard.

Used to refer to a time period:

• I was very naïve in the past.
• This song was very popular in the 1980s.

Used to indicate all the members of a family:

• I invited the Bakers for dinner.
• This medicine was invented by the Smiths.

[Quiz 10.1]

Choose the correct article in each sentence.

1) Did you bring                      (a, an, the) umbrella?
2) Are you looking for                      (a, an, the) shampoo?
3) I checked                      (a, an, the) mailbox again.
4) Can I have                      (a, an, the) spoon please?
5) I was born into                      (a, an, the) poor family.
6) She will come back in                      (a, an, the) hour.
7) Have you been to                      (a, an, the) Space Needle Tower in Seattle?
8) I would love to talk to one of                      (a, an, the) managers.
9) What                      (a, an, the) amazing view!
10) The helicopter landed on                      (a, an, the) roof of a building.

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Grammar IX (Verbs (Second Form))

Verbs (Second Form)

Regular verbs form their past and past participle by adding ed (d).

Base Verb	Past	Past Participle
learn	learned	learned
study	studied	studied
cook	cooked	cooked
solve	solved	solved
ask	asked	asked
watch	watched	watched
listen	listened	listened

Irregular verbs do not have definite rules, but there are a few patterns.

Base Verb	Past	Past Participle
grow	grew	grown
know	knew	known
begin	began	begun
draw	drew	drawn
drive	drove	driven
fly	flew	flown
give	gave	given
speak	spoke	spoken
swim	swam	swum
go	went	gone
take	took	taken
find	found	found
spend	spent	spent
teach	taught	taught
pay	paid	paid
feel	felt	felt
buy	bought	bought
meet	met	met
have	had	had
feed	fed	fed
keep	kept	kept
cut	cut	cut
hit	hit	hit
set	set	set
shut	shut	shut
fit	fit	fit

[Quiz 9.1]

Find the past and past participle forms of the following verbs using your dictionary:

bring
drink
think
tell
eat
make
beat

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Grammar VIII (Prepositions)

Prepositions

 

Prepositions "On," "At," and "In"

A preposition is a word that links a noun, pronoun, or noun phrase to some other part of the sentence.

Prepositions can be tricky for English learners. There is no definite rule or formula for choosing a preposition. In the beginning stage of learning the language, you should try to identify a preposition when reading or listening in English and recognize its usage.

• to the office
• at the desk
• on the table
• in an hour
• about myself

A preposition is used to show direction, location, or time, or to introduce an object.

Here are a few common prepositions and examples.

On

Used to express a surface of something:

• I put an egg on the kitchen table.
• The paper is on my desk.

Used to specify days and dates:

• The garbage truck comes on Wednesdays.
• I was born on the 14th day of June in 1988.

Used to indicate a device or machine, such as a phone or computer:

• He is on the phone right now.
• She has been on the computer since this morning.
• My favorite movie will be on TV tonight.

Used to indicate a part of the body:

• The stick hit me on my shoulder.
• He kissed me on my cheek.
• I wear a ring on my finger.

Used to indicate the state of something:

• Everything in this store is on sale.
• The building is on fire.

At

Used to point out specific time:

• I will meet you at 12 p.m.
• The bus will stop here at 5:45 p.m.

Used to indicate a place:

• There is a party at the club house.
• There were hundreds of people at the park.
• We saw a baseball game at the stadium.

Used to indicate an email address:

• Please email me at abc@defg.com.

Used to indicate an activity:

• He laughed at my acting.
• I am good at drawing a portrait.

In

Used for unspecific times during a day, month, season, year:

• She always reads newspapers in the morning.
• In the summer, we have a rainy season for three weeks.
• The new semester will start in March.

Used to indicate a location or place:

• She looked me directly in the eyes.
• I am currently staying in a hotel.
• My hometown is Los Angeles, which is in California.

Used to indicate a shape, color, or size:

• This painting is mostly in blue.
• The students stood in a circle.
• This jacket comes in four different sizes.

Used to express while doing something:

• In preparing for the final report, we revised the tone three times.
• A catch phrase needs to be impressive in marketing a product.

Used to indicate a belief, opinion, interest, or feeling:

• I believe in the next life.
• We are not interested in gambling.

[Quiz 8.1]

Identify all prepositions in the following sentences.

After flying for many hours, we finally got off the airplane. We walked out the exit and went to the baggage claim area. There were hundreds of different bags on the conveyer belt. I almost picked up the wrong one because it looked like mine.


[Quiz 8.2]

Choose a correct preposition in the sentence.

1) I want to lose 5 kilogram                      (on, at, in) one month.
2) Could you get me this pants                      (on, at, in) a larger size?
3) She seems to be interested                      (on, at, in) Psychology.
4) I will come to pick you up                      (on, at, in) 2 pm tomorrow.
5) This class will be held                      (on, at, in) Mondays.

Prepositions "Of," "To," and "For"

Of

Used for belonging to, relating to, or connected with:

• The secret of this game is that you can’t ever win.
• The highlight of the show is at the end.
• The first page of the book describes the author’s profile.
• Don’t touch it. That’s the bag of my friend’s sister.
• I always dreamed of being rich and famous.

Used to indicate reference:

• I got married in the summer of 2000.
• This is a picture of my family.
• I got a discount of 10 percent on the purchase.

Used to indicate an amount or number:

• I drank three cups of milk.
• A large number of people gathered to protest.
• I had only four hours of sleep during the last two days.
• He got a perfect score of 5 on his writing assignment.

To

Used to indicate the place, person, or thing that someone or something moves toward, or the direction of something:

• I am heading to the entrance of the building.
• The package was mailed to Mr. Kim yesterday.
• All of us went to the movie theater.
• Please send it back to me.

Used to indicate a limit or an ending point:

• The snow was piled up to the roof.
• The stock prices rose up to 100 dollars.

Used to indicate relationship:

• This letter is very important to your admission.
• My answer to your question is in this envelop.
• Do not respond to every little thing in your life.

Used to indicate a time or a period:

• I work nine to six, Monday to Friday.
• It is now 10 to five. (In other words, it is 4:50.)

For

Used to indicate the use of something:

• This place is for exhibitions and shows.
• I baked a cake for your birthday.
• I put a note on the door for privacy.
• She has been studying hard for the final exam.

Used to mean because of:

• I am so happy for you.
• We feel deeply sorry for your loss.
• For this reason, I’ve decided to quit this job.

Used to indicate time or duration:

• He’s been famous for many decades.
• I attended the university for one year only.
• This is all I have for today.

[Quiz 8.3]

Choose the correct preposition in each sentence.

1) I slept                      (of, to, for) only two hours last night.
2) It was my first trip                      (of, to, for) Hawaii.
3) Turn off the TV and go straight                      (of, to, for) bed.
4) This book was written                      (of, to, for) the people who want to learn how to play a guitar.
5) I was late                      (of, to, for) school.
6) Spencer is one                      (of, to, for) my best friends.

Prepositions "With," "Over," and "By"

With

Used to indicate being together or being involved:

• I ordered a sandwich with a drink.
• He was with his friend when he saw me.
• She has been working with her sister at the nail shop.
• The manager will be with you shortly.

Used to indicate "having":

• I met a guy with green eyes.
• Were you the one talking with an accent?
• People with a lot of money are not always happy.

Used to indicate "using":

• I wrote a letter with the pen you gave me.
• This is the soup that I made with rice and barley.
• He cut my hair with his gold scissors.

Used to indicate feeling:

• I am emailing you with my sincere apology.
• He came to the front stage with confidence.

Used to indicate agreement or understanding:

• Are you with me?
• Yes, I am completely with you.
• She agrees with me.

Over

Used to indicate movement from one place to another:

• Come over to my house for dinner sometime.
• Could you roll over?
• They sent over a gift for his promotion.

Used to indicate movement downward:

• The big tree fell over on the road.
• Can you bend over and get the dish for me?
• He pushed it over the edge.

Used to indicate more than an expected number or amount:

• This amount is over our prediction.
• Kids twelve and over can watch this movie.
• The phone rang for over a minute.

Used to indicate a period of time:

• I worked there over a year.
• She did not sleep there over this past month.

By

Used to indicate proximity:

• Can I sit by you?
• He was standing by me.
• The post office is by the bank.

Used to indicate the person that does something in a passive voice sentence:

• The microwave was fixed by the mechanic.
• The flowers were delivered by a postman.
• The branch office was closed by the head office.

Used to indicate an action with a particular purpose:

• You can pass the exam by preparing for it.
• I expressed my feeling toward her by writing a letter.
• She finally broke the record by pure effort.

Used to indicate a mean or method:

• Please send this package to Russia by airmail.
• I came here by subway.

[Quiz 8.4]

Choose the correct preposition in each sentence.

1) If she left at 4 p.m., she should be here                      (with, over, by) now.
2) Go                      (with, over, by) there and catch my ball.
3)                      (With, Over, By) your determination, you will be able to achieve your dream.
4) I just found it! It was                      (with, over, by) the radio on my desk.
5) I knocked him                      (with, over, by) accidentally.
6) She was                      (with, over, by) me when the accident occurred.

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Grammar VII (Simple Tense)

Simple Tense

Verb tense tells you when the action happens. There are three main verb tenses: present, past, and future. Each main tense is divided into simple, progressive, perfect, and perfect progressive tenses.

	Simple	Progressive	Perfect	Perfect Progressive
Present	finish	am/is/are finishing	have/has finished	have/has been finishing
Past	finished	was/were finishing	had finished	had been finishing
Future	will finish	will be finishing	will have finished	will have been finishing

Things to remember about simple tense:

     a. Present tense is the original verb form.
     b. Past tense has a few patterns.
     c. Future tense needs will (shall) + verb.

run

• I run a marathon twice a year. (present)
• I ran a marathon last year. (past)
• I will run a marathon next year. (future)

eat

• I eat lunch in my office.
• I ate lunch an hour ago.
• I will eat lunch in one hour.

see

• I see a movie once a week.
• I saw a movie yesterday.
• I will see a movie tomorrow.

know

• I know it.
• I knew it the day before yesterday.
• I will know it by tomorrow.

learn

• I learn English.
• I learned English the last two years.
• I will learn English next year.

cook

• I cook my supper every night.
• I cooked our dinner already.
• I will cook breakfast tomorrow.

[Quiz 7.1]

Fill in the blanks with appropriate verb forms.

1) I                      a song at the concert yesterday.
2) He                      a letter to his girlfriend tomorrow.
3) I                      to the library to borrow some books this weekend.

Continue

Grammar VI (Adverbs)

Adverbs

Adverbs modify a verb, an adjective, or another adverb.

An adverb tells more about a verb in the sentence.

• The fire engine runs fast.
• Listen to his speech carefully.
• I browse the web frequently.
• It rained hard.

An adverb describes more about an adjective in the sentence.

• The news is very surprising!
• The coffee is extremely hot, so be careful.
• Nature is really amazing!

An adverb modifies another adverb in the sentence.

• It rains very hard.
• Computers run much faster these days.
• I clean my room less frequently because I am busy.

Commonly, adjectives can be changed to adverbs by adding 'ly'.

• slow – slowly
• quick – quickly
• comfortable – comfortably
• loud – loudly
• clear – clearly

To change adjectives ending in 'y' into adverbs, change the 'y' to 'i' and add 'ly'.

• happy – happily
• easy – easily

[Quiz 6.1]

Choose the correct word form in the following sentences.

1) I spoke to you (careful, carefully) last time.
2) We talked about it (clear, clearly).
3) I sat on the (comfortable, comfortably) sofa.
4) My dog runs very (fast, faster).
5) Let’s install the new program (quick, quickly).

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Grammar V (Adjectives)

Adjectives

 

Adjectives describe or modify nouns.

I like fairy tales. A fairy tale is an imaginary story that has unrealistic characters in a fantastic background. It makes me forget about the real world and refreshes my tired mind.

Adjectives generally appear immediately before the noun.

• A pretty girl
• Red flowers
• A long stick
• Heavy boxes
• Warm weather

Commonly, adjectives of opposite meaning are formed by adding a prefix such as un, in, or dis.

• clear – unclear, important – unimportant, predictable – unpredictable, believable – unbelievable, common – uncommon, aware – unaware, ambiguous – unambiguous, conventional – unconventional, certain – uncertain
• definite – indefinite, correct – incorrect, comparable – incomparable, complete – incomplete, evitable – inevitable, expensive – inexpensive
• able – disable, assemble – disassemble, content – discontent, similar – dissimilar

When using a string of adjectives, they should appear in a set order: size/shape + age + color + origin + material.

• A big brown house
• A small old English desk
• A beautiful black Italian leather purse
• Delicious Chinese food

The + adjective describes a class or group of people and acts as a noun.

• the old, the young, the poor, the rich, the oppressed, the homeless, etc.
• This popular TV show is loved by the old.

[Quiz 5.1]

Write opposite adjectives using the appropriate prefix.

1) Clear –                     
2) Definite –                     
3) Correct –                     
4) Expensive –                     
5) Complete –                     


[Quiz 5.2]

Underline all adjectives in the following sentences.

In the spring, red roses blossom in my cute small garden. The beautiful birds also sing in the big oak tree.

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Grammar IV (Pronouns)

Pronouns

A pronoun takes the place of a noun.

Example story:

Mary is one of the heads of the ToJi Corporation. Mary works with Mr. James and Mr. James' son Tom. Mr. James and Mr. James' son Tom are experts in biochemistry. Mary, Mr. James, and Tom researched and invented a drug for cancer treatment.

If the story above is written using pronouns:

Mary is one of the heads of the ToJi Corporation. She works with Mr. James and his son Tom. He and his son Tom are experts in biochemistry. They researched and invented a drug for cancer treatment.

Personal Pronouns

Personal pronouns refer to a person:

• I go to school.
• You are a student.
• They are Koreans.
• He works here.
• We gave her food.

The word ‘it' refers to an object:

• I drank it.
• It is big.
• They cut it into halves.

Memorize the personal pronouns:

		Singular Subject	Singular Object	Singular Reflexive	Plural Subject	Plural Object	Plural Reflexive
First		I	me	myself	we	us	ourselves
Second		you	you	yourself	you	you	yourselves
Third	Male	he	him	himself	they	them	themselves
Third	Female	she	her	herself	they	them	themselves
Third	Neutral	it	it	itself	they	them	themselves

[Quiz 4.1]

Write the correct pronoun in each blank.

1) I ate an apple.                     was delicious.
2) You look tired.                     should rest.
3) She is a teacher. I gave                    a book.
4) They are my friends. I like                     very much.
5) He saw the movie.                     was fun.

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Grammar III (Possessive Nouns)

Possessive Nouns

 

Possessive nouns are used to indicate ownership.

Possessive nouns usually are formed by adding an apostrophe (') and s.

• John's book
• Kerry's car
• Grandma's mirror

When a noun is plural and ends in s, just add an apostrophe (').

• The kids' toys
• My parents' house
• The teachers' lounge

If two people own one thing, add the apostrophe and s to the second person only.

• John and Mary's new house
• David and Sue's wedding
• Tom and Doug's car

If two people own separate things, add the apostrophe and s for each person.

• Susan's and Beth's books
• Jean's and Dan's pants
• Ben's and Jim's offices

[Quiz 3.1]

Which of the following is not correct?

1) Dr. Hunts has a new computer.
2) Dr. Hunts's new computer is working well.
3) Dr. Hunts' computer is new.

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Grammar II (Count Nouns vs. Non-Count Nouns)

Count Nouns vs. Non-Count Nouns

 

Count nouns

Can be counted as one or more.

• pen, computer, bottle, spoon, desk, cup, television, chair, shoe, finger, flower, camera, stick, balloon, book, table, comb, etc.

Take an s to form the plural.

• pens, computers, bottles, spoons, desks, cups, televisions, chairs, shoes, fingers, flowers, cameras, sticks, balloons, books, tables, combs, etc.

Work with expressions such as (a few, few, many, some, every, each, these, and the number of).

• a few pens, a few computers, many bottles, some spoons, every desk, each cup, these televisions, the number of chairs, a few shoes, a few fingers, many flowers, some cameras, every stick, each balloon, these books, the number of tables, many combs, etc.

Work with appropriate articles (a, an, or the).

• a pen, the computer, a bottle, the spoon, a desk, the cup, a television, the chair, a shoe, the finger, a flower, the camera, a stick, the balloon, a book, the table, a comb, etc.

Do NOT work with much (for example, you would never say much pens or much computers).

Non-count nouns

Cannot be counted. They usually express a group or a type.

• water, wood, ice, air, oxygen, English, Spanish, traffic, furniture, milk, wine, sugar, rice, meat, flour, soccer, sunshine, etc.

Generally cannot be pluralized.

Work both with and without an article (a, an, or the), depending on the context of the sentence.

• Sugar is sweet.
• The sunshine is beautiful.
• I drink milk.
• He eats rice.
• We watch soccer together.
• The wood is burning.

Work with expressions such as (some, any, enough, this, that, and much).

• We ate some rice and milk.
• I hope to see some sunshine today.
• This meat is good.
• She does not speak much Spanish.
• Do you see any traffic on the road?
• That wine is very old.

Do NOT work with expressions such as (these, those, every, each, either, or neither).

[Quiz 2.1]

Choose all of the non-count nouns in the following list:

wine, student, pen, water, wind, milk, computer, furniture, cup, rice, box, watch, potato, wood

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Grammar I (Singular and Plural Nouns)

Singular and Plural Nouns

A noun names a person, place, thing, or idea.

Usually, the first page of a grammar book tells you about nouns. Nouns give names of concrete or abstract things in our lives. As babies learn "mom," "dad," or "milk" as their first word, nouns should be the first topic when you study a foreign language.

For the plural form of most nouns, add s.

• bottle – bottles
• cup – cups
• pencil – pencils
• desk – desks
• sticker – stickers
• window – windows

For nouns that end in ch, x, s, or s sounds, add es.

• box – boxes
• watch – watches
• moss – mosses
• bus – buses

For nouns ending in f or fe, change f to v and add es.

• wolf – wolves
• wife – wives
• leaf – leaves
• life – lives

Some nouns have different plural forms.

• child – children
• woman – women
• man – men
• mouse – mice
• goose – geese

Nouns ending in vowels like y or o do not have definite rules.

• baby – babies
• toy – toys
• kidney – kidneys
• potato – potatoes
• memo – memos
• stereo – stereos

A few nouns have the same singular and plural forms.

• sheep – sheep
• deer – deer
• series – series
• species – species

[Quiz 1.1]

Choose the correct form of the noun in each sentence.

1) I have three (child, children).
2) There are five (man, men) and one (woman, women).
3) (Baby, Babies) play with bottles as toys.
4) I put two big (potato, potatoes) in the lunch box.
5) A few men wear (watch, watches).
6) I put a (memo, memos) on the desk.
7) I saw a (mouse, mice) running by.
8) There are few (bus, buses) on the road today.

Continue