Basic English Grammar For Dummies - UK: UK Edition

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Modal verbs are a special kind of auxiliary verb that express necessity or possibility. Words like must, should, can, will and may are all modal verbs.

After this lesson, test your abilities with this quiz and see if you understood the concepts correctly. Phrasal Verbs: a New Way to Learn Them Like me, you probably spend a lot of time on the Internet. I have placed extra material there, to add to what you find on the screen of your e-reader or between the paper covers of Basic English Grammar For Dummies. Here is what you get, all for free:Names: I am Geraldine Woods, not geraldine woods. Nearly all names require capital letters. (Some companies choose lowercase letters for products. The iPad is an example of a name that doesn’t begin with a capital letter.) The past continuous tense is used to describe a continuous action that got interrupted. If you got a phone call late at night, you could say “I was sleeping last night when I got the call.”

When you do want to create grammatically correct sentences, you must pay attention to several issues. The sections that follow briefly show you these issues. Action or being words The difference is subtle (not too big) and you can get away with using either one. Just remember that “will” is used more often for promises and things you do by choice, and “going to” is used for making plans. tip This icon signals a shortcut or an extra bit of information. A tip is a whisper in your ear, helping you master a grammar rule. WHY IT IS RIGHT: Spoke is the irregular verb form you need in this sentence. (For more information about irregular verb forms, see Chapter 10.)

Full stop, question mark, exclamation mark: These three punctuation marks signal the end of a sentence. A full stop is a little dot. It follows a sentence that makes a statement. A question mark is made from a curve and a dot. It follows a sentence that asks a question. An exclamation mark is a line and a dot. It shows emphasis – the punctuation mark that shouts. Look at these punctuation marks in action: going to the beach bad idea no pets allowed want take the dog he does not bite you know kind and friendly he is to the park instead Since it’s very hard for anyone to memorize all the numbers at once, try to learn 10 numbers at a time per day. This will help you review the numbers you learned earlier when you play the video again before learning the next group of numbers. The Big Numbers Song

tip Are you curious about numbers? You can’t capitalise 22 or 15 or any numeral. So what happens when a number appears at the beginning of a sentence? Good question! The answer is that you shouldn’t begin a sentence with a numeral. If you need a number there, use the word: Objects (nouns or pronouns that receive the action of a verb) and subject complements (nouns, pronouns, or adjectives that complete the linking verb statement) allow you to scold the dog ( dog = direct object) and notice that the room is bright (bright = subject complement). Active voice Most of these problems arise with all language learners. We’re just used to speaking in a certain way from our native language. These tenses have a few variations that make them more specific and talk about the exact time during which actions happen.I don’t know who you are, but you will spend some time with me. When I write, I keep you, the reader, in my mind. I imagine you holding a yellow For Dummies book or an e-reader. This is how I see you: Can you imagine what a sentence without any punctuation would be like? Without proper punctuation, it would be unreadable. Knowing when and how to use the period, comma, colon, semicolon, and other punctuation marks will make your writing smoother and more understandable. There’s no better example of the messiness of English pronunciation than this particular group of letters. The way you speak them changes with almost every word, from “through” to “tough” to “bough” (tree branch). The new pub will open tomorrow. It looks stylish and modern. My guess is that the prices will be high there.