ENGLISH GRAMMAR SECTION THREE: THE DEFINITE ARTICLE p2 SECTION FOUR: NOUNS p6

1. ENGLISH GRAMMAR • SECTION THREE: THE DEFINITE ARTICLE p2 • SECTION FOUR: NOUNS p6 • SECTION FIVE: PRONOUNS p21 • SECTION SIX: ADJECTIVES p32 • SECTION SEVEN: COMPARISON OF ADJECTIVES p33 • SECTION EIGHT: COMPARISON OF ADVERBS p37 • SECTION NINE: PREPOSITIONS OF TIME p39 • SECTION TEN: PREPOSITIONS OF PLACE p52 • SECTION ELEVEN: THE SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE p63 • SECTION TWELVE: THE PRESENT CONTINUOUS TENSE p74 • SECTION THIRTEEN: THE FUTURE TENSE p85 • SECTION FOURTEEN: THE SIMPLE PAST TENSE p91 • SECTION FIFTEEN: THE PAST CONTINUOUS TENSE p99 • SECTION SIXTEEN: THE PRESENT PERFECT TENSE

2. SECTION THREE: THE DEFINITE ARTICLE: 3.1 Usage: The Definite Article is used before singular and plural nouns when the noun is particular or specific: e.g. the teacher the crowd the mountains 3.2 Usage: Exceptions: The is not used before: A: uncountable nouns with a general meaning: e.g. I think geography is very interesting. (not the geography) Bill cannot eat meat. (not the meat)

3. Here are some more examples of general uncountable nouns: life, transport, music, society B: the name of a language: e.g. French is a difficult language to learn. (not the French) I speak English at home and German at the office. (not the English or the German) C: names of countries: e.g. Eric lives in England. (not the England) Joan went to Italy for a holiday. (not the Italy)

4. D: days of the week, names of months, years: e.g. He arrived on Monday. (not the Monday) Bill visited me in July. (not the July) E: names of meals: e.g. What do you want for breakfast? (not the breakfast) Mary ate lunch at midday? (not the lunch) F: titles + names of people: e.g. President Mitterrand (not the President Mitterand) Queen Elizabeth II (not the Queen Elizabeth II)

5. G: names of towns/cities and famous buildings: e.g. in Paris (not the Paris) at Oxford University (not the Oxford University) H: certain nouns: e.g. at school (not the school) by car (not the car) Here are some more examples: in/to prison at/to university at/to work at/from home at night on holiday

6. SECTION FOUR: NOUNS: 4.1 Usage: There are of three types of nouns: countable, uncountable, collective: countable nouns are nouns that can be counted and have a plural form. uncountable nouns are nouns that cannot be counted and do not have a plural form. collective nouns are the name for a group/collection of people/animals/things. In English, Nouns are used in the same way as they are in French but they are not defined as masculine/feminine/neuter. Some nouns are clearly masculine or feminine: man (men) - masculine , woman (women) - feminine.

7. Domestic animals are called he or she to distinguish between male and female. e.g. I have a dog and he sleeps all the time. 4.2 Structure: Countable Nouns: A: To form plural nouns add -s to the singular form: e.g. book books elephant elephants However, for some groups of nouns, different rules apply

8. B: Nouns with distinct male and female forms. Common examples include: masculine feminine masculine feminine actor actress hero heroine author authoress host hostess businessman businesswoman man woman duke duchess prince princess earl countess waiter waitress god goddess widow widower

9. C: Singular nouns ending in -s, -sh, -ch and x add -es in the plural form: singular: plural singular plural glass glasses bush bushes stitch stitches box box

10. D: Many singular nouns ending in -f change -f to -v and add -es in the plural form. There are a few nouns ending in -f that behave normally and add -s in the plural form. Here are common examples of both types: singular plural singular plural calf calves chief chiefs half halves cliff cliffs leaf leaves roof roofs loaf loaves shelf shelves

11. E: Singular nouns ending in -fe change -fe to -ves in the plural form: knife - knives life - lives wife - wives F: Singular nouns ending in a -y after a consonant change -y to -i and add es in the plural form: city - cities company - companies factory - factories G: Singular nouns ending in -y after a vowel add -s in the plural form: boy - boys key - keys toy - toys trolley - trolleys

12. H: Some singular nouns ending in -o add -es in the plural while others add s. It is important to learn the most common nouns of both types: singular plural singular plural hero heroes banjo banjos potato potatoes dynamo dynamos tomato tomatoes piano pianos volcano volcanoes solo solos

13. 4.3 Structure: Countable Nouns: Exceptions: A: Certain nouns do not add -s in the plural. Common examples are: aircraft counsel graffiti media offspring spaghetti B: Some nouns, particularly the names of animals and fish, have the same form in singular and plural. Common examples are: antelope - antelope buffalo - buffalo deer - deer fish - fish pike - pike sheep - sheep salmon - salmon trout - trout

14. C: A number of nouns have no singular form even if there is only one: singular/plural singular/plural singular/plural singular/plural barracks headquarters pliers shorts clothes jeans premises spectacles contents manners pyjamas spirits cross-roads means scissors trousers goods outskirts savings valuables

15. D: Certain compound nouns add -s to the first word in the plural form. Some examples are:- editor-in-chief - editors-in-chief father-in-law - fathers-in-law son-in-law - sons-in-law passer-by - passers-by

16. E: Some nouns change vowels and/or add consonants in the middle of the word or add - en in the plural form: foot - feet child - children goose - geese ox - oxen man - men woman - women mouse - mice louse - lice

17. F: Certain singular nouns ending in -ex or ix remove the last two letters and add -ices in the plural form.. Common examples are:- appendix - appendices index - indices vortex - vortices G: Certain nouns used commonly in English are the same in English and French: bureau - bureaux gateau - gateaux tableau - tableaux

18. 4.4 Structure: Uncountable Nouns: Uncountable nouns cannot be counted normally and have no plural form: e.g. milk sugar soap meat 4.5 Structure: Uncountable Nouns: Exceptions: A: Some uncountable nouns can be counted by naming the container/shape/weight in which they are found: e.g. a bottle of milk a bag of sugar a bar of soap a tin of meat

19. B: Certain uncountable nouns can be counted by using a piece of .... , a bit of .... : e.g. a piece of information a piece of news a piece of advice a bit of information a bit of news a bit of advice Here are some more nouns that may be used in this way: advice, furnitue, homework, housework, luggage, money, research.

20. 4.6 Structure: Collective Nouns: Collective nouns can be singular or plural and name groups/collections of people/animals/things e.g. a crowd of people a herd of cows a bunch of bananas A: When the collective nouns is the subject of the sentence, the verb is usually singular: e.g. A flock of sheep is very noisy. A team of horses was pulling the old carriage. B: When the individual members of the collective group are important, the verb is plural: e.g. The police are protecting the town. The government are protesting about the low wages of members of Parliament.

21. SECTION FIVE: PRONOUNS: Pronouns replace nouns for various purposes in English and as in French, there are several types of pronouns: personal, reflexive, demonstrative, possessive.. e.g. Derek himself took it to Marcel and showed him the details. These books are mine and Mary bought them for me in London.

22. 5.1 Usage: Personal Pronouns: Different groups of Personal Pronouns have different roles in sentences: A: The Subject: I, you, he/she/it can replace singular nouns and we, you, they can replace plural nouns as the subject in a sentence: e.g. Brian went to the cinema = He went to the cinema. Joan and Mary visited Italy last July = They visited Italy last July.

23. B: The Direct Object: me, you, him/her/it can replace singular nouns and us, you, them can replace plural nouns as the direct object in a sentence: S V DO S V DO e.g. Bill left Jane at the school gate = Bill left her at the school gate. Joan met Tom and Mary in the park = Joan met them in the park.

24. C: The Indirect Object: me, you, him/her/it can replace singular nouns and us, you. them can replace plural nouns as the indirect object in a sentence: S V IO S V IO e.g. John Smith gave the cat some food = John Smith gave it some food. My parents gave Jill and I a car = My parents gave us a car.

25. 5.2 Structure: Personal Pronouns: Personal Pronouns are usually found in the same position in a sentence as the noun/nouns they are replacing: S V IO DO e.g. Henry wrote Ann a long letter. He wrote her a long letter.

26. 5.3 Structure: Exceptions: A: With certain verbs, to can be put before the Indirect Object and the Indirect Object is placed after the Direct Object: S V IO DO e.g. The manager passed Jennifer a glass of wine. S V DO IO The manager passed a glass of wine to her. Here are some more verbs of this type: to bring, describe, explain, pass, pay, owe, pass, pay, promise, read, sell, send, show, suggest, take.

27. B: With certain verbs, for can be put before the Indirect Object and the Indirect Object is placed after the Direct Object. S V IO DO e.g. My mother cooked the children some eggs. S V DO IO My mother cooked some eggs for them. Here are some more verbs of this type: to bring, buy, cook, fetch, find, get, leave, open, order, reserve, save.

28. 5.4 Usage: Reflexive Pronouns: The reflexive pronouns myself, yourself, himself/herself/itself in the singular and ourselves, yourselves, themselves in the plural can be used in two ways: e.g. I drove myself to Marseille. Bill himself found the lost watch.

29. 5.5 Structure: A: to mention again the identity of the subject of the sentence with the meaning for ...... the reflexive pronoun is placed immediately after the verb: e.g. John found a nice house to buy. John found himself a nice house to buy. B: to emphasise identity, the reflexive pronoun is placed immediately after the noun: e.g. The brothers do not know the answer. The brothers themselves do not know the answer.

30. 5.6 Usage: Possessive Pronouns: The possessive pronouns mine, yours, his/hers/its in the singular and ours, yours, theirs in the plural show that an object/person/thing belongs to someone who is not named. e.g. Mary and Bill are buying a house and the house is theirs. (the house of Bill and Mary) Who owns this car? It's mine. (the car of the writer) 5.7 Structure: In sentences, possessive pronouns replace the missing name of the owner of the object/person/thing.

31. 5.8 Final Note: My, your, his/her/its in the singular and our, your, their in the plural are Possessive Adjectives. They are used to show that a person/place/thing belongs to someone whose identity is known: e.g. "Mary and Bill are our children," said Ann and John. The pilot landed his plane safely.

32. SECTION SIX: ADJECTIVES: 6.1 Usage: As in French, adjectives are used in English to describe/give more information about nouns: e.g. the blue car the sad teacher the intelligent lion 6.2 Structure: A: Adjectives are placed immediately in front of the noun they are describing: e.g. the wild pig the enormous elephant the angry boxer B: In English, adjectives do not agree with the gender of nouns: e.g. the tall man the noisy boy the happy prince the tall woman the noisy girl the happy princess

33. C: Certain words ending in -ly are adjectives and not adverbs: e.g. a friendly letter a lovely scene an early train Here are some other adjectives of this type: daily, hourly, weekly, monthly, yearly. SECTION SEVEN: COMPARISON OF ADJECTIVES: 7.1 Usage: To compare the description of two or more people/animals/things/places. e.g. John is young but Mary is younger and Michael is the youngest.

34. 7.2 Structure: Regular Adjectives: e.g. Adjective Comparative Superlative young younger youngest small smaller smallest There are five rules for the construction of the Comparative and Superlative forms of regular adjectives. A: Short adjectives of one syllable add -er and -est to the adjective: e.g. old older oldest Here are more examples of adjectives of one syllable: young, small, tall, cheap, few.

35. B: When an adjective ends in -y, change this letter to -i and add -er and -est: e.g. easy easier easiest Here are more examples of adjectives that end in -y: heavy, early, busy, healthy, noisy, lucky, silly, happy. C: When an adjective ends in -e, remove the -e and then add -er and -est: e.g. large larger largest Here are some more examples of adjectives that end in -e: brave, wise, safe, pale, simple, late. D: When an adjective ends with a vowel plus a consonant, double the consonant and then add -er and -est: e.g. big bigger biggest Here are some more examples of adjectives of this type: thin, hot, fat, fit.

36. E: Adjectives of three or more syllables and some adjectives of two syllables do not change but more and most are put in front of these adjectives: e.g. beautiful more beautiful most beautiful Here are some more examples of adjectives of this type: delicious, efficient, humorous, expensive, careful, modern, famous, correct, honest. 7.3 Structure: Irregular Adjectives: There are three adjectives which do not follow any rule: these must be memorised: Adjective Comparative Superlative good better best bad worse worst far farther/further farthest/furthest

37. SECTION EIGHT: COMPARISON OF ADVERBS: 8.1 Usage: To compare the description of two or more people/animals/things/places. e.g. John runs fast but Mary runs faster and Michael is the fastest. 8.2 Structure: Regular Adverbs: e.g. Adverb Comparative Superlative quick quicker quickest slow slower slowest There are two rules which control the formation of the Comparative and Superlative forms of regular adverbs.

38. A: In general, add -er and -est to the adverb. B: When an adverb ends in -ly, more and most are put in front of the adverb. 8.3 Structure: Irregular Adverbs: There are three irregular adverbs which do not follow any rule: these must be memorised: Adverb Comparative Superlative good better best badly worse worst far farther/further farthest/furthest

39. SECTION NINE: PREPOSITIONS OF TIME: 9.1 Usage: At, On, In: These prepositions are used to show the time and date of events, activities and situations: e.g. at three o'clock. in June. on Monday. 9.2 Structure: At: at + particular time: dawn, midday, noon, night, midnight, nine o'clock etc.. e.g. at dawn. at + the + a particular time in a week/month/year: start/end of the week/month/year, weekend. e.g. at the start of July. at + calendar festival season: Christmas, New Year, Easter, Pentecost etc.. e.g. at Easter. at + meal: breakfast, lunch, mid-morning, tea, dinner, supper etc.. e.g. at breakfast.

40. 9.3 Structure: On: on + day of the week: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday etc. e.g. on Thursday. on + particular part of a day: Friday morning, Saturday afternoon. e.g. on Sunday evening. on + particular date: 25 July 1994, 4 January. e.g. on 19 March. N.B. On the nineteenth of March is how this date is read aloud or said in conversation. on + calendar festival day: Christmas Day, Palm Sunday. e.g. on Easter Sunday.

41. 9.4 Structure: In: in + the + a part of a day: the morning, the afternoon, evening. e.g. in the afternoon. in + month: January, February, March, April, May etc.. e.g. in June. in + season of the year: Spring, Summer, Autumn. e.g. in Winter. in + specific year: 1988, 1989, 1990 etc.. e.g. in 1994. in + the + a specific century: nineteenth century. e. g. in the twentieth century. in + historical period of time: the Dark Ages, Pre-historic Times. e.g. in the Middle Ages.

42. N.B. No preposition is used if the day/year has each, every, last, next, this before it: e.g. I go to Switzerland each Christmas ( not at each Christmas ) I'll see you next Monday afternoon. ( not on Monday afternoon ) Martin left home last evening. ( not in the evening ) 9.5 Usage: For and Since: These prepositions explain how long an event, activity, situation has continued: e.g. for three days since last Thursday

43. 9.6 Structure: For: for + a period of time: two days, one week, three months, four years e.g. for the weekend. This phrase can be used with all verb tenses. e.g. Michael went to the Bahamas last year for three weeks. - past I am in Paris for ten days. - present My cousin will be visiting the West Indies for two months next February. - future

44. 9.7 Structure: Since: since + a point of time + past tense: last week, the war ended, 1990, yesterday. The point of time does not have to be accurate. e.g. My sister and her husband have worked in India since 1991. Mary has been very ill since yesterday evening.

45. 9.8 Usage: During and While: These prepositions explain a period of time in which an event, activity or situation took place: e.g. during the next month while I was swimming. 9.9 Structure: During: during + a noun or phrase: the war, the nineteenth century: e.g. during my schooldays. This phrase can be used with all verb tenses: past, present, future and is the same as the French pendant: e.g. Marcel received many telephone messages during the last week. - past I am seeing John during the morning. - present Bill will return to England during the Christmas Holiday. - future

46. 9.10 Structure: While: while + subject + verb: to eat, talk, swim, walk etc.... This clause can be used with all verb tenses: past, present, future and is the same as the French pendant que: e.g. We will take you to the theatre while we are in London. While David was in Spain, he didn't go to a bull fight. N.B. In English, While can often be replaced by when and retain the same meaning. while + infinitive + -ing (Present Participle): thinking, running, driving etc.. e.g. While swimming in the sea, Elizabeth was attacked by a shark. Solange met Andrew while studying History at the Sorbonne.

47. 9.11 Usage: Before and After: These prepositions explain accurately the timing of an event, activity or situation: e.g. before the weekend after the holiday 9.12 Structure: Before: before + a noun: Monday, Christmas, examinations etc.. e.g. before the weekend. before + subject + verb: to eat, study, swim, talk. etc.. All verb tenses can be used. e.g. He spoke to his teacher before the examinations began. Before you say anything, I must explain why I am here. before + infinitive + -ing (Present Participle): to read, write etc.. e.g. before eating.

48. 9.13 Structure: After: after + noun: the lesson, the meal etc. e.g. after the journey after + subject + verb: to draw, sit, read etc.. All verb tenses can be used: e.g. Patricia was very happy after she won the tennis match. Why did the Queen smile after the President shook her hand? After she finishes her studies, Ann will work in South Africa. after + infinitive + -ing (Present Participle): to decide, say, report etc.. e.g. after crying.

49. 9.14 Usage: By, until, till: These prepositions describe a time limit for commencement/completion of an activity. e.g. by Sunday until April 1995 till next week By means not later than and can be used with all verb tenses. Until/till explains how long an activity continues, will continue or has continued and can be used with all verb tenses. N.B. Until/till have the same meaning: till is a short form of until.

50. 9.15 Structure: By: by + noun describing time/date: examples: this afternoon, tomorrow, Thursday. e.g. Please pay me by Friday morning. Will you finish your work by four o'clock? By the end of the year, Mark spoke English very well. 9.16 Structure: Until, till: until/till + noun describing time/date: examples: next week, this evening, tomorrow. e.g. Tom's wife will stay here until/till the end of next week. Until/till the end of the month, you can use my computer. The Williams Family lived in Germany until/till 1991.