PRESENT CONTINUOUS

We mainly use the present progressive or present continuous to talk about events that are taking place at the time of speaking so we can infer that the action is not finished yet.

         The structure of the present progressive or present progressive is as follows:

subject/pronoun + be + verb-ing + complement 

                                                               am, is are

The kids are playing in the park.

Joe and his friends are watching a movie in the living room.

Maria is making a chocolate cake.

We also use the present continuous or present progressive to talk about temporary events or situations.

Steve teaches History at school on weekends. (simple present)

This weekend he is  teaching English. (Present continuous)

I usually work in my office in the morning. (simple present)

This week I am working at home. (present continuous)

We can use the adverbs "always, forever, and constantly" to emphaze a series of repeated events or actions.

My parents are always arguing.

The new secretary is constantly leaving the office early in the afternoon.

Rules that we have to consider when we add "ing" to verbs in the present contonuous or presengt progressive.

A. All verbs will add "ing" when used in the present progressive or present continuous.

Walk  -  Walking

Run  -  Running

Swim  -  Swimming

Paint  -  Painting 

B. Verbs ending in a silent "e" will drop it out and will add "ing".

Dance  -  Dancing

Write  -  Writing

Arrive  -  Arriving

Chase  -  Chasing

C. One syllable verbs that end in a consonant - vowel - consonant will duplicate their last consonant and will add "ing"

Get  -  Getting

Stop  -  Stopping

Run  -  Running

Spin  -  Spinning

D. A small group of verbs will not add "ing" becaue of their meaning, we call them stative verbs. feel, agree, love, like, adore, belong, believe, prefer, see, taste, doubt, sound, need, think, appreciate, cost.

The manager is not agreeing with us. (incorrect!)

The manager does not agree with us. 

She is believing our story. (incorrect!)

She believes our story. 

The food is smelling delicious.

The food smells delicious.

the secretary is needing a new computer. (incorretct!)

The secretary needs a new computer.

PLURAL NOUNS

Most nouns including those ending in a silent "e" will be cjanged to their pplural form by adding "s".

Book      -   Books

Brake     -   Brakes

Pencil     -   Pencils

Person    -  Persons

Actor       -   Actors

Runner   -   Runners

Nouns ending in "ch", "tch", "sh", "x", "z", "zz", "s", "ss", are made plural by adding "es"

Gas  -  Gases

Box  -  Boxes

Buzz  -  Buzzes

Lunch  -  Lunches

Watch  -  Watches  

Kiss  -  Kisses

Nouns ending in "y" precedeed by a consonant are made plural by changing the "y" for an "i" and adding "es".

Baby  -  Babies

City  -  Cities

Story  -  Stories

Democracy  -  Democracies

Proper nouns ending in a final "y" are made plural by adding "s"

Kennedy  -  Kennedys

Zeivy  -  Zeivys

Levy  -  Levys

Bromley  -  Bromleys

When  a "y" is preceded by a vowel (ay, ey, oy, uy)

Day  -  Days

Key  -  Keys

Guy  -  Guys

Boy  -  Boys 

Some nouns ending in "f" or "fe" are made plural by changing the "f" for a "v" and then add "es".

Life  -  Lives

Leaf  -  Leaves

Knife  -  Knives

Wife  -  Wives

Shelf  -  Shelves

Wolf  -  Wolves

Some nouns ending in "f" or "fe" only add "s".

Gulf  -  Gulfs

Safe  -  Safes

Roof  -  Roofs

Chief  - Chiefs

Some Nouns that end in "o" preceded by a consonant are made plural by adding "es". 

Echo  - Echoes

Hero  -  Heroes

Mosquito  -  Mosquitoes

Embargo  -  Embargoes

Other noun ending in "o" proceded by a consonant are made plural by adding "s".

Casino  -  Casinos

Torso  -  Torsos

Dynamo  -  Dynamos

Ego  -  Egos

There is a small group of nouns ending in "o" that are made plural by adding either "s" or "es".

Buffalo  -  Buffalloes  -  Buffalos

Volcano  -  Volcanoes  -  Volcanos

Halo  -  Haloes  -  Halos

Zero  -  Zeroes  -  Zeros

Tornado  -  Tornadoes  -  Tornados

Nouns ending in "o" prceded by a vowel and most muscical instruments ending in "o" are made plural by adding "s".

Folio  -  Folios

Bamboo  -  Bamboos

Radio  -  Radios

Piano  -  Pianos

Sopranos  -  Sopranos

Banjio  -  Banjios

Compound nouns are usually made plural by making the principal noun plural.

Mother-in- law  -  Mothers-in-law

Notebook  -  Notebooks

Horseman  -  Horsemen

Music lesson  -  Music lessons

Compound nouns mad of two nouns of equal importance are made them plural by making both nouns plural.

Woman driver  -  Women drivers

Manservant  -  Menservants

Some nouns do not change forms from singular to plural.

Deer  -  Deer

Sheep  -  Sheep

Fish  -  Fish

Chinese  -  Chinese

Series  -  Series

Forceps  -  Forceps 

Some nouns are only used in the plural form.

Clothes

Goods

Scissors

Measles

Pants

SOME AND ANY

Some and any are used with plural nouns and uncountable nouns

We use some mainly with affirmative sentences.

We use any with negative sentences and questions.

• I have some yogurt in the refrigerator. (affirmative/uncountable noun)

• I guess we don’t have any yogurt left in the refrigerator. (negative/uncountabe noun)

• We bought some books at the book fair. (affirmatve/countable noun)

• Joan doesn't have any plates for breakfast. (negative/countable plural noun)

• Do we need any cheese for the sandwiches? (question/uncountable noun)

• Does Samantha want any apples for desert? (question/plural noun)

Questions with some and any

In most questions we use "ANY"

• Have you met any famous singers?

• Does George have any Children?

We can use "some" in the following circumstances.

A. When we make an offering.

• Would you like some cake with your coffee?

• Do you want some cookies for desert? 

B. When we ask someone for something.

• Could I have some sugar, please?

• Can you get me some chips for may sandwich, please?

C. When we give suggestions.

• Why don'y you buy some cheese for the sandwiches?
• You should buy some jeans for your trip.

We can use Any and Some without a noun following them if the meaning is clear or stated. 

• We didn't eat any cake at the party, but steve had some. (cake)

• I didn't buy any souvenirs on my trip but my wife bought some. (souvenirs)

SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE

The simple present tense is used to describe habits, unchanging situations, general truths, and fixed arrangements. 

The simple present structure is as follows:

Subject/Pronoun + verb + Complement.

Look at the following examples:

The students have luch in the cafeteria.

I watch TV in the living room.

You live on hudson Road.

We want a cottage in a town near the lake.

When refering to the third person singular (he, she, it) the verb will add s, es, or ies.

He/She/It + verb s,es, ies + Complment.

Look at the following examples:

*The student has lunch in the cafeteria.

Marianne watches TV in the living room.

My brother likes to play in the park.

John studies History at school on weekends.

The endings s, es, and ies are only used in affirmative sentences and affirmative long answers.

To change a simple present statement to the negative form, to a question form, or to give long complete answers we need to use the auxiliaries Do or Does.

Do is used with the pronouns I, you, they, and we.

Does is used with the pronouns he, she, and it.

Verbs ending in ch, tch, sh, x, z, zz, s, ss, and o will add "es" when used in affirmative sentences and affirmative long answers.

My little sister marches like a soldier.

Susana watches movies on weekends with her brothers.

The teacher quizzes his students every Friday.

My grandmother kisses her grandchildren.

Robert goes to the park everyday.

Verbs ending in a final "y" with a consonant before it will change the "y" to and "i" and will add "es".

The baby cries at night. (cry)

Brenda is studies music at school. (study)

That boy bullies his classmates at school. (bully)

Be careful if your verb ends in a final "y" but with a vowel before it, you will just add "s" to the verb if the subject is he, she, or it.

My sister plays in the backyard everyday. (play)

My dad enjoys swimming in the ocean. (enjoy)

My mom buys her groceries in the supermarket. (buy)

Let's take a look to how Do and Does are used:

The students have lunch in the school's cafeteria

The students don't have lunch in the school's cafeteria.

Do the students have lich in the school's cafeteria?

Yes, the students have lunch in the school's cafeteria.

No, the students don't have lunch in the school's cafeteria.

Yes, they do.           No, they don't.

Notice that do/don't are only used with negative sentences, questions, negative long answers, and short answers.

My brother plays video games in the livingroom.

My broher doesn't play video games in the living room.

Does your brother play video games in the livingroom?

No, my brother doesn't play video games in the livingroom.

Yes, my brother plays video games in the livingroom.

Yes, he does.          No, he doesn't.

Notice that does/doesn't are only used with negative sentences, questions, negative long answers, and short answers.

COMPARATIVES AND SUPERLATIVES

We use comparatives to compare one person, thing, action or event or group, with another of the same kind.

Superlative forms are used to compare somebody or something with the whole group it belongs to.

John is taller than his sister. (comparative)

John is the tallest student in his group. (superlative)

Cancun is more expensive than Puerto Vallarta. (comparative)

Mexico city is one of the most exciting cities in Mexico. (superlative)

All comparative and superlative forms are made from adjective forms.

For an adjective to become a comparative it needs to add either the prefix "more" or the suffix "-er".

For the adjective to become a superlative it needs to add the prefix "most" before it or the suffix "est" after it.

Soft    Softer    Softest

Cold    Colder    Coldest

Modern    More modern    Most modern

Expensive    More expensive    Most expensive

Adjectives of one syllable will add "er" in order to change them to the comparative form.

John is younger than Steve.

Yucatan is warmer than Guadalajara.

My cell phone is newer than yours.

Adjectives of one syllable will add "est" in order to change them to the  superlative form.

John is the youngest student in the class.

Mexicali is the warmest city in Mexico.

I want to buy the newest cell phone in the store.

One silable adjecives that end in a consonant-vowel-consonant will duplicate their last consonant and will add "er" to change them to the comparative form and "est" to change them to the superlative form.

Big        Bigger       Biggest

Thin        Thinner        Thinnest

Sad        Sadder      Saddest

Michoacan is a bigger state than Colima. (comparative)

chihuahua is the biggest state in Mexico. (superlative)

Steve is thinner than her sister Joan. (comparative)

Steve is the thinnest in his family. (superlative)

George is fatter than his cousin Bob. (comparative)

George is the fattest man in Monterrey. (superlative)

Two syllable adjectives ending in a final "y" with a consonant before it will change the "y" for an "i" and will add "er" for the comparative and "est" for the superlative forms.

Happy          Happier          Happiest.

Easy          Easier          Easiest.

Lucky          Luckier          Luckiest.

Samantha looks happier than her brother Bob. (comparative)

Marc is the happiest person I have ever met.

Some two syllable adjectives that end in an unstressed syllable /ə/, /l/, /r/ will add "er" or "est" endings when changed to the comparative forms.

Narrow          Narrower         Narrowest

Simple         Simpler          Simplest

Clever          Cleverer         Cleverest

                                                              Quiet            Quieter           Quiestest

Adjectives of two or more syllables will add "more" when used as comparatives and "most" when used as superlatives.

Interesting          more interesting          most interesting

Expensive          more expensive          most expensive

                                               Crowded             more crowded            most crowded

                                               Exciting              more exciting              most exciting

This book is more interesting than the book that I read last month.

This book is the most intersting in the bookstore.

Puerto Vallarta is more expensive than Guayabitos.

Los Cabos is the most expensive beach in Mexico.

If you want to increase the level of difference with a comparative you may use "much".

John is younger than my brother Marc. (John is 20 and Marc is 22)

John is much younger than Steve. (John is 20 and Steve 28)

SIMPLE PAST AND PRESENT PERFECT

 

Simple Past

Susan was in high school last year.

I worked for that company for 10 years.

The manager gave a speech at the meeting.

George didn’t travel last summer.

Did my dad call last night?

Present Perfect

James has been a teacher since 2012.

I´ve lived here for 24 years.

We’ve spoken once today

Brian hasn’t traveled anywhere this year.

Has Joan called us today?

• Remember that we use the present perfect to talk about events that started in the past, continue up to the present, and may continue into the future.

• The simple past is used to talk about something that happened and finished in the past and has no connection to the present.

• We also use the present perfect to talk about events that happened at an indefinite time in the past.

• We use the simple past to talk about something that happened at a specific time in the past. Time is mentioned so we know when the event took place.

• We use the present perfect to talk about events that occurred in a time period that has not finished, such as today, this morning, this month, this year, etc.

            Your dad has called you three times today. (Your dad may call you back again today)

• We use the simple past with events that happened in a period of time that is finished, such as yesterday, last week, last month, in December, etc.

            Your dad called you three times yesterday.

• Be careful! expressions such as this morning, this month, or this year can refer to finished or unfinished periods of time. Use simple past if you refer to finished events, and present perfect if you refer to unfinished events.

            My dad has already had three cups of coffee this morning. (the morning hasn't finished yet)

           My dad had three cups of coffee this morning. (it's already 3 pm.)

PAST PERFECT

 

The past perfect is a tense that is used to talk about an event that was completed before another action or event took place in the past. Usually, the simple past tense is used together with the past perfect.

 

Subject / Pronoun + Had + participle verb + Complement.

Marianne had published a book of poems before she graduated from high school.

 The kids had done their homework prior we arrived home.

The past perfect takes us back into the past. Take a look at the following example:

• By the time we arrived home, the kids had already gone to bed, had taken a shower and had done their homework.

In the example above we can see that  the closests event to the present is; "we arrived home", but then the rest of the events take us back to past.

The same example can be written using simple past but this change would give a different meaning to the above example.

• Before we arrived home the kids did their homework, took a shower, and went to bed.

Changing the tense to the past tense also changes the meaning of what is expressed in the above statement. In this example events occur in chronological order, one after another. Still the event of arriving home is the closest event to the present. 

 

PASSIVE VOICE

In order to understand what passive voice is, we have to first understand what active voice is.

In active voice statements we find that a subject performing something, look at the following examples:

 

• The kids play in the backyard.

• Susana is watching tv in the living-room.

• Marc studied music in his hometown.

• The students will take a test next week.

• Mr. Jones has seen that movie three times

In all the examples above we can see that the subject is the one that performs that action of the verb. This can also be done by asking the question “who…?” to the verb. When the someone performs the action of the verb, we say then that our statement is active.

 

• Brenda goes to school by bus. (Who goes to school by bus? Brenda)

In the passive voice the subject does not perform the action of the verb. Look at the following example.

•  The lab is painted two times a year.

If we ask the question “who…” in order to find who performs, the action of the verb we will not find and answer to this question

•  Spanish is spoken at this office. (Who speaks Spanish at tis office? There is no answer)

 

Now let’s take a look at the structure of both the active and the passive voice.

 

Active Voice:

Subject/Pronoun + Auxiliary* + Verb + complement

 

Passive Voice:

Subject/Pronoun +Auxiliary * + be + Participle + complement + agent/doer

*Simple present and simple past have no auxiliary in their affirmative structure. This is very important to remember when we will make the change from active voice to the passive voice.

For a sentence to be changed to the passive voice, its verb needs to perform something. We can call it the action of the verb or the direct object. This can be done by either asking the questions “what or who” to the main verb of the sentence. If any of these two questions can’t be answers then the sentence cannot be change to the passive form.

e.g.:

 

The kids are playing cheerfully in the backyard. (What are the kids playing?)

 

This sentence can’t be changed to the passive because the verb does not perform anything.

The kids are playing baseball cheerfully in the park. (What are the kids playing?)

This sentence can be changed to the passive voice because the verb performs an action (it has an object). 

When we make the change from active to passive the action of the verb will become the subject of the passive voice.

The structure of the sentence has to be kept. This means that no changes in verb tense will be made.

In the example above both sentences are in the present progressive form. 

As you can see all the elements in the active voice are included in the passive voice, the only element that we include is the verb to be. This will take the form of the verb in the active form.

In the example above the verb to be adds -ing because that the form of the main verb in the active form.

Now let take a look at other examples.

Simple Present:

In the above sentence (simple present) we have no auxiliary in the affirmative form. In this sentence the doer can be omitted since it is not necessary. The important fact is that Spanish is studied, not who performs the action.

 

Spanish is studied at a language school .

The same happens for the simple past tense. Look at the following example:

Here you have a list of passive forms of most common structures.

CONDITIONALS

A conditional statement is a sentence that is made up of two clauses or sentences that refer to a condition and the result of this.

We have four conditional sentences:

•  Present Real or Zero conditional – Usually refers to a general truth.

• Future Possible or First Conditional – Usually refers to a future event.

• Present Unreal or Second Conditional – Usually refers to a Hypothetical situation.

• Past unreal or Third Conditional – Usually refers to a Hypothetical outcome.

Remember that conditional statements will always contain two clauses, one called if clause or condition and the other called main clause or result.

The Present Real condition or Zero conditional refers to conditions or situations that are always true or that always take place. We can also refer this as a Universal Truth.

    If + subject / pronoun + verb + complement  +  Subject / Pronoun + Verb + Complement.

                  If clause or Condition                                          Main Clause or Result

 In a Present Real situation  if the if clause or condition takes place the result always happens, take a look at the following example.

• If I wake up late on weekdays, I get late to my office.

• If Susan gets a headache, she takes an aspirin.

• If they arrive late after the party, their parents get mad.

In both parts of the present real situation, statements are written in simple present tense.

The word order in a conditional statement may be reverse but the meaning will be the same. The comma will no be used if you start with the main clause or with the condition.

• I get late to my office if I wake up late on weekdays.

• Susan takes an aspirin if she gets a heatache.

• Thier parents get angry if they arrive late after the party.

In a Future Possible Conditional or First Conditional we are referring to a possible situation or scenario in the future. here if the condition takes place the result is likely to happen.

If + subject / pronoun + verb + complement  +  Subject / Pronoun + Modal + Base form Verb + Complement.

                                                                                                      can, will, may

                 If clause / Condition                                                      Main clause / Result

• If I have money this weekend, I will buy a pair of new shoes. (The use of "will" implies that buying a pair of shoes is likely to happen)

• If we don't tell my parents the truth, they may get angry at us. (The use of "may" implies that the result of telling my parent the truth is likely to happen)

Remember that if want to start with the result we only ommit the comma.

• I will buy a pair of new shoes If I have money this weekend.

• My parents may get angry at us if we tell them the truth.

Present Unreal or Second Conditional.

This conditional refers to hypothetical events in the present or to events that are very difficult to be become real facts in the present. A Present Unreal situation expresses contrary to fact situations, which mean that opposite ideas are expressed.

Subject / Pronoun + Past tense verb + Complement   +   Subject / Pronoun + Modal + Base form Verb + Compl.

                                                                                                                  could, would, might

*If you use the verb to-be in the if clause "were" will be use with all the pronouns. "Was" is possible only in informal English.

• If I had money, I would buy a new pair of shoes. (I have no money so I will not buy a new pair of shoes)

• If Sam lived lived near us, he could come to the party. (Sam lives far away so he can come)

• If Joan spoke Spanish, she might get a better job. (Joan does not speak Spanish so she can't get a better job)

• If I were you, I would accept the job position. (I am not you so I will not accept the job)

• If Susan were here, she might help us. (Susan is not here so she may not help us)

Remember that we can reverse the word order. We can start with the result ant then have the condition or if clause. Only the comma is ommited.

• I would buy a new pair of shoes if I had money.

• Susan might help us if she were here.

• Joan might get a better job if she spoke Spanish.

The Past Unreal or Third Conditional

We use this conditional in order to refer to hypothetical situations in the past. We refer to outcomes that we wish have never taken place but they did take place.

Subj. / Pron. + Had + Participle + Complement  +  Subj. / Pron. + Modal + Have + Participle + Compl.

                                                                                   could, would, might, should

• If I had known you three years ago, I would have married you.

• If George had studied more, he could have passed the test.

• If we hadn't stopped for gas, we might have been involved in the car accident.

• If I had accepted that job offer, I might not have had this economical problems.

*Notice that in all the sentences above we are expressing an opposite idea from what is actually written.

• If George had studied more, he could have passed the test. (he didn't study for the exam. He failed the test)