Wish and if only: imagine a different present
Express present wishes with past forms after wish and if only. Practise states, habits, ongoing actions and could, then contrast a wish with a realistic hope.
Read and practiseAdventure journal
English grammar
Understand English sentence patterns and verb forms with examples, explanations and exercises you can use.
Adventure journal
English grammar
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Past simple passive: report what was done
Report completed events with was or were plus a past participle. Practise questions, negatives and irregular forms, while choosing whether the agent matters.
Read and practiseCompound subjects: bread and butter is or are?
Two subjects joined by and can name separate things or one unit. Choose the verb by considering what the subject means.
Read and practiseModal passives: can be done, must be done and must not be done
Combine modal verbs with be and a participle to express options, advice and requirements. Distinguish a forbidden action from one that is simply unnecessary.
Read and practiseBy or with in the passive: agent, cause and tool
Name who did an action with by, distinguish a tool introduced by with, and decide when an agent can be omitted. Include nonhuman causes and the phrase by hand.
Read and practiseThe rich and the elderly: groups of people
A simple adjective can name a whole group of people after the. See why the verb is plural and how to refer to one person.
Read and practiseHave something done: arrange repairs, cleaning and translation
Describe a service with have plus object and past participle. Change the tense of have, preserve word order, and recognise an unwanted experience in the same pattern.
Read and practiseReported statements: said, told and context-sensitive backshift
Report statements with say or tell, change pronouns to match the speaker, and practise backshift without assuming every tense and time word must change.
Read and practiseReported questions: if, whether and statement word order
Retell questions with if, whether or a question word. Practise subject–verb order, recognise subject questions and choose tense changes from context.
Read and practiseAdjectives followed by that-clauses
Feelings and certainty can introduce a complete situation: connect an adjective to a clause with that, or sometimes leave it out.
Read and practiseReporting requests and instructions with ask and tell
Describe what someone asked or told another person to do. Use object plus to-infinitive, form negative instructions and distinguish requests from questions.
Read and practiseDefining relative clauses: identify people and things
Identify the neighbour, bag or coat you mean with who, which or that. Build defining relative clauses without commas or repeated subject and object pronouns.
Read and practiseInterested in and interesting to: describing reactions
A person can be interested in a subject, while that subject may be interesting to them. Choose the form and complement that fit.
Read and practiseWhen can you omit a relative pronoun?
Shorten defining relative clauses by omitting object who, which or that. Keep subject relatives, preserve stranded prepositions and avoid doubled objects.
Read and practiseWhose in relative clauses: belongings, family and connections
Connect a person or thing to its bicycle, father, rooms or cover with whose plus a noun. Distinguish whose from who's and match verbs to the correct subject.
Read and practiseWhere and when in relative clauses: place or time, not an object
Describe where an event happens or when it occurs with relative where and when. Contrast these with which or that when the noun is the clause's subject or object.
Read and practiseToo or very: degree and excess
A room can be very warm without being too warm. Compare strong descriptions with degrees that cause a problem.
Read and practiseVerbs followed by ing: enjoy, avoid, consider, finish and mind
Build natural verb patterns with enjoy doing, avoid doing and consider doing. Use finish, mind and miss with ing, including future possibilities and polite requests.
Read and practiseVerbs followed by to-infinitives: decide, hope, agree and manage
Express decisions, hopes, plans, agreements, refusals and achievements with to-infinitives. Keep the base verb and distinguish intended actions from successful ones.
Read and practiseEven with comparative forms
A difference can be surprising in its size: put even before a comparative to emphasize a greater or smaller degree.
Read and practiseVerb, object and to-infinitive: say who should do something
Name who should act with want, ask, advise, encourage, remind and expect plus an object and to-infinitive. Practise object pronouns and negative infinitives.
Read and practiseRemember and forget: a memory of doing or a task to do?
Distinguish remember doing from remember to do, and forgetting an experience from forgetting a task. Use context rather than a simple past-versus-future shortcut.
Read and practiseStop and try: how ing and to change the meaning
Contrast stop doing with stop to do, and trying a method with trying to achieve a result. Learn why an attempt can succeed and a tested method can fail.
Read and practiseAs if and as though: appearance and comparison
A dark sky can look as if rain is coming. Describe appearances and imaginary comparisons, and choose a tense that fits the meaning.
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