Picture it: you are sitting in an English class and a teacher says “don’t use double negatives”. Double negative? What is a double negative? How can anything…… Read more “Double negatives in English – a big no no”
Category: Grammar
Future in the past – What were you going to do?
In English, there exists a concept called “future in the past”. This is when you talk about how the future was going to be at some point…… Read more “Future in the past – What were you going to do?”
Reported Speech – He said, she said
Sometimes when you are telling a story or relaying information someone told you, you don’t necessarily want to say absolutely everything in exactly the same way as…… Read more “Reported Speech – He said, she said”
Past habits – Over and over again
You can describe past habits (or actions that happened repeatedly in the past) in three different ways in English: used to, would and the past simple tense.…… Read more “Past habits – Over and over again”
Modal verbs – Can vs May
Before reading this article, make sure you are familiar with the uses of can and may. You will need that information to understand can vs may. You…… Read more “Modal verbs – Can vs May”
Semi-modal verbs – used to
The last semi-modal on our list is “used to”, which you will probably be very familiar with. You have probably used “used to” to talk about habits:…… Read more “Semi-modal verbs – used to”
Semi-modal verbs – ought to
For many of you, reading this post will be one of the few times (if not the first time) you have seen the word “ought to”. This…… Read more “Semi-modal verbs – ought to”
Semi-modal verbs – had better
Probably one of the more unusual semi-modal verbs is “had better”. While it follows the rules of normal modal verbs, this one is the only one that…… Read more “Semi-modal verbs – had better”
Semi-modal verb – need
The next semi-modal verb on our list is the verb “to need”, which means “to require something”. Usually it follows the rules for normal verbs, such as…… Read more “Semi-modal verb – need”
Semi-modal verb – dare
The next semi-modal verb on our list is the verb “to dare”, which means “to have the courage to do something” or “defy/challenge someone to do something”.…… Read more “Semi-modal verb – dare”
Showing obligation: “must” vs “have to”
So we have looked at the modal verb “must” and the semi-modal verb “have to” and have seen that they serve very similar roles. They both talk…… Read more “Showing obligation: “must” vs “have to””
Semi-modal verbs – have to
The verb “to have” is very versatile. It forms the perfect tenses and also has its own meaning which shows possession. For example: I have a cat.…… Read more “Semi-modal verbs – have to”
An Introduction to semi-modal verbs
Before we talk about what a semi-modal verb is, you should be familiar with the concept of a modal verb. What is a semi-modal verb? A semi-modal…… Read more “An Introduction to semi-modal verbs”
Quora – Is “the parcel arrived this morning” grammatically correct?
Read James Brooks’ answer to Is “the parcel arrived this morning” grammatically correct? on Quora It depends on what you mean. If you are trying to make…… Read more “Quora – Is “the parcel arrived this morning” grammatically correct?”
Quora – What is the meaning of the word “swam”?
Read James Brooks’ answer to What is the meaning of the word “swam”? on Quora The word swam is the past simple tense of the verb to swim. To swim means to…… Read more “Quora – What is the meaning of the word “swam”?”