... perspective away from grammar as a list of arbitrary problems, and towards grammar as a means of free expression.We have tried to produce a grammar of real English the English that people speak ... usage.Some great grammars of English for example Otto Jespersen's A Modern EnglishGrammar support each statement with citations from published books, just as the major dictionaries of English ... it.This grammar is based on these important correspondences between structure and function, which are set out in the CobuildGrammar Chart on the following pages. The skeleton of English grammar...
... usually put comparative and superlative adjectives in front of other adjectives. Some of the better English actors have gone to live in Hollywood. These are the highest monthly figures on record. ... much, no, some There was little applause. We need more information He did not speak much English. WARNING: The following general determiners can never be used with uncount nouns. ... education. This machinery uses less energy. You use `fewer', or `less' in informal English, with plural nouns to refer to a number of people or things that is smaller than another...
... same'. Teenage fashions are the same all over the world. The initial stage of learning English is the same for many students. You can use some adverbs in front of `the same as' ... job, but I couldn't wait any longer. He's not going to play any more. In formal English, you can use an affirmative clause with `no longer' and `no more'. You can put...
... explains the type of functional approach that is taken. Cobuild Grammar ChartThe CobuildGrammar Chart sets out in schematic form the contents of the grammar. It shows the progression from word to ... it.This grammar is based on these important correspondences between structure and function, which are set out in the CobuildGrammar Chart on the following pages. The skeleton of English grammar ... the Cobuild Dictionaries and the CobuildEnglish Course, gives a first glimpse of what it is like to have access to real examples.John SinclairEditor-in-Chief Cobuild Professor of Modern English...
... `wh'-word: whatwherewhowhose whenwhichwhomwhyhow Note that `whom' is only used in formal English. 6 When a `wh'-word is the subject of a question, the `wh'-word comes first, ... of a clause is different when the clause is a statement, a question, or a command. He speaks English very well. (statement) Did she win at the Olympics? (question) Stop her. (command) ... You use `nobody' or `no one' to talk about people. Nobody in her house knows any English. No one knew. `No one' can also be written `no-one'. There's no-one...
... * In English, some things are thought of as individual items that can be counted directly. The nouns which refer to these countable things are called count nouns. Most nouns in English are ... or `a piece of', to talk about a quantity or an item. `A bit of' is common in spoken English. I bought two loaves of bread yesterday. He gave me a very good piece of advice. They ... brothers and each one lives in a different country. I bought the children one each. 5 In formal English, people sometimes use `one' to refer to people in general. One has to think of the...
... which describe actions that people do to themselves, do not usually take reflexive pronouns in English, although they do in some other languages. With these verbs, reflexive pronouns are only ... They used to live at 5, Weston Road. She got a job in Oxford Street. Note that American English uses `on': `He lived on Penn Street.' For more material and information, please ... say what the action involves or is aimed at. supporters of the hunger strike. a student of English. Note that you often use two nouns, rather than a noun and a prepositional phrase. For...
... about the present, to emphasize that the information in the manner clause is not true. In formal English, you use `were' instead of `was'. Presidents can't dispose of companies ... instead of `as if' or `as' to say how a person feels, looks, or sounds. Some speakers of English think that this use of `like' is incorrect. He felt like he'd won the pools. ... You use continuous tenses to show that something is changing, developing, or progressing. Her English was improving. The children are growing up quickly. The video industry has been developing...
... miles. He remembered that he would see his mother the next day. 5 In spoken English and informal written English, `shall' and `will' are shortened to `-'ll', and `would' ... ordinary conversation. `I knew I'd seen you,' I said. `Only one,' replied the Englishman. `Let's go and have a look at the swimming pool,' she suggested. In ordinary ... for her child. Don't forget to send in your entries. After `regret', in formal English, you use a `to'-infinitive clause with these verbs to say that you are sorry about...
... verb. * In English, some things are thought of as individual items that can be counted directly. The nouns which refer to these countable things are called count nouns. Most nouns in English are ... statements. You use `nobody' or `no one' to talk about people.Nobody in her house knows any English. No one knew. `No one' can also be written `no-one'.There's no-one here. ... usually put comparative and superlative adjectives in front of other adjectives.Some of the better English actors have gone to live in Hollywood.These are the highest monthly figures on record.5...
... `wh'-word:whatwherewhowhosewhenwhichwhomwhyhow Note that `whom' is only used in formal English. 6 When a `wh'-word is the subject of a question, the `wh'-word comes first, then ... brothers and each one lives in a different country.I bought the children one each.5 In formal English, people sometimes use `one' to refer to people in general.One has to think of the ... ?' - `Yes, it was very crowded.'My father is fat - he weighs over fifteen stone. In English, `he' and `she' normally refer to people, occasionally to animals, but very rarely...
... exactly alike.15 Come on, children! time to get up! nearly breakfast time. 29 A PRACTICAL ENGLISH GRAMMAR EXERCISES 1CONTENTS Articles PEG chapter I1 Articles: a/an 2 Articles: the 3 Articles: ... now.19 I . . . a very interesting conversation with the milkman when myneighbour interrupted me.20 English people always . . . roast beef for lunch on Sundays?21 It is difficult to learn a foreign ... get me some aspirin when you're at the chemist's. have: possessive PEG 122In British English, have meaning possess is not normally conjugatec with do except when there is an idea of...