English Grammar Guide: Present Perfect, Future Tense, Comparatives, Superlatives, and More
Present Perfect
I/you/we/they have been to Paris (Positive)
He/she/it has been to Paris
I/you/we/they have not been to Paris (Negative)
He/she/it has not been to Paris
Have I/you/we/they been to Paris (Question)
Has He/she/it been to Paris
Regular Verbs:
Travel/traveled
Irregular Verbs:
- Break/broke/broken
- Buy/bought/bought
- Do/did/done
- Eat/ate/eaten
- Get/got/gotten
- Give/gave/given
- Go/went/gone
- Know/knew/known
- Leave/left/left
- Make/made
- Meet/met
- See/saw/seen
- Take/took/taken
- Tell/told/told
- Think/thought
- Write/wrote/written
Will or Going to
Use going to for plans.
Use will or won’t for promises, offers, and decisions made at the moment.
Going to:
I am going to…
You are not going to…
Are you going to …?
Superlative Adjectives
The adjective ends with est and is preceded by the.
Example: Jim is the oldest person.
- Old / the oldest
- Big / the biggest
- Easy / the easiest
- Friendly / the friendliest
- Beautiful / the most beautiful
- Expensive / the most expensive
- Good / the best
- Bad / the worst
- Far / the farthest
Comparative Adjectives
The adjective ends with er and is followed by than.
For words with 3+ syllables, more is placed before the adjective.
Example: Ben is older than Phil.
Direct and Indirect Questions
Direct: If the sentence has are or is, the question word is placed at the end.
Direct: If the sentence has do/does/did, the question word goes with the verb.
Direct: If the sentence has has or have, the subject goes before has or have.
Direct: If the sentence has can, the can disappears in the indirect question.
Questions
Present Perfect:
- How much money/ what + have + subject + verb +…
- How long has + subject + verb +…
Future Question:
- Who/what + will + subject + verb +…
- Where/why + are/is + subject + going +…
Present Continuous:
Wh + are/is + subject + verb + ing +…
Past Continuous:
- Who/why/where + subject + verb + ing +…
- What/how + was + subject + verb + ing +…
Simple Present:
- Where/who + do + subject + verb + principal
- What/how many + does + subject + verb + principal
Simple Past:
Wh + did + subject + verb + principal +…
__________
(PRESENT PERFECT) I can’t find my car keys. Have you seen them? No, I haven’t. Sorry. We’ve written more than 100 e-mails in the past week. My cousin has met a lot of famous people in her life. Have you ever broken a bone? Yes, I have. Has she ever eaten Vietnamese food? No, she hasn’t. Have you ever thought about moving to another country? We’ve thought about it, but we haven’t told our kids. The teacher hasn’t given us any homework yet. Camilo has made a lot of mistakes in his life. Have you ever gotten lost while driving? No, I haven’t – but my mother has! Kristin has never taken singing classes. HE has been awake since last night. I have thought about English for 8 years. It has been a rainy day. I, you, we, they: have
He, she, it: has + past participle.
(Past Simple) I lived in Brazil for three years. I saw the new Mission Impossible film last week.
(Going to) I’m going to buy some new shoes next week. She’s not going to watch TV. They’re going to get married in June. On my next vacation, I’m going to stay in a nice hotel in Paris. She’s going to look for a new job after her current contract ends. David’s going to meet me at the airport at 8:00. We’re going to get married next July. They’re going to visit Amy next week. They made plans to meet up on Monday. Peter and Paul are going to share an apartment when they move to New York
(Will) I‘ll send you an e-mail. I won’t tell anyone your secret. He‘ll pay you back tomorrow. We won’t forget your birthday. I‘ll buy you a drink. My secretary will help you with the paperwork.
(Present Continuous) I’m having dinner with friends tonight. + She’s meeting David at the train station tomorrow. – He isn’t coming to the party. – We aren’t seeing our family this weekend. ? What are you doing on Saturday? ? Is Mary arriving at 7:00 or 8:00 tomorrow morning?(+)Subject+
verb to be(are)+verb+ing/(?)wh+to be+subject(you)+verb+ing+ ?
(Comparative) My new car is faster than my old car. I’m older than my brother. Traveling by bike takes longer than traveling by motorcycle. // An elephant is bigger than a cat. Brazil is hotter than Sweden. My sister is thinner than me.// Reading English is easier than listening. Maria is happier than Dave. People today are busier than in the past. // A car is more expensive than a computer. Michael Jackson’s music is more popular than country music. Watching a movie is more interesting than studying grammar // Eating fruit is better for your health than eating hamburgers. Cancer is worse than the flu. One mile is farther than one kilometer
(Superlative) My grandmother is the oldest person in my family. Russia is the biggest country in the world. This is the easiest test I’ve ever taken. Barry is the friendliest guy in the class. Donna is the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. The most expensive shoes in the world cost 1.5 million. I like all sports, but I like soccer the best. Picking up garbage was the worst job I’ve ever had. Australia is the farthest I’ve ever traveled. The cheapest
(INDIRECT QUESTIONS) FRASES: Could you tell me… Do you know… I was wondering… Do you have any idea… I’d like to know… Would it be possible… Is there any chance… // EXAMPLES Direct: Where is Market Street? Indirect: Could you tell me where Market Street is? // Direct: What time does the bank open? Indirect: Do you know what time the bank opens? // Direct: Why did you move to Europe? Indirect: I was wondering why you moved to Europe. // Direct: How has he managed to get in shape so quickly? Indirect: Do you have any idea how he’s managed to get in shape so quickly? // Direct: How much does this motorcycle cost? Indirect: I’d like to know how much this motorcycle costs. // Direct: Can you finish the project by tomorrow? Indirect: Would it be possible for you to finish the project by tomorrow? // Direct: Can we change the meeting to Thursday? Indirect: Is there any chance we could change the meeting to Thursday?
(YES-NOT): Direct: Does Tom like Italian food? Indirect: Do you know if Tom likes Italian food? // Direct: Are your parents joining us for dinner? Indirect: Could you tell me if your parents are joining us for dinner? // Direct: Do they speak English? Indirect: I was wondering if they speak English