Key English Grammar Concepts: Verbs, Tenses, and Clauses

Posted on Apr 6, 2025 in Translation and Interpreting

Linking Words and Conjunctions

Time

  • When: When, As, While, Whereas
  • Just as / On: As soon as
  • Before: Before
  • After: After
  • Until: Until, Till

Contrast / Concession

  • Although / Even though / Though: Although, Even Though, Though
  • While: While
  • In Spite of / Despite: In Spite of, Despite (+ noun / gerund / the fact that…)
  • However: However

Cause / Reason

  • Because of / Due to: Because of, Due to

Result / Consequence

  • So: And so
  • As a result: As a result
  • Therefore: Therefore
  • So…that / Such…that: So…that, Such…that

Purpose

  • To / In order (not) to / So as (not) to: To, In order (not) to, so as (not) to (+ infinitive)
  • For: For (+ noun / gerund)
  • So that: So that (+ clause)

Condition

  • In case: In case
  • If: If
  • Whether: Whether
  • If not / Unless: Otherwise, Unless

Place

  • Where / Wherever: Where, Wherever

Manner

  • As if / As though: As if, As though

Comparison

  • Like / As: Like, As
  • Similarly: Likewise, In the same way

Addition

  • Besides / Furthermore / In Addition / Moreover: Besides, Furthermore, In Addition, Moreover
  • Similarly: Similarly
  • Else: Else
  • As well as: As well as
  • Also / Too: Also, Too
  • Not only… but also: Not only… but also
  • Both… and: Both… and

Exemplification

  • For example / For instance: For example, For instance
  • Such as / Like / Including: Such as, Like, Including

Alternatives

  • Either… or: Either… or
  • Neither… nor: Neither… nor

Sequence / Ordering

  • To begin with: To begin with
  • First / Firstly: First, Firstly
  • At the beginning: At the beginning
  • Then / Next: Then, Next
  • After that: After that
  • Finally / In the end / At last: Finally, In the end, At last
  • Eventually: Eventually

Pronouns

Personal Pronouns (Object Form)

  • Me
  • You
  • Him
  • Her
  • It
  • Us
  • You
  • Them

Verb Patterns: Infinitives and Gerunds

Verbs Followed by Infinitive (to + verb)

  • Afford
  • Agree
  • Appear
  • Arrange
  • Ask
  • Attempt
  • Beg
  • Care
  • Choose
  • Claim
  • Decide
  • Demand
  • Expect
  • Fail
  • Help
  • Hope
  • Learn
  • Manage
  • Need
  • Offer
  • Plan
  • Pretend
  • Promise
  • Refuse
  • Seem
  • Try
  • Want
  • Wish
  • Would like

Verbs Followed by Gerund (verb + -ing)

  • Admit
  • Avoid
  • Consider
  • Deny
  • Detest
  • Enjoy
  • Finish
  • Imagine
  • Keep
  • Mention
  • Mind
  • Miss
  • Practise
  • Resist
  • Suggest
  • Common verbs like: go, like, love, hate

Verbs Followed by Infinitive or Gerund (No Meaning Change)

  • Begin
  • Start
  • Continue

Verbs Followed by Infinitive or Gerund (Meaning Changes)

  • Remember
  • Stop
  • Regret
  • Try

Gerund Usage

  • After prepositions
  • As the subject of a sentence
  • In certain expressions (e.g., It’s no use…)
  • After specific verbs (see list above)

Infinitive Usage

  • After adjectives
  • To express purpose (see Linking Words)
  • After specific verbs (see list above)

Reported Speech

General structure: Reporting Verb (e.g., said, told) + that + Reported Clause (with changes)

Tense Changes

  • Direct Speech Present Simple (e.g., GO) -> Reported Speech Past Simple (e.g., He said that he went.)
  • Direct Speech Past Simple (e.g., WENT) -> Reported Speech Past Perfect (e.g., He said that he had gone.)
  • Direct Speech Present Continuous (e.g., ARE GOING) -> Reported Speech Past Continuous (e.g., He said that they were going.)
  • Direct Speech Past Continuous (e.g., WERE GOING) -> Reported Speech Past Perfect Continuous (e.g., He said that they had been going.)
  • Direct Speech Present Perfect (e.g., HAVE GONE) -> Reported Speech Past Perfect (e.g., He said that he had gone.)
  • Direct Speech Present Perfect Continuous (e.g., HAVE BEEN GOING) -> Reported Speech Past Perfect Continuous (e.g., He said that he had been going.)
  • Direct Speech Past Perfect (e.g., HAD GONE) -> Reported Speech Past Perfect (No change) (e.g., He said that he had gone.)
  • Direct Speech Past Perfect Continuous (e.g., HAD BEEN GOING) -> Reported Speech Past Perfect Continuous (No change) (e.g., He said that he had been going.)
  • Direct Speech Future Simple (WILL GO) -> Reported Speech Conditional Simple (e.g., He said that he would go.)

Time and Place Adverb Changes

  • now -> then
  • today -> that day
  • yesterday -> the previous day / the day before
  • last week/month/year -> the previous week/month/year
  • a month ago -> the previous month / a month before
  • tomorrow -> the next day / the following day
  • next week/month/year -> the following week/month/year
  • here -> there
  • this / these -> that / those

Modal Verb Changes

  • can -> could
  • may -> might
  • must -> had to (obligation) / must (deduction – often no change)
  • will -> would
  • Note: Could, Might, Would, Should, Ought to usually do not change.

Future Tenses

Future Perfect

Structure: will have + past participle

Use: Actions that will be completed by a particular time in the future. (e.g., By next year, I will have finished my studies.)

Future Continuous

Structure: will be + verb-ing

Use: Actions that will be in progress at a particular time in the future. (e.g., This time tomorrow, I will be flying to Paris.)

Modal Verbs

Obligation and Necessity

  • Must: Strong obligation (often internal or speaker’s authority).
  • Have to: General obligation (external rules or circumstances).
  • Need to: Necessity.
  • Mustn’t: Prohibition (It’s forbidden).
  • Don’t / Doesn’t have to: No obligation, lack of necessity.
  • Needn’t / Don’t / Doesn’t need to: No necessity.

Past Obligation / Deduction / Regret

  • Had to: Past obligation.
  • Must have + past participle: Past deduction (certainty). (e.g., He’s late. He must have missed the bus.)
  • Should have + past participle: Past regret or criticism about something that didn’t happen. (e.g., You should have studied harder.)
  • Needn’t have + past participle: Action done in the past that was unnecessary. (e.g., You needn’t have bought bread; we have plenty.)

Deduction (Present)

  • Must be: Strong deduction (certainty). (e.g., She must be tired after the journey.)
  • Can’t be: Strong deduction (impossibility). (e.g., That can’t be true!)

Advice

  • Should / Ought to: General advice (You should/ought to see a doctor).
  • Shouldn’t / Ought not to: Negative advice.
  • Had better + infinitive (without to): Strong advice for a specific situation (often implies negative consequence if ignored). (e.g., You‘d better hurry or you’ll miss the train.)
  • Had better not + infinitive (without to): Strong negative advice. (e.g., You‘d better not tell him.)

Ability

  • Can: Present ability.
  • Could: Past general ability.
  • Be able to: General ability (present, past, future), often used when ‘can/could’ are not possible (e.g., after modals, infinitives) or to emphasize effort/success.
  • Was / Were able to: Ability and success on a specific occasion in the past. (e.g., Despite the storm, we were able to reach the summit.)

Permission and Possibility

  • Can: Permission (informal), Possibility.
  • Could: Polite request, Past possibility, Present/Future possibility (less certain than ‘can’).
  • May: Permission (formal), Possibility (more formal or slightly more likely than ‘might’).
  • Might: Possibility (less certain than ‘may’).

Present Perfect Adverbs

  • Yet: Used in negative sentences and questions, usually at the end. (Meaning: still / by now).
  • Just: Used for recently completed actions, usually placed before the main verb.
  • Already: Used in affirmative sentences, indicates something happened sooner than expected. Usually placed before the main verb or at the end.
  • Since: Used with a specific point in time (e.g., since 2020, since Monday, since I was a child).
  • For: Used with a duration of time (e.g., for three years, for two weeks, for a long time).
  • Ever: Used in questions (Have you ever…?) and negative statements (Nobody has ever…). (Meaning: at any time).
  • Never: Used in affirmative sentences to mean ‘not ever’.

Conditional Sentences

Type 0: General Truths / Facts

Structure: If + Present Simple, Present Simple

Example: If you heat water to 100°C, it boils.

Type 1: Possible Future Condition

Structure: If + Present Simple, Will + Infinitive (or modal like can, may, might, should)

Example: If it rains tomorrow, we will stay home.

Type 2: Hypothetical Present / Future Condition

Structure: If + Past Simple, Would + Infinitive (or could, might)

Note: With ‘be’, ‘were’ is often used for all subjects (If I were you…).

Example: If I won the lottery, I would buy a house. (I don’t expect to win)

Example: If I were you, I could help.

Type 3: Impossible Past Condition

Structure: If + Past Perfect (had + past participle), Would have + past participle (or could have, might have)

Example: If I had studied harder, I would have passed the exam. (I didn’t study hard, and I didn’t pass)

Example: If you had told me, I could have helped.

Other Conditional Structures and Wishes

  • Unless: If not (e.g., Unless you hurry, you will be late. = If you don’t hurry…)
  • Whether: Used to introduce alternatives, often with ‘or not’. (e.g., I don’t know whether he is coming or not.)
  • Even if / Even though: Emphasizes that the result is surprising or unexpected in relation to the condition/concession. (e.g., Even if it rains, I’m going out.)
  • As long as / Providing / Provided that: On condition that (e.g., You can borrow my car as long as you drive carefully.)
  • I wish / If only: Used to express wishes or regrets. Followed by:
    • Past Simple: Wish about the present (e.g., I wish I were taller.)
    • Past Perfect: Regret about the past (e.g., I wish I hadn’t eaten so much.)
    • Would + Infinitive: Wish for a future change or complaint about present behaviour (e.g., I wish you would stop making noise.)

Relative Clauses

Relative Pronouns and Adverbs

  • Who: Refers to people (subject).
  • Whom: Refers to people (object, often used after prepositions, formal).
  • Which: Refers to animals and things.
  • That: Refers to people, animals, and things (often used in defining clauses, especially after words like all, none, little, few, anything, nothing, superlatives). Cannot be used after a preposition or in non-defining clauses.
  • Whose: Indicates possession (for people, animals, sometimes things).
  • Where: Refers to places.
  • When: Refers to times.
  • Why: Refers to reasons (often after ‘the reason’).

Defining vs. Non-Defining Clauses

  • Defining Relative Clauses: Provide essential information to identify who or what we are talking about. No commas are used. The relative pronoun (who, which, that) can sometimes be omitted if it is the object of the clause. (e.g., The book that I bought is interesting.)
  • Non-Defining Relative Clauses: Provide extra, non-essential information. Commas are used to separate the clause. ‘That’ cannot be used. The relative pronoun cannot be omitted. (e.g., My brother, who lives in London, is a doctor.)