Verb Alternations: Middle, Conative, and More
Verb Alternations
The Middle Alternation
The middle alternation involves a change in a verb’s transitivity (e.g., Emily broke the laptop – Laptops break easily). Verbs that allow the middle alternation express the bringing about of a change of state in the verb’s object. Verbs like “pat,” “touch,” and “see” do not allow this alternation. It derives from a transitive verb, and the verb has active morphology. The subject corresponds to the logical object of a verb (i.e., patient). Transitive
Read MoreEnglish Grammar Tenses and Verb Forms Explained
English Grammar: Tenses and Verb Forms
Present Perfect Simple
Used to describe actions or states that began in the past and continue to the present, past actions that have effects on the present, or past experiences.
Past Perfect Simple
Used to describe actions that happened before another action in the past, or to express an action that had occurred before a specific moment in the past.
Present Perfect Continuous
Used to highlight the duration of an action up to the present moment, to describe actions
Read MoreSpanish American Traits, Verbal Periphrasis, and Verbal Locutions
Traits of Spanish American Spanish
Phonetics
- Seseo: Pronunciation of c before e or i, and z as [s] (e.g., [sapato] for zapato).
- Yeísmo: Merging of the sounds of ll and y. This also occurs in most of Spain.
- Aspiration, assimilation, or loss of final or implosive s: [mismo] > [mihmo] > [mimmo].
- Aspiration of initial h (from Latin f) or initial g: hente for gente.
- In the Caribbean and Central America, confusion of r and l at the end of a syllable or word: [amol] for amor.
- Loss of intervocalic -d-,
Near-Drowning Incident & Language Evolution
A Near-Drowning Experience in Morocco
Nine years ago, during my annual vacation to Morocco, I had a frightening experience at the beach. I go to Morocco every year, and this trip started like any other.
One day, my parents, my brothers, and I went to the beach, bringing along a large inflatable float. We were enjoying ourselves, playing with the float, when our cousin joined us. The game was simple: my cousin would push my brother and me, on the float, out into the sea. However, things quickly took
Read MorePhrasal Verbs: Separable and Inseparable Examples
Phrasal Verbs: Separable and Inseparable
Separable Phrasal Verbs:
BREAK DOWN, COME BACK, COME IN, COME OVER (come visit), EAT OUT, GET UP, GO BACK, GO ON (pass, happen), GROW UP, KEEP ON (follow doing something, continue), WAKE UP …
Examples:
- BRING UP (introduce a topic of conversation, educate, raise)
- FIND OUT (learn, discover)
- GIVE BACK
- HAND IN (deliver)
- LOOK UP (search in a list)
- PUT AWAY (save)
- PUT OFF (postpone)
- PUT ON (put)
- PUT OUT (halt, extinguish)
- TAKE OFF (remove)
- TRY ON (test)
- TURN DOWN
- TURN UP
- TURN
English Grammar: Verb Tenses and Conditionals Explained
English Verb Tenses and Structures
Present Perfect
Form: HAVE/HAS + PAST PARTICIPLE (-ED or irregular form)
Examples:
- I have forgotten his name.
- I haven’t talked to Ana.
- I love New York! I have been there 2 times already, and I can’t wait to go back.
Keywords:
- SINCE: desde (specific moment, e.g., last week, yesterday)
- EVER: siempre
- LATELY: últimamente
- JUST: solo
- FOR: durante (a month, hours, six years)
Present Perfect Continuous
Form: HAVE/HAS BEEN + VERB + -ING
Examples:
- I have been studying all morning.
- She hasn’