The Future of Entertainment, Grammar, and Tense Usage

Posted on Sep 1, 2024 in English

Vocabulary

The Future

Robot, Artificial Intelligence, War, Crime Wave, Epidemic, Climate Change, Virtual World, Pollution, Space Travel, Colony, Alien, Catastrophe, Space Station, Overpopulation

Entertainment

Audiences, TV Shows, Sports Programmers, Reality Show, Talent Show, Game Show, Viewers, Viral Video, Readers, Series, Bestsellers, Genre (Comedy, Horror, Romance), Blockbusters, Box Office

Grammar

Past Simple & Past Continuous Use

  • We use the past simple to discuss an action in the past that has ended. Example: I wrote my essay last night. I started it at five o’clock and I finished at half past six.
  • We use the past continuous to discuss an action which was happening at a specific time in the past. Example: ‘What were you doing at six o’clock?’ ‘I was writing my essay.’
  • We can combine the past simple with the past continuous by using when or while. We can also vary the order of the tenses within a sentence. Example: While I was driving, my mobile rang. My mobile rang while I was driving.

Past Simple & Present Perfect Simple Use

  • We use the past simple to discuss a state or action that finished in the past. Example: I lived in Gijón when I was eight years old. (I don’t live there now.)
  • We use the present perfect simple to discuss a state or action that started in the past, but continues in the present. Example: I’ve lived in Gijón since 2007. (I still live there now.)
  • We use the past simple with a time expression to specify the time something happened. Example: I tried Thai food last night.
  • We use the present perfect simple if we don’t want or need to specify the time something happened. Example: Have you tried Thai food? (When doesn’t matter.)

Past Perfect Simple Form

We form the past perfect with had + past participle. Example: She had gone to the cinema with her Mum. I hadn’t phoned him before my flight took off. Had you brought a waterproof coat?

Use

  • For actions/situations which happened before another action/situation/specific point in the past. Example: I’d only seen Khan in photos before I visited India.
  • With the expression it was the first/second/third time. Example: It was the first time that I’d tried octopus.

Past Simple & Past Perfect Simple Use

  • We use the past simple, not the past perfect simple, for actions/events in the past that have finished. Example: I listened to the band’s new album.
  • We use the past perfect simple for actions/events in the past that happened before another action/event. Example: I’d seen the show before I met the presenter.

Past Simple, Used To and Would – Use

  • We can use the past simple as well as used to or would to discuss past actions or habits. Example: As a child, she’d spend her holidays in Ibiza. As a child, she used to spend her holidays in Ibiza. As a child, she spent her holidays in Ibiza.
  • We can’t use would to discuss past states; we must use the past simple or used to instead.
  • We can’t use used to with for or since. Always in infinitive.

Future Tense – Use

Will + Infinitive

  • To make predictions or give opinions about the future. Example: I think it’ll rain later today.
  • To express decisions that you make as you’re speaking. Example: Hang on a second – I’ll get the bus too.
  • To make promises, offers, or to give warnings. Example: I’ll buy you some chocolate for dessert. We can also use time expressions such as never, ever, just, only and still. We put the adverb between will and the infinitive. Example: I will never speak to him again.

Going To

  • Plans and intentions. Example: What are you going to wear to the party?
  • Predictions for the future when we have evidence. Example: He hasn’t studied, so he’s going to fail his exam. We use be going to to make predictions when we have evidence, but we use will to make predictions with no evidence. We can also use time expressions such as never, ever, just, only, still with be going to. We put the adverb before be going to. Example: Is he ever going to finish talking?

Future with Present Continuous

  • We can use present continuous instead of going to to discuss definitive plans and arrangements in the short-term future, and mention a specific time or place. Example: I’m meeting Alexei at the theatre on Friday.

Future with Present Simple

  • We use the present simple for future events on a timetable. Example: The flight leaves at six o’clock in the morning.

Future Continuous

  • We form the future continuous with will be + present participle. Example: At eight o’clock tonight I’ll be watching TV.
  • We use the future continuous to discuss actions that will be in progress at a point in the future. Example: At three o’clock I’ll be playing football. or We’ll be dancing at the club this evening.

Future Perfect

  • We use the future perfect to discuss something that will be completed by a specific time in the future. Example: Will you have had dinner? We’ll have eaten by nine. She will have made dinner by nine. Will you have dinner by nine?

Future Continuous & Future Perfect

  • We use the future continuous when we want to say something will be in progress at a specific time. Example: I’ll be doing my homework at seven o’clock.
  • However, we use the future perfect when we want to say something will have been completed by a specific time. Example: I’ll have done my homework by seven o’clock.