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Still, yet and already

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- Practice quiz 1

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Now is your chance to use this w eek's grammar!

- Practice quiz 2

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- Use the grammar

Tell us about your dreams and ambitions. You could describe something you've already
achieved, something you haven't done yet or something you are still trying to do.

Thank you for all your comments. This topic has now closed.
Brigitte, France
I have already brought up my children, I am still taking care of children and I
haven't finished yet because I look after my grandchild. I already travelled in the past,
I still hope to go abroad as I have yet to visit South America.
Nuala say s:
Hi Brigitte,
And do you spoil your grandchildren more than you spoiled your own children? I suppose
it's grandma's role to give out more chocolate than mum!
You used 'already ', 'still' and 'y et' well in your short piece.
A couple of times you could have used conjunctions to add ideas together or to contrast
them. For example 'and' could help connect two ideas here 'I have already brought up
my children and I am still taking care of children'. Now, can you see two places where 'but'
would help contrast two ideas?
Thanks for writing in and telling about your life as a granny.
Nuala
Aura, Romania
My English isn't very good but I still try to improve it every day. I started my first lesson when I
was 45, so I can be a litlle proud, can't I? My son is a student at Manchester University. I still
hope to be able to visit him one day and to understand his tutor's words when he tells us that
my son is brilliant! There are lots of English idioms that I can not explain yet, but that day
will surely come. My English teacher is the internet. I think I have made too many grammar
mistakes, already so I must say goodbye for now.
Nuala says:
Hi Aura,
You're wrong! You've hardly made any mistakes at all. But you're absolutely right about one
thing you should be proud of taking up English when you were 45. Keep up the good work!
You've used 'still' and 'yet' well in your piece.
There are just a couple of little things you might want to look at to improve your writing. Firstly,
the spelling ' litlle ' isn't quite right. And secondly, the verb 'explain' isn't correct in this
sentence: 'There are lots of English idioms that I can not explain yet'. The internet, a teacher
or even our very own award-winning "Teacher" can explain idioms but as a student, you
learn or understand them.
Thanks for writing in and I hope you get to visit your brilliant son in Manchester soon.
Nuala
Koorosh, Iran
My friends usually ask me. "Are you still learning English?" I answer them, "Yes, I am still
learning English with this interesting site. I have not found a better site yet". I thought it
took at least 2 years to speak English fluently. As a matter of fact, I have spoken English after
1 year already. They also ask me, "Have not you gone to London yet?" I answer them, "I
am going to go to London next July." My greatest ambition is to meet my great English teachers
in London. Unfortunately, I have not met them yet. I am sure some day it will happen. I
promise!
Nuala says:
Hi Koorosh,
We're glad to hear you find the site interesting!
You've used 'still' and 'yet' well in your piece.
But 'already' isn't quite right in this sentence 'I have spoken English after 1 year
already'. I'm not exactly sure what you want to say here but if you started speaking English
last year and you're still speaking it, you could say 'I've been speaking English for a year
already'.

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One other general point is that your piece comes across as very formal, for example, Have
not you gone to London yet? What contractions ( 'I haven't found') could you use to make
it sound more informal?
And who knows? Maybe we'll bump into you when you're in London!
Nuala
Maria Daluz, Portugal
I have been living in London for the past seven years and although people often say that my
english is extremely good. I still think i can improve it to a more advanced level! Sometimes,
I feel that i have achieved a great deal of success, like for example, i have worked as an
interpreter in magistrates courts and for someone whose english is not her first language it is
not bad actually. But, in terms of job satisfaction, i have not found anything that really makes
me tick yet! I have already tried to work in several different industries. On my last
assignement i was working on a trading floor at Morgan Stanley, in C anary Wharf, where i
looked after a team of 25 bankers (includig two MDs). However, my dream job is to work in a
more creative environment, like film or TV as a producer ideally and combine all the skills that i
have already acquired from previous employment!
Nuala says:
Hi Maria,
You're absolutely right, your English is very good!
And you've used this week's three keys words (still, yet and already) very well in your
article.
Here are a couple of other points your might like to look at in your ongoing quest to improve
your English.
Although you've achieved a good standard of English, it's still important not to forget the basics
capital letters on 'i', 'english ' and ' magistrates' courts ' and getting your spelling right on
words like 'assignement' and 'includig '
Finally, for quite a long piece, you used only five sentences. If you re-wrote this piece, can you
see how you could divide up some of your longer sentences to make your piece easier for your
reader?
Thanks for writing in and good luck with finding a career that makes you tick!
Nuala
China
C hina I still can't find out what's my dream for my future but I have already reached my
middle age. However who knows what will happen because tomorrow haven't arrived yet.
Nuala says:
Hi,
It's nice to keep your options open, isn't it? Who says dreams are only for the young?
You used a good mixture 'still' 'already' and 'yet' in your piece. Well done!
A couple of times you sounded more formal than perhaps you meant to. You could think about
changing 'but I have already reached my middle age' to 'I've already reached middle
age' or even, 'I'm already middle-aged'. 'But' would sound more chatty than 'However' in
'However who knows what will happen?'
And finally, 'tomorrow' is singular so do you know what you should have written instead of
'tomorrow haven't arrived yet?
Good luck with finding your dream!
Nuala

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