Verbs

Conditionals

First conditional is used to talk about a possible future condition and its result.

If (condition) + present simple + will (result) + verb

it snows we'll
If go skiing.
it doesn't snow we won't
 If I have time, I'll phone you later.

Second conditional is used to talk about an improbable or impossible condition and its result.

If (improbable
+ past simple + would (result) + verb
condition)
I lived in Rome learn Italian
If I'd
I didn't live in London quickly.

 If I had more time, I'd go to the gym more often.

Verbs

Future forms

Will for future

Affirmative and negative

I/you/he/we etc. will go to the party.

won't (will not)

Question

Will I/you/he/we etc. go to the party?

Won't

We often use will to write formally about the future.

 Anne and Paula will take a month to walk across the Kalahari Desert.
 Any money you donate will help us start co-operative work projects.

Be + going to + infinitive

Affirmative and negative

I am going to have a swim tonight.

You/we/they are not going to
He/she/it is

Question

Am I
Are you/we/they going to have a swim tonight?
Is he/she/it

We often use be + going to + infinitive to talk informally about a future plan.

 I'm going to start doing a lot of exercise.

 Are you going to take any special equipment with you?
 We're going to take lots of water on our trek.

Present simple

We often use the present simple to talk about timetables or fixed itineraries.

 When exactly do you start your trek?

 We leave on the 1st of June.

Present continuous

We often use the present continuous to talk about arrangements made with other people.

 Betty and I are getting married. (= This is definite and arranged.)

Compare this to the going to future, which is used for decisions and plans.

 I'm going to get married one day. (= This is an intention of mine.)

Verbs

Have got

Have got is used for possession. It means the same as have.

 I have got a new car. = I have a new car.

 Have you got a new car? = Do you have a new car?

Affirmative and negative

have got
I/You/We/They
haven't got
a car.
has got
He/She
hasn't got

Question
Have I/you/we/they
got a car?
Has he / she

Have and has can also be contracted.

 I've got
 You've got
 She's got
 He's got
 It's got
 We've got
 You've got
 They've got

When have does not mean possession you can't use have got.

 I have breakfast at eight o'clock.

NOT: I have got breakfast at eight o'clock.

 I have been to America.

NOT: I have got been to America.

There is no past or future form of have got. In the past and future we use have.

 I had a dog.
NOT: I had got a dog.

 Did you have a dog?

NOT: Had you got a dog?

 I will have a new job.

NOT: I will have got a new job.

 Will you have a new job?

NOT: Will you have got a new job?

Verbs

Imperatives

We use imperatives to give instructions, advice or encouragement. To make an imperative we use the
base form of the verb (infinitive without to).

 Cook the eggs for three minutes.

 Look before you cross the road.
 Don't leave your empty cups on the desk.
 Don't worry, be happy.

Verbs

Infinitive

Infinitive without to

Use the infinitive after let's... and why don't we... to make suggestions.
Let's go to the beach.

Why don't we
phone Rita?
Shall we

Infinitive with to

Some verbs are usually followed by the infinitive (with to).The action of the verb in the infinitive is
usually later in time than the first verb. These include decided, hope, learn, plan, refuse and want.

 He planned to go to China but decided to learn Chinese first.

Infinitive of purpose, so that

To say why a person does something, use to + verb.

 A: Why did you go to the shops?

 B: To get some food.

You can also use so that + subject + modal verb.

 I went to the shops so (that) I could get some food.

Verbs

-ing form

Use the -ing form after these verbs to express likes and dislikes: like, love, prefer, enjoy and hate.

 I like swimming.
 I love singing.
 I prefer going to the cinema to watching videos.

The -ing form is also used after the verbs go, spend time, start, stop, admit, deny, keep and (don't)
mind.

 She admits stealing the bag but denies taking the money.

Use -ing forms after prepositions. Certain verbs and adjectives take certain prepositions.

Adjective + preposition + -ing

be good / bad at
be interested in
be proud / ashamed / afraid of
be worried / concerned / excited about

 They are good at learning languages.

 I am interested in learning another language.
 She is proud of passing the exam.

Verb + preposition + -ing

agree with, believe in, insist on, think of, be arrested for, be accused of, be bored with, be fed up
with

 He insisted on bringing the wine.

 He was arrested for driving while drunk.

Before or after + -ing

  Before having breakfast I have a shower.
 After seeing the film we went for a coffee.

Use the -ing form to make suggestions after How about...?, What about...?, Do you fancy...?.

 What about going to the cinema?

 How about helping me with this?
 Do you fancy having a coffee?

The -ing form is also used in many compound nouns:

 shopping mall, washing machine, waiting room, training programme, parking area,
shaving cream

Verbs

Irregular verbs

There are seven groups of irregular verbs.

Group 1: completely irregular verbs

Infinitive Simple past Past participle

be was/were been

do did done

go went gone

Group 2: the write wrote written group

Infinitive Simple past Past participle

beat beat beaten

bite bit bitten

break broke broken

choose chose chosen

drive drove driven

eat ate eaten

fall fell fallen

forget forgot forgotten

give gave given

hide hid hidden

ride rode ridden

shake shook shaken

 speak spoke spoken

steal stole stolen

take took taken

wake woke woken

write wrote written

Group 3: the fly flew flown group

Infinitive Simple past Past participle

blow blew blown

draw drew drawn

fly flew flown

grow grew grown

know knew known

lie lay lain

see saw seen

show showed shown

tear tore torn

throw threw thrown

wear wore worn

Group 4: the come came come group

Infinitive Simple past Past participle

become became become

come came come

run ran run

Group 5: the begin began begun group

Infinitive Simple past Past participle

 begin began begun

drink drank drunk

ring rang rung

sing sang sung

sink sank sunk

swim swam swum

Group 6: the get got got group

Infinitive Simple past Past participle

bend bent bent

bring brought brought

burn burnt burnt

build built built

buy bought bought

catch caught caught

dream dreamt dreamt

feed fed fed

feel felt felt

fight fought fought

find found found

get got got

hang hung hung

have had had

hear heard heard

hold held held

keep kept kept

lay laid laid

lead led led

learn learnt learnt

 leave left left

lend lent lent

lose lost lost

make made made

mean meant meant

meet met met

pay paid paid

say said said

sell sold sold

send sent sent

shine shone shone

shoot shot shot

sit sat sat

sleep slept slept

smell smelt smelt

spell spelt spelt

spend spent spent

stand stood stood

sweep swept swept

swing swung swung

teach taught taught

tell told told

think thought thought

understand understood understood

win won won

Group 7: the put put put group

Infinitive Simple past Past participle

cost cost cost

 cut cut cut

hit hit hit

hurt hurt hurt

let let let

put put put

read read read

set set set

shut shut shut

spread spread spread

Common irregular verbs in alphabetical order.

Infinitive Simple past Past participle

be was/were been

beat beat beaten

become became become

begin began begun

bend bent bent

bite bit bitten

blow blew blown

break broke broken

bring brought brought

burn burnt burnt

build built built

buy bought bought

catch caught caught

choose chose chosen

come came come

cost cost cost

cut cut cut

 do did done

draw drew drawn

dream dreamt dreamt

drink drank drunk

drive drove driven

eat ate eaten

fall fell fallen

feed fed fed

feel felt felt

fight fought fought

find found found

fly flew flown

forget forgot forgotten

get got got

give gave given

go went gone

grow grew grown

hang hung hung

have had had

hear heard heard

hide hid hidden

hit hit hit

hold held held

hurt hurt hurt

keep kept kept

know knew known

lay laid laid

lead led led

learn learnt learnt

leave left left

lend lent lent

let let let

lie lay lain

lose lost lost

make made made

mean meant meant

meet met met

pay paid paid

put put put

read read read

ride rode ridden

ring rang rung

run ran run

say said said

see saw seen

sell sold sold

send sent sent

set set set

shake shook shaken

shine shone shone

shoot shot shot

show showed shown

shut shut shut

sing sang sung

sink sank sunk

sit sat sat

sleep slept slept

smell smelt smelt

speak spoke spoken

spell spelt spelt

 spend spent spent

spread spread spread

stand stood stood

steal stole stolen

sweep swept swept

swim swam swum

swing swung swung

take took taken

teach taught taught

tear tore torn

tell told told

think thought thought

throw threw thrown

understand understood understood

wake woke woken

wear wore worn

win won won

write wrote written

These regular and irregular verbs are easy to confuse:

Infinitive Simple past Past participle

fall (drop onto the ground) fell fallen

feel (experience an emotion or sensation) felt felt

fill (make something full) filled filled

find (get back something lost) found found

found (start up an organisation or institution) founded founded

lay (put down flat) laid laid

lie (be down) lay lain

lie (say things that are not true) lied lied

 leave (go away) left left

live (inhabit a place) lived lived

raise (put up) raised raised

rise (go/get up) rose risen

strike (hit) struck struck

stroke (pass the hand gently over) stroked stroked

Verbs

Past continuous

Affirmative and negative

You/We/They were (not)

watching.
I/He/She was (not)

Question

Were you/we/the
watching?
Was I/he/she

We use the past continuous to talk about actions in progress at a moment in the past.

 I was working in the garden yesterday morning.

 They were living in Spain when I saw them.

It is often used in narratives to describe scenes in the past.

 The birds were singing and the sun was shining.

 The market was busy. People were buying vegetables and children were playing.

It is also used to describe an action or situation which was in progress when another event interrupted
it.

 The Brahman was walking in the forest when he saw the tiger.
 She was watching TV when the telephone rang.

Verbs

Past of to be
 Present Past
Affirmative Negative Affirmative Negative
I am I'm not I was I wasn't
you are you aren't you were you weren't
she/he/it is she/he/it isn't she/he/it was she/he/it wasn't
we/you/they are we/you/they aren't we/you/they were we/you/they weren't

Note: We can contract the negative sentences in two different ways.

 You aren't Australian. = You're not Australian.

 She isn't English. = She's not English.

But it is not possible to contract am.

 I'm not Spanish.

NOT: I amn't Spanish.

Verbs

Past of regular verbs

To form the past simple of regular verbs, add -ed to the infinitive.
When the infinitive ends in e add -d.
When the infinitive ends in y, the y changes to i and then add -ed.

Infinitive Past simple

finish finished
decide decided
study studied

To form the negative past simple use didn't + infinitive.

 I didn't finish the book.

To form a past simple question use did + infinitive.

 Did you finish the book?

NOT: Did you finished the book?

Verbs

Past perfect

Affirmative and negative

I/you/he/she/it/we/they had (not) visited the town before.

Question
Had I/you/he/she/it/we/they visited the town before?

The past perfect is used to talk about events and states that happen before a moment in the past.

 Gloria discovered that her sister had moved house.

 We had finished all the preparations by the time they arrived.

Verbs

Past simple

Affirmative and negative

arrived
I/You/He/She/We/They yesterday.
didn't arrive

Question

Did I/you/he/she/we/they arrive yesterday?

We use the past simple to talk about:

-finished actions in the past, often with a definite time.

 I went to the beach on Saturday afternoon.

 They got married in 1976.

-a series of finished actions in the past.

 She came home, made a cup of tea and read the newspaper.
 We arrived at seven. A woman showed us to our room and we sat down.

Verbs

Perfect infinitive

Perfect infinitive = (to) have + past participle

Perfect infinitives are used in the following ways:

-with a modal verb, such as must, will, would, can't, could, might and may.

 The message should have arrived yesterday.

-after certain verbs and be + participle/adjective (seem, look, appear, hope, be known, be thought,
be said, be happy, be pleased and be sorry).
 A Queensland Tiger is known to have existed.

Verbs
Present continuous

Affirmative and negative

am
I
am not

are
You/We/They listening.
aren't

is
He/She/It
isn't

Question

Am I

Are you/we/they listening?

Is he/she/it

The present continuous is used:

- to talk about actions in progress at the time of speaking.

 Is she eating her soup?

-for actions happening around the time of speaking (often of a temporary nature).

 I'm studying Chinese these days.

-for events arranged in the future.

 We're meeting Ivan tonight.

Note: The present continuous future is used for arrangements made with another person. The
future with going to is used for decisions and plans.

 Betty and I are getting married.

 I'm going to get married one day.

Verbs

Present perfect

In the following sentence has collected is an example of the present perfect.

 Louise started collecting teaspoons when she was eight. She has collected 196.
The present perfect is formed like this: auxiliary verb have + past participle

 I have lived here for six years.

 She has written two pages.

Affirmative and negative

have (not) seen the film.

I/You/We/They

He/She/It has (not) seen the film

Question

I/you/we/they seen the film?

Have

Has he/she/it seen the film?

The present perfect is used to talk about:

-situations which started in the past and continue now.

 I have lived in Japan for 13 years.

 She has worked as a teacher for two months.

-experiences at an indefinite time in the past.

 I've been to Rome, but I've never been to Venice.

 Have you seen the new Woody Allen film?

Verbs

Present perfect continuous

Affirmative and negative

have
I/You/We/They
haven't
been reading.
has
He/She/It
hasn't

Question

Have I/you/we/they
been reading?
Has he/she/it

The present perfect continuous is used:

- to talk about situations which started in the past and continue in the present.

 I've been living here for three years.

- to explain the result of a recent past activity.

 I'm tired. I've been studying all day.

 I'm hot. I've been running.

Verbs

Present perfect vs. past simple

The present perfect is used to talk about:

-situations which started in the past and continue now.

 I have lived in Japan for 13 years.

 She has worked as a teacher for two months.

-experiences at an indefinite time in the past.

 I've been to Rome, but I've never been to Venice.

 Have you seen the new Woody Allen film?

When the situation is finished, we use the past simple.

 I have collected thousands of stamps. = I collect stamps now.

 I collected stamps when I was a child. = I don't collect stamps any more.
NOT: I have collected stamps when I was a child.

When we are speaking about a completed experience at a specific time, we use the past simple.
Compare these sentences:

 I've read Gone with the Wind. (when is not specified)

 I read Gone with the Wind when I was 15. (when is specified)
NOT: I've read Gone with the Wind when I was 15.

Verbs

Present perfect simple vs. present perfect continuous

The present perfect simple emphasises the result (of a completed action).

 "How many times have you read that book?" "I've read it three times."

The present perfect continuous emphasises the activity itself (possibly unfinished).

 "What have you been doing this morning?" "I've been reading."

Verbs

Present simple
We use the present simple to talk about:

 factual information
 personal information
 habits and routines
 likes and dislikes

Be

Affirmative and negative

am
I English.
am not

are
You/We/They interested in clothes.
aren't

is
He/She a doctor.
isn't

Question

Am I first?

Are you/we/they interested in clothes?

Is he/she a doctor?

Like

Affirmative and negative

like
I/You/We/They
don't like chocolate.
likes wearing jeans.
He/She
doesn't like

Question

Do I/you/we/they chocolate?
like
Does he/she wearing jeans?

Verbs

Present simple vs. present continuous

The present simple is used to talk about habits and facts - things that are often permanent.

 I speak a little Japanese.

 Jill's sister lives in Italy.

The present continuous is used to talk about changing situations and developments - things that are
often temporary.
  I'm studying Japanese at night school.
 Everyone is learning English these days.

Affirmative and negative

I am

You/we/they are (not) studying Japanese at night school.

He/she/it is

Question

Am I

Are you/we/they studying Japanese at night school?

Is he/she/it

Verbs

Stative verbs vs. process verbs

Process verbs describe actions or processes.

 I drive to work.
 She looked at the photos.
 We listen to the radio.

Stative verbs describe states, qualities, opinions and our senses (what we see, hear, taste, etc.).
Stative verbs are not normally used in continuous forms.

 I am in my car.
NOT: I am being in my car.

 I like ice cream.

NOT: I am liking ice cream.

 I see a house on the hill.

NOT: I am seeing a house on the hill.

The following are examples of stative verbs:

states: be, belong, understand, know, weigh, measure, contain, need, want, own, have (possession)

opinions: think, believe, like, hate, love, prefer

senses: see, hear, smell, taste, feel

Verbs associated with the five senses - look, feel, taste, sound and smell - can be followed directly by
an adjective phrase.

 You look worried. Is everything OK?

 I've taken an aspirin and I feel better already.

The same verbs are followed by like before a noun phrase.

 These veggieburgers really taste like hamburgers.

 My brother looks like me.
 Who's that on the radio? It sounds like Bob Dylan.
 This feels like the worst cold I've ever had.

Verbs

There is/are

Use there is and there are to say that something exists, or to describe where it is.

  Affirmative Negative Question

There is a bank. There isn't a bank. Is there a bank?

Present
There are some shops. There aren't any shops. Are there any shops?

There was a storm. There wasn't a storm. Was there a storm?

Past
There were some people. There weren't any people. Were there any people?

There has been an There hasn't been an Has there been an

accident. accident. accident?
Perfect
There have been some There haven't been any Have there been any
problems problems. problems?

Future There will be an exam. There won't be an exam. Will there be an exam?

 There is a table in the living room.

NOT: A table is in the living room.
NOT: It's a table in the living room.