BASICS OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR

PRESENT TENSE BE,

DEMONSTRATIVES, POSSESSIVE
ADJECTIVES, CAN,
PREPOSITIONS, TENSES

Darmawati Darwis, M.Si.,Ph.D

Physics Department of Tadulako University

Ada 3 bentuk dari to be : am, is dan are

yang pemakaiannya tergantung pad subjek
atau kata ganti yang dipakai

PRESENT TENSE BE
The

verb BE has three forms: AM, IS, ARE,

which we have to use according to the pronoun
or subject.
TO BE

Occupations

Nouns

Adjectives

Places

AFFIRMATIVE SENTENCES
Subject

Verb Form

Example

AM

I am a teacher.

You

ARE

You are a student.

He

IS

He is in the lab.

She

IS

She is my sister.

It

IS

It is a city.

We

ARE

We are friends.

They

ARE

They are doctors.

Bentuk Negative :
menambahkan NOT di
belakang to be

NEGATIVE SENTENCES
You can make negative sentences similar to the
sentences before. The only different is to add NOT
after am, is, are, as you can see in the following
chart.

She is not sad

They are not in the school

NEGATIVE SENTENCES
I am not

I`m not

He
She
It

is not

He`s not = He isnt

Shes not = She isnt
Its not = It isnt

are not

Were not = We arent

Youre not = You arent
Theyre not = They arent

We
You
They

YES / NO QUESTIONS
In

English we have to kind of questions: Yes/No

questions and Wh-questions.

Dalam bahasa Inggeris dikenal dua jenis pertanyaan : yes/no question and Wh-question

The

Yes / No Questions are called that because

the answers always start with Yes or No

Disebut yes/no question karena jawabannya selalu diawali dengan yes or no

Remember

to answer Yes/No questions you

have to pay attention to the subject.

Ingat bawa dalam menjawab pertanyaan anda harus memperhatikan subjeknya

YES / NO QUESTIONS
Affirmative Statement:
Yes / No question:
Short Answers:
Full /Complete
Answers:

John and Peter are students.

Are John and Peter students?
Yes, they are / No, they arent
Yes, they are students. / No they
are not students.

Affirmative Statement:
Yes / No question:
Short Answers:
Full /Complete
Answers:

Mary

is tall and thin.

Is Mary tall and thin?
Yes, she is / No, she isnt
Yes, she is tall and thin. / No, she
is not tall and thin

WH - QUESTIONS
The

wh-questions look for information

accoding to the question word.

Pertanyaan Wh- adalah pertanyaan yg mencari informasi, jadi jangan pernah menjawab dengan yes or
no

In

this kind of questions you never answer

Yes or No, because they are asking for some
information. The answer is a statement with
the information according to the question
word.

WH - QUESTIONS
Wh-word
What

Information
about
Things (Sesuatu)
Name (Nama)
Occupations
(Pekerjaan)

Activities (Aktivitas)

Example
What is this? It is a book.
What is your name? Roberth.
What do you do? I am a driver.
What is he doing? Hes working

Who

People (Orang)

Who is the director of the school?

Carlos Samaniego.

Where

Places (tempat)

Where is he? In the house.

How

State (Pernyataan)
Form / manner

How are you? I am sad.

How is Loja? It is small.

REVIEW
Statement

Negative
Statements

Yes/No Question

Short Answers

I am a teacher.

I am not a teacher.

Am I a teacher?

Yes, you are / No, you are

not

You are a
student.

You are not a

student.

Are you a student?

Yes, I am / No, I am not

He is in the lab.

He is not in the lab.

Is he in the lab?

Yes, he is / No, he is not

She is my sister.

She is not my sister.

Is she my sister?

Yes, she is / No, she is

not

It is a city.

It is not a city.

Is it a city?

Yes, it is / No, it is not

We are friends.

We are not friends.

Are we friends?

Yes, we are / No, we are

not

They are
doctors.

They are not

doctors.

Are they doctors?

Yes, they are / No they

are not

DEMONSTRATIVES
We use THIS / THESE when the objects are near to the speaker.
This/These digunakan ketika objek ada di dekat pembicara)

This is a blackboard
THIS +Singular Nouns

These are papers

THESE + Plural Nouns

DEMONSTRATIVES
We use THAT / THOSE when the objects are far from the speakers.
This/These digunakan ketika objek jauh dari pembicara )

That is a lake.
Those are mountains

THAT + Singular Nouns

THOSE + Plural Nouns

DEMONSTRATIVES
Questions
What is that?
That is an airplane.
Is that a bird?
No, it is an airplane.

What are those?

Those are books
Are those books?
Yes, they are books.

PLURAL NOUNS (Jamak)

Noun ending

Forming the plural

Examples

s, x, ch or sh

Add -es

boss - bosses
tax - taxes
bush - bushes

consonant + y

Change y to i
then
Add es

fly - flies
try - tries
curry curries

most others

Add -s

cat - cats
face - faces
day days

IRREGULAR PLURAL
Noun type

Forming the plural

Examples

Ends with -fe

Change f to v
then
Add s

knife - knives
life - lives
wife - wives

Ends with f

Change f to v
then
Add es

half - halves
wolf - wolves
loaf - loaves

Ends with - o

Add es

potato - potatoes
tomato - tomatoes
volcano volcanoes

IRREGULAR PLURAL
Noun type

Forming the plural

Examples

ALL KINDS

Change the vowel

or
Change the word
or
Add a different
ending

man - men
foot - feet
child - children
person - people
tooth - teeth
mouse - mice

Unchanging

Singular and plural

are the same

sheep
deer
fish (sometimes)

POSSESSIVE ADJECTIVES
I
You
He
She
It
We
They

My
Your
His
Her
Its
Our
Their

NOUN

POSSESSIVE ADJTECTIVES

Her pants are blue

This is our house

His shirt is new

This is her cat

POSSESSIVE FORM S

Kevins wife is Rose.

His wife is Rose.

Charlies book is black.

The Childs mother is happy

PREPOSITION OF PLACE
IN (di dalam)

In the house
In a room
In a car

in a shop
in a town
in a garden

ON (di atas)

On a shelf
on a wall
On a plate
on the table
On a balcony on a door

AT (di)

At the bus station at home

At the door
at the top
At work
at the end of

CAN / CANT
Can

is used to show ability

Can digunakan untuk menunjukkan kemampuan

They can dance

He cant play the piano

He can swim

He can play football

He can skate

Simple Present Tense

Otherwise known as the

Timeless
Present

Simple Present Tense is used:

When

you are referring to habitual actions-actions that you always or never do

Ketika membicarakan tentang suatu kegiatan yang selalu atau tidak pernah dilakukan

When

you are referring to unchanging truths

Ketika membicarakan sesuatu yang tidak pernah berubah

When

you are making general statements of

fact

Ketika membuat pernyataan umum

Examples
(habit)

He always comes late to class.

(unchanging truth) The sun rises in the east.
(general statement of fact) They are friendly.

simple present tense

Indicators
Always

Whenever

Everyday

Usually

Often

Frequently

Sometimes

Rarely

Occasionally

never

simple present tense

Form
I study

I wait

You study

You wait

S/he/it studies

s/he/it waits

We study

we wait

They study

they wait

simple present tense

Diagram--time on a line

simple present tense

Simple Past Tense

The Simple Past Tense is Used:

When

an activity or situation began and

ended at a particular time in the past--in
other words, when an activity or situation is
completed in the past

Terjadi di masa lampau

To refer

Kebiasaan lama

to past habits

Examples
(Completed

action in the past) He was late to

class yesterday.
(Completed action in the past) We arrived
three weeks ago.
(Past habit) She always wrote a letter to her
mother on Sunday night.

Simple Past Tense

Indicators
Last night, week, year, month, Saturday,
semester, etc.
Yesterday
ago

Simple Past Tense

Form
I studied

I waited

You studied

You waited

S/he/it studied

S/he/it waited

We studied

We waited

They studied

They waited
Simple Past Tense

Diagram--time on a line

Simple Past Tense

The Present Perfect

A tense very commonly
used in English to refer
to the past!

The Present Perfect is Used:

When

an activity happened at an unspecified

time in the past (before the present)

When

an activity has been repeated several

times before now
When an activity was very recently completed
before now
When an activity is not completed in the past

Examples
(unspecified

time before now) They have

already seen that movie.
(repeated activity before now) We have
visited New York City many times.
(an action has recently been completed
before now) I have just eaten.
(action not completed in the past) I have
studied Spanish for many years.
Present Perfect Tense

Indicators
Before

Ever

Never

So far

Already

Yet

Just

Recently

For

since

Present Perfect Tense

Form 1
have or has + past participle
I have studied . . .

I have seen . . .

You have studied . . . You have seen . . .

S/he/it has studied . . S/he/it has seen . . .
We have studied . . .

We have seen . . .

They have studied . . . They have seen . . .

Present Perfect Tense

Form 2
I've walked . . .

I've grown . . .

You've walked . . .

You've grown . . .

S/he/it's walked . . .

S/he/it's grown . . .

We've walked . . .

We've grown . . .

They've walked . . .

They've grown . . .

Present Perfect Tense

Diagram 1--time on a line

Present Perfect Tense

Diagram 2--time on a line

Present Perfect Tense

The Present Continuous Tense

Sometimes called the
Present Progressive
Tense

PRESENT CONTINOUS
AFFIRMATIVE

NEGATIVE

YES/NO QUESTIONS

I am dancing

I am not dancing

Am I dancing?

You are eating

You are not eating

Are you eating?

He is sleeping

He is not sleeping

Is he sleeping?

She is reading

She is not reading

Is she reading?

It is running

It is not running

Is it running?

We are walking

We are not walking

Are we walking?

They are studying

They are not studying

Are they studying?

RULES
Verb ending in...

How to make the -ING

form

1 vowel + 1
consonant

Double the consonant,

then add ING

swim - swimming
hit - hitting
get getting

1 vowel + 1
consonant + E-

Remove E, then add

INGcome

coming
lose - losing
live living

[anything else]

Add ING

say - saying
go - going
walk - walking

Examples

NEGATIVE AND QUESTIONS

AFFIRMATIVE

NEGATIVE

YES/NO
QUESTIONS

SHORT ANSWERS

I can cook

I can not cook

Can I cook?

Yes, you can / No,you cant

Can you dance?

Yes I can / No I cant

You can dance You can not dance

He can play

He can not play

Can he play?

Yes, he can / No, he can`t

She can swim

She can not swim

Can she swim?

Yes, she can / No, she cant

It can run

It can not run

Can it run?

Yes, it can / No, it cant

We can sing

We can not sing

Can we sing?

Yes, we can / No, we cant

They can walk

They can not walk

Can they walk ?

Yes, they can / No, they

cant

The Present Continuous Tense is

Used:
When

an activity is in progress now at the

moment of speaking
When an activity began before now and
continues into the future without stopping.
When an activity is temporary.
When an activity is developing and changing.

Examples
Im

explaining something to the class right

now.
Hes taking 16 credits this semester.
She is understanding English more and more
because she moved into the dorm.

Present Progressive Tense

Indicators
Right now, at this
moment

Still

This year, week,

month, etc.

As we speak

Present Progressive Tense

Form
I am studying

I'm studying

You are studying

You're studying

S/he/it is studying

S/he/it's studying

We are studying

We're studying

They are studying

They're studying

Present Progressive Tense

Diagram--time on a line

Present Progressive Tense

Future Tense

The Future Tense is Used:

To indicate

that an activity or event will take

place at a time in the future
Activetas yang akan dilaksanakan pada
masa yang akan datang

Examples

When Im retired, Im going to travel.

Pada saat saya pensiun saya akan bepergian
Next week, we will work at the shopping centre.
Minggu depan, kami akan bekerja di mall
He is going to get his car fixed tomorrow.
Dia akan memperbaiki mobilnya besok
Our plane departs at noon next Friday.
Pesawan kita akan berangkat pada hari jumat siang

Future

Indicators
Tomorrow

Next Saturday, week, month, year, etc.

Future

Form 1
I will stay

I'll stay

You will stay

You'll stay

S/he/it will stay

S/he/it'll stay

We will stay

We'll stay

They will stay

They'll stay

Future

Form 2
I am going to stay

I'm going to stay

You are going to stay You're going to stay

S/he/it is going to stay S/he/it's going to stay
We are going to stay We're going to stay
They are going to
stay

They're going to stay

Future

Form 3

Sometimes the simple present tense or the

present progressive tense are used to
express a future meaning. Usually these
tenses are used when scheduled events
are being discussed.
Kadang-kadang simple present tense atau
present continous tense digunakan untuk
menyatakan sesuatu yang akan terjadi di masa
depan. Biasanya digunakan ketika kegiatan
yang sudah dijadwalkan sedang didiskusikan
I arrive

I am arriving

You arrive

You are arriving

S/he/it arrives

S/he/it is arriving

We arrive

We are arriving
Future Tense

Diagram--Time on a Line

Future

Other English Verb Tenses

These tenses are

combinations of the
tenses we have just
reviewed

Past Perfect
This

tense is not used a lot. It can often be

used interchangeably with the simple past
because these tenses do not differ much in
meaning. The past perfect tense refers to
activities that happened before a specific
time in the past.
Example, He had visited her many times
before she died.
Form: had + past participle

Past continuous
This

tense is used to refer to activities

continuously in progress around a time in the
past.
Example: They were eating when the taxi
arrived.
Form: was or were + verbing

Past Perfect continuous

This

tense is used when an activity was

continuously in progress before a specific
time in the past.
Example: I had been thinking about her
before she called.
Form: had + been + verbing

Present Perfect continuous

This

tense is used to describe actions that

have been continuously in progress before
now. These actions are not completed.
Example: I have been waiting here for the
last two hours.
Form: have or has + been + verbing

Future Perfect
The

future perfect expresses the idea that an

activity will occur before some future time.
Example: She will have finished dinner
before the game starts.
Form: will + have + past participle

Future continuous Tense

This

tense is used to refer to activities that

will be continuously in progress around some
future time.
Example: We will be flying over New York at
noon tomorrow.
Form: will + be + verbing

Future Perfect continuous

This

tense is used to refer to activities that

will be continuously in progress before a
future time.
Example: He will have been working for 3
hours before you arrive.
Form: will + have + been + verbing

Overview of the English Verb Tense/Aspect System

Simple
Perfect
(HAVE +
verb+en)

Present

Past

Future

Progressive
(BE +
verb+ing)

Perfect
Progressive (HAVE
+ BEEN +
verb+ing)