This section contains tips on words and parts of speech. Words like get and have and structural elements like adjectives and auxiliaries are explained in a easy way with examples.
In this section, Gavin's English Course also contains explanations on many variations for basic structures.
There is and There are.
This combination of two words expresses the presence of something. In some cases it can express the possession, but it normally refers to the presence. (E.g. 1)
It is a subject verb form and is inverted in questions and used with the word any. (E.g. 2)
The negative is expressed by adding the word not and also possible in a contracted format. We can also use these to express the absolute zero. It is also common to use the word any with the negative. (E.g. 3)
In the interrogative and negative cases we use the plural format for countable elements and the singular format for the uncountable elements. In these two cases we use the word any.(E.g. 2 and 3)
(E.g. 1)
(E.g. 2)
(E.g. 3)
Do, Make and Take
There are NO rules for the use of Do or Make or Take. There is an explanation in a very generic form which does not apply for all of the cases.
Do:
Make:
It is not as easy as suggested. It is often simply a matter of usage, of learning and knowing which of these two verbs collocate with which nouns. In most cases you can always check a good dictionary.
Be careful not just look at one word to decide if it is do or make. The word "shopping" can be used as a noun or as an adjective.
We are going to do the shopping. (Noun) Here we express the activity "to buy".
We are going to make a shopping list. (Adjective) Here we express the activity "to produce a list".
Take:
There is another verb in English that is often left out of this group. Take. This word is also used in a similar way for other interpretations. Here are some examples:
Once again, it is the usage that determines the application of this word.
Contact us