Verb + Gerund or Infinitive?


Stage 8 Stage 9 Stage 10 In English, when we want to follow a verb immediately with another verb, the second verb must take the form of either a gerund or an infinitive. The tricky part is discovering which verb is followed by what form. There is no rule that will help you to decide …

False Friends Between English and Spanish


Stage 6 Stage 7 Stage 8 Spanish and English have a lot of words that are either the same or at the very least close enough to be understood without having ever learned the language. These include a multitude of words that end in either –tion in English or –cion in Spanish. For example, “Education” …

Prepositions Related to Time


Stage 5 Stage 6 Stage 7 Prepositions, the great struggle for students of English everywhere! Although there exist some rules related to the use of prepositions, they must be learned, for the most part, by practice and trial and error. One useful way to learn them is by separating them into basic general categories, which …

The verb ‘make’ in phrasal verbs


Stage 9 Stage 10 Stage 11 Stage 12 What’s the difference between a phrasal verb and a prepositional verb? When we use a prepositional verb, we are using the preposition in its normal, literal sense (e.g. ‘I am looking up at the ceiling‘; ‘the dog jumped over the wall’; ‘he put the coffee on the …

A few, few, a little, little


Stage 6 Stage 7 Stage 8 This week’s blog post concerns two words that students often get mixed up – few and little.   Download Exercise   Few is the opposite of many (and “a lot of”) and little is the opposite of much (and “a lot of”). For example: – There are few people …

Nouns That Become Adjectives


Stage 8 Stage 9 Stage 10 Today we are going to have a look at a different way to create an adjective. Sometimes we want to describe something by thinking about the use of the object. The use of that object might have something to do with another object. In English it is possible to …

CONFUSED AND MISUSED WORDS IN ENGLISH


Stage 7 Stage 8 Stage 9 There are many words in English which have similar meanings but are often used in very different ways. Also, there are words that are often confused for each other because of similar pronunciation or spelling. It can be difficult to figure out if you are using the right word. …

The Construction “As…As…”


Stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4   The construction “as…as…” can be a difficult point for students of English to use correctly. After we learn the comparatives and superlatives of adjectives, we think, Ok, this is easy! But the construction “as…as…” can prove to be a little harder to not only remember, but also to …

CONDITIONAL SENTENCES IN ENGLISH


Stage 4 Stage 5 Stage 6 This week’s blog is on conditional sentences. There are four conditional constructions in English. Their names are the Zero Conditional, the First Conditional, the Second Conditional and the Third Conditional.   Download Exercise   • We use the ‘Zero Conditional‘ to talk about things that are generally true. Its …

‘AS’ AND ITS MANY USES


Stage 8 Stage 9 Stage 10 The word as has various meanings. Here are some of the most important ones: • It can be used to indicate two actions or events occurring at the same time. In this case, its meaning is similar to when or while. E.g. “As I was driving to work, I …