61739515 functional-english-grammar

Functional EnglishVaman Deshmukh

Functional English Page 1 of 58

BASIC ENGLISH STRUCTURE

This chapter contains the basic information of English structure grammar including parts of speech; helping verbs,

forms of be, have and do; forms of main verbs etc.

Parts of Speech

Parts of Speech are kinds of words. They are divided into eight categories based on their usage.

Noun: A noun is the name of a person, animal, thing or place.

E.g.: Ravi is pursuing MBA in HRM..

We saw a group of foreigners in the vehicle.

The crowd was very big.

Always speak the truth.

Our class consists of 20 students.

APEC has many branches in Hyderabad and abroad.

Tenali Raman was famous for his wisdom.

Cleanliness is next to Godliness.

The class is studying grammar.

Lion is called as the king of jungle.

Pronoun: A pro-noun is a word used instead of a noun. Given below are the common pronouns in English.

I We You He She It TheyMy Our Your His Her Its TheirMe Us Your Him Her It Them

Other Pronouns: This, That, These, Those etc

E.g.: They were going at a speed of 110 kmph.

Here is your book, take it away.

When I saw the child it was crying.

You began the quarrel, not me.

His sister is my colleague.

Some say he is very intelligent.

These are my best friends.

Many of them were Americans.

Did you ask anybody to come?

Somebody has stolen my watch.

Everyone knows his position.

Anybody can participate in the contest.


Adjective: An ad-ject-ive gives additional information of noun; it qualifies a noun. It answers the question how is

the subject or the object.

E.g.: She is a slim, beautiful, smart girl.

The screw is loose, tighten it.

The Sun is red, the Earth is blue,

The crazy guy was shouting in the road.

Where are my new shoes?

He was absent last week.

Raju won the second prize.

Main road leads to the station.

Look at that lazy foolish fellow.

The old woman lives in a small hut.

Verb: A verb shows an action or a condition.

E.g.: Krishna was swimming in the river.

Chaitanya was not doing the work.

Fresh batch will begin from March 1st.

You must practice LSRW regularly.

We have an opening in our marketing department.

Do not use cell phones in the lab.

The results have been declared.

He tried again and again.

We will get back to you soon.

T-shirts don’t look good for a professional.

Bajaj bikes give best mileage.

She came to office rather late today.

Adverb: An ad-verb, as its name itself shows describes a verb; It answers the questions like when, how, where an

action took place. In English, an adverb normally ends in –ly.

E.g.: She was walking slowly in the road.

Finally, India won the exciting match.

Try again, try again, if you don’t succeed.

We woke up very early.

You are truly a very smart gal.

I surely expect him tomorrow.

The patient is breathing rapidly.

She spoke to me nicely.

Do not walk so fast.

Are you going so immediately?


Preposition: A pre-position is placed before a noun and it shows the relationship between two nouns.

E.g.: The book is on the table.

His cousin lives on Bank Street.

Do not run in the road.

They will reach the venue at 6 O’ clock.

I can do anything for you.

The train travels from Hyderabad to Mumbai.

The trainer has been working here since 2001.

The baby is crying for an hour.

The reception will be on November 22.

They will come to India in January 2010.

Conjunction: A con-junction connects two nouns or two clauses.

E.g.: And, Or, If, But, So, Because etc

E.g.: Jyoti and Swati are Shrikant’s sisters.

Dhoni hit a boundary because it was full toss ball.

Wait here till I come back.

Walk quickly else you will miss the train.

I like him because he is honest.

You will get the prize if you work hard.

I waited till the train arrived.

Harry failed because he was idle.

Work hard otherwise you will fail.

Seeta is tall but Kamala is taller.

Cats can climb trees however dogs cannot.

You must start at once otherwise you will be late.

Interjection: An Inter-jection is a single word exclamation; it takes an exclamatory mark (!) at the end and is a

complete sentence in itself.

E.g.: Alas! How poor the child is!

Pity! She is so hungry!

Bravo! Let’s do it man!

Hello! What on Earth are you doing there?

Alas! He is dead!

Hurrah! We have won the game!

Ah! Have they gone?

Hush! Don’t make noise.

Kinds of Sentences


Sentences are of four types, based on the purpose of their use. They can be positive or negative. A negative sentence

contains any one word out of: no, not, nobody, no one, none, nothing, never, nowhere, neither- nor etc. In the

following examples, starred (*) sentences are negative ones. Normally exclamations are not possible in negative

form.

Statements: Meant to give information. They have a full stop (.) at the end.

E.g.: Barack Obama is the president of the U.S.A.

Dinosaurs existed a million years ago.

*Reliance GSM is not available in A.P.

*You have to get through I-CET for doing MBA.

Questions: Meant to ask information. They have a question mark (?) at the end.

E.g.: Where is my laptop?

Do you have 1000 Rs. change?

*Why don’t you join a good gym?

*Don’t you know the importance of practice?

Orders: Meant to tell someone to do something; they are order, and request. They have a full stop (.) at the end.

E.g.: Go straight and turn left in third lane.

Please, get me two CDs from the market.

*Never open unknown e-mails on April 1st.

*Please, don’t tease the poor child.

Exclamations: Meant to express sudden feelings like wonder, love, happiness, joy, anger, pity, sorrow etc. They

have an exclamatory mark (!) at the end.

E.g.: Wow! What a great shot!

Alas! The poor girl lost everything!

What a great victory India recorded!

How gracefully the artiste performed!

Helping Verbs

Helping verb, as the name itself shows, helps main verb to make different tenses, without changing their meaning.

E.g.: 1. Rahul came to college on bike. (Simple Present Tense)

2. Rahul was coming to college on bike. (Past Continuous Tense)

3. Rahul can come to college on bike. (Simple Present Tense)

4. Rahul should come to college on bike. (Simple Present Tense)

Be, Have, Can and Do

These are the most important words in English. The verbs like be, have and do are used both as helping verbs and as

main verbs. Their forms are as follows:

Be: Be shows a state or a condition. It tells you that something / somebody is in existence. As helping verb, it is

used to make Continuous Tenses.


Forms of BeTense Form Meaning in your Mother tongue Used with

Present

Am I

Is he, she, it, Singular Noun

Are We, you, they, Plural Noun

PastWas I, he, she, it, Singular Noun

Were we, you, they, Plural Noun

Future Will Be All

Perfect Been All

Other Be All

E.g.: I am an M. Sc. in computer science.

I am working in HCL since January this year.

He is really a very interesting chap.

She is cleaning the dining table.

They are all American citizens.

Cell phone was a very big thing ten years ago.

The cat was sleeping in the gallery.

Little children were ready for drill.

We were traveling to Vizag last Monday.

Tirupati will be our next destination.

The whole of India will be speaking English.

I have been to Pondichery a few times.

He can be a good English speaker by practice.

He should be a good programmer next year.

Have: Have, as helping verb is used to make perfect tenses.

Forms of HaveTense Form Used with

PresentHave I, We, You, They, Plural Noun

Has He, She, It, Singular Noun

Past Had AllE.g.: They have gone out since morning.

My cousin has left the job to go abroad.

He has spoken to me about the matter.

I had watched the movie long back.

The internet connection has broken down.

She has settled in her job in Australia.


Do: do, as helping verb is used to make questions and negative sentences, only in simple present and simple past

tenses, when there in no Be or Can form in the sentence.

Forms of DoTense Form Used with

PresentDo I, We, You, They, Plural Noun

Does He, She, It, Singular Noun

Past Did AllE.g.: I know. I don’t know. You know. Do you know? He doesn’t know anything.

She went to college. She did not go to college. Did she go to college?

Can: Can group has the words like can, could, should, would, may, might, must, have to, dare, need to etc.

See Chapter no. 9 Helping Verbs for more details.

Forms of Main Verbs: Main verbs are action verbs. They need above mentioned helping verbs to make different

tenses. Main verbs themselves have different forms used for different tenses as follows:

Forms of Main VerbsForm Code Used with Example

Simple Present TenseV1 I, we, you, they, Plural Noun GoVs he, she, it, Singular Noun Goes

Simple Past Tense V2 All nouns and pronouns WentAll Perfect Tenses V3 All nouns and pronouns GoneAll Continuous Tenses Ving All nouns and pronouns Going

Some Examples all forms of Main Verbs

V1 Vs V2 V3 Ving

Go goes went gone going

Come comes came come coming

Eat eats ate eaten eating

Do does did done doing

Get gets got got getting

Make makes made made making

Speak speaks spoke spoken speaking


TENSES

Tense and Time

Time is infinite. In fact, there are only two times- past and future. What we call present is only a thin line that

divides the past and the future; however we define the duration of present according to the situation. Tenses are

divisions of time made for the convenience of language. There are three major Tenses as follows:

Based on the use, tenses can be again be divided into four types. Remember, these are not further divisions of

present, past and future tenses; instead, they are variants of the three:

Remember all these tenses are not used in Indian Spoken English. Let us understand all these one by one.

SIMPLE TENSES

Simple Present Tense:

S+ V1/Vs S+ do/does+ not+ V1 do/does+ S+ V1 do/does+ not+ S+ V1USAGE: To show 1. Scientific / universal truths, 2. Habits, 3. Professions, 4. Natural facts, 5. General facts,

normal course of life etc

E.g.: 1. The sun rises in the east

If you put oil into water, it floats.

2. I work out in gym three days a week.

Sanjay goes for a morning walk everyday.

3. My father is a senior Journalist.

Swati is the personnel Manager in ICICI Bank.

4. These plants flower in early summer.

The stars twinkle brightly at no-moon night.

5. You look world of beautiful in blue dress.

Two and two make four.

Many people drink black coffee.


Ugadi comes once in a year.

Some people work 15 hours a day.

Her eyes remind me of her mother.

Birds build nests in trees.

Sakshi’s skin gets dry in winter.

Yeshwantpur express leaves at 9.15 pm.

Some chaps lack self-confidence; some others are over confident.

You want a good slap now.

I am an Indian citizen by birth.

Many people do not go for a morning walk.

He is the best employee in our staff.

Curd-rice and mango pickle is my favourite food.

They are all software professionals.

You are my best friend ever, truly.

I go to watch cinema in theatres very rarely.

They take lemon-tea and muffins sometimes.

Children look very cute in yellow clothes.

Do you want to read today’s newspaper?

Does he work out in gym regularly?

Do they have any manners?

Why do you work till late hours on computer?

My boss is really a workaholic guy.

Simple Past Tense:

S+ V2 S+ did not+ V1 did+ S+ V1 did+ S+ not+ V1USAGE: To show an action /condition in the past.

E.g.: I went to the US and Canada many times.

She sang a very melodious song at the party.

The operator did a lot of work in ten hours.

Some people ran away from the accident site.

She put salt into tea by mistake.

Long long ago, there was a wood cutter.

Her eyes filled with tears.

The expert thoroughly checked the machine.

They married four years back.

The two were not a very good couple.

Press reporters gathered round Mahesh Babu.


She was not interested to see you.

I did not give any tip to waiter.

He did not work at Mumbai till now.

Meeting was over and all went off.

Sonia got up rather late today.

I blew out the candle before sleeping.

About 150 participants were present for the programme.

He always carried a pen & a diary with him.

Mother sang me sleep every night, when I was a baby.

Jyoti purchased a dozen and a half pomegranates.

Simple Future Tense:

S+will+V1 S+will not+V1 S+will+V1 S+will+V1USAGE: To show an action / state in the future.

E.g.: I will speak in fluent English very soon.

Rajnikant will launch his next movie in June 09.

My family will go to Canada next year.

You will get well in a couple of days.

I will join the company within 30 days.

These shoes will last for more than two years.

The shop will remain open on Sunday.

She will never respond my phone.

Management will appoint a new receptionist soon.

The ESPD batch will come to an end on March 15.

Deccan Chargers will surely win IPL cup this time.

Mangos will be cheap this year.

CONTINUOUS TENSES

Present Continuous Tense:

S+ am/is/are+ Ving S+ am/is/are+ not+ Ving am/is/are+ S+ Ving am/is/are+ S+ not+ VingUSAGE: 1) To show an action that is going on while speaking, 2) To show future plan

E.g.: 1. A lot of people were talking at a time.

2. Raghu is going to Australia this week.

MMTS local trains are running late these days.


Counsellor is speaking to walk-in enquiry.

My watch is gaining / losing time.

Mobile call rates are coming cheaper.

They all are working on a government project.

Computers are becoming cheaper and faster.

She is typing at a speed of 80 wpm.

I am working in TCS at Pune at present.

Your hands are feeling cold.

Rajshekhar is learning new languages.

Past Continuous Tense:

S+was/were+Ving S+was/were+not+Ving was/were+S+Ving was/were+S+not+VingUSAGE: To show an action that was going on in the past.

E.g.: I was working in Bangaluru at that time.

Rajshree was driving her new Tata Indica yesterday.

Counsellors were working on Sunday too.

The MP3 player was not running properly.

I was speaking to my Tally faculty yesterday.

Kids were dozing every now and then in the program.

Chaitanya was talking on phone the whole night.

Special officer was asking questions to me.

Vehicles were running slow due to traffic.

Priya was working hard to complete the project.

Future Continuous Tense: S + will be + Ving +...

USAGE: To show an action that will be going on in the future.

E.g.: Tendulkar will be playing in 2010 world cup.

The gardener will be watering the plants.

She will be enjoying the vacations.

You will be working in an MNC next year.

PERFECT TENSES

Perfect tenses take “have form” along with past participle (V3). They are used to show an action that is complete

and the effect of the action is on. Remember, there are no equivalents for English perfect tenses in Telugu.


Therefore, most of the times only Simple Past Tense is used in Telugu for Simple Past, Present Perfect and Past

perfect Tenses in English.

Imagine a situation that your father goes out at 9 o’ clock. At 10 o’ clock somebody phones for him. You receive the

call and say, “My father has gone out.” (Present Perfect Tense) your father comes at 11 o’ clock and again the

same person phones. Then your father receives the call and says. “I had gone out.”(Past Perfect Tense)

Present perfect Tense:

S+have/has+V3 S+have/has+not+V3 have/has+S+V3 have/has+S+not+V3E.g.: My father has gone out, would you wait?

Don’t worry, I have had my lunch.

I have put five litres of petrol in the bike.

Realty market has risen again.

The Director has called a meeting.

The librarian has allowed us to use library.

Be serious, you have become a father now.

The kids have got cold.

The family has purchased a new car.

Winter has come earlier this year.

Past perfect tense: S + had + V3+...

E.g.: When I reached station, the train had left.

I had made him a call at 9.30.

We had reached very early.

The doctor had given me these medicines.

The staff had gone for weekend celebrations.

I had lived in Pune for five years in 1997.

Future perfect Tense: S + will have + V3 +...

E.g.: He will have saved 20 lakh Rupees by 2012.

The batch will have started on 15th this month.

He will have got home by now.

Many people will have purchased 3G phones.

PERFECT CONTINUOUS TENSES

These tenses are used identically with continuous tenses. However, when you mention the starting time or the

duration of an action, perfect continuous tenses are preferred. The constructions are as follows:

Present Perfect continuous Tense: S +have / has been + Ving +...

E.g.: Children have been playing since morning.

We all have been waiting for the party for long.


He has been going to college since Monday.

She has been surfing Net since early morning.

They have been waiting for interviews for hours.

He has been working for 15 hours now-a-days.

Past Perfect continuous Tense: S + had been + Ving +...

E.g.: Sweets-vendor had been walking all the day.

It had been raining continuously all day.

Students had been studying for a long time.

Your son had been cutting school for two months.

Future Perfect continuous Tense: S + will have been + Ving +...

E.g.: I will have been earning in seven figures after 2012.

Tenses at a GlanceConstruction

Tenses Statement Negative Statement Question Negative QuestionSimple Present S+ V1/Vs S+ do/does+ not+ V1 do/does+ S+ V1 do/does+ not+ S+ V1Simple Past S+ V2 S+ did not+ V1 did+ S+ V1 did+ S+ not+ V1Simple Future S+ will+ V1 S+ will not+ V1 will+ S+ V1 Won’t+ S+ V1Present Continuous S+ am/is/are+ Ving S+ am/is/are+ not+ Ving am/is/are+ S+ Ving am/is/are+ S+ not+ VingPast Continuous S+ was/were+ Ving S+ was/were+ not+ Ving was/were+ S+ Ving was/were+ S+ not+ VingFuture Continuous S+ will be+ Ving S+ will not be+ Ving will+ S+ be+ Ving will+ S+ not be+ VingPresent Perfect S+ have/has+ V3 S+ have/has+ not+ V3 have/has+ S+ V3 have/has+ S+ not+ V3Past Perfect S+ had+ V3 S+ had not+ V3 had+ S+ V3 had+ S+ not+ V3Future Perfect S+ will have+ V3 S+ will not have+ V3 Will+ S+ have+ V3 Will+ S+ have not+ V3Present Perfect

Continuous

S+ has/have+

been+ Ving

S+ has/have+ not+

been+ Ving

has/have+ S+ been+

Ving

has/have+ S+ not+ been+

VingPast Perfect

Continuous S+ had been+ Ving S+ had not been+ Ving

Had+ S+ been+

VingHad+ S+ not been+ Ving

Future Perfect

Continuous

S+ will have been+

Ving

S+ will not have been+

Ving

will+ S+ have been+

Ving

will+ S+ not have been+

Ving


STATEMENTS

Statement is the first and the basic kind of sentence and has a variety of uses. It is meant to give information. It has

both positive and negative forms. A statement has a full stop (.) at the end.

Positive Statements:

I completed B. Tech. in 2007 from JNTU.

I can speak English, Telugu and Hindi very well.

I am working in Infosys as an Asst. Programmer.

I want a bit more challenging job now.

She is one of my best students ever.

She goes to her office on Yo-Byke.

They will come here in a while.

Blue and yellow are my favourite colours.

Fresh batches start on every alternative Monday.

Person is more important than property.

Golkonda Fort is a great place to visit.

This is the best shop for leather articles.

People should be loved, things should be used.

APEC is an ISO 9001:2000 recognized company.

Duel SIM phones have become very common now.

My secretary will get back to you soon.

Computer is necessary everywhere today.

India has a big market in retail Industry.

Hyderabad is among the biggest cities in the world.

P. V. Narsimha Rao was a great writer as well.

“V” is the 22nd letter in English alphabets.

Body language is an important part of communication.

Human brain is far more powerful than computer.

Barking dogs seldom bite.

Too many cooks spoil the broth.

Smile is the cheapest happiness in life.

Face is the index of mind.

A friend in need is a friend indeed.

Early to bed, early to rise makes Jack healthy, wealthy and wise.

Man is the most intelligent animal on the Earth.


The word whose pronunciation is is is a helping verb.

Negative Statements:

I don’t know where he went.

I don’t have experience in Oracle platform.

I can’t attend the party as I have office work.

I don’t feel so well today.

You can’t do it without my help.

You never told me the truth of the matter.

You should not use cell phone in lab or in class.

He didn’t eat anything since morning.

He didn’t come on time yesterday.

He is not interested in BPO/ Call Centre jobs.

She will not accept the offer at this low salary.

She doesn’t like watching cricket matches.

It is not my mistake, it’s yours.

They do not have proper qualification.

They are not interested in business.

My friend is not so tall and slender.

My brother is not working in that company now.

Touch screen panels are not so useful.

Some chaps never look happy.

Students should not bunk classes.

Plastic bags are not good for environment.

Nobody brought lunch-box today.

Pollution is not good for health.

I- Phone is not so successful in India.

The man is not good in nature.

All that glitters is not gold.

Black colour is not used in interior decoration.

Nobody in the world is 100% perfect.

Normally, no sentence in English begins with because because because is a conjunction.


QUESTIONS

Question is the second type of sentence. It is used when you want to ask information. It has a question mark (?) at

the end.

Questions are of two types: Verbal Questions and Wh- questions.

Verbal question begins with a helping and its answer is yes or no.

Wh- question begins with a Wh- word and its answer is descriptive.

A question can be positive or negative.

A question must have a helping verb i.e. any form of be, have, can or do.

In simple present and simple past tenses, when there in no helping verb (be, can) in the sentence, proper

forms of do (do, does, did) are used.

Verbal Questions:

E.g.: Do you know? / Don’t you know?

Do they come here regularly?

Do you have the necessary qualification?

Do these two colours match?

Do the jeans come in military colour?

Don’t you understand this simple thing?

Don’t you have any common sense?

Does he eat non-veg food on Monday?

Does she work in Photoshop or in CorelDraw?

Did you meet Mahesh Babu ever?

Did she phone you at that time?

Did you receive my message?

Am I not eligible for the position?

Is he really interested in the project?

Is it more important than your career?

Are you not telling the truth?

Are you coming here straight from the station?

Are you still working in the same company?

Was he present yesterday?

Were you going to Big Bazaar?

Will you come to receive me at Secunderabad station?

Will they have reached there?


Will you do this? Can you do this? Should I do this?

Can you tell me something about yourself?

Can India be a developed nation in the next 20 years?

Can you tell me some negative question examples?

Shall we start the session now?

Should I sign here in this box?

Should I clean the room for you?

Wh- Questions:

Wh- words are -What, when, where, who, whom, whose, which, why, how, how much and how many.

Out of them What and Which are the most important ones.

You can replace all the other words by these two.

What:

E.g.: What are your hobbies and interests?

What is the price of this book?

What is the difference between you and me?

What did he tell you about me?

What is the specialty of new Pulsar DTS-Si?

What do you like to do on Sundays?

What do you want to purchase here?

What is the meaning of this sentence?

What will you do tomorrow?

What is your ultimate goal in life?

What is she doing at present?

What do you think Rahul can do now?

When: (at what time)

E.g.: When will you come home?

When will you come out of the bathroom?

When does she chat with you normally?

When did you leave the company?

When did you meet each other first?

When do these children play and enjoy?

When did you get the news?

When should I expect your call?

If appointed, when can you join?

When are you starting your now business?


Where: (at which place)

E.g.: Where is the leather belt I bought yesterday?

Where shall we meet tomorrow?

Where did you keep my specs?

Where should I keep my bag?

Where have my keys gone?

Where did you meet such interesting chap?

Where will you go for next weekend celebration?

Where exactly is Hyderabad Central located?

Where will all these poor people go?

Where did you buy this MP4 player?

Why: (for what)

E.g.: Why do you lie always?

Why does she go in bus when she has Scooty?

Why did Yogesh commit suicide?

Why do you look so gloomy?

Why are the people angry with him?

Why did you join ESPD course?

Why did you go there without my permission?

Why didn’t you come yesterday?

Why don’t you keep quite?

Why aren’t you interested in reading novels?

Who: (which person)

Normally, Do forms (Do, Does, Did) are not necessary in Who questions in spoken English.

E.g.: Who will / can / should do this?

Who is your role model?

Who is the present Prime Minister of India?

Who is coming? / Who are coming?

Who brought such rotten fruits?

Who can go in graveyard alone?

Who switched the lights on?

Who designed such a lovely website?

Who live in this building?

Who likes you very much?

Whom: (to which person)

E.g.: Whom do you want to vote this time?


Whom will you consult now?

Whom did you ask the address?

Whom should we meet in the meeting?

Whom do you like most?

Whom will you save from danger first- wife or mother?

Whom are you telling this?

Whom will the first prize go to?

Whose: (of which person)

E.g.: Whose advice do you take in problem?

Whose bag is lying here suspiciously?

Whose study material do you follow?

Whose help had you taken for the project?

Whose house is there in KBHP?

Whose mobile was lost at the party?

Whose voice is the sweetest one here?

Whose brother studies in KV?

Which:

E.g.: Which languages can you speak?

Which T’wood Actor do you like most?

Which company launched mobile service in India first?

Which movie are you watching?

Which newspaper do you read regularly?

On which platform will Padmavati Express come?

Which ice-cream should I eat?

Which hotel shall we go?

Which team do you play for?

Which is your children’s school?

How: (what…)

E.g.: How do you feel now?

How is your friend now?

How does your fiancé look like?

How can you type so fast without mistakes?

How do you work for so long time?

How did you come to know about this?

How was the climate in Simla last summer?

How did you guess that I was coming?

How does the machine work?


How did you learn English so quickly?

How much and How many: (What…)

How much is used to form questions of uncountable nouns like all liquids, all fine things like sand, sugar,

food grains, land, cloth, most grocery items etc. It takes singular noun and singular verb.

How many is used to form questions of countable nouns like, buses, buildings, people, books, cities,

feelings etc. It takes plural noun and plural verb.

How much E.g.: How much is your present CTC?

How much salary do you expect?

How much land does a man need?

How much cloth is required for sewing a shirt?

How much money did you lose in the business?

How much rent can you pay for a 2BHK flat?

How much does the service cost?

How much money will they ask?

How much sugar do you take in tea?

How much time will it take to make Dosa?

How much oil should I put in pickle?

How much hair is there on bald head?

How many E.g.: How many siblings do you have?

How many clothes will you wash today?

How many guests had come last evening?

How many flights take off from Hyderabad everyday?

How many times should I explain this to you?

How many times did you take the examination?

How many bricks a truck can carry?

How many T-shirts do you have?

How many theatres may be there in Hyderabad?

How many systems the lab has?

How many years passed since the independence?

How many flats are there in this building?

How +…: (What…)

You can also form questions by using How+ any of long, wide, deep, tall, far, large etc without using ‘much’.

E.g.: How tall / old are you? : Height

How long should I wait for you? : Time


How long will you shop? : Time

How long is a Tata bus? : Length

How wide is this road? : Width

How wide is the room? : Width

How deep is the well? : Depth

How deep is the water in tank bund? : Depth

How far is Dilsukhnagar from SR Nagar? : Distance

How far is your office from here? : Distance

How tall is the building Aditya Enclave? : Height

How high is the plane flying? : Height

How large was the ship Titanic? : Size

How heavy is this box? : Weight

How often do you see each other? : Frequency


ORDERS

Order is the third type of sentence. It is used when you want to tell someone to do something. It has a full stop (.) at

the end.

Orders are two types: 1. Order (or Command) and 2. Request.

Normally, orders begin with main verb (V1).

Orders have both positive and negative forms.

Positive Orders: V1+ …

E.g.: Think again.

Turn on / Put on / Switch on the fan.

Turn off / Put off / Switch off / Put out the light.

Put out college uniform and put on these trousers.

Wash these pants inside out and dry in shade.

Beware of pickpockets.

Come on guys, get into the car.

Fill up this form and sign at the end.

Tell me, what your problem is.

Come forward a bit and stand on the line.

Close the window and draw the bolt.

Turn off TV and listen to me.

Keep your phones on silent mode.

Look both ways before crossing the road.

Negative orders: Don’t+ V1+ …

Don’t worry about me.

Don’t come here again.

Don’t use pen-drives in lab systems.

Don’t leave the front door open.

Don’t bring those muddy shoes inside.

Don’t take your boss’s anger on your wife.

Never wipe your nose on shirt.

Never get disappointed.

Never bribe any government employee.

Never quarrel with your true friend.

Never cry in public place.

Never trust a stranger in journey.


Use of Let:

Let me think a while.

Let him study English first.

Don’t let minors in bar.

The shirt is still a bit wet, let it dry properly.

Let’s go to NTR garden this evening.

Let her parents choose her life partner.

Let’s understand simple present tense first.

Let them go to hell; I will do what I want.

Requests:

1. Please+ V1+ …

Please, do this work for me.

Please, forward this mail to all your friends.

Please, delete all the .txt files in My Documents.

Please, scratch the coupon to see the recharge number.

Please, try to understand me.

Please, don’t go away from me.

Please, do not walk on the grass.

Please, don’t laugh at the lame.

Please, do not respond this mail.

Don’t get angry dude, please.

2. Could you+ V1+ … / Would you+ V1+ …

Would / could you tell me about your previous job?

Would / could you show me your documents?

Could you pass me the salt and pepper, please?

Could you excuse us for a while?

Could you please bring me an R/W DVD?

Would you kindly draw the curtain?

Could you lend me your car tomorrow?

Could you staple these papers?

Could you knot the tie for me?

Could you start your laptop?

Could you mind my luggage while I get the ticket?

Could you hold this bag for a while?

Could you tell me where the post office is?

Could you send me your close-up photograph?



EXCLAMATIONS

Exclamation is the fourth kind of sentence. It is meant to express sudden feelings like love, happiness, joy wonder,

pity, fear, anger, sorrow etc. It has an exclamatory mark (!) at the end.

Exclamatory sentence is formed normally with any one word out of what and how.

The constructions for an exclamatory sentence are:

What+ a/ an+ adj+ noun+ …

How+ adj / adv+ noun+ …

E.g.: What a lovely garment!

What an excellent faculty Sanjeev is!

What a lovely nose she has!

What a big victory India recorded in T-20!

What a foolish guy!

What an impressive personality he possesses!

Ha! What a surprise you gave us!

Great! What a clever student!

Wow! What a nice beach!

What a great country Mauritius is!

What an idea Sirjee!

How exciting the game was!

How muddy Indian politics is!

How brave Indian Army is!

How crazily your friend behaved!

How cruelly the villain kills the child!

How cute your baby looks!

How dirty thoughts you have in your mind!

How quickly the days passed!

How cold your hands feel!

How fat you have grown!

How thin you have become!

Exclamations can also be formed with so/ such a/ such an:

My boss is so kind man!


I am so proud of my spouse!

You are so lazy to get up so late!

Jagdish is such a fantastic guy!

You know, my father is such a great man!

Cooking lemon rice is such a boring job!

Kasata ice-cream is so delicious in taste!

Chatting on phone is such wastage of time!

Oh! Rahul is such an idiot chap!

She is such a charming actress!

Shit! They are such rogues!

Mumbai is such a great city to work in!


NEGATIVE SENTENCESAs you have studied till now, sentences are of four kinds. Out of them statements, Orders and questions have both

positive and negative forms. Exclamations are normally not possible in negative form. A negative sentence contains

any word out of no, not, nothing, nowhere, never, none, no one, no body etc.

Abbreviations of Negative Forms of Helping Verbs

Helping Verb Abbreviation

am not aren’t

are not aren’t

can not can’t

could not couldn’t

did not didn’t

do not don’t

does not doesn’t

had not hadn’t

has not hasn’t

Helping Verb Abbreviation

have not haven’t

is not isn’t

may not mayn’t

must not mustn’t

shall not shan’t

should not shouldn’t

was not wasn’t

were not weren’t

will not won’t

Negative Statements

E.g.: I am not interested in jobs in Australia.

India is not a poor country.

He may not accept such offers.

But he should not miss the opportunity.

You should not be late to office.

I can not join before 30 days.

Many people cannot spell “Grammar” properly.

I don’t owe any money to you.

We do not provide SAP training.

Gold rates will not come down.

Negative Questions

E.g.: Are you not going to her wedding?

Have you not been to Ramoji Film City yet?

Don’t you know that he went to UK last month?

Don’t you like reading English fiction?

Wasn’t he present for your birthday party?

Can’t you keep quiet at least a moment?

Aren’t you ready yet? It’s already too late.

Don’t you have Rs. 1000/- change?


Don’t you see I am working?

Why didn’t you come yesterday?

Why don’t you join APEC for C and C++?

Who are not coming for the excursion?

Negative Orders

E.g.: Do not argue with your boss.

Don’t go out in the rain.

Don’t use office phone for personal calls.

Do not take right turn at Punjagutta Junction.

Don’t bend your credit /debit card.

Don’t cross police line.

Don’t start PC without UPS.

Now don’t say that I didn’t see anything.

Don’t eat so oily food; it’s not good for your health.

Don’t try to be too smart.

Don’t speak to each other in class.

Never watch TV very closely.

Never forget these two rules.

Don’t allow salespersons in the building.

Use of ‘NO’

No arguments, please.

She has no interest in Music channels.

They have no knowledge of programming languages.

I have no balance at the moment.

No parking. / No Horn. / No overtake.

Say NO to corruption.

Use of nobody, no one, none, nothing, never, nowhere etc

Nobody came forward to help us.

I can do nothing about this.

You never did anything for me.

No one could pass the examination.

I never spoke to him about this.

None of his children are obedient.

She never spoke whole-heartedly to me.

The thief had nothing to say.

They have gone nowhere since morning.

It’s none of your business.



HELPING VERBS

As you have studied earlier, Be, Have and Do are the basic helping verbs in English. Be is used to make continuous

tenses, have is used to make perfect tenses and do is used to make questions and negative sentences. However there

are still some other helping verbs in English. In grammar, they are called as Auxiliaries. Let’s study these verbs in

detail in this chapter.

Auxiliaries are: can, could, should, would, might, may, must, have to, dare, need to etc.

These verbs show ability, possibility, permission etc.

They modify the meaning of main verbs, normally, without changing the tense.

They have multiple meanings.

They take the root form of the main verb (V1).

They are not used as main verbs.

See these examples:

He goes to office on bike.

He is going to office on bike.

He was going to office on bike.

He has gone to office on bike.

He can go to office on bike.

He should go to office on bike.

He may go to office on bike.

He has to go to office on bike.

Can + V1:

USAGE: To show 1. Ability, 2. Possibility, 3. To give Permission, 4. To ask permission

E.g.: 1. Dhoni can play for at least 10 years more.

Mr. Rajshekhar can work very well on Linux platform.

Can you see what is written on the board?

How long can you hold your breath?

If you try, you can speak in English.

Farmers in Andhra Pradesh can use Kisan Credit Card.

2. It’s thundering it can rain now.

Smoking can cause cancer.

You can’t create a file or folder CON in windows.

Can you smell anything burning?

3. You can use my PC, if you wish so.

You can call me on my Idea number.


4. Can I borrow your bike?

Can I sit in reception to fill in the form?

Can students come on Sunday for extra practicals?

Could + V1:

USAGE: 1. Past tense of can 2. Polite form to make request 3. Used instead of can in informal English

E.g.: 1. I could climb tall trees when I was a child.

She could read without specs until before two years.

We could not reach on time.

2. Could you get me a colour print of this document?

Could you help me finish this job-work?

Could you show me your ID card?

Could you kindly come tomorrow?

Could you lend me 10,000 bucks, please?

3. You could bathe at least once in a week.

India could still win the series.

Will be able to + V1:

USAGE: Future tense of can.

E.g.: I will be able to speak English by this course.

Computer will be able to think in future.

The baby will be able to walk very soon.

India will be able to beat china by 2020.

Should + V1:

USAGE: To show a moral responsibility, advice, to suggest something

E.g.: You should help old people cross the road.

You should practice LSRW to learn English.

Government should help poor people.

I should take your leave now.

You should be ashamed of yourself.

Should we leave now?

You should always tell the truth.

HR people should take some rest now.

Where should we meet tomorrow?

Should we go to any specialist for check-up?

Would + V1:

USAGE: 1. To make request, 2. Past tense of ‘will’, 3. To show past habit, 4. Replaces ‘will’ in informal English

E.g.: 1. Would you (please) open the door?


Would you kindly help me with dinner?

Would you come for a walk?

Would you allow me to speak to the manager?

2. I Know India will win. I Knew India would win.

I knew he would not get the job.

I had no doubt that India would win.

We hadn’t thought that English would be so easy.

3. He would study till late night when in school.

They would use mobiles only for incoming calls.

4. I would love to work in Pune.

He would never betray us.

May / might + V1:

USAGE: 1. To Show possibility, 2. to ask/ give permission, 3. to show desire/ wish

E.g.: 1. General Manager may know the reason.

We may be late a bit to the programme.

Be ready, guests may come at any moment.

PC prices may still come down.

Rice production may be less this year.

2. May I come in, Sir?

If you don’t mind, may I use your laptop?

May I join from March 1st?

May I go out with her, mom?

May I have your attention, please?

Readers may borrow only one book at a time.

Citizens below 18 may not vote.

You may go now.

3. (May) God save you!

(May) God favour you!

(May) god protect you!

May you prosper / succeed!

May my child be safe at home!

May you live as long as you want, may have no want as long as you live!

Must + V1:

USAGE: 1. to show compulsion, 2. to show strong Possibility

E.g.: 1. You must start immediately.


Your goals must be SMART to succeed in life.

Young generation must look after their health.

Patient must take the medicine twice a day.

Passengers must travel with proper ticket.

Everybody must follow traffic rules.

You must not allow latecomers in the class.

2. It must be raining in Andhra now.

The lazy guy must be sleeping.

She must be at home, go soon.

Have to + V1:

USAGE: To show a plan, duty, scheduled work, etc.

E.g.: You have to study everyday.

Salesman has to complete his target.

India have to progress in the next 12 years.

Faculties have to reach office before 8o’clock.

Animals have to find their food throughout their life.

Nikita had to do a lot of work the next week.

Need to + V1, Need not + V1:

USAGE: To show a necessity/ no necessity

You need to speak in English as much as possible.

You need to wash your teeth twice a day.

You need to study at home to benefit from this course.

Wrinkle-free clothes need not be pressed.

You need not come to office on Sunday.

Plastic painted walls need not be re-painted every year.

Dare:

Dare not + V1:

E.g.: The thief dared not open his mouth before police.

She dared not speak to her angry father.

The failed student dared not meet his teacher.

Good people dare not tell lies.

How dare + S + V1:

E.g.: How dared you think so dirty?

How dare they break the law?

How dared you even touch my bike?

How dare you enter my class without permission?



PASSIVE VOICE

You must have learnt Active voice and Passive voice in your school and college. You also might have

come across a question like Change the voice of the following:

Pooja ate a mango. (Active Voice)

A mango was eaten by Pooja. (Passive Voice)

Consider the following sentences. These are real life examples. Can you identify and change their voice?

A. Computer books are sold here.

B. A fly over is being constructed at Mehdipatnam.

C. Ten people were killed in the blast.

D. The Bharatratna Award was given by the President.

You must know that active voice and passive voice are different forms, have different usage and should not

be transformed into each other. Passive voice is used only in the following situations:

1) When subject is not important - E.g.: A.

2) When subject is known to the listening - E.g.: B.

3) When subject is not known - E.g.: C.

4) Sometimes subject also appears in the passive sentences as a less important entity. - E.g.: D.

Passive voice Constructions:

Tense Construction for Statement Example

Simple present O+ am/is/are+ V3 Books are sold here.

Simple past O+ was/were+ V3 Books were sold here.

Simple future O+ will be+ V3 Books will be sold here.

Present continuous O+ am/is/are+ being+ V3 Books are being sold here.

Past continuous O+ was/were+ being+ V3 Books were being sold here.

Present perfect O+ has/have+ been+ V3 Books have been sold here.

Past perfect O+ had been+ V3 Books had been sold here.

E.g.: The match was cancelled due to rain.

Today’s match will be played day night.

These plants need to be watered regularly.

Injured people were shifted to the hospital.

The culprit was punished with life- time imprisonment.

Java language was invented by Gosling in 1990’s.

The kidnapped child was brutally beaten up.

Cucumbers are usually eaten raw.

150 guests have been invited for the programme.

The amount will be deposited in a couple of days.


English is spoken all over the world.

Your plan is good but it should be materialized.

These rules should be followed without fail.

On which finger is a ring worn?

Mr. Vaswani is considered to be a great orator.

The lion is called as the King of jungle.

Most railway lines in SCR have been electrified.

Has every relative been informed?

Nothing can be done now.

When was this well dug?

The thieves were caught red-handed.

Has your bag been stolen?

The mansion will be auctioned soon.

Boys should be taught manners right since their childhood.

Girls should be taught cooking right since their childhood.


USAGE

Important Constructions

Following are some of the most useful constructions commonly used in spoken English.

Want to+ V1

E.g.: I want to learn fluent English..

They want

Feel like + Ving (want to, shows liking)

E.g.: I feel like eating ice-cream in hot summer.

I really felt like sleeping in the lecture.

The girl felt like vomiting in R.T.C bus.

I just don’t feel like going Koti through endless traffic.

Do you feel like drinking coffee?

Does he feel like watching cinema?

Would like to+ V1 (want to, shows liking)

E.g.: I would like to speak to you face-to-face.

We would like to thank all of you.

Hyderabadi people would always like to eat Biryani.

She would like to marry software professional.

I would like to show you my new car.

Very few people would like to work on Sundays.

I would not like sugar in coffee.

I would like a window seat.

Shirisha would like to shop at big Bazaar.

Would you like to come for a walk?

Would like to try on these jeans?

Would you like ice in your juice?

Would anyone like some ice-cream?

Would you like to have some more curd?

Be going to+ V1 (shows future plan)

E.g.: Mr. Reddy is going to buy Sumo Grande.

Mr. Rao is going to tile the kitchen.

Soni is going to have a baby next month.

I am going to invest in gold.

They are going to erect P.V. Narsimha Rao’s statue.

The sun was going to set.


How long are you going to be in bed?

Chiranjeevi is not going to act in cinema anymore.

Used To (would, shows past habit)

E.g.: I used to work out in gym for three hours.

I used to like mathematics at school.

They used to chat in college till evening.

Ravi used to work in London at that time.

Raghu used to study for hours in his room.

Many celebrities used to visit the hotel.

Do you think + statement (to ask opinion)

Do you think India will win the next world cup?

Do you think you will get promotion this time?

What do you think is the reason of your success?

Where do you think Prabhakaran might have gone?

Why do you think china progressed more than India?

Does he think he will get through the examination?

If clauses (conditional situations)

1) If + present tense, present tense- to show universal result

2) If + simple present tense, simple future tense- to show future possible result

3) If + past perfect tense + would / could etc- to show past impossible result

If you study, you will pass.

If you do this work, I will give you 1000 Rs.

If the rain continues, we will not be able to go out.

Please let me know, if you come across any problem.

I am extremely sorry, if I have offended you.

If the project goes late, we will have to pay the penalty.

If I stop working, I would die early.

If you don’t like her, why do you speak to her?

If you move along a bit, I could sit here.

If he respects me, I will respect him.

Any sentence + Wh word + statement

I don’t recall where I kept the keys yesterday.

The trainer will explain you how to use this courseware.

I just don’t understand how that crazy gal got such handsome husband.

Could you explain me how to use this tool?

Who are you to teach me what should I do?

Do you know what she is doing at this moment?


Do you understand what you are doing?

S+ need to+ V1 (shows necessity)

Software people need to work harder.

You need to get your hair cut timely.

The project needs to be started as early as possible.

You need to read the book thoroughly.

You don’t need to raise your voice.

An MBA needs to have good communication skills.

One needs to think before speaking.

V+ and+ V (Two verbs)

I will go and meet him this week.

Wet a cloth and wipe out these stains.

The Orator cleared his throat and began to speak.

Shall we stop here and have meal?

Go and get me a cold drink, quickly.

The thieves got on the bike and zoomed off.

In India, the academic year starts in June and ends in April.

I will just go and get some sweets.

Work for five days and enjoy for two days.

Direct and Indirect object (two objects in a sentence)

The host presented a bouquet to the guest.

My wife has knit me this sweater.

She prepared me steaming tea.

I owe you 50,000 Rs. / I owe 50,000 Rs. to you.

We greeted our M. D. with a garland.

It’s just you who can teach English to yourself.

They served food to the devotees.

Present your mother with a sari from your first salary.

Please bring me some dry fruits while coming home.

Question Tag: (Used to enforce the statement)

Positive sentence + negative Tag +?

Negative sentence + positive Tag +?

Pavan got a very handsome salary, didn’t he?

Anu does a lot of work everyday, doesn’t she?

Soni went to college in the morning, didn’t she?

Indians work very honestly, don’t they?

Our M. D. doesn’t like indiscipline, does he?


The candidate has a great expertise in Tally, hasn’t she?

He was an able administrator, wasn’t he?

Your cousin is in the US now-a-days isn’t he?

The march 3rd is Monday, isn’t it?

He really surprised us all, didn’t he?

Mr. Dasharath is an expert faculty for H&N, isn’t he?

They are not able to speak fluent English, are they?

The new ESPD batch will start on the next Monday, won’t it?

Let’s have grand celebration for your new venture, shall we?

There + be (shows state/ condition / situation)

Is there any book shop nearby?

~Yeah, there is one under Punjagutta flyover.

There is no need to worry about it.

Long long ago, there was a wood cutter.

There is a free atmosphere at my office.

Is there a direct flight from London to Hyderabad?

There are four major political parties in A.P

There are a lot of harmful effects of T.V.

It + be (Shows condition/ situation)

It is quite easy to learn English in India.

It was plain foolishness to consult a stock market expert.

It’s boring to do the same task again and again.

It’s not fair to blame marketing team for everything.

It is dangerous to go alone to ATM at midnight.

Is it possible to prove this?

It is no use just to feel sorry, you need to do something.

It will be difficult to reach Bangalore in eight hours.

It +take + person + adj + to + V1 (Shows Requirement)

It takes some time to understand each other.

It took him eight years to complete degree.

It will take years to build a brand like APEC.

It takes twenty minutes for me to go to Ameerpet.

It won’t take much time to download this file.

How long will it take to complete the project?

It took five hours to clear the traffic.

Normally it takes a year for a PR visa in Canada.

Also see:


The house took two years to be ready.

Chaitali will take hours to prepare a single cup of tea.

It is time to +V (shows urgency)

Well, friends, it’s time to leave now.

Come on guys, its time for the class to start.

Be serious, its time to think.

Stop nonsense, is it time to laugh?

It’s time (that) you joined gym.

It’s high time you take UPSC Examination.

Its time we stop a while and have tea and snacks.

It is time for luncheon.

It is time for practicals.

It was time for making merry.

Past tense + when + past tense

I was just sitting down for lunch when the bell rang.

I was just phoning you when your phone came.

She was just crossing the road when the bus came.

The cinema had just started when the projector broke down.

We were just about to leave when they arrived.

S + be bound to +V1 ()

All living being are bound to die.

You are bound to feel weak after an illness.

We all are bound to help human kind.

They were bound to marry, sooner or later.

You are bound to fail again, if you don’t prepare properly.

Be, Have and Do as main verbs

As you saw earlier, be, have and do are very important verbs in English. They are used both as helping

verbs and as main verbs. In this section they are discussed as main verbs. See the table on pages 5 and 6 for usage.

Be: (Forms: am, is are; was, were; will be; been; be) Shows state/ condition / situation

We are human beings, not machines.

My sister is about your age.

Delhi is the capital of India.

Man is helpless in the world.

Woman is the second mistake of god…

…Man is the statue of mistakes.

Paddy crop is quite good this year.

You two are a pair of idiots.


The world’s population is six billion.

The road was full of potholes and stones.

The ESPD course will be a grand success.

This is your problem, not mine.

She is a charming young girl.

Is this bowl silver? ~ No, it’s platinum.

These flowers are not real, they are plastic.

Will five hundred Rs. be enough for your expenditure?

What is Telugu word for ‘table’?

Is this table teak? ~Yeah, it is.

What is this swelling on your arm?

C.M. is the chief of the government in state.

These mangoes are raw, not ripe.

Why some people are always sad?

Such occasions are very rare.

His resume was not so attractive.

Have (Forms: have, has; had): possess, take, get, eat, drink, consume etc

A car has four wheels, a bike has two.

A mobile number has ten digits.

We have a five day week.

Many young people have high blood pressure.

I have no money at the moment.

Do you have the courage to go alone there?

Does your bike have five gears?

Does anybody have AirTel phone here?

You should have the courage to say ‘no’.

The government has no funds at present.

I have just had tea.

She had a baby on February 10.

We had a lot of fun during the journey.

My uncle had a surgery last month.

He is having bath.

He had an impressive personality.

Our cat has very beautiful eyes.

He has a very low voice.

Kal has very sweet nature.

We have very troublesome neighbours.


She has oily skin; he has dry.

I have confidence, the plan will be successful.

The manager had no time till Saturday.

Have faith in God, everything will be fine.

Have fun / Have chilling out / Have enjoyment.

Have some more biscuits please.

Do (Forms: do, does; did)

Do the new.

How do you do? ~ I am (doing) fine.

Just do it, dude!

Well when will you do the work?

Don’t worry, I will do everything.

You need to do all the front-office work.

Whatever you do, do it with confidence.

Do your work properly.

All faculties did a lot of work.

IT professional do at least 40 hours work a week.

Time, Day and Date

The words, which show time, day, date, month, year, come at the end of the sentence.

The preposition at is used for time. E.g.: at 8 o’clock

The preposition on is used for day and date. E.g.: on Monday, on November 22nd

The preposition in is used for week, month and year. E.g.: in January, in 2002,

To ask Time: What is the time (now)? / What time is it (now)? / Time please. / Do you have the time?

To tell time: Its 10 o’ clock. (10:00)

It’s 20 past five. (5:20)

It’s quarter to six. (5:45)

It’s quarter past eleven. (11:15)

It’s half past four. (4:30)

It’s five (minutes) to ten (9:55)

E.g.: Padmavati Express will arrive at 9.30am.

The party will be held at 8 pm.

I came home at 10.30 pm yesterday.

They spoke to the CM at 5 o’clock.

She will reach there by 11.45 am.

He starts for office at 8.30 everyday.


He will arrive here this evening / this after noon / tonight.

She started for Mumbai last evening / last night / yesterday.

Today: this morning, this afternoon, this evening, to night

Yesterday: yesterday morning, yesterday afternoon, last evening, last night

Tomorrow: tomorrow morning, tomorrow afternoon, tomorrow evening, tomorrow night

General: In the morning, in the afternoon, in the evening, at night

Other: early morning, late morning, late night, midnight

The day before yesterday, the day after tomorrow

This Sunday, last Sunday, next Friday, next week, last month, this year

What is the day? / What is the date today?

It’s Monday today. / It’s Feb. 23rd today.

It’s Sunday on March 1st.

The wedding will be on, Tuesday, May 11th, 2009.

Since, for, from:

Since is used to show time from a certain point.

For is used to show a duration of time.

From is used with ‘to’ to show time and distance.

From is used to show distance.

E.g.: I have been training in ESPD since 2000.

They are living in Hyderabad since they married.

She is not feeling well for five days.

L. K. Advani is active in politics for over 40 years.

You need to stay here from 8 am to 4 pm.

He travelled from Hyderabad to Delhi on bicycle.

Rajnikant the great Tamil actor hails from Maharashtra.

Some Important Words:

Get: (listen, take, give, receive, wake, reach, enter, be etc )

When did you get this news?


I have to get the children ready for school.

She got a telephone call from her mother this morning.

Your tea is getting cold.

You will get well soon.

I can’t get lid off this bottle.

My puppy has got a cold and fever.

Aren’t you getting tired of driving?

Usually, I get up at five o’ clock.

Don’t worry; we will get home by 6 pm.

Go: (be, become, run, work etc)

Philosophers ask where the humanity is going.

Somehow, the car started going.

What went wrong where?

The swelling will go down in a couple of days.

The political procession went off peacefully.

What is going on?

Eat these guavas before they go rotten.

I think he has gone mad.

We can’t go on sitting hand on hand.

Where the hell has my cell gone?

Do: (be, make, run, tolerate etc)

How do you do? / How are you doing? / How are you?

I am doing fine.

These clothes will do. This watch will not do.

Indiscipline strictly won’t do here.

I can’t do with his arrogance any more.

Can’t you do this sentence into English?

Point: (meaning, issue, edge etc)

I see no point in continuing this.

There is no point in waiting for him.

There is no point in arguing about it.

What is the point in arguing about it?

This is the main point of our discussion.

The world is on the point of destruction.

Run: (go, operate, run, work etc)


Leave the engine running for a while.

The railway track runs along the river.

Trains used to run on coal before.

Do you know how to run this machine?

His nose is running.

I have run out of money.

The water is running over, turn the tap off.

Set: (give, make, do, open, start, establish etc)

Elders should set a good example for the youngsters.

The date for the meeting hasn’t been set yet.

The sun sets in the west.

I set my watch on TV time.

Bindra has set a big record in Olympics.

Four partners have set up the organization.

IMPORTANT EXPRESSIONS

Following pages are for self study.

Following are some of the common expressions used in formal English.

These should be practised and mastered by the student.

Students need not consult the trainer for this chapter.

COULD I …..

Could I know your name please?

Could I have your card?

Could I know where you are working?

Could I introduce Mr. Arvind to you?

Could I ask you something personal?

WOULD YOU LIKE TO …..

Would you like to meet Mr. Arvind?

Would you like to have some coffee?

Would you like to join us for dinner?

Would you like to speak to the group?

Would you like to become a member here?

I WOULD LIKE TO ….

I would like to introduce myself.

I would like to ask you some questions.

I would like to meet Mr. Agarwal.

I would like to have your card.

I would like to visit your office once.

IT IS NICE …..

It is nice meeting you.

It is nice having you with us.

It is nice talking to you.

It is nice seeing you again.

It is nice meeting such a talented person like you.

HAVE YOU BEEN TO ….

Have you been to Delhi?

Have you been abroad?

Have you been to the US?

Have you been to the beach here?

Have you been to Agra?

YES, I’VE BEEN TO …..

Yes, I’ve been to Delhi.

Yes, I’ve been abroad.

Yes, I’ve been to the US.

Yes, I’ve been to the beach here.

NO, I’VE NOT BEEN TO …..

No, I‘ve not been to Delhi.

No, I’ve not been abroad.

No, I’ve not been to the US.

No, I’ve not been to the beach here.

HAVE YOU MET ……

Have you met Mr. Reddy? He is our Manager.

Have you met Ms Sheeba? She is the correspondent.

Have you met Mr. Dhabolkar? He is the President.

Have met Mr. Ashok? He is our Regional Manager.

Have you met Mrs. Joshi? She is the Secretary.

LET ME INTRODUCE ……….

Let me introduce Mr. Joshi to you.

Let me introduce Miss Mary to you.

Let me introduce Mr. Mehta to you.

Let me introduce Ms Sheela to you.

Let me introduce Mr. Dixit to you.

LET ME TAKE LEAVE OF YOU……

Let me take leave of you. See you then.

Let me take leave of you. Till then; good bye.

Let me take leave of you. It was pleasure talking to you.

Let me take leave of you. Glad to have met you.

WHAT TIME ……..

What time do you have your breakfast?

What time does he return?

What time do you leave for work?

What time does the train arrive?

What time does the meeting start?

HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE …….

How long does it take for you to do this work?

How long does it take to learn English?

How long does it take to paint this?

How long does it take to get there?

How long does it take to get there by bus?

HOW OFTEN ……

How often do you go to your native town?

How often do you go on tours?

How often does he call you up?

How often do you send your bike for servicing?

How often does she come here?

WHERE DO YOU ……

Where do you park your vehicle?

Where do you buy vegetables?

Where do you service your bike?

Where do you make your clothes?

Where do you board the train?

HOW DO YOU …..

How do you solve this problem?

How do you go to work?

How do you manage him?

How do you get along with him?

How do you convince her?

I WOULD RATHER ….

I would rather settle down in my village.

I would rather have some coffee please.

I would rather have a soft drink please.

I would rather take up the US offer.

I would rather wait and meet him than come again.

I LOVE ….

I love this place.

I love reading books.

I love playing in the rain.

I love listening to old melodies.

I love speaking English.

ARE YOU INTERESTED….

Are you interested in this job?

Are you interested in meeting him?

Are you interested in politics?

Are you interested in joining the army?

Are you interested in buying the plot?

I GO TO …..

I go to temple on Fridays.

I go to my native town occasionally.

I go to his house rarely.

I go to Tirupathy once a month.

I go to the head office once in a way.

WHAT’S SPECIAL …..

What’s special about your home town?

What’s special about your nature of work?

What’s special about the programme?

What’s special about the meeting today?

What’s special about today’s speaker?

COULD YOU TELL ME ….

Could you tell me where the post office is?

Could you tell me what time the function starts?

Could you tell me what time the train arrives?

Could you tell me on which platform is the Dadar express?

Could you tell me from which platform the Dadar leaves?

AT WHAT TIME ……

At what time is the meeting?

At what time is the interview?

At what time is the programme?

At what time is the next bus?

At what time is the last bus to Gandhi Nagar?

IT IS GOOD ….

It is good you told the truth.

It is good you have joined NDA.

It is good you sent him the telegram.

It is good we did not pay him in cash.

It is good you said ‘no’ to their offer.

WHAT YOU HAVE TO DO IS TO ……

What you have to do is to practice.

What you have to do is to keep quiet and listen.

What you have to do is to read a lot.

What you have to do is to wait, collect the cheque and come.

What you have to do is to meet the GM personally.

ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS TO …..

All you have to do is to meet him in person.

All you have to do is to give your name and address.

All you have to do is to just sign the documents.

All you have to do is to send a cheque and clear the dues.

All you have to do is to hand over this letter and come.

DO YOU HAVE ……

Do you have any money to spare?

Do you have any books to read?

Do you have anything to say?

Do you have any doubts?

Do you have any problem?

HAVE YOU GOT ….

Have you got any change?

Have you got office tomorrow?

Have you got time to do this?

Have you got any spare tickets?

Have you got a one rupee coin?

DON’T YOU HAVE …..

Don’t you have office today?

Don’t you have your certificates with you?

Don’t you have a license?

Don’t you have a TV at home?

Don’t you have a vehicle?

I HAVE ….

I have office tomorrow.

I have no change.

I have a lot of time to spare.

I have some one-rupee coins.

I have two vehicles.

I DON’T HAVE ….

I don’t have any objection.

I don’t have any change.

I don’t have time to do that.

I don’t have any vehicles.

I don’t have anything to say.

THERE IS NOTHING WRONG IN …..

There is nothing wrong in your meeting him in person.

There is nothing wrong in explaining your position.

There is nothing wrong in asking them for help.

There is nothing wrong in speaking frankly on this matter.

There is nothing wrong in reporting the matter to the police.

I AM GOING TO …..

I am going to start a business.

I am going to attend the meeting.

I am going to ask them for clarification.

I am going to sell my bike.

I am going to take up the job.

I AM NOT GOING TO ……

I am not going to cancel the programme.

I am not going to wait for their return.

I am not going to spare them.

I am not going to reveal it to anybody.

I am not going to pay the money back.

I am not going to accept their conditions.

ARE YOU GOING TO ….

Are you going to contact them in person?

Are you going to apply for the job?

Are you going to contest the election?

Are you going to marry her?

Are you going to consult your parents about this?

WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO ….

What are you going to do further?

What are you going to do about the matter?

What are you going to do about the money?

What are you going to do about your studies?

What are you going to do about your admission?

HOW ARE YOU GOING TO …..

How are you going to manage?

How are you going to convince her?

How are you going to tackle the problem?

How are you going to repay the loan?

How are you going to send it?

IT WAS NOT SO EASY AS …..

It was not so easy as I thought.

It was not so easy as you said.

It was not so easy as you told me.

It was not so easy as I imagined.

It was not so easy as I expected.

IT’S HIGH TIME …..

It’s high time you got married.

It’s high time you settled down.

It’s high time started the production.

It’s high time you took up some job.

It’s high time you put your child in some school.

HAVE YOU EVER ….

Have you ever been to Delhi?

Have you ever seen a movie shooting?

Have you ever heard of man biting a dog?

Have you ever traveled by air?

Have your ever tasted this?

IN SPITE OF ….

In spite of my advice, he resigned his job.

In spite of heavy rains, we are facing water scarcity.

In spite of his best efforts, he failed.

In spite of the disturbance, the speaker continued with his speech.

In spite of a good harvest, there is food shortage.

IN SPITE OF BEING ……

In spite of being rich, he is not happy.

In spite of being a stranger, he was able to guide us.

In spite of being alone, she is not afraid.

In spite of being jobless, he spends a lot of money.

In spite of being busy, he has given us an appointment.

IN SPITE OF …..

In spite of getting up early, I was late for work.

In spite of explaining to my boss, I did not get permission.

In spite of doing physical exercise for 6 months, I have not been able to reduce my weight.

In spite of driving carefully, he met with an accident.

In spite of drinking a lot, he remained sober.

I HEAR …..

I hear that you are getting married.

I hear that there are no buses tomorrow.

I hear she is going abroad.

I hear that they are issuing new ID cards.

I hear he has joined the college.

I DOUBT ….

I doubt if she will come.

I doubt if he is in town.

I doubt if we will get good rains this year.

I doubt if he will pass.

I doubt if he will get that job.

I AGREE (THAT) ….

I agree (that) I am not that intelligent.

I agree (that) he is a genius.

I agree (that) I have made a mistake.

I agree (that) I didn’t notice you.

I agree (that) your views are right.

I WONDER ….

I wonder where he is now.

I wonder how he got the job.

I wonder how he became so rich.

I wonder why he married her.

I wonder how he got admission to the Medical College.

I DON’T DENY (THAT) ….

I don’t deny (that) I lead a bad life.

I don’t deny (that) I made a mistake.

I don’t deny (that) I owe you money.

I don’t deny (that) I kept the door open.

I don’t deny (that) I didn’t invite them.

I DON’T REMEMBER ….

I don’t remember where I kept the file.

I don’t remember where I met him.

I don’t remember when I met him last.

I don’t remember who came here yesterday.

I don’t remember why I called you in.

IT IS NO USE …

It is no use crying now.

It is no use going there.

It is no use warning him now.

It is no use advising him.

It is no use arguing with him.

I AM NOT SURE ….

I am not sure the shop would be open.

I am not sure he would have so much money.

I am not sure they would help you.

I am not sure she would come today.

I am not sure that he came here yesterday.

I DON’T THINK …..

I don’t think he will come.

I don’t think she will get her visa.

I don’t think there would be a war.

I don’t think he is a doctor.

I don’t think he is clever.

I DON’T MIND ….

I don’t mind your going there.

I don’t mind his getting married out of his caste.

I don’t mind if you leave now.

I don’t mind your staying here late.

I don’t mind your asking questions.

I DON’T CARE ….

I don’t care what happens to him.

I don’t care whether they lose or win.

I don’t care how he is or where he is.

I don’t care whether you do it or not.

I don’t care whether she is employed or not.

WHAT I WANT TO KNOW IS …..

What I want to know is where the money has gone.

What I want to know is who did this.

What I want to know is what happened to the sweets kept here.

What I want to know is what you were doing here in my room.

What I want to know is whether you are coming or not.

WHAT I WANT TO TELL YOU IS …..

What I want to tell you is you must be careful with him.

What I want to tell you is you must meet him in person.

What I want to tell you is there is no meeting tomorrow.

What I want to tell you is the cheque has bounced.

What I want to tell you is Sheela is not with him now.

WHAT YOU HAVE TO DO IS TO ….

What you have to do is to practice.

What you have to do is to keep quiet and listen.

What you have to do is to read a lot.

What you have to do is to wait, collect the cheque and come.

What you have to do is to get his signature.

ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS TO …….

All you have to do is to speak to him.

All you have to do is to give your name and address.

All you have to do is to smile and say ‘Theek hai’.

All you have to do is to just sign the document.

All you have to do is to keep quiet.

THAT IS WHAT I WANTED YOU TO …..

That is what I wanted you to do.

That is what I wanted you to speak.

That is what I wanted you to give.

That is what I wanted you to write.

That is what I wanted you to see.

WHAT I WANT YOU TO KNOW IS …..

What I want you to know is we are here to help.

What I want you to know is we are in the same boat.

What I want you to know is he is still alive.

What I want you to know is he is your distant cousin.

What I want you to know is you are wrong.

ASK HIM / HER / THEM WHETHER …..

Ask him whether he is coming.

Ask him whether they are interested.

Ask him whether they know anything about the matter.

Ask her whether they have sent the cheque.

Ask him whether she has left.

I JUST WANTED KNOW ….

I just wanted to know if you are there.

I just wanted to know if she has left.

I just wanted to know if you are aware of it.

I just wanted to know if you have posted it.

I just wanted to know if you are available.

LET’S FIND OUT WHETHER ….

Let’s find out whether they have sent the cheque.

Let’s find out whether she is really busy.

Let’s find out whether they have disclosed the matter.

Let’s find out whether the results are announced.

Let’s find out whether she knows about it.

WHAT MATTERS NOW IS …..

What matters now is the money that is spent.

What matters now is the standard of education.

What matters now is our prestige.

What matters now is our policy, our style.

What matters now is our name, not the business.

NO MATTER ….

No matter who, say I am not available.

No matter who, there are no concessions.

No matter what, bring them up.

No matter what, keep your mouth shut.

No matter who, rules are rules.

I FIND IT DIFFICULT TO …..

I find difficult to breathe.

I find difficult to speak on stage.

I find difficult to understand his language.

I find difficult to walk all the way from the station.

I find difficult to open the box.

I DON’T FIND IT DIFFICULT TO …..

I don’t find it difficult to understand your writing.

I don’t find it difficult to work with him.

I don’t find it difficult to speak English now.

I don’t find it difficult to move with him.

I don’t find it difficult to get up early in the morning.

DO YOU FIND IT DIFFICULT TO …..

Do you find it difficult to understand my language?

Do you find it difficult to sit here for 2 hours?

Do you find it difficult to come by bus?

Do you find it difficult to convince her?

Do you find it difficult to work in the branch office?

Do you find it difficult to read my handwriting?

FIND OUT …

Find out whether they are there.

Find out whether the manager has come.

Find out whether the bank is open.

Find out whether they are issuing the cards today.

Find out whether he knows about the matter.

HOW DO YOU FIND …

How do you find your new house?

How do you find your new job?

How do you find life here in Kolkata?

How do you find the course you have joined?

How do you find your new boss?

Education

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