English Grammar Reference and Exercises

English Tenses – Overview

Table of English Tenses

Diagram of all Tenses

Example Sentences for all Tenses

English Tenses Active

Pool of Exercises

Irregular Verbs

Simple Present (Present Simple)

Present Progressive / Continuous

Simple Past (Past Simple)

Past Progressive / Continuous

Present Perfect Simple

Present Perfect Progressive / Continuous

Past Perfect Simple

Past Perfect Progressive / Continuous

Future I Simple (will)

Future I Simple (going to)

Future I Progressive / Continuous

Future II Simple

Future II Progressive / Continuous

Conditional and Subjunctive

Conditional I Simple

Conditional I Progressive / Continuous

Conditional II Simple

Conditional II Progressive / Continuous

Subjunctive

All other Grammar Topics

Adjectives, Adverbs (Formation, Comparison)

Auxiliary Verbs

Modal Verbs

If-Clauses (Conditional Clauses/Sentences)

Infinitive, Gerund

Nouns (incl. Articles, Plural and Possessive Forms)

Passive Voice

Participles

Phrasal Verbs

Prepositions

Pronouns

Question Tags

Relative Clauses

Reported Speech

Short Answers

Word Order (Sentence Structure)

Confusing Tenses

Simple Present – Present Progressive

Simple Present – Present Perfect Progressive

Present Perfect Simple – Present Perfect Progressive

Simple Past – Past Progressive

Simple Past – Present Perfect Simple

Simple Past – Past Perfect Simple

Future Mix (going to, will, Simple Present, Present Progressive)

Passive Voice

Use of Passive

Passive voice is used when the focus is on the action. It is not important or not known, however, who or what is performing the action.

Example: My bike was stolen.

In the example above, the focus is on the fact that my bike was stolen. I do not know, however, who did it.

Sometimes a statement in passive is more polite than active voice, as the following example shows:

Example: A mistake was made.

In this case, I focus on the fact that a mistake was made, but I do not blame anyone (e.g. You have made a mistake.).

Form of Passive

Subject + finite form of to be + Past Participle (3rd column of irregular verbs)

Example: A letter was written.

When rewriting active sentences in passive voice, note the following:

• the object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence
• the finite form of the verb is changed (to be + past participle)
• the subject of the active sentence becomes the object of the passive sentence (or is dropped)

Examples of Passive 

Tense		Subject	Verb	Object
Simple Present	Active:	Rita	writes	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	is written	by Rita.
Simple Past	Active:	Rita	wrote	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	was written	by Rita.
Present Perfect	Active:	Rita	has written	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	has been written	by Rita.
Future I	Active:	Rita	will write	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	will be written	by Rita.
Hilfsverben	Active:	Rita	can write	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	can be written	by Rita.

Examples of Passive 

Tense		Subject	Verb	Object
Present Progressive	Active:	Rita	is writing	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	is being written	by Rita.
Past Progressive	Active:	Rita	was writing	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	was being written	by Rita.
Past Perfect	Active:	Rita	had written	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	had been written	by Rita.
Future II	Active:	Rita	will have written	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	will have been written	by Rita.
Conditional I	Active:	Rita	would write	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	would be written	by Rita.
Conditional II	Active:	Rita	would have written	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	would have been written	by Rita.

Passive Sentences with Two Objects 

Rewriting an active sentence with two objects in passive voice means that one of the two objects becomes the subject, the other one remains an object. Which object to transform into a subject depends on what you want to put the focus on.

	Subject	Verb	Object 1	Object 2
Active:	Rita	wrote	a letter	to me.
Passive:	A letter	was written	to me	by Rita.
Passive:	I	was written	a letter	by Rita.

.

As you can see in the examples, adding by Rita does not sound very elegant. That’s why it is usually dropped.

Personal and Impersonal Passive

Personal Passive simply means that the object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence. So every verb that needs an object (transitive verb) can form a personal passive.

Example: They build houses. – Houses are built.

Verbs without an object (intransitive verb) normally cannot form a personal passive sentence (as there is no object that can become the subject of the passive sentence). If you want to use an intransitive verb in passive voice, you need an impersonal construction – therefore this passive is called Impersonal Passive.

Example: he says – it is said

Impersonal Passive is not as common in English as in some other languages (e.g. German, Latin). In English, Impersonal Passive is only possible with verbs of perception (e. g. say, think, know).

Example: They say that women live longer than men. – It is said that women live longer than men.

Although Impersonal Passive is possible here, Personal Passive is more common.

Example: They say that women live longer than men. – Women are said to live longer than men.

The subject of the subordinate clause (women) goes to the beginning of the sentence; the verb of perception is put into passive voice. The rest of the sentence is added using an infinitive construction with 'to' (certain auxiliary verbs and that are dropped).

Sometimes the term Personal Passive is used in English lessons if the indirect object of an active sentence is to become the subject of the passive sentence.

Excercises

Exercises on Passive (Form)

• Exercise on Passive with Simple Present
• Exercise on Passive with Simple Past 
• Exercise on Passive with Present Perfect 
• Exercise on Passive with Future I 

10 Tips to Improve Your Reading Skills

In the modern age of information, reading truly is a fundamental survival skill. Here are ten tips that anyone can use to improve their reading skills:

1. You don't have to be a great reader to get the point.

Some people read fast and remember everything. Others read slowly and take a couple of times to get all the information. It doesn't matter, really, so long as when you read, you get the information you're seeking.

2. Know WHY you're reading.

Are you reading for entertainment or to learn something? Decide why you're reading before you start and you'll greatly improve your comprehension and your enjoyment.

3. You don't need to read everything.

Not every magazine, letter, and email you receive contains information you need. In fact, most of it is simply junk. Throw it away, hit the delete key! Just doing this will double the amount of time you have available to read.

4. You don't need to read all of what you DO read.

Do you read every article of every magazine, every chapter of every book? If so, you're probably spending a lot of time reading stuff you don't need.

Be choosy: select the chapters and articles that are important. Ignore the rest.

5. Scan before you read.

Look at the table of contents, index, topic headers, photo captions, etc. These will help you determine if, a) you have a real interest in this reading, and b) what information you're likely to get from it.

6. Prioritize your reading.

You can't read everything all at once (and wouldn't want to). If it's important, read it now. If it's not, let it wait.

7. Optimize your reading environment.

You'll read faster and comprehend more if you read in an environment that's comfortable for you.

8. Once you start, don't stop!

Read each item straight through. If you finish and have questions, go back and re-read the pertinent sections. If you don't have questions, you got what you needed and are ready to move on.

9. Focus.

Remember, you're reading with a purpose, so focus on that purpose and the material. If you lose interest or keep losing your place, take a break or read something else. You can keep track of where you are by following along with your hand. This simple technique helps you focus and increase your concentration.

10. Practice!

The more you read, the better reader you'll become (and smarter, too)! So, feed your mind: read!

Why Listening Skills Development Is So Important

Whatever your role in life you need to understand the importance of listening skills development. When you understand the importance of listening skills development you will be able to reduce confusion and misunderstandings and evaluate the information you heard.

Listening skills development is something you have to practice, however, so consider how well you listen and how you can improve your listening skills. By learning to listen you will positively impact your life, the lives of those around you, and reduce problems and misunderstandings.
As you can see, listening skills development is important to have good communication between people as well as to ensure that you are really hearing what people have to say and not allowing yourself to anticipate what is going to be said.

Learning skills development can be learned at any age, so go ahead and start practicing hearing what people have to say. You will become a better leader, better parent, wife, child, student, employee, pretty much any role in your life will be improved when you learn how to really listen and practice listening skills development.
Listening Skills Development

Powerful Techniques to Improve Talking and Listening Skills

There are many techniques to improve talking and listening skills, however you need to have the desire and dedication to improve these skills first.

The reason for this is no matter what techniques you are using, whether they are techniques to improve talking and listening skills, or other skills, you will need to really want to improve in order to do so.

Reading is important and can teach you different ways to communicate more effectively as well. There are many books written on improving communication skills that you can read that will help you recognize your communication shortcomings and make them stronger.

Improving your communication level is important and will improve your business and personal relationships significantly. In light of this, make sure you start learning techniques to improve talking and listening skills to be a more effective communicator at work and at home.

Future Simple Tense

How do we make the Future Simple Tense?

The structure of the future simple tense is:

subject	+	auxiliary verb WILL	+	main verb
		invariable		base
		will		V1

For negative sentences in the future simple tense, we insert not between the auxiliary verb and main verb. For question sentences, we exchange the subject and auxiliary verb. Look at these example sentences with the future simple tense:

	subject	auxiliary verb		main verb
+	I	will		open	the door.
+	You	will		finish	before me.
-	She	will	not	be	at school tomorrow.
-	We	will	not	leave	yet.
?	Will	you		arrive	on time?
?	Will	they		want	dinner?

When we use the future simple tense in speaking, we often contract the subject and auxiliary verb:

I will	I'll
you will	you'll
he will she will it will	he'll she'll it'll
we will	we'll
they will	they'll

For negative sentences in the future simple tense, we contract with won't, like this:

I will not	I won't
you will not	you won't
he will not she will not it will not	he won't she won't it won't
we will not	we won't
they will not	they won't

How do we use the Future Simple Tense?

No Plan

We use the future simple tense when there is no plan or decision to do something before we speak. We make the decision spontaneously at the time of speaking. Look at these examples:

• Hold on. I'll get a pen.
• We will see what we can do to help you.
• Maybe we'll stay in and watch television tonight.

In these examples, we had no firm plan before speaking. The decision is made at the time of speaking.
We often use the future simple tense with the verb to think before it:

• I think I'll go to the gym tomorrow.
• I think I will have a holiday next year.
• I don't think I'll buy that car.

Prediction

We often use the future simple tense to make a prediction about the future. Again, there is no firm plan. We are saying what we think will happen. Here are some examples:

• It will rain tomorrow.
• People won't go to Jupiter before the 22nd century.
• Who do you think will get the job?

Be

When the main verb is be, we can use the future simple tense even if we have a firm plan or decision before speaking. Examples:

• I'll be in London tomorrow.
• I'm going shopping. I won't be very long.
• Will you be at work tomorrow?