GRAMMAR TIPS

A.
1.Either……………………….or + sg. Verbs
Either mom or dad comes to the school meetings.
2.Neither………………….nor + sg. Verbs
Neither John nor Mary is at home.
3.Both……………………….and + pl. Verbs
Both Kate and my sister help me every time I need it.
B.
Hardly
Scarcely had + S + V3 (-ed)
…………………………..when…………………
Barely

Hardly had I entered the room when the phone rang.

No sooner + had + S + V3 (-ed)
…………………………..than…………………

No sooner had I thought of him than he called me.

C. Conditional clauses.
1. But for…………………………., S + would have V3 (-ed) .
(but for = if + S + Past Perfect)
But for the dog, the thieves would have entered the house.
(If the dog hadn’t been there, the thieves would have
entered the house.)

2. Had + S + V3 (-ed)………., S + would have V3 (-ed) .

(Had + S + V3 (-ed) = if + S + Past Perfect)

Had I met him two years ago, it wouldn’t be / wouldn’t

have been a problem now.

D. WISH / IF ONLY
+ Past Tense (unreal situation in the present)
e.g. I wish she
were here.
WISH + Past Perfect (regret that something
happened / did not
happen) e.g. I wish I had
been rich.
+ would + V1 (reproach / annoying situation for
the speaker)
I wish you would stop making
that awful noise!
I wish I would have been at the
wedding.
I wish I could have been at the
wedding.
 + Past Tense (unreal situation in the present)
e.g. If only
my life were more interesting
(but it isn’t).
IF ONLY
+ Past Perfect (regret that something
happened / did not
happen) e.g If only David had
been a bit
more careful, he’d have been
all right.

E. RATHER / PREFER / HAD BETTER

1.Would rather + Short Infinitive (+……than)

I would rather talk to him in person (than call him on
the phone).

2.Would prefer + Long Infinitive (+ …………..to).

They would prefer to sleep in a comfortable hotel.
or
They’d prefer sleeping in a comfortable hotel to
sleeping in a tent.

3.Had Better + Short Infinitive

 It’s cold. You’d better wear a jacket.

F. IT’S (HIGH) TIME

1. It’s time + S + Past Tense It’s time we went home

now.
2. It’s time + Long Infinitive: It’s time to go home now.

G. PAST HABITS (USED TO / WOULD / BE USED TO / GET

USED TO)

1. Used to + Infinitive (past habits: actions / states).

We used to go shopping on Saturdays. (We no longer go
shopping on Saturdays). - action
They used to be friends when they were younger. (They
are no longer friends). – state
2. Would + Short Infinitive (past habits: actions only)
We would go shopping on Saturdays.
They would be friends when they were younger.

3. Get used to / Be used to + V-ing / Noun

I got used to reading before going to bed.
He got used to cold weather in Canada.

They are used to being listened to.

You were used to fast cars.

H. PURPOSE
1. TO I rang to find out the train times.
2. IN ORDER TO / SO AS TO (more formal)
She was hurrying in order not to miss the bus.
The students were working at weekends so as to complete
the
projects in time.

3. SO THAT + S + WILL / CAN / MAY / COULD / SHOULD /

WOULD / MIGHT
I’ll give you a map so that you can / will find your way.
I gave him a map so that he could / might / would find
his way.
but
I’ll post the letter today so that it gets there on Daniel’s
birthday.

4.TO or FOR?
- For + noun (why we do something): Why don’t you
come over for a
coffee?
- To – infinitive / for + V-ing (the purpose of a thing):
The heater is to keep / for keeping the plants warm
in winter.
- To – infinitive (a specific action): I put the heater on
to keep the plants warm. (NOT I put the heater on for
keeping the plants warm.)

I. DESPITE / IN SPITE OF / ALTHOUGH / HOWEVER

1.DESPITE / IN SPITE OF + NOUN / V-ing
Despite the danger, she went there.
 In spite of sleeping late in the morning, he is never
late.
2. ALTHOUGH (THOUGH / EVEN THOUGH) + S + VERB.
Although it was dark, we could find the key.
3.HOWEVER, + SENTENCE
It was dark outside. However, we could find the key.

J. A LITTLE / LITTLE / A FEW / FEW.

1. A LITTLE (positive meaning = some / a small amount of)
Jane has made a little progress and now she can cook
simple dishes.
2. LITTLE (negative meaning = not much)
Vicky has made little progress and so she is not very
pleased.
3. A FEW (positive meaning = some / a small number of)
A few customers came into the shop.
4. FEW (negative meaning = not many)
Few customers came in to the shop last week. It was very
quiet.