How many Tenses are there in English? It sounds like a simple question, but, unfortunately, it isn't. This is because different people - including both students and TEFL teachers - have different definitions of what a tense actually is and there is no single, accepted...
Units of Measurement are used to talk about quantity. Common units include: length: meter, mile, kilometer... weight: pound, stone, kilogram... liquid: liter, gallon... Singular & Plural Units of measurement usually have a singular and plural form: I've lived here...
Find the Comparative is a good activity for your class to practice making comparative sentences. It's best used as an activity for pairs or small groups. Preparation Begin by making a series of cards. On each one write a pair of words which are related somehow; they...
A lot of people don't like Double Negatives and quite a number of people aren't sure what they are. This article addresses both those concerns. What is a Double Negative? Simply put, a Double Negative is when you use a negative form of the verb along with a negative...
Crazy Comparatives is a simple activity to practice comparatives with your class. It can be used with most levels. Preparation Prepare a set of flashcards. On each one have a noun which will be used for comparison. You should make as many as you can and there's no...
The Comparative Game is a simple way to get your class practicing comparatives. It's best used at the end of a lesson where you've been looking at comparatives and adjectives and/or adverbs in general. Playing the Game Firstly divide the class into groups of four or...
To compare different things, we can use a number of different Comparison Phrases. Equality/Inequality {as} + {adjective/adverb} + {as} He is as tall as me. They work as slowly as I do. In positive sentences we can use as...as, in negative sentences we use as...as or...
Coordination and Subordination are the grammatical terms we use to talk about joining 2 clauses together. The usual pattern is this: {clause} + {conjunction} + {clause} Coordination If clauses which we combine are independent clauses (that is, if they can stand on...
An Antonym or Opposite is a word which - generally speaking - has the opposite meaning to another word. For example, the following are antonyms: big ↔ small fat ↔ thin tall ↔ short old ↔ young male ↔ female Some words will have more than one antonym depending on...
When we compare two or more items, we have different ways to do it, depending on the items we are comparing. We can change the form of the word or use a phrase. Comparatives and Superlatives To compare nouns, we can change the adjective describing them by using...
We use Exclamations to express surprise, anger, joy and so on: What an idiot! Unbelievable! How fantastic! As you can see, in writing an exclamation is shown using an Exclamation Mark (or Exclamation Point) which is a vertical line over a dot. See Exclamation Mark for...
To compare the property or quality of two items we can use the comparative form of adjectives and adverbs. The comparative form of most monosyllable (1 syllable) and disyllable (2 syllable) adjectives and adverbs is made by adding –er to the adjective. I am big,...
When we want to compare two or more nouns, adjectives or adverbs we use the comparative and superlative forms. Grammatically the main difference is between comparing 2 items or comparing more than 2 items. Comparing 2 Items To compare two items, we use the...
In English there are a number of different ways to be Negative and these depend on the original positive sentence. Generally speaking we make negatives in two ways. Either by adding not to an auxiliary verb or by using do/does/did + not: I am going to answer that...
The Syllabus is the outline of language to be taught to a class over a particular course (term, semester, etc). It can be seen as a step in the hierarchy of learning and teaching English. At best it will be designed by the school Director of Studies; at worst there...
When we talk about Language Functions, we are talking about the reason we use a language. This can be contrasted with grammar which is how the language works. Functions are why we use language: to greet people, to order a meal, to ask the time and so on. Grammar, on...
