Appunti Inglese B1

Appunti inglese OFA B1 - Marta Pessina

Pronomi

• Subject pronouns: I, you, he/she/it, we, you, they
• Object pronouns: me, you, him/her/it, us, you, them
• Possessive adjectives: my, your, his/her/its, our, your, their
• Possessive pronouns: mine, yours, his/hers, ours, yours, theirs

Direct/indirect object pronouns and word order

- He bought me a rose
- I am going to lend her my camera
- They showed us their new flat
- I’ll send you the document
- We bought him some books

Some verbs can have 2 objects, usually a thing (the direct object) and a person (the indirect object).

Verb + the indirect object + the direct object or:
- He bought it for me
- I am going to lend it to her
- They showed it to us
- I’ll send it to you
- We bought them for him

Comparatives: adjectives

We use comparative adjectives to compare two people, places, things, etc.

• My sister is a bit taller than me
• Bergamo is prettier than Milan
• Milan is more expensive than Naples
• This structure is less difficult than the present perfect

Rules

1. Short adjectives (1 syllable)

• old > older
• big > bigger
• hot > hotter

2. Adjectives ending in ‘y’

• easy > easier
• pretty > prettier

3. Long adjectives (2 > syllables)

• modern > more/less modern
• beautiful > more/less beautiful

4. Irregular adjectives

• good > better
• bad > worse
• far > further

Practice

• My sister is thinner than me
• I’m busier this week than last week
• Milan is further from Venice than Verona
• I did the second exam worse than the first
• Atalanta played better than Juventus
• The students in year 1 work harder than students in year 2
• My SCO course is more/less interesting than the English course

Comparative adverbs

Use comparative adverbs to compare actions.

• He drives more slowly than me
• She runs more quickly than you

Regular: carefully > more carefully

Irregular: hard > harder, well > better, badly > worse

As + adjective / adverb + as

We can use this to make comparisons:

• I am as tall as you
• She drives as fast as you do
• The new sofa isn’t as comfortable as the old one

Practice

• Kate is taller than Kelly. Kelly isn’t as tall as Kate.
• Your case is heavier than mine. My case isn’t as heavy as yours.
• Rome is bigger than Milan. Milan isn’t as big as Rome.
• Football is more popular than tennis. Tennis isn’t as popular as Football.
• Children learn languages faster than adults. Adults don’t learn languages as fast as children.
• You work harder than me. I don’t work as hard as you.
• France played better than England. England didn’t play as well as France.

Superlatives

Form superlatives like comparatives but use -est instead of -er and most/least instead of more/less.

• Cold, colder, the coldest
• Hot, hotter, the hottest
• Pretty, prettier, the prettiest
• Beautiful, more/less beautiful, the most/least beautiful
• Good, better, the best
• Bad, worse, the worst
• Far, further, the furthest

Practice

• Yesterday was the hottest day of the year
• This is the worst time to drive through the city
• She’s the friendliest person in the class
• This is the most important part of the exam
• The best month to visit is September
• It’s the most polluted city in the world
• The furthest I’ve ever flown is Australia

Present simple

We use present simple for things that are always true (e.g., I live in Bergamo) or happen regularly (e.g., I often study at the weekend). Use with adverbs of frequency: always, never, sometimes, etc.

NOTE: Adverbs of frequency go BEFORE the main verb, and AFTER 'be':

• She usually has cereal for breakfast
• I’m never late

Questions and negatives with 'to be' in present simple

- I am hungry
- I’m not hungry
- Are you hungry?

Negatives: use don’t or doesn’t

- I ski
- I don’t ski
- She skis
- She doesn’t ski

Questions: use do or does

QUAS: Question word + auxiliary + subject + verb (infinitive)

• Where do you study?
• Does she work?
• Do you ski?
• Does she ski?

Present simple for 'timetable' future

When things happen according to a timetable, especially travel times like flights or train times, or class times:

• The train leaves at 6am every morning.
• Our flight stops in Singapore.
• What time does your flight arrive in New York?

Present continuous

We use the present continuous for actions in progress at the time or things that are happening around now and are usually temporary, not habitual actions.

• This week, I’m driving to work. Usually, I take the bus.
• I’m making lunch.
• I make lunch at the weekend.

Verbs which describe states or feelings can only be used in the present simple:

• I agree.
• I believe.

Examples of verbs which describe states and feelings

Some verbs describe states and feelings, not actions:

• Agree, be, believe, belong
• Depend, forget, hate, hear
• Know, like, look like, love
• Matter, mean, need, prefer
• Realize, recognize, remember
• Seem, suppose, understand
• Want

These verbs are normally used in the present simple, not the continuous, even if we are referring to now.

Verbs which can have action and non-action meanings

- Do you have any sunscreen? = possession (non-action)
- He’s having a shower at the moment. = an action
- Do you think we should have lunch in the hotel? = opinion (non-action)
- They’re thinking of going on a cruise. = an action
- I see what you mean. = understanding (non-action)
- I’m seeing the hotel manager tomorrow morning. = an action

Some verbs have two meanings, an action meaning and a non-action meaning:

• Have, think, see

If they describe a state or feelings, not an action, they are not usually used in the present continuous. If they describe an action, they are used in the present continuous.

Present continuous for future arrangements

We often use the present continuous where there is an arrangement to do something in the future:

• I’m leaving tomorrow and I’m coming back on Tuesday.
• We’re seeing our grandparents this weekend.

Questions and negatives with the present continuous

- I’m feeling happy
- I’m not feeling happy
- Are you feeling happy?
- She’s going out with her friends
- She isn’t going out with her friends
- Is she going out with her friends?

Possessives

Possessive 's and of:

• That’s Mark’s jacket.
• He’s my sister’s boyfriend.
• What’s the name of the street where you live?
• They sat at the back of the bus.

We can use name / person + ‘s to mean that person’s house or flat:

• We spent the weekend at Paul’s.
• I went to my grandmother’s yesterday.

We also use ‘s after words for certain jobs to refer to their shop or business, e.g., hairdresser’s, chemist’s:

• Can you get me some aspirins when you go to the chemist’s?

When we’re talking about something belonging to 2 people or things:

• We saw Tom and Mary’s parents.
• Is that Kate and David’s house?

More rules for of to show possession

• That man over there is a friend of mine.
• This is an interesting book of Sarah’s.
• Tell me about this plan of theirs.
• Where’s that husband of yours?

We often use noun + of + possessive pronoun or name / noun + ‘s after a / an or this / that.

Own

• I’d love to have my own business.
• That’s my magazine. Why don’t you buy your own?
• Our town is going to get its own shopping centre.
• Small bakers often sell their own bread and cakes.

We can use own after a possessive adjective for emphasis. We can use of my / his / her, etc. + own.

Past simple

Worked, stopped, went. We use the past simple for finished actions in the past (when we say, ask or know WHEN they happened).

• She was born in Ferrara.
• You started University last October.
• They didn’t pass their exams yesterday.
• What time did you get up this morning?
• I got up at 6am.

Practice

• They didn’t have breakfast together this morning.
• Did they have breakfast together this morning?
• We didn’t have to run for the bus yesterday.
• Did they have to run for the bus yesterday?
• You weren’t late for the lessons.
• Were you late for the lessons?
• I didn’t do my homework at the weekend.
• Did you do your homework at the weekend?
• She didn’t see a fantastic film last night.
• Did she see a fantastic film last night?

Past continuous

Was / were + verb + ing. We use the past continuous to talk about an action in progress at a specific time in the past.

• What were you doing at 6pm last night? I was preparing dinner.
• We were doing our homework.

We use it to describe a past action in progress, which was interrupted by another action in the past.

I was reading a book, when the phone rang.

We often use it with while for two actions happening at the same time.

• While I was doing my homework my mum was cooking the dinner.

We often use it to describe the beginning of a story or anecdote.

• It was a cold night and it was raining.
• I was watching TV in the sitting room when suddenly…

Practice

• I broke my arm when I was playing football.
• Were you driving fast when the police stopped you?
• It was snowing when we left the pub.
• I didn’t see the match because I was working.
• When you called me I was talking to my boss.

Past habits

Used to / didn’t use to + infinite. We use used to for things that were true over a period of time in the past.