Grammar reference
Unit 1
Likes and dislikes
1 The verbs like, love, enjoy, can't stand/bear, detest, dislike,
hate and loathe can be followed by a noun.
I like football.
I hate spiders.
2 The verbs enjoy, fancy, dislike, detest and loathe can be
followed by a verb+ -ing only.
I enjoy swimming. (NOT I enjoy to swim.)
3 The verbs can't stand/bear, like, hate, love and prefer can
be followed by a verb+ -ing or to.
I like playing/to play baseball.
I can't bear watching/to watch sport on TV
4 You can use like with a verb+ -ing or to to express a
particular meaning.
I like to go for a swim every morning. (I think that this is
a good idea but don't necessarily enjoy it.)
I like going for a swim every morning. (I enjoy it.)
5 prefer
You can use the following to express a preference for one
thing compared to another:
• prefer+ noun+ to+ noun. Use the -ing form if the
things are activities.
I prefer books to computer games.
I prefer surfing to sailing.
• prefer+ to+ infinitive+ than+ infinitive without to
I prefer to read novels than play computer games.
6 I'd rather
You can use the following to express that you would
rather do one thing compared to another:
• would.I'd rather(not) + verb
I'd rather go to the concert.
I'd rather not watch the horror film.
• would.I'd rather+ verb + than + verb
I'd rather play the piano than go out.
7 would like/love/prefer/hate
Would like/love/prefer/hate must be followed by to +
infinitive.
I'd love to go to a live concert.
I'd prefer to eat in than go to the restaurant.
Present simple, present continuous and past
simple
A Present simple
You use the present simple:
• for an habitual action
I get up before 8 am every day.
Lectures start at 9 am every day.
• to show how frequently people do things
I sometimes arrive late, because the buses are not
reliable.
• to describe states and situations
I know the area very well.
My work requires a lot of contact with people.
• with common state verbs which are not normally used
in the present continuous (see present continuous)
I like sport.
I love swimming and skiing.
• f or possession and senses (such as taste, thoughts,
feelings, smell)
I have a bicycle.
• Ah, yes, I think I know the place well. to describe stages
in a process or lifecycle, and thus in a narrative
The sun rises and heats the water, which then
evaporates and forms clouds.
My grandmother helps us a lot and makes us feel
happy.
• to give directions
You come out of the main station entrance, and you
turn left and just walk about 100 metres and you are
here.
• for facts, general statements and truths
°
Water boils at 100 C.
It's clear that car sales fall steadily over the period.
Cities generally attract a lot of people from the
countryside.
B Present continuous
You use the present continuous:
• to describe actions and events which are happening
'around now' (the actions and events may not be
apparent at the time of writing or speaking)
The earth is becoming warmer year by year.
More and more students are applying for the course.
I'm doing a course on pottery at the moment.
• to describe an action that is in the process of
happening as you speak or write
You are preparing for IELTS if you are using this book.
s
The baby sleeping. Try not to wake her.
• to talk about the future (see Unit 5)
C Present simple or present continuous?
1 You use 'state' verbs like know, promise and understand
only in the present simple.
I promise I'll come to the party.
I understand what you are saying.
2 For verbs that have a 'state' and 'action' meaning, you
use the present simple to describe 'states' and the present
continuous to describe 'actions'.
State: I think studying languages is important.
Action: I'm thinking about this problem. Give me a few
minutes.
State: I have a pen.
Action: The government is having difficulties.
State: This perfume smells nice.
Action: The cat is smelling the food. Maybe he'll eat it.
3 With always
Present simple: He always gets up at 7 am. (He does it as
a matter of routine.)
Present continuous: Hes always talking about his health.
(He does it more than I think he should.)
4 With the verb to be
Present simple: She is very persistent. (This is part of her
personality.)
Present continuous: She is being very persistent at the
moment. (This is unusual for her. This is not her normal
behaviour.)
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D Past simple
You use the past simple:
• to describe a completed action, event or state in the
past which is not connected with now. The time in the
past may be clear from the information around the
sentence
At one time, people believed that the world was flat.
(But they don't now.)
He lived in China for a long time.
Dickens wrote many brilliant novels. (He wrote them a
long time ago.)
• to describe an action or event at a particular time, or
during a particular period of time
I stayed in London for two months in 2008.
Sales rose between 2005 and 2009.
• to describe habitual actions in the past
I attended classes in pottery for three months.
Unit 2
Past simple and present perfect
1 Past simple
For use, see Unit 1.
2 Present perfect
You use the present perfect:
• to describe actions or events that have a connection
with the present
I have just passed my exam. Look at my certificate.
I've just fixed the TV! Look, it's working!
• to talk about an action or event that has happened at
any time up to now, but you don't know or mention
when. The emphasis is on the fact the action or event
has happened, not the time that it happened
I have lived in West Africa.
He has visited France.
• to talk about periods that continue to the present
My parents have lived in their house since 2001.
I have studied hard for the past month.
Note the contrast between the past simple and the
present perfect.
I did a lot of work yesterday (no connection with the
present), but I haven't done much today (connection
with the present).
I visited Spain ten years ago, but I haven't been to
Italy.
When did you finish the book?
Or
Haven't you finished it yet?
2 Present perfect continuous
You use the present perfect continuous to describe
periods up to and including the present.
She's been watching that film all afternoon.
I have been learning English since I was ten.
Habit in the past - used to and would
You use used to and would to describe habitual actions and
events in the past.
1 You use used to to describe habits or states in the past
which no longer happen or exist.
I used to live in the countryside.
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I used to play chess quite a lot when I was a child.
Note that used to becomes use to with questions and
negatives.
I didn't use to play outdoor games much.
Did your parents use to travel much when they were
younger?
2 You use would to describe past habits, but not states.
I would work for my uncle every Tuesday evening when I
was 16.
I used to own a collection of antique clocks.
(NOT I would own a collection of antique clocks.)
Would is often used to reminisce about the past and in
descriptive writing.
On spring afternoons, I would go for long walks with my
friends and look at the wildlife.
Note that you usually don't use would in negative or yes/
no questions.
Adverbs of frequency
1 You use adverbs of frequency to indicate how often
something happens. Common adverbs of frequency
are always, usually, normally, regularly, often, frequently,
sometimes, occasionally, rarely, hardly ever, seldom, never.
2 You use adverbs of frequency after be and auxiliaries, but
before all other verbs.
I am always on time for lectures.
He has never eaten noodles before.
Politicians rarely pay attention to the opinions of the
people.
3 You can invert the subject and the verb when you use
never, rarely and seldom at the beginning of a sentence.
Never have I seen such an impressive PowerPoint
presentation from a student.
Unit3'·
Adjectives with prepositions
Some adjectives are followed by a particular preposition
(when used with the verb be). Sometimes a different
preposition is used depending on whether you are referring
to 'people' or 'things'. You can check this in a dictionary, but
they include:
angry/annoyed/happy/upset about (things)
good/bad at
late/famous/ready for
different from
interested in
afraid/fond/frightened of
keen on
kind/married/used to
angry/annoyed/bored with (people)
When you use a verb after the proposition, you use the verb
+-ing form.
He's keen on playing football.
I'm interested in learning about other cultures.
When you learn new adjectives which are followed by
prepositions, try to learn the adjective and the preposition
together.