Essential English Grammar and Vocabulary Review

Essential English Verb Forms (32 Examples)

1. is
2. becomes
3. has shown
4. don’t fully mature
5. are
6. change
7. keep
8. has been seen
9. is
10. is not
11. are
12. have just taken
13. continues
14. suggests
15. differs
16. have ever been told
17. don’t become
18. have not changed
19. have seen
20. were growing
21. did not see
22. reached
23. began
24. became
25. found
26. learning
27. lay
28. had turned
29. grew
30. went
31. took
32. are living

Key Phrasal Verbs and Prepositional Phrases

1. get over the death
2. get out of this house
3. look after the baby
4. look at the document
5. broke down completely
6. put out the lights (or turn off the lights)
7. keep it on for long
8. the gun went off by accident
9. goes up in the winter (Price/Temperature)
10. gave them back to them
11. I came across a vase
12. take it out / take it back
13. took over the family
14. care for four children
15. I ran across (someone)
16. turn off
17. called off because (of something)
18. gave back all the books
19. put it away
20. handed in their papers

Suitable Vocabulary and Expressions

1. trust
2. to confide in you (Interpretation of "to other you")
3. decision
4. have an accident
5. a little bit strange
6. hard storm (or severe storm)
7. sneaky / unreliable
8. confused about the exam

Word Formation: Affixes and Structure

Adjective Format

Adjectives are often formed using suffixes such as:

• -ful (e.g., helpful)
• -less (e.g., careless)
• -ly (e.g., friendly, though often adverb)
• -y (e.g., rainy)
• -al (e.g., natural)
• -ish (e.g., childish)
• -able (e.g., readable)
• -ous (e.g., dangerous)
• -en (e.g., wooden)
• -ic (e.g., historic)
• -(t)ive (e.g., active)

Negative adjectives often use the prefix non- (e.g., non-essential).

Noun Format

Nouns are formed from adjectives or verbs using suffixes:

From Adjectives:

• -ness (e.g., happiness)
• -dom (e.g., freedom)
• -ity (e.g., clarity)
• -ism (e.g., capitalism)

From Verbs:

• -tion (e.g., completion)
• -ment (e.g., development)
• -ance (e.g., performance)
• -er (e.g., teacher)
• -age (e.g., breakage)
• -al (e.g., refusal)
• -ery (e.g., bravery)

Negative Prefixes

Common negative prefixes include:

• dis- (e.g., dishonest)
• im- (e.g., impossible)
• ir- (e.g., irregular)
• il- (e.g., illegal)
• mis- (e.g., misunderstand)
• non- (e.g., non-fiction)
• un- (e.g., unhappy)

Modal Verbs: Functions and Usage

• Ability: can, can’t, could
• Permission: can, could, may
• Possibility: may (not), might (not)
• Obligation: must, have to, will have to, had to
• Prohibition: mustn’t, aren’t allowed to
• No Obligation: don’t have to, don’t need to, needn’t, won’t have to, won’t need to, didn’t have to, didn’t need to
• Advice: should
• Certainty (Deduction): can’t (for negative certainty), must (for positive certainty)

Effective Linkers and Connectors

Contrast

• although = in spite of the fact that / despite the fact that
• however = but = yet
• whereas = while

Cause and Effect

• because + sentence
• because of + noun phrase

Conditionals

• as long as = if
• provided that = if

Certainty and Opinion

• We are sure that = We have no doubt that

Regret

• I regret the fact that I... = I wish I... (followed by past perfect for past regrets)

Sentence Transformation Examples

Possession

Is that bicycle hers? (Possessive Pronoun)

Does that bicycle belong to her? (Verb of Possession)

Gerunds and Infinitives (Ger-Inf)

Common transformations using gerunds or infinitives:

• I still have in mind = I still remember (doing something)
• I’m sorry = I apologize for (doing something)
• Give me a hand = Help me
• He no longer smokes = He has stopped smoking
• I really don’t like = I detest (doing something)
• I made a decision = I decided to (do something)
• We are still doing it = We haven’t finished (doing it)
• I think = I regret (doing something)
• I had the habit of = I am used to (doing something)
• I have an idea of = I imagine (doing something)
• I act as = I pretend to (do something)
• I surrender = I give up (doing something)