Learn the world of English

English Language and Usages

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English language is so widely spoken, it has often been referred to as a "world language", the lingua franca of the modern era, and while it is not an official language in most countries, it is currently the language most often taught as a foreign language. Some linguists believe that it is no longer the exclusive cultural property of "native English speakers", but is rather a language that is absorbing aspects of cultures worldwide as it continues to grow. It is, by international treaty, the official language for aerial and maritime communications. English is an official language of the United Nations and many other international organisations.

English is the language most often studied as a foreign language in the European Union, by 89% of schoolchildren, ahead of French at 32%, while the perception of the usefulness of foreign languages amongst Europeans is 68% in favour of English ahead of 25% for French. Among some non-English-speaking EU countries, a large percentage of the adult population claims to be able to converse in English – in particular: 85% in Sweden, 83% in Denmark, 79% in the Netherlands, 66% in Luxembourg and over 50% in Finland, Slovenia, Austria, Belgium, and German.

For the Beginners below are topics needs to be learned

English Basics and History

Subject

Type Of Subject

English letter

Word & Sentence

Sentence Classifications

Quotations

Noun

Abstract Nouns

Collective Nouns / Group Nouns

Common Nouns

Concrete Nouns

Countable / Uncountable Nouns

Gerund Nouns

Predicate Nouns

Proper Nouns

Object

Types of object

Verb

Action Verbs

Auxiliary Verbs

Finite / Non Finite Verbs

Irregular verbs

Main Verb

Verbs - Mood

Phrasal Verbs

Regular Verbs

Stative Verbs

Preposition

Prepositions of Time

Prepositions of Place

Prepositions of Movement

Tense

Present Tense

Simple Present Tense

Present Continuous Tense

Present Perfect Tense

Present Perfect Continuous Tense

Past tense

Simple Past Tense

Past Perfect Tense

Past Perfect Continuous Tense

Future tense

Simple Future Tense

Future Continuous Tense

Future Perfect Tense

Future Perfect Continuous Tense

Vowels

Adverbs

Degree of Adverbs

Duration of adverbs

Frequency of Adverbs

Adverbs-Manner

Adverb-Place

Adverbs-Probability

Adverbs-Time

Adverbs-Comparison

Superlative form of Adverbs

Adjectives

Comparative form of Adjectives

Adjective Order

Possessive Adjectives

Superlative Adjectives

Common Adjectives

Personality Adjectives

Case

Subjective / Nominative Case

Objective / Accusative Case

Possessive Case

Clauses

Participles

Present Participles

Perfect Participles

Past Participles

Pronoun

Indefinitive Pronouns

Possessive Pronouns

Reflexive Pronouns

Adverbials

Conjunctions

Coordinating Conjunctions

Subordinating Conjunctions

Correlatives

Determiners

Gerund and Infinitive

Conditionals

Zero Conditional

Conditional I

Conditional II

Conditional III

This increasing use of the English language globally has had a large impact on many other languages, leading to language shift and even language death, and to claims of linguistic imperialism. English itself is now open to language shift as multiple regional varieties feed back into the language as a whole

English Irregular verb test

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English gender Test

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English verb test

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English test

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Stative Verbs

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Stative verbs are verbs that show a state and not an action.

You can group verbs that show a state in the following ways:-

Verbs that show thought - believe, doubt, know, undertand etc.
Verbs that show possession - have, own, want, contain etc.
Verbs that show senses - hear, see, smell etc.
Verbs that show emotion - love, hate, want, need etc.

There are regular and irregular stative verbs. But when they are used to show a state they do not take the -ing form.

For Example:

I like ice cream. (Never "I am liking...")
I know a lot of English words. (Never "I am knowing...")

However, some verbs can be used to show an action or a state.
For Example:

I think English is easy. = It is my opinion.
I'm thinking of joining a new course. = I am considering it.

Regular Verbs

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Regular verbs are conjugated to easy to learn rules.

They all have a base form.

e.g. to look

A gerund (ing) form where ing is added to the end of the verb.

e.g. looking

An -s form where s is added to the end of the verb.

e.g. looks

A past tense form where ed is added to the end of the verb.

e.g. looked

A past participle form where ed is added to the end of the verb.

e.g. looked

Phrasal Verbs

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A phrasal verb is a combination of a verb and preposition, a verb and an adverb, or a verb with both an adverb and a preposition.

A phrasal verb has a meaning which is different from the original verb. That's what makes them fun, but confusing. You may need to try to guess the meaning from the context, or, failing that, look it up in a dictionary.

The adverb or preposition that follows the verb are sometimes called a particle. The particle changes the meaning of the phrasal verb in idiomatic ways.

They are also known as ‘compound verbs’, ‘verb-adverb combinations’, ‘verb-particle constructions", “two-part words/verbs’ and ‘three-part words/verbs’ (depending on the number of words).

Phrasal verbs are usually used informally in everyday speech as opposed to the more formal Latinate verbs, such as “to get together” rather than “to congregate”, “to put off” rather than “to postpone”, or “to get out” rather than “to exit”. They should be avoided in academic writing.

Literal usage

Many verbs in English can be combined with an adverb or a preposition, a phrasal verb used in a literal sense with a preposition is easy to understand.

"He walked across the square.

Verb and adverb constructions are also easy to understand when used literally.

"She opened the shutters and looked outside."
"When he heard the crash, he looked up."

An adverb in a literal phrasal verb modifies the verb it is attached to, and a preposition links the subject to the verb.

Idiomatic usage

It is, however, the figurative or idiomatic application in everyday speech which makes phrasal verbs so important:

"I hope you will get over your operation quickly."

The literal meaning of “to get over”, in the sense of “to climb over something to get to the other side”, is not relevant here. Here "get over" means "recover from" or "feel better".

Transitive and intransitive phrasal verbs

Phrasal verbs also differ in their transitivity or intransitivity in the same way as normal verbs do. A transitive verb always has an object.

For example:-

“Many people walked across the bridge.”

"Across" in this sentence is the preposition to "the bridge".

An intransitive verb does not have an object.

For example:-

“When I entered the room he looked up.”

"Up" here is an adverb, and does not have an object.

Separable or inseparable phrasal verbs

A further way of considering phrasal verbs is whether they are separable or inseparable. In inseparable verbs, the object comes after the particle.

For example:-

"She got on the bus ."
"On weekdays, we look after our grandchildren."

Separable verbs have several ways of separating verb, particle and object. Usually, the object comes between verb and particle.

For example:-

"She looked up the word in her dictionary."
"She looked it up in her dictionary."

However, with some separable verbs, the object can come before or after the particle.

For example:-

"Switch the light off."
"Switch off the light."
"Switch it off."

Verbs - Mood

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Yes, verbs have moods, not good moods and bad moods though, they're not actually moody, here 'mood' (sometimes 'mode') comes from the Latin for 'manner'. The so called mood of the verb simply expresses the viewpoint of the speaker or writer; their wishes, intents, or assertions about reality.

In English there are three moods:-

The indicative mood is the most common one; it is used to state facts, to deny things, or ask a question.

The imperative mood is used to give commands.

The least used mood, but the one that gives people the most trouble, is the subjunctive mood. The subjunctive mood is usually used to express doubt or show that a situation is hypothetical.

Modal Verbs

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All the auxiliary verbs except be, do and have are called modals. Unlike other auxiliary verbs modals only exist in their helping form; they cannot act alone as the main verb in a sentence.

Be, do, and have also differ from the other auxiliaries in that they can also serve as ordinary verbs in a given sentence.

The modal verbs are:-

CAN / COULD / MAY / MIGHT / MUST / SHALL / SHOULD / OUGHT TO / WILL / WOULD

Modal	Example	Uses
Can	They can control their own budgets. We can’t fix it. Can I smoke here? Can you help me?	Ability / Possibility Inability / Impossibility Asking for permission Request
Could	Could I borrow your dictionary? Could you say it again more slowly? We could try to fix it ourselves. I think we could have another Gulf War. He gave up his old job so he could work for us.	Asking for permission. Request Suggestion Future possibility Ability in the past
May	May I have another cup of coffee? China may become a major economic power.	Asking for permission Future possibility
Might	We'd better phone tomorrow, they might be eating their dinner now. They might give us a 10% discount.	Present possibility Future possibility
Must	We must say good-bye now. They mustn’t disrupt the work more than necessary.	Necessity / Obligation Prohibition
Ought to	We ought to employ a professional writer.	Saying what’s right or correct
Shall (More common in the UK than the US)	Shall I help you with your luggage? Shall we say 2.30 then? Shall I do that or will you?	Offer Suggestion Asking what to do
Should	We should sort out this problem at once. I think we should check everything again. Profits should increase next year.	Saying what’s right or correct Recommending action Uncertain prediction
Will	I can’t see any taxis so I’ll walk. I'll do that for you if you like. I’ll get back to you first thing on Monday. Profits will increase next year.	Instant decisions Offer Promise Certain prediction
Would	Would you mind if I brought a colleague with me? Would you pass the salt please? Would you mind waiting a moment? "Would three o`clock suit you?" - "That’d be fine." Would you like to play golf this Friday? "Would you prefer tea or coffee?" - "I’d like tea please."	Asking for permission Request Request Making arrangements Invitation Preferences

The Main Verb

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Sometimes there is more than one kind of verb in a sentence. There are auxiliary verbs , modal verbs, and main verbs (sometimes called full or non-auxiliary verbs).

The main verb expresses the main action or state of being of the subject in the sentence and changes form according to the subject (singular, plural, 1st person, 2nd person, 3rd person).

Most statements in speech and writing have a main verb.

The main verb changes its form according to the verb form (perfect tense, past tense, simple tense etc).

For example:

Dogs usually chase cats.
But my cat chases my dog.
My cat is chasing my dog.
My dog has sometimes chased my cat.
But, only because my cat ate my dog's dinner.
My cat has been eating my dog's dinner a lot.

Irregular verbs

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Irregular verbs have no rules for conjugation. These can only be learnt in context - sorry!

They all have a base form.

e.g. to run

A gerund (ing) form where ing is added to the end of the verb.

e.g. running

An -s form where s is added to the end of the verb.

e.g. runs

A past tense form which must be learnt.

e.g. ran

A past participle form which must be learnt.

e.g. run

Finite / Non Finite Verbs

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Finite Verbs

A finite verb (sometimes called main verbs) is a verb that has a subject, this means that it can be the main verb in a sentence. It shows tense (past / present etc) or number (singular / plural).

For example:-

I live in Germay. (I is the subject - live describes what the subject does - live is a finite verb).

Non-Finite Verbs

A non-finite verb has no subject, tense or number. The only non-finite verb forms are the infinitive (indicated by to), the gerund or the participle.

For example:-

I travelled to Germany to improve my German. (To improve is in the infinitive form).

Auxiliary Verbs

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Auxiliary verbs are used together with a main verb to give grammatical information and therefore add extra meaning to a sentence. Information that is not given by the main verb.

They are used to form the passive voice.

They are used to form the continuous tense.

They are used to form the perfect tense.

Be, Do and Have are auxiliary verbs, they are irregular verbs and can be used as main verbs. The verbs 'to be' and 'to have' are the most commonly used auxiliary verbs and work alongside the main verbs in any statement.

Modal verbs are also auxiliary verbs, but will be treated separately, these are can, could, may, might, must, shall, should, will, and would, they differ from the others in that they can never function as a main verb.

To be

Be is the most common verb in the English language. It can be used as an auxiliary and a main verb. It is used a lot in its other forms.

Base form = be

Present form = am/is/are

Past form = was/were

Present Participle / Gerund = being

Past Participle = been

To do

The verb do is one of the most common verbs in English. It can be used as an auxiliary and a main verb. It is often used in questions.

Base form = do

Present form = do/does

Past form = did

Present Participle / Gerund = doing

Past Participle = done

To have

Have is one of the most common verbs in the English language.

Base form = have

Present form = have / has

Past form = had

Present Participle / Gerund = having

Past Participle = had

Action Verbs

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Action verbs are verbs that show the performance of an action. They are dynamic verbs that show something happening.

There are regular and irregular action verbs.

For example:

To walk is a regular action verb
To run is an irregular action verb .

Prepositions of Time

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Prepositions can also be used to show when something happened.

The prepositions at, on, and in

We use at for specific times.

For example:-
I start work at 7.00 a.m.
I don't work at night.

We use on for specific days and dates .

For example:
My birthday is on Monday.
We're having a party on 7th September.

We also use on for some special days.

For example:
On Christmas day.

We use in for nonspecific times during a day, a month, a season, or a year.

For example:
In summer it's too hot to work.
I started this web site in 1999.
She woke up in the night.

Prepositions of Place

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The prepositions at, on, and in

We use at to show a specific place or position.

For example:
Someone is at the door.
They are waiting at the bus stop.
I used to live at 51 Portland Street.

We use on to show position on a horizontal or vertical surface.

For example:
The cat sat on the mat.
The satellite dish is on the roof.

We also use on to show position on streets, roads, etc.

For example:
I used to live on Portland Street.

We use in to show that something is enclosed or surrounded.

For example:
The dog is in the garden.
She is in a taxi.
Put it in the box.

We also use in to show position within land-areas (towns, counties, states, countries, and continents).

For example:
I used to live in Nottingham.

Prepositions of Movement

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Prepositions can be used to show movement.

For example:-

to, through, across

We use to to show movement with the aim of a specific destination.

For example:-
I moved to Germany in 1998.
He's gone to the shops.

We use through to show movement from one side of an enclosed space to the other.

For example:
The train went through the tunnel.

We use across to show movement from one side of a surface or line to another.

For example:
She swam across the river.

Present Participles

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The present participle is a participle that ends in ing. It can be used with the auxilliary verb 'to be' to form the continuous tense. It always takes the ‘ing’ form of the verb, even irregular verbs have an ‘...ing’ form, in fact virtually all English words that end with ‘ing’ are present participles.

For example:-

I am learning English. (Learning is part of the continuous verb phrase 'am learning')

We were running through the woods. (Running is part of the continuous verb phrase 'were running' ).

It can also be used as an adjective.

For example:-

As an adjective: I am a working woman. (Working is used here as an adjective.)

Perfect Participles

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The perfect participle indicates completed action. You form the perfect participle by putting the present participle having in front of the past participle.

For example:-

having done, having finished, having read, having spoken

It can be used to form the passive voice.

For example:-

Having improved her English Pia's promotion prospects were much better.

Past Participles

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A past participle indicates past or completed action or time. It is often called the 'ed' form as it is formed by adding d or ed, to the base form of regular verbs, however it is also formed in various other ways for irregular verbs.

It can be used to form a verb phrase as part of the present perfect tense.
For example:-

I have learnt English. (Learnt is part of the verb phrase 'have learnt')

It can be used to form the passive voice.
For example:-

Her hair was well brushed.

It can also be used as an adjective.
For example:-

As an adjective: He had a broken arm. (Broken is used here as an adjective.)

Participles

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A participle is a word formed from a verb that can function as part of a verb phrase.

For example:-

has been

Or independently as an adjective.

For example:-

working woman
hot water bottle

There are three forms of participle: The present participle, the past participle and the perfect participle.

Types of Participles

Present Participles

Perfect Participles

Past Participles

Proper Nouns

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Proper nouns ( also called proper names) are the words which name specific people, organisations or places. They always start with a capital letter.

For example:-

Each part of a person's name is a proper noun:-

Lynne Hand - Elizabeth Helen Ruth Jones ...

The names of companies, organisations or trade marks:-

Microsoft - Rolls Royce - the Round Table - WWW

Given or pet names of animals:-

Lassie Trigger Sam

The names of cities and countries and words derived from those proper nouns:-

Paris - London - New York - England - English

Geographical and Celestial Names:-

the Red Sea - Alpha Centauri - Mars

Monuments, buildings, meeting rooms:-

The Taj Mahal - The Eiffel Tower - Room 222

Historical events, documents, laws, and periods:-

the Civil War - the Industrial Revolution - World War I

Months, days of the week, holidays:-

Monday - Christmas - December

Religions, deities, scriptures:-

God - Christ - Jehovah - Christianity - Judaism - Islam - the Bible - the Koran - the Torah

Awards, vehicles, vehicle models and names, brand names:-

the Nobel Peace Prize - the Scout Movement - Ford Focus - the Bismarck - Kleenex - Hoover

Predicate Nouns

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A predicate noun follows a form of the verb "to be".

He is an idiot. (Here idiot is a predicate noun because it follows is; a form of the verb "be".)

A predicate noun renames the subject of a sentence.

Margaret Thatcher was the Prime Minister. (Margaret Thatcher is the subject and Prime Minister is the predicate noun - notice it follows 'was' the past tense of 'to be'.)

Gerund Nouns

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A gerund (often known as an -ing word) is a noun formed from a verb by adding -ing. It can follow a preposition, adjective and most often another verb.

For example:

I enjoy walking.

Learn the world of English

English Language and Usages

English Irregular verb test

English gender Test

English verb test

English test

Stative Verbs

Regular Verbs

Phrasal Verbs

Literal usage

Idiomatic usage

Transitive and intransitive phrasal verbs

Separable or inseparable phrasal verbs

Verbs - Mood

Modal Verbs

The Main Verb

Irregular verbs

Finite / Non Finite Verbs

Finite Verbs

Non-Finite Verbs

Auxiliary Verbs

To be

To do

To have

Action Verbs

Prepositions of Time

The prepositions at, on, and in

Prepositions of Place

The prepositions at, on, and in

Prepositions of Movement

Present Participles

Perfect Participles

Past Participles

Participles

Types of Participles Present Participles Perfect Participles Past Participles

Proper Nouns

Each part of a person's name is a proper noun:-

The names of companies, organisations or trade marks:-

Given or pet names of animals:-

The names of cities and countries and words derived from those proper nouns:-

Geographical and Celestial Names:-

Monuments, buildings, meeting rooms:-

Historical events, documents, laws, and periods:-

Months, days of the week, holidays:-

Religions, deities, scriptures:-

Awards, vehicles, vehicle models and names, brand names:-

Predicate Nouns

Gerund Nouns

Types of Participles

Present Participles

Perfect Participles

Past Participles