Present Continuous/present progressive is usually used for right now. We also use it to talk about the future when we feel that the future is definite.
Some verbs should NOT be used in a progressive or continuous tense. These are called "stative" verbs or non-action verbs. The most common are be, want, need, like, and have (when have means own.) Use these in simple present tense even if the time is right now.
I'm hungry, (I'm being hungry) and I want my lunch now. (I'm wanting)
Use should+_______(base verb) to say what's ideal good. Use shouldn't+_______(base verb) to say what's bad.
We should practice a lot every day. You should tell me when you don't understand. We should talk a lot. We shouldn't laugh when people don't understand. We shouldn't criticize religious customs.
Countable nouns are things you can count. There's a man. There are some children. There are three books.
Non count verbs are usually difficult to count -- liquids (water, milk, tea, beer), small grains (sand, sugar, salt) gloppy things (pudding, ice cream, yogurt) or groups containing different things (furniture, money, fruit.)
Non count verbs use the singular verb, but never have "a" as an article. (A=1)
There's some coffee. There is some sugar. There isn't any fruit.
Illogical Count Rules: --Rice is non-count, but beans are count -- even if the beans are really small. --Fruit is non-count, but vegetables are count. There is some fruit in the bowl. There are some vegetables in the bowl. Individual pieces of fruit are count -- 3 apples, 2 bananas, two bunches of grapes. --Stars are count, but money is non-count. --Alive chickens and fish are count, but they are non-count as meat. (Which is why fish counted as non-count to University of Victoria, but count in the I can't count song.) There are three fish in the aquarium. There is some fish in the oven -- A whole cake, pizza, or watermelon is count. I made a cake. We ordered five pizzas. He brought a watermelon to the party. Once you cut them, use "pieces of" with singular and plural or treat them as non-count. I ate three pieces of cake. There's some cake left on the plate. There's some pizza in the kitchen. sort the count nouns game
The next video is British, but we use most of the same expressions in US English.
We don't do a burp or a fart, though.
I also don't think the emphasis on non-specific things being "do" is completely true.
It's okay to make something too.
Do something is respond. Make something is create -- usually food for dinner.
A or An = 1When I use a or an for one, I probably don't know or care which one. I don't think you know which one anyway. Use for non-specific nouns. Use a or an with one of many. Examples: Please hand me a napkin. Can I have a piece of pizza? Please give her a pencil. Get a chair. Have an apple. I'll be done in just a minute.
Never use a or an with plural (more that 1) or non-count nouns.
The= I think you know which one(s). Can be used with plural nouns and non-count nouns. Don't use anything when the plural or non-count noun is a big idea. (Practice makes your English improve. Religion makes her happy. March has nice weather in Virginia. The students need more practice. (What students? The ones in my class.) There's the girl with the orange hat. (What girl? The girl who is wearing the only orange hat in the class. You know which one because you can see the orange hat.) Did you finish the homework? (What homework? The homework that the teacher told you to do for today. I think you know, but if you don't know, check the blog!! What blog? The blog for our class: www.lieasyesol.blogspot.com) The must be used when there's only one because if there's only one, you know which one. Please lock the door. Look at the clock.
The should be used when you describe which one. We say "a student" to describe any one student in the class, but "the student" with the NIKE cap to describe a particular student. A desk=any desk. The teacher's desk=a specific desk---and you know which. The should be used after the first mention because now you know which one(s). Please give me a sponge. Would you please wet the sponge before you give it to me? (What sponge? The sponge that you are going to give me.)
A man and a woman were walking on Oxford Street. The woman saw a dress that she liked in a shop. She asked the man if he could buy the dress for her. He said: "Do you think the shop will accept a check? I don't have a credit card Advanced Explanation -- Scroll down for some good examples
For a vs. an Use "an" before a vowel sound. Be careful. Sometimes the sound is more important than reality. If "hon" sounds like "awww," use an. If "u" sounds like "yooo," use a a or an practice a or an 2 Woodward English a vs. an
Some people may have learned not to use "to have" in a progressive or continuous tense. That's true, but only when "have" means possess. It's OK to say, "I was having my lunch," but not "I was having a car."
This next one has a british accent and advertising for a grammar book, but I like her explanation.
This link has great, (but grammar-vocabulary filled) explanations of conjunctions. There are a few small grammar mistakes in some of the examples: ?http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKlvpPBh8Pc?
Practice Quiz -- Includes too Too is used like also or as well. Too shows agreement with a positive statement when used at the end of a sentence. When my husband travels, I want to go too.
In front of an adjective (description word), too is an adverb, not a conjunction. Too intensifies the meaning of the next word so much that it's a problem. If the light is too bright, it hurts my eyes. If I eat too much, I have a stomach ache. If he is too short for the team, he can't be on the team because of his height.
Do you have a big family? Do you live with your family? What makes your family different from other families? What do you like to do with your family? Do you have any friends that are like family to you?
The examples put the frequency adverb first much more often than people usually do in my life. Technically, you can correctly put a frequency adverb first or last, but I require students to put them before action verbs or after the verb "to be" because that's the way I usually hear them.
The hard part of using simple present is remembering to add an s on the verb for he/she/it
We usually just add "s," but when the end of the word already sounds like "s" -- ending in ss, zz, ch or sh -- we add es. (crosses, buzzes, watches, rushes) If the end of the word is consonant-y -take off the y and add ies. She studies a lot.
