by Phil Williams | Apr 8, 2013 | Definitions, Grammar
Reflexive pronouns are used in English to refer to a noun, adjective, adverb or pronoun when the subject is the same as the object in a clause. Here’s an example: Bob dresses himself. The subject, Bob does the action to him, also the subject, but the pronoun...
by Phil Williams | Apr 3, 2013 | Exercises, Grammar
The following exercises are designed to test your knowledge of countable and uncountable nouns and plurals. The ability to count a noun will change the verb conjugation and the type of quantifier you use for it (for example, fewer/less). The first exercise tests the...
by Phil Williams | Apr 1, 2013 | Grammar, Words
Police is a rather unique uncountable plural noun in the English language. It should be treated like people for grammatical purposes, for instance The people were standing in a crowd. The police were standing around them. Essentially, police is an irregular plural of...
by Phil Williams | Mar 25, 2013 | Definitions, Exercises, Grammar
Choosing to say fewer or less in English is a grammar point that native speakers get wrong as well as foreign learners. This is not because it is complicated, but because less often sounds simpler or more natural than fewer. And (as with much in English language) not...
by Phil Williams | Mar 12, 2013 | Definitions, Exercises, Grammar
Adjectives and adverbs are describing words. They add details to other components of a sentence. They can be used in a variety of ways, and some uses have regional variations. Generally, however, the simplest way to think of them is that adjectives describe nouns...
by Phil Williams | Mar 9, 2013 | Books, Grammar
Whenever I recommend just one English grammar book, I suggest Raymond Murphy’s English Grammar in Use. The English Grammar in Use series covers all areas, Basic, Intermediate and Advanced, though the one I find most useful is Intermediate. The large selection of...