Latest Articles from ELB
Choosing between the past simple and continuous for states
Following from my tips for my article explaining that the past simple is used for state verbs, here’s a brief comparison to show how the past simple and past continuous can be compared for states. With verbs showing conditions, possession, emotion and senses, this is...
Mixed tenses practice – a quick quiz!
Here's a very short quiz to practice specific understanding of all the tenses. In many situations, different tenses can be chosen to show different meaning (for instance, I went to the park, I am going to the park, I had been going to the park...). Sometimes, the...
Simple Tenses and States – The Past Simple
States, which may be used as a general description for different states of mind, senses conditions and possession, usually use simple tenses instead of continuous tenses, even when the action or event is temporary or is interrupted. This creates a trick area of...
A lovely pile of books
This just arrived at my door; a box of printed editions of The English Tenses Practical Grammar Guide. And I'm happy to say these will all have a home, as this bundle has been produced for the purpose of promotional giveaways. Over the next few months, primarily...
Using “agree” and prepositions – with, on, to, about
Depending on the object, you can "agree with", "agree on", "agree about" or "agree to" something. All of these prepositions can be connected to a noun, so it's the nature of the object that decides the appropriate preposition, as each connects the subject and object...
Adverbs for building atmosphere – vocab and reading pratice
To put my Friday Twitter vocabulary blasts to more use, here’s a list of adverbs that can build atmosphere in descriptive English. As adverbs describe verbs, adjectives or other adverbs, these atmospheric words can add depth to your descriptions and events. The...
The Past Tenses in Narratives – Comparative Examples (2)
Continuing my short series of narrative examples to explain different uses (and the reasons behind different choices) in using past tenses, below is another brief past tense passage. The sentences are numbered, with full explanations below. Past tense narrative...
Subjunctive mood, form and use
The subjunctive mood in English is used to describe actions, ideas and events that are not real facts; for example imagined possibilities (or impossibilities!), and future intentions. It is often used in dependent clauses, such as if statements in conditional...
The Past Tenses in Narrative Use – Comparative Examples (1)
As the many uses of the different aspects of English can make choosing between the different tenses confusing, it may help to look at specific narrative texts or sections of English dialogue and analyse why the writer or speaker chooses different tenses. To help...