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mutiplying predeterminer + noun phrase

DETERMINERS

‘double, treble, quadruple’ can be multiplying predeterminers.  They come before other determiners in a noun phrase.  For example, ‘double the national average.’   Bloomberg.com New York City‘s unemployment rate was nearly double the national average in June. Other multiplying expressions: He earns three times more than me. She gets paid nearly three times as much as me. *In the English Vocabulary Profile, B1 if followed by a comparative structure. We can’t be […]

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must see

ADJECTIVES, MODALITY, NOUNS

Usually, ‘must’ is a modal verb. You must see this movie. You must see the difference. (see can mean understand/notice) However, ‘must’ can be a noun. It’s a must. = This is a thing that you must do. There are new combinations: As an adjective: It’s a must-see movie. =  It’s a movie that you must see. As

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May be vs maybe (possibility)

ADVERBS, MODALITY

Here we explain the differences between may be and maybe ‘maybe‘ is usually an adverb that means ‘perhaps’ or ‘possibly’. ‘may‘ is usually a modal auxiliary verb with many uses related to ‘possibility’, ‘permission’ etc. He is in Vietnam.  (sure.) He may be in Vietnam. (50% sure.) Maybe, he is in Vietnam. (50% sure.) ‘be’

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Children’s grammar?

research

We love testing the grammar profiler app against all types of texts.  The following comes from an 8-year-old in grade 3 in an Australian primary school.  She was asked to write a paragraph about anything.  The CLAWS7 tagger had a problem marking the part of speech for a few words since they are new.  And

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THERE + is | are | was | were

A1, A2, complements, NOUNS, phrases, plural, singular, VERBS

In English grammar, “there is” and “there are” are commonly used to indicate the existence or presence of something.

“There is” is used when the noun following it is singular. For example, “There is a book on the table.”
“There are” is used when the noun following it is plural. For example, “There are many books on the shelf.”
These phrases can be used in various tenses by adjusting the form of the verb “be”. For instance, you could say “There was a time when I was everything to you,” using the past tense. However, this usage is typically considered more advanced and may be classified as A2 level in some learning resources.

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irregular plural noun + ‘s + noun

B1, DETERMINERS, irregular, NOUNS, plural, possessive

In the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 44 in the category of DETERMINERS is defined as: ‘S after irregular plural nouns to indicate possession. Here’s an expert example: Women‘s organizations were active participants from the beginning. (Listen to this sentence) A search in iWeb for: _NN2 _GE _NN We removed those that are not irregular. 1 CHILDREN ‘S HOSPITAL 34865 2 MEN ‘S

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ANY + comparative

ADJECTIVES, ADVERBS, B1, comparatives, emphasis, NEGATIVE, QUESTIONS, vocabulary

‘Any’ can be used as an adverb to mean ‘at all’ or ‘in some degree’. Here are expert examples: We‘re not gonna discuss it here any further. Keep The Change You‘re not at university any longer. listen How would that end any differently than last time? Captain America In the English Vocabulary Profile, ‘any’ is listed as ADVERB B1 used in questions and negatives to emphasize a comparative adjective or adverb Do you feel any better?

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THE LEAST

C2, emphasis, NEGATIVE, superlative

Here are expert examples of negation + ‘the least‘: I’m not in the least bit religious. Listen to this sentence Well, aren’t you the least bit curious  as to how I can be talking to you on the phone right now  when I ‘m supposed to be taped to a chair? listen C2 Point 28 in the category of NEGATION is defined: ‘IN THE LEAST’ after a negative form for emphasis. A search in iWeb: 1 NOT SURPRISED

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‘AS’ + pronoun + ‘USED’ + to-infinitive

background, C2, highlight, MODALITY, narrative, PRONOUNS

In the English Grammar Profile, C2 point 236 in the category of MODALITY is defined: ‘as’ + pronoun + ‘used to’ to add background to a narrative, often to highlight something unusual *Note this is not the “as + adjective + as” structure. Student example in a speaking test: I don’t think that they pay enough attention towards the national customs as they used to do those days.

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WOULD + adverb (wide range)

ADVERBS, C2, MODALITY, range

Let’s look at some examples of ‘would’ + a wide range of adverbs: They would eventually become the oppressive hand of the Russian government.  (Listen) What would normally take him maybe a day or something to solder by hand, he can do in a few minutes using this machine.  (Listen)   Point 234 in the category of MODALITY is defined: wide range of adverbs with ‘would’, including ‘undoubtedly’, ‘possibly’, ‘normally’, ‘personally’, ‘eventually’, ‘obviously’, ‘significantly’,

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used not to

C2, MODALITY, NEGATIVE

The following rare student writing example shows how ‘used not to‘ expresses modality: Also when I was younger, I used not to be allowed to drink coffee. PELIC Korean female level 3 grammar class. It sounds more natural to say: “I didn’t use to be allowed to drink coffee.” *In other words, she did not have permission to drink coffee.  Although now she is an adult and can. In the

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IF clause + SHALL clause

C2, CLAUSES, conditional, MODALITY

Here’s an expert example of using a conditional clause + ‘shall’ clause to express modality: Come on, if we don’t share a similar social consciousness, how shall we discuss social problems? Listen to this sentence. C2 point 225 in the category of MODALITY is defined: ‘shall’ in the main clause after an ‘if-‘ clause conditionals Long open queries are impossible on iWeb, so here we first look for the

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