HARDLY HAD + inversion
C2 FOCUS | FORMAL | happened immediately before something else
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formal
- Formal language is used for more serious situations.
- If we don’t know the people so well, we usually use more formal language.
- Writing usually has more formal language than speaking.
- However, speeches or lectures also contain more formal language.
NON-FINITE past participle CLAUSES
In the English Grammar Profile, C1 point 7 in the category of FOCUS is defined as: non-finite subordinate clause with an ‘-ed’ form, before a main clause, for focus, often in formal, academic or business contexts. Also see Pearson’s 76 GSE C1: add information using appended clauses with ‘being’ and/or passive participles. Given enough time, she‘ll do
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have + OBJECT + INFINITIVE
Point 39 in the category of PASSIVES is defined as: ‘have’ + object + infinitive without ‘to’ to talk about asking or causing someone to do something, often in formal contexts _VH _P _VV0 1 HAVE YOU BELIEVE 5396 Interesting Engineering From Scientific Research to Memes: A Brief History of the … Amazon
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one (pronoun)
This post lists two clashing points in the English Grammar Profile. The only difference that we can guess from the definition is that the B1 point does not require the subject position. B2 point 91 in PRONOUNS is defined as: ‘ONE’ as a generic personal pronoun in the subject position to mean people in general.
simple prepositions (range)
When it comes to single word grammar points such as single-word prepositions, the English Vocabulary Profile is much better at explaining range than the English Grammar Profile. For that reason, this post will only cover the prepositions appearing in the EGP examples. A1 is defined: prepositional phrases with a preposition and a noun phrase. limited
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fronted preposition + relative pronoun
Wh-relatives can be preceded by a preposition unlike ‘that’ or ‘zero’ relatives. For example: This is the thing which I am interested in. (stranded preposition) This is the thing in which I am interested. (fronted preposition) This is the thing that I am interested in. (stranding) This is the thing I am interested in. (‘zero’ relative pronoun and stranding) In the English Grammar Profile, B2 point 12 in the category of PREPOSITIONs is defined as: preposition + relative pronoun as complement, to
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NEVER BEFORE + perfect inversion
‘never + inversion‘ is B2 with or without past perfect. The following examples use present perfect simple + inversion: Never before has man possessed so much power. listen Never before have so many people risen so far so fast, on so many different dimensions. listen Here’s an example with past perfect inversion without ‘before’: Never had I felt such an incomprehensible emptiness within myself. listen In the English Grammar Profile, B2 point 68 in PAST is defined as: past perfect
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NO SOONER + past perfect – than
In the English Grammar Profile, B2 point 56 in PAST perfect simple is defined as: invert the subject and auxiliary verb with ‘no sooner … than’ to talk about something that happened immediately before something else, often in formal contexts This is quite a rare structure. 1 NO SOONER HAD HE SAID 30 2 NO
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Many a NOUN
The idiomatic phrase ‘many a’ or many an’ + a singular noun is a rare formal and literary structure meaning ‘a large number of’. C2 point 65 in the category of DETERMINERS and quantity is defined as: ‘many a’ or ‘many an’ + singular noun for emphasis and focus. *We noticed that this phrase often
complex prepositions
Firstly, complex prepositions are phrases, which means there are two or more words to them. B2 example: In addition to imitation, there are a number of other procedures designed to give the therapist some degree of control over the child‘s language production. The Louvain EAP dictionary: ‘in addition to’ is used to add new information and introduces the point to which you want to add something new. C1 example: In those few weeks, our lives had reverted back to what they‘d been prior to the murder of Sean
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will have + PAST PARTICIPLE (future perfect)
There are 5 formally related grammar points in the English Grammar Profile in the category of FUTURE/perfect simple with ‘will.’ Many of them overlap and at C1 they are very rare and hard to find in corpora. An example from the iWeb corpus of the future perfect form used for a polite assumption about the
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organising opening closing phrases
A discourse marker is a word or phrase that is used to connect sentences and paragraphs, and to signal the relationship between ideas. They are often used in formal contexts, such as academic writing or business reports. Some common discourse markers that are used to open and close texts include: To open a text: In
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Do not (imperative)
In the English Grammar Profile, B2 Point 99 in the category of CLAUSES & imperatives is defined as: ‘DO NOT’ for EMPHASIS in formal contexts We do not believe ‘formality’ is essential to make this structure B2. *We have expanded this point because the first person imperative can be negated simply by inserting ‘not’ after the
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rather a + adjective
In the English Grammar Profile, B2 point 61 in the category of ADJECTIVES is defined as: adjective phrases with ‘rather a’ + adjective, often in formal contexts A search in iWeb for rather a _JJ 1 RATHER A LONG 392 Further collocates 4 to the left and right: 1 TIME (NNT1 ) 187 2 WAY
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And yet
In the English Grammar Profile ‘and yet’ or ‘yet’ is listed at C2 Point 24 in CONJUNCTIONS “CONCESSIVE to combine sentences, often unexpected” C1 Point 20 in CONJUNCTIONS coordinating CONCESSIVE ‘(and) yet’ to combine phrases and clauses to introduce a contrast, often unexpected. In the English Vocabulary Profile, ‘yet’ as a conjunction is listed as:
if it were to INFINITIVE
C2 CLAUSE: introduce conditions in formal contexts
‘If it were’ + to-infinitive
EGP
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‘major cities’, ‘very beginning’ (major | very + noun)
For this C2 grammar, ‘major’ is an adjective meaning: important, serious, or significant. ‘Very’ is an adjective meaning: actual or precise, with emphasis on the exact quality of the following noun or an extreme point in time/space. Point 73 under the category of adjectives in C2 on the English Grammar Profile these two vocabulary items
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Inversion in clauses with conditions and formality
C1 | C2:
Had I known | Should you desire | Were I allowed + WOULD | COULD
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