After a passive verb phrase (or a past participle as an adjective), the preposition “for” indicates purpose or reason. Here are the results of a search in the iWeb corpus for: _VB _VVN for 1 BE USED FOR 284604 Crush. It‘s funny how the same word for the feeling of attraction can be used for the feeling of disappointment. listen 2 IS KNOWN FOR 97688 And he is known for being a liar. listen The sentence “he is known […]
BE + past participle + FOR Read More »
can’t/couldn’t very well do sth = used to say that something is not a suitable or practical thing to do
You can’t very well expect other people to be nice to you if you aren’t willing to lead the way.
English Vocabulary Profile at C2
can’t | couldn’t + very well + INFINITIVE Read More »
The adverb ‘otherwise‘ has 3 listings in the English Vocabulary Profile. WHAT WOULD HAPPEN B1 used after an order or suggestion to show what the result will be if you do not follow that order or suggestion A search in the NOW corpus for: , otherwise _P _V 1 , OTHERWISE IT WILL 1394 There
While working on another piece of grammar, I noticed a complex piece of grammar that is not listed in the English Grammar Profile. There are many grammar points that are listed that are about adverbs in the middle position, but none about two which should be listed at C2. A search in iWeb corpus for
verb + adverb + verb + adverb + verb Read More »
In this post, we put common lexical bundles that French EFL students use in their writing, through our GRAMMAR PROFILER. Magali Paquot wrote a paper about Lexical bundles. Here are the significant forms found in the ICLE – FR: Here are our expert examples: You‘ll be tempted to tear it off. listen They may never be considered as such by religion, but they are just as important as the ones in your textbooks. listen Kaleb‘s art can be viewed as deeply rooted in the pop minimalism of Aureur or Baer.
English lexical bundles and their most frequent equivalent forms in French Read More »
What can be going through a man‘s mind at this moment? The Right Stuff The verb phrase “can be going” in the sentence above expresses possibility or uncertainty. The speaker is not sure what is going through the man’s mind, but they are asking for possible explanations. The word “going” is a present participle, which is a verb form that is used here to
‘All’ with the meaning ‘the only thing’ is listed at B1 in the English Vocabulary Profile. For example: All I can say is I‘m sorry. listen All it does is tire your mind and stops you thinking for yourself. listen That‘s all I can suggest. Stranger Than Fiction An iWeb search for: All * _VM _VVI _VB 1 ALL I CAN SAY IS 19460 2 ALL WE CAN SAY IS 1135 3 ALL
ALL + clause (the only thing) ‘all I can say is…’ Read More »
The page discusses the use of ‘can’ in forming questions at the A1 level of English proficiency. It highlights that ‘can’ is often used with the pronouns ‘you’ and ‘we’. The page provides examples of questions formed with ‘can’, such as “Can you help?” or “Can we talk?”. These questions can be extended for specific contexts, like “Can you help me with my homework tonight?” or “Can we talk about our plans for the upcoming vacation?”. The page serves as a guide to using ‘can’ in forming various types of questions.
Can you | we ? (QUESTION) Read More »
Affirmative declarative clauses are statements that express how things are. Modal verbs are verbs that indicate possibility, ability, permission, obligation, etc. Affirmative declarative clauses with modal verbs combine the subject, the modal verb and the bare infinitive of the main verb.
CAN | WILL (affirmative declarative clause) Read More »
In the English Vocabulary Profile at B2, ‘bear’ is defined: accept someone or something unpleasant For example: I can’t bear to see him like this. listen *There are other uses of ‘bear’ that are more advanced. However, the sense defined above has a distinct grammar pattern: (CAN | COULD) (often negative) + bear + (to-infinitive | Verb-ing | noun phrase) Verb-ing
can’t bear + to-infinitive Read More »
I’m often asked by my students just before they take an IELTS test for some quick tips on what to study before a particular task. Therefore, in this post, I will summarise the salient grammar and vocabulary features I found in very good introductions and overviews in the Academic IELTS Task 1 tests using our
Academic IELTS grammar for task 1 Read More »
Let’s start with A1 grammar to explain how to form modal verb questions when asking for something. Here is an affirmative declarative sentence: I can get some help. To form a yes/no question with a modal auxiliary verb, invert the subject and the modal verb I can → Can I follow it with the bare
questions with modal verbs Read More »
In the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 74 in MODALITY is defined: ‘can you believe’ to express surprise PELIC STUDENT EXAMPLE: Can you believe that my poor mother still did not know that she was dying? Mongol female level 4 grammar class. TLC SPEAKING TEST EXAMPLE: Can you believe that only in Niger there are one point three million people who are in critical need of food and assistance due to corruption? female Sri Lanka B1 An iWeb search: 1 Can you believe it? 2387 listen 2
Can you believe it? Read More »
In the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 98 in the category of modality is defined:
GENERAL TRUTHS AND TENDENCIES: ‘can be’
“If + present simple + present simple in the main clause”: This structure is used to talk about things that are always true, such as scientific facts, or to give advice. For example, “If this happens, money only brings him loneliness, not happiness.” Here, the speaker is expressing a general truth or observation about the consequences of a certain situation.
“If + present simple + imperative in the main clause”: This structure is used to give advice or make suggestions. The “if” clause presents a condition, and the imperative in the main clause suggests what should be done if that condition is met. For example, “If you feel sick, see a doctor.” Here, the speaker is giving advice on what to do when feeling sick.
“If + present simple + can in the main clause”: This structure is used to talk about possible or likely situations in the future. The “if” clause sets up a condition, and “can” in the main clause expresses what will be possible if that condition is met. For example, “If we properly invest into data infrastructure and data preparation, all this can be avoided.” Here, the speaker is expressing that a certain undesirable outcome can be avoided if proper investments are made.
These structures are very common in English and are used in various contexts to express conditions and their potential outcomes.
IF + present simple Read More »
In the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 74 in the category of CLAUSES/conditional is defined as: PRESENT SIMPLE ‘IF’ CLAUSE + MODAL, FUTURE, POSSIBLE OUTCOME: introduce a possible future condition, with modal verbs in the main clause, to talk about a possible result. A search in TED corpus for expert examples: If you‘ve got a couple of final words you want to share, that would be great. listen So if you look that up, you can hear more of those tunes. listen PELIC
If + PRESENT SIMPLE + MODAL CLAUSE Read More »
In the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 120 in the category of MODALITY is defined as: ‘can’ with a limited range of adverbs (including ‘also’, ‘always’, ‘even’, ‘just’, ‘only’, ‘really’, ‘still’) in the normal mid position after the modal verb. PELIC STUDENT EXAMPLE: Some old people can only sit on the wheelchair. Chinese female level 3 writing class. A search on iWeb for: can_VM
CAN + limited range of adverbs Read More »
The pronoun ‘it’ can be used where the subject is unclear at C1, and verbs such as ‘conclude’ are only used by C1 learners. For example: It was concluded that it never existed. However, this post is about reporting with modal verbs. C1 point 208 in MODALITY is defined as: ‘can’ in passive reporting clauses in a more formal impersonal
It can | could + be + said | argued | concluded | considered Read More »
Here are 2 examples of post-modifying a superlative adverb phrase with a clause containing an ellipted modal verb: I do the best I can with what I have. I go about my business, make money, help society the best I can and try to promote free trade in this world. listen You know, I did the best I could with what I had. listen C1 English Grammar Profile point 118 in the category of CLAUSES is defined as: ‘the best’ as a superlative adverb + pronoun + ellipted ‘can’ or ‘could’.
the best + PRONOUN + can | could Read More »
Linking adverbs, also known as conjunctive adverbs, are used to connect ideas between two independent clauses or sentences. They help to show the relationship between these ideas. Here’s how the adverbs ‘also’, ‘however’ and the conjunction ‘so’ function in this capacity: Also: This adverb is used to add information or express agreement with the previous
LINKING ADVERBS / SUBORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS Read More »
