In the English Vocabulary Profile at B1: If something used to happen or a situation used to exist, it happened regularly or in the past but it does not happen or exist now. In the English Grammar Profile at B1: Point 60 in MODALITY: ‘used to’ to talk about repeated actions or states in the […]
didn’t use to + INFINITIVE Read More »
B1 FUTURE continuous NEGATIVE WITH ‘WILL’ (won’t)
English Grammar Profile
will not be VERBing Read More »
In the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 94 in the category of MODALITY is defined:
‘may’ negative
‘Willingness‘ = being prepared to do something (readiness). In the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 105 in the category of MODALITY is defined: negative forms of ‘would’ to talk about willingness in the past. For example: Dad wanted him buried in the family plot in St Louis, but Pete wouldn’t allow it. Philomena Helen, come on! She wouldn’t wait for you. Edward Scissorhands The EGP examples include the bare infinitives ‘wait’ and ‘allow’. This is incredibly
WOULDN’T (past willingness) Read More »
Here’s a student example of ‘present perfect simple negative‘: Today I can play very well with someone, even when I haven’t played for a long time. PELIC Portuguese female level 3 writing. A2 point 5 in the category of NEGATION/AUXILIARY VERBS is defined: negative statements of main verbs in the present continuous and present perfect with ‘be’ and ‘have’ + ‘not/n’t’. A2 point 13 in the category of PAST is
present perfect simple negative (YET) Read More »
This is another clashing grammar point in the English Grammar Profile and therefore not really useful to expand. It would be better if it listed which tenses/aspects it is associated with. B1 point 11 in the category of NEGATION is defined: adverbs: ‘ever’, ‘never’, ‘yet’, ‘still’ in negative contexts. Let’s look at the English Grammar
adverb (negative context) Read More »
Negative questions usually show the speaker’s expectation that the response should be positive. In the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 12 in the category of NEGATION is defined as: negative question forms in main clauses and question tags. This is such a general point that overlaps and clashes against so many other points in the
The indefinite pronoun “anything” can be used after a negative verb form to express a lack of something. For example, “I don’t have anything to do.” In this sentence, the word “anything” refers to any possible thing that the speaker could do.
The use of “anything” after a negative verb form is first introduced at the A2 level of the CEFR. However, the English Vocabulary Profile lists “anything” at the A1 level, so it is important to be aware of the different ways that this word can be used at different levels.
In my knowledge, you can see that the word “anything” is often used in negative sentences with the verbs “do”, “have”, “know”, “find”, “see”, and “say”. These verbs are all commonly used to express a lack of something.
The search results also show that the word “anything” can be used in other ways, such as in the phrases “it doesn’t mean anything” and “there isn’t anything”. In these cases, the word “anything” is used to refer to something that is not important or significant.
The use of the word “anything” can be a bit tricky, but it is an important part of the English language. By understanding the different ways that this word can be used, you can improve your English grammar and communication skills.
Here are some additional things to keep in mind about the use of the indefinite pronoun “anything”:
“Anything” can be used in both affirmative and negative sentences. For example, “I can do anything” and “I can’t do anything” are both grammatically correct sentences.
“Anything” can be used with a variety of verbs, not just the verbs listed above. For example, you could say “I don’t want anything” or “I didn’t see anything”.
“Anything” can be used in both formal and informal contexts. However, it is more common in informal contexts.
indefinite pronouns (negative context) Read More »
Point 14 in the category of NEGATION: negative forms of mental process verbs (‘I don’t think’, ‘I don’t believe’) followed by a complement clause, where the negative form is in the mental process verb rather than the complement clause An iWeb search for: _P _VD _X think|believe that_C 1 I DO N’T THINK THAT 20060
I don’t + think | believe + CLAUSE Read More »
Let’s look at the most common examples of non-finite or ellipted clauses used after ‘not’. Usually, we would say: I am not sure if it is possible. But we can remove the subject and verb to make an ellipted clause: Not sure if it is possible. We can also say: This is a petrol car
‘Not sure if it is.’ (NOT + non-finite or ellipted clause) Read More »
There is no listing in the English Grammar Profile for a ‘wide‘ range of main verbs with present perfect simple. So, here’s an expert example of present perfect simple using academic collocation: In the course of my professional life, I have acquired knowledge and manual skill. (linotype.com) Here are some general range points in the English Grammar Profile in the category of
present perfect simple (range) Read More »
In the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 39 in the category of PAST is simply defined as: past continuous NEGATIVE TLC STUDENT SPEAKING TEST example: (discussing saving money as a child) I was saving. I was not eating chocolates. I was just spending my money on my studies. male India B1 An iWeb search: _VBD _XX _VVG 1 WASN’T GOING 29202 2 WAS NOT GOING 16267 3
past continuous negative Read More »
We use present perfect simple negative questions to ask about actions that have not happened in the recent past.
Haven’t you finished your homework yet?
Hasn’t she seen the new movie?
Why haven’t they called us back?
present perfect negative question Read More »
Point 24 in the category of PAST perfect simple: negative forms. PELIC STUDENT EXAMPLE: At that time, I had not found my job and I had a lot of free time. Chinese male, level 3 writing class. A search on iWeb for: _VHD _XX _VVN 1 HAD N’T SEEN 10519 2 HAD NOT SEEN 8370 3 HAD N’T HEARD 6433 4 HAD N’T THOUGHT 5405 5
had not + PAST PARTICIPLE Read More »
The negative form of the present simple passive is formed: present form of BE + NOT + PAST PARTICIPLE am | is | are + n’t | not + past participle In the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 10 in the category of PASSIVES is defined as: PRESENT SIMPLE, NEGATIVE + range of pronoun and noun
present simple passive negative form Read More »
In the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 63 in the category of PRONOUNS is defined as: possessive pronouns ‘mine’ and ‘yours’, with singular reference, in comparative clauses after ‘(not) as … as’. *The following example does not have a singular reference, and the use of ‘yours’ is A2 in the English Vocabulary Profile. They‘re not as complicated as
as * as + mine | yours Read More »
In the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 21 in the category of QUESTIONS is defined as: negative ‘yes/no’ questions to involve the listener or reader by seeking agreement. B1 point 4 in the category of PRESENT/simple is defined as: NEGATIVE TAG QUESTIONS ‘don’t you think’ or ‘don’t you agree’ to look for agreement or an
negative question (seeking agreement) Read More »
In the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 23 in the category of QUESTIONS is defined as: alternative questions using ‘or not’ to substitute for a clause, sometimes to express annoyance or impatience An iWeb search for: * * or not ? 1 THIS EARNING OR NOT? 287 2 GOOD IDEA OR NOT? 122 Is drinking fruit juices a good idea or not? cityspidey.com 3
There are a number of similar points for questionS in the EGP. Some are clearly different, while others get harder to differentiate. 18 QUESTIONS tags B1 increasing range of affirmative ‘be’, ‘do’ and ‘have’ tags with negative main clauses. 19 QUESTIONS yes/no B1 use main verb ‘be’ + ‘n’t’ to form negative ‘yes/no’ questions. 20
QUESTION TAGS (range) Read More »
Here’s a very advanced hypothetical conditional example of using a negative modal verb phrase in a question: If worms were evading the vibrations, wouldn’t they burrow deeper instead? listen Here are simpler examples of negative modal questions: Now who wouldn’t want that? listen Won’t you join me? listen Shouldn’t we save everything we can on the lifeboats? listen Question tags are also B1: Your life would be pretty different, wouldn’t it? listen Here are B2 examples: Wouldn’t that be cool? listen Why, if we knew this was going to happen every year, why couldn’t we just do something to make sure that we were safer?
NEGATIVE QUESTIONS with MODAL VERBS Read More »
