Notes (Apuntes)  End-of-course Overview NB1
End-of-Course Overview of Verbs
for Básico 1 students
By michelle (2009) - used with permission of talkingpeople.net
Printer-friendly version  (2 pages; version using colors)
Tenses – Using them – Look for Clues!
Present simple: for habits, routines, general truths.
More clues: frequency adverbs, time expressions indicating routines, habits, like "On Mondays, at weekdays, every day, in the morning, on Tuesday afternoon"… |
Past simple: for actions that happened in a past time that has completely finished. Clues: yesterday, last week, the other day… The other day we didn’t finish this exercise.
Tip: You also use it when you list actions you performed in the past.
Yesterday I was very busy: I got up at 8.00, I worked from 9.00 to 15.00, then I took the children to karate lessons, I did the shopping, I took a watch to the repair shop, I went to the post office to send a parcel, I went back home, helped the kids with their homework and cooked dinner! After dinner I studied English! |
Present continuous: for actions happening now, at the moment of speaking.
More clues: Actions happening in this period of your life, temporary. |
Past continuous: for actions that happening in a past time & which we can express in their duration.
When/While we were watching (cont.) TV, we heard (simple) a noise
Tip: You also use it when you want to describe, evoke, the action!
We got (simple) to Paris in the morning. The sun was shining (cont.). The weather was (simple) perfect. We left (simple) our luggage in the hotel and then we went (simple) for a walk. We were walking (cont.) around the city for 4 hours! It was (simple) tiring* but lovely! *tiring is not a verb! It’s an –ing adjective! |
Crib note for tenses…
SYNTAX – WORD ORDER |
|
POSITIVE STATEMENTS |
NEGATIVE STATEMENTS |
QUESTIONS |
To be |
S + V |
S + V + "not" |
V + S…? |
Other verbs |
S + (AUX*) + V |
S + AUX + "not" |
AUX + S + V…? |
To have (only meaning possession) |
Both above:
Do you have…? or Have you got…? – I don’t have… or I haven’t got… I have… or I’ve got… |
- When the auxiliary is do (do/does for present simple, or did for past simple), the main verb is a bare infinitive
- When the auxiliary is be (am/is/are for present cont., or was/were for past cont.), the main verb is an –ing form.
- When the auxiliary is have (have/has for the present perfect), the main verb is a past participle (regular verbs = –ed form & irregular verbs = 3rd column)
MORPHOLOGY – AGREEMENT BETWEEN AUX & MAIN VERB |
Simple tenses |
Continuous tenses |
Perfect tenses |
AUX = DO* |
AUX = BE |
AUX = HAVE |
V = bare INF |
V = -ING form |
V = Participle |
Present simple: do, does
Past simple: did |
Present cont.: am, is, are
Past cont.: was, were |
Present perf.: have, has
Past perfect: had
(not studied this year) |
*only in - & ? (neg/interrg)
When we use do (in -, ?), do takes all the marks of tense and person, so that the main verb can be a bare infinitive. We say: I don’t like… Does she like…? / We didn’t go… |
She is sitting over there
Are you listening to me?
--
We were looking for this street
|
Have you ever been to…?
I’ve never been to… |
Reminder: in narrations about past events, combine the simple past and the past cont. past: The other day we went to our hometown. WHILE/WHEN we were driving there, we saw a traffic accident!!! |
|
Notice this: When the auxiliary is a modal (except obligation modal "have to"), the main verb is a bare INFINITE.
Haber o no haber!: There be versus Have
- Have followed by a past participle is an auxiliary verb. It doesn’t mean anything. It just helps the main verb to express time and person.
- There be is a special verb. It is a MAIN VERB: it means that sth or sb exists somewhere! And then that sth or sb, the subject of that verb, follows the verb instead of preceding it!
There is a girl on/in the street
There are some drinks over there |
There isn’t any time
There aren’t any students in class |
Is there any money there?
Are there any people in class? |
Remember how There be combines with QUANTIFIERS
SINGULAR: There is a… (for +, - and ?) / There is some… (mass or uncountable nouns)
PLURAL: There are some… (for +) /There aren’t any… (for -) /Are there any…? (for ?)
| There are a lot (of)… / many*… |
There isn’t much…
There aren’t many… |
Is there much…?
Are there many…? |
Verbs of likes and dislikes followed by another verb
When you want to express you like/don’t like an action, you need to be careful. That action may take the form of a gerund (-ing form) or a full infinitive (to-infinitive).
- If you are referring to an action which is kind of permanent in your like/dislike, use a gerund. Grammar clue: gerunds often go after simple tenses because these indicate habits, more permanent things in your life. I love dancing. I don’t like playing football.
- If you are referring to an action which is a like/dislike for a specific moment, use the infinitive. Another clue is: full infinitives often go after the Conditional Tense: "would" (-ría, condicional; no –ía de pasado). Would you like to go to the cinema? I love going to the cinema, and I love movies, but I can’t go this week. Would you like to go next week? Sure!
QUERER: I’d like to… (Requests, Invitations) – I want to…
They’re very similar, but in requests (peticiones) and invitations, and generally whenever you want to be polite, use "Would you like to...?" and "I’d like to...". It’s like the difference between "Querría / Quisiera / Por favor, ¿podría...?" and "Quiero".
|
Would like to… |
Want to… |
Positive |
I’d like to have a coffee |
I want to get home earlier today |
Interrogative |
Would you like to visit this museum? |
Does she want to be a teacher? |
Negative |
(You won’t be using it now like this) |
I don’t want to miss the bus, so see you tomorrow! |
Modals and Meanings in Use!
Shall I...? - Offering yourself to do something for people
Shall I open the window? - Shall I start? (In Spanish, it’s always a present!)
Will you...? - Asking for a favour/favor
Will you turn the light on? - Will you hold this for me? (¿Me agarras esto?)
Have to – Obligation – Listen to sentences with "have to" at our Audio section
What do we have to do?
We have to do this exercise
We don’t have to do this
Can – many meanings! Can you cook? I can’t meet you today (Ability) Can I borrow your pen, please?, Can I have two stamps/a coffee, please? (Request)
Special Case: expressing the future in English (introduction!!! A better explanation)
Be going to – For future plans and intentions
What are we going to do today?
We are going to do the listening exercise on page 23.
Will – For spontaneous decisions (I’ll have a coffee, please)
For predictions (I think I’ll stay home this evening) – uncertain future events
Present continuous – For arrangements (agenda items: I’m meeting Minnie at six)
Two special cases: What are you doing next weekend? What are you having?
Standing, sitting and wearing
For "estoy" wherever, if it is possible, use the present continuous and "stand" or "sit".
Pilar is sitting opposite Mercedes. Mayte is sitting in front of Montse. Julia is sitting in front of Cristóbal and next to Mónica. Mónica is next to the teacher, who is standing!
When we talk about the clothes we are wearing it is not the same as when we talk about the kind of clothes we usually wear. Compare:
In the present continuous
B-What are you wearing?
A-I’m wearing a pair of black jeans and a red T-shirt. And you?
B-I’m wearing a pair of bright green sandals and a green dress. |
In the present simple
A-What kind of clothes do you usually wear?
B-I often wear jeans, T-shirts & boots! What about you?
A-I wear all kinds of clothes. I often wear jeans, too. But I also wear skirts and dresses. |
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