How do you compare one thing to another in English? What if you want to explain how something is better than all the rest? In English, this is pretty easy to do. We call a word which compares the properties of two things “the comparative”. If we want to talk about how something is the best of all, we call that “the superlative”.
“Modals verbs” are a class of verbs used to express ideas like intention, likelihood, ability, or to give advice. You can call them helper verbs. They always appear with a main verb. English has nine of them: can, could, will, would, shall, should, may, might, must.
Practical English Usage by Michael Swan is the best modern example I have seen of this kind of book. The book is split into two sections; one covers common English grammar points and the other covers English vocabulary. Explanations are clear, easy to understand, and written with learners in mind.
The difference between countable and uncountable nouns is if they can be separated into individuals. Cat is countable because you can separate a group of cats. However, air is not because you cannot separate a mass of air into individual pieces. Unique things also cannot be counted, like New York.
The best grammar books are no-frills showcases of English grammar with plenty of exercises to complete. They let you know about a tool and practice it without needless discussion most learners aren’t interested in. Your grammar book should show you a tool, how to use it, then set you to practicing.
The main difference between the two is:
Quotation marks are used to report speech.
An apostrophe is used for making contractions and possession.
It’s not likely you’ll mix them up, but keep in mind, apostrophes appear alone and quotation marks appear in twos!
You are able to effectively pick apart a sentence you don’t understand and explain its inner workings when you understand grammar. Knowing about grammar allows you to ask intelligent questions about English usage, and it makes you aware of the tools available to you when speaking or writing.
Commas are one of the most commonly misused punctuation marks in English writing; Even many native speakers get it wrong, so don’t feel bad if these little marks still confuse you. Using the comma is actually easy, if you know some of its simple uses!
A comma splice occurs when two separate, independent sentences are joined together using only a comma.
Most simply, a conjunction is a word which joins together words, phrases, or sentences. In English, the most commonly seen conjunction is ‘and’. Alice and Bob three pencils and five erases The girl sings, and the boy listens. This type of conjunction is called a coordinating conjunction. The function of which is to take two … Read more
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