Page 9 - Oxford_English_Grammar_Course_Basic_2015

words for talking about grammar

active and passive: I see, she heard are active verbs; / am seen, she was heard are passive verbs,
adjectives: for example big, old, yellow, unhappy.
adverbs: for example quickly, completely, now, there.

affirmative sentences or statements are not questions or negatives - for example / arrived.
articles: a/an ('indefinite article'); the ('definite article').
auxiliary verbs are used before other verbs to make questions, tenses etc - for example do you think; I have finished,
she is working. See also modal auxiliary verbs,
clause: see sentence.
comparatives: for example older, better, more beautiful, more slowly.
conditional: a structure using the conjunction if.

conjunctions: for example and, but, because, while.
consonants: see vowels.
contractions: short forms like I'm, you're, he'll, don't.
conversational: see formal.
countable nouns: the names of things we can count - for example one chair, three cars; uncountable (or'mass')
nouns: the names of things we can't count, like oil, rice.
determiners: words like the, some, many, my, which go before (adjective +) noun,
double letters: pp, tt, ee etc.
formal, informal, conversational: We use formal language with strangers, in business letters etc: for example

'Good afternoon, Mr Parker. May I help you?' We use informal or conversational language with family and
friends: for example 'Hi, John. Want some help?'
future verbs: for example / will go; Ann is going to write to us.
imperatives: forms like Go home, Come and sit down, Don't worry, which we use when we tell or ask people (not)
to do things.
indirect speech: the grammar that we use to say what people say or think: for example John said that he was tired.

infinitives: (to) go, (to) sleep etc.
informal: see formal.
-ing forms: going, sleeping etc.
irregular: see regular.
leave out: If we say Seen John?, we are leaving out Have you.
modal verbs or modal auxiliary verbs: must, can, could, may, might, shall, should, ought to, will and would.
negative sentences are made with not: for example / have not seen her.
nouns: for example chair, oil, idea, sentence.
object: see subject.

opposite: hot is the opposite of cold; up is the opposite of down.
passive: see active.
past perfect tense: see perfect tenses,
past progressive tense: see past tenses.
past tenses: for example went, saw, stopped (simple past); was going, were eating (past progressive),
past participles: for example gone, seen, stopped.

perfect tenses: forms with have/has/had + past participle: for example I have forgotten (present perfect); It has
been raining (present perfect progressive); They had stopped (past perfect),
personal pronouns: for example/, you, us, them.
plural: see singular.
possessives: for example my, your; mine, yours; John's, my brothers'.
prepositions: for example at, in, on, between.
present participles: for example going, sleeping etc (also called -ing forms),
present perfect tenses: see perfect tenses.

viii WORDS FOR TALKING ABOUT GRAMMAR