Advanced language practice Michael Vince

Contents

 

Introduction viii

 

Grammar

 

Uniti Tense consolidation: present time l

 

Present simple and present continuous 1

 

• facts, habits, states, temporary actions, actions happening at the moment of speaking

 

State verbs and event (action or dynamic) verbs 1

 

• state verbs normally without a continuous form

 

• difference of meaning in stative and active Other uses of present continuous 2

 

• temporary or repeated actions

 

• complaints about bad habits

 

• verbs describing change and development Other uses of present simple 2

 

• making declarations, headlines, instructions and itineraries

 

• summaries of events, historic present

 

Unit 2 Tense consolidation: future time 7

 

Will, Going to, present continuous: basic contrasts 7 « will: predictive will, assumption, immediate decision

 

• be going to: intentions and plans, present cause

 

• present continuous: fixed arrangements

 

• speaker preference

 

Future continuous 7

 

• an event happening at a future point

 

• events which will happen ‘anyway’

 

• politeness

 

• fixed arrangements and plans Future perfect 8

 

• time which we look back at from a future point

 

• assumption

 

Other ways of referring to the future 8

 

• is/are to be, be about to, be on the point of, be due to

 

• present simple in future time clauses

 

• present perfect when the completion of an event is emphasised

 

• present simple for fixed events not simply the wishes of the speaker

 

Other future references 9

 

• hope, verbs of thinking, just, shall

 

Unit 3 Tense consolidation: past time 14

 

Past simple and past continuous 14

 

• past simple: completed actions, habits, states

• past continuous: temporary actions, interrupted actions, background description, changing states, repeated actions: criticism

 

• not used to describe habitual actions

 

Past perfect simple and continuous 14

 

• past perfect tenses: events in the past before other events in the past

 

• past perfect continuous: contrasts as between past simple and past continuous, indirect speech

 

Used to and would 15

 

• used to: contrast with the present, negative forms, no present time reference

 

• would: repeated actions not states, contrasted with used to, contexts of use

 

Unfulfilled past events 15

 

• was going to, was thinking of, was about to, was to have done

 

Polite forms 16

 

• with wonder

 

Contrasts with present perfect

 

« (see Unit 4)

 

Unreal time

 

• (see Units 8 and 9 for past tense forms used to express unreal time)

 

Unit 4 Tense consolidation: present perfect 20

 

Present perfect simple 20

 

• recent events without a definite time reference, indefinite events, indefinite events with an obvious result in the present, a state lasting up to the present, a habitual action in a period of time up to the present

 

• contrasts with past simple, speaker choice

 

Present perfect continuous 20

 

• a state lasting up to the present moment, an incomplete activity, to emphasise duration, a recently finished activity, a repeated activity

 

• contrasts with present perfect simple: choice of verb, completion and incompletion

 

Time expressions with present perfect 21

 

• contrast with past simple may depend on choice of time expression

 

• some time expressions are not associated with a particular tense

 

Unit 5 PROGRESS TEST 25

 

Unit 6 Passive 1 30

 

Basic uses 30

Using and not mentioning the agent 31

 

• change of focus, unknown agent, generalised agent obvious agent

 

• unimportant agent, impersonality

 

Unit 7 Passive 2 35

 

Have and get something done, need doing 35

 

• have something done, get something done, need doing

 

Passive get 35

 

• forming the passive with get in spoken language

 

Reporting verbs 35

 

. • present reference, past reference, past reporting verbs, passive infinitive, verbs with two objects, continuous infinitive

 

Verbs with prepositions 36

 

• ending a sentence with a preposition, by and with, be made to

 

• verbs followed by with, by or in.

 

Common contexts for the passive 37

 

• formality, impersonality

 

Unit 8 Conditionals and if- sentences 41

 

Basic contrasts 41

 

• wrhat is always true: present + present

 

• what was always true: past + past

 

• real situations: present + will

 

• hypothetical situations: past + would

 

• hypothetical past situations: past perfect + would have

 

• with modals

 

• if only

 

• unless, and other alternatives to if: as long as, so long as, provided

 

• only if, even if

 

• past events with results in the present

 

• colloquial past situations

 

Other tenses in conditional sentences 42

 

• go mg to

 

• present perfect

 

• doubt and uncertainty t should

 

• were to

 

• happen to

 

• if it were not for, if it hadn't been for

 

• will and would: politeness and emphasis

 

Other ways of making a conditional sentence 43

 

• supposing, otherwise

 

• but for

 

• if so, if not

 

• colloquial omission of if

 

• if and adjectives

 

• if meaning although

Unit 9 Unreal tenses and subjunctives 48

 

IPs time 48

 

• it's time, it's high time, was and were

 

Wishes 48

 

• present, would and could, past, wish and hope

 

Fd rather 49

 

• I’d rather and I’d sooner, I'd prefer

 

As if, as though 49

 

• real and unreal, present and past

 

Suppose and imagine 49

 

• understood conditions, present or past

 

Formal subjunctives 50

 

• insist, demand, suggest, require

 

• it is necessary, essential, important

 

• less formal usage with should, past tense, or infinitive

 

Formulaic subjunctive 50

 

• God Save the Queen, be that as it may, come what may

 

Unit 10 PROGRESS TEST 54

 

Unit 11 Modal auxiliaries 1: present/future 59

 

Don’t have to and must not 59

 

® absence of obligation, obligation not to do something

 

Should 59

 

• expectation, recommendation, criticism of an action, uncertainty

 

• with verbs ot trunking, with he and adjectives describing chance

 

« after in case to emphasise unlikelihood

 

Could 59

 

• possiblity or uncertainty, with comparative adjectives to express possibility or impossibility, suggestions, unwillingness

 

Can 60

 

• criticism, capability

 

Must and can’t 60

 

• certainty, present time reference only

 

May and might 60

 

• although clauses, may/might as well, possibility or uncertainty

 

• with try

 

Shall 60

 

• certainty, what the speaker wants to happen

 

Will 61

 

• assumption, intention, refuse and insist

 

Would 61

 

• annoying habits, certainty, with adjectives to express a tentative action

 

Need 61

 

• need to not a modal, need partly a modal