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GENERAL ENGLISH
NOUNS
Kinds of Nouns:
Common Nouns – They are names of people (e
...
man), things (e
...
books), animals (e
...
monkey) and
places (church)
...
g
...
g
...
g
...
g
...
A proper
noun begins with a Capital Letter
...
g
...
Collective Nouns – They are names used for a number of people, things or animals together and treated
as one
...
Countable and Uncountable Nouns – Countable
nouns are nouns which can be counted (e
...
trees)
...
(e
...
smoke)
...
Masculine Gender – The masculine gender is
used for all males
...
Feminine Gender – The feminine gender is used
for all females
...
Common Gender – The common gender is used
where the noun can be both male and female
...
Neuter Gender – The neuter gender is used for
things which have no life or sex
...
Singular and Plural Nouns – A noun that shows only
one person (e
...
a girl), thing (e
...
pencil), animal
(e
...
tiger) or place (e
...
market) is called a singular
noun
...
g
...
g
...
g
...
g
...
Plural nouns are formed
...
‘es’ to nouns ending in –ch, –s, –sh and
–x
...
buffalo
buffaloes
potato
potatoes
cargo
cargoes
mosquito
mosquitoes
echo
echoes
tomato
tomatoes
By adding ‘s’ to nouns ending in –o
...
baby
babies
lorry
lorries
fly
flies
navy
navies
hobby
hobbies
puppy
puppies
By adding ‘s’ to nouns ending in –y
...
calf
calves
loaf
loaves
half
halves
self
selves
life
lives
wife
wives
By adding ‘s’ to nouns ending in –f or –fe
...
foot
feet
louse
lice
goose
geese
tooth
teeth
mouse
mice
woman
women
Some nouns have same words for plural and singular
...
child
children
ox
oxen
crisis
crises
passer-by
passers-by
mouse
mice
radius
radii
www
...
in
Transitive and intransitive verbs
VERB
Verbs are words that show action
...
A verb is not always one word
...
Auxiliary verbs
The words: am, is, are, was, and were are verbs
...
They are helping verbs
called auxiliary verbs
...
If the subject of a sentence is plural, the
verb must be plural
...
Examples of ‘subjects’ and ‘verbs’ being singular:
The man is sleeping
...
The student does his homework every day
...
‘Man’, ‘she’, ‘student’ and ‘train’ are known as
subjects
...
The verbs ‘is’,
‘goes’, ‘does’ and ‘has’ are all singular too
...
They go to the market
...
The trains have arrived
...
The subjects are all plural
...
Other singular and plural subjects that take on singular and plural verbs:
Subjects with words like ‘each’, ‘every’, ‘any’, ‘no’,
‘none’ and ‘nobody’ take on the singular verbs
...
Every child is happy watching the show
...
Uncountable nouns always take singular verbs
...
There is oil on the floor
...
Subjects with words like ‘both’, ‘all’, ‘many’, ‘some’,
‘several’ and ‘a number of’ take on a plural verb
...
All of us want to be happy
...
Two or more subjects joined by ‘and’ always take a
plural verb
...
His father and mother are watching tele
vision
...
Example: He feeds a cat
...
The object can be a noun or a pronoun
...
Example:
He ran
...
She reads every day
...
(No object)
The Finite verb
The finite verb changes with the subject
...
When
the subject is in the first or second person or is plural,
the verb does not change
...
The verb ‘eat’ is a finite verb
...
Other usage of verbs to remember:
1
...
Examples: Beef and mutton are meat
...
2
...
Examples: My friend and classmate is very
helpful
...
3
...
Example: The shopkeeper and owner of the shop
is my uncle
...
When we refer to two different persons, we use the
article twice and the verb must be in the plural
...
5
...
Example: Bread and butter is his usual breakfast
...
When a noun is a quantity or an amount, it is treated
as a whole and the verb is in the singular
...
Nowadays, fifty dollars is not a lot
of
money
...
ssc-cgl2014
...
a
...
c
...
e
...
2
...
b
...
3
...
b
...
Example: He plays football on Sundays
...
Example: Night follows day
...
Example: See how she walks
...
Example: He arrives tomorrow
...
Example: The tiger comes; it catches the boy
...
Example: We hear that the king is dead
...
Example: Shakespeare says: “Neither a bor
rower nor a lender be
...
It shows that the action is
not yet complete
...
Used instead of the future tense
...
Used to use the phrase ‘is going’ which
means ‘about to’
...
Used to show an action which happens many
times
...
Example: He is always getting into trouble
...
The action may be a recent one
or it may be one which happened a long time
ago
...
There have been many changes in
this country
...
Example: I have lived here for ten years
...
c
...
Example: I have already told them about the
plan
She has never replied to my letter
...
Example: Where have you been? I have been
to London to see the Queen
...
The Past Perfect Continuous Tense
Used for an action that had been going on in
the past before another action occurred in the
past
...
THE FUTURE TENSE
The Future Tense is used to show some action or happening in the future
...
Simple Future Tense is used to show future
action or that something will happen in the future
...
2
...
Example: We are going to Japan next week
...
Future Continuous Tense is used to show continuous action at some future time
...
4
...
Example: I shall have finished this job by seven
o’clock
...
5
...
This continuous tense is formed with ‘shall/will
have been’ + a present particle
...
Exercise
Write the correct form of the verb in the brackets:
1) I -----to the cinema yesterday
...
( to be)
3) My friend----- to music every evening
...
It looks new again
...
( to play)
6) She ------- her left arm two weeks ago
...
( to write)
8) Danny ---------- a book this evening
...
( to have)
www
...
in
10)
He ---------- his money
...
( to lose)
Answers
1
...
will be
3
...
have cleaned 5
...
broke
7
...
is going to read 9
...
has lost
www
...
in
ADJECTIVES
An adjective is a word that tells us something about
a noun, that is, about a person, an animal, a thing or
a place
...
A giraffe has a long neck
...
That is an old temple
...
An adjective which tells us about the quality
of the noun
...
2
...
Example: The zoo has many animals
...
3
...
Example: That is my dog
...
4
...
Example: Which school do you go to?
Whose car is this?
5
...
Example: This boy is a member of the club
...
Adjectives which end in ‘-ing’,
e
...
an interesting film, an amazing player, an annoying habit,
Adjectives which end in ‘-ed,
e
...
the damaged goods, the escaped prisoners, improved version,
wonderful
more wonderful most wonderful
bad
worse
worst
good
better
best
little
less
least
Exercise
Pick the correct words in the brackets
...
My father is as (strong, stronger, strongest)
as
his father
...
She is (pretty, prettier, prettiest) than her
sister
...
You are not as (tall, taller, tallest) as your
brother
...
That pond is the (shallow, shallower,
shallowest) in this area
...
That has to be the (interesting, more interesting, most interesting) film I have seen
...
Which university offers (the good, the better,
the best) degree courses?
...
This clown is not as (funny, funnier, funniest)
as the other one
...
He is easily the (bad, worse, worst) player in
the team
...
The second half of the play was (little, less,
the least) interesting
...
For example: His house is as big as my house
...
For example: His house is bigger than my house
...
For example: His house is the biggest in the neighbourhood
Positive
Comparative Superlative
bold
bolder
boldest
deep
deeper
deepest
near
nearer
nearest
rich
richer
richest
tall
taller
tallest
careful
more careful
most careful
enjoyable
more enjoyable most enjoyable
forgetful
more forgetful most forgetful
useful
more useful
most useful
www
...
in
ADVERBS
An adverb adds more to the meaning of a verb, an
adjective or another adverb
...
(called=verb; last
night=adverb)
Your dress is very beautiful
...
(suddenly=adverb; quite=adverb)
Types of Adverbs
Adverb of Time – This shows when an action or
something is done or happens
...
Example: I phoned you yesterday
...
Adverb of Place – This shows where an action or
something is done or happens
...
Example:
I live here
...
Adverb of Manner – This shows how an action or
something is done
...
Example: She sleeps soundly
...
Adverb of Degree or Quantity – This answers the
questions, “To what degree?” or “How much?” It is
usually placed before the adjective and the adverb
...
Last night it rained very heavily
...
We always go to school by bus
...
Interrogative Adverb (Question)
Example: When? Where? How? Why? How
much/often?
Relative Adverb: when, where, how, why
These words are the same in form as Interrogative
Adverbs; but they are not questions
...
The scene where the accident
occurred
...
The reason why he left
...
Most adverbs which
end in ‘-ly’ form the Comparative with ‘more’ and
the Superlative with ‘most’
...
She left _____ for the university where she is
doing a degree course
...
We are standing _____ his house waiting for him
...
He told us _____ not to walk on the grass
...
I am not strong _____ to help him carry that box
...
She will _____ be happy in that job
...
_____, I saw him walking to the church
...
My father is _____ late for work
...
He drove _____ to avoid being late
...
I _____ play badminton with my sister
...
This is the place where he fell _____
...
It took _____ two hours to get here
...
They were _____ very friendly
...
He has _____ strong hands
...
She has _____ completed her degree course
...
This dictionary went _____ in 2003
...
yesterday 2
...
angrily
4
...
never
6
...
rarely
8
...
often
10
...
11nearly
12
...
unusually 14
...
online
www
...
in
THE ARTICLES
Definite Article – ‘The’
Indefinite Article – ‘A’ or ‘An’
‘A’ is used:
Before a word which begins with a consonant
...
Example: a banana
When we mention something for the first time
...
Before a word with a long sound of ‘u’
...
Example: a one-way street, a
one-eyed man, a one-year course, a one-day holiday,
etc
...
Example: an apple
...
Example: an hour, an honest man, an heir, an honour,
an honourable man, etc
Before a singular, countable noun which begins with
a vowel or silent ‘h’
...
When the same thing or person mentioned
again, that is, a particular thing or person
...
The orange is sweet
...
When there is only one such thing
...
3
...
Example: The Eiffel Tower, The Great Wall
of
China
...
When a singular noun is used to point out a
whole class, race, group, etc
...
5
...
S
...
, the U
...
, the
U
...
S
...
and the U
...
E
...
6
...
Example: The Koran, The Bible
...
Before an adjective when the noun is understood
...
Articles are not used:
1
...
(not A or The Michael Jackson)
2
...
Example: Barcelona is a beautiful city
...
Before names of materials
...
(not A or The gold)
4
...
Example: We love all beauty
...
1
...
2
...
3
...
When we arrived, she went straight to _____
kitchen and started to prepare ___ meal for us
...
He has _____ cut on his leg and _____ bruise
on _____ chin
...
Mt
...
7
...
I have
_____ cold
...
We reached _____ top of _____ hill during
_____ afternoon
...
Do you like _____ weather here? Isn’t it too
hot during _____ day but it is very cold at
night?
10
...
Answers
1
...
a, the 3
...
the,a 5
...
the,the7
...
the,a, the 9
...
an, a, the
www
...
in
Direct Speech / Quoted Speech
Saying exactly what someone has said is called direct speech (sometimes called quoted speech)
Here what a person says appears within quotation marks (“
...
For example: She said, “Today’s lesson is on presentations
...
Indirect Speech / Reported Speech
Indirect speech (sometimes called reported speech), doesn’t use quotation marks to enclose what the person said and it
doesn’t have to be word for word
...
This is because when we use reported speech, we are usually talking
about a time in the past (because obviously the person who spoke originally spoke in the past)
...
For example:
Direct speech
“I’m going to the cinema”, he said
...
Tense change
As a rule when you report something someone has said you go back a tense: (the tense on the left changes to the tense
on the right):
Direct speech
Indirect speech
Present simple
Past simple
She said, “It’s cold
...
Present continuous
Past continuous
She said, “I’m teaching English online
...
Present perfect simple
Past perfect simple
She said, “I’ve been on the web since 1999
...
Present perfect continuous
Past perfect continuous
She said, “I’ve been teaching English for seven years
...
Past simple
Past perfect
She said, “I taught online yesterday
...
Past continuous
Past perfect continuous
She said, “I was teaching earlier
...
Past perfect
Past perfect
She said, “The lesson had already started
NO CHANGE - She said the lesson had already started when he when
he arrived
...
Past perfect continuous
Past perfect continuous
She said, “I’d already been teaching
NO CHANGE - She said she’d already been teaching for five
for five minutes
...
Modal verb forms also sometimes change:
Direct speech
Indirect speech
will
would
She said, “I’ll teach English online tomorrow
...
can
could
She said, “I can teach English online
...
must
had to
She said, “I must have a computer to teach English online
...
shall
should
She said, “What shall we learn today?”
› She asked what we should learn today
...
Note - There is no change to; could, would, should, might and ought to
...
ssc-cgl2014
...
He said he might go to the cinema
...
e
...
She said her name was Leela
...
Direct speech (exact quote)
Indirect speech (not exact)
“Next week’s lesson is on reported speech “, she said
...
Time change
If the reported sentence contains an expression of time, you must change it to fit in with the time of reporting
...
Today
Indirect speech
“Today’s lesson is on presentations
...
Expressions of time if reported on a different day
this (evening)
›
that (evening)
today
›
yesterday
these (days)
›
those (days)
now
›
then
(a week) ago
›
(a week) before
last weekend
›
the weekend before last / the previous weekend
here
›
there
next (week)
›
the following (week)
tomorrow
›
the next/following day
In addition if you report something that someone said in a different place to where you heard it you must change the
place (here) to the place (there)
...
Pronoun change
In reported speech, the pronoun often changes
...
”
She said she teaches English online
...
We use asked to report questions:For example: I asked Prema what time the lesson started
...
For example: Sasikala told me she felt tired
...
We usually use said without an object
...
If said is used with an object we must include to ;
For example: Romy said to me that she’d never been to China
...
For example: Aruna told me that she’d never been to China
...
These include:accused, admitted, advised, alleged, agreed, apologised, begged, boasted, complained, denied, explained, implied,
invited, offered, ordered, promised, replied, suggested and thought
...
For example:
He asked me to come to the party:He invited me to the party
...
He ordered me to come to the party
...
www
...
in
He suggested I should come to the party
...
For example: He told me that he lived in Germany
However, that is optional
...
For example: He asked me if I would come to the party
...
1
...
”
2
...
The teacher said to the class, “Pay attention
...
My mother said to me, “Buy some bananas for
me
...
My father said to me, “Don’t waste your money
...
She said to me, “Where is the hospital?
...
My friend said to me
...
”
8
...
His teacher said to him, “Try to do it by your
self
...
She asked me, “What are your favorite online
games?”
Answers
1
...
2
...
3
...
4
...
5
...
6
...
7
...
8
...
9
...
10
...
www
...
in
Auxiliary verbs
Auxiliary verbs are sometimes called helping verbs
because they are needed to form many of the tenses
...
For example: the auxiliary to do is
needed to ask questions in the present and past simple
tenses
...
The auxiliary
to have is used in the present and past perfect tenses
...
Have you done your homework?
My father has never visited the USA
...
The verb “be”
The verb be can be used as an auxiliary and a full
verb
...
Note that be is an
irregular verb:
Simple Present:
I am, he/she/it is, we/you/they are
Simple Past:
I/he/she/it was, we/you/they were
Past Participle:
been
You can tell that in the following sentences be is an
auxiliary because it is followed by another verb (the
full verb)
...
)
Progressive Forms
Present Progressive:
He is playing football
...
Present Perfect Progressive:
He has been playing football
...
Passive
Simple Present/Past:
The house is/was built
...
Future I:
The
house will be built
...
In this case, it’s not
followed by another verb
...
positive sentence: They are fifteen years old
...
question: Are they fifteen years old?
The verb “have”
The verb have, too, can be used both as an auxiliary and as
a full verb
...
(Use the past
participle of the full verb
...
Past Perfect Simple:
He had played football
...
Past Perfect Progressive:
He had been playing football
...
Note that have is an irregular verb, too:
Simple Present: I/we/you/they have, he/she/it has
Simple Past:
I/he/she/it/we/you/they had
Past Participle: had
“have” in positive sentences
As a full verb have indicates possession
...
full verb:
I have a car
...
“have” in negative sentences and questions
When we use have as a full verb, we must use the auxiliary
do in negative sentences and questions
...
have as a full verb:
I do not have a car
...
Have I got a car?
The verb “will”
The verb will can only be used as an auxiliary
...
The auxiliary verb “will”
Future I:
He will not play football
...
The verb will remains the same for all forms (no “s” for 3rd
person singular)
...
ssc-cgl2014
...
’
eg; I will, he will
I will not = I won’t
The verb “do”
The verb do can be both an auxiliary and a full verb
...
(Use the infinitive of the
full verb
...
Simple
Past: He did not play football
...
If we want to
form negative sentences or questions using do as a full verb,
we need another do as an auxiliary
...
negative sentence:She doesn’t do her homework
every day
...
/ Are you okay?
the sentence already contains another auxiliary (e
...
have,
be, will)
eg; They are not sleeping
...
/ Can you repeat that, please?
the question asks for the subject of the sentence
eg; Who sings that song?
Other common auxiliary verbs are: will, should, would, can,
must, might, may, could (These verbs are often called modal
verbs)
...
They are used with other verbs to express ability,
obligation, possibility, and so on
...
can to request permission Can I open the window?
may to express possibility I may be home late
...
must to express strong belief She must be over 90 years
old
...
would to request or offer
Would you like a cup of tea?
would in if-sentences
If I were you, I would say
sorry
...
They do not change
their form (spelling) and they have no infinitive or
participle (past/present)
...
Here are some examples:
Past simple
Sorry I’m late
...
Present perfect She’s had to return to Korea at short
notice
...
Infinitive
I don’t want to have to go
...
Present perfect I haven’t been able to solve this
problem
...
Infinitive
I would love to be able to play the
piano
...
They do not need an
additional auxiliary in negatives or questions
...
For
example, you can say I’m playing tennis tomorrow,
instead of I am playing tennis tomorrow
...
The short form itself often has two alternatives, which
are equally usual and correct
...
She isn’t going to the dance
...
I’ve not seen him for ages
...
For
example:
Why don’t you call him?
I have called him
...
www
...
in
Conditional Clauses
Zero conditional
When we talk about things that are generally or always
true, we can use:
If/When/Unless plus a present form PLUS present
simple or imperative
Eg
...
When you fly budget airline, you have to
pay for your drinks and snacks
...
Note that we are not talking about a specific event but
something which is generally true
...
In the result clause, there can only be the present
simple or imperative
...
If you visit London, go on the London Eye
...
If you’ve done that, go and have a coffee
...
It’ll be very hot
...
When I’ve finished an article, I always ask
Kate to read it through
...
Eg
...
Unless prices are rising, it’s not a good
investment
...
The first conditional
We use the First Conditional to talk about future events
that are likely to happen
...
If we take John, he’ll be really pleased
...
If they tell us they want it, we’ll have to give
it to them
...
The ‘if’ clause can be used with different present
forms
...
If I go to New York again, I’ll buy you a
souvenir from the Empire ate Building
...
The “future clause” can contain ‘going to’ or the future
perfect as well as ‘will’
...
If I see him, I’m going to tell him exactly
how
angry I am
...
The “future clause” can also contain other modal verbs
such as ‘can’ and ‘must’
...
If you go to New York, you must have the
cheesecake in Lindy’s
...
Second conditional
The Second Conditional is used to talk about ‘impossible’
situations
...
If we were in London today, we would be able
to go to the concert Hyde Park
...
If there were no hungry people in this world,
it would be a much better place
...
Note that after I / he/ she /it we often use the subjunctive
form ‘were’ and not ‘was’
...
)
Eg
...
If I lived in Japan, I’d have sushi every day
...
Note the form ‘If I were you’ which is often used to give
advice
...
If I were you, I’d look for a new place to live
...
The Second Conditional is also used to talk about ‘unlikely’
situations
...
If I went to China, I’d visit the Great Wall
...
If you were in my position, you’d understand
...
Compare these examples
...
Joy – If I win the lottery, I’ll buy a big house
...
Joy – If I get promoted, I’ll throw a big party
...
Joy – If my team win the Cup, I’ll buy champagne for
everybody
...
Note that the ‘If clause’ can contain the past simple or the
past continuous
...
If I was still working in Delhi, I would commute
by train
...
If they were thinking of selling, I would want
to buy
...
www
...
in
Eg
...
If we met up for lunch, we could go to that
new restaurant
...
Also note that sometimes the ‘if clause’ is implied rather
than spoken
...
What would I do without you? (“if you
weren’t here”)
Where would I get one at this time of night?
(“if I wanted one”)
He wouldn’t agree
...
Eg
...
If I had had time, I would have gone to see
him
...
If we had bought that house, we would have
had to rebuild the kitchen
...
Notice that the main clause can contain ‘would’, ‘could’ or
‘might
...
If I had seen him at the meeting, I would have
asked him
...
)
If I had seen him at the meeting, I could have
asked him
...
)
If I had seen him at the meeting, I might have
asked him
...
Perhaps if the
opportunity had arisen
...
Exercise
Give suitable words to fill in:
1)
If you like, you ----- for two days
...
3)
If the parents bought the cat, their children --very happy
...
5)
He ------- my e-mail if he’d been online
yesterday
evening
...
7)
If she -------- up her room, she must find the
receipt
...
9)
Where would you live if you------ younger
...
Answers
1
...
had seen
3
...
expands
5
...
hadn’t torn off 7
...
would you do
9
...
will wait
www
...
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PRONOUNS
A Pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun
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There are two types of Personal Pronouns:
(1) those used as subjects; and
(2) those used as objects
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Example: He has hurt himself
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They always end in ‘self ‘
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1
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3
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5
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7
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9
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10
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Answer
1
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which 3
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whom 5
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who
7
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whom 9
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who
Reflexive Pronouns
Singular
Ist Person
Myself
Ist Person
Yourself
Third Person Himself
Herself
Itself
Plural
Ourselves
Yourselves
Themselves
Themselves
Themselves
Relative Pronouns
The Relative Pronouns take the place of Nouns or Pronouns; and they are used to join two sentences about
the same person or thing
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In most cases, we use who, whose and whom to make
statements about people
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Example: “The man is an artist
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”
“The man is an artist who drew that picture
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Example: “That is my uncle whose son is my cousin
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There
is one other difference in the way we use who and
which
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After which we can put a
verb, a pronoun or a noun
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That is the camera which he bought
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¨ We use whom to make a statement about human beings
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Example: (a) The man whom they caught was sent to
prison
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PREPOSITIONS
Prepositions are words placed before Nouns and Pronouns
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Examples of Prepositions showing time:
My birthday falls in September
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I have an appointment at 9 o’clock
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The glass is on the table
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Examples of Prepositions showing direction:
She got into the taxi
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I have to go to town
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She likes to go out with her friends
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Her parents give her a box of sweets
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1
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2
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3
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4
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5
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Don’t lean that ladder _____ the wall
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I don’t usually feel tired _____ the morning
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Have you heard anything _____ him yet?
9
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10
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Answer
1
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by
3
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like 5
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against
7
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from 9
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