Making Comparative and Superlative Adjectives

Making Comparative and Superlative Adjectives To make the comparative form of adjectives (like 'bigger' or 'more expensive') and the superlative form (like 'biggest' or 'most expensive'), first we need to know how many syllables are in the adjective. Adjectives with one syllable Usually if an adjective has only one syllable, we add 'er' to make the comparative form. We add 'est' to make the superlative form. clean cleaner / cleanest cold colder / coldest small smaller / smallest young younger / youngest tall taller / tallest There are some spelling changes. If there is one vowel followed by one consonant at the end of the adjective, we often double the consonant. wet wetter / wettest big bigger / biggest hot hotter / hottest thin thinner / thinnest If the adjective ends in 'y', this often changes to 'i'. dry drier / driest

If the adjective ends in 'e', we don't add another 'e', just 'r'. nice nicer / nicest large larger / largest Even when the adjective has only one syllable, it's still not wrong to use 'more' or 'most'. It's possible to say 'more wet' or 'most tall'. This isn't incorrect. There are a few adjectives that we have to use 'more' or 'most' with, even though they only have one syllable. We CAN'T add 'er' or 'est'. fun more fun / most fun (NOT funner / funnest) real more real / most real (NOT realer / realest) right more right / most right (NOT righter / rightest) wrong more wrong / most wrong (NOT wronger / wrongest) Adjectives with two syllables For adjectives with two syllables we generally use 'more' or most. careful more careful / most careful bored more bored / most bored But some two syllable adjectives can take 'er' or 'est'. It's also fine to use 'more' (for the comparative) or 'most' (for the superlative). clever cleverer simple simpler narrow narrower quiet quieter

Adjectives with two syllables that end in 'y' usually can add 'er' or 'est' (y generally changes to i). It's also fine to use 'more'. dirty dirtier / dirtiest pretty prettier / prettiest happy happier / happiest ugly uglier / ugliest Adjectives with more than two syllables Adjectives with more than two syllables can only make their comparative by using 'more' and their superlatives by using 'most'. beautiful more beautiful / most beautiful intelligent more intelligent / most intelligent interesting more interesting / most interesting expensive more expensive / most expensive Irregular Adjectives There are also some irregular adjectives. We just need to learn these forms. good better / best bad worse / worst far further / furthest little less / least much more / most

Comparatives and Superlatives Here are some basic rules for spelling comparatives and superlatives: Comparatives Simply add -er Examples: smart = smarter young = younger fast = faster Rule 1 - one syllable adjectives or adverbs: Superlatives Use THE and add -est Examples: smart = the smartest young = the youngest fast = the fastest Rule 1B - One syllable adjectives with a Consonant-Vowel-Consonant /CVC) Pattern: If the adjective has a CVC pattern, double the consonant and add -er. Examples: wet = wetter big = bigger sad = sadder If the adjective has a CVC pattern, double the consonant and add -est. Don't forget THE! Examples: wet = the wettest big = the biggest sad = the saddest Rule 2 - two syllable adjectives ending in Y Change the Y to I and add -er Examples: pretty = prettier happy = happier busy = busier Change the Y to I and add -est. Don't forget to use THE! Examples: pretty = the prettiest happy = the happiest busy = the busiest Rule 3 - Adjectives or adverbs with two or more syllables (not ending in Y): Use MORE Use THE MOST Examples: Examples: famous = more famous famous = the most famous interesting = more interesting interesting = the most interesting carefully = more carefully carefully = the most carefully Use of LESS

Less and not as/not so with comparatives We use less with longer adjectives (interesting, beautiful, complicated), but we don t normally use less with short adjectives of one syllable (big, good, high, small). Instead we use not as as, or not so as Not as is more common than not so: The second method was less complicated than the first one OR The second method was not as complicated as the first one HOWEVER This new laptop is not as fast as my old one. NOT : This new laptop is less fast than my old one.) short adjective so we don t use less Comparative adjectives: using much, a lot, far, etc. We can strengthen or emphasise a comparative adjective using words such as much, a lot, far, even or rather, or by using than ever after the adjective: This food is much better than the food we had yesterday. The town is a lot more crowded these days because of the new shopping centre. Alex is far less intelligent than the other kids in the class. We ve been busier than ever at work this last month or so. We can soften a comparative adjective using a little or a bit. A bit is less formal: She feels a little more confident now that she s given her first public performance. or She feels a bit more confident (less formal)

IES Libertas. Torrevieja. Departamento de Inglés adjectives: comparative and superlative 1. Complete the chart with the comparatives and superlatives: Adjective Comparative Superlative long longer than the longest fast pretty beautiful ugly thin fashionable 2. Write the comparative: faster than more beautiful than uglier than more fashionable than a. old older f. good b. strong g. large c. happy h. serious d. modern i. pretty e. important j. bad 3. Complete the sentences with a superlative: a. This building is very old. It s the oldest building in the town. b. It was a very happy day. It was of my life. c. It s a very good film. It s I ve seen. d. It was a very bad mistake. It was in my life. e. It was a very cold day. It was of the year. f. She s a popular singer. She s in the country. g. He s a very boring person. He s I know. h. This house is very big. It is I ve lived in. i. My cousin is very tall. He is I have. j. Laura is a very pretty girl. She is I know. 4. Choose the correct answer: a. Tom s car is as big as / the biggest his friend s. b. Who is shorter than / the shortest person in your family? c. Who is more independent than / the most independent person you know? d. These sofas are more comfortable than / the most comfortable ours. e. My brother is taller than / the tallest in the class. f. Is Jason s dog older than / the oldest yours? g. Who is the best / better than singer in the world? the prettiest the thinnest 3º E.S.O. 1

IES Libertas. Torrevieja. Departamento de Inglés h. We are younger than / the youngest the rest of the class. i. My hair is the straightest / straighter than your hair. j. He is more popular / the most popular singer in the world. 5. Write the sentences in the correct order: a. taller / than / Gary / Rick / is. Gary is taller than Rick. b. trousers / John / got / has / new / light. c. Mary / clothes / likes / bigger d. an / expensive / Rick / wearing / coat / is e. the / Carol / has / scarf / got / shortest f. the / student / he / tallest / is g. actress / Mary / the / was / popular / most h. He / the / was / footballer / best i. plays / than / better / you / Mary j. father / is / your / than / stronger / mine 6. Complete the sentences with the correct form of the adjective in brackets: a. Carol is as good (good) as you at sport. b. We like wearing the (late) fashion. c. These trousers are (comfortable) than those jeans. d. She is (happy) now than he was last year. e. You are the (pretty) girl in class. f. My grandma is (old) than my grandpa. g. The red dress is the (attractive) in the shop. h. I always tell the (fun) jokes. i. Your hair is (curly) than my hair. j. My hair is (short) than yours. 3º E.S.O. 2

Comparative adjectives. Exercises. A. Write the Comparative forms of the adjectives: tall taller 1. fast 2. heavy 3. dangerous 4. small 5. large 6. light 7. rare 8. common 9. bad 10. good B. Correct the sentences. 1. Cats are popularer than snakes as pets. X 2. Pigs are more intelligent as other animals. X 3. Turtles are slow than crocodiles. X

4. Elephants are heavyer than pigs. X 5. Bears are more rare than snakes. X Comparative adjectives. 1. I am (tall) my sister. 2. My mum thinks that cats are (good) pets than dogs. 3. Cycling is one of (dangerous) sports. 4. I want to have (big) car. 5. A blue whale is (heavy) twenty-five elephants. 6. You look (thin) last month. Have you lost weight? 7. Bicycles are (slow) cars. 8. She is (nice) person I know. 9. What is (good) film you ve seen? 10. Computers are (cheap) mobile phones. 11. Is your brother (tall) you? 12. I think Spanish is (easy) Japanese. 13. Our dog is (nice) your dog. 14. Glass bottles are (good) plastic bottles. 15. I think Rafael Nadal is (good) tennis player in Spain. 16. Sharks are (dangerous) other fish.

17. This situation is (serious) the last one. 18. He is (smart) his brother. 19. My brother wanted (expensive) trainers in the shop. 20. Today is (good) day of the year. 21. Daniela is (funny) me. 22. My house is (larger). 23. Mount Everest is (high) mountain in the world. 24. The sea is (large) a lake. 25. My job is (easy) yours. 26. London is (big) city in England. 27. This car is (comfortable) yours. 28. He is (rich) man in town. 29. I am (strong) you. 30. A baby blue whale gets (big) a great white shark. Comparative adjectives. 1. A Mercedes is (expensive) a Fiat. 2. Maradona is (good) football player ever. 3. A swordfish is (fast) a jellyfish. 4. Julio is (friendly) Carlos. 5. Irene is (clever) Silvia. 6. Comedies are (funny) police dramas.

7. Pablo is (big) Juanma. 8. Max is (old) John. 9. Adriano is (fast) Ronaldo. 10. My hair is (long) yours. 11. A dolphin is (intelligent) a shark. 12. Elaine is (wise) her sister. 13. Tony is (happy) Max. 14. Sandra is (busy) Sam. 15. Skiing is (dangerous) football. 16. This is (narrow) of all roads in Málaga. 17. Health is (important) money. 18. Those cakes are (bad) I ve ever tasted. 19. My dog is (good) dog in the world. 20. Patricia s house is (small) Linda s. 21. A car is (fast) a bike. 22. My laptop is (fast) yours. 23. The ant is (small) insect. 24. This lamp is (bright) one in the room. 25. My house is (clean) her house. 26. Jack is (tall) boy in his class. 27. Steven Spielberg is (good) film director in the world. 28. This dress is (old) that one. 29. A sea lion is (heavy) a lobster. 30. A sports car is (fast) a motorbike.

Comparative and superlative adjectives. 1. clean 2. easy 3. good 4. dirty 5. fat 6. beautiful 7. sad 8. flat 9. active 10. comfortable 11. hot 12. happy 13. wet 14. narrow 15. big 16. busy 17. noisy 18. dirty 19. thin 20. little 21. bad 22. few

23. much 24. many 25. rich

ENGLISH GRAMMAR The Passive Voice THE PASSIVE VOICE INTRODUCTION The passive of an active tense is formed by putting the verb to be into the same tense as the active verb and adding the past participle of the active verb. The subject of the active verb becomes the agent of the passive verb. The agent is very often not mentioned. When it is mentioned it is preceded by by and placed at the end of the clause. Active: My grandfather planted this tree. Passive: This tree was planted by my grandfather. PASSIVE VERB TENSES ACTIVE VOICE PASSIVE VOICE Present Simple He delivers the letters. The letters are delivered. Past Simple He delivered the letters. The letters were delivered. Future Simple He will deliver the letters. The letters will be delivered. Present Continuous He is delivering the letters. The letters are being delivered. Past Continuous He was delivering the letters. The letters were being delivered. Going to He is going to deliver the letters. The letters are going to be delivered. Present Perfect He has delivered the letters. The letters have been delivered. Past Perfect He had delivered the letters. The letters had been delivered. Infinitive He has to deliver the letters. The letters have to be delivered. Modals He must deliver the letters. The letters must be delivered. 1 SIMPLE CONTINUOUS PERFECT + S + am/is/are + Ptp S + am/is/are + being + Ptp S + have/has + been + Ptp PRESENT - S + am/is/are + not + Ptp S + am/is/are + not +being + Ptp S + have/has + not + been + Ptp? Am/Is/Are + S + Ptp? Am/Is/Are) + S + being + Ptp? Have/Has) + S + been + Ptp? + S + was/were + Ptp S + was/were + being + Ptp S + had + been + Ptp PAST - S + was/were + not + Ptp S + was/were + not + being + Ptp S + had + not + been + Ptp? Was/Were + S +PtpV? Was/Were + S + being + Ptp? Had + S + been + Ptp + S + will + be + Ptp FUTURE - S + will + not + be + Ptp? Will + S + be + Ptp? + S + V to be (am/is/are) + going to + be + Ptp GOING TO - S + V to be (am/is/are) + not + going to + be + Ptp? V to be (am/is/are) + S + going to + be + Ptp?

Short answers To make short answers: we use the verb to be (am/is/are/was/were) for Present Simple, Past Simple, Present Continuous, Past Continuous and Going To questions. we use the verb have (have/has/had) for Present Perfect and Past Perfect questions. we use will for Future Simple questions. USE The Passive is used: 1. when the agent (=the person who does the action) is unknown, unimportant or obvious from the context. Jane was shot. (We don t know who shot her.) This church was built in 1815. (Unimportant agent) He has been arrested. (Obviously by the police) 2. to make more polite or formal statements. The car hasn t been cleaned. (more polite) (You haven t cleaned the car. less polite) 3. when the action is more important than the agent, as in processes, instructions, events, reports, headlines, new items, and advertisements. 30 people were killed in the earthquake. 4. to put emphasis on the agent. The new library will be opened by the Queen. 2 AGENT To say who did the action that we are talking about, ie. to refer to the agent, we use the preposition by and the name (by Peter), noun (by the teacher) or pronoun (by him) at the end of the sentence. We usually only refer to the agent when it gives us some important information which otherwise would be missing from the sentence. Our house was designed by a famous architect. We don t mention the agent: 1. if we don t know who has done what we are talking about. Our car was stolen last night. (We don t know who stole it) 2. if we are not interested in who has done what we are talking about or it is not important to mention it. He has been taken to hospital. (What we are interested in is the fact that he has been taken to hospital and not who has taken him.) 3. if it is easy to understand who did something without it being mentioned. The murderer was arrested last night. (It is not necessary to mention that he has been arrested by the police because it is self-evident.) 4. if the subject of the active voice sentence is something like somebody, people, they, you, etc. Someone broke the window. The window was broken. ACTIVE TO PASSIVE To change a sentence from the active voice to the passive voice: the object of the active voice sentence becomes the subject of the passive voice sentence. Agatha Christie wrote this book. This book was written by Agatha Christie. we change the main verb of the active voice sentence into the passive voice. The tense remains unchanged. the subject of the active voice sentence becomes the agent of the passive sentence. It is placed after the past participle and it is preceded by the preposition by.

ENGLISH GRAMMAR The Passive Voice Agatha Christie wrote this book. This book was written by Agatha Christie. Leslie took this photograph yesterday. SUBJECT ACTIVE VERB OBJECT TIME COMPLEMENT This photograph was taken by Leslie yesterday. SUBJECT PASSIVE VERB AGENT TIME COMPLEMENT BY OR WITH? In the passive voice, we use: by with the agent to refer to by whom the action is being done. The door was opened by Mr Black. (Mr Blak = agent) with to refer to the instrument, object or material that was used for something to be done. The door was opened with a key. (a key = the object that was used) The omelette was made with eggs, cheese and peppers. (eggs, cheese and peppers = the material that was used) 3 DOUBLE OBJECT VERBS When we have verbs that take two objects like, for example, give somebody something, we can convert the active sentence into a passive one in two ways: a. by making the indirect (animate) object the subject of the passive voice sentence, which is also the way that we usually prefer. b. By making the direct (inanimate) object the subject of the passive voice. Rick gave me (indirect object) this book (direct object). I was given this book by Rick. This book was given to me by Rick. Some of the verbs that take two objects are: give, tell, send, show, bring, write, offer, pay, etc. When the indirect object is alone after the verb in the passive voice sentence, it needs the preposition to. If the indirect object of the active voice sentence is a personal pronoun it has to be changed into a subject pronoun to be the subject of the passive voice sentence. SUBJECT OBJECT I me SUBJECT OBJECT You you We us He him You you She her They them It it BIBLIOGRAPHY - A. J. Thomson and A.V. Martinet, A Practical English Grammar, Oxford University Press, 1986 - V. Evans, Round-Up (English Grammar Practice), Longman, 1995 - M. Carling and S. Jervis, Grammar Time 4, Longman, 2003 - S. Jervis, Grammar Time 5, Longman, 2003 - M. Carling, Grammar Time 6, Longman, 2003

EXERCISES 1. Complete the sentences with the correct passive form of the verbs in brackets. Use the Present Simple. a. English (speak) in many countries. b. The post (deliver) at about 7 o clock every morning. c. (the building/use) any more? d. How often (the Olympic Games(hold)? e. How (your name/spell)? f. My salary (pay) every month. g. These cars (not make) in Japan. h. The name of the people who committed the crime (not know). i. His travel expenses (not pay) by his company. 4 2. Complete the sentences with the correct passive form of the verbs in brackets. Use the Past Simple. a. My car (repair) last week. b. This song (not write) by John Lennon. c. (the phone/answer) by a young girl? d. The film (make) ten years ago. e. When (tennis/invent)? f. The car (not damaged) in the accident. g. The original building (pull) down in 1965. h. Where (this pot/make)? i. When (this bridge/build)? 3. Choose the correct form of the verbs in brackets. FIAT Fiat 0 was started (started/was started) by a group of Italian businessmen in 1899. In 1903, Fiat, 1 (produced/was produced) 132 cars. Some of these cars 2 (exported/were exported) by the company to the United States and Britain. In 1920, Fiat 3 (started/was started) making cars at a new factory at Lingotto, near Turin. There was a track on the roof where the cars 4 (tested/were tested) by technicians. In 1936, Fiat launched the Fiat 500. This car 5 (called/was called) the Topolino the Italian name for Mickey Mouse. The company grew, and in 1963 Fiat 6 (exported/was exported) more than 300,000 vehicles. Today, Fiat is based in Turin, and its cars 7 (sold/are sold) all over the world. 4. Change the following sentences into passive sentences using the words in brackets. a. We sell tickets for all shows at the Box Office. (Tickets for all shows/sell/at the Box Office) b. Thomas Edison invented the electric light bulb. (The electric light bulb/invent/by Thomas Edison) c. Someone painted the office last week. (The office/paint/last week) d. Several people saw the accident. (The accident/see/by several people) e. Where do they make these video recorders? (Where/these video recorders/make)

ENGLISH GRAMMAR The Passive Voice 5. Rewrite these sentences in the passive voice. a. Someone built this house 200 years ago. b. A thief stole my purse. c. The police will arrest the robbers. d. They produce cars in this factory. e. They serve breakfast at eight o clock every day. f. People throw away tones of rubbish every day. g. They make coffee in Brazil. h. Someone stole Jim s bike lat night. 5 6. Rewrite these sentences in the passive voice. a. They will build a new bridge next year. b. Brian Brody directed The Ultimate Space Adventure. c. Pierre Matie will design her costume. d. Someone found my wallet. e. One of the students broke the window. f. They will deliver my computer on Monday. g. Mary invited Paul to her birthday party. h. British astronomers discovered a new planet. 7. Form the question. a. Paper is made from wood. Is paper made from wood? b. The telephone was invented by Mr Bell.? c. This picture was painted by Peter.? d. The thieves will be arrested by the police.? e. Champagne is made in France.? f. The letters will be sent next week.? g. The animals are fed three times a day.? h. This article was written by Stanley.?

i. CDs are made of plastic.? j. The party was organised by Paul.? 8. Read and complete. Use Past Simple. a. The toothbrush / invent / in the 15 th century. b. The first public basketball game / play / in 1892. c. The first eyeglasses / wear / in the 1200s. d. The first bicycle / ride in 1791. e. The first hot dog / eat / in the 1860s. f. The first CDs / sell / in the 1980s. g. The first electric guitar / play / in 1923. h. The first computer mouse / use / 1964. 6 9. Complete with the passive. Use Present Simple. a. This programme (watch) by millions of people. b. Paper (make) from wood. c. Hundreds of people (kill) in accidents every year. d. London (visit) by thousands of tourists every year. e. The biology class (teach) by Mr Green. f. English (speak) all over the world. g. Lunch (serve) at twelve o clock. h. Books (write) by authors. 10. Put the verbs in brackets into Past Simple Passive. Two men (see) breaking into a house in my street last night. The police (call) and they arrived very quickly. One man (catch) immediately. The other escaped, but he (find) very soon. Both men (take) to the police station where they (question) separately by a police officer. The two men (charge) with burglary. 11. Rewrite the following passage in the Passive. Somebody has stolen a bus from outside the school. Some children saw the thief. The police are searching for the bus now. They will use the children s descriptions to catch the thief.

ENGLISH GRAMMAR The Passive Voice 12. Rewrite the following passage in the Passive. Some people saw a UFO in the sky above London last night. They reported it to the police. The army sent a helicopter to look at it more closer. The UFO shot the helicopter down and killed both men in it. People have given photographs of the UFO to the police. Experts are looking at them now. 13. Rewrite the following passage in the Passive. Someone broke into a local jewellery shop yesterday. The owner had just locked up the shop when a robber with a gun threatened him. The robber told him to unlock the shop and give him all the diamonds in the safe. Then the robber tied him up. The police have organized a search for the robber. They hope they will find him in a few days. Doctors are treating the owner of the shop for shock. 7 14. Rewrite the following passage in the Passive. My uncle painted this picture. Someone has offered him a lot of money for it. He will deliver the painting tomorrow. When they give him the money, he will tell them the truth. He painted it one night while he was sleepwalking! 15. Rewrite the following passage in the Passive. Our school is organizing a contest. The teachers will choose the best project about the environment. The students must include pictures and drawings in their projects. The students will also have to do all the writing themselves. The school will give the winner a set of encyclopaedias. 16. Turn from Active to Passive in two ways. a. He gave me a present. b. The waiter will bring us the bill. c. Her mother bought Mary some sweets. d. Bob has sold Ted a second-hand car.

e. Larry is going to send a letter to Tom. 8 17. Turn from Active to Passive. a. Someone is helping her with the housework. b. The mail-order company sent Mrs Green a parcel. c. My friend sent me an invitation. d. The secretary has given Mrs Jones some letters. e. The traffic warden had already given him a ticket for illegal parking. f. John gave Elizabeth that beautiful ring. g. Her students have sent her flowers. h. He must give the message to the right person. i. We teach our students English and French. j. Someone bought flowers for the bride. k. They showed the tourists the sights of Athens. l. They pay her an excellent salary. m. They paid the artist 1,000 for his painting. 18. Rewrite these sentences in the passive voice. 1. They sell oysters in the shop next door. 2. They haven t delivered the food yet. 3. Shakespeare wrote King Lear. 4. They have to answer the questions on this sheet. 5. Has anybody put the cases upstairs? 6. Someone should take this rubbish away. 7. They ll ask you a lot of questions. 8. Someone s going to send her some flowers.

ENGLISH GRAMMAR The Passive Voice 9 9. They didn t pay me much for that job. 10. Have they offered him a better job? 11. They told us a secret. 12. Would they lend me their car? 13. People should send their complaints to the head office. 14. They had to postpone the meeting because of illness. 15. They are going to hold next year s congress in San Francisco. 16. The bill includes service. 17. People don t use this road very often. 18. They cancelled all the flights because of fog. 19. Somebody accused me of stealing the money. 20. They are building a new ring-road round the city. 21. I didn t realize that someone was recording our conversation. 22. They have changed the date of the meeting. 23. Brian told me that somebody had attacked and robbed him in the street. 24. You should open the wine about three hours before you use it. 25. Somebody had cleaned my shoes and brushed my suit. 26. We use this room only on special occasions. 27. In some districts farmers use pigs to find truffles. 28. John gave Elizabeth that beautiful ring. 29. They have offered Sarah a very good job. 30. The estate agent showed the house to the young people. 31. We will pay the gardener a lot of money. 32. Someone is going to repair the roof next week.

10 33. They can t find Joanna. 34. They should decorate the room with flowers. 35. Archaeologists have discovered an ancient temple. 36. We will put all these things into boxes. 37. The firefighters rescued the teenagers from the burning building. 38. The youngest student in the class has written the best composition. 39. The children send me messages every day. 40. The villagers gave the travellers food and water. 41. A very talented young girl wrote the story. 42. They are going to finish the new road in a few days. 43. They cancelled the match because of the rain. 44. You must not cross this line. 45. They had picked the oranges before the storm. 46. Professor Smith should write the book. 47. Mr Elliot will pay the workers. 48. Two men were following Tom. 49. Millions of people use the Internet every day. 50. They gave Bob a CD player for his birthday. 51. The prime minister will give a medal to the winners. 52. She is telling the children a story. 53. They ve offered Sally a job. 54. Poisonous chemicals have polluted the river. 55. Doctor Simms is examining her. 56. You must stop him now. 57. Someone gave them free tickets for the concert.

English Grammar Questions Asking questions 1 The basic rule for asking questions in English is straightforward: Invert the order of the subject and the first auxiliary verb. It is snowing. = Is it snowing? He can speak German. = Can he speak German? They have lived here a long time. = Have they lived here a long time? She will arrive at ten o'clock. = Will she arrive at ten o'clock? He was driving fast. = Was he driving fast? You have been smoking. = Have you been smoking? If there is no auxiliary, use part of the verb 'to do'. You speak fluent French. = Do you speak fluent French? She lives in Brussels. = Does she live in Brussels? They lived in Manchester. = Did they live in Manchester? He had an accident. = Did he have an accident? Most questions with question words are made in the same way: How often does she use it? Why don't you come? Where do you work? How many did you buy? What time did you go? Which one do you like? Whose car were you driving? Note who and what can be the subject. Compare: Who is coming to lunch? (who is the subject of the verb) Who do you want to invite to lunch? (you is the subject of the verb) What happened? (what is the subject of the verb) What did you do? (you is the subject of the verb) Note the position of the prepositions in these questions: Who did you speak to? What are you looking at? Where does he come from? 1) Yes/No questions Subject and verb change their position in statement and question. statement question You are from Germany. Are you from Germany?

We always use the short answer, not only "Yes" or "No". This sounds rude. NOTE: If the answer is "Yes", we always use the long form. Example: Yes, I am. If the answer is "No", we either use the long or the contracted form (short form). Example: No, I am not - No, I'm not. Are you from Germany? Yes, I am. Is he your friend? Yes, he is. No, I am not. 'm not. Are Peter and John from England? Yes, they are. 2) Questions with question words Question word Verb Rest Answer Where are you from? I'm from Stuttgart. What is your name? My name is Peter. How are Pat and Sue? They're fine. 3) Yes/No Questions and short answers with the verb have Auxiliary Subject Verb Rest Yes/No Subject Auxiliary (+ n't) Have you got a cat? Yes, I have. Have you got a new car? No, we haven't. Has your brother got a bike? Yes, he has. 4) Questions with question words and the verb have Question word Auxiliary Subject Verb Rest Answer Where have you got your ruler? I've got it in my pencil case. Where do you have your ruler? I have it in my pencil case.

5) Questions without question words in the Simple Present Auxiliary Subject Verb Rest Yes/No Subject Auxiliary (+ n't) Yes, I do. Do you read books? No, I don't. Does Peter play football? Yes, he does. 6) Questions with question words in the Simple Present Question word Auxiliary Subject Verb Rest Answer What do you play When does your mother go on your computer? to work? Where do you meet your friends? I play games on my computer. She goes to work at 6 o'clock. I meet them at the bus stop. 7) Questions without question words in the Simple Past Auxiliary Subject Verb Rest Yes/No Subject Auxiliary (+ n't) Yes, he did. Did Max play football? No, he didn't. Yes, I did. Did you watch the film yesterday? No, I didn't. BUT: to be Subject xxx Rest Yes/No Subject Auxiliary (+ n't) Yes, I was. Were you in Leipzig last week? No, I wasn't. 8) Questions with question words in the Simple Past Question word Auxiliary Subject Verb Rest Answer What did you do yesterday evening? I did my homework. When did she meet her boyfriend? She met him yesterday. Where did they go after the match? They went to a café.

BUT: Question word to be Subject xxxxx Rest Answer Where were you yesterday? I was at the cinema. 9) Subject question Question word Verb Rest Subject Verb Object - Place - Time Who runs to the shop? Peter runs to the shop. 10) Object question Question word Auxiliary Subject Verb Rest Answer Who do you like? I like my mum. Who did Mandy phone last Monday? Mandy phoned her uncle. NOTE! Subject question Object question Who phoned John? Who did John phone?

Question Words. Exercises. Fill in the question words What, Where, Why, When, How, Who to form the question. 1. do you like best? 2. does Manolo get up in the morning? 3. don t you go by bus, Cristina? 4. hobbies does Carlos like? 5. do they go to every week? 6. old are you Silvia? 7. is Maria s birthday? 8. are my exercise books? 9. are you doing at the moment, Harry? 10. do the Petersons live? Fill in the correct question word. 1. sits next to Dries? Mo. 2. does the boy come from? From Madrid. 3. old are her children? Three and five. 4. is Lola s birthday? In March, I think. 5. much is the shirt? It s twenty euros.

6. is best at playing tennis? Johann. 7. are you going? To my parents. 8. much is an soda? It s one euro. 9. does the restaurant open? At ten o clock. 10. can I get some ice cream? At the snack bar. 11. are you going to order? Pasta. 12. are you going to do on Monday? I don t know. 13. has got my sunglasses? I have got them. 14. is your name? Rita. 15. is Helen s party? On Friday. Complete with the correct question word. 1. much are the patotoes? One dollar. 2. can I do for you? I want two white T-shirts. 3. can I get a newspaper? At Park street. 4. is your best friend? It s paul. 5. does Lisa live? In Boston. 6. colour is your new car? It s white. 7. do you collect? Stickers. 8. can help me? I can. 9. about some grapes? No, thanks.

10. was your first word as a baby? Mama. 11. were you born? On March 9th. 12. were you born? In St. Maarten. 13. were you last Sunday? I was working. 14. can we have a picnic? I know a nice place near a pond. 15. are you going to take with you? Some sandwiches and a coke. Choose between What, Which and Whose. 1. time is it? 2. colour is her hair? 3. kind of clothes do you like to wear? 4. school do you go to? 5. doll is your favourite? 6. road leads to the Zoo? 7. runner is the last one? 8. Do you know girl won the prize? 9. foot print s are these? 10. baby is this?

Choose between What, Which and Whose. 1. kind of animal is that? 2. runner is the winner? 3. is the matter? 4. desk is this? 5. cell phone is ringing? 6. is your name? 7. twin is taller? 8. hand is holding the pen? Complete the questions with these words (When, Where, Who, What). 1. is your favourite singer? 2. is your house? 3. is your favourite day of the week? 4. is your favourite colour? 5. are your English lessons? 6. is your favourite movie? 7. are you from? 8. is near you house? 9. do you live? 10. is your favourite type of music?

11. are your English lessons at school? 12. is your favourite sportsperson? 13. is your English teacher? 14. is your favourite animal? 15. do you like to do Saturdays? 16. time do you got to school? 17. is his name? 18. is the museum? 19. do you go to school? 20. is he talking to? 21. is your dog s name? 22. is the time? 23. are those people? 24. are you talking about? 25. are you going to leave? Choose between How, What, Where, When, Who. 1. are you, Mr Gordon? 2. is she doing? 3. time is she coming home? 4. are you going. I am going to the park.

5. are you going. I m going on Monday? 6. do you go to school? I go to school in Málaga. 7. does Pedro work? He works every evening. 8. many cars does your family have? We have two cars. 9. does the dog want? It wants a big bone. 10. much is that? It costs 3 euros. 11. do you like to eat? I like to eat chicken. 12. is reading in the library. Sandra is reading in the library. 13. time is it now? It s nine o clock. 14. is your school? It is near the post office. 15. is this lady? She is my favourite teacher. 16. do you like better, cakes or chocolates? 17. often do you go to the movies?

WH QUESTIONS PRACTICE 1: Fill in the blanks with What, When or Where 1. is the name of the President of the United States of America? 2. month is the Chinese new year? 3. did Neil Armstrong say when he first landed on the moon? 4. did he first land? 5. did the Americans drop the atomic bomb on Hiroshima? 6. is New York city? 7. is that called in English? 8. are the Hawaiian Islands? 9. are you doing this afternoon? PRACTICE 2: Write on the blank: how, when, what or where and make questions. For example : 1. Derrick runs quickly to his desk. How How does Derrick run to his desk? 1. Pamela speaks slowly. 2. Janet is sitting in front of André. 3. Pat arrived early today. 4. Karen and Simon drive dangerously. 5. Sharon usually laughs at my jokes. 6. Monique types quickly. 7. I often go to school on my bike. 8. Nathalie is beside Peter. 9. He sometimes calls me at home. 10. Your teacher answers honestly.

PRACTICE 3: Put as many as questions as you can. 1. Dora goes to the bank on Monday afternoons. a b c??? 2. I sleep at Jane s on weekends. a b?? 3. My parents are at home in the morning. a b c?? 4. David washes his car in the rain. a b?? 5. The children go to the lake in summer. a b c??? 6. My father has breakfast in his bedroom. a b???

PRACTICE 4: ASK QUESTIONS USING WH- 1. Where does she live? She lives on Victory Street. 2. We get up at 7 o clock. 3. He works at Memorial Hospital. 4. My brother is a popular dentist. 5. They have four children. 6. I go to school by bus. 7.. She teaches at Harvard University. 8. I eat a hamburger and french fries for lunch. 9. She has two brothers. 10. The restaurants open at 4: 30. PRACTICE 5: ASK QUESTIONS USING WH- 1. They do their homework at night. (when). 2. Mr. Robertson came to the party alone. (who) 3. The car is across the street from the house. (where) 4. I like the red blouse, not the blue one. (which) 5. She felt better after she took a nap. (how) 6. That is an English book. (what) 7. My sister called her boyfriend yesterday (when)

8. She talked to him for an hour. (how long) 9. He studies piano at the university. (what) 10. The party lasted all night. (how long) 11. The check was for $5.50. (how much) 12. She was eating a sandwich. (what) 13. She is working hard. (what) 14. My parents have two cars. (how many) 15. They are coming to visit tomorrow. (when) 16.He is going to work right now. (where) 17. The man with the white hat is my brother. (who) 18. I don t get up early because I like to sleep late. (why) 19. We have an English class every day. (how often) 20. They like to dance on weekends. (what) 21. The club is not far from their house. (where) 22. Their favorite kind of music is Latin Jazz. (what) 23. I didn t bring my dictionary today. (why) 24. They are singing popular songs. (what kind)

~An English-Zone.Com Page~ Reflexive Pronouns Name: Reflexive pronouns are clear and easy. The subjects and the pronouns must match: subject possessive pronoun adjective reflexive pronoun examples: 1st person I my myself When I look in my mirror, I see myself. 2nd person you your yourself When you look in your mirror, you see yourself. 3rd person he his himself When he looks in his mirror, he sees himself. 3rd person she her herself When she looks in her mirror, she sees herself. 3rd person it its itself The machine will turn off by itself. 3rd person one one s oneself One must always do one s work by oneself. 1st person plural we our ourselves We painted our house by ourselves. 2nd person plural you your yourselves You should push yourselves to work harder. 3rd person plural they their themselves They painted their house by themselves. 1. Franz always asks why English is so crazy. 2. I consider to be an intelligent person. 3. The computer will reboot after the program installation. 4. Jörg and Birgit drive to work every day. They don't take the bus. 5. Sonja cleans her room by. She never asks for help. 6. We are going to repair our house by. 7. You and your coworker must finish on this project. 8. I will finish these questions by. 9. Tom saw a reflection of in the mirror. 10. Rita thought about killing, but she realized it was wrong. 11. I will fax the report. 12. The man on the news accidentally shot in the foot. 13. We enjoyed at the seaside. 14. He drove to the airport yesterday. 15. She lives in that big, old house by. 16. I made this table by. 17. It is exciting for one to see on television. 18. I can t believe it! The Prime Minister answered the phone! 19. All of our family caught a cold. So we had to take care of. 20. I told I could do it, because I believe in.

~An English-Zone.Com Page~ Reflexive Pronouns Reflexive pronouns are clear and easy. The subjects and the pronouns must match: subject possessive pronoun adjective reflexive pronoun examples: 1st person I my myself When I look in my mirror, I see myself. ---ANSWER KEY--- 2nd person you your yourself When you look in your mirror, you see yourself. 3rd person he his himself When he looks in his mirror, he sees himself. 3rd person she her herself When she looks in her mirror, she sees herself. 3rd person it its itself The machine will turn off by itself. 3rd person one one s oneself One must always do one s work by oneself. 1st person plural we our ourselves We painted our house by ourselves. 2nd person plural you your yourselves You should push yourselves to work harder. 3rd person plural they their themselves They painted their house by themselves. 1. Franz always asks himself why English is so crazy. 2. I consider myself to be an intelligent person. 3. The computer will reboot itself after the program installation. 4. Jörg and Birgit drive themselves to work every day. They don't take the bus. 5. Sonja cleans her room by herself. She never asks for help. 6. We are going to repair our house by ourselves. 7. You and your coworker must finish on this project yourselves. 8. I will finish these questions by myself. 9. Tom saw a reflection of himself in the mirror. 10. Rita thought about killing herself, but she realized it was wrong. 11. I myself will fax the report. 12. The man on the news accidentally shot himself in the foot. 13. We enjoyed ourselves at the seaside. 14. He drove himself to the airport yesterday. 15. She lives in that big, old house by herself. 16. I made this table by myself. 17. It is exciting for one to see oneself on television. 18. I can t believe it! The Prime Minister herself answered the phone! 19. All of our family caught a cold. So we had to take care of ourselves. 20. I told myself I could do it, because I believe in myself.