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English grammar
English grammar — A2
Grammar explanations, examples and common mistakes for CEFR A2.
English grammar — A2
Simple Past (in depth)
Time expressions with Past Simple: when exactly did it happen?
Irregular verbs: recalling and using V2
Past simple: negatives and questions without marking the past twice
Past Continuous
Past Continuous: building an action in progress in the past
Past Continuous with Past Simple: what was happening when something happened
Two simultaneous actions in the past
Present Perfect
Forming the present perfect
Present Perfect: experience up to now
Present perfect: just, already or not yet?
Future with Will
Will: building sentences
Will: predictions and decisions
Will: offering help and making promises
Going to vs Will
Going to: reporting a plan already chosen
Will: a decision made now
Will and going to: predictions and their basis
Used to
Used to: saying that things were different before
Used to: negatives and questions
Used to or Past Simple: habits, states and individual events
Present Perfect vs Past Simple
Finished past time and a summary up to now
Experience up to now and an account of a particular occasion
Still continuing or already over?
Present Continuous for Future
Plans arranged in advance
Present continuous and going to: presenting a plan
Common time expressions for future plans
Present Perfect with For and Since
For + a time period: saying how long
Since: from a starting point until now
How long have you…? — duration up to now
Must and Mustn't
Must: necessity and obligation
Mustn’t: clearly saying an action is prohibited
Must, mustn’t, don’t have to: obligation, prohibition and no obligation
Should and Shouldn't
Should for advice
Shouldn’t / should not: advising someone not to do something
Asking for advice with should
Have to and Don't have to
Have to: obligations from rules and circumstances
Don't have to: not necessary, no need
Questions with have to: is it necessary, what is needed and who must act?
Could
Could: skills and abilities in the past
Could for gentle requests and asking permission
Could: suggestions and uncertain possibility
May and Might
May and might: uncertain possibility
May not and might not: possibly not
May for Formal Permission Requests
Comparatives
Comparatives of short adjectives: -er
More + long adjective: how to compare
Irregular comparative forms: good → better, bad → worse, far → farther/further
More and less after a verb
Superlatives
The + short adjective + -est
The most + a long adjective
Irregular superlative forms
Adverbs of Frequency
Always, usually, often: how to say how often something happens
Position before the main verb
Frequency expressions: every day, once a week
Adverbs of Manner
Forming adverbs from adjectives: adjective + -ly
Irregular Adverbs
Position of adverbs of manner
Too and Enough
Too + adjective: more than needed
Adjective + enough: when a quality is sufficient
Enough + noun
A little and A few
A few + countable nouns
A little + uncountable nouns
Few or a few, little or a little: a small amount or quantity
Conjunctions
And, But, Or, So: joining ideas of equal status
Because, when, while: reason, time, and simultaneity
Before, after, until: order of events and the time boundary
First Conditional
First Conditional: how to build a real future condition
First Conditional: common communicative uses
Unless = if not: an exception without a change of meaning
Relative Clauses
Who for people: adding information about a person
Which: adding a description of a thing
That: describing a person or thing
So and Such
So + adjective or adverb
Such + noun: emphasising a high degree
So and such: choosing an intensifier
Tag Questions
Affirmative sentence + negative question tag
Negative statement + affirmative question tag
Question tags: agreement of the auxiliary verb
Zero Conditional
The zero conditional: general truths and facts
Zero or first conditional: every time or this time?
When instead of if in repeated and predictable relationships
Prepositions of Movement
To, into, out of: where we move to and from
Through, across, along: describing a route
Up, down, past, towards: describing direction
Much, Many, A lot of
Many and much: describing a large quantity
A lot of in positive sentences
A few and a little: small numbers and small amounts
Compound Pronouns
Someone, something, somewhere: an unspecified person, thing or place
Anyone, anything, anywhere: questions and negatives
No- and every-: Negation versus “all” in one word
Both, Either, Neither
Both … and: both one and the other
Either … or: one option or another
Neither … nor: not one and not the other
Possessive Pronouns
Possessive pronouns: mine, yours, his, hers, ours, theirs
Possessive forms: my before a noun, mine instead of it
Whose in questions about possession
Reflexive Pronouns
Reflexive pronouns: forms
Reflexive pronouns: the subject and object are the same participant
By + reflexive pronoun: alone or without help
There was / There were
There was + singular or uncountable noun
There were + plural: saying that several things or people were present in the past
Past questions with Was there / Were there
Articles: Using The
The = we both know exactly which one
No article: general statements
Using “the” with geographical names and places
Gerunds and Infinitives
Verb + -ing: enjoy reading, finish cooking
Verb + to-infinitive
Verbs with -ing or to: like, start, continue
Verb + Preposition
Common verb + preposition combinations
Agree with, Arrive at/in, Ask for: three verb–preposition combinations
Interested in, good at, afraid of: adjectives and their prepositions
Phrasal Verbs
What are phrasal verbs?
Separable phrasal verbs
Common phrasal verbs for everyday life
Passive Voice
The present simple passive: am/is/are + past participle
The Past Simple passive: was/were + past participle
Active and passive voice: who acts and who receives the action
Reported Speech
Reported speech: reporting statements
Reported speech: pronouns from a new point of view
Reported speech: told or said
Expressing Opinions
Expressing Your Opinion
How to agree or disagree
Asking for opinions: What do you think…? / Do you agree?
Making Arrangements
How to suggest a shared plan
Accepting an invitation or declining politely
How to Agree on the Time and Place of a Meeting
Complaining and Apologizing
Making a complaint politely
Apologizing — how to apologize in English
Responding to apologies — how to respond to apologies
Giving Instructions
Sequencing words in instructions
Imperatives for Instructions
How to make instructions clear
Telling Stories
How to Start a Story
Linking events in a story
How to end a story naturally
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