English I

1. TENSES

Present Tense

Simple: subject + base verb
• Used for habits and facts
• Example: She sings.

Continuous: am/is/are + verb-ing
• Action happening now
• Example: She is singing.

Perfect: has/have + past participle
• Completed before now
• Example: She has sung.

Past Tense

Simple: verb-ed / irregular verb
• Completed action
• Example: She sang.

Continuous: was/were + verb-ing
• Ongoing past action
• Example: She was singing.

Perfect: had + past participle
• Completed before another past event
• Example: She had sung.

Future Tense

Simple: will + verb
• Example: She will sing.

Continuous: will be + verb-ing
• Example: She will be singing.

Perfect: will have + past participle
• Example: She will have sung.

2. SUBJECT–VERB AGREEMENT

• Singular subject → singular verb
• Plural subject → plural verb
• Everyone / somebody / each → singular verb
• Collective nouns → usually singular
• Neither / either → singular verb
• “A number of” → plural verb
• “The number of” → singular verb

Examples:
• Everyone is happy.
• A number of students are missing.
• The number of students is increasing.

3. ACTIVE & PASSIVE VOICE

Active: subject + verb + object
Passive: object + be + past participle (+ by subject)

Common Changes

• writes → is written
• wrote → was written
• is writing → is being written
• has written → has been written
• will write → will be written

Example:
Active: He wrote a letter.
Passive: A letter was written by him.

4. DIRECT & INDIRECT SPEECH

Tense Changes

• present → past
• past → past perfect
• will → would
• can → could
• may → might

Time Changes

• today → that day
• tomorrow → the next day
• now → then
• here → there

Pronoun Changes

• I → he/she
• you → I/they

Example:
Direct: “I am tired.”
Indirect: He said that he was tired.

5. ARTICLES

a

• Before consonant sounds
• Example: a boy, a university

an

• Before vowel sounds
• Example: an apple, an hour

the

Use for:
• something specific
• unique objects
• superlatives
• rivers, seas, oceans
• famous buildings

6. PREPOSITIONS

Time

• at (exact time) → at 5pm
• on (days/dates) → on Monday
• in (months/years) → in July

Place

• at (point) → at the door
• on (surface) → on the table
• in (space) → in the room

Direction

• to → go to school
• into → go into the room
• onto → jump onto the bed

7. CONJUNCTIONS

Coordinating (FANBOYS)

For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So
Example: I wanted to go, but it rained.

Subordinating

because, although, if, since, while, unless, before, after
Example: She left because she was tired.

8. CONJUNCTIVE ADVERBS

Used with semicolon + adverb + comma

Examples:
• however
• therefore
• moreover
• meanwhile
• consequently

Example:
It was raining; however, we continued walking.

9. SENTENCE TYPES

Simple

• one independent clause
Example: I went home.

Compound

• two independent clauses + conjunction
Example: I went home, and I slept.

Complex

• one independent + one dependent clause
Example: I went home because I was tired.

10. PUNCTUATION

Comma

• items in a list
• before conjunctions (and, but, or)
• after introductory words

Semicolon (;)

• joins two related independent clauses
Example: The road was empty; everyone was asleep.

Colon (:)

• introduces lists or explanations
Example: She brought three things: a book, a pen, and a bag.

Apostrophe (')

• possession → Tashi’s bag

📘 Sentence Functions — Definitions

1. Assertive Sentence (Declarative Sentence)
A sentence that states a fact, idea, or opinion.
It gives information without showing strong emotion.
Example: She is reading a book.

2. Interrogative Sentence
A sentence that asks a question.
It usually begins with a question word or an auxiliary verb.
Example: Where are you going?

3. Imperative Sentence
A sentence that gives a command, request, advice, or instruction.
The subject (you) is usually understood but not written.
Example: Close the door.

4. Exclamatory Sentence
A sentence that expresses strong emotion such as surprise, fear, joy, or anger.
It often ends with an exclamation mark.
Example: What a beautiful day!