Grammar ReferenceLevel 1
Unit 1
bestatements
Affirmative
Negative
I am (Im)
I am not (Im not)
You are (Youre)
You are not (You arent/Youre not)
He/She/It is (Hes/Shes/Its)
from New York.
He is not (He isnt/Hes not)
from Tokyo.
We are (Were)
We are not (We arent/Were not)
They are (Theyre)
They are not (They arent/Theyre not)
beyes/no questions and information questions
Yes/No questions
Information questions (What, Where, When, How old)
Am I
am I
Are you
are you
Is he/she/it
Where
from Kyoto?
is he/she/it
Are we
are we
Are they
are they
from?
Unit 2
Articles
a/an
We use a before singular nouns, e.g., a singer.
We use an before singular nouns that begin with a vowel, e.g., an artist.
Plural nouns
Before plural nouns, we dont use a or an, e.g., doctors.
Possessive nounss and s
To make a possessive noun
add s to singular nouns, e.g., Brittanys
add s to plural nouns, e.g., sisters
Note:
Richards a car mechanic. = Richard is a car mechanic.
Richards car is here. = possessive noun (the car belongs to Richard.)
Unit 3
Simple presentstatements and yes/no questions
We use the simple present to describe things that are generally true or permanent situations.
Affirmative/Negative
like /
dont like
I/You/We/They
He/She/It
buys /
doesnt buy
Yes/No questions
Yes,
Do I/you/we/they
music.
Short answers
like music?
Does he/she/it
No,
Yes,
No,
I/you/we/they
he/she/it
do.
dont.
does.
doesnt.
Spelling: Change y to i for verbs ending in consonant + y, e.g., He/She studies.
Simple presentinformation questions
Question word
Auxiliary
Subject
What/Where/
When/Why/Who
do
I/you/we/they
does
he/she/it
Verb
watch/do/etc. ?
D.R. Macmillan Publishers, S.A. de C.V. 2010
Grammar ReferenceLevel 1
Unit 4
Frequency adverbs
0%
100%
never rarely sometimes often usually always
Note: Frequency adverbs come before the verb be, e.g., Diana is rarely late.
They come after other verbs, e.g., We often go to the movies.
Clauses with until, before, after
To talk about the order of events
before
I always touch the grass before I start to play.
We use before with the second event.
after
After I do that, I always play well.
We use after with the first event.
To talk about the duration of events
until
We use until to talk about an event that continues
up to another event or a specific time.
I stay in the dressing room until the other players leave.
Punctuation: Use a comma if the clause with until, before, or after comes first.
e.g., I always play well after I do that. After I do that, I always play well.
Unit 5
there is/there are with some, any, several, a lot, many
Affirmative
There is a cool festival in my city.
There are several/some/many/a lot of festivals in my city.
Negative
There arent many/any/a lot of festivals in my city.
Questions
Are there many/any/a lot of festivals in your city?
should
Affirmative
Negative
Information questions
You should go to Harrods.
You should not/shouldnt visit on Mondays.
What should I see in London?
Note: Dont use to after should.
Dont use do with negatives or questions.
Adverbs of certainty (definitely, really, and probably) usually come after the modal verb should and before shouldnt in statements:
e.g., You should probably visit the museum. You probably shouldnt go to the zoo.
Unit 6
Present progressive
1 We use the present progressive with situations or events that are happening now or around now.
2 We form the present progressive with be + verb ing
3 We dont use the present progressive with some verbs, (e.g., like, know, want, need).
Affirmative/Negative
I
am/
am not
He/
She/It
is/
is not
You/We/
They
are/
are not
Yes/No questions
Is he/she/it
Are you/we/they
Information questions
Yes, I am./
No, Im not.
Am I
working.
Short answers
working?
Yes, he is./
No, he isnt.
am
Where
Yes, they are./
No, they arent.
is
are
I
he
she
it
you
we
they
working?
Spelling: When the verb ends in e, drop the e before adding ing, e.g., taketaking.
When the verb ends in consonant-vowel-consonant, double the final consonant, e.g., planplanning.
D.R. Macmillan Publishers, S.A. de C.V. 2010
Grammar ReferenceLevel 1
Unit 7
can/cantability
We use can to talk about ability. Questions and negatives do not use the auxiliary do.
Affirmative/Negative
can
cant
(cannot)
I/You/
He/She/It/
We/They
Yes/No questions
swim.
I/you/
he/she/it/
we/they
Can
Short answers
Yes,
swim?
No,
I/you/
he/she/it/
we/they
can.
cant.
(cannot)
can/cant with adverbs of manner
1 Adverbs of manner describe an action, e.g., She can sing beautifully.
2 Adverbs usually come after the verb, e.g., She cant dance well.
Formation of adverbs:
1 We usually form the adverb by adding -ly to the adjective, e.g., slowslowly, quickquickly.
2 For adjectives that end in -y, we change the -y to -i and add ly, e.g., funnyfunnily.
3 There are some irregular adverbs, e.g., goodwell, fastfast.
Unit 8
this, that, these, those
Singular nouns
Plural nouns
Use
this
these
to talk about things that are close to the person who is speaking
that
those
to talk about things that are not very close to the person who is speaking
Comparative adjectives
One syllable adjectives
Add er, e.g., oldolder, smallsmaller.
For adjectives that end consonant-vowel-consonant,
double the final consonant and add -er, e.g., thinthinner, fatfatter.
Two syllable adjectives ending in y
Change the y to i and add er, e.g., happyhappier, funnyfunnier.
Adjectives with two or more syllables
Use more or less, e.g., interestingmore interesting, popularmore popular.
Irregular adjectives
badworse, goodbetter
We use less with all adjectives, e.g., less cold, less hot, less popular.
Unit 9
Count and noncount nouns
Count nouns
Singular
Affirmative
Negative
Questions
Plural
Noncount nouns
Examples
I want a banana.
I dont want a banana.
I want some bananas.
chipchips
I dont want any bananas.
Do you want some/
orangeoranges
Do you want a banana?
any bananas?
Count nouns have singular and plural forms.
Use a/an before singular count nouns.
Examples
I want some rice.
bread
I dont want any rice.
beef
Do you want some/
rice
any rice?
Noncount nouns do not have a plural form.
Do not use a/an before noncount nouns.
Infinitive phrases
Statements for expressing desire
Questions for inviting
I would like/Id like to
Would you like to ?
I would love/Id love to
Do you want to ?
I want to
Note: Use the infinitive (to + base form) after would like, would love, would have, would need, would want.
To make a suggestion, use Lets + base form.
D.R. Macmillan Publishers, S.A. de C.V. 2010
Grammar ReferenceLevel 1
Unit 10
Simple pastaffirmative statements
Regular verbs
Irregular verbs*
Base form
Simple past form
Base form
Simple past form
answer
carry
answered
carried
eat
go
ate
went
Spelling: Most verbs: add ed.
Verbs ending in e: add d (prepareprepared).
Verbs ending in consonant + -y: Change -y to ied (studystudied)
*See past tense endings of other irregular verbs on page 127 of the Students Book.
Simple pastquestions and negative statements
be
Other verbs
Negative statements
The food wasnt very good.
The menu didnt have a very big selection.
Yes/No questions
Was it expensive?
Did you like Brennans?
Short answers
Yes, it was./No, it wasnt.
Yes, I did./No, I didnt.
Information questions
How was your weekend?
What did you do on the weekend?
Where did you go?
Unit 11
Simple past with when clauses
The action in the when clause happened at the same time or before the other event in the sentence. The when clause can come
first or second in a sentence. If it is first, we use a comma.
when clause
Main clause
When Steve was older,
he learned to work with crocodiles. (Use a comma.)
Main clause
when clause
Steve learned to work with crocodiles
when he was older. (Dont use a comma.)
Object pronouns
Subject pronouns
you
he
she
it
we
you
they
Object pronouns
me
you
him
her
it
us
you
them
Unit 12
Present progressive as future
We use the present progressive to talk about definite plans.
Questions
Affirmative
Negative
What are you doing this weekend?
Im going shopping.
Im not going anywhere.
going to
We use going to for future plans.
be + going to + verb
Affirmative statements
Im going to improve my English.
Negative statements
Were not going to have a test next week.
Questions
Is Victor going to study tomorrow? Yes, he is./No, he isnt.
What are you going to do tonight? Were going to play cards.
D.R. Macmillan Publishers, S.A. de C.V. 2010
