Last updated at 11:18 BST, Tuesday, 15 September 2009

Verbs and tenses

Questions answered

Using 'wonder'
Trudi Faulkner-Petrova explains the use of the word 'wonder' in various contexts
American and British verb grammar
Anwar Hassan from Egypt asks about the grammatical differences between British and American English.
Auxiliary verbs 1:'do' and 'have'
Roger Woodham explains how these auxiliary verbs are used in different tenses.
Auxiliary verbs 2:'do' + 'does'
You can use 'do' in a positive sentence in order to give extra emphasis.
Auxiliary verbs 3: 'do'
There are several ways that we use 'do' as an auxiliary verb in positive sentences.
'be able' + infinitive
How to say you tried to do something but didn't succeed.
'being'
Discover the different ways that we use 'being'.
'can' and 'could'
Afreen in India asks about the difference between 'can' and 'could'.
concern, concerned and concerning
Roger Woodham explains the different uses of the different forms of the verb 'concern'.
Continuous forms:see, feel, like
These verbs are not usually used in the continuous form.
could, was able to, managed to
Find out how to talk about ability and success in the past.
'didn't' and 'wouldn't'
Nyu Shvei from Hong Kong wants to know when to use 'I didn't go home' and 'I wouldn't go home'.
'do' and 'would'
What is the difference between 'He wouldn't know' and 'He doesn't know'?
Double negatives
Is it correct to use two 'nots' in a sentence? Don't dare to not read this!
'get' + past participle
Did 'she marry him', or did she 'get married to him'?
'happen' and 'happen to'
Ruben from Italy asks for advice about using the verb 'happen'.
'have' + object + infinitive
An interesting way to talk about making someone do something.
'have' and 'have got'
You need to be careful with the grammar of these verbs with similar meanings.
'have done' or 'don't have'?
Karen Adams explains that the correct negative depends on the grammatical use of 'have'.
'haven't done' and 'have to do'
You have to read this if you haven't read it already.
Future forms 1:social +work plans
Yukiazb in Japan is confused by all the different future forms in English.
Future forms 2: planned actions
Find out about three ways to talk about future plans.
Future forms 3:will + be going to
Anna in the Netherlands asks about the differences between 'will' and 'going to'.
Future forms 4:going+be going to
Marcel Fehlmann in Switzerland asks which of these forms is more natural.
Future forms 5:Future in the past
Sometimes, a future event is actually in the past! How do we refer to that?
Future forms 6:'he is/is not to'
We often use this structure to talk about official plans and arrangements.
Future forms 7:to be + infinitive
We can use this future form to talk about official arrangements.
Future forms 8:be to + infinitive
Julio Molina from Peru asks why he is not to smoke.
Future forms 9:'shall' and 'will'
George Pickering explains the differences and similarities between these two words.
Future:will stay/will be staying?
Callum Robertson explains that both are possible, but one is more natural.
Future forms 11:would + going to
Definite plans vs. slight possibilities.
Future progressive
What's the difference between 'I’ll miss you' and 'I’ll be missing you'?
'hope'
Agata from Poland asks: What grammatical constructions are possible after 'hope'?
'I was' and 'I were'
Mark Shea explains why we sometimes say 'I were'.
Infinitives:with and without 'to'
Does Roger's advice 'help to explain' the grammar, or does it 'help explain' it?
-ing participle clauses
Which is correct - "I heard the dog / dog's barking"?
Intransitive and transitive verbs
Some verbs need an object, others never have one. Find out which are which.
Inversion
Martin Parrot discusses inverted subject-verb word order in conditionals.
'let' or 'leave'
Salman from Pakistan would like to know the difference between 'let' and 'leave'.
'lie' or 'lay'
You 'lie on a bed', but you 'lay the baby on the bed'. What is the difference?
'like' as verb and preposition
Do you 'like' to use 'like' as a preposition, or are you confused by this?
'need' and 'dare'
There are different ways to make these verbs negatives. Does it change the meaning?
non-standard English
Samanth Hague takes on a question about a non-standard grammatical form.
Passive forms 1: Overview
Roger Woodham shows the different tenses in the passive form.
Passive forms 2: continuous forms
Which passive continuous forms are usually avoided?
Passive:modals,future,infinitive
These complex forms of the passive are explained by Roger Woodham.
Passive: 'to have something done'
This is a way to say that you arranged for someone to do something for you.
Passive:causative + non-causative
Rachel Wicaksono discusses two slightly different usages of 'to have something done'.
Past tenses 1: a comparison
Comparing different tenses can help you understand when to use them.
Past tenses 2: verb endings
Carmen from Hong Kong asks if there are any rules for making the past form of a verb.
Past tenses:past simple / perfect
Students often make mistakes when using the past simple and the past perfect together.
Past tenses 4:past simple/perfect
Find out why these verb forms have been giving Niki from Hungary a headache for weeks.
Past tenses 5: unreal situations
Why do we use the past simple in the expression 'it's time we left'?
Past: 'used to' or past simple?
Paul from Russia asks when we use 'used to' to refer to the past.
1:Present perfect and past simple
Bahito from Algeria asks for the exact difference between these verb forms.
2:'for' and 'since'
Burcin from Turkey says her biggest problem is with the present perfect.
3:'have' as main verb
Sabz Ali Khan from Saudi Arabia finds it difficult to use 'have' with 'had'.
4: simple and continuous
Find out the difference between these similar forms.
5:'been' or 'gone'
He's been to London; he's gone to London. What is the difference?
6:'It's been a long time'
Read this if you have been studying the present perfect for a long time.
7: just, already, ever, yet
Learning about these time expressions will help you use the present perfect.
8: simple or continuous?
Mi Mi Khin from Myanmar has many problems with these forms. Can Catherine Walter help?
Stative and dynamic verbs 1
Learn how the meaning of a verb can affect the tenses we use.
Stative verbs 2: have a meeting
Hana from Poland is confused as to whether or not 'have meeting' is a state verb.
Stative verbs 3: used to + 'would
Rachel Wicaksono explains which types of verb you can use with 'used to' or 'would'.
Stative verbs 3: know and knowing
Wojciech in Poland wants to know when you can use state verbs in the continuous form.
Subject-verb agreement 1
Susan Fearn deals with the basics of subject-verb agreement.
Subject-verb agreement 2:there is
Why do we say 'there is a table and a chair', and not 'there are...' ?
Subjunctive forms 1
What is the subjunctive form in English? Is it the same as 'should'?
Subjunctive forms 2
John in Ireland asks for some examples of the subjunctive in English.
Past simple and present perfect
Umed from Iraq asks if you can use two different tenses to refer to the same event.
Tenses 2: simple or continuous?
What is the difference between 'He is naughty' and 'He is being naughty'?
Tenses 3: newspaper headlines
Gareth Rees explains why newspapers use the present tense in their story headlines.
The emphatic 'do'
Hossein is confused by a seemingly mistaken use of 'do' on a BBC Learning English page.
Time expressions:ever,already,yet
With which tenses can you use these time expressions?
Time expressions: Tenses
We use different time expressions for the finished, unfinished and future time.
'used to' and 'would'
Alex Gooch explains the difference between these ways to refer to the past.
Using verbs as nouns: the gerund
Sarah Bradshaw explains how the '-ing' form can be a noun.
Verb patterns 1:'to' or '-ing'?
I 'enjoy swimming', but I 'want to fly'. Why?
Verbs with 'to' or '-ing'
After which verbs do we use '-ing' or 'to'?
'Stop to do' or 'stop doing'?
Gareth Rees talks about verb patterns that affect meaning.
Verbs with two objects
'Show it to me' and 'show me it': Is there a difference in meaning?
What happened / What did happen?
Using the auxiliary 'do' in questions.
Wishes: past, present and future
Roger Woodham explains this complicated area of grammar.
'Worry' and 'be worried'
Mohammad Atai from Iran wants to know the difference in the use of to worry and to be worried.

Latest answers

'Finished' in questions
From Taher, Yemen
'Still' in sentences
From Marcel, Brazil
Using 'divorced'
From Pamela, South Korea
Using 'wonder'
From Kimia, Iran
Using 'open'
From Andrei, Russia

Verbs and tenses

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