English grammar: basic concepts. Crazy English grammar

Friends, every language has its own basic rules regarding grammar, spelling, syntax, etc. English is no exception. On the pages of our website you can find a detailed description of each section of grammar, reading rules, syntactic rules, and speech patterns of the English language.

In this article we will not dwell in detail on each section of the language.

Our material today is intended specifically for beginners in learning the language, for those who have taken up English from scratch. We want to introduce you to the most basic, most important and necessary rules of the English language that you will encounter everywhere while mastering this language. If you are ready, then 15 basic rules are waiting for you!

You need to know these rules!

So, dear readers, now you will get acquainted with the basic rules of English from different sections of the language. They concern grammar, speech, syntax and much more. All you need is to read the rules carefully and thoughtfully, pay attention to the examples and, of course, remember them! If you wish, you can copy this information into your English notebook or notepad. This way, you can always remind yourself of what you need in a particular exercise.

Rule #1

After modal verbs there is a particle to not used. We are speaking:

• Imust learn Englishmodalverbs. — I have to learn English modal verbs.
• You should listen to your parents. “You should listen to your parents.”
• May I take yournotebooktillSunday? — Can I borrow your laptop until Sunday?

And in no case do we say: must to learn; should to listen; may to take etc.

Rule No. 2

You cannot use the definite/indefinite article with a pronoun:

• I love my mother. - II loveminemom.
• Where is your friend now? - WhereNowis yoursFriend?
• Yesterday I met Tom and his wife. — Yesterday I met Tom and his wife.

You can't say: the my mother or my mother; the friend or your friend. You can immediately see how absurd this looks, and even more so, how absurd it sounds. It really hurts my ears!

Rule No. 3

Adverbs of the English language (for the question “how?”) are formed according to the scheme: adjective + ending ly:

• Perfect - perfect ly- excellent, wonderful, wonderful
• Quick - quick ly- quickly, nimbly
• Rapid - rapid ly- fast
• Quiet - Quiet ly- quiet
• Nice - nice ly- cute
• Easy - easy ly- easily
• beautiful - beautiful ly- Beautiful

• He entered the room quietly. - Hequiethas enteredVroom.
• Tom did his homework perfectly fine! - Volumedidmyhomeexcellent job (incredibly good)!
• Suelooksbeautifully today. — Sue looks beautiful today.

Rule No. 4

Use PresentSimple, after unions if,assoonasbeforewhen,till,until,after,incase in sentences of time and conditions relating to the future:

• When I finish school, I will go to my grandparents in the countryside. - WhenII'll finishschool, II'll goTominegrandfatherAndgrandmaVvillage.
• After you study your family tree, you will find out where you descend from. - AfterTogo, HowYouyou will studygenealogicaltreeyoursfamilies, Youyou will find, fromwhomYouhappening.
• Your elder brother will certainly help you if you ask- Is yoursseniorBrotherNecessarilywill helpyou, IfYouhisask.

Rule No. 5

The word order in an English sentence is:

Subject + predicate + direct object + indirect object + adverbial

Subject + predicate + direct object + indirect object + adverbal modifier

• Isentyoualetterlastweek. — I sent you a letter last week.
• I saw Mike in the club. - IsawMikeVclub.
• It was sunny yesterday. - Yesterdaywassunny.

In a Russian sentence, liberties are allowed, and there is no specific word order in it, everything depends on the emotion embedded in it. In an English sentence, everything is clear and strict.

Rule No. 6

Phrasal verbs (verb + preposition) of the English language have their own separate meaning and their own translation. For example:

To look- look; to look for- search

To put- put, put; to put on- put on

Compare:

• Put the plates on the table, please. - Put itdishesontable, Please.
• It is cold outside; put on your coat. - OnstreetCold, put it oncoat.

Rule No. 7

The most general rule for the definite and indefinite articles in the English language: the indefinite article is placed where nothing is known about the subject; The definite article is used where something is known about the subject.

• I see a The girl walking down the street is very beautiful. - II seegirl. The girl walking down the street is very beautiful.

Rule No. 8

Ending - ed characteristic of the past tenses of only regular verbs. Irregular verbs have a different form for each past tense. For example:

Look -looked BUT! Bring -brought —brought

Rule No. 9

There are 4 types of questions in English:

We go to the theater every Saturday. - Welet's goVtheatereverySaturday.

• General(general): Do we go to the theater every Saturday? —Welet's goVtheatereverySaturday?
• Special(special): Where do we go every Saturday? —WhereWelet's goeverySaturday?
• Alternative(alternative): Do we go to the theater every Saturday or every Sunday? —Welet's goVtheatereverySaturdayoreachSunday?
• Disjunctive(separating): We go to the theater every Saturday, don’t we? —Welet's goVtheatereverySaturday, NotSowhether?

Rule No. 10

To make an impersonal sentence, you need a pronoun It:

• It is cold today. - TodayCold.
• It is morning. - Morning.
• It is difficult to translate this text. - Thistextdifficulttranslate.

Rule № 11

After alliances asif,asthough(as if, as if, as if, as if) in the conditional mood, verb tobe in the 3rd person singular takes the form were:

• She speaks so proudlyas if she wasn't guilty. “She speaks so proudly, as if she’s not guilty.”
• Tom looks as though he were rich. - VolumelooksSoas ifHerich.

Rule No. 12

Conditional incentive sentences in the 1st and 3rd person are formed using the word Let's:

• Let's I have a look at these pictures. - Let me look at these photographs.
• Let's him sleep, he is tired. - Giveto himsleep, Hetired.

Rule No. 13

Everyone knows what the word is many is used with countable nouns, and the word much- with the uncountable. But, if suddenly you find it difficult, doubt, forgot the rule or don’t understand what noun is in front of you, feel free to use a combination of words alotof. It applies to both types of nouns.

• Many birds a lot of birds
• Much sugar - a lot of sugar

Rule no.14

Many English words are polysemic, that is, they can have several meanings. It depends on the context and meaning of the sentence. To more accurately understand the translation, you should consult a dictionary and clarify in what context the word is used.

• Toshoot- shoot on video; toshoot- fire
• Country- a country; country- village, village

Rule No. 15

Verb do can replace the main verb in a sentence. For example.

We present to you the first article in the “English Grammar for Beginners” series. In this series of materials, we decided to present all the rules briefly and in simple words, so that beginners “from scratch” or those who do not remember the basics of English well can independently figure out the grammar, understand it and apply it in practice.

Plural in English

In English, as in Russian, all words are divided into countable and uncountable. This is important to understand when forming the plural of a word. Countable nouns denote those objects that can be counted, for example: table (table), book (book), apple (apple). Uncountable nouns are abstract concepts, liquids, products, etc., that is, things that cannot be counted. For example: knowledge, water, meat, flour. These words have no plural or singular.

Countable nouns can be used in singular or plural. A singular noun denotes one thing; this is the form of the word that is indicated in the dictionary: apple - apple. A plural noun denotes several objects: apples - apples.

How to form the plural of nouns:

Usually the plural of nouns is formed by adding the ending -s to the word: book – books (book – books). However, there are several spelling features:

• If the word ends in -o, -s, -ss, -sh, -ch, -x, then add the ending -es: hero – heroes (hero – heroes), bus – buses (bus – buses).

  Exceptions: photo - photos (photo - photographs), video - videos (video recording - video recordings), radio - radios (radio - several radios), rhino - rhinos (rhino - rhinoceroses), piano - pianos (piano - several pianos), hippo - hippos (hippopotamus – hippopotamuses).

• If the word ends in -f, -fe, then change the ending to -ves: knife – knives, leaf – leaves, wife – wives.

  Exceptions: roof - roofs (roof - roofs), giraffe - giraffes (giraffe - giraffes), cliff - cliffs (cliff - cliffs).

• If a word ends in -y, preceded by a consonant, then we change -y to -ies: body – bodies (body – bodies).
• If the word ends in -y, preceded by a vowel, then add the ending -s: boy – boys (boy – boys).

In English there is also exception words, which form the plural irregularly. You just need to learn such words by heart; fortunately, there are not very many of them.

Try our test to see how well you have understood the material.

English Plural Noun Test

Articles in English

There are two types of articles in English: definite and indefinite. They are not translated into Russian. In the vast majority of cases, one of these articles must be placed before a singular noun.

The indefinite article a/an is used only with countable nouns in the singular: a girl (girl), a pen (handle). If a word begins with a consonant sound, we write the article a (a girl), and if the word begins with a vowel sound, we write the article an (an apple).

The indefinite article a/an is used in the following cases:

• We name any indefinite object, and we have only one, which is why we use the article a, which comes from the word one (one):

  It is a book. - This is a book.

• We mention the subject for the first time in speech:

  I see a shop. - I see (some, one of many) store.

• We talk about a person’s profession or indicate his belonging to a certain group:

  He is a teacher. - He is a teacher.
  She is a student. - She is a student.

We use the definite article the when we are talking about a specific object that is familiar to us. This article can appear before a singular or plural noun.

The definite article the is used in the following cases:

• We have already mentioned the subject earlier in our speech:

  I see a shop. The shop is big. - I see a store. (This) store is big.

  It is believed that the definite article comes from the word that (that), therefore it is intended to indicate some specific object familiar to the interlocutors.

• We are talking about an object that in this context is one of a kind and cannot be confused with something else:

  Honey, I'm washing the car. - Honey, I'm washing the car. (the family has one car, so we are talking about a specific item)
  Look at the girl in the red dress. - Look at the girl in the red dress. (we point to a specific girl in a specific dress)

• We are talking about a one-of-a-kind object, there is no other like it: the sun, the moon, the world, the President of France, etc.:

  The earth is our home. - Earth is our home.

Verb to be

There is always a verb in an English sentence. And if in Russian we can say “I am a doctor”, “Mary is beautiful”, “We are in the hospital”, then in English this is unacceptable: in all these cases the verb to be must appear after the subject. Therefore, you can remember a simple rule: if there are no ordinary verbs in a sentence, then the verb to be is needed.

The verb to be has three forms:

• Am is added to the pronoun I when we talk about ourselves:

  I am beautiful. - I am beautiful.

• Is is placed after the pronouns he, she, it:

  She is beautiful. - She's beautiful.

• Are is used after you, we, they:

  You are beautiful. - You are handsome.

The verb to be in English is most often used in the following cases:

• We inform you that by whom is a person (name, profession, etc.):

  I am a doctor. - I am doctor.

• We inform you that what a person or thing has a quality:

  Mary is beautiful. - Mary is beautiful.

• We inform you that Where there is a person or object:

  We are at the hospital. - We're in the hospital.

Sentences with the verb to be in the present tense are constructed as follows:

We think you are now ready to take the test and test your knowledge.

Test for the use of the verb to be

Present Continuous Tense - present continuous tense

Present Continuous Tense most often shows that an action is happening at the moment.

Every English sentence has a subject and a predicate. In the Present Continuous, the predicate consists of the auxiliary verb to be in the required form (am, is, are) and the main verb without the particle to, to which we add the ending -ing (playing, reading).

She is playing tennis now. - She is now plays to tennis.
I am reading a novel at the moment. - I'm currently I'm reading novel.

The verb to be in this tense is an auxiliary verb, that is, it is a word that comes before the main verb (playing, reading) and helps to form tense. You will find auxiliary verbs in other tenses; these types of verbs include to be (am, is, are), do/does, have/has, will.

Please note the following tense words Present Continuous: now (now), at the moment (at the moment), today (today), tonight (tonight), these days (these days), currently (these days), at present (currently), still (still).

Affirmative sentences in the Present Continuous are formed as follows:

Usually in this tense you just need to add the ending -ing to the main verb: walk – walking (walk), look – looking (look). But some verbs change like this:

• If the verb ends in -e, we remove the -e and add -ing: write – writing, dance – dancing.

  Exception: see – seeing (to see).

• If the verb ends in -ie, we change -ie to -y and add -ing: lie – lying (lie), die – dying (die).
• If the verb ends with a stressed syllable with a short vowel that occurs between two consonants, the final consonant is doubled by adding -ing: begin – beginning (begin), swim – swimming (swim).

In negative sentences in the Present Continuous, you just need to insert the particle not between to be and the main verb.

She isn't cooking at the moment. - At the moment she doesn't cook.
You are not listening to me now. - You don't listen me now.

In interrogative sentences in the Present Continuous, you need to put the verb to be in the first place, and after it put the subject and the main verb.

Is she cooking at the moment? - She trains At the moment?
Are you listening to me now? - You me now are you listening?

Now we suggest you take a test on the use of Present Continuous tense.

Test for the use of Present Continuous

We have presented you with the first 5 basic topics of the English language. Now your task is to thoroughly understand them and work through them as productively as possible with the help of exercises. In order not to burden you with a large amount of grammar at once, we will release the next article in this series in a few weeks. Subscribe to our newsletter, then you will definitely not miss important information. We wish you success in learning English!

What does English grammar look like by level?

In this post we will discuss in detail what grammar is covered at different levels of learning English - from beginner to advanced. Let's see examples of this grammar and do a little test.

Just in case, let me remind you that grammar is just one aspect of language learning. Necessary, useful, yes. But far from the only one.

How nice it would be if I learned grammar and, consider myself, mastered English))

English grammar by level

You will see that the same grammar is often repeated at different levels. Read more about why this happens. In short:

• not all grammatical structures are learned the first time (repetition is the mother of learning)))
• at low levels phenomena are considered separately from each other, and at higher levels they are compared with each other
• As the level of English improves, it turns out that each grammatical structure has nuances and subtleties, which insidious teachers are silent about for the time being, so as not to create confusion

English grammar by level - in different textbooks - looks approximately the same. Therefore, I will take as a basis one of the most popular textbooks - English File.

By the way, this English grammar by levels can be a kind of test. Look at any section and see if you understand sentences with grammar examples? But - more importantly - do you use such constructions in your speech? If not, it may not be your level yet. If yes, go to the next level and do the same.

English grammar by level - a short way to the desired section:

Beginner/Starter level grammar

The Beginner level covers the basics - the simplest constructions. At the same time, they are also the most important, because all the complex grammar of higher levels will be based on them.

At this level, a lot of attention is paid to forms - again, to achieve a certain automaticity in simple things, like I am, you are, he is. Grammatical constructions at the Beginner level are mainly treated separately from each other to avoid confusion of comparisons and nuances.

Elementary level grammar

The Elementary level is very similar to the previous level. I will say more, often instead of Beginner, my students and I take on Elementary right away, we just go through it a little more carefully.

The Elementary grammar is almost identical to the grammar of the previous level.

Pre-intermediate level grammar

At the Pre-intermediate level they are already beginning to compare different designs with each other and find out the nuances. Why is it better to say somewhere I study economics, and somewhere - I"m studying economics.

Intermediate Grammar

At the Intermediate level, they also compare already familiar phenomena with each other and, of course, study new ones.

Upper-intermediate grammar

By the advanced Upper-intermediate level, enlightenment usually sets in; the basics have already been covered. All that remains is to repeat them a little and move on to the interesting and subtleties of grammar.

Advanced Grammar

That's all English grammar by levels.

Does English grammar really end after the Advanced level? No, of course)) If you look at the levels, there is also the Proficiency level, but the line of conversation courses really ends at the Advanced level.

Perhaps this is because:

• even an ambitious user of English rarely needs a level higher than Advanced (not to mention the average learner who stays in the Intermediate area)
• at high levels, people already know how to find the necessary authentic materials on their own and independently organize their training
• at high levels, many people think about a more practical and targeted use of English - for example, preparation for international exams (IELTS, TOEFL and others) or specialized courses in the profession

And there are still a lot of subtleties left even after the Advanced level!

How do you like English grammar by levels?

Did you manage to determine your level with its help? Share in the comments!

Tables and diagrams with comments can be of great help when studying English grammar. Grammar in tables and diagrams helps to see all the grammatical subtleties and intricacies in the system. You can print the tables and have them always at hand, using them when necessary.

Nouns are words that make up one of the main parts of speech. They designate an object and answer the question “who?” So what?". On the one hand, there should be no problems with English nouns, because... Many categories of nouns that play a fundamental role in other languages ​​have no practical meaning in English grammar. For example, in German, the gender of a noun is of great importance (the type of article and its change by case depend on this). But in English, you can pay absolutely no attention to the gender of the noun, since it affects almost nothing. On the other hand, English nouns have many other nuances that you should know. Therefore, we invite you to the section where you can learn all the intricacies of this part of speech.

We practice basic grammatical structures to music in short rhyming songs. This method is very effective, as it combines educational language material with a clear rhythm and simple melody.

Understanding English tenses means mastering the English language by 60%. Now you can master English tenses (Present Simple, Present Continuous, etc.) in detail.

There are only two articles in English - the definite the and the indefinite a(n), but they cause so much trouble! It is with the use of articles that the majority of mistakes made by English language learners are associated. To master this topic, take a look at our special section.

Adjectives are one of the main parts of speech in the English language. Here we study all the topics related to this part of speech: degrees of comparison, prefixes and suffixes of adjectives and other topics. You will also learn which English adjectives, according to scientists, should be learned first.

We propose to understand all the intricacies of using English prepositions. You will learn the basic rules for using prepositions, as well as all the nuances that should be taken into account in order to make your speech correct and beautiful.

Modal verbs in English grammar are different from regular verbs. Welcome to the section with all the site materials about modal verbs in English.

Phrasal combinations (take over, run down, look out for, etc.) consist of several components, the main of which is a verb called phrasal. The tricky thing about phrasal verbs is that often by itself it has one meaning, but in combination with a subsequent preposition or adverb it has a completely different meaning. For example, look - look, but look out for - beware. This section presents rules and exercises with answers to phrasal verbs.

Adverbs are words that most often answer the question “how?”: good, bad, often, excellent, etc. Adverbs are very common in the English language, so we recommend paying special attention to them.

Interjections are mainly used to express various feelings and emotions. Oh, ah, uh, etc. - all these are interjections.

Numerals are intended mainly to indicate the number of objects or their order when counting. In this section you can learn all the rules for the formation and use of English numerals.

The main function of pronouns is to indicate an object, and not to directly name it. For example, the noun house (house) directly names an object of reality, and the pronoun this (this) only indicates something nearby.

English pronouns are divided into a number of categories: personal, possessive, demonstrative, etc. All the features of this group of words are outlined in this section.

English grammar for beginners seems overwhelming. Articles, pronouns, verbs - the English language has a huge number of rules that are not so easy to transfer to Russian. This raises doubts: is it worth starting at all? Is it worth diving into English grammar without some confidence that you can master it? No, with such an attitude, you will definitely not be able to swim far in your study. Therefore, it is important to discard all doubts and stereotypes. Believe me, English grammar can be studied independently and in the shortest possible time. All you need is consistency and perseverance, and we will help you with everything else.

First, let's figure out what the grammar of this language is. The English grammar or English grammar is a set of all rules that relate to prepositions, prefixes, parts of speech, types of English verbs and their tenses, members of sentences, and so on.

In simple words, everything that is in the English language is its grammar. Accordingly, a common question about how to learn grammar , has a very simple answer: to learn English grammar, you just need to learn the language. Of course, it will not be possible to analyze all the nuances in one article. Why, even books that promise to show you the entire grammar of the English language from scratch with exercises, in fact, will never tell you about the entire grammar. Therefore, we have collected only the most basic rules that are best suited for beginners.

How can you learn English grammar without even knowing the rules of pronunciation? Let's start with them. The rules for reading letters in English is a fairly broad topic, since with a certain combination their pronunciation can change. However, let's not go too deep and consider the standard pronunciation of letters, of which, by the way, there are 26 in English. When mastering the topic of pronunciation, special attention is paid to transcription, which, as a rule, is indicated in square brackets:

English Grammar: Articles

When studying English grammar, a lot of confusion may arise with, since they have no analogues in Russian. Articles are usually used with nouns to show whether we are talking about a specific object (that bag) or an indefinite one (a person). There are 3 types of articles:

1. Zero article or its absence:

1. The indefinite article a/an is used when you are not paying attention to a specific thing, but are simply talking about the subject in general. The indefinite article is also used when you first mention something to someone:

Note that if the noun or adjective that describes it begins with a consonant, the article “a” is used, and if it begins with a vowel, “an” is used.

1. The definite article the, expressing specific objects:

They occur constantly in speech, so be sure to remember.

Nouns in English grammar

English grammar from scratch very often begins with nouns. Perhaps this is because nouns in English have a lot in common with Russian ones. For example:

• they are also divided into proper and common nouns:

• can change in number, forming the plural using the ending -s (-es):

• have cases, although their number is limited to only two:

• perform the roles of all members of the sentence, examples:

The difference is that, unlike the Russian language, English nouns do not change by gender. Only pronouns have it.

English Grammar: Pronouns

Pronouns in English are divided into 9 subgroups, but the most popular are rightfully personal pronouns. They change according to cases, tenses and numbers:

English Grammar: Verbs

The verb in English is perhaps the main part of speech. It can be personal and impersonal. Personal verbs include those verbs that are used with all persons and in all tenses. They can be used in both active and passive voices:

Impersonal ones include the gerund, infinitive and participle:

Both regular and irregular verbs have 3 forms. The correct ones are formed as follows:

Irregular ones have 3 individual forms that need to be memorized, for example:

It is necessary to know all these forms, since with their help the formation of tense verb forms occurs.

In addition, verbs have three moods:

Particular attention should be paid to modal verbs. Modal verbs are verbs that are not used on their own. They are necessary to show the speaker’s attitude towards some action. Some of the most commonly used modal verbs are:

English Grammar: Adjectives

An adjective in English denotes an attribute of an object and answers the questions “which?” and “whose?” In simple words, it is used to describe objects and persons. According to their structure, adjectives are divided into 3 groups:

These and other adjectives can be used in 3 degrees of comparison:

English Grammar: Adverbs

The descriptive function is also characteristic of adverbs, which are responsible for expressing a characteristic of an action. It comes in several types:

They can also have degrees of comparison:

English Grammar: Numerals

Numerals, as in Russian, are quantitative and ordinal:

With the exception of the first 3 digits, the remaining ordinal numbers are formed with -th (-eth). In English ordinal numbers can be written using a number and the last two letters of the ending: second - 2nd, ninth - 9th, sixteenth - 16th and so on.

English Grammar: Interjections

It is impossible not to note the independent part of speech, the use of which helps to convey emotions and one’s feelings, namely interjections. They can be divided into 3 groups:

Functional parts of speech

Functional parts of speech in English grammar are used quite often. Let's look at some of them:

• Conjunctions connect members of a sentence, as well as simple sentences within a complex sentence. By structure they are divided into:

According to their functions, they are divided into coordinating and subordinating:

• Prepositions are used no less often than conjunctions. According to their structure, they are divided into exactly the same groups:

In addition to their main purpose, prepositions are always used with the following verbs:

• Another useful part of speech is particles. There are 5 types of particles in English:

English Grammar: Word Order in a Sentence

Sentences in English are affirmative, negative and interrogative. They are built as follows:

Based on these tables, sentences are drawn up at any time.

English Grammar: Tenses

There are 12 tense forms in English. They are formed using 3 tenses and 4 tense forms:

Knowing these forms, you can form any sentences.

English Grammar: Types of Sentences

By the way, about proposals. As in Russian, English sentences are divided into simple and complex. Complex ones are divided into complex and complex.

It is worth noting that, despite the fact that most sentences in English are complete, it is also possible to use incomplete sentences. As a rule, this option is used in colloquial speech, so this is rather a practical grammar of the English language:

These were the basic rules of grammar. Of course, it is unfortunately impossible to fit all the material here. However, knowing at least the mentioned rules of the English language, you will already feel quite confident during a conversation. As for conversations. A collection of English exercises or another version of descriptive information is, of course, good. However, believe me, practical English grammar cannot be compared with anything in its effectiveness. By communicating, language learners can learn much more than by sitting in front of a book. Therefore, do not hesitate to communicate with native speakers.