Gerunds & Infinitives

It is important to realise that verbos cannot be learnt in isolation. You should learn what follows each verb in order to use it accurately.

          GERUND:

We use gerund in the following cases:

 - After verbs such as involve, avoid, consider, mind ans risk.

         EX: Do you mind telling me what you are doing?

 -After many verbs which expresses like or dislikes, such as love, hate, loathe, enjoy.

          EX: I love cooking.

 - As a subject or object:

        EX: Eating is not permitted on the premises. 

 - After prepositions, phrasal verbs and expressions ending in a preposition:

        EX: He burnt the letter after reading it.

        INFINITIVE:

We use the bare infinitive (infinitive without to):

  - After modal verbs: 

         EX: We should listen to what he says.

  - After make and let:

         EX: They made me wear school uniform.

                 You wouldn't let me play.

  

We use the full infinitive (infinitive with to):

  - To express a reason or purpose:

    EX: He enrolled in the evening classes to improve his German.

  -After certain verbs such as appear  manage, seem, want, intend, plan, decide, would like and prefer.

  - Verbs which have two objects: encourage, request, advise, recommend, tell and ask.

  - EX: His mother encouraged him to apply for the course.

But there are some verbs which take both the infinitive or the gerund with a change of meaning.
 These verbs are, for example, like, try, stop, remember, hate and mean.


Let's do some exercises to check:

GRAMMAR: Conditionals

There are four types of conditionals:

ZERO CONDITIONAL: When we talk about things that are generally or always true. 

If/Whether + Present Simple/Continuous + Present Simple/Continuous

EX: If you do aerobic exercise, you burn up calories.

FIRST CONDITIONAL: Future  events that are likely to happen.

If/ Whether + Present tense + Will/ Won't

EX: Whether we don'y hurry up, we will be late.

SECOND CONDITIONAL: To talk about very improbable situations 

If/ Whether + Past simple + Would + Infinitive

EX: If I had a million dolars, I would buy ten cars.

THIRD CONDITIONAL: When we talk about impossible conditions because they are in the past and we can't change the past.

If/ Whether + Past perfect + Would Have + Participle 

EX: If I had worked harder, I would have got better marks.

Exercises:

 -  If he _________________ (be) younger, he _________________ (travel) more. 

- If I __________________ (go) out tonight, I __________________ (go) to the cinema.

 - If we __________________ (not / see) each other tomorrow, we_________________ (see) each other next week.

 - If he __________________ (come), I __________________ (be) surprised.

 - If I _________________ (be) you, I _________________ (get) a new job.

 -  If he _________________ (be) younger, he _________________ (travel) more.

 -  If we _________________ (not / be) friends, I _________________ (be) angry with you.

 - If you ______________ (not / be) late, we ______________ (not / miss) the bus.

 -  If she ______________ (study), she ______________ (pass) the exam.

 -  If they ______________ (go) to bed early, they ______________ (not / wake) up late

 -  If we ______________ (arrive) earlier, we ______________ (see) John.

 - If you __________________ (get) back late, I __________________ (be) angry.

-  If I _________________ (have) enough money, I _________________ (buy) a big house.

Useful vocabulary!!

                                                            IDIOMS

Hello to everyone! This week I am going to talk about idioms. This is a field in English that cannot have any connotation or possibility to modify because they are a whole. We can learn them by hearth because they haven´t a literary translation in Spanish, they are as their names say, idioms.

There are a great amount of idioms and expressions that can be useful when we learn a language or when we do a travel to visit the countries where those languages are spoken, or when a friend invited us to go to his house and shows us his country. Many people go to these countries without any idea of the language or without preparing a list or something like that to understand people in the airport or in the street where you are not with your friend or partner. Many of these idioms are very similar to the meaning in Spanish but others are totally different. . Let´s see it!

For example:

·         It´s raining cats and dogs => literally, its meaning is “están lloviendo gatos y perros” but in English it refers to “está lloviendo a cántaros”.

·         Piece of cake => this idiom is the equivalence of “pan comido” in Spanish. This is a very typical expression in English when we say that something is very easy to do.

·         Cost an arm and a leg  =>It means “cuesta un ojo de la cara” so it´s very useful to used in everyday life, when we go to the supermarket or to the bank.

·         No pains, no gains => This idiom has the same meaning that  Spanish expression “quien algo quiere, algo le cuesta”.

·         Two birds one stone => literally it means the same than in Spanish, “ matar dos pájaros de un tiro”

·         And Bob´s your uncle => this is an English typical expression. Although if we translate into Spanish the meaning it´s difficult to understand, but it means something like “está chupado”

·         Make yourself at home => this idiom can be used when someone visits you at home; it means something like “siéntete como en casa"

I hope that these idioms are useful for many of you when you travel to some of these countries. See you soon!

GRAMMAR:

FUTURE TENSES:

There are many ways of expressing the future in English depending on meaning. We can use:

WILL + Infinitive
-To predict what's going to happen based on past experience or opinion.
                You must go to India - You will enjoy it.
-In more formal contexts for arrangements which have been made in some detail.
                The tour will begin at 9.30, you will need good walking shoes.
-For decisions which are made on the spur of the moment.
                I think I will go to Paris

(We use WON'T in negative sentences) 

GOING TO + Infinitive
-To predict something that you hav evidence for.
               Look at those clouds-  I am sure it is going to rain.
-To express intentions or decisions.
              I am going to see The Museum of Modern Art when I get to NY.

SHALL + Infinitive
-To talk about the future instead of will with I and We although it is used less nowadays than previously.
            I shall certain travel first class next time I go abroad.
-For offers.
           Shall I carry your bags?

More Grammar for your pleasure!!

Present Perfect Simple & Continuous

The difference between these both tenses depends on if the action is finished or not.

Present Perfect Simple(PPS):

It describes an event that started in the past and it has just finished, for example:

I have read a book. (se traduce como: he leído un libro)

 

The structure of a sentence in PPS:

+     Sub  +  Have/Has  +V (Participle)+ Compl.

-      Sub  + Haven't /Hasn't + V (Participle)+  Compl.

?     Have/Has +  Sub + V (Participle) +Compl.

Present Perfect Continuous(PPC):

It is not said if the action is finished or not. It underlines the action instead of the duration, for example:

I have been reading a book (se traduce como: he estado leyendo un libro)

The structure is:

+     Sub  +  Have/Has +Been +V (Gerund)+ Compl.

-      Sub  + Haven't /Hasn't +Been + V (Gerund)+  Compl.

?     Have/Has +  Sub + Been+ V (Gerund) +Compl.

Translate these sentences to check what we have learnt in this lesson:

-Mi padre ha estado fumando toda la mañana.

-La profesora ha leído diez libros este mes.

-Lola se ha cortado el pelo.

-Lucía ha estado cocinando toda la mañana

-Jose ha estado trabajando toda la noche.

-El perro ha ladrado durante horas.

-El niño ha estado estudiando para un examen.

-Mi vecino ha visitado NY tres veces.

-Mi madre ha estado mirando recetas nuevas.

-Yo he estado buscando ofertas de trabajo.

LET'S GO WITH GRAMMAR

PAST SIMPLE & CONTINUOUS

The second basic step is the past tense. 

Past Simple is used to talk about actions or situations in the past. It used to appear with time expressions like: yesterday, the last night, the last week, last year...

The structure is the following:

Statements:          Sub+V(past)+ Compl.
Negative:              Sub+ DIDN'T +V (present) + Compl         
Questions:             DID+ Sub + V (present) + Compl. 

For example: I ate an apple yestedary.

But we have to identify IRREGULAR VERBS.  The most important ones are:

The Past Continuous is used when we talk about something which was happening at a special time in the past. 
The structure is the following:

Statements:              Sub+ to be(past)+ gerund V+ Compl.
Negative:                 Sub+ to be (Past,negative) + gerund V+Compl.
Question:                 To be(past)+ Sub+ gerund V+ Compl ?

For example: I was eating an apple.

We can find these both tenses in the same sentence and there is a CLUE to identify where is each tense: "When" always appears with PAST SIMPLE and "While" always appears with PAST CONTINUOUS.

EX: We were sitting at the breakfast table when the doorbell rang.

He met a lot of friendly people while he was working in California.

And finally there you have some exercises to practise:

1) When they (leave) the museum, the sun (shine)

2) The students (play) cards when the teacher (come) in.

3) While the children (sleep), their parents (watch) TV.

4) It (start) to rain while she (water)the flowers in her garden.

5) When I (open) the door, it (rain)

6) While Henry (have) a drink at the bar, his wife (swim) in the sea.

7) He (hear) a loud bang while he (talk) to his friend.

8) While he (take) a shower, his dogs (eat) his steaks.

   

LISTENING COMPREHENSION Let's get back to business !

   Hey! Let's get back to business ! 

This week we are going to make it a bit difficult 

Now, I give you a recording with six different situations, you will have to listen to them closely and then answer a few questions. 

Come on !!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVzMy_-YKNo 

That is the link to the selected recording and here you have the questions. Good Luck ! 

Situation 1

1. How many members are there ?

2. What is the first person going to drink ?

3. How about the other ones ?

4. What’s the problem with one of them ? What’s his/her name ?

5. Where do they seem to be ?

Situation 2

1. How many people are talking?

2. What does the first person suggest?

3. What happens with the second person? What does she want to ?

4. What does the next speaker insist in ?

5. The last speaker seems to have a problem, which one is it ?

Situation 3

1. How many speaker do we have here ?

2. There are some noise, where do they seem to be ?

3. What are they discussing ?

4. One of them remembers something, who does he mention? what is his job?

5. Where is working that person? How old is he?  

Situation 4

1. Where does one of them seem to go to ?

2. What is the other person complaining about ?

3. He forgot something, what is it?

4. Does he offer himself to do something? what?

5. How much time will he spend in returning back ?

Situation 5

1. What does the first person say that they must do ?

2. How does the man resolve it ?

3. The women now complains about something, what does she say ?

4. Which type of relation do they have with this third person ?

5. Finally, what has the women decided to do ?

Situation 6

1. Who does the man phone to ?

2. What does he want?

3. He is asked to give the membership numbers, write them.

4. What problems does he have?

5. Finally, what happens ?

READING: Robin Hood

Hi Everybody!!

An important part on the learning of your English. Each week, we are going to practice this part with funny exercises.

Now, let's go to practice with a easy and entertaining exercise.

You can READ the following text and ANSWER the questions.



TEXT: ROBIN HOOD

Robin Hood is the archetypal English folk hero, an outlaw who, in modern versions of the legend, stole from the rich to give to the poor.

This redistributionist form of philosophy-in-action anticipates the work of writers such as Proudhon and Karl Marx by many hundreds of years. Although most noted for his material egalitarianism, in the stories he also pursues other types of equality and justice. However, as mentioned below, Robin Hood was not originally so generous.

The stories relating to Robin Hood are apocryphal, verging on the mythological. His first appearance in a manuscript is in William Langland's Piers Plowman (1377) in which Sloth, the lazy priest boasts "I ken (i.e. 'know') 'rimes of Robin Hood." Three years later the Scottish chronicler John Fordun wrote that, in ballads, "Robin Hood delights above all others".

Printed versions of Robin Hood ballads appear in the early 16th century — shortly after the advent of printing in England. In these ballads, Robin Hood is a yeoman which, by that time, meant an independent tradesman or farmer. It is only in the late 16th century that he becomes a nobleman, the Earl of Huntington, Robert of Locksley, or later still, Robert Fitz Ooth.

His romantic attachment to Maid Marian (or "Marion") (originally known as Mathilda) is also a product of this later period and probably has something to do with the French pastoral play of about 1280, the Jeu de Robin et Marion. Aside from the names there is no recognizable Robin Hood connection to the play.



The late 16th century is also the period when the Robin Hood story is moved back in time to the 1190s, when King Richard is away at the crusades. One of the original Robin Hood ballads refers to King Edward (Edward I, II, and III ruled England from 1272 to 1377). The idea of Robin Hood as a high-minded Saxon fighting Norman Lords originates in the 19th century, most notably in the part Robin Hood plays in Sir Walter Scott's Ivanhoe (1819), chapters 40 - 41, where the familiar modern Robin Hood—"King of Outlaws and prince of good fellows!" Richard the Lionheart calls him—makes his debut.

The folkloric Robin Hood was deprived of his lands by the villainous Sheriff of Nottingham and became an outlaw. The Sheriff does indeed appear in the early ballads (Robin kills and beheads him), but there is nothing as specific as this allegation. Robin's other enemies include the rich abbots of the Catholic Church and a bounty hunter named Guy of Gisbourne. Robin kills and beheads him as well. The early ballads contain nothing about giving to the poor, although Robin does make a large loan to an unfortunate knight.

In the ballads, the original "Merry Men" (though not called that) included: Friar Tuck, Will Scarlet (or Scathlock), Much the Miller's Son, and Little John — who was called "little" because he wasn't. Alan-a-Dale is a later invention in Robin Hood plays.

QUESTIONS:

1. Robin Hood appeared in print in the beginning of the 16th century.

True.
False.
We don't know.

2. The stories relating to Robin Hood are of questionable authenticity.

True.
False.
We don't know.

3. The folkloric Robin Hood was considered a criminal.

True.
False.
We don't know.

4. According to an early ballad, Robin Hood kills the Sheriff.

True.
False.
We don't know.

5. The legend of Robin Hood was associated to King Richard and the crusades.

True.
False.
We don't know.

6. Ivanhoe was written by Sir Walter Scott.

True.
False.
We don't know.

7. Little John was called like that because...

he was little.
he was tall.
he was young.

Are you ready to learn English vocabulary?

Hello!! In this section of the blog, I would try to explain some techniques of learning vocabulary at the same time that the vocabulary as well. Vocabulary is a great and ambiguous field in the English language because there are millions of words and the British themselves can´t know all of them.

This ambiguity may be seen in most of the words but I will focus on the verb get. The verb get has a lot of meanings and variety of forms. Originally this verb means “obtener, conseguir” but the meaning change depending on the word we put after the verb. For example:

•  To get + a break -> means “tener una oportunidad” as we can see in this example:

        - I play the guitar at a pub on Thursdays but one day I hope I get my break. 

Here, you could think that the meaning is similar to the prototype, but pay attention to this one:

• To get + a move on -> means “darse prisa” as we can see in this example:

       - Emily, get a move on! We're going to be late for the ceremony!
You can see how this meaning is totally different from the first one or from the prototype. One example more:

• To get + hell -> “ aguantar una bronca” as we can see in this example:

       -No! I won't get hell from mom and dad again for something you did!

These are only a few examples with the verb to get but there are others with other verbs in English language. These are known as phrasal verbs and the meaning of these verbs change depending on the word that appear after the main verb, and that is why they are difficult for non-native speakers of English.
Pay attention!! It´s really important that you understand the context of the words that you want to learn, because is the best way to learn it.
See you soon!!

Let's practise our level of listening with this enjoyable exercise !

Here in this entry of our blog we provide you an exercise to improve your listening. You will have to listen closely to this nice song performed by Sara Bareilles and fill the gaps of the lyrics 

ARE YOU READY ? 

ENJOY !

Something always brings me back to _____. 

It never takes too _____. 

No matter what I ____ or do I'll still ____ you here 'til the ______ I'm gone. 

You hold me without ______. 

You keep me ______ chains. 

I never wanted ______ so much than to drown in your _____ and not feel your ____. 

[CHORUS]

Set me ____, leave me ___. I don't want to _____ another moment into your _______. 

Here I am and I ______ so tall, just the way I'm ________ to be. 

But you're on to me and all ____ me. 

You loved me 'cause I'm ______. 

_____ I thought that I was strong. 

But you touch me for a ___________ and all my fragile strength is _____. 

[CHORUS] 

I live here on my knees as I ____ to make you ____ that you're ________ I think I need here on 

The _______. 

But you're _______ friend nor foe though I can't seem to let you go.

The one ______ that I still _____ is that you're keeping me _____.

Something _______ brings me back to _____. 

It ______ takes too _____.