Teacher Discussion Forums

Quote: "Are all your examples in Present Perfect cannot be said in Simple Past? If so, say in front of us." Of course they cannot be said in simple past without changing the meaning - why do I have to tell you this? Quote: As for some kind of wording containing some stars, you can hardly understand ...

It needs a link with the present, surely. The most common uses, ' We've won!', 'Now you've done it!', 'I haven't been to the bank yet', 'I haven't seen him' have the present meanings: We're very good, You're in trouble, I need to go to the bank, I don't know where he is . The example, on this thread...

Spacing and punctuation are both vital - one doesn't want to confuse man's laughter with manslaughter, and no Psychotherapist would wish to be known in written form as Psycho the rapist.

now, if i heard a person say "what a plank" my first thought would be that maybe he meant "walk the plank" like in sea stories. Hence the exclamation mark, which you missed. An exclamation in the form of " What a (singular noun) ! " has little ambiguity, even if I insert the over-polite plank in pl...

I have never heard a native (UK) speaker say they study in an educational institution.

I have a friend from SE England who says "You was" when talking to one person and "you were" when talking to more than one. He's a native speaker of English, so it's neither an error nor a mistake - it's just part of his dialect. As a native of SE England, I would still label it a mistake. It is a ...

Hmm, tough one. It's hard to find much at all on this in grammar books, and if you do find anything, it is likely to be more about semantics (e.g. "(F)or many main clauses with two or more noun phrases, there is usually only one noun phrase that qualifies semantically as the subject of the particip...

The above description would also fit the standard of English displayed by many British politicians.
Now that you mention it, whenever I hear a member of the UK Government I get violent urges as well.

I am not in disagreement over the spatial arrangement; I was just concentrating on a subtle (possible) difference between this and that when the 'spatial connotation, or temporal, or emotional' is the same.
I'm sorry for stealing your words, but they're better than mine.

But...couldn't it just as easily be the other way around? :? Larry Latham It would sound a little strange to my ears, that's all. I would only use this to introduce someone or something. "Fred, let me introduce you to someone. This is my wife." Fred immediately begins to fondle her... "Oi! That's m...

Henry Teach wrote: What about: Mrs Jones'
That's also correct.
Henry

I think that would put you in danger from the paramilitary wing of the Apostrophe Protection Society
Jones' would surely indicate that several people called Jone are the owners.

Back to metal's first example: Q. Is that a picture of your family? A. Yes. This is my dad; this is my sister Madge... But... Q. Who are the people in the picture? A. Well, that is my dad; that is my sister Madge... The first is like an introduction and the second is identification; or is my example...

Putting my anorak on...

... the correct punctuation when a person called Ms Jones possesses something is Ms Jones's.
Your test gives four possible answers - all incorrect.

Apart from that, I think it is excellent.

The person who complained that the letter is impolite is probably too sensitive and delicate for this world and should seriously consider self-immolation. However, I know from experience that many Government departments are full of such unfortunates; so it is worth inserting some niceties to avoid c...

I would only add the following two alterations: I would change "all I understood are some key words" to "all I understood were some key words" or "all I understand are some key words" to avoid having one verb in the past and the other in the present; and I would "make corrections to my writings. " a...