English Tenses Timeline Chart – Active/Passive Tenses

This timeline tenses chart provides a handy reference sheet to English tenses and their relationship to
one another and the past, present and future. Conjugated verbs are highlighted in bold.

TIMELINE
PROGRESSIVE / PROGRESSIVE /
SIMPLE
SIMPLE PASSIVE CONTINUOUS CONTINUOUS
ACTIVE
ACTIVE PASSIVE
PAST TIME
^
|

^
She had already The painting had been I had been waiting for
|
finished when I sold twice before it was four hours when he
PAST PERFECT
arrived. destroyed. finally arrived.
|
|

^
I bought a new car The book was written in | I was watching TV
last week. 1876 by Frank Smith. PAST when she arrived.
|
|

^
She has lived in The company has been | She has been working
California for many managed by Fred Jones PRESENT at Johnson's for six
years. for the last two years. PERFECT months.
|
|

^
He works five days Those shoes are made in | I am working at the The work is being
a week. Italy. PRESENT moment. done by Jim.
|
|
|
PRESENT
MOMENT
|
|
The reports are going
FUTURE
They are going to fly to be completed by
INTENTION
to New York tomorrow. the marketing
|
department.
V
|
The sun will shine The decision will be FUTURE SIMPLE She will be teaching The rolls are going to
tomorrow. made later. | tomorrow at six o'clock. be baked at two.
V
|
I will have She will have been
The project will have FUTURE
completed the working here for two The house is going to
been finished by PERFECT
course by the end years by the end of be built in six months.
tomorrow afternoon. |
of next week. next month.
V
FUTURE
TIME
V

Summer English Course Annabella Tay

August 8th – September 1st, 2006
 Asking for Information

There are a number of formulas used when asking for information in English.
Here are some of the most common:

• Could you tell me...?

• Do you know...?
• Do you happen to know...?
• I'd like to know...
• Could you find out...?
• I'm interested in...
• I'm looking for..

These two forms are used for asking for information on the telephone:

• I'm calling to find out...

• I'm calling about...

Construction

Formula + Question Word Example Finish

Could you tell me when the next train leaves?
Do you know how much that vase costs?
Do you happen to know where Tom lives?
I'd like to know what you think about the new project.
Could you tell me when the next train leaves?
Could you find out when she is going to arrive?

Formula + Gerund (-ing) Example Finish

I'm interested in buying a boat

Formula + Noun Example Finish

I'm looking for information on holidays in Spain.

Formula used only on

+ Question Word Example Finish
the telphone
flight AZ098 will leave on time
I'm calling to find out... if
today.
Formula used only on
+ Noun Example Finish
the telephone
I'm calling about... the offer published in today's newspaper.

Summer English Course Annabella Tay

August 8th – September 1st, 2006
Contrasting Ideas

Making Complaints

Asking for Information

Giving Advice

Guessing

Being Imprecise or Vague

Saying 'No' Nicely

Showing Preferences

Making Suggestions

Offering Help

Giving Warning

Demanding Explanations

More Grammar Help

• Beginning Grammar
• Lower Intermediate Grammar
• Intermediate Grammar
• Upper Intermediate Grammar
• Advanced Grammar

Summer English Course Annabella Tay

August 8th – September 1st, 2006
 ESL Tic-Tac-Toe - Question Forms

Tic-Tac-Toe games are a fun way for students to practise their English while
enjoying some competition. The exercise is rather intuitive:

• Distribute the tic-tac-toe sheet.

• Students complete the question.
• Students score an X or O for each sentence that is grammatically correct
and makes sense.
• This game is best played as a class with the teacher checking answers.
However, with larger classes, the game can also be played in pairs while
the teacher goes around the room checking answers.

Question Forms Tic-Tac-Toe

Summer English Course Annabella Tay

August 8th – September 1st, 2006
Teacher’s Instructions

ESL Tic-Tac-Toe - Time Expressions

Tic-Tac-Toe games are a fun way for students to practise their English while
enjoying some competition. The exercise is rather intuitive:

• Distribute the tic-tac-toe sheet.

• Students complete the sentence.
• Students score an X or O for each sentence that is grammatically correct
and makes sense.
• This game is best played as a class with the teacher checking answers.
However, with larger classes, the game can also be played in pairs while
the teacher goes around the room checking answers.

Time Expressions Tic-Tac-Toe

Printing Version

Tic-Tac-Toe with Conditional Forms

Tic-Tac-Toe with Question Forms

More Lesson Plans

Summer English Course Annabella Tay

August 8th – September 1st, 2006
http://esl.about.com/library/howto/htpronounce.htm

How To Improve Your Pronunciation

Pronouncing every word correctly leads to poor pronunciation! Good pronunciation

comes from stressing the right words - this is because English is a time-stressed
language.

Difficulty Level: Hard Time Required: Varies

Here's How:

1. Learn the following rules concerning pronunciation.

2. English is considered a stressed language while many other languages are
considered syllabic.
3. In other languages, such as French or Italian, each syllable receives equal
importance (there is stress, but each syllable has its own length).
4. English pronunciation focuses on specific stressed words while quickly gliding
over the other, non-stressed, words.
5. Stressed words are considered content words: Nouns e.g. kitchen, Peter -
(most) principle verbs e.g. visit, construct - Adjectives e.g. beautiful,
interesting - Adverbs e.g. often, carefully
6. Non-stressed words are considered function words: Determiners e.g. the, a
- Auxiliary verbs e.g. am, were - Prepositions e.g. before, of - Conjunctions
e.g. but, and - Pronouns e.g. they, she
7. Read the following sentence aloud: The beautiful Mountain appeared
transfixed in the distance.
8. Read the following sentence aloud: He can come on Sundays as long as he
doesn't have to do any homework in the evening.
9. Notice that the first sentence actually takes about the same time to speak
well!
10. Even though the second sentence is approximately 30% longer than the first,
the sentences take the same time to speak. This is because there are 5
stressed words in each sentence.
11. Write down a few sentences, or take a few example sentences from a book or
exercise.
12. First underline the stressed words, then read aloud focusing on stressing the
underlined words and gliding over the non-stressed words.
13. Be surprised at how quickly your pronunciation improves! By focusing on
stressed words, non-stressed words and syllables take on their more muted
nature.
14. When listening to native speakers, focus on how those speakers stress
certain words and begin to copy this.

Tips:

1. Remember that non-stressed words and syllables are often "swallowed" in

English.
2. Always focus on pronouncing stressed words well, non-stressed words can
be glided over.

Summer English Course Annabella Tay

August 8th – September 1st, 2006
 3. Don't focus on pronouncing each word. Focus on the stressed words in each
sentence.

Related Features:

• Intonation and Stress: Key to Understanding

• Software review of Clear Speech Works
• Pronunciation Grammar and Writing Software
• Pronunciation Resources
• RealAudio Examples of IPA Symbols

http://esl.about.com/library/weekly/aa110997.htm

Intonation and Stress: Key to Understanding and Being

Understood

Try this short exercise

Say this sentence aloud and count how many seconds it takes.

The beautiful Mountain appeared transfixed in the distance.

Time required? Probably about 5 seconds. Now, try speaking this sentence aloud.

He can come on Sundays as long as he doesn't have to do any homework in the

evening.

Time required? Probably about 5 seconds.

Wait a minute the first sentence is much shorter than the second sentence!

The beautiful Mountain appeared transfixed in the distance

He can come on Sundays as long as he doesn't have to do any homework in the
evening

You are only partially right!

This simple exercise makes a very important point about how we speak and use
English. Namely, English is considered a stressed language while many other
languages are considered syllabic. What does that mean? It means that, in
English, we give stress to certain words while other words are quickly spoken
(some students say eaten!). In other languages, such as French or Italian, each
syllable receives equal importance (there is stress, but each syllable has its own
length).

Many speakers of syllabic languages don't understand why we quickly speak, or

swallow, a number of words in a sentence. In syllabic languages each syllable has
equal importance, and therefore equal time is needed. English however, spends
more time on specific stressed words while quickly gliding over the other, less
important, words.

Summer English Course Annabella Tay

August 8th – September 1st, 2006
Let's look at a simple example: the modal verb "can". When we use the positive
form of "can" we quickly glide over the can and it is hardly pronounced.

They can come on Friday. (stressed words underlined)

On the other hand, when we use the negative form "can't" we tend to stress the
fact that it is the negative form by also stressing "can't".

They can't come on Friday.

As you can see from the above example the sentence, "They can't come on
Friday" is longer than "They can come on Friday" because both the modal "can't"
and the verb "come" are stressed.

So, what does this mean for my speaking skills?

Well, first of all, you need to understand which words we generally stress and
which we do not stress. Basically, stress words are considered CONTENT
WORDS such as

• Nouns e.g. kitchen, Peter

• (most) principal verbs e.g. visit, construct
• Adjectives e.g. beautiful, interesting
• Adverbs e.g. often, carefully

Non-stressed words are considered FUNCTION WORDS such as

• Determiners e.g. the, a, some, a few

• Auxiliary verbs e.g. don't, am, can, were
• Prepositions e.g. before, next to, opposite
• Conjunctions e.g. but, while, as
• Pronouns e.g. they, she, us

Let's return to the beginning example to demonstrate how this affects speech.

The beautiful Mountain appeared transfixed in the distance. (14 syllables)

He can come on Sundays as long as he doesn't have to do any homework in the

evening. (22 syllables)

Even though the second sentence is approximately 30% longer than the first, the
sentences take the same time to speak. This is because there are 5 stressed
words in each sentence. From this example, you can see that you needn't worry
about pronouncing every word clearly to be understood (we native speakers
certainly don't). You should however, concentrate on pronouncing the stressed
words clearly.

Now, do some listening comprehension or go speak to your native English

speaking friends and listen to how we concentrate on the stressed words rather
than giving importance to each syllable. You will soon find that you can
understand and communicate more because you begin to listen for (and use in
speaking) stressed words. All those words that you thought you didn't understand

Summer English Course Annabella Tay

August 8th – September 1st, 2006
are really not crucial for understanding the sense or making yourself understood.
Stressed words are the key to excellent pronunciation and understanding of
English.

I hope this short introduction to the importance of stress in English will help you
to improve your understanding and speaking skills. Make sure to come to our
chat lessons on Monday and Thursday evening to discuss these and other ideas.
Email for any suggestions or topics that you would like to work on in the future.
esl.guide@about.com

PRONUNCIATION

Pronunciation: Practicing Stress and Intonation

I am often surprised at how focusing on the "stress - timed" quality of English helps students improve
their pronunciation skills. Students often focus on pronouncing each word correctly and therefore
tend to pronounce in an unnatural manner. By focusing on the stress - timed factor in English - the
fact that only principle words such as proper nouns, principle verbs, adjectives and adverbs receive
the "stress" - students soon begin sounding much more "authentic" as the cadence of the language
begins to ring true. The following lesson extends previous lessons by developing student ears'
sensitivity to the rhythmic quality of English.

Aim: Improving pronunciation by focusing on the stress - timed nature of spoken English

Activities: Comparison of unnaturally and naturally spoken English by looking at the tendency of
some students to pronounce every word correctly.

Level: Upper intermediate - recommended for upper level students who have a high level of
understanding, but are having problems with fluency in communication caused by pronunciation
problems.

Outline:

• Begin awareness raising activities by reading an example sentence aloud to the students (for
example: The boys didn't have time to finish their homework before the lesson began).
Read the sentence the first time pronouncing each word carefully. Read the sentence a
second time in natural speech.
• Ask students which reading seemed more natural and why it seemed more natural.
• Using the ideas students come up with, explain the idea of English being a "stress - timed"
language. If the students speak a syllabic language (such as Italian or Spanish), point out
the difference between their own native language and English (theirs being syllabic, English
stress - timed). Just this awareness raising can make a dramatic difference in such
students abilities.
• Talk about the differences between stressed words and non-stressed words (i.e. principle
verbs are stressed, auxiliary verbs are not).
• Write the following two sentences on the board:
o The beautiful Mountain appeared transfixed in the distance.
o He can come on Sundays as long as he doesn't have to do any homework in the
evening.
• Underline the stressed words in both sentences. Ask students to try reading aloud. Point out
how each sentence seems to be approximately the same length in "stress - time".
• Have students practice the exercise below in groups of two. By having students first read in a
unnatural way and then in a natural way, students become more aware of their own
tendencies to 'over-pronounce' each word.
• Now that the students are comfortable with listening to the stress-timed nature of English,
raise their awareness about the rhythmic nature of English. Point out how important it is
that they use their ears to aid them with the following exercise.

Summer English Course Annabella Tay

August 8th – September 1st, 2006
 • Take this task to the next level by reading the following sentences aloud and have the
students repeat each sentence. Each sentence is read aloud three or more times with a
pause between each reading to allow students to repeat the sentence. Students should
focus on imitating what they hear.
o Variety is the spice of life.
o I'll have bought a new house by the time Jack finishes school!
o PETA has been well known for its support by famous Hollywood actors and
actresses.
o Why don't we catch a film tonight?
o You'd be surprised at how many people find English almost impossible to
understand when spoken quickly.
o A great way to improve listening skills is to listen to songs that you are very familiar
with and learn the words by heart.
o My favorite magazine is called Wired. It focuses on cultural, business and
philosophical issues surrounding the information age and its instruments.
o So, as I was telling John, we had been waiting for about an hour when Frank finally
showed up.
o Sentences that use a number of words to express simple ideas are about as boring
as overcooked cabbage.
o Janet silently turned the page.
• Have students create their own sentences (about five or so). Ask them to pair up and practice
the previous exercise with each other. One student reads and repeats his/her sentences
while the other student repeats what he/she hears.

The Music of English

English is a very rhythmic language because only certain, important words are accented. For this
reason, you should practice using your ear as much as possible.

Naturally Spoken English

Speak through the following sentences trying to carefully pronounce EVERY word. Notice
how unnatural this sounds. Next, focus on speaking the sentences stressing only content
words. Tape yourself doing this and you will be surprised at how quickly your pronunciation
improves!

• By the time he receives this letter, I will have caught the train to Paris.
• Following closely behind the herd was a group of filthy, disgusting vultures.
• I'll make sure to give him a ring the next time I'm in town.
• Not only are the exams required, but they are also absolutely imperative for your further
education.
• Hey, have you seen the new film with Bruce Willis? You know, the one where he's supposed
to be a sensitive doctor.

Subject: Can You Follow Instructions?

Below are four (4) questions and a bonus question. You have to
answer them instantly. You can't take your time. Answer all of them immediately.
OK?
Let's find out just how clever you really are.
Ready? GO!!! (scroll down)
First Question:
You are participating in a race. You overtake the second
person. What position are you in?

Summer English Course Annabella Tay

August 8th – September 1st, 2006
Answer: If you answered that you are first, then you are absolutely
wrong!
If you overtake the second person and you take his
place, you are second!

The next question.

To answer the second question, don't take as much time as you
took for the first question.

Second Question:
If you overtake the last person, then you are...?
Answer: If you answered that you are second to last,
then you are wrong again.

Tell me, how can you overtake the LAST Person?

You're not very good at this! Are you?

Third Question:
Very tricky math! Note: This must be done in your head only.

Do NOT use paper and pencil or a calculator.

Try it.

Take 1000 and add 40 to it. Now add another 1000.

Now add 30. Add another 1000. Now add 20. Now add
another 1000. Now, add 10. What is the total?

Scroll down for answer.

Did you get 5000?

The correct answer is actually 4100.

Don't believe it? Check with your calculator! Today is definitely not
your day. Maybe you will get the last question right?

Summer English Course Annabella Tay

August 8th – September 1st, 2006
Fourth Question:

Mary's father has five daughters: 1. Nana; 2. Nene; 3.

Nini; 4. Nunu.
What is the name of the fifth daughter?

Answer: Nunu?
NO! Of course not. Her name is Mary. Read the question again

Okay, now the bonus round:

There is a mute person who wants to buy a

toothbrush. By imitating the action of brushing one's
teeth he successfully expresses himself to the
shopkeeper and the purchase is done.
Now if there is a blind man who wishes to buy a pair
of sunglasses, how should he express himself?

He just has to open his mouth and ask, so simple.

KEEP THIS GOING TO FRUSTRATE THE SMART
PEOPLE IN YOUR LIFE

Summer English Course Annabella Tay

August 8th – September 1st, 2006