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We use whether in indirect yes-no questions and questions with or. We cant
leave out whether (or if):
They asked me whether (if) I was tired. (original question: Are you tired?)
I want to find out whether (if) the rooms have a shower or not.
Not: I want to find out the rooms have a shower or not. (original question: Do
the rooms have a shower or not?)
Whether or
I cant decide whether to paint the wall green or blue. (or to paint the wall
blue)
When the subject of the main clause is the same as the subject of
the whether-clause(s), we can use whether to + infinitive or whether + a finite
clause. When the subject of the main clause is different from the subject of the
subordinate clause, we have to use a finite clause.
Compare
same subject different subject
Whether or not
We use the title Ms rather than Mrs (married woman) or Miss (unmarried
woman) when we dont know whether a woman is married or not.
We can use whether or not in front or end position with this meaning. We
use it in orders or commands:
Whether you like it or not, youre going to have to look after your sister.
(or Youre going to have to look after your sister, whether you like it or not.)
See also:
If or whether?
Ellipsis
If: reporting questions
Typical errors
We use whether or not, not either, to mean its not important that:
We have to accept that they are part of our lives, whether we like it or not.
She has to decide whether she is going to accept the job or not.
If: conditions
If you dont book now, you wont get good tickets. (real)
Theyd have got the job done quicker if theyd had more people working on
it.(imagined)
See also:
Conditionals: if
If possible, if necessary
Check the temperature of your meat with a meat thermometer if possible. (if
its possible or if thats possible)
Interest rates would have to rise if necessary to protect the pound, Mr John
Smith, Shadow Chancellor, indicated yesterday on BBC TVs Money
Programme.
If so, if not
We use so or not after if when it is obvious what we are referring to:
Are you looking for part-time work? Do you want to work from home? If so,
read on.(if you are looking for part-time work or if you want to work from home)
You should all have received your booklist for the course by now. If not,
please email the office. (if you havent received your booklist for the course by
now)
Ill see you soon, definitely at the wedding, if not before. (if I dont see you
before the wedding)
Even if
Youre still going to be cold even if you put on two or three jumpers.
See also:
Even
Compare
Are you leaving now or are you He asked if I was leaving now or
staying for a bit longer? staying for a bit longer.
We use only if to express a strong condition, often an order or command, to
mean on the condition that. It has an opposite meaning to except if:
Alright Ill come but only if I can bring a friend with me.
We often separate only and if, using only in the main clause:
Hell only take the job if they offer him more money.
If and politeness
If youll just tell Julie that her next client is here. (Can you tell Julie that )
Clauses: introduction
[S]Sarah [V]smiled.
Be careful!
Jump!
You be careful.
See also:
Commands and instructions
Verbs
Subjects
Objects
Complements
Adjuncts
Clauses and sentences
Main (or independent) clauses can form sentences on their own. They arent
dependent on other clauses. They are always finite (they must contain a verb
which shows tense).
Subordinate (or dependent) clauses cannot form sentences on their own. They
are dependent on main clauses to form sentences. They can be finite or non-
finite (the main clauses are in bold; the subordinate clauses are underlined):
She had pretty hair and must have been nice-looking when she was
young.
See also:
Clauses: finite and non-finite
Clauses: coordinated
[main clause]Ill take the train and [main clause]you can take the car.
Ill give you a call [subordinate clause] if Im going to be late or [subordinate clause]if
Im not coming.
You can use the phone [non-finite clause]to receive calls but [non-finite clause]not to
make them.
Unless
Conditional clauses can begin with unless. Unless means something similar to
if not or except if.
The verb forms in the examples are similar to sentences with if: we use the
present simple in the unless-clause and shall, should, will, would, can, could,
may or might in the main clause:
Unless I phone you, you can assume the trains on time. (If I do not phone
you /except if I phone you, you can assume the train is on time.)
Well have to cancel the show unless we sell more tickets at the last
minute. (Well have to cancel the show if we do not sell more tickets/except if
we sell more tickets at the last minute.)
Warning:
If the government had not raised food prices, there would not have been so
many protests.
Not: Unless the government had raised food prices
Warning:
See also:
Unless
If so, if not
In formal situations, we can use should + subject (s) + verb (v) instead of if:
Should you wish to cancel your order, please contact our customer service
department on 02317 6658932. (or If you should wish to cancel your order )
Should your child become anxious or nervous about any activity, it is a good
idea to inform the team-leader. (or If your child should become )
Had I known you were waiting outside, I would have invited you to come in. (If
I had known you were waiting outside )
Had Margaret realised she would be travelling alone, she would never have
agreed to go.
If + were to
In formal situations, we can use if + were to when we talk about things that
might happen but which we think are unlikely:
If the Prime Minister were to resign, there would have to be a general election
within 30 days.
[V]Were [S]the
economy [to -INF]to slow down too quickly, there would be
major problems. (If the economy slowed down too quickly )
You can play in the living room as long as you dont make a mess.
The bank lent the company 100,000 pounds on condition that they repaid the
money within six months.
You can get a senior citizens reduction providing youve got a railcard.
They may do whatever they like provided that it is within the law.
See also:
As long as and so long as
Or and otherwise
Youve got to start studying, or youll fail all those exams. (If you dont start
studying, you will fail the exams.)
Wed better send it express, otherwise itll take days. (If we do not send it
express, it will take days.)
Supposing
Supposing I dont arrive till after midnight, will the guest-house still be
open?(Imagine if I dont arrive till after midnight )
Supposing you lost your passport, youd have to go to the embassy, wouldnt
you?
See also:
In case (of)
Wish
If only
Suppose, supposing and what if
Conjunctions
de English Grammar Today
Conjunctions are linking words like and, or, but, then and because:
They knocked down all the houses and they built a car park.
One-word conjunctions
Connecting words
Connecting phrases
Connecting clauses
[clause]There are seats outside but [clause]some people dont like sitting
outdoors.
Connecting sentences
My grandmothers name was Wall. But she became Jenkins when she got
married to my grandfather. (In very formal writing, we dont normally start a
sentence with but.)
Connecting prefixes
[prefix]Pro-
and [prefix]anti-government supporters waited outside the
parliament.
Two-word conjunctions
You can drink chocolate milk either hot in the winter or cold in the summer.
Neither Lisa nor Helena had been to Italy before. (Lisa hadnt been to Italy
before and Helena hadnt been to Italy before.)
Both you and I know what really happened. (You know and I know what
happened.)
Warning:
Common subordinating conjunctions are: after, (al)though, as, before, if, since,
that, until, when, whereas, while, once, so, as soon as, provided that. When a
clause follows these conjunctions, it becomes a subordinate clause, which
needs a main clause to make a complete sentence.
One-word conjunctions
[subordinate clause]After we had talked on the phone, [main clause]I wrote down
what we had decided.
See also:
Although or though?
As
As as
Before
If
Once
Since
So
That
Until
When
Whereas
While and whilst
Conjunctions with more than one word
I have been afraid to swim in the sea ever since I was young.
He left home late. (As a result) he (as a result) didnt arrive until 8 pm (as a
result).
Compare
See also:
Clauses and sentences
Conditionals
Clauses and sentences
de English Grammar Today
What is a clause?
A clause is the basic unit of grammar. A clause must contain a verb. Typically
a clause is made up of a subject, a verb phrase and, sometimes, a
complement:
Ive eaten.
See also:
Clauses
What is a sentence?
I looked at her and she smiled at me. (two main clauses connected by and)
We didnt go to the show because there werent any tickets left. (a main clause
and a subordinate clause connected by because)
Right.
Lets go.
A:
B:
Which ones?
A:
A:
B:
Computing?
A:
Clauses: introduction
[S]Sarah [V]smiled.
Be careful!
Jump!
You be careful.
See also:
Commands and instructions
Verbs
Subjects
Objects
Complements
Adjuncts
Clauses and sentences
Main (or independent) clauses can form sentences on their own. They arent
dependent on other clauses. They are always finite (they must contain a verb
which shows tense).
Subordinate (or dependent) clauses cannot form sentences on their own. They
are dependent on main clauses to form sentences. They can be finite or non-
finite (the main clauses are in bold; the subordinate clauses are underlined):
She had pretty hair and must have been nice-looking when she was
young.
See also:
Clauses: finite and non-finite
Clauses: coordinated
[main clause]Ill take the train and [main clause]you can take the car.
Ill give you a call [subordinate clause] if Im going to be late or [subordinate clause]if
Im not coming.
You can use the phone [non-finite clause]to receive calls but [non-finite clause]not to
make them.
Finite clauses
Finite clauses must contain a verb which shows tense. They can be main
clauses or subordinate clauses:
We didnt get any food because we didnt have enough time. (main: past;
subordinate: past)
Non-finite clauses
Non-finite clauses contain a verb which does not show tense. We usually use
non-finite verbs only in subordinate clauses. We usually understand the time
referred to from the context of the main clause. We often use a non-finite
clause when the subject is the same as the subject in the main clause:
I had something to eat before leaving. (I had something to eat before I left.)
After having spent six hours at the hospital, they eventually came home.
Helped by local volunteers, staff at the museum have spent many years
sorting and cataloguing more than 100,000 photographs.
He left the party and went home, not having anyone to talk to.
You have to look at the picture really carefully in order to see all the detail.
See also:
Ellipsis
After verbs + -ing or infinitive with to
We use non-finite clauses as the complements to verbs which take -ing or to-
infinitive after them:
Relative clauses
A relative clause can be non-finite when the subject of the relative clause is
the same as the subject of the main clause:
The man sitting on the sofa over there is Simons brother. (The man who is
sitting )
Dont forget to fill in the form attached to the letter. ( which is attached to
the letter.)
See also:
Although or though?
Finite clauses
Relative clauses
Finite clauses
Finite clauses must contain a verb which shows tense. They can be main
clauses or subordinate clauses:
We didnt get any food because we didnt have enough time. (main: past;
subordinate: past)
Non-finite clauses
Non-finite clauses contain a verb which does not show tense. We usually use
non-finite verbs only in subordinate clauses. We usually understand the time
referred to from the context of the main clause. We often use a non-finite
clause when the subject is the same as the subject in the main clause:
I had something to eat before leaving. (I had something to eat before I left.)
After having spent six hours at the hospital, they eventually came home.
Helped by local volunteers, staff at the museum have spent many years
sorting and cataloguing more than 100,000 photographs.
He left the party and went home, not having anyone to talk to.
You have to look at the picture really carefully in order to see all the detail.
See also:
Ellipsis
After verbs + -ing or infinitive with to
We use non-finite clauses as the complements to verbs which take -ing or to-
infinitive after them:
Relative clauses
A relative clause can be non-finite when the subject of the relative clause is
the same as the subject of the main clause:
The man sitting on the sofa over there is Simons brother. (The man who is
sitting )
Dont forget to fill in the form attached to the letter. ( which is attached to
the letter.)
See also:
Although or though?
Finite clauses
Relative clauses
We usually use a relative pronoun (e.g. who, that, which, whose and whom) to
introduce a defining relative clause (In the examples, the relative clause is
in bold, and the person or thing being referred to is underlined.):
They should give the money to somebody who they think needs the
treatment most.
Shes now playing a woman whose son was killed in the First World War.
Spoken English:
In defining relative clauses we often use that instead of who, whom or which.
This is very common in informal speaking:
See also:
Relative pronouns
Subject or object
The relative pronoun can define the subject or the object of the verb:
Theyre the people who/that bought our house. (The people bought our
house. The people is the subject.)
Theyre the people who/that she met at Jons party. (She met the
people. The people is the object.)
Here are some cells which/that show abnormality. (Some cells show
abnormality. Some cells is the subject.)
Here are some cells which/that the researcher has identified. (The
researcher has identified some cells. Some cells is the object.)
No relative pronoun
We often leave out the relative pronoun when it is the object of the verb:
See also:
No relative pronoun
Punctuation
Warning:
When the relative pronoun is the subject of the relative clause, we dont use
another personal pronoun or noun in the relative clause because the subject
(underlined) is the same:
Shes the lady who lent me her phone. (who is the subject of the relative
clause, so we dont need the personal pronoun she)
Not: There are now only two schools in the area that they actually teach Latin.
When the relative pronoun is the object of the relative clause, we dont use
another personal pronoun or noun in the relative clause because the object
(underlined) is the same:
We had a lovely meal at the place which Phil recommended. (which is the
object of the relative clause, so we dont need the personal pronoun it)
Not: We had a lovely meal at the place which Phil recommended it.
Clare, who I work with, is doing the London marathon this year.
Not: Clare, I work with, is doing the London marathon this year.
Doctors use the testing kit for regular screening for lung and stomach
cancers, which account for 70% of cancers treated in the western world.
Alice, who has worked in Brussels and London ever since leaving
Edinburgh, will be starting a teaching course in the autumn.
Warning:
Allen, who scored three goals in the first game, was the only player to
perform well.
Not: Allen, that scored three goals in the first game, was the only player to
perform well.
See also:
Relative pronouns
Punctuation
Spoken English:
Unlike American firms which typically supply all three big American car
makers Japanese ones traditionally work exclusively with one
maker.(formal)
And this woman who Id never met before came up and spoke to
me.(informal)
Sometimes defining and non-defining relative clauses can look very similar but
have different meanings.
Compare
non-defining defining
Its hoped that we will raise Its hoped that we will raise 10,000 for local
10,000 for local charities which help the homeless.
charities, which help the The money is intended for local charities.
homeless. Some of these local charities help the
non-defining defining
The money is intended for local homeless. There are other local charities as
charities. All these local charities well as these.
help the homeless.
Warning:
Compare
Warning:
We can use that instead of who, whom or which in defining relative clauses,
but not in non-defining relative clauses:
Her car, which was very old, broke down after just five miles.
Not: Her car, that was very old, broke down after just five miles.
Each or every?
de English Grammar Today
Compare
We use adverbs such as almost, practically and nearly with every, but not
with each:
Not: Every of us
Wish + to-infinitive
When we use wish followed by a verb in the to-infinitive form, wish means the
same as want, but it is more formal. We do not normally use wish in the
continuous form when we use it with a to-infinitive:
We dont use a that-clause after wish when it is a more formal version of want:
I did not wish my family to know about Sara, so I told them nothing.
When we use an object after wish, we must also use a verb in the to-infinitive
form. Alternatively, we can say want or (more politely) would like:
We wish to have a table near the window, please. (or We would like a
table near the window, please.)
We use wish with two objects, an indirect object + a direct object (underlined),
for expressions of good wishes and hopes that good things will happen to
people:
Wish + that-clause
We use wish with a that-clause when we regret or are sorry that things are not
different. We imagine a different past or present:
I wish I had his mobile phone number; we could tell him the good news. (I
dont have his mobile phone number; it would be good if I had it.)
I wish you hadnt told me how the film ends. Youve spoilt it for me. (You told
me how the film ends; it would have been better if you had not told me.)
The verb forms we use in that-clauses after wish are similar to the verb forms
in conditional clauses after if. We use a past verb form for present and future
meanings.
Compare
if wish
It would be good if I knew how to use this I wish I knew how to use this DVD
DVD player. player.
When we wish something about the past, we use the past perfect after wish:
I wish I had known Charlie was coming. I would have invited Jane. (I didnt
know it and did not invite Jane.)
I wish I hadnt said that. I can see Ive upset you. Sorry. (I did say it; it would
have been better if I had not said it.)
Wish + would
We can use wish + would if we are annoyed about something that is or is not
happening, or about something that will or will not happen:
I wish youd stop making so much noise! (You are making a noise; it would be
better if you didnt.)
I wish you wouldnt come through the kitchen with your dirty boots on. (You
do come through the kitchen; it would be better if you didnt.)
In informal situations, we can use wish in the continuous form like this:
Warning:
We use hope, not wish, when we want something to happen in the future or
when we want something to have happened in the past:
Suggestions
A:
What time shall we meet?
B:
Suppose we meet in the offices downstairs at four oclock?
A:
Thats perfect. Ill let the others know.
Supposing I dont bring my car and you and I travel together. That would
save us half the cost of petrol and parking.
A:
The electricity has gone. There must be a power cut.
B:
What if we find the candles and put them around the room?
A:
Okay. Good idea. Do you know where they are?
Possibility
When we are less certain, we use suppose, supposing and what if + past form
to talk about future possibility:
Suppose we asked Mary to baby-sit? Do you think shed do it? (not as certain
as Suppose we ask Mary to baby-sit?)
Supposing someone else wrote the essay. How would we know? (not as
certain as Supposing someone else writes the essay )
A:
What if I gave up working full-time. Id love that.
B:
Youre joking surely!!
Suppose we hadnt brought our umbrellas. (We did bring our umbrellas.)
Supposing they had closed the road. Would that have been a good
idea? (They didnt close the road.)
What if I had accidentally told Maria about the party! That would have ruined
the surprise. (I didnt tell Maria about the party.)
Warning:
We use be supposed to to talk about obligations and arrangements, not
suggestions.
See also: