Grammar Challenge 2

Should have

In this programme we examine should have - a way of talking about regretable past actions.

When we want to talk about mistakes we made in the past, we can use 'should have' with a past participle.

Positive and Negative:

subject	should have / shouldn't have	past participle
Matt	should have	worn	a clean shirt.
He	shouldn't have	been	late.

Question form:

should / shouldn't	subject	have	past participle
Should	Matt	have	worn	a clean shirt?
Shouldn't	he	have	arrived	early?

Second conditional

In this programme we look at the second conditional - a way of talking about impossible or unlikely events or situations.

To talk about an impossible or improbable situation, we can use if and the past simple together with would and the infinitive:

Positive and Negative:

If	Past simple	Would / wouldn't	Infinitive (without to)
If	you lost your passport	it would	take ages to get another one.
If	it cost me a fortune	I wouldn't	be able to take you on holiday again.

Question:

If	Past simple	Would / wouldn't	Infinitive (without to)
If	it cost me a fortune	would I	be able to take you on holiday again?
If	I couldn't take you on holiday	wouldn't we	save a lot of money?

To, for, so that

In this programme we look at three ways to talk about the reason for doing something.

o talk about purpose, or the reason why we do things, we can use for + verb-ing, we can use the infinitive with to, and we can use so that + subject + verb.

Noun or pronoun	'for' + verb-ing
I'm bringing some pots and pans...	for cooking
Action or event	Infinitive with 'to'
We've got some water...	to make tea
Action or event	'so that' + subject + verb
I'm taking some extra blankets...	so that we don't get cold

Reported speech

If someone tells you something and you want to tell another person, can use 'direct speech' or 'reported speech'. Find out the differences in this programme.

In reported speech, we usually put the verb in the reported clause back one tense:

Direct speech		Reported speech
Present "I'm from Spain." Present Perfect "I've been married for years." Past "I stole it."		Past She told me that she was from Spain. Past Perfect He said he had been married for years. Past Perfect She admitted she had stolen it.

In direct speech we use inverted commas to show the exact words the person said.
For example:

"I'm from Spain."

In reported speech, we don't use inverted commas.

Will & going to

These are two of the many ways we have of talking about the future in English. In this programme we contrast these forms and find out when to use each one.

As we've seen in a previous Grammar Challenge 'going to' is used to describe a plan or decision that you have made about the future. We use 'will' for decisions which we make at the moment of speaking, something which hasn't been planned before.

For example, in a restaurant:

Waiter: What would you like?
Customer: (looking at the menu) Mmm, I think I'll have the steak.

Will is a modal form. It always stays the same whatever the subject and is followed by a base infinitive (the infinitive without 'to'.) Although the form of 'will' doesn't change we usually contract it to 'll.

Subject	will	base infinitive
I s / he you we they	will 'll	go to bed now. have an early night. go to the shops, if you like. answer the door. bring a cake. look after it for you.

Future plans

Using 'going to' and the present continuous are two ways we can talk about our future plans and arrangements in English. In this programme we learn more about them and the differences between them.

Both the present continuous and 'going to' can be used to talk about future plans and arrangements even though they are present forms. This is because the future plan has already been made and exists in the present, it is not something which is decided at the moment of speaking.

Often there is very little difference between the two forms and you can use either, however we tend to use the present continuous for a fixed arrangements, such as appointments.

Present continuous
Subject	to be	verb + ing
I	am 'm	babysitting tonight. studying this weekend. not doing anything next week. seeing the dentist on Tuesday. seeing friends at the weekend. meeting at 12.00 with the bank manager.
S / he	is 's
You We They	are 're

For intentions and decisions we'd normally use 'going to'.

Going to
Subject	to be	going to	base infinitive
I	am 'm	going to	watch a film tomorrow. do the shopping later. take the train. start music lessons soon. study really hard at the weekend.
S / he	is 's
You We They	are 're

Present perfect and past simple

There are many situations in English when we mix the verb forms which we use. In this programme we look at breaking news with the present perfect and describing the details with the past simple.

When giving news we quite often use the present perfect to announce what has happened. We then switch to the simple past to give the details. For example:

"The President has just quit! He left his office a few minutes ago for the last time. It was a complete surprise to all of his staff."

Present perfect
subject	has/have	past participle
I You We They	have 've	shocked the boss. heard the news. quit.
He She	has 's

Present perfect (negative)
subject	have / has not	past participle
I You We They	have not haven't 've not	said anything. found a new job yet. said if she's coming back.
He She	has not hasn't 's not

Present perfect question form
have / has	subject	past participle
Have	I you we they	heard the news? seen the boss today? resigned?
Has	he she