Prepositions of Time

A preposition links (una preposición une) nouns, pronouns and phrases to other words in a sentence. The word or phrase that the preposition introduces is called the object of the preposition.

A preposition usually indicates the temporal, spatial or logical relationship (relación lógica o con el espacio) of its object (de su objeto) to the rest of the sentence (con el resto de la oración) as in the following examples:

The book is on the table. (sobre)

The book is beneath the table. (abajo, debajo)

The book is leaning against the table. (contra)

The book is beside the table. (al lado, junto a)

She held the book over the table. (sobre)

She read the book during class. (durante)

In each of the preceding sentences, a preposition locates (una preposición localiza o ubica al noun -book-) the noun "book" in space or in time. (en el espacio o tiempo)

http://www.uottawa.ca/academic/arts/writcent/hypergrammar/preposit.html

IN

Use 'in' months and years and periods of time:

• in January
• in 1978
• in the twenties

Use 'in' a period of time in the future:

• in a few weeks
• in a couple of days

AT

Use 'at' with precise time:

• at six o'clock
• at 10.30
• at two p.m.

ON

Use 'on' with days of the week:

• on Monday
• on Fridays

Use 'on' with specific calendar days:

• on Christmas day
• on October 22nd

IMPORTANT NOTES

in the morning / afternoon / evening - at night

We say in the morning, afternoon or evening BUT we say 'at night'

 

Test Your Understanding

Now that you have studied the use of in / at / on - prepositions of time and date, try the follow-up quiz to test your understanding.

Prepositions of Time and Date Quiz (ejercicios con preposiciones de tiempo)
Excercises using Prep. of Time


http://esl.about.com/od/grammarintermediate/a/prepositions_of_time.htm

Adverbs of Frequency

An adverb can modify a verb, an adjective, another adverb, a phrase, or a clause. An adverb indicates manner, time, place, cause, or degree and answers questions such as "how," "when," "where," "how much".

  

 Adverbs that Reflect How Often

Use adverbs of frequency to say how often you do something. Adverbs of frequency are often used with the present simple because they indicate repeated or routine activities. (puedes usar adverbios de frecuencia para decir qué tan seguido -qué tan a menudo- haces algo. Los adverbios de frecuencia son comúnmente usados con el presente simple porque indica repeticiones o actividades rutinarias)

For example, They often go out for dinner.

Adverbs of frequency include (algunos de los adverbios de frecuencia son:

• always -siempre /'olgüeys/
  
• usually -usualmente /'yushualy/
  
• often -seguido, a menudo /'ofen/
  
• sometimes -algunas veces /'somtaims/
  
• occasionally -ocasionalmente /a'keishnali/
  
• seldom -pocas veces /seldm/
• rarely -raramente /'rerli/
  
• never -nunca

If the sentence has one verb (e.g. no auxiliary verb) put the adverb in the middle of the sentence after the subject and before the verb.(si la oración tiene un verbo -no verbo auxiliar- colocar el adverbio en medio de la oración, después del sujeto y antes del verbo)

Examples
Tom usually goes to work by car.
Janet never flies. She always goes by bus. 


Adverbs of frequency come after the verb 'be': (los adverbios de frecuencia vienen después del verbo 'To Be')
Examples
I am never late for work.
Peter is often at school. 


If the sentence has more than one verb (e.g. auxiliary verb), put the adverb of frequency before the main verb. (si la oración tiene más de un verbo -inclusive verbo auxiliar- colocar el adverbio de frecuencia antes del verbo principal)
Examples
I can never remember anything!
They have often visited Rome.


When using adverbs of frequency in the question or negative form, put the adverb of frequency before the main verb. (cuando se usen adverbios de frecuencia en preguntas u oraciones negativas, colocar el adverbio de frecuencia antes del verbo principal)
Examples
She doesn't often visit Europe.
Do you usually get up early?

If there are more adverbs at the end of a sentence,

the word order is normally:

(si hay más adverbios al final de la oración, el orden de las palabras es normalmente:)

Manner - Place - Time

Peter sang the song happily in the bathroom yesterday evening.

puedes identificar fácilmente el tipo de adverbio haciéndote las preguntas:

• ¿de qué forma o manera?¿cómo?--> happily --> Manner
• ¿dónde?--> in the bathroom --> Place
• ¿cuándo? --> yesterday evening --> Time

Ejercicio 1 using Adverbs of Frequency 

Ejercicio 2 using Adverbs of Frequency

 

-ing endings

Be careful with some words when adding -ing to the infinitive. (Ser cuidadoso con algunas palabras al momento de agregar -ing al infinitivo del verbo)

1) consonant after a short, stressed vowel at the end of the word (consonante después de una corta y remarcada pronunciación al final de la palabra)

Double the consonant. (escribir doble consonante)

sit – he is sitting
put - he is putting

If the consonant is not stressed, we do not double it: (si la consonante no se pronuncia fuerte, no se repite la consonante)

benefit - benefiting (Here we stress the first 'e', not the 'i'.)

In British English we double one -l at the end of the word: (en inglés británico se escribe doble consonante al final de la palabra)

travel - travelling

---

2) one -e at the end of the word (una -e al final de la palabra)

Leave out the -e. (se elimina la  -e)
write – he is writing
take – he is taking

BUT:
double –e: add -ing (si tiene doble -e, agregar -ing)
see – he is seeing

---

3) verbs ending in -ie (verbos terminados en -ie)

Change 'ie' to 'y'. (cambiar -ie por -y)
lie - he is lying

---

4) verbs ending in -c (verbos terminados en -c)

Change 'c' to 'ck' (cambiar -c por -ck)
picnic - he is picnicking

Demonstratives - this, that, these, those

This/that/these/those show the relative distance between the speaker and a noun.

/this, that, these, those muestra la distancia relativa entre el que habla y el objeto del que se refiere/

This refers to something near to the speaker, that to something further away. These is the plural of this, and those is the plural of that.

/-this- se refiere a algo cerca de la persona que habla, algo que puede tocar, -that- se refiere a algo mas lejos, el cual no tiene a su alcance, -These- es el plural de -this y -those- es el plural de -that-/

Sometimes demonstratives are pronouns, for example: /algunas veces funcionan como pronombres/
- "This is my Mom." Mom is near to the speaker /Esta o Ella es mi Mamá (Mamá está cerca)/
- "These are my books." The books are near the speaker./esos son mis libros (los libros estan cerca)/
- "I don't like that." He doesn't like something that is further away./No me gusta eso (a él no le gusta algo que está lejos)/
- "That girl is going to dance with those boys" /esa o aquella chica va a bailar con esos o aquellos chicos/

Sometimes demonstratives can also be adjectives, for example: /algunas veces pueden ser adjetivos/
- That man is a doctor. /ese o aquél hombre es un Doctor/
- I like those jackets. /me gustan esas chamarras/
- I don't like that movie. /no me gusta esa película/

Ejercicios usando Demonstratives

Present Progressive Vs 'be going to'

Ejercicios Using the present simple or the present continuous.

Be Going to...

Going to is used to show a future intention. For example:/'Going to' es usado para mostrar una intención futura/
- I'm going to go on vacation next summer. /Voy a ir de vacaciones el próximo verano/
- We're going to start our own business./vamos a empezar nuestro propio negocio/

Going to future sentences are made as follows: /las oraciones con Going to son hechas como sigue:/

Positive: Subject + verb "to be" + going to + infinitive verb + compl.

    They are going to have dinner. -ellos van a cenar-

      I am going to buy a car next year. -voy a comprar un carro el proximo año-

     She is going to meet a new friend this night -ella va a conocer un nuevo amigo esta noche-

     It is going to rain  -va a llover- 

Negative: Subject + 'To Be ' + NOT + going to + Infinitive verb + compl.

     They are not going to have a dinner -ellos no van a cenar -

       I am not going to buy a car next year

       She is not going to meet a new friend this night

       It is not going to rain

Interrogative: 'To Be' + Subject + going to + infinitive verb + compl. + ?

    Are they going to have a dinner? -ellos van a cenar?-

    Am I going to buy a new car next year?

    Is she going to meet a new friend this night?

    Is it going to rain?

Usage /usos/

Going to is used for future plans. For example:
- I'm going to see my friends this evening.
- He's going to write a book.
- What are you going to do?

Going to is also used to make a prediction based on present evidence /Predicción basada en una evidencia presente/. For example:
- He's going to fall over! (I can see he's in danger now.)
- She's going to win. (I can see she's winning now.)

Will and going to are both used for predictions and sometimes there is little difference in meaning. Compare:
- It will be sunny this afternoon. (A general prediction)
- It's going to be sunny this afternoon. (because it's getting warmer now)

Going to with the Past Simple of "to be" is often used for an intention or plan that wasn't actually done. /con el pasado simple de 'To Be' es a menudo usado para una intensión o plan que no se ha hecho/ For example:
- I was going to meet my friends but I didn't have time. /iba a reunirme con mis amigos pero no tuve tiempo/
- We were going to take a vacation but it was too expensive. /íbamos a tomar unas vacaciones pero estaba muy caro/

Going to is often contracted to gonna in spoken English /a menudo es contraido como 'gonna' cuando se habla/. For example:
- "I'm gonna buy a new computer."

Going to        =       Gonna

(más usado cuando se escribe)           (más usado cuando se habla)

Ejercicios con 'be going to' 1

Ejercicios con 'be going to' 2 

Time expressions used with 'be going to': expresiones de tiempo usadas con 'be going to'

• tomorrow mañana
• the day after tomorrow  pasado mañana
  
• this weekend este fin de semana
• next month el próximo mes
• next week
• soon pronto
• in a week en una semana
• in a month
• in a year, etc... 

 

Ejercicios con 'Be Going to'

Present Progressive

Present Progressive or Continuous

El presente continuo o progresivo se forma con el presente del auxiliar 'to be' y el gerundio del verbo que se quiere conjugar:

I am playing You are playing He is playing We are playing You are playing They are playing

Yo estoy jugando Tú estás jugando Él está jugando Nosotros estamos jugando Ustedes estan jugando Ellos están jugando

I am reading a book / Estoy leyendo un libro
Helen is phoning a friend / Helen está telefoneando a un amigo

a.) La forma negativa añade la partícula 'not' al auxiliar:

I am not playing You are not playing He is not playing We are not playing You are not playing They are not playing

Yo no estoy jugando Tú no estás jugando Él no está jugando Nosotros no estamos jugando Ustedes no estan jugando Ellos no están jugando

I am not reading a book / No estoy leyendo un libro
Helen is not phoning a friend / Helen no está telefoneando a un amigo

b.) La forma interrogativa invierte el sujeto y el auxiliar:

Am I playing? Are you playing? Is he playing? Are we playing? Are you playing? Are they playing?

¿Estoy yo jugando? ¿Estás tú jugando? ¿Está él jugando? ¿Estamos nosotros jugando? ¿Están ustedes jugando? ¿Están ellos jugando?

Am I reading a book? / ¿Estoy yo leyendo un libro?
Is Helen phoning a friend? / ¿Está Helen telefoneando a un amigo?

c.) En la forma interrogativa-negativa se coloca la partícula not después del sujeto:

Aren't you reading a book? / ¿No estás leyendo un libro?
Isn't Helen phoning a friend? / ¿No está Helen telefoneando a un amigo?

USO DEL PRESENTE PROGRESIVO

a.) Indica una acción que se está desarrollando en ese momento. 

He is smoking / Él está fumando
Está fumando en este momento. Puede ser un fumador habitual o puede que fume en muy raras ocasiones. (*) Oberva la diferencia con el ejemplo anterior del Presente Simple 'He smokes'

I am having breakfast now and it's nine o'clock / Estoy desayunando ahora y son las nueve en punto
Estoy desayunando y en este momento son las nueve en punto. Es posible que todos los días desayune a las nueve pero podría ser también que habitualmente desayune a otra hora distinta. El hecho es que hoy desayuno a las nueve en punto.

b.) También puede indicar una acción planificada que se desarrollará en un futuro.

I am going to Barcelona tomorrow / Voy a Barcelona mañana

c.) Puede indicar una acción habitual que se repite frecuentemente. En este caso, suele acompañarse de adverbios de frecuencia ('often', 'usually', etc.)

She is always shouting / Ella siempre está gritando

Plural Rules

Como norma general, el plural se forma añadiendo -s a la forma singular: Book, books / Libro, libros               Chair, chairs / Silla, sillas Car, cars / carro, carros                    bone, bones / hueso, huesos size, sizes / tamaño, tamaños             line, lines / línea, líneas

  

EXCEPCIONES

- Cuando la palabra termina en s, ss, x, ch, sh se le añade -es al final.

Bus, Buses / Autobús, autobuses         Glass, glasses / Vaso, vasos
Fox, foxes / Zorro, zorros                     Church, churches / Iglesia, iglesias
Dish, dishes / Plato, platos                  kiss, kisses / beso, besos

radish, radishes / rábano, rábanos      peach, peaches / durazno, duraznos

- Cuando termina en -o precedida de consonante se le añade -es también, aunque hay algunas excepciones (palabras de origen no inglés, como piano, pianos)

Tomato, tomatoes / Tomate (s)          Potato, potatoes / Patata (s)

hero, heroes / héroe, héroes             volcano, volcanoes or volcanos / volcán, volcanes

piano, pianos / piano, pianos            photo, photos / foto, fotos

radio, radios / radio, radios               video, videos / video, videos

- Cuando terminan en -y precedida de consonante se sustituye la -y por la terminación -ies.

Story, stories / Historia (s)     Lady, ladies / Señora (s)        Fly, flies / Mosca (s)

- Algunas palabras que terminan en -f o -fe cambian la -f / -fe por -ves.

Knife, knives / Cuchillo (s)                   Life, lives / Vida (s)                              Wife, wives / Esposa (s)
Wolf, wolves / Lobo (s)                        Thief, thieves / Ladrón (s)                    Half, halves / Mitad (es)

(Hay algunas excepciones a esta regla, como roof, proof, chief, safe y cliff, que forman el plural añadiendo -s al final de la palabra)

- Plurales irregulares

Man, men / Hombre (s)         Woman, women / Mujer (es)             Child, children / Niño(s)
Foot, feet / Pie (s)                Tooth, teeth / Diente (s)                    Ox, oxen / Buey (es)
Mouse, mice / Ratón (es)     Goose, geese / Ganso (s)                  Louse, lice / Piojo (s)
Penny, pence / Penique (s)                                                          Dormouse, dormice / Lirón (es)

- Algunos sustantivos tienen únicamente forma singular:

                              Deer / Ciervo(s)                                     Sheep / Oveja(s)

Fish / Pez (peces) aunque existe el plural Fishes, lo cual es usado cuando se refiere a diferentes tipos de peces.

- Algunos sustantivos tienen solamente la forma plural

Goods / Mercancías              Scissors / Tijeras                  Trousers / Pantalones
Glasses / Gafas                     Pyjamas / Pijama                  Clothes / Ropa                      Thanks / Gracias

- En los nombres compuestos (sustantivos formados por dos palabras que juntas toman una significación única) solamente el segundo sustantivo toma la forma de plural.

Summer holiday, summer holidays / Veraneo(s)
Armchair, armchairs / Sillón (es)

En cambio, cuando se forman con preposiciones o adverbios el plural recae en el primer sustantivo.

Maid of honour, maids of honour / Dama(s) de honor
Brother in law, brothers in law / Cuñado(s)

Y si incluyen la palabra man o woman, los dos sustantivos forman el plural.

Manservant, menservants / Criado(s)

- OJO con los adjetivos. Recuerda que únicamente tienen forma singular.

Red, Good, Easy, Beautiful ...

A B mouse mice woman women house houses ox oxen friend friends sheep sheep door doors church churches potato potatoes cat cats cow cows mosquito mosquitoes man men child children story stories store stores watermelon watermelons sister-in-law sisters-in-law smile smiles meter meters fox foxes cross crosses staple staples farm farms computer computers teacher teachers country countries loaf loaves life lives chief chiefs foot feet deer deer fish fish bus buses thirty thirties bluff bluffs thief thieves home homes sky skies city cities waste wastes problem problems factory factories river rivers turkey turkeys day days tax taxes night nights car cars business businesses spy spies cloud clouds farmer farmers kitten kittens product products highway highways toy toys lady ladies gentleman gentlemen nose noses pepper peppers oven ovens mess messes lion lions owl owls mountain mountains cuff cuffs carpet carpets light lights flower flowers line lines coin coins dollar dollars cupful cupfuls trout trout editor-in-chief editors-in-chief penny pennies scissors scissors pants pants inch inches goose geese tooth teeth office offices valley valleys copy copies

Prepositions of Movement

Prepositions of Place

The Body

Decimal & Math Expressions

Punctuation

ü  At the end of a sentence that is not a question or an exclamation:

o    I knocked at the door. There was no replay.

o    I knocked again.

ü  Sometimes in abbreviations:

o    Jan.        e.g.         a.m.        etc.

ü  In internet and e-mail addresses (said ‘dot’):

o    http://www.oup.com

ü  To separate words in a list:

o    A bouquet of red, pink and white roses

o    Tea, coffee, milk or hot chocolate

ü  To separate phrases or clauses:

o    If you keep calm, take your time, concentrate and think ahead, then you’re likely to pass your test.

o    Worn out after all the excitement of the party, the children soon fell asleep.

ü  To separate an introductory word or phrase, or an adverb or adverbial phrase that applies to the whole sentence, from the rest of the sentence:

o    Oh, so that’s where it was.

o    As it happens, however, I never saw her again.

o    By the way, did you hear about Sue’s car?

ü  To separate a tag question from the rest of the sentence:

o    It’s quite expensive, isn’t it?

o    You live in Bristol, right?

ü  Before a short quotation:

o    Disraeli said, ‘Little things affect little minds’.