Can’t (or Couldn’t) have + Past participle.
Can’t ( or couldn’t) have + past participle. : This expression is used to explain the opposite of ‘Must Have’ when it deals with the probability aspect. Examples will clarify the essence of this expression. Johny drove past me without stopping. He can’t have seen me.( i.e probably he would not have seen me. We don’t say, he mustn’t have seen me) . Now differentiate the expression ‘must have ‘ when used in a positive sentence. Johny stopped his car on the way. He must…
Further (OR) Farther
Further (OR) Farther : Both these are the comparative forms of ‘ Far ‘. Further means ‘ more, additional or more distance’. But ‘ Farther ‘ refers only to distance. Examples. We will make a decision on getting further details . ( NOT farther details.) It’s a long walk from here , further than I thought. ( OR farther than….) I can’t walk any farther. (OR any further) We must get further information. (NOT farther) We don’t want to go further into the matter.(NOT farther)…
‘ CAN ‘ and ‘ MUST ‘
CAN : We use ‘Can ‘ to say that something is possible or that somebody has the general ability to do something . ‘ Can ‘ frequently precedes verbs of perception. Thus it indicates (a) your own ability (b) positive permission (c) perception (d) possibility etc. Can you lift this box? (ability) You can drive my car.( positive permission) Can you hear me well?( perception) He can be in the town now.(possibility) Children can sometimes be very trying. It can be very cold here even…
Could – different usages.
Could – different usages. (1) ‘ Could ‘ refers to the past ability/ perception.(general or particular) My grandfather could speak five languages.(general) When we went into the house, we could smell something burning.(particular) I could not grasp what the old man said.(particular) (2) We use ‘ Could ‘ for general ability. But, if we are talking about what happened in a particular situation, we use ‘was/ were able to ‘. When we use ‘ Managed to….’ , it has a special connotation that a certain…
Past Simple
Past Simple : (1) This tense denotes an action completed in the past as in : in 1980, in May, on Monday, at 10 a.m etc. We can mention the exact time when the action took place . He went to Delhi yesterday. They ate up all the mangoes we had kept in the basket. When did you see him last? Did he lose his key? Yes he did.( whether he got back the key now or not is not mentioned/clear here) What did you…
Possessive Adjective and Possessive Pronoun
Possessive Adjective Possessive Pronoun My Mine Your Yours His His Her …
Who…………That
Who…………….That : When applied to people ‘WHO’ is preferred to ‘ That’. But after superlatives, only, all, any and ‘it is’ OR ‘it was’ etc ‘ THAT’ is preferred to ‘ Who ‘. Examples for ‘ WHO ‘ preference. He is the boy who got the first prize. The man who is in charge of the library has not come. Examples for ‘ THAT ‘ preference. Sachin is the best batsman that played in the last world cup. ( the best batsman – superlative) Dr.K.J.Yesudas…
Present Perfect Continuous.
Present Perfect Continuous : ( Structure – Subject + has been/ have been + verb + ing) This tense denotes an action begun some time in the past and still continuing at the time of speaking. In this tense, we can mention the length of time involved in the action. But, this is not possible in the case of Present Continuous Tense. Comparison of present perfect continuous and present continuous. They have been studying in the government school since 2001.( This is present perfect…
Sooner or Later
Sooner or Later = Eventually, certainly although one cannot be sure when, at some time in future. To explain further, you don’t know exactly when something will happen but you are certain that it will happen. If you do such a mean thing, you will be punished sooner or later. The culprit will be brought to book sooner or later. You will have to tell the truth sooner or later. The accused has escaped from the police custody. But he will be caught by the…
Could have(done)
Could have (done): (1) When you do not really mean what you say: I was so tired. I could have slept for a week. When I saw the result I could have wept.( i.e I felt like weeping but I didn’t ) I was so hungry. I could have eaten a horse. He behaved so stupidly. I was annoyed terribly. I could have beaten him. (2) Most often we use ‘ Could have (done) ‘ for things which were possible but did not happen or…