Must have (done)
Must have (done) – (1) – to express the present supposition /guessing of what would have happened in the past. We must have taken the wrong road. The sign board was not clear. She predicted that such a creature must have existed. It must have been dreadfully difficult. How did you manage the situation? It must have been agonising for the people around you. We rang the calling bell but he didn’t come out. He must have been asleep. You looked weak and pale. You…
Compare ‘Will have + past participle ‘ with other perfect forms.
Compare ‘ Will have + past participle ‘with other perfect forms. This is a short comparison of ‘ Present Perfect, Future Perfect and Past Perfect ‘ Examples: They have been married for 20 years.( present perfect – shows the present position. We don’t say , ‘ They are married for…………..)) By the end of December next year they will have been married for 21 years. ( future perfect – shows the future position. We don’t say, ‘ They will be married for……..)) When their first…
May / Might as well
May / Might as well : This particular expression is used for making suggestions. This expression suggests a different course of action would be preferable and this frequently occurs in everyday conversation. This is used mainly on informal occasions. ‘ Might as well ‘ is more common than ‘ May as well ‘. A : Here comes the bus. We might as well take it. B: Yes, we might as well. A: How slow this bus is ! We might as well walk. B: We…
Shall – Modal expressions.
Shall – Modal expressions: (1) ‘ Shall ‘ is used with the second and third person to express a ‘ Command or Promise ‘. He shall not enter my garden. (command) You shall get a prize if you top the class.( i.e I promise that I will give you a prize) Students shall not pick flowers from the garden. (2) ‘ Shall ‘ is used with the first person to ask the opinion , suggestion etc. Shall I close the door? (i.e Do you wish…
Will – Modal expressions.
Will – Modal expressions. (1) Determinations. I will punish him. I will get a first-class in the next examination. (2) A third person’s volition. The old man will sit in the beach for hours together. Some people will leave this door open. They won’t close it properly. (3) Assumption or probability. This will be the boy who got the prize. ( I suppose…….) ( The phone rings). That will be Rozanne, I expect. The rain will come soon. (4) We use I’ll ( = I…
The Difference between ‘Active Voice’ and ‘Passive Voice’
The difference between ‘ Active Voice ‘ and ‘ Passive Voice’ In Active Voice the subject is given more importance than the Object. Here the Subject-Verb-Object order is followed. But when we give more emphasis on the object, Passive Voice is used. The following are the relevant points which will clarify why Passive Voice is important. When the subject is not known/clear. When using of Active Voice becomes awkward. When more importance is given for the result rather than the doer(or Subject) The last but…
Active Voice and Passive Voice Compared.
Active Voice and Passive Voice Compared : All the three Perfect Continuous Tenses and Future Continuous Tense have no passive voice. So out of the 12 tense forms , only 8 have passive voice. Some typical examples are given in order to clarify the structural differences of Active Voice and Passive Voice. Once you study the examples carefully, you will become thorough with the grammatical rules behind. The examples are given only for the purpose of teaching the grammar and usage and at times they…
May have –ed and Might have –ed
May have –ed: Here the speaker makes a present supposition about the pre-present or past. He is late. ( or he was late). He may have been delayed by the rain. (One of the possible explanations of his lateness is (was) that he has been delayed by the rain.) A : I wonder why she didn’t come to the party. B : She may not have been well. (OR) She might not have been well. A: I wonder why she didn’t say hello. B: She…
May and Might
May and Might (1) We use ‘May’ or ‘ Might ‘ to say that something is a possibility. ‘ Might ‘ expresses the maximum degree of hesitancy. It may be true. (OR) It might be true ( more hesitant) She may (or might) know the details. It might not be true. Might I borrow your pen, please? ( more hesitant than ‘May’) Might this be the answer? That might be the answer but I doubt it. He may (or might) come to the party. What…
Make – special usage
Make – special usage : Here ‘ MAKE ‘ has the meaning ‘ to force’ OR ‘ to compel ‘. When ‘ Make’ or ‘Made’ is used in the active form , headless infinitive (bare infinitive) is used. And in the passive voice the usual form of infinitive is used. Structural differences when ‘ force, compel’ and ‘make’ are used may be clearly distinguished from the examples given below: Examples: The security staff forced us to stand in queue. The security staff made us stand…