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GOLDEN GRAMMAR RULES
1. Donāt use an with own.
Sue needs her own room. (NOT Sue needs an own room.) Iād like a phone line of my own. (NOT ā¦ an own phone line.)
2. Use or rather to correct yourself.
Sheās German ā or rather, Austrian. (NOT Sheās German ā or better, Austrian.) Iāll see you on Friday ā or rather, Saturday.
3. Use the simple present ā play(s), rain(s) etc ā to talk about habits and
repeated actions.
I play tennis every Saturday. (NOT I am playing tennis every Saturday.) It usually rains a lot in November.
4. Use will ā¦ , not the present, for offers and promises.
Iāll cook you supper this evening. (NOT I cook you supper this evening.) I promise Iāll phone you tomorrow. (NOT I promise I phone you tomorrow.)
5. Donāt drop prepositions with passive verbs.
I donāt like to be shouted at. (NOT I donāt like to be shouted.) This needs to be thought about some more. (NOT This needs to be thought some more.)
6. Donāt use a present tense after Itās time.
Itās time you went home. (NOT Itās time you go home.) Itās time we invited Bill and Sonia. (NOT Itās time we invite Bill and Sonia.)
7. Use was/were born to give dates of birth.
I was born in 1975. (NOT I am born in 1975.) Shakespeare was born in 1564.
8. Police is a plural noun.
The police are looking for him. (NOT The police is looking for him.) I called the police, but they were too busy to come.
9. Don't use the to talk about things in general.
Books are expensive. (NOT The books are expensive.) I love music. (NOT I love the music.)
10. Use had better , not have better.
I think youād better see the doctor. (NOT I think you have better see the doctor.) Weād better ask John to help us.
11. Use the present progressive - am playing, is raining etc - to talk
about things that are continuing at the time of speaking.
Iām playing very badly today. (NOT I play very badly today.) Look! It's raining! (NOT Look! It rains!)
12. Use for with a period of time. Use since with the beginning of the
period.
for the last two hours = since 9 o'clock for three days = since Monday for five years = since I left school Iāve been learning English for five years. (NOT Iāve been learning English since three years.) Weāve been waiting for ages, since eight oāclock.
13. Don't separate the verb from the object.
VERB OBJECT
She speaks English very well. (NOT She speaks very well English.) Andy likes skiing very much. (NOT Andy likes very much skiing.)
14. Don't use the present perfect - have/has seen, have/has gone etc -
with words that name a finished time.
I saw him yesterday. (NOT I have seen him yesterday.) They went to Greece last summer. (NOT They have gone ā¦ last summer.).
15. English (the language) normally has no article.
You speak very good English. (NOT You speak a very good English.)
16. After look forward to , we use -ing , not an infinitive.
I look forward to seeing you. (NOT I look forward to see you.) Weāre looking forward to going on holiday. (NOT ā¦ to go on holiday.)
17. Information is an uncountable noun.
Can you give me some information? (NOT Can you give me an information?) I got a lot of information from the Internet. (NOT I got a lot of informations from the Internet.)
18. Use -ing forms after prepositions.
I drove there without stopping. (NOT I drove there without to stop.) Wash your hands before eating. (NOT Wash your hands before to eat.)
19. Use this , not that , for things that are close.
Come here and look at this paper. (NOT Come here and look at that paper.) How long have you been in this country? (NOT How long have you been in that country?)
20. Use a plural noun after one and a half.
30. Use reflexives ( myself etc) when the object is the same as the
subject.
I looked at myself in the mirror. (NOT I looked at me in the mirror.) Why are you talking to yourself? (NOT Why are you talking to you?)
31. Use a present tense to talk about the future after when, until, as
soon as, after, before etc.
Iāll phone you when I arrive. (NOT Iāll phone you when I will arrive.) Letās wait until it gets dark. (NOT Letās wait until it will get dark.) Weāll start as soon as Mary arrives. (NOT Weāll start as soon as Mary will arrive.)
32. Before most abstract nouns, we use great , not big.
I have great respect for her ideas. (NOT I have big respect for her ideas.) We had great difficulty in understanding him. (NOT We had big difficulty in understanding him.)
33. Donāt use the with a superlative when you are not comparing one
person or thing with another.
Compare: ļ§ Sheās the nicest of the three teachers. ļ§ Sheās nicest when sheās working with small children. ļ§ This is the best wine Iāve got. ļ§ This wine is best when itās three or four years old.
34. Put enough after, not before, adjectives.
This soup isnāt hot enough. (NOT This soup isnāt enough hot.) Sheās old enough to walk to school by herself.
35. Donāt use a structure with that ā¦ after want or would like.
My parents want me to go to university. (NOT My parents want that I go to university.) Iād like everybody to leave. (NOT Iād like that everybody leaves.)
36. After link verbs like be, seem, feel, look, smell, sound, taste , we use
adjectives, not adverbs.
I feel happy today. (NOT I feel happily today.) This soup tastes strange. (NOT This soup tastes strangely.)
37. Use than after comparatives.
My mother is three years older than my father. (NOT My mother is three years older that/as my father.) Petrol is more expensive than diesel.
38. In questions, put the subject immediately after the auxiliary verb.
Where are the President and his family staying? (NOT Where are staying the President and his family?) Have all the guests arrived? (NOT Have arrived all the guests?)
39. Used to has no present.
I play tennis at weekends. (NOT I use to play tennis at weekends.) Where do you usually have lunch? (NOT Where do you use to have lunch?)
40. Use through , not along , for periods of time.
All through the centuries, there have been wars. (NOT All along the centuries, there have been wars.) For more details, see Practical English Usage 3rd Edition section 45.
41. Use canāt , not mustnāt , to say that something is logically
impossible.
It canāt be the postman at the door. Itās only 7 oāclock. (NOT It mustnāt be the postman at the door. Itās only 7 oāclock.) If A is bigger than B, and B is bigger than C, then C canāt be bigger than A. (NOT ā¦ then C mustnāt be bigger than A.)
42. Use the present perfect with This is the first time ā¦ etc.
This is the first time Iāve been here. (NOT This is the first time Iām here.) This is the fifth cup of coffee Iāve drunk today. (NOT This is the fifth cup of coffee I drink today.)
43. Use be , not have , to give peopleās ages.
My sister is 15 (years old). (NOT My sister has 15 years.)
44. Use between , not among , to talk about position in relation to
several clearly separate people or things.
Switzerland is between France, Austria, Germany and Italy. (NOT Switzerland is among France, Austria, Germany and Italy.) The bottle rolled between the wheels of the car.
45. We donāt normally use the before abbreviations that are pronounced
like words (āacronymsā).
My cousin works for NATO. (NOT My cousin works for the NATO.) The money was given by UNESCO. (NOT ā¦ by the UNESCO.)
46. Everybody is a singular word.
Everybody was late. (NOT Everybody were late.) Is everybody ready? (NOT Are everybody ready?)
47. Use any , not some , in negative sentences.
She hasnāt got any money. (NOT She hasnāt got some money.) I didnāt see anybody. (NOT I didnāt see somebody.)
48. Use interested for feelings; use interesting for the things that
interest people. The same goes for bored/boring , excited/exciting etc.
58. Use it , not I, he, she etc to identify people.
(on the phone): Hello. Itās Alan Williams speaking. ((NOT Hello. Iām Alan Williams.) āWhoās that?ā āItās John.ā (NOT Whoās that?ā āHeās John.ā)
59. People (meaning āpersonsā) is a plural word The people in this town are
very friendly. (NOT The people in this town is very friendly.) Who are those people? (NOT Who is that people?)
60. Use although or but , but not both together.
Although it was late, she went out. It was late, but she went out. (BUT NOT Although it was late, but she went out.)
61. With if , we normally use the present to talk about the future.
If I have time, Iāll phone you. (NOT If Iāll have time, Iāll phone you.) Iāll be surprised if she answers my letter. (NOT Iāll be surprised if sheāll answer my letter.)
62. Use almost , not nearly , to say that one thing is very like another.
She is almost a sister to me. (NOT She is nearly a sister to me.) I almost wish I had stayed at home. (NOT I nearly wish I had stayed at home.)
63. If you donāt do something any more, you stop doing it.
The doctor told me to stop smoking. (NOT The doctor told me to stop to smoke.) Iām going to stop working so hard. (NOT Iām going to stop to work so hard.)
64. A singular countable noun must normally have a determiner
(e.g. a/an, the, my, that ).
She broke a/the/that/my window. (NOT She broke window.) Where is the station? (NOT Where is station?)
65. We donāt often use would in subordinate clauses; instead, we use
past tenses.
Would you follow me wherever I went? (NOT Would you follow me wherever I would go?) I would tell you if I knew. (NOT I would tell you if I would know.)
66. With when , use the past perfect to make it clear that one thing
finished before another started.
When I had written my letters, I did some gardening. (NOT When I wrote my letters, I did some gardening.) When he had cleaned the windows, he stopped for a cup of tea. (NOT When he cleaned the
windows, he stopped for a cup of tea.)
67. Donāt use can to talk about the chance that something will happen.
It may/might/could rain this evening. (NOT It can rain this evening.) I think Jane may/might/could come tomorrow. (NOT I think Jane can come tomorrow.)
68. Donāt use an infinitive after think.
Iām thinking of changing my job. (NOT Iām thinking to change my job.) Are you thinking of going home this weekend? (NOT Are you thinking to go home this weekend?)
69. Use a singular noun after every.
I play tennis every Wednesday. (NOT I play tennis every Wednesdays.) He wrote to every child in the village. (NOT He wrote to every children ā¦)
70. When you say what somebodyās job is, use a/an.
My sister is a photographer. (NOT My sister is photographer.) Iām studying to be an engineer. (NOT Iām studying to be engineer.)
71. Use at last , not finally , as an exclamation.
At last! Where have you been? (NOT Finally! Where have you been?) Sheās written to me. At last!
72. Get can mean ābecomeā, but not before nouns.
Itās getting cold. Itās getting to be winter. (BUT NOT Itās getting winter.)
73. Donāt use negative questions in polite requests or enquiries.
Could you help me, please? (NOT Couldnāt you help me, please?) You havenāt seen John, have you? (NOT Havenāt you seen John?)
74. One negative word is usually enough.
She looked, but she did nāt see anything. (NOT She looked, but she didnāt see nothing.) I have never heard of him. (NOT I havenāt never heard of him.)
75. Much and many are unusual in affirmative sentences (except in a
very formal style).
He has a lot / plenty of money. (NOT He has much money.) My father has travelled to lots of countries. (More natural than My father has travelled to
85. Only use unless to mean āexcept ifā.
Compare: Iāll see you tomorrow unless I have to work. Iāll be really upset if I do nāt pass the exam. (NOT Iāll be really upset unless I pass the exam.)
86. Use be with adjectives, not have with nouns, to talk about physical
sensations like cold, hunger, thirst etc.
I am thirsty. (NOT I have thirst.) We are cold in this house. (NOT We have cold in this house.)
87. Donāt use to- infinitives after can, could, will, would, may, might,
shall, should or must.
I can swim. (NOT I can to swim.) Must you make so much noise? (NOT Must you to make so much noise?)
88. Use not , not no , to make sentences negative.
Iām not asleep. (NOT Iām no asleep.) We are open on Saturdays, but not on Sundays. (NOT ā¦ but no on Sundays.)
89. We donāt usually use present tenses after past reporting verbs.
She told me she had a headache. (NOT She told me she has a headache.) I asked him what he wanted. (NOT | asked him what he wants.)
90. Use to after married, engaged.
Heās married to a doctor. (NOT Heās married with a doctor.) My sister is engaged to a computer engineer. (NOT My sister is engaged with a computer engineer.)
91. Use which , not what , to refer back to a whole sentence.
She passed her exam, which surprised everybody. (NOT She passed her exam, what surprised everybody.) My father has just climbed Mont Blanc, which is pretty good for a man of 75. (NOT ā¦ what is pretty good for a man of 75.)
92. Donāt use the with society when it has a general meaning.
We all have to live in society. (NOT We all have to live in the society.) Rousseau said that society makes people evil. (NOT Rousseau said that the society makes people evil.)
93. Use a to -infinitive after want.
I want to go home. (NOT I want go home.) The children want to stay up late. (NOT The children want stay up late.)
94. Use make , not do , with mistake.
I have made a mistake. (NOT I have done a mistake.) You canāt speak a language without making mistakes. (NOT ā¦ without doing mistakes.)
95. Donāt repeat a relative pronoun with another pronoun.
Thereās the man that I work for. (NOT Thereās the man that I work for him.) She saw a doctor who sent her to hospital. (NOT She saw a doctor who he sent her to hospital.)
96. After a superlative, use in with a place expression.
Which is the biggest city in the world? (NOT Which is the biggest city of the world?) This is the best restaurant in the city. (NOT This is the best restaurant of the city.)
97. You explain and suggest something to somebody.
Please explain to me what you want. (NOT Please explain me what you want.) Can you suggest a good restaurant to us? (NOT Can you suggest us a good restaurant?)
98. Work is an uncountable noun.
Iām looking for work. (NOT Iām looking for a work.) My brother has found a new job. (NOT My brother has found a new work.) For more details, see Practical English Usage 3rd Edition section 148.
99. Be careful of the word order in negative infinitives.
Itās important not to work too hard. (NOT Itās important to not work too hard.) I asked her not to make so much noise. For more details, see Practical English Usage 3rd Edition section 280.
100. Possessives replace articles.
We stayed in Johnās house at the weekend. (NOT We stayed in the Johnās house at the weekend.) Sheās been studying Britainās foreign policy since 1980. (NOT Sheās been studying the Britainās foreign policy since 1980.)
