Simple grammar. Basic rules of English grammar

Everything in our life is subject to rules, and so are linguistic phenomena. The elusive English can still be caught in the net and placed in memory.

Starting to learn a language, you still wonder where to start or how best to remember. To learn to read, write and speak, it is not enough just to memorize the dictionary. After all, each word is interconnected with another, they are modified under the influence of each other. Acquainted with ground rules of English language, having mastered them, you will not only understand the “soul” of foreign speech, but also learn how to express yourself logically and correctly. After all, the main goal of training is to learn to communicate and not feel language barriers.

All English language rules conditionally divided into groups. Let's look at some of them.

Introduction to English grammar it is better to start with the study of parts of speech: noun, adjective, verb and adverb. Of particular difficulty are temporary groups, which, unlike Russian, are much larger. The British express desire, opportunity and ability to act with the help of modal verbs, and the Russians involved and adverbial phrases are translated into English by means of impersonal forms of the verb.

Your speech will not be complete enough if you do not get acquainted with the numerals and do not learn how to correctly name the date, year and time. In communication, we constantly transmit the speech of one person to another. This is subject to the rules of direct and indirect speech, which have not only writing features, but also temporary changes. Such an unusual part of speech, a bit alien to the Russian speaker, like the article, plays one of the main roles in the language vacuum of the English language. Well, spice can be called conjunctions, prepositions and particles that transform speech, give expressiveness and expressiveness.

On a separate line, you can display such rules of the English language as . Unlike the Russian language, English punctuation marks are not so difficult, but without them it will be impossible to write a competent letter or essay.

To make your speech in English understandable, you will have to spend a lot of time phonetics and phonetic rules. There are not very many of them, but you still have to learn all the letter combinations and their reading norms.

FROM lexical side the language also needs to be enriched. And this is not only replenishment vocabulary, but the ability to correctly build sentences, give short answers, use a clear structure of the statement, study idioms and phrasal verbs.

The basic rules of the English language can be found in any grammar book, but each of them is presented in a different way.

Of course, you can talk about the rules of the English language endlessly, because there are actually a lot of them. Grabbing everything at once is not worth it, as well as getting hung up on one thing. Learn and improve the language in a complex: both from the grammatical, and from the lexical, and from the phonetic sides.

Language was created so that people can communicate and understand each other. In order for the interaction to be most effective, the first native speakers had to agree on the rules in English, otherwise everyone would speak their own. Over time, the set of these rules grew, acquired additional nuances and exceptions, and then turned into thick English textbooks that now flood the shelves of bookstores and libraries. We will not delve into the wilds of studying British speech, so as not to list all the rules in English, but we will focus on 10 basic rules of the English language. Check it!

Order of words in a sentence

Russian speech allows you to compose phrases in any order in which we like. The sentences “He bought a car,” “He bought a car,” “He bought a car,” and other variations will sound equally organic and grammatically correct. But the English are a pedantic people, so in their sentences, as well as in life, there is a strictly observed order:

Subject(who?) + predicate(What is he doing?) + addition(with whom? over whom? etc.) + circumstance(when? where? how? etc.).

He bought a car. - He bought a car.

Secondary members may be absent, but the presence of a subject and predicate is mandatory, so the existence of impersonal sentences in English is impossible. If in the Russian analogue the subject performing the action is absent, then in English it is replaced by the pronoun " it».

It's cold outside. - It's cold outside.

Auxiliary verbs

It is very important to remember to use auxiliary verbs in negative and interrogative sentences. In Russian, we do not need any helpers, except for the main verb-predicate. But in classical English, the construction of a question and a negation requires the indispensable presence of a helper verb.

Do you like music? - Do you like music?
I'm not going to this party. - I won't (will not) go to the party.

Which auxiliary verb to use depends on tense, but that's another story with 16 separate chapters.

Basic forms of English verbs be, have, do

There is a "holy trinity" of verbs in English - words that can express most of the actions. These are the verbs: be"(to be, to be, to be)," have" (to have) and " do" (do). Due to such frequent use, in the present tense they have their own special forms:

• « Be"divided into am (for I)," is" (for he, she, it) and " are” (for we, you, they).
• "Have" It has special form only for third party singular(he, she, it) - " has».
• BUT " do", using general rule for "he", "she", "it" in the present tense, uses the ending " es» — « does».

Having memorized these basic rules about verbs and their forms, you can already express your thoughts and explain to a foreigner what you need from him.

No double negative

The famous game I never..." in English is called " I've never(done)...". As you can see, in Russian there is a double negation - the pronoun " never" and the negative particle " not". In English we only see the negative pronoun " never”, and before the verb “done” there is no and cannot be the usual negative particle “not”. Why it happened and who is to blame for this is unknown to history, but we like the version that business residents of Foggy Albion simply do not like to repeat themselves. And we should remember that in English you cannot use double negation.

Articles

You can talk about these mysterious guys for hours. What makes this conversation especially long is the fact that there are no articles in the Russian language. But we will not repeat the multi-volume material of textbooks, but will concentrate only on when articles are not needed:

• When a noun is preceded by a possessive pronoun or a noun in the possessive case:

This is a dog. This is my dog. It isn't my sister's dog.- This is a dog. This is my dog. This is not my sister's dog.

• When a noun is preceded by a cardinal number (answers the question "how much?"):

I have two sisters and one brother.- I have two sisters and one brother.

• When a noun is preceded by the negation "no":

I have no idea what to do.- I have no idea what to do.

• When a noun is preceded by a demonstrative pronoun (this, these, that, those):

Give me that pencil, please.- Give me that pencil, please.

Plural

The basic rule for plural formation is the addition of the ending " s» to the singular form:

a dog - dog s, a cat - cat s, an insect - insect s

If the noun ends in hissing sound or letter about", then you should add the ending " es»:

bus - bus es, glass - glass es, bush - bush es, box - box es, branch - branch es, potato-potato es

When a word ends in " y", and in front of her stands consonant, « y"" in the plural changes to " ies»:

ba by-bab ies, ci ty- cit ies, la dy- lad ies
But: b oy- boy s, t oy- toy s,pl ay- play s.

When at the end of a word is " f" or " fe”, when adding the ending “ s» letter « f' changes to ' v»:

lea f-lea v es, wi f e-wi v es

These are the main English rules formation of the plural form, but one should not forget about exceptions that go against the rules, for example:

child- children,man- men,mouse- mice etc.

Degrees of comparison

There are two ways to form degrees of comparison: with the help of suffixes and with the help of additional words. The choice of method is influenced by the number of syllables and last letter in the word:

If the word has 1 syllable, then you should add a suffix:

cold- colder - coldest, cool- cooler -the coolest, big- bigger -the biggest

If the word is two or more syllables, then we use an additional word:

beautiful- more beautiful- the most beautiful

When a word ends in " y”, we again use the first method with endings, but at the same time “y” changes to “ ie».

funny - funny ier- funn iest, sunny-sunn ier- the sunn iest

Don't forget the article the" before superlatives comparisons, and doubling the last consonant letters in monosyllabic words with "consonant/vowel/consonant" alternation.

Gerund after the verb "like"

Gerund is a verb with the ending " ing". If you need to express the idea of ​​\u200b\u200bits preferences using the verb “like”, then it is preferable to use the gerund after it:

I like watch ing films.
Do you like jogg ing?
You don't like play ing chess, do you?

Past tense forms of verbs

The basic rule is that to express the past tense, you should use second verb form. Here the nuances begin, because the main verbs of the English language are divided into regular and irregular, and the ways of forming the second form are different for them. For correct verbs use the ending " ed", but each wrong the verb has its three forms that you need to remember - there is no separate rule for irregular verbs. Fortunately, many of them are formed according to similar word-formation patterns, and modern teaching methods have funny rhymes aimed at fast memorization forms of irregular verbs. Our online tutor will be happy to introduce you to them.

Many, much, a lot

English nouns, like Russian ones, are divided into two classes: countable and uncountable. The class affects the use of cardinal pronouns:

• FROM countable should use " many».

I have many dresses.- I have a lot of dresses.

FROM uncountable, which are liquids, substances and substances that cannot be counted, we use " much».

I don't drink much water.- I don't drink much water.

If a define a classdifficult, then you can use a lot (of)”, which goes equally well with both uncountable nouns and those that can be counted

He doesn't watch a lot of TV, but he reads a lot of books.- He doesn't watch TV much, but he reads a lot of books.

Small clue in the definition of a class of nouns, the ending " s» for plural countable nouns.

Conclusion

When learning English, remember that rules are there to be broken. All the rules above are just the "skeleton" of British literary speech. Alive colloquial has a lot of nuances and exceptions, which can only be known by plunging into the atmosphere of an English-speaking society. English songs and films, as well as live interlocutors, will help to do this!

Embark on an exciting journey through the sections of our site, and in a few days the 10 most important rules of the English language will become as natural as breathing. Breathe in English!

Big and friendly family EnglishDom

Any discipline studied, simple or complex, cannot do without a basic structure, without a core. In a language, this is grammar, and in grammar, such a core is rules. In this article I will try to tell at least a little about such a vast and complex issue as the rules of English grammar, which are very numerous, however, as well as exceptions. We will focus on the most important ones.

Basic rules in English

You don’t need to blindly memorize the rules, and it’s useless, you just need to understand the grammar. Having an idea about the system and structure of the language, understanding its means and mechanisms, the basic rules that it operates on, you can hone your practical skills, and sometimes consult reference books to clarify any points, or when your intuition does not tell you the right answer.

If you periodically have hesitations about the correct use of a number, the choice of a word, their order, then take a look at the code of laws of English grammar. This article will help you resolve doubts about mastering difficult or problematic moments of English language. I have chosen the most common grammatical problems faced by people who decide to master a foreign language.

Articles are three special words in English

In English, special words are used - articles. There are two of them - a certain article the and the indefinite a (an is placed before nouns that begin with a vowel). In most cases, this function word is placed only before nouns. Indefinite article apply exclusively to countable nouns in the singular, while the definite is used when using nouns, both in the singular and in the plural, whether they are countable or not.

There are times when the article is not used at all. They need to be remembered.

So, the article is not used at all if the noun is preceded by:

cardinal number (one, two, three);

There are ten boys in the team - there are ten boys in the team.

possessive or demonstrative pronoun (this, our, that, my, etc.);

My flat is not big, but modern - My flat is small but modern.

another noun in the possessive case (my sister's, Sam's etc.);

negation of "no" (not "not"!).

I have no book - I don't have a book.

Note: if a noun in the possessive case serves as an adjective in the sentence, the use of the article in this case is possible.

It's a children's room (children's room).

The article is not placed before uncountable nouns that denote an abstract concept or an indefinite amount of a substance.

I don't like milk, I prefer juice. - I don't like milk, I prefer juice (juice, milk - in general)

Kindness is one of the most important things in the world. Kindness is one of the most important things in the world (kindness is an abstract concept).

The article is not used with the names of sports:

I am fond of box, and my sister prefers sport dancing. — I love boxing, and my sister prefers sports dancing.

The article is not placed before proper names (some geographical names are exceptions).

The order of construction of proposals

In Russian, the meaning of what is said does not depend on the sequence of words. The meaning of a phrase or proposition is not affected in any way by the order in which the words are arranged. English, on the other hand, has its own order of constructing phrases and sentences, the observance of which is mandatory, otherwise the meaning of what was said will be different or the sentence will simply lose its meaning and form.

So the correct sequence of words is:

The Subject always comes first, followed by the Predicate, then the Addition - What? Circumstances - Where and When, and Definition - What? is placed between the article and the word it defines: The green room…

The possessive case of the word (Whose?) determines the next noun and is always placed in the preposition (before) of the noun being defined. Analogue in Russian - possessive adjective or Genitive: children's room - children's room or children's room.

But definitions in English are also arranged in a certain order. To remember their sequence, you need to learn the word "OPSHACOM", consonant with the Russian "OBSHCHAKOM". The basis of this word is the first letters of the definitions in the desired sequence:

• Opinion - opinion
• shape - shape
• Age - age
• color - color
• material - material

Indefinite adverbs and adverbs of frequency are set in preposition in relation to the main verb, but in postposition relative to "to be", as well as in the postposition of the first auxiliary verbs and the second "have". Unclear? This is for now. As soon as you come across such adverbs, remember this rule.

It is worth remembering the "rule of once": in a simple sentence, any grammatical unit can be used once, and the closer to the beginning of the proposition, the more correct and better. Also, the negation is used only once. And in complex polyfunctional units, after the past tense, only the past is used and no other.

Indefinite present tense

This tense is used to show an action that is constantly taking place in the present or to express generally accepted truths. For example: In the morning I wash / Every morning I wash up or The moon shines at night / The moon shines at night.

The infinitive form agrees with the Present Indefinite, excluding "to" in all persons, with the exception of the third person singular, which takes the ending "-s (-es)". In this case, this ending is pronounced differently:

• After vowels and voiced consonants - [ z ] - writes
• After deaf consonants - [ s ] - tells
• After whistling and hissing, as well as letter combinations ss, sh, ch, x - [ iz ] - washes

The same rule applies to plural nouns.

By the way, about nouns. The word "FAMILY" is a collective concept that combines with the plural if it means "all members of the family", as well as with the 3rd person singular form of the verb if it means "Family", as a whole. All combinations of similar verbal forms obey this rule: team, group, etc.

Do not forget that the word "POLICE" is constantly used with plural verbs. And the words "Advice", "Information" and "News" are uncountable nouns that can only be combined with 3-letter verbs. unit

Questions

There are two kinds of unusual questions in English. Here we will talk about them.

The first type is questions of choice or alternative (either/or, or/or). In this case, the word order follows the basic rules: Do you like cold or hot tea? / Do you like cold tea or hot? But with an alternative, there are some features:

In infinitive structures, "to" is only placed before the first initial form

The article is preserved in definitions with one noun, which is in the singular.

When using the noun that was in the first place, the other is replaced by "ONE": Do you like a big apple or little one? Instead of the second word "apple" use "ONE"

When selecting the entire sentence, "NOT" is applied: Do you want the toy or NOT? / Do you want the toy or not?

The second type is connecting (separating) questions. The table will show its structure:

stress

Well, with one-syllable words, everything is clear. Now let's deal with the grammar of disyllabic and complex lexical units. In two-syllable and three-syllable words, the stress is read on the first syllable, in most cases. But in compound words, where there are two or more stems, the first word acquires a greater intonation, that is, stress.

Are you still wondering where to start learning English? Start with the basics - learn the alphabet, sounds and rules for reading words, and then just move on to learning the words, phrases and grammar of the English language.

These 24 tables are arranged in such a way that you can smoothly progress in learning English from the simplest to the most difficult.

1. Let's start with the most elementary - with articles. Here are the situations in which each is used.

2. We recommend that you first familiarize yourself with the correct use of prepositions of place in English.

3. If you still don't understand the meaning of prepositions of place, look here.

4. The prepositions in and on, together with the preposition at, are also used to indicate time. Just learn all these phrases by heart.

5. And try to remember these.

6. Here are the cases in which you should use for, since, during and until in English.

The preposition for is usually translated as "during, continuing". As a rule, for is used with an indication of the period, the period of time during which something is done, happens, for example: for 1 year, for 8 months, for 5 years. It also indicates the duration of the action.

The preposition since is translated as "from" and is used to indicate the exact time, the moment in time from which something began, for example: since October, since last year, since 9:19 a.m.

The preposition during is translated as “throughout” and indicates that something happens within a certain period of time: during summer, during the lesson, during films.

7. Here are more examples of these prepositions.

Until is also used as a time indicator. This word means that the action continued / continues / will continue until some point: until 10 o "clock.

8. This table will show you the difference between than and then.

Then translates as "then, at that time, then, then, in that case."

Than is used solely to compare one with the other. It can be replaced with the phrases “compared with” (comparing with ...) or “in comparison to” (compared to ..).

9. Not sure what to choose whether or if? Here's a hint.

Whether is used to express doubt (I don "t know whether I can come to your party - I don't know if I can go to your party) or in questions: Do you know whether it will rain tomorrow? - You don't know - tomorrow it will be raining?

If in some cases has the same meaning as whether: I don "t know if I can come to your party. The preposition if is used in complex sentences (2) and in requests (3).

10. You will definitely need knowledge of irregular verbs. These are the easiest to remember - all three forms are the same and are pronounced the same.

11. These irregular verbs will be more difficult to remember. The first form of the verb - the infinitive - differs from the other two - Past Simple and Past Participle.

12. The third group of irregular verbs is the most difficult. All three words in the series differ both in spelling and pronunciation. Only cramming will help them remember.

13. You need to memorize not only regular verbs, but also a number of nouns that form the plural in a special way.

14. Let's expand our vocabulary further. Here is a selection of the most popular phrasal verbs that are often used when discussing the topic "Clothes".

• Put on - put something on yourself.
• Take off - take off a piece of clothing.
• Try on - try on something.
• Dress up - dress up, dress up for a special occasion, put on the best outfit.
• Do up - fasten (with buttons or other fasteners), tie shoelaces.
• Zip up - fasten with a zipper.
• Hang up - hang clothes on a hook, hanger.
• Slip on - put on (clothes).
• Throw on - throw, throw.
• Wrap up - wrap yourself in warm clothes.

15. After replenishing the vocabulary, you can begin to build sentences. A characteristic feature of sentences in English is a solid word order!

16. Interrogative sentences are built using question words. Here are the most popular ones.

• What: A question asking for information about something.
• When: specifying the time when something happened or will happen in the future.
• Where: Specifies a place or location.
• Which: Clarification of information about countable items.
• Who: Clarification of who exactly is being referred to.
• Whom: Clarification of who exactly did the action.
• Whose: specifying whether something belongs to someone.
• Why: clarification of the reasons.
• How: How the action was performed.

17. Here are more examples of using question words.

Note!

How many and How much translate the same - How much? Difference from what: the pronoun much is applied to uncountable noun, and many to countable.

• How long - How long? / What time is it?
• How far - How far?
• How often - How often?

18. Here's how to use modal verbs would, could, can, will in interrogative sentences.

Modal verbs would, could, can, will are used in requests. The difference between them is only in the degree of politeness.

Would and could are considered more "polite" verbs, use them when referring to someone older, respected or in a higher social position.

19. You are now ready to learn English tenses. Each of them has its own meaning and is translated differently.

20. This is how tenses are formed in English.

21. There are not many tables showing the peculiarity of English times.

22. Learn the difference between personal and possessive pronouns in English.

23. You can convey someone else's speech in English using direct speech (Direct Speech) or indirect speech (Indirect Speech).

Verbs in direct speech in the form of Present Tense are used in indirect speech in the form of Past Tense.

Verbs in direct speech in the Past Tense form are used in indirect speech in the Past Perfect form (or may not be used).

Verbs in direct speech in any future tense pass into the corresponding future in the past in indirect speech.

24. For general development, you can familiarize yourself with the differences in the formation of nouns that have a different gender.

The words in the table are divided into two columns: in the first - nouns that refer to masculine(masculine gender), in the second - nouns denoting the female gender refer to feminine(feminine gender).

Keep these useful tables so as not to lose them. You can print them out or save them on your gadget so that you can refer to them if necessary.

English grammar for beginners seems to be something unbearable. Articles, pronouns, verbs - English has huge amount rules that are not so easy to translate into Russian. This raises doubts, but is it worth starting at all? Is it worth it to dive into English grammar without a certain certainty that you can master it? No, with such an attitude, you definitely won’t be able to sail far in the study. Therefore, it is important to discard all doubts and stereotypes. Believe me, English grammar can be learned on your own and in the most short time. All that is required of you is constancy and perseverance, and we will help you with everything else.

First, let's figure out what the grammar of this language is. The English grammar or English grammar is a set of all rules that relate to prepositions, prefixes, parts of speech, types English verbs and their tenses, sentence members, and so on.

In simple words, everything that is in the English language is its grammar. Respectively, frequently asked question how to learn grammar , has a very simple answer: to learn English grammar, you just need to learn the language. Of course, it will not be possible to analyze all the nuances in one article. Why, even books in which they promise to show you the entire grammar of the English language from scratch with exercises, in fact, they will never tell you about all the grammar. Therefore, we have collected only the most basic rules that are best suited for beginners.

How can you learn English grammar without even knowing the rules of pronunciation. Let's start with them. The rules for reading letters in English is a rather extensive topic, since with a certain combination their pronunciation may change. However, let's not go too deep and consider the standard pronunciation of letters, which, by the way, are 26 in English. When mastering the topic of pronunciation, special attention is paid to transcription, which, as a rule, is indicated in square brackets:

English Grammar: Articles

When studying English grammar, there can be a lot of confusion with, since they have no analogues in Russian. Articles are usually used with nouns to show whether the reference is to a specific object (that bag) or an indefinite one ((some) person). In total, there are 3 types of articles:

1. Zero article or its absence:

1. The indefinite article a / an, which is used when you are not paying attention to a specific thing, but simply talking about the subject as a whole. The indefinite article is also used when you first mention something to someone:

Note that if the noun or adjective that describes it begins with a consonant, the article "a" is used, and if with a vowel, "an".

1. The definite article the, expressing specific objects:

In speech, they are constantly encountered, so be sure to remember.

Nouns in English Grammar

English grammar from scratch very often starts with nouns. Perhaps this is because English nouns have a lot in common with Russian ones. For example:

• they are also divided into own and common nouns:

• can change in numbers, forming plural with the ending -s (-es):

• have cases, although their number is limited to only two:

• perform the roles of all members of the proposal, examples:

The difference lies in the fact that, unlike the Russian language, English nouns do not change by gender. Only pronouns have it.

English Grammar: Pronouns

Pronouns in English are divided into 9 subgroups, but the most popular are rightfully personal pronouns. They change in cases, tenses and numbers:

English Grammar: Verbs

The verb in English is perhaps the most important part of speech. It can be personal or impersonal. Personal verbs include those verbs that are used with all persons and at all times. They can be used in both active and passive voices:

Impersonal include gerund, infinitive and participle:

Both regular and irregular verbs have 3 forms. The correct ones are formed as follows:

Incorrect ones have 3 individual forms that need to be memorized, for example:

It is necessary to know all these forms, since with the help of them the formation of tense verb forms takes place.

In addition, verbs have three moods:

Particular attention should be paid to modal verbs. Modal verbs are verbs that are not used on their own. They are necessary to show the attitude of the speaker to some action. Some of the most used modal verbs are:

English Grammar: Adjectives

An adjective in English denotes a sign of an object and answers the questions “what?” and "whose?". In simple terms, it is used to describe objects and persons. According to their structure, adjectives are divided into 3 groups:

These and other adjectives can be used in 3 degrees of comparison:

English Grammar: Adverbs

The descriptive function is also characteristic of adverbs, which are responsible for the expression of the sign of action. It is of several types:

They can also have degrees of comparison:

English grammar: numerals

Numerals, as in Russian, are quantitative and ordinal:

Except for the first 3 digits, the rest of the ordinal numbers are formed with -th (-eth). In English ordinal numbers can be written using a number and the last two letters of the ending: second - 2nd, ninth - 9th, sixteenth - 16th and so on.

English Grammar: Interjections

It is impossible not to note the independent part of speech, the use of which helps to convey emotions and feelings, namely interjections. They can be divided into 3 groups:

Service parts of speech

The service parts of speech of English grammar are used quite often. Let's consider some of them:

• Unions connect the members of the proposal, as well as simple sentences within the complex. By structure, they are divided into:

According to their functions, they are divided into coordinating and subordinating:

• Prepositions are used at least as often as conjunctions. According to their structure, they are divided into exactly the same groups:

In addition to their main purpose, prepositions are always used with the following verbs:

• One more service unit speech are particles. There are 5 types of particles in English:

English grammar: word order in a sentence

Sentences in English are affirmative, negative and interrogative. They are built as follows:

According to these tables, offers are made at any time.

English Grammar: Tenses

There are 12 temporary forms in English. They are formed using 3 tenses and 4 temporary types:

Knowing these forms, you can form any sentences.

English grammar: types of sentences

By the way, about the proposals. As in Russian English sentences divided into simple and complex. Complex ones are subdivided into compound and complex.

It is worth noting that, despite the fact that most sentences in English are complete, the use of incomplete sentences is also acceptable. As a rule, this option is used in colloquial speech, so this is rather a practical grammar of the English language:

These were the basic rules of grammar. Of course, it is impossible to fit all the material here, alas. However, knowing at least the mentioned rules of the English language, you will already feel quite confident during the conversation. As for conversations. A collection of English exercises or another version of descriptive information is, of course, good. However, believe me, the practical grammar of the English language is incomparable in its effectiveness. By communicating, language learners can learn much more than by sitting at a book. Therefore, do not hesitate to communicate with native speakers.