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Grammar Reference

Could is the past tense of can. We use it to talk We use the Past Progressive:
about ability in the past. • for an action that was happening at a speci ic
My brother couldn’t ride a bike when he was six. point of time in the past.
I was reading a book at 7 o’clock yesterday
Adverbs of manner evening.
Adverbs of manner describe how something is • to set the scene in a story.
done or happens. Tom was walking in the forest and it was raining.
Danny is a good driver. He drives carefully. • for actions that were happening at the same time
in the past. In this case we usually use while.
We form most adverbs of manner quiet  quietly While I was watching TV, my mother was cooking.
by adding -ly to the adjective. careful  carefully

Adjectives ending in a consonant Past Simple - Past Progressive
+ -y, drop the -y and take -ily. easy  easily Time Clauses (when, while)
Adjectives ending in -le, drop • We use the Past Progressive and the
the -e and take -y. terrible  terribly Past Simple in the same sentence when one
I was not eating © MM Publications
action interrupted another in the past. We use the
IRREGULAR ADVERBS Past Progressive for the longer action and the
Past Simple for the shorter action. In this case we
ADJECTIVES ADVERBS
usually use while or when.
good well While I was riding my bike, I fell and hurt my
fast fast knee.
early early I was sleeping when the telephone rang.
late late
Module 3
hard hard

Past Progressive Can / Could / May / Might

The verbs can, could, may and might:
AFFIRMATIVE
• are followed by the base form of the verb.
I was eating
You were eating • are the same in all persons in the singular and
He was eating plural.
She was eating • do not form the question and negative forms
It was eating with do.
We were eating
You were eating • We use Can I…?, Could I…?, May I…? to make an
They were eating o fer.
Can I help you?
NEGATIVE • We use Can I…?, Could I…?, May I…? to ask for
FULL FORMS SHORT FORMS permission.
May I borrow your mobile phone?
I wasn’t eating
You were not eating You weren’t eating • We use Can I/you…?, Could I/you…? to make
He was not eating He wasn’t eating polite requests and to ask for a favour. Could is
She was not eating She wasn’t eating more polite.
It was not eating It wasn’t eating Can I have a glass of water, please?
We were not eating We weren’t eating Could you drive me to the shopping centre,
You were not eating You weren’t eating please?
They were not eating They weren’t eating
• We use may, might and could to express
QUESTIONS SHORT ANSWERS
possibility in the present or future. Might
Was I eating? Yes, I was. No, I wasn’t. expresses slight possibility.
Were you eating? Yes, you were. No, you weren’t. We may/might/could go to the beach next
Was he eating? Yes, he was. No, he wasn’t. weekend. (= I’m not sure)
Was she eating? Yes, she was. No, she wasn’t. • We use may not / might not to express the
Was it eating? Yes, it was. No, it wasn’t. possibility that something will not happen in the
Were we eating? Yes, we were. No, we weren’t. present or future.
Were you eating? Yes, you were. No, you weren’t. Henry may not / might not come to the park.
Were they eating? Yes, they were. No, they weren’t.

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