countable nouns - webcolegios.com · countable nouns countable nouns are easy to recognize. they...
TRANSCRIPT
1
ANEXO 4
Countable Nouns
Countable nouns are easy to recognize. They are things that we can count. For
example: "pen". We can count pens. We can have one, two, three or more pens. Here are some more countable nouns:
dog, cat, animal, man, person
bottle, box, litre
coin, note, dollar
cup, plate, fork table, chair, suitcase, bag
Countable nouns can be singular or plural:
My dog is playing. My dogs are hungry.
We can use the indefinite article a/an with countable nouns:
A dog is an animal.
When a countable noun is singular, we must use a word like a/the/my/this with it:
I want an orange. (not I want orange.) Where is my bottle? (not Where is bottle?)
When a countable noun is plural, we can use it alone:
I like oranges.
Bottles can break.
We can use some and any with countable nouns:
I've got some dollars.
Have you got any pens?
We can use a few and many with countable nouns:
I've got a few dollars. I haven't got many pens.
"People" is countable. "People" is the plural of "person". We can count people:
There is one person here.
There are three people here.
2
Uncountable Nouns
Uncountable nouns are substances, concepts etc that we cannot divide into separate
elements. We cannot "count" them. For example, we cannot count "milk". We can
count "bottles of milk" or "litres of milk", but we cannot count "milk" itself. Here are
some more uncountable nouns:
music, art, love, happiness
advice, information, news
furniture, luggage
rice, sugar, butter, water
electricity, gas, power money, currency
We usually treat uncountable nouns as singular. We use a singular verb. For example:
This news is very important. Your luggage looks heavy.
We do not usually use the indefinite article a/an with uncountable nouns. We cannot say "an information" or "a music". But we can say a something of:
a piece of news
a bottle of water a grain of rice
We can use some and any with uncountable nouns:
I've got some money. Have you got any rice?
We can use a little and much with uncountable nouns:
I've got a little money. I haven't got much rice.
Here are some more examples of countable and uncountable nouns:
Countable Uncountable
Dollar Money
Song Music
suitcase Luggage
Table Furniture
Battery Electricity
3
Bottle Wine
Report Information
Tip Advice
Journey Travel
Job Work
View Scenery
When you learn a new word, it's a good idea to learn whether it's countable or uncountable.
Write c for countable and u for uncountable:
time - books - sugar - milk - pens - hair -
chairs - meat - butter - pencils - bread - jam - friends -
fingers - flour - apples - oil - cars - salt -
houses - cheese - rice - tea - games - tomatoes -
cream - honey - carrots -
a) a / an + singular countable noun ( a pen, an apple) some + plural countable nouns -
positive sentences ( There are some cars)
some + uncountable nouns - positive sentences ( There is some oil)
any - we use any in negative sentences and in most questions.(countable and uncountable
nouns) I don't have any pens. There isn't any salt.
Do you have any sisters?
2. Choose a, an, some or any
a) It is dog. b) Have you got friends?
c) I bought milk. d) Linda has not got pets.
e) There is orange on the table. f) Tim eats cheese every day.
g) We don't have bread. h) My brother found money.
i) My sister found pen. j) Do you have eggs?
k) There are students in the classroom. l) Is there pencil on the desk?
4
Modal Verbs (Ability) – can, could, be able to
I can ski / puedo esquiar
Una de las funciones del verbo modal can es para expresar habilidad.
Podemos utilizar el can si decidimos ahora que vamos hacer en el futuro.
Ej) I can have lunch with you tomorrow. / Puedo almorzar contigo mañana.
I can’t see you this weekend. / No puedo verte esta fin de semana.
Nota:
Después del can ponemos el infinitivo sin to ... can play tennis
... can't go tomorrow
La forma negativa completa se escribe como una sola palabra; cannot.
En otros casos, para expresar habilidad en el futuro utilizamos will be able to.
Ej) Do you think England will be able to win the World Cup one day?
Piensas que Inglaterra pueda ganar el Mundial algun día?
El pasado de can y can’t por habilidad es could y couldn’t
Ej) When I was young I could drink 10 or 12 pints of lager in one night.
Cuando era joven, podía beber 10 o 12 pintas de cerveza en una sola noche.
El can y el could también se utiliza para pedir a las personas que hagan algo.
Ej) can/could you give me your phone number?
El Condicional
Podemos utilizar el could para decir podría (would be able to)
Ej) We could get a new car next year if we didn’t have a holiday this summer.
Podríamos comprarnos un nuevo coche si no tomamos vacaciones este verano.
5
EJERCICIOS
Elije can o can’t si es posible. Si no, elige could o will be able to.
1. I’m sorry, I take you to the airport in the morning because I’ve
got a business meeting at 9 o’clock.
2. I think I pass my driving test before my 50th birthday.
3. One day in the future I think we live on the moon.
4. If we left now, we before the shops close.
5. I’m not working this weekend so we go cycling on Sunday.
6. I meet you for coffee at 11, but I’ll only have fifteen minutes.
7. I’ll do the washing and the ironing, but I do the shopping.
8. If we worked together, we finish it before the film starts.
9. She was bad after the accident, but I think she go back to work
next week.
10. It’s not possible yet, but I think computers do the housework for
us in a few years.
11. I go for a run this evening. My parents are coming to visit and I
won’t have time.
12. I do your job. It’s so complicated and stressful.
Obligation
Have to and must are both used to express obligation. There is a slight difference
between the way they are used.
Have to shows us that the obligation comes from somebody else. It’s a law or a rule
and the speaker can’t change it.
Do you have to wear a uniform at your school?
John can’t come because he has to work tomorrow.
In Britain you have to buy a TV licence every year.
Must shows us that the obligation comes from the speaker. It isn’t a law or a rule.
I must call my dad tonight.
You must hand in your homework on Tuesday or your mark will be zero.
You must come and visit us the next time you come to London.
6
No obligation
We use don’t have to to show that there is no obligation. You can do something if you
want to but it’s not compulsory.
You don’t have to wear a tie in our office. You can wear a tie if you want to but
it’s OK if you don’t.
It’ll be nice if you do but you don’t have to come with me if you don’t want to.
You don’t have to dress up for the party. Wear whatever you feel comfortable
in.
EXERCISE 1. Fill in the blanks with MUST / MUST NOT / HAVE TO / DON’T HAVE TO
1. Ronaldo can go to Brazil next week because he ________________ attend the training.
2. You ______________ buy that CD. We have got so many Cds at home.
3. Look at my car. It’s really dirty. I ____________ wash it as soon as possible.
4. I have just ordered some pizza. You ____________ cook anything tonight.
5. Since Alex de Souza was injured in the middle of the match, he ___________ leave the
pitch.
6. You ___________ remember what I said to you. It’s very important.
7. You ___________ put the chains on the wheels. It’s going to be snowy.
8. Tayfun ___________ buy a new CD player. He can use mine.
9. In Turkey all men _____________ do military service.
10. You __________ prepare an impressive CV before applying a job.
EXERCISE 2. Fill in the blanks with MUST / MUST NOT / CAN / CAN’T / HAVE TO / DON’T HAVE TO
1. My mother has told me to buy some batteries. I ___________ forget to buy some.
2. The old lady is sleeping. You _____________ turn down the volume.
3. You ____________ walk on the grass. It’s forbidden.
4. I’m sorry I couldn’t come yesterday. I _____________ visit a very important client.
5. We’ve got a lot of time. You ____________ hurry.
7
Asking for, information phrases
1. Can you tell me…?
Could you tell me…?
This is the most common way to ask for information. You can use either can or could. Can is probably a little more informal.
“Could you tell me how to get to the train station?”
2. Can anyone tell me…? / Could anyone tell me…?
Use these phrases when you are addressing a group of people, not an individual.
“Can anyone tell me what time the bank opens?”
3. Do you know…?
Use this phrase if you’re not sure whether or not the person you’re speaking to knows the answer.
“Do you know how long the movie is?”
4. Do you have any idea…? Do you happen to know…?
These phrases, like #3, are used if it’s possible the person doesn’t know the answer.
“Do you have any idea why today’s class was cancelled?”
5. I wonder if you could tell me…
This phrase is the most indirect.
“I wonder if you could tell me who I need to contact to talk about job
openings.”
Practice: In pairs write a dialogue using some of the phrases above mentioned to
ask for information.
8
Transport - vocabulary Match the name with the right picture.
aeroplane bicycle boat bus cable car car carriage cruiser double-decker helicopter hot-air balloon lorry
motor boat motorbike roller-skates scooter skis sleigh spaceship steamer submarine train tram Underground
______________ ________________ ______________ _____________ ____________
__________ _____________ ____________ _______________ __________________
_____________ ____________ ______________ _________________ ___________________
__________________ ___________________ __________________ _______________
9
The Simple Past of the Verb "to be"
The simple past tense of the verb to be:
This page will present the simple past tense of the verb to be:
its form
and its use.
The affirmative form:
I, he, she, it was.
you, we, they were.
Examples:
I was in London in 1999.
Pam was in London in 1999, too.
We were together.
She was my girlfriend.
The interrogative form:
Was I, he, she, it?
Were you, we, they?
Examples:
Were you in London last year?
Was Pam with you?
Were you together?
The negative form:
I, you, he, she was not.
wasn't.
You, we, they were not.
10
weren't.
Examples:
I wasn't in Paris in 1999.
Pam wasn't in Paris in 1999.
We weren't in Paris.
Rememeber:
1. wasn't is the short form of was not. You can say either:
I was not in Paris, or
I wasn't in Paris.
2. weren't is the short form of were not. You can say either:
we were not in Paris, or
we weren't in Paris.
Put the verb "to be" into the simple past:
1. I in Canada last summer holiday.
2. My sister with me.
3. We in Montreal.
4. She very happy.
5. I happy, too
WAS OR WERE
I ___ at the cinema yesterday.
was
were You ___ at school last week.
were
was
He ___ on holiday in summer.
were
was
She ___ ill last week.
was
were
We ___ in Italy last summer.
were
was
You ___ in the USA in January.
was
were
11
PLACES, SIMPLE PRESENT, SIMPLE PAST 1. Write the names: (shop, park, swimming-pool, cinema, museum, restaurant, library, hospital)
2. Complete the sentences using the simple present (am - is - are):
They at the
I at the
She at the
They at the
12
You at the
We at the
He at the
We at the
3. Complete the sentences using the simple past (was - were):
They at the
I at the
She at the
They at the
You at the
We at the
He at the
We at the
13
WASN´T – WEREN´T I / he / she / it wasn't...... you / we / they weren't......
1. Peter (not be) very happy. He had too much homework to do.
2. The children didn't like their rooms because they (not be) big enough.
3. Nobody ate their lunch because it (not be) what they wanted.
4. We (not be) allowed to talk in class yesterday.
5. I (not be) very happy because I had so much to do.
6. We had to buy some bread because there (not be) any left.
7. There (not be) a good film on at the cinema yesterday, so we went home.
8. I tried to ring you up last night, but you (not be) at home.
Was/Were Questions
Type Was or Were in the boxes below.
1. you there last night?
2. the movie good?
3. you at school yesterday?
4. the doors closed?
5. it very windy?
6. the weather cold?
7. she angry with you?
8. Bill and Fred at the restaurant?
14
9. you thirsty after the walk?
10. the umbrella in the car?
The Simple Past
The simple past tense
This page will present the simple past tense:
its form
and its use.
Before you continue the lesson read the following passage and try to see how the verbs
are formed and used.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was an Austrian musician and
composer. He lived from 1756 to 1791. He started composing
at the age of five years old and wrote more than 600 pieces of
music. He was only 35 years old when he died.
The verbs "was, lived,started, wrote, died" are in the simple
past tense.
Notice that:
lived, started,died are regular past forms.
was, wrote are irregular past forms.
Regular verbs:
The verbs "lived, started, died" are regular past forms. The rule is the following:
Verb + ed
15
Examples:
The infinitive The simple past
live Lived
start Started
die Died
visit Visited
play Played
watch Watched
phone Phoned
marry Married
For the spelling of the -ed forms click here.
Irregular verbs:
The verbs "was, wrote" are irregular past forms. "Was" is the simple past of "to be";
"wrote" is the simple past of "write".
More on the simple past of "to be" here.
There is no rule for these verbs. You should learn them by heart.
The infinitive The simple past
be was/were
write Wrote
come Came
do Did
meet Met
speak Spoke
As you can see we can not predict the simple past forms of these verbs. They are
16
irregular. You should learn them by heart. Here is a list of irregular verbs.
The forms of the simple past:
The Affirmative form of the simple past:
I, you, he, she, it, we, they played.
wrote
did.
Examples:
I played tennis with my friends yesterday.
I finished lunch and I did my homework.
The interrogative form of the simple past:
Did I, you, he, she, it, we, they Play?
write
do?
Examples:
Did you play basketball yesterday?
Did you watch television?
Did you do the homework?
The negative form of the simple past:
I, you, he, she, it, we, they did not/didn't play
write
do
I didn't like the food in the wedding last Saturday.
I didn't eat it.
Remember:
17
didn't is the short form of did not. You can say either:
I did not play basketball, or
I didn't play basketball.
WHO IS J.K. ROWLING
Reading /Complete the story using the Past Simple.
J.K. Rowling is the author of the Harry Potter books.
J. K.'s name is Joanne Kathleen.
She________ ( be) born in 1965 in a small town near Bristol, England.
Joanne____________ (live) with her parents and her sister.
The Rowling family was not rich. Joanne___________ (not go ) to special
schools.
She was a quiet child. She_____________ (love) to read and write stories.
Joanne___________ (go) to Exeter University, and she_______________ (finish)
in 1987.
She___________ (work) in different offices. In her free time, she_________
(write) stories.
In 1990, Joanne's mother_______(die). Joanne______(is) sad, and
she_________(want) to leave England.
She________(see) a job in the newspaper for an English teacher. The job was in
Portugal.
She _______ (have) an interview, and she______ (get) the job. In Portugal,
Joanne______(marry) a Portuguese man.
The next year, Joanne had a daughter, but she _________(be) happy in her
18
marriage.
She _________ (leave) Portugal with her daughter and ______(go) to live to
Edinburgh, Scotland, near her sister.
Life was difficult for Joanne. She___________ (take) care of her
daughter.
She_________ (be) alone and nobody________ (help) her. She______ (have) no
money and no job.
She (live) in a small apartment and ___________ (begin) to write
stories again.
Joanne first_____________ (think) about the Harry Potter story many years
ago
on a train. Joanne liked to go a coffee shop to write. She_______ (sit) there
for many hours.
She___________ (drink) coffee and____________ (write). Her
daughter____________ (sleep) beside her.
After five years, Joanne____________(finish) writing the first
Harry Potter book.
She__________ (send) it to many publishers.
They all_______(say) that they didn't like it.
Finally, a publisher _________(like) it, but the publisher said," This is a
children's book.
Adults won't read. You won't make a lot of money."
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer'Stone was in the bookstores.
J.K.Rowling _____ (be) very happy. Her dream to publish her book________
(come) true.
The book was famous all over the world.
Now Harry Potter book is in forty-two languages.
The publisher was wrong about one thing: Everyone loves Harry Potter-
19
Comprehension/ True or False?:.
1. Joanne was an English teacher in Portugal ______
2. Joanne married an English man in Portugal _______
3. Joanne left her daughter in Portugal _________
4. Joanne finished writing the first Harry Potter book after five years _____
5. Every publisher liked the book _________
6. Harry Potter is in twenty-four languages _________
children and adults.
Over 100 million books were sold in 1999.Then two Harry Potter
books__________ (become) movies.
J.K.Rowling ________ (write) three more Harry Potter books after that.
People all over the world want more Harry Potter. And what is J.K.Rowling
doing now?
She is writing another book!
Words and Meanings/ Choose the correct word.
quiet
author
adults
alone
interview
dreams
all over the
world
1. Good things happened to Joanne.All her____________
came true.
2. J.K.Rowling is an_______________. She writes books.
3. Joanne was not a noisy child. She was_______________.
4. Joanne lived_____________.She didn't live with another
person.
5. Joanne had a meeting about a new job. She had
an_______________.
6. People of all ages like Harry Potter: children
and________________.
7. Harry Potter is famous in every country.
It is famous ______________________________________
20
The past continuous / progressive
The past continuous:
The past continuous, also called past progressive, is used to refer to an action that was
continuous (i.e. an action that was going on) at a particular time in the past.
This page will present the form and the use of the past continuous (progressive.)
(More on the present continuous / progressive)
Before you continue the lesson, read the following passage and try to see how the verbs in
bold are formed and used.
Yesterday, Liza and Jim played tennis. They began at 10:00 and
finished at 11:30.
So at 11:00, they were playing tennis.
They were playing="they were in the middle of playing." They had not finished yet.
Was/were playing is the past continuous.
The form of the past continuous:
The past continuous is formed as follows:
to be in the simple past + verb + ing
The affirmative form:
I, he, she, it Was playing.
you, we, they were
Examples:
21
Yesterday evening I was watching a film, when someone knocked on the door.
This morning I was revising my lessons when my father came in.
Jim and Liza were playing tennis yesterday at 11:00.
The interrogative form:
Was I, he, she, it Playing?
were you, we, they
Examples:
What were you doing yesterday evening?
And what was your mother doing?
Where were you going, this morning at 7:30?
What were Jim and Liza doing?
The negative form:
I, he, she, it was not / wasn't playing.
you, we, they were not / weren't
Examples:
I wasn't reading a book yesterday evening; I was watching a film.
My mother wasn't preparing dinner; she was working on the computer.
We weren't playing cards.
The use of the past continuous:
We use the past continuous to say that somebody was in the middle of doing
something at a certain time in the past.
Example:
"This time yesterday, I was doing my homework."
We use the past continuous to say that something happened in the middle of
something else:
22
Example:
"Bob burnt his hand when he was cooking dinner yesterday"
"While I was working in the garden, I hurt my back."
Remember:
"Wasn't playing" and "weren't playing" are the short forms of "was not playing"
and "were not playing"
Put the verbs into the correct form (past progressive).
1. When I phoned my friends, they (play) monopoly.
2. Yesterday at six I (prepare) dinner.
3. The kids (play) in the garden when it suddenly began to rain.
4. I (practice) the guitar when he came home.
5. We (not / cycle) all day.
6. While Alan (work) in his room, his friends (swim) in the
pool.
7. I tried to tell them the truth but they (not / listen ) .
8. What (you / do) yesterday?
9. Most of the time we (sit) in the park.
10. I (listen) to the radio while my sister (watch) TV.
11. When I arrived, They (play) cards.
12. We (study) English yesterday at 4:00 pm .
PAST CONTINUOUS-DESCRIBING PAST EVENTS
Put the verbs in the Past Continuous tense.
23
Last night was hard. There was a blackout as well as a robbery. People in Smithville were
upset. But what were they doing when the lights went out? A man (wash) the
dishes while his wife ( give) her baby a bath. A blonde woman
(wash) her clothes. Another woman (watch) TV with her husband
and their children (do) their homework. A young man didn't realise the lights
went out because he (listen) to music on his mp3 player. But why did the
lights go out? The director of the power company claims that there was a blackout because
it (rain) heavily but it is said that they (have) a party and
they (not watch) the controls. One of the reporters, Bob,
(wash) the dishes and Dorris, his wife, (have) a bath. Jackie, Bob's colleague,
(work) in the building.
Now let's talk about the robbery. Burglars broke into all the apartments in the building when
all the tenants were out. But what (they/do)? One of the
tenants (wash) his clothes and a woman (visit) a friend. Another
woman (have) a picnic at the beach and a man (play) tennis in the
park. Two men (attend) a football game and a blonde woman
(visit) her grandchildren. What a night!