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@GramTime News@
-a corpus-based newsletter
for teachers of English
As a non-native teacher of English one is
often faced with usage questions which
are difficult to answer by means of
dictionaries and grammars. GramTime
News is a free, electronic newsletter,
issued four times a year, which answers
questions on present-day English usage.
It also provides tips about useful books
and websites concerned with the English
language.
To subscribe, send an e-mail to:
[email protected]
with the following message: subscribe
You can also read back issues on our
website:
http://www.hum.vxu.se/publ/gtn
GramTime News is issued by
a research project called
GramTime
which stands for
GRAMmatical Trends
In Modern English
and is based at Växjö University, Sweden
 Project leader:
Hans Lindquist (PhD)
 Project adviser:
Jan Svartvik (Prof. Em.)
 Research assistants: Magnus Levin (MA) and
Maria Estling Vannestål (MA)
Overview of the contents
of previous issues
Usage questions
GTN 98:1
1. Is it correct (as some books say) that the dropping of the
preposition of in such expressions as look out (of) the window is
only used in American English?
2. Is it possible to use an indicative form of the verb (the simple
present) in a subclause following an expression of demand,
suggestion etc., such as Why don't you suggest that he sees his
doctor?
3. Many Swedes use such instead of what in exclamations like Such a
lovely day! and Such terrible weather! How frequent is this
construction among native speakers of English?
4. Is the use of an initial small letter in words for political ideologies
and their adherents or adjectives referring to them as common as
the use of an initial capital letter?
5. What does the title of the recent British film The Full Monty
actually mean?
6. Which is the more common genitive construction with personal
names already ending in -s: an 's (Charles's) or the zero
construction (Charles')?
GTN 98:2
1. Is it OK to leave out the definite article with musical instruments as
objects of the verb play, like in play the piano?
2. How frequent is the use of singular quantifiers (a good/great deal
of, amount of, less) with plural nouns? Are there any regional
differences?
3. Is the use of plenty (of) restricted to spoken language?
4. Which is the most common expression: every second, every two or
every other?
5. How frequent are the alternatives to different from, i.e. different to
and different than?
7. What is the distribution of regular and irregular verb forms with
verbs like spelled/spelt etc. in British, American and Australian
English?
GTN 98:3
1. Are abbreviations such as USA and EU used without the definite
article? Are the names of ships always used with the definite
article?
2. Are titles like Chancellor of the Exchequer and Prime Minister etc.
always written with capital letters?
3. Is the last days etc. ever used without few in sentences like He's
been at home for the last (few) days?
4. How frequent is types/sorts/kinds of books compared to types/sorts/
kinds of book?
5. (a) How frequent is I look/am looking/forward to see you compared
to I look/am looking/ forward to seeing you? (b) Can you say I look
forward seeing you?
GTN 99:1
1. Is there a difference between saying Sweden's economy and the
economy of Sweden?
2. When are the names of seasons and holidays used with the definite
article?
3. How frequent is a conditional construction like Had you been there,
you would have... compared to the if-construction (If you had been
there, you would have...)?
4. Are the adjectives ill and well ever used in a premodifying position,
as in an ill child?
5. Should the verb be in the singular or plural after subject noun
phrases containing a number of or the number of?
GTN 99:2
1. In some cases there is variation in the use or non-use of the proform one, as in The new model is faster than the old (one). Which
should I choose?
2. I have noticed the use of would in if-clauses where I would expect
should. Can you find such examples in your corpora?
3. When should I and me be used in constructions like between you
and I/me, better than I/me and it's I/me?
4. Are plural nouns like police and scissors ever used with singular
verb/pronoun forms?
5. Is it possible to leave out the definite article with the word
knowledge as in (a) good knowledge of Spanish?
6. How frequent is the use of the regular verb form showed as a past
participle?
GTN 99:3
1. How frequent is the progressive form with stative verbs like love,
understand and remain? Are there differences between speech and
writing, between British and American English or between
particular words?
2. When are adverbs used with the -ly ending and when without, as in
real good/really good and dig deep/dig deeply?
3. Which is the most frequent construction of used to in questions and
negative statements?
4. In a previous issue you discussed the use of out the window/door
vs. out of the window/door and concluded that the simple
preposition out was very frequent in spoken British English. I have
also come across the use of the simple preposition together with a
word for an enclosed space, as in out the room. What do you find in
your corpora?
GTN 99:4
1. Is the expression to read English replacing to study English?
2. Is it a nonsense to say a Chinese?
3. Can you say who of?
4. Is it OK to say We have three cars, of which two are Volvos in stead
of We have three cars, two of which are Volvos?
5. Which preposition should be used with adjectives like harmful,
harmless, advantageous and disadvantageous?
6. Can you say I use to/don't use to go by bike to work?
7. Which is more frequent with abbreviations like The U.S., periods or
no periods after the abbreviated letters?
GTN 00:1
1. Which form of the verb – the infinitive, the -ing form or the to
infinitive – should be used after the construction rather than?
2. I've heard Shania Twain's hit That don't impress me much, but to
me this title just sounds wrong. Shouldn't it be That doesn't impress
me much?
3. Can you say He behaved himself badly?
4. Can friendly be used as an adverb?
5. Are the names of foreign newspapers used with or without the
definite article in English?
6. How frequent is the use of reflexive instead of personal pronouns in
sentences such as She closed the door behind herself?
GTN 00:2
1. When visiting the States, I have heard people use the preterite form
of irregular verbs as past participles (e.g. I have came). How
frequent is this usage? Does it only occur in the U.S.?
2. How are the female titles Mrs, Miss and Ms used in present-day
English?
3. What is the origin of the noun woman and why is the plural form,
women, pronounced so strangely?
4. How acceptable and how frequent is the use of plural verbal
agreement with subjects consisting of either, neither and none?
5. I don't know which preposition to choose! Can your corpora help
me?
GTN 00:3
1. How are uncountable nouns, such as advice and furniture, treated in
authentic usage? I have a feeling that constructions of type a piece
of furniture and a word of advice actually are very infrequent.
2. I learnt about logical plurals at school: My children have good
appetites etc. Do native speakers always use this, or would it be
possible to say as we do in Swedish: My children have good
appetite?
3. It seems that with some adverbs both the -ly form and the suffixless form are used together with some verbs. Is this okay?
4. My teacher told me never to use the adjective handsome about
women and never to use beautiful about men. Is English usage
really this strict?
5. How should one refer back to an indefinite pronoun or noun
phrase denoting a person, as in You could ask someone/a friend
what ______ would do?
6. At school my teacher told me that I should avoid using the word
siblings to refer to brothers and sisters, since it was restricted to
scientific (especially medical) usage. Nowadays I often hear and
see siblings used, both by my students and by native speakers. Has
this word become everyone's possession lately?
Book tips





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David Crystal: English as a global language(98:1)
David Crystal: Language Play (98:3)
Tom McArthur: The English Languages (98:3)
Laurie Bauer & Peter Trudgill (eds.): Language myths (99:1)
Jan Svartvik: Engelska - öspråk, världsspråk, trendspråk (99:2)
Alan Partington: Patterns and meanings. Using corpora for
English language research and teaching (99:3)
 Robin Dunbar: Grooming, Gossip and the Evolution of
Language (00:1)
Web tips
 Have a go at using a corpus (99:2):
http://titania.cobuild.collins.co.uk//
 Learn more about old and new words and expressions (99:3):
http://www.bentarz.se/me
 Check out a website with links to on-line newspapers,
magazines, dictionaries, grammars and much more (99:4):
http://jupiter.lang.osaka-u.ac.jp/~krkvls/newsstand.html
 More on words (00:1):
http://www.quinion.com/words/
 Plenty of tips for English teachers: vocabulary exercises, lesson
plans, penpal lists and many other things (00:2):
http://jupiter.lang.osaka-u.ac.jp/~krkvls/newsstand.html
 Learn English and learn about the world – at the same time!
(00:3):
http://literacynet.org/cnnsf/