Download Example of Dice Steps

Guide to VERBS
Verbs are doing words.
Verbs show what people, animals or objects do, feel or are.
They come in 3 forms:
do (an action)
I went to the cinema for my birthday
feel (an occurrence)
He felt sick!
are (a state)
I am happy
When using verbs, you can talk about yourself or someone else.
So, verbs have ‘person’, e.g. I run; you run; it (he or she) runs
One or more things can be ‘doing’ something.
So, verbs have ‘number’, e.g. I run; We run
Things can happen in the past, present and may or may not happen in the future.
So, verbs have ‘tense’, e.g. I ran; I run; I will run: I might run
Verbs can give a sentence a different meaning depending on how they are written.
So, verbs have ‘mood’, e.g. She shouldn’t touch that vase; Don’t touch that vase
Verbs can be used informally (anecdotal / friendly) or formally (proper / polite).
So verbs have ‘voice’, e.g. Joe washed the car; The car was washed by Joe.
Guide to VERBS
Fact 1 - Verbs have ‘person’ and ‘number’
The verb talks about me, you, someone else, or one or more things.
Verbs that end in a consonant such as walk, play and jump behave in the same way. In the
present tense, they only change in the third person singular, where they add s.
Singular
Plural
First Person
I walk
We walk
Second Person
You walk
You (pl) walk
Third Person
He, she or it walks
They walk
Some verbs behave differently, When a verb ends in s, ss, sh, ch, or x, the third person singular is
different - it adds es.
Singular
Plural
First Person
I watch
We watch
Second Person
You watch
You (pl) watch
Third Person
He, she or it watches
They watch
Rule - Verbs must agree with their subject:
“If the noun in front of the verb is singular, then the verb must be singular
too”
Joe watches the football every weekend.
“If the noun or pronoun is plural, then the verb must be plural too”
The cows watch the fox as it crosses the field.
Rule – Nouns agree with verbs in number
A singular noun takes a singular verb. Plural nouns take plural verbs
The exception is collective nouns A collective noun e.g. pair, pride, pack
or flock takes a singular verb
The flock of sheep grazes in the field
Guide to VERBS
Fact 2 - Verbs have tenses
The action of the verb can take place in the past, present or may or may not happen in the
future.
Present tense
The present tense talks about what is happening now. This comes in two forms.
Simple Present
I watch the football.
You would use this when you are talking about something you do regularly or usually:
I watch the football every weekend.
Present Continuous:
I am watching the football.
You use this when you are doing the action for an extended time period, or while you
are doing something else:
I am watching the football while I am doing my homework.
Guide to VERBS
Past tense
The past tense talks about things that happened some time ago. Sometimes these things have
finished happening, and sometimes they haven’t. There are four past tenses, and each one
means something slightly different:
Spelling Tip: Most verbs form the past tense by adding -ed onto the ‘verb stem’, but many of the
verbs we use often are irregular, and you have to learn the past tense.
Simple Past
I watched the football last night
You did the action.
Past Continuous
I was watching the football last night.
You were doing the action for some time, and you might have been doing something
else at the same time:
I was watching the football last night while I did my homework.
Past Perfect
I had watched the football last night.
You have finished the action, which happens before something else does:
I had watched the football last night before my Dad came in.
Past Perfect Continuous
I had been watching the football last night until my dad turned the TV.
The action you were doing was going on when something else happened.
Guide to VERBS
Future Tense
The future tense talks about something that will happen or is going to happen, as well as
something that might or might not happen.
Present tense used to describe future action
Sometimes when we talk about something that is really in the future, we use the
present tense.
I am going to the shops after school.
The plane leaves next Thursday
This is because we know that the thing that is happening in the future has already been
arranged.
Future Tense
I will go to the shops after school
I am going to go swimming after school.
This is what we use when we talk about something that we definitely want or intend to
happen. Both of these things will definitely happen. In the first ‘will’ form, you are
determined that the event will happen. In the second form, you are just explaining what
is going to happen – the event is planned or intended.
Modal Verbs
Sometimes we do not know whether something we intend will take place. The action of
the verb may or may not happen. To express this, we use what are called ‘modal
verbs’ because they describe events that are possible, or probably or likely.
I would go to the shops after school if I could.
I might be playing football next Monday.
May I have a bar of chocolate?
Should I do my homework now, or leave it till later?
Guide to VERBS
Fact 3 - Verbs have moods
Verbs can give a sentence a different meaning depending on how they are written.
All of the examples of verbs so far have been in the indicative mood. This is the one we use to
make statements. Most verbs we use are in the indicative mood.
The Indicative Mood
This is for making statements or asking questions.
We played football before dinner.
Are you going swimming tomorrow?
I will be going on holiday in the summer
There are three other moods:
The Imperative Mood
This is the ‘bossy mood’. We use it to give orders or commands:
Do not touch that vase!
Kick the ball hard!
Watch what you are doing!
The Infinitive Mood
This is the unchanging part of the verb. It usually has ‘to’ in front of it, and we use it
often with verbs that express something we want, need, like, or have to do:
I want to go to the shops.
I love to play football.
I have to do my homework.
The Subjunctive Mood
This mood expresses things that might happen. Often when we talk about things that
might happen we use the modal verbs to help us, but there is one instance when we
use the subjunctive mood and that is with hypothetical statements using if:
If I were to go to London, I would like to stay at a good hotel
If I were not afraid of heights, I might enjoy using the climbing wall
NOTE: It is not correct to say ‘If I was to go’ or ‘If I was to do’.
Guide to VERBS
Fact 4 - Verbs have voice (Required for the Level 6 test only)
Verbs can be used informally (anecdotal/friendly) or formally (proper/polite).
Verbs can be in the active or the passive voice. The active voice is used for most informal
conversation. The passive voice is often used when you are writing formally, or writing reports.
Active voice
In the active voice, the subject of the sentence does the action of the verb:
Joe washes the car.
Joe is the person doing the action – he is washing. Joe is the subject of the sentence,
who is doing the verb. The car is the object of the sentence – it is having washing done
to it.
Ann kicks the ball.
Ann is the person doing the action – she is kicking. Ann is the subject of the sentence,
who is doing the verb. The ball is the object of the sentence – it is having kicking done
to it.
These active voice sentences are constructed like this: subject: active verb: object
Passive voice
In the passive voice, the thing that has the verb done to it is the subject of the
sentence. The subject receives the action of the verb:
The car is being washed by Joe.
The car is having washing done to it by Joe. The car is the subject of the sentence, and
is receiving the action of the verb. Joe is the agent, who is making what the car has
done to it, happen.
The ball is being kicked by Siân.
The ball is having kicking done to it by Siân. The ball is the subject of the sentence,
and is receiving the action of the verb. Siân is the agent, who is making what the ball
has done to it, happen.
These passive voice sentences are constructed like this: subject: passive verb: agent
Passive voice and tenses
The passive voice is used in the past tense as well:
The gazelle was killed by the lion;
The children have been left at home alone;
A new cancer drug has been discovered by scientists
Use of the passive voice makes the written language sound more formal. It also
changes the focus of the sentence from who is doing the verb to the thing that receives
the verb: this is why it is often used to write about science where the thing that is being
investigated or discovered is more important than the people who investigated or
discovered it.