Adverbs of frequency: And some other adverbs like: also, only, probably, almost, even, all & both COME BEFORE THE MAIN VERB.. These adverbs come AFTER the verb 'TO BE'.. The traffic isn'
Trang 1by Viv Quarry (www.vivquarry.com)
1. Position of adverbs
Adverbs of frequency:
And some other adverbs like: also, only, probably, almost, even, all & both
COME BEFORE THE MAIN VERB
Eg. Jack hardly ever watches television and rarely reads newspapers
She almost fell over as she came down the stairs
However, they must come BEFORE 'have to'
Eg. We always have to wait a long time for a bus
These adverbs come AFTER the verb 'TO BE'
Eg. The traffic isn't usually as bad as it was this morning
Why are you always late? You're never on time
BUT AFTER AUXILIARY verbs (WILL, DO & HAVE) and the modals CAN, MUST, SHOULD & MIGHT
Eg. It will probably rain tomorrow
She doesn't usually smoke
My parents have always lived in London
John's car has probably been stolen
I can never remember his name
Trang 2He should be more punctual and he should also work harder
If he had arrived sooner he might never have missed the bus
In negative sentences, probably comes before the negative
Eg. I probably won't see you. or I will probably not see you. He still hasn't done it yet.
Adverbs do not usually come between a verb and a direct object
Eg. I like tennis very much He drove the car very fast
2. Word order in sentences
The most common word order in sentences is : SUBJECT + VERB + OBJECT
English sentence structure usually follows the pattern:
1. WHAT Eg. He was lying quietly |1 You worked hard |1 He stayed
2. WHERE in bed. |2 |2 in the office
3. WHEN |3 today. |3 until 3pm
However, in very long sentences with various clauses it is better to start with the WHEN clause
Eg. Last year I spent three months working on a project at Shell Centre in London
Verbs can be followed by a direct object (THING) and an indirect object (PERSON)
THE PERSON USUALLY COMES FIRST
Eg. He owes my brother ten pounds. They read him his rights
I bought her a car. It took him a long time
She lent me her pen. She wrote me three letters
The policeman showed me his ID card. Pass me the salt, please
My father brought me home. They sent him the report
They gave John a very nice present. She told me the answer
They refused to give David a visa. They offered him the job
Note! THE PERSON CAN COME AFTER THE THING (with the preposition TO or FOR) IF
Trang 3(direct object)
Eg. I owe ten pounds to the brother of a friend of mine
She gave it to the woman in the blue dress
They brought some food for the people who had been rescued
WHEN BOTH OBJECTS ARE PRONOUNS, THE THING MUST COME BEFORE THE PERSON
Eg. Give it to me!
Show it to her
Buy it for me
THE THING (direct object) MUST ALSO COME FIRST WITH THESE VERBS :
EXPLAIN DESCRIBE REPORT INTRODUCE SUGGEST
Eg. I explained the problem to my wife
He described the criminal to the police
She explained the situation to the manager
I introduced the new teacher to the students
We suggested the idea to our boss