Engames and Fluency MC have joined forces again to bring you a post that will help you decide whether you should use a gerund or an infinitive after a verb. This post is not going to provide a comprehensive overview of the grammar. Our aim is to give your students a simple guide to help them decide correctly between the two parts of speech most of the time.
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The post contains a song, an infographic, an interactive online quiz and a game.
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Gerund or Infinitive – pretest
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]Do you think you know the grammar already and don´t need to read the article? Try the following test and see how well you do. [viralQuiz id=1]
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Gerund or Infinitive – song
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]Watch the following song and complete the lyrics. The aim of this song is to introduce the topic.
Here are the lyrics in a pdf file:
Lyrics gerund
Here are the lyrics as supplied and created by Fluency MC:
Gerund-or-Infinitive
Gerund-or-Infinitive-2
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Gerund and Infinitive – infographic
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]The following infographic does not contain a comprehensive list of all the verbs. Only the verbs that are used in the song appear here.
These rules are so called rules of thumb. They work in most cases but not all. However, to use the rules correctly, students first have to understand them.
The rule goes like this: “If the first verb happens before the second verb, use TO. If the second verb happens at the same time or before the first verb use the ending -ING with the second verb. “ Thus in the sentence “I hope to go to the party,” I first hope and then go to the party. That is why you use TO. On the other hand, in the sentence “I enjoyed going to the party,” I enjoyed the party at the same time as I was there.
Assess your students understanding of the rules using the following test. Choose 10 verbs at random and ask your students to write them down and write if they think they should be followed by TO or -ING. Then go through their responses and elicit the correct answers.
Once you feel that the students know the grammar, it is time to practise it.
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Gerund or infinitive – online quiz
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]The best way to remember the verb patterns is by using them. The following quiz is in HTML5 and will work on all mobile devices.
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To display the quiz on full screen click the button below.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/verb patterns/Verb patterns quiz gerund (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Gerund or infinitive? – quiz[/su_button]
The second game is in Flash and will play only on desktop computers. It is called On Target, and your task is to choose the correct option and then shoot all the bad cows and ducks. You can shoot one of the bottles on the wall to get a bonus. Enjoy.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/verb patterns/Gerund or infinitive on target.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Gerund or infinitive – On target game[/su_button]
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Gerund or infinitive – links
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]At engames.eu I have already published two posts on the use of gerunds and infinitives in English. The first post is called Verb Patterns – preintermediate, and the second is called Verb Patterns again – final solution. You can practise the grammar there as well.
Yesterday a friend sent me a song he’d written that uses only the past simple and past continuous tenses. He asked me how I liked it, and I had to admit it was great. A few hours later I encountered a short explanation of the same grammar by Australiaplus.com, and I realised that I wanted to share both with my friends on the Internet. This post is the result.
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In this post there is the song by Chris Barickman, a video explanation, an explanation by Australiaplus.com, an infographic and an interactive quiz.
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Past simple and continuous – song
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Let’s start with the song. Please listen and complete the lyrics:
The lyrics worksheet:
Past continuous tense lyrics
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Past simple and continuous – explanation
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Now listen to the following explanation.
And here is another short explanation of the same grammar by Australiaplus.com:
https://soundcloud.com/australiaplus/past-continuous
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Past simple and continuous – infographic
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Here is a set of infographics created by www.engames.eu.
See how the questions are formed in the past continuous tense
See when you should use the past continuous tense
If you want to download the full infographic in superb quality, you can do that here:
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/grammar/past_continuous/past-continuous-full.jpg” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Past continuous tense – full infographic[/su_button]
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Past simple and continuous – quiz
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The following quiz is in HTML 5 so it will play on all mobile devices and desktop computers. Your task is to choose the correct tense – either the past simple or the past continuous. Enjoy the games if you pass the tests.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/grammar/past_continuous/Past simple or continuous test (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Past simple or past continuous? – quiz[/su_button]
The past tenses of the modal verbs MUST, CAN and CAN’T often cause problems, even for advanced students of English. I have heard some of my best students, who had already passed the CAE exam, use words like MUSTED, and I was not happy about it. That is why I try to teach this grammar thoroughly.
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In this post I would like to share an infographic and additional exercises I use to teach this grammar point. I hope you find this post useful. Please don’t hesitate to share any of your materials on this topic. You can send them to my email: rotreklzdenek @gmail.com. Thank you.
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Modals in the past tense – infographic
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Display the following infographic to your students and explain that MUST does not have a past tense. Instead, they should use the past tense of HAVE TO. Go through all the verbs and elicit their meaning. Then ask your students to work in pairs. One of them will turn with their back to the screen, and the other will say the verb in the present tense. The student whose back is turned then has to say the verb in the past tense. It is a kind of drill, but if you ask your students to do this for one minute each, it is very effective.
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Modal verbs in the past tense – quiz
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The following quiz is in HTML 5 so it will work on all mobile devices and desktop computers. Students can do the quiz either at home or at school in a computer lab. If they complete each of the texts with the correct modal verb in the past tense they will be rewarded with a game.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/modal_verbs/Past tense of Modals (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f8d23c” size=”6″]Modal verbs in the past tense quiz[/su_button]
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Modal verbs in the past tense – links
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There are some very interesting exercises at the British Council site.
There are more exercises on this topic at the BBC learning English site.
This is the last post in which we try to teach the irregular verbs mentioned in the rap song by Fluency MC. This time there are 15 irregular verbs and to help you teach or learn them there is an infographic, a quiz and a game.
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Irregular verbs – song
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]First, listen to the following song and complete the lyrics. Start at 2:45.
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The lyrics worksheet:
Irregular verbs song lyrics 4
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Irregular verbs – infographic
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]Display or hand out the following infographic and go through the irregular verbs with your students. Explain the meaning of the more difficult verbs if necessary or ask your students to use dictionaries.
To print ot the infographic, use the following pdf file:
Irregular verbs with fluency 04
Irregular verbs – online quiz
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]The following online quiz consists of two parts. In the first part the students should match the irregular verbs and their meanings, and then complete the sentences with an appropriate irregular verb in the past tense.
In the second part the students should drag the irregular verbs to the appropriate spaces in the sentences. After they pass each part of the quiz they will be rewarded with a game.
The quiz is created in HTML5, so it will play on all electronic devices and computers. [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/irregular_verbs/withFluencyMC/Irregular%20verbs%20with%20Fluency%20MC%204%20(Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f8d23c” size=”6″]Irregular verbs Quiz[/su_button]
The second game is called Goose Science Quiz, and your task is to click the dice in the upper right hand corner and then answer the questions. If you manage to get to the finish first, you will win the game. The game can be played by multiple people at the same time.
Once again, the game is in HTML5, so it will play on all electronic devices and computers.
Irregular verbs – all irregular verbs with Fluency MC posts
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]As I wrote above, this is the fourth post we have prepared together with Fluency MC. You can find the previous posts here:
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Students often learn just one piece of grammar in a lesson. Most of them master that day’s subject and move on to the next. But, when the time for revision comes, they often don’t remember what they’ve learnt.
For example, two weeks ago my class encountered an exercise in which several tenses were revised. First, they demanded that I re-explain the grammar and then they seemed really confused about what form they should use.
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That was why I decided to stop there and prepare several exercises and a clear mind map. You can find them here.
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Six tenses – infographic
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There are two different mind maps in this post. The first one shows when different tenses should be used. If you decide to use this mind map, you will have to explain the grammar yourselves.
The second infographic is much more detailed. You will have to explain this one to your students as well. You have to emphasize that they first have to ask when the action happens. Does it happen NOW, IN THE FUTURE, IN THE PAST or ALL THE TIME? Once they answer that question, they should follow the appropriate branch. If the action happens in the past, they have to decide if the action was a long one or a short one and then use the appropriate tense.
If the action happens in the future, they have to decide how certain the action is and then use the appropriate form. Promises and predictions are considered uncertain.
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Six tenses – online quiz
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Now that your students understand the grammar, they have to use it as soon as possible. Allow them to use the infographic here.
The following online quiz is in HTML5, so your students can try it out on their mobile phones while you do it on the interactive whiteboard. The quiz has two parts. You will get to play a game after each part if you pass.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/grammar/six tenses/Six tenses exercises (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f8d23c” size=”6″]Six tenses quiz[/su_button]
If you cannot do the exercise online, you can try the following paper version of the quiz.
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More exercises
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You can find more exercises to practise different tenses at Five Tenses and Five Tenses additional exercises.
As I wrote before, irregular verbs are the most important thing for all students of English to learn. However, it is not easy to master them. That is why Fluency and I started to collaborate on a series of posts that deal with teaching just the irregular verbs.
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In this post we are going to introduce another set of 15 verbs. To learn them there is a song, an infographic, a quiz and a game. If you go through all the activities you will meet each word at least 6 times. We hope you will like our work and share the post.
Irregular verbs – song
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]Listen to the following song and try to complete the lyrics. To complete the lyrics start the song at 2:05.
You can find the lyrics here:
Lyrics part 3
Irregular verbs – infographic
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]Here is the infographic with all the irregular verbs, you should learn in this post. For each word there is a definition (in either word or picture form) and two examples of usage.
Display the infographic and go through the verbs with your students. Explain the meaning of the difficult words.
Irregular verbs – game and quiz
[/su_heading]Here is a two-part online quiz. Your task is to choose the correct answers and pass the quiz. You you will be rewarded with a game after each part of the quiz if you pass.
This game is in HTML5, so it will play on all mobile devices as well as desktop computers.
Irregular verbs – other sites
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]You can find more irregular verbs practise at https://grammarlane.com/irrverbs/irrverbsen.html . Choose the irregular verbs you want to practise and choose the mode (speaking or writing). Then write or say the past tense and the past participle of the verbs you see.
Irregular verbs by British Council.
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A song by Fluency MC on irregular verbs:
In my opinion, irregular verbs are the most important thing one has to learn in English. Therefore, it is absolutely essential that students know them. However, teaching them is not easy. There are no rules, and the number of new words that students manage to commit to memory is quite low. Thus the teaching materials have to be interesting enough that students would return to them.
And one of the best materials for teaching irregular verbs is this song, which was created by Jason R Levine from Fluency MC:
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In this post we are going to deal with the verbs mentioned in the second verse of the song. Below you will find an infographic, an online quiz and a game to help your students learn the irregular verbs.
[su_spacer] [su_heading]Irregular verbs – infographic
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]Display the following infographic and go through the words with them. Use the pictures to explain the meaning or ask your students to use their dictionaries.
Rate this picture:
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Irregular verbs – an online quiz and a game
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]Start with the online quiz. The quiz is in HTML5 so it will play on mobile devices too. In the first part, you should drag the words to the correct spaces. If you pass, you will be rewarded with a game called Angry Farmer. In the second part, you have to look at the picture and complete the sentence. Use the past tense of a verb that best fits the sentence. [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/irregular_verbs/Irregular verbs with Fluency MC 2 (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f8d23c” size=”6″]Irregular verbs quiz[/su_button] [su_spacer] [su_heading]
Irregular verbs – links[/su_heading] [su_spacer]
You can practise the irregular verbs in sentences in the following video.
Irregular verbs by British Council.
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A song by Fluency MC on irregular verbs:
I have already published 10 posts on teaching irregular verbs. You can see the list of the posts down here:
- Irregular verbs again
- Irregular verbs again 2
- Irregular verbs – third time lucky?
- Irregular verbs in context 1
- Irregular verbs straightforward
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- Irregular verbs straightforward #2
- Irregular verbs straightforward #3
- Teach 9 irregular verbs in one lesson
- Irregular verbs in context – Scream
- Irregular verbs in context – Teacher story
But I still cannot say that my students know the verbs. That was why I joined forces with Fluency MC, and this time we would like to teach the irregular verbs together.
To achieve this, we have prepared a song, an infographic, a game and an online quiz. We believe that if you go through all the activities, you will know the 20 irregular verbs we would like to teach in this post.
Irregular verbs – song
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]Listen to the song and complete the lyrics.
Irregular verbs lyrics first part
[su_spacer] [su_heading]Irregular verbs – infographic
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]Show the following infographic to your students and ask them to go through the example sentences. If you teach a monolingual class, ask them to translate the more difficult sentences. Note that the print version of the worksheet looks different than the infographic here:
You can download the print version of the infographic here:
Irregular verbs with Fluency MC 1
[su_spacer] [su_spacer] [su_heading]Irregular verbs – online quiz
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]Now it is time to test your students knowledge. Ask them to complete the following online test. If they pass they will be rewarded with a game.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/irregular_verbs/Irregular%20verbs%20with%20Fluency%20MC%20%28Web%29/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f8d23c” size=”6″]Online quiz on irregular verbs[/su_button] [su_spacer] [su_heading]Fluency MC – more videos
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]You can watch more videos by Fluency MC here:
I always loved the word formation part of the FCE test. This was the part of the test where I always scored really high. However, some of my students don’t. So I sat down and tried to find out why I have been so successful in this part of the test.
And the result? I believe that I do well on these tests because I know the other forms of words. I take the key word and then learn all of its other forms, and when I meet the word in a test I am able to remember the correct form.
In this post I am going to give you a chance to do the same. I selected 10 words that regularly appear in the word formation test for B2 level, and I listed all the forms and example sentences. What should you do? Try to memorise all the forms from the infographic and then go through the online quizzes.
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Word formation – infographic
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Study the following infographic and try to remember all the forms. Do not forget to notice the differences in meaning.
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Do not spend too much time just learning the forms. It is best to use them in context, so I believe it is time to move to the online quizzes.
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Word formation – online quizzes
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The first online quiz is in HTML5 so it will play on all devices. Your task is to choose the correct form of the words, and if you pass the quiz you will be given a chance to play a game as a reward.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/vocabulary/wordformation/Word formation 01 (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f08cf5″ size=”6″]Word formation quiz – full screen[/su_button]
The second game is called En Garde and it will only play on your desktop as it is made in flash. Your task is to choose the correct answer and then stop the circle as close to the centre as possible. Will you win?
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/vocabulary/wordformation/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f08cf5″ size=”6″]Word formation quiz – full screen[/su_button]
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Word formation – links
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You can find more interesting exercises at the British Council site.
Conditionals scare students to death. They seem complicated and difficult to understand. But as I explain, they only seem to be like this. In fact, they are quite simple and easy to comprehend.
In this post, I will try to keep things as simple as possible. I will deal only with one type of conditional – the second conditional. At the beginning of the post, there is a song that clearly demonstrates the form and the meaning of the grammar. Then there is a mind map and another explanation of the meaning.
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Second conditional – song
First, ask your students to listen and complete the following lyrics. Then ask them to listen and sing the song. In this way they will improve their listening and pronunciation, and they will notice the form of the second conditional.
Second conditional song lyrics
Second conditional song:
[su_spacer]Second Conditional – Infographic
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Display the following mind map and ask the students to read the sentences. Then elicit the form of the second conditional.
Draw the students’ attention to the pictures at the bottom of the page and explain the usage of the second conditional. It is used for imagined situations.
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[su_spacer]You can find some excellent materials for teaching the second conditional at the British Council site.
There is a nice explanation of this grammar at the BBC Learning English site too.
The past continuous tense is one of the most graphical tenses in English. By “graphical” I mean that it is easy to demonstrate the difference between the past simple and past continuous tense in a video or in a short dramatic sketch. Unfortunately, I could not find a video demonstrating the difference betweent the two past tenses, and that is why I created one myself.
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In addition to this video I created an infographic and an online quiz to practise the past continuous tense.
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Past continuous – infographic
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This infographic explains the form and the usage of the past continuous tense in a graphical way.
First, concentrate on the form. Explain that the students have to use the verbs WAS or WERE and the verb ending with -ing. Then explain how the negative and questions are formed.
If your students cannot create the -ing form properly, refer to the following post on the present continuous tense, which shows how the -ing verbs are formed.
Once you get to the usage of the past continuous tense, play the video. Play it twice and the second time stop the video and highlight the differences in the scenes and the tenses.
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Past continuous – online quiz
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You can use the following online test in class or you can ask your students to do it at home. The online quiz consists of two parts. In the first part, the students are asked to put the verb into the past continuous tense. In the second part they have to choose either the past simple tense or the past continuous tense.
If you want to play the online quiz in full screen click the button below.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/grammar/past_continuous/Past continuous tense (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f08cf5″ size=”6″]Past continuous – online quiz[/su_button]
Or you can use the flash version here:
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/grammar/past_continuous/flash_soubory/past_continuous_quiz.html” target=”blank” background=”#f08cf5″ size=”6″]Past continuous – online quiz[/su_button]
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Past continuous – share
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More often than not I teach in classrooms with no internet connection, so I realize that it is important to be able to use the activities offline too. You can download the online quiz, the game, and the picture and use them offline:
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Past continuous tense download
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Past continuous tense – links
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You can find one more post on past continuous tense here.
There is also a good discussion of the past continuous tense at the British Council site.
And the last link is to the BBC Learning English site.
In the following post intermediate students of English can learn to form wish clauses starting with I WISH or IF ONLY. In my opinion wish clauses are quite easy to master. However, if you feel it differently, there are several helpful features to change your mind. There are several interactive quizzes, an explanatory video and an infographic.
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If you have a blog or a website, where you would like to share the content published here, you can do so by downloading the zip file at the end of the post and uploading it to your web.
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Wish clauses – infographic
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The following infographic contains the basic explanation how to form wish clauses.
I did not manage to get into the infographic several pieces of information. First, if you regret something something that you did not do in the past and you use the verb could, you do not use the past perfect tense but you use the form COULD HAVE DONE something.
Second, we use the from I WISH somebody WOULD do something, if we are angry and we would like someone to change their behaviour right now and keep it changed in the future too.
Third, in wish clauses we can use WERE instead of WAS and it is still correct.
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Wish clauses – video
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At BBClearningEnglish.com they publish great materials for learning English. However, most often than not they publish their material as an mp3 file instead of video. That is why I have turned their wonderful Grammar Challenge on regrets into the following video.
You can find the original mp3 file at http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/radio/specials/922_gramchallenge5/
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Wish clauses – quizzes
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The following interactive quizzes are in HTML5 so they will play in all browsers on all mobile devices.
The quizzes contain nearly 30 sentences to practise the grammar. If you pass the test you can play a short game.
If you prefer doing the quiz on the full screen click the button below:
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/grammar/wish_clauses/new_version/Wish clauses quiz (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f08cf5″ size=”6″]WISH CLAUSES – full screen quiz[/su_button]
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/grammar/wish_clauses/new_version/Wish clauses quiz_flash (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f08cf5″ size=”6″]WISH CLAUSES – flash quiz[/su_button]
https://engames.eu/grammar/wish_clauses/new_version/Wish clauses quiz_flash (Web)/index.html
If you feel you have not had enough practice, you can go to British council site and try the quizzes there.
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Wish clauses – share
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If you like the quiz above and you would like to share it on your blog or use it in a classroom without an internet connection, you can do this. You can download all the files here and upload them to your site just unpack the files and use them in the classroom:
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wish clauses002
The difference between LITTLE and FEW, especially when you add A LITTLE and A FEW, causes a lot of problems event to students whose English is really good. In this post I try to teach the difference in a graphical way. Having studied the infographic, you should try the interactive quiz and check whether you really got the grammar right.
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Few and Little – infographics
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Study the infographic. Notice the difference between A LITTLE and LITTLE. If there is the article A – it means that there is some. Without the article we say that there is not enough of something.
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If you think you understand the concept, it is time to check your understanding in the following quiz.
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Few and Little – quiz
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The following quiz is in HTML5, so it will play on all mobile devices. If you pass the test, you will be given the chance to play the game TIC-TAC-TOE against the computer. Remember that it is possible to beat the computer, but it might take you some time before you find the correct way.
You can take the quiz on the full screen by clicking the button:
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/countable/Few and little (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f08cf5″ size=”6″]Few and little – full screen[/su_button]
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Few and Little – more practice
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If you feel you need more practice, you should try the following pages:
The difference between Little and Few is a part of a larger concept called countability in English. If you would like to understand the whole concept, I can recommend the following posts:
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Little and Few – share
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If you like the quiz above and you would like to share it on your blog or use it in a classroom without an internet connection, you can do this. You can download all the files here and upload them to your site just unpack the files and use them in the classroom:
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Few and little (Web)
About half a year ago I published a post where I tried to explain the usage of 5 different tenses. About 71,000 people have viewed this post but several complained that there was not enough practice. That is why I have decided to reintroduce this topic and add three more quizzes to practise the five tenses. So here we go!
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Five tenses – mind map
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Study the following mind map. There I try to explain the usage of the following tenses: Present simple, present perfect simple, present continuous, be going to and past simple.
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And if you think you understand the grammar, it is time to try the quiz.
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Five tenses – quiz
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You can choose either the print version of the quiz or the digital version of the quiz.
You can download the word document here and you can edit it in any way you like. The key is included.
If you prefer the interactive version of the same quiz, you can find it down here.
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[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/Five tenses_more quizzes (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” size=”5″]Five tenses – full screen quiz
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If you would like to do more practice, you can go to British Council site and try several more exercises there.
Students make a lot of mistakes in present perfect tense. I have tried to collect the most typical ones and I have put them into a mind map and tried to explain the rules there. Moreover, I have added two games to give the students a chance to practice the grammar one more time.
To be able to form the present perfect tense correctly, it is necessary to know the past participles. Students can learn the past participles in the following posts:
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Common mistakes – Mind map
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I have collected the following mistakes my students make:
In the first bubble there is the wrong sentence, then there is the correct sentence and at the end of each branch there is the explanation.
For teaching purposes it might be a good idea to leave the end of the branch empty and ask the students to come up with their own explanation. You can find the mind map here:
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Common mistakes – Games
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All the mistakes can be divided into three categories:
- bad knowledge of the past participles
- Not using has
- wrong subject in the answers.
If you feel that you have problems with the past participles I recommend the following video:
If you need more practise of past participles and irregular verbs go to Irregular verbs straightforward and Irregular verbs straightforward#2.
To deal with problems 2 and 3 I have prepared two games. The first one is an HTML5 quiz and your task is to answer the tasks correctly. At the end there is a game as a reward for your effort.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/common_mistakes/Common Mistakes_present perfect (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f08cf5″ size=”6″]Common mistakes – present perfect quiz[/su_button]
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The second game is more game like, but it is in Flash and it will work only on your desktop. It is called On Target and your task is to answer the questions and then shoot the bad ducks.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/common_mistakes/Present_perfect_mistakes_ontarget.html” target=”blank” background=”#f08cf5″ size=”6″]Common mistakes – present perfect On Target[/su_button]
By now you should know the grammar well.
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Common mistakes – Share
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If you would like to use the games in a classroom with no internet connection you can download the following files. You can share these games on your website too.
Prepositions are one of the favourite test items. They appear at tests like FCE or CAE and if you know them then you can get a lot of points. Moreover, if you use the prepositions correctly, people find it easier to understand you.
The aim of this post is to teach several high-frequency phrases starting with the preposition IN. There are two quizzes with games a mind map and a mnemonic to help you remember all the phrases.
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Preposition IN – mind map
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The following mind map shows all the phrases that I would like to teach. On the right side there are the key words organised into simple logical lines which should make them easier to remember.
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Some might find the lines on the right side difficult to understand. It should work as a mnemonic. It is much easier to remember 4 sentences than to remember 20 separate phrases. You should read the lines and imagine the picture. For example:
Common general like touch bed danger
Imagine a normal soldier who likes touching bed in danger.
In the same way try to remember the other three sentences. The sentence after the slash creates the image you should remember.
debt my opinion fact doubt other words / The debt in my opinion is a fact. Doubt other words.
prison time vain any case advance / Time in prison is spend in vain, but it passes in any case.
touch the south the end the sky / Touch the south end of the sky.
Anyway, once you remember these lines, do not forget that there is IN in front of them 🙂
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Preposition IN – games and quizzes
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I have prepared two HTML5 quizzes to practice the grammar. In the first quiz you should drag the correct word into the correct gap. This game will work on any mobile device too, so you can practice anywhere you go.
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[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/Prepositions_time/Phrases with IN (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#771f9b” size=”6″]Phrases with the preposition IN – Quiz[/su_button]
The second game is a simple crossword. Complete the crossword with the phrases with the preposition IN. Again the game is in HTML5 and will work on any mobile device or desktop.
[su_button url=”http://www.envocabulary.eu/crossword/?puzzle=prepostion-in” target=”blank” background=”#771f9b” size=”6″]Phrases with the preposition IN – crosswords[/su_button]
I have already dealt with the usage of prepositions in the posts Prepositions AT, IN and ON for time and Adjectives with prepositions. However, this post is different because it concentrates only on the phrases IN THE END, AT THE END, IN TIME and ON TIME which are frequently used incorrectly by students of English. In this post I would like to explain the usage and meaning of the phrases. To achieve this I have created a mind map, an interactive video and two quiz games.
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Set phrases – mind map
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In this mind map I try to explain the meaning and the usage of the phrases IN THE END, AT THE END, IN TIME and ON TIME.
If you feel that this explanation is not clear enough, there is a video explanation which can help you.
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Set phrases – interactive video
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In this interactive video you can see and here the explanation of the usage of the phrases. The video contains many questions which you have to answer to move on. In this way you can check immediately whether you understand the phrases and use them correctly. The video is in HTML5 so it will play on your mobile device too.
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Set phrases – games
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Now, I hope, you understand the usage and meaning of the phrases IN THE END, AT THE END, IN TIME and ON TIME. So do not hesitate to try out our interactive exercises and games. The first game is in HTML5 and it will play on any mobile device.
Your task is to complete the quiz with the correct phrases and if you pass you will be given a chance to play the game Word boggle (really great addictive game which might help you improve your English a lot).
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/grammar/phrases_time_end/In the end quiz (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#ad1776″]Set phrases – Word game[/su_button]
The second game will play only on your desktop. It is called Hoopshoot and your task is to choose the correct answer and then score. Good luck.
In this post I would like to teach you how to use the words DESPITE, IN SPITE OF, ALTHOUGH, EVEN THOUGH, BECAUSE OF and BECAUSE correctly. I will explain the meaning of the words and the grammar. To help you with this there are two games, a mind map, a video explanation and a graphical explanation. I hope you will learn to use these conjunctions.
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Conjunctions – meaning
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The meaning of the conjunctions DESPITE and IN SPITE OF is the same. ALTHOUGH and EVEN THOUGH are the same as well. And so are the meanings of the words BECAUSE and BECAUSE OF. As you will see later the main difference between these words is their grammar.
The meaning of these conjunctions is clearly explained in the following graphics:
If you want to print out the graphic, you can download the pdf file below:
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Conjunctions – the usage
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As I write above, the main difference between the phrases is their usage. To cut the explanation short, the words DESPITE, IN SPITE OF and BECAUSE OF are followed by a noun phrase or a gerund (verb + ing). The conjunctions BECAUSE, EVEN THOUGH and ALTHOUGH are followed by a clause.
You can see the explanation again in the following mind map:
To make it absolutely clear, here is an interactive video explaining the usage of the words BECAUSE and BECAUSE OF.
This video uses the free recording offered by BBC learning English at http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/radio/specials/165_gramchallenge10/
To experience the video full screen click on the following button (as it is HTML5 video it will work on your mobile too):
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/despite conjunctions/BECAUSE and BECAUSE OF (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#17ad38″]BECAUSE – video explanation[/su_button]
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Conjunctions – quizzes and games
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The first game is slightly easier but it can be played only on your desktop. It is called Hoopshoot and your task is to choose the correct conjunction. If you succeed you will be given a chance to score a basket.
The second quiz is fully in HTML5 so it will play on any mobile device you own. Your task is to connect both of the sentences into one and use the conjunction in the brackets. If you pass the test you will play the game called Math Pop and practise your Maths too.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/despite conjunctions/Despite quiz (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#17ad38″]Conjunctions – quiz and Math pop game[/su_button]
When students hear the phrase indirect questions, they get scared. But actually this is one of the easiest grammar points in English. The only thing you have to watch out for is that if a sentence starts with a certain phrase (Do you know or Could you tell me etc.) you have to use the word order for an affirmative sentence. To put it simply, after the aforementioned phrases do not make questions.
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To help you master this grammar there is a mind map, a video and several games in this post.
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Indirect questions – video
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The following video is based upon BBC learning English recording. To make it easier for learners of English to follow I have added the text and illustrations.
We recommend that you watch the video and stop the recording every time there is a task and answer the task before MASA does. It is a great fun and a superb way to learn English.
If you want to watch it full screen, click here:
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/indirect questions/Grammar challenge_indirect questions_film (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#17ad38″]Indirect questions video[/su_button]
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Indirect questions – mind map
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The following mind map tries to show the rules for indirect questions in a graphical form. As you can see each indirect question has to start with a phrase signalling that it is an indirect question. Then you use a question word or IF/WHETHER (if there is no WH.. word) and the word order of a normal statement.
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Indirect questions – games
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Now it is time to practise what you have learnt in the following games. The first one is a quiz with two games. If you answer the quiz correctly you can play the games called Angry Farmer and Math Pop. Both the quiz and the games are in HTML5 so you can play them on your mobile phones.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/indirect questions/indirect questions_quiz (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#17ad38″]Indirect questions Quiz[/su_button]
The second game is in Flash and it will play only on your desktop. It is the notorious On target game. If you choose the correct option you will be given a chance to shoot the bad ducks. Moreover, you can get a bonus if you shoot one of the bottles on the sides. Enjoy.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/indirect questions/indirect questions on Target.swf” target=”blank” background=”#17ad38″]Indirect questions On Target[/su_button]
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Vocabulary videos
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On Youtube we have created a new channel which contains all the vocabulary videos we have created. Here are some of them. So do not miss them:
You can learn the words connected with the environment at http://youtu.be/PbBR1sNc6C4
There is a vocabulary video introducing the Town features at http://youtu.be/5Plh_LBjwks
At http://youtu.be/c0T5j-5MEg8 you can learn some vocabulary to speak about Plants in English.
For young learners we have some names of Animals at http://youtu.be/wb6Ctlvz0Ys
If you want to learn more vocabulary on Sports you can go to http://youtu.be/14_5rLiIAm0 and learn the names of Winter Olympics sports
At http://youtu.be/9IWZb61DG1M you can learn Clothes Vocabulary
Furniture vocabulary is presented at http://youtu.be/7VOpE1n74h0
One of the most difficult parts for learners of English to learn are personal qualities.
To help you with this, you can try the video at http://youtu.be/3KisHI5O6WY
A few days ago I wrote a post where I dealt with the mistakes my students made during their final exams. There were six common mistakes which I felt needed explanation and correction.
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In this post I will deal with six more common mistakes that my students make. Some of them are really elementary but some are more difficult. There is a mind map depicting the mistakes, their correction and an explanation. At the end of the post there are two games to practise the grammar you have learnt.
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Common mistakes – mind map
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This mind map shows the common mistakes my students make. In the first column there are the mistakes, the second column contains the corrected version and in the third one you can find a short explanation.
Learn from the mistakes others made.
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Common mistakes – games
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Once you feel confident that you know the correct grammar, it is time to practise the grammar in the following quizzes.
In the first quiz there are several slides with different types of questions. Your task is to correct the mistakes and choose the correct options. If you answer more than 80% of the questions correctly you will get a chance to play the game Tower Defence. In this game you have to set your guards in such a way that they kill all the attackers before they get to your tower. I have passed 2 levels. Will you do better? Both the quiz and the game are in HTML5 so they should play on your mobile device.
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[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/common_mistakes/commmistakes2/Common_mistakes_II (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#ef892d” size=”9″]Common mistakes II – QUIZ[/su_button]
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The second game is not in HTML5. It is in flash and it plays only on your desktop. You have to download the document and open it with Acrobat Reader. It is called Hoopshoot and your task is to choose the correct sentence and then score a basket. You can choose the difficulty of this game. Good luck.
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Common mistakes – share
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There have been several requests from people who wanted to share the games on their website. Now you can share the quiz by pasting the following code to your site:
<iframe src=”https://engames.eu/common_mistakes/commmistakes2/embed/battle_fillintheblank_game.html” width=”800″ height=”640″ frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen=”allowfullscreen”></iframe>
To share the game Hoopshoot on your site insert the following code:
<iframe src=”https://engames.eu/common_mistakes/commmistakes2/embed/battle_flashcards_game.html” width=”800″ height=”600″ frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen=”allowfullscreen”></iframe>