sábado, 8 de septiembre de 2012

Leisure, unit 1


Leisure

Leisure may be defined as the spare-time which a man gets after his bread and butter activities are over. It is the time which a man is free to pass in any way he likes. He has already his day's work. He has no longer to worry about the work by which he earns his living. Still he has sometimes left on his hand. That is leisure or spare time. A man gets more of leisure during holidays that in working day.
Modern life is a busy life. The pace of life gets faster and faster every day and a man must hurry and utilize every moment of his life, otherwise he would be left behind in the race of life. But some leisure is necessary for the happiness of life. There can be no happiness for a man, unless he gets some time to pass in the way he likes best. The great English poet Davies protested against this over-business of life when he wrote.

What is this life, if full of care
We have no time to stand and stare.


Simple Present – Present Progressive

Form

Simple Present
Present Progressive
infinitive
(3rd person singular: infinitive + 's')

I speak
you speak
he / she / it speaks
we speak
they speak
form of 'be' and verb + ing
 

I am speaking
you are speaking
he / she / it is speaking
we are speaking
they are speaking
Exceptions
Exceptions when adding 's' :
  • For can, may, might, must, do not add s.
Example: he can, she may, it must
  • After o, ch, sh or s, add es.
Example: do - he does, wash - she washes
  • After a consonant, the final consonant y becomes ie. (but: not after a vowel)
Example: worry - he worries
but: play - he plays
Exceptions when adding 'ing' :
  • Silent e is dropped. (but: does not apply for -ee)
Example: come - coming
but: agree - agreeing
  • After a short, stressed vowel, the final consonant is doubled.
Example: sit - sitting
  • After a vowel, the final consonant l is doubled in British English (but not in American English).
Example: travel - travelling (British English)
but: traveling (American English)
  • Final ie becomes y.
Example: lie - lying

Use

In general or right now?

Do you want to express that something happens in general or that something is happening right now?
Simple Present
Present Progressive
in general (regularly, often, never)
Colin plays football every Tuesday.
present actions happening one after another
First Colin plays football, then he watches TV.
right now
Look! Colin is playing football now.
also for several actions happening at the same time
Colin is playing football and Anne is watching.
Signal words
  • always
  • every ...
  • often
  • normally
  • usually
  • sometimes
  • seldom
  • never
  • first
  • then
  • at the moment
  • at this moment
  • today
  • now
  • right now
  • Listen!
  • Look!
Note: The following verbs are usually only used in Simple Present:
be, have, hear, know, like, love, see, smell, think, want

Timetable / Schedule or arrangement?

Do you want to express that something is arranged for the near future? Or do you refer to a time set by a timetable or schedule?

Simple Present
Present Progressive
action set by a timetable or schedule
The film starts at 8 pm.
arrangement for the near future
I am going to the cinema tonight.

 

Daily routine or just for a limited period of time?

Do you want to talk about a daily routine? Or do you want to emphasis that something is only going on for a limited (rather short) period of time?

Simple Present
Present Progressive
daily routine
Bob works in a restaurant.
only for a limited period of time (does not have to happen directly at the moment of speaking)
Jenny is working in a restaurant this week.

Certain Verbs

The following verbs are usually only used in Simple Present (not in the progressive form).
  • state: be, cost, fit, mean, suit
Example: We are on holiday.
  • possession: belong, have
Example: Sam has a cat.
  • senses: feel, hear, see, smell, taste, touch
Example: He feels the cold.
  • feelings: hate, hope, like, love, prefer, regret, want, wish
Example: Jane loves pizza.
  • brain work: believe, know, think, understand
Example: I believe you.
  • Introductory clauses for direct speech: answer, ask, reply, say
Example: “I am watching TV,“ he says.



Gramática

Ambos verbos se utilizan para describir acciones presentes, si bien con diferentes matices.

a) Present continuous

a.1) Describe acciones que están ocurriendo en ese preciso momento.
I am reading the newspaper (lo estoy leyendo ahora)
a.2) También puede describir acciones que ocurren alrededor del momento actual, aunque no precisamente ahora.
I am planning a trip to Egypt for this summer (por ejemplo, le estoy contando a un amigo que estoy planeando un viaje; no es que lo esté planeando en ese preciso momento)

b) Present simple

b.1) Describe acciones habituales, actuales, generales, que no tienen porqué estar ocurriendo en ese preciso momento.

I work in a bank
I speak English very fluently
In Madrid people drive very fast

b.2) Describe también acciones que se repiten periódicamente, acciones rutinarias.

Every morning I have a meeting with my boss at 8 o'clock
I play tennis every Sunday

Algunos verbos no se suelen utilizar en tiempo continuo, por lo que en estos casos hay que emplear el "present simple":

Verbos que describen acciones de los sentidos: feel, hear, see, smell...
Verbos de sentimiento / emoción: like, love, hate, want, wish, fear, desire, detest, dislike...
Verbos de acciones mentales: agree, believe, forget, know, remember, think (=tener una opinion), understand, realize...
Verbos de posesión: belong, own, posess...

Por último, decir que estas dos formas verbales se emplean a veces para describir acciones futuras.

¿Qué son los Stative verbs?

En inglés hay una serie de verbos que NO se usan en su forma continua (presente continuo, futuro continuo…) son verbos que describen estados, situaciones y condiciones y se llaman STATIVE verbs.

-Decimos I have a car, y no I´m having a car.

Los verbos que SI se usan en sus formas continuas son los llamados DYNAMIC verbs, ya que describen principalmente acciones.

Veamos una lista de los STATIVE verbs más comunes agrupados por categorías:

STATIVE VERBS o verbos que no se usan en su forma continua:

-Verbos que describen un estado (feel , be) o estados mentales como opinión, duda, acuerdo o desacuerdo:

agree, think, believe, disagree, feel, doubt, depend, understand, know, mean, remember, seem, look (=seem), mind, suppose, guess, appear, matter, concern, realise

Ejemplos:

-Mary feels good.  Mary se siente bien.
-I am very happy. Yo estoy muy contenta.
-She looks very nice in that dress.
Ella se ve bien con ese vestido.

1)Verbos que describen gustos, preferencias, o emociones: like, dislike, prefer, love, hate.                         

Ejemplos:

-I don´t like cheese. No me gusta el queso.
-I  love westerns. Me encantan las películas del oeste.

2)Verbos relacionados con la posesión o pertenencia: have, possess, belong, own, owe, lack, include, involve.

Ejemplos:

-That house belongs to the Murphys. Esta casa pertenece a los Murphys.
-I don´t understand her accent.
No entiendo su acento.

3) Verbos que describen el peso, medida, contenido o características de algo: weigh, measure, consist, contain.

Ejemplos:

- The parcel weighs 3kg and contains 6 video games. El paquete pesa 3kg y contine 6 videojuegos.

4) Verbos que expresan deseo o necesidad: want, wish, need, deserve.

-I want an ice cream. Quiero un helado.

5) Verbos relacionados con la percepción y los sentidos: sound, hear, taste, see, smell,  imagine, recognise, satisfy

Ejemplo:

- The soup smells good. La sopa huele bien.       


Pero !ojo! algunos verbos pueden ser tanto stative como  dynamic;  estos verbos tienen más de un significado.

Algunos de ellos son: be, have, think, see, smell o taste.

Veamos algunos ejemplos:

Be
-She is funny. Ella es divertida.
-She is being very funny. Ella está siendo muy divertida.

En la primera frase se “funny” describe una característica de la persona (static), mientras que en la segunda se habla de un comportamiento en un determinado momento (dynamic).

Have

-I have a car. Tengo un coche.
-Are you having a good time?
¿Lo estás pasando bien?

En el primer ejemplo “have” indica posesión (static) mientras que en el segundo forma parte de la expresión “to have a good time” que no tiene nada que ver con la posesión, otras expresiones con have: have lunch, have a shower, have a party, have a good time

See

-I see what you mean. Entiendo lo que quieres decir.
-I see you now, you are in front of the bookshop.
Ahora te veo, estás delante de la librería.
-I´m seeing Mary this afternoon. Voy a ver a Mary esta tarde.
-I´ve been seing my girlfriend since last August.
He estado viendo a mi novia desde agosto del año pasado.

See puede significar ver o entender (static) y también reunirse con alguien o tener una relación (dynamic)

Taste (smell)

-The food tastes good. La comida sabe bien.
-The cook is tasting the food.
El cocinero está probando la comida.

Podemos decir que algo tiene un sabor u olor determinado, (static) y también hablar de la acción de saborear u oler (dynamic).

Como dato curioso, te sonará seguro un caso en el que estas reglas no se aplican, y es que quién no ha escuchado el famosísimo eslogan de Macdonalds'
“I´m loving it”.

Aquí el verbo love, que debería ser stative, se usa como dynamic; las reglas se rompen en beneficio del marketing y la publicidad. Debido a que el lenguaje es un sistema en constante evolución, este fenómeno ocurre en numerosas ocasiones, pero no quiere decir esto que no debamos aprender las reglas gramaticales, sino al contrario, debemos aprenderlas bien primero, para luego romperlas. 



domingo, 6 de mayo de 2012

Les adjectifs et pronoms démostratifs

LES ADJECTIFS DÉMONSTRATIFS (lisez la leçon et faites l'exercice)

(ce/cet/cette /ces)
adjectif démonstratif : ce
Ce + nom masculin
Ce verre
adjectif démonstratif : cetCet + nom masculin commençant par une voyelle.
Cet arbre
adjectif démonstratif : cetteCette + nom féminin
Cette chaise
adjectif démonstratif : cesCes + nom pluriel
Ces livres
Exemple : Cette histoire commence en France.

LES PRONOMS DÉMONSTRATIFS
El pronombre sustituye al sustantivo para evitar repetición.

Ce soldat-ci est courageux
Celui-ci est courageux -
Ce soldat-là est couard
Celui-là est couard Formas simples:
Celui (el)/ celle (la) / ceux (los) / celles (las) Celui de (Él de)
Celle de (La de)
Celui qui (Él que) Funciona como sujeto
Celui que (Él que)
Celle qui (La que) Funciona como sujeto Celle que (La que)
Ceux qui (Los que) Funciona como sujeto
Ceux que (Los que) Celles qui (las que)Funciona como sujeto Celles que (las que)
Estas formas van normalmente acompañadas de:
qui, que, de, des, du.

I
l y a deux chemises. Celle de gauche me plaît plus.
Hay dos camisas. La de la izquierda me gusta más.
Quel livre voulez-vous?
Celui qui est sur la console
¿Qué libro quiere? . El que está sobre el mostrador.
Qui est ta soeur?
Celle qui est debout
¿Quién es tu hermana? La que está de pie. Quelle maison vas tu acheter? Celle que nous avons visitée l'autre jour. ¿Qué casa vas a comprar? La que nosotros hemos visitado el otro día.
Il a aidé
ceux qu'il pouvait
Él ha ayudado a los que ella podía. Il a réglé son ordonnateur et celui de sa fiancée Ha arreglado su ordenador y el de su prometida.
También se acompañan a veces de las particulas
"-ci" / "-la" para indicar proximidad o lejanía.

Masc sin. :
Celui-ci (este)/Celui-là (ese o aquel)

Fem. sing.:
Celle-ci (esta)/Celle- là (esa o aquella)

Neutro sing.:
Ceci / cela (Eso en ambos casos)

Mas./Fem. Plural:
Ceux-ci (estos)/ Ceux-là (esos o aquellos) ; Celles-ci (estas) / Celles-là (esas o aquellas)
 


Pronoms possessifs

Pronoms possessifs

Le pronom possessif sert à remplacer un nom précédé d'un adjectif possessif (mon, ton son...).

Il varie selon le genre et le nombre du nom qu'il remplace.
Exemples :
1. Voilà ma soeur -> voilà la mienne       
Here is my sister -> here is mine
--> 'la mienne' remplace 'ma soeur' qui est au féminin singulier

2. Il a apporté ses livres -> il a apporté les siens
--> 'les siens' remplace 'ses livres' qui est au masculin pluriel

MASCULIN Singulier
MASCULIN Pluriel
FEMININ Singulier
FEMININ Pluriel
le mienles miensla mienneles miennes
le tien les tiensla tienneles tiennes
le sienles siensla sienneles siennes
le nôtreles nôtresla nôtreles nôtres
le vôtreles vôtresla vôtreles vôtres
le leurles leursla leurles leurs
Attention à nôtre et vôtre car dans ce cas-ci, ils prennent un accent circonflexe sur le O


Les adjectifs possessifs

Les adjectifs possessifs

Les adjectifs possessifs indiquent une possession d’un ou plusieurs objets. Ils s’accordent en genre et en nombre avec l’objet possédé.
 
Personne qui possède
Singulier (un objet possédé)
Pluriel (plus d’un objet possédé)
moi
mon père, ma mère
mes parents
toi
ton frère, ta soeur
tes amis
lui, elle
son cousin, sa cousine
ses oncles
nous
notre maison
nos frères
vous
votre voiture
vos grands-parents
eux, elles
leur jardin
leurs tantes
 
 

Reporting verbs

Reported speech (estilo indirecto)

El Reported speech o Estilo indirecto es una estructura que usamos cuando reportamos o hacemos mención sobre algo que alguien ha dicho previamente. Aquí tenemos varias páginas que te ayudarán a entender su uso.

Cambios en los tiempos verbales: "I live in Italy". She said. → She said that he lived in Italy.
Cambios en los verbos modales: "They will help you". She said. → She said that they would help me.
 Cambios en las referencias de tiempo y lugar: "We live here". They said → They said that they lived there Cambios en las preguntas: "Where do they sell the tickets?" → He asked where they sold the tickets


REPORTING VERBS (Verbos Comunicadores)
Estos son algunos de los verbos comunicadores o reporting verbs más utilizados (seguidos por una cláusula relativa con that):
add
(agregar)
complain
(quejarse)
feel
(sentir)
repeat
(repetir)
say
(decir)
tell
(comentar)
agree
(acordar)
deny
(negar)
inform
(informar)
reply
(responder)
show
(demostrar)
threaten
(amenazar)
answer
(contestar)
explain
(explicar)
promise
(prometer)
report
(comunicar)
suggest
(sugerir)
warn
(advertir)







Reporting verbs

In the sentence "James said that he was my neighbour", said is a reporting verb (was is a reported verb). There are other reporting verbs we can use depending on the statement. We can also use the verbs like told, offered and promised. Let's take a look at some examples.

Told

"My brother is buying a car" said Anne (direct speech) becomes Anne told me (that) her brother was buying a car.
Use told + person + what was said. Don't use told with to: Anne told to me (that) her brother was buying a car is not correct.

Offered

Use offered + to + infinitive verb.
"I'll do the shopping for you", said Simon becomes Simon offered to do the shopping for us .

Promised

Use promise + to + infinitive verb
"I'll buy you lunch", said Mark becomes Mark promised to buy me lunch.
OR Promise + clause (change the tense of the verb):
Mark promised (that) he would buy me lunch.


Reporting Verbs

When using reported speech, most students learn to use "say" and "tell":
Examples:
John told me he was going to stay late at work.
Peter said he wanted to visit his parents that weekend.

These forms are perfectly correct for reporting what others have said. However, there are a number of other reporting verbs which can more accurately describe what someone has said. These verbs take a variety of structures. The following list gives you reporting verbs in various categories based on sentence structure. Notice that a number of verbs can take more than one form.
verb object infinitive verb infinitive verb (that) verb gerund verb object preposition gerund verb preposition gerund
advise
encourage
invite
remind
warn
agree
decide
offer
promise
refuse
threaten
admit
agree
decide
deny
explain
insist
promise
recommend
suggest
deny
recommend
suggest
accuse
blame
congratulate
apologize
insist
Examples: Jack encouraged me to look for a new job. They invited all their friends to attend the presentation.
Examples: She offered to give him a lift to work. My brother refused to take no for an answer.
Examples: Tom admitted (that) he had tried to leave early. She agreed (that) we needed to reconsider our plans.
Examples: He denied having anything to do with her. Ken suggested studying early in the morning.
Examples: They accused the boys of cheating on the exam. She blamed her husband for missing the train.
Examples: He apologized for being late. She insisted on doing the washing up.











































   

Reported speech (english)

REPORTED SPEECH 

Pronoun, tenses and time expressions (Changes: direct into indirect speech)

Pronouns

In reported speech, you often have to change the pronoun depending on who says what.
Example
She says, “My mum doesn’t have time today.” – She says that her mum doesn’t have time today.

Tenses

No backshift

Do not change the tense if the introductory clause is in Simple Present (e. g. He says). Note, however, that you might have to change the form of the present tense verb (3rd person singular).
Example
He says, “I speak English.” – He says that he speaks English.

Backshift

You must change the tense if the introductory clause is in Simple Past (e. g. He said). This is called backshift.
Example
He said, “I am happy.” – He said that he was happy.
Direct Speech Reported Speech
Simple Present Simple Past
Present Progressive Past Progressive
Simple Past Past Perfect Simple
Present Perfect Simple
Past Perfect Simple
Past Progressive Past Perfect Progressive
Present Perfect Progressive
Past Perfect Progressive
Future I (going to) was / were going to
Future I (will) Conditional I (would)
Conditional I (would)
The verbs could, should, would, might, must, needn’t, ought to, used to do not normally change.
Example:
He said, “She might be right.” – He said that she might be right.

Place and Time expressions

For place and time expressions you have to check whether place and time are the same in direct and reported speech or not. Check out the following example:

It is Friday and you meet James at a restaurant. James tells you that he saw Caroline in this restaurant today. (“I saw Caroline here today.”) A few minutes later, Helen joins you and you want to report what James has told you. Place (here) and time (today) are the same and you can say:

James said that he had seen Caroline here today.

One day later, you meet Mary at the same restaurant. Again, you want to report to her what James has told you. The place is the same, but not the time (it happened yesterday). So you would say:
James said that he had seen Caroline here yesterday.

Still a few days later, Tom rings you at home. Again, you want to report to him what James has told you. However, now you are not at the restaurant (but at home) and a few days have passed since then. So you would say:
→ James said that he had seen Caroline at the restaurant on Friday.
→ I met James in a restaurant on Friday and he said that he had seen Caroline there that day.

Therefore you always have to think which place and time expressions are logical in a certain situation.
In the following table, you will find ways of transforming place and time expressions into reported speech.

Direct Speech Reported Speech
today that day
now then
yesterday the day before
… days ago … days before
last week the week before
next year the following year
tomorrow the next day / the following day
here there
this that
these those


Statements
1) If the sentence starts in the present, there is no backshift of tenses in Reported speech.
Example: Susan: "I work in an office." Susan says that she works in an office.


2) If the sentence starts in the past, there is often backshift of tenses in Reported speech. (see: Note)
Example: Susan: "I work in an office." Susan said that she worked in an office.

Backshift of tenses
from       to
Simple Present   Simple Past
Simple Past    Past Perfect
Present Perfect
Past Perfect
will    would    
Progressive forms
am/are/is    was/were
was/were    had been
has been
had been

Backshift of tenses
from to
Peter: "I work in the garden." Peter said that he worked in the garden.
Peter: "I worked in the garden." Peter said that he had worked in the garden.
Peter: "I have worked in the garden."
Peter: "I had worked in the garden."            
Peter: "I will work in the garden." Peter said that he would work in the garden.
Peter: "I can work in the garden." Peter said that he could work in the garden.
Peter: "I may work in the garden." Peter said that he might work in the garden.
Peter: "I would work in the garden."
(could, might, should, ought to)
Peter said that he would work in the garden.
(could, might, should, ought to)
Progressive forms
Peter: "I'm working in the garden." Peter said that he was working in the garden.
Peter: "I was working in the garden." Peter said that he had been working in the garden.
Peter: "I have been working in the garden."
Peter: "I had been working in the garden."

If the sentence contains an expression of time, you must change it as well.

Peter: "I worked in the garden yesterday."
Peter said that he had worked in the garden the day before.


Shifting of expressions of time
this (evening) that (evening)
today/this day that day
these (days) those (days)
now then
(a week) ago (a week) before
last weekend the weekend before / the previous weekend
here there
next (week) the following (week)
tomorrow the next/following day

Note:
In some cases the backshift of tenses is not necessary, e.g. when statements are still true.

John: "My brother is at Leipzig university."
John said that his brother was at Leipzig university. or
John said that his brother is at Leipzig university.

or
Mandy: "The sun rises in the East."
Mandy said that the sun rose in the East. or
Mandy said that the sun rises in the East.

Reported questions

 If you put a question into Reported speech there are some steps which are the same like in statements: (changing of the person, backshift of tenses, changing of expressions of time).
 In Reported speech there is no question anymore, the sentence becomes a statement.
That's why the word order is: subject - verb


Question without question words (yes/no questions):
Peter: "Do you play football?" - Peter asked me if I played football.

Question with question words:
Peter: "When do you play football?" - Peter asked me when I played football.

Reported commands

If you put a command into Reported speech there are some steps which are the same like in statements: (changing of the person, backshift of tenses, changing of expressions of time).
The form is mostly: form of to tell + to + infinitive.
Affirmative commands Negative commands
Father: "Do your   homework."      Teacher.   "Don't talk to    your neighbour."
Father told me to do my homework.     The teacher told me not to talk to my neighbour.