STUDENT REVISION SHEET. YEAR 10
Indefinite Articles: a and an
"A" and "an" signal that the noun modified is indefinite, referring to any member of a group.
For example:
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"My daughter really wants a dog for Christmas." This refers to any dog. We don't
know which dog because we haven't found the dog yet.
"Somebody call a policeman!" This refers to any policeman. We don't need a specific
policeman; we need any policeman who is available.
"When I was at the zoo, I saw an elephant!" Here, we're talking about a single, nonspecific thing, in this case an elephant. There are probably several elephants at the
zoo, but there's only one we're talking about here.
Remember, using a or an depends on the sound that begins the next word. So...
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a + singular noun beginning with a consonant: a boy; a car; a bike; a zoo; a dog
an + singular noun beginning with a vowel: an elephant; an egg; an apple; an idiot;
an orphan
a + singular noun beginning with a consonant sound: a user (sounds like 'yoo-zer,' i.e.
begins with a consonant 'y' sound, so 'a' is used); a university; a unicycle
an + nouns starting with silent "h": an hour
a + nouns starting with a pronounced "h": a horse
o In some cases where "h" is pronounced, such as "historical," you can use an.
However, a is more commonly used and preferred.
A historical event is worth recording.
If the noun is modified by an adjective, the choice between a and an depends on the initial
sound of the adjective that immediately follows the article:
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a broken egg
an unusual problem
a European country (sounds like 'yer-o-pi-an,' i.e. begins with consonant 'y' sound)
Remember, too, that in English, the indefinite articles are used to indicate membership in a
group:
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I am a teacher. (I am a member of a large group known as teachers.)
Brian is an Irishman. (Brian is a member of the people known as Irish.)
Seiko is a practicing Buddhist. (Seiko is a member of the group of people known as
Buddhists.)
Definite Article: the
The definite article is used before singular and plural nouns when the noun is specific or
particular. The signals that the noun is definite, that it refers to a particular member of a
group. For example:
"The dog that bit me ran away." Here, we're talking about a specific dog, the dog that bit me.
"I was happy to see the policeman who saved my cat!" Here, we're talking about a particular
policeman. Even if we don't know the policeman's name, it's still a particular policeman
because it is the one who saved the cat.
"I saw the elephant at the zoo." Here, we're talking about a specific noun. Probably there is
only one elephant at the zoo.
Count and Noncount Nouns
The can be used with noncount nouns, or the article can be omitted entirely.
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"I love to sail over the water" (some specific body of water) or "I love to sail over
water" (any water).
"He spilled the milk all over the floor" (some specific milk, perhaps the milk you
bought earlier that day) or "He spilled milk all over the floor" (any milk).
"A/an" can be used only with count nouns.
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"I need a bottle of water."
"I need a new glass of milk."
Most of the time, you can't say, "She wants a water," unless you're implying, say, a bottle of
water.
Geographical use of the
There are some specific rules for using the with geographical nouns.
Do not use the before:
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names of most countries/territories: Italy, Mexico, Bolivia; however, the Netherlands,
the Dominican Republic, the Philippines, the United States
names of cities, towns, or states: Seoul, Manitoba, Miami
names of streets: Washington Blvd., Main St.
names of lakes and bays: Lake Titicaca, Lake Erie except with a group of lakes like
the Great Lakes
names of mountains: Mount Everest, Mount Fuji except with ranges of mountains like
the Andes or the Rockies or unusual names like the Matterhorn
names of continents (Asia, Europe)
names of islands (Easter Island, Maui, Key West) except with island chains like the
Aleutians, the Hebrides, or the Canary Islands
Do use the before:
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names of rivers, oceans and seas: the Nile, the Pacific
points on the globe: the Equator, the North Pole
geographical areas: the Middle East, the West
deserts, forests, gulfs, and peninsulas: the Sahara, the Persian Gulf, the Black Forest,
the Iberian Peninsula
Omission of Articles
Some common types of nouns that don't take an article are:
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Names of languages and nationalities: Chinese, English, Spanish, Russian (unless you
are referring to the population of the nation: "The Spanish are known for their warm
hospitality.")
Names of sports: volleyball, hockey, baseball
Names of academic subjects: mathematics, biology, history, computer science
PREPOSITIONS
Adverbs of Frequency
Adverbs of Frequency are Adverbs of Time that answer the question "How frequently?" or
"How often?". They tell us how often something happens. Here are some examples:
a. daily, weekly, yearly
b. often, sometimes, rarely
c. You probably see a difference between a) and b) above. With words like daily we
know exactly how often. The words in a) describe definite frequency. On the other
hand, words like often give us an idea about frequency but they don't tell us exactly.
The words in b) describe indefinite frequency.
d. We separate them into two groups because they normally go in different positions in
the sentence.
Adverbs of indefinite frequency
Examples:
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never, seldom, sometimes, often, always
Adverbs of indefinite frequency mainly go in MID position in the 100% always, constantly
sentence. They go before the main verb (except the main verb "to
be"):
usually, normally
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We usually go shopping on Saturday.
I have often done that.
She is always late.
Occasionally, sometimes, often, frequently and usually can also
go at the beginning or end of a sentence:
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Sometimes they come and stay with us.
I play tennis occasionally.
frequently, regularly
often
50% sometimes
occasionally
Rarely and seldom can also go at the end of a sentence (often with
"very"):
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We see them rarely.
John eats meat very seldom.
rarely, infrequently
seldom
hardly ever
0% never
pronouns
Definition:
A pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun. Pronouns can be in one of three cases:
Subject, Object, or Possessive.
Rule 1
Subject pronouns are used when the pronoun is the subject of the sentence. You can
remember subject pronouns easily by filling in the blank subject space for a simple sentence.
Example:
______ did the job.
I, you, he, she, it, we, and they all fit into the blank and are, therefore, subject pronouns.
Rule 2
Subject pronouns are also used if they rename the subject. They follow to be verbs such as is,
are, was, were, am, and will be.
Examples:
It is he.
This is she speaking.
It is we who are responsible for the decision to downsize.
NOTE: In spoken English, most people tend to follow to be verbs with object pronouns.
Many English teachers support (or at least have given in to) this distinction between written
and spoken English.
Example:
It could have been them.
Better:
It could have been they.
Example:
It is just me at the door.
Better:
It is just I at the door.
Rule 3
Object pronouns are used everywhere else (direct object, indirect object, object of the
preposition). Object pronouns are me, you, him, her, it, us, and them.
Examples:
Jean talked to him.
Are you talking to me?
THERE IS / THERE ARE
We use there is for singular and there are for plural.
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There is one table in the classroom.
There are three chairs in the classroom.
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There is a spider in the bath.
There are many people at the bus stop.
This - That - These - Those - Here - There
It's important to learn this and these for objects that are close at hand. This is used for
singular objects, and these is used for plural objects. This and these are often used with the
'here' to indicate that the object is near. For example:
This is my bag here.
These are my friends in this room.
That is used for singular objects, and those is used for plural objects that are located away
from the speaker. That and those are often used with the 'there' to indicate that the object is
away from the speaker. For example:
That is my car parked over there.
Those are my apple trees at the back of the garden.
Here is a chart to give a quick overview of the use of these important words:
Close or
Far?
Singular Example
Close =
here
This
This is my car here in my
driveway.
These
These are my friends sitting at the
table here.
Far = there That
That is Tom's house over
there.
Those
Those are my classmates sitting over
there.
Plural Example
The Simple present of the verb to be
The simple present of the verb to be
This page will present the simple present of the verb to be:
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its form
and its use
The verb to be
The verb to be is the most important verb in the English language. It is difficult to use
because it is an irregular verb in almost all of its forms. In the simple present tense, to be is
conjugated as follows:
Affirmative forms of the verb to be
Subject Pronouns Full Form Contracted Form
I
am
'm
you
are
're
he/she/it
is
's
we
are
're
you
are
're
they
are
're
Some, Any
Some = a little, a few or a small number or amount
Any = one, some or all
Usually, we use some in positive (+) sentences and any in negative (-) and question (?)
sentences.
some
+
any
I have some
money.
example situation
I have $10.
-
I don't have any
money.
I don't have $1 and I don't have $10 and I don't have
$1,000,000. I have $0.
?
Do you have any
money?
Do you have $1 or $10 or $1,000,000?
Use of much / many
In everyday English, we normally use much / many only in questions and negative clauses.
Example:
How much money have you got?
Carla does not have many friends.
In positive clauses with so, as or too, we also use much / many.
Example:
Carla has so many friends.
She has as many friends as Sue.
Kevin has too much money.
In all other positive clauses, however, we prefer expressions like a lot of / lots of.
Example:
Carla has a lot of / lots of friends.
Kevin has a lot of / lots of money.
In formal texts, however, much / many are also common in positive clauses. This you will
notice for example when you read English news.
Countable / Uncountable Nouns
In connection with much / many people often speak of countable nouns and uncountable
nouns.
Countable nouns have a singular and a plural form. In plural, these nouns can be used with a
number (that's why they are called 'countable nouns'). Countable nouns take many.
Example:
100 friends – many friends
Uncountable nouns can only be used in singular. These nouns cannot be used with a number
(that's why they are called 'uncountable nouns'). Uncountable nouns take much.
Example:
100 money – much money
Note: Of course you can count money – but then you would name the currency and say that
you have got 5 euro (but not „5 money“).