Auxiliary Verbs

Auxiliary Verbs are the verbs be, do, have, will when they are followed by another verb (the full verb) in order to form a question, a negative sentence, a compound tense or the passive.

The verb "be"

The verb be can be used as an auxiliary and a full verb. As an auxiliary we use this verb for compound tenses and the passive voice. Note that be is an irregular verb:

Simple Present:

I am, he/she/it is, we/you/they are

Simple Past:

I/he/she/it was, we/you/they were

Past Participle:

been

You can tell that in the following sentences be is an auxiliary because it is followed by another verb (the full verb). (For progressive forms use the "-ing" form of the full verb; for passive voice, use the past participle of the full verb.)
Progressive Forms

Present Progressive:

He is playing football.

Past Progressive:

He was playing football.

Present Perfect Progressive:

He has been playing football.

Past Perfect Progressive:

He had been playing football.

Passive

Simple Present/Past:

The house is/was built.

Present/Past Perfect:

The house has/had been built.

Future I:

The house will be built.

"be" as a full verb
The verb be can also be a full verb. In this case, it's not followed by another verb. If be is used as a full verb, we do not need an auxiliary in negative sentences or questions.

positive sentence:

They are fifteen years old.

negative sentence:

They are not fifteen years old.

question:

Are they fifteen years old?

The verb "have"

The verb have, too, can be used both as an auxiliary and as a full verb. As an auxiliary we use this verb to form compound tenses in active and passive voice. (Use the past participle of the full verb.)
Compound Tenses - Active Voice

Present Perfect Simple:

He has played football.

Past Perfect Simple:

He had played football.

Present Perfect Progressive:

He has been playing football.

Past Perfect Progressive:

He had been playing football.

Compound Tenses - Passive Voice

Present/Past Perfect:

The house has/had been built.

Note that have is an irregular verb, too:

Simple Present:

I/we/you/they have, he/she/it has

Simple Past:

I/he/she/it/we/you/they had

Past Participle:

had

"have" in positive sentences
As a full verb have indicates possession. In British English, however, we usually use have got (have being the auxiliary, got the full verb).

full verb:

I have a car.

auxiliary verb:

I have got a car.

"have" in negative sentences and questions
When we use have as a full verb, we must use the auxiliary do in negative sentences and questions. If we use have got, however, we do not need another auxiliary.

have as a full verb:

I do not have a car.

Do I have a car?

have as an auxiliary verb:

I have not got a car.

Have I got a car?

The verb "will"

The verb will can only be used as an auxiliary. We use it to form the future tenses.
The auxiliary verb "will"

Future I:

He will not play football.

Future II:

He will have played football.

The verb will remains the same for all forms (no "s" for 3rd person singular). The short form for negative sentences is won't.'

Examples:

I will, he will

I will not = I won't

The verb "do"

The verb do can be both an auxiliary and a full verb. As an auxiliary we use do in negative sentences and questions for most verbs (except not for be, will, have got and modal verbs) in Simple Present and Simple Past. (Use the infinitive of the full verb.)
The auxiliary "do" in negative sentences

Simple Present:

He does not play football.

Simple Past:

He did not play football.

The auxiliary "do" in questions

Simple Present:

Does he play football?

Simple Past:

Did he play football?

The verb do is irregular:

Simple Present:

I/we/you/they do, he/she/it does

Simple Past:

I/he/she/it/we/you/they did

The full verb "do"
As a full verb we use do in certain expressions. If we want to form negative sentences or questions using do as a full verb, we need another do as an auxiliary.

positive sentence:

She does her homework every day.

negative sentence:

She doesn't do her homework every day.

question:

Does she do her homework every day?

Sentences without the auxiliary "do"

In the following cases, the auxiliary do is not used in negative sentences/questions:
the full verb is "be"

Example:

I am not angry. / Are you okay?

the sentence already contains another auxiliary (e.g. have, be, will)

Example:

They are not sleeping. / Have you heard that?

the sentence contains a modal verb (can, may, must, need, ought to, shall, should)

Example:

We need not wait. / Can you repeat that, please?

the question asks for the subject of the sentence

Example:

Who sings that song?

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Conditional Sentence

Conditional sentences play an important role in grammar. On this page I'll try to point out the most important facts about them.
Conditional sentences have two parts: the if-clause and the main clause. In the sentence If it rains, I will stay at home, "if it rains" is the if-clause, and "I will stay at home" is the main clause.
When studying conditionals, there two ways to go:
a) this method of studying/ teaching is intended for beginners. It narrows the number of types of conditionals down to four:

• Zero conditional
• First conditional
• Second conditional
• Third conditional

This is done for the sake of simplicity so students studying the conditional for the first time aren't confused. These four conditionals usually make up for 95% of conditional sentences.
b) if you're a more advanced student, it's reasonable to analyze the other method. It is vital to understand that certain variations are possible with each type of the conditional. Those variations are the so-called mixed conditionals but not only.

But how do we form those variations?

The easiest way is to understand that both clauses (the if-clause and the main clause) can be real or unreal and refer to present (future) or past. Depending on these factors, the clause will look different.
Real conditional describes real-life, possible situations.
Unreal conditional describes imaginary situations.
We'll deal with each clause separately.

If-clause

First of all, you must decide if the situation in the if-clause is real or unreal.
Examples of real if-clauses:

• I have some money, I go to a club. (zero conditional or first conditional can be used)
  It's a situation that happens very often.
• When my uncle visited us, he would always help me with my homework.
  My uncle visited us many times.
  

Examples of unreal if-clauses.

• If I could fly, I...
  But that will never happen.
  
• If she had told me about that,...
  but she didn't tell me.
  

Once you've decided about that, it's time to choose the correct tense. As I mentioned, there are two choices: the present (future) or the past.

Examples of present if-clauses:

• If meet him again, I will tell him that. (zero conditional or first conditional can be used)
  I will probably meet him soon.
  
• If I were a bit taller, I would be more attractive.
  But I'm not taller.
  

Examples of past if-clauses:

• When my uncle visited us, he would always help me with my homework.
  My uncle visited us many times.
• If she had told me about that,...
  But she didn't tell me.
  

If these examples have confused you a bit, don't worry — I'm sure everything will become more and more obvious in just a moment.
The table below sums up what has been said about the if-clause.

1	Real		Unreal
2	Present / Future	Simple Present If he says	Simple Past If he said
	Past	Simple Past If he said	Past Perfect If he had said

Main-clause

The main-clause is also formed in two steps: first decide if you're talking about a real or an unreal situation, and then choose the correct tense.
If the main-clause is real, then it is exactly the same as a normal sentence. For example:

• If he's late again, I will fire him. (first conditional]
  The situation is real because it can happen at any time.
• If the weather was nice, she often walked to work.
  The situation is real because it happened (at least according to the speaker).

If the main-clause is unreal, then it is formed in accordance with the table below:

Present / Future	Modal + Infinitive Examples: would, might, should, could
Past	Modal + Perfect Infinitive Examples: would have, might have, should have, could have

• If it wasn't raining, we would go for a walk. (second conditional)
  But it is raining.
• If he had been late again, I would have fired him. (third conditional)
  But he wasn't late.

OK, so far I've been mostly using examples that were, in fact, the four basic conditionals (as mentioned in the parentheses) and the Mixed Conditional. If these were the only conditional sentences that there are, two thirds of this article would be worthless. Of course, that's not the case - the purpose of this was to use simpler sentences that would accustom you to the method b) .
Now that you are accustomed to it (I hope you are!), we can proceed to the more advanced examples, which are the essence of the article. Let's start:
1. If neither of you saw the dog, I might have had hallucinations.
The if-clause is about a real situation. The main-clause is unreal because the speaker is unsure of the truth. Both clauses are about the past.
If it were a part of conversation, it might look similar to this:
1: Have you seen that? Something has moved in the bushes.
2: Where?!
1: Over there. It's a dog!
2: We can't see anything there, Mark.
The next day (Mark's conclusion):
1: Well, if neither of you saw the dog, I might have had hallucinations.

2. You should not tell him about the letter, even if he asked your about it.
Both clauses are present/future. The questions that arises: why is the verb ask in the past form?
The answer is: because in this way, the speaker tells us that the situation of him asking is unlikely — it is unreal.

3. If they were born in the US, they don't need a green card.
That's a simple sentence whose both clauses are real, however the if-clause is in the past.
There are at least a couple more variations and I strongly encourage you to find them.
As you can see it's quite easy — all in all — to form the conditional sentences using the method b). It's important, however, not to forget about the basic conditionals because, as mentioned, they are used most often.
sumber dari :http://www.englishtenseswithcartoons.com/conditional_sentences

THE DEGREES OF COMPARISON

Tingkat Perbandingan

Kata sifat kuantitatif much dan little, dan kata sifat bilangan many and few, mempunyai tingkat

perbandingan (degrees comparison).

The degrees of comparison (tingkat perbandingan) berjumlah tiga tingkat, yaitu :

1. The positive degree (tingkat biasa)

2. The comparative (tingkat lebih/perbandingan)

3. The superlative (tingkat paling)

1) Kata sifat yang terdiri dari satu suku kata dan beberapa kata sifat bersuku kata dua dapat dibentuk comparative dengan menambahkan er atau r, dan superlative dengan menambahkan -est atau -st.

a) Jika positive berakhir dalam dua huruf mati atau dalam satu huruf mati yang didahului oleh dua huruf hidup, er dan est ditambahkan

Positive thick long short

Comparative thicker longer shorter

Superlative thickest longest shortest

b) Jika positive berakhir dalam satu huruf mati dan huruf mati itu didahului oleh sebuah vokal pendek, huruf mati terakhir digandakan kemudian ditambahkan er dan est

Positive big = besar wet = basah hot = panas

Comparative bigger = lebih besar wetter = lebih basah hotter = lebih panas

Superlative biggest = terbesar wettest = terbasah hottest = terpanas

c) Jika positive berakhir huruf e, hanya r dan st ditambahkan

Positive nice = baik fine = bagus wise = bijaksana

Comparative nicer = lebih baik finer = lebih bagus wiser = lebih bijak

Superlative nicest = terbaik finest = terbagus wisest = terbijaksana

d) Jika positive berakhir huruf y, dan y itu didahului oleh huruf mati, y diubah menjadi I, lalu ditambahkan er dan est

Positive wry = miring dry = kering happy = bahagia

Comparative wrier = lebih miring drier = lebih kering happier = lebih bahagia

Superlative wriest =paling miring driest = terkering happiest = terbahagia

e) Jika y didahului oleh sebuah huruf hidup, y tidak diubah menjadi i, tapi langsung ditambahkan r dan est

Positive gay = riang coy = pemalu grey = mendung

Comparative gayer = lebih riang coyer = lebih pemalu greyer = lebih mendung

Superlative gayest = teriang coyest = terpemalu greyest = termendung

f) Kata sifat yang terdiri dari dua suku kata (two syllables) yang berakhiran some, ow, le, er, ditambahkan er dan est

Positive wholesome narrow noble clever

Comparative wholesomer narrower nobler clever

Superlative wholesomest narrowest noblest cleverest

2) Kata sifat yang bersuku kata dua – two syllables (yang tekanan suaranya jatuh pada suku kata awal) atau lebih, ditambahkan more untuk membentuk comperatives dan most untuk superlatives

Positive famous = terkenal useful = berguna beautiful = cantik

Comparative more famous more useful more beautiful

Superlative most famous most useful most beautiful

3) Beberapa kata sifat dibentuk dengan cara tak beraturan (irregular) untuk comparatives dan superlatives

Positive fore bad ill evil good hind late late little much nigh old old near

Comparative former worse worse worse better hinder later latter less more nigher older elder nearer

Superlative foremost,first worst worst worst best hindmost latest last least most nighest,next oldest eldest nearest

Catatan 1 :

a) Former = yang terlebih dahulu/tadi ; yang pertama (di antara dua benda).

Contoh: I prefer the former fabric. Saya lebih menyukai kain yang terlebih dahulu

Of the two methods I prefer the former. Diantara kedua metoda itu saya lebih menyukai yang pertama

b) Later = yang belakangan

Contoh: I will take the later plane. Saya mau naik kapal terbang yang belakangan

c) Latter = yang belakangan/yang terakhir (di antara dua benda)

Contoh: I will take the latter book. Saya mau membeli buku yang terakhir (di antara dua buah buku)

d) Latest = yang belakangan/yang terakhir sampai sekarang

Contoh: What is the latest news of the war? bagaimanakah kabar terbaru (terakhir) perang itu?

e) Last = yang terakhir (yang paling akhir/penghabisan)

Contoh: This is our last opportunity. Inilah kesempatan terakhir kita

Z is the last letter of the alphabet. Z adalah huruf terakhir abjad

Penjelasan :

Later berarti yang belakangan atau lebih lambat, menunjuk pada waktu

Contoh: She came to school later than I. Ia datang ke sekolah lebih lambat daripada saya

Latter menunjuk pada urutan yang kedua di antara dua hal atau benda yang baru saja disebut

Contoh: Alexandria and Cairo are large cities; the latter has a population of over a million.

Alexandria dan Kairo adalah kota besar ; yang belakangan (yaitu Kairo) mempunyai penduduk lebih dari satu juta orang

Latest berarti yang terakhir sampai sekarang, sedangkan last berarti yang paling terakhir atau

penghabisan.

Jika kita katakan :

Did you read Mr. Green’s latest book? apakah anda membaca buku terakhir/terbaru Tuan Green?

Ini berarti bahwa Tn. Green boleh jadi akan mengarang lagi buku lain.

Kalau kita katakan :

Did you read Mr. Green’s last book? apakah anda membaca buku terakhir Tn. Green?

Ini berarti bahwa Tn. Green tidak atau tidak akan menulis buku lain lagi setelah buku yang

dimaksudkan tadi.

Catatan 2 :

a) Elder juga bentuk comperative dari old. Perhatikan perbedaan pemakaian elder dan older.

Contoh: John is my elder brother. John adalah kakak laki-laki saya

John is older than Lisa. John lebih tua daripada Lisa

b) Eldest juga bentuk superlative dari old. Perhatikan perbedaan pemakaian eldest dan oldest:

She is my eldest daughter. Ia putriku yang sulung

That is the oldest hotel in the city. Itulah hotel yang tertua di kota ini

Penjelasan :

Elder dan eldest dipakai pada orang saja, dan paling sering dipakai pada orang dalam hubungan

kekeluargaan. Sedangkan older dan oldest dipakai untuk menyatakan umur atau usia yang lebih tua atau tertua pada orang atau pun benda.

4) Ada enam buah kata adverbs (kata keterangan) dalam bentuk positive degrees, tetapi adjectives (kata sifat) dalam bentuk comparative dan supelative

Positive fore far in out neath up

Comparative further farther inner outer nether upper

Superlative furthest farthest innermost, inmost uttermost, utmost nethermost uppermost

5) Kata-kata sifat tertentu tidak dapat diperbandingkan

perfect = sempurna

unique = unik

supreme = tertinggi

preferable = lebih baik

natural = alamiah

right = benar

wrong = salah

etc.

POSITIVE DEGREE (tingkat positif) digunakan untuk menunjukkan bahwa sesuatu itu sama tingkatannya. Perbandingan untuk sesuatu yang tingkatannya sama digunakan as … as.

Contoh: Ali is 1,6 meters and Anwar is also 1,6 meters.

Ali is AS TALL AS Anwar.

This book cost Rp. 2.000,-. That book costs Rp. 2.000,-

This book is AS EXPENSIVE AS that one

Bentuk negatif dari perbandingan ini adalah sebagai berikut:

Contoh: Jakarta is not AS WARM AS Surabaya.

Rumus :

as + positive + as

no less + positive + than

not more + positive + than

Contoh:

This girl is as clever as that. Anak perempuan ini sepandai anak perempuan itu

This girl is no less clever than that. Anak perempuan ini sama pandainya dengan anak perempuan itu

That girl is not more clever than this. Gadis itu tidak lebih pandai daripada gadis ini

(berarti gadis itu dan gadis ini sama pandainya)

B. COMPARATIVE DEGREE digunakan apabila dua orang atau benda dikatakan tidak sama dalam hal sifat yang tertentu Yang satu lebih dari yang lain. Tingkat perbandingan dinyatakan dengan menggunakan “-er” jika kata sifat itu hanya memiliki satu suku kata (one syllable) serta di tambah kata “than.”

Contoh: Handi is TALLER than Anton

A train is FASTER than a bus

Jika kata sifat itu diakhiri dengan le, r, ow, y, maka tambahkan “-er”. Jika kata sifat diakhiri dengan “y”, maka berubah menjadi “ier.”

Contoh: This problem is simpler than the one we had yesterday.

The street in front of my house is narrower than this one.

Comparative degree yang menggunakan lebih dari satu suku kata (two or more syllables) digunakan “more.” Suku kata maksudnya beautiful = beau-ti-ful (3 suku kata); expensive = ex-pen-sive (tiga suku kata), useful = use-ful (dua suku kata)

Contoh: TV Program are more interesting than radio program.

My trousers are more expensive than yours.

Rumus :

comparative + than

Contoh:

Lisa is taller than her sister. Lisa lebih tinggi daripada saudara perempuannya

Jakarta is bigger than Surabaya. Jakarta lebih besar daripada Surabaya

PERHATIKAN!

Aturan untukk dua suku kata (two syllabels) lebih rumit. Beberapa adjective membentuk comparative and superlative dengan –er, -est., beberapa dengan more, most, yang lainnya boleh kedua-duanya.

Two-syllable adjectives dengan –er, -est

1. Adjective berakhiran –y yang didahului oleh konsonan

Contoh: pretty – prettier, dirty – dirtier, noisy – noisier, happy – happier, unhappy – unhappier

2. Adjective berakhiran –ple, -ble, dan biasanya –tle, -dle

Contoh: simple – simpler, noble – nobler, humble – humbler, subtle – subtler, idle – idler

Two-syllable adjective dengan more, most

1. Sebagian besar adjective berakhir suffix derivatif: -ous, -ish, -ful, -ing, -ed, etc.

Contoh: more famous, more useful, more childish, more interesting, more tired

2. Sebagian besar adjective berakhiran –ct, -nt, -st

Contoh: more exact, more recent, more honest, more urgent

Two-Syllable adjective dengan –er, -est or more, most (yang bentuk –er, -est kurang formal)

1. Adjective berakhiran –er: cleverer, tenderer, bitterer

2. Adjective berakhiran –ow: narrower, shallower, mellower

3. Adjective berakhiran –some: hansomer, wholesomer, lonesomer

4. Others: penekanan pada suku kata pertama: pleasanter, crueler, quieter, stupider

Penekanan pada suku kata kedua: politer, profounder, remoter, obscurer, sincerer, severer, securer

C. SUPERLATIVE DEGREE (tingkat superlative) yaitu apabila seseorang atau sebuah benda dikatakan melebihi atau mengungguli semua orang atau benda yang lain yang sama macamnya, kita menggunakan superlative degree dengan the … of.

Ketika kata sifat terdiri dari satu atau dua suku kata, digunakan dengan menambahkan “est.”

Contoh: The Wisma Nusantara building is THE TALLEST building in Jakarta.

An elephant is THE BIGGEST animal nowadays.

Ketika kata sifat berakhir dengan “y”, maka tingkat superlative berubah menjadi “iest.”

Contoh: Today is THE HAPPIEST day for me. It’s my birthday.

I don’t know which is THE HEAVIEST metal.

Kata sifat yang lebih dari dua suku kata menggunakan “MOST.”
from :http://englishtutorial.co.cc/

Business letter writing phrases

Yours faithfully or Yours sincerely; Dear Sir or Dear Mr

On this page we look at important phrases that we need when writing letters and emails, such as when to use Yours faithfully and Yours sincerely, Dear Sir, Dear Madam, and so forth.
You know how important it is to speak good English in an international working environment. If you work for a company which does business abroad, you probably read and write a lot of English, too. Writing, like speaking, is communication. When writing letters and emails we need the skills to be able to express ourselves well and with the correct level of formality.
Do you have that skill? Ask yourself these questions:

• Do you present yourself in a professional manner when you write?
• What image do you give to the people who read your letters and emails?

In short, you want to give a professional image when you write to your customers and business partners. To get you started, we’ve prepared some lists of standard phrases:

10 good opening lines

We need an opening line in a business letter or professional email:
to make reference to previous correspondence; to say how we found the recipient’s name/address; to say why we are writing to the recipient.

• With reference to your letter of 8 June, I … .
• I am writing to enquire about … .
• After having seen your advertisement in … , I would like … .
• After having received your address from … , I … .
• I received your address from … and would like … .
• We/I recently wrote to you about … .
• Thank you for your letter of 8 May.
• Thank you for your letter regarding … .
• Thank you for your letter/e-mail about … .
• In reply to your letter of 8 May, … .

10 good closing lines

We need a closing line in a business letter or email:
to make a reference to a future event; to repeat an apology; to offer help

• If you require any further information, feel free to contact me.
• I look forward to your reply.
• I look forward to hearing from you.
• I look forward to seeing you.
• Please advise as necessary.
• We look forward to a successful working relationship in the future.
• Should you need any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me.
• Once again, I apologise for any inconvenience.
• We hope that we may continue to rely on your valued custom.
• I would appreciate your immediate attention to this matter.