GRAMTICA INGLESA

Pronombres
I
You
He
She
It
We
You
They

Pronombres acusativos
me
you
him
her
it
us
you
them

Adjetivos posesivos
my
your
his
her
its
our
your
their

Pronombres posesivos
mine
yours
his
hers
its*
ours
yours
theirs
*Se emplea poco

Pronombres rflexivos
myself (me, yo mismo)
yourself (te)
himself (se)
herself (se)
itself (se)
ourselves (os)
yourselves (os)
themselves (se)

PRONOMBRES REFLEXIVOS
Se emplean para formar los verbos reflexivos (la accin recae sobre la persona que la ejecuta), poniendose en ingls
despus del verbo:
myself (me, yo mismo)
herself (se, ella misma)
ourselves(nos, nosotros mismos)
yourself (te, tu mismo)
itself (se, l/ella mismo/a)
yourselves(os, vosotros mismos)
himself (se, l mismo)
oneself (-se, uno mismo)
themselves (se, ellos mismos)
I wash myself: me lavo
He has cut himself: se ha cortado
She herself gave it to me: me lo dio ella misma
Give me the letter itself, not the copy: dame la carta misma, no la copia
Oneself se emplea para el pronombre reflexivo impersonal:
It is necessary to wash oneself every day: Hay que lavarse cada da
To wash oneself: lavarse
To hurt oneself: hacerse dao
To enjoy oneself: divertirse
To cut oneself: cortarse
To amuse oneself: divertirse
To kill oneself: matarse
To dress oneself: vestise
Hay verbos reflexivos en espaol que en ingls no lo son: to get up, to remember, to turn, to make a mistake
Ntese el modismo formado por el pronombre reflexive precedido de by:
by myself, by yourself, by himself: a solas
LOS NUMERALES: LOS NMEROS Y LOS NMEROS ORDINALES
1 one
2 two
3 three
4 four
5 five
6 six
7 seven
8 eight
9 nine
10 ten
11 eleven
12 twelve
13 thirteen
14 fourteen
15 fifteen (ve por f, + teen)
16 sixteen
17 seventeen
18 eighteen (solo aade een)
19 nineteen
20 twenty
30 thirty
40 forty (pierde la u)
50 fifty (ve por f, + ty)
60 sixty
70 seventy
80 eighty (solo aade y)
90 ninety
100 one hundred
1,000 one thousand
1,000,000 one million

1st first
2nd second
3rd third
4th fourth
5th fifth (ve por f, + th)
6th sixth
7th seventh
8th eighth (solo aade h)
9th ninth (pierde la e)
10th tenth
11th eleventh
12th twelfth (ve por f, + th)
13th thirteenth
14th fourteenth
15th fifteenth
16th sixteenth
17th seventeenth
18th eighteenth
19th nineteenth
20th twentieth (y por ieth del 20th hasta 90th )
30th thirtieth
40th fortieth
50th fiftieth
60th sixtieth
70th seventieth
80th eightieth
90th ninetieth
100th one hundredth
1,000th one thousandth
1,000,000th one millionth

En ingles se utiliza la coma y no el punto para separar el millar de las centenas y el millon de los millares de
centenas:
1,000,000 one million
1,000,000,000 one billion o one thousand million
Nota: Un billn en el sistema decimal internacional es un milln de milones o sea 1.000.000.000.000. Los ingleses y
sus descendientes norteamericanos llaman billn (todava) a los mil millones 1.000.000.000
El punto se reserva para los nmeros decimales: 2.5 para los ingleses = 2,5 en para los espaoles.
En ingles no se utiliza and entre las decenas y las unidades ni entre el millar y las centenas:
26 twenty-six, 48 forty-eight, 1600 one thousand six hundred
Si se utiliza entre las centenas y las decenas o entre las centenas y las unidades. Tambien se usa entre el millar
y las decenas o entre el millar y las unidades en el caso de no haber centenas:
103 one hundred and three, 125 one hundred and twenty-five, 1670 one thousand six hundred and seventy, 1001 one
thousand and one, 1025 one thousand and twenty-five.
Examples:
101 one hundred and one
210 two hundred and ten
815 eight hundred and fifteen
1001 one thousand and one
1010 one thousand and ten
2,434 two thousand, four hundred and thirty-four
8,082 eight thousand and eighty-two
9,922 nine thousand, nine hundred and twenty-two
97,500 ninety seven thousand, five hundred
112,440 one hundred and twelve thousand, four hundred and forty
150,000 one hundred and fifty thousand
850,000 eight hundred and fifty thousand
425,322 four hundred and twenty five thousand, three hundred and twenty-two
925,010 nine hundred and twenty five thousand, and ten
Al leer un nmero cifra por cifra, el cero puede leerse de cinco maneras distintas en ingls: zero (matemticas y
temperatura), nought (matemticas y para nombrar la cifra) o como la letra O (nmeros de telefonos y en fechas), nil
(resultados de futbol y algunos deportes), love (para el tenis).
Temperatures today are below zero: Las
675075674: six-seven-five, o-seven, fifty-six,
temperaturas estn hoy bajo cero
seventy-four
Zero divided by six is zero: Cero dividido por seis
1905: nineteen o five
es cero
1808: eighteen o eight
Eight times zero is zero: Ocho por cero es cero
The score is two nil: El resultado es dos a cero
One minus one is nought: Uno menos uno es cero
The final score is five nil: El resultado final es cinco
Three times nought is nought: Tres por cero es cero
a cero
Five from five is nought: Cinco menos cinco es cero
The score is three sets to love: El resultado es tres
695073320: six-nine-five, o-seven, double three,
sets a cero
two-o
The score is two sets to love: El resultado son dos
668490450: double six-eight, forty-nine, o-four,
sets a cero
fifty
Despus de una cantidad de dinero el verbo va en singular: 1000$ was paid to Sheila as a special bonus
Fechas:
En ingles se emplean los nmeros ordinales para los das del mes: the fourth of July, the ninth of May
En en lenguaje hablado a menudo se cambia el orden:
The fifteenth of June June the fifteenth
On the thirtieth of April On April the thirtieth
Los das del mes se pueden escribir de varias maneras: 6th August, 6 August (en el encabezamiento de una carta) o
August 6th. Aunque se escriba 6 August, se sigue prununciando de la misma manera: sixth
En ingls no se utiliza la preposicin of entre el mes y el ao: In Jaunary 1998
Una fecha completa se puede expresar de las siguientes formas: 12th October 1992, 12 October 1992 (en el
encabezamiento de una carta y textos formales)
Los aos hasta mil se leen de forma convencional: 708 seven hundred and eight, 650 six hundred and fifty
Despus de mil, se toman las dos primeras cifras y se leen como un nmero y lo mismo con las otras dos cifras:
1996: nineteen ninety-six
1650: sixteen fifty
1066: ten sixty-six
1900: nineteen hundred
1801: eighteen o one
Por lo que respecta al siglo XXI se oye hablar de: 2001: two thousand and one, 2010: two thousand and ten

EL ADJETIVO
Terminaciones:
-y
-ful (lleno)

-less (sin)

-ous (-oso)

-ing (participio presente)

Prefijos:
un- o in- (negacin)
a-

anger: ira, clera

beauty: hermosura
care: cuidado
use: uso
care: cuidado
use: uso
hat: sombrero
precious: precioso
curious: curioso
serious: serio, grave
amusing: divertido
interesting: interesante

angry: enfadado, irritado, colrico

beautiful: hermoso
careful: cuidadoso
useful: til
careless: descuidado, negligente
useless: intil
hatless: sin sombrero

confortable: cmodo
dependent: dependiente

uncomfortable: incomodo
independent: independiente
afraid: temeroso
alone: solo

lone: solo, solitario

Adjetivos compuestos:
1-Adjetivo o sustantivo delante de adjetivo: La primera parte modifica la segunda
Dark green: verde oscuro
library book: libro de la biblioteca
Light blue: azul claro
world famous: de fama mundial
Grass green: verde hierba
2-Adjetivo, adverbio o sustantivo delante del gerundio
Dirty looking: que parece sucio
Wine-drinking: que bebe vino
Hard-working: trabajador
Fruit growing: que cultiva fruta
3-Adjetivo, adverbio o sustantivo delante de participio pasado
Coffee-coloured: de color de cafe
Sun-burnt: tostado por el sol
Well-dressed: bien vestido
Blue-eyed: con ojos azules
El adjetivo atributivo precede, por regla general, al sustantivo que califica
She is a kind, helpful, hard-working and intelligent girl: Es una chica amable, til, trabajadora e inteligente
The fine old building: un edificio antiguo y hermoso
A big square blue box: Una caja grande azul
A small mixed farm: una granja mixta pequea
cuadrada
A very busy time: un tiempo muy ocupado
A disgusting pink plastic ornament: Un adorno
A wonderful old Italian clock: un reloj maravilloso
repugnante de plstico rosa
Italiano antiguo
Some slim new French trousers: unos pantalones
estrechos franceses nuevos
El adjetivo va despus de sustantivo cuando:
Cuando se emplea como predicativo (cierto nmero de adjetivos slo se emplean como predicativos, entre ellos
los que llevan el prefijo a-(*)). Tambin en las expresiones de medida, cuando califica a los pronombres thing
y body, y cuando est calificado por un complemento(**).
*worth: valer
*well: bien, sano
*Ill: enfermo

*to beleft: quedar

*to bemissing: faltar
*asleep: dormido

*alone: solo
*afraid: temeroso
*ashamed: avergonzado

The girl is hard-working: La muchacha es muy trabajadora

This tea isnt worth three shillings a pound: Este t no vale tres chelines la libra
Are you well today? No, I am rather ill: Ests bien, hoy? No, estoy bastante enfermo
He is asleep: Est dormido
The street is a mile long: La calle tiene una milla de largo.
Have you heard anything new: Ha odo algo nuevo?
I want somebody intelligent: Deseo alguien inteligente
**She dropped a dish full of ices on to the floor: Dej caer una fuente llena de helados al suelo
Cuando se habla de una clase de gente en conjunto y en general, se usa el adjetivo precedido del artculo
definido como sustantivo colectivo:
We must give a good education to the poor: Tenemos que educar bien a los pobres
The rich can eat good food: Los ricos pueden comer bien
The very old and the very young must be looked after: Los muy viejos y los muy jvenes deben ser cuidados
More examples:
The dead: los muertos
The dying: los moribundos

The blind: los ciegos

The wounded: los heridos

The good: los buenos

The bad: los malos

Un adjetivo de nacionalidad empleado para indicar el idioma se emplea como suatantivo sin artculo:
He is learning Greek: Est aprendiendo griego
He speaks English, French, and Spanish: Habla ingls, francs y espaol
El adjetivo en singular precedido del artculo definido se emplea a veces como sustantivo abstracto:
The ideal and the real: Lo ideal y lo real
Do not go out in the cold and the wet: No salga con tiempo fro y hmedo
Ciertos adjetivos de uso corriente se emplean como sustantivo:
The adult: el adulto
The noble: el noble
The patient: el paciente, el enfermo
The public: el pblico
El adjetivo como adverbio: No se puede en ingls, como se hace en espaol, emplear el adjetivo como adverbio,
pero hay unos adjetivos que tienen la misma forma que el adverbio correspondiente:
This is a fast train

The train is travelling fast

He came by the early train
I must get up early
This is a hard lesson

He works hard
ADVERBIOS:
Los adverbios te indican como se hace algo: She sings beautifully or He went upstairs carefully
Un adverbio no puede modificar un nombre:
NOT!!!: He is a quietly man The correct sentence should say: He is a quiet man
NOT!!!: I have a happily dog The correct sentence should say: I have a happy dog
Los adverbios de modo se forman aadiendo -ly al adjetivo:
Los adjetivos terminados en le cambian la -e por -y, los terminados en ll aaden slo -y, los que acaban en -y
la cambian por -i, los que acaban en ue pierden la -e.
bad: malo
badly: gravemente, mal
slow: lento
slowly: lentamente
bright: brillante
brightly: brillantemente
fluent: fluido
fluently: con fluidez
literal: literal
literally: literalmente
natural: natural
naturally: naturalmente
most: ms, mayora
mostly: sobre todo, en general, en la mayor parte
affectionate: carioso
affectionately: cariosamente
certain: seguro, cierto
certainly: sin duda, desde luego, indudablemente, ciertamente
beautiful: hermoso
beautifully: hermosamente
dear: caro, querido
dearly: caro, cariosamente, con cario
good: bueno
well: bien
possible: posible
possibly: posiblemente
comfortable: comodo
comfortably: comodamente
simple: simple
simply: simplemente
full: completo
fully: totalmente
easy: fcil
easily: fcilmente
noisy: ruidoso
noisily: ruidosamente
due: debido
duly: debidamente
true: verdadero
truly: verdaderamente
Ntese la terminacin -ward(s) en sentido de hacia:
Forwards: hacia delante Backwards: hacia atrs
Notese la diferencia:
I feel good: me siento bien
I feel well: me encuentro bien (salud)
Algunos adjetivos no cambian al tomar la forma de adverbio:
fast: rpido
fast: rpidamente
hard: duro
hard: dramente
straight: derecho, recto
straight: derecho, en linea recta
tight: apretado, ajustado, prieto
tight: hermticamente
Excepciones:
near: cerca de
nearly: casi
late: tarde
lately: recientemente, ltimamente
hard: duro
hardly: apenas
Adverbios compuestos
somehow: de alguna manera u otra
everywhere: por todas partes
anyhow: de cualquier manera
nowhere: en ningn sitio
somewhere: en algn sitio
elsewhere: en otro sitio
anywhere: en cualquier sitio
somewhat: algo

Posicin del abverbio:

1-Precede a la palabra que modifica (con excepcin del verbo): He is very clever: Es muy listo
Los adverbios modifican verbos, te indican como algo es hecho: She sings beautifully
Los adverbios modifican adjetivos, llendo antes del adjetivo: She is extremely happy. They are absolutely sure
2-No debe separar el verbo del complemento directo: He speaks English well: Habla bien el ingls
3-Va despus del verbo to be:
She is always ill: Siempre est enferma
I am easily tired: Me canso facilmente
4-En los tiempos compuestos va despus del verbo auxiliar:
She has always been ill: Ha estado siempre enferma
5- Con un verbo transitivo (requieren de la presencia de complemento directo) el adverbio puede ir entre el
sujeto y el verbo (en los tiempos compuestos va despus del verbo auxiliar) o despus del complemento directo:
He easily won the race
He completely forgot the time
He has easily won the race
He has completely forgotten the time
He won the race easily
He forgot the time completely
He has won the race easily
He has forgotten the time completely
6- Con un verbo intransitivo (no requieren de la presencia de complemento directo) el adverbio se coloca
despus del verbo:
He smokes too much
He drives very fast
They have driven too fast from London
Principales adverbios de cantidad: little, much, almost, rather, quite, very, too, enough
Principales adverbios de lugar: above, across, along, around, away, back, behind, below, down, far, here, in, near,
off, there, up, where, beside
Principales adverbios de tiempo: after, again, ago, already, always, before, early, ever, formerly, late, never, now,
often, once, seldom, sometimes, soon, still, then, today, when, yesterday, yet
Principales adverbios de negacin: no, not, never, not at all.
Todos los adverbios de frecuencia o de tiempo indefinido como always, soon, sometimes, often, usually,
generally, occasionally, never, last.. siempre van entre el sujeto y el verbo entre el verbo auxiliar y el verbo,
SIN EMBARGO, en los tiempos simples del verbo to be se ponen despus de este verbo. A veces van al
principio de la frase. Los adverbios de frecuencia que expresan infrecuencia no son normalmente usados en la forma
negativa ni en la interrogativa.
They dont usually travel on fridays
I always have breakfast in my pyjamas
Since I last saw you
I sometimes have lunch in my pyjamas
He doesnt probably know the answer
Sometimes, he likes to go to museums
I have never seen King Juan Carlos
Peter is always hungry
Jean never wears a coat in winter
He is often ill.
Infrecuencia:
He is often late for class
NOT!!!: Does she rarely eat fish?
He will soon be here
NOT!!!: They dont seldom go to the cinema
Do you always eat in a restaurant?
Adems los siguientes adverbios tambin van en la misma posicin que los adverbios de frecuencia:
almost: casi
nearly: casi
also: tambin
quite: completamente
first: en primer lugar, primero
hardly: apenas
once: una vez
Adems los siguientes adverbios se colocan generalmente en posicin final:
today
better
yesterday
very well
late
tonight
well
tomorrow
the day after tomorrow
the day before yesterday
Otros adverbios son: even, completely

early
badly
worse
very much

No debe usarse nunca very con adjetivos que expresen una cualidad incrementada de un adjetivo base:
good (adjetivo base) - fantastic (extremo de good).
NOT!!!: She is a very beautiful woman

SUSTANTIVOS
Sustantivos
Los sustantivos pueden ser compuestos: bedroom, tea-spoon... y tambin pueden ser gerundios: reading, writing
Los sufijos er y or indican un agente: placer, actor, teacher, manager
Muchos sustantivos en ingls tienen la misma forma que el verbo correspondiente:
to help: ayudar
help: ayuda
to walk: pasear
a walk: un paseo
to answer: contestar
an answer: una contestacin
to change: cambiar a change: un cambio
Sustantivos compuestos: empleado como calificativo puede indicar:
Lugar: Country people, the village church
Materia: a silk handkerchief, a stone house
Uso: a passport office, a coffee-room
Tiempo: a evening paper, an afternoon class que no es lo mismo que an afternoons work: el trabajo de una tarde o
una tarde de trabajo.
Contenido: a picture paper, a flower garden
El complemento de un agente: a bus-driver, a bank- manager
El genero puede ser, masculino (The man, the boy, the horse), femenino (the lady, the maid, the cow), comn (the
teacher, the doctor) o neutro (the spoon, the sun, the morning)
El sustantivo colectico crowd (multitude, muchedumbre) y cuando no se especifica el sexo de un animal, se
consideran neutro. Un nio de pecho generalmente tambin es neutro:
The baby has a piece of paper in its mouth.
The crowd was big; in fact it was too big.
The bird and its little ones.
Barcos, mquinas y paises generalmente son de genero femenino: She is a fine ship, Spain and her colonies.
El femenino se forma de las siguientes maneras:
1.Mediante la terminacin ess: distinguimos los generos masculino y femenino: actor/actress, master/mistress,
author/authoress, manager/manageress, waiter/waitress, heir/heiress, lion/lioness
2. Con una palabra distinta: boy/girl, cock/hen
3. Con un sustantivo compuesto: milkman/milkmaid, manservant/maidservant, he goat/she goat
4. Con el adjetivo female: male friend/female friend
SUSTANTIVOS. EL PLURAL
El plural del sustantivo se forma aadiendo s al singular o -es despus de -s, x, z, ch, sh, tch, ss.
book-books, shop-shops
church churches bush bushes (arbusto)
box boxes
dress dresses
watch watches
dish dishes
fox foxes
glass glasses
bench benches
wish wishes
tax taxes
Los sustantivos terminados en -o aaden -es al formar el plural, pero la -e queda muda: Potato-potatoes, tomatotomatoes, hero-heroes.
Excepciones: piano-pianos, radio-radios, cuckoo-cuckoos (cuclillo), photo-photos
Los sustantivos que acaban en -f -fe cambian en plural la -f -fe por -ves: knife-knives, leaf-leaves, half-halves,
wife-wives, life-lives, shelf-shelves, thief-thieves, scarf-scarves
Excepciones: roof-roofs, chief-chiefs, handkerchief- handkerchiefs, grief-griefs, cliff-cliffs, proof-proofs, beliefbeliefs, relief-reliefs.
Los sustantivos terminados en y precedida de consonante cambian la y por i,aadiendo es, con lo que
forman el plural con ies: lady-ladies, body-bodies, family-families
Los sustantivos terminados en y precedida de vocal aaden s regularmente: way-ways, day-days, boy-boys
Ciertas palabras retienen la forma original del plural: series-series, crisis-crises, bureau-bureaux, Mr-Messrs.
Ciertas palabras tienen la misma forma en singular y plural: sheep (oveja), poultry (aves), cattle (ganado), fish
(pescado).
Ej: a sheep two sheep, a fish some fish (fish: pescado, fish en sentido de pez forma plural fishes (peces))
Sustantivos colectivos que se emplean slo en singular aunque se traducen al castellano a veces en plural o en
singular. Para expresar la unidad de estas palabras se puede emplear a piece of
advice (consejos), furniture (muebles), knowledge (conocimiento(s)), progress (progreso(s)), luggage, (equipaje)
nonsense (tonteria(s)), news (noticia(s)), information (informacin, informe), rubbish (basura, desperdicios)
Examples:
The news is good: La noticia es buena o las noticas son buenas
A piece of furniture: un mueble
A piece of advine: un conjejo
A piece of news: una noticia
Sustantivos que se emplean solo en plural: People, trousers, scissors, goods, wages, customs
Ej: The people have all come

Como vemos la palabra people siempre va con verbo y articulos en plural: Those people are bad
Plural Irregular
man men
otros casos:
woman women
holiday: vacaciones (a holiday: unas vacaciones)
tooth teeth
little few
foot feet
a little a few (tambin: a bit = un poco)
mouse mice
child children
goose geese
fish fish
sheep sheep
mikman mikmen
Enghishman Enghishmen
Bedroom bedrooms
Cloth pao, trapo tiene 2 plurales cloths (paos, trapos, tejidos (sin confeccionar) y clothes (ropa, vestidos
(confeccionados))
MODIFICACIONES GRFICAS DEL VERBO (Pag 84 y 90 libro Basil Potter elemental Pag 112, 178 libro
Basil Potter intermedio)
Aaden -es en la tercera persona los verbos terminados en -s, ss, x, z, ch, sh, tch.
I Catch He catches
I finish it finishes
I fix He fixes
I Watch He watches
I Wash He washes
I mix He mixes
I Teach He teaches
I push He pushes
I fax He faxes
I Fish He fishes
I dressHe dresses
I reach He reaches
Aaden -es en la tercera persona los verbos terminados en -o (la e es muda)
I do He does
I Go He goes
Los verbos monoslabos con vocal breve y una sola consonante al final duplican la consonante final al aadir
las terminaciones -ed, -ing. Ocurre lo mismo en los verbos de dos slabas, siempre que la ltima slaba lleve el
acento:
To get
getting
To cut
cutting
To stop
stopped
To run
running
To sit
sitting
To occur
occurred
To hit
hitting
To dig
digging
To prefer
preferred
Los verbos que terminan en l siempre doblan la l al aadir una terminacin:
To contol
the controller
To travel
the traveller, I travelled
Se suprime la -e final de un verbo al aadir una terminacin que empiece por vocal:
To come
coming
La -y final precedida de consonante cambia por -ie al aadir una -s o -ed. Sin embargo, -y final precedida de vocal
no presenta irregularidades. La -y final nunca cambia a ie para formar el gerundio:
To try
I tried
he tries
trying
To carry
I carried
he carries
carrying
To cry
I cried
he cries
crying
To say
I said
he says
saying
To play
I played
he plays
playing
Los verbos terminados en -ie cambian -ie por y para formar el gerundio:
To lie
lying
To die
dying
3. PRONOMBRES Y ADJETIVOS DEMOSTRATIVOS
Adjetivos
This: este, esta
These: estos, estas
That: ese, esa, aquel, aquella
Those: esos, esas, aquellos, aquellas

Pronombres
This: sto
This one: ste, sta
These: stos, stas
That: eso, aquello
That one: se, sa, aqul, aqulla
Those: sos, sas, aqullos, aqullas

Adjetivos
This meat is badly cooked
That house in the distance is my aunts
These children are noisy. Cant they go to another room
Those handkerchiefs at the back of the shop-window are quite cheap
Pronombres
This is very amusing. Ill read it to you
Thats a good idea
Here are two dresses.Do you like this one or that one? I dont like either.
Will I wear these trousers or those? I prefer these
I prefer that one
Por otro lado las expresiones like this y like that significan as
A la hora de presentar a una persona, empleamos el pronombre demostrativo this. Literalmente se dice:
This is Peter: Este es Pedro
Despus de indicar de quien estamos hablando, con la palabra this, empleamos la forma impersonal it, hasta
que identificamos a la persona por su nombre:
Is this Phillip Johnson? No, it isnt
Is it Pierre Monet? No, it isnt
Is it Luigi Barghini? No, it isnt
Who is it? Its Nigel Perkins
Is he a man o a boy? Hes a man
VERBO EN SINGULAR Y PLURAL SEGN EL SUJETO
1-Cuando tenemos un sujeto compuesto que contiene un nombre plural y un nombre singular unidos mediante
or o nor, el verbo va de acuerdo con la parte del sujeto que est ms cerca l.
The boy or his friends run every day
His friends or The boy runs every day
Cuando el sujeto de una frase est compuesto por dos o ms nombres conectados por and, el verbo va en
plural
She and her friends are at the fair
Every night a pink moon and a fleecy cloud appear over the horizon of the city.
Cuando dos o ms nombres singulares estn conectados mediante or onor, el verbo va en singular
The book or the pen is in the drawer
2-Las palabras: each, each one, either, neither, everyone, everybody, anybody, anyone, nobody, somebody,
someone and no one, son singulares y requieren verbo en singular
Each of these hot dogs is juicy
Everybody knows Mr Jones
Either is correct
3-Los nombres: civics, mathematics, dollars, measles, news, requieren verbo en singular
The news is on at six
What the news is?: Que notcias hay?
The news is good
La palabra dollars es un caso especial, cuando hablamos de una cantidad de dinero, requiere un verbo singular,
y cunado nos referimos a los dolares como moneda, requiere un verbo plural
Five dollars is a loto f Money
Dollars are often used instead of rubles in Russia
4- Los nombres: scissors, tweezers, trousers and shears requieren un verbo en plural.
These scissors are dull
Those trousers are made of wool
5- Las frases que empiezan con there is or thera are, el verbo to be es plural o singular dependiendo de lo
que le siga:
There are many question
There is a question
6-Los nombres colectivos tales como: group, team, society, committee, class, family; son palabras que implican a
varias personas pero son consideradas singular (al hablar en general) y van seguidas de un verbo en singular.
Solamente se usa el verbo en plural cuando se especifica de manera concreta y se deja de hablar en general.
The team runs Turing practice
The family has a long history
The committee decides how to proceed
My family have never been able to agree
7- Expresiones tales como: with, together with, including, accompanied by, in addition to, as well; no cambian el
nmero del sujeto, si el sujeto es singular, el verbo tambin lo es:
The president, accompanied by his wife, is travelling to India.
All of the books, including yours, are in that box

4. WHO, WHOM, WHOSE, WHAT, WHICH, THAT (Pag 121, 129 Basil Potter intermedio)
Promombres interrrogativos: who, whom, whose, which, what
Adjetivos interrogativos: which, what
Promombres relativos:
PERSONAS
ANIMALES Y COSAS
SUJETO
Who, that (que)
Which, that (que)
Complemento
Whom, that (a quien)
Which, that (que)
Posesivo
Whose (cuyo)
Of which, whose (cuyo)
Despus de preposicin
To whom (a quien)
In which (en que)
What (lo que)
Pronombre interrogativo Quin
Promombre relativo que
Who pregunta la identidad.
Who is that?, That is Tom Brown: Quin es ese?, Ese es Tom Brown
The man who went on horseback was late: El hombre que fue a caballo llego tarde
A neighbour is the person who lives in front of you: Un vecino es la persona que vive en frente de ti
Who:

Whom: Pronombre interrogativo A quin

Promombre relativo A quin
Whom did you see?: A quin viste?
The man whom I saw on horseback was late: El hombre a quien v a caballo llego tarde
Ojo!!!Despus de preposicin se utiliza Whom: from whom, for whom
The boy to whom the cap belongs has gone away: El muchacho a quien pertenece el gorro se ha ido
Whose: Pronombre interrogativo De quien
Whose + (Complemento directo) + is/are + it/they/this/that/these/those.(De quin es.)
Promombre relativo Cuyo: whose se construye como cuyo en espaol, poniendo el complemento al lado
No se puede emplear el articulo the despus de Whose
Whose is it?: De quin es?
Whose are they?: De quin son?
Whose umbrella is it?: De quin es el paraguas?
Whose letters are they?: De quin son las cartas?
Whose books are they?:De quien son los libros?
Whose hat is it?: De quien es el sombrero?
Whose grapes are those?: De quien son esas uvas?
The man whose house we can see from here is very ill: El hombre cuya casa vemos desde aqu est muy enfermo.
The man whose son is here: El hombre cuyo hijo est aqui
The man whose son was at Oxford with Peter is a lawyer: El hombre cuyo hijo estaba en la Universidad de Oxford
con Pedro es abogado.
The house whose gardens are very beautiful belongs to my father: La casa cuyos jardines son muy hermosos
pertenece a mi padre.
Whose se contesta con un adjetivo o pronombre posesivo, (my, mine), o por un caso posesivo (Peters)
Whose car is this? It is my car. It is mine. It is Peters
Pronombre interrogativo Qu/Cul?; What pregunta la profesin y se usa en sentido general
Pronombre relativo lo que
Which: Pronombre interrogativo Qu/ Cul? (Generalmente se traduce por Cal?)
Pronombre relativo que
What:

Empleamos which como Qu/Cul? cuando es una eleccin entre 2, 3 o varias cosas concretas ya identificadas
(en sentido selectivo), de otra forma utilizamos la palabra what.
of which onlyde la cual solo
of which: cuyo
some of which.algunos de los cuales
from whichdesde la cual
on which: entonces, a lo cual
which is...el cual es
at which pointmomento en el que
whichin? En qu.?
whichon? En qu?
whichto? A qu.?
Which car do you like between Audi y BMW?: Qu coche te gusta entre Audi y BMW?

Which of these books do you want?: Cal de estos librso quieres?

Which one is yours, this one or that one?: Cul es el tuyo, ste o aqul?
Which one is the hot tap?: Cul es el grifo del agua caliente?
Which picture did you buy?: Qu cuadro compraste?
Which tailor do you go to? Johnson and Son.: A qu santre vas? Johnson e hijo
The car which won the race was mine: El coche que gano la carrera era mo
The car which I bought in London won the race: El coche que compr en Londres gan la carrera
The carriage of which the horse fell belongs to a friend of mine: El coche cuyo caballo cay pertenece a un amigo
mo
It started to rain, at which point we ran: Empez a llover, momento en el que corrmos
The movie which was shown later was better: La pelcula que ms tarde se demostr era mejor.
Choose which you like best: elige la que ms te guste
Which of the three races is the most interesting?: Cul de las tres carreras es la ms interesante?
Notese que en ingles el sujeto de la frase relativa se coloca denlante del verbo, segn la regla general. No se
puede hacer la inversin del sujeto, como ocurre a menudo en espaol:
The house which my father bought is very fine: La casa que compr mi padre es muy bonita.
The house in which we live is very old: La casa en que vivimos es muy vieja
Which? Escogiendo entre dos: Which book will you have? I will have this one, that one, the one about Spain,
either, both, neither, I wont have either.
Which? Escogiendo entre ms de dos: Which book will you have? I will have this one, that one, the one about
Spain, any one, all, none, I wont have any.
What car do you like?: Qu coche te gusta?
What are your plans?: Cules son tus planes?
What pictures do you like?: Qu cuadros te gustan?
What are you? I am a tailor: Qu eres tu? Soy sastre
What I dont understand is why he has come: Lo que no entiendo es por qu ha venido
I will give you what you need for the journey: Le dar lo que necesite usted para el viaje
What nice weather!: "Qu agradable clima!"
Construccin
Un pronombre o adjetivo interrogativo cuando es sujeto va seguido de un verbo en forma afirmativa, cuando
es complemento va seguido de un verbo en forma interrogativa
Who came this morming?
Whom did you see?
Which book was the best?
Which house did you buy?
La preposicin que rige un pronombre interrogativo se coloca muy a menudo al final de la oracin, sobre todo
en el estilo familiar, usandose en este caso who en vez de whom. De igual modo sucede con los pronombres
relativos en el estilo familiar.
To whom are you writing (estilo literario)
Who are you writing to? (estilo familiar)
With whom are you going to the football match?
Who are you going to the football match with?
The boy to whom the cap belongs has gone away: El muchacho a quien pertenece el gorro se ha ido
The boy whom the cap belongs to has gone away: El muchacho a quien pertenece el gorro se ha ido
The house in which we live is very old: La casa en que vivimos es muy vieja
The house which we live in is very old: La casa en que vivimos es muy vieja
That: Hay que emplear that en vez de who, whom o which:
1-Despus de un adjetivo en grado superlativo, despus de first, last, all y cuando el antecedente est
compuesto de cosas y personas:
London is the largest city that I have ever visited: Londrs es la ciudad ms grande que he visitado jams
I was the frist person that he saw on arriving: Yo fui la primera persona que l vio al llegar
He gave me all the books that he had brought from Spain: Me dio todos los libros que haba trado de Espaa
He did all that I wanted: Hizo todo lo que quera yo
(all that: todo lo que)
The people and the carriages that were going to the market blocked the road: La gente y los coches que iban al
mercado bloquearon la carretera.
2-Empleo preferable de that: that en contraste con who, whom y which se emplea en sentido selectivo y
restrictivo:
My brother who is in America is a doctor: Mi hermano, que est en Amrica, es mdico (slo un hermano)
My brother that is in America is a doctor: Mi hermano, el que est en Amrica, es mdico (varios hermanos)
Si hay slo un hermano no se puede emplear that, con lo que sera incorrecto decir:
My wife that is in America is ill MAL (porque slo tiene una esposa)
OK My wife who is in America is ill: Mi esposa, que est en Amrica, est enferma
3- No se puede colocar ninguna preposicin delante de That, se colocan al final de la frase relativa:
The man that I gave it to has gone away: El hombre a quien se lo di se ha ido
The person that we are speaking to: la persona a la que estamos hablando

10

Omisin del pronombre relativo:

El pronombre sujeto no se puede omitir
El pronombre complemento that se puede omitir, pero whom y which no se omiten
The man (that) I saw has gone away
Parson Adams came to the house of Parson Trulliber whom he found with his coat off
Cualquier pronombre relativo regido por una preposicin puede omitirse con tal de colocar la preposicin en
posicin final.
The boy (whom) the cap belongs to has gone away: El muchacho a quien pertenece el gorro se ha ido
The house (which) we live in is very old: La casa en que vivimos es muy vieja
The man (that) I gave it to has gone away: El hombre a quien se lo di se ha ido
The name and address of the person or firm (whom) you are writing to: El nombre y la direccin de la persona o
empresa a quien ests escribiendo
La omisin del pronombre relativo es obligatoria si se coloca la preposicin al final de una frase relativa
formada con el infinitivo:
I have no place in which to keep my books: No tengo sitio en donde guardar mis libros
I have no place to keep my books in.
El antecedente del pronombre relativo
He who
El que
The one who
La
que
The one which
Those who
The ones who
Los que
Those which
Las que
The ones which
what
Lo que
He who steals will finish in prison: El que roba terminar en la carcel
(who he, who she se emplea poco y casi siempre en sentido general)
Did they catch the thief? Which thief? The one who came yesterday to Mr Joness house: Cogieron al ladrn?Que
ladrn? El que vino ayer a casa del seor Jones.
Which station does the train leave from? The one which is near the river: De cul estacin sale el tren? De la que
est cerca del ro.
Which doctors are the best? Those who (the ones who) live in Harley Street are the most expensive, but I dont
know if theyre the best: Qu mdicos son los mejores? Los que viven en Harley Street son los ms caros, pero no
s si son los mejores.
What clothes will I take? Those which (the ones which) you took to Italy last month: Qu vestidos llevar
conmigo? Los que usted llev a Italia el mes pasado.
EL EMPLEO DEL ARTCULO a/an
Empleo el artculo a/an:
Antes de consonante, antes de u, eu cuando se pronuncia ju: a useful person, a European war
Antes de o cuando se pronuncia w: a one-legged man
Antes de hundred y thousand en singular: There are a hundred house, He gave me a thousand cows, pero: There
are two hundred houses, He gave me two thousabd cows.
Cuando hablo de una profesin (en singular):
What do you do?: A que te dedicas? I work as a farmer They work as firefighters (firemen) NUNCA SE
DICE: I work like waiter
Singular: I work as a doctor (usamos el articulo a)
Plural: We work as doctors (no usamos el articulo a)
En este caso as significa como
Hay otras frases en que decimos como con like (to like) I dont play football like Maradona, I play the gutar like
you
Para expresar la unidad de tiempo, peso y medida:
Three times a day: tres veces al dia
Two euros a kilo ( kilogram): dos euros el kilo
Four euros a meter: cuatro euros el metro
Three euros a pair: tres euros el par
A pound and a half of cheese: una libra y media de queso
An hour and a half
Con sustantivos en aposicin se pone a the segn el sentido:
Madrid, a beautiful city Madrid, ciudad hermosa
Madrid, the capital of Spain Madrid, capital de Espaa
Despus de as en sentido de cmo: As a wife, she is admirable. As a birthday present

11

Despus de what!!, such, half, without y delante de certain:

What a fine man !!!
Such a thing is not possible
Half a hour
Without a hat
A certain boy: cierto chico
Nombres contables en singular siempre necesitan un artculo:
a se cambia en an delante de vocal: an arm, an orange

I have a flat

where is the car?

ONE SE EMPLEA:
Se traduce por: un, una
Como numeral: He has only one leg
En el sentido de uno solo: I have one book, but he has two.
En el sentido de cierto: One day: un da, cierto da
Delante de of: One of them, one of his friends
En contraste con otro: One half for me, the other for you
Si se omite el sustantivo, se pone One como pronombre:
A pullover, sir; yes, here is a nice one
This shirt is cheap, but that one is too dear
The one on the table is mine
Which one is the hot tap?
Which ones are theirs?
The one here is mine
Do you want a book? Heres a good one
There are many noisy streets and few quiet ones in London
I dont like this flat much: I prefer the one which we saw yesterday
Do you like this scarf? No, I prefer that one
Ntese que el adjetivo no se puede emplear solo en ingls salvo casos excepcionales. Slo these y those se
pueden emplear como pronombres sin one.
Como pronombre impersonal, correspondiente al espaol uno, aunque en este sentido one se emplea poco:
Hay tendencia a emplear you o they como impersonal:
One likes to have ones own house: A uno le gusta tener su propia casa
They drink wine in France: Se bebe vino en Francia
You cant go there by air: No se puede ir all por avin
Nota: no one: nadie
EL ARTICULO THE
No se emplea el articulo the cuando se habla de cosas en general.
Men and women
Pens are useful
Horses are very peaceful animals
Coffee and tea are hot drinks
Water is a liquid
Cars always have four wheels
Pero The water is hot this evening The water in the city tastes strange The cars in the dealership are expensive
(s se emplea The porque en este caso es en sentido determinado)
No se emplea el articulo the antes de nombres propios o de ttulos, se dice pero no se escribe:
Captain Hardy: El Capitan Hardy
King George VI (the sixth) is king of England now: El rey Jorge VI es rey de Inglaterra ahora
I have never seen King Juan Carlos: Nunca he visto al rey Juan Carlos
Henry VIII (the 8th) had six wives: Enrique octavo tuvo seis mujeres
Nota: yo escribo: Henry VIII had six wives, pero yo pronuncio: Henry the 8th had six wives
Sin embargo se dice: the King of Spain: el Rey de Espaa
Sin embargo cuando digo: He has broken his leg Put on your coat Se ha roto la pierna or Ponte el
abrigoutilizo el adjetivo posesivo (my, your, his, her) en vez de el artculo the:
Captain Hardy has put on his coat: El capitan Hrdy se ha puesto el abrigo
No se emplea el articulo the a la hora de decir:
La semana que viene, el mes que viene, el ao que viene, la prxima vez, el proximo mircoles, se dice:
Next week, next month, next year, next time, next wednesday
La semana pasada, el mes pasado, el ao pasado, la ltima vez, el ltimo da, el viernes pasado, se dice:
Last week, last month, last year, last time, last day, last friday
Jason did his homework last night: Jason hizo sus deberes anoche
Ojo: The next morning: A la maana siguiente

12

No se emplea el articulo the al nombrar una calle, un sustantivo + nmero, o con los nombres de comidas:
Oxford street is very long: El paseo de Gracia es muy largo
Number 4, Page six, Book eleven, Chapter four, Part one, Act one, Scene three: El nmero 4, la pgina seis, el
libro once, el captulo cuarto, primera parte, acto primero, escena tercera
After breakfast, Tea is at five oclock
No se emplea el articulo the despus de Whose
Whose is it?: De quin es?
Whose are they?: De quin son?
Whose umbrella is it?: De quin es el paraguas?
Whose letters are they?: De quin son las cartas?
Whose books are they: De quien son los libros?
Whose hat is it: De quien es el sombrero?
No se emplea el articulo the delante del poseido cuando el poseedor est en forma de genitivo sajn:
Marys book These boysmother
No se emplea el articulo the con los pronombres posesivos
El mio, el tuyo, el suyo (de l), el suyo (de ella), el de nosotros, el de vosotros, el suyo (de ellos),mime, yours, his,
hers, ours, yours, theirs
This is mine: este es el mo
This is yours: este es el tuyo
This is his: este es el suyo
Our baby is prettier than theirs: nuestro nio es ms bonito que el suyo
Your book is more interesting than mine: su libro es ms interesante que el mo
Is this bus yours? No, It is not mine: Es ste autobs el tuyo? No, no es el mo
Peter waited a few minutes more and then his came along (the bus): Pedro espero unos minutos ms y entonces el
suyo llego tambin
Next to mine: al lado de la ma
Next to yours: prximo al tuyo al lado del tuyo
Por otro lado se dice:
In bed, at school, at church, at home, in town, at work, at rest En la cama, en la escuela, en la iglesia, en casa, en la
ciudad, trabajando, descansando.
I take a bus to go to (school, work, church, cinema ( the cinema))
Ojo, No se dice: to go to home, sino to go home.
To bed, to school, to church, to market, to town, home A la cama, a la escuela, a la iglesia, al Mercado, a la ciudad,
a casa
From school, from church, from home, from town De la escuela, de la iglesia, de casa, de la ciudad
Se emplea delante de pais en plural In the Unites States
Se emplea cuando se trata de cordilleras de montaas The Alps, The Pyrenees, sin embargo: El Mont Blanc es
una montaa muy alta: Mont Blanc is a very high mountain. (No se emplea).
EN INGLS SE USA MAYUSCULAS
1. Se escriben con mayusculas los ttulos, los tratamientos usados al referirse a parsonas en concreto: Dr.Jones,
the King of Spain
2. Tambin los nombres y ttulos de libros, periodicos, pelculas: The Zorro, The Times
3. Los nombres de los das de la semana y los meses: Tuesday, September
4. Los nombres de los pases y los adjetivos y sustantivos relativos a los mismos: Scotland, she is Scottish
AT, TO, IN, INTO, ON, ONTO, BY, FOR
At: Se emplea cunado indico que estoy en un punto o sitio concreto: Estoy en casa, en la estacin, en la cafetera, en
la escuelapero no estoy dentro. (Cuando no hay movimiento)
At como preposicin de lugar: At home, at work, at the station, at the cafeteria, at school, at university, at college,
at the top, at the bottom, at the side, at reception, at the church, at the meeting, at the corner, at the bus stop, at the
door, at the top of the page, at the end of the road, at the entrance, at the crossroads.
At como preposicin de tiempo se emplea para: horas, periodos de tiempo:
At 3 oclock, at 10.30am, at noon, at dinnertime, at bedtimeat sunrise, at sunset, at the moment, at present,
at night, at the weekend, at Christmas/Easter, at the same time.
At Christmas: el da de Navidad
On Christmas: las Navidades
To: Voy a la escuela, a casa, a la estacin (Cuando no hay movimiento)
"In y on" se utilizan, en general, para indicar la posicin o situacin de cosas o personas. "Into y onto", en cambio,
se utilizan para indicar la direccin hacia donde estn yendo esas cosas o personas.

13

In y into: In se emplea para traducir en, dentro, adentro en el sentido de dentro de, cuando no hay movimiento.
Si existe movimiento debe emplearse into (en, a, dentro de, hacia) y en este caso es necesario nombrar el sitio
donde se entra.
He jumped in the river: salt en el ro
He jumped into the river: Salt hacia el ro
I am in the house: Estoy en la casa
I go into the house: Voy hacia la casa
I see the house and I go in: Veo la casa y voy dentro
Ejemplos con "in/into", compara:
-Where are you? Dnde ests? I'm in my room. Estoy en mi habitacin. Nota: estoy indicando mi ubicacin con
"in".
- Where are you going? Dnde vas? I'm going into my room. Voy hacia/a mi habitacin.
Nota: Estoy indicando la direccin hacia donde voy con "into".
She was putting the images into the report when he came in. Ella estaba colocando las imagnes en/dentro del
informe cuando l entr.
In como preposicin de lugar: In the garden, in London, in France, in a box, in my pocket, in my wallet, in a
building, in a lift (elevator), in the newspaper, in the sky, in a row, in Oxford Street. Para metodos de transporte
pequeos: in a car, in a taxi, in a helicopter, in a boat.
In como preposicin de tiempo se emplea en: aos, eras, meses, maana, tarde, (pero NO noche) y estaciones
del ao
In May, in September, in April, in summer, in the summer, in 1990, in 1987, in the 1990s, in the next century, in the
Ice Age, in the past, in the future, in the morning(s), in the afternoon(s), in the evening(s), at night.
On y onto: On significan: en, sobre (algo) cuando se quiere indicar el lugar de algo o alguien. Onto no tiene un
significado definido, puede significar en, a, hacia, a la y se usa cuando se realiza una accin en la que hay
movimiento.
He jumped onto the fence: salt hacia la valla
The secretary transcribes the recording onto paper: el secretario transcribe la grabacin en papel
On como preposicin de lugar: On the wall, on the ceiling, on the door, on the cover, on the floor, on the carpet, on
the menu, on a page, on a bicycle, on a motorbike, on a horse, on an elephant, on the radio, on television, on the left,
on the right, on the way. Para metodos de transporte masivos: on a bus, on a train, on a plane, on a ship, on a coach.
Ejemplos con "on/onto", compara:
The cat jumped onto the table: El gato salto hacia la mesa
The cat jumped on the table: EL gato salto sobre la mesa
The actors walked onto the stage: Los actores caminaron hacia el escenario
The actors walked on the stage: Los actores caminaron sobre el escenario
Where is the cat? Dnde est el gato? It is on the tree top. Est en la copa del rbol.
Nota: Con "on" indico el lugar donde est el gato.
How did it get onto the tree top? Cmo lleg a la copa del rbol? Observacin: Para animales utilizamos el
pronombre "it" a no ser que sean nuestros animales, en cuyo caso, utilizamos "she/he".
Nota: Con "onto" pregunto "Cmo lleg a ...?" Fjate como la traduccin que hago al espaol est muy alejada del
ingls a fin de plasmar la idea de movimiento y direccin de "get onto".
Detalle: into y onto se escriben juntos. No obstante, en ingls britnico vers "on to" en ocasiones.
They threw their coins onto the cart. Tiraron sus monedas al carro.
Throw another coin on the cart. Tira otra moneda en el carro.
En estos ejemplos ocurre lo mismo que con "jump" porque ambos verbos "jump/saltar" y "throw/tirar" expresan
siempre movimiento y es difcil ver la diferencia entre "on/onto". En el primer ejemplo, pongo nfasis en la
realizacin del movimiento "tirar una moneda" y en el segundo ejemplo indico dnde debe estar la moneda despus
de tirarla, debe estar "en el carro."
On se utiliza tambin en fechas: On christmas dayOn Monday El da de navidad.. El lunes.
SIN EMBARGO decimos At the weekend: el fin de semana, At the weekends or weekends: los fines de semana,
for the weekend: de fin de semana
On como preposicin de tiempo se emplea en: das, fechas en las que indicamos da y mes, das sealados
On Sunday, on Tuesdays, on 6 March, on 25 Dec. 2010, on Christmas day, on Independence day, on my birthday, on
New Years Eve, on Tuesday morning, on Saturday mornings, on Saturday afternoons, on Monday evening.
On vacation: de vacaciones
On holidays: en vacaciones
On the right, on the left: A la derecha, ala izquierda
Pero decimos Turn to the lef, right: Gira a la izquierda, derecha
On the ground floor: en la planta baja
On that subject: sobre ese tema
On the first, second, third, fourth, fifth,of March, of January: El 1, 2, 3, 4, 5,de Marzo, de Enero
On seguido de la forma en ing a veces se traduce por Al:
On arriving he went upstairs: Al llegar subi arriba
On leaving the house he met his friend: Al salir de casa encontr a su amigo

14

Examples:
On his birthday: en su cumpleaos (de l)
On a visit to: en una visita a/en
On the day: el da
On the road: en la carretera
On the phone: por telefono
On the way: en el camino
On my bicycle: en mi bicicleta
On leave: de permiso
On menu: en el men
On deck: sobre cubierta
On the plane: en el avin
On board: a bordo
On the corner: en la esquina
On shore: en tierra, a tierra
On opening: al abrir
On earth: en el mundo
On the metro: en el metro
On duty: de servicio
On each hand: en cada mano
On purpose: a propsito
On cold mornings: en las maanas de fro
On one occasion: en una ocasin
On your list: en tu lista
On the basics: en lo bsico
Para resumir y recordar: "In/on" indican posicin. "Into y onto" indican direccin. Con ciertos verbos de
movimiento (put, jump, throw) se pueden utilizar alternativamente "in/into" u "on/onto".
Examples of review:
La pelota rod lentamente hacia la caja. (movimiento): The ball rolled slowly into the box.
No s como l logra subirse al tejado. (movimiento): I don't know how he manages to get onto the roof.
Estoy en el saln. (posicin): I'm in the living room.
Ella camin hacia el saln. (movimiento): She walked into the living room.
Tir mi zapato a la copa de un rbol. (movimiento): I threw my shoe onto a treetop.
Donde est mi zapato? Est en la copa de un rbol. (posicin): Where is my shoe? It's on the treetop.
Cmo convertir un prncipe en rana. (verbo que va con "into"): How to change a prince into a frog.
By: Se emplea para traducir: por, junto a.
By seguido de la forma en ing se emplea para indicar la manera en que se hace una cosa
They learn things by playing games
By working hard he was able to pass his exam
Se emplea para indicar el ltimo momento/hora/fecha en que una accin ser finalizada. Normalmente es
similar en significado a before. Se usa generalmente con tiempos futuros: I will have finished my project by
Saturday
Examples:
This was painted by Velzquez: esto fue pintado
por Velzquez,
A poster by Picasso: un pster de Picasso
by bus/car/train: en autobs/coche/tren
to pay by cheque: pagar con talon
made by hand: hecho,-a a mano
He went in by the front door: entr por la puerta
principal
He got his job by bribing the boss: consigui el
trabajo sobornando al jefe
by accident: por accidente
by chance: por casualidad
eggs are sold by the dozen: los huevos se venden
por docenas
This film is better by far: esta pelcula es mejor con
diferencia

She's paid by the hour: cobra por horas

it increased by 10%: aument en un 10%
day by day: da a da
little by little: poco a poco
She sat by my side: se sent a mi lado
He passed by the church: pas delante o al lado de
la iglesia
to be by oneself: estar solo,-a
to do something by oneself: hacer algo sin ayuda
I need it by six: lo necesito para las seis
by day/night: de da/noche
do it by the rules: hazlo segn las reglas
that's fine by me: por m, vale
by the way: por cierto
ten by (times) ten is one hundred: diez por diez son
cien

For: Se emplea para traducir: por, para, ya que, durante:

For seguido de la forma en ing se puede emplear para traducir para seguido de infinitivo, pero slo despus de
sustantivos. En otros casos para seguido de infinitivo se traduce slo por el infinitivo ingls precedido de to.
An organisation for preparing boys to be scouts
A school for teaching foreign languages
He took the bus to get there
I went to the Bakers to buy bread
Diferencia entre 'during' y 'for'
Se usa during para referirse al tiempo o momento en que se desarrolla una accin y contesta a la pregunta When...?
I began to feel ill during the concert: Me empec a encontrar mal durante el concierto.
For se utiliza cuando se especifica la duracin de la accin y contesta a la pregunta How long?
Ive been in my sisters house for two weeks: he estado en casa de mi hermana durante dos semanas

15

Diferencia entre 'for' y 'since'

Cuando for se traduce por desde hace se puede confundir con since, desde. Ambas preposiciones se usan para
expresar el tiempo que ha durado la accin del verbo, pero for expresa la duracin de la accin y since el comienzo
de la misma:
Ive known Boddy for five years: He conocido a Boddy desde hace cinco aos
I've known you for a year, but I know nothing about you: Te he conocido desde hace un ao, pero no s nada de ti
I've been living in London for two months: Vivo en Londres desde hace dos meses.
I've been living in London since February: Vivo en Londres desde febrero.
He has been studying since 9 oclock: Ha estado estudiando desde las 9:00
Observa el uso en ambos casos del pretrito perfecto o el pluscuamperfecto y nunca del presente.
LA HORA: What time is it?, What is the time?
Para las fracciones de hora, antes de la media hora se dice (past) de la hora; despus de la media hora,tantos
minutos hacia (to) la hora. La media se traduce por half-past. La hora y cuarto se expresa a quarter past. La hora
menos cuarto, a quarter to. La palabra minutos se omite generalmente. En punto oclock. oclock sharp = en
punto.
Its one oclock
Its twenty five to one
Its ten past one
Its a quarter past one
Its half-past one
Its a quarter to one
-Empleamos at para indicar un momento concreto:
At one oclock: a la una
(At) what time does it start?: a qu hora empieza?
At six oclock: a las seis
At two oclock (or at two): A las dos
At six oclock sharp: a las seis en punto
At quarter past four: a las cuatro y cuarto
The concert will begin at half-past eight
At twenty to six: a las seis menos veinte
(At) what time?: a qu hora?
-Empleamos by cuando no queremos ser precisos
by eight o'clock: alrededor/sobre las ocho
by 10 oclock in the evening, all the guests had gone
for eight o'clock: para las ocho
Expresiones:
Medio da: noon o midday a las doce del medioda: 12 noon
Media noche: midnight
a las doce dela noche: 12 midnight
A media noche: At midnight
Por la maana/en la madrugada: In the morning (01:00-12:00)
Por la tarde: In the afternoon (12:00-18:00), In the evening (18:00-21:00)
Por la noche: At night (21:00-01:00)
Tonight: Esta noche
Una vez al mes: Once a month
Saturday afternoon: sabado por la tarde
Dos veces a la semana: Twice a week
On Saturday mornings: los sabados por la maana
Dos veces al mes: Twice a month
In 10 minutes: en 10 minutos dentro de 10 minutos
Tres veces: three times
Una vez a la semana: Once a week
Cuatro veces: four times
Why dont you do an effort for once!?: Por qu no haces un esfuerzo por una vez?
Half: mitad y medio
Half the cake, the house, the Money: La mitad del pastel, de la casa, del dinero
Half an hour, a day, a minute.: media hora, medio dia, medio minuto.
A half hour: una media hora
An hour and a half: una hora y media
Three and a half hours: tres horas y media
CASO POSESIVO (pag 97 Basil Potter intermedio)
Cosas: Se forma con la preposicin of: The door of the room, The leg of the table
Personas: (Genitivo sajn) Se aade s al poseedor y se coloca lo posedo a continuacin, se suprime el artculo del
posedo.
Si el poseedor es un sustantivo en singular o en plural sin s (men, children), se aade "s"
Si el poseedor es un sustantivo en plural con s aade slo el apstrofo
Juans car, The schools new lab, Peters leg, The horses legs, Peters brother, The boys sisters, A girls
handkerchief, This must be somebodys hat, The childens toys, Those mens club, Those boysfather, These
girlshouse, the students complaints, the studentscomplaints
Los sustantivos terminados en s en singular aaden s si son de una o dos slabas y el apostrofo slo si son de
ms de dos o de origen clsico: St Jamess church: (La iglesia de Santiago), Charless book, Cervantesworks
Si hay ms de un poseedor para el mismo posedo, slo el ltimo poseedor se pone en caso posesivo: Peter and
Bettys Father

16

Si el poseedor se compone de una frase larga, slo el ltimo sustantivo de la frase se pone en caso posesivo: The
queen of Englands country house
Despus del posesivo (s) se omite shop, house, church, collage y hospital.
The Bakers, the grocers, the butchers, the fishmongers, the tailors, outfitters, hairdressers, cleanersLa
panaderia, los ultramarinos, la carniceria, la pescadera, el sastre, tienda de hombres, peluquera, tintorera
I am going to Peters Voy a casa de Pedro
Pedro called at the Joness at about half past two Pedro llamo a casa de Jones sobre las dos y media.
Tambin se pone el caso posesivo sin el poseido para evitar la repeticin de ste en la misma frase:
This is my car and that is Mr Browns, Is this your book? No, Its Bettys
Cuando el poseedor no es una persona, se puede evitar la repeticin del posedo mediante el uso de:
that of (el de, la de): The area of Spain is greater than that of England
Se emplea con expresiones de tiempo, distancia, peso y valor: A weeks rest, a months Holiday, last years crop,
an hours walk, an hours journey, five pounds weight of potatoes, five shillings worth of vegetables
A two months time: un plazo de dos meses
Un amigo mo, tuyo, etc. se traduce al ingles poniendo "of " entre el sustantivo y el pronombre posesivo,
pudindose utilizar el caso posesivo en vez del pronombre.
A friend of mine: Un amigo mo
This dog of yours is very intelligent: Este tuyo es
A book of yours: Un libro tuyo
muy inteligente
Are you a friend of his?: Eres amigo suyo?
I saw one of your friends last night: V uno de tus
Are you a friend of Peters?: Eres amigo suyo?
amigos anoche
He is a friend of my brothers: Es amigo de mi
I saw a friend of yours last night: V un amigo tuyo
hermano
anoche
Un animal nunca puede poseer a una persona:
His dog Joey always comes to see him and often sleeps near his master.
De todas formas, la forma "its" se utiliza cuando el poseedor es un objeto o un animal, pero a veces, cuando se siente
especial cario por el animal, se utiliza la forma masculina "his" o femenina "her".
SOME, ANY, LITTLE, QUITE A LITTLE, FEW, QUITE A FEW, A LITTLE BIT OF, QUITE A BIT OF
Some ,any: Se traducen por unos-as, algn, alguno, algunos/as, algo de, empleandose como artculos partitivos,
como el plural del artculo indefinido a o como pronombres. Tambin se emplean cuando interviene la idea de
cantidad.
Idea de cantidad:
1. Some: se emplea en frases afirmativas para sustantivos contables y cuando en espaol no se requiere
artculo al referirnos a una cantidad limitada de un sustantivo incontable. Se emplea en frases interrogativas
cuando se trata de ofrecer una pequea cantidad de un sustantivo incontable cuya contestacin ser afirmativa.
Some bread, water, wine, salt, milk, soap, toothpaste, tobacco (Sustantivos incontables)
Some stamps, aspirins, flowers, postcards (Sustantivos contables)
Leave us some oranges: Djanos algunas naranjas
There are some apples: Hay algunas manzanas
There are some green frogs: Hay algunas ranas verdes
There is some water in the bottle: Hay agua en la botella.
There are some bottles of water in the fridge: Hay algunas botellas de agua en la nevera.
Would you like some coffee?: Quieres un cafe?
Would you like a biscuit?: Quieres una galleta?
Do you want some wine? : Quieres algo de vino?
Can I give you some advice?: Puedo darte algn consejo?
Can I have some biscuits?: Puedo tomar algunas galletas?
2. Any: se emplea en frases negativas e interrogativas con sustantivos contables e incontables (menos cuando se
trata de una pequea cantidad, ya que en ese caso se usa some en las frases interrogativas).
Any people, problem, envelope, childrem, cars, trains
Do you take any sugar?: Tomas azcar?
Does Ral have any Brothers or sisters?: Tiene Ral hermanos?
There aren't any oranges: No hay naranjas
Are there any blue frogs?: Hay algunas ranas azules?
There isn't any water in the bottle: No hay agua en la botella.
There aren't any bottles of water in the fridge: No hay botellas de agua en la nevera.
Are there any bottles of water in the fridge?:Hay botellas de agua en la nevera?
Any se emplea tambin en sentido muy indefinido para traducer cualquier:
Any person can do that
Any kid would have behaved like that
You can pick any of these books

17

You can go anywhere you want

Any se emplea tambin en oraciones condicionales con el significado de "alguien, algo, alguna cosa".
If anyone ask for me, please tell them I will be back soon
If anything happens, please call me immediately
If I had any money I would buy a new car
Little and quite a little se emplean con nombres incontables
Little: poco
Quite a little: mucho/a
a little: un poco de
I have little money to spend
He offered little help for my problem
He offered quite a little help for my problem
I have a little Money to spend
He made little progress
Few and quite a few se emplean con nombres contables
Few: pocos
Quite a few: bastante
a few: algunos
The baby has few toys
A few doctors from the hospital play on the softball team
Few restaurants in this town offer vegetarian dishes
Quite a few restaurants in this town offer vegetarian dishes
The baby has a few toys
A little bit of, Quite a bit of, normalmente preceden nombres incontables
A little bit of: un poco de
Quite a bit of: bastante
Theres a little bit of pepper in the soup
Theres quite a bit of pepper in the soup
Pronombres compuestos
somebody, someone: alguien (oraciones afirmativas)
anybody, anyone: alguien (oraciones interrogativas, negativas y condicionales )
nobody, no one: nadie (oraciones afirmativas)
everybody, everyone: todos/as, todo el mundo (oraciones afirmativas)
something: algo (oraciones afirmativas)
anything: algo, ninguno, nada (oraciones interrogativo, negativo o condicionales)
anything: cualquier cosa (cuando es el sujeto de la frase)
nothing: nada (cuando no hay otra particula negativa en la frase. Si hubiese otra particula negativa en la frase se
utilizara anything)
She has done nothing
She has not done anything
En ingles no puede darse 2 negaciones en la misma frase!!!
everything: todo
no = not any: Ningn He has not any servant = He has no servant
There were no squirrels in the park today
We have no time left to finish the project
Theres no service: No hay servicio
none: ninguno He has none
none y No se pueden emplear tambin como sujetos en voz pasiva: No/None bread was bought
somebody, something y someone se emplea en frases donde se emplearia some
anybody, anything y anyone se emplea en frases done se emplearia any
MUCHO: MUCH, MANY, TOO, TOO MUCH, TOO MANY (leccin 3 pag 47 nivel intermedio Vaughan)
Mucho:
Much: mucho-a Se emplea en frases negativas e interrogativas para sustantivos incontables (arina, azucar,
liquidos, gases, dinero, tiempo, paciencia, informacin, muebles (furniture)) .Tambin despus de un verbo o un
complemento podemos decir very much que significa mucho: Yesterday I studied very much, I like the theatre
very much, It didnt hurt very much: no dola mucho. Little: poco, se emplea tambin para sustantivos incontables.
Did he drink much water? No, he drank little water: Bebi l mucha agua ?. No, l bebi poca agua
Do you have much time?. No, I have little time: Tienes mucho tiempo? No, tengo poco tiempo
Many: muchos-as Se emplea en frases negativas e interrogativas para sustantivos contables en plural
Few: pocos, se emplea tambin para sustantivos contables.
Do you have many books?. No, I have few books: Tienes muchos libros? No, tengo pocos libros
Does he have many brothers?. No, he has few Brothers: Tiene l muchos hermanos?. No, l tiene pocos hermanos

18

"Much" y "many" como hemos visto, se utilizan principalmente en oraciones negativas e interrogativas, ya
que en oraciones afirmativas se suelen sustituir ambos por "a lot of" (muchos, un montn). En cualquier tipo
de frases afirmativas, negativas e interrogativas y para cualquier tipo de sustantivo, contables y no contables
podemos emplear a lot of para decir mucho-a,-os-as.
Do you have many friends? Yes, I have a lot of friends or No, I don't have many friends: Tienes muchos amigos?
S, tengo muchos amigos o No, no tengo muchos amigos
A lot of: mucho-a,-os-as.
A lot of = lots of
No hay diferencia entre "a lot of/ lots of." Ambos se usan delante de sustantivos incontables (singular) o
sustantivos contables (plural), solo que "lots of" es ms informal que "a lot of" y se usa ms en conversaciones
coloquiales
I have a lot of Money
a lot of pollution = lots of pollution (mucha / bastante contaminacin)
a lot of students = lots of students (bastantes alumnos)
I sleep a lot (como no hay complemento despus, omitimos la preposicin of)
No podria decir: I have much money.
No obstante, "much" y "many" s se utilizan en oraciones afirmativas cuando van precedidos por algunas
partculas, como "so" (tanto), "too" (demasiado), etc
He has so many friends....: El tiene tantos amigos ...
You have too many doubts: T tienes demasiadas dudas
We drank too much alcohol: Bebimos demasiado alcohol
We spent so much money....: Gastamos tanto dinero ...
Tambin se emplean a menudo en vez de much y many: a lot of (mucho, un montn), plenty of (mucho, un
montn: da idea de abundancia), a great deal of (una gran cantidad de), a great many (una gran cantidad de), a good
deal (mucho, bastante, una gran cantidad)
I have a lot of work
I have plenty of work
There are plenty of mountains in Switzerland
She has plenty of money in the bank
I have a great deal of work
I have a great many friends
Plenty of se puede traducir como "de sobra".
I have plenty of time: Tengo tiempo de sobra.
Demasiado: Too, cuando es adverbio y too much, too many cuando es adjetivo:
I am too tired to go
I have too much work (too many cards)
It is much too dear
Adems, Too se emplea para traducir tambin llendo al final de la frase: I enjoyed the concert too
Cuanto / Cuantos?
How much / How many se utilizan para preguntar por cantidades de algo.
How much?: Cunto? Para sustantivos incontables
How many?: Cuntos.? Para sustantivos contables
1. En ingles cuando queremos preguntar acerca de la cantidad de un sustantivo incontable, usamos
la estructura:
How much + sustantivo + is there?
How much money do you have?: Cunto dinero tienes?
How much money is there?: Cunto dinero hay?
How much milk is there? There are three litres or there are three bottles. Cuanta leche hay? Hay tres litros o hay tres
botellas.
En las respuestas se puede usar un partitivo no especifico como: a lot (un montn), a little (un poco), none (nada),
some (algo).
How much milk is there?: There is a little: Cuanta leche hay? hay un poco
O por el contrario podemos usar partitivos especificos de unidad o medida o peso para especificar las
cantidades:
How much milk is there? There is a little, there is a bottle, etc...Cunta leche hay? Hay un litro, una botella, etc...
2. Si queremos preguntar acerca de la cantidad de un sustantivo contable, usamos la estructura:
How many + sustantivo + are there?
How many oranges are there?: Cuantas naranjas hay ?
How many cars do you have?: Cuntos autos tienes?
How many cars are there?: Cuntos autos hay?
En las respuestas se usa: a lot (un monton), a few (unas pocas), too many, (demasiadas), o none (ninguna), some
(algunas), si queremos especificar cantidades entonces usamos partitivos contables del tipo; un kilo, un litro, un

19

paquete, una bolsa, one, two, etc.

How much y how many se usan para preguntas en general acerca de cosas, cuando queremos que se nos indique
las cantidades que hay, entonces how much y how many van acompaados de is there o are there.
How much water is there? There is 1 litre.
How many students are there? There are eleven students in class.
Tambien existe otra forma de preguntar cuando no estamos seguros de si hay algo o no, y es usando, Is there +
any + sustantivo (para incontables) o Are there + any + sustantivos (para contables)
Is there any bread? Yes, there is: Hay algo de pan? Si hay
Are there any apples? Yes there are Hay alguna manzana? Si hay
Si quieres especificar la cantidad o cantidades, se usa there is o there are + partitivo(s)
There is a loaf of bread: Hay una barra de pan.
There are two loaves of bread: Hay dos barras de pan.
There is an apple: Hay una manzana.
There are three apples: Hay tres manzanas.
Apuntes especiales:
En ingles los lquidos, materias y sustancias son incontables, en este apartado debemos de incluir a los siguientes
sustantivos como incontables en ingles:
Money - dinero
Time - tiempo
Meat - carne
Fruit - fruta
Chocolate - chocolate
Beef - carne (vacuna)
Bread - pan
Cuanto cuesta/-an?
How much se utiliza tambin para preguntar precios:
How much is this car?: Cunto cuesta este auto?
How much are the potatoes?: Cunto cuestan las papas?
How much is this train? = How much does this train cost?
How much is your laptop? = How much does your laptop cost?
How much is a single room per night? = How much does a single room cost per night?
Ojo!!! How much are the books in that bookshop?=How many do the books cost in that bookshop?
Nota: Con el pijama o traje puesto: In your pyjamas o suit
How often do you have dinner in your pyjamas? I never have dinner in my pyjamas.
How often does your boss have breakfast in his suit? My boss sometimes has breakfast in his suit
CUNTOS AOS TIENES?, QU ALTURA/LONGITUD/ANCHURA TIENE?
Personas: How old are you, is him? I am twenty nine years old I am twenty nine. (puede suprimerse
years old, lo que no se puede hacer es poner years y no poder old).
Cosas: How old is that fat? It is twenty yeas old. (No se puede suprimir el years old).
Tambin empleamos How para preguntar la altura, longitud, anchuraetc de las cosas:
How high/long/wide is this floor? It is twenty metres high/long/wide
Para personas usamos tall (alto) y para cosas high (alto)
ENOUGH, QUITE, RATHER
Enough: Se traduce por bastante se pone detrs del adjetivo, verbo o adverbio que modifica pero delante de
sustantivos contables o incontables.
That isnt good enough for me
They had rested enough
I have not enough money
He is not careful enough
We have enough money to buy a car
He doesnt work enough
I dont have enough potatoes to make the soup
He doesnt work hard enough
Quite: es un adverbio ingls con diversas acepciones. Una de ella es con el significado completamente:
I was quite sure: Yo estaba completamente seguro
It was quite different: Era completamente diferente
You are quite wrong: T ests completamente equivocado
Rather: es, asimismo, otro adverbio con distintos usos. As, por ejemplo, se utiliza para expresar preferencias, en
cuyo caso va seguido de un infinitivo sin to: (I would rather: prefiero)
I would rather drink water than coffee: Yo preferira agua antes que caf
I'd rather listen to pop music than classical: Prefiero or msica pop que clsica
He'd rather go by metro than walking: El prefiere ir en metro que andando
A veces, rather se puede utilizar con ideas positivas, pero en estos casos se desea remarcar la sorpresa que la misma
nos produce:
The village was rather clean: El pueblo estaba bastante limpio (nos sorprende, ya que normalmente est sucio)
The student was rather attentive: El estudiante estuvo bastante atento (algo que no es habitual en l)

20

Quite y rather tambin se utilizan con el significado de bastante, pero con la diferencia de que "quite" se emplea
para expresar ideas positivas, mientras que "rather" se utiliza normalmente con ideas negativas:
He is quite tall: El es bastante alto
He is rather short: El es bastante bajo
The weather is quite sunny: El tiempo es bastante soleado
The weather is rather chilly: El tiempo es bastante fro
They quite like gardening too: Les gusta bastante cultivar el jardin tambin
La intensidad que expresa "quite" y "rather" es menor que la de "very", pero superior a la de little
He is very strong: El es muy fuerte
He is quite strong: El es bastante fuerte
He is little strong: El es poco fuerte
OTHER-ANOTHER
Other: otro/otros The others: Los otros
The other man: El otro hombre (delante de un sustantivo singular va con artculo)
Other men: Otros hombres (delante de un sustantivo singular va sin artculo)
Have the others arrived yet?
Another: otro (otro distinto)
Will you give me another book?: Me daras otro libro? (distinto al anterior)
One man turned to another and said: Un hombre se giro a otro y dijo
Pronombre recproco
Each other: entre si, el uno al otro (2 personas). Puede emplearse en vez de one another
One another: entre si, unos a los otros (ms de 2 personas). No puede emplearse en vez de each other
The two cousins love each other: las dos primas se quieren
The three cousins love one another: las tres primas se quieren
They loved each other: se amaron el uno al otro
Let us help one another: ayudmonos unos a otros
Dont speak to one another: no hablen unos con otros
Football players often hurt one another: Los jugadores de futbol a menudo se hacen dao
The two girls wore each others dresses: Las dos chicas llevaron los vestidos la una de la otra
They hurt each other: Se hacen dao el uno al otro They hurt themselves: Se hacen dao (a s mismos)
ALL, BOTH
1. Van despus de: pronombre personal, verbo auxiliar en un tiempo compuesto o un sustantivo
2. Van delante del artculo definido de un sustantivo
All: todo, todos
Both: ambos, ambas
We all like to play tennis: A todos nos gusta jugar al tenir
We all have our hats: Todos tenemos nuestros sombreros
They all three: Los tres
They have all come today: Hoy han venido todos
You have all made a mistake: Todos habeis cometido un error
They both went out: Ambos salieron
You must both come this evening: Ambos debeis venire esta tarde
All the children came or The childrem all came
Both the boys went home or The boys both went home
EITHER Y NEITHER
A veces, en mi empeo por hacer las explicaciones ms sencillas, me pongo a ver si existe alguna regla que facilite la
comprensin del tema. Cre que poda decir la regla de si el verbo est en negativo, usamos either y cuando est en
afirmativo utilizamos neither (ambos tendran el significado de tampoco). Posteriormente me di cuenta que no es
siempre as. Por tanto, es posible utilizar alternativamente neither o either con el significado de tampoco tanto
con frases negativas como afirmativas.
Either:
En una frase afirmativa significa cualquiera (entre 2 cosas, si son ms de 2 cosas uso any).
Either book is good
You can wear either of the two coats.
En una frase negativa significa tampoco colocndose siempre en posicin final. Tambin en una frase negativa
significa ni, ni siquiera, ninguno/a. En una pregunta significa alguno/a.
If you dont go. I wont go either (tampoco)
I don't know either of them. (ninguno)
She can't speak either Spanish or English. (nini)
Either of you can do this? (alguno)
Either......or: oo
You can have either bread or cookies (biscuits).

21

Come and see me either today or tomorrow

Pronunciacin: Either: [ider] [aider] Cul usar? La que te resulte ms fcil.
Neither:
En frases afirmativas significa tampoco, ninguno/a
It's not our idea. Neither is it the idea of our friends. (tampoco)
Did you see that movie? No. me neither. (tampoco)
I like neither of them. (ninguno)
Neither of them is too good. (ninguno)
Neither......nor: nini
I like neither tea nor coffee.
It seemed to me neither good nor bad.
Pronunciacin: Neither: [nider] [naider] Cul usar? La que te resulte ms fcil.
COMPARATIVO Y SUPERLATIVO:
La formacin del comparativo y el superlativo de los adjetivos en ingls depende del nmero de slabas de la
palabra.
Los grados de comparacin se forman aadiendo al adjetivo las terminaciones er para el comparativo y -est
para el superlativo.
Los adjetivos monoslabos, excepto aquellos que terminan en -ed (bored, scared), forman el comparativo
aadiendo er, y el superlativo aadiendo est: tall, taller, tallest, hollow, hollower, hollowest
Los adjetivos monoslabos acabados en consonante despus de vocal breve doblan la consonante al aadir -er o -est:
big, bigger, biggest, thin, thinner, thinnest, hot, hotter, hottest
En ingls britnico la l final siempre se dobla al aadir un sufijo: cruel, crueller, cruellest
Los adjetivos acabacos en -e, solo se les agrega una -r para formar el comparativo y st para formar el superlativo:
nice, nicer, nicest, large, larger, largest, wide, wider, widest, wise, wiser, wisest, simple, simpler, simplest
Los adjetivos acabacos en -y, precedida de consonante cambia la -y por -i al aadir -er o est: happy, happier,
happiest, heavy, heavier, heaviest, funny, funnier, funniest, easy, easier, the easiest
Los adjetivos acabacos en -y, precedida de vocal siguen la regla general: grey, greyer, greyest
La mayoria de los adjetivos de dos slabas, de ms de dos slabas y los de una slaba como bored (aburrido) o
sacred (asustado), forman el comparativo usando la partcula more y el superlativo con la palabre most:
interesting, more interesting, most interesting
famous, more famous, most famous
careful, more careful, most careful
Algunos adjetivos pueden formar el comparative y el superlative de ambas maneras:
common,componer/more common, commonest/most common
clever, cleverer/more clever, cleverest/most clever
Comparativos y superlativos irregulars:
good
better
best
bad
worse
worst
old
older/elder
oldest/eldest
far
farther/further
farthest/furthest
Ojo: Cuando se realiza la comparacin entre dos personas o cosas siempre si utiliza more o er, no se usa ni
most ni est.
The taller of the two girls: La ms alta de las dos chicas
Which of the two books is the more interesting?: Cual de los dos libros es el ms interesante?
Comparativo: Se forma con la terminacin er. El adverbio de comparacin que se traduce siempre por than. Se
usa al comparar dos personas o dos cosas:
Peter is taller than David
This book is cheaper than that magazine.
Empleamos more delante de adjetivos de ms de dos slabas: more..than: msque
Peter is more intelligent than David
The cinema is more confortable than the theatre
Inferioridad: lessthan: menosque
Se antepone less (menos) al adjetivo seguido de than (que comparativo):
He's less young than you: l es menos joven que t
less expensive than: menos caro que
less intelligent than: menos inteligente que
Superlativo: Se forma con la terminacin est. El pronombre relativo que se traduce siempre por that. Se usa al
comparar ms de dos personas o cosas:
Peter is the tallest boy in the class: he is taller than David and taller than Jimmie
Peter is the tallest boy that I have ever seen. (have/has ever: jams he/ha)
Empleamos most delante de adjetivos de ms de dos slabas:

22

Peter is the most intelligent boy in the class

Paris is the most beautiful city that I have ever visited
One of the most extraordinary houses that I know
Notese: que despus de superlativo de se traduce por in delante de sustantivo de lugar y por of delante de los
dems sustantivos.
Oxford is the nicest town in England
Peter is the most intelligent of the family
La expresin espaola "cada vez ms" equivale en ingls a los dos comparativos del adjetivo.
The film is becoming more and more interesting: la pelcula se vuelve cada vez ms interesante
Los grados de comparacin del adverbio se forman de la misma manera que para los adjetivos:
well
better
best: bien
far
farther farthest: lejos
badly
worse
worst: mal
little
less
least: poco
near
nearer next: cerca
much
more
most: mucho
Ojo: more fun (ms diversin) funnier (ms divertido), ya que funnier es adjetivo y fun es sustantivo.
Cuando usas "more" en este caso simplemente ests diciendo que hay mayor cantidad, grado o medida de algo, que
en este caso es de diversin ("fun", como sustantivo, y no como adjetivo). As puedes decir: more fun, more money,
more wine, more funny movies
COMPARACIN DE IGUALDAD: ASAS, SOAS:
Asas: Tancomo Frases afirmativas y negativas
Soas: Tancomo Frases negativas
Peter is as intelligent as Jimmie
David isnt as intelligent as Peter = David isnt so intelligent as Peter
Tambin se construye such (tal, tan) y the same (el/la mismo/a) con as cuando haya comparacin. Se emplea such
a/an con sustantivos contables en singular. Se emplea such (sin artculo) con sustantivos incontables con adjetivo
delante o con un sustantivo contable en plural con adjetivo delante.
I have never known such an interesting person as you: Nunca he conocido una persona tan interesante como usted
I have never seen such a house as this: Nunca he visto tal casa como esta
I have never seen such a beautiful house as this: Nunca he visto una casa tan hermosa como esta
We live in the same road as the Smiths: Vivimos en la misma calle que los Smiths
The cage was too small for a such a big animal: La jaula era pequea para un animal tan grande
Linda is at such a difficult age: Linda est en una edad tan difcil
I have never known such interesting people: Nunca he conocido a gente tan interesante
Such nice weather doesnt exist in England: Tal tiempo agradable no existe en Inglaterra
Such ideas are hard to understand: Tales ideas son difciles de entender.
It was such a long journey that it took a day to get over it: Fue un viaje tan largo que llev un da para terminarlo.
Pollution is causing such an enormous disaster in the layer hole: La contaminacin est causando un desastre tan
enorme en el agujero de la capa
S, NO, YO NO ES VERDAD? VERDAD? TAMBIN Y TAMPOCO
S: (Yes + pronombre persona a quien me dirijo+ verbo auxiliary): Yes, I do. Yes, he is. Yes, he did. Yes I should.
Yes he can. Yes I must. Yes she ought
Do you like pizza? Yes, I do
Can I come too? Yes, you can
Were they at the party? Yes, they were
NO: (NO + pronombre persona a quien me dirijo + verbo auxiliary + not): No I dont, No he isnt, No he didnt, No I
should not, yes he cant, No I must not, No she oughtnt
Do you like pizza? No, I dont
Can I come too? No you cant
Were they at the party? No, they werent
Yo: (pronombre personal + verbo auxiliary)
Who has taken my book? I have: Quien ha cogido mi libro? Yo
He has not livedcin the East as long as I have: No havivido en el Oriente tanto tiempo como yo
No es verdad?: Hay que repetir el verbo to be en la misma persona poniendo el verbo to be en forma
negativa despus de una afirmacin y en forma afirmativa despus de una negacin
You are coming with us, arent you?
You arent coming with us, are you?
Question Tags Verdad? no?: Hay que repetir el verbo auxiliar en la misma persona poniendo el verbo
auxiliar en forma negativa despus de una afirmacin y en forma afirmativa despus de una negacin.
You go to work every day, dont you?
You would find it rather difficult to act in English,
wouldnt you?

23

The Spanish Club produces plays in Spanish, doesnt

it?
We ought to go and meet him at the station, oughtnt
we?
It's a beautiful day, isn't it?
You are coming tomorrow, aren't you?
I'm not late, am I?
He was flying when I phoned, wasn't he?
Martha wasn't angry, was she?
You weren't really tired, were you?
You went to Costa Rica in 1990, didn't you?

Elena has traveled a lot, hasn't she?

Ann will be here soon, won't she?
Tom should pass his exam, shouldn't he?
You can play the violin, can't you?
He could find a job, couldn't he?
Let's go out for a walk, shall we?: Salgamos a dar
una vuelta, qu te parece?
Let's study tomorrow morning, shall we?:
Estudiemos maana por la maana, s?
Lets go for a walk in the forest, shall we?: Vamos a
dar un paseo en el bosque, si?

Despus del imperativo (do/don't do something) el tag que corresponde es will you? (en interrogativo
AFIRMATIVO). Aqu tienes algunos ejemplos:
Open the door, will you?: Abre la puerta, s?
Don't smoke in this room, will you?: No fumes en esta habitacin, de acuerdo?
Tambin y Tampoco:
Tambien: So + verbo auxiliar tiempo de la frase + sujeto Ej: She lives in Madrid, and so do I.
Tampoco: Neither/ Nor + verbo auxiliar tiempo de la frase + sujeto Ej: She doesnt live in Madrid, and
Neither/Nor do we, I havent done my homework yet, Neither/Nor have I.
Me either = Me neither = Not me either: yo tampoco
Nota: me too: yo tambin
LAS CONTRACCIONES DEL SUJETO Y VERBO
I am/Im
I have/ Ive
I had, I would/ Id
I will, I shall/ Ill
you are/ youre
you have/ youve
you had, you would/ youd
you will/ youll
he is, he has/ hes
he had, he would/ hed
he will/ hell
she is, she has/ shes
she had, she would/ shed
Contacciones negativas
is not/ isnt
are not/arent
was not/wasnt
were not/werent
has not/hasnt
have not/havent
had not/hadnt

she will/ shell

it is, it has/ its
it had, it would/ itd
it will/ itll
we are/ were
we have/ weve
we had, we would/ wed
we will, we shall/ well
they are/ theyre
they have/ theyve
they had, they would/ theyd
they will/ theyll

do not/dont
does not/doesnt
did not/didnt
will not/wont
shall not/shant
can not/cant
could not/couldnt

dare not/darent
might not/mightnt
must not/mustnt
need not/neednt
ought not/oughtnt
should not/shouldnt
would not/wouldnt

Con las formas verbales is, are, has, have, will y shall la contraccin se puede hacer de dos maneras distintas:
he is not
he isnt
hes not
they are not
they arent
theyre not
she has not
she hasnt
shes not
we have not
we havent
weve not
you will not
you wont
youll not
I shall not
I shant
Ill not
Contracciones con palabras interrogativas
how is, how has/ hows
who is, who has/whos
how will/ howll
who will/wholl
how have/howve
who had, who would/whod
what is, what has/ whats
who have/whove
what will/ whatll
when is, when has/whens
what have/ whatve
when will/whenll
Contracciones con here, there y that
here is/heres
there is, there has/theres

there will/therell
that is, that has/thats

when have/whenve
where is, where has/wheres
where will/wherell
where have/whereve
why is, why has/whys
why have/whyve

that will/thatll

24

Tambin suelen contraerse las formas verbales que siguen a nombres comunes o propios:
That man is very tall/ that mans very tall
Pili will come with us/ Pilill come with us
Ojo, recordad que s puede significar is o has y que d puede significar had o would
VERBOS AUXILIARES
Los verbos auxiliares nos ayudan a conformar y expresar correctamente los tiempos y distintas formas de los verbos
principales. En ingls tenemos los verbos to be, to have y to do. Los verbos auxiliares forman el negativo y el
interrogativo. El negativo se forma agregando not al verbo auxiliar, el interrogativo, invirtiendo el orden del sujeto
y el vervo auxiliar.
Los verbos auxiliares to be y to have intervienen en la formacin de los tiempos verbales compuestos de otros
verbos: presente continuo, presente perfecto, pasado perfecto, condicional perfecto...
El verbo to do es necesario para formar el negativo y el interrogativo de los tiempos simples. En el presente se
utiliza la forma do para todas las personas excepto la tercera del singular, que requiere la forma does llendo el
verbo principal en infinitivo. En el pasado se utiliza la forma did en todas las personas con el verbo principal en
infinitivo.
be
is/are
was/were
do
does/do
did
have
has/have had
Nota: Uso enftico del verbo to do
Se emplea con la forma afirmativa del presente, imperativo y pasado preterito, para dar nfasis al verbo:
I like it
I do like it
Come tomorrow
Do come tomorrow
He sold his car
he did sell his car
EL PRESENTE SIMPLE (PRESENT SIMPLE)
Hay que tener presente que la tercera persona del singular aade s o es. El verbo auxiliar do, se utiliza para
construir las formas negativas y de interrogacin del presente simple. Los verbos "to be", "to have" y "can" no
aceptan el auxiliar "to do".
El presente simple se usa:
1-Hechos que siempre son ciertos:
Water boils at 100 degrees Celsius
Cats like milk.
Birds do not like milk.
Do pigs like milk?
California is in America.

California is not in the United Kingdom.

Windows are made of glass.
Windows are not made of wood.
New York is a small city

2-Habitos:
British people drink a lot of tea
I play tennis.
She does not play tennis.
Does he play tennis?
The train leaves every morning at 8 AM.
The train does not leave at 9 AM.

When does the train usually leave?

She always forgets her purse.
He never forgets his wallet.
Every twelve months, the Earth circles the Sun.
Does the Sun circle the Earth?

3-Declaraciones (expresar lo que uno siente): I dont like gangster films, I like ice cream
4-Referirse a algo que est planeado para el futuro cercano:
The concert starts at seven
When do we board the plane?
The train leaves tonight at 6 PM.
The party starts at 8 o'clock.
The bus does not arrive at 11 AM, it arrives at 11
When does class begin tomorrow?
PM.
Hurry up, the next bus leaves at 7:15
5-Para referirse al futuro en oraciones encabezadas con when, until, as soon as:
Ill do it when I have time, Wait until I call you
6-Titulares periodico: Ship sinks in midnight collision
7-Instrucciones e itinerarios: First you roll out the pastry, On day three we visit Stratford-upon-Avon (una calle)
8-Resumenes de eventos: May 1945: The war in Europa comes to an end
Examples:
I don't know that.
Do you go to the cinema?

Mary plays basketball every Sunday

He lives in that street
I always get up at 8 o'clock

25

We visit my grandmother twice a week

She doesn't play football every Saturday
Peter doesn't live in that street
I don't live in England
Mary and Peter don't play the guitar
Does Mary play the piano everyday?
Does he drink tea?
Do you speak Chinese?
Do you run in the park everyday?
Do you want to buy a car?
Does he come to your house?
How can you tell me that?
Are you a doctor?
Are you in Pars?
Is he a good person?
Can you play the guitar?
Can't they go with us?
Do I have a car?
I have a class every day

We have to go now
She has a nice friend
He does his homework in his house every day
You dont have to do this
She doesnt love her boyfriend
Do I do the right thing?
Do we have to sleep early every day?
You speak English
Do you speak English?
I am here now
She is not here now
He needs help right now
He does not need help now
He has his passport in his hand.
Do you have your passport with you?
You dont speak English
You only speak English.
Do you only speak English?

PASADO SIMPLE (PAST SIMPLE)

Se usa para referirse a cosas que ocurrieron en el pasado. El verbo auxiliar to do: did, se utiliza para construir las
formas negativas y de interrogacin del pasado simple. Se usa para:
1-Para expresar acciones o una serie de acciones acabadas en el pasado:
I worked last year
I finished work, walked to the beach, and found a
I got up at seven
nice place to swim.
I saw a movie yesterday
He arrived from the airport at 8:00, checked into the
I didn't see a play yesterday
hotel at 9:00, and met the others at 10:00.
Last year, I traveled to Japan.
Did you add flour, pour in the milk, and then add
Last year, I didn't travel to Korea.
the eggs?
Did you have dinner last night?
I was in London last year
She washed her car.
Sarah and Tom were in London last year
He didn't wash his car.
I had breakfast at 8 o'clock
She listened to music
2-Para expresar duracin en el pasado:
I lived in Brazil for two years.
Shauna studied Japanese for five years.
They sat at the beach all day.
They did not stay at the party the entire time.
3-Para expresar habitos en el pasado:
I studied French when I was a child.
He played the violin.
He didn't play the piano.
Did you play a musical instrument when you were a
kid?

We talked on the phone for thirty minutes.

How long did you wait for them? We waited for one
hour.

She worked at the movie theater after school.

They never went to school, they always skipped
class.

4-Para expresar hechos pasados o generalizaciones:

She was shy as a child, but now she is very outgoing.
He didn't like tomatoes before.
Did you live in Texas when you were a kid?
PASADO CONTINUO (PAST CONTINUOUS)
El Pasado Continuo, es un tiempo verbal que describe acciones que estaban siendo realizadas en un momento del
pasado al que se hace referencia y que luego continuaron. El Pasado Continuo se construye con el verbo auxiliar
"to be" en su forma pasada y el verbo principal en gerundio.
Se emplea en:
1. Para hablar sobre acontecimientos que estaban ocurriendo en, o en torno a, un momento particular en el
pasado. Para hablar de 2 acciones, una siendo ms larga que la otra que interumpe la accin anterior.
Yesterday he was studying English: Ayer l estaba estudiando ingls (Comenz a estudiar antes de ese momento y
continu estudiando posteriormente)
John was playing tennis at 10 a.m: John estuvo jugando tenis a las 10 a.m. (Comenz a jugar tenis antes de las 10
a.m. y continu haciendolo despus)
She was listening to music at noon: Estaba escuchando msica a mediodia
He was playing football at half past four yesterday: El estaba jugando ftbol a las cuatro y media ayer
I was speaking when the telephone rang: Estaba hablando cuando son el telfono

26

I was cooking when the doorbell rang: Estaba cocinando cuando alguien llam a la puerta
2. Para indicar que algo es temporal:
I was living in Madrid vs. I lived in Madrid: Ambas oraciones se traducen: "Viva en Madrid", pero la primera indica
una situacin temporal.
3. Para dar algo ms de informacin de fondo a una historia o ancdota:
I was living in London when Led Zeppelin gave their first concert in years: Estaba viviendo en Londrs cuando Led
Zeppelin di su primer concierto despus de aos
4. Para hablar de situaciones que iban cambiando: It was getting hotter and hotter: Cada vez haca ms calor
Tambin se puede utilizar este tiempo verbal para relatar dos acciones que sucedieron en el pasado y que una de
ellas ya se ha completado. Para ello utilizamos el Pasado Simple para mencionar lo que ya finaliz y el Pasado
Continuo para relatar lo que sigue ejecutndose.
When I left, he was studying the lesson: Cuando yo part, el estaba estudiando la leccin.
They were singing when I broke the windows: Ellos estaban cantando cuando yo romp la ventana.
Trabajaba, dormia, estudiabalo traducimos al ingles en pasado continuo: I was working, I was sleeping, I was
studying
Abreviaturas:
Peter was going to have = Peter was to have
Peter was going to go = Peter was to go
I was going to follow = I was to follow
PRESENTE PERFECTO (PRESENT PERFECT)
Se forma utilizando el presente del verbo auxiliar to have ms el participio del verbo conjugado. Se usa para
referirse a acciones pasadas que tienen alguna conexin con el momento presente. Cuando usamos este tiempo nunca
se especifica el momento en que ocurri la accin, con lo que no pueden usarse expresionesde tiempo tales
como: yesterday, one year ago, last week, when I was a child, when I lived in Japan, at that moment, that day, one
day, etcEl present perfect se usa frecuentemente con los adverbios: ever, never, yet, already, lately, once, many
times, several times, before, so far
1-Para decir que una accin ocurri en un tiempo no especificado antes de ahora:
I have seen that film
People have traveled to the Moon.
I have finished my homework
People have not traveled to Mars.
Have you ever been robbed? Alguna vez te han
Have you read the book yet?
robado? o Alguna vez has sido robado?
Nobody has ever climbed that mountain.
Have you ever robbed? Alguna vez has robado?
Have you only seen that movie one time?
I have never had snails: Nunca he comido caracoles
You have only seen that movie one time.
She has already finished: ya ha terminado
Has there ever been a war in the United States? Yes,
Have you seen her lalety?: La has visto
there has been a war in the United States
ltimamente?
Have you been to England?: has estado en
I have seen that movie twenty times
Inglaterra?
Juan has done the shopping
Tony havent been to Paris before: Tony no ha
I think I have met him once before.
estado en Paris antes
There have been many earthquakes in California.
2-Para describir experiencias:
I have been to France.
This sentence means that you have had the experience of being in France. Maybe you have been there once, or
several times.
I have been to France three times.
You can add the number of times at the end of the sentence.
I have never been to France.
This sentence means that you have not had the experience of going to France.
I think I have seen that movie before.
He has never traveled by train.
Joan has studied two foreign languages.
Have you ever met him?, No, I have not met him.
3-Para hablar sobre el cambio que ha ocurrido en un perodo de tiempo:
You have grown since the last time I saw you.
The government has become more interested in arts education.
Japanese has become one of the most popular courses at the university since the Asian studies program was
established.
My English has really improved since I moved to Australia.

27

4- Para expresar logros:

Man has walked on the Moon.
Our son has learned how to read.
Doctors have cured many deadly diseases.
Scientists have split the atom.
5-Para expresar una accin incompleta, la cual se espera que suceda:
James has not finished his homework yet.
Susan hasn't mastered Japanese, but she can communicate.
Bill has still not arrived.
The rain hasn't stopped
6-Para expresar cosas que ocurrieron en el pasado en diferentes tiempos:
The army has attacked that city five times.
I have had four quizzes and five tests so far this semester.
We have had many major problems while working on this project.
She has talked to several specialists about her problem, but nobody knows why she is sick.
7-S pueden utilizarse expresiones tales como: in the last week, in the last year, this week, this month, so far, up
to now, etcal no considerarse un tiempo especfico, por lo que requiere Presente Perfecto:
Have you been to Mexico in the last year?
I have seen that movie six times in the last month.
They have had three tests in the last week.
She graduated from university less than three years ago. She has worked for three different companies so far.
My car has broken down three times this week.
8-Para expresar que una accin dura desde el pasado hasta la actualidad:
I have had a cold for two weeks.
She has been in England for six months.
Mary has loved chocolate since she was a little girl.
Nota:
It has been: se ha
There have been: ha habido
PASADO PERFECTO (PAST PERFECT)
Es el equivalente pasado del presente perfecto. Se forma con el pasado de los auxiliares to have: had yto be:
was ms el participio del verbo conjugado. A diferencia del presente perfecto, con este tiempo se puede
especificar el momento en el que haba ocurrido la accin.
1-Se usa para referirse a acciones anteriores a un determinado momento en el pasado
I had already seen the film
I was tired because I had got up at six
She had visited her Japanese relatives once in 1993 before she moved in with them in 1996.
If the Past Perfect action did occur at a specific time, the Simple Past can be used instead of the Past Perfect when
"before" or "after" is used in the sentence. The words "before" and "after" actually tell you what happens first, so the
Past Perfect is optional. For this reason, both sentences below are correct.
Examples:
She had visited her Japanese relatives once in 1993 before she moved in with them in 1996.
She visited her Japanese relatives once in 1993 before she moved in with them in 1996.
2-Expresa la idea de que algo ocurri antes que otra accin en el pasado:
You had studied English before you moved to New York
You had previously studied English before you moved to New York.
Had you previously studied English before you moved to New York?
I had never seen such a beautiful beach before I went to Kauai.
She had never seen a bear before she moved to Alaska.
I did not have any money because I had lost my wallet.
Tony knew Istanbul so well because he had visited the city several times.
Had Susan ever studied Thai before she moved to Thailand?
She only understood the movie because she had read the book.
Kristine had never been to an opera before last night.
We were not able to get a hotel room because we had not booked in advance.
Had you ever visited the U.S. before your trip in 2006? Yes, I had been to the U.S. once before.
3-Para mostrar que algo se inici en el pasado y contina hasta otra accin en el pasado:
We had had that car for ten years before it broke down.
By the time Alex finished his studies, he had been in London for over eight years.

28

They felt bad about selling the house because they had owned it for more than forty years.
FUTURO Y EL PRESENTE CONTINUO
Futuro: 3 formas de expresarlo: Will, Presente continuo y to be going to + verbo
1.1 Will: (Se puede usar Shall en las primeras personas del singular y plural para formar el futuro)
1-Se utiliza sobre todo cuando hay incertidumbre.
Will you stay at your fathers house?: Te quedaras en casa de tu padre?
2-Para expresar acciones voluntarias:
I will send you the information when I get it.
I will translate the email, so Mr. Smith can read it.
Will you help me move this heavy table?
Will you make dinner?
I will not do your homework for you.
I won't do all the housework myself!
I'm really hungry. I'll make some sandwiches.
I'm so tired. I'm about to fall asleep. I'll get you some coffee.
The phone is ringing. I'll get it.
You will never help him.
Will you ever help him?
3- Para expresar promesas
I will call you when I arrive.
If I am elected President of the United States, I will make sure everyone has access to inexpensive health insurance.
I promise I will not tell him about the surprise party.
Don't worry, I'll be careful.
I won't tell anyone your secret.
4- Despus del verbo to think y su sinnimo to reckon (creer, pensar), hay que emplear el futuro en ingls
puesto que la frase: Pienso venir maana: I think I will come tomorrow, no puede traducirse literalmente al ingls
sin la ayuda del futuro. (Ocurre lo mismo con los verbos believe, expect y doubt)
En afirmativo probably va despus de will, en negativo va antes de will
I dont think that will happen: No creo que eso pase
I dont think it will last long: No creo que dure mucho
I reckon youll find it difficult: Creo que te resultar dificil
What do you think theyll say?: Que crees que diran?
Where do you think youll have dinner?: Dnde piensas cenar?
I expect the train will be late: supongo que el tren llegar tarde
I doubt whether he will win: Dudo si l ganar
Ill probably go: Es probable que vaya
Itll probably rain: Es probable que llueva
La contraccin Itll la pronuncian (itol)
Shell probably arrive after midnight: Es probable que ella llegue despus de media noche
I probably wont buy it: Es probable que no lo compre
5-Will se usa para expresar un futuro predictivo que describe hechos conocidos o que suponemos que es cierto:
They will be at home this evening: Estarn en casa esta tarde
Ill be late home this evening
The company will make a profit next year
I will (shall) work: trabajar
It will be cold tomorrow: har frio maana
6-Tambin se usa cuando se expresa una suposicin: Thatll be Jim at the door
7-Al expresar una decisin inmediata: Ill take this one, I think Ill go now
8-Will you?:Quiere usted.? Cuando tiene verbo subordinado:
Will you give me my book?
Will you have some tea?
Will you sign here, please?
Si no tiene verbo subordinado, querer (desear) se traduce por want:
Do you want some bread?
I dont want this book
Despus de to hope puede ir la frase en presente o futuro:
I hope it doesnt rain: espero que no llueva
I hope it wont rain: espero que no llueva

29

Adems Will se emplea en su sentido original de querer (sustantivo will=voluntad) en todas las personas del
futuro aadiendo as la idea de determinacin o promesa al futuro.
I will do it: Si, lo hare
He will not obey his parents: No quiere obedecer a sus padres
You will come tomorrow, wont you?: Vesdrs maana verdad?
El pasado de will, would, se emplea de la misma manera para dar la idea de deseo, determinacin o promesa
en oraciones en pasado.
Did you bring Anne? No, she wouldnt come: Has trado a Ana? No, no quiso venir
Nota:
There will be: habr
We will have: habremos
1.2 Presente continuo:
Se forma utilizando el presente del verbo to be ms el gerundio del verbo conjugado:
Se usa el presente continuo en:
1-Acciones que se producen en el momento de hablar:
She is watching the news
The dog is sleeping on our bed
Are you enjoying your stay here?
2-Acciones temporales, acciones repetitivas:
Im staying in a hotel until I find a flat
My car has broken down, so I am walking to work these days
3-Cuando expresamos quejas de malos habitos:
You are always complaining about my cooking!
4-Cuando existe un desarrollo/cambio en la accin:
Things are getting worse!
More and more people are giving up smoking
Im learning to drive
5-Para expresar planes fijados, especialmente planes sociales o planes de viaje usando usualmente un tiempo
referencial (tomorrow).
We are leaving tomorrow: nos vamos maana
Im going to Barcelona tomorrow: Voy maana Barcelona
They are bringing the results tomorrow: Maana traen los resultados
Are you coming to the next class?: Vienes a la prxima clase?
Im flying to London next month: Voy a londres el mes que viene (en avin)
Are you leaving tomorrow?: Te marchas maana?
Nancy is arriving tomorrow: Nancy lleva maana
She is going to Italy on Sunday: Ella va a Italia el domingo
Los verbos de estado son verbos que no se usan casi nunca en presente continuo porque ya de por si
expresan continuidad en la accin, son los siguientes:
Verbos que expresan pensamientos y opiniones: understand, know, remember, belive, forget, belong, consist,
contain, doubt, fit, have, mean, seem, suppose, suspect.
Verbos que expresan gustos y preferencias: like, love, prefer, hate, matter, want, wish
Verbos que expresan estado y posesin: be, own
1.3 To be going to (ir a): Para referirse al futuro tambin se usa la forma to be going to + infinitivo. Describe
intenciones o planes, de forma que en momento de hablar los planes ya estn hechos. Tambin se usa para expresar
algo que va a suceder en ese momento o que es evidente.
She is going to buy a car: Se va a comprar un coche
Im going to wait here until Carol gets back: Voy a esperar aqu hasta que Carol regrese
Look at that tree! Its going to fall: Mira ese arbol, Se va a caer
Im going to look: Voy a mirar
We are going to read it: Lo vamos a leer
You are going to see: Vais a ver
She is going to call: Ella va a llamar
They are not going to come: No van a venire
He is going to spend his vacation in Hawaii.
She is not going to spend her vacation in Hawaii.
When are we going to meet each other tonight? We are going to meet at 6 PM.
I'm going to be an actor when I grow up.
Michelle is going to begin medical school next year.
They are going to drive all the way to Alaska.
Who are you going to invite to the party?

30

You are never going to meet Jane.

Are you ever going to meet Jane?
Who is going to make John's birthday cake? Sue is going to make John's birthday cake.
Will vs be going to: Usamos be going to para decisiones premeditadas y will para decisiones espontneas que se
comunican en el acto: La persona A lleva un rato pensando en algo y la persona B est pensando en otra cosa en ese
momento, y al escuchar a la persona A, se apunta a la idea
Persona A
Persona B
Im going to call for a pizza
I will have some
Im going to make some tea
I will have one
Im going to wash up
I will give you a hand
Ambos "will" and "be going to", pueden expresar la idea de una prediccin general sobre el futuro:
The year 2222 will be a very interesting year.
The year 2222 is going to be a very interesting year.
John Smith will be the next President.
John Smith is going to be the next President.
The movie "Zenith" will win several Academy Awards.
The movie "Zenith" is going to win several Academy Awards.
Will tambin se emplea para decir:
Estar de vuelta: Ill be back
Nos vemos el lunes?: Ill see you on Monday (sin ?)
Nos vemos: Ill see you
Hablamos: Ill talk to you
Te espero fuera de la estacin: Ill wait for you outside the station
FORMAS CONTINUAS
Many verbs are used in continuous tenses. Here are some examples:
Present continuous: I'm working at the moment.
Past continuous: Jack was cooking dinner when I arrived.
Future continuous: I will be playing tennis this time tomorrow.
Present perfect continuous: She's been working her for three years.
Generally, continuous (or progressive) tenses are used to describe what is happening at a particular moment in time.
The focus when using continuous tenses is always on an action in progress. However, there are some important
exceptions to using continuous tenses. Most importantly, there are a number of common non-continuous verbs that
are never or rarely used with continuous forms. These verbs fall into a few categories:
Mental and Emotional States
believe
love
suppose
dislike
hate
understand
doubt
prefer
want
imagine
realize
wish
know
recognize
like
remember
Examples:
She dislikes that boy NOT She is disliking that boy.
Jack prefers going out for dinner tonight NOT Jack is preferring going out for dinner tonight.
I recognize you! NOT I'm recognizing you!
Sense
appear
smell
hear
sound
see
taste
seem
Examples:
I saw him when the train arrived NOT I was seeing him when the train arrived.
It tastes strangeNOT It is tasting strange.
Did you hear that? NOT Were you hearing that?
Communication
agree
impress
satisfy
astonish
mean
surprise
deny
please
disagree
promise
Examples:
You astonish me! NOT You are astonishing me!
I'm afraid I disagree with you NOT I'm afraid I am disagreeing with you.
I meant to tell him yesterday afternoon NOT I was meaning to tell him yesterday afternoon.

31

Other States
be
depend
belong
deserve
concern
fit
consist
include
contain
involve
cost
lack
Examples:
It depends on how much it costs NOT It is depending on how much it is costing.
She said it involved a lot of work NOT She said it was involving a lot of work.
It doesn't matter NOT It isn't mattering.

matter
need
owe
own
possess

There are also a number of verbs that don't take the continuous forms in one meaning but DO take the
continuous forms in other meanings. Here are some of the most important:
Non-Continuous Meanings
feel = 'have an opinion' - He feels he should get a second chance.
see = 'understand' - I see what you mean.
think = 'have an opinion' - I think we should leave immediately.
appear = 'look like' - That appears to be stale.
look = 'seem' - It looks impossible!
taste = 'have a taste' - That tastes yummy!
Continuous Meanings
feel = 'feel physically' - I'm feeling awful this afternoon.
see = 'visit' - She's seeing a doctor this morning.
think = 'use the brain' - He's thinking hard about the problem.
appear = 'be on stage / perform' - Jack Daniels is performing at the Paramount tonight.
look = 'stare at' - I'm looking at that strange man.
taste = 'use the mouth' - The cook is tasting the sauce!
EMPLEAMOS LA FORMA VERBAL EN ING
1. Para formar los tiempos continuos de los verbos:
I am eating.
We have been working.
2. Para traducir el participio pasado de:
To be sitting: estar sentado
To be standing: estar de pie
To be lying: estar echado, tumbado
3. Como adjetivo:
Interesting
an interesting story
Amusing
an amusing book
4. Cuando una accin ocurre al mismo tiempo que otra:
Father is sitting by the fire reading a book
5. Como sujeto o complemento de un verbo:
Living at home is not so expensive as living in a hotel
They learn cooking and map reading
Getting to work on time means getting up at 6:00: llegar al trabajo a tiempo significa levantarse a las 6:00
6. Despus de cada preposicin, con excepcin de to cuando forma el infinitivo
He went out without putting his coat on
He is tired of working
After having tea he listened to the radio
Before going into the room he knocked at the door
7. En el verbo dependiente despus de algunos verbos que generalmente expresan la idea de empezar, continuar
o cesar.
Despus de estos verbos el verbo dependiente va en gerundio:
admit, advise, appreciate, avoid, cant help, cant stand, complete, consider, delay, deny, detest, dislike, enjoy,
escape, excuse, finish, forbid, get through, have, imagine, mind, miss, permit, postpone (put off), practise, quit, recall,
report, resent, resist, resume, risk, spend (time), suggest, tolerate, waste (time), begin*, start*, continue*, go on, stop,
, like*, love, keep, spend, hate, feel like, fancy, give up, keep on, regret, involve El verbo dependiente se pone en
gerundio

32

*To begin, to start, to continue y to like se pueden construir tambin con infinitivo
*I begin/start/continue/like/ + to (infinitivo) I begin/start/continue/like/ + (verbo+ing):
I like to drive
She enjoys meeting famous people
I like driving
I spend much time playing football
Mr Jones continues to work in his garden
He stopped playing
He could not continue playing
They enjoyed working on the boat
I cant go on working today
Despus de estos verbos + preposicin, el verbo dependiente va en gerundio:
admit to: admitir
feel like: sentir ganas de
approve of: aprobar
forget about: olvidarse de
argue about: discutir sobre
insist on: insistir en
believe in: creer en
object to: desaprobar
care about: preocuparse de/por
plan on: hacer planes de
complain about: quejarse de
prevent (someone) from: impedir, prevenir de
concentrate on: concentrarse en
refrain from: abstenerse de
confess to: confesar
succeed in: tener xito en
depend on: depender de
talk about: hablar de
disapprove of: desaprobar
think about: pensar acerca de
discourage from: hacer desistir de
worry about: preocuparse por
dream about: sonar con
Cuando despus de una preposicin va un verbo, ste se escribe en gerundio:
We concentrated on doing well
In spite of working hard, I didn't feel tired
Mr. Johnson is thinking about selling the company.
Close the door after leaving!
We're looking forward to meeting our new grandson.
They won't be able to enter without paying.
Dave has been arrested for stealing a TV set.
I want to visit uncle Frank before going back to Canada.
8. Despus de frases como: It is no use, It is no good, To be worth, y la palabra besides.
It is no use: no sirve para nada, es intil
It is no good: no sirve para nada, es intil
To be worth: valer la pena
Examples:
Whats the use of?: De (para) qu sirve?
It is no use talking to him in Spanish, he doesnt undertand
Is it worth buying new furniture for the spare room?
Besides acting and singing, they always build the stage and paint the scenery
9. Despus del verbo to need (necesitar) en vez del infinitivo pasivo, que se puede tambin emplear
The house needs painting
The house need to be painted
VERBOS MODALES: Can (to be able to), could, may, might, must, need, should, ought to, shall, will,
to have to (to have got to), would/should, used to: no tienen infinitivo con to, participio ni gerundio, no agregan
s en la tercera persona del presente, van seguidos de un infinitivo sin to (salvo ought to, need to, have to y used
to) y solo pueden usarse en un nmero limitado de tiempos verbales.
Grados de Certeza:
Grados de obligacin:
Probabilidad media, posibilidad media: may, may
Obligacin fuerte: must
not
Prohibicin: must not, can't
Dbil probabilidad o posibilidad: might, might not,
Obligacin dbil: should, might, may
could, couldn't
voluntad, insistencia y ofrecimientos: will, would
Permiso: can, may, might
Habilidad: can
Can (to be able to): (Poder)
Can siempre va sin to, slo se utiliza en presente, en pasado utilizamos Could/was, were able to y en el futuro
to be able to. Significa poder y traduce la idea de habilidad, posibilidad, imposibilidad, peticin y permiso. Su
preterito y su condicional es could.
I can speak English: S hablar ingles (Habilidad)
Can you come tomorrow?: Puede venir maana? (Posibilidad)
Can you open the door for me?: Me puedes habrir la puerta?
You cant see the dentist now: No puedes ver al dentista ahora (Imposibilidad)
Can I see you tomorrow?: Le podre ver maana? (Peticin)
Can I use your car?: Puedo usar tu coche? (Peticin)
You can take the car tomorrow: puedes coger el coche maana (Permiso)

33

Es empleado mucho con verbos de sensacin:

I can see you: Ya le veo
From the window you can hear the bells in the valley: Desde la ventana se oyen las campanas abajo en el valle
Be able to se emplea ms a menudo en combinacin con otros auxiliares.
I dont think Ill be able to get there on time: No creo que pueda llegar a tiempo
I am very pleased to be able to help you at any time: Estoy muy contento de poner ayudarte en cualquier momento
He is able to dress himself
You will be able to get tickets to the concert if you arrive at the box office early: Podrs conseguir entradas para el
recital si llegas a la boletera temprano.
Will you be able to come with us?: Podrs venir con nosotros?
The kids have not been able to study much today: Los nios no han sido capaces de estudiar mucho hoy.
Ms. Peterson has been able to contact Mr. Hope this morning: La Sra. Peterson pudo contactar al Sr. Hope esta
maana.
Mom had been able to clean the house before we got home: Mam haba podido limpiar la casa antes de que
llegramos a casa.
After I had been able to open the box, I discovered that it was empty: Depus de que haba podido abrir la caja,
descubr que estaba vaca.
If Betsy danced every day, she would be able to become a professional dancer: Si Betsy bailara todos los das, podra
llegar a ser una bailarina profesional.
Peter would be able to speak Italian if he lived in Rome for a year: Peter sera capaz de hablar italiano si viviera en
Roma durante un ao.
They wont be able to arrive until 8 pm: No podran llegar hasta las 8 pm
Could (was, were able to): (Poda, pude, podra)
A could le sigue un infinitivo sin to. Significa poda, pude, podra y traduce la idea de habilidad, posibilidad,
imposibilidad, perticin y sugerencia.
She could swim well at the age of four: Poda nadir bien a los cuatro aos (habilidad)
The keys could be in the car: Las llaves podran estar en le coche (Posibilidad)
Could I have a word with you?: Podra hablar contigo? (Peticin)
I couldnt open the door: No poda habrir la puerta (Imposibilidad)
You could get advice from your doctor: Podras obtener el consejo de tu doctor (Sugerencia)
At the conference, the speaker could answer all the questions: En la conferencia, el orador pudo contestar todas las
preguntas.
When Grace was five, she could walk on her hands: Cuando Grace tena cinco aos, poda caminar con las manos.
When David was a boy, he could run very fast: Cuando David era un nio, poda correr muy rpido.
Tom could not/was not able to win the contest last year: Tom no pudo ganar el concurso el ao pasado.
The climbers could not/were not able to reach the summit yesterday: Los escaladores no pudieron llegar a la cima
ayer.
That soccer player was able to score nine goals last season: Ese jugador de ftbol pudo marcar nueve goles la
temporada pasada.
Our team was able to beat yours in the World Cup: Nuestro equipo pudo derrotar al tuyo en la Copa del Mundo.
We were all able to pass the test last week: Todos pudimos aprobar el examen la semana pasada.
Jim was not able to meet Richard yesterday: Jim no pudo encontrarse con Richard ayer.
We were able to find the house although we had no map
The police were finally able to solve the mystery: La polica pudo finalmente resolver el misterio.
May: (Poder, quiza, puede que, tal vez).
A may le sigue un infinitivo sin to. Para expresar la posibilidad de que algo ocurra en el presente o en el futuro. Can
significa que algo es posible porque las circustancias reales lo permiten, mientras que may indica que algo no es
seguro, que puede ocurrir o no, pudiendose traducir en este caso de posibilidad (en el futuro o negativa) por puede
que, tal vez o quiz. Se emplea para pedir permiso (peticin formal) considerandose ms educado que can,
tambin se emplea para dar permiso. Cuando aparece en forma negativa indica prohibicin.
It may rain tomorrow: Quizas llueva maana (Posiblidad en el futuro)
He may come tomorrow: Quiza venga maana (Posiblidad en el futuro)
He may not arrive tonight: Puede que no venga esta noche (Posiblidad negativa)
May I call you later?: Puedo llamarte ms tarde? (Peticin formal)
May I come in?: Se puede? (Peticin formal)
You may take the car: Puedes coger el oche (Permiso)
You may smoke in this room: Puedes fumar en esta habitacin (Permiso)
You may not smoke in the library: No puedes fumar en la biblioteca (Prohibicin)
There may be a fault in the experiment: Puede haber un fallo en el experimento
Might: (Podra, puede que, es posible que)
A might le sigue un infinitivo sin to. Might se puede usar como may en el sentido de posibilidad, pero expresa una
posibilidad ms dudosa (posibilidad muy remota). No se emplea para pedir permiso.
He might come tomorrow: Es posible (pero poco probable) que venga maana. (Posibilidad remota)
It might rain tomorrow: Es posible (pero poco probable) que llueva maana (Posibilidad remota)

34

Tom might not be tired today: Puede que Tom no est cansado hoy (Posibilidad remota negativa)
She might win the race: Puede que gane la carrera (Posibilidad remota)
Must: (Deber, tener que, deber de)
Must siempre va sin to. Must solo se usa en presente. Traduce la idea de deber por obligacin o deber ineludible.
Es preferible usar must not en vez de mustnt, que pudiendose utilizar para algunos no es ni correcto.
You must go and see that film: Debes ir a ver esa pelcula
You mustnt smoke in this hospital: No debes fumar en este hospital.
The children must be at school at nine oclock
Everybody must work if he wants to eat
He must be upstairs
To have to (to have got to): se traduce por tener que. Se emplea para expresar obligacin o necesidad
I have to go now = I must go now
I have got to write a letter to my aunt
I had to go yerterday
We have to wear school uniforms
I will have to go
I dont have to pay this until June
I have had to go today
He had to leave early
I have to go to work every day
We will have to leave soon
Donde empleamos must para decir deber no puedo utilizar to have to:
It must be good
El pasado de deber de se forma con must have + participio del verbo siguiente:
He must have gone home: Debio de irse a casa Ha debido de irse a casa
She must have eaten something which was no good for her: Dedio de comer algo que no fue bueno para ella
Traduccin del modismo castellano que seguido de infinitivo, se traduce en ingles con el infinitivo con to:
Tengo mucho que hacer: I have much to do
Would: (Quera)
Puede emplearse should slo en la primera persona del singular y plural.
El verbo modal "would" (pasado de "will") se utiliza acompaado del infinitivo "to like" para expresar
ofrecimientos e invitaciones:
Would you like some bread?: Quieres algo de pan?
Would you like a cup of coffee?: Te gustara una taza de caf ?
Would you like to come with us?: Te gustara venir con nosotros ?
Would he like a piece of cake?: Le gustara un trozo de pastel ?
Para expresar preferencias: (I would rather: prefiero)
I would (should) like white wine with my fish: me gustara vino blanco con mi pescado
I would rather have tea: prefiero tomar t
Tambin se utiliza para manifestar deseos o realizar peticiones de una manera corts:
I would like to be rich: Me gustara ser rico (deseo)
I would like your help: Deseara tu ayuda (deseo)
Id like some flowers: Quera unas flores (deseo)
Id like five roses, please: Quisiera cinco rosas, por favour (deseo)
Id like four freesias as well: Quisiera tambin cuatro fresias (flor) (deseo)
Id like some aspirins, please: Quera aspirinas, por favour (deseo)
Would you move your car, please?: Movera su coche, por favor? (Peticin formal)
Would you lend me your car?: Me prestaras tu coche ? (Peticin formal)
Aparte de estos usos como verbo modal, "would" tambin se utiliza para formar el condicional:
If that car was cheaper, I would buy it: Si ese coche fuera ms barato, lo comprara
If it didn't rain, we would go to the beach:Si no lloviera, iramos a la playa
As como para formar el futuro de una accin que se desarrolla en el pasado:
He said that he would buy the tickets: El dijo que l comprara las entradas
I thought that I would go to the movies:Yo pensaba que ira al cine
Para expresar una accin repetida en el pasado
when I was a child, I would wake up at 7 o' clock to go to school: Cuando era chico, me levantaba a las 7 de la
maana para ir al colegio
Beethoven wouldn't stop teasing her and she didn't know what to do: Beethoven no paraba de molestarla y ella no
sabia que hacer.
I would walk on the beach every morning: Andaba por la playa todas las maanas

35

Should y Ought to: (deber, debera). Tienen casi el mismo significado. Pero en frases negativas se utiliza con
mayor frecuencia should (should not/shouldn't) y en las frases interrogativas en ingls americano nunca se utiliza
ougth to. Se usan para expresar lo que se debe hacer, equivalen a debera, deberas
Traduce la idea de deber moral o la del deber no ineludible. Sirven para dar consejos, sugerencias
Es preferible usar should not en vez de shouldnt, que pudiendose utilizar para algunos no es ni correcto.La forma
negativa de ought to es ought not to. Ought to es poco usado en interrogativa y negativa.
What should he have said?
The government should (ought to) care for homeless
children
I should/would like to be introduced to the manager
I should (ought to) learn English (deber moral)

I should (ought to) have gone yesterday (deber

moral)
You should (ought to) go home (deber no ineludible)
You should (ought to) see a doctor (consejo)
You should not lose temper with people (consejo)
Should I put the bag here?

Shall: (deber, tener que), lo empleamos cuando preguntamos algo por cortesa y esperamos una respuesta
positiva (peticin formal u oferta de ayuda). Su uso es ms formal que will. Slo se emplea para la primera
persona del singular y del plural: I y we
Shall not se contrae en shant y NO en shallnt
Shall I open the door?: Abro la puerta?
Shall we sell it?: Lo vendemos?
Shall I answer the phone?: Cojo el telfono?
Shall we go to have dinner out tonight?: Nos vamos
Shall I hold it for you?: Te lo sujeto?
a cenar esta noche?
Shall I carry this bag?: Llevo esta bolsa?
Shall I tell him the news?: Le cuento la noticia?
Shall I wake you up?: Te pespierto?
Shall I print the document?: Imprimo el documento?
Shall we open it now o later?: Lo abrimos ahora o
Shall we have a drink?: Tomamos una copa?
ms tarde?
I shall not leave his office before five = I shant leave his office before five: No saldr de su oficina antes de las
cinco
Se emplea como verbo auxiliar para formar el futuro en la primera persona del singular y del plural: I y we
I shall go to London tomorrow: Ir a Londres maana
We shall go to London tomorrow: Iremos a Londres maana
Se emplea como verbo auxiliar en la segunda y tercera persona para aadir a la idea de futuro la de amenaza,
orden, obligacin o promesa:
You shall do it: S, lo hars
The enemy shall not pass: El enemigo no pasar!
El pasado should se emplea en sentido condicional y se traduce por deber (ya visto)
I should go there, but I am too busy: Debera ir all, pero estoy demasiado ocupado
Need to = have to: tener que
To need puede funcionar como un verbo normal o como un verbo modal.
Como verbo normal, necesita el auxiliar do y le sigue un infinitivo con to:
Do you need to do it?, Tienes que hacerlo?
I dont need to do the exam: No tengo que hacer el examen
I didnt need to do the exam: No tenia que hacer el examen
I need to do the exam: Tengo que hacer el examen
I needed to do the exam: Tena que hacer el examen
I need to lose weight: Tengo que perder peso
I need to go to the toilet: Tengo que ir al servicio.
They need to buy carrots: Tienen que comprar zanahorias.
We need to get money: Tenemos que ganar dinero.
Como verbo modal, l mismo desempea el papel del auxiliar do y le sigue el infinitivo sin to:
Need you do it?: Tienes que hacerlo?
I need do the exam: Necesito hacer el examen
Need I stay?: tengo que quedarme?
You needn't come if you don't want to: no hace falta que vengas si no quieres
Need you read all these books?: Necesitas leer todos estos libros?
I neednt do the exam: No necesito hacer el examen
I need have done the exam: Necesit/necesitaba hacer el examen
I neednt have done the exam: No necesit/necesitaba hacer el examen
Her jacket is dirty. It needs cleaning: Su chaqueta est sucia. Necesita limpieza
LAS ORACIONES CONDICIONALES
Las oraciones condicionales constan de dos partes, la parte que establece la condicin, que va encabezada por
if (or unless: a menos que, a no ser que, si no) y la oracin principal. Se dividen en tres tipos bsicos:

36

0. If + presente, presente: Situacin siempre verdadera

If you freeze water, it turns into ice.
If I don't practice the piano everyday I play poorly
Unless you change your diet, you cant lose weight
Does your mom get mad if you don't call her?
If you eat less, you lose weight
Mr Smith does not like it if his children come home
If you want it, take it
late for dinner.
If you heat water to 100 C, it boils.
1. If + presente, futuro: Se utiliza para expresar una condicin que es muy probable que se cumpla.
If she takes a taxi, she will be here in ten minutes
If you study, you will pass the exam
If you exercise, you will feel better
Will you take the train if you miss the bus?
If it rains today, I'll stay at home
2. If + pasado, condicional: Se utiliza para expresar el deseo de conseguir algo poco probable, o condiciones
difciles de cumplirse. Tambin es usado para dar consejo y expresar esperanza o ambiciones
If she took a taxi, she would be here in ten minutes: Si tomase un taxi, estara aqu en diez minutos
If I had any money, I would lend it to you: Si tubiese dinero, te lo prestara
If I were you, I would eat less: Si fuese t (yo que t), comera menos
If I went on a diet, I would/could lose weight: Si siguiese una dieta, perdera peso
If I won the lottery, I would travel around the world: Si ganase la loteria, viajara alrededor del mundo
If Rachel had more time, she would learn to play the guitar
3. If + pasado perfecto, condicional perfecto: Se utiliza para expresar una condicin que no se puede cumplir,
ya que se refiere a algo pasado, que ya no es posible hacer.
If she had taken a taxi, she would have been here in ten minutes: Si hubiese tomado un taxi, habra estado aqu en
diez minutos
If I had won the lottery, I would have traveled around the world: Si hubiese Ganado la loteria, habra viajado
alrededor dle mundo
If I had gone to the beach, I would have seen my friends: Si hubiese ido a la playa, habra visto a mis amigos
If I had known then what I know now, I would have done things differently
Suzanne wouldn't have had the heart attack if she had gone on a diet as her doctor recommended
Would you have liked to go to university if you had been able to afford it?
If you had asked me, I would have cooked you a meal: Si me hubieses preguntado, te habra cocinado una comida
If you had followed a diet, you could/might have lost weight: Si hubieses seguido una dieta, podras haber perdido
peso
I would have gone to the conference, if I had been able to reschedule my meeting: Habra ido a la conferencia, si
yo hubiera sido capaz de cambiar mi reunion
If he had asked you for money yesterday, what would you have said?: Si te hubiese pedido dinero ayer, qu le
habras dicho?
En las oraciones condicionales a menudo se utiliza were en lugar de was, sobre todo en la expresin If I
were you: yo que t.
If I were you, I would buy the red one
En condicionales la forma"was" no se considera gramaticalmente correcta. En ingls escrito siempre se debe
usar "were". Sin embargo, en la conversacin diaria, "was" se utiliza a menudo.
If I were: si fuese
Slo la palabra "if" se utiliza con el condicional debido a que se est discutiendo situaciones imaginarias.
"when" no puede ser usado.
I would buy that computer when it were cheaper. Not Correct
I would buy that computer if it were cheaper. Correct
Ejemplos:
If I go to a friend's house for dinner, I usually take a bottle of wine or some flowers.
When I have a day off from work, I often go to the beach.
If the weather is nice, she walks to work.
Jerry helps me with my homework when he has time.
I read if there is nothing on TV.
What do you do when it rains? I stay at home.
Where do you stay if you go to Sydney? I stay with my friends near the harbor.
If I owned a car, I would drive to work. But I don't own a car.
She would travel around the world if she had more money. But she doesn't have much money.
I would read more if I didn't watch so much TV.
Mary would move to Japan if she spoke Japanese.
If they worked harder, they would earn more money.
What would you do if you won the lottery? I would buy a house.
Where would you live if you moved to the U.S.? I would live in Seattle.
If he were French, he would live in Paris.
If she were rich, she would buy a yacht.
I would play basketball if I were taller.
I would buy that computer if it were cheaper.
I would buy that computer if it was cheaper. Not Correct (But often said in conversation.)

37

if I should find: si encontrara

if you should hear:si escucharas
Adems de las partculas if y unless, otras palabras pueden introducer una condicin: before, after,
when/whenever, until/till, by the time, once, the moment that, as soon as, as long as. Estas palabras van seguidas por
el presente simple incluso cuando hablamos sobre el futuro.
LA VOZ PASIVA
Los tiempos en la voz pasiva se forman con el auxiliar to be y el participio pasivo del verbo conjugado.
Tiempos verbales que permiten forma pasiva:
Presente simple: She types the letters The letters are typed
Pasado simple: She typed the letters The letters were typed
Presente continuo: She is typing the letters The letters are being typed
Pasado continuo: She was typing the letters The letters were being typed
Presente perfecto: She has typed the letters The letters have been typed
Pasado perfecto: She had typed the letters The letters had been typed
Futuro simple: She will type the letters The letters will be typed
Futuro (to be going to): She is going to type the letters The letters are going to be typed
Verbos modales:
She has to type the letters The letters have to be typed
She must type the letters The letters must be typed
She can type the letters The letters can be typed
She may type the letters The letters may be typed
She might type the letters The letters might be typed
Verbos que en ingles se construyen en voz activa seguidos de preposicin, en voz pasiva retienen la
preposicin:
John pays for the dinner The dinner is paid for by John
They arent paid for the work they do (by them)
Se emplea en: Come te llamas? Cmo se llama.?:
What are you called? Im called Ral
What is your sister called? My sister is called Yoly
It is known: se sabe
It has been: se ha
Ejemplos:
The speech is written for the president: El discurso est escrito para el presidente
The house was built in 1975: La casa fue construida en 1975
My wallet has been stolen: Mi cartera ha sido robada
The room will be cleaned while we are out: La habitacin ser limpiada mientras estemos fuera
Mark Twain wrote the book. The book was written by Mark Twain.
The housekeeper will clean the room. The room will be cleaned by the housekeeper.
Usamos la voz pasiva cuando no sabemos quien ha hecho la accin.
A civilian has been killed: Un civil ha sido asesinado
The car was stolen: El coche fue robado
Usamos la voz pasiva cuando queremos dar importancia a lo que pas, ms que a quin hizo la accin o
cuando no queremos decir quien lo hizo.
Ejemplos:
The letter was delivered yesterday: La carta fue entregada ayer
A mistake was made: Un error fue cometido
Nota: No podemos usar la voz pasiva con verbos intransitivos como "die", "arrive" o "go". Verbos intransitivos son
verbos que no llevan un objeto directo.
INFINITIVO CON TO O SIN TO
1. El infinitivo sin to se emplea:
1.1. Despus de los verbos modales con excepcin de ought
Can you come tomorrow?
May I look at your newspaper?
We shall all bring you some books
They will not arrive tonight
1.2. Despus del verbo to do cuando se emplea como verbo auxiliar en presente y pasado
Does he go to the club every day?
Do you know where my hat is?
I didnt see him at the concert
1.3. Despus de los verbos to make y to let
I made him come: Le hice venir
Let me go out: Dejame salir
Let us go = Lets go: Vmonos!
Let him come in: Que entre!

38

Let them go out: Que salga!

1.4. Despus de los verbos de sensacin to see, to hear, to feel (el sujeto va delante del verbo dependiente al
contrario que en castellano) de manera que si la accin dura algn tiempo se usa la forma progresiva ing en vez del
infinitivo sin to.
I saw the boy fall from the tree: Vi caer al nio del arbol
He heard his father come in: Oy entrar a su padre
He saw his father coming down the street: Vi a su padre bajar la calle
I heard the rain falling on the roof: O caer la lluvia sobre el tejado
2. El infinitive con to se emplea:
2.1. Como sujeto de la oracin
To learn a foreign language is not always easy
2.2. Despus de la mayora de los verbos salvo los dichos en 1: agree, aim, appear, arrange, ask, attempt, be able,
beg, begin, care, choose, condescend, consent, continue, dare, decide, deserve, detest, dislike, expect, fail, forget, get,
happen, have, hesitate, hope, hurry, intend, leap, like, long, love, mean, neglect, offer, ought, plan, prefer, prepare,
proceed, promise, propose, refuse, remember, say, shoot, start, stop, strive, swear, tell, threaten, try, use, wait, want,
wish
Nota: Los verbos subrayados arriba son verbos de deseo, orden, ruego y expectacin: van seguidos de
complemento indirecto + to + verbo (Lo vemos en el punto 2.4)
Examples:
It started to rain
He wanted to ask you a question
I decided to go home
We ought to help his brother
Everyone expect her to win
2.3. Como calificativo
Flat to let: Piso para alquilar
Ive got a jod to do: Tengo una tarea que hacer
There is a job to be done (que hacer)
It was the last thing in my house that I remained to be sold (por vender)
2.4. Despus de los verbos de deseo (to want, should like), de orden (to order, to tell), de ruego (to ask) y de
expectacin (to expect). Despus de los verbos de deseo, orden, ruego y expectacin la conjuncin que no se
traduce al ingles, nos limitamos a poner el infinitivo con to, llendo la negacin not delante de ste. (Sujeto + verbo+
CI + to + infinitivo)
Despus de los siguientes verbos va complemento indirecto + to + verbo: advise, allow, ask, beg, bring, build, buy,
challenge, choose, command, dare, direct, encourage, expect, forbid, force, have, hire, instruct, invite, lead, leave, let,
like, love, motivate, order, pay, permit, persuade, prepare, promise, remind, require, send, teach, tell, urge, want,
warn.
I want you to come tomorrow: quiero que venga maana
I should like you to show me your house: Me gustara que me enseases tu casa
He ordered the men to leave the town: Orden a los hombres que dejasen la ciudad
She told me to meet her at the tea-shop: Me dijo que le encontrar en el salon del t
They asked us to give them some books: Nos pidieron que les dieramos libros
She asked him to come and play: Ella le pidi que viniera a jugar
We expect them to arrive tomorrow: Esperamos que lleguen maana
He told her not to drive too fast: Le dijo que no condujese demasiado rpido
She told him to sit down: Le dijo que se sentara
They told me not to wait: Me dijeron que no esperara
What do you want me to do?: Qu quieres que haga?
IMPERATIVO
Imperativo: Lo utilizamos para dar rdenes solamente con el verbo bsico (sin to)
Come on!: ven! !venga
Look at me!
Lets go!: Vamos!
Sit down please!
Get up!: Levantate!
Stand up!
Let's not play: No juguemos!
Jane, stop smoking in here!
Take off: Quitarse, despegar, salir (un avin)
Take it off: Quitalo
Put in/into: Meter en
Put it in/into: Metelo en .
Take out of: Sacar de
Take it out of: Sacalo de
Put on: poner
Put it on: pontelo Tell me to put my watch back on (back: de nuevo)
HAVE: PARA COMIDAS Y BEBIDAS, Y TAMBIN PARA DECIR: PUEDES DARME
En comidas y bebidas, tomar se traduce por have.
Tomar vino, tomate, sopa..en la cena, comida, meriendaese en la es for.
My brother doesnt have wine for lunch Mi hermano no toma vino en la comida

39

En las comidas no se pone el artculo:

Desayunar: To have breakfast
Comer: To have lunch
Merendar: To have a snack
Cenar:To have dinner/supper/meal a lovely meal: una cena buenisima
Se dice:
After dinner/supper/meal
Before breakfast
Tea is at five oclock
Can I have:Puedes darme
Can I have the key to room 212, please?: Puedes darme la llave de la habitacin 212, por favor?
Can I have a beer?: Puedes darme una cerveza?
Can I have some sugar?: Puedes darme azucar
El verbo to have se emplea slo en forma continua cuando es verbo principal y no auxiliar y traduce la idea de
tomar algo, y no la de posesin: We are having lunch, Are you having a good time?...
Cuando traducimos to have en sentido de posesin o para decir tener que se puede emplear tanto to
have como to have got (para dar nfasis al verbo to have se emplea el participio de to get que es to got):
Have you my book? = Have you got my book?
Ive got a lot of work to do
Have you got any money?, No I have not got any
Ive got to go to London next week
Que talla tienes?: Se utiliza el verbo to take, y no to have what size do you take?
VERBO+AND+VERBO
En Ingles despus de un verbo de movimiento, en lugar de la costruccin espaola con infinitivo (viene a verle), se
emplean los dos verbos en la misma persona unidos por la conjuncin and.
He comes and sees you: Viene a verle
Will you and John go and play in the garden?: T y Juan iris a jugar en el jardn?
This evening your friends from next door will come and see you: Esta tarde tus amigos los vecinos vendrn a verte
Stop the car and lets get out and see: Para el coche y salgamos a ver
TO COME, TO GO
Los verbos "come"[kam] (venir) y "go" [gou](ir) muchas veces se confunden en ingls porque su uso no siempre
coincide con el "ir" y "venir" del espaol.Veamos las reglas:
To come:
1-Indica un movimiento de la persona que habla o escucha hacia el sitio donde est o estar la persona que
escucha o habla:
I will come and see you tomorrow morning
Waiter! Coming sir
Come here
You must come and see me in Oxford
Can you come? Yes, I'm coming. Incorrecto: I'm going.
IMPORTANTE: No se dice "I'm going" porque se trata de un desplazamiento hacia el lugar donde est la persona
que est hablando. Este es el uso ms complejo y que debes estudiar con detenimiento porque difiere del espaol.
Ms ejemplos:
When did she come to London? Nota: El que dice esta oracin est en Londres.
Can they come to Paris? Nota: El que dice esta oracin est en Paris.
2- Utilizamos "come" para referirnos a un desplazamiento hacia donde estuvo (pasado) o estar (futuro) la
persona que habla o escucha:
What time did you come here yesterday?
Will you come to my party?
En este caso el uso de "come" no es diferente al uso de "venir" en espaol.
3-Se emplea en el sentido de acompaar: Will you come to the theatre with me tonight?
4- Se emplea en el sentido de llegar:
He came half an hour late
I came to the conclusion that he was wrong.
As soon as we came to the intersection, I realized I had forgotten something.
5- Come se utiliza tambin para decir de dnde proviene una persona (pas, ciudad, pueblo, etc.):
She comes from Poland. I come from Spain.
To go:
1- Utilizamos "go" para referirmos al desplazamiento que hacemos o haremos a otros lugares (no a donde est
la persona que habla o escucha).
I'm going to France.
Are you going to Turkey?
When they came, we all went to the cinema and John said he would drive us home in his car afterwards.
2- Se emplea a veces en el sentido de partir: We must go at once

40

Diferencia entre go back y come back: Ambos significan volver, ahora bien, uno significa go back: volver
para all y el otro come back: volver para ac
Im going to Barcelona tomorrow
Im coming back to Madrid the next day
Then Im going back to Barcelona
Finally, Im coming back to Madrid the next day
VERBOS DE SENSACIN: TO SEE, TO HEAR, TO FEEL
Se construyen con el verbo dependiente en infinitivo sin to:
I see him come: Le veo venir
I hear John call his father: Oigo que Juan llama a su padre
Cuando decimos:
Veo a Pedro: I See Peter, no se dice: I see to Peter
Ral fue a ver a su novia el fin de semana Ral went to see his girlfriend at the weekend
NO se usa el To con el verto to see cuando decimos veo a
Veo el lago: I see the lake
Le veo: I see him
Veo al rey: I see the king
El ve a Mar: He sees Mar
ARRIVE, GET, TAKE, CARRY, FETCH
LLEGAR:
To come, came, come: venir, llegar
To arrive in: llegar a (con nombres propios) The planes arrives in England
To arrive at: llegar a (con los dems nombres) I arrive at station
To get to: llegar a (un lugar) SE USA MS QUE To arrive at
LLEVAR:
To take, took, taken: Coger, tomar, llevar. (en la mano y llevar de llevar a alguien a algn lado)
To carry, carried, carrying: llevar (en la mano)
To fetch: ir a buscar, traer, llevar (en la mano)
TO SAY, TO TELL
To say, to tell to say tiene el sentido de decir, recitar y to tell tiene el sentido de decir, contar, ordenar.
say and tell no van seguidos de to: Traducimos decir por say cuando no hay complemento indirecto y por
tell cuando si lo hay.
Digo: I say
Te digo: I tell you
Dije: I said
Te dije: I told you
l va a decirlo: he is going to say it
l va a decir a los trabajadores: he is going to
tell the workers
Una manera simple de diferenciar los usos de to say y to tell es pensar:
To say: You say something
To tell: You tell someone something
Ram said that he was tired.
Ram told Jane that he was tired.
Anthony says you have a new job.
Anthony tells me you have a new job
Tara said: "I love you."
Tara told John that she loved him
Normalmente despus de to tell va obligatoriamente complemento indirecto sin to (persona a la que estamos
hablando). To say puede emplearse con o sin complemento indirecto; cuando despus de to say va
complemento indirecto, entre medias se pone to.
She told me that she loved John.
He said that he was going out
She said that she loved John.
He said to his father that he was going out
She said to me that she loved John.
He said he was going out: Dijo que iba a salir (nica
He told everybody that he had to leave.
forma de decirlo)
He said that he had to leave.
Anthony said to her, "I hope you come soon."
He said to everybody that he had to leave.
"I'd like to sleep," she said to him quietly.
He told his father that he was going out
Usamos to say en habla directa, y solo usamos to tell en habla directa cuando se trata de una instruccin
o informacin:
Amanda said, "Hello John. How are you?"
He told her: "Open the door quietly."
"That's great'" she said.
She told me, "I have never been to England."
Nota: Estilo directo e indirecto
Estilo directo (cuando se citan al pie de la letra palabras atribuidas a una persona) y estilo indirecto (cuando una
tercera persona relata una conversacin)
He says, I will come
Where is the Town Hall he asked
Go to the hospital immediately I said to him
He said (that) he would come
He asked where the Town Hall was
I told him to go to the hospital immediately

41

Usamos to say en preguntas directas, y en este caso no podemos usar to tell:

She said: "Do you love me?"
The policeman said to the prisoner, "Where were you at 8pm?"
Podemos usar to say y to tell para hablar sobre informacin recibida:
She said that it was raining.
She told me that she would call at 2pm.
REMIND OF/ABOUT/TO:
Cuando significa "hacer que alguien se acuerde de algo para que no olvide":
Do I need to remind you of/about our company's standards? Tengo que recordarle las normas de nuestra empresa?
remind of : Todos los otros significados usan "of" (pensar que alguien se parece a otra persona, hacer que alguien se
acuerde de algo que pas en el pasado):
You remind me of your mother: Me recuerdas a tu madre
The smell reminds him of his grandmother: El olor le recuerda a su abuela
Watching my son play basketball reminds me of when I was on a team: Ver a mi hijo jugar baloncesto me recuerda
cuando yo estaba en un equipo
A sunny day reminds me of my last holiday on the beach.
remain to:
Remind me to go to the chemists
I called Sue and reminded her (that) the meeting had been cancelled.
Tom reminded me to send an email to Pam.
Remind me to turn off the lights
Remind John to buy some bread at the store.
LISEN TO, TO TALK TO
Listening to: Siempre que utilizamos el verbo to listen, hay que utilizar la preposicin to
What is she listening to? She is listening to the radio
Do you listen to the radio every day?
Well, then listen to what I have to say
Talking to: hablando con
Hablando con Paula: Talking to Paula
No nos estamos hablando: Were not talking to each other
Hablando por telefono: Talking on the phone
DOLOR
Hurts para sustantivos en singular y hurt para sustantivos en plural
My toe hurts: Me duele el dedo del pie
His head hurts: Le duele la cabeza
Their feet hurt: Les duelen los pies
Our legs hurt: Nos duelen las piernas
ache: doler, dolor
My head aches: me duele la cabeza
I have a headache: tengo dolor de cabeza
TO KNOW, TO LEARN, TO TEACH
To know, to learn, to teach se construyen con el infinitivo precedido de how to. En el caso de to know es
obligatorio, y en el caso de to learn y to teach pueden ir con to how o con to solo segido de infinitivo.
I know how to swim
I know how to use a computer: yo s utilizar el ordenador
Will you teach me how to swim?
Will you teach me to swim?
I want to learn how to swim
I want to learn to swim
HACER Y TENER TO BE
En las expresiones que indican un estado o una condicin, sea del tiempo o sea de la persona, cuando se emplean
hacer y tener en espaol es preciso traducirlos por to be en ingls, que va seguido del adjetivo correspondiente:
It is fine today: Hoy hace buen tiempo
I am one metre fifty tall: Tengo un metro cincuenta
It is cold today: Hoy hace fro
de altura
It is warm today: Hoy hace un poco de calor
I am fifteen years old: Tengo quince aos
It is hot today: Hoy hace calor
I am afraid: Tengo miedo
It is dark: Esta oscuro
I am hungry: Tengo hambre
It is hot: Hace calor
I am thirsty: Tengo sed
I am cold: Tengo fro

42

I am hot: Tengo mucho calor

I am warm: Tengo calor
I am right: Tengo razn
Ntese la diferencia entre:

I am wrong: No tengo razn, estoy equivocado

I am sleepy: Tengo sueo

It is cold: hace fro

I am cold: tengo fro

CUANDO VAMOS A COLOCAR TO AL FINAL DE UNA ORACIN?

La funcin bsica ser sustituir a un infinitivo en dos situaciones:
1) Respondiendo a una pregunta.
2) Cuando queda claro por el contexto de la oracin y puede evitarse una repeticin innecesara
1-Respondiendo a una pregunta
Cuando utilizamos un infinitivo despus del verbo principal para preguntar. En la respuesta no ser necesario repetir
ese infinitivo.
Do you want to play basketball? Yes, I want to.: Quieres jugar baloncesto? S, s quiero. Ese "to" viene a sustituir
al "to play" (jugar) de la pregunta
Would you like to stay here tonight? Yes, I would like to: Te gustara quedarte aqu esta noche? S, s me gustara.
El "to" sustituye a "to stay"
Do you need to do the house chores? Yes, I definitely need to. Necesitas hacer los quehaceres? S, definitivamente
lo necesito. El "to" sustituye a "to do"
Do you have to talk on the cell phone all day long? No, you're right I don't have to. Tienes que hablar por celular
todo el da? No, tienes razn, no tengo por qu. El "to" sustituye a "to talk"
2-Evitando una repeticin innecesaria
Cuando el verbo infinitivo queda totalmente definido por el contexto de la oracin, no es necesario repetirlo en su
totalidad, el "to" ser suficiente. La palabra "to" al final de una oracin, quiere decir hacer, llevar a cabo el
verbo principal
They asked me to help them, and I will be happy to: Me pidieron que les ayudara y yo estar feliz (de hacerlo)
Peter doesnt generally get up until he have to: Pedro no suele levantarse hasta que tenga que (hacerlo)
They won the prize, and they were really proud to: Ellos ganaron el premio y estaban realmente orgullosos (de
haberlo hecho)
She really wants to become a nurse, she is anxious to: Ella de verdad quiere ser enfermera, est ansiosa (por de llegar
a serlo)
You needn't come if you don't want to: no hace falta que vengas si no quieres (hacerlo)
I promise to: Prometo (hacerlo).
I did it because he told me to: Lo hice porque el me dijo que (lo hiciera).
I think he is going to: creo que l lo va a (hacerlo)
They said they had to: dijeron que tuvieron (que hacerlo)
Examples:
I've made some really good friends at the gym I go to
What kinds of programs do you like to?
What place would you like to move to?
Who do you want to speak to?
How will we know who we're talking to?
Would you like to come? Yes, Id love to!
UTILIZACIN CASUAL DE HAVE: THE CAUSATIVE: HAVE/GET SOMETHING DONE
Se forma: Have /get + objeto + participio pasado = I have /get my watch mended
Se usa un verbo causativo para expresar las acciones que encargamos a alguien. Esta estructura tiene un
significado pasivo, puesto que el sustantivo que va en medio recibe la accin expresada por el verbo en participio.
She always has her food delivered (en lugar de traerla ella, pide a alguien que se la traiga)
I got my photograph taken for my passport (otra persona me hizo la foto)
Nota:
a) get tambin indica que el objeto realiza personalmente la accin o se implica mucho en su ejecucin.
When I get my homework done, Ill match TV
b) have es un poco ms formal que get y get es ms frecuente que have en la forma imperativa.
Example: Get your bedroom tidied at once!
Ntese la diferencia entre:
a) Im going to have/get this chair restored
b) Im going to restore this chair
En la frase a) yo voy a llevar la silla a alguien para que efecte la restauracin, mientras que en la b) soy yo mismo
quien la efecta.
Si quisiramos mencionar quin hace la accin, podramos aadir by + el agente al final de la frase.

43

Susan had her car repaired by a mechanic (Susan llev el coche a un mecnico para que se lo arreglara)
El verbo causativo puede usarse prcticamente en cualquier tiempo, incluso en las formas continuas.
Were having our house painted this week
Jack will be getting his messages sent by e-mail from now on
TENSE

HAVE/GET SOMETHING DONE

Present Simple

I have/get my hair cut.

Past Simple

I had/got my hair cut.

Present Continuous I'm having/getting my hair cut.

Past Continuous

I was having/getting my hair cut.

Present Perfect

I have had my hair cut.

Past Perfect

I had had my hair cut.

will

I will have my hair cut.

must

I must have my hair cut.

be going to

I'm going to have my hair cut.

La interrogativa y la negativa se forman como las de cualquier otro verbo

Do you have your car serviced regularly?
You wont have your eyes tested next week
Did he get his house redecorated last week?
Im not getting my hair cut today.
En situaciones en las que se quiere indicar que algo desagradable ha ocurrido en el pasado se suele usar have +
objeto + participio
He had his car broken last week
I had my finger bitten during the fight
She had his mobile phone stolen while she was playing in the playground
Examples:
Liz and Meg are having their hair dyed: Liz y Meg se estn haciendo teir el pelo.
Mr. Singer always has his suits made at the tailor's shop: El seor Singer siempre se hace hacer los trajes en la
sastrera.
Jake had his groceries delivered two hours ago: Le trajeron las compras a Jake hace dos horas.
We had our house burgled last weekend: El fin de semana pasado entraron a nuestra casa a robar.
Diane has had her printer cartridges refilled: Diane hizo recargar los cartuchos de su impresora.
We'd just had our house fumigated: Habamos acabado de hacer fumigar la casa.
You should have your eyes checked: Deberas hacerte revisar los ojos.
Jenny will have her ears pierced: Jenny se va a hacer perforar las orejas.
I usually get my hair done at Luigi's: Generalmente me peino en Luigis.
Martin got his tonsils removed yesterday: A Martin le extirparon las amgdalas ayer.
You must get this pipe fixed as soon as possible: Debes hacer arreglar este cao lo antes posible
ESTRUCTURAS CASUALES
Activas: had=hizo que
Susan had her brother do her homework
The police had the suspect stop his car
We had the carpenter fix our window

Pasivas: had= tuve, tuviste, tuvo, tuvimos

We had our door fixed
Yukiko had her hair cut
Sanjay had the windows cleaned

Causativo Make
make + thing + verb word: I make this radio work: Hice que esta radio funcionara
make + person + verb word: I can make your friend work part time in this summer vacation: Puedo hacer que tu
amigo trabaje a tiepo parcial en estas vacaciones de verano
Causativo Let
let + thing + verb word: I can let this car cool: Puedo dejar que este coche se emfrie
let + person + verb word: would you let me join your party?: Me permitirias unirme a tu fiesta?
Causativo Have
have + thing + participio: I have my car fixed: Tengo mi coche arreglado
have + person + verb word: My english teacher had me give oral speaking: Mi profesor de ingles tuvo que darme
habla oral.
Causativo Help
help + person + verb word: Would you help me deliver this box?: Me ayudas a llevar esta caja?
help + person + infinitivo: I helped her to pack the luggage: La ayud a hacer el equipage
Causativo Get
get + thing + participio: I get my house repaired before this winter: Tengo mi casa reparada antes de este invierno
get + person + infinitivo: I got my friend to help this homework: Tuve a mi amigo para ayudarme con esta tarea

44

ORACIONES APOSITIVAS
Apositivo: indicado por pausas en la comunicacin oral o por comas en la comunicacin escrita, porque provee
informacin adicional, no necesaria para identificar el referente gramatical.
My brothers car, a sporty red convertible with bucket seats, is the envy of my friends
The chief surgeon, an expert in organ-tranplant procedures, took her nephew on a hospital tour
A bold innovator, Wassily Kadinsky is known for his colorful abstract paintings.
The first state to ratify the U.S constitution, Delaware is rich in history
A beautiful collie, Skip was my favourite dog
Cuando el nombre (sujeto) explicado es demasiado general sin el apositivo, la informacin es esencial para el
significado de la frase de manera que no se ponen comas alrededor del apositivo. Cuando el sentido de la frase es
claro y completo sin el apositivo, es cuando el apositivo va entre comas.
Examples:
The popular Us president John Kennedy was known for his eloquent and inspirational speeches
John Kennedy, the popular Us president, was known for his eloquent and inspirational speeches
John Kennedy the popular Us president was quite different from John Kennedy the unfaithful husband
FRASES:
Se quitaron los pantalones: They took off their trousers
Soy una persona tmida: I'm a shy person.
Algunas personas me consideran fro, antiptico y taciturno. Espero que no tengan razn: Some people think
I'm cold, unpleasant and taciturn. I hope they are wrong.
No me gustan las fiestas, ni las discotecas. No me encuentro a gusto en ellas: I like neither parties nor
discos/discotheques. I don't feel comfortable there.
Lo siento si no hablo bien el ingls: I'm sorry if I don't speak English well.
Vamos a dar una vuelta/ un paseo?: Shall we go to have a walk?
Maana vas/vis a venir?: Will you come tomorrow?/ Are you going to come tomorrow?/ Are you coming
tomorrow?
No me gusta bailar: I don't like to dance/ I don't like dancing.
Yo no fumo, ni consumo drogas, ni bebo ni frecuento discotecas. No me gusta la marcha: I neither smoke nor
take drugs nor drink nor go to discos/discotheques. I'm not lively.
No s nadar: I can't swim.
Antes jugaba al ftbol con algunos amigos pero hoy ya no practico ningn deporte: I used to play football with
some friends but nowadays I don't do any sport.
El chico que nos acompa el otro da es un viejo conocido: The boy who went with us last day is an old friend.
No tengo coche: I haven't got car.
En general soy una persona muy tranquila: In general, I'm a very calm person.
Te puedo dar un beso en la mejilla?: Can I kiss you in the cheek?
Marta est enojada, verdad?: Martha is angry, isn't she?
Ests muy cansado, no?: You are really tired, aren't you?
No fue culpa tuya: It wasnt your fault
Son personas muy agradables, no?: They're very nice people, aren't they?
Pedro est volando en estos momentos, no?: Pedro's flying now, isn't he?
Jane me dijo que su cumpleaos fue el quince: Jane told me that her birthday was on the fifteen
Hazlo como quieras: Do it as you like
No es un da hermoso, verdad?: It isn't a beautiful day, is it?
Pero mi padre se haba comprometido a mi madre tres aos antes: But my father had engaged to my mother
three years before
Marta no est enojada, no?: Martha isn't angry, is she?
No ests muy cansado, verdad?: You aren't really tired, are you?
Los vecinos de abajo: The neighbours below
No son personas muy agradables, no?: They aren't very nice people, are they?
No vas a venir maana, no?: You aren't coming tomorrow, are you?
Pedro no est volando en estos momentos, no?: Pedro isn't flying now, is he?
Fue un da hermoso, verdad?: It was a beautiful day, wasn't it?
Marta estaba enojada, no?: Martha was angry, wasn't she?
Estabas muy cansado, verdad?: You were really tired, weren't you?
Estuviste estudiando a las 6, no?: You were studying at 6, weren't you?
No fue un da hermoso, no?: It wasn't a beautiful day, was it?
No estuviste estudiando a las 6, no?: You weren't studying at 6, were you?
No estaba volando cuando llam, no?: He wasn't flying when I phoned, was he?
No cultivo verduras, slo cultivo algunas flores: I dont grow vegatables, I just grow a few flowers
Vine por eso precisamente: Thats just why I came
Dejamelo a mi!: Just leave it to me
A pesar de lo que ella dice: Despite what she says
Le entend a pesar de su acento: I understood him, in spite of his accent
A pesar de su mal humor, contest a mis preguntas: Despite her bad humour, she answered my questions

45

Baja de ese rbol!: Come down from that tree!

Durante el verano: During the summer
Ayer llovi durante dos horas: Yesterday it rained for two hours
Pronto saldr hacia Francia: She will soon start for France
Por las siguientes razones...: For the following reasons...
Rezar por la paz: To pray for peace
No lo veo desde hace cinco das: I haven't seen him for five days
Ella escribe una carta por m (en mi lugar): She is writing a letter for me
Soy espaol: I'm from Spain
Qutale las tijeras al nio: Take the scissors from the child
Lo hizo por despecho: He did it from spite
Estudio desde la maana hasta la noche: I study from morning till night
Desde el 20 de julio: From 20 July
Vivimos en Valencia: We live in Valencia:
En el ao 2001: In the year 2001
En invierno: In winter
Llegaste a Madrid en Septiembre: You arrived in Madrid in september
Te ver dentro de una semana: I'll see you in a week's time
El interior de la caja: The inside of the box
Entr en la habitacin: I went into the bedroom
Un viaje hacia lo desconocido: A journey into the unknown
El coche choc con un muro: The car ran into a wall
l entr en la habitacin: He went into the room
l estaba en la habitacin: He was in the room
Piensas como mi madre: You think like my mother
Quiero una falda como esa: I want a skirt like that
Hay una comisara por aqu cerca?: Is there a police station near here?
Cerca del medioda: Near midday
Hecho de acero: Made of steel
Al este de Londres: East of London
Est orgulloso de su hija: He is proud of her daughter
Se cay de la escalera: She fell of the ladder
Una calle que sale de la plaza principal: A street off the main place
Mi sombrero est sobre la mesa: My hat is on the table
Te veremos el sbado: We will see you on Saturday
Estoy aqu por negocios: I'm here on business
Dar clases sobre Shakespeare: To lecture on Shakespeare
Esta habitacin da a la calle Sesamo: This room looks out on Sesame Street
Fuera de los muros de la prisin: Outside the prison walls
Volamos sobre Nueva York: We flew over New York
Pon un mantel sobre la mesa: Put a cloth over the table
Un puente sobre el Ro Kwai: A bridge over the River Kwai
Lo discutiremos durante la cena: We'll discuss it over dinner
Tiene ms de 30 aos: He's over 30
El tiempo es estupendo en Mexico: The weather is great in Mexico.
Puedes decirme la locacin del hotel?: Can you tell me where the hotel is?
Sabes el camino al restaurante?: Do you know how to get to the restaurant?
Dnde est el cambio de moneda?: Where is the currency exchange?
Dnde est la oficina postal?: Where is the post office?
Por favor necesito ms toallas: I need more towels please.
Alguien aqu habla ingls?: Does anyone here speak English?
Llmenos un taxi / necesitamos un taxi: Call us a taxi/we need a taxi.
Necesitamos el autobs que va al centro comercial: We need the bus that goes to the shopping center.
Que camino al estadio?: Which way to the stadium?
Donde estn los puntos turisticos de interes?: Where are the tourist points of interest.
Los cuartos en este hotel vienen con un desayuno gratis: All stays at this hotel have a free breakfast included.
No se puede comer o beber cerca de la piscina: You can't eat or drink near the pool.
Nios menores de 12 aos se hospedan gratis: Kids 12 and under stay free.
Necesitas una tarjeta de crdito para la reserva: You need a credit card for a reservation.
El sistema de reservas est informatizado: The reservation system is computerized.
Hay que aadir impuesto a todos los precios: Add tax to all prices.
Un grupo grande de personas no es un problema: A Large group of people is not a problem.
Esta es un sala de no fumadores: This is a No Smoking room.
Cada habitacin est equipada con una cafetera: Each room is equipped with a coffee maker.
Las horas de la piscina son de 5 a 10: Pool hours are from 5 am to 10 pm.
Nios menores de 12 aos no permitidos: Kids under 12 not allowed.
Donde puedo lavar mi ropa?: Where can I do my laundry?

46

Cual es el horario del banco?: What hours does the bank operate?
Me gustara el dinero en billetes de veinte por favor: I'd like the money in twenties please.
Donde esta el ATM (cajero automtico)?: Where is the ATM?
Esta cuenta no tiene cargos adicionales: This account has no fees/This account has no additional charges
Necesito ayuda en balancear mi cuenta: I need help in balancing my account.
Su cuenta no tiene suficiente para cubrir el cheque: Your account doesn't have enough to cover the check.
Me gustara abrir una cuenta nueva: I would like to open a new account.
Cuanto cuesta alquilar una caja de seguridad?: How much does it cost to rent a safe deposit box/ security box?
Como quiere su dinero?: How would you like your money?
Tiene usted identificacin?: Do you have some identification?
Lo siento, el banco esta cerrado: I'm sorry, the bank is closed.
Gracias por visitar nuestro banco: Thank you for visiting our bank.
Usted va a pagar con efectivo o crdito?: Are you going to pay with cash or credit?
Quiere una bolas para esto? Would you like a bag for this?
Gracias por hacer compras en nuestra tienda: Thank you for shopping at our store.
Por favor, lleva la mercanca de devolucin a la mesa de servicio: Please take return-merchandise to the service
desk.
Si, este artculo/producto esta en venta: Yes, this item is on sale.
No, este artculo/producto no est en venta: No, this item is not on sale.
Si, esto es el precio de venta: Yes, this is the sale price.
No, esto no es el precio de venta: No, this is not the sale price.
Quiere hablar con el gerente?: Would you like to talk to the manager?
ahora voy a lavarme la boca: I am going to brush my teeth now.
Donde dej mis zapatos?: Where did I leave my shoes?
Me estoy peinando el cabello: I am combing my hair.
Tengo que irme al bao: I have to go to the bathroom.
Ahora me voy a cambiar: I am going to get changed now.
Cuando vas a escribir la carta?: When are you going to write the letter?
Estoy tratando de encontar mis llaves: I am trying to find my keys.
Has visto las llaves de mi coche?: Have you seen my car keys?
Har la cama ahora: I will make the bed now.
Por favor, saca la basura cuando tengas tiempo: Please take out the garbage when you have time.
Estoy leyendo uno de mis libros favoritos: I am reading one of my favorite books.
I'm going to condense my speech for publication: voy a resumir mi discurso para publicarlo
Nevertheless, many families could take advantage of previously unavailable fruit, vegetables, and dairy
products to achieve more varied fare: Sin embargo, muchas familias podran beneficiarse de la fruta previamente
disponible, verduras y productos lcteos para lograr una comida ms variada
I am used to getting up early: Estoy acostumbrado a levantarme temprano.
He is used to working on Saturdays: El esta acostumbrado a trabajar los sabados
We are used to travelling by bus: Nosotros estamos acostumbrado a viajar en autobus.
I am getting used to working in an office: Me estoy acostumbrando a trabajar en una oficina.
She is getting used to living in a city: Ella se esta acostumbrando a vivir en una ciudad.
They are getting used to studying everyday: Ellos se estan acostumbrando a estudiar todos los dias.
I used to work in an office: solia trabajar en una oficina.
I am used to working in an office: Estoy acostumbrado a trabajar en una oficina.
I will have to get used to getting up early: Tendr que acostumbrame a levantarme temprano.
I had to get used to getting up early: Tuve que acostumbrame a levantarme temprano.
I got used to getting up early: Me acostumbr a levantarme temprano.
Last spring my parents had their house painted by a good decorator: La primavera pasada mis padres tenan su
casa pintada por un buen decorador.
I am looking forward to seeing you: Tengo muchas ganas de verte
If you had studied, you would have passed the test: Si hubieses estudiado, habras pasado la prueba
Tendremos que reunirnos fuera del estadio. A qu hora?: We'll have to meet outside the stadium. At what time?
Deveramos comer ahora Buena idea!: Should we eat now? Good idea!
Cunto cuesta esta carta a Australia? Por va area?: How much is this letter to Australia? By air?
Prefiere limonada o zumo de naranja? Tienes algo ms?: Would you prefer lemonade or orange juice? Have
you got anything else?
Debes comprobar los neumticos antes de poner en marcha un viaje largo en coche: You ought to check the
tyres before you start on a long car journey.
El hombre se sinti aliviado una vez que haba logrado ponerse en contacto con su familia: The man felt
relieved once he had succeeded in contacting his family.
Mauricio se pone muy nervioso en torno a tomar parte en las reuniones: Maurice gets very nervous about taking
part in meetings.
La pareja decidi ampliar sus vacaciones por tres das: The couple decided to extend their vacation by three
days.
Tom a los alpinistas diez das alcanzar la cima del Monte Everest: It took the mountaineers ten days to reach the
summit of Mount Everest.

47

Mi padre ha tenido su coche nuevo durante dos semanas ahora: My father has had his new car for two weeks
now.
El viejo teatro va a ser derribado y sustituido por un aparcamiento: The old theatre is going to be pulled down
and replaced by a car park.
"Podrais bajar la voz por favor?" el bibliotecario pregunt a los estudiantes: "Could you lower your voices
please?" the librarian asked the students.
Stefan finalmente admiti robar el televisor: Stefan eventually admitted stealing the TV.
A diferencia de la mayora de la gente, no tengo ningn deseo de tomar unas vacaciones anuales: Unlike most
people, I have no wish to take an annual vacation.
Empresas de calzado deportivo pasan mucho tiempo desarrollando nuevos productos: Sports shoe companies
spend a great deal of time developing new products.
El boxeo tiene muchos fans, pero pocos de ellos negaran que es un deporte peligroso: Boxing has lots of fans,
but few of them would deny that it is a dangerous sport.
Debido al mal tiempo, el espectculo al aire libre fue cancelado: Due to the bad weather, the open-air performance
was cancelled.
Las personas que reciben pensiones del estado estn exentas de cargos para la medicina: People receiving state
pensions are exempt from charges for medicine.
El maestro llev a cabo una encuesta para ver qu deportes los estudiantes prefirieron: The teacher carried out
a survey to see which sports the students preferred.
Antes de que finalice la temporada de atletismo, Ahmed espera mejorar su mejor tiempo para los 1500 metros:
Before the track and field season finishes, Ahmed hopes to improve on his best time for the 1500 meters.

48