GRAMMARera arya ods Oy Tea einael a 1 Some examples of be in the present simple. This s my brother. He's ten years old. I'm eighteen anda student; these are my books. ‘My parents aren't at home; they/re at work. 2 Here are the present simple forms of be: PSnaec Bion Singular 1am Im you are you're he/she/itis _he/shefit's Plural = weare we're you are you're they are they're NEGATIVE Full form Short form gular lamnot Tmnot youarenot you're not or you aren't he/she/itis not _he/she/it’s not or he/she/it isn’t Plural wearenot we're not or wearen’t youarenot you're not or you aren't theyarenot they're not or they aren't We usually use the short forms in speech, She's my sister. He's my brother. {fm from Germany. They're students. For information on question forms, seep. 4. A_ Introductions 3 We use be to talk about the family, jobs, saying who we are, talking about the weather or a location and talking about age. 2 We use be when we talk about our jobs: Jam adoctor and they are nurses. Grammar in action ‘] We use be when we introduce ourselves and our families: These are my sisters and this is my brother. I'm Steve; his is my partner, Ruth. ‘She's 30 years old but Im younger. We use be when we say where we're from: 1'm from Brazil; my aunt is Portuguese, 1m not from England. fm from Wales. 4 Weuse be when we talk about the weather: ‘It’s. a beautiful day but it’s cold. ItSnot very warm today and its very windy. 5 Weuse be when we talk about location: ‘Milan is in the north but it isn't near Venice. We also use be to form continuous tenses. > For more information on the present continuous, see p. 10. (i) Add the correct forms of be. Use the short form where possible. 1c? 20and1 ? student. My father,........2 from Brazil. My mother ‘ 2 (not) from Brazil, She 4 Irish. Her parents........# from Dubli Paul and Simon ¢ my brothers. They. ? both teachers. Simon ® 23 and Paul 325,501 ¥ (not) the oldest. © Age. 1 Job . 2 Nationality... 3. Family Iva, 20. 2. | Present tenses Which use of be in (i) matches these contexts? Choose one example.Home, nationality and jobs We're meeting people at a party. What are they saying? Add the correct forms of be. Use the short form where possible. Paola and Federico....re from Naples. Naples. * artists, ! 7 ateacher. in the south of Italy. Paola * English. This is my husband, Tom. ? a photographer and * from London, We * from Scotland. Federico, 3 a dentist. C The weather and location It’s the first day of a new class. Four students are talking about quien tian their countries. Add the correct forms of be or one of the words in ae cd the box. Use the pictures to help you. sunny sea near south north cold KUMIKO Hello, !m Kumiko. 'm from Tomakomai. It inthe north.¢ of Japan, it’ © cold in the winter, and it * hot ® in the summer. Tomakomal 2a small town 2 Sapporo. = z GALINA Hi 'm Galina, !m from St. Petersburg. It ‘inthe west of Russia. It + (not) very hott In fact it’s very in the winter, But sometimes it 7 sunny! St. Petersburg ® (not) the capital of Russia, of course, but it’s a very big city. ABBAS Im Abbas, and this is my cousin, Sulama. We're from Oman. It % ahot country and it’s very », SULAMA We're from two small towns in the ", Salalah and Mirbat. They ® bythe ».They + (not) near Muscat, the capital city. Muscat 8 a thousand kilometres away. Presenttenses | 3Be: Present simple Are you hungry?; What time is it? 4 Tomake questions with be, we put the verb before the Grammar in action subject: Singular AmI? Are you? Ishe/she/it? 5 These questions can be an: ‘Are you here on holiday? ~ Yes, am. G Weuse be + adjective to describe how we feel. We might talk about a Plural Are we? Journey: ‘Are you? ‘Are you unhappy? ~ No, but tim Are they? cold and tired. ~'m sorry. It'sa tong journey. iswered with Yes or no: 7 Weuse be +noun and be + adjective to describe things. ie YOUrsOn.G Saent?~ No=nEs OG; Here, we're describing a house in ‘The answers are short: Yes, am. our village: Nor ¥es-tamrom boride Isa lovely od house and the > For more information on yes/no questions and ee short answers see unit 12. eo Be Wetearheda medion Werle tr raksquediore Wi We can use there + be to talk about where be, too: things are or when things happen. = What's yourjob? *¥ For more informatio 82. Where are your fiends? == How olds your brother? > For more information or unit 12. 4 | Present tenses n question words, see Asking and answering questions Ming is a student from Shanghai. This is her first day in London. People ask her questions at the airport and at her new college. First put the words in the right order to make the questions on the left of the page. 0 |s this your svitcase?, (your suitcase/this/is)......Yes, itis, 1 (a student/you/are) ('s/your name/what) (you/are/how old) ..(ate/from Hong Kong/you) (Your ID card, please/is/where) (what/your address in the UK/) auswn Now write these answers inthe correct spaces next to the questions above: | Hereitis. m2. Yes,/am. Yes;itis: No, 'm from Shanghai. | Its The Hyde Park Hotel, Queensway, London W2 381,_ I's Ming Yifeng Finally, use a form of be to make the questions that Ming asks at her college and hotel. “hissy new timetable’... (this my new timetable) is. our first class? (ourfirst class) (this your first day here, too)8 Where {you from) 9 (lin the correct classroom) | (this the bus to Queensway) 11 Where (the Hyde Park Hotel, please) 12, Whattime (breakfast tomorrow moming) E Aholiday conversation Sally is on holiday in Greece. She meets Liga in a café. Add the word(s) in brackets and a form of be to their conversation. Use capital letters where necessary. SALLY Hi, ...l/o9.._ ()) Sally, UGA Pleased to meet you. Im Liga. * (you) here on holiday? SALLY Yes. 2 (it) a beautiful town, and it’s so sunny here! But >) sad because it’s my last day. UGA Oh, 'm sorry. Where * (you) from, Sally? SALLY Athenry. > (it) ance little town in ireland, but § (it/not) very sunny. And you? UGA I'm from Riga. It's the capital of Latvia. I'm here with my boyfriend, and ? (this) our first day, so * (we) happy! ‘SALLY 6 2 (you) lucky! WAITER Good morning, ladies. Would you like something to eat? SALLY 2 not) hungry, thanks, but Id like an orange juice, please. ca " () thirsty, too. A lemonade, please. SALLY Well, * (i) good to meet you, Liga, ifonly for a day! F Ata bus stop Katie and Asif meet Dieter at a bus stop. After the example, add twenty more positive and two more negative forms of be. Use capital letters where necessary. ASIF Look at the time. Itftwo in the morning. Where we? KATIE On Burley Street, | think. you hungry, Asif? ASIF No, | hungry, but | tired. Where the bus stop? KATIE Look, it there! Come on! (At the bus stop they meet Dieter.) ASIF Excuse_me, this the bus stop for Rayne’s Park? DIETER Yes, | hope so. It a cold night. KATIE Hi. | Katie and this my friend Asif. DIETER Pleased to meet you. | Dieter. you students? KATIE No, we students. We doctors. And you? DIETER | a waiter at the Hamburger restaurant on Park Street. ASIF Where you from? you German? DIETER No, | Austrian, but | in Leicester for six months. It an interesting city. KATIE Look, the bus here! | hope it warm inside. After you, Dieter. Come on, Asif. Now go to page 122, Presenttenses | 5Present simple ela ea ARTCC x) 02 11 Some examples of the present simple: come from France, but | speak English. ‘She usually phones me at the weekend. Welive in the centre of Belling. 2. The positive form of the present simple only changes after he/she/it: on Singular stop Plural we stop you stop you stop he/shevit stops they stop 3. The changes after he/she/it: For most verbs, we add -s: leat—+sheeats theypay — he pays But for verbs ending in-o, -ch, sh, -ss and-x, we add before -s: Igo — itgoes you fix —* she fixes ‘we watch — he watches I wash —* she washes they miss —> he misses ‘And for verbs ending in a consonant (b,¢, d, etc) +, we change the y to ie, and then adds: Icarty—*he carries you study — she studies For the verb have, we say'he/she/it has...: These spelling rules work for nouns too: potato—- potatoes match—+ matches box— boxes baby—- babies 4. We use the present simple to talk about ourselves, where we live, and where we work, to talk about our hobbies and timetables, to talk about things we don't like and to talk about things we don't know. + For information on present simple negative, see p. 8. Grammar in action ‘We use the present simple to talk ‘My mum comes from Australia. ‘My dad works for an American company. about facts. Here, we're talking about a where we live, and where we work: ‘My parents live in Scotland. 2. We use the present simple to talk about our hobbies, tables, and things we do regularly: 1 sometimes play football on Sunday mornings They never goon holiday. ‘Megan comes to.a French class with me on Mondays. & We often put a frequency adverb (usualy, | sometimes, never, etc.) before the verb, or we give a time, day or period (at 9.30, in the ‘morning, on Tuesdays, at the weekend, in the summer, etc.) after the verb. For information on frequency adverbs, see p. 16. A_ Talking about where we live and where we work Joe and his friends share a big house in London. Jean-Paul is going to stay with them. ‘Add the correct form of the verbs in brackets to thi Hijean-Paul! Herts come tnformation about our house, Sally ain | (work) for a travel company anal | He... 2 (fix) ears. mario (come) from italy, Lucia pasta’ Finally, Greg Ste ypu soon! 6 | Present tenses letter. live 2 (live) onthe first floor sally .works. & 2 (dvive) @ taxi. Poul 4 (ive) onthe second floor with his wife, Lucia They : cole) a Little French, | 5 (sleep) ow the top floor. He 2 (have) a room. on cur floor, ton, we. They both 7 (rake) great 9 (kench) maths in a local scnocl.Things we do regularly () Here is an interview with Anisha Chetty, the managing director of the supermarket company, Bisco's. Add the correct verb, changing the form if necessary. INTERVIEWER When do you start your day? ANISHA My husband. sleeps. 9 (sleep/stay) until 8 a.m, but | always....9¢%...? (start/get) up at 6.30 a.m. | usually + (leave/go) to the gym first. Then! 2 (haver/sit) breakfast at the London office at 7.30 a.m. I 2 (start/stop) workat 8 a.m. INTERVIEWER Wow! That's early. Are you the first person to arrive at the office? ANISHA No, actually. My Personal Assistant, Philip, * (get/artive) at 7.45 a.m, but he 2 (finish/lose) work at 3 p.m. to pick up his children from school. INTERVIEWER Do you have meetings all day long? ANISHA No, notall day. On Wednesdays | $ (fiy/catch) to Glasgow to visit the Scottish manager, Derek. He ? (give/make) me information every week on the eleven Bisco supermarkets in Scotland. INTERVIEWER Do you have any time to relax? ANISHA Sure. You have to relax. I. ® (make/do) yoga on Tuesday afternoons. And * (try/come) to get home early on Friday afternoons. (ii) Check your answers to (i), and then add the verb in the correct form to these sentences about Anisha. 0 She always,...92ts....up at 6.30 a.m, 1. She usually to the gym first. 2 Then she breakfast at the London office. 3. She. ‘work at 8 am. 4 OnWednesdays she to Glasgow. SRE sssnn YOGA ON Tuesday afternoons. 6 Andshe............to get home early on Friday afternoons. Facts and regular activities Gill is showing a family photo to her friend. Cross out the wrong verb forms in the sentences in the first half (1-4), and add them to the sentences in the second half (5-8). 0 My mother.make/makesTV programmes. 1 My father work/works in a travel agency. 2. My parents spends/spend two months every year in California, My grandfather speaks/speak five languages. He plays/play jaz piano at the weekends. aw My brothers fora South American bank. They both... Spanish as well as English, They,..rnake,_ alot of money. My older brother, Matt, all his money on cars They both tennis together on Sundays. evoanu Presenttenses | 7Present simple We don’t know; he doesn’t remember 5 Some examples of the present simple negative: Grammar in action ‘don't ike musicin shops. Shedoesn't eat meat. 5. We use the present simple to talk We do not know the answer. about things we like or don't like: This train does not stop at York. Hove sunny days! Jlike most classical music. 6 Wemake the negative form by using do not/don't or ‘Mike doesn't lke golt does not/doesn’t before the infinitive: We want an ice cream! war ‘My dad hates motorbikes. oe | don't want another book for my birthday! Singular | do not stop I don’t stop & We use the present simple to talk about things we ‘you do not stop you don't stop know or don't know and think or don’t think: he/she/itdoes notstop_he/she/it doesn’t stop I don't know her name. Do you? Plural we donot stop wwe don’t stop Sei Mi Veer arene rd Imsorry, but }don’tunderstand. you do not stop you don’t stop Leu tcdeend theydonotstop _they don’t stop Fee we Jo doesn't think this restaurant is very good. 1 Note that we don't add -safterhe/she/it =f understand a few words in French. Sie reales (ois teesemenene =| > Forinformation on present simple questions, 2 Inspeech and informal writing, we usually seep. 18, use short forms. 8 | Presenttenses D_ Sightseeing in Edinburgh Bob and Jess and their kids, Sam and Mel, are visiting Edinburgh. Add the correct verb in the correct form. B08 SAM JESS Bos JESS Bos JESS MEL B08 JESS SAM JESS. k:nowe..? (not think/not know) where we are, Jess. Mel.....thinks.....2 ant) we're on Princes Street -the street with all the shops - but I'm not sure. 1 * (hate/love) shops! They're boring. | want to go to the z00. 1 2 (not think/not understand) the zoo isin the city centre, Sam. And Mel 2 (not hate/not like) zoos anyway. Listen. m going to ask this man where we are. Excuse me, sir, what isthe name of this street? Bob! He sua (not understand/not think) you. I don't think he's British. OK. Sorry, sit. Look, Jess. What's that? 1 + (not know/not understand), Bob. But! $ (think/know) what it is! It's the Scott Monument. | read about it at school. Thanks, Mel. This is Princes Street, then. So now | know the way to the Tourist Information Office. Great! We can ask for directions to the National Gallery of Scotland. i ? (love/hate) paintings! Well, $ (not hate/not like) paintings. They're boring. m thirsty wa * (want/love) a drink. We can have a drink at the café in the National Gallery, Sam. We may see some paintings of lions or tigers there. That will be nice, won't it?E Aday in the life of Ling Wang (i) We use the present simple for facts and regular activities; things we like and don't like; and things we know and don’t know. In the first part of this magazine article, tick (V) the verb forms if they’re correct. If they're wrong, cross them out and write the correct forms. This informal magazine uses short forms of the present simple negative. Ling Wang read 2045, ° the evening news on a Beijing TV channel, She lives... ¥.....9 ina beautiful apartment in the centre ofthe city. She don't * get up early. She likes 2 co sleep lace, until 10 or 11 aum. She have s > three cups of green tea for breakfast. At 11.30 a.m. she go * fora swim in a pool in her apartment block. “Then she relaxes > unl lunchtime, "Sometimes I meets ¢ a friend for hunch,” she says. “We elk 7 about our jobs, and music and films and things. I know. * lovely restaurant near my apartment. (ii)In the second part, add the verb forms from the box. understand takes think don'teat don't speak studies arrive don'tmeet love 4 We normally -ar-cive © dhere at 1 pam. Tn a vegetarian, so 1 ® meat or fish, bur | 1 fresh fruit and vegetables. | : | irs important to look after your body” ; After lunch, Ling always » her language ; books for an hour. She speaks English and Japanese as well as Chinese. “I one or wo words in Spanish, too, bue I 1 jg she says. “L ¥ many Spanish people in Beijing!” At pum. a eax 1 her to the TV studio, eae ws i camel ERROR Now go to page 122. Presenttenses | 9Lara meer aU CoLeLy 03 eT M ela MALLE) 1. Some examples of the present continuous: Hurry up! Sara and Tom are waiting for us! ‘Im sorry, Matt's shopping at the moment. Do you want to leave a message for him? | don't like my boss —'m looking for a new job. 2 Hereis the positive form of the present continuous: ons imine Binal Singular | am waitit I'm waiting youare waiting you're waiting he/shefitis waiting _he/she/i’s waiting Plural we're waiting you are waiting you're waiting they are waiting they're waiting | In speech and informal writing, we usually use the short forms after pronouns. We can use the short form with singular nouns, too: He'seating. The dog's/dog is eating. 3. Tomake the -ing form: For most verbs, we add -ing: sleep — sleeping work —* working But for verbs ending in -e, we take away the -e first: live —* living make — making And for these common verbs, we double the final consonant: beginning getting running shopping sitting swimming travelling winning + For more information on the -ing form, see p. 128. 4 Weuse the present continuous to talk about things that are happening right now and things that are happening around now, but perhaps not at the exact moment of speaking, ~ For information on the present continuous negative, see p. 12. Grammar in action ‘]_ We use the present continuous to describe things that are happening now. This is often in an email, on the telephone, or in a radio or TV report: ‘fmsitting at my desk and its snowing outside. letter) Bob's watching TV, and Jo's reading, (in an email) Steve Jordan is running towards the goal now! (in a report on the radio) a 2 We use the present continuous to tell people about things that are happening now so that they do or say something in response: That big dog is running towards us! Let’s go! I'mlistening to the radio. Be quiet! Its getting late. Shall we go home? That man is looking at you. Do you know him? A Atelephone conversation - things that are happening now Patrick is at home with his son Pete, who is sick. His wife, Simona, is on holiday with their daughters, Ally and Becca. Add the verbs to their phone conversation in the present continuous form. Use short forms if possible. PATRICK Everything is fine, thanks. Pete.’s.s|¢@ping,.® (sleep) and | , (sit) in his bedroom. The sun 2 (shine) in the garden. What about you? | hope you 3 (enjoy) the holiday. SIMONA Well, | * (think) about Pete and you, of course. But we. 5 thave) fun, Becca sn (Swim) in the pool and c ? (splash) her new friend, and Ally ® (run) around. She 2 (play) football with peor eee ay Panett Sete era ner eet ena ee seers some Spanish kids. 10 | PresenttensesResponses to things that are happening now (1) ‘Add these verbs in the present continuous to the pictures on the right. Use short forms if possible. 0 Mencbrying to read my newspaper! Be quiet! 1 You to0 fast! Please slow down! 2. That boat !We should help! 3. She me! Tell her to stop! 4 That man at us! What does he want? 5 You on my foot! Please can you move? A television report - things that are happening now In this news report, add the correct verb form in the present continuous. Use short forms if possible. “This is Francesca Martin for'Liverpool Newstime!|./n standing? (stand/stay) outside the new Ship Museum. | can see a car. Yes, the Queen * and/artive). Her C8 ou. ou? (Stop/start) near a group of local people. Now Her Majesty $ (get out/get up) of her car. She * (wait/wear) a blue coat and a blue and white hat. Someone... 5 (have/aive) her some flowers. She * (smile/say) now, and she ? (take/talk) to a man and woman at the front of the group. The director of the museum, Pandit Desai, f (become/come) to meet her. In a moment, the new Liverpool Ship Museum will be open. And now, back to the studio! Responses to things that are happening now (2) Jan and Dave are on holiday. Add these sentences to the dialogue: JAN Are you taking a photo of me? DAVE No. |'nn taking a phote of that-yacht:.° Can you move to the left, please? JAN + Perhaps you should stop. DAVE Are you sure? JAN Put your camera in your bag. DAVE Oh dear. | don't think she’s happy. OWNER It'sa nice yacht, isn't i? 2 Would you like to join us? JAN That's very kind of you, but We should go back to our hotel. ‘OWNER. Well, come again tomorrow afternoon. We can show you our yacht. Presenttenses | 11Present continuous It is not working; we're not coming 5 Some examples of the present continuous negative: 8 Wedon't normally use these verbs in the present Look! Itisn’t raining any more. They're not playing very well at the moment. He isn’t working on the computer, he’s sleeping. 6 Here's the negative form of the present continuous: NEGATIVE kel Singular |am notworking —_mnot working youarenot working you're not /aren‘t working he/she/ heJsherits not/ itisnotworking isn't working wearenotworking we're not /aren't working youarenotworking you're not aren't working they arenot working they're not /aren't working Short form Plural 7 We often use these expressions with the present continuous: ‘She isn’t working very hard at the moment. You're watching a lot of TV this week. Grammar in ai 8 continuous: [dont ike musicals. (Nox Frrmottiking musicals) She knows London. (nor She’knowing tondom) For on present continuous questions, see p.20. We can use the present continuous to talk about things that are happening around now (but perhaps not at the exact moment of. speaking). Often we are giving news about friends and family: My parents are driving across ‘America at the moment. ‘Marsha is learning German at evening class. ‘Sometimes we use the present continuous to talk about how life is slowly changing: The world is getting warmer. We're all working longer hours these days. Oo ds E News about friends and family tthe positive or negative form Dimitri is visiting a museum in London. Put the verbs of the present continuous. Use short forms if possible. DIMITRI Hazel! | don't believe it! How are you? How nice to see you! Is Joe with you? HAZEL Dimitri 'm fine, thanks, No, .2¢.'5.werkine..* Uoe/work) in Paris this month. What about Galina? DIMITRI She's ine. 3 (She/not stay) in London with me, because 2 (her sister/move) house this week, and 2 (Galina/help) her. Anyway, how is life at the BBC? HAZEL Actually, * (Unot work) in television these days. 3 (Vlearn) Russian. DIMITRI * (You/learn) my language! That's wonderful. But why? HAZEL ? (Vite) a book about Moscow. Perhaps you can help me! DIMITRI Of course. have many friends there. HAZEL And what about your DiMmTR! Yes, but * (We/not live) in Moscow at the moment, but we ren? Are they still enjoying their music? * (they/not play) together these days. (Alexander/study) in Germany now, and... " (Fedor/teach) the piano at home. Anyway, Hazel, here's my email address, HAZEL Thanks, Dimitri. We must keep in touch. 12 | PresenttensesF Life in modern Britain Finish the -ing forms of the verbs in the first part of this article on modern Britain. | Life is changing in the UK, but is it getting mote interesting food. But often, we'e € better? For example, we have wonderful * it on our own in front of the TV. Of | computers at work, but we're wor 2 Course, we're |... longer. But we aren't harder. We aren't enj___...? ourselv Ray oan? a8 many children, so who will more. We're g...........? Up earlier and we'te —_look after us when we're old? Dr Brian Dixon, St, soonseon® longer at the Professor of Sociology at the University of office. At the supermarket, we're b. Yorkshire, has some of the answers. He says .. G Aphone call toa friend We use the present continuous for things that are happening right now; and for ‘things that are happening around now. Add the words from the boxes in the Present continuous form to this conversation. Use short forms if possible. “Play Spend visit ‘wash watch MANDY Sally? It's Mandy here, What are you doing? SALLY | ‘1.washing,..® the dishes at the moment. What about you? MANDY | cu) TV. My patents... ? the weekend in Mallorca, so | 2 after the twins. Ben 4 ice cream, and Joe _ouf with his trains, ‘What about you? Is Clare in? SALLY No, she § Mum and her new husband. It'sjust meand dad. MANDY Ben! You suxaua’ 100 quickly! You'll be sick. So Sally, how is your dad, anyway? ‘drive get meet play not SALLY Better, thanks. He. Sh * so much time on his own in his room - he " * people, and he ° tennis again. MANDY Joe! You ™ that train too fast! Sorry, Sally. SALLY That's OK. I'm going to do some homework in a minute. MANDY You * very hard at the moment. SALLY | know. | want to go to university next year. What about you? MANDY I'm still not sure. | ? about it. Anyway, I'd better go and put the twins to bed. They ™* very tired. SALLY OK. See you tomorrow! VERON Now go to page 122. Present tenses | 1304 Present simple and present con Long-term or temporary actions sues Gis inesn nue) Long-term We use the present simple for facts: Sally speaks French and German. 1 don’t drive a car—Ihave a bicycle. and to talk about our hobbies, timetables and things we do regularly: We study maths on Monday mornings. often go swimming. ‘We usually use the present simple with ike, love, hate, want, know, think, understand. MIKE Do you like the film? (or Are youttiking the firm) ‘NIKKI Yes, but /don‘t understand the story! (not Fm-niot. understanding thestory) Facts and regular activites are long-term (true for a long time). Use with: often, sometimes, etc. on Tuesdays, at 9.30, ete. Grammar in action ‘J. We normally use the present simple for things that are long-term and the present continuous for things that are temporary or different from our normal lives. Lookat this information about John: John lives in London. (LONG-TERM) He works for The Times: (LONG-TERM) A Temporary We use the present continuous for things that are happening now, to describe things: ‘Jack is speaking to his dad on the phone. and to tell people about things so that they do something in response: You're driving too fast! Slow down! We use the present continuous for things that are happening around now, but not perhaps at the exact moment of speaking ~ such as study courses: ‘Marsha is studying Japanese at university. and how life is slowly changing: Children are living at home longer these days. ‘Things that are happening right now and around now are temporary (true for a shorter time). |_ Use with: at the moment, these days, this week/month/year Long-term and temporary act Every week, he writes about football, LONG-TERM) At the moment, he’s writing a book on Great American, Golfers; too. (TEMPORARY) Infact, he often plays golf with his son, Luke. (LONG-TERM) But Luke is skiing in Colorado this week, (TEMPORARY) so today John is working at home in his garden instead. (TEMPORARY) ies (1) Luis is describing his business trip to London. Circle the correct options. My names Luis. fm coming Alcomé? from Mexico. I normally work/fm normally working’ in Mexico City. But this week 'm visiting/I visit? our offices in London. In Mexico City, Iive/tm living? with my wife and two children in a large house with a garden. At the moment, though, | stay/I'm staying* in a very small apartment in central London. usually drive /m usually driving to work in Mexico City. But this week, I walk/tm walking® ‘everywhere! It’s very good for me. And my English improves/my English is improving? — alittle! B_ Long-term and temporary activities (2) () Three international exchange students are waiting for a college bus at a university in ‘Madrid, Put the verbs in the present simple or continuous. Use short forms if possible. XU Hil Do you guys speak English? I'm Xu, and I'm from Beijing. 14 | Present tensesUWE Hil,.....| come ___° (Vcome) from Germany, but cena (speak) English. My name is Uwe. KHAN I'm Khan. fm from Liverpool... coud (Ustudy) music. What about you two? 0 ose 2 (V/do) computer studies. UWE. Really? + (My dad/work) for a computer company in Berlin. But cad (Ustudy) art. KHAN Do you guys know if they have a football team here? £ Wplay) every week in England. XU Imnot sure. Do you play outside or inside? 7 (\t/rain) a lot in England, doesn't it? KHAN Yes, but it's OK. * (We/have) a nice hot shower after every game. What about you, Uwe? Do you play any sports? UWE Actually, sua? (learn) to play tennis at the moment. 'm not very good. XU Really? 4© (My mum/teach) tennis at school. But she's in China, so she can't help you! KHAN Look, 1 (that man/shout) at ust UWE It's OK. He's the bus driver. He wants us to get on board. Gi) A month later, Xu is emailing his English friend, Sharon. Again, put the verbs in the present simple or continuous. Use short forms if possible. How are you? At the moment, . ting. (Vsit) next to the window in one of the university's. excellent computer rooms. (The sun/shine). I've got my timetable now. Basically, ‘classes in the morning, and... 2 (Vdo) sports in the afternoon! ve got two new friends, Khan and Uwe. ‘i (Khan/come) from Liverpool, and 5 (he/study) music. (Hefspen) a couple of days in England at the moment. | think his sister is getting married. Uwe is German. . 7 (He/do) art. In fact, * (he/paint) a picture of me this week. Pil show it to you one day! (He/speak) really good English. Of course, (my Spanish/get) better all the time. ‘Es hora de ir’ - that’s ‘Spanish for think. ‘See youl € Long-term and temporary activities (3) Gail is talking on the phone to her sister about her son. Add the verbs in brackets in the present simple or continuous. Use short forms if possible. TINA What's he doing now? GAIL He.’ opening ° (open) the back door and HE sss 2 (walk) into the garden. TINA Sowhat? GAIL Well, he. ? (wear) his pyjamas and he... " 3 (sing) something. And it's midnight. TINA Oh dear, he... é 4 (fall) in love again, isn’t he? GAIL | think so. Normally he. 5 (come) back from work, and he cnsnnansnan (NaNG) his dinner. Then he > (watch) TV, andhe .. $ (go) to bed at 10 p.m. TINA And now? GAIL He sonuuiaun® (NOt eat) at all. And look, he. 19 (dance)! Presenttenses | 15Present simple and present continuous Expressions of time 3. When we use the present simple for regular activities, we often put a frequency adverb (usually, sometimes, never, etc.) before the verb, or we give a time, day or period (at 9.30, in the morning, on Tuesdays, at the ‘weekend, in the summer, etc) after the verb: Carla often visits her grandmother. eat lots of ice cream in the summer. ‘And when we use the present continuous for things that are happening around now, we sometimes use expressions like at the moment, these days, this ‘week/month/year: We're buying anew house at the moment. You're not eating very much these days. 4 We use the present simple (and not normally the resent continuous) when we talk about things we like or don't like, using the verbs like, love, hate, want: Dave likes jazz. (nor Bavestiking jazz.) I want a.cold drink. (Nor Fr-wanting-e-cokd drink) and also when we talk about things we know or don't know, using the verbs know and understan Jo knows London. (uorsos-knowing-tondore) With the verb think, we can use the present simple or continuous, but the meaning changes: 1 think its nice. (= 1n my opinion, it’s nice.) 1'm thinking about her. (= She's in my mind/ thoughts now) should be. DIANA (the=0) Hello, my Grammar in action 2 Weuse the present simple to say how often or when ‘we do things in our daily ives. Here we're talking about our friends’ routines: ‘Mike sometimes cycles to work. Heather goes toa French class on Mondays. We use the present continuous to say how our lives are different from normal: ‘'mworking in our Paris office at the moment (but | normally work in Manchester). Stellais walking to work this week (but she normally goes on the bus). 5 Weuse the present simple to tell friends how we feel about something: DAVE /love musicals ike Phantom ofthe Opera’ MEG Do you? lke plays by Shakepeare. DAVE Really? don't understand Shakespeare at all. D Aconversation at a music college A music student introduces herself to Julie. Put a number where the missing word name's Diana. I'm studying here at 0 moment. JULIE (every=1)Hi! tm Julie. 1 come to these concerts week. What instrument do you play? DIANA (this=2)Well, 1 normally play the violin, but Im learning to a play the trumpet year, too. JULIE 1 love violin music, But the trumpet is a difficult instrument, isn't it? DIANA (on=3)Yes!_ I have a class Tuesdays. It isn't easy. What about you? DIANA (at=7)Ohdearl You're working much too hard 16 | Presenttenses Do you play anything? JULIE =4)Not really. My husband teaching me the piano at the moment. He plays every day. DIANA It's not easy to find the time, is it? JULIE (these=5)We're all working very hard days. Too hard. But these concerts after work are great. DIANA (have=6)Good. We sometimes concerts at lunchtime, too. JULIE Lunchtime! What's that? the moment!E Apublic notice Look at this public notice in Watford. Tick (7) the verb forms if they're correct. If they're wrong, cross them out and write the correct forms. Use short forms if possible. ‘We are-knowing,.....noyy.__...® that people like conn® to see beautiful things in their town centres. Some people WANE... 90:00. .m0.- fountains. Other people are liking _2 statues. But most people love 3 parks! In Watford, we build | z + anew park for you this year. We are thinking... sooo? you will ike i, We understand vooveusf that you are wanting... 7 the best, and we WOFK osnnanimonn® Very hard these days ~bue the best things take time! We don't know . # exactly when your new park will be open, bur we make ' abe 19 special park web page a the moment, so go ro wwwuwtfond gouuldaswpark after 5 May for more information! F Meeting old and new friends in a restaurant We use the present simple for long-term things and with verbs such as ike and know, and we use the present continuous for temporary activities. In this conversation, ‘Samis introducing Michiko to his brother, Chris and Chris’ wife, Rachel, at a local restaurant. Use the correct verb forms. Use short forms if possible. SAM Chris, Rachel! Hi! Have a seat. This is Michiko. She comes. ° (she/come) from Tokyo. RACHEL Hi, Michiko! Welcome to Edinburgh, and to Marios. Ihope. 2 (yourlike) Italian food. MICHIKO 2 (V/not know) Italian food well, but. : (love) pizzas. CHRIS Good to meet you. Sam says + (you/study) at the university. MICHIKO. That's right. 5 (learn) about international business systems. CHRIS § (The waiter/come) I'll get some cola, shall I? SAM 2 (Michiko/not like) cola. Can you order some water, too? ‘Anyway, what's new, Rachel? RACHEL a. nuonsisnsananr® (We/l00k) for a bigger house, Sam. But they're very expensive. 2 (Chris and W/teach) French at a local school, Michiko, so we're not well-off MICHIKO + (Vnot understand). What does well-off’ mean? CHRIS ‘Rich We're not rich. But we're OK. What about you, Sam? Anything new? SAM —_ Nothing, apart from Michikot ¥ Wget up), 3 (Ugo) to work, sun! (Uplay) football on Saturdays! RACHEL una! (The waiter/bring) our drinks. Shall we look at the menu? "7 Now go to page 122. Presenttenses | 17Present simple and present continuous questions Do you understand?; When does the library open? 1 Look at these present simple qu 3 We sometimes put the question words what, when, Do you want a sandwich? where, and how much before do/does: Do they remember me? Where does Michael work? Where does he live? What do you want? How much does it cost? 2 Tomake present simple questions we put do/does When does the next train leave? before Vyou/he/we/they: > For more information on question words and short -do/does + subject + verb answers, see p.48. You speak English. + Do you speak English? ‘Hecomes from London. — Does he come from Grammar in action London? They have an English dictionary. Do they havean —_{]_ We use present simple questions to get useful English dictionary? information. At a tourist information office we might ask about travel timetables, ticket We form present simple questions like this: Eetecoeatnes Do these buses go to the stadium? vou How much does a ticket cost? he/she/it } want (a drink)? Does Windsor Castle open on ‘wefyou/they Sundays? 2. We use present simple questions to Note that the verb after do/does doesn't | askour friends what they want: change: Does he go to the gym? Do you want an ice cream? (not Boeshegoesto-the gym?) Does Dave wanta newspaper? = SSE What do you want? A. Getting information (1) Daniel, from France, is going to spend six months at a college in Madrid. Put the words in brackets in the right order, and write out the questions that he asks his new ‘American flatmate, Greg, on his first day in Madrid. 0 ...Dovou speak French’... (speak/French/you/do) ~ No, I'm afraid | don't. 1 (the local shops/you/do/like) ~ Yes, the best are on Calle Gracia. oe * _(you/do/sports in Madrid/play) ~ Yes, | play tennis. 3 (a map of Madrid/do/have/you) ~ Sure. There's one in the kitchen. 4 (do/a lot of money/metro tickets/cost) ~ No, they're really cheap. 5 {start/does/college/when) ~ On 14 January. Now, use the words in brackets to form questions. 0 Perov.9e.te.gellege.every aay? (goto college every day/you) ~ No, | don't go on Fridays. 6 = (cook/Spanish food/you) ~ Well, sometimes make paella. a {at the weekend/open/the college library) ~ Yes, | think so. 18 | Presenttenses8 (change/money/the local bank) ~ Yes, it sells euros. 9 (traditional food/cook/the local restaurants) ~ Yes, the food's delicious. 10 (cost/the cinema/how much) ~ It's about six euros for a film. Getting information (2) Faroukh and Aisha are in the Tourist Information Office in Dublin. Use the words in brackets to form questions. Use capital letters where necessary. ASSISTANT Hello. Can | help you? AISHA Yes, please. We'te spending the weekend in Dublin. Po yeu havea map of the city centre? ° (of the city centre/have/ amap/you) ASSISTANT Of course. Here you are, What do you want to see during your visit? FAROUKH Everything! Dublin Castle, for example, i (how/Dublin Castle/we/find) ASSISTANT It's here on Dame Street. A long time ago, there was a small lake in the castle, called the Black Pool, and that’s what Dublin means ~'black pool: FAROUKH That's interesting, We also want to see Trinity College. 2 (itySundays/on/open) ASSISTANT Yes. From 9 a.m. to 5 pm. AISHA Thanks. And > (open/the National Gallery/when) ASSISTANT Every day, from 10 a.m, to 7 p.m. It’s a great place. Do you have any more questions? AISHA Yes. One more. * (Dublin Bay/to/the train/go) ASSISTANT Sure. I'll give you a timetable. FAROUKH Thanks. 5 (the train/much/how/cost) ASSISTANT Oh, it’s not very expensive. It’s £5 for a return ticket. Asking friends what they want First match these words with the correct Sal, Kit and Kit’s baby son, Max, are in a restaurant. Use the words in brackets to form questions with want. SAL That fish was good... Po you wantadessert? 2 (you/a dessert?) This chocolate fudge cake looks good. KIT No, I don’t. The food was great, but I'm really full. 7 . * (you/some more water?) (7) Bl SAL Yes, please. m thirsty today. But what about some apple pie with cream, Kit? That's just fruit, really. Or (you/some cheescake?) KIT No, I'm OK, thanks. SAL What about Max? = (he/a banana split?) KIT No, | don’t think so, Sal. He looks tired. SAL OK. 4 (we/coffee afterwards?) They say the cappuccino here is very good. KIT Sure. Are you OK, Max? 5 {you/some more orange juice?) Present tenses | 19Present simple and present continuous questions Is it snowing?; What are they doing? 4. Lookat these questions: ‘Are you waiting for me? Is Mike working upstairs? What are you doing? 5. To make present continuous questions, we put the form of the verb be before I/you/he/we/they: You are sleeping. —» Are you sleeping? It raining. — Is itraining? ‘We form present continuous questions like this: Csi Am 1 Are you Is shefhelit lesetoge Are welyourthey © We sometimes put the question words what and where before am/is/are: Where are you going? Whats she watching? > For more information on question words and short answers, see p. 48. Grammar in action 5 Weuse present continuous ‘questions to ask about peoples actions at the present moment: What are you watching? ‘Are you enjoying that pizza? What's your mum doing? & Weuse present simple and present continuous questions to ask people about their lives. On your first day at school you might ask a new friend: Doyou live near here? Are you studying French? D_ Getting ready to go out in New York Juan and Cova are staying with friends in New York. Use the words in brackets to form present continuous questions. DIANE Are you enjoying that CD. juan? (that CD, Juan/you/enjoy) JUAN Yes, lam, Ita great band. Are they American? DIANE No, they're Canad Is Cova OK? JUAN She's resting, Diane. What about Joe? 2 (she/what/do) (he/in the kitchen/cook) DIANE No, he's doing something on the computer upstairs. But its time to go. Joe! JOE (Coming downstairs) Hi, Juan. Diane. DIANE It’s that’Paper Dog’CD. JOE Yes, darling. JUAN Yes. Coval 2 (listen to/you/what) * (leave now, Joe/we) 5 (rest/upstairs/Cova) § (downstairs/come/you) E Atthe opening of an art gallery (i) Here are eight questions you can ask people you meet. We often use sort of in questions: it means ‘type of Question 2 is for a visitor or a tourist. Complete the words. Basic information: Do you |\ve......° near here? Are you sta "nearhere? Where do you 2 from? Work/study: Do you w. 2 near here? What sort of}, ‘doyoudo? —Areyou stu, # anything? Free time: What sort of things do you d. What sort of food do you | 20 | Present tenses ® in your free time? 7(ii) A group of people are going to look at some paintings in a new gallery in a small town. Add seven more of these eight questions in the right place. 0 Are you staying near here? ‘Yes, we've got a room in a hotel on Oak Street. I play tennis sometimes, but don’t have much free time! Ima doctor. We really love Indian food. There's a great restaurant near here. {im from Portugal, actually. What about you? Yes, weve gota flat in the town centre. No, not really. | commute every day to London. Yes, 'm trying to learn Chinese F Aconversation at a bus station in New Delhi We use questions to get information; to ask people what they want; to ask what people are doing at the present moment; and about their lives. Make present simple ‘or continuous questions in this conversation. ALLY Excuse me, please. Does this bys stop. at Mvimbai?.® (this bus stop/ at Mumbai?) DRIVER Yes it does, Madam, 3 + (you/want/a ticket?) ALLY I thinkso. ? sou? (the bus/leave soon?) DRIVER No it doesn't, 'm afraid. But you can wait on these seats. ALLY Thankyou. 2 (Whenv/it/go?) DRIVER In an hour. ALLY Thankyou. (Ally sits down next to a man.) Excuse me. ‘ (you/wait/for the bus to Mumbai?) ROD Yes, lam. ALLY Metoo. 2 (you/stay/in New Delhi at the moment?) ROD No, Iwork in Mumbai. ALLY Really? (What sort of work/you/do/there?) ROD I'ma doctor. And you? 1 vu? (you travel/around India?) ALLY Yes, it’s my first visit. I's very hot, isnt it? ROD Of course! We aren't in London, you know! 2 (youlwant/a cold drink?) ALLY Sure, (Rod stands up) 4° (where/you/go?) ROD —Toanice hotel near here, We'll have some cold lemonade. (VERON) Now goto page 122. Presenttenses | 21eerie ile) (9 06 | Two examples of the past simple: went to London with two friends last summer. We stayedin a hotel near Hyde Park. PeyeN xe meee 2. Tomake the positive form of the past simple we add -ed to regular verbs: Vyou he/shesit } asked we/you/they + For-ed spelling changes (e.9. try/tried), see p. 128. 3. But many common verbs have irregular past simple forms. Look at these examples: break/broke —buy/bought —_catch/caught come/came _do/did drink/drank eat/ate findfound —_forget/forgot go/went havefhad —_know/knew leaverleft lose/lost make/made meetimet _pay/paid run/ran read/tead ——_see/saw sell/sold send/sent _speak/spoke _ spend/spent take/took ——_win/won write/wrote ‘The verb be has two past forms: was and were. Paes Singular Vhe/she/it was Plural we/you/they were Chris and ! were in Scotland at the weekend, and it was very cold! + For a full list of irregular past participles, see p. 129. 4 Weuse the past simple for finished past actions: Liz lived in Madrid for two years. She had a fantastic time there. (Liz doesn't live in Madrid now) When Mike was a child, he spent every summer holiday in Cornwall (Mike isn'ta child now.) 5 We often use expressions fora finished time with the past simple to talk about when things happened in the past: Tost my watch last week, but I founditin the bathroom this morning. Josie phoned about ten minutes ago. 6 We use the past simple to talk about recent actions in finished time periods, to talk about our past, to tell stories and to talk about history. + For past simple negatives and questions, see p. 24. Grammar in action 4] We use the past simple to talk about recent actions in finished time periods — things we did last week, at the ‘weekend, yesterday or this morning: went to Brighton last Sunday with Katie, We had a picnic on the beach. It was really nice. We use the past simple to tell people about our lives in the past: [studied music at college, and we started a band. We played at parties. We often describe holidays and trips: ‘My brother travelled by bus from Brazil to Chile when he was a student. He spent a month in Santiago and meta lot of interesting people. 2 We use the past simple to tell true stories (lists of past actions) about ourselves, our families and friends: heard a loud noise, so | went downstairs, and Isaw a big black dog in the kitchen. We also tell fictional stories (children's stories and novels): ‘Along time ago, an old man lived with his beautiful young daughter inasmall house. | A. Talking about things we did last week ry eed een 7™ Prric ons 22 | Pastand perfect tenses ‘Tim and Greta meet at the photocopier at work. Make forms of the past simple. GRETA Did you have a good weekend, Tim? Not bad, thanks. My brother and his wife arrived, 9 (My brother and his wife/arrive) from Scotland on Friday evening, and . (they/stay) with us until Sunday lunchtime.GRETA. Really? What did you do? TIM Notmuch. 2 (We/talk) alot, of course, and 2 (we/see) a film on Saturday night. Then * (we/eat) at that French restaurant, ‘Serge’s: What about you? Did you have a good weekend? GRETA Yes, * (itibe) OK, thanks. * (go) into town on Saturday morning and 7 (meet) Dave, and * (we/do) some shopping, Then 2 (we/watch) United in the afternoon. °° (They/lose) again, of course, And on Sunday, (take) it easy. TIM Well, you need a rest now and again. B_ Telling people about a holiday In this email message, choose the right verb, and make forms of the past simple, HiEd, ‘Thanks for your message. | think you're working too hard. You need a long holiday. Last year, Barry, the kids and I _:?¢n'.° (spendilive) four weeks in Cornwall. It... (have/be) great! We _.? (find/stay) a really nice little house near the sea. We 2 (go/get) for walks, and we ., * (buy/make) food from the local farms. We * (cooW/clean) dinner at home most nights, we... * (fead/look) books instead of watching TV, and the KKidS .......7 (Cun/play) games in the garden. It rained sometimes, of course, but we . (spend/enjoy) every day.1...° (take/watch) a few photos the day before we (leave/miss). I'll send you them, and give you the address of the house! Best wishes, Stephanie C_ Telling true stories about our family Graham is writing about his Italian grandfather. Add these verbs in the past simple form: cen My grandfather, Alfredo, borrowed £70 and... went. to Egypt when he was twenty. By He wanted to make money. He studied Arabic. He * Arabic clothes. He spoke to the old men in the markets. He ? tea with them. When he was hungry, he > fish. Sometimes he washed dishes in restaurants. Then one day an old man cout him to buy coffee. He travelled about, and bought all the coffee he could find from farmers. He ® about £50. Then he waited. The following year, 1947, the price of coffee increased by 200%. So he. $ his coffee and made his first profit. After that, he worked hard. He 7 every morning at 6 a.m. He bought things when they were cheap, and he sold them if they * expensive! Sometimes he ° money, of course, but in the end he became very rich. In 1955, he " my grandmother, the daughter of an Egyptian farmer. He in Egypt for ‘another 15 years. Then he returned to Italy with my grandmother and a baby son, my father. He built a factory in Naples. But his son, Davide, ® to England, where | was born, Pastand perfecttenses | 23Past simple We didn’t go; did they see? 7 Look at this dialogue: Did you see Stella yesterday? ~ No, she didn’t come tocollege. ‘8 Wemake the negative form of the past simple like this: I didn’t goto the game. vyou he/shertt } did not/didn’t wait ‘we/youlthey 9 We normally make the question form of the past simple like this: Toran Pree Did l/you/he/she/it/we/yourthey write to Tim? en SMe ey Ds tec ee cee eee} When did I/you/he/she/it/we/yourthey arrive? When did Shakespeare die? (The answer is 1616.) D Sunday evening 10 With be, we don't use did not/didn't or Did.. @ We use the past simple to talk about We must use did/didn't/Did...? with the verb —=| do too: Did they do their homework? ~ Yes, but they didn't do the dishes. PaNeae .gularyou/he/she/it was not/wasn’tin the garden. Plural You/we/they were not/weren’t at home. Singular Was Uyou/he/she/t late? Plural Were you/we/they right? Grammar in action national and world history: Tony Blair was the British Prime ‘Minister from 1997 to 2007. He won three general elections in 1997, 2001 and 2005. Maggie, Dave and Pete are students. Maggie is returning to their flat on Sunday evening. Use the words in brackets to make questions or negative forms. MAGGIE. I'm back! Hi Dave. DAVE —_No,|'m tired today. this afternoon. MAGGIE No, Pid yoy finish your essay °(yourfinish your essay) (Vnot do anything) 27 (you see Jenny) 2. (she/not be at home) But met Joanna, the new American student, in town. PETE Oh. MAGGIE I think so, but. DAVE MAGGIE Yes. 'm sure she'll come. Pete? 47 (she/be OK) 5 (she/not talk very much). § (you/invite her to our party) next weekend? ? (What/you do all afternoon) 8 (you/make a wonderful dinner) for us? PETE Nol didn't, I'm afraid. But my parents arrived at two o'clock with a fantastic new ‘Wior the flat. MAGGIE Well, that's kind of them. 2 (Whenithey leave?) PETE About an hour ago. Do you want a cup of coffee, Maggie? DAVE Oh. £8 (Vnot get any milk this morning) Pete. MAGGIE. Black coffee is fine. What’s on TV? 24 | Pastand perfect tensesE Going on holiday John and Liz are driving to the airport for a two-week holiday. Put the words in brackets in the right order to make questions and negative forms of the past simple. Putthe correct Use capital letters to start your answers. esi JOHN Pid you lock the front door, Liz $ (lock/you/the front door, Liz/did)? Lz Yes, definitely. But | 4ant make any sandwiches ®(make/V/any sandwiches/didn't), JOHN } (forget/you/did)? Lz No, 2 (didn'v\/time/have). Well get something at the airport. 2 (your passport/under the bed/was)? JOHN Yes. Later) + (you/email Sally/did)? LZ Yes, last night. She's going to feed the cat every day. JOHN uz JOHN uz 5 (a key/did/you/give hen? Of course. But |forgot one thing. ‘ (didn't/the windows upstairs/check/l). Oh dear. 2 (open/were/they)? No, closed them. (Later) Are you going to work on holiday this time? * (my laptop/pack/no/didn'v). Good. We both need a break. F Anaccident in the mountains of Iran Julie is tel ‘Add these words to the conversatior BRAD JUUE 19 Brad about her trip to Iran with two friends. Hi Julie! Did you... have ° a good trip? What's wrong with your leg? Hitell you. We + in Esfahan by train, but we vou Want to spend all our time in the city. So. 3 did you do? We tooka taxi one afternoon to the village of Hafeshjan in the Zagros mountains. The local people : very friendly. We found a small hotel, and we 5 the night there, And $ hotel comfortable? Yes, the hotel wasn't the problem. Next morning we started our walk in a forest outside the village. We didn't ? fast, because it was already hot. Soon we saw some rocks and a cave. Then | Pabig mistake. I went into the cave. | couldn't see anything, and I ° my foot on a wet rock. |fell and * my leg. Jim and Daniel, me back to the village. When we got to the hotel, they phoned fora taxi, and they, * my leg in the hospital in Esfahan! VERON Now go to page 123. Pastandperfecttenses | 25Past continuous Oy 11 Two examples of the past continuous: Iphoned you at ine, but you weren't there. ~Oh, | was driving to work. Did you have a good time in Bristol? ~Notreally. was cooking meals all weekend. 2. We form the past continuous like this: Aud Vhe/shesit was } an you/we/they were a Pea Vhe/shesit was you/welthey were } ente Prsies Was I/he/she/it ing? Woreyouretney — ea > For rules on the spelling of -ing forms, see p. 128. 3 We use the past continuous to talk about actions in progress around a particular moment in the past: knocked on your door this morning. ~ Oh, Im sorry. I didn’t hear you. ! was sitting in the garden. (nor sat inthe garden.) knocked (exact moment) 9am. t1am. ‘+= was sitting (background action) ‘was sitting in the garden before and after you knocked.) MaKe ICU e Mak same Vel Caglne Merwe a eluate re Here is another example: John was working at 12 o'clock last night! (= John was working before (and probably after) 12.) We don't normally use the past continuous with the verbs like, love, hate, want, know, understand, Grammar in action ‘We use the past continuous to describe everyday background actions: to tell or ask people what was happening around a particular moment: What was Paul doing in the library yesterday ‘morning? ~ He was checking his emails. We were watching TV at about 9 o'clock, and Mike brought us some sandwiches. IK Apoliceman can ask: What were you doing at 9 o'clock last night? 2 We use the past continuous to describe the background of a story. We can talk about the weather ‘or what people were doing before the story starts: Itwas snowing! The boys were happily building a snowman and their mum was looking out of the Kitchen window. Then Oliver found some old money. A Actions around a particular moment in the past (1) Phil is sending an email from the airport. Add the verbs in the past continuous. | HiDiana there. When | left, Patti room, Lourdes and Tom See you soon in Berli Phil 26 | Pastand perfect tenses | I'ma the airport. | took a taxi from the flat at midnight. All your old friends were ; was, having, (eat) fish and chips as usual, Patti | loud, though, because Giovanni * (sleep). Anyway, they all send their best. ane ® (have) a little party in the living : + (dance). Nick 2 2 (not play) the music * (work) in his room and Jil