English Grammar Fundamentals

Verb Tenses

• Present Simple:
  • Used to describe habits, routines, and general truths
  • Form: Base form of the verb (e.g., I go, you go, he/she/it goes, we go, they go)
• Present Continuous:
  • Used to describe actions in progress at the moment of speaking
  • Form: am/is/are + present participle (e.g., I am going, you are going, he/she/it is going, we are going, they are going)
• Past Simple:
  • Used to describe completed actions in the past
  • Form: past form of the verb (e.g., I went, you went, he/she/it went, we went, they went)
• Past Perfect:
  • Used to describe actions that occurred before another action in the past
  • Form: had + past participle (e.g., I had gone, you had gone, he/she/it had gone, we had gone, they had gone)
• Future Simple:
  • Used to describe future actions
  • Form: will + base form of the verb (e.g., I will go, you will go, he/she/it will go, we will go, they will go)

Clause Structure

• Independent Clause:
  • A clause that can stand alone as a complete sentence
  • Has a subject and a predicate
• Dependent Clause:
  • A clause that cannot stand alone as a complete sentence
  • Begins with a subordinating conjunction (e.g., because, although, if)
• Relative Clause:
  • A dependent clause that provides additional information about a noun
  • Begins with a relative pronoun (e.g., who, which, that)

Sentence Formation

• Simple Sentence:
  • A sentence with one independent clause
• Compound Sentence:
  • A sentence with two or more independent clauses joined by a conjunction
• Complex Sentence:
  • A sentence with an independent clause and one or more dependent clauses

Parts of Speech

• Nouns:
  • Words that refer to people, places, things, and ideas
• Verbs:
  • Words that express action or a state of being
• Adjectives:
  • Words that modify nouns or pronouns
• Adverbs:
  • Words that modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs
• Pronouns:
  • Words that replace nouns in a sentence
• Prepositions:
  • Words that show the relationship between a noun or pronoun and other words in a sentence

Modal Verbs

• Can:
  • Expresses ability or possibility
• Could:
  • Expresses ability or possibility in the past
• May:
  • Expresses permission or possibility
• Might:
  • Expresses possibility or uncertainty
• Shall:
  • Expresses future action or obligation
• Should:
  • Expresses advice or recommendation
• Will:
  • Expresses future action or intention
• Would:
  • Expresses hypothetical or conditional situations

Word Formation

• Prefixes:
  • Words that are added to the beginning of a root word to change its meaning
• Suffixes:
  • Words that are added to the end of a root word to change its meaning
• Compounding:
  • The process of combining two or more words to create a new word

Aggettivi (Adjectives in Italian)

• Qualificativi:
  • Adjectives that describe the qualities of a noun
• Possessivi:
  • Adjectives that show possession or belonging
• Dimostrativi:
  • Adjectives that point out or identify a noun
• Interrogativi:
  • Adjectives that ask a question about a noun

Avverbi (Adverbs in Italian)

• Di modo:
  • Adverbs that describe the manner in which an action is performed
• Di tempo:
  • Adverbs that describe the time at which an action is performed
• Di luogo:
  • Adverbs that describe the place where an action is performed
• Di frequenza:
  • Adverbs that describe the frequency of an action

Articoli (Articles in Italian)

• Definite Articles:
  • Il, lo, la, i, gli, le (used to refer to specific nouns)
• Indefinite Articles:
  • Un, una, uno (used to refer to non-specific nouns)
• Partitive Articles:
  • Di, del, della, dei, delle (used to indicate a part of a whole)