Practice
English practice 4: use grammar in short contexts
Sign in to saveA short sentence can still contain several decisions. Before you choose a word, find the person or thing, notice the time, and ask what the speaker means. Those clues make grammar choices easier to check.
Use the subject, time clue, noun meaning, and sentence purpose to choose an accurate form in a short everyday English context.
Read and practice
Read the examples and try the written questions in this guide. Listening recordings are not available for this lesson yet.
Try the written questions
check the context /tʃek ðə ˈkɒntekst/
The short answer
Read the whole context before you choose a form. Find the subject, look for a time clue, check whether the noun is one thing or more than one, and notice whether the sentence is a statement or a question.
Nadia bought a sandwich after work yesterday.
Why it works: Nadia is the subject, a sandwich is one countable item, and yesterday signals a finished past action.
6 more examples
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Maya walks to the station every morning.
Every morning describes a routine, and Maya is one person, so the present-simple verb ends in -s.
Not this:Maya
walkedto the station yesterday morning. What changes: Yesterday morning changes the context to a finished past action. -
We need a map for the new walking route.
Map is one countable thing, so use a before it.
Not this:We need
some mapsfor the new walking route. What changes: Maps is plural, so a cannot introduce it. Some shows an unspecified number. -
There is some rice in the cupboard.
Rice is normally uncountable when it means food in general, so use some rather than a plural ending.
Not this:There are
three bowlsof rice in the cupboard. What changes: Bowls is a countable plural noun, so it can follow a number. -
Where does your brother work?
Does comes before the singular subject in this present-simple question, and work remains in the base form.
Not this:Your brother
worksnear the hospital. What changes: In a statement, the subject comes first and the singular present verb takes -s. -
The children are playing in the garden now.
Now points to an activity in progress. Are agrees with the plural subject children.
Not this:The children
playin the garden after school. What changes: After school describes their usual routine, so use the present simple. -
I did not bring my umbrella because the sky was clear.
Did marks the negative as past, so bring stays in the base form.
Not this:I
do not bringmy umbrella on sunny days. What changes: Do not marks a present habit, while bring remains the base form in both negative patterns.
Read the full guide
Grammar choices work together. In the sentence Where does Leo keep the spare key?, where makes a question, does carries the present-simple grammar, Leo is the subject, and keep stays in its base form. Check each clue instead of changing every word you see.
Read the complete short context first
Do not choose a word before you have read the sentence around it. A nearby time phrase, noun, or question word can change the grammar you need. Even a short context gives you more evidence than one blank or one isolated word.
After the meeting, Omar sent the notes to the team.
After the meeting places the action in a finished past situation, so sent is the form that fits.
What should you look for before choosing a verb: only the subject, or the subject and the time clue?
Look for both. The subject helps with agreement, and the time clue helps you choose the tense.
Match a present or past verb to the time
Use the present simple for routines, repeated actions, and regular facts. Use a past form for an action that finished at a past time. Words such as usually, every week, and on Mondays often support the present simple. Yesterday, last month, and two days ago normally point to the past.
My neighbour checks the post every afternoon.
Every afternoon shows a routine, and my neighbour is singular, so checks is correct.
My neighbour checked the post yesterday afternoon.
Yesterday afternoon refers to one finished time, so checked is needed.
For an action happening at the moment, English often uses be plus an -ing form: The neighbours are checking the post now. The form of be must still match the subject.
Check the noun before choosing an article or quantity word
A singular countable noun usually needs a determiner. Use a or an when you mean one nonspecific item: a ticket, an email. Use plural nouns for more than one item, and use some with many plural or uncountable nouns when the amount is not exact.
Could you print an invoice for this order?
Invoice is one countable item, and it begins with a vowel sound, so an fits.
Could you print some invoices for these orders?
Invoices is plural, so it cannot follow an. Some gives an unspecified plural amount.
Which phrase fits one nonspecific sandwich: a sandwich or some sandwich?
Use a sandwich when you mean one countable item. Some sandwich can refer to an amount of sandwich filling or food in a different context.
Separate countable and uncountable meanings
Countable nouns can usually take a number: two chairs, three messages. Uncountable nouns refer to material, information, or an idea as a whole: water, advice, luggage. Do not add -s to an uncountable noun when you mean the general thing. Use a countable container or unit when you need a number.
There is some useful advice in the guide.
Advice is uncountable in this meaning, so some advice is natural and advices is not.
The guide gives three useful pieces of advice.
Pieces is countable, so three can describe the number of separate advice items.
Some nouns can be countable in one meaning and uncountable in another. Coffee is often uncountable as a drink in general, but two coffees can mean two cups ordered in a café.
Use question order with helping verbs
Many present-simple and past-simple questions need do, does, or did before the subject. The main verb then stays in the base form. Write Where do they live? and When did she arrive? Do not add a second past or third-person ending to the main verb after the helping verb.
Why does the shop close early on Sundays?
Does comes before the singular subject the shop, and close stays in the base form.
When did the shop close early last week?
Did carries the past meaning, so close does not change to closed in the question.
Which question is correct: Did Lena called, or Did Lena call?
Use Did Lena call? Did already marks the past, so call remains the base form.
Make one final context check
After you choose a form, read the complete sentence again. Check that the subject and verb agree, the time reference makes sense, and the noun phrase says the intended amount. This final reading catches errors that a rule-by-rule check can miss.
Are you meeting your friends at the café this evening?
Are signals a planned arrangement, you is the subject, and this evening gives the time context.
We met our friends at the café last evening.
The past form met fits a completed visit, but the wording sounds more natural with last night in many everyday contexts.
If two forms look possible, ask whether the meaning changes. Choose the form that says exactly what happened, happens regularly, or is happening now.
Before you go
Remember this
Use the context as a checklist. Find the subject, the time reference, the kind of noun, and the sentence purpose. Then choose one form that fits all four clues. Reading the complete short context is more reliable than choosing from spelling alone.
Practice with the written examples
You can practice with the written questions in the Learn tab. Each answer includes an explanation.
Try the written questionsListening test not available yet
This lesson does not have the recordings needed for a listening test. Use the written questions in the guide to check your understanding.
Try the written questionsQuestions about "English practice 4: use grammar in short contexts"
How do I choose a verb form in a short English sentence?
Find the subject and then look for the time clue. A routine such as every morning supports Maya walks to the station every morning. A finished time such as yesterday morning supports Maya walked to the station yesterday morning.
Maya walks to the station every morning.
When should I use a or some before a noun?
Use a or an with one nonspecific countable item, as in a map for the new walking route. Use some with an unspecified plural or uncountable amount, as in some maps or some rice.
Maya walked to the station yesterday morning.
How can I tell whether a noun is countable?
A countable noun can usually follow a number, such as three bowls. An uncountable noun describes a general material or idea, such as rice. When you need to count an uncountable thing, use a unit such as a bowl of rice.
We need a map for the new walking route.
Why does a present-simple question use does before the subject?
Does carries present-simple agreement in a question, so it comes before a singular subject and the main verb stays in the base form. The question asks Where does your brother work?, while the statement says Your brother works near the hospital.
We need some maps for the new walking route.
What is the difference between are playing and play?
Are playing describes an activity in progress, as in The children are playing in the garden now. Play describes a regular habit or routine, as in The children play in the garden after school.
There is some rice in the cupboard.