Grammar

Learn B1 Level English

Nouns

Collective Nouns

I have a daily meeting with my team at 9 o'clock.

Team is a collective noun that refers to all members who are part of this collective group

Pronouns

All, No, None of

All students need to write this exam.

All is used to refer to the whole class.

Both/Both... and

I like both coffee shops that are near my place.

In this case, both is used in the meaning of all.

Each, Every

Every new day is a new opportunity.

Every is used in the meaning of all.

Either/Either … or

I would like either Chinese or Mexican for dinner.

The presence of either ... or in a sentence indicates a choice between two possibilities.

Neither/Neither ... nor

Neither coffee shop in my area is good.

Neither is the opposite to both, and is used in the meaning of not one and not the other when referring to two things.

Reflexive Pronouns

I need to figure out how to take proper care of myself.

Myself is a reflexive pronoun.

Questions

Question Tags

Your flat is so big, isn't it?

Isn't it? is a tail question used to invite a response.

Sentence structure

Second Conditional

If I won the lottery, I would go on the round-the-world trip.

Here, we use the second conditional to imagine things that would happen if one wins a lottery.

Third Conditional

If you had studied harder, you would have passed this exam.

Here, the third conditional is used to talk about the past situation (studying harder) and it's outcome (passing the exam) as if they were different.

Tenses

Past Perfect Continuous

He had been studying for hours to pass the exam.

Here, the past perfect continuous is used to emphasize the longevity of the action rather than its result.

Past Perfect Simple

I started working only after I had made a cup of ice-cold coffee for myself.

The past perfect tense expresses the action (make coffee) that took place before a cerain moment in past (start working), expressed using past simple.

Present Perfect Continuous

My mom has been working as an accountant for 15 years.

Here, the present perfect countinuous tense describes the action that has started in the past and emphasizes its progress.