Topica limbii engleze

Topica este ordinea cuvintelor intr-o propoziţie respectiv a părtilor de propoziţie. În funcţie de limbă, topica se supune sau nu unor reguli. În limba română topica este relativ liberă, ca in limbile in care predicatul sau atributul adjectival nu pot sta decât într-un anumit loc.
În limba engleză, topica este diferită şi trebuie facută după anumite reguli.

1. Regula proximităţii ( The rule of Proximity)
- cuvintele legate intre ele ca inteles trebuie să fie cât mai aprope unele de altele.

2. Regula ritmului (The rule of Rhythm)
- cere o propoziţie bine echilibrată, cuvintele mai scurte să fie aşezate înaintea celor lungi (îndeosebi în succesiuni de adjective).
- regula ritmului cere, de asemenea, ca parţile de propoziţie mai scurte să fie aşezate inaintea celor mai lungi.

3. Regula accentuării (The rule of Emphasis)
- urmareşte scoaterea in relief a unor cuvinte sau propoziţii, intr-o pozitie diferită de cea stabilită de gramatică.
- limbajul folosit in scrierea poeziilor.

Despre ordinea cuvintelor in limba engleza putem spune ca este destul de complicata, formandu-se dupa anumite reguli si, bineinteles, exceptiile. Sunt reguli, spunem noi, pe care le stim destul de bine dinainte de a ne apuca de invatatul limbii in profunzime, si atunci descoperim, poate, anumite greseli facute pana atunci. Inafara celor trei reguli scrise mai sus, sunt cateva care ne pot ajuta sa scriem si sa vorbim corect limba engleza:

a. Adjectivul sta inaintea substantivului
ex: a smart boy

b. Daca exista doua sau mai multe adjective in propozitie, acestea se pun in ordinea marimii lor, de la cel mai mic catre cel mai mare
ex: a smart handsome boy

c. Adjectivele posesive se pun si ele inaintea substantivelor
ex: my brother, your ball, his uncle

d. In limba engleza, trebuie specificata persoana de fiecare data, astfel:
ex: John este sportiv si ii place foarte mult sa joace fotbal. (in limba romana este subinteles)
     John is sportive and he likes playing football very much.

e. Atunci cand formam o intrebare, verbul vine in fata propozitiei, la fel si verbul auxiliar urmat de subiect
ex: Is she your sister?
     Do you speak English?

f. Intrebarile care contin WH, what, when, why, where, who, which, how, whom, se pun inaintea verbului
ex: Who is your best friend?
      What is your name?

g. In cazul in care in propozitie apare un complement de timp, acesta va sta la sfarsitul propozitie
ex: I saw the policeman, yesterday.

h. Langa never nu apare niciodata particula de negativ
ex: I never don't eat peaches. - gresit
     I never eat peaches. - corect

De asemenea, ne putem ajuta de schema de mai jos pentru formarea propozitie afirmative:

WHO- WHAT- WHERE- WHEN- HOW- WHY

   

IN, ON, AT- prepoziţii de timp

IN- months, years, centuries and long periods
In May, in summer/ in the summer, in 1990, in the 1990 s, in the next century, in the Ice Age, in the past, in the future.

ON- days and dates
On Sundays, on 6.th March, on 25 December 2010, on Christmas Day, on Independence Day, on my birthday, on New Year's Eve.

AT- precise time
at 3 o'clock, at 10.30 p.m, at noon, at dinnertime, at bedtime, at sunrise, at sunset, at the moment, at night.

* When we say Last week, every, this. we do not also use in, on and at.
ex: I went to London last June. ( not in last June)

*Other prepositions of time: after, ago, before, between, by, during, for, from...to from...till/ until, past, since, to, up to.

Don't forget, practice makes perfect, so, here are some exercises to do. Good luck!

1. Choose the correct preposition of time.

   1. Mary wore a witch costume (in,at,on) Halloween.

   2. I have English classes (in,at,on) Tuesdays.

   3. My dad comes home (in,at,on) lunchtime.

   4. The children like going to the park (in,at,on) the morning.

   5. Henry's birthday is (in,at,on) November.

   6. Lots of people go shopping (in,at,on) Christmastime.

   7. My mum was born (in,at,on) 1.st of March, 1960.

   8. Leaves turn red, gold and brown (in,at,on) autumn.

   9. My friends like going the the movies (in,at,on) Saturdays.

   10.The pilgrims arrived in America (in,at,on) 1620.

   11. My sister likes watching TV (in,at,on) the evening.

   12. Mum always reads stories (in,at,on) bedtime.

   13. I like watching the parade (in,on,at) Independence Day.

   14. Hippies protested against the war (in,at,on) the 1960s. 

   15. We finished the marathon (in,at,on) the same time.

2. Write at, in, on or leave it blank if we do not use a preposition.

 

   1. My cousins went to Australia last.......July.

   2. I like eating pancakes........the morning.

   3. Dad is not home........the moment.

   4. Mammoths lived......the Ace Age.

   5. My family gets together......dinnertime.

   6. My brother comes home every......Christmas.

   7. I take my dog for a walk.........the morning.

   8. Susan has English classes......Tuesdays. 

   9. My mum called me......night.

   10. I like eating biscuits.....the morning. 

3. Answer the questions. Write a time, day, month or year. Use the correct preposition.

1. When do you get up?__________

2. When do you go to school ( work)?________

3. When do you have a lunch break?__________

4. When do you finish school?_________

5. When do you have maths classes?_________

6. When do you have your holidays?_________

7. When do you have English classes?________

8. When do you go to the beach?_________

9. When do you go skiing? ____________

10. What time is it now?___________

4. Read the text about Sarah and complete the missing prepositions. Use in, on and at.

Hi! I'm Sarah. I'm ten years old. I was born......2004. My birthday is........September. I want to tell you few things about my daily routine. I wake up every day.....seven o'clock. I have breakfast and then I go to school........eight o'clock. I have lunch......twelve o'clock. I like eating pizza, but I don't eat pizza every day, sometimes I have salad or chicken. After school, I do my homework and play computer games. I go to bed......ten o'clock. My mum says it's too late for a pupil. This is what I do from Monday to Friday.
.........weekends, I usually do something different. I do my homework ......Friday night and ......Saturday and Sunday I play or go on trips with my parents. We like travelling very much. ............summer, we go to the beach together. Usually, ..........my birthday we like to party outside in the garden. I invite all my friends.
I miss summer holiday already!

Some si Any

Some - se foloseste in propozitiile afirmative (pozitive);
          - se poate folosi atat langa substantivele numarabile cat si cele nenumarabile;
ex: some money, some fruit, some apples, some information etc.
"some" words: 
somebody- cineva, careva, vreunul
someone- cineva, cuiva, pe cineva
somewhere- undeva, intr-un loc oarecare
something- ceva, ce, putin
ex: I need somebody to love for Valentine's day.
   

Any - se foloseste in propozitiile negative si intergogative (intrebari);
        - se poate folosi atat pentru substantivele numarabile cat si cele nenumarabile;
"any" words: 
anybody- oricine, nimeni, careva, oricare
anyone- oricine, nimeni, oarecare
anywhere- oriunde, nicaieri, undeva
anything- orice, nimic, ceva
ex: Does anybody have a cat at home?
     She doesn't have anyone to speak with.

Lista cu substantive NENUMARABILE!!!

General Homework                   soap     Equipment                   paper Luggage                       wood Clothing                      petrol Furniture                     gasoline Machinery                  baggage Gold                            hair Silver                          traffic cotton glass jewelery perfume	Activities swimming walking driving jogging reading writing listening speaking cooking sleeping studying working

Abstract advice help fun recreation enjoyment information knowledge news patience happiness progress confidence courage education intelligence space energy laughter peace pride Sports golf tennis baseball basketball soccer football cricket hockey rugby chess poker bridge

Food food flour meat rice cake bread ice cream cheese toast pasta spaghetti butter oil honey soup fish fruit salt tea coffee Languages English Portuguese Hindi Arabic Japanese Korean Spanish French Russian Italian Hebrew Chinese

Weather thunder lightning snow rain sleet ice heat humidity hail wind light darkness Subjects/Fields mathematics economics physics ethics civics art architecture music photography grammar chemistry history commerce engineering politics sociology psychology vocabulary archaeology poetry

Present Continuous

We use Present Continuous Tense:
- to talk about actions which are happening at the present moment, but will soon finish.
ex: I'm playing tennis now.
- for temporary situations:
ex: I'm reading a good book.
- annoying habits:
ex: You're always screaming too much.
- a situation which is changing:
ex: He's getting better with his English.

Time expressions for Present Continuous Tense: at the moment, these days, now, nowadays.
*notice that the time expressions can come at the start or at the end of the sentence!!
ex: She is watching TV at the moment.
     Paul is living to London these days.
     What are you doing now?

How to form Present Continuous:
Affirmative: 
S+ aux Be (am, is, are)+ Verb+ ING- He is cooking with his brother.
Negative:
S+ aux Be+ NOT+ Verb+ ING- He isn't cooking with his brother.
Interrogative: 
Aux Be+ S+ Verb+ ING- Is he cooking with his brother?

How to spell the Present Continuous:

a. Basic rule- add - ING to the base verb
ex: working, playing, eating

There are some exceptions, like:
1. if the verb ends in consonant+ stressed vowel+ consonant, double the last letter;
ex: stop- stopping, shop- shopping, begin- beginning, run- running etc.
2. if the verb ends in E, we remove it and add ING;
ex: write- writing, dance- dancing, prove- proving, come- coming etc.
3. if the verb ends in IE, change it in Y;
ex: lie- lying, die- dying, tie- tying
4. we add K to verbs ending in C;
picnic- picnicking

A simple conjugation with Present Continuous:
I am eating                          
You are eating
He is eating
She is eating
It is eating
We are eating
You are eating
They are eating


*We can't use this tense or any other continuous tense with state verbs.
( love, like, dislike, detest, prefer, adore, hate, wish, desire, imagine, forget, hear, smell, taste etc. )    

Present Simple

We use Present Simple Tense:
-when we want to talk about fixed habits or routines;
ex: I always read before I go to bed.
     I like green apples very much.
- things which are always true;
ex: The Earth moves around the Sun.
- to talk about what happened in books, plays and movies;
ex: At the end of the movie, they remain together,

Adverbs of frequency for Present Simple: always, often, frequently, sometimes, occasionally, seldom, rarely, hardly ever, never.
*notice that the adverb comes before the main verb in the sentence.
ex: Michael frequently visits his family.
     Japanese people never wear shoes inside.

How to form Present Simple:
Affirmative: 
S+ V e/ es (III) - He lives in Budapest.
Negative: 
S+ Don't/ Doesn't+ Verb ( the verb doesn't change its form)- He doesn't live in Budapest.
Interrogative: 
Do/ Does+ S+ Verb (the verb doesn't change its form) - Does he live in Budapest?

a. We add an S to the verb at the 3.rd person
    she sings/ he eats/ it plays
b. If the verb ends in:  o, s, z, sh, ch, consonant+y, we add - ES
    Do- does, kiss- kisses, buzz- buzzes, push- pushes, catch- catches, try- tries. 
* The verbs Have and Be have different forms: Have- Has

Conjugation for Be: 

I am

You are

He is 

She is

It is

We are

You are

They are

* The verb CAN doesn't change!! 

* Some verbs, state verbs, are used only in Simple Tenses.

Here is a short list: 

like	know	belong
love	realise	fit
hate	suppose	contain
want	mean	consist
need	understand	seem
prefer	believe	depend
agree	remember	matter
mind	recognise	see
own	appear	look (=seem)
sound	taste	smell
hear	astonish	deny
disagree	please	impress
satisfy	promise	surprise
doubt	think (=have an opinion)	feel (=have an opinion)
wish	imagine	concern
dislike	be	have
deserve	involve	include
lack	measure (=have length etc)	possess
owe	weigh (=have weight)

Present Simple and Present Continuous- simple exercises

1.  Choose the Present Simple or the Present Continuous - positive, negative or question:

1. (you/come) tonight?
2. (he/eat) fruit every day?
3. I  (work) at the moment.
4. (he/come) to London often?
5. He  (play) tennis now.
6. (you/come) to the cinema later?
7. They  (not/come) to the party tomorrow.
8. He  (not/play) golf now.
9. (play) tennis this Sunday?
10. They  (go) to a restaurant every Saturday.
11. She  (not/go) to the cinema very often.
12. You usually  (arrive) late.
13. He normally  (eat) dinner at home.
14. (you/study) every night?
15. (they/work) late usually?
16. You  (not/go) out later.
17. I  (not/work) tonight. 
18. (she/work) at the moment?
19. I  (not/drink) coffee very often.
20. Julie  (sleep) now. 

2. Change the verb into the correct tense: 

This (be)  Caroline.

She (be) twenty years old. 

Caroline (have)  long blond hair and green eyes. 

She usually (wear)  glasses, but now she (wear)  contact lenses.

Caroline (like) doing sports.

She (play)  handball every Monday and Thursday. 

"Another language, another man"

Învăţatul unei limbi străine a fost şi va fi foarte important şi folositor. Beneficiul cunoaşterii unei altei limbi este un semn al eleganţei, al educaţiei, al nobilităţii şi poate reprezenta cheia accesului în inalta societate. În societatea de azi, cunoaşterea limbii engleze ocupă un loc important în orice domeniu de activitate. Atunci când iei această decizie, de a învaţa şi asimila limba engleză, trebuie să ai in vedere trei puncte importante: scrierea, pronunţia şi sensul.  Bineînţeles, rapiditatea cu care se poate invăţa această limbă diferă de la individ la individ. Accesul este foarte mare, de la internet până la carţi scrise în engleză, disponibile intr-o gamă foarte largă. Orice contact cu această limbă te ajută şi te aduce mai aproape de a o cunoaşte. Limba engleză se invaţă foarte bine auzind, vorbind, citind şi scriind, în majoritatea cazurilor exact in aceasta ordine. Exerciţiile de gramatică ajută intr-o mare masură în invatarea expresiilor uzuale si a formulării de propoziţii corecte.
Take your time and enjoy, and don't forget, practice makes perfect!! :)