Read A Workbook to Communicative Grammar of English Online
Authors: Dr. Edward Woods,Rudy Coppieters
A Workbook to Communicative Grammar of English (9 page)
Auxiliaries only occur by themselves if the main verb is supplied by the earlier context. They can be placed before
not
and also before the subject in questions.
Contracted forms of auxiliaries are typical of spoken and informal English. Most auxiliaries also have contracted negative forms.
Task one *
Identify the auxiliary verbs in the following text, underlining the
primary auxiliaries
once and the
modal auxiliaries
twice.
Ruth watched him as he dropped his bag down on the sofa, felt in his pocket and carefully laid fifteen brand new fifty-pound notes on the table. Ruth was impressed. ‘Great-grandmother’s legacy? Bank raid?’
Martin was biting his lip hard. ‘It’s all there. You can count it.’ Ruth fingered the money. The new logs that Mr Wellbeing had cut for her hissed and spat from the fire.
‘You’re serious.’
‘I had more money in my account than I thought.’
Martin began to hum as he pulled at the zip of his anorak. It was an odd, uneasy sound and Ruth had never heard it before. For the first time since she had met him, Ruth sensed that he might not be telling the truth and she was intrigued. ‘You mean you cashed in your life savings for a one-legged chair?’ Ruth did laugh then. ‘I think Papa would have appreciated that.’
‘Don’t mock.’
‘I wasn’t mocking, Martin. Hemingway had a sense of humour. You must know that.’
‘Not about himself. He didn’t like to be laughed at.’
(from Michael Palin,
Hemingway’s Chair
, pp. 159–160)
Task two *
Rewrite the verb phrases in the following sentences by replacing the full forms with contracted ones where possible.
1.
It is going to be hard to get away with this but I will do my best.
2.
Although I had made an awful mistake, Marjorie did not notice.
3.
You need not worry if I have not come back by midnight.
4.
Jim has been in trouble before, so he had better watch out.
5.
We are getting complaints from people who have been treated unfairly.
6.
Do you mind if we suspend these talks until everybody is listening again?
7.
We must not condemn others as long as we are not setting an example ourselves.
8.
I do not approve of what you have done but I will not tell anyone.
9.
I would be prepared to lend a hand this afternoon but I am afraid I cannot come.
10.
Should the Robinsons not have told us they were not going to share the costs after all?
5.2. The auxiliary verbs
do, have
and
be
The verbs
do, have
and
be
are used both as auxiliaries and as main verbs:
•
The auxiliary
do
helps to form the
do
-construction, also called
do
-support. When used as a main verb or a substitute verb
do
has the full range of forms, including non-finite ones.
•
The auxiliary
have
helps to form the perfect aspect. When used as a main verb meaning
possess, have
is sometimes constructed as an auxiliary in British English but the form
have got
can be used instead.
•
The auxiliary
be
helps to form the progressive aspect and the passive. When used as a main verb
be
is constructed as an auxiliary, except with imperatives needing
do
-support.
Task one *
Specify for each of the underlined verbs whether it is used as an auxiliary (A) or as a main verb (M).
1.
It
is
true that we
were
trying to help people in need.
2.
Karen
does
realize that I
did
her a favour by also inviting her boyfriend.
3.
Those who
had
dinner with Mr Partridge
have
been told about his latest project.
4.
Brian
is
a long-distance commuter, so he
has
a car of his own.
5.
Do
come over to see us if you
have
enough time to spare.
6.
Mark
was
appointed for the job because he
had
good references.
7.
Be
silent about the points you
do
want to remain secret.
8.
The fact that you
have
reported these incidents to the police
does
you credit.
9.
We
were
convinced that the door
had
been forced open before.
10.
I
did
all the exercises as I
was
preparing for an important exam.
Task two *
Make the above sentences negative, using contracted forms where possible.
The modal auxiliaries do not have -
s
forms, -
ing
forms or -
ed
participles.
Can, may, shall
and
will
have corresponding past forms, while the other modals have only one form.
Dare
and
need
can be constructed either as main verbs followed by a
to
-infinitive or as modal auxiliaries followed by a bare infinitive.
The modal auxiliary
used
is a past form which is always followed by a
to
-infinitive. This auxiliary often takes the
do
-construction, in which case the spellings
use
and
used
both occur.
Task **
Complete the following sentences, giving two grammatically acceptable versions where possible. N stands for ‘negative’ and Q for ‘yes–no question’.
1.
(you / need) ____________________ come back until the end of this week. (N)
2.
(Sandra / used) ____________________ send postcards when she was abroad. (N)
3.
(you / dare) ____________________ call me a selfish person? (Q)
4.
(I / dare) ____________________ think how disastrous such a policy might be. (N)
5.
(Mrs Barnes / used) ____________________ give money to charity? (Q)
6.
(I / need) ____________________ write more than thirty lines, sir? (Q)
7.
(the PM / dare) ____________________ call an election yet. (N)
8.
(we / used) ____________________ condemn such eccentric behaviour. (N)
9.
(John / need) ____________________ have his passport renewed? (N/Q)
10.
(people / used) ____________________ be afraid of ghosts in those days? (N/Q)
Sections 113–115; 573–578; 740–741
Verbs can refer to:
•
an event
, i.e. a happening thought of as a single occurrence with clearly defined limits
•
a state
, i.e. a state of affairs continuing over a period with or without clearly defined limits
•
a habit
, i.e. a state consisting of a series of events.
All three meanings are normally expressed by simple, i.e. non-progressive forms of the verb (simple present, simple past, present perfect and past perfect).
A fourth type of meaning is the temporary meaning expressed by the progressive aspect (present progressive, past progressive, present perfect progressive and past perfect progressive).
Task one **
Identify the (non-modal) finite verb phrases in the text below, specifying for each
(a) | which of the four above meanings it expresses |
(b) | which of the eight verb forms mentioned in brackets is used. |
The argument for a Slow Europe is not only that slow is good, but also that it can
work
. In 1999 Slow Food gave birth to the Slow City movement, which started in the tiny Tuscan town of Greve and has since spread throughout Italy. The organization has turned around local economies by promoting local goods and tourism, and now has a waiting list of cities hoping to copy the success of its members. Young Italians are moving from larger cities to Bra, where unemployment is only 5 per cent, about half the nationwide rate. Slow food and wine festivals draw thousands of tourists every year. Shops are thriving, many with sales rising at a rate of 15 per cent per year. “This is our answer to globalization,” says Paolo Saturnini, the founder of Slow Cities and mayor of Greve.
(from
Newsweek
, 2 July 2001, p. 21)
Task two ***
Convert the following sentences expressing state meaning into corresponding sentences expressing
habit meaning
.
Example:
Basil is a teetotaller
⇒
Basil
doesn’t drink
alcohol. / Basil never
drinks
alcohol
.
1.
Fiona is a vegetarian.
2.
Sibyl is a pianist.
3.
Winston Churchill was a cigar smoker.
4.
We were regular churchgoers in those days.
5.
Mr Hazelhurst was a Russian teacher for twenty years.
6.
Dr Winter is a brain surgeon.
7.
Davy is a beggar.
8.
Ms Booth is a barrister.
9.
Alan Sparke is an arsonist.
10.
My cousin is a conscientious objector.
11.
This convict is a serial killer.
12.
Ben Jonson was an actor and a playwright.
Present states, present (complete) events and present habits are all referred to by verbs in the simple present tense.
Temporary present events, and temporary and persistent habits, are referred to by verbs in the present progressive.
Occasionally, the simple past is used with verbs like ‘
want
’ and ‘
wonder
’ as a more tactful alternative to the simple present.
Task one **
Specify which of the above basic meanings is expressed by the underlined verb phrases in the following sentences.
1.
I’m
not
drinking
any alcohol this week as I’
m
on antibiotics.
2.
My adoptive mother
cooks
for my father and for any relatives who
drop in
.
3.
Rare properties
are
already
being snapped up
by western tourists who
visit
the Dalmatian coast each summer.
4.
The patients
pay
according to means and some of them
are sent
here under contractual arrangements.
5.
Why
are
you always
asking
if Uncle Toby really
owns
three Jaguars?
6.
I
don’t belong
to a secret organization, I
swear
it.
7.
I’
m
just
showing
the kids how to fly a kite and … look, up it
goes
.
8.
Charles
doesn’t live
at the cottage, but he and his wife
do come
almost every weekend.
9.
Mr Duisenberg
hails
from Friesland, a Dutch province where people
are known
for their patience.
10.
Did
you
want
to see the doctor, Mrs Hopkins?
Task two **
Complete the following sentences using the most appropriate (active or passive) form of the verb in brackets.
1.
My car (still repair) ____________________ so I (commute) _______________ by train this week.
2.
I (assure) _______________ you the situation (get) _______________ out of hand very quickly.
3.
Lions (hunt) _______________ by night and (feed) ____________ on any animals they can pull down.
4.
Bob, you (be) ____________ very rude again to the very person who (love) ____________ you most.
5.
It (say) ____________ in the newspaper that new measures (consider) ____________ to fight organized crime.
6.
Why (you continually interrupt) ________________________ the speaker? He (deserve) ____________ your undivided attention, you (know) ____________.
7.
I (wonder) ____________ if you could possibly help me. I (try) ____________ to fix the ventilator but it (not work) ____________ yet.
8.
Millions of people in Britain (get) ____________ their paper early in the morning because many newsagents (organize) ____________ ‘paper rounds’.
9.
I (make) ____________ a mess of this job but I (promise) ____________ to do better next time.
10.
(you still think) ____________ of moving to the Seychelles or (you prefer) ____________ to stay in our northern hemisphere after all?
11.
Dad (keep) ____________ telling me that the early bird (catch) ____________ the worm.
12.
This tropical disease (spread) ____________ fast in Central Africa, where people (not earn) ____________ enough to buy expensive medicines.
