Articles
冠词
1. There are 3 types of articles ‘a’, ‘an’ and ‘the’.2. ‘A’ and ‘an’ indefinite articles and only used with singular countable nouns. 2.1 ‘a’ is used before words that begin with consonants sounds or words which
begin with the vowel ‘u’ but has a consonant sound (you). a) a boy b) a flower c) a pineapple d) a zebra e) a university f) a unit g) a unique school h) a one-way street
2.2 ‘an’ is used before words which begin with vowels (a, e, i, o, u) or words which begin with the silent ‘h’.
a) an ant b) an apple c) an earring d) an elephant e) an insect f) an onion g) an umbrella h) an hour i) an honour j) an honest girl
2.3 ‘a’ and ‘an’ are not use before uncountable nouns. E.g: rice, sand, oil, etc. 3 ‘The’ definite article and is used with plural countable nouns and also
3.1 To show something that is special and one of its kinds in the world. a) The sun is setting in the west.
b) The air is fresher in the countryside.
3.2 To refer to a particular person, animal, thing or place. a) The white cat is under the chair.
b) That is the car which honked at me yesterday. 3.3 For the superlative form of an adjective. a) She is the tallest girl in her class.
b) I bought the cheapest book.
3.4 With things which are already mentioned before. a) A pupil is in a library. The pupil is reading quietly.
Nouns
名词
Countable and Uncountable Nouns 可数名词和不可数名词
1. A noun is used to refer to a person, place, animal or thing. a) teacher (person)
b) market (place) c) rabbit (animal) d) car (thing)
Countable Nouns (can be counted) Uncountable Nouns (cannot be counted) pen boy house cat car bag key plate oil sand dust ink water curry rice paper 3. Can be used in the following ways.
Countable Nouns Uncountable Nouns
a lot of many a few plenty of a few several some a large number of a small number of books pencils houses cars bags keys books cows durians a little a lot of plenty of some much less more a large amount of a small amount of oil water sand rice ink butter money curry petrol a lot of positive statements, negative statements, questions. some positive statements, questions.
any negative statements, questions plenty of
Collective Nouns 集合名词 Used to refer to people, animals or things as a unit.
People
1. a band of musicians 一群音乐家 9. a patrol of policemen 一队警员 2. a choir of singers 一队歌手 10. an army of soldiers 一队士兵 3. a class of pupils 一班学生 11. a staff of servants 一班雇员 4. a caravan of gypsies 一群吉卜塞人 12. a team of players 一队运动员 5. a batch of students 一批学员 13. a tribe of natives 一族土著 6. a gang of prisoners 一群犯人 14. a troupe of artistes 一群艺人 7. a crew of sailors 一群水手 15. a panel of judges 一组裁判 8. a crowd of people 一群人 16. a party of friends 一群朋友
Animal
1. an army of ants 一群蚂蚁 11. a plague of locusts 一群蝗虫 2. a brood of chickens 一窝小鸡 12. parliament of owls 一群猫头鹰 3. a cloud of flies 一群苍蝇 13. a shoal of fish 一群鱼 4. a nest of mice 一窝老鼠 14. a smack of jellyfish 一群水母 5. a gaggle of geese 一群鹅 15. a team of oxen 一群公牛 6. a flight of swallows 一群燕子 16. a swarm of bees 一群蜜蜂
7. a flock of birds 一群鸟 17. a pack of wolves 一群狼 8. a troop of monkeys 一群猴子 18. a pride of lions 一群狮子 9. a litter of kittens 一窝小猫
a litter of puppies 一窝小狗 19. a flock of birds 一群小鸟 a flock of sheep 一群绵羊 10.a school of dolphins 一群海豚
a school of whales 一群鲸鱼
20. a herd of buffaloes 一群水牛 a herd of elephants 一群大象
Things / Plants
1. a string of pearls 一串珍珠 11. a garland of flowers 一环花朵 2. a bale of cotton 一大包棉花 12. a layer of dirt 一层污垢
3. a bowl of rice 一碗饭 13. a queue of vehicles 一列车辆 4. a bunch of keys 一串钥匙 14. a pack of cards 一副纸牌 5. a cluster of coconuts 一嘟噜椰子 15. a bouquet of flowers 一束鲜花 6. a column of smoke 一缕烟 16. a tuft of grass 一丛草
7. a bundle of sticks 一捆柴枝 17. a wad of currency 一叠纸币 8. a suit of clothes 一套衣服 18. a cloud of dust 一团尘雾 9. a clutch of eggs 一窝蛋 19. a comb of bananas 一把香蕉 10.a crate of fruits 一箱水果 20. a set of tools 一套工具
Singular and Plural Nouns 单数和复数名词 A singular noun 1 person, animal, place or thing.
A plural noun more than 1 person, animal, place or thing. 2) The letter ‘s’ is usually added to form a plural noun.
a) fruit – fruits b) girl – girls c) lamp – lamps d) song – songs
3) For nouns which end with ‘s’, ‘x’, ‘sh’ and ‘ch’, the plural is formed by adding ‘es’. a) class – classes
b) box – boxes c) dish – dishes d) match – matches
4) For a noun which ends with ‘y’ preceded by a consonant, the letter ‘y’ is changed into ‘ies’ to form the plural.
a) activity – activities b) berry – berries c) lorry – lorries d) puppy - puppies
5) For a noun which ends with ‘y’ preceded by a vowel (ay, ey, oy, uy), the letter ‘s’ is added to form the plural.
a) boy – boys b) day – days c) key – keys d) guy - guys
6) For a noun which ends with the letter ‘o’ preceded by a vowel, the letter ‘s’ is added to form the plural.
a) radio – radios b) studio – studios c) bamboo – bamboos d) piano – pianos e) zoo – zoos
7) For a noun which ends with the letter ‘o’ preceded by a consonant, ‘s’ or ‘es’ is added to form the plural.
a) photo – photos b) potato – potatoes c) hero – heroes
8) For a noun which ends with the letter ‘f’ or ‘fe’, the plural form is made by either adding the letter ‘s’ or by changing ‘f’/ ‘fe’ to ‘ves’.
a) leaf – leaves b) knife – knives c) half – halves d) thief - thieves e) roof - roofs f) safe – safes g) chef - chefs
9) Some nouns are called irregular as their plural form is spelt very differently from the singular form.
a) ox – oxen b) child – children c) foot – feet d) tooth – teeth e) goose – geese f) mouse – mice g) man – men h) woman – women
10)A few irregular nouns maintain the same spelling and pronunciation for both singular and plural forms.
a) deer – deer b) sheep – sheep c) salmon – salmon d) furniture – furniture
11) Some nouns occur only in the plural form:
binoculars, glasses, scissors, spectacles, pants, pyjamas, shorts, tights, trousers, clothes, stairs, goods
12)Some nouns have no plural: news, work, homework, rubbish
Singular Plural First Second Third I You He / She / It We You They
Subject of the verb Object of the verb
Singula r
I like to play badminton. You are late.
He is an engineer. She is an only child. It is a Persian cat.
My parents took me out. I called you last night. The teacher scolded him. They found her in the room. The car knocked it down. Plural We visited the museum.
They won the singing competition. They are waiting for us.The teacher praised them.
Personal Pronouns Possessive Adjectives Possessive Pronouns Reflexive Pronouns I You He She It We They my your his her its our their mine yours his hers its ours theirs myself yourself himself herself itself ourselves themselves This is my bag.
This is your book. This is his pen. This is her pencil. This is its kennel. That is our house. These are their chairs.
The bag is mine. The book is yours. The pen is his. The pencil is hers. The kennel is its. The house is ours. The chairs are theirs.
I paint the picture myself. You have to do it yourself. He writes the poem himself. She cut the fruit herself. The dog scratched itself. We saw it ourselves. They helped themselves.
Adjectives
形容词
Comparison of Adjectives (Regular)Positive 原级 Comparative 比较级 Superlative 最高级
1 big 大 bigger than the biggest
2 brave 勇敢 braver than the bravest
4 busy 忙碌 busier than the busiest
5 cheap 便宜 cheaper than the cheapest
6 clean 清洁 cleaner than the cleanest
7 clear 清晰 clearer than the clearest
8 clever 聪明 cleverer than the cleverest
9 cold 冷 colder than the coldest
1 0
cool 凉快 cooler than the coolest
11 cruel 残忍 crueler than the cruelest
1 2
dark 黑暗 darker than the darkest
1 3
deep 深 deeper than the deepest
1 4
dirty 肮脏 dirtier than the dirtiest
1 5
fat 胖 fatter than the fattest
1 6
friend 友善 friendlier than the friendliest 1
7
great 美妙的 greater than the greatest
1 8
happy 快乐 happier than the happiest
1 9
hard 硬 harder than the hardest
2 0
healthy 健康 healthier than the healthiest 2
1
heavy 重 heavier than the heaviest
2 2
high 高 higher than the highest
2 3
hot 热 hotter than the hottest
2 4
large 大 larger than the largest
2 5
lazy 懒惰 lazier than the laziest
2 6
light 轻 lighter than the lightest
2 7
long 长 longer than the longest
2 8
low 低 lower than the lowest
2 9
near 靠近 nearer than the nearest
3 0
neat 整洁 neater than the neatest
3 1
nice 美好 nicer than the nicest
3 2
3 3
pretty 漂亮 prettier than the prettiest
3 4
poor 穷 poorer than the poorest
3 5
quiet 安静 quieter than the quietest
3 6
rich 富有 richer than the richest
3 7
strong 强壮 stronger than the strongest 3
8
tall 高 taller than the tallest
3 9
thick 厚 thicker than the thickest
4 0
thin 薄/瘦 thinner than the thinnest
4 1
weak 弱 weaker than the weakest
4 2
warm 温 warmer than the warmest
4 3
wise 聪明 wiser than the wisest
4 4
young 年轻 younger than the youngest Comparison of Adjectives (By adding ‘more’ and ‘most’)
Positive 原级 Comparative 比较级 Superlative 最高级
1 beautiful 美丽 more beautiful most beautiful
2 careful 小心 more careful most careful
3 comfortable 舒适 more comfortable most comfortable
4 dangerous 危险 more dangerous most dangerous
5 difficult 困难 more difficult most difficult
6 exciting 兴奋 more exciting most exciting
7 expensive 昂贵 more expensive most expensive
8 famous 著名 more famous most famous
9 helpful 有帮助的 more helpful most helpful
1 0
intelligent 有智慧的 more intelligent most intelligent
11 joyful 快乐的 more joyful most joyful
1 2
obedient 听话的 more obedient most obedient
1 3
peaceful 和平的 more peaceful most peaceful
Comparison of Adjective (Irregular)
Positive 原级 Comparative 比较级 Superlative 最高级
bad 坏 worse worst
little 少 less least
many 许多 more most
much 许多/大量 more most
far 遥远 further/farther furthest/farthest
There is no comparison for positive
The comparative is used to compare two things
The superlative is used to compare three or more things
The suffixes ‘-er’ and ‘-est’ are added to the positive adjectives to form most comparatives and superlatives. However, ‘-ier’ and ‘-iest’ are needed when a two-syllable adjective ends in ‘y’.
When an adjective of one syllable ends in a single consonant, double the consonant for the comparative and superlatives forms. However, letters ‘-w’ and ‘-x’ are not doubled.
Conjunctions
连词
Conjunction
Usage Example
and To join two sentences with the same or similar ideas
- Sandy likes singing. - Sandy likes dancing.
Sandy likes singing and dancing. but To join two sentences with
different ideas
- I want to go Singapore by bus. - He insists on taking the plane.
I want to go Singapore by bus but he insists on taking the plane.
because To give reason - Danny was punished.
- He did not do his homework.
Danny was punished because he did not do his homework.
so To show cause and effect - The children are tired. - They go to bed early.
The children are tired so they go to bed early.
or To show a choice or possibility can be made
- Would you prefer tea? - Would you prefer coffee?
Would you prefer tea or coffee? if To show a condition - You work harder.
- You will pass your examination.
examination. although To show contrast
(beginning / middle)
- It is raining heavily.
- They continue with the climb.
Although it is raining heavily, they continue with the climb.
- Nobody wants to live in that mansion. - It is beautiful.
Nobody wants to live in that mansion although it is beautiful.
Wh-question Words
疑问句用词
Wh-question Word Usage Example Who
To ask about people Who are you? Who is the man? Who is your mother? Who is your best friend? What
To ask about things or something
general.
What is this?
What is in your bag? What are they doing? What does he want?
What did you do yesterday? Which
Choices between a few possibilities (people, things / places)
Which is your pen? Which is the capital? Which book is better? Which shirt should I wear? Why
To ask the reason for something
Why are you here? Why is the bag wet? Why is he going out?
Why do you want to be a singer? Whose
To ask about who the owner of something is / belong to
(possessives)
Whose pencil is this? Whose ruler is this? Whose car is that? Whose books are these?
Where
To ask about places Where are you? Where is the ruler? Where do you live? Where is the car key? When
To ask about the time something happens
When is your brother’s birthday? When are we going home? When did you come?
When will you leave? How
To ask about the way how something is done / quality, quantity
How are you? How was your trip?
How do you cook the fish? How do you get to London? * 7 W, 1 H used to ask questions.
Verbs ‘to be’, ‘to have’ and ‘to do’
动词
Verb Present Tense Past Tense Example
to be is
am was
He is the head prefect. I am a boy.
She was in Langkawi yesterday.
are were These boys are my nephews.We were there last month.
to have has
have had
She has a yellow raincoat. You have a dictionary.
He had a football practice yesterday.
to do does
do did
She does the housework every day. We do our work quietly.
They did their homework just now.
Subject-Verb Agreement
主语与动词一致
The verb must agree with its subject. If the subject is singular, the verb must be singular. If the subject is plural, the verb must be plural as well.
Singular Plural
The pupil sings during the music class. The pupils sing during the music class. He / She prepares some food for
supper.
They prepare some food for supper. The child runs around in the field. The children run around in the field. The dog does not like its new owner. The dogs do not like their new owner. The backpacker has no place to sleep
tonight.
The backpackers have no place to sleep tonight.
Singular Plural is has does are have do
Simple Present Tense 现在时式
1) Facts, things that are always or generally true.
The sky is blue.
The moon is round.
A hen lays eggs.
A dog has four legs.
The sun rises in the east.
Tropical fish are beautiful.
Water boils at 100 degrees.
Plants die without water.
My birthday is in September.
2) For situations that are (more / less) permanent.
I live in Malaysia.
She likes drawing.
They love coffee.
My father works in a bank.
She has three children.
The boy studies in SJK(C) Kundang.
3) Things that we do regularly / often à routines, habits.
(every day, once a week, twice a month, every Sunday, four times a year) (always, often, usually, sometimes, rarely, never)
I go to school by car.
He always wakes up at 6 a.m.
Mei Ling often listens to music.
Carol brushes her teeth twice a day.
I drink a cup of coffee every morning. 4) Short actions.
He looks at his watch.
She opens the door.
5) Imperatives à statements / order
Do not litter!
Keep off the grass!
Do not feed the animals.
Go to your bedroom now.
6) We also use it to talk about the future after words like ‘ when’, ‘ until’, ‘ after’, ‘ before’, ‘as soon as’ in a future sentence.
I will call you when I have time.
I won't go out until it stops raining.
She'll come as soon as her babysitter arrives.
I'm going to make dinner after I watch the news.
I'll give you the book before you go.
***Spelling: In general, for single subject we add ‘s’ in the verb. However...
a) For verbs that end in -o, -ch, -sh, -ss, -x, or -z we add -es. o go – goes o catch – catches o wash – washes o kiss – kisses o fix – fixes o buzz – buzzes
b) For verbs that end in a consonant + y, we remove the y and add -ies. o marry – marries
o study – studies o carry – carries o worry – worries
c) For verbs that end in a vowel + y, we just add -s. o play – plays
o enjoy – enjoys o say – says
Present Continuous Tense 现在进行时式
1) Used to show something which is happening now. a. I am cutting the grass now.
c. We are waiting for him at the bus stop. 2) Used to express the future.
a. I am going camping next week. b. She is going for a holiday soon. c. We are going to China tomorrow.
3) Used to express developing and changing situations.
a. The wind is getting stronger and the temperature is dropping faster. b. More people are buying organic products nowadays.
***Spelling: Verbs when adding -ing.
a) Consonant after a short, stressed vowel at the end of the word.
Double the consonant: sit – he is sitting
put – he is putting
travel – they are travelling
If the consonant is not stressed, we do not double it: benefit - benefiting (we stress the first 'e', not the 'i'.) b) One -e at the end of the word
Leave out the –e: write – he is writing take – he is taking
BUT double –e add –ing: see – he is seeing c) Verbs ending in –ie
Change 'ie' to 'y': lie - he is lying d) Verbs ending in –c
Change 'c' to 'ck': picnic - he is picnicking Simple Past Tense 过去时式
1) Something has happened in the past (specific time) and has finished.
I took her home just now.
They were at his birthday party last night.
The cleaned the house last weekend.
He knew the answer yesterday. 2) Telling stories or past events.
Once upon a time, a lord lived in the castle.
There was an ugly witch living in the middle of the forest.
In the past, the knights travelled on strong horses. 3) Indicate a time in the past.
I lived in Johor in 1994. 4) Express habit in the pass.
I collected stamps when I was a child.
*** Spelling: Verbs in the Past Simple Tense Regular Verb
-d, -ed, -ied Irregular Verb remaining sameVerb live à lived want à wanted carry à carried stop à stopped plan à planned panic à panicked sell à sold drink à drank buy à bought cut à cut put à put let à let
Positive and Negative Statements
肯定句和否定句
Positive statement in the Present TenseI You
We They
go
to the town’s library on weekends.
He She
It
goes
Negative statement in the Present Tense I
You We They
do not go
to the town’s library on weekends.
He She
It
does not go
Positive statement in the Past Tense
You We They He She It
Negative statement in the Past Tense I You We They He She It
did not go to the zoo last Saturday.
Prepositions of Time
Prepositions Use in month year season part of the day (morning, afternoon, evening)
duration at
specific time of day (noon, midnight)
part of the day (night)
celebrations on
days of the week
dates
special days
after something will happen later by a deadline in the future
Prepositions Examples
in
- My birthday is in December. - Jenny was born in 1990.
- Tom wakes up early in the morning. - Mr Siew will be here in three minutes. - The van will be here in ten minutes.
at - Lunch is at noon. - Dinner is at 6 o’clock. - Tuition is at 2.30 p.m.
on -- Ali is going to Ipoh on Friday.I am going to visit my grandmother on Saturday. - My birthday is on the 25th of June.
- We are going to the party on my birthday. after - I will see you after school.
- After the holidays, I will start studying French.
by - I expect rain by noon.
- I want to have those papers by Friday. during
