GRAMMAR
USED TO
FORMACIÓN
"Used to" se puede traducir por "acostumbraba" o "solía". Su formación actual es la siguiente:
1. Afirmativa: Sujeto + used to + verbo en infinitivo + complementos
She used to drink tea.
2. Negativa: Sujeto + didn't + use to + verbo en infinitivo + complementos
She didn't use to drink tea.
3. Interrogativa: Did + sujeto + use to + verbo en infinitivo + complementos?
Did he use to drink tea?
What did you use to watch on TV when you were a child?
Affirmative I used to watch “Charlie Brown”.
Interrogative Did you use to play “Hide and seek”?
Yes, I did. No, I didn’t.
Negative I didn’t use to play hide and seek
When you want to describe activities that occurred in the past and no longer exist, you can use “used to” or the simple
past.
Additional examples:
What games did you use to play when you were a child?
I used to play “Hide and seek”. Or I played “Hide and Seek”.
And did you use to play “TAG”?
No, I didn’t. I used to play “Jacks”. Or I played “Jacks
I I
You You
He He
Sh used to Sh didn’t use to
e swim e swim
It It
We We
They They
Re-write the sentences below using “used to”.
1. Last month, I rode my bicycle to school. Now, I don’t ride my bicycle to school.
2. ____________________________________________________________________.
2. Ten years ago, I studied Japanese. Now, I don’t study Japanese.
4. ____________________________________________________________________.
3. Before, I didn’t do exercise. Now, I do exercise.
6. ____________________________________________________________________.
4. Last year, my classmate didn’t study hard. Now, he studies hard.
8. ____________________________________________________________________.
5. A long time ago, people didn’t have electricity. Now, people have electricity.
10. ____________________________________________________________________.
6. When I was young, I was lazy. Now, I’m not lazy.
12. ____________________________________________________________________.
7. A long time ago, people didn’t have TV. Now, people have TV.
14. ____________________________________________________________________.
8. When Sarah was younger, she was short. Now, Sarah is tall.
14. ____________________________________________________________________.
Complete the sentences with appropriate forms of “used to” and the verbs in parentheses. Use negatives when
necessary.
1. Did you _________________ (watch) “The Little RASCALS” when you were a kid?
2. Where did you ________________(play) as a child?
3. I ________________ (walk) my dog when I was in secondary school.
4. My Mom and Dad ___________________ (take) me to the children’s park when I was five.
5. I _______________________ (play/not) hopscotch with the kids on my block, but I _______________ (play) hide and
seek.
6. My friends _______________________________ (compete/not) with me playing the top, but they like to compete
nowadays.
Choose a correct answer for these questions.
1. What did you use to play when you were a child?
I listened to rock music.
I used to watch “Lost in space”.
I played Jacks.
2. I ______________ with Barbies. It was fun.
used to play.
use to play
didn´t use to play.
3. Where did you use to go on your summer vacation?
We didn’t go somewhere.
We didn’t go any where.
We always went to Arizona. It was exciting
4. _______________ your friends _______________ play hopscotch with you?
Do …………. used to
Did ………… use to
Did ………… used to
5. What did you do yesterday?
I done my homework, I played tennis and I watched the news.
I did my homework, I played tennis and I watched the news.
I do my homework, I played tennis and I watched the news.
Write in another way. Include “used to” in your new sentences (Pay close attention to the words in bold face).
Example:
Mirna played with her Barbie dolls when she was a child.
Mirna used to play with her dolls when she was a child.
Did you really like “The Beatles” when you were little?
Did you really use to like “The Beatles” when you were little?
1. What games did you play as a child?
______________________________________________________________________
2. I always watched “Lost in space” when I was a kid.
______________________________________________________________________
3. Did you have a dog or a cat in your childhood?
______________________________________________________________________
4. My parents always took me to school in my childhood.
______________________________________________________________________
5. What kind of things did you do after school as a child?
______________________________________________________________________
6. My cousins lived about two blocks from our house.
______________________________________________________________________
7. Did you have a lot of friends in your childhood?
_____________________________________________________________________
8. We always went to Arizona on our summer vacation.
______________________________________________________________________
9. Where did you live when you were a child?
______________________________________________________________________
10. I didn’t like to do my homework when I was in primary school.
______________________________________________________________________
Use your imagination and write about what people “used to” do before these inventions.
1. televisions (1926)
2. ____________________________________________________________________.
2. electric lights (1879)
4. ____________________________________________________________________.
3. alarm clocks (1847)
6. ____________________________________________________________________.
4. cameras (1814)
8. ____________________________________________________________________.
5. telescopes (1608)
10. ____________________________________________________________________.
6. guns (about 1,000 years ago)
12. ____________________________________________________________________.
7. written words (about 5,000 years ago)
14. ____________________________________________________________________.
8. farming (about 10,000 years ago)
14. ____________________________________________________________________.
PAST CONTINUOUS
the simple past is used to express a past action that has now finished.
Example: The teacher left two hours ago.
The time expressions that are used with the simple past are for example: last year, last month, five days ago, yesterday,
in 1990.
The past continuous expresses a past activity that has duration.
Example: I met my girlfriend while I was studying secondary school.
With the past continuous, the exact moment in time is always clear: at one o´ clock in the afternoon, at midnight, during
recess.
The past continuous expresses an activity in progress before, and probably after, a time in the past.
Example: It was raining when I woke up this morning.
The past continuous of any verb is composed of two parts:
1. The past tense of the verb to be (was /were)
2. The base of the main verb + ing.
Affirmative
Subject Verb to be (past) Base form verb + ing complement
You, we, they were singing.
I, he, she, it was dancing.
Negative
Subject Verb to be (past) Base form verb + ing complement
You, we, they were not = weren’t singing.
I, he, she, it was not= wasn’t dancing.
Interrogative
Verb to be Subject Base form verb + ing complement?
Were You, we, they singing?
Was I, he, she, it dancing?
Past continuous
Interrupted actions in the past
We use the past continuous to indicate that an action was in progress in the past and was interrupted. Sometimes a
continuous past event (such as running, reading, eating, talking, dancing, sleeping, jumping, etc.) is interrupted by a
momentary event. In these cases, we use the past continuous for the continuous event and the simple past for the
momentary event.
Examples: The childen were playing.
The mother was sleeping.
We also use the past continuous to describe several actions in progress at the same time in the past, usually to set a
scene.
Past continuous form
When and While
When introduces a second action. The second action interrupted the ongoing action.
Use the simple past with the when clause and the past continuous for the ongoing action.
You use while and the past continuous with two actions in the same sentence to express the idea that both actions were
happening at the same time. The actions are parallel.
Examples:
The children were marching while the boy was selling snacks.
The baby was sleeping when the telephone rang.
John was jumping the rope when he fell and broke his leg.
Tell a specific time in the past when you were doing these things. Write it down.
Example: study - I was studying at 10: 00 last night.
1.Sleep: _____________________________________________________
2.Study: _____________________________________________________
3.Watch television: _____________________________________________
4.Walk to school: ______________________________________________
5. Eat breakfast: _______________________________________________
Fill in the blanks below to complete the sentences. Use the words was/were wasn´t / weren´t .
1. A: ___________ they watching TV at midnight? B: No, they ___________.
2. We ___________ eating lunch in the cafeteria at noon.
3. A: ___________ you talking on the phone a few minutes ago? B: No, I __________.
4. I ___________ walking home when I saw the car accident.
5. My classmate and I ___________ studying together at the library.
6. While he ___________ cleaning the house, we ___________ cooking.
7. A: What ___________ you doing at one o’clock? B: I ___________ sleeping.
8. The car engine ___________ working, so I had to fix it.
9. A: ___________ you listening to the teacher? B: Yes, I ___________.
10. At seven o’clock, Mr. Smith ___________ robbing the bank.
11. Steven ___________ doing his homework, he was playing with his friends.
12. It ___________ raining last night, so I took my umbrella.
13. Anne ___________ studying in London last year.
14. I ___________ working as a teacher when I first met your mother.
15. We ___________ swimming while you ___________ playing volleyball.
Write the verbs into the past continuous or simple past.
1.A: What ______________ (you/do) when the phone _______ (ring)?
B: I ______________ (watch) television.
2.A: Where __________ (you / be) when the teacher ________ (come)?
B: I ____________ (buy) some water to drink.
3. A: Why ___________ (you / ride ) your bicycle so fast?
B: Because I ________ (have) to take the letters to my uncle.
4. A: What _______________ (your father / do) when your mother _______ (fall)
B: He _____________ (visit) my grandparents.
5.A: Where ___________ (you/ be) while your friends ______________ (organize)
the competition?
B: I ___________________ (buy) the snacks for the school party.
Write when or while accordingly.
1.My friend was singing ________ the electricity went off.
2.Last night I was cleaning my room _________ my sister was studying.
3. It was raining very heavily ___________ my classes finished.
4. My brother was swimming in the river _______ he saw a big fish.
5. Many people were dancing in the church ________ the fireworks were starting.
1. Katy __________ over while she __________ along the street.
was falling / was running
fell / was running
was falling / ran
fell / run
2. He __________ his phone while he __________ in the library.
lost / studied
was losing / was studying
lost / was studying
was losing / studied
3. I __________ up the meaning of the word when my teacher __________ me the answer.
was looking / was telling
looked / was telling
was looking / told
looked / told
4. Scientists __________experiments while they __________ at university.
were doing / was studying
were doing / were studying
did / were studied
were did / were studying
5. I __________ my phone because it __________.
didn’t take / was charging
took / were charging
was taking / was charged
wasn’t take / was charged
6. My father __________ for me about twenty minutes because I __________ a shower.
waited / was have
was waiting / was having
waits / was having
waited / was had
7. The driver __________ the dog because he __________ at his phone.
didn’t see / was looking
wasn’t seeing / looked
wasn’t saw / wasn’t looking
saw / didn’t looking
8. The washing machine __________ noisy so I __________ it.
worked / was stopping
was worked / was stopped
was working / was stopping
was working / stopped
9. It __________ while the children __________ in the garden.
snowed / played
was snowing / played
was snowing / were playing
snowed / was playing.
10. Where __________ they __________ when you __________ them?
were / going / saw
did / go / saw
did / going / was seeing
did / go / was seeing
RELATIVOS EN INGLÉS
1. WHO (que ,quien, quienes) - Lo utilizamos para referirnos a personas.
Ej: The boy, who you met yesterday, is my brother.
2. WHICH (que, el que, la que...) - Lo utilizamos para referirnos a animales, cosas u objetos.
Ej: The car, which you bought yesterday, is really nice.
3. THAT (que, el que, la que...) - Lo utilizamos para referirnos a personas, animales y cosas. Hay una regla en inglés
que dice que no se puede utilizar "that" después de coma. Por tanto, no podemos utilizar este relativo en oraciones
NON - DEFINING que son aquellas oraciones en las que la oración de relativo va entre comas.
4. WHAT (lo que) - Utilizamos "what" con este sentido cuando es pronombre relativo, y no interrogativo.
Ej: What you say is false! ///// I don't understand what you say.
5. WHERE (donde) - Indica lugar.
Ej: This is the house where I live.
6. WHEN (cuando) - Indica tiempo.
Ej: Yesterday, when you called me, was special for me.
7. WHOSE (cuyo, a, os, as) - Indica posesión.
Ej: Maria, whose father is a doctor, is my cousin.
8. WHY (el porque) - Para argumentar una razón de porque se hace algo.
Ej: I don't understand why she got angry yesterday.
NON - DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES
En español se corresponden con las oraciones subordinadas adjetivas explicativas. Vamos a analizar las características
de este tipo de oraciones para que puedas reconocerlas:
1. La oración de relativo (non - defining) va entre comas. Por ejemplo:
Ejemplo: Felipe VI, who is the king of Spain, is a very tall man.
2. En las oraciones non - defining el relativo es obligatorio y nunca se omite.
3. En las oraciones non - defining se pueden utilizar todos los relativos excepto el relativo THAT, que no puede
utilizarse en oraciones explicativas como las non - defining. Por tanto, si el antecedente (la palabra previa al relativo)
se refiere a una persona utilizarás WHO, y en el resto de casos WHICH (para animales o cosas).
Ejemplo: The boy, who you saw yesterday, is my friend.
Ejemplo: The car, which you bought last week, is really nice.
DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES
Las oraciones de relativo defining no van entre comas. Hay dos tipos, aquellas en las que se puede omitir el relativo y
aquellas en las que no.
NO SE OMITE: cuando la palabra que aparece después del relativo es un verbo, el relativo no se omite.
Ejemplo: He is the boy who broke the window.
SE OMITE: los tres relativos que puede omitirse son WHO, WHICH y THAT. Cuando después del relativo aparece, un
pronombre personal, un sustantivo común o propio, el relativo en inglés se omite.
Ejemplo: He is the boy (who) you saw last week. / En este ejemplo, podríamos omitir el relativo who.
NOTA: el resto de relativos (todos menos who, which y that) no se omiten.
1. Children ________eat a lot of candy often get bad teeth.
which
who
where
whose
2. Here is the newspaper ______ is in my room.
which
where
who
whose
3. The book _______ you gave me is great.
that
who
whose
when
4. This is the town __________ I was born.
who
that
which
where
5. I sent all the letters _______ you gave me.
where
who
that
whose
6. The boy __________ father is a doctor often visits me.
that
where
who
whose
7. My uncle ________ is a teacher has got three children.
whose
where
which
who
8. This is the school ___________ I learned English.
that
who
where
which
9. My sister _______ lives in Istanbul is going to visit us.
where
that
whose
which
10. That pencil____________ is on your desk belongs to me.
which
where
who
whose
Phrasal verbs
A phrasal verb is a verb combined with an adverb or a preposition, or sometimes both, to give a new meaning.
For example: get on
Peter, get on the bus, please. Peter needs to take the bus, because he is leaving.
Peter gets on well with his father. Peter has a nice relationship with his father.
Phrasal verb Preposition Example Meaning
run away from Mary always runs away from John.
Mary doesn’t want to meet John; she leaves quickly when she sees him.
An adverb is a word that adds more information about place, time, manner, cause or degree to a verb, an adjective, a
phrase or another adverb.
Sometimes a phrasal verb is followed by a preposition.
Sometimes the phrasal verb has an object. Usually there are two positions for the object. You can say:
Phrasal verb: turn on; Object: the computer
But, if the object is a pronoun (me, you, him, her, etc.), there is only one possible position for the phrasal verb.
Phrasal verb: turn on; Object: it (instead of the computer)
She turned on the computer. She turned the computer on.
She turned it on.
There are some phrasal verbs with a particular meaning. See the next chart
1 Clean up /tidy up Make something clean. The children have to clean up their
room.
2 Break into (something) To enter a building by force. The robbers broke into my house last
year.
3 Break up (with somebody) Stop the relationship. Pamela is very sad because she broke up
with her boyfriend.
4 Drop in Visit somebody for a short time. My friends just dropped in after
school, yesterday.
5 Drop off (college, university,etc.) Stop before the university is finished. Peter wants to drop off his studies.
6 Fill in (a form, a questionnaire) Write the necessary information on a form. When I went to get my passport, I
had to fill in all the application forms.
7 Get out (of something you have arranged to) To avoid doing something. I want to get out of this work, but I can’t.
8 Give up Stop doing something. I don’t give up all my responsibilities.
9 Heat up Make hotter. The milk is cold, please,heat it up.
10 Look after Take care of somebody. My father has to look after us when my
mother is away.
11 Look for Search for something. I don’t know where my keys are. I have to look for them.
12 Looking forward Wait for an event with anticipation. I look forward to meeting my friends
from Canada.
13 Look out Be careful. It is raining! Look out, the floor is wet.
14 Look up Find the meaning in the dictionary. What’s the meaning of plane?Look it up
in a dictionary.
15 Wake up Stop sleeping. Don’t shout, please! Anita is sleeping and
she is going to wake up.
16 Put off Delay doing something. You have an exam tomorrow; don’t put
off your studies.
17 Run out Something that is finished. My car ran out of petrol, I need to buy
some.
18 See (somebody) off To say goodbye to somebody. We went to the airport to see the
children off.
19 Take after (somebody) To look like an older member of your family. You really took after your
mother. Your eyes are the same.
20 Try on Try some clothes. I like this blouse. I am going to try it on.
21 Turn down To reduce the amount of sound. The music is too loud, please turn
it down.
22 Turn off /switch off Stop the power from something. Henry, If you finish your homework, turn
the computer off.
23 Turn on Give power to something. Turn on the television; I want to listen to
the news.
24 Take ( it ) out Remove. Take the rubbish out of the basket and
put it outside,please.
25 Work out Do physical exercise Every day, my sister works out in the
gym.
Read the sentences and complete them with the corresponding phrasal verb from the box.
look after give up broke up heat up fill in try on
ran out take (it) out see (somebody) of turn off
turn down try them on turn the volume down
1. Don’t wait for me; I have to ______________________ my little sister.
2. I don’t know how to __________________________ this application.
3. My girlfriend doesn´t want to __________________ with her studies.
4. Beto has to ______________ the television before he goes to sleep.
5. I am very sad, I ____________________ with my best friend.
6. Sorry, I couldn’t come to the game, I ____________________ of time.
7. Our friends are leaving soon, we want to _____________ them _______.
8. We have to _________ the rubbish ________ of the classroom every day.
9. My mother is buying some shoes. She is going to _____________ them _____to check the size.
10. I love loud music, but my father usually asks me to ____________ the volume _____________.
That song has already _______ €7 million.
made out
made up
made
2. You can _______ words in a dictionary.
look after
look up
look up to
3. Sorry I'm late. My car _______ petrol.
ran out
ran out of
ran out on
4. Those bright yellow football boots really
stand up
stand down
stand out
5. Oh no! The building's lift has _______ again!
broken down
broken up
broken in
6. Our babysitter's really good at _______ our kids.
looking after
looking into
looking down on
7. The bus was nearly full so it was difficult to
get in
get on
get up
8. If the TV isn't loud enough, turn it _______ a little.
off
up
down
9. Our plane _______ thirty minutes late.
took off
took up
took out
10. Let's _______ that old box. We don't need it.
throw up
throw in
throw away
