Unit 1: Present continuous ( I am doing )

1- At the time of speaking. The action is not finished, I started doing it. I’m in
the middle of doing it.
Ex: Hoang is in his car. He is on his way to work. He’s driving to work
( now ).

2- The action isn’t happening at the time of speaking right now. ( plan to do sth
in the future or in the process of doing it )
Ex: I’m watching a TV series released every Friday. It’s fucking amazing.
I’m planning, building, learning, looking for abcxyzbcd...
I’m going to Hanoi this weekend. ( have an event in the future and it’s
planned ).

3- Today/ this week/ this year etc. ( periods around now )

Ex: You’re doing great this year.

4- A change has started to happen. ( get, become, start, begin, change, improve,
increase, rise, fall, grow,etc. )
Ex: He’s becoming popular.

5- Not used: like + want + need + prefer + mean etc. ( Stative verbs )
Ex: I’m liking going fishing (??)

Unit 2: Present simple ( I do )

1- Things in general / happens all the time ( permanent ) / repeatedly/ true.
Ex: Teachers teach, The sun rises in the east.
 2- How often we do ( Every, How often, often, two times a year
[ repeatedly ] ).
Ex: I usually try to pick myself up.

3- I do things by saying something. ( promise, suggest )

Ex: I promise I won’t hurt you anymore.

4- See + Hear + Smell + Taste + Look + Feel

Ex: The room smells as a shit. Let’s open a window.

The same:
1- Say how somebody looks or feels now:
Ex: How do you feel today? | How are you feeling today?
But: I usually feel tired in the morning ( not I’m usually feeling )

Difference:
1- Say how somebody is behaving now:
Ex: I can’t understand why he’s being so selfish. He isn’t usually like that.
( at that moment behaving selfishly )

Generally, not only now:

Ex: He’s very selfish.

** Sam is ill ( behavior cannot control ) – ( not Sam is being ill ).

2- Temporary situation ( continue for a short time )
Ex: I’m hanging out with my friends. I’ll come back soon.

Permanent situation ( continue for a long time )

Ex: After finishing all his works, he just hangs out with his friends.

3- Do it everytime ( Schedule ) – I always do:

Ex: I always go to school by my motorbike.

Too often, too much than usual, when we wanna complain about something (
Frequency + Negative ) - I’m always doing:
Ex: I’m always boring at learning English until I write this sentence. I
always study all day when I’m free. :DD

4- Think ( believe/ have an opinion ) – not use continuous | Think ( consider ) –

Go ahead 😉

Ex: I’m thinking about sharing money for my employees. I often think about
it.

Unit 5: I did
Unit 6: I was doing
1- Yesterday Hoang and 3 Season studied English. We started at 7 a.m and
finished at 11 a.m. So, at 10 a.m we were studying English.
|------------[------|-----]----------|---------
 Past was doing past now
2- I was in the middle of doing it at a certain time.
( have a signal of present continuous: 10 p.m last night, this time last
month/year )
Ex: I read the book, but she was listening to loud music. So suck!

3- Something happened ( I did ) in the middle of something else ( I was doing )

Ex: When Hoang arrived, we were having dinner ( we had already started
before he arrived ).
When Hoang arrived, we had dinner. ( Hoang arrived, and then we had
dinner ).

4- Just like present continuous, know + want + prefer, etc are not used
( Stative verbs )
Ex: I was enjoying the party, but Hoang wanted to go home ( not was
wanting )

Unit 7: I have done 1

1- Thuy get up late.
She has not gone to school on time
= She didn’t go to school on time and she can’t come inside now.

2- New or recent happenings:

Ex: Oh shoot! I’ve said the N-word in front of her.

3- Connect with now. The action in the past has a result NOW.
 Ex: I can’t find my girlfriend. Have you seen it? ( = do you know where she
is now? )
4- Gone ( to ) and Been ( to )
Ex: Hoang is on vacation. He has gone to Vietnam ( he is in VN now or on
his way there )
3 Season is back home now. They has been to my mouth ( he has now
come back )
*Been ( to ) = visited
I’ve been to Vietnam. Have you been there?

5- Just, already, yet

Ex: Just = a short time ago
Already = sooner than expected
Yet = until now, expect something to happen, ( ? and - )
- I’ve JUST had dinner. I can’t eat anything now.
- I’ve ALREADY vaccinated against disease this morning.
- Have you brushed your teeth YET? | I haven’t made out with her YET.

6- Also can use ( did, went, had, etc )

Ex: Hoang played games with his dudes. He’s gone out. | He went out.
Are you a virgin? No, I’ve just fucked with two girls | No I just fucked
with two girls.

Unit 8: I have done 2

1- Signal ( recently, in the last few days, so far, since I arrived, etc )
Ex: I really love that girl. I’ve tried to connect with her three times.
The weather is bad. It’s rained every day since I arrived.
2- Today, this evening, this year ( when these periods are not finished at the
time of speaking ) ( a period of time continues until now )
Ex: I’ve studied English this morning ( in the morning – OK, in the evening
– NOT )

3- “ It’s the first ( second, third => again ) time something has happened “
Ex: Don’s having a driving lesson.
- It’s the first time he has driven a car.
- He hasn’t driven a car before.

Unit 9: Present perfect continuous ( I have been doing )

1- The activity has recently stopped
Ex: - Is it raining?
- No, but the door is wet.
- It’s been raining.

2- ( How long, for, since, etc ): The activity is still happening from the past/ has
recently stopped
Ex: It began raining one hour ago and it is still raining...
- How long has it been raining?
- It’s been raining for one hour.

3- Repeated actions:
Ex: Hoang is a professional table tennis player. He’s been playing since he
was 16.
Difference: I am doing and I have been doing
(1) Hurry up! We’re waiting.
(2) We’ve been waiting for an hour.

Unit 10: I have been doing | I have done

Unit 11: How long have you ( been ) ... ?
1- Hoang and Thuong are married. They got married 20 years ago, so today is
their 20th wedding anniversary.
They have been married for 20 years.
 They are married. ( present )
 ( But ) How long have they been married?
( Not How long are they married? ) ( because they did it in the past
and still continues now )
 They have been married for 20 years.
( They are married for 20 years )

2- Example: Hoang is at home.

Hoang’s been at home since May.

3- When asking or saying “how long”, the continuous is more usual

Ex: I’ve been learning English since May.
How long have you been driving? “Since I was 17”.

4- Can use either the continuous or simple with live, work, study:
Ex: Hoang has been living ( has lived ) in this house for a long time.
 How long have you been working ( have you worked ) here?
( But ) We use simple ( have lived ) with always:
Ex: I’ve always lived in the country.
5- I haven’t ( done something ) since/for
Ex: I haven’t seen Tom since Monday.
Hoang hasn’t phoned for ages.

Unit 12: For and since | When and How long

1- For + a period of time:
Ex: We’ve been waiting for two hours.

2- Since + the start of a period:

Ex: We’ve been waiting since 8 o’clock.

3- Leave out for ( not usually in negative sentences )

Ex: They’ve been married ten years.
They haven’t had a holiday for ten years. ( we need for )

4- Not use for + all ... ( all day/ all my life, etc )
Ex: I’ve lived here all my life ( not for all my life )

5- When ( past simple ) | How long ( present perfect )

Ex: - When did it start raining?
It started raining an hour ago / at 1 o’clock.
How long has it been raining?
It’s been raining for an hour / since 1 o’clock.
 Ex: - When did Joe and Kate first meet?
They first met a long time ago / when they were at school.
How long have they known each other?
They’ve known each other for a long time / since they were at school.

6- It’s + [ FOR ] a long time ( six months, etc ) + since something happened
It’s been
Ex: - It’s two years since I last saw Joe
It’s been two years since I last saw Joe.
 I haven’t seen Joe for two years.
Ex: - How long is it since Mrs Hill died?
How long has it been since Mrs Hill died?
 When did she die?

Unit 13: Present perfect and past 1

1- Tom is looking for his key. He can’t find it.
He has lost his key. ( he doesn’t have his key now )

Ten minutes later:

Now Tom has found his key. He has it now.
Has he lost his key? No, he has found it.
Did he lose his key? Yes, he did.

2- Present perfect = Past simple => new/ recent happenings:

 Ex: I’ve repaired the washing machine. It’s working OK now.
I reparied the washing machine. It’s working OK now.

3- Not use past simple for things are not recent/ new:
Ex: My mother grew up in Vietnam.
=> Somebody has invented a new type of washing machine.
Who invented the telephone

4- Present perfect ( new/ recent ). But if we continue to talk about it, we use
past simple.
Ex: Look! Somebody has spilt something on the sofa.
Well, it wasn’t me. I didn’t do it.

Unit 14: Present perfect and past 2

1- Past simple to ask When...? or What time...?
Ex: When did your friends arrive?
What time did you finish the lunch?
=> Is Adam here or has he left?
When did Adam leave?
2- Textbook

Unit 15: Past perfect ( I had done )

1- Hoang and Hien went to the same party last week, but they didn’t see each
other. Hoang left the party at 10.30 and Hien arrived at 11.00
So when Hien arrived at the party. Hoang wasn’t there.( Hoang had gone
home ).

2- Compare present perfect and past perfect:

Ex: Who is that woman? I’ve seen her before, but I can’t remember where.
I wasn’t sure who she was. I’d seen her before, but I couldn’t remember
where.
Have seen=>
-------------------|-----------|------- -------------------------------------|------
Had seen=> past now past now

Unit 16: Past perfect continuous

1- Yesterday morning I got up and looked out of the window. The sun was
shining, but the ground was very wet.
It had been raining.
 It was not raining when I looked out of the window. The sun was shining.
But it had been raining before.

2- I can say that something had been happening before something else
happned:
Ex: We’d been playing tennis for about half an hour when it started to rain
heavily.

3- Compare have been -ing | had been -ing

 Ex:
I have been -ing=>
------------------------|-----------|------- ------------------------------|------
I had been -ing=> past now past now

4- Compare was –ing | had been –ing

Ex: Hoang was lying on the sofa. He was tired because he’d been working
hard.

Unit 17: Have | Have got

1- For possession, relationships, illnesses, appointments etc.
Ex: They have ( have got ) a new car.
Hoang has ( has got ) one sister.
I have ( have got ) a headache.
Our house has ( has got ) a small garden.
He has ( has got ) a few problems.
I have ( have got ) a driving lesson tomorrow.
 With these meanings, not use continuous forms
Ex: We’re having a great time in Paris. We’ve got a nice room in the hotel.

2- For the past, only had

Ex: Hoang had short hair when he was a child.

3- ? | -
 Ex: Do you have any questions? She doesn’t have a car.
Have you got any questions? She hasn’t got a car
Have you any questions? She hasn’t a car.

 In past ? | - we use did/ didn’t

Ex: Did you have a car when you were living in Paris
I didn’t have my have, so I couldn’t call you.
Hoang had long hair, didn’t he?

4- Use have ( not have got ) for things we do or experience. ( Textbook )

Ex: Sometimes I have a sandwich for my lunch.
I’ve got/ I have some sandwiches. Would you like one?

5- Can use continuous forms ( I’m having etc. ) with these expressions:
Ex: We’re enjoying our holiday. We’re having a great time.
Where’s Hoang? He’s having a shower.

6- ? | - We use do/does/did:
Ex: I don’t usually have a big breakfast.
Where does Hoang usually have lunch?
Did you have trouble finding somewhere to stay?
 Unit 91: Each and Every
1- Definition
Each:
- Things separately, one by one
Ex: Study each unit carefully.
( Study the units one by one )

- Small number:
Ex: There are four members in my family
Each member is fascinated.

Every:
- Things as a group, refer to “all”
Ex: Every girl in my class is cute.
( All the girls in my class is cute )

- Large number:
Ex: Hoang loves cooking. He has read every cooking book in the kitchen.
( all the cooking books )
2- Structure
Each:
- With or without a noun:
Ex: None of the boys are the same.
Each boy is different.
Each is different.
Each one is different.

- Each of ( the/ these, them, etc )

Ex: Each of the boys is a different style ( NOT each of boys )
Each of them is a different style.
Each of these boys is not good at Vietnamese.

Every:
- Just with a noun:
Ex: I’ve gotten every beautiful photo when I go with you.

- Every one of ( NOT every of )

Ex: I’ve cooked every one of those dishes.
I’ve cooked every one of them.

3- Each:
- In the middle of a sentence:
Ex: The students were each given a pencil
( Each student was given a pencil )
 - A dollar each, ten pounds each, etc:
Ex: These lemons are 10k dong each. ( each = for one lemon )

- Use for two things:

Ex: In ping pong, each team has highest 3 members. ( not every team )

Every:
- Everyone ( people, = everybody ) and every one ( things, people )
Ex: Everyone loved my song.
- She read a lot of books about Harry Potter so she knew every one. (
every information ).
- Have you read all these chapters?
Yes, every one.

- How often something happens:

Ex: How often do you study? Every day. ( not Each day )
There’s a train every one hour. ( not each one hour )

Unit 102: So and such

1- Structure
- So + adjective/ adverb:
Ex: He is so cool.

- Such + ( adjective ) + noun:

Ex: I didn’t like you. You’re such an idiot.
 Don’t hurt them. They’re such a nice people.

Such a...
Ex: Aww! Such a big dog.

2- Make the meaning stronger:

- So:
Ex: I’ve had a terrible day. I’m so tired. ( = really tired )
Ex: I was so tired that I didn’t know where I sleep last night. (so ... that )
Ex: I was so tired I didn’t know where I sleep last night. ( leave out that )

- Such:
Ex: We did lots of things last night. We had such a good time.
Ex: You’re such a good guy that I can believe in you. ( such... that )
Ex: You’re such a good guy I can believe in you.

3- “Like this”
- So:
Ex: I expect the weather to be cooler. I’m surprised it is soo warm ( as warm
as it is )

- Such:
Ex: I didn’t realise it was such a broken house.
Ex: You know it’s not true. How can you say such a thing? ( a thing like
this )
 Ex: You won’t find the word “bietch” in the dictionary. There’s no such
word. ( this word does not exist )

4- Compare:
- So long | Such a long time
- So far | Such a long way
- So much, so many | Such a lot ( of )

Unit 18: Used to ( do )

1- I did it often in the past, but not any more:
Ex: I used to watch porn movies a lot, but I change my habit now.

2- Things were true, but are not true any more:

Ex: I used to think 3 Mien was bad, but now it’s good and reasonable.

3- Just “ I used to”

Ex: I used to ... . But now I do ...
There used to be ... . But now there is ...

4- Did you use to ... ?

Ex: Did you use to sing a bolero song? ( = did you do this often? )

5- I didn’t use to | I used not to

Ex: I didn’t use to love her.
I used not to love her.
 6- I used to do | I was doing
Ex: I used to read book a lot. ( I read book a lot in the past, but I don’t do
this anymore )
I was reading a book ( I am reading book but in the past )

7- I used to do | I am used to doing

Ex: I used to read book a lot. ( I read book a lot in the past, but I don’t do
this anymore )
Ex: I am used to reading book a lot. ( I read book, and it’s not a problem for
me to read fast because I’ve read book a lot for some time )

Unit 103: Enough and Too

1- Enough
- After adjectives and adverbs:
Ex: Let’s go. We have waited long enough.

- Before nouns:
Ex: We have enough chairs. You don’t have to stand up.

- Alone:
Ex: We don’t need more health =)). We have enough.

2- Too and enough

- Too ... | Not ... enough
Ex: You never stop reading. Your knowledges are too deep.
( = more than is necessary )
 Ex: You’re lazy. Your knowledges are not deep enough.
( = less than is necessary )

- Too much/many | enough

Ex: There’s too much furniture in this room. There’s not enough space.
Ex: There were too many people and not enough chairs.

3- Enough/Too + for... | + to...

- Enough/Too ... for somebody/something:
Ex: Does Hoang have enough experience for the job?
This shirt isn’t big enough for you.
This shirt is too big for you.

- Enough/Too ... to do something:

Ex: Does Hoang have enough experience to do the job?
This shirt is not big enough to wear in.
This shirt is too big to wear in actually.

- For... and to...:

Ex: The shirt is big enough for you to wear in.

4- Too hot to eat etc.

Ex: The food was very hot. We couldn’t eat it.
The food was so hot that we couldn’t eat it.
The food was too hot to eat. ( not to eat it )
 Unit 114: In case
1- in case something happens = because it is possible it will happen
Ex: I’ll write down my password in case I forget it.
( = because it is possible I will forget it )
I’ll remind them about the class meeting in case they’ve forgotten.
( = because it is possible they have forgotten )

2- Just in case ( for a smaller possibility ):

Ex: I don’t think it will rain, but I’ll take an umbrella just in case. (= just in
case it rains )

3- Not use will after in case

Ex: I’ll write down my password in case I forget it
( not in case I will forget it )

4- In case and if are different.

If ( choices, yes or not )
In case to say why somebody does or doesn’t do something.
You do something now in case something happens later.
In case now, whether he comes or not.
Then we’ll already have the
We’ll buy some more food in
food if he comes )
case Tom comes.
If
( = Maybe Tom will come.
We’ll buy some more food
 We’ll buy some more food if ( = Maybe Tom will come. If
Tom comes. he comes, we’ll buy some more
food. If he doesn’t come, we
won’t buy any more food ).

5- in case + past to say why somebody did something:

Ex: We rang the doorbell again in case they hadn’t heard it the first time.

6- in case of = if there is... ( especially on notices, instructions, etc )

Ex: In case of fire, please call 114 = ( if there is a fire )

Unit 117: Like | As

1- Like
1/ similar to, the same as:
Ex: - What a beautiful house! It’s like a palace ( not as a palace )
- Be careful! The floor has been polished. It’s like walking on ice ( not
as walking )
- You should have done it like this ( not as this )
- What’s that noise? It sounds like a baby crying ( not as a baby crying )
 Like is a preposition. Followed by a noun | a pronoun | -ing

2/ for example. You can also use such as:

Ex: I enjoy using money, like VND, USD and EURO
I enjoy using money, such as VND ...

3/ Before S + V:
Ex: You should have done it as I showed you.
 4/ Like I said, Like I say ( ONLY ):
Ex: Like I said yesterday, I’m sure we can win this game.
2- As
1/ in the same way as, in the same condition as:
Ex: - I didn’t move anything. I put everything as it was.
- You should have done it as I showed you.
 Before S+ V

2/ Before S + V has other meanings:

Ex: You do as you like (= do what you like )
They did as they promised ( = They did what they promised )

3/ As usual/ as always:
Ex: You’re late as usual.
As always, Nick was the first to complain.

4/ The same as...

Ex: Your phone is the same as mine. ( not the same like )

5/ As you know/ As I said / As she expected/ As I thought etc:

Ex: - As I said yesterday, it’s Hoang’s birthday next week. ( = I said this
before )
- I never join the crew again, as you know ( = you know this already )
 6/ As can be prepostion ( as + noun ) ( in the position of, in the form of ),
meaning different from like:
Ex: As a teacher, I spend most Ex: Everyone in the family wants me
of my working life at school. to teach them English free. I’m like a
teacher.
( I’m a taxi driver, it’s my job )
( I’m not a teacher, but I’m like one )

More ex:
- London is fine as a place to visit, but I wouldn’t like to stay there.

Unit 46: Have (Get) something done

1- The roof of Hoang’s house was damaged. So he called a builder, and
yesterday he came and repaired it.
Hoang had the roof repaired yesterday.
This means: Hoang arranged for somebody else to repair the roof. He didn’t
repair it himself.

 You have something done, you arrange for somebody to do it for you.
More ex:
- Hoang repaired the roof. ( Hoang repaired it himself )
- Hoang had the roof repaired. ( = He arranged for somebody else to
repair it )
- I think you should have that coat cleaned.
- Where did you get your hair cut?
2- You have something done ( something happens to somebody or their
belongings )
Ex: - Hoang and Hien had their teddy bears stolen while they were going
out. ( JUST means “ Their teddy bears were stolen “ )
- Hoang had his nose broken in a fight. ( = his nose was broken )