Prepositional verbs
We often use verbs and prepositions together. Usually this results in a “prepositional verb”. Some prepositional verbs are: • To agree withExamples:o I agree with everything they sayo They usually agree with each other...
Graham's Grammar Posts
The “person” of a verb
The person of a verb depends on its subject. There are six persons: three singular and three plural. In many languages, verbs ‘conjugate’ or make an ‘inflection’ according to the person. In modern English...
Everything but the kitchen sink
The idiom “everything but the kitchen sink” means “almost everything”. To help understand the phrase, imagine you are moving home. You want to take everything with you, but some things are fixed and can’t...
To bowl over
“To bowl over” is a phrasal verb with two main meanings. The first meaning of “to bowl over” is to knock someone or something to the ground. Examples: Because she wasn’t looking where she...
Compound nouns
We form compound nouns by joining together two words. Sometimes we keep these words separate. Examples: coffee cup fairy tale washing machine Sometimes we hyphenate them (join them together by a hyphen). Examples:...
Countable and uncountable nouns
Nouns can be either countable or uncountable. Countable nouns can be: preceded by a (a dog), both singular and plural (dog, dogs) counted (one dog, two dogs, three dogs, thirty dogs). Examples: programme case...
Possessive nouns
The possessive (or “genitive”) case of regular singular nouns is formed by adding –‘s (an apostrophe followed by an s). Examples: Jim’s (as in Jim’s foot) Mum’s (as in Mum’s car) horse’s (as in...
Well-heeled
“Well-heeled” is an idiom that is used to describe someone who has plenty of money. It probably originates from the idea that only someone with enough money could afford to have their shoes repaired...
What does “literally” mean?
Some people get very angry when they hear or read the word “literally” used in a way that they think is wrong. So, let’s try to understand what it means and how it should...
To earn your keep
The idiom “to earn your keep” means to work in return for food and somewhere to live. It comes from the times when workers, usually on farms, were often given food and accommodation instead...