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Denise Hoskin
denise.hoskin@courzal-academy.fr
ph 06 76 72 97 25

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Are you a learner at B1 (intermediate) or B2 (upper intermediate) English level? In this section, you can improve your grammar with our clear and simple grammar lessons.

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Are you a learner at B1 (intermediate) or B2 (upper intermediate) English level?

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Learn English with our free online listening, grammar, vocabulary and reading activities. Practise your English and get ready for your Cambridge English exam.

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When to use the present perfect or past simple tense in English.

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Rachel Charles
rachel.charles@courzal-academy.fr
ph 07 45 80 17 78

For a face to face lesson, cancellations must be done 48 working hours before the class.  For video lessons, cancellations must be done 24 hours before the class. In this case, the class will be rescheduled.  In all other cases, the class is lost and will be billed.

Please refer to your copy of the document "Information sur le report et/ou Annulation tardive d'une séance de formation langue" which you signed in the first lesson.

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Listening practice to help you understand the main points of clear, standard speech about everyday or job-related topics. Situations include phone calls, meetings and interviews.

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TOEIC® TEST PRO is designed to help you practice and improve your TOEIC® skills to well prepare for the exam. The app assists you in improving Online TOEIC® Test

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Test de positionnement: A2
Niveau aprés premier cours: A2

Objectifs: Prendre confiance à l’oral, augmenter le vocabulaire (quotidien) et se faire comprendre pour communiquer avec les étrangers (natifs et non-natifs) pour les déplacements professionnels à Hambourg (Allemagne) et Mobile (USA) et pour de futures opportunités de carrière chez Airbus.

Besoins: Vincent est très motivé pour perfectionner son anglais après avoir travaillé à Mobile et à Hambourg l'année dernière. Depuis ce temps, il a également fait beaucoup d'auto-apprentissage, mais il a besoin d'avoir une certaine structure (grammaire, vocabulaire)

Souhaite attendre le niveau: B1-

Oral Expression: A2
Listening Comprehension: A2
Reading Comprehension: A1+
Written Comprehension: A1+

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Prepositions - English Grammar Today - a reference to written and spoken English grammar and usage - Cambridge Dictionary

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TechDico - English-French technical dictionary and translation (and in 26 other languages)

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Technical dictionary with millions of translation categorised by field of work in English-French. Languages: English, French, Spanish, German, Portuguese, Italian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Russian, …

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Improve your grammar with 6 Minute Grammar - medium, our grammar series for medium level learners. On this page you'll find a range of medium level grammar programmes to boost your language skills. Each programme covers a key grammar point with all the explanations, examples and activities you need to become a medium grammar champion - in just 6 minutes. Grammar topics include present tenses, the present perfect continuous, the past perfect, zero conditionals, reported speech, relative clauses, passive voice, intensifiers and much, much more.

If this series is too difficult why not start with our basic grammar series, Easy 6 Minute Grammar or you can check your grammar knowledge with our complete easy grammar reference guide, medium grammar reference guide, medium grammar reference 2 guide and hard grammar reference. You can also try The Grammar Gameshow and study the lessons and use the worksheets from our English Class series.

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BBC Learning English - Medium grammar - 6 Minute Grammar

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Improve your grammar with 6 Minute Grammar - medium, our grammar series for medium level learners. On this page you'll find a range of medium level grammar programmes to boost your language skills. Each programme covers a key grammar point with all the explanations, examples and activities you need to become a medium grammar champion - in just 6 minutes.

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DATE/HORAIRE
1.  Mardi 21 Février 2023,
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2.  Vendredi 24 Février 2023,
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About the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR)

The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) is an international standard for describing language ability. It describes language ability on a six-point scale, from A1 for beginners, up to C2 for those who have mastered a language. This makes it easy for anyone involved in language teaching and testing, such as teachers or learners, to see the level of different qualifications. It also means that employers and educational institutions can easily compare our qualifications to other exams in their country.

What exams are on the CEFR?

The diagram below shows all of our English exams on the CEFR.

*Linguaskill reports up to a maximum score of 180+ , which equates to C1 (or above) on the CEFR scale.

Download a larger version of the CEFR diagram
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common european framework of reference for languages

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The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) and international language standards explained by the experts at Cambridge English.

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Cambridge Dictionary | English Dictionary, Translations & Thesaurus

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The most popular dictionary and thesaurus for learners of English. Meanings and definitions of words with pronunciations and translations.

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BBC Learning English - BBC Learning English - Podcasts

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Learn English with these free learning English podcasts from BBC Learning English. These podcasts will help you learn English and improve your pronunciation, grammar and vocabulary.

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English Vocabulary Exercises for B1 with Answers.

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Find French translations in our English-French dictionary and in 1,000,000,000 .

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Latest news from around the world | The Guardian

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Latest World news news, comment and analysis from the Guardian, the world's leading liberal voice

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A list of the more common irregular verbs in English, showing base, past and past participle. Vocabulary for ESL learners and teachers.

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English Vocabulary Quiz - Intermediate Level (B1 - B2) | 25 Questions

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VOA Learning English - Intermediate Level

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Intermediate level articles are for individuals with a limited knowledge of American English. Stories are often between 500 words to 1,000 in length. They may include audio from newsmakers. New words are explained in the Words in This Story area at the bottom of the article.

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Clear explanations about how to use the present simple tense (or simple present) in English

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Are you a learner at A1 (elementary) or A2 (pre-intermediate) English level? Learn new words and practise your vocabulary.

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Location:

La Condamine, Monaco

Description:

106.5 Riviera Radio plays the best music of the 70's, 80's, 90's and today. The station broadcasts BBC News and from it own news centre presents the local French news in English. The key ingredients of the station are Great Music, Up-to-date News, Fun and Listener Involvement.

Contact:

10 QUAI ANTOINE 1ER - 98000 MONACO +377 97 97 94 94

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106.5 Riviera Radio plays the best music of the 70's, 80's, 90's and today. The station broadcasts BBC News and from it own news centre presents the local French news in English. The key ingredients of the station are Great Music, Up-to-date News, Fun...

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The present continuous is made from the present tense of the verb and the -ing form of a verb:

We use the present continuous to talk about:

activities at the moment of speaking:

I'm just leaving work. I'll be home in an hour.
Please be quiet. The childrenare sleeping.

Present continuous 3

Plans for next month

2nd (Sat.) - my birthday. Party!
4th - day off
10th (Sun.) - flight OS462 15.40
11th, 12th, 13th - conference, Vienna
15th - dentist 3 p.m.
22nd - Mum & Dad arrive, evening
23rd - Toni's Restaurant (make reservation!)
25th - Mum & Dad > home
29th - payday
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Present continuous 4

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Present continuous questions

Present continuous questions 1

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Present continuous questions 2

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Present continuous negatives

Present continuous negatives 1

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Present continuous negatives 2

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Stative verbs

We do not normally use the continuous with stative verbs. Stative verbs include:

We normally use the simple instead:

I understand you. (NOT I am understanding you.)
This cake tastes wonderful. (NOT This cake is tasting wonderful.)

Level: intermediate
We also use the present continuous to talk about:

At eight o'clock we are usually having breakfast.
When I get home the childrenare doing their homework.

something which we think is temporary:

Michael is at university. He's studying history.
I'm working in London for the next two weeks.

something which is new and contrasts with a previous state:

These days most people are using email instead of writing letters.
What sort of clothesare teenagers wearing nowadays?
What sort of musicare they listening to?

something which is changing, growing or developing:

The children are growing up quickly.
The climateis changing rapidly.
Your Englishis improving.

something which happens again and again:

It's always raining in London.
Theyare always arguing.
George is great. He's always laughing.

Note that we normally use always with this use.

Level: advanced
We can use the present continuous to talk about the past when we are:

The other day I'm just walking down the street when suddenly this man comes up to me and asks me to lend him some money. Well, he's carrying a big stick and he looks a bit dangerous, so I'm wondering what to do ...

Harry Potter is a pupil at Hogwarts school. One day when he is playing Quidditch he sees a strange object in the sky. He wonders what is happening ...

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Learn about the present continuous and do the exercises to practise using it.

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English Vocabulary Quiz - Beginner Level (A1 - A2) | 25 Questions

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Breaking News English - Easier News Lessons

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Breaking News English Lessons - 3,369 FREE Easy News English lesson plans. EFL/ESL graded news lessons, news in 7 levels, current events.

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Using the Past Simple (or Simple Past) Tense

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Practise using the past simple (or simple past) tense here with easy explanations and lots of exercises

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France 24 - International breaking news, top stories and headlines

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Breaking news and world news from France 24 on Business, Sports, Culture. Video news. News from the US, Europe, Asia Pacific, Africa, Middle East, America

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Also called the present progressive tense

Read about how to make the present continuous tense here.
Download this explanation in PDF here.

Present Uses
1: First, we use the present continuous for things that are happening at the moment of speaking. These things usually last for quite a short time and they are not finished when we are talking about them.

I'm working at the moment.

Please call back as we are eating dinner now.

Julie is sleeping.

2: We can also use this tense for other kinds of temporary situations, even if the action isn't happening at this moment.

John's working in a bar until he finds a job in his field. (He might not be working now.)

I'm reading a really great book.

She's staying with her friend for a week.

Compare this with the present simple, which is used for permanent situations that we feel will continue for a long time.

I work in a school. (I think this is a permanent situation.)

I'm working in a school. (I think this is a temporary situation.)

3: We can use the present continuous for temporary or new habits (for normal habits that continue for a long time, we use the present simple). We often use this with expressions like 'these days' or 'at the moment'.

He's eating a lot these days.

She's swimming every morning (she didn't use to do this).

You're smoking too much.

4: Another present continuous use is for habits that are not regular, but that happen very often. In this case we usually use an adverb like 'always', 'forever' or 'constantly'. Often, we use the present continuous in this way to talk about an annoying habit.

You're forever losing your keys!

She's constantly missing the train.

Lucy's always smiling!

Future Uses
5: The next use is for definite future arrangements (with a future time word). In this case we have already made a plan and we are pretty sure that the event will happen in the future.

I'm meeting my father tomorrow.

We're going to the beach at the weekend.

I'm leaving at three.

We can't use this tense (or any other continuous tense) with stative verbs.

Read more about the difference between the present simple and the present continuous here.)
Try some exercises about the present continuous here.

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Present Continuous Use (or Present Progressive Use)

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Present continuous use - Clear explanations about when to use the present continuous (or present progressive) tense in English, with lots of exercises.

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What would you like to learn today?

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Free English lessons at Test-English.com: grammar, vocabulary, listening, reading. Learn English online for free with tests and exam prep.

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Using the past continuous (or past progessive) tense

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When should we use the past continuous tense? Easy explanations and lots of exercises.

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TOEIC® TEST PRO is designed to help you practice and improve your TOEIC® skills to well prepare for the exam. The app assists you in improving Online TOEIC® Test

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Look at these examples to see how used to, get used to and be used to are used.

I used to want to be a lawyer but then I realised how hard they work!
How's Boston? Are you used to the cold weather yet?
No matter how many times I fly, I'll never get used to take-off and landing!

Try this exercise to test your grammar.

Grammar test 1

'used to' + infinitive and 'be' or 'get used to' + '-ing': Grammar test 1

Read the explanation to learn more.

Grammar explanation

Used to + infinitive and be/ get used to + - ing look similar but they have very different uses.

We use used to + infinitive to talk about a past situation that is no longer true. It tells us that there was a repeated action or state in the past which has now changed.

She used to be a long-distance runner when she was younger.
I didn't use to sleep very well, but then I started doing yoga and it really helps.
Did you use to come here as a child?

be used to and get used to

Be used to means 'be familiar with' or 'be accustomed to'.

She's used to the city now and doesn't get lost any more.
He wasn't used to walking so much and his legs hurt after the hike.
I'm a teacher so I'm used to speaking in public.

We use get used to to talk about the process of becoming familiar with something.

I'm finding this new job hard but I'm sure I'll get used to it soon.
It took my mother years to get used to living in London after moving from Pakistan.
I'm getting used to the noise now. I found it really stressful when I first moved in.

Be used to and get used to are followed by a noun, pronoun or the - ing form of a verb, and can be used about the past, present or future.

Do this exercise to test your grammar again.

Grammar test 2

'used to' + infinitive and 'be' or 'get used to' + '-ing': Grammar test 2

Language level

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'used to' + infinitive and 'be' or 'get used to' + '-ing'

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Look at these examples to see how used to, get used to and be used to are used. I used to want to be a lawyer but then I realised how hard they work! How's Boston? Are you used to the cold weather yet?

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Listening practice to help you understand common vocabulary and expressions in short, clear dialogues. Situations include simple explanations, introductions, messages and announcements.

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For information on how to make the present perfect, click here.
Download this explanation in PDF here.

We use this tense for unfinished and finished actions.

Unfinished Actions
1: We use this tense when we want to talk about unfinished actions or states or habits that started in the past and continue to the present. Usually we use it to say 'how long' and we need 'since' or 'for'. We often use stative verbs.
'Since' and 'For'
We use 'since' with a fixed time in the past (2004, April 23rd, last year). The fixed time can be another action, which is in the past simple (since I was at school, since I arrived). We use 'for' with a period of time (2 hours, three years, six months). Finished Actions
2: Life experience. These are actions or events that happened sometime during a person's life. We don't say when the experience happened, and the person needs to be alive now. We often use the words 'ever' and 'never' here. 3: With an unfinished time word (this month, this week, today). The period of time is still continuing. We CAN'T use the present perfect with a finished time word.

NOT:I've seen him yesterday.

4: A finished action with a result in the present (focus on result). We often use the present perfect to talk about something that happened in the recent past, but that is still true or important now. Sometimes we can use the past simple here, especially in US English. 5: We can also use the present perfect to talk about something that happened recently, even if there isn't a clear result in the present. This is common when we want to introduce news and we often use the words 'just / yet / already / recently'. However, the past simple is also correct in these cases, especially in US English. Been and Gone
In this tense, we use both 'been' and 'gone' as the past participle of 'go', but in slightly different circumstances. We use 'been' (often when we talk about life experience) to mean that the person we're talking about visited the place and came back. We use 'gone' (often when we are talking about an action with a result in the present) to mean that the person went to the place and is at the place now. Read more about the difference between the present perfect and the past simple here.
Read more about the difference between the present perfect simple and the present perfect continuous here.
Try some present perfect exercises here.

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Using The Present Perfect Tense in English

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When should we use the present perfect tense? Clear explanations and lot of exercises.

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A2 Listening Test | English Listening Test

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Also called the present perfect progressive

Read about how to make the present perfect continuous tense here.
Download this explanation in PDF here.
Unfinished actions
1: To say how long for unfinished actions which started in the past and continue to the present. We often use this with 'for' and 'since' (see the the present perfect simple page for more about 'for' and 'since').

I've been living in London for two years.

She's been working here since 2004.

We've been waiting for the bus for hours.

This use is very similar to how we use the present perfect simple, and often it's possible to use either tense. Of course, with stative verbs, we can't use the present perfect continuous.

I've been here for hours.

NOT: I've been being here for hours.

2: For temporary habits or situations. The action started in the past and continues to the present in the same way as with use number 1, but we don't answer the questions about 'how long' so clearly. Instead, we use a word like 'recently'.

I've been going to the gym a lot recently.

They've been living with his mother while they look for a house.

I've been reading a lot recently.

This is very similar to the use of the present continuous for temporary habits and often either tense is possible.

Finished actions
3: Actions which have recently stopped (though the whole action can be unfinished) and have a result, which we can often see, hear, or feel, in the present. We don't use a time word here.

I'm so tired, I've been studying.

I've been running, so I'm really hot.

It's been raining so the pavement is wet.

The present perfect simple has a very similar use, which focuses on the result of the action, whereas the present perfect continuous focuses on the action itself. See my page here about the difference between the present perfect simple and the present perfect continuous for more explanation.

Here's a list of all the present perfect and present perfect continuous exercises.

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Using the Present Perfect Continuous (or Progressive)

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When should I use the present perfect continuous? Easy explanations and lots of exercises.

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When we know about the future, we normally use the present tense.

1. We use the present simple for something scheduled:

We have a lesson next Monday.
The trainarrives at 6.30 in the morning.
The holidaysstart next week.
It's my birthday tomorrow.

2. We can use the present continuous for plans or arrangements:

4. We use be going to:

Be careful! You are going to fall. (= I can see that you might fall.)
Look at those black clouds. I think it's going to rain. (= I can see that it will rain.)

5. We use will be with an -ing form for something happening before and after a specific time in the future:

6. We can use instead of the present continuous or when we are talking about plans, arrangements and intentions:

7. We often use verbs like would like, plan, want, mean, hope, expect to talk about the future:

I might stay at home tonight or I might go to the cinema.
Wecould see Mary at the meeting. She sometimes goes.

9. We can use should if we think there's a good chance of something happening:

Talking about the future 1

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Talking about the future 2

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In time clauses with words like when, after, until we often use present tense forms to talk about the future:

In clauses with if we often use present tense forms to talk about the future:

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When we know about the future, we normally use the present tense. 1. We use the present simple for something scheduled: We have a lesson next Monday. The trainarrives at 6.30 in the morning. The holidaysstart next week. It's my birthday tomorrow. 2. We can use the present continuous for plans or arrangements: 4.

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Download this explanation in PDF here.
Read about how to make the past perfect here.
1: A finished action before a second point in the past.

When we arrived, the film had started (= first the film started, then we arrived).

We usually use the past perfect to make it clear which action happened first. Maybe we are already talking about something in the past and we want to mention something else that is further back in time. This is often used to explain or give a reason for something in the past.

I'd eaten dinner so I wasn't hungry.

It had snowed in the night, so the bus didn't arrive.

If it's clear which action happened first (if we use the words 'before' or 'after', for example), the past perfect is optional.

The film started before we arrived / the film had started before we arrived.

2: Something that started in the past and continued up to another action or time in the past. The past perfect tells us 'how long', just like the present perfect, but this time the action continues up to a point in the past rather than the present. Usually we use 'for + time'. We can also use the past perfect continuous here, so we most often use the past perfect simple with stative verbs.

When he graduated, he had been in London for six years. (= He arrived in London six years before he graduated and lived there until he graduated, or even longer.)

On the 20th of July, I'd worked here for three months.

3: To talk about unreal or imaginary things in the past. In the same way that we use the past simple to talk about unreal or imaginary things in the present, we use the past perfect (one step back in time) to talk about unreal things in the past. This is common in the third conditional and after 'wish'.

If I had known you were ill, I would have visited you.

She would have passed the exam if she had studied harder.

I wish I hadn't gone to bed so late!

Try some exercises about the past perfect here.

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Clear explanation of the situations where we need to use the past perfect tense in English, with practice exercises.

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Free online English grammar book for ESL / EFL students and teachers.

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Look at these examples to see how used to, would and the past simple are used.

They used to live in London.
I didn't use to like olives.
We would always go to the seaside for our holidays.
But one holiday we went to the mountains instead.

Try this exercise to test your grammar.

Grammar explanation

When we talk about things in the past that are not true any more, we can do it in different ways.

Used to + infinitive

We can use used to to talk about past states that are not true any more.

We used to live in New York when I was a kid.
There didn't use to be a supermarket there. When did it open?
Did you use to have a garden?

We can also use used to to talk about past habits (repeated past actions) that don't happen any more.

I used to go swimming every Thursday when I was at school.
She used to smoke but she gave up a few years ago.

used to + infinitive should not be confused with be/get used to + -ing, which has a different meaning. The difference is covered here.

We can use would to talk about repeated past actions that don't happen any more.

Every Saturday I would go on a long bike ride.
My dad would read me amazing stories every night at bedtime.

would for past habits is slightly more formal than used to. It is often used in stories. We don't normally use the negative or question form of would for past habits. Note that we can't usually use would to talk about past states.

Past simple

We can always use the past simple as an alternative to used to or would to talk about past states or habits. The main difference is that the past simple doesn't emphasise the repeated or continuous nature of the action or situation. Also, the past simple doesn't make it so clear that the thing is no longer true.

We went to the same beach every summer.
We used to go to the same beach every summer.
We would go to the same beach every summer.

If something happened only once, we must use the past simple.

Do this exercise to test your grammar again.

Language level

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Past habits: 'used to', 'would' and the past simple

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Do you know how to talk about past habits using used to, would and the past simple? Test what you know with interactive exercises and read the explanation to help you.

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Adverbs of Frequency are adverbs of time that answer the question "How frequently?" or "How often?". They tell us how often something happens. Here are some examples:

1. daily, weekly, yearly

2. often, sometimes, rarely

You probably see a difference between a) and b) above. With words like daily we know exactly how often. The words in a) describe definite frequency. On the other hand, words like often give us an idea about frequency but they don't tell us exactly. The words in b) describe indefinite frequency.

We separate them into two groups because they normally go in different positions in the sentence.

Adverbs of Definite Frequency

Examples:

hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, yearly

every second, once a minute, twice a year

once, twice, once or twice, three times

Adverbs of definite frequency, like all adverbs of definite time, typically go in END position. Look at these examples:

Most companies pay taxes yearly.

The manager checks the toilets every hour.

The directors meet weekly to review progress.

Sometimes, usually for reasons of emphasis or style, some adverbs of definite frequency may go at the FRONT, for example:

Every day, more than five thousand people die on our roads.

Adverbs of Indefinite Frequency

Look at these examples of adverbs of indefinite frequency:

Adverbs of indefinite frequency mainly go in MID position in the sentence. They go before the main verb (except the main verb "to be"):

We usually go shopping on Saturday.

I have often done that.

She is always late.

Occasionally, sometimes, often, frequently and usually can also go at the beginning or end of a sentence:

Sometimes they come and stay with us.

I play tennis occasionally.

Rarely and seldom can also go at the end of a sentence (often with "very"):

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Adverbs of Frequency are adverbs of time that answer the question "How frequently?" or "How often?". They tell us how often something happens. Here are some examples: daily, weekly, yearly often, sometimes, rarely You probably see a difference between a) and b) above. With words like daily we know exactly how often.

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Questions: wh- questions - English Grammar Today - a reference to written and spoken English grammar and usage - Cambridge Dictionary

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Look at these examples to see how stative verbs are used.

I think that's a good idea.
I love this song!
That coffee smells good.
Do you have a pen?

Try this exercise to test your grammar.

Read the explanation to learn more.

Grammar explanation

Stative verbs describe a state rather than an action. They aren't usually used in the present continuous form.

I don't know the answer. I'm not knowing the answer.
She really likes you.She's really liking you.
He seems happy at the moment.He's seeming happy at the moment.

Stative verbs often relate to:

Verbs that are sometimes stative

A number of verbs can refer to states or actions, depending on the context.

I think it's a good idea.
Wait a moment! I'm thinking.

The first sentence expresses an opinion. It is a mental state, so we use present simple. In the second example the speaker is actively processing thoughts about something. It is an action in progress, so we use present continuous.

Some other examples are:

I have an old car. (state - possession)
I'm having a quick break. (action - having a break is an activity)

Do you see any problems with that? (state - opinion)
We're seeing Tadanari tomorrow afternoon. (action - we're meeting him)

He's so interesting! (state - his permanent quality)
He's being very unhelpful. (action - he is temporarily behaving this way)

This coffee tastes delicious. (state - our perception of the coffee)
Look! The chef is tasting the soup. (action - tasting the soup is an activity)

Do this exercise to test your grammar again.

Language level

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Do you know how to use stative verbs like think, love, smell and have? Test what you know with interactive exercises and read the explanation to help you.

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How to pronounce 'ed' of past simple regular verbs

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How to pronounce 'ed' of past simple regular verbs

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Pronunciation: 'ed' endings
Regular verbs in the simple past all end in 'ed'. These two small letters can be pronounced in three different ways. In the programme we find out what these different pronunciations are and give our challenger Sebastian the chance to produce the correct sounds in our role-play.

Listen to the programme!

There are three different ways to pronounce the 'ed' ending of regular verbs in the simple past tense: / Id / , / t / or / d /.

The pronunciation depends on the sound at the end of the infinitve of the main verb and whether it is voiced or not.

A voiced sound is one that vibrates in your throat when you say it. For more information and for a technique for finding out whether a sound is voiced or not, download Nuala's description below.

To see a list of voiced and unvoiced sounds, vist our Pronunciation Tips section here.

As well as some consonant sounds, all vowels sounds are voiced.

Download Nuala's grammar explanation and table (pdf - 41 K)

Download this programme (mp3 - 1.8 MB)

Download Nuala's tip for finding voiced sounds (mp3 - 169 K)

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Now it's your turn to practise ed endings . Go to our quiz page on this subject here.

Meet us Useful links Next episode

Nuala and Callum

Pronunciation Tips
Oxford House College*

* The BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites

We go back to the topic of articles and look at some simple rules for using 'a' and 'an', the indefinite articles.

Homepage and archive

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BBC World Service | Learning English | Grammar Challenge

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Every week, a different student takes our grammar challenge. A continuing online course with quizzes, downloads and grammar tables.

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Pronunciation of 'th' - English In A Minute

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4 Future Tenses In English And How To Use Them | Oxford House Barcelona

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Future perfect and future simple: Do you know the difference? Today we’re looking at 4 of the future tenses: future simple, future continuous, future perfect and future perfect continuous. We’ll show you how and when to use them, and give you some fun activities for you to try at home.

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Look at these examples to see how used to, get used to and be used to are used.

I used to want to be a lawyer but then I realised how hard they work!
How's Boston? Are you used to the cold weather yet?
No matter how many times I fly, I'll never get used to take-off and landing!

Try this exercise to test your grammar.

Grammar test 1

'used to' + infinitive and 'be' or 'get used to' + '-ing': Grammar test 1

Read the explanation to learn more.

Grammar explanation

Used to + infinitive and be/ get used to + - ing look similar but they have very different uses.

We use used to + infinitive to talk about a past situation that is no longer true. It tells us that there was a repeated action or state in the past which has now changed.

She used to be a long-distance runner when she was younger.
I didn't use to sleep very well, but then I started doing yoga and it really helps.
Did you use to come here as a child?

be used to and get used to

Be used to means 'be familiar with' or 'be accustomed to'.

She's used to the city now and doesn't get lost any more.
He wasn't used to walking so much and his legs hurt after the hike.
I'm a teacher so I'm used to speaking in public.

We use get used to to talk about the process of becoming familiar with something.

I'm finding this new job hard but I'm sure I'll get used to it soon.
It took my mother years to get used to living in London after moving from Pakistan.
I'm getting used to the noise now. I found it really stressful when I first moved in.

Be used to and get used to are followed by a noun, pronoun or the - ing form of a verb, and can be used about the past, present or future.

Do this exercise to test your grammar again.

Grammar test 2

'used to' + infinitive and 'be' or 'get used to' + '-ing': Grammar test 2

Language level

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Do you know the difference between I used to drive on the left and I'm used to driving on the left? Test what you know with interactive exercises and read the explanation to help you.

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How to pronounce past tense -ED | English pronunciation