The English language is considered one of the easiest languages in the world. But even English has a lot of tricky rules which baffle even the best English writers and speakers. One of the sore points in English grammar.
Grammar is the cornerstone of the English language and is needed every time to speak in English be it when you are appearing for interviews, giving presentations, or having casual conversations with your friends. There are many English grammar books, pdfs, and online resources, but self-learning can be daunting and monotonous. One needs a good grammar teacher to help build a strong foundation.
At our online English Speaking classes, we’ve seen that the maximum number of students struggle with grammar only but with time and regular practice during our sessions, they pick up the grammar rules and start speaking fluently in English.
There are some rules of grammar that you think only the maestros in English can finesse and use but that is not so. If you want to polish your English speaking skills and take it up a notch then this blog is just for you. We have explained four rules of grammar which will add oomph in your English Speaking and you will be able to impress the big shots as well. We follow Oxford English grammar.
- Compound it with Complex Sentences
In simple words, use compound and complex sentences. Compound sentences draw the listener’s attention to what you have to say and you get to convey more in less, better-phrased words.
Let’s break it down for you and make compound sentences simple to understand.
Note: The sentence we used above is a compound sentence.
Compound sentences are nothing but two independent sentences joined together to create one sentence. We used the conjunction “and” to join these two statements, and created a compound sentence.
Complex sentences are a little different as they have dependent and independent clauses. How so?
He heated his coffee and cooked his sandwich whilst working on the presentation.
The part of the sentence which is in bold is a dependent clause, it provides additional information to help understand the context better. The beginning of the sentence is an independent clause as it can be understood on its own.
- Add Action by Infinitives and Gerunds
As the heading says, infinitives and gerunds are words you can use to express actions. They might sound intimidating but are pretty easy to use while speaking in English or writing and we are sure you have used them quite often. Infinitives are nothing but verbs that are clubbed with “to”.
Infinitives = to + verb
For example, to write, to run, to eat, to email, to study, etc. The list is endless.
An example of an infinitive sentence is:
He went to eat in a restaurant.
Simple enough?
Gerunds are even simpler!
Gerunds are verbs used in simple tenses ending with “ing”.
Gerund = verb + ing
For example, writing, running, eating, emailing, studying… get the gist?
An example of a gerund is:
He was eating in a restaurant in the morning.
Although the meanings and usage of infinitives and gerunds seem similar in some cases, the usage differs like:
I am afraid to swim in the ocean. (specific meaning)
He is afraid of swimming. (general meaning)
Do you get the difference? Gerunds usually convey general meanings whereas infinitives are more specific and convey direct thoughts.
- Know your Verbs, Use them Right
Verbs are the words that add action, color, and excitement to your characters, scenes, and writing as a whole. But verbs are a tricky bunch to understand and easy to use incorrectly in your English speaking and writing.
Irregular Verbs are verbs that don’t follow the usual usage.
For example:
study – study, studies, studied
start – start, starts, started
But there are some irregular verbs that don’t follow this structure, for example:
Begin – begin, began, begun
Break – break, broke, broken
Know – know, knew, known
There are several examples of irregular verbs and these are important to use correctly.
Phrasal Verbs are another interesting set of words you can use, these are idiomatic verbs that have the verb followed by a preposition or an adverb.
Phrasal verb = verb + preposition/adverb
Phrasal verbs add an interesting dimension to your writing and enhance the reading experience. Adding a preposition or adverb to the verb changes the meaning of the verb also.
Let’s discuss some commonly used phrasal verbs and as an exercise, you can note how the meanings of the verbs have changed:
Lookout: We both need to look out for each other to survive.
Made up: He made up a bunch of lies in front of the police to avoid getting arrested.
Ran into: They both ran into each other at the supermarket.
Can you use these in your English speaking and writing now?
Just like when we give a speech we lay emphasis on certain words to convey their importance, we can use passive voice to take the reader’s and listener’s attention to specific information.
When the readers read the content or the listeners listen to you, they tend to automatically segregate information in their heads as to what is important and what isn’t. Active and Passive voice can help you direct this segregation as per your will. Let’s look at it with an example:
His team laid the entire pathway in a day.
The entire pathway was laid by his team in a day.
Can you gauge the difference between the two? Even though both sentences convey the same meaning but because we have changed the order, or have changed active voice into passive voice the emphasis has been shifted.
In the first sentence, the emphasis is on “
his team”, the subject, as it is mentioned first. But if you want to emphasize the gravity of work accomplished you can talk about the object “
entire pathway” first.
You can use this technique next time you write an article or speak to your boss and see the difference for yourself.
These grammar rules, though a little tricky, can bring charm to your writing and speaking and you can impress the people around by making just minute changes in how you write and speak. If you are someone who writes well but stumbles in using grammatical rules correctly you can join
Yuno Learning’s Grammar Course. And if you are someone who wants to speak fluently in English but hesitates, you must join our highly popular
online English Speaking Courses. These courses are specially designed for individuals who want to brush up their grammar skills and improve their writing and speaking skills by the correct usage of grammar. These courses build your basic English knowledge via a step-by-step approach. The course is taught by the best instructors with significant experience in teaching English language.
Still not sure? Here’s what our students from
English Speaking classes have to say about us:
“An extremely good learning session through Yuno Learning. Special thanks to our Reena Nagpal who was extremely patient and was courteous to clear our doubts at all levels. Due to a small class size, I was able to communicate easily within the group and was able to clear my doubts. The regular speaking session also helped me work on my oral communication skills.” – says Sandeep Sapra
And another student, Aditi Sood from Intermediate English Speaking course says:
“I learned a lot of things over the period of time. The instructions and teaching methods are easy to follow and build my confidence day by day. My english speaking and pronunciation have improved and the teacher, Ms. Sumita Kapur is very good and helpful as she gives personal attention to each and every student. Thank you Ms. Sumita Kapur Mam for teaching me English (Intermediate).”
If you are an enrolled student with
Yuno Learning you will not just have access to grammar lessons as part of the course, you will also get videos and ebooks to make learning simpler for you.
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