Spanglish

Discourse markers are words and expressions used to show how discourse is constructed. We use different discourse markers in speaking and writing. In speaking, the following discourse markers are very common: - anyway, like, right, you know, fine, now, so, I mean, good, oh, well, as I say, great, okay, mind you, for a start. Discourse markers to order or sequence what we say: - and, in general, second, to sum up, and then, in the end, secondly, what’s more, first (of all), last of all, so, well, firstly, next, lastly, for a start, on top of that, third(ly). Discourse markers as responses: - absolutely, fine, okay, wow, (all) right, good, quite (more formal), yeah, certainly, great, really, yes, definitely, I see, sure, exactly, no, wonderful. Discourse markers showing attitude: - actually, frankly, I think, (I’m) sorry, admittedly, hopefully, literally, surprisingly, amazingly, honestly, naturally, thankfully, basically, ideally, no doubt, to...

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Independent and Dependent Clauses Independent and dependent  clauses  are the building blocks of sentences. A single independent clause can be a sentence, by itself. However, dependent clauses are used to make sentences more complete and more interesting. Using conjunctions and proper punctuation, dependent and independent clauses can be joined together to create interesting and complex compound sentences that are fun and engaging to read. Independent Clause Defined An independent clause is a clause that can stand on its own, by itself. It does not need to be joined to any other clauses, because it contains all the information necessary to be a complete sentences.  Independent clauses have three components: They have a subject - they tell the reader what the sentence is about. They have an action or predicate - they tell the reader what the subject is doing. They express a complete thought - something happened or was said. An independent clause ca...

Adverb Clauses Adverb   clauses  are groups of words that function as an adverb. To understand this, you need to know about clauses and the functions of adverbs. Types of Clauses A clause is a group of words that contains a subject and verb (predicate). This differs from a phrase, which does not have a subject and a  verb , like “to the park.” Clauses can be independent or dependent. Independent clauses are called sentences as they can stand alone and express a complete thought. Dependent clauses, or subordinate clauses, are subordinate to something else, usually an independent clause, and depend on it for meaning. Here are some examples with the dependent clause underlined: Because he has a college degree , he was given a great job. When the storm started , she was at the store. Bob wore the coat  that I gave him . You can see that each underlined clause cannot stand on its own, but needs a clause to help it make sense or to help it co...

We use relative clauses to give additional information about something without starting another sentence. By combining sentences with a relative clause, your text becomes more fluent and you can avoid repeating certain words. How to Form Relative Clauses  Imagine, a girl is talking to Tom. You want to know who she is and ask a friend whether he knows her. You could say: A girl is talking to Tom. Do you know the girl? That sounds rather complicated, doesn't it? It would be easier with a relative clause: you put both pieces of information into one sentence. Start with the most important thing  – you want to know who the girl is. Do you know the girl … As your friend cannot know which girl you are talking about, you need to put in the additional information  – the girl is talking to Tom. Use „the girl“ only in the first part of the sentence, in the second part replace it with the relative pronoun (for people, use the relative pronoun „who“). So the final se...

Used To FORM [used to + VERB] Example: I  used to go  to the beach every day. It is better not to use "used to" in questions or negative forms; however, this is sometimes done in informal spoken English. It is better to ask questions and create negative sentences using  Simple Past . USE 1 Habit in the Past "Used to" expresses the idea that something was an old habit that stopped in the past. It indicates that something was often repeated in the past, but it is not usually done now. Examples: Jerry  used to study  English. Sam and Mary  used to go  to Mexico in the summer. I  used to start  work at 9 o'clock. Christine  used to eat  meat, but now she is a vegetarian. USE 2 Past Facts and Generalizations "Used to" can also be used to talk about past facts or generalizations which are no longer true. Examples: I  used to live  in Paris. Sarah  used to be fat , but now she is thin...

Active / Passive Verb Forms Sentences can be active or passive. Therefore, tenses also have "active forms" and "passive forms." You must learn to recognize the difference to successfully speak English. Active Form In active sentences, the thing doing the action is the subject of the sentence and the thing receiving the action is the object. Most sentences are active. [Thing doing action] + [verb] + [thing receiving action] Examples: Passive Form In passive sentences, the thing receiving the action is the subject of the sentence and the thing doing the action is optionally included near the end of the sentence. You can use the passive form if you think that the thing receiving the action is more important or should be emphasized. You can also use the passive form if you do not know who is doing the action or if you do not want to mention who is doing the action. [Thing receiving action] + [be] + [past participle of verb] + [by] + [thing doing acti...

Use of Passive Passive voice is used when the focus is on the action. It is not important or not known, however, who or what is performing the action. Example: My bike was stolen. In the example above, the focus is on the fact that my bike was stolen. I do not know, however, who did it. Sometimes a statement in passive is more polite than active voice, as the following example shows: Example: A mistake was made. In this case, I focus on the fact that a mistake was made, but I do not blame anyone (e.g. You have made a mistake.). Form of Passive Subject + finite form of  to be  + Past Participle (3rd column of  irregular verbs ) Example: A letter was written. When rewriting active sentences in passive voice, note the following: the object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence the finite form of the verb is changed ( to be  + past participle) the subject of the active sentence becomes the object of the passive sent...