LANGUAGE REFERENCE
108
4
GRAMMAR
G1
PRESENT PERFECT
You use the present perfect to talk about experiences
in the past. You usually don’t say when you had the
experience.
They
’ve built
a new clinic.
Form the present perfect with
have
+ the past
participle of the main verb.
Regular past participles are the same as the past
simple form of the verb, i.e. add
-ed
to the infinitive.
I
’ve visited
a lot of countries.
She
hasn’t recovered
from her illness.
Has
the surgeon
finished
the operation?
Present perfect short answers use
have/haven’t
.
Yes, I
have
. / No, I
haven’t
.
You often use questions in the present perfect with
Have you ever …?
to ask about experiences.
Have
you
ever been
to Africa?
Many common verbs are irregular.
be – was/were – been
,
go – went – gone
,
write – wrote – written
,
drive – drove – driven
¬
irregular verb list, page 165/106
G2
PRESENT PERFECT AND PAST SIMPLE
You use the present perfect when you do not give
(or do not know) the exact time you did something.
You use the past simple when you give (or know) the
exact time you did something.
He
’s travelled
to a lot of different countries.
In 2010
, he
travelled
around the world.
Use the present perfect to talk about
finished
actions or situations in an
unfinished
period of time.
Common adverbs with this use of the present perfect
are
today
,
this week/month/year
,
so far
.
The surgeon
has done
four operations so far today.
(= the operations are finished but the time period –
today – isn’t.)
When the time period is finished, you use the past
simple.
The surgeon
did
four operations yesterday.
G3
ARTICLES
Use
a/an
with a singular noun to mention something
for the first time:
He works for
a
medical company.
Use
a/an
also to talk about a person’s job.
He’s
a
doctor.
Use
an
, not
a
, when the noun begins with a vowel
sound (
a
,
e
,
i
,
o
,
u
):
an
artist
. But note that some
words that begin with the letter
h
take
an
and you do
not say the
h
:
an
hour
.
Use no article with plural nouns, when they refer to
people or things in general.
Medical dramas are exciting.
Use
the
with a singular noun to talk about a specific
person or thing, or one you already know about.
The
local newspaper doesn’t have much news.
(= There’s only one local newspaper.)
Put the flowers on
the
table. (= We know which table.)
Use
the
with plural nouns to refer to particular or
known people or things.
I love
the
photos on this page. (= specific photos)
The
people at the party were all very friendly.
(= We know which people.)
FIRST AND SECOND MENTION
Use
a/an
(with singular nouns) and no article (with
plural nouns) to talk about something for the first time.
He works for
a
medical company.
He creates health reports.
Use
the
when you mention the noun again.
Medical dramas are exciting.
The
medical dramas are often on Channel 6.
KEY LANGUAGE
KL
GIVING ADVICE AND REASONS
You should (go to the optician’s).
You shouldn’t (drink coffee at night).
(You should eat garlic)
because
it fights colds.
(You should do exercise)
in order to
lose weight.
(You should eat a lot of fruit)
to
stay healthy.
VOCABULARY
V1
HEALTH AND WELLBEING
clinic, dentist, depression, disease, doctor,
healthcare, health insurance, heart disease,
high blood pressure, hospital, illness, injury,
insomnia, lack of motivation, local doctor, medicine,
minor illness, nurse, operation, optician,
poor concentration, poor memory, prevent,
private hospital, serious illness, state hospital,
surgeon, surgery, treatment, vaccination
V2
FOOD AND NUTRITION
carbohydrates, junk food, nuts, salmon, vitamins
V3
REPORTING VERBS
feel, think, recommend, reveal, say, show, state,
suggest
Subject
have
(
+ not
)
Past participle
+
I/You/We/They ’ve (have)
He/She/It
’s (has)
worked.
–
I/You/We/They haven’t
(have not)
He/She/It
hasn’t (has not)
Have
+
subject
Past participle
?
Have I/we/you/they
(ever) worked?
Has he/she/it
