Monthly Archives: April 2012

“must” is used with another verb in its infinitive form. “must” does not change for either person or count.

Pattern:

I / you / he, she, it / we / they “must” + V (inf. form)

The negative “not” comes between “must” and its verb:

“must not” + V (inf. form)

“must” is used in two different ways:

1 – to indicate something that we believe to be true
2 – to indicate that doing something is an obligation or necessity

1 – must: belief that something is true

In this sense, it is very similar to “probably”:

John dislikes driving, so I think he must take the train to work. (I think he probably takes the train to work, since he dislikes driving.)

You haven’t eaten all day? You must be hungry! (You are probably hungry!)

I called the Petersons, but no one answered. They must not be home. (They are probably not home.)

There are several newspapers on the neighbor’s driveway. They must be on vacation. (They are probably on vacation.)

2 – must: something is an obligation or necessity

You must be quiet in the library.

All drivers must stop at a red light.

If you want dessert, you must finish your dinner.

It’s quiet hours now in the dormitory. You must not play loud music.

Note: “must not” can be contracted: “mustn’t”

You mustn’t play loud music.

Note: We can also use “have to” in the positive sentences above:

You have to be quiet in the library.

All drivers have to stop at a red light.

If you want dessert, you have to finish your dinner.

For the negative, use “should not”:

It’s quiet hours now in the dormitory. You should not play loud music.

If we need the past tense, we use “had to” and not “must”:

You had to be quiet in the library.

All drivers had to stop at a red light.

If you wanted dessert, you had to finish your dinner.

Exercises: Complete the sentences. Use “must be” and one of the following verbs.

Example:

Your sister had a new baby? Congratulations! You must be (hungry, happy, tired)! ==> You must be happy!

Jack worked all night. He must be (hungry, happy, tired).
It must be (cold, raining, windy). I see everyone is using an umbrella.
Class is canceled today. Mrs. Smith must be (sick, hungry, short).
John just sits on the couch and sighs. He must be (busy, hot, bored).
Mary gets straight As every semester. She must be (dumb, very smart, tall).

Exercises: Complete the sentences. Use “must” and one of the following verbs.

Example:

Everything in Susie’s room is pink She must (hate, like, know) the color pink. ==> She must like the color pink.

Miss Brown teaches two kindergarten classes every day. She must (know, have, like) the patience of Job.
Tom studied for six hours last night. He must (know, write, see) all the material well enough for the test by now.
The Jones have a large vegetable garden. They must (drink, wash, eat) plenty of fresh vegetables in the summer.
Jane used to have long hair, but now it’s short. She must (have, be, seem) gotten a haircut.
Jack seems to know so much. He must (write, read, talk) a lot.

Exercises: Complete the sentences. Use “must” and one of the following verbs.

Example:

You are going to Disneyworld for your vacation? You must (take, give, bring) a lot of pictures. ==> You must take a lot of pictures.

Hospital visiting hours are over. You must (go, leave, stay) home now.
All passengers must (eat, have, read) their passports ready when going through Customs.
In most states, you must (have, be, am) 21 to drink alcohol.
You must (close, look, sign) this form before submitting it to the office.
You must (do, listen, work) your homework if you want to pass the test.

Exercises: Complete the sentences. Use “must” or “must not”.

Example:

Jack never goes out after work. He (must / must not) like socializing. ==> He must not like socializing.

Matt rides a bike every day, even in the winter. He (must / must not) have a car.
Jane has the flu. She (must / must not) feel very well.
Tom works at the zoo. He (must / must not) like animals.
Grandpa needs a magnifying glass to read the paper. He (must / must not) see very well.
Mary’s pie has won a blue ribbon at the county fair. She (must / must not) be a good cook.

must

Culture Focus: Easter

Posted on 2012/04/04

This Sunday is Easter. Even though Easter is the day on which Christians celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ, many people in the U.S. observe it as a secular holiday celebrating the arrival of spring. Due to its connection to the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, the date of Easter is tied closely to the Jewish holiday of Passover, and so is based on the lunar calendar. Since Passover is celebrated in conjunction with the full moon, the Church decided to celebrate Easter on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox (the day in the spring when day and night are of equal length). Consequently, the date of Easter is not fixed, but jumps around from year to year. In particular, this year Easter falls on April 8.

The main figure in a non-religious celebration of Easter is the Easter Bunny. The Easter Bunny brings children a basket full of colored eggs, chocolates (particularly rabbit-shaped chocolate), jelly beans, marshmallow chicks, marshmallow eggs, and other sweet things that give dentists nightmares 🙂 ! Oftentimes, a cuddly stuffed animal or other toy will be included in the Easter basket. It is also somewhat customary to dress up in a new Easter dress and hat (or bonnet) (girls) or pants, suitcoat, and tie (boys) as the winter clothes are put away and exchanged for the new, fresh fashions of spring.

Most people do not do Easter decorations, but it is traditional to get a white lily known as an Easter lily (Latin name: Lilium longiforum). These flowers are very fragrant, and the white color symbolizes purity.

Other Easter traditions include eating a special dinner, generally ham or lamb. Most stores are closed on Easter, but a number of restaurants remain open, so some people prefer to go out to eat instead of cooking an elaborate dinner at home.

Grammar Basics: Unit 31 – can and could (Solutions)

Posted on 2012/04/04

Exercises: Using the given clues, write sentences using “can.” If there is a question mark, make a question using “can.”

Example:

Tom / sing well ==> Tom can sing well.
She / speak Italian / not ==> She can’t speak Italian.
John / poker / ? ==> Can John play poker?

Walter can drive a car.
We can’t come to the party.
I can ice skate.
Can you swim?
Bill can go to the picnic.
Can we go on vacation this summer?
They can’t buy a house.
Can you shut the window?
Sally can cook dinner.
Tim can’t stay up late.

Exercises: Determine whether to use “can” or “could” with the given verb in the following sentences.

Example:

I wasn’t busy, so I (come) to the party. ==> I wasn’t busy, so I could come to the party.
Dan is sick. He (go, not) to the football game. ==> Dan is sick. He can’t go to the football game.

After eating a whole pizza, James was full. He couldn’t eat another bite of food.
Louis is blind. He can’t read that book.
Mark is in high school, so he can attend summer camp this year.
We couldn’t go swimming at the outdoor pool because there was a thunderstorm.
We have finished packing, so we can leave on our trip as soon as you’re ready.
John didn’t finish his homework in time, so he couldn’t go skiing with us.
On a clear day, you can see forever.
We had an extra seat in the car, so we could give Mary a ride to the train station.
If you’re tired, you can take a quick nap before dinner.
The weather was nice, so we could go camping at the state park last weekend.

Grammar Basics: Unit 31 – can and could

Posted on 2012/04/03

“can” is used to indicate the ability to do something. It is used with a verb in the infinitive form:

can + V (inf.) …

Examples:

I can play the piano.
Shelia can ride a bike.
The twins can play chess.
We can go to the museum tomorrow.

Note: “can” is the same, regardless of person and number. First person singular, third person plural – it doesn’t matter :).

To make a question, switch the order of “can” and its subject:

Can you play the piano?
Can Jack ride a bike?
Can they play checkers?

To negate, put “not” between “can” and its verb: “can not”, which is written as one word ==> “cannot”

I cannot lift this heavy suitcase.
They cannot come because of bad weather.
Sam cannot speak Chinese.

Note: “cannot” is usually contracted to “can’t.” Thus we have:

I can’t lift this heavy suitcase.
They can’t come because of bad weather.
Sam can’t speak Chinese.

All the examples we’ve given thus far use “can” or “can’t” in the present or future tense. To speak of ability in the past tense, we use “could” (“could not” or “couldn’t” for the negation):

The neighbors were noisy, so I couldn’t sleep at all last night.
James could eat a whole pizza when he was a teenager.
They could stay up all night when they were in college.

Other Notes:

1) Sometimes “can” / “can’t” is used for permission rather than ability:

You can’t use your cell phone in the library.
Tom can’t go visit Becky. He has to whitewash the fence.
Can I have a drink of water?

2) In asking permission, “could” is a more polite form to use than “can”:

Can I have a drink of water? ==> Could I have a drink of water?
Can my friend sit here? ==> Could my friend sit here?
Can you open the window? ==> Could you open the window?

Exercises: Using the given clues, write sentences using “can.” If there is a question mark, make a question using “can.”

Example:

Tom / sing well ==> Tom can sing well.
She / speak Italian / not ==> She can’t speak Italian.
John / poker / ? ==> Can John play poker?

Walter / drive / a car
We / come / to the party / not
I / ice skate
You / swim / ?
Bill / go / to the picnic
We / go on vacation / this summer / ?
They / buy a house / not
You / shut / the window / ?
Sally / cook / dinner
Tim / stay up / late / not

Exercises: Determine whether to use “can” or “could” with the given verb in the following sentences.

Example:

I wasn’t busy, so I (come) to the party. ==> I wasn’t busy, so I could come to the party.
Dan is sick. He (go, not) to the football game. ==> Dan is sick. He can’t go to the football game.

After eating a whole pizza, James was full. He (eat, not) another bite of food.
Louis is blind. He (read, not) that book.
Mark is in high school, so he (attend) summer camp this year.
We (go, not) swimming at the outdoor pool because there was a thunderstorm.
We have finished packing, so we (leave) on our trip as soon as you’re ready.
John didn’t finish his homework in time, so he (go, not) skiing with us.
On a clear day, you (see) forever.
We had an extra seat in the car, so we (give) Mary a ride to the train station.
If you’re tired, you (take) a quick nap before dinner.
The weather was nice, so we (go) camping at the state park last weekend.

Education Focus: Report Cards 1

Posted on 2012/04/02

Today I want to take a look at report cards. A report card is an official record of a student’s grades in the various subjects that he is taking that school year. Report cards are given quarterly in the lower grades through high school, but they are done on a semester basis in college. Each course or class that the student is taking for that term (or each subject, for the younger students through the eighth grade) will be listed on the report card, along with the grade that the student has earned for that term. Typical courses or subjects that grade school and high school students might have would be mathematics, science, history, English, PE (physical education), and art or music.

The grades are calculated based on the various assignments, tests, and quizzes that the student has had during the term. American students are given grades that range from A (best) to F (worst). Additionally, a letter grade might have a + or a – after it, indicating “better” or “worse,” respectively. Thus, the full range of letter grades looks like this, along with the percentage cutoffs for the grades:

A+ (97%), A (93%), A– (90%)
B+ (87%), B (83%), B– (80%)
C+ (77%), C (73%), C– (70%)
D+ (67%), D (63%), D– (60%)
F

Why is there no “E”? First of all, the letter “F” stands for “fail,” and is not necessarily supposed to be a continuation of the grade series. This also explains why there is no “F+” or “F–,” since it doesn’t really make sense to say that failure can be “better” or “worse”: failure is failure.

Another reason there is no “E” letter grade is purely practical: if a student received an “F,” it would be rather easy to cheat and change the grade to “E,” since the two letters are so similar.

Letter grades are generally given to older students – the real young students (for example, first and second graders) are often given grades that indicate how well the student is progressing in learning the basics. An example of this type of grading system might look like this: “superior,” meaning that the student has learned the skills necessary not only for his grade level, but has learned skills that would be expected of older students; “satisfactory,” meaning that the student has learned the skills necessary for his grade level, but not advanced skills; and “unsatisfactory,” meaning that the student needs additional work to get caught up to the skill level that he should be at.

There is more to be said about report cards, so we’ll continue this topic next week.

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Crossword – Basic Vocabulary 9 (solution)

Posted on 2012/04/02

Crossword – Basic Vocabulary 9

Posted on 2012/04/01

Across
2 a preposition used to say where someone or something goes (2)
3 acceptance of a plan, decision, or a person (8)
5 the long, thin part of a plant, from which leaves, flowers, or fruit grow (4)
7 to use your eyes (3)
8 to reverse an action (4)
10 to turn with a circular movement around a central point (8)
13 done, used, or experienced before now (4)
15 a strong, alcoholic drink made from sugar (3)
17 not closed (4)
18 ways of sending information (14)
20 to fasten things together using a piece of string or a rope (3)
22 a large pot, often used for making soup (6)
23 rock or earth from which metal can be obtained (3)
24 a promise to yourself (10)
27 what cars use for fuel (3)
28 a word used when talking about something that might happen or be true, or might have happened (2)
29 opposite of under (4)
30 on a line or course parallel and close to; continuously beside (5)
31 not dead, alive (6)
34 what the doctor gives you to eat to make you feel better (8)
36 admiration for someone because of their qualities (7)
37 a deep breath that you take when you are tired or sleepy (4)
38 opposite of yes (2)

Down
1 the act or process of destroying something (11)
2 a device used to measure how hot or cold something is (11)
3 a clear liquid with a strong, bad smell that is used for cleaning (7)
4 to move quickly by moving your legs more quickly than when you walk (3)
5 a salty body of water (3)
6 a dry, brown fruit inside a hard shell that grows on a tree (3)
9 as different as possible from something else (8)
11 pants; especially, men’s pants (8)
12 a car and driver that you pay to take you somewhere (4)
14 when you guess about the possible causes or effects of something without knowing all the facts (11)
16 mirror (7-5)
19 the movement of air, liquid, etc in a system (11)
21 someone kept in prison as a legal punishment for their crime (8)
25 what you hear with (3)
26 opposite of on (3)
29 a part of the body, like the heart or the lungs, that has a particular purpose (5)
32 what you are able to see; the whole area that you can see from somewhere (4)
33 to move from one place to another (2)
34 the fifth month (3)
35 the small drops of water that form on outdoor surfaces during the night (3)