B1 Grammar Practice - ESL Lesson 3

Grammar Reference

Subject Rules Example
Past Perfect Use had + past participle to talk about an action that happened before another past action or time. She had left when I arrived. / They had finished the work by 5 PM.
Second Conditional Use past simple in if-clause and would + base verb in main clause to talk about unreal or hypothetical situations in the present or future. If I won the lottery, I would travel the world. / If she studied harder, she would pass the exam.
Modal Verbs for Deduction (must, can't, might, could) Use must for strong positive deduction, can't for strong negative deduction, might/could for possibility. He must be tired (he worked all day). / She can't be interested (she left early).
Comparative Adjectives Use -er/more for comparatives (two items) and -est/most for superlatives (three or more items). For adjectives ending in -y, change to -ier/-iest. This road is narrower than that one. / This is the most beautiful place I've ever seen.
Passive Voice (Past Continuous) Form with was/were + being + past participle. Use for ongoing actions in the past where focus is on the action. The road was being repaired when we drove past.
Reported Questions For reported questions, use if/whether for yes/no questions, and question words (what, where, when, etc.) for wh-questions. Change pronouns and tenses. She asked, "Where are you going?" → She asked where I was going.
Movement Prepositions Use to for direction toward a place, from for direction away from a place, into/out of for entering/leaving enclosed spaces. Go to the store, come from the office, jump into the pool, get out of the car.
Positive Question Tags Use positive tags after negative statements. Use auxiliary verb from statement. You don't like coffee, do you? / She can't swim, can she?
Non-Defining Relative Clauses Use who/which (not that) for people/things, whose for possession, where for places, when for time. Always use commas. My brother, who lives in Australia, is visiting next week. / The Eiffel Tower, which is in Paris, is famous.
Future Continuous Use will be + present participle (-ing) to talk about actions that will be in progress at a specific time in the future. This time tomorrow, I will be flying to New York. / At 8 PM tonight, they will be having dinner.

Answer Key

1. had left

2. won

3. must

4. more beautiful

5. was being repaired

6. where

7. into

8. can she

9. which

10. will be flying

1. By the time we arrived, she ___ . (left/had left)
2. If I ___ the lottery, I would buy a house. (win/won)
3. He ___ be tired after working all day. (must/can't)
4. This view is ___ than any I've seen before. (beautiful/more beautiful)
5. The road ___ when we drove past. (was repaired/was being repaired)
6. She asked me where I ___ . (am going/was going)
7. He jumped ___ the pool to cool off. (in/into)
8. You can't swim, ___ ? (can you/can she)
9. The painting, ___ was very expensive, sold quickly. (which/that)
10. This time tomorrow, I ___ to New York. (will fly/will be flying)