Additional Exercise on Pronouncing the Past Tense of Regular Verbs

Below you will find an additional exercise on the end sounds of the past tense of regular verbs. Listen to the audio and then, attempt the final exercise found in the given slideshow.

The problematic `ed' in the past tense

Regular verb + ed = past tense

Walk + ed = walked

It's a simple rule and it's so easy to remember and follow, but for some, the problem starts when they are asked to pronounce the past tense of the regular verbs for there are actually three ways of pronouncing the `ed'! Watch and listen to the audio recording below to find out more about these three ways, if you too have trouble with pronouncing the past tense of regular verbs.

 After listening to the audio, try reading out the passage below.

I tried to attract their attention but they were too engrossed in their conversation. I paced up and down the room, hoping that would distract them. But no, their conversation was, obviously, just too interesting that nothing else seemed to qualify as a worthy competitor to whatever topic they had embarked on! I was frustrated and, with a huff and puff, dropped onto a comfy sofa. I told myself, no, I will not get irritated, I will just enjoy the softness of the cushion and revel in my just completed masterpiece. Ah, it was a masterpiece! The judges had praised my unique artistry when they handed me a beautiful trophy. The trophy looked quite grand with an image of a painting mounted on the top of it.

"Speak like the native!" - Please don't!

I just read a comment in the previous post that included a link to another site that teaches one English. Out of curiosity, I took a look and found the exhortation that a foreign speaker will be guided to speak like a native so as to not feel embarrassed.

As a linguist and a teacher and researcher into the learning of the English Language, this immediately set off alarm bells in me. There is no such thing as a singular `native' speaker. Even within a family, there are differences in the speech patterns among the members. On a global scale, there are differences between the native speakers of English in England, the United States, Australia and New Zealand. There are differences between native speakers in different settings within a country. A farmer speaks differently from a lawyer.

Your environment, educational settings and profession affect the manner in which you speak.

So, the next time you learn a new language, remember there is nothing to be ashamed of if you speak with an accent. Learn the conventions, grammar and pronunciation for those help you to understand and to be understood but if you have an accent, don't worry. Language is about communication and if you can communicate, you are doing well!

Learning English

As we embark on the year 2016, it might be a good idea to go over some of the topics covered in previous posts and their relationship to the learning of the English language. 

Anyone would agree that learning a new language is never easy. A language embodies not just rules that have evolved over centuries to form its grammar but it also includes certain cultural peculiarities that would be foreign to speakers of other languages.

A Vietnamese adult student of mine lamented the difficulty in learning the English language because there are rules that, on first sight, don't make sense to her. Only when the logic is explained does she appreciate these rules. As many languages as there are, there are differing logical applications of the grammars and language conventions.

(I will discuss a problematic rule that the Vietnamese student had in the next post as a further illustration of why differing logical applications are acceptable; there are no black and white here, it all depends on the perspective of the speaker or community.)

Coming back to the English language, we need to understand that even something that seems as minor as Punctuation is important in altering the meaning of a statement. Ignore the comma, and your statement changes in meaning. For instance:

Don't kill the weeds with pesticide.

Don't, kill the weeds with pesticide.

Here, the two statements assume opposing stands. In the first statement, it is clear that the writer is advising against the killing of the weeds using pesticide. However, in the second statement, the killing of the weeds with pesticides is advocated instead and, presumably, alternative modes of getting rid of the weeds are deemed unacceptable.

In addition, one has to learn about the rules pertaining to Syntax so as to create intelligible sentences that get across the intention of the writer with clarity. Of course, one also has to understand logic behind the rules governing the Grammar so as to better internalise the learning of the language.

Finally, a language is boring if there is no Creative Expression, and as in any other language, the English language has produced master weavers who can expertly navigate through their thoughts and express these thoughts in artistic forms.

If you would like to find out more about the English courses that The Pear Tree Centre for Education offers, or would like to discuss possible areas in which we can help you with your English language learning so that we can adapt according to your needs, contact us at admin1@thepeartree.info - we will not only teach you the basics but gradually, guide you to achieve creativity in your use of the language as well!

Sentences: A Refresher Exercise on Complete and Incomplete Sentences

In earlier post, we had gone over the properties of incomplete and complete sentences.  Go over the post again if you are still unsure of what makes a sentence complete or incomplete. After that, attempt the following exercise in which the incomplete sentences are identified in purple font colour for you.

Exercise

"Hmmm... I wonder where she went." James had been at the bus-stop for over an hour now. Earlier in the evening, he had received an urgent call from Jennie asking him to meet her at the bus-stop near the Whammy, a five-star hotel located in the middle of the town. Glancing at the circular face of his watch which was studded with gold nodules to signify each hour. "This is absurd! Asks me to come, and she's not here!" he fumed under his breath. Losing his patience and lifting his briefcase that lay beside him. "Well, enough of this game! I'm going home." He walked briskly toward the parking lot where he had parked his car. Just then, a bright red car with a sun-roof and gold door handles. He heard someone getting out of the car. He sensed heavy footfalls moving in his direction. Soon, the footsteps stopped and he felt a pat on his shoulder. Turning around and looking into a pair of blood-shot eyes. He gaped in disbelief.

Now, ask yourself why these are sentence fragments before taking a look at the following revisions in which additions are made so as to complete the sentences.

"Hmmm... I wonder where she went." James had been at the bus-stop for over an hour now. Earlier in the evening, he had received an urgent call from Jennie asking him to meet her at the bus-stop near the Whammy, a five-star hotel located in the middle of the town. Glancing at the circular face of his watch which was studded with gold nodules to signify each hour, he let out an exasperated sigh. (Addition of the main thought or action since the act of glancing is merely an elaboration since `glancing' indicates that some other act was performed.)  "This is absurd! She asks me to come, (Addition of the subject, or doer, of the act of `asking' to show who is doing the `asking'.) and she's not here!" he fumed under his breath. Losing his patience and lifting his briefcase that lay beside him, he got off the metal seat he had occupied for the past hour. (Again, the main thought or action, which was missing, is added. The `ing' in the `losing' and `lifting' and the absence of a subject are hints that this part of the sentence is merely an elaboration.) "Well, I have had enough of this game! (There is no subject or verb in this sentence and so the subject `I' and the verb, `have had' are added.) I'm going home." He walked briskly toward the parking lot where he had parked his car. 
Just then, a bright red car with a sun-roof and gold door handles whizzed past him. (There is the subject but there is neither a verb nor an object; hence, the verb `whizzed' and object `him' are added to complete the sentence.) He heard someone getting out of the car. He sensed heavy footfalls moving in his direction. Soon, the footsteps stopped and he felt a pat on his shoulder. Turning around and looking into a pair of blood-shot eyes, he gaped in disbelief. (By adding the incomplete thought to the complete sentence, we have a complete sentence!)

Answers to the `Additional Refresher Exercise'

Additional Refresher Exercise Rapidly they came, like a 21-gun salute, Exploding into multiple single crackling pops. The jolly red fire-crackers danced gleefully As each thick roll jerked heavily back and forth And the string of rolls turned into smoky black ashes.

Answers to the `Additional Refresher Exercise' can now be found in the current blog post on The Pear Tree website.

Online `O' Level English And Lit Lessons (for Singaporean students)

Adjectives and Adverbs

Why are adjectives and adverbs important?

They add descriptive details that enable the reader to visualise even more graphically what is written.

To recap:

Adjectives: Descriptive words that tell you more about the noun or pronoun.

Adverbs: Modify the verb, adjective or adverb by giving one more information about any one of those.

Additional Refresher Exercise Rapidly they came, like a 21-gun salute, Exploding into multiple single crackling pops. The jolly red fire-crackers danced gleefully As each thick roll jerked heavily back and forth And the string of rolls turned into smoky black ashes.

Identify the adjectives and adverbs in the boxed exercise. Suggested answers will be given soon as a blog post on The Pear Tree website


So, why are adjectives and adverbs important?

Just take a look at the following:

A man and his daughter came upon a window from which light fell onto the pavement outside. One could see through the window many kinds of watches and seated within the shop, was a man who was working over a device.

The above is an adaptation of an extract from Nathaniel Hawthorne's story, `The Artist of the Beautiful'. Wouldn't you agree that, as a reader, you cannot adequate visualise what Hawthorne is trying to describe? Now, read the original version:

An elderly man, with his pretty daughter on his arm, was passing along the street, and emerged from the gloom of the cloudy evening into the light that fell across the pavement from the window of a small shop. It was a projecting window; and on the inside, were suspended a variety of watches - pinchbeck, silver, and one or two of gold - all with their faces turned from the street, as if churlishly disinclined to inform the wayfarers what o'clock it was. Seated within the shop, sidelong to the window, with his pale face bent earnestly over some delicate piece of mechanism, on which was thrown the concentrated lustre of a shade-lamp appeared a young man.

 You will find the original, by being more descriptive, is graphic enough to give the reader a better picture of what the author wants to get across than the adaptation with very few details. Therefore, make sure to include adjectives and adverbs the next time you write so as to make your writing more graphic.

Adverbs: Answers to the Exercise in the previous post

The exercise is reproduced below:

Exercise

I went very quickly into the the wooden shed.  It was somewhat dilapidated and yet, there was a homely feeling to it.  I walked up to the chest of drawers, and with a piece of old newspaper that I had found lying nearby, I wiped off the dust from the surface.  Yes, it was still there.  I had thought the childishly drawn picture of a wilting flower would have faded with age.  But no, it was still there.  Slowly, I traced the outlines with my index finger and sighed.  It's been a long time, such a long time. 

Suggested Answers and Explanations:

Adverb	What it modifies	Explanation
very	Adverb `quickly'	Gives added details to the `quickly' (adverb) to indicate the degree of the quickness of the narrator's action (verb) in going into the shed.
quickly	Verb `went'	Elaborates on the pace the narrator adopted.
somewhat	Adjective `dilapidated'	Allows the reader to visualise to what extent the shed is dilapidated.
childishly	Adjective `drawn'	`Drawn' is used here as an adjective to indicate the type of picture and `childishly' demonstrates the manner in which it was `drawn'
slowly	Verb `traced'	Reveals the narrator's lack of haste in tracing the outlines.
such	Adjective `long'	Emphasises the prolonged period of time that has passed.

Adverbs

(Update from the last post: Go to the Blog page of The Pear Tree Centre for Education for an additional exercise on the past perfect tense as well as the suggested answers and explanations.)

Adverbs

What are adverbs? They are similar to adjectives in that, while adjectives describe the nouns, adverbs modify, or gives further details or descriptions of, the verbs, adjectives or adverbs.

Describing the Verb

I ran slowly.

The car's engine died and it gradually came to a stop.

Often, one finds that adverbs end with an `ly', and this is true for those adverbs that describes the verb. In the above examples, `slowly' describes the manner in which the person ran, and `gradually' describes the car coming to a stop in stages.

However, there are adverbs that do not end with an `ly', and these modify the adjective or another adverb. Examples are:

He was too bold a character. (The `too' modifies the adjective `bold' which describes the `character.)

The deep green leaves is soothing to the sight. (The `deep' describes the extent to which the leaves, the noun, are green, the adjective.)

I drew very carefully the dots on the paper. (`Carefully', the adverb, modifies `drew', which is a verb while `very' modifies the adverb, `carefully'.)

Now, try to identify the adverbs in the following exercise. The answers are given in the next post.

Exercise

I went very quickly into the the wooden shed.  It was somewhat dilapidated and yet, there was a homely feeling to it.  I walked up to the chest of drawers, and with a piece of old newspaper that I had found lying nearby, I wiped off the dust from the surface.  Yes, it was still there.  I had thought the childishly drawn picture of a wilting flower would have faded with age.  But no, it was still there.  Slowly, I traced the outlines with my index finger and sighed.  It's been a long time, such a long time. 

The Past Perfect Tense: Additional Exercise in The Pear Tree Blog

An additional exercise on the Past Perfect Tense can be found in the `Our Blog' section of The Pear Tree Centre for Education.

Attempt the exercise and look out for the answers, with suggested explanations, in the upcoming blog post.

To gain a greater understanding of the Perfect Tense, join the grammar course at The Pear Tree Centre for Education.

Past Perfect Tense (Explanations to given exercise)

Suggested Explanations:

• I had not felt like stepping outdoors for several days now.  

The `several days' indicate that whatever had happened took place over a period of time.  To demonstrate the `feeling' that lasted for `several days', the past perfect tense, `had not felt' is used.

• This indiscriminate burning had gone on for too long, I thought to myself at that time.

`Too long' indicates that the `indiscriminate burning' took place over a period of time.

• Indeed, it was a welcomed respite from the hazy conditions that we had been experiencing for the last few days. 

Here there are two verbs, namely `was' and `had been experiencing'.  So, in order to differentiate between the timings of the occurrences of the two events that are connect to each other and had already taken place, or are in the past, the past perfect tense is used to indicate which of the two took place first. In this case, the hazy conditions that `we had been experiencing' took place first before the welcomed respite (`it was'). 

• I wanted to breathe in the air that was fresher than it had been previously.

There are three verbs in the statement above, namely `wanted', `was' and `had been'. To differentiate between the timings of two inter-related occurrences, the perfect tense is used for the first related occurrence.

There is a comparison between the quality of the air at two moments in the past. The air had gradually become fresher. When it was less fresh, the past perfect tense is used to indicate what the quality of the air was before it became fresher later. 

The Past Perfect Tense

The perfect tense can leave many baffled. When do you actually use it? Why is it used instead of the present tense (in the case of present perfect tense) or the past tense (in the case of the past perfect tense)?

In the first instance, let us narrow the focus to just one, namely the past perfect tense and attempt to gain a better understanding of it before going into other kinds of perfect tenses.

Firstly, we must remember that the past perfect tense belongs to the family of `tenses'; hence, we are looking at time-frame. Allow me to go over a couple of reasons for using the past perfect tense.

Now take a look at the following exercise and attempt to explain why the past perfect tense is used in each of the cases.

I had not felt like stepping outdoors for several days now.  The air even smelt of the burning that was taking place thousands of miles away in the Indonesian islands of Sumatra and Kalimantan. This indiscriminate burning had gone on for too long, I thought to myself at that time.

Then, the heavens parted and the beautiful rain poured down in torrents.  I sighed in relief.  Indeed, it was a welcomed respite from the hazy conditions that we had been experiencing for the last few days. When it stopped raining, I walked out for a stroll.  I wanted to breathe in the air that was fresher than it had been previously.

Suggested explanations, to cross-reference with those that you may have come up with, will be offered soon.

An Exercise in Tenses

In the extract of a paragraph from the passage, A Cooking Challenge, in a previous post on reading comprehension, you will notice that there are different kinds of tenses. Take a look at the tenses highlighted in red and attempt to explain why different kinds of tenses are used.  Then, go to the blog page of The Pear Tree Centre for Education for the explanations.

In the next post, I will go over the same extract to explain perfect tense.

I have had a few yuck moments, for sure, before I had the revelation that cooking is a science!  I have, for instance, realised that one simply does not concoct a drink from grapefruit and bitter gourd, no matter how good, Google tells you, they are good for your body.  I must admit that I tried unsuccessfully to redeem the drink through scooping spoonfuls of honey.  But, ah, those are moments that belong to history.  With a bit of help from my sister, friends and the Net, I found to my surprise that I was getting better.  That is, I was getting better, with creating rather simple dishes until the fateful day when I decided to cook egg curry with the help of the `egg roast curry powder'.

Remember to go to website of The Pear Tree Centre for Education for the suggested explanations. 

Suggested Answers (The Cooking Challenge)

Suggested answers to the reading comprehension questions found in the previous post.

1.    Give an example of a `palatable dish' that originated from `bland ingredients'.

An example would be fried egg.  The addition of onions, chillies to raw egg fried in oil makes the resultant dish tastier than the individual ingredients on their own.

2.    Which original phrase inspired the phrase `cross kitchen knives and ladles'?

The phrase is `cross swords'.

3.    What do you think happened when the writer had those `yuck moments'?

The dishes were failures in that these dishes didn't taste good.

4.    What does the writer mean by saying that `cooking is a science'?

There is a logical method to cooking. In other words, in order to achieve a good dish, only appropriate ingredients or ingredients that complement one another should be included.

5.    What would be the taste of the drink before honey was added to it? Was the addition of the honey successful in making it taste better? Give a reason for your answer.

It would taste very sour or bitter. No, since we are told that the attempt was unsuccessful.

6.    What is the meaning of chagrin?

It means disappointment or exasperation.

7.    Name the `staple vegetables'. Why do you think the writer refers to these vegetables as `staple'

The staple vegetables are tomatoes and carrots. These vegetables are regularly featured or used in the writer's cooking.

8.    What does `bid adieu' mean?

It means to say goodbye, in other words, to leave the pan.

9.    Why would the writer think that the eggs are ready to be removed?

The protruding white substance would indicate that the egg white is cooked since it has turned from liquid to solid. Hence, the writer would think that whole egg white and yolk inside each of the eggs would be cooked.

10.              In what way or ways is the `base' important?

The `base' was enough to make the dish tasty even though the main ingredient, the eggs, were not well-cooked.

A Reading Comprehension Exercise

The Cooking Challenge

I am not a great cook - well, not even a `passable' cook actually - but recently, I have been showing some interest in trying my hand at transforming bland ingredients into palatable dishes.  Reality shows have a way of inducing viewers into thinking they can become as good as the competitors on the countless shows where aspiring chefs cross kitchen knives and ladles!

I have had a few yuck moments, for sure, before I had the revelation that cooking is a science!  I have, for instance, realised that one simply does not concoct a drink from grapefruit and bitter gourd, no matter how good, Google tells you, they are for your body.  I must admit that I tried unsuccessfully to redeem the drink through scooping spoonfuls of honey.  But, ah, those are moments that belong to history.  With a bit of help from my sister, friends and the Net, I found to my surprise that I was getting better.  That is, I was getting better, with creating rather simple dishes until the fateful day when I decided to cook egg curry with the help of the `egg roast curry powder'.

Honestly, with the base curry powder at your side, how difficult can it be?  Well, unfortunately, I found out to my chagrin that what comes after including the `base' is also important!

First, I placed a saucepan, half-filled with water, on the stove and lighted it.  Then, I went about chopping the onions, garlic and ginger.  I decided that from a one-dish person, it would be better to include some carrots and tomatoes in it to make it a more complete and nutritious meal.  So, after a good rinse under the running tap, my dear staple vegetables landed on my chopping board.

Meanwhile, I glanced at the saucepan and thought the water was about to boil.  Now, I thought, would be a good time to gently lower the eggs into the pan using a ladle.  (Yes, I do get nightmares about boiling water splashing on me!)  I remembered hearing that eggs don't take long to become hard-boiled.  I glanced uncertainly at my eggs dancing in the boiling water.  When I noticed the tell-tale white substance protruding from within a thin crack lining the side of the one of the eggs, I decided that it was time for my eggs to bid adieu to the pan.

I scooped up the eggs and left it in a pot of tap water to let them cool off.  Not too long after, I decided to peel the shells off of the eggs.  It was not easy to peel because the insides were not hard but still soft.  Is this what they call `soft-boiled'? I saw the gooey yellow and mushy white wobbling within the cracked shells.

No, I did not have my perfect egg curry, but my scrambled egg curry was not too bad.  I suppose, the base is important after all!

Below are some questions based on the above account.  Go over them and try to use contextual clues and prior knowledge to answer them. Suggested answers will be offered in a few days.

1. Give an example of a `palatable dish' that originated from `bland ingredients'.
2. Which original phrase inspired the phrase `cross kitchen knives and ladles'?
3. What do you think happened when the writer had those `yuck moments'? 
4. What does the writer mean by saying that `cooking is a science'?
5. What would be the taste of the drink before honey was added to it?  Was the addition of the honey successful in making it taste better? Give a reason for your answer.
6. What is the meaning of chagrin?
7. Name the `staple vegetables'. Why do you think the writer refers to the vegetables as `staple'?
8. What does `bid adieu' mean?
9. Why would the writer think that the eggs are ready to be removed?
10. In what way or ways is the `base' important?

Sentences: Ways of starting a sentence

So do the examples above include `proper' sentences?

Thundering down in torrents, rain came, battering the barren earth in merry glee.

So long as the sentence has a subject, verb and optional object, if it is needed to complete a thought, it does not matter in which order these appear. If I were to rearrange the words, I would get:

The rain came, thundering down in torrents (and) battering the barren earth in merry glee.

The subject is the rain and the action is `came'.  So, it does not matter whether the subject is at the beginning or in the middle; so long as it's there, and along with a verb (came), the sentence gets across a complete thought, it is a proper sentence.

Now, go over the following and ask yourself if they are complete or incomplete sentences:

1. The field is overgrown with grass.
2. I can't believe that
3. James running into the room in anticipation
4. She was in tears when she came up to me and apologised
5. Lush and green, the fields appeared in the morning glow.

The answers can be found in one of the posts in The Pear Tree website.

Sentences: Beginning a sentence

Marnqui was on his way to the park when he met Lil' Pompurse walking hurriedly toward the bus-stop.

Marnqui:	Hey, wait up, where are you off to?
Lil' Pompurse:	(With his little chest puffing up in a proud heave) I am off to tutor my classmates on what makes a sentence and what does not?
Marnqui:	Wow, so you are now a tutor?
Lil' Pompurse:	Yup, I am the smartest in class, so Mr John told me to help the others.
Marnqui:	Oh, pray then, tell me, what makes a sentence a sentence and what does not?
Lil' Pompurse:	Hmmm, so you don't know either, huh? (The chest heaved even more!)
Marnqui:	Don't bother about what I know or don't, just tell me, what are you going to teach your classmates?
Lil' Pompurse:	Well, it usually starts off with the subject or doer of the action. You know, like `I had cereal for breakfast.' The `I' is the subject or the one in the thick of the action!
Marnqui:	Oh, alright... then, what about a sentence that starts with an object?  What would your answer be for a sentence that goes like this: `The cereal was eaten by me.'
Lil' Pompurse:	I am coming to that! (Here, the chest deflated a little, but just for a moment, mind you!) That would depend on whether the sentence is an active or passive voice.
Marnqui:	Voice?! You mean, a sentence talks?!
Lil' Pompurse:	(Breaking into spirited laughter, or to our texting friends, lol) Gosh, you crack me up! In an active voice, the focus is on the subject or doer and the action, so the sentence is, sort of, active, you know. From my given example, the focus is on the `I' having the cereal. However, in the case of the passive voice, the attention is drawn to the object, or the recipient, or result, of the act. Thus, in your example, you want people to pay attention to the cereal and not the `I' or subject. Hence, you said, `The cereal was eaten by me.' Both are correct. It just depends on what or whom you want to draw attention to.
Marnqui:	Wow, you are so smart, Pompurse! Now, do you see this sign? What do you make of it? Some of these sentences don't start with a subject or an object? So, are they proper sentences?

What do you think? Are they `proper' sentences? Answers from The Pear Tree Centre for Education coming soon.

Meanwhile, look out for the additional exercise on complete and incomplete sentences, which will be available in a couple of days.