Essential English Vocabulary and Grammar Structures
Core English Vocabulary Lists
Personality Adjectives
- BIG-HEARTED
- CARING
- COURAGEOUS
- CRUEL
- DEPENDABLE
- MODEST
- OPTIMISTIC
- OUTGOING
- RESPONSIBLE
- SELFLESS
- SUPPORTIVE
- SYMPATHETIC
Common Verb Collocations: GET and MAKE
- GET BETTER
- GET INVOLVED
- GET PERMISSION
- GET THE FEELING
- GET THINGS DONE
- GET USED TO
- MAKE A PROMISE
- MAKE AN EFFORT
- MAKE AN IMPRESSION
- MAKE THE MOST OF
Verbs Related to Advertising
- ADVERTISE
- APPEAL
- APPEAR
- BROADCAST
- CLAIM
- EXAGGERATE
- INFLUENCE
- INFORM
- MANIPULATE
- PROMOTE
- RECOMMEND
Shopping and Consumer Terms
- BARGAINING
- BID
- BROWSE
- BROWSER
- CHARGE
- CONSUME
- CONSUMER
- PURCHASE
- REFUND
- SELECT
- SELECTION
- SUPPLIER
- SUPPLY
Pronouns: Reflexive, Emphatic, and Reciprocal
Reflexive and Emphatic Pronouns
MYSELF / YOURSELF / HIMSELF / HERSELF / ITSELF / OURSELVES / THEMSELVES
Reciprocal Pronouns
- EACH OTHER
- ONE ANOTHER
Nutrition Vocabulary
- ADDITIVE
- AMOUNT
- CALORIE
- CARBOHYDRATE
- FAT
- FIBRE
- MINERAL
- NUTRIENT
- PRESERVATIVE
- PROTEIN
- SERVING
- VITAMIN
- BALANCED (Adjective)
- DELICIOUS (Adjective)
Verbs Describing Function and Process
- ABSORB
- BOOST
- CONSUME
- CRASH
- PERFORM
- PROCESS
- RELEASE
- REPAIR
- REST
- TRANSPORT
Phrasal Verbs for Well-Being
- CALM DOWN
- CHEER UP
- CUT DOWN
- GET OUT
- JOIN IN
- LIVEN UP
- LOOSEN UP
- OPEN UP
- SET UP
- SLOW DOWN
- STRESS (Noun/Verb)
- TAKE UP
Miscellaneous Vocabulary
- ANTIDOTE
- MATTER
- MOOD
- SESSION
- TREATMENT
- WELL-BEING
Medical Terms: Aches and Pains
- ACHING MUSCLES
- ALLERGIC REACTION
- BROKEN LEG
- BRUISED KNEE
- DISLOCATED SHOULDER
- ITCHY KNEE
- SORE BACK
- SPRAINED WRIST
- STIFF NECK
- SWOLLEN ANKLE
Protest and Activism Vocabulary (Nouns)
- CAMPAIGN
- DEMONSTRATION
- ISSUE
- MARCH
- PETITION
- PROTEST
- RALLY
- SIT-IN
- SPEECH
- STRIKE
- STRUGGLE
Advanced Adjectives
- BIASED
- FURIOUS
- INEFFECTIVE
- LABOUR-SAVING
- PROHIBITIVE
- SIGNIFICANT
Adjectives Describing Feelings (-ED/-ING)
- AMAZED / AMAZING
- AMUSED / AMUSING
- ANNOYED / ANNOYING
- BORED / BORING
- DISAPPOINTED / DISAPPOINTING
- FRUSTRATED / FRUSTRATING
- IRRITATED / IRRITATING
- SHOCKED / SHOCKING
- SURPRISED / SURPRISING
Reported Speech (Indirect Speech)
1. Reported Statements
- DIRECT: “It is sunny today,” she said.
- REPORTED: She said it was sunny that day.
- DIRECT: “I didn’t win the match yesterday,” he said.
- REPORTED: He said that he hadn’t won the match the day before.
2. Reported Questions
Beginning with Question Words (Wh- Questions)
- DIRECT: “Where do you live?” he asked me.
- REPORTED: He asked me where I lived.
Beginning with a Verb (Yes/No Questions)
- DIRECT: “Will all cars be electric next decade?” he asked.
- REPORTED: He asked if all cars would be electric the following decade.
3. Reported Commands and Requests
- DIRECT: “Open the door,” the teacher told us.
- REPORTED: The teacher told us to open the door.
- DIRECT: “Don’t make noise, please,” the teacher asked us.
- REPORTED: The teacher asked us not to make noise.
4. Reported Suggestions
Suggestions often use the structure suggest + gerund or suggest that + subject + base form/should.
Direct Forms of Suggestion:
- Let’s go to the cinema!
- Shall we go to the cinema?
- Why don’t we go to the cinema?
- How/What about going to the cinema?
Reported Forms:
- He suggested going to the cinema.
- (When addressing a specific person): He suggested that Jane go to the cinema.
Conditional Sentences
Zero Conditional (General Truths)
Structure: IF + Present Simple / Present Simple
Example: If you heat water, it boils. (We can substitute if for when.)
First Conditional (Likely Future)
Structure: IF + Present Simple / Future Simple (will + verb)
Example: If you study, you will pass the exam.
Use: To describe a future situation that is likely to happen (probable).
Second Conditional (Unlikely/Hypothetical)
Structure: IF + Past Simple / Conditional Simple (would + bare form)
Example: If you studied, you would pass the exam.
Attention: If I were rich, I would buy a yacht.
Use: To describe a future situation that is unlikely to happen (improbable) or hypothetical.
Third Conditional (Past Regret/Impossible Past)
Structure: IF + Past Perfect / Conditional Perfect (would have + participle)
Example: If you had studied, you would have passed the exam.
Use: To describe a past situation that did not happen and its hypothetical result.
Verb Tenses Review
Past Perfect Simple
- Affirmative: Subject + had + Past Participle (e.g., I had played)
- Negative: Subject + hadn’t + Past Participle (e.g., I hadn’t written)
- Interrogative: Had + Subject + Past Participle? (e.g., Had you played?)
Present Perfect Simple
- Affirmative: Subject + have/has + Past Participle (e.g., I have worked)
- Negative: Subject + haven’t/hasn’t + Past Participle (e.g., I haven’t worked)
- Interrogative: Have/Has + Subject + Past Participle? (e.g., Have I worked?)
Present Perfect Progressive (Continuous)
- Affirmative: Subject + have/has + been + Verb -ing (e.g., They have been learning Maths for 2 years)
- Negative: Subject + have/has + not + been + Verb -ing (e.g., They have not been learning Maths for 2 years)
- Interrogative: Have/Has + Subject + been + Verb -ing? (e.g., Have they been learning Maths for 2 years?)
Perfect Modals (Modals + Have + Participle)
Used to speculate about or criticize past actions.
- Can’t have + participle (Impossibility)
- Could have + participle (Possibility/Unrealized ability)
- May have + participle (Possibility)
- Might have + participle (Slight possibility)
- Must have + participle (Logical deduction/Certainty)
- Should / Ought to have + participle (Criticism/Regret)
Example:
It is impossible that Mary wrote that essay.
Mary can’t have written that essay.
Advanced Question Structures
1. Object Questions
The question word refers to the object of the sentence.
Structure: Question Word + Auxiliary + Subject + Verb + Objects?
Example: What did you watch on TV yesterday?
2. Subject Questions
The question word refers to the subject of the sentence; no auxiliary verb is used (except ‘be’).
Structure: Question Word (Subject) + Verb + Objects?
Example: Who won the match last Sunday?
3. Question Tags
Used to confirm information or seek agreement. If the main clause is positive, the tag is negative, and vice versa.
- You speak 3 languages, don’t you?
- He didn’t pass the exam, did he?
- They are preparing the presentation, aren’t they?
4. Questions Ending with Prepositions
In informal English, the preposition often appears at the end of the sentence.
Rule: Start with the question word and place the preposition at the end.
Example: Who do you live with?