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I’ll give it to you straight: English is not an easy language to learn! Although you could argue that any language (even your first language) isn’t exactly easy, English likes to make things even more difficult with irregular grammar rules, borrowed words, and an ever-evolving nature.
To really learn English, you have to understand English grammar (at least the basics!). Easier said than done, though, right? Today, I’m going to share with you some English grammar tips to help you understand the very structure of the language. A little English grammar cheat sheet, if you will!
What is grammar and why does it matter?
Grammar is the very structure of a language. The rules of grammar vary between languages, but they all govern the sounds, words, sentences, phrases, and clauses that make up a language. Grammar rules also define how these words and phrases are combined and interpreted.
Now, why does grammar matter? To truly understand English (or any language), you must understand the basics of English grammar. If language is the foundation of communication, grammar is the foundation of language.
When it comes to English, the more we are aware of how grammar works, the more we can detect ambiguity, parse meaning, monitor effectiveness, utilize preciseness, and express ourselves richly.
Of course, understanding English grammar is not an easy feat! To help you, I’ve come up with these 15 English grammar tips to help you master the language.
1. There is a standard word order (subject-verb-object).
Unlike many other languages, English has a standard word order. Deviating from this order means you won’t make sense at worst, or your grammar will be incorrect at best. Of course, there are exceptions to the standard word order (more on this later), but in most cases, it’s subject-verb-object (SVO).
For example, a proper sentence is “Boy (S) meets (V) world (O),” versus “Boy world meets” or “Meets world boy.”
2. Know the difference between passive and active voice.
English uses both active and passive voice. In active voice (which is used most often) the subject is doing the verb, like this: “Someone stole my keys.” In passive voice, the subject is being acted upon by the verb: “My keys were stolen.”
Although active voice is often preferred, especially when writing, passive voice has its place, such as when you don’t know who (or what) is doing the action, it doesn’t matter who did the action, or you want a sentence to sound more formal.
3. Remember the subject-verb agreement.
One of the main grammar rules of English is that there must always be a subject-verb agreement. For example, if the subject is plural, the verb needs to match the subject. It’s a common mistake beginning English learners make, but it’s easy to understand once you’ve got the hang of it!
Here’s what subject-verb agreement looks like: “The dog drinks water” has both a singular subject (dog) and a singular form of the verb (drinks). It also looks like this: “The dogs drink water.” Now we have a plural subject (dogs) and plural form of the verb (drink).
4. Learn about countable vs. uncountable nouns.
When considering the subject-verb agreement, one thing you need to remember is the difference between countable and uncountable nouns.
If a noun is uncountable, it only uses singular verbs. A donkey smells, but donkeys smell; air smells (and only smells).
5. Adverbs and adjectives are not interchangeable.
Adverbs and adjectives, while both parts of speech that describe other parts of speech, are not interchangeable!
The main thing to remember is that adjectives describe nouns (“green tree”) while adverbs describe verbs, adjectives, and even other adverbs (“she worked quietly”). Extra tip: Many adverbs end in -ly.
6. Don’t be afraid of conjunctions.
Conjunction conjunction, what’s your function? Why, its function is to be your friend! Adding a conjunction to two separate ideas improves your English fluency both in writing and speaking.
Besides and, other common conjunctions are yet, so, but, or, nor, for.
Read more: How to Improve Your English Writing Skills: 15 Essential Tips
7. Memorize the irregular verbs.
English has over 200 irregular verbs that are used regularly—I know! But don’t worry! I’m not asking you to memorize all of them. However, you do need to memorize some of the irregular verbs to really get a handle on English reading and writing (and listening).
Although you will probably run into all 200 irregular verbs eventually, you can start small! Begin by memorizing the ten most used irregular verbs: go, see, say, come, know, get, give, find, become, and think.
8. Get friendly with the main verb tenses.
Now that you’re working on memorizing the irregular English verbs, what about the regular verbs? You don’t need to memorize any regular verbs to learn English, but you do need to know the main verb tenses. Once you know these, you’ll be able to conjugate any regular English verb, no problem.
The three main verb tenses are past, present, and future, with four grammatical aspects: simple, continuous, perfect, and perfect continuous.
Here’s an example chart, using the verb “to talk.”
| Infinitive: to talk | simple | continuous | perfect | perfect continuous |
| past | talked | was talking | had talked | had been talking |
| present | talk | am talking | have talked | have been talking |
| future | will talk | will be talking | will have talked | will have been talking |
9. Punctuation matters.
I know punctuation can seem rather trivial when it comes to fluency in English, but I promise, it does matter! Proper capitalization (at the beginning of each sentence and for proper nouns), the correct use of question marks vs. periods vs. exclamation points, and the appropriate use of commas are all important things to know.
Punctuation can impact the meaning of a sentence, especially when writing, so it is integral to learning English. For example, the comma is pretty important in these two sentences: “I like cooking my friends and my family” vs. “I like cooking, my friends, and my family.”
10. Each part of speech has a function—learn them!
All eight parts of speech in English (noun, pronoun, verb, adjective, adverb, interjection, conjunction, and preposition) have an integral function.
The part of speech shows how the word functions within the sentence, both grammatically and in meaning. So, you need to know when, and where, to use each one!
Here’s a quick review:
- Nouns are people, places, ideas, and things (cat, love, England)
- Verbs are actions (run, swim)
- Adverbs describe a verb, adjective, or adverb (hugely tall tree)
- Adjectives describe nouns (green tree)
- Pronouns replace nouns (she, him)
- Prepositions link nouns with other words (through, over, under)
- Interjections are short exclamations (oh! Hi! cool!)
- Conjunctions join clauses and/or sentences (and, or, yet, but)
11. Adjective order is a thing.
English is strict when it comes to word order, and this includes adjective order! Generally speaking, adjective order in English (also called “the royal order of adjectives”) goes like this: opinion, size, age, shape, color, origin, material, purpose/qualifier, followed by the noun. It’s not recommended to use more than three adjectives, however, for the most part!
So, for example, you would say “That’s a beautiful, black, Arabian horse” not “that’s a black, Arabian, beautiful horse.”
12. Keep an eye (or ear) out for homophones.
English just LOVES to confuse you, doesn’t it? (It’s not personal!). English is full of homophones, words that look and sound the same but have different meanings. Even native speakers get tripped up by homophones, so don’t be embarrassed if you get confused!
Watch out for common ones like your/you’re, there/their/they’re, brake/break, by/buy/bye. To help you differentiate, pay attention to context, and learn them so you can spot them when they come up!
13. Apostrophes have different meanings.
Apostrophes in English mean different things. They can signal a contraction, which combines two words (such as they + are = they’re), indicate possession (such as “the boy’s name is”), or form plurals of letters, numbers, and symbols (“he got all A’s in science class”).
Knowing when to use apostrophes, and when not to, will improve your English a whole lot!
14. Don’t forget those articles.
Articles modify nouns and are a necessary part of any sentence. While adjectives describe nouns, articles refer to them. We use both definite and indefinite articles in English: “the” (definite) or “a/an” (indefinite).
The is used for specific items, such as “that is the problem with you.” A/an is for non-specific nouns, like “that is a problem we must solve.”
15. English has moods.
I don’t mean that English can be sad or happy (although it can describe those feelings!), but that English verbs have moods. Four, to be precise: indicative, imperative, subjunctive, and infinitive. Indicative expresses assertion, imperative expresses demand, subjunctive expresses doubt or a wish, and infinitive expresses an action (using the infinitive form of the verb).
A few examples: “Are you done yet?” (indicative), “Watch out!” (imperative), “If I were you…” (subjunctive), and “It’s better to be careful” (infinitive).
Conclusion
I hope these English grammar tips will help you in your quest for English fluency! English is not the easiest language to learn, but it can be fun! And with millions of English speakers worldwide, it will be worth it to learn it.
If you need some extra help with English grammar (or speaking), check out resources such as Italki, British Council, or Preply, or dive into these English grammar books.
Do you have any more tips for English grammar? Share the wealth in the comments below!