Basic Terms
The alphabet is a set of letters used in English to make words. There are 26 letters from A to Z. Learning the alphabet helps in reading, writing, and spelling.
- A, B, C, D, … Z
Vowels are letters that allow air to pass through freely when spoken. They are essential for forming syllables and words.
- A, E, I, O, U
Consonants are letters produced by blocking or restricting air with lips, tongue, or teeth. They combine with vowels to make words.
- B, C, D, F, G, H, …
A word is a group of letters that expresses meaning. Words can act as nouns, verbs, adjectives, and other parts of speech.
- Book, Run, Happy, Quickly
A phrase is a group of words that gives meaning but does not form a complete sentence. It adds detail to a sentence.
- in the park, very quickly, a tall building
A clause contains a subject and a verb. It can be independent (complete sentence) or dependent (needs another clause).
- She smiled. (Independent)
- When it rains, I stay inside. (Dependent)
A sentence expresses a complete thought. It starts with a capital letter and ends with punctuation.
- She is reading a book.
- Are you coming?
- Sit down!
A paragraph is a group of sentences that talk about one main idea. It is used to organize thoughts clearly.
- A short passage about your favorite hobby.
- A paragraph describing your school or home.
The subject is the part of a sentence that tells who or what is doing the action.
- Ali plays football.
- The cat is sleeping.
The object receives the action in a sentence. It can be a noun or pronoun.
- Ali kicked the ball.
- She read the book.
The predicate tells what the subject does or is. It includes the verb and details.
- The cat is sleeping.
- Ali plays football every evening.
Parts of Speech are categories of words based on their function in sentences.
- Noun – name of a person, place, thing, or idea
- Pronoun – replaces a noun
- Verb – shows action or state
- Adjective – describes a noun
- Adverb – describes a verb, adjective, or adverb
- Preposition – shows relation between words
- Conjunction – joins words or sentences
- Interjection – expresses strong feeling
Articles are words used before nouns to show whether something is specific or general.
- a, an, the
- I saw a dog. / She ate an apple. / The sun is bright.
Tenses show the time of an action. There are 12 main tenses in English:
- Present Simple – I eat
- Present Continuous – I am eating
- Present Perfect – I have eaten
- Present Perfect Continuous – I have been eating
- Past Simple – I ate
- Past Continuous – I was eating
- Past Perfect – I had eaten
- Past Perfect Continuous – I had been eating
- Future Simple – I will eat
- Future Continuous – I will be eating
- Future Perfect – I will have eaten
- Future Perfect Continuous – I will have been eating
A transitive verb is an action verb that needs an object to complete its meaning.
- She reads a book.
- He kicked the ball.
An intransitive verb does not need an object to complete its meaning.
- She smiles.
- He runs every morning.
Active voice shows the subject doing the action; passive shows the action done to the subject.
- Active: Ali eats an apple.
- Passive: An apple is eaten by Ali.
Narration is when we tell what someone said using our own words.
- Direct: He said, “I am tired.”
- Indirect: He said that he was tired.
Modal verbs show ability, possibility, permission, or obligation.
- can, could, may, might, must, shall, should, will, would
- You can swim. / She must finish her homework.
Collocations are words that usually go together naturally.
- make a decision, do homework, heavy rain
An idiom is a phrase where the meaning is different from the words used.
- Break the ice – to start a conversation
- Piece of cake – very easy
A phrasal verb is a verb combined with a preposition or adverb.
- look after – take care of
- give up – stop trying
Synonyms are words with similar meaning.
- Happy – joyful
- Big – large
Antonyms are words with opposite meaning.
- Hot – cold
- Happy – sad
Homophones are words that sound the same but have different meanings or spellings.
- Sun – son
- Sea – see
Similes compare two things using “like” or “as”.
- He is as brave as a lion.
- She sings like an angel.
Literal meaning is the exact, dictionary meaning of a word or phrase.
- “Break a leg” literally means to break a leg bone.
Figurative meaning is the intended or symbolic meaning of a word or phrase.
- “Break a leg” figuratively means “Good luck!”