Lesson 14. Demonstratives
In this lesson you'll learn how to use the English demonstrative adjectives and pronouns (this and that). You'll also learn how to use infinitives, gerunds, and the verb phrases to be supposed to and used to.
At the end of this lesson is chapter 5 of the story "Ana and Alejandro's Adventures in Vancouver". In this chapter, Ana and Alejandro start their first day of English school.
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Grammar Focus
Demonstrative Adjectives and Pronouns
Demonstrative Adjectives are used to talk about specific things and people. There are two demonstrative adjectives in English, this and that. When comparing objects, this is used to describe the object or event nearer in distance or time, and that is used for the object or event further away in distance or time. A demonstrative pronoun comes before the noun it describes.
Demonstrative pronouns are the same as the demonstrative adjectives, except they take the place of a noun in a sentence.
The following table shows the demonstrative adjectives and pronouns.
| Singular | Plural | |
|---|---|---|
| near | this | these |
| far | that | those |
Examples
| That idea is great! | Demonstrative adjective |
| That is a great idea! | Demonstrative pronoun |
| This book is better than that book. | Demonstrative adjectives |
| This is better than that. | Demonstrative pronouns |
| Those apples taste good. | demonstrative adjective |
| These apples are better than those. | Demonstrative adjective and demonstrative pronoun |
Infinitives
An infinitive is a form of a verb used in several situations in English.
- as a complement of another verb.
Examples: I want to hear. I can go. - as a noun phrase that expresses an action in an abstract way.
Example: To err is human. - as a modifier of a noun or adjective.
Examples: I don't know what to do. This is the way to do it.
The word to often comes before the verb in the infinitive form. When an infinitve follows certain verbs, such as can, will, shall, may, and do, the infinitive only consists of the base of the verb.
Examples
| I want to go. | 我想去。 |
| I will go. | 我会去。 |
| I need to find my jacket. | 我需要找到我的夹克。 |
| Don't tell me what to think. | 不要告诉我想想什么。 |
| They should do it. | 他们应该这样做。 |
| Can you speak English? | 你会说英语吗？ |
Gerunds
A gerund is a noun that is made from a verb by adding ing to the end of the infinitive form of the verb. If the infinitive of the verb ends in a single e, the e is usually dropped.
| Verb | Noun |
|---|---|
| read | reading |
| talk | talking |
| go | going |
| race | racing |
| be | being |
| see | seeing |
| take | taking |
Examples
| Reading is one way to become smarter. | 阅读是变得更聪明的方法之一。 |
| Talking about it will help. | 谈论它将帮助。 |
| I think swimming is great exercise. | 我觉得游泳是很好的锻炼。 |
| She says giving is better than receiving. | 她说给予比接受好。 |
| They helped by bringing drinks for everyone. | 他们帮助通过把饮料给大家。 |
| Speaking another language is very rewarding. | 说另一种语言是非常有益的。 |
To Be Supposed To
The verb phrase to be supposed to expresses expectation, obligation, or what is believed to be true.
Examples
| Mary is supposed to study for her exam. | 玛丽应该为考试做准备。 |
| We are supposed to paint the house today. | 我们今天应该粉刷房子。 |
| You are not supposed to tell anyone. | 你不应该告诉任何人。 |
| Am I supposed to do it? | 我应该这么做吗？ |
| You were supposed to do it. | 你应该这么做。 |
| The teacher was supposed to explain it to us. | 老师应该向我们解释一下。 |
Used To
Used to has several different meanings. This section covers each of its uses.
1) To be used to means to be accustomed to, or to be familiar with. For example:
| I am used to the warm weather. | 我习惯了温暖的天气。 |
| I’m used to leaving work late. | 我习惯工作到很晚。 |
| He is used to the noise of the traffic. | 他习惯了交通噪音。 |
2) When used to follows a noun or pronoun it means an action was repeated in the past, but does not currently happen. For example:
| I used to drive to work, but now I walk to work. | 我以前开车上班，但现在我走路去上班。 |
| I used to put two teaspoons of sugar in my coffee, but now I don’t put any sugar in. | 我习惯把糖两茶匙在我的咖啡，但是现在我不把任何糖。 |
| They used to visit almost every weekend, but now that they’ve moved away, we rarely ever see them. | 他们用几乎每个周末参观，但现在他们已经搬走了，我们很少看到过他们。 |
3) Used to can also be the past tense of the verb phrase use to. For example:
| What did you use to fix it? I used a hammer to fix it. | 什么你用它来解决这个问题？我用锤子来解决它。 |
| What do they use the apples for? They use them to make apple pie. | 他们是怎么使用的苹果呢？他们用他们做苹果派。 |
| We used it to store our extra clothes. | 我们用它来存储多余的衣服。 |
Story: A New Life in Vancouver
Chapter 5: First Day of School
On Monday morning, Ana and Alejandro wake up early. It is their first day at English school in Vancouver. They are excited but also a little nervous.
“Do you have your notebook?” Ana asks.
“Yes,” Alejandro says. “Do you have your student card?”
Ana checks her bag. “Yes, I have it.”
They take the bus to the school. When they arrive, many students are standing outside. They hear people speaking Spanish, Korean, Japanese, Portuguese, and many other languages.
“It’s so international,” Ana says.
Inside the school, a friendly woman at the front desk smiles at them. “Good morning. Are you new students?”
“Yes, we are,” Ana says.
“Great. Please go to Room 204 for your placement test.”
They walk down the hallway and enter the room. A teacher gives them a short test to check their English level. After the test, the teacher says, “You will both be in the A2 class. Your classroom is Room 110.”
They go to Room 110 and meet their classmates. There are students from Brazil, Mexico, Korea, Turkey, and Italy. Everyone looks friendly.
The teacher, Ms. Carter, walks in. “Good morning, everyone. Welcome to class.”
She writes her name on the board and begins the lesson. They practice introductions, simple conversations, and vocabulary about daily life.
During the break, Alejandro talks to a student from Japan.
“Hi, I’m Alejandro,” he says.
“I’m Yuki,” the student replies. “Nice to meet you.”
They talk about Vancouver, the weather, and their favorite foods.
After class, Ana says, “I really like this school. The teacher is nice.”
“Yeah,” Alejandro says. “And I made a new friend.”
They walk outside into the warm afternoon sun, feeling happy about their first day.
Lesson Quiz
Part 1 - This and That
Use the correct form of the demostrative adjective in parentheses
Example
Question: _____ shoes are very muddy. (that)
Answer: Those shoes are very muddy.
Part 2 - Infinitive
Use the correct form of the infinitive for the verb in parentheses
Example
Question: I need _____ to the store. (go)
Answer: I need to go to the store.
Part 3 - Gerund
Fill in the blank with the gerund of the verb in parentheses
Example
Question: Only by _____ will you get good results. (try)
Answer: Only by trying will you get good results.
