At a B1 level you can understand the main points in situations regularly encountered at work, school and in your free time. Travelling becomes easier. You can describe experiences, events, hopes, dreams and ambitions. Think of B1 English grammar as another key in a house full of locked doors.

australian flag b1 english grammar page

PAST TENSE

The simple past is used to talk about finished events while the past continuous is good for telling stories.

Irregular Verbs

Past Simple Exercises

Most Common Irregular Past Tense Verbs

Travel Disasters: ESL Simple Past Exercise

William Shakespeare: Past Simple Verbs

Irregular Past Simple Exercise

A Great Party (Past Simple Verbs)

Travelling (Past Simple Verbs and Comparatives)

Present Perfect vs Past Simple

Past Simple vs Past Continuous

NEGATIVE DETERMINERS

We use negative determiners in positive sentences to emphasise negative ideas.

Negative Determiners

CONJUCTION JUNCTION

Despite, In Spite of & more!

PRESENT CONTINUOUS

B1 English grammar starts to become a little more complex. The present continuous is used to talk about actions happening now—in the moment–and for some actions in the future.

Present Continuous – English Grammar Exercise

MIX-UPS

There are lots of verbs that look similar between languages but do not always have the same definition.

Easily Confused Verbs

ADJECTIVES

How do you describe a noun? With an adjective.

-ed vs. -ing: Adjective Exercise

SO vs. SUCH

Technically speaking, such is a determiner while so is an adverb, but they often have the same meaning: “very” or “to this degree.” How do we know which to choose?

So vs Such – Grammar Lesson 1

So vs Such – Grammar Lesson 2

COMPARATIVES

It is fun to be able to compare experiences and things. Is Captain America cooler than avocados? Let the debate begin.

The More, The Less

Travelling (Past Simple Verbs and Comparatives)

A Trip to the San Siro

Cities of the World English Comparatives

TOO vs. ENOUGH

For negative situations we use “too” while “enough” is used positive ones. “Too” comes before the adjective or adverb it’s describing. “Enough” comes after the adjective or adverb. Enough comes before a noun, whereas too is never used before a noun. Try out the exercise.

Too vs. Enough – English Language Exercise

EVERYONE’S FAVORITE VERB: “GET”

“Get” has so many different uses that if you forget a verb, using “get” might be the correct choice!

The Infamous ‘Get’

Get vs. Be – English Quiz

Get + adjective

MUST vs. HAVE TO

“Have to” mainly expresses general obligations, while “must” is used for specific obligations.

Must vs Have To – English Language Exercise

PREPOSITIONS

You’ll encounter prepositions at every level because it’s like they are randomly assigned!

Verb + Preposition Collocations

PERMISSION & POSSIBILITY

“May I go to the bathroom.” – Students every 5 minutes.

Allowed, Permitted, Supposed To

May vs Might

BORROW vs LEND

When you give something, you lend it. When you receive something, you borrow it. “May I borrow a pen? I forgot mine.” Don’t forget to return it!

Borrow vs Lend

PASSIVE VOICE

Passive is used mostly for explaining how things are made or in the news, when the action is more important than the subject. It uses the verb “to be” + past participle.

English Exercise – Passive Voice

Passives – Famous Female Writers

DURING vs FOR vs WHILE

The prepositions during, for, and while are used a lot with time expressions.

During vs For vs While – Grammar Exercise

INDEFINITE PRONOUNS

These pronouns don’t refer to any person, amount, or thing in particular.

Anybody, Somebody, Nobody

MAKE vs DO

In most situations, use “make” for when you create or produce something. Use “do” for actions you must complete, like jobs or work, and for general activities.

Make vs Do

Meet the Conditionals

The 1st conditional is used for expressing future consequences of a realistic possibility now or in the future. The 2nd conditional is used to imagine present or future situations that are impossible or unlikely in reality. There is also a 3rd conditional and a “mixed” conditional, but that is a story for another time.

1st and 2nd Conditionals


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