Cheatsheet B1

Nouns and determiners

Articles: a, an, the

Point	Rule	Example
Form	a before a consonant sound, an before a vowel sound	a book / an apple
a / an	one thing, a job, or a first mention	She's a doctor.
the	a thing we both know, or already mentioned	There's a cat. The cat is black.
the	the only one; superlatives and ordinals	the sun / the best / the first time
A2the	rivers, seas, oceans, mountain ranges	the Thames / the Atlantic / the Alps
A2the	countries with a plural name, Kingdom or States	the UK / the USA / the Netherlands
B1the	the + adjective means a group of people	the rich / the young
No article	plural and uncountable nouns in general; meals; names	I like dogs. / We have lunch at two.
A2No article	home, work, school, bed; transport after by	go home / at work / by bus
B1No article	hospital, prison, church for their purpose; the for the building	He's in hospital.
Trap	the first sound decides, not the letter	a university / an hour
Trap	most countries take no article	I live in Spain.

Quantifiers: some, any, much, many

Use	Plural countable noun	Uncountable noun
Affirmative	some apples / a lot of apples	some milk / a lot of milk
Negative	not any apples / not many apples	not any milk / not much milk
Question	any apples? / many apples?	any milk? / much milk?
How…?	How many apples?	How much milk?
A2Offer, request	Would you like some apples?	Can I have some milk?
A2A small number or amount	a few apples	a little milk
A2None: no + noun	no apples	no milk
B1Not enough	few apples	little milk
B1None: none of + noun	None of the apples	None of the milk

Verbs

Irregular Verbs Table

Pattern	Base form	Past simple	Past participle
All three forms are the same	put	put	put
-ought / -aught	buy	bought	bought
Past and participle end in -d	make	made	made
B1Final -d becomes -t	build	built	built
A2Long vowel shortens, -t added	keep	kept	kept
/iː/ shortens to /e/	meet	met	met
Vowel changes, past = participle	sit	sat	sat
Participle = base form	come	came	come
i → a → u	drink	drank	drunk
Participle in -en	take	took	taken
participle in -n / -ne	go	went	gone
Use	—	finished actions: I went to Madrid.	after have: I have gone there.

Phrasal Verbs: Core

Point	Rule	Example
Phrasal verb	verb + a particle; the particle gives the verb a new meaning	I'm looking for my keys.
Separable	a noun goes before or after the particle	Turn off the light. / Turn the light off.
Inseparable	the object always follows the particle	Look after the baby.
Daily routine	wake up, get up, put on, take off, turn on	She puts on her coat.
Going and coming	go out, come in, come back, pick up	I pick up the children at three.
Looking and finding out	look for, look after, look up, find out, fill in	Look up the word.
B1Continuing and stopping	carry on, run out of, get on with, look forward to	We ran out of milk.
Trap	a separable verb takes a pronoun in the middle	Turn it off.
B1Trap	look forward to takes a noun or the -ing form	I look forward to seeing you.

Gerund vs Infinitive

Form	Rule	Example
verb + -ing	after enjoy, finish, mind, avoid, suggest	I enjoy cooking.
verb + to + V	after want, decide, hope, plan, need	They decided to move.
want / need / would like + person + to + V	a person can come before to	I want you to come.
preposition + -ing	after a preposition: interested in, before, without	Wash your hands before eating.
-ing as the subject	the -ing form works as a noun	Swimming is good for you.
look forward to + -ing	to is a preposition here	I look forward to seeing you.
stop + -ing / to + V	-ing means he quit; to means he paused in order to smoke	He stopped smoking. / He stopped to smoke.
remember + -ing / to + V	-ing recalls the action; to means do not forget	I remember locking it. / Remember to lock it.
try + -ing / to + V	-ing tests it; to makes an effort	Try adding salt. / I tried to open it.
Either form	like, love, hate, prefer: almost the same meaning	I like swimming. / I like to swim.

Tenses

Tense map

Tense	Form	Meaning	Example
Present simple	V / V-s	habits, facts, permanent states	I always walk to work.
Present continuous	am / is / are + V-ing	now, temporary situations	I'm working now.
A2Present perfect	have / has + V-ed	past events that matter now	I've never been to Rome.
Past simple	V-ed / irregular	finished events	I worked yesterday.
A2Past continuous	was / were + V-ing	in progress at a past moment	I was working at eight.
A2Used to	used to + V	past habits and states, over now	I used to swim when I was a child.
B1Past perfect	had + V-ed	before another past event	She had left before I arrived.
Going to	am / is / are going to + V	plans, predictions with evidence	We're going to cook tonight.
Present continuous for the future	am / is / are + V-ing	arrangements	I'm leaving tomorrow.
A2Will	will + V	decisions, offers, promises, opinions	I think it'll rain.
A2Present simple for the future	V / V-s	timetables	The train leaves at six.

Continuous Tenses

Tense	Question			Statement			Negative
Tense	Helper	Subject	Verb	Subject	Helper	Verb	Subject	Helper	Verb
B1Future	Will	I	be working?	I	will be	working.	I	won't be	working.
		you		You			You
		he		He			He
		she		She			She
		it		It			It
		we		We			We
		they		They			They

Present	Am	I	working?	I	am	working.	I	am not	working.
	Are	you		You	are		You	aren't
	Is	he		He	is		He	isn't
		she		She			She
		it		It			It
	Are	we		We	are		We	aren't
	Are	they		They	are		They	aren't

A2Past	Was	I	working?	I	was	working.	I	wasn't	working.
	Were	you		You	were		You	weren't
	Was	he		He	was		He	wasn't
		she		She			She
		it		It			It
	Were	we		We	were		We	weren't
	Were	they		They	were		They	weren't

Perfect Tenses

Tense	Question			Statement			Negative
Tense	Helper	Subject	Verb	Subject	Helper	Verb	Subject	Helper	Verb
Present perfect	Have	I	worked?	I	have	worked.	I	haven't	worked.
	Have	you		You	have		You	haven't
	Has	he		He	has		He	hasn't
		she		She			She
		it		It			It
	Have	we		We	have		We	haven't
	Have	they		They	have		They	haven't

B1Past perfect	Had	I	worked?	I	had	worked.	I	hadn't	worked.
		you		You			You
		he		He			He
		she		She			She
		it		It			It
		we		We			We
		they		They			They

Future Forms

Point	Rule	Example
am / is / are going to + V	plans and intentions; predictions with evidence	We're going to visit Granada. / Look at those clouds. It's going to rain.
am / is / are + V-ing	present continuous: a fixed arrangement, with a future time	I'm seeing the dentist on Friday.
A2will / 'll / won't + V	decisions now, offers, promises, opinions (I think)	It's cold. I'll close the window. / I think she'll win.
A2V / V-s	present simple: timetables	The train leaves at 6:15.
B1Prediction	opinion or guess (I think): will; evidence now: going to	I think it'll be a good year. / Watch out! You're going to fall.
B1Arrangement or intention	fixed arrangement: present continuous; intention: going to	I'm meeting Sam at 8. / I'm going to learn Italian.
Trap	plans take going to	I'm going to buy a car tomorrow.
A2Trap	will makes questions by itself	Will you come?

Modal verbs

May and Might

Point	Rule	Example
Form	subject + might / may + base verb; one form for every subject	She might come.
Negative	might not / may not	He might not come.
Possibility	something possible, now or in the future	She might be at home. / We might go to the beach.
Might or may	might sounds a little less sure	It might rain. / It may rain.
Possibility question	ask with think + will	Do you think it will rain?
B1Permission	May + subject + base verb asks; may allows in formal rules	May I use your phone? / Guests may use the pool until 10.
B1Certainty	will is sure, probably very likely, may / might possible	She will come. / She'll probably come. / She may come.
Trap	may be follows the subject; maybe starts a clause	He may be late. / Maybe he is late.

Would

Point	Rule	Example
Want	would like + noun / to base verb; short form 'd	I'd like a coffee, please. / I'd like to book a table.
Question and offer	Would + subject + V; no do	Would you like some cake?
B1Form	subject + would / 'd + V; negative wouldn't	She would help. / I wouldn't go.
B1Polite request	Would you…? asks politely for help	Would you pass the salt, please?
B1Imagined situation	with if: if + past simple, would + base verb	I would buy a boat. / If I had more time, I would learn Italian.
B1Past habit	repeated actions; the sentence needs a past time frame	When I was a child, we would play outside every day.
B1Trap	used to for a past state: live, be, have, know	When I was young, I used to live in Paris.

Sentence building

Conjunctions and Linkers

Point	Rule	Example
and, or	and adds an idea, or gives a choice; usually no comma before them	I like tea and coffee. / Do you want tea or coffee?
but, so	but contrasts, so gives a result; usually a comma before them	I like tea, but I don't like coffee. / I'm tired, so I go to bed.
because	gives the reason; a clause follows	I'm tired because I work late.
A2when, before, after	a time clause; the present simple talks about the future	When I arrive, I'll call you.
A2also, too	also goes before the main verb and after be; too goes at the end	I also speak French. / I speak French too.
B1however	starts a new sentence; a comma follows	It was raining. However, we went out.
B1so that	gives a purpose; a clause follows	I left early so that I could catch the bus.
B1unless	unless means if … not	We stay in unless it stops raining.
A2Trap	because of is followed by a noun	We stayed in because of the rain.
B1Trap	although joins two clauses and replaces but	Although it was raining, we went out.

Conditionals: Zero, First and Second

Point	Rule	Example
Zero: facts	if + present, present	If you mix blue and yellow, you get green.
First: real possibilities	if + present, will + V	If you study, you'll pass.
B1Second: unreal situations	if + past simple, would + V	If I won the lottery, I'd buy a house.
The if-clause	present simple, also for the future	If it rains, we'll stay in.
Order	if-clause first: comma; if-clause second: no comma	If it rains, we'll stay in. / We'll stay in if it rains.
B1Trap	were for every person, also in advice	If I were you, I'd take the train.
B1Trap	unless means if … not; the verb is affirmative	Unless you hurry, you'll miss the bus.

Relative Clauses

Point	Rule	Example
Form	noun + who / which / that + clause; right after the noun	The woman who lives next door is a nurse.
who, which	who for people, which for things	The woman who lives next door is a nurse. / The book which I bought was cheap.
that	people or things, in defining clauses only	The film that we saw was long.
whose	possession; a noun follows	The man whose car was stolen called the police.
where	places	The café where we met has closed.
Subject pronoun	stays: a verb follows	The girl who speaks French is my cousin.
Object pronoun	can be left out in a defining clause only	The film I saw was long.
Defining	says which one; no commas	The man who called is my uncle.
Non-defining	extra information in commas; who / which / whose / where	Paris, which I visited in May, is beautiful.
Trap	where already includes the preposition	The house where I live is old.

Passive Voice

Point	Rule	Example
Form	the object becomes the subject; be + past participle	Shakespeare wrote Hamlet. → Hamlet was written by Shakespeare.
Present simple	am / is / are + V-ed	English is spoken here.
Past simple	was / were + V-ed	The bridge was built in 1990.
Present perfect	has / have been + V-ed	The window has been broken.
will, can, must	will / can / must be + V-ed	The results will be sent tomorrow.
Negative, question	negative: be + not + V-ed; question: be + subject + V-ed	The room wasn't cleaned. / Was the room cleaned?
Use	unknown or unimportant doer, processes, news, formal writing	My phone was stolen on the train. / Wine is made from grapes.
by / with	by names a new or important doer; with names a tool	The song was written by Adele.
Trap	verbs without an object stay active: happen / arrive / die	The accident happened yesterday.
Trap	use the past participle: made, written, sold, taken	The window was broken.

Reported Speech

Point	Rule	Example
say	say + (that) + clause; no person, or to + person	She said (that) she was tired.
tell	tell + person + (that) + clause	She told me (that) she was tired.
present simple / present continuous	→ past simple / past continuous	He said he worked there. / She said she was waiting.
past simple / present perfect	→ past perfect	He said he had left. / She said she had finished.
will / can / must	→ would / could / had to	He said he would call. / She said she could swim.
No change	would, could, should, might; a fact still true; after says (present)	She said she lives in Paris. / She says she is tired.
Pronouns and time	pronouns follow the speaker; today → that day, tomorrow → the next day	Anna said she was tired.
Questions	yes/no questions take if or whether; wh-questions keep the wh-word	She asked if I liked tea.
Commands	told / asked + person + (not) to + V	He told us not to be late.
Trap	a reported question has statement order, with no do / does / did	She asked me where I lived.

Question Tags

Point	Rule	Example
Form	positive statement, negative tag; negative statement, positive tag	It's cold, isn't it? / It isn't cold, is it?
Pronoun	auxiliary + pronoun; the pronoun replaces the subject	Tom is late, isn't he?
be	isn't / aren't / wasn't / weren't	They were late, weren't they?
Other verbs	present: don't / doesn't; past: didn't	She works here, doesn't she? / He left early, didn't he?
have, modals	repeat the auxiliary or modal	You've finished, haven't you? / You can swim, can't you?
I am	aren't I	I'm right, aren't I?
Let's, command	Let's → shall we; command → will you	Let's go, shall we? / Open the door, will you?
Use	check something, make conversation or ask politely	You're from Madrid, aren't you?
Intonation	falling ↘: you are sure; rising ↗: a real question	It's a lovely day, isn't it? ↘ / You haven't seen my keys, have you? ↗
Trap	nobody / nothing / never make the statement negative: positive tag	Nobody called, did they?

Adjectives and adverbs

Too, Enough, So and Such

Point	Rule	Example
too + adjective / adverb	more than is good; the result follows with to + V	The box is too heavy for me to lift.
adjective + enough / enough + noun	enough follows an adjective and comes before a noun	She is old enough to drive. / We have enough chairs.
so + adjective / adverb	the result follows with that	I was so tired that I fell asleep.
such a + adjective + singular noun / such + adjective + plural noun	such goes with a noun, so with an adjective or adverb	It's such a good film. / They are such nice people.
Trap	not + adjective + enough	The room is not big enough.
Trap	so many + plural noun	I have so many friends.