PET Writing

Part 1: sentence transformations

Contents
1

The Passive Voice...................................................................................................... 3

1.1

How to make the Passive in English....................................................................3

1.2

Verbs with two objects......................................................................................... 3

1.3

The passive in subordinate clauses.....................................................................3

1.4

When should we use the passive?.......................................................................4

1.4.1

When we want to change the focus of the sentence:....................................4

1.4.2 When who or what causes the action is unknown or unimportant or obvious
or 'people in general':............................................................................................... 4
1.4.3

In factual or scientific writing:.......................................................................4

1.4.4 In formal writing instead of using someone/ people/ they (these can be used
in speaking or informal writing):............................................................................... 4
1.4.5
style:

In order to put the new information at the end of the sentence to improve
4

1.4.6

When the subject is very long:......................................................................4

Lend vs Borrow.......................................................................................................... 4

Comparatives and Superlatives................................................................................5

3.1

Comparatives...................................................................................................... 5

3.1.1

1-syllable adjectives: add -er to the adjective..............................................5

3.1.2

2-syllable adjectives ending in -y: change the -y to -ier...............................5

3.1.3

Other 2-syllable adjectives: use more with the unchanged adjective...........5

3.1.4

Adjectives with 3 or more syllables: use more with the unchanged adjective
5

3.2

Superlatives........................................................................................................ 5

3.2.1

1-syllable adjectives: add -est to the adjective (plus the).............................5

3.2.2

2-syllable adjectives ending in -y: change the -y to -iest (plus the)..............6

3.2.3

Other 2-syllable adjectives: use the most with the unchanged adjective.....6

3.2.4 Adjectives with 3 or more syllables: use the most with the unchanged
adjective................................................................................................................... 6

3.3

The same as........................................................................................................ 6

3.4

Prefer and would rather....................................................................................... 6

Present Perfect.......................................................................................................... 7
4.1

'For' and 'since'.................................................................................................... 7

4.2

Just, already and yet............................................................................................ 8

4.3

Have/Has Gone; Have/Has Been..........................................................................8

Quantifiers................................................................................................................ 8

5.1

Examples of quantifiers....................................................................................... 8

5.2

The position of quantifiers...................................................................................9

5.3

Formal and Informal Quantifiers..........................................................................9

5.4

Few vs. Little....................................................................................................... 9

So do I / Neither do I................................................................................................. 9

Close to / Far from / Near........................................................................................ 10

Reported Speech..................................................................................................... 10

8.1

Tense Direct Speech Reported Speech..............................................................10

8.2

Reported Questions........................................................................................... 11

8.3

Direct Question Reported Question...................................................................11

8.4

Reported Requests............................................................................................ 12

8.5

Reported Orders................................................................................................ 12

8.6

Time Expressions with Reported Speech...........................................................12

The infinitive of purpose......................................................................................... 13

10 Indefinite Pronouns................................................................................................. 13
11 Unless (=If not)....................................................................................................... 15
12 The Second Conditional........................................................................................... 15
12.1 Uses................................................................................................................... 15
12.2 How is this different from the first conditional?.................................................16
13 What about / Shall we............................................................................................. 16
14 Have / Have got...................................................................................................... 16
15 For / During / While................................................................................................. 17
15.1 For..................................................................................................................... 17
15.2 While................................................................................................................. 17
15.3 During............................................................................................................... 17
16 Negative Infinitives................................................................................................. 17
17 References.............................................................................................................. 18

1 The Passive Voice

Lets look at this sentence:
I drank two cups of coffee.
This is an active sentence and it has the subject first, followed by the verb, and finally
the object (the person or thing that the action happens to). So, in this example, the
subject is 'I', the verb is 'drank' and the object is 'two cups of coffee'.
But, we don't always need to make sentences this way. We might want to put the object
first, or perhaps we don't want to say who did something. In this case, we can use a
passive, which puts the object first:
Two cups of coffee were drunk (we can add 'by me' if we want, but it isn't necessary).

1.1 How to make the Passive in English

We make the passive by putting the verb 'to be' into whatever tense we need and then
adding the past participle. For regular verbs, we make the past participle by adding 'ed'
to the infinitive. So play becomes played.
Tense
Present Simple
Present Continuous
Past Simple
Past Continuous
Present Perfect
Present Perfect
Continuous
Past Perfect
Future Simple
Future Perfect

Active
I make a cake.
I am making a cake.
I made a cake.
I was making a cake.
I have made a cake.
I have been making a cake.
I had made a cake.
I will make a cake.
I will have made a cake.

Passive
A cake is made (by me).
A cake is being made (by me).
A cake was made (by me).
A cake was being made (by me).
A cake has been made (by me).
A cake has been being made (by
me).
A cake had been made (by me).
A cake will be made (by me).
A cake will have been made (by
me).

1.2 Verbs with two objects

Some verbs that have two objects can make two different active sentences and so two
different passive sentences too. For example, the verb give is like this:
Active: He gave me the book / He gave the book to me.
You can choose either of the two objects to be the subject of the passive sentence.
Passive: I was given the book (by him)/ The book was given to me (by him).
Other verbs like this are: ask, offer, teach, tell, lend, promise, sell, throw.

1.3 The passive in subordinate clauses

You can make the passive in a subordinate clause that has a subject and a normal
conjugated verb. This is really the same as a normal passive.
Active: I thought that Mary had kissed John.
Passive: I thought that John had been kissed by Mary.
Active: He knew that people had built the church in 1915.
Passive: He knew that the church had been built in 1915.

You can also make the passive using a passive gerund or a passive infinitive in the
same place as a normal gerund or infinitive.
The child loves being cuddled.
She would like to be promoted.

1.4 When should we use the passive?

1.4.1 When we want to change the focus of the sentence:
The Mona Lisa was painted by Leonardo Da Vinci. (We are more interested in the
painting than the artist in this sentence)
1.4.2 When who or what causes the action is unknown or unimportant or
obvious or 'people in general':
He was arrested (obvious agent, the police).
My bike has been stolen (unknown agent).
The road is being repaired (unimportant agent).
The form can be obtained from the post office (people in general).
1.4.3 In factual or scientific writing:
The chemical is placed in a test tube and the data entered into the computer.
1.4.4 In formal writing instead of using someone/ people/ they (these can be
used in speaking or informal writing):
The brochure will be finished next month.
1.4.5 In order to put the new information at the end of the sentence to
improve style:
Three books are used regularly in the class. The books were written by Dr. Bell.
('Dr. Bell wrote the books' sounds clumsy)
1.4.6 When the subject is very long:
I was surprised by how well the students did in the test. (More natural than: 'how
well the students did in the test surprised me')

2 Lend vs Borrow
If you borrow something from somebody, you take it with their permission and promise
to return it in due course, at the end of a limited period usually.
I borrowed five pounds from my brother and forgot to pay it back.
If you lend somebody something, or lend something to somebody, then you give them
something of yours for a limited period of time. If you lend someone some
money, they will owe you the money.
She lent her sister her car for the weekend. (verb + indirect object + direct
object)
If you lend your coat to Philip, youll never see it again. (verb + direct object +
indirect object)

3 Comparatives and Superlatives

3.1 Comparatives
Comparative is the name for the grammar used when comparing two things. The two
basic ways to compare are using as as or than.
I'm almost as good in maths as in science.
This computer is better than that one.
When comparing with as ... as, the adjective does not change. When comparing
with than, however, some changes are necessary, depending on the number of
syllables the adjective has:
3.1.1 1-syllable adjectives: add -er to the adjective
It's colder today than it was yesterday.
Note: If the word ends: consonant-vowel-consonant, then the last consonant is usually doubled
in the comparative. Examples: big-bigger, fat-fatter, hot-hotter.

3.1.2 2-syllable adjectives ending in -y: change the -y to -ier

She's looking happier today.
Beware: Do not confuse adjectives and adverbs. 2-syllable adverbs ending in -y must be
compared with the word more. Example: I drive more quickly (quicklier) than my brother.

3.1.3 Other 2-syllable adjectives: use more with the unchanged adjective
The shops are always more crowded just before Christmas.
Note: The comparative of some shorter 2-syllable adjectives can be formed with -er. Examples:
simple-simpler, clever-cleverer, narrow-narrower. To be sure which comparative method to use,
you will need to consult a good dictionary.

3.1.4 Adjectives with 3 or more syllables: use more with the unchanged
adjective
Russian grammar is more difficult than English grammar.

3.2 Superlatives
In the superlative you talk about one thing only and how it is the best, worst, etc. You
do not compare two things. The following guidelines apply to the superlative:
3.2.1 1-syllable adjectives: add -est to the adjective (plus the)
My sister is the tallest in our family.
Note: If the word ends: consonant-vowel-consonant, then the last consonant is usually
doubled in the superlative. Examples: big-biggest, fat-fattest, hot-hottest.
3.2.2 2-syllable adjectives ending in -y: change the -y to -iest (plus the)
The richest people are not always the happiest.

Beware: Do not confuse adjectives and adverbs. 2-syllable adverbs ending in -y form
their superlative with the words the most. Example: Of all the people I know my father
drives the most quickly (quickliest).
3.2.3 Other 2-syllable adjectives: use the most with the unchanged adjective
The most boring thing about ESL class is doing grammar exercises.
Note: The superlative of some shorter 2-syllable adjectives can be formed with -er.
Examples: simple-simplest, clever-cleverest, narrow-narrowest. To be sure which
superlative method to use, you will need to consult a good dictionary.
3.2.4 Adjectives with 3 or more syllables: use the most with the unchanged
adjective
My most enjoyable class is English.

Following are two common irregular comparative/superlative forms:

good-better-the best
bad-worse-the worst
The following guidelines apply to the comparative/superlative of most adverbs:
1-syllable adverbs: add -er/-est
I can run faster than you. / I can run the fastest in my class.
She works harder than me (I do). / She works the hardest of all students.
Other adverbs: use more / the most
She ran more quickly than me (I did). / Of all the students she ran the most
quickly

3.3 The same as

The same is followed by as. It is not followed by that or than:
Does start mean the same as begin in English?
My new car is the same model as my old one.

3.4 Prefer and would rather

When we talk about general preferences, we can use prefer or would rather. The
meaning is the same. After prefer we use the verb in the -ing form. After would
rather we use the infinitive without to.
I prefer walking to cycling.
I would rather walk than cycle.
We say: prefer to
I prefer walking to driving.
We say: would rather than

Id rather walk than drive.

4 Present Perfect
We use the present perfect
with phrases beginning with "This is the first/second/third ....time":
This is the first time I have won the jackpot.
This is the fifth time I have lost my job.
with ever and never. Ever is used to ask if any things have or have not happened at
any time up to now. It is also used in negative statements and together with the
phrase "The first time ..." Never is used mainly in negative statements. Their position
is just before the past participle verb.
Have you ever lost your temper in a public place?
That's the biggest lie I have ever heard in my whole life.
This is the first time we have ever listened to such a dirty joke.
We have never been to a circus.
with other time expressions such as:
always: He has always believed everything he reads.
how long: How long have you waited for the bus?
recently: I have only recently started learning English.
lately: I have met her a lot lately.
so far: We haven't had any trouble with the new tenant so far.
Up to now: Up to now we have not come up with a solution to the problem.

4.1 'For' and 'since'

When an activity began in the past and is still going on, we use the present perfect
tense
+
for/since.
We often use for and since with the present perfect tense. Since can only be used
with perfect tenses (present perfect and past perfect tenses); for can also be used with
the past simple tense.
We use for + a period of time as an indication of how long an activity has lasted up to
the present moment.
We have been tennis partners for three years.
We use since + a point in time in the past to show when in the past the activity began.
I have been her tennis partner since early May this year.
He has lived here for five years. (he is still living here)
He has lived here since 2000. (he is still living here)

4.2 Just, already and yet

We often use some words with the present perfect tense. These words include:

Just: if something has just happened, it happened only a short time ago. Just is usually
placed after have/has and before the main verb in a sentence.
Sister Jane has just been out shopping.
Already: if something has already been done, it's done by or before now or a particular
time. It is usually positioned in the middle (afterhave/has and before the main verb)
or at the end of a sentence. It can also appear in questions.
They have already built the tallest sandcastle on the beach.
Yet: if something is not done yet, it is not done until now or until a particular time. We
usually use yet at the end of a negative sentence or a question.
They have not come yet.
It is possible for yet to appear in the middle of a sentence.
As yet, we've had no word from them. (OR: We've had no word from them
as yet.)

4.3 Have/Has Gone; Have/Has Been

They have gone to Timbuktu. (They are still there or on the way there.)
They have been to Timbuktu. (They are not there now. They have come back or
are somewhere else.)

5 Quantifiers
Quantifiers tell us something about the amount or quantity of something (a noun).
Some quantifiers express a small or large quantity:
Small: I have a few things to do before finishing work.
Large: I have many things to do before finishing work.
Some quantifiers express part of or all of a quantity:
Part: It rains most days in winter.
All: It rained all day yesterday.
Quantifiers belong to a larger class called Determiner.

5.1 Examples of quantifiers

Quantifiers can be a single word (e.g. some) or a phrase (e.g. a lot of). Quantifiers that
appear as a phrase are often called Complex Quantifiers.
Simple Quantifiers: all, another, any, both, each, either, enough, every, few, fewer,
little, less, many, more, much, neither, no, several, some.
Complex Quantifiers: a few, a little, a lot of, lots of

5.2 The position of quantifiers

We put quantifiers at the beginning of noun phrases.
quantifier + noun: some people
quantifier + adjective + noun: many old books

quantifier + adverb + adjective + noun: a lot of very crazy drivers

We can also use quantifiers without a noun, like a pronoun.
These books are old but some are still in good condition. (Some refers to some books)

5.3 Formal and Informal Quantifiers

Sometimes we can make a sentence more formal or more informal (or natural) just by
changing the quantifier.
Many people were invited to the wedding. (formal)
A lot of people arrived late. (informal/natural)
They made little progress. (formal)
They didn't make much progress. (informal/natural)

5.4 Few vs. Little

We use Few and Little to suggest a small quantity. Few is used with countable nouns.
Little is used with uncountable nouns.
There are only a few days left until Christmas. (Countable noun)
There is little hope of finding your wallet. (Uncountable noun)
While Few and Little usually have positive meanings, very few and very little have
negative meanings.
He is sad because he has very few friends. (Countable noun)
They have very little knowledge about politics. (Uncountable noun)

6 So do I / Neither do I
and neither responses can be very difficult. Let's just focus on what we say if we
agree with someone.
So

If someone says something negative and we agree with them we can use neither.
I dont like fish.

Neither do I.

If someone says something positive and we agree with them we can use so.
We must also remember that the verb in the statement needs to agree with the verb in
the response:
I am excited about the party.

So am I.

7 Close to / Far from / Near

Close to means almost.
I think there are close on three million unemployed at present.
Far from means a great distance in space.
The situation is far from clear.
Near means not far away in distance or time.
Don't come too near me - you might catch my cold.
Her birthday was getting nearer and I still hadn't bought her a present.

8 Reported Speech
Sometimes someone says a sentence: "I'm going to the cinema tonight". Later, maybe
we want to tell someone else what the first person said. Here's how it works:
We use a reporting verb like 'say' or 'tell'. If this verb is in the present tense, it's easy.
We just put 'she says' and then the sentence:
Direct speech: I like ice cream.
Reported speech: She says she likes ice cream.
We don't need to change the tense, though probably we do need to change the person'
from 'I' to 'she', for example. We also may need to change words like 'my' and 'your'.
On the other hand, if the reporting verb is in the past tense, then usually we change the
tenses in the reported speech:
Direct speech: I like ice cream.
Reported speech: She said she liked ice cream.

8.1 Tense Direct Speech Reported Speech

Tense

Direct Speech

Reported Speech

I like ice cream.

She said (that) she liked ice

cream.

present
continuous

I am living in London.

She said she was living in

London.

past simple

I bought a car.

She said she had bought a car

OR She said she bought a car.

past continuous

I was walking along the

street.

She said she had been

walking along the street.

present perfect

I haven't seen Julie.

She said she hadn't seen Julie.

I had taken English lessons

before.

She said she had taken English

lessons before.

I'll see you later.

She said she would see me

later.

I would help, but

She said she would help but...

I can speak perfect English.

She said she could speak

perfect English.

present simple

past perfect*
will
would*
can
* doesn't change.

Occasionally, we don't need to change the present tense into the past if the information
in direct speech is still true (but this is only for things which are general facts, and even
then usually we like to change the tense):
Direct speech: The sky is blue.
Reported speech: She said that the sky is/was blue.

8.2 Reported Questions

Direct speech: Where do you live?

10

How can we make the reported speech here? In fact, it's not so different from reported
statements. The tense changes are the same, and we keep the question word. The very
important thing though is that, once we tell the question to someone else, it isn't a
question any more. So we need to change the grammar to a normal positive sentence:
Reported speech: She asked me where I lived.
Do you see how I made it? The direct question is in the present simple tense. We make
a present simple question with 'do' or 'does' so I need to take that away. Then I need to
change the verb to the past simple.
Direct speech: Where is Julie?
Reported speech: She asked me where Julie was.
The direct question is the present simple of 'be'. We make the question form of the
present simple of be by inverting (changing the position of) the subject and verb. So,
we need to change them back before putting the verb into the past simple.

8.3 Direct Question Reported Question

Where is the Post Office, please? She asked me where the Post Office was.
What are you doing? She asked me what I was doing.
Who was that fantastic man? She asked me who that fantastic man had been.
So much for 'wh' questions. But, what if you need to report a 'yes / no' question? We
don't have any question words to help us. Instead, we use 'if':
Direct speech: Do you like chocolate?
Reported speech: She asked me if I liked chocolate.
Do you love me? He asked me if I loved him.
Have you ever been to Mexico? She asked me if I had ever been to Mexico.
Are you living here? She asked me if I was living here.

8.4 Reported Requests

There's more! What if someone asks you to do something (in a polite way)?
Direct speech: Close the window, please.
or: Could you close the window please?
or: Would you mind closing the window please?
All of these requests mean the same thing, so we don't need to report every word when
we tell another person about it. We simply use 'ask me + to + infinitive':
Reported speech: She asked me to close the window.
Please help me. She asked me to help her.
Please don't smoke. She asked me not to smoke.
Could you bring my book tonight? She asked me to bring her book that night.
Could you pass the milk, please? She asked me to pass the milk.
Would you mind coming early tomorrow?

11

She asked me to come early the next day.

To report a negative request, use 'not':
Direct speech: Please don't be late.
Reported speech: She asked us not to be late.

8.5 Reported Orders

And finally, how about if someone doesn't ask so politely? We can call this an 'order' in
English, when someone tells you very directly to do something.
Direct speech: Sit down!
In fact, we make this into reported speech in the same way as a request. We just use
'tell' instead of 'ask':
Reported speech: She told me to sit down.

8.6 Time Expressions with Reported Speech

Sometimes when we change direct speech into reported speech we have to change
time expressions too. We don't always have to do this, however. It depends on when we
heard the direct speech and when we say the reported speech.
It's Monday. Julie says "I'm leaving today".
If I tell someone on Monday, I say "Julie said she was leaving today".
If I tell someone on Tuesday, I say "Julie said she was leaving yesterday".
If I tell someone on Wednesday, I say "Julie said she was leaving on Monday".
So, there's no easy conversion. You really have to think about when the direct speech
was said.
Here's a table of some possible conversions:
now

then / at that time

today

yesterday / that day / Tuesday / the 27th

of June

yesterday

the day before yesterday / the day

before / Wednesday / the 5th of December

last night

the night before, Thursday night

last week

the week before / the previous week

tomorrow

today / the next day / the following day /

Friday

9 The infinitive of purpose

A to-infinitive can be used to express purpose:
Diya went to the door to open it.
To pass this test, you need to achieve a score of 60% or more.
In order and so as can be used before a to-infinitive for emphasis in more formal
styles:

12

He took a book with him in order to have something to read on the train.
The parties started negotiations so as to reach an agreement as soon as
possible.
In order to attract a wider audience, we need to rethink our marketing
strategy.
The negative is always in order not + to-infinitive or so as not + to-infinitive:
He tiptoed through the hall so as not to be heard.
In order not to lose time, we must act at once.

10 Indefinite Pronouns
An indefinite pronoun does not refer to any specific person, thing or amount. It is vague
and "not definite".

Singular

pronoun

meaning

example

an additional or different person

or thing

That ice-cream was good. Can I

have another?

no matter what person

Can anyone answer this

question?

no matter what thing

The doctor needs to know if you

have eaten anything in the last
two hours.

each

every one of two or more people

or things, seen separately

Each has his own thoughts.

either

one or the other of two people or

things

Do you want tea or coffee? / I

don't mind. Either is good for me.

as much or as many as needed

Enough is enough.

all people

We can start the meeting

because everybody has arrived.

all things

They have no house or

possessions. They
losteverything in the earthquake.

less

a smaller amount

"Less is more" (Mies van der

Rohe)

little

a small amount

Little is known about his early

life.

much

a large amount

Much has happened since we

met.

neither

not one and not the other of two

people or things

I keep telling Jack and Jill but

neither believes me.

nobody/
no-one

no person

I phoned many times but

nobody answered.

nothing

no single thing, not anything

If you don't know the answer it's

another
anybody/
anyone
anything

enough
everybod
y/
everyone
everythin
g

13

best to say nothing.

an unidentified person

Can one smoke here? | All the

students arrived but now one is
missing.

a different person or thing from

one already mentioned

One was tall and the other was

short.

somebod
y/
someone

an unspecified or unknown person

Clearly somebody murdered him.

It was not suicide.

somethin
g

an unspecified or unknown thing

Listen! I just heard something!

What could it be?

both

two people or things, seen

together

John likes coffee but not tea. I

think both are good.

any

no matter how much or how many

Is any left?
Are any coming?

none

not any; no person or persons

They fixed the water so why is

none coming out of the tap?
I invited five friends but none
have come.*

some

an unspecified quantity of
something; an unspecified number
of people or things

Here is some.
Some have arrived.

such

of the type already mentioned

He was a foreigner and he felt that

he was treated as such.

one

Singular/Plural

Plural

other

11 Unless (=If not)

We normally use unless with present tenses when we are referring to the future:
You won't get in to see the show, if you don't have reserved seats. OR:
Unless you have reserved seats, you won't get in to see the show.
However, we cannot use unless in questions:
What will you do if you don't pass those exams?
And we cannot use unless with would to talk about unreal future situations:
If he weren't so bad-tempered, I would help him to get the work done
We cannot use unless with would have to talk about unreal situations in the past
either:
If you hadn't had that last glass of wine, this would never have happened.

12 The Second Conditional

The second conditional uses the past simple after if, then 'would' and the infinitive:
if + past simple, ...would + infinitive

14

(We can use 'were' instead of 'was' with 'I' and 'he/she/it'. This is mostly done in formal
writing).

12.1 Uses
1) To talk about things in the future that are probably not going to be true.
Daydreaming.
If I won the lottery, I would buy a big house. (I probably won't win the lottery)
She would travel all over the world if she were rich.
2) To talk about something in the present that is impossible because it's not true.
Have a look at the examples:
If I had his number, I would call him. (I don't have his number now, so it's
impossible for me to call him).
If I were you, I wouldn't go out with that man.

12.2

How is this different from the first conditional?

This kind of conditional sentence is different from the first conditional because this is a
lot more unlikely. For example (second conditional):
If I had enough money I would buy a house with twenty bedrooms and a
swimming pool (I'm probably not going to have this much money, it's just a
dream, not very real)
But (first conditional):
If I have enough money, I'll buy some new shoes (It's much more likely that I'll
have enough money to buy some shoes)

13 What about / Shall we

We can use what about to make suggestions and more genuine questions:
What about asking Tom?
What about the workers? Have you thought about them?
Shall is fairly rare in modern English, particularly in American English. We can use it to
make offers and suggestions and to ask for advice.
Shall I open the window?
Shall we start the meeting?
What dress shall I wear?

14 Have / Have got

When we are talking about possession, relationships, illnesses and characteristics of
people or things we can use either have or have got. The have got forms are more

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common
in
an
informal
style.
Have got has the same meaning as have and both are used as present tenses. Note
that have got is NOT the present perfect of get.
To make questions and negative sentences with have we normally use the auxiliary
verb do.
Note the way in which we form short answers and question tags with have
got and have:
- Have you got a sore throat as well as a runny nose?
- No, I havent.
- But youve got a high temperature, havent you?
- Yes, I have.

- Does this music school have enough pianos?

- No, it doesnt.
- But you have enough opportunities to practise, dont you?
- No, we dont.

15 For / During / While

15.1 For
The preposition "for" is used to express how long something or someone is doing
something. "For" is used to state a period of time and is usually used with a
noun/pronoun.
I have been riding my bicycle for 2 hours.
The dog has been barking for a long time.
The traffic has been bad for the last three days.

15.2 While
The preposition "while" is used to represent the length of time an action has been
happening.
"While" is used when speaking about 2 actions that are happening at the same time.
The length of the action is not important. "While" is used with a subject and a verb.
While I was playing with my dog, my sister was doing her homework.
While we are playing cards, the radio was playing.
My mother doesn't like the T. V. on while we are eating dinner.

15.3 During
The preposition "during" is used to represent the length of time of an action that is
while the action is happening. "During" is used with a noun/pronoun.
I will be really busy during the week.
The kids were sleeping during the party.

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The lights went out during the storm.

16 Negative Infinitives
The negative infinitive is formed by putting not in front of any form of the infinitive.
I decided not to go to London.
He asked me not to be late.
I'd like you not to sing so loudly.
I'd rather not eat meat.
I might not come.

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17 References
"The Passive Voice." Perfect English Grammar. Web. 7 Feb. 2015.
"Lend or Borrow" BBC News. BBC. Web. 7 Feb. 2015.
"Comparative/superlative." English Grammar Explanations. Web. 7 Feb. 2015.
"Same, Similar, Identical." Cambridge Dictionaries Online. Web. 7 Feb. 2015.
"Intermediate Grammar Exercise: Would Rather, Would Prefer, Prefer - Speakspeak."
Speakspeak. Web. 7 Feb. 2015.
"Present Perfect Tense." My English Grammar. Web. 7 Feb. 2015.
"Much - Many - Lot - Few." Grammar. Web. 7 Feb. 2015.
"So and Neither." Ecenglish. Web. 7 Feb. 2015.
Walter, Elizabeth. Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary. 3rd ed. Cambridge [etc.:
Cambridge UP, 2010. Print.
"Reported Speech." Perfect English Grammar. Web. 7 Feb. 2015.
"The Infinitive of Purpose." Grammaring. Web. 7 Feb. 2015.
"Indefinite Pronouns." English Club. Web. 7 Feb. 2015.
"Unless." BBC News. BBC. Web. 7 Feb. 2015.
"The Second Conditional." Perfect English Grammar. Web. 7 Feb. 2015.
"What About." English Grammar Lessons. Web. 7 Feb. 2015.
"Shall." English Grammar Lessons. Web. 7 Feb. 2015.
"Have and Have Got." BBC News. BBC. Web. 7 Feb. 2015.
"For vs. During vs. While vs. Prepositions." English The Easy Way. Web. 7 Feb. 2015.
"Infinitive." Edufind. Web. 7 Feb. 2015.

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