Verb Tenses

Tense communicates an event’s location in time. The different tenses are identified by
their associated verb forms. There are three main verb tenses: past, present, and future.

In English, each of these tenses can take four main

aspects: simple, perfect, continuous (also known as progressive), and perfect
continuous. The perfect aspect is formed using the verb to have, while the continuous
aspect is formed using the verb to be.

In academic writing, the most commonly used tenses are the present simple, the past
simple, and the present perfect.

Tenses and their functions

The table below gives an overview of some of the basic functions of tenses and aspects.
Tenses locate an event in time, while aspects communicate durations and relationships
between events that happen at different times.

Tense Function Example

Present used for facts, generalizations, and “She writes a lot of papers for
simple truths that are not affected by the her classes.”
passage of time

Past simple used for events completed in the past “She wrote the papers for all of
her classes last month.”

Future used for events to be completed in the “She will write papers for her
simple future classes next semester.”

Present used to describe events that began in “She has written papers for

perfect the past and are expected to continue, most of her classes, but she still
or to emphasize the relevance of past has some papers left to write.”
events to the present moment

Past perfect used to describe events that happened “She had written several papers
prior to other events in the past for her classes before she
switched universities.”

Future used to describe events that will be “She will have

perfect completed between now and a specific written many papers for her
point in the future classes by the end of the
semester.”

Present used to describe currently ongoing “She is writing a paper for her
Tense Function Example

continuous (usually temporary) actions class.”

Past used to describe ongoing past events, “She was writing a paper for her
continuous often in relation to the occurrence of class when her pencil broke.”
another event

Future used to describe future events that are “She will be writing a lot of
continuous expected to continue over a period of papers for her classes next year.”
time

Present used to describe events that started in “She has been writing a paper
perfect the past and continue into the present or all night, and now she needs to
continuous were recently completed, emphasizing get some sleep.”
their relevance to the present moment

Past perfect used to describe events that began, “She had been writing a paper
continuous continued, and ended in the past, all night, and she needed to get
emphasizing their relevance to a past some sleep.”
moment

Future used to describe events that will “She will have been writing this
perfect continue up until a point in the future, paper for three months when she
continuous emphasizing their expected duration hands it in.”
Articles

Articles are words that identify a noun as being specific or unspecific. Consider the

following examples:

After the long day, the cup of tea tasted particularly good.

By using the article the, we’ve shown that it was one specific day that was long and one

specific cup of tea that tasted good.

After a long day, a cup of tea tastes particularly good.

By using the article a, we’ve created a general statement, implying that any cup of tea

would taste good after any long day.

The definite article

The definite article is the word the. It limits the meaning of a noun to one particular

thing. For example, your friend might ask, “Are you going to the party this weekend?”

The definite article tells you that your friend is referring to a specific party that both of

you already know about. The definite article can be used with singular, plural, or

uncountable nouns. Below are some examples of the definite article, the, used in

context:

Please give me the hammer.

Please give me the red hammer; the blue one is too small.

Please give me the nails.

Please give me the large nail; it’s the only one strong enough to hold this painting.

Please give me the hammer and the nails.

The indefinite article

The indefinite article takes two forms. It’s the word a when it precedes a word that

begins with a consonant. It’s the word an when it precedes a word that begins with a

vowel. The indefinite article indicates that a noun refers to a general idea or category of

a thing rather than a specific thing. 

For example, you might ask your friend, “Should I bring a gift to the party?” Your

friend will understand that you are not asking about a specific type of gift or a specific

item. “I am going to bring an apple pie,” your friend tells you. Again, the indefinite

article indicates that she is not talking about a particular apple pie. Your friend probably

doesn’t even have any pie yet. The indefinite article appears only with singular nouns.

Consider the following examples of indefinite articles used in context:

Please hand me a book; any book will do.

Please hand me an autobiography; any autobiography will do.

Exceptions: using a or an

There are a few exceptions to the general rule of using a before words that start with

consonants and an before words that begin with vowels. The first letter of the

word honor, for example, is a consonant, but it’s unpronounced. Despite its spelling, the

word honor begins with a vowel sound. Therefore, we use an. Consider the example

sentence below for an illustration of this concept.

Wrong My mother is a honest woman.

Correct My mother is an honest woman.

Similarly, when the first letter of a word is a vowel but is pronounced with a consonant

sound, use a, as in the sample sentence below:

Wrong She is an United States senator.

Correct She is a United States senator.

This holds true for acronyms and initialisms too: an LCD display, a UK-based

company, an HR department, a URL.

An article before an adjective

Sometimes an article modifies a noun that is also modified by an adjective. The usual

word order is article + adjective + noun. If the article is indefinite, use a or an based on

the word that immediately follows it. Consider the following examples for reference:

Eliza will bring a small gift to Sophie’s party.

I heard an interesting story yesterday.

Indefinite articles with uncountable nouns

Uncountable nouns are nouns that are impossible to count, whether because they name

intangible concepts (e.g., information, animal husbandry, wealth), collections of things

that are considered as wholes (e.g., jewelry, equipment, the working class), or

homogeneous physical substances(e.g., milk, sand, air). Although most of these nouns

are singular in form, because they refer to things that can’t be isolated and counted, they

never take a or an. Uncountable nouns can be modified by indefinite adjectives

like some, however. Consider the examples below for reference:

Please give me a water.

Water is an uncountable noun and should not be used with the indefinite article.

Please give me some water.

If you describe the water in terms of a countable unit (like a bottle), you can use the

indefinite article to modify the unit.

Please give me a bottle of water.

Please give me an ice.

Please give me an ice cube.

Please give me some ice.

Note that depending on the context, some nouns can be countable or

uncountable (e.g., hair, noise, time):

Wrong We need a light in this room.

Correct We need some light in this room.

Using articles with pronouns

Possessive pronouns—words like his, my, our, its, her, and their—can help identify

whether you’re talking about specific or nonspecific items. As we’ve seen, articles also

indicate specificity. But if you use both a possessive pronoun and an article together,

readers will become confused. Articles should not be used with pronouns. Consider the

example below:

Why are you reading the my book?

The and my should not be used together, as they are both identifying the same noun.

Instead, choose one or the other depending on the intended meaning:

Why are you reading the book?

Why are you reading my book?

Omission of articles

Occasionally, articles are omitted altogether before certain nouns. In these cases, the

article is implied but not actually present. This implied article is sometimes called a
“zero article.” Often, the article is omitted before a noun that refers to an abstract idea.

Look at the following examples:

Wrong Let’s go out for a dinner tonight.

Correct Let’s go out for dinner tonight.

Wrong The creativity is a valuable quality in children.

Correct Creativity is a valuable quality in children.

Relative Clauses

We use relative clauses to give additional information about something without starting
another sentence. By combining sentences with a relative clause, your text becomes
more fluent and you can avoid repeating certain words.

How to Form Relative Clauses

Imagine, a girl is talking to Tom. You want to know who she is and ask a friend
whether he knows her. You could say:

A girl is talking to Tom. Do you know the girl?

That sounds rather complicated, doesn't it? It would be easier with a relative clause: you
put both pieces of information into one sentence. Start with the most important thing  –
you want to know who the girl is.

Do you know the girl …

As your friend cannot know which girl you are talking about, you need to put in the
additional information  – the girl is talking to Tom. Use „the girl“ only in the first part
of the sentence, in the second part replace it with the relative pronoun (for people, use
the relative pronoun „who“). So the final sentence is:

Do you know the girl who is talking to Tom?

Relative Pronouns

relative
use example
pronoun
I told you about the woman
who subject or object pronoun for people
who lives next door.
which subject or object pronoun for animals and Do you see the cat which is
 things lying on the roof?
He couldn’t read which
which referring to a whole sentence
surprised me.
Do you know the boy whose
whose possession for people animals and things
mother is a nurse?
object pronoun for people, especially in
non-defining relative clauses (in defining I was invited by the professor
whom
relative clauses we colloquially prefer whom I met at the conference.
who)
subject or object pronoun for people,
I don’t like the table that stands
that animals and things in defining relative
in the kitch
clauses (who or which are also possible)

Informal Letters

Informal letters are written to close acquaintances of the writer, their friends, family,
relatives, etc. Since they are written to close relations the letters have an informal and
personal tone. Casual language is used while writing informal letters. And sometimes the
letters may even have an emotional undertone.

Informal letters are mainly used for personal communication. So they do not have to
follow any specific pattern, format or conventions. They can be written as per the writer’s
wishes and the requirement of the situation. So the letter is written in a personal fashion in
casual unassuming language.

Aspects to consider when writing an Informal Letter:

Address

The first thing to write is your address, i.e. the address of the writer. We usually write the
address on the left-hand side of the page at the very top. The address should be accurate
and complete. Even when writing to close friends or relatives the address must be written,
so they can reply back to the letter with ease. If the recipient of the letter is in another
country, do not forget to write your country as well in the address.

Date

Next just below the address we write the date. This allows the reader to have a reference as
to when the address was written. He can then relate better to the contents of the letter.
Greeting

Now since you know the person you are writing to, the greeting can be informal as well. If
it is a friend or someone close to your age you can greet them by their first name, like
“Dear Alex”. If you are writing to your relative like your mother/father/aunt/uncle etc, you
may greet them as such, for example, “Dear Mom”. And if you are writing to an elder
person, someone you respect greatly you can address them as Mr or Mrs. Like say for
example you were writing a congratulatory letter to your teacher, it can be addressed as
“Dear Mrs. Alex”.

Introduction Paragraph

And now we begin writing the actual letter. The introductory paragraph sets the tone for
the whole letter. You might begin by asking the recipient about their well being. Or you
may say that you hope the letter finds them in good health and great spirits. The opening of
informal letters should be casual and comforting. It must not be formal and direct as
in business letters.

Body of the Letter

The letter overall should maintain a friendly tone. But you have to adjust the language and
the wordings according to who you are writing to. With a friend, you can afford to be very
casual and flippant even. But if you are writing to an elder relative, you must be extremely
respectful and considerate.

One way to determine the tonality of your letter is to remember how you talk to the person
in a conversation. And then apply the same syntax and sentiments to the letter.

Conclusion

In the conclusive paragraph sum up the reason for writing the letter, i.e. summarize the
letter. Say a meaningful and affectionate goodbye to the reader. And do not forget to invite
the reader to write back or reply to your letter. It shows an intention to keep the
conversation going.

Signature

There is no one way to sign off informal letters. Since they do not follow a strict format,
you may sign off as you please. Some commonly used phrases are:

 Lots of Love, Best, Best Wishes, Kind Regards, Kindly,

Formal Letters

A formal letter is one written in a formal and ceremonious language and follows a certain
stipulated format. Such letters are written for official purposes to authorities, dignitaries,
colleagues, seniors, etc and not to personal contacts, friends or family. A number
of conventions must be adhered to while drafting formal letters. So let us take a look at a
sample format of a formal letter.

Formal Letter Layout

The example formal letter below details the general layout that it should conform to.
Each aspect is detailed more fully below the image.

1) Your Address
Your address should be displayed in the top right-hand section. This will enable the
person that you are writing to, to reply.

2) The Address of the person you are writing to

This address should be displayed beneath your address on the left-hand side, remember
to include the name of the person that you are writing to (if known).
Date:This should be displayed on the right-hand side of the page on the line beneath
your address and should be written in full format:

e.g. 1st January 2016

Salutation & Greeting:

1) Dear Sirs,
If you do not know the name of the person that you are writing to, use the greeting
"Dear Sirs,". In some circumstances it is useful to find a name, especially if you are
making a request as this will show that you have done your homework and you are
more likely to receive a response.

2) Dear Mr Jones,
If you know the name, use one of the following titles:

Mr - for a male
Mrs - for a married female
Miss - for an unmarried female
Ms - for a female whose status is unknown or would prefer to remain anonymous
Dr - for a person with the status of a doctor

This should be followed by the surname only (not the first name).

Concluding:

1) Yours faithfully,
If you do not know the name of the person, conclude with "Yours faithfully,".

2) Yours sincerely,
If you know the name of the person, conclude with "Yours sincerely,".

3) Your signature
Sign your name, then print it underneath the signature. If it is potentially unclear what
your title would be then include this in brackets next to your printed name.

Introductory Paragraph

The introductory paragraph should be concise and should clearly state the purpose,
whether it is to lodge a complaint, make an enquiry or to request something.

Main Body

The main body should clearly state the points that you want to make. As a general rule it
is a good idea to keep this as to the point as possible to ensure that the recipient remains
engaged. A longer main body may be more appropriate when making a complaint as
you may require to add more detail in order to convey the importance of what you are
putting across.
Concluding Paragraph

The concluding paragraph should outline what action you would like the recipient to
take: to make a refund, to send you information etc.