WEBVTT FILE

1
00:00:01.400 --> 00:00:02.550
Hi, I’m Daniel.

2
00:00:02.550 --> 00:00:04.630
Welcome to Oxford Online English!

3
00:00:04.630 --> 00:00:10.030
In this lesson, you can learn the most important
grammar rule in English.

4
00:00:10.030 --> 00:00:14.900
Of course, you need to know many things to
use grammar correctly in English.

5
00:00:14.900 --> 00:00:21.160
However, there’s one tip that can dramatically
improve your English grammar—especially

6
00:00:21.160 --> 00:00:22.449
in writing.

7
00:00:22.449 --> 00:00:28.869
First, don’t forget to check out our website:
Oxford Online English dot com.

8
00:00:28.869 --> 00:00:32.300
We have many free lessons to help you improve
your English.

9
00:00:32.300 --> 00:00:37.940
There’s also a level test, which can show
you how good your grammar is now.

10
00:00:37.940 --> 00:00:40.690
But, you want to hear the grammar tip, right?

11
00:00:40.690 --> 00:00:42.220
What is it?

12
00:00:42.220 --> 00:00:45.479
Let’s see!

13
00:00:45.479 --> 00:00:53.119
Here’s the basic idea: make sure your sentence
has a subject and a verb, and that you know

14
00:00:53.120 --> 00:00:57.580
what the subject and main verb are.

15
00:00:57.580 --> 00:01:04.560
Every sentence needs a verb, and unless your
sentence is an imperative—meaning that you’re

16
00:01:04.569 --> 00:01:11.779
giving someone a command—then your sentence
needs a subject, too.

17
00:01:11.780 --> 00:01:18.709
Each clause in your sentence should have one
subject and one main verb, and only one subject

18
00:01:18.709 --> 00:01:21.009
and one main verb.

19
00:01:21.010 --> 00:01:22.620
It sounds simple.

20
00:01:22.620 --> 00:01:25.980
Maybe you’re thinking, ‘This is too easy!

21
00:01:25.980 --> 00:01:27.740
I know this already!’

22
00:01:27.740 --> 00:01:35.500
However, we see students make mistakes with
this all the time, especially in writing.

23
00:01:35.500 --> 00:01:41.709
Mistakes with this point are serious, because
they often make it hard to understand what

24
00:01:41.709 --> 00:01:43.899
you want to say.

25
00:01:43.900 --> 00:01:51.260
Even if your meaning is clear, sentences with
this problem are often difficult to read.

26
00:01:51.260 --> 00:01:54.200
In any situation, that’s a problem.

27
00:01:54.200 --> 00:01:59.900
It’s especially serious if you’re taking
an exam, like IELTS.

28
00:01:59.900 --> 00:02:03.190
Let’s look at the most basic point.

29
00:02:03.190 --> 00:02:09.610
Your sentence needs a subject, which should
be a noun or noun phrase, like ‘they’,

30
00:02:09.610 --> 00:02:13.069
‘everybody’, or ‘my maths teacher from
high school’.

31
00:02:13.069 --> 00:02:18.799
Then, you need a main verb, which generally
goes after the subject.

32
00:02:18.800 --> 00:02:26.260
With this, you can make simple sentences like
these: ‘They have a nice house’;

33
00:02:26.260 --> 00:02:28.840
‘Everybody agreed.’

34
00:02:28.840 --> 00:02:36.780
‘My maths teacher from high school was really
good at explaining complicated things.’

35
00:02:36.780 --> 00:02:43.200
After the main verb, you might have a simple
complement, like ‘a nice house’.

36
00:02:43.209 --> 00:02:45.488
You might have nothing at all.

37
00:02:45.489 --> 00:02:50.540
Your sentence might finish after the verb,
like ‘Everybody agreed.’

38
00:02:50.540 --> 00:02:58.790
Or, you might have a longer complement, possibly
including other verbs, as in ‘My math teacher

39
00:02:58.790 --> 00:03:03.400
from high school was really good at explaining
complicated things.’

40
00:03:03.400 --> 00:03:08.389
So, you’re probably still thinking that
this is easy.

41
00:03:08.389 --> 00:03:11.560
And, so far, it is!

42
00:03:11.560 --> 00:03:14.659
Let’s see how it can go wrong.

43
00:03:14.659 --> 00:03:20.560
Look at five sentences:
By the way, these sentences are all real examples

44
00:03:20.560 --> 00:03:23.069
from our students’ writing.

45
00:03:23.069 --> 00:03:27.579
Most of them come from IELTS writing practice.

46
00:03:27.579 --> 00:03:33.209
All these sentences break the basic rule we
mentioned above.

47
00:03:33.209 --> 00:03:35.409
Can you see how?

48
00:03:35.409 --> 00:03:40.559
Pause the video, read the sentences, and try
to find the problems.

49
00:03:40.559 --> 00:03:45.989
Start again when you’re ready.

50
00:03:45.989 --> 00:03:49.349
In the first sentence, there's no main verb.

51
00:03:49.349 --> 00:03:56.150
'Will' is a modal verb, but a modal verb can't
be a main verb; you need a main verb after

52
00:03:56.150 --> 00:03:57.150
it.

53
00:03:57.150 --> 00:04:02.980
For example, 'We will *go* back home next
Friday.'

54
00:04:02.980 --> 00:04:11.200
The second sentence has two subjects: ‘Imposing
higher taxes on fast food’ and ‘it’.

55
00:04:11.200 --> 00:04:14.749
One clause can’t have two subjects.

56
00:04:14.749 --> 00:04:21.060
To correct this sentence, remove ‘it’:
‘Imposing higher taxes on fast food *is*

57
00:04:21.060 --> 00:04:23.240
a good idea.’

58
00:04:23.240 --> 00:04:27.490
The third sentence has a main verb, but no
subject.

59
00:04:27.490 --> 00:04:31.460
*What* affects individuals’ lives directly?

60
00:04:31.460 --> 00:04:36.389
This is difficult to correct, because it’s
impossible to know what the writer wanted

61
00:04:36.389 --> 00:04:37.659
to say.

62
00:04:37.659 --> 00:04:45.080
You would need to add a noun before the verb
‘affects’ to make it understandable.

63
00:04:45.080 --> 00:04:51.930
The fourth sentence has a fragment at the
end which includes a subject and a verb.

64
00:04:51.930 --> 00:04:59.039
This means the sentence has too many subjects
and verbs; each clause can only have one subject

65
00:04:59.039 --> 00:05:01.220
and one main verb.

66
00:05:01.220 --> 00:05:04.960
What’s the solution?

67
00:05:04.960 --> 00:05:11.290
There are many possibilities, but the easiest
way to correct this is to break the sentence

68
00:05:11.290 --> 00:05:13.400
into two parts.

69
00:05:13.400 --> 00:05:19.500
You can do this by changing the comma after
‘Alexandria’ to a semicolon.

70
00:05:19.500 --> 00:05:22.650
Finally, what about the fifth sentence?

71
00:05:22.650 --> 00:05:27.260
It’s difficult to understand, right?

72
00:05:27.260 --> 00:05:34.360
Again, it’s difficult to correct this sentence,
because it’s hard to see the writer’s

73
00:05:34.370 --> 00:05:35.430
ideas.

74
00:05:35.430 --> 00:05:41.770
The problem is that this sentence has several
parts with several subjects and verbs, and

75
00:05:41.770 --> 00:05:46.700
it’s not clear what refers to what.

76
00:05:46.700 --> 00:05:53.740
For example, ‘each society’ is a subject,
but then ‘forced medical treatment’ is

77
00:05:53.750 --> 00:05:56.190
also a subject.

78
00:05:56.190 --> 00:06:04.650
Later in the sentence, we have a verb—‘avoid’—and
it isn’t clear which subject goes with it.

79
00:06:04.650 --> 00:06:11.060
On a more practical level, it just isn’t
clear what this sentence is about.

80
00:06:11.060 --> 00:06:17.070
Does the writer want to say something about
‘each society’, or about ‘large sets

81
00:06:17.070 --> 00:06:21.339
of people,’ or about ‘forced medical treatment’?

82
00:06:21.339 --> 00:06:23.679
We don’t know.

83
00:06:23.680 --> 00:06:30.509
This is why subject-verb structure is so important:
if it isn’t clear, it will be hard to understand

84
00:06:30.509 --> 00:06:33.210
what your sentence is about.

85
00:06:33.210 --> 00:06:37.960
Sometimes, this might mean that your ideas
aren’t clear in your mind.

86
00:06:37.960 --> 00:06:45.000
Next, let’s expand this basic rule and see
how you can use it to make a wider range of

87
00:06:45.000 --> 00:06:49.519
sentences.

88
00:06:49.529 --> 00:06:56.138
You heard before that both subjects and verbs
can be words or phrases.

89
00:06:56.139 --> 00:07:01.650
Sometimes, your subject or verb might be a
longer phrase.

90
00:07:01.650 --> 00:07:08.020
This often leads to mistakes, because when
your subject and verb are multiple words,

91
00:07:08.020 --> 00:07:12.759
it’s more difficult to keep track of your
sentence structure.

92
00:07:12.759 --> 00:07:16.300
Let’s do an example together.

93
00:07:16.300 --> 00:07:22.729
Take a sentence you saw before: ‘Everybody
agreed.’

94
00:07:22.729 --> 00:07:27.099
You can make the subject—‘everybody’—into
a phrase.

95
00:07:27.099 --> 00:07:33.370
For example: ‘Everybody who was at the meeting
agreed.’

96
00:07:33.370 --> 00:07:40.659
You can make the verb into a phrase, like
this: ‘Everybody who was at the meeting

97
00:07:40.659 --> 00:07:44.729
agreed to change the office dress code.’

98
00:07:44.729 --> 00:07:48.249
You can make each phrase even longer.

99
00:07:48.249 --> 00:07:54.509
For example: ‘Everybody who was at the board
meeting held last Tuesday evening agreed to

100
00:07:54.509 --> 00:08:01.080
change the existing office dress code to something
more informal.’

101
00:08:01.080 --> 00:08:06.750
Even though we’ve added lots of new words
and ideas, this sentence has the same basic

102
00:08:06.750 --> 00:08:09.658
structure as before.

103
00:08:09.659 --> 00:08:15.620
It still has one subject, and one main verb.

104
00:08:15.620 --> 00:08:20.510
Although we’ve added a complement after
the verb, the verb doesn’t have a direct

105
00:08:20.510 --> 00:08:22.009
object.

106
00:08:22.009 --> 00:08:28.568
We haven’t added anything grammatically
new to the sentence; we’ve simply expanded

107
00:08:28.569 --> 00:08:31.199
the existing parts.

108
00:08:31.200 --> 00:08:34.650
Let’s do one more example of this.

109
00:08:34.650 --> 00:08:37.740
This time, we want you to try!

110
00:08:37.740 --> 00:08:42.860
Here’s a basic sentence: ‘My sister called.’

111
00:08:42.870 --> 00:08:49.270
Can you make this sentence longer by changing
the subject and verb to longer phrases?

112
00:08:49.270 --> 00:08:53.360
For this exercise, there are a couple of rules.

113
00:08:53.360 --> 00:08:59.150
You can’t add a noun after ‘called’,
because that would change the structure.

114
00:08:59.150 --> 00:09:05.960
You also can’t use conjunctions like ‘although’
or ‘because’.

115
00:09:05.960 --> 00:09:12.370
The idea is to keep the basic structure the
same, so that the sentence has one subject

116
00:09:12.370 --> 00:09:17.910
and one verb which doesn’t have a direct
object.

117
00:09:17.910 --> 00:09:23.170
Pause the video and try it now.

118
00:09:23.170 --> 00:09:24.280
How did you do?

119
00:09:24.280 --> 00:09:27.620
Of course, there are many ways to do this.

120
00:09:27.620 --> 00:09:31.600
Let’s look at three possibilities.

121
00:09:31.600 --> 00:09:35.900
‘My sister Mandy called last night.’

122
00:09:35.900 --> 00:09:44.000
‘My sister, who I haven’t spoken to for
ages, called to tell me about her new job.’

123
00:09:44.000 --> 00:09:50.340
You can see that you can do this in a simpler
way, or you can make the sentence much more

124
00:09:50.350 --> 00:09:57.809
complicated, by adding relative clauses, adjectives,
adverbs, and so on.

125
00:09:57.809 --> 00:10:05.630
However, remember the basic idea: all of these
sentences have the same basic structure: one

126
00:10:05.640 --> 00:10:09.300
subject and one main verb.

127
00:10:09.300 --> 00:10:16.660
Let’s move on and talk about one more important
point.

128
00:10:16.660 --> 00:10:20.960
As you heard before, almost all sentences
need a subject.

129
00:10:20.960 --> 00:10:25.830
Only imperatives, like ‘Come here!’ don’t
need a subject.

130
00:10:25.830 --> 00:10:32.210
Interjections, like ‘Wow!’, also don’t
need a subject, but many linguists—including

131
00:10:32.210 --> 00:10:36.559
us—would say that these are not sentences.

132
00:10:36.559 --> 00:10:42.509
However, sometimes there isn’t a clear noun
subject.

133
00:10:42.510 --> 00:10:48.100
In this case, you need to use a word like
‘it’ or ‘there’.

134
00:10:48.100 --> 00:10:52.179
For example: ‘It won’t take long to get
there.’

135
00:10:52.179 --> 00:10:54.559
‘It’s worth going.’

136
00:10:54.559 --> 00:10:57.699
‘There’s a mosquito on your nose.’

137
00:10:57.700 --> 00:11:04.420
‘There have been several developments since
the last time we spoke.’

138
00:11:04.429 --> 00:11:10.759
In these sentences, the words ‘it’ and
‘there’ are empty subjects; they don’t

139
00:11:10.760 --> 00:11:14.210
refer to a specific noun or thing.

140
00:11:14.210 --> 00:11:17.460
You use them only because the sentence needs
a subject.

141
00:11:17.460 --> 00:11:21.929
They don’t add any meaning to the sentence.

142
00:11:21.929 --> 00:11:24.759
So, what’s the difference?

143
00:11:24.760 --> 00:11:32.080
When do you need to use ‘it’, and when
do you need to use ‘there’?

144
00:11:32.080 --> 00:11:35.679
Use ‘it’ to talk about distances and times.

145
00:11:35.679 --> 00:11:41.239
For example: ‘It’s not far to the metro.’

146
00:11:41.240 --> 00:11:46.500
‘How long will it take you to finish everything?’

147
00:11:46.500 --> 00:11:49.660
‘It’s six thirty.’

148
00:11:49.660 --> 00:11:53.200
You often use ‘it’ to talk about the weather,
too.

149
00:11:53.200 --> 00:11:56.190
For example: ‘It’s sunny.’

150
00:11:56.190 --> 00:11:59.179
‘It’ll be cold tomorrow.’

151
00:11:59.179 --> 00:12:03.759
‘It was really wet last month.’

152
00:12:03.760 --> 00:12:10.260
You also use ‘it’ to talk about situations,
and in a number of phrases like ‘it’s

153
00:12:10.260 --> 00:12:11.940
worth…’

154
00:12:11.940 --> 00:12:16.520
For example: ‘It’s safe to walk around
at night here.’

155
00:12:16.520 --> 00:12:19.600
‘It’s good that you could join us.’

156
00:12:19.600 --> 00:12:23.880
‘It’s really cosy in here.’

157
00:12:23.890 --> 00:12:26.210
What about ‘there’?

158
00:12:26.210 --> 00:12:31.200
Use ‘there’ to say that something exists,
or doesn’t exist.

159
00:12:31.200 --> 00:12:36.920
Usually, when you use ‘there’, it’s
the first time you’re mentioning something.

160
00:12:36.920 --> 00:12:41.800
For example: ‘There’s some salad in the
fridge.’

161
00:12:41.800 --> 00:12:47.900
‘There are several reasons why I have to
say ‘no’ to this idea.’

162
00:12:47.900 --> 00:12:53.400
‘There didn’t use to be so many homeless
people here.’

163
00:12:53.400 --> 00:12:55.570
Let’s practise together.

164
00:12:55.570 --> 00:12:57.260
Look at five sentences.

165
00:12:57.260 --> 00:13:01.740
Do you need to add ‘it’ or ‘there’?

166
00:13:01.740 --> 00:13:05.830
Pause the video, and think about your answers.

167
00:13:05.830 --> 00:13:07.830
Ready?

168
00:13:07.830 --> 00:13:11.380
Here they are.

169
00:13:11.380 --> 00:13:18.470
Finally, we have one more thing to show you.

170
00:13:18.470 --> 00:13:24.809
In general, the subject of your sentence goes
immediately before the main verb.

171
00:13:24.809 --> 00:13:31.539
You can see this in the sentences you’ve
already seen in this lesson.

172
00:13:31.540 --> 00:13:39.480
Sometimes, the main verb also has an auxiliary
verb, like ‘have’, ‘has’, ‘do’,

173
00:13:39.480 --> 00:13:43.920
‘does’, ‘will’, ‘can’ and so on.

174
00:13:43.920 --> 00:13:50.910
In positive sentences, the auxiliary verb
and the main verb almost always go together.

175
00:13:50.910 --> 00:13:56.719
For example: ‘They have bought a nice house.’

176
00:13:56.720 --> 00:14:01.000
‘My sister Mandy will call tonight.’

177
00:14:01.000 --> 00:14:07.120
However, there’s one case where the main
verb goes before the subject: questions with

178
00:14:07.121 --> 00:14:08.750
‘be’.

179
00:14:08.750 --> 00:14:16.250
For example: ‘Are you ready?’;
‘Were there many people there?’;

180
00:14:16.250 --> 00:14:22.100
In some cases, the auxiliary verb needs to
come before the subject.

181
00:14:22.100 --> 00:14:25.200
This is most common in questions.

182
00:14:25.200 --> 00:14:28.960
For example: ‘Can you help me?’

183
00:14:28.960 --> 00:14:32.600
‘What time does she arrive?’

184
00:14:32.600 --> 00:14:37.180
‘How many pieces of cake have you had already?’

185
00:14:37.180 --> 00:14:44.360
It’s also possible in certain structures
which are mostly used in formal writing, like

186
00:14:44.360 --> 00:14:50.260
‘At no time did I suspect that he was the
thief.’

187
00:14:50.260 --> 00:14:55.920
At this point, let’s review the most important
points that you should take away from this

188
00:14:55.920 --> 00:14:57.299
lesson.

189
00:14:57.300 --> 00:15:04.440
One: make sure every sentence has a subject
and a main verb in each clause.

190
00:15:04.440 --> 00:15:10.420
Don’t put more than one subject or main
verb in one clause.

191
00:15:10.420 --> 00:15:17.820
Two: if your subject and main verb are longer
phrases, or if you add a lot of adverbs or

192
00:15:17.820 --> 00:15:25.110
subordinate clauses to your sentence, it might
be harder to keep track of the structure.

193
00:15:25.110 --> 00:15:31.120
Before you write a sentence, think about this
question: what are you talking about, and

194
00:15:31.120 --> 00:15:35.050
what are you saying about this thing?

195
00:15:35.050 --> 00:15:42.220
Decide what you’re talking about—the subject—and
what you’re saying about it—the main verb.

196
00:15:42.220 --> 00:15:45.120
Keep these in your head.

197
00:15:45.120 --> 00:15:50.760
Three: study the difference between main verbs
and auxiliary verbs.

198
00:15:50.760 --> 00:15:55.670
Remember that auxiliary verbs can’t generally
be used alone.

199
00:15:55.670 --> 00:15:59.710
Make sure every auxiliary verb has a main
verb attached.

200
00:15:59.710 --> 00:16:06.229
Learn the cases when the auxiliary verb needs
to come before the subject.

201
00:16:06.230 --> 00:16:12.360
If you can follow these simple steps, your
writing will be clearer, better-organised,

202
00:16:12.360 --> 00:16:14.580
and more accurate.

203
00:16:14.580 --> 00:16:19.690
Do you have any tips to help other English
learners improve their grammar?

204
00:16:19.690 --> 00:16:23.630
Please share your suggestions in the comments!

205
00:16:23.630 --> 00:16:24.960
Thanks for watching!

206
00:16:24.960 --> 00:16:25.730
See you next time!