Grammar by level
CEFR levels: what A1 to C2 mean and what to study next
The Common European Framework of Reference describes language ability in six bands, from A1 beginner to C2 proficient. This page explains each band in plain English and links every grammar page, vocabulary pair and idiom page on the site to the levels it covers.
How to use this map
Find your band
Take the free A1 to C2 level test, or read the summaries below and pick the band that sounds like your English. The descriptions tell you what a learner at each level can usually do.
Read the short list for your band
Every band has a "what to study next" line. Start with those pages. They were chosen for the mistakes learners make most at that level.
Work down or up one band
When the drills in your band feel easy, move one band up. If the explanations feel hard, move one band down and close the gaps first. Grammar builds in both directions.
A topic such as "A2-B1" appears under both bands, because it starts at one level and reaches into the next. Use the band that matches where you feel least sure, not where you feel most comfortable.
The six bands at a glance
| Level | Name | What it means | Study pages |
|---|---|---|---|
| A1 | Beginner | Simple phrases about yourself, your family and everyday objects. | 13 pages |
| A2 | Elementary | Short, routine exchanges about shopping, travel, work and family. | 71 pages |
| B1 | Intermediate | Most everyday situations, experiences and short reasons for your opinions. | 124 pages |
| B2 | Upper-intermediate | Complex texts on concrete and abstract topics, with a clear argument. | 43 pages |
| C1 | Advanced | Flexible, effective language for social, academic and professional life. | 0 pages |
| C2 | Proficient | Near-native comprehension and precision across almost every situation. | 0 pages |
The band descriptions paraphrase the official CEFR descriptors. They are a study guide, not an official certificate. Only an exam board can issue a CEFR certificate.
A1 Beginner: first words and small quantities
Simple phrases about yourself, your family and everyday objects.
- Introduce yourself and ask someone their name.
- Talk about where you live and what you have.
- Understand slow, clear speech on very familiar topics.
Study next: Start with the present simple, numbers and the small quantity words.
Grammar topics
Some vs any
Some for positive sentences, any for negatives and questions, and the polite exceptions that use some.
20 instant-marked questions
Much vs many
Many counts things you can number. Much measures what you cannot, and positive sentences prefer a lot of.
20 instant-marked questions
A few vs a little
A few counts things you can number. A little measures what you cannot, and both mean enough.
20 instant-marked questions
A vs an: choose by sound
Choose a before a consonant sound and an before a vowel sound. Spelling is not the test; your ears are.
20 instant-marked questions
Prepositions of time: at, on and in
At marks a point on the clock, on marks a day, in marks a bigger period. The size of the time decides the preposition.
20 instant-marked questions
Prepositions of place: at, on and in
In puts something inside a space, on puts it on a surface, and at marks a point. The same object can take all three, depending on how you see it.
20 instant-marked questions
How much vs how many: count the noun
How many counts separate things. How much measures an amount, a price or an uncountable idea.
20 instant-marked questions
Vocabulary pairs
Make vs do
Make creates a result you can point at. Do performs a job or activity, often a routine one. The fixed phrases decide the rest.
15 instant-marked questions
Bring vs take
Bring moves something here, to the speaker or the shared place. Take moves something there, away from the speaker.
15 instant-marked questions
Hear vs listen
Hear is what reaches your ears without trying. Listen means you pay attention to the sound on purpose.
15 instant-marked questions
There, their or they're
There names a place or introduces a thing. Their belongs to them. They're is the short form of they are.
15 instant-marked questions
Your vs you're
Your means belonging to you. You're is the short form of you are.
15 instant-marked questions
To, too or two
To with one o points the way or introduces a verb. Too with two o's means also or more than enough. Two spells the number 2.
15 instant-marked questions
A2 Elementary: past, future and polite requests
Short, routine exchanges about shopping, travel, work and family.
- Describe your day and your past in simple sentences.
- Handle short conversations in a shop, a cafe or on a journey.
- Write a short message about everyday things.
Study next: The past tenses, future plans, the first conditional and for with the present perfect.
Grammar topics
Present perfect vs past simple
The classic contrast: finished time takes the past simple, a link to now takes the present perfect.
20 instant-marked questions
Irregular verbs
The three forms (go, went, gone) grouped by pattern, with the mistakes to avoid.
20 instant-marked questions
First conditional
If plus the present simple, will plus the base verb: a real possibility in the future.
20 instant-marked questions
Articles: a, an and the
New or known, sound not letter, and the zero article for general statements.
20 instant-marked questions
Prepositions of time and place: at, on and in
At, on and in for clock times, days and periods, and for points, surfaces and spaces.
20 instant-marked questions
Modal verbs: can, could, must, should, may
No -s, no to, no do: what modals share, and which one fits each job.
20 instant-marked questions
Can vs could
Can for now, could for the past and for polite requests, plus the one past situation that refuses could.
20 instant-marked questions
Past continuous
Was or were plus -ing: the action in progress, the interruption, and the background of a story.
20 instant-marked questions
Past simple vs past continuous
The event or the background: choosing the right past tense, and how when and while help.
20 instant-marked questions
Will vs going to
The future has two shapes: will for decisions made now, going to for plans and visible evidence.
20 instant-marked questions
Present continuous for the future
Fixed plans with a time and a place: why "I am meeting Anna at six" sounds more certain than "I will meet Anna".
20 instant-marked questions
Present perfect with for and since
For counts a period. Since names the starting point. Both connect the past to now.
20 instant-marked questions
Present perfect with just, already and yet
Just for a moment ago, already for earlier than expected, yet for the question and the negative.
20 instant-marked questions
Some vs any
Some for positive sentences, any for negatives and questions, and the polite exceptions that use some.
20 instant-marked questions
Much vs many
Many counts things you can number. Much measures what you cannot, and positive sentences prefer a lot of.
20 instant-marked questions
A few vs a little
A few counts things you can number. A little measures what you cannot, and both mean enough.
20 instant-marked questions
Few vs little: not enough
Without the little word a, both phrases turn negative: few things and little stuff are not enough.
20 instant-marked questions
A vs an: choose by sound
Choose a before a consonant sound and an before a vowel sound. Spelling is not the test; your ears are.
20 instant-marked questions
The or no article: general and specific
The points to one specific thing. No article speaks about things in general. The difference changes the meaning of a sentence.
20 instant-marked questions
Prepositions of time: at, on and in
At marks a point on the clock, on marks a day, in marks a bigger period. The size of the time decides the preposition.
20 instant-marked questions
Prepositions of place: at, on and in
In puts something inside a space, on puts it on a surface, and at marks a point. The same object can take all three, depending on how you see it.
20 instant-marked questions
How much vs how many: count the noun
How many counts separate things. How much measures an amount, a price or an uncountable idea.
20 instant-marked questions
Ever and never with the present perfect
Ever means at any time up to now, and it lives in questions. Never means at no time up to now, and it lives in statements.
20 instant-marked questions
Zero conditional: facts and habits
When the result is always true, both halves of the sentence take the present simple. If and when mean the same thing here.
20 instant-marked questions
Must vs have to: rules and obligations
Must is the obligation you feel or state. Have to is the obligation the world gives you. The two negatives mean completely different things.
20 instant-marked questions
Phrasal verbs with up: finish, increase, arrive
The particle up often means completely, higher or appearing. Learn the verbs in meaning groups instead of one long list.
20 instant-marked questions
Passive voice: present and past tenses
The passive always takes a form of be plus the past participle. The tense lives in be, and the doer moves behind by or disappears.
20 instant-marked questions
The with geographic names: the UK, the USA, no article
Most single country names take no article. The takes over with plural names, group names and rivers, seas, oceans and mountain ranges.
20 instant-marked questions
Prepositions of movement: to, into, through and across
Movement prepositions answer the question "which way?". Into and out of are about entering and leaving, through and across are about crossing, and to is the destination.
20 instant-marked questions
Mustn't vs don't have to: ban or choice
Mustn't means you cannot do it. Don't have to means you can, but nobody requires it. The two negatives sit almost opposite each other.
20 instant-marked questions
Present perfect with today, this week and this year
Unfinished time takes the present perfect: today, this week and this year are still open. Finished time takes the past simple: yesterday, last week and in 2019.
20 instant-marked questions
Too much vs too many: countable and uncountable
Too much takes uncountable nouns such as water and time. Too many takes countable plural nouns such as books and people. Enough goes after an adjective and before a noun.
20 instant-marked questions
Each vs every: one by one or all together
Each sees the members of a group one by one. Every sees the whole group together. Both take a singular noun and a singular verb.
20 instant-marked questions
Irregular verbs that stay the same
One group of irregular verbs never adds -ed: cut, put, hit, let, set, shut, cost, hurt and read.
20 instant-marked questions
Have gone vs have been
Have gone means someone left and is still away; have been means the visit is over or the person has experience of the place.
20 instant-marked questions
Say vs tell
The object rule: say takes the words, tell takes the person, plus the fixed phrases that ignore the pattern.
20 instant-marked questions
Articles with school, hospital and bed
No article when the place is used for its normal purpose; a or the when it is just a building or a specific one.
20 instant-marked questions
By car, on foot, in a taxi: transport prepositions
By + vehicle for the way you travel, on or in + a/the + vehicle when you picture the journey, and the fixed phrase on foot.
20 instant-marked questions
Would vs used to: past habits
Both describe the past, but would cannot describe states, and used to cannot repeat forever without a time frame.
20 instant-marked questions
Gerund after prepositions
Every verb after a preposition becomes an -ing form, including after two-word prepositions and the tricky to in look forward to.
20 instant-marked questions
Another vs other vs others
Another adds one more of the same kind, other describes different things, and others stands alone as a pronoun.
20 instant-marked questions
Countable and uncountable nouns
The two noun groups, the words that only work with each, the measures that make uncountables countable, and the nouns with two meanings.
20 instant-marked questions
Vocabulary pairs
Make vs do
Make creates a result you can point at. Do performs a job or activity, often a routine one. The fixed phrases decide the rest.
15 instant-marked questions
Bring vs take
Bring moves something here, to the speaker or the shared place. Take moves something there, away from the speaker.
15 instant-marked questions
Hear vs listen
Hear is what reaches your ears without trying. Listen means you pay attention to the sound on purpose.
15 instant-marked questions
There, their or they're
There names a place or introduces a thing. Their belongs to them. They're is the short form of they are.
15 instant-marked questions
Your vs you're
Your means belonging to you. You're is the short form of you are.
15 instant-marked questions
To, too or two
To with one o points the way or introduces a verb. Too with two o's means also or more than enough. Two spells the number 2.
15 instant-marked questions
Its vs it's
Its means belonging to it, with no apostrophe. It's is the short form of it is or it has.
15 instant-marked questions
Fun vs funny
Fun is the enjoyment you feel. Funny is what makes you laugh. Funny also means strange.
15 instant-marked questions
Desert vs dessert
Desert has one s and means dry land or to leave someone. Dessert has two s’s and is the sweet food after a meal.
15 instant-marked questions
Peace vs piece
Peace means calm, quiet and no fighting. Piece means a part or portion of something.
15 instant-marked questions
Quiet vs quite
Quiet is about low noise and has two syllables. Quite is an adverb that makes the next word stronger: quite good means fairly good.
15 instant-marked questions
Then vs than
Then tells you when or what is next. Than compares one thing with another after a comparative word.
15 instant-marked questions
Affect vs effect
Affect is the action and effect is the result. If the or an fits in front of the word, effect is the one you need.
15 instant-marked questions
Borrow vs lend
Borrow means you receive and give back. Lend means you give and get back. The preposition from and the person after the verb tell you which one to use.
15 instant-marked questions
Fewer vs less
Fewer goes with plural countable nouns, like fewer cars. Less goes with uncountable nouns and measurements, like less traffic.
15 instant-marked questions
Lose vs loose
Lose is a verb: to stop having something, or to not win. Loose is an adjective: not tight and not fixed.
15 instant-marked questions
Advice vs advise
Advice is the thing you receive. Advise is the action of giving it. The ending sound follows the job: ice for the noun, eyes for the verb.
15 instant-marked questions
Weather vs whether
Weather is the condition outside. Whether means if, usually when there are two choices.
15 instant-marked questions
Speak vs talk
Speak is for languages and formal or one-way moments. Talk is for conversation and friendly exchange.
15 instant-marked questions
Learn vs teach
Learn means you receive knowledge or a skill. Teach means you give that knowledge to someone else.
15 instant-marked questions
Idioms
Break the ice
To break the ice is to say or do something that ends the first awkward silence when people meet and do not know each other yet.
10 instant-marked questions
Piece of cake
A piece of cake is a task that is very easy to do, or a situation that gives you no trouble at all.
10 instant-marked questions
Under the weather
To feel under the weather is to feel slightly ill, tired or not as healthy as usual.
10 instant-marked questions
Hit the books
To hit the books is to begin studying hard, usually before a test or an exam.
10 instant-marked questions
Raining cats and dogs
If it is raining cats and dogs, it is raining very heavily indeed.
10 instant-marked questions
Call it a day
To call it a day is to stop working on something for now, because you have done enough or because the work can wait.
10 instant-marked questions
Hit the sack
To hit the sack is to go to bed, usually because you are tired and ready to sleep.
10 instant-marked questions
Ring a bell
If a name, a face or a story rings a bell, it sounds familiar, even if you cannot remember where you know it from.
10 instant-marked questions
On cloud nine
To be on cloud nine is to be extremely happy, often because something wonderful has just happened.
10 instant-marked questions
B1 Intermediate: perfect tenses and unreal situations
Most everyday situations, experiences and short reasons for your opinions.
- Deal with most situations while travelling in an English-speaking place.
- Describe experiences, hopes and plans, and give short reasons.
- Write simple connected text on familiar topics.
Study next: The present perfect in all its forms, the second conditional, reported speech and the passive.
Grammar topics
Present perfect vs past simple
The classic contrast: finished time takes the past simple, a link to now takes the present perfect.
20 instant-marked questions
Irregular verbs
The three forms (go, went, gone) grouped by pattern, with the mistakes to avoid.
20 instant-marked questions
Phrasal verbs
Verb plus particle, three types, and the pronoun rule that learners break most often.
20 instant-marked questions
Phrasal verbs with get
One small verb, a score of meanings: the get phrasal verbs learners meet every day.
20 instant-marked questions
Conditional sentences (type 1, 2 and 3)
If plus the right verb pattern: real, unreal and impossible situations, with the comma rule.
20 instant-marked questions
First conditional
If plus the present simple, will plus the base verb: a real possibility in the future.
20 instant-marked questions
Second conditional
If plus the past simple, would plus the base verb: the present that is not real.
20 instant-marked questions
Third conditional
If plus had and the past participle, would have plus the past participle: the past that cannot change.
20 instant-marked questions
Reported speech
Direct to indirect: one step back, pronouns move, time words change, say vs tell.
20 instant-marked questions
Articles: a, an and the
New or known, sound not letter, and the zero article for general statements.
20 instant-marked questions
Prepositions of time and place: at, on and in
At, on and in for clock times, days and periods, and for points, surfaces and spaces.
20 instant-marked questions
The passive voice
Be plus past participle, when the doer matters and when the result matters more.
20 instant-marked questions
Modal verbs: can, could, must, should, may
No -s, no to, no do: what modals share, and which one fits each job.
20 instant-marked questions
Can vs could
Can for now, could for the past and for polite requests, plus the one past situation that refuses could.
20 instant-marked questions
Gerund vs infinitive
Verb plus -ing or verb plus to: the pattern lists, and the verbs where meaning flips.
20 instant-marked questions
Past continuous
Was or were plus -ing: the action in progress, the interruption, and the background of a story.
20 instant-marked questions
Past simple vs past continuous
The event or the background: choosing the right past tense, and how when and while help.
20 instant-marked questions
Will vs going to
The future has two shapes: will for decisions made now, going to for plans and visible evidence.
20 instant-marked questions
Present continuous for the future
Fixed plans with a time and a place: why "I am meeting Anna at six" sounds more certain than "I will meet Anna".
20 instant-marked questions
Future time clauses: when, before, after, until
When, before, after, as soon as and until take the present, even when the meaning is future.
20 instant-marked questions
Future continuous
Will be plus -ing: the action in progress at a future moment, and the polite way to ask about plans.
20 instant-marked questions
Future perfect
Will have plus the past participle: what will already be finished before a deadline in the future.
20 instant-marked questions
Present perfect with for and since
For counts a period. Since names the starting point. Both connect the past to now.
20 instant-marked questions
Present perfect with just, already and yet
Just for a moment ago, already for earlier than expected, yet for the question and the negative.
20 instant-marked questions
Present perfect continuous
Have been plus -ing: the activity that fills the time up to now and often leaves a visible result.
20 instant-marked questions
Present perfect simple vs continuous
A result or a count takes the simple form; a continuing activity takes the continuous.
20 instant-marked questions
Few vs little: not enough
Without the little word a, both phrases turn negative: few things and little stuff are not enough.
20 instant-marked questions
The or no article: general and specific
The points to one specific thing. No article speaks about things in general. The difference changes the meaning of a sentence.
20 instant-marked questions
By vs until: deadline or duration
By names the latest moment for a finished action. Until names the end of a continuing situation. The verb decides which one you need.
20 instant-marked questions
Ever and never with the present perfect
Ever means at any time up to now, and it lives in questions. Never means at no time up to now, and it lives in statements.
20 instant-marked questions
Zero conditional: facts and habits
When the result is always true, both halves of the sentence take the present simple. If and when mean the same thing here.
20 instant-marked questions
Must vs have to: rules and obligations
Must is the obligation you feel or state. Have to is the obligation the world gives you. The two negatives mean completely different things.
20 instant-marked questions
May vs might: possibility and permission
May sounds a little more likely and a little more formal. Might sounds more remote and tentative. Both never take to.
20 instant-marked questions
Phrasal verbs with up: finish, increase, arrive
The particle up often means completely, higher or appearing. Learn the verbs in meaning groups instead of one long list.
20 instant-marked questions
Separable or inseparable phrasal verbs
A noun object can often move, but a pronoun cannot. It must sit between the verb and the particle in a separable phrasal verb.
20 instant-marked questions
Reported questions: word order and tense
A reported question stops being a question. It takes statement word order, drops the auxiliary, and often moves one tense back.
20 instant-marked questions
Reported commands and requests: tell and ask
A reported command takes told plus a person plus to. A reported request takes asked plus a person plus to. The infinitive never backshifts.
20 instant-marked questions
Remember, stop, try: gerund or infinitive
With these six verbs, the -ing form looks at the action itself, and to plus the verb looks at the purpose or the task still to do.
20 instant-marked questions
Used to, be used to and get used to
Used to plus the base verb looks at the past. Be used to and get used to take a noun or an -ing form and describe comfort with something.
20 instant-marked questions
Passive voice: present and past tenses
The passive always takes a form of be plus the past participle. The tense lives in be, and the doer moves behind by or disappears.
20 instant-marked questions
Passive voice with modal verbs
A modal passive keeps the modal in front and puts be plus the past participle after it. For the past, be becomes have been.
20 instant-marked questions
Past perfect vs past simple: which came first
When one past event happens before another, the earlier event takes had plus the past participle. The later event stays in the past simple.
20 instant-marked questions
Phrasal verbs with look: after, for, forward to and more
Look keeps its basic idea of attention or eyes, and the particle decides what happens next: caring, searching, waiting, investigating or resembling.
20 instant-marked questions
Phrasal verbs with take: off, up, after and over
The particle decides whether take means removing clothes, leaving the ground, starting a hobby, resembling a parent or gaining control.
20 instant-marked questions
Unless: if not, and how to use it
Unless introduces the one condition that stops something: "Unless you hurry, we will be late." The clause stays in the present simple, even about the future.
20 instant-marked questions
Wish and if only: past, present and future regrets
Wish moves the tense one step back to show that the situation is unreal: past simple for now, past perfect for then, and would for what annoys you.
20 instant-marked questions
Reporting verbs: say, tell, ask, advise and warn
A reporting verb decides the shape of the sentence: tell needs a person, say does not, and verbs like advise and warn take an object plus an infinitive.
20 instant-marked questions
The with geographic names: the UK, the USA, no article
Most single country names take no article. The takes over with plural names, group names and rivers, seas, oceans and mountain ranges.
20 instant-marked questions
Prepositions of movement: to, into, through and across
Movement prepositions answer the question "which way?". Into and out of are about entering and leaving, through and across are about crossing, and to is the destination.
20 instant-marked questions
Adjective + preposition: good at, interested in, afraid of
An adjective and its preposition form a fixed pair. Learn the pair, not the preposition alone: interested in, good at, afraid of, proud of and keen on.
20 instant-marked questions
Verb + preposition: depend on, listen to, wait for
A verb and its preposition form a fixed pair: depend on, listen to, wait for, agree with. Learn the pair with one example and use it as a single unit.
20 instant-marked questions
Have something done: the causative explained
Have something done puts the focus on the service and the result, not on who did the work: "I had my hair cut" means a professional cut it.
20 instant-marked questions
Mustn't vs don't have to: ban or choice
Mustn't means you cannot do it. Don't have to means you can, but nobody requires it. The two negatives sit almost opposite each other.
20 instant-marked questions
Should vs ought to: advice and expectation
Should and ought to mean almost the same thing. Both give advice and state expectations; should is more common and takes questions and negatives without help.
20 instant-marked questions
Past modals of deduction: must have, might have, can't have
Must have shows certainty, might have shows possibility and can't have shows impossibility about the past. All three take have plus the past participle.
20 instant-marked questions
Verbs followed by a gerund: enjoy, avoid, suggest
A group of common verbs takes an -ing form after them: enjoy, avoid, suggest, finish, practise and mind. Learn the group as a fixed pattern.
20 instant-marked questions
Verbs followed by an infinitive: decide, hope, promise
Many common verbs take to plus the base verb after them: decide, hope, promise, want, need and plan. Some also need a person before the infinitive.
20 instant-marked questions
Present perfect with today, this week and this year
Unfinished time takes the present perfect: today, this week and this year are still open. Finished time takes the past simple: yesterday, last week and in 2019.
20 instant-marked questions
Past perfect continuous: had been doing
Had been plus -ing describes an activity that was in progress before another past moment. It stresses the duration, not the finished result.
20 instant-marked questions
Too much vs too many: countable and uncountable
Too much takes uncountable nouns such as water and time. Too many takes countable plural nouns such as books and people. Enough goes after an adjective and before a noun.
20 instant-marked questions
Each vs every: one by one or all together
Each sees the members of a group one by one. Every sees the whole group together. Both take a singular noun and a singular verb.
20 instant-marked questions
Both, either and neither: pairs and choices
Both means the two together, either means one or the other, and neither means not the one and not the other. Both and either take a plural view; neither is usually singular.
20 instant-marked questions
Irregular verbs: the past participle
The third form of an irregular verb, the jobs it does after have, has, had and be, and the mistakes it causes.
20 instant-marked questions
Phrasal verbs with put
The everyday meanings of put on, put off, put up, put out, put down and put away, with the separable word order.
20 instant-marked questions
Phrasal verbs with turn
The main meanings of turn on, off, up, down, into, out and around, with the pronoun rule for separable verbs.
20 instant-marked questions
Have gone vs have been
Have gone means someone left and is still away; have been means the visit is over or the person has experience of the place.
20 instant-marked questions
In case vs if
If says what must happen first; in case says do something now because something might happen later.
20 instant-marked questions
As long as, provided that and on condition that
Three formal ways to say "only if", the present simple after them, and the difference from if and unless.
20 instant-marked questions
If vs whether
Both words introduce reported yes or no questions, but whether is required after prepositions and before to-infinitives.
20 instant-marked questions
Articles with school, hospital and bed
No article when the place is used for its normal purpose; a or the when it is just a building or a specific one.
20 instant-marked questions
During vs while
During + noun answers when; while + subject and verb answers what else was happening at the same time.
20 instant-marked questions
Prepositions at the end of questions
Wh- questions often end in a preposition because the question word is the object; formal English moves it to the front.
20 instant-marked questions
Future in the past: was going to and would
The past forms of will and going to: plans that may never happen, predictions and interrupted moments.
20 instant-marked questions
Would rather vs prefer
Would rather + base verb for one choice now; prefer + noun or -ing for a general taste, and pref ... er ... to ... for comparisons.
20 instant-marked questions
Had better: strong advice
A fixed phrase for strong advice: had better + base verb, had better not for warnings, and no to after better.
20 instant-marked questions
Would vs used to: past habits
Both describe the past, but would cannot describe states, and used to cannot repeat forever without a time frame.
20 instant-marked questions
Gerund after prepositions
Every verb after a preposition becomes an -ing form, including after two-word prepositions and the tricky to in look forward to.
20 instant-marked questions
Another vs other vs others
Another adds one more of the same kind, other describes different things, and others stands alone as a pronoun.
20 instant-marked questions
Vocabulary pairs
Quiet vs quite
Quiet is about low noise and has two syllables. Quite is an adverb that makes the next word stronger: quite good means fairly good.
15 instant-marked questions
Then vs than
Then tells you when or what is next. Than compares one thing with another after a comparative word.
15 instant-marked questions
Affect vs effect
Affect is the action and effect is the result. If the or an fits in front of the word, effect is the one you need.
15 instant-marked questions
Borrow vs lend
Borrow means you receive and give back. Lend means you give and get back. The preposition from and the person after the verb tell you which one to use.
15 instant-marked questions
Fewer vs less
Fewer goes with plural countable nouns, like fewer cars. Less goes with uncountable nouns and measurements, like less traffic.
15 instant-marked questions
Lose vs loose
Lose is a verb: to stop having something, or to not win. Loose is an adjective: not tight and not fixed.
15 instant-marked questions
Advice vs advise
Advice is the thing you receive. Advise is the action of giving it. The ending sound follows the job: ice for the noun, eyes for the verb.
15 instant-marked questions
Weather vs whether
Weather is the condition outside. Whether means if, usually when there are two choices.
15 instant-marked questions
Especially vs specially
Especially means particularly or above all. Specially means for a special purpose, and it usually goes with made, designed or trained.
15 instant-marked questions
Rise vs raise
Rise means to go up by itself, with no object. Raise means to move something up or increase it, so it always needs an object.
15 instant-marked questions
Lie vs lay
You lie down, but you lay something down. Lie has no object, lay needs one, and the past of lie is lay, which is the root of the confusion.
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Practice vs practise
In British English, practice with a c is the noun and practise with an s is the verb. American English uses practice for both.
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Speak vs talk
Speak is for languages and formal or one-way moments. Talk is for conversation and friendly exchange.
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Learn vs teach
Learn means you receive knowledge or a skill. Teach means you give that knowledge to someone else.
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Stationary vs stationery
Stationary with -ary means not moving. Stationery with -ery means the paper and pens you write with.
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Complement vs compliment
Complement with an e means to complete or go well with something. Compliment with an i is the praise you give or receive.
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Sight, site or cite
Sight is about seeing, site is a place or a website, and cite means to quote a source.
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Remember vs remind
Remember is memory that stays in your own head. Remind means to make someone else remember, so it needs a person after the verb.
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Idioms
Break the ice
To break the ice is to say or do something that ends the first awkward silence when people meet and do not know each other yet.
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Piece of cake
A piece of cake is a task that is very easy to do, or a situation that gives you no trouble at all.
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Under the weather
To feel under the weather is to feel slightly ill, tired or not as healthy as usual.
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Hit the books
To hit the books is to begin studying hard, usually before a test or an exam.
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Raining cats and dogs
If it is raining cats and dogs, it is raining very heavily indeed.
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Call it a day
To call it a day is to stop working on something for now, because you have done enough or because the work can wait.
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Hit the sack
To hit the sack is to go to bed, usually because you are tired and ready to sleep.
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Ring a bell
If a name, a face or a story rings a bell, it sounds familiar, even if you cannot remember where you know it from.
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On cloud nine
To be on cloud nine is to be extremely happy, often because something wonderful has just happened.
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Spill the beans
To spill the beans is to tell a secret, usually before you are supposed to or without meaning to.
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Let the cat out of the bag
To let the cat out of the bag is to reveal a secret, usually without meaning to and often too early.
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Kick the bucket
To kick the bucket is a very informal way to say that someone has died.
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See eye to eye
To see eye to eye with someone is to agree with them or share the same opinion.
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Pull someone’s leg
To pull someone’s leg is to joke with them by saying something that is not true, in a friendly way.
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Get cold feet
To get cold feet is to become nervous at the last moment and want to back out of a plan, especially a big one.
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In hot water
To be in hot water is to be in trouble because of something you did or failed to do.
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Miss the boat
To miss the boat is to lose an opportunity because you waited too long or did not act in time.
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Play it by ear
To play it by ear is to deal with a situation as it develops, instead of following a plan made in advance.
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Throw in the towel
To throw in the towel is to admit that you cannot win or continue, and to give up.
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Once in a blue moon
If something happens once in a blue moon, it happens very rarely.
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Bite the bullet
To bite the bullet is to accept an unpleasant job or a hard decision and do it, without waiting any longer.
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Cost an arm and a leg
If something costs an arm and a leg, it costs a lot of money, more than it should.
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Burn the midnight oil
To burn the midnight oil is to stay up late working or studying, long after the normal day has ended.
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Sit on the fence
To sit on the fence is to stay neutral and avoid taking sides in an argument or a choice.
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Beat around the bush
To beat around the bush is to avoid the main point and talk about everything except what matters.
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Go the extra mile
To go the extra mile is to make more effort than expected, so that someone is helped or a job is done especially well.
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When pigs fly
If you say something will happen when pigs fly, you mean it will never happen.
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Up in the air
If something is up in the air, it is not decided yet and the final answer is uncertain.
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B2 Upper-intermediate: precision with conditionals and passives
Complex texts on concrete and abstract topics, with a clear argument.
- Understand the main ideas of a technical discussion in your field.
- Interact with fluency and explain a viewpoint with arguments.
- Write detailed text and explain the advantages of different options.
Study next: The third and mixed conditionals, the full passive, and the differences inside the perfect tenses.
Grammar topics
Phrasal verbs
Verb plus particle, three types, and the pronoun rule that learners break most often.
20 instant-marked questions
Phrasal verbs with get
One small verb, a score of meanings: the get phrasal verbs learners meet every day.
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Conditional sentences (type 1, 2 and 3)
If plus the right verb pattern: real, unreal and impossible situations, with the comma rule.
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Second conditional
If plus the past simple, would plus the base verb: the present that is not real.
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Third conditional
If plus had and the past participle, would have plus the past participle: the past that cannot change.
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Reported speech
Direct to indirect: one step back, pronouns move, time words change, say vs tell.
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The passive voice
Be plus past participle, when the doer matters and when the result matters more.
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Gerund vs infinitive
Verb plus -ing or verb plus to: the pattern lists, and the verbs where meaning flips.
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Future time clauses: when, before, after, until
When, before, after, as soon as and until take the present, even when the meaning is future.
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Future continuous
Will be plus -ing: the action in progress at a future moment, and the polite way to ask about plans.
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Future perfect
Will have plus the past participle: what will already be finished before a deadline in the future.
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Present perfect continuous
Have been plus -ing: the activity that fills the time up to now and often leaves a visible result.
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Present perfect simple vs continuous
A result or a count takes the simple form; a continuing activity takes the continuous.
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Mixed conditionals: past and present together
When one half of a conditional looks at the past and the other at now, the sentence is mixed. The time words tell you which pattern you need.
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Used to, be used to and get used to
Used to plus the base verb looks at the past. Be used to and get used to take a noun or an -ing form and describe comfort with something.
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Passive voice with modal verbs
A modal passive keeps the modal in front and puts be plus the past participle after it. For the past, be becomes have been.
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Past perfect vs past simple: which came first
When one past event happens before another, the earlier event takes had plus the past participle. The later event stays in the past simple.
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Wish and if only: past, present and future regrets
Wish moves the tense one step back to show that the situation is unreal: past simple for now, past perfect for then, and would for what annoys you.
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Reporting verbs: say, tell, ask, advise and warn
A reporting verb decides the shape of the sentence: tell needs a person, say does not, and verbs like advise and warn take an object plus an infinitive.
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Adjective + preposition: good at, interested in, afraid of
An adjective and its preposition form a fixed pair. Learn the pair, not the preposition alone: interested in, good at, afraid of, proud of and keen on.
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Verb + preposition: depend on, listen to, wait for
A verb and its preposition form a fixed pair: depend on, listen to, wait for, agree with. Learn the pair with one example and use it as a single unit.
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Have something done: the causative explained
Have something done puts the focus on the service and the result, not on who did the work: "I had my hair cut" means a professional cut it.
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Past modals of deduction: must have, might have, can't have
Must have shows certainty, might have shows possibility and can't have shows impossibility about the past. All three take have plus the past participle.
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Past perfect continuous: had been doing
Had been plus -ing describes an activity that was in progress before another past moment. It stresses the duration, not the finished result.
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In case vs if
If says what must happen first; in case says do something now because something might happen later.
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As long as, provided that and on condition that
Three formal ways to say "only if", the present simple after them, and the difference from if and unless.
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Future in the past: was going to and would
The past forms of will and going to: plans that may never happen, predictions and interrupted moments.
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Vocabulary pairs
Stationary vs stationery
Stationary with -ary means not moving. Stationery with -ery means the paper and pens you write with.
15 instant-marked questions
Complement vs compliment
Complement with an e means to complete or go well with something. Compliment with an i is the praise you give or receive.
15 instant-marked questions
Sight, site or cite
Sight is about seeing, site is a place or a website, and cite means to quote a source.
15 instant-marked questions
Remember vs remind
Remember is memory that stays in your own head. Remind means to make someone else remember, so it needs a person after the verb.
15 instant-marked questions
Who vs whom
Who does the action, like he. Whom receives the action, like him, and often follows a preposition.
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Principal vs principle
Principal means main, or the head of a school, or the capital sum of a loan. Principle is always a noun: a rule or a belief.
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Idioms
Bite the bullet
To bite the bullet is to accept an unpleasant job or a hard decision and do it, without waiting any longer.
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Cost an arm and a leg
If something costs an arm and a leg, it costs a lot of money, more than it should.
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Burn the midnight oil
To burn the midnight oil is to stay up late working or studying, long after the normal day has ended.
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Sit on the fence
To sit on the fence is to stay neutral and avoid taking sides in an argument or a choice.
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Beat around the bush
To beat around the bush is to avoid the main point and talk about everything except what matters.
10 instant-marked questions
Go the extra mile
To go the extra mile is to make more effort than expected, so that someone is helped or a job is done especially well.
10 instant-marked questions
When pigs fly
If you say something will happen when pigs fly, you mean it will never happen.
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Up in the air
If something is up in the air, it is not decided yet and the final answer is uncertain.
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The ball is in your court
If the ball is in your court, it is your turn to take action or make the next decision.
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Cut corners
To cut corners is to do a job in a quicker or cheaper way by skipping the proper steps, usually with poor results.
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C1 Advanced: flexibility and implied meaning
Flexible, effective language for social, academic and professional life.
- Understand long, demanding texts and implied meaning.
- Express ideas fluently without searching for words.
- Write clear, well-structured text on complex subjects.
Study next: Advanced grammar pages arrive in stage 2. Until then, use the level test to check the bands you have passed.
Study pages for this band arrive in stage 2. Until then, keep working on the band below and check your progress with the level test.
C2 Proficient: near-native precision
Near-native comprehension and precision across almost every situation.
- Understand with ease virtually everything you read or hear.
- Summarise information from different spoken and written sources.
- Express yourself precisely in complex situations.
Study next: Advanced grammar pages arrive in stage 2. Keep reading widely and review the bands below for gaps.
Study pages for this band arrive in stage 2. Until then, keep working on the band below and check your progress with the level test.
Not sure about your level?
The free level test uses 36 questions, six for each band, and scores in your browser. You get a per-band result and a rule explanation for every answer, so the test doubles as a grammar review.