Last updated at 11:05 BST, Tuesday, 22 June 2010
Nouns, pronouns, determiners and articles
Questions answered
Alex Gooch explains the basic rules for using 'a', 'an' and 'the'
Bilal from Pakistan wants to know: 'Is no article a type of article?'
You say it's a quarter to six, but it's only half past five by my watch
We often use 'the' with superlatives (the biggest): did you know that you can also use 'the' with comparatives?
Why do English speakers say 'I'm going to the pub'?
Zdenek Berger from the Czech Republic wants to know if this sentence is correct: 'First, you must ask to get a permission'.
R Malik from Pakistan says: 'I am always confused when to put the before the noun.' Can Roger Woodham help?
When do we place 'the' in front of a noun and when do we take it away?
Why does one say 'the river Thames' but not 'the lake Como'? Should one say 'Mount Etna' or 'the Etna Mount'?
Why don't we put the definite article 'the' before 'Britain' in this sentence: 'the total eclipse of the moon on 16 May 2003 could not be seen in most parts of Britain because of cloud cover.'?
Roger Woodham gives some more information about using 'the'
We say 'seasonal jobs' and 'seasonal fruit', so can we say 'seasonal ticket'?
Explanation by Catherine Chapman
Is there a plural form for the following words? 'information', 'administration', 'management', 'disease'.
Is 'cake' countable or uncountable? And can we say 'a beautiful music'?
Bella from Switzerland asks: is 'cake' countable or uncountable?
Christine Vandierendonck from Belgium writes: 'Could you please explain to me the difference between 'each' and 'every'?'
Should we say 'either of them is' or 'neither of them are'? Find out with Roger Woodham
Yasuhiro Chasi from Japan has lots of questions for Roger
Professor Michael Swan answers another question; this one is about 'the others' and other similar words
Gareth Rees answers a question from Marta in Poland and explains how vowel and consonant sounds rather than letters are important in deciding whether to use 'an' or 'a'.
Which sentence is correct: 'there are lots of cars in the road' or 'there are lot of cars in the road'?
Chanokporn Intiang from Bangkok asks which of these sentences is correct: 'This is not good.' or 'This is no good.'?
Do phrases like 'approval of', 'awareness of', 'belief in', 'fondness for', affect sentence construction?
Teresa Lee from Taiwan examines the sentence 'We were refused permission to enter the building' and asks, 'Is there any rule governing noun + to - infinitive?'
Do we say 'the government is' or 'the government are'? Find out with Roger Woodham
Why do we say 'There is a chair and a table in this room', not 'There are a chair and a table in this room'?
Mohammed Abdul-Malek from Saudi Arabia has a couple of questions for Roger Woodham
Yang Zen from China asks whether we say 'the amount of ships' or 'the number of ships'
Steve from Hong Kong asks about the difference between 'material' and 'materials'
Is the homework that James did referred to as James's homework, James' homework or both?
Martin Parrot explains why we talk to the school principal rather than the school's principal
Should you avoid using possessives with things, ideas or animals?
Is it ok to use possessives in phrases like 'the US bank's Italian corporate finance division' or 'Saturday's game'?
Which of these are correct: 'boys’ toys', 'Jesus’s gown', 'the princess’ crown', 'the boss’ secretary'?
Yong Kah Choon from Malaysia is confused about these words
Julia from the US needs help with using 'its' and 'it's'
Adinath has doubts about when to use 'I' and 'me'. Do you?
Sian Harris explains the rules for using 'who' and 'whom'
Which is correct: 'The girl who you described as smart has failed the exam' or 'The girl whom you described as smart had failed the exam'?
Roger explains what reflexive pronouns (myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, oneself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves) are and shows how to use them
What is the right pronoun to use for someone if we don't know if they are male or female: can we say 'he'?
If I knock on the door and someone asks: 'Who is it?' Should I say: 'It is me' or should I say: 'It is I'?
Mamoru from Japan asks Roger to teach her the difference between these words. She's not sure which one she should use when she writes an email.
If I ask: 'Who’s the girl in a blue T-shirt?', is the correct answer: 'It’s Susan' or 'She’s Susan'?
Daniela Volke from Germany asks about these words
What is the difference between 'what' and 'which' in this sentence: 'It is difficult to know what idioms are in fashion and which are not.'?
Our expert answers a question from Julia in the US
Gareth Rees answers a question from Paola in Italy
Jos Luis Landa from Mexico wants to know which of these phrases is correct: 'A large amount of cows...A large quantity of cows...A large number of cows'
Susan Fearn has lots to say about 'a lot', 'lot' and 'lots'
Alex Gooch explains that these expressions have different degrees of formality
Find out how to use 'too much', 'too many', 'fewer', 'less', 'little', 'as much as' etcetera
Daymir Garcia from Cuba asks about the words 'few', 'less' and 'little'
Susan Fearn shows she is 'something of an expert' at English. Are you?
Do we say 'data is' or 'data are'?
Francoise Maroy from Reunion Island asks if 'the USA' is a singular or plural noun
Steve from Hong Kong has seen the phrases 'materials development' and 'teaching material'. So when should he use the plural form?
Why are words such as 'everybody' followed by a singular verb, e.g. 'Everybody needs some fun'? and is 'all' followed by a singular noun or a plural one?
C. Chan from Hong Kong writes: 'Zero means no and the noun that follows it should surely be in singular form'. Does Roger agree?
Is it appropriate to say: 'If you have any query', or should we say: 'If you have any queries'?
C Mathiack from Germany asks: When can you replace 'So do I' with 'Me too'?
this is such an important grammar point that Savino Carrella from Naples wrote in to ask about it
Yolanda, studying English in the UK, has problems using 'that' and 'than' correctly.
Amy Lightfoot answers a question from Svetlana in Kazajgstan and explains the difference between the words they, there, are and will
Vannek from Cambodia has looked in grammar books but is still not sure how to use 'it' and 'there'.
Is there a plural for the word 'water'?
Maria Grazia Rinieri from Italy has two questions for Roger Woodham
Explanation by Catherine Chapman
Paola from Italy wants to know - "Is it suitable to use pronouns 'he' or 'she' if the subject is not a pet but a wild animal like a monkey or a seagull?"
