1.

The Simple Aspect

We use the simple aspect to talk about general, permanent or repeated
actions.

Here, the present simple is used to refer to a general, habitual action:

I often read business magazines online.

In the above example, it is implied that you read these magazines online all
the time. This is something you do regularly.

We use the continuous aspect to focus on progressive actions that usually

happen around the moment of speaking.

Here, the present continuous is used to refer to an action that is happening

at the moment of speaking:

I am reading an interesting book.

The same rule applies to all the verb tenses, past, present and future. If you
want to focus on the continuity of the action, use the continuous aspect. If
you are more interested in the result of the action, then use the simple
aspect.

Why is this useful for IELTS?

In IELTS Speaking Part 1 you have to answer questions about yourself.
You will need to make sure you use the right verb tense and the right
aspect—simple or continuous—depending on what you want to say. If you
want to talk about general things that you do regularly, then you need the
present simple. If, however, you want to refer to actions that are temporary
and happen around the moment of speaking, then you need the present
continuous.
You may also need this grammar rule in Writing Part 1 when describing
trends shown in graphs or charts. You are probably going to use the past
simple quite a lot because in this part you report on situations that happened
in the past.

Examples:

Between January and March, the profit rose by 10%.

They produced twice the amount of cars in June.
Hungary accounted for 10% of the students involved in the competition.

Let’s practice this rule by putting the verbs in the right tense and aspect:

1. I ___(exercise) every other day, but I ___(not like) going to sports

competitions.

2. The graphs ___(show) how the total number of students ___(change) in the
past 5 years.

3. I ___(do) an internship this spring, so I ___(not want) to take another job

just yet.

4. Alan ___(watch) a movie when I ___(arrive).

2. The Simple Past and Present Perfect Verb Tenses

When using the past tense, we see these past actions as having no
connection with the present. They belong to the past, so we use the past
tense to express them.
I ate my breakfast with Tony and then we saw a movie.
The action above happened in the past. There is no connection with the
present, so we use the simple past.
If, however, the action happened in the past but it has some kind of impact
on the present, or if it continues into the present, we need to use
the present perfect.
I haven’t eaten breakfast yet, I’m starving.

The above is present perfect because it is a past action but it has an obvious
impact on the present, the speaker is now hungry.

I have been waiting here since 10 a.m.

The above is present perfect because the action started in the past but is
continuing into the present, when the speaker is still waiting.
Why is this useful for IELTS?

In the IELTS speaking test you may have to talk about different events from
the past, either about yourself or about other matters. Decide if the actions
are still relevant in the present, if they still have an impact or not.
You have more time to make this decision when you are writing than
when speaking, but if you practice this rule you’ll be able to think faster.

Have a look at the following sentences and decide whether to use

the past or the present perfect:

5. I ___(start) studying for the IELTS exam two months ago but I still ___(not
decide) whether to move to Australia.

6. According to the bar chart, more women than men ___(take) the course
last year.

7. Entertainment ___(change) a lot since people ___(start) using the Internet

every day.

3. The Passive Voice

The passive voice can be used whenever you want to sound more formal
and impersonal.
You form the passive voice by using the verb “to be” in the tense you want,
plus the past participle (the third form of the verb; for example, for the
verb “write” you would use “written”).

Examples:

Almost 50% more courses were chosen in the second semester as

compared to the first one. (the passive voice is used here, with the past
tense of the verb “to be” and the past participle of the verb “choose”).
More research needs to be done before choosing a certain supplier.
(“do” is used in the passive voice in the infinitive, with the verb “be” used
in the infinitive and the past participle of the verb “do”).
Why is this useful for IELTS?

You can use the passive voice in both writing tasks in the IELTS exam,
particularly in reports where a more formal tone is needed.

Now try using the verbs in parentheses in the right passive voice form. These
are examples you could use in your own formal reports!

8. As can ___(see) from the figures, the number of first year students
decreased dramatically in the last five years.
 9. As ___(show) in the diagram, there was a marked increase in the number
of students driving their own cars to school.

10. More language courses ___(choose) by students in the second semester.

4. Modal Verbs
You can use modal verbs when you want to express different nuances like
degrees of certainty.
 Could, might and may are modal verbs and can be used to refer to possible
but uncertain actions in the future, with might being slightly less certain
than may.

Examples:

We could be late if we stop for drinks now.

I may want to spend my holiday in Europe, but everything depends on my
partner.
We might want to move to a different class if the problem persists.
 Could have, might have and may have are used to
express possible actions in the present or past—you are suggesting that
these actions are or were possible, or that they are or were completed.

Examples:

They could have left hours ago.

It’s almost midnight in Spain, the plane might have landed by now.
I may have mentioned your name to my colleague.
 Can is used to make general possible statements about the present,
while could is used as the past of can with this meaning.

Examples:

My boss can be very demanding at times.

Students can be difficult to motivate in evening classes.
My boss could be very demanding when I first got hired.
Students could be difficult to motivate when I was an inexperienced teacher.
 Can’t (cannot) is used to express impossibility.

Example:

These conclusions can’t be right.

 Must is used when we are sure something is true and must have is used
with the same meaning for the past.

Examples:

There must be a better explanation for why they haven’t arrived yet.
They must have changed their marketing strategy to afford such good
prices.
Why is this useful for IELTS?

In the IELTS exam, you may find modal verbs in reading and in listening and
if you get their meaning right you stand a better chance of getting that part
of the test right.

In speaking you may want to use them in Part 3 when extending the
discussion from yourself to other aspects the examiner might ask you about.
Modal verbs can be used to express probability when making generalizations
and talking more abstractly.

Now try practicing them by filling in the gaps with the right modal verbs
studied above:

11. This ___(not be) your phone, I know you had a different ringtone.

12. It ___(be) Donna at the door, she called to say she is sick.

13. They ___(change) their plans, but they haven’t said anything to me.

5. The Definite Article

The definite article (the), as the name suggests, is used for talking about
people or things that are known to the speaker, already mentioned earlier,
described in some detail or unique.

Examples:

Can you turn the TV on? (The speaker knows which TV they are talking
about.)
We are not going by car. The car is not big enough for all of us. (The car has
already been mentioned, so we know what car the speaker is referring to.)
 The gift they brought was a bit inappropriate. (We know what gift the
speaker is talking about.)
I can’t open the door, as I don’t have the key. (The key is unique.)
 The can also be used with superlatives, ordinal numbers, countries that have
plurals in them or that include the words “republic” or “kingdom.”

Examples:

This is the best movie I’ve seen in a while. (superlative)

This is the second time I’ve met him today. (ordinal number)
The Czech Republic is one of my favorite country in Europe. (country that
includes the word “republic”)
Why is this useful for IELTS?
In the IELTS Writing exam, leave a few minutes at the end to proofread for
grammar mistakes. If you’re still having doubts whether you are
using the correctly, try practicing in writing first and then in speaking, as you
have more thinking time to decide if you should use the or not. It’s easy to
erase it in case you decide that the person or thing is in fact undefined, new
or not specified.
To practice making this decision, use the or nothing in the following gaps:

14. I don’t like ___ romantic comedies, I prefer ___ thrillers, but I like ___ one
you suggested last week.

15. Moving to ___ United States was a big decision, but not ___ best they
took.

16. ___ employees don’t like it when their bonuses are being cut.

6. Comparing Adjectives
You should use adjectives as often as you can to describe people or things
because they prove you have a wide range of vocabulary in speaking and
writing. You may need to compare them
using comparatives or superlatives, depending on what you are trying to
say. There are a few rules you need to keep in mind:
 Most one syllable adjectives take -er and -est at the end to form the
comparative and the superlative.

Examples:
 My plan is safer than yours.
This is the safest plan of them all.
 Two-syllable adjectives can form the comparative and superlative either by
adding -er and -est or by using more and the most. In most cases, both
forms can be used.

Examples:

This is a simpler version of what I’ve just said.

I’ve never lifted a heavier bag.
This is the narrowest path I’ve ever walked on.
His was the most complete answer I got.
 Adjectives of three or more syllables use more and the most to form the
comparative and the superlative.

Examples:

I’ve never heard a more beautiful song.

This is the most interesting story I’ve ever read.

Pay special attention to irregular adjectives that don’t follow the rules above:

good ⇒ better ⇒ the best

bad ⇒ worse ⇒ the worst

far ⇒ farther ⇒ the farthest

little ⇒ less ⇒ least

In the IELTS exam you may want to use adjectives to prove your wide range
of vocabulary, but pay attention to spelling while taking the writing test.
 Adjectives ending in consonant + y: The y changes to an i when adding -
er or -est.

Examples:

Shiny ⇒ shinier ⇒ shiniest

Icy ⇒ icier ⇒ iciest
 Adjectives ending in e: The e is dropped when adding -er or -est.

Examples:
 Polite ⇒ politer ⇒ politest
Gentle ⇒ gentler ⇒ gentlest
 Adjectives ending in a consonant with a single vowel preceding it, double the
consonant when adding -er or -est.

Examples:

Big ⇒ bigger ⇒ biggest

Red ⇒ redder ⇒ reddest

Sad ⇒ sadder ⇒ saddest

Have a look at the following sentences and fill in the gaps with the correct
comparative or superlative form:

17. This is the ___(fast) route to our destination.

18. The salad your mom makes is ___(delicious) than this one.

19. His report is ___(comprehensive) than I expected it to be.

7. Watch Out for Frequent Spelling Mistakes

Here’s a list of frequent spelling mistakes students make. Make sure you
understand the rule behind each mistake so that in the IELTS Writing exam
you don’t make these mistakes!

 Double l in adverbs. Normally, you can add –ly to many adjectives and turn
them into adverbs. For example, interesting becomes the
adverb interestingly. However, if the adjective ends in l already, then its
adverb will have a double l:

Examples:

Beautiful ⇒ beautifully
 Adding -ing and -ed to verbs. If the verb ends in an -e, then the -e is
dropped before you add -ing or -ed:

Examples:
 Live ⇒ living ⇒ lived
Fake ⇒ faking ⇒ faked
 If the verb ends in a consonant + vowel + consonant pattern of letters, then
we double the final consonant when adding -ing or -ed:

Examples:

Plan ⇒ planning ⇒ planned

Stop ⇒ stopping ⇒ stopped

 If the verb ends in -ie, we change it to –ying when adding -ing:

Examples:

Lie ⇒ lying

Die ⇒ dying

Now have a look at the following sentences and correct the spelling mistakes
if you find any. Some sentences are correct.

20. I have never studyied Geography and I regret it.

21. They’ve been planing to visit, but never got the chance to do it.

22. The clock stopped working hours ago.

23. I’ve been listenning to this lecture for one hour and I still don’t get the
point of it.

24. The little girl is tying her shoelaces.

25. He was fixing his bike when I got there.

These are just a few basic grammar rules you need to know to get a higher
IELTS score. Remember that just doing IELTS tests is usually not enough. You
need to improve your general level of English to notice progress.

The best part about learning grammar is that you feel more confident in all
the four skills—reading, writing, listening and speaking.
Before you leave, check out the answer key below to see how your answers
were!