Hotel-tefl
An English Language site
dedicated to the hotel industry
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Hotel-tefl An English Language site dedicated to the hotel industry |
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Grammar
Wh Questions During their stay at the hotel a guest is likely to ask many questions. Most of the questions asked will be WH questions- question words that usually begin with the letters Wh. Look at these WH questions a guest may ask.
Who is the manager of this hotel? What is the name of the the Chinese restaurant at the hotel? When does the gym open? Where is the pool located? Why has my luggage not arrived to my room yet? How can I get to the local theater?
Practice
Work with your partner and ask each other the following questions. For additional practice, change the words in parentheses to form your own sentences. Granted, most guests will not ask these kinds of questions to a staff, but it is good to practice using these types of questions.
Remember that one the of best was to improve your English skills is to use the language over and over again. It may be boring and tedious but it works to make the language readily accessible for use when needed.
1. What kind of (books) do you (read)? 2. When do you usually (go to bed)? 3. When do you like to (eat ice cream)? 4. What do you usually (eat for breakfast)? 5. How often do you (go to the movies)? 6. Who do you (dislike)? 7. What do you do usually (do at night)? 8. What is your favorite (meal)? 9. How long have you been (studying English)? 10. What classes (do you take in school)? 11. What color (shirt/blouse) are you wearing? 12. Who is your (best friend)?
More Practice
Ask your partner more WH questions using these words or think of your own.
When: study, get up, sleep, watch TV, go to movies, work What: father’s/mother’s job, hobby, capital of your country, animal you like Where: from, live, library, place to fish, place to meet people, home town How often: swim, drink milk, go to concerts, travel abroad Why: exercise, watch TV news, take vacation, take this class Who: favorite actor, president of your country, famous sports figure, inventor of airplane Can and Do Questions
Other common questions that guest may ask will start with CAN and DO. Can questions are used to ask about permission or ability. Do questions are asked to get additional information. Look at these examples.
Can I leave my bags here for a moment? Does this restaurant have sea food? Can you send someone up to fix the air conditioner? Do you have a currency exchange at this hotel?
Practice Work with your partner and ask each other the following questions. For additional practice, change the words in parentheses to form your own sentences. Granted, most guests will not ask these kinds of questions to a staff, but it is good to practice using these types of questions.
1. Does your (mother swim)? 2. Do you (listen to music in the evening)? 3. Does your mother ever cook (apple pie for dessert)? 4. Can your grandfather (operate a computer)? 5. Can your best friend (play pool)? 6. Do your parents (have the same hobby)? 7. Does your family (take a vacation every year)? 8. Can any of the students (in your class speak Spanish)? 9. Can your father (play the piano)? 10. Do you ever (gamble)? 11. Does your brother or sister (attend college)? 12. Do you (wash your hair every day)? 13. Do you ever (wish upon a star)? 14. Do you ever (go to the movies) alone? 15. Do you (kiss and tell)? 16. Does (studying English) give you a head ache?
Verb Tenses and Usage
Verbs are words that express action (run) or a state of being (love). The action can also be abstract rather than visible, such as the words think and decide. There are the twelve categories verb tenses and verb usage that are related to the time something happens and its duration. Six are simple and six are continuous or progressive forms (continuous or progressive may be - and often are - used interchangeably here). Simple forms are used when we view the action or state as being complete. The continuous or progressive form is used when the action or state is seen as being incomplete. There are also six perfect and six non-perfect forms. The perfect forms are used when the actions being talked or written about looks back into the past (from the speakers perspective - this is important). Below is an explanation of the twelve verb tenses and when they should be used. 1. The simple present tense The simple tense is the base form of the word. The simple present tense is used when talking or writing about events, actions, or situations that exist now, have existed in the past, and will probably exist in the future.
When using the simple present, be sure to follow the subject-verb agreement rule. Some verbs require an -s at the end, depending on what the subject of the sentence is.
Use an –s ending with verbs that have he, she, it, or singular nouns as subjects of the sentence. Mary takes a walk after class every day.
Use no -s ending on verbs that have I, we, they, you, or plural nouns as subjects. I always take a walk after class.
Use the simple present tense: 1. When talking about general truths and scientific or permanent facts. Water covers over 70% of the Earth’s surface. 2. When talking about general statements, when no particular time is specified. A college education improves one’s chances for a financially rewarding job. 3. When talking about actions, situations, or states of being that occur all the time, frequently, or at any time. I exercise every morning before I go to work. 4. When giving opinions. Everyone loves a parade. 5. When talking about processes or giving directions. Insert flap A into slot B.
Practice
2. The simple past tense regular verbs or the past tense form of irregular verbs. The simple past is used when talking or writing about actions, events, or states of being
that were
started and completed in the past.
in the
past.
in the
past.
What did (you do yesterday)?
3. The simple future tense simple future is used when talking or writing about actions or events that
will occur in the future.
future.
use the family car.
occurring and will occur in the future.
4. The
present continuous tense (is. am, are) + main verb + ing ending or is going to. The present continuous is used when talking or writing about an action or event that
began in the
past and continues to the present (and maybe future).
as one
speaks.
given
period of time.
changing.
if so, why)?
What are you doing (to protect the environment)?
who?
who
and what? What is the person (on your right wearing)?
past continuous is used when talking about an event, action, or situation
that occurred during a certain time in the past.
particular
time in the past that have been completed.
occurred in
the past.
simultaneously
with other past events, actions, or situations.
do not usually take the
present continuous tense. These verbs are:
someone)?
exhausted)?
The future continuous is used when talking about an event, action, or
situation that will begin in the future.
at a
particular time in the future.
the
future.
he
will
retire.
expected to happen in the normal course of things.
present perfect refers to the present, although the action took place in the
past.
exactly
when they happened.
continue in
the present.
of one’s
experience.
Olympics?
Ocean)?
school)?
president)?
future perfect when talking about the completion of an activity at some time
in the future.
by a certain time
in the future. in the future, but prior to another event, situation, or action taking
place.
you
have eaten last)?
have
elapsed)?
the
week)?
three
months)?
have
seen this year)?
eaten this
month)? have watched TV this week)?
verb + ing ending. an activity or action that started in the past, continues in the present, and
may continue into the future.
past and
continue into the present or future.
in the
past and continue to the present.
situation,
or action than the result of it.
losing)?
lately)?
action or situation in the past that was in progress before another past
action or situation in the past.
past.
action.
How long had you been (studying English before taking this class)?
instructor
entered)?
morning)?
running
before it was canceled)?
off)?
moved into your current one)?
verb
+ “ing”.
an activity that will be in progress before another time or
event in the future.
certain
time in the future.
for 12
years.
another event in the future.
perfect can be used to express
the same meaning.
years.
present
home)?
newspaper
for daily news)?
in
the
classroom today)?
been
having democratic elections)? days, how many hours will they have been dancing by the time
they quit)?
reporting the
news on TV)?
singing)?
class)?
chair)?
answering
questions in this section)?
There is fairly common agreement about nine parts of speech: nouns pronouns verbs prepositions adverbs adjectives conjunctions interjections articles/determiners/quantifiers
On some lists you will also find determiners instead of articles (articles are in this class) and possibly quantifiers, most of which can also be classed as determiners. It’s important to know that many words can be used as more than one part of speech—their classification will depend on how they are used in a sentence.
1. Nouns A noun is a part of speech that represents the name of a person, animal, place, thing, quality (such as kindness), action (reading), or measure (hour, kilogram).
Nouns can be categorized as very specific: “proper nouns” - which are capitalized and typically used without an article, and general: “common nouns” - which are typically accompanied with a determiner.
Nouns may also be classified as countable and uncountable (sometimes called count and non-count nouns). Countable nouns are nouns that are easily counted, such as chairs, tennis balls, and apples. Non-count nouns are nouns that can not be counted, such as water, flour, and patience. Countable nouns can have a plural form; non-count nouns do not.
There are also “collective” nouns: names for groups, such as committee, government, jury, family, etc.
2. Pronouns Pronouns are words that are used in place of, and refers to a previously mentioned or implied noun or non phrase. The noun it refers to is called the antecedent.
Example I read the book. It was good.
Pronouns representing noun phrases can make speech or writing easier by representing much longer passages and ideas with a simple pronoun.
There are several classes of pronouns. Look at the examples below.
A. Personal Pronouns are pronouns such as I, you, he, she, it, them. They can be further classed as first, second, and third-person pronouns (me, you, them). They can also be classified by case as subjective or objective (used as the subject or object of a sentence).
Examples I vs. me; she vs. her; they vs. them.
B. Demonstrative pronouns are pronouns such as this, that, these, and those, which by their very use indicate or demonstrate what is being talking about. Example I want those.
If they are used in front of a noun, they are called demonstrative adjectives.
Example I want those pencils.
C. Possessive pronouns indicate ownership. That car is hers. It is mine. If a pronoun is used to indicate to whom an object belongs—it is called a possessive adjective.
Example That is her car.
Some grammarians would classify such use as determiners— not adjectives.
D. Reflexive pronouns indicate that the subject receives the action of the verb.
Example I treated myself to a big piece of chocolate cake.
E. Indefinite pronouns are pronouns that refer to non-specific people or things. The indefinite pronouns include everyone, someone, anyone, no one, everybody, somebody, anybody, nobody, everything, something, anything, and nothing.
Example Someone turned out the light.
F. Interrogative pronouns introduce questions — which, what, who, whom, and whose.
Examples Who did that?
G. Relative pronouns are used to tie together related groups of words. The relative pronouns are which, what, who, whom and whose.
Example I went to the doctor that my friend recommended.
3. Determiners Determiners are a broader class of words that include articles and most quantifiers. Determiners can be defined as words that begin noun phrases and help limit or specify the nouns they precede. This class of words would also includes possessive and demonstrative adjectives.
The possessive adjectives his her my their our your
The demonstrative adjectives this that these those
Quantifiers Quantifiers are simply words that precede nouns that give some indication of how many or how much of a noun we are talking about. Quantifiers often act as article-equivalents when plural countable nouns or uncountable nouns are referred to in a way that doesn’t specify exactly how many or how much, but still implies a specific group or quantity. We’ll look at the most commonly used (and abused) quantifiers here.
Common quantifiers are: some, any, few, little, many, much, a lot, several.
Some is used with affirmative statements and any is used with questions and negative statements.
English speakers do not normally say: Instead, they generally say:
I bought apples. I bought some apples. Do you have bananas? Do you have any bananas?
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