Grammar

1. Tense
Tenses Affirmative Negative/Question
Simple Present A: He speaks. \\ do/does N: He does not speak.
স কথা ব ল Q: Does he speak? Why does he speak?
Present A: He is speaking. \\ am/is/are doing N: He is not speaking.
Continuous স কথা বল ছ Q: Is he speaking? What is he doing?

Simple Past A: He spoke. \\ did N: He did not speak.

স কথা ব লিছল Q: Did he speak? Why did he speak?
Past Continuous A: He was speaking. \\ was/were doing N: He was not speaking.
স কথা বলিছল Q: Was he speaking?
When was he speaking French?
Present Perfect A: He has spoken. \\ have/has done N: He has not spoken.
Simple স কথা ব ল ছ Q: Has he spoken?
Why has he spoken Mandarin?
Present Perfect A: He has been speaking for 5 minutes. N: He has not been speaking…...
Continuous স কথা ৫ িমিনট যাবৎ বল ছ \\ have/has been doing Q: Has he been speaking since 10
A: He has been speaking since 10 o’clock o’clock? Why has he been speaking for
স ১০টা থ ক কথা বল ছ so long?
Past Perfect A: He had left before I reached. \\ had done N: He had not uttered a word before I
Simple আিম পৗছার আ গই স চ ল গল mentioned her name.
..I thought you would come. Q: Had he spoken….?
Past Perfect A: He had been speaking before you entered the N: He had not been speaking before you
Continuous class. came. Q: Had he been speaking before I
ি ম া স বশ করার আ গ স কথা entered the class?
shall/will be doing তু
বলিছল \\ had been doing

Future Simple A: He will speak. \\ shall/will do N: He will not speak. Q: Will he speak?
স কথা বল ব What will you do? When will they go?

Future Continuous A: He will be speaking. \\ shall/will be doing N: He will not be speaking.

স কথা বল ত থাক ব Q: Will he be speaking? What will he be
doing/speaking?
Future Perfect A: He will have spoken. \\ shall/will have done N: He will not have spoken.
স কথা ব ল থাক ব Q: Will he have spoken?
Future Perfect X A: He will have been speaking. N: He will not have been speaking.
Continuous স কথা বল ত থাক ব \\ shall/will have been doing Q: Will he have been speaking?

2. Passive
The passive voice is used when we want to emphasize the action (the verb) and the object of a
sentence rather than subject. This means that the subject is either less important than the action itself
or that we don’t know who or what the subject is. For example, “I noticed that a window had been left
open.” “Every year thousands of people are killed on our roads.”

Passive forms are made up of be/be verb+past participle (be done):

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 be past participle
English is spoken all over the world.
The windows have been cleaned.
Lunch was being served.
The work will be finished soon.
They might have been invited to the party.
If we want to show the person or thing doing the action, we use by:
She was attacked by a dangerous dog.
The money was stolen by her husband.

Passive voice with infinitives (to be done):

You have to be tested on your English grammar.
She wants to be invited to the party.
I expect to be surprised on my birthday.

Passive voice with gerunds: (being done)

I remember being taught to drive.
The children are excited about being taken to the zoo. //The children are excited to be taken to
the zoo.
Most film stars hate being interviewed. //Most film stars hate to be interviewed.
Active to Passive at a glance (Source: modified from https://halsepele.files.wordpress.com )
ACTIVE PASSIVE
Simple Present Denis teaches them. They are taught by Denis.
Present Continuous Denis is teaching them. They are being taught by Denis.
Present Perfect Denis has taught them. They have been taught by Denis.
Simple Past Denis taught them. They were taught by Denis.
Past Continuous Denis was teaching them. They were being taught by Denis.
Past Perfect Denis had taught them. They had been taught by Denis.
Will-future Denis will teach them. They will be taught by Denis.
Be going to Denis is going to teach them. They are going to be taught by
Denis.
Future Perfect Denis will have taught them. They will have been taught by Denis.
Modals Denis can/may teach them. They can/may be taught by Denis.

Some verbs which are very frequently used in the passive are followed by the to-infinitive:

be supposed to be expected to be asked to be told to

be scheduled to be allowed to be invited to be ordered to
John has been asked to make a speech at the meeting.
You are supposed to wear a uniform.
The meeting is scheduled to start at seven.

More examples: It’s said that he lives abroad now. He is said to live abroad now. It’s believed that he
is the hero of the town. It’s claimed that he left the country two months

3. Sequence of tenses:
a) As if/as though: The past subjunctive after as if / as though indicates an unreal situation in the
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 present.
However, if the situation is true, we use a real tense to express present time:
He looks as if he knew the answer. [he (probably) doesn't know]
He looks as if he knows the answer. (he knows the answer)
He seems as if he hadn't slept for days. [he (probably) has or we don't know whether he has or not]
He seems as if he hasn't slept for days. (he hasn't slept for days)
If the preceding verb is put into the past tense, the present perfect hasn't slept changes into past perfect,
while the past perfect subjunctive hadn't slept stays the same:
He seemed as if he hadn't slept for days.
b) IT'S (HIGH/ABOUT) TIME + PAST (also> it is time to do….)
 It's time you went to bed.  It's time to say goodbye.
 It's high time I bought a new pair of  It's time for breakfast
jeans.
c) Wishes
 We use past tense modals would and could to talk about wishes for the future:
I don’t like my work. I wish I could get a better job.
I always have to get home early. I wish my parents would let me stay out later.
 We use past tense forms to talk about wishes for the present:
I don’t like this place. I wish I lived in somewhere more interesting.
These seats are very uncomfortable. I wish we were travelling first class.
I wish it wasn’t so cold.
 We use the past perfect to talk about wishes for the past:
Mary wishes she had listened to what her mother told her.
I wish I hadn’t spent so much money last month.
d)
WOULD RATHER DO HAD BETTER DO

I would rather stay at home than go to a movie. (I You had better watch your steps. (you should
prefer staying at home) watch your steps)
I would rather leave. She had better listen to you.
I would rather we ate at home. You had better not be late.
I would rather you didn’t leave. You had better not leave him out.
I’d rather walk than drive.
I'd rather our children didn't watch it.

e) Conditionals:
a) If you give, he will take. OR He will take if you give
b) If you gave them, they would take. OR They would take if you gave
c) If you had given them, they would have taken. OR They would have taken if you had given
f) Causative Verbs: get, have, make
1) Get somebody to do something (কাউ ক িদ য় িকছুকরা না) = I got him to clean the room.
2) Have somebody do something (“ ) = I had him clean the room.
3) Make somebody do something (“ ) = I made him clean the room.
4) Have/get something done ( কানিকছু করা না) = I had/got the room cleaned.
5) Be made to do something= he was made to clean the room. (তা ক িদ য় রু
ম পির ার করা না হ য়িছল)
4. Subject-Verb Agreement
Verb according to the noun after ‘or’
a) The children or their mother is. . . . The mother or her children are……
Verb according to the noun before ‘as well as’

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b) The girl as well as her friends is. . . . The supporters as well as their candidate are. . .
Singular verb after a single amount/distance/weight etc.
c) Five dollars is not a big amount. 10 miles is too long for walking. 150 kg is too much for him to lift.
d) Everybody/somebody/nobody is…. Everything/something/nothing is….
e) ‘Each of them is’ but ‘they each are’ (each preceded by plural noun).

Collective Nouns (source: en.oxforddictionaries.com/grammar/matching-verbs-to-collective-nouns)

Collective nouns are nouns which stand for a group or collection of people or things. They include words such
as audience, committee, police, crew, family, government, group, and team.
In American English, most collective nouns are treated as singular, with a singular verb:

√ The whole family was at the table.

√ The government is doing a good job.
√ He prefers an audience that arrives without expectations.
In British English, most collective nouns can be treated as singular or plural:
The whole family was at the table.[singular collective noun; singular verb]
The whole family were at the table.[plural collective noun; plural verb]
The government is doing a good job.[singular collective noun; singular verb]
The government are doing a good job.[plural collective noun; plural verb]
There are a few collective nouns (in both British and American English) that are always used with a plural verb, the
most common of which are police and people:
√ She's happy with the way the police have handled the case.
√ It's been my experience that people are generally forgiving.
f) A third of the city is unemployed. A third of the people are unemployed. All of the pie is gone. All of
the pies are gone. Some of the pie is missing. Some of the pies are missing.
g) A number of (= some) problems have arisen. The number of homeless people has increased
dramatically.
h) Slow and steady wins the race. (one who is slow and steady).

5. Sentence types: Simple, Compound and Complex

List of Conjunctions

Coordinating Conjunctions: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so (mnemonic= FANBOYS)

Correlative Conjunctions: both/and, either/or, neither/nor, not only/but, whether/or

Some Subordinating Conjunctions: after, although, as, as if, as long as, as much as, as soon as, as though,
because, before, by the time, even if, even though, if, in order that, in case, in the event that, lest , now that,
once, only, only if, provided that, since, so, supposing, that, than, though, till, unless, until, when, whenever,
where, whereas, wherever, whether or not, while

6. Adjective
Comparative vs superlative:
A comparative compares a person or thing with another person or thing. A superlative compares a person or
thing with the whole group of which that person or thing is a member:
Joe’s older than Mike. (comparing one person with another)
Sheila is the youngest girl in the family. (comparing one person with the whole group she belongs to)
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When there are just two members in a group, traditionally, we use the comparative. However, in informal
situations people often use the superlative:
Who is younger, Rowan or Tony? (traditional usage)
Jan and Barbara are both tall, but Jan’s the tallest. (more informal)
Comparative and superlative adjectives: form
One-syllable adjectives (big, cold, hot, long, nice, old, tall)
To form the comparative, we use the -er suffix with adjectives of one syllable:
It’s colder today than yesterday.It was a longer holiday than the one we had last year. Sasha is older than
Mark.
To form the superlative, we use the -est suffix with adjectives of one syllable. We normally use the before a
superlative adjective:
I think that’s the biggest apple I’ve ever seen! They have three boys. Richard is the oldest and Simon is the
youngest.
Some one-syllable adjectives have irregular comparative and superlative forms:
bad, worse, worst far, farther/further, farthest/furthest
good, better, best old, older/elder, oldest/eldest
The morning flight is better than the afternoon one.
His elder sister works for the government.
Olivia is Denise’s best friend.
I think that was the worst film I’ve ever seen!
Pluto is the furthest planet from the sun in our solar system.
Farther, farthest or further, furthest?
Farther and further are comparative adverbs or adjectives. They are the irregular comparative forms of far.
We use them to talk about distance. There is no difference in meaning between them. Further is more
common:
We can’t go any further; the road’s blocked.
After this, I felt a little refreshed but as I came over the hill, my legs rebelled. I could walk no further.
How much farther are we going?
Farther, and, much less commonly, further can be used as adjectives to refer to distance away from the
speaker:

He could see a small boat on the farther shore.

At the further end of the village stood an old ruined house.
We often repeat farther or further to emphasise the distance:
‘I am just a little ship,’ Aunt Emily said, ‘drifting farther and farther out to sea.’
We often use along with farther and further:
Ben Gunn had told me his boat was hidden near the white rock, and I found that rock farther along the beach.
We often use a little, a bit or a lot before further and farther:
Now push and stretch that arm just a little further and count to ten.
Superlative forms
Farthest and furthest are superlative adjectives or adverbs. They are the irregular superlative forms
of far. We use them to talk about distance. There is no difference in meaning between
them. Furthest is more common than farthest:
The furthest galaxies are about three thousand million light years away.
Go on, boys! Let’s see who can run furthest.

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Viv took a corner seat farthest away from the door.

7. Gerund (doing); infinitive (to do)

Common verbs usually followed by the gerund:
enjoy I enjoyed living in France mind I don't mind coming early
fancy I fancy seeing a film tonight suggest He suggested staying at a hotel
discuss We discussed going on holiday recommend They
dislike together keep recommended meeting earlier.
I dislike waiting for buses He kept working, although he felt
ill.
miss She misses living near the beach consider She considered moving to New
York.
appreciate I appreciated her helping me. can't stand
He can't stand her smoking in the
delay He delayed doing his taxes. can't help
office.
postpone He postponed returning to Paris risk
He can't help talking so loudly.
practise She practised singing the song. admit
He risked being caught.

He admitted cheating on the test.

And here are some common verbs followed by 'to' and the infinitive:

agree She agreed to help. hope I hope to pass the exam

ask I asked to leave early / would like I would like to see her /
I asked him to leave early I would like you to see her
decide We decided to go out for promise We promised not to be late
help dinner.
He helped to clean the kitchen
/
he helped me to clean the
kitchen
can afford We can't afford to go on holiday. offer Frank offered to drive us home.
manage He managed to open the door. wait She waited to buy a movie ticket.
prepare* They prepared to take the test. would I'd hate to be late / I'd hate you to be late.
demand He demanded to speak to Mr. hate I'd love to come / I'd love him to come.
choose Harris. would Nancy seemed to be disappointed
I chose to help. love
seem

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8. Prepositions:
At In On
At 4:30 pm in March on Monday
At 3 o'clock In Winter On 6 March
At noon In the summer On 22 Dec.2012
At dinnertime In 1990 On Christmas Day
At bedtime In the next century On your birthday
At the moment In the future On New Year's Eve

In the morning /on Monday morning== In the mornings/on Sunday mornings == In the afternoon(s)
/ on Sunday afternoons == In the evening(s)/ on Friday evenings.

When we say next, last, this, every we do not use at, in, on:
I went to New York last June. She is coming back next Monday. I go home every Easter. We'll
call you this afternoon.
Place: at, in, on
At In On
At the bus stop At work In London In a On the wall On a plane
helicopter
At the corner At school In the garden In an elevator On the ceiling On a bicycle
At the entrance At university In a box In the sky On the floor On the radio
At the crossroads At the top In a building In the street On the carpet On the left
At the top of the At the In a car In a row On a page On a horse
page bottom
At home At the side In a car In a boat On a bus On a boat
At reception In a taxi On a train

Idiomatic phrases with prepositions

All the money paid by investors is now at risk. //Mark always drives at top speed. //I dialed the wrong
number by mistake. // I’d like to buy this picture if it's for sale. // You have to pay half the cost of the holiday
in advance. // I can't stop. I'm in a hurry. // I drive about ten thousand miles a year, on average. // Did you go
there on holiday or on business? // They went on a trip to Cox’s Bazar. // They went on a tour of Cox’s Bazar.
// Mr Jones is on leave this week. He'll be in the office next Monday. // There are so many different
computers on the market. // I saw it on television. // I heard it on the radio. // I'm afraid the machine is out of
order.

9.

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8
9
10
11
 WRITING

10. Letter, application, CV

a. Job application/cover letter

Signature
Name

12
11. CV/Resume´
Musharraf Ahmed

Address: 32 Mitali
MC College Road, Sylhet
P/O: Head Post Office-3100
Phone: 01********
Email: x***[email protected]

Career Objective
Looking to develop a career as a software developer within an internation environment, where I can
realize my full potential rising gradually to the executive-level position.

Educational qualifications:

January 2017 to present: M.Sc. Engg. in CSE

Metropolitan University, Sylhet

September 2012 –August 2016: B.Sc. Engg. In CSE

Metropolitan University, Sylhet
CGPA 3.85 on the scale of 4.00

2010-2012: HSC, Science Group

Education Board, Sylhet
CGPA 4.95 on the scale of 5.00

2008-2010: SSC, Science Group

Education Board, Sylhet
CGPA 5.00 on the scale of 5.00

Employment history:

January 2015-0ctober 2016: Assistant Engineer

XY IT Ltd, Dhaka

Other qualifications and skills: Advanced Certificate in Programming

Language: C, C++, Java, PHP, Python

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 Good at speaking and writing English

Interest: Cricket, travel, swimming

References: Dr Afjal Ahmed

Associate Professor
Department of Computer and Engineering
YZ University, Dhaka
Phone: 01*****56
Email: [email protected]

Managing Director
Jalalabad Gas T&D System Ltd
Mendibagh, Sylhet – 3100
Phone: 01*****56
Email: [email protected]

12. Essay
1. As well as making money, businesses also have social responsibilities. To what extent do you agree or
disagree?
Businesses have always sought to make a profit, but it is becoming increasingly common to hear people talk
about the social obligations that companies have. I completely agree with the idea that businesses should do
more for society than simply make money.

On the one hand, I accept that businesses must make money in order to survive in a competitive world. It
seems logical that the priority of any company should be to cover its running costs, such as employees’
wages and payments for buildings and utilities. On top of these costs, companies also need to invest in
improvements and innovations if they wish to remain successful. If a company is unable to pay its bills or
meet the changing needs of customers, any concerns about social responsibilities become irrelevant. In
other words, a company can only make a positive contribution to society if it is in good financial health.

On the other hand, companies should not be run with the sole aim of maximising profit; they have a wider role
to play in society. One social obligation that owners and managers have is to treat their employees well,
rather than exploiting them. For example, they could pay a “living wage” to ensure that workers have a good
quality of life. I also like the idea that businesses could use a proportion of their profits to support local
charities, environmental projects or education initiatives. Finally, instead of trying to minimise their tax
payments by using accounting loopholes, I believe that company bosses should be happy to contribute to
society through the tax system.

In conclusion, I believe that companies should place as much importance on their social responsibilities as
they do on their financial objectives.
2. Some people think that all university students should study whatever they like. Others believe that they
should only be allowed to study subjects that will be useful in the future, such as those related to science
and technology. Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

14
People have different views about how much choice students should have with regard to what they can study
at university. While some argue that it would be better for students to be forced into certain key subject areas,
I believe that everyone should be able to study the course of their choice.

There are various reasons why people believe that universities should only offer subjects that will be useful
in the future. They may assert that university courses like medicine, engineering and information technology
are more likely to be beneficial than certain art degrees. From a personal perspective, it can be argued that
these courses provide more job opportunities, career progression, better salaries, and therefore an improved
quality of life for students who take them. On the societal level, by forcing people to choose particular
university subjects, governments can ensure that any knowledge and skill gaps in the economy are covered.
Finally, a focus on technology in higher education could lead to new inventions, economic growth, and
greater future prosperity.

In spite of these arguments, I believe that university students should be free to choose their preferred areas
of study. In my opinion, society will benefit more if our students are passionate about what they are learning.
Besides, nobody can really predict which areas of knowledge will be most useful to society in the future, and
it may be that employers begin to value creative thinking skills above practical or technical skills. If this were
the case, perhaps we would need more students of art, history and philosophy than of science or technology.

In conclusion, although it might seem sensible for universities to focus only on the most useful subjects, I
personally prefer the current system in which people have the right to study whatever they like.
3. Some people think that employers should not care about the way their employees dress, because what
matters is the quality of their work. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
In the modern workplace, dress codes are changing as employers focus more on results than on the rules
that employees must follow. While I agree that the way people dress should be seen as irrelevant in many
work contexts, I believe that dress codes still exist for good reason in certain professions.
On the one hand, many employers have stopped telling their staff how to dress, and I see this as a positive
trend. Some of the most successful companies in the world, including technology giants like Google and
Facebook, are famous for the relaxed office environments that they try to create. Employees are encouraged
to dress casually, and even the company executives and leaders are rarely seen wearing anything other than
T-shirts and jeans. However, while managers and programmers are free to dress how they like, they are
expected to produce work of outstanding quality. It is clear from the performance and global dominance of
such companies that strict dress codes are completely unnecessary in the technology sector.
However, I would also argue that rules regarding employees' clothing are still relevant in other work
situations. We expect certain professionals, such as nurses, police officers and airline pilots, to wear
uniforms. These uniforms may have a practical or safety function, but perhaps more importantly they identify
the person’s position or role in society. Similarly, a lawyer, politician or school principal may choose to wear
formal clothing in order to portray an image of authority, trustworthiness and diligence. I believe that most of
us prefer to see these professionals in smart, formal attire, even if it is not strictly necessary.
In conclusion, I support the trend towards relaxed dress codes for workers, but I do not see it as applicable to
all occupations or sectors of the economy.
4. Some people claim that not enough of the waste from homes is recycled. They say that the only
way to increase recycling is for governments to make it a legal requirement.
To what extent do you think laws are needed to make people recycle more of their waste?
It is true that we do not recycle enough of our household waste. Although I accept that new legislation to
force people to recycle could help this situation, I do not agree that a recycling law is the only measure that
governments should take.

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In my view, a new recycling law would be just one possible way to tackle the waste problem. Governments
could make it a legal obligation for householders to separate all waste into different bins. There could be
punishments for people who fail to adhere to this law, ranging from a small fine to community service, or
even perhaps prison sentences for repeat offenders. These measures would act as a deterrent and
encourage people to obey the recycling law. As a result, the improved behaviour of homeowners could lead
to a clean, waste-free environment for everyone.
However, I believe that governments should do more than simply introduce a recycling law. It might be more
effective if politicians put education, rather than punishment, at the centre of a recycling campaign. For
example, children could be taught about recycling in schools, and homeowners could be informed about the
environmental impact of household waste. Another tactic that governments could use would be to create
stricter regulations for the companies that produce the packaging for household products. Finally, money
could also be spent to improve recycling facilities and systems, so that waste is processed more effectively,
regardless of whether or not people separate it correctly in the home.
In conclusion, perhaps we do need to make recycling a legal requirement, but this would certainly not be the
only way to encourage people to dispose of their waste more responsibly.

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