Piccolo corso di inglese
Daniele Scuto
Remind and Remember
Remind (fare ricordare a qualcuno)
I remind you to study (ricordati di studiare)
I reminded my father to buy some bread
( ho ricordato a mio padre di comprare il pane )
Remember (ricordarsi)
I must remember to post the letter (dovrò ricordarmi di spedire la lettera)
(ci si proietta nel futuro poiché must ha in sé l’idea del futuro)
I remember posting the letter (mi sono ricordato di spedire la lettera)
(ci si proietta nel passato, dato l’uso della forma in ing con il verbo remember)
To leave (dimenticare una cosa in un posto)
To wear (what) I wear casual clothes
To dress (how) I dress casually
Importantissimo!!!
(sono le 2:30 del pomeriggio)
When I arrived the teacher 1 ) did 2 ) had done 3 ) was doing a dictation
(sono tutti e tre giusti, ma cambia l’orario)
2:30 did ; 3:30 had done (azione finita) ; 2:50 was doing
To use to; To be used to; To get used to
I used to + infinito (indica un’azione che facevi in passato o eri solito fare in passato)
I use to è sbagliato.
Per esprimere un’azione che fai abitualmente nel presente: I usually + verb senza il to
( I usually go…)
To be used to + object o gerundio (essere abituati a qualcosa o a fare qualcosa)
( I’m used to going…)
...by Daniele Scuto
Pagina 1 di 10
To get used to + object o gerundio (abituarsi a)
Es: I used to live in Liverpool when I came to Sicily. I wasn’t used to the chaotic traffic and it took
me a while to get used to it. Now I usually drive about ten hours a day. I have got used to it.
To be used to living, to doing something
I used to go…( di solito andavo…)
I usually go…( di solito vado)
I use to go…( sbagliatissimo!!! )
Important!
What does he look like? Come è? (in senso solo fisico) He is tall
(to look like)
What does he like? Cosa gli piace? Music
(to like)
What’s he like? Come è? (come carattere o pure come fisico o in generale)
(to be like)
Es: What was the film like?
How is he? Come sta?
(to be)
Very important!!! Present perfect and simple past
The lesson started at 2:30
I arrived in the classroom at 2:30
Now it’s 3:10, so I have been here for 40 minutes (sono qui da 40 minuti)
Notare il valore di tempo presente della frase e l’uso del for nell’indicazione del tempo.
My grandfather has been (present perfect) in hospital for a week
(è in ospedale da una settimana, quindi si trova ancora in ospedale)
My grandfather was in hospital
(è stato in ospedale ma non è più lì)
Quindi il present perfect (has been) indica un’azione non ancora terminata e il past simple
un’azione finita
Es: Salvo has been living in Catania for 2 months but he still isn’t used to living far from home
(Salvo vive a Catania da due mesi ma non si è ancora abituato a vivere lontano da casa)
Notare l’uso del for, la posizione di still e la forma in ing dopo il verbo to be used to
( Salvo has been living…è un present perfect continuous )
A proposito di for, di since e di ago:
I haven’t been to France for a long time
( Attenzione: mai scrivere It is a long time since I don’t go to France, sbagliatissimo )
I haven’t seen my friends there for three years
( e mai scrivere I don’t see my friends there since three years, sbagliatissimo )
...by Daniele Scuto
Pagina 2 di 10
I started playing the piano 6 years ago ( 6 anni fa )
So I have been playing the piano for 6 years
I hadn’t seen her for ages
It had been a long time since I had seen her
I have been playing the guitar since I was twelve ( da quando avevo dodici anni )
Attenzione all’uso corretto delle preposizioni:
The same as
Different from
Similar to
To be good at (doing something)
To be famous for being
To be interested in something
Verbi e forme in ing
I like going to…
I prefer playing in defence
I prefer having a shower to having a bath ( preferisco fare la doccia che fare un bagno)
Vari utilizzi del verbo To Think
I don’t think he has…(giusto)
I think he hasn’t (sbagliato)
(perché è il primo verbo che nega)
He thinks he is nice
(mai scrivere: he thinks to be nice)
What do you think of Salvo?
He is thought to be nice; it is thought that he is nice
(si pensa che lui sia bello)
I think I will go to Spain next year (giusto)
I’m thinking of going to Spain this year (giusto)
I think of going (sbagliato)
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Pagina 3 di 10
Il futuro
I’m meeting john at the station
(incontrerò john alla stazione, e mi sono già messo d’accordo)
I’m going to meet john at the station
(è solo un’intenzione e quindi ancora non è sicuro che ci vada)
It will rain
(è una previsione, lo pensi ma non è detto che pioverà)
It is going to rain
(sta per piovere ed è sicuro che pioverà)
It is raining
(sta piovendo)
Costruzione di alcuni verbi
(verb + object + infinito)
I want you to do something
(voglio che tu faccia qualcosa)
Così anche I verbi: to prefer, ask, tell, want, like, advise
I advise you to study if you want to pass your exam
I want you to study (voglio che tu studi)
He advised me to study
He advised me not to go to study
He asked me not to tell anybody
He is teaching me to play football
I reminded you to study
My father wanted me to go to England
I would like my daughter to marry a rich man
( vorrei che mia figlia sposasse un uomo ricco )
( verbo + soggetto + verbo indicativo )
( to know, to think, to realize, to imagine, to suppose, to feel )
He knew he had a problem Sapeva di avere un problema
( Attenzione, mai scrivere He knew to have a problem, sbagliatissimo )
Amleto felt he was in danger Amleto sentiva di essere in pericolo
( mai scrivere Amleto felt to be in danger, e così sempre con questi tipi di verbi perché è sbagliato)
Italians think they are friendly Gli italiani si credono amichevoli
( mai scrivere Italians think to be friendly )
Very important!!! Conditional sentences
1. If you heat (riscaldi) ice, it melts (si scioglie)
(è il grado zero, doppio presente, e si riferisce a qualcosa che accade sempre, quindi falso
condizionale)
2. If (o anche when o as soon as ) he comes, I will phone you
(se verrà ti chiamerò. Attenzione all’utilizzo di un solo futuro in inglese ovvero quello della
proposizione principale, mai usare in inglese due futuri nella stessa frase)
3. If I had a lot of money, I would buy a yacht
( se avessi tanti soldi comprerei uno yacht)
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Pagina 4 di 10
4. If I had left early, I wouldn’t have missed the train
( se mi fossi liberato presto non avrei perso il treno)
Unless ( If not, se non )
If you don’t study, you will not pass the exam
Unless you study, you will not pass the exam
Enough (abbastanza)
( prima del sostantivo, dopo l’aggettivo)
I don’t have enough time
I’m not good enough at doing…
Domande di conferma
Devi lavorare, vero? You must work, mustn’t you?
Ieri sei andato al mare, vero? Yesterday you went to the sea, didn’t you?
You are married, aren’t you?
( si rende al negativo il verbo della frase se il verbo è affermativo, o positivo se il verbo è negativo;
se il verbo è to be, have, can, could, should, must e tutti i vervi modali il verbo non cambia; per gli
altri verbi si sostituisce quel verbo con to do)
He can’t speak French, can he?
Must, should, have to
You should study!
(dovresti studiare, non è un obbligo imposto ma ipotetico)
You have to study!
(devi studiare, è un ordine che ti viene imposto)
You must study!
(devi studiare, perché è un dovere ed è giusto farlo, ma nessuno te lo ha imposto)
Al passato:
You should have studied
(avresti dovuto studiare)
You had to study
(si usa sia per have to che per must che non ha la forma al passato)
Al negativo:
You shouldn’t study
(non dovresti studiare)
You mustn’t study!
(non devi studiare, te lo proibisco)
Attenzione!!!
You don’t have to: you don’t need to
You don’t have to non si usa nel senso di mustn’t ovvero di non dovere fare qualcosa ma nel senso
di you don’t need to ovvero non c’è bisogno che…
...by Daniele Scuto
Pagina 5 di 10
Should and ought to hanno lo stesso significato ( dovresti…), ovvero sono sinonimi
Had better ( sarebbe meglio, dovremmo, è meglio…)
( è più forte di should )
Sarebbe meglio non arrivare in ritardo: We had better not be late
Attenzione!!! Had better si usa senza il to ( we had better go…)
Might
It might: può darsi che, potrebbe…
He is probably sleeping: He might be sleeping
He was probably sleeping: He might have been sleeping
He will probably sleep this afternoon: He might sleep this afternoon ( ha in sé l’idea del futuro )
Likely, unlikely
It’s likely that I will phone you; I’m likely to phone you
( è probabile che ti telefonerò)
It’s unlikely…; I’m unlikely…
(è improbabile che…)
Anche: I will probably phone you
Very important!!! Past perfect
When I arrived the film had finished Quando arrivai il film era già finito
( the first action was completed when the second action happened)
Past perfect è il past of the past
When I got up, Julia had already gone to work Quando mi alzai lei era già andata a lavoro
( ancora prima che mi svegliassi, quindi ancora prima del passato espresso da got up)
Discorso indiretto ( indirect speech )
He said to me: “I want to…”
He said to me that he wanted to…
He said to me: “I had…”
He said to me that he had had…
He said to me: “I’ve found…”
He said to me that he had found…
He said to me: “I’m leaving tomorrow!”
He said to me that he was leaving the next day
He said to me: “I will write…”
He said to me that he would write…
He said to me: “you can come!”
...by Daniele Scuto
Pagina 6 di 10
He said to me that I could come.
Quindi:
Pensavo che sarei andato…
I thought I would go…e non I would have gone…
(perché proviene da: I think I will go…)
Interrogative indirette: Are you married? She asked if I was married
( la costruzione è uguale: si va un tempo all’indietro )
Both, Neither
(entrambi, nessuno)
Both of them are studying
Neither of them are studying
Altre posizioni corrette di Both:
They both have a lot of homework
They are both students
( prima del verbo avere o altri verbi; dopo il verbo essere)
Così anche Still:
He still hasn’t arrived
She is still here
Nelle interrogative e negative si usa anche e preferibilmente yet:
He hasn’t arrived yet
Preposizioni
On the 6th of February, On Monday
In November, In the afternoon, In 2001
At midnight, At Christmas, At lunchtime, At 7:30
Bored with, confused about, frightened of, interested in, surprised by, worried about
Napoleon was known as…era conosciuto come…
It’s difficult for children to study in this weather
( non è facile per i ragazzi studiare con questo tempo)
Most people live…(la maggior parte…)
A lot of people…(un sacco di persone…)
(a lot of in positive sentences for countable and uncountable; much and many in questions and
negatives, much for uncountable, many for countable)
Not many people…(non molti…)
Very few people…(davvero pochi…)
Too many people…(troppi…)
Nobody, no one…( nessuno)
None of my guests came to my party ( giusto )
Nobody of my guests came to my party ( sbagliato, non si può scrivere nobody of )
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Pagina 7 di 10
Some of them
Many of them
Few of them
None of them are…( plurale )
Not one of them is…( singolare)
People are…( mai scrivere people is)
He is a person whose life ( la cui vita ) is fantastic
She is a person who loves
She is the person I love
Which solo per le cose
Write to me! ( giusto)
Write me! ( sbagliato )
I have been to…
I went in…
I have been in… ( sbagliato )
I haven’t been to France for a long time
I have been with my mother
( mai scrivere I have stayed with…)
It’s time I went
É tempo che io vada ( notare l’uso del verbo al passato )
It’s time for me to go
É tempo che io vada ( se si specifica il soggetto preceduto dal for si può usare l’infinito )
It’s difficult to come
( è difficile arrivare )
È difficile che john verrà
John is unlikely to come
( e non It’s difficult that john…perché It’s difficult si può usare solo se c’è l’infinito )
Get, do, make, have
To have a party
( mai to make a party )
I have got a brother ( ho un fratello )
( si usa have got invece che il semplice have quando si vuole indicare un possesso)
Quindi: I have got a lot of money ( ho un sacco di soldi )
To make:
an arrangement, an appointment, a decision, a plan, a mistake, a noise, a cup of tea, a sandwich,
lunch, a profit.
To make someone cry, smile
To make something possible, better, clear, difficult.
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Pagina 8 di 10
To do:
English, Biology, some research, some studying, an exam, a job, military service.
To do well, to do your best.
To speak English, to talk in English ( to speak è parlare e basta, to talk è discutere, colloquiare )
( parlare inglese, discutere in inglese )
To tell:
The truth, lies, a story, a joke
To tell someone to do something, to tell someone about something, to tell the difference between
two things, to tell someone what to do
( o semplicemente raccontare )
To say:
Hello, goodbye, thank you, yes, no, you are sorry, a prayer
( o semplicemente dire, disse che: per riportare un qualcosa che qualcuno ha detto )
It is said that, they say that…( dicono che…)
Si dice che Marco sia diventato… Marco is said to have become…
The Passive:
French is spoken in France ( in francia si parla francese )
They make fiat cars in Italy
Fiat cars are made in Italy
They made fiat cars in Italy
Fiat cars were made in Italy
They have made fiat cars in Italy
Fiat cars have been made in Italy
They would make fiat cars in Italy
Fiat cars would be made in Italy
They would have made fiat cars in Italy
Fiat cars would have been made in Italy
They will make fiat cars in Italy
Fiat cars will be made in Italy
They could make fiat cars in Italy
Fiat cars could be made in Italy
They are making fiat cars in Italy
Fiat cars are being made in Italy
They were making fiat cars in Italy
Fiat cars were being made in Italy
Have something done:
I have to have my watch repaired
( devo fare riparare il mio orologio)
Tutte le estati mi faccio lavare I tappeti prima di andare in vacanza
Every summer I have my carpets cleaned before going on holiday
( notare la forma in ing dopo before, lo stesso anche con after: after going…ma anche after he has..)
...by Daniele Scuto
Pagina 9 di 10
Although ( sebbene )
Although the attendance was poor, the show was a succes
Although he treats her badly, she loves him
More and more
Sempre più…
More and more
Sta diventando sempre più interessante, sempre più ricco
He is getting more and more interesting, richer and richer
To find work
To find a job
To find a work ( sbagliatissimo )
There were other boys ( other senza la S perché è aggettivo)
Where are the others
Where are the other children
I’m looking forward to going…non vedo l’ora di andare…
Ma anche: I can’t wait to go…
To go on trip: viaggiare ( to go on holiday )
Stiamo aspettando che arrivino gli altri ragazzi
We are waiting for the other boys to arrive
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Pagina 10 di 10
