POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE SENTENCES

A positive sentence tells you that something is so. A sentence that tells you something is not so is called a negative sentence. It contains a negative word like not, never, no, no one, nobody, none, or a negative verb like isn’t or can’t or won’t.

POSITIVE SENTENCE - NEGATIVE SENTENCE

Peter is running. He is not walking.

We should tell the truth. We should never tell lies.

Everyone is in the garden. There is no one in the house.

The fridge is empty. There is nothing in it.

It is very cloudy. It isn’t sunny.

I have sold the last newspaper. I have no newspapers left.

Someone has eaten There are none in the bag. all the cookies.

QUESTIONS

There are two kinds of questions: yes or no questions and wh- questions. You ask a yes or no question to get yes or no as the answer. Use the verbs be, have or do, or any of the helping verbs, to ask yes or no questions.

For example:

Can you swim? - Yes. Are they coming? - No.

Is it raining? - No. May I come in? - Yes.

In questions, the helping or auxiliary verbs come before the subject of the sentence. When be and have are used as ordinary verbs, they come before the subjects, too.

GRAMMAR HELP

Here are some different ways of asking the same question:

Has he a sister called Jane?

Does he have a sister called Jane?

Has he got a sister called Jane?

STATEMENT - QUESTION

Jim is ill today. - Is Jim ill today?

She has an older brother. - Has she an older brother?

The cats want to be fed. - Do the cats want to be fed?

We should go now. - Should we go now?

It will rain tomorrow. - Will it rain tomorrow?

You may use my computer. - May I use your computer?

Kate can ride a bike. - Can Kate ride a bike?

Wh- questions usually include the verbs be, have, do, or any of the helping verbs.

To ask for facts, use the question words what, which, who, whom, how, when, where. The helping verbs in wh- questions usually come before the subject. So does the verb be when it is used as an ordinary verb.

For example:

Where are you?

What is David saying?

How did you get up here?

Why was the girl crying?

Which color do you prefer?

Who is she going to invite to her party?

Whom is she going to invite to her party?

What is your problem?

When do the stores open in the morning?

Where shall I put this box?

What have you done to my computer?

How am I going to finish all this work?

What would you like for dinner?

If the wh- question word is the subject of the question, it comes before the verb. For example:

Who told you that?

What made you change your mind?