6 grammar

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Contents

1. Sentences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2. Nouns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
3. Tenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27
4. Verbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
5. Subject – Verb Agreement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
6. Pronouns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
7. Articles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .87
8. Adjectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
9. Adverbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
10. Prepositions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
11. Conjunctions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
12. The Passive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
13. Capitalisation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
14. Punctuation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
15. Conditionals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166
Composition
1. Personal Narrative. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
2. Persuasive Writing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
3. Fictional Narrative: A Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
4. Expository Writing: Research Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182

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1 Sentences

Kinds of Sentences

Mother: What are you looking at, Kailash?
Kailash: I am looking for the man who wrote that sign.
Mother: But why?
Kailash: Because I want to ask him what to look for!

A sentence is a group of words that expresses a complete thought. A sentence
has a subject and a verb.
A sentence starts with a capital letter and ends with a punctuation mark.
A sentence is used for different purposes:

- to make a statement;
- to ask a question;
- to give a command;
- to emphasise feelings.

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Depending on the purpose, sentences can be divided into four kinds:
1. Declarative: A declarative sentence makes a statement about something or

tells something. It ends with a full stop (.).
Laxmi Prasad Devkota is Nepal’s greatest poet.
Nepali culture is based on the philosophy of unity in diversity.
2. Interrogative: An interrogative sentence asks about something. It ends
with a question mark (?).
What can we do to reduce the effects of global warming?
Are there any watermelons left in the fridge?
3. Imperative: An imperative sentence gives a command or a suggestion. It
usually ends with a full stop (.).
Move to the left.
Let’s go shopping.
4. Exclamatory: An exclamatory sentence expresses a strong feeling or
emotion. It ends with an exclamation mark (!).
What a lovely day!
I am excited to visit my grandparents!

1. Read and identify the kind of the sentences given below.
i. What is the name of Nepal’s current prime minister?
ii. That movie was full of melodrama!
iii. Go downstairs and get me some water.
iv. Is that Rajani?
v. I am a happy-go-lucky person.
vi. We should behave well with our elders.
vii. Pollution has been rising in Kathmandu.
viii. Our ox cart ride was so much fun!

2. Punctuate the given sentences correctly. Capitalise where necessary.
i. muna Madan is an epic poem written by Laxmi Prasad Devkota
ii. greatness is measured by one’s deeds, not by one’s race or birth
iii. why did Madan go to Lhasa

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iv. laxmi Prasad Devkota cherished Muna Madan more than any of his
other works

v. please, don’t go to Lhasa
vi. madan had fallen sick on the way to Kathmandu
vii. go watch the movie based on Muna Madan
viii. is Muna the wife of madan

3. Rearrange the fragments and add appropriate punctuation marks
to make complete sentences.
i. is an exciting/a jungle safari/experience
ii. to experience/the world/vicariously/books/a chance/offer
iii. Nepal’s/who/is/do you think/national hero
iv. Shreya/in primary school/read Muna Madan
v. is an important date/in Nepali literature/12th November 1909
vi. there were/trees/in the desert/no
vii. financial success/any/Laxmi Prasad Devkota’s/ to him/work did not
bring
viii. endured/had/Madan/great/in Lhasa/hardship

Subjects and Predicates

Social worker 1: We are putting this
notice up to help the illiterate.
Social worker 2: One question. If
they are illiterate, how are they
going to read it?

A sentence has two parts: Subject and Predicate.
Mr. Devkota wrote Muna Madan.

Subject Predicate

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The subject is the part of the sentence which names the person or thing we are
speaking about.

The predicate tells us about the subject: its actions, possessions, state or
appearance. It includes a verb and other words that describe the verb, thereby
completing the meaning of the sentence.

1. Circle the subjects and underline the predicates in the following
sentences.
i. Muna Madan is the most successful Nepali book ever published.
ii. Laxmi Prasad Devkota had spent some time in a mental hospital.
iii. The epic poem has been adapted into a movie of the same name.
iv. The movie made an entry at the Academy Awards in 2004.
v. Devkota was born in Dillibazaar, Kathmandu, on the day of Laxmi
Puja.
vi. The actress Usha Poudel played the role of Muna in the movie.
vii. The poem is one of the most popular works of Nepali literature.
viii. Muna and Madan are the main characters of the poem.

Subjects in Different Kinds of Sentences

Doctor to patient: You are iron-deficient.
Eat some iron-rich food.
(Next day the patient visits the doctor again)
Doctor: What happened to your teeth?
Patient: You told me I needed more iron
in my body. So, I went home and chewed
some iron bars.

Every sentence has a subject. But the position of the subject may differ depending
on the kind of the sentence.
A declarative sentence (a statement) usually begins with its subject.
Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the world.

Subject Predicate

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An interrogative sentence (a question) does not begin with its subject. It always
begins with a part of the predicate: the helping verb. The subject comes next,
and is followed by the rest of the predicate.

Is Mount Everest the highest mountain in the world?

Subject

Predicate

The subject of an interrogative sentence can be located by restating it as a
declarative sentence.

Predicate Subject Predicate
Is Mount Everest the highest mountain in the world?
is the highest mountain in the world.
Mount Everest good for health?
Are fruits are good for health.

Fruits

An imperative sentence or command does not mention the subject. Therefore, in
imperative sentences, ‘you’ is understood to be the subject.

Understood (implied) subject Take these pills for three days.
(You) Please, wait for a minute.
(You)

1. Underline the subjects in the following sentences. Write you if
there are any implied subjects.
i. Did you find any flowers?
ii. Do research on the Chure hills.
iii. Do the Japanese take the least number of days off from work?
iv. Is Rabin working on the research?
v. Are the children reading their books?
vi. Describe how plants make their own food.
vii. Take the book and read a few pages.

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viii. Has Mr. Devkota written any novels?

2. Change the following interrogative sentences into declarative.
i. Is the cow Nepal’s national animal?
ii. Does the Himalayan range act as a cooling chamber for the world?
iii. Have you tasted fresh honey?
iv. Are we going on a holiday?
v. Has Anuradha completed the essay?
vi. Did you eat that cake?
vii. Does Rajesh know how to ride a bike?
viii. Are they willing to go to Chitwan?

Simple and Compound Sentences

Girl at the counter: Haven’t you bought
a ticket for the film already?
Man: Yes, but I need to buy another
one. At the door, that man tore up my
ticket and kept a half himself.

A simple sentence has only one clause. It has a subject and a predicate.
A boy is running after butterflies.
The girl is running very fast.
The boy is excited.

A compound sentence has two clauses. In other words, a compound sentence
is made of two simple sentences. In a compound sentence, both the clauses are
equally important. We make compound sentences by joining two clauses with
conjunctions such as and, but and or.

The Nepali team scored a goal, and the crowd cheered.
The sun rises in the east, but it sets in the west.

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You can eat apples, or you can eat mangoes.

1. Write S next to the simple sentences and C next to the compound
sentences given below.
i. Pratik is reading a newspaper.
ii. The Lophophorus is our national bird, and the Rhododendron our
national flower.
iii. Nepali society values kindness.
iv. Schools provide basic knowledge on various subjects.
v. Did he stay at home or go jogging yesterday morning?
vi. A cow gives birth to babies, but a chicken lays eggs.
vii. Aditi is from Ilam.
viii. He travelled to different places, and now he writes about what he’d
seen.
ix. He was far away from his family.
x. Uncle Suhan is coming.

2. Make compound sentences using the pairs of simple sentences
and the connecting words given below.
and or but so
i. The play was not very funny. Still, the audience laughed a lot.
ii. Should we wait for everyone? Should we get started?
iii. The plot was based on football. The fans were thrilled.
iv. Krishna Shrestha played a striker. Hari Acharya played a goalkeeper.
v. Everyone was busy. I went to the game alone.

Practice exercises

Practice set A: Identifying the kinds of sentences
Read and identify the different kinds of sentences in the following paragraphs.
Many of Laxmi Prasad Devkota’s poems focus on mundane elements of the
human and natural world. His poetry was mostly inspired by the commonplace.
Try reading some of his poems, like Ban, Kisaan and Baadal. All of these are
based on everyday occurrences and happenings.

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More than anything, he was interested in the challenges affecting humanity,
especially in Nepali society. If in doubt, read Muna Madan. You will feel the pain
and suffering of Muna and Madan in your heart! You won’t be able to remain
unmoved after reading the poem! You will surely feel Devkota’s profound faith
in humanity in his words.
Have you read any of his works?

Practice set B: Identifying subjects and predicates
Identify the subjects and predicates in the following sentences.
1. The dry season, October to November, is the best time to visit Nepal.
2. Views of the Himalayan range are clear and picturesque!
3. The countryside of Nepal is green and lush.
4. Many colourful festivals are celebrated in these months.
5. This period is particularly popular among tourists.
6. It’s a good time to visit the Terai, especially the Chitwan National Park.
7. The monsoon season is the least popular time to visit Nepal.
8. It rains almost every day in this season.

Practice set C: Identifying subjects
Circle the subjects in the following sentences. Write you where the subject is
implied.
1. Do we think alike?
2. Get over it and move forward.
3. England was once a colonial power.
4. How exceptional these children are!
5. Do some physical exercise to stay healthy.
6. Is he very smart?
7. The gurkhas are considered the bravest of the brave.
8. Was the dish delicious?

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Practice set D: Writing compound sentences
Make compound sentences from the pairs of sentences given below by using the
connecting words from the list.

and or but so
1. You can continue studying for the exam. You can go to sleep.
2. I lost my purse. I have no money.
3. She learned Spanish. He learned English.
4. Mother bought a toy for me. I am happy.
5. Ram rushed in. Radha had already left.
6. Kriti has finished her work. She can come out to play.
7. We could watch a movie. We could make some dinner.
8. It was a hot day. We drank lassi.

Practice set E: Proofreading
Proofread the following paragraphs. Capitalise letters and punctuate where
necessary.
After having dinner, Sraddha entered her room. she sat on her chair, not aware
of anything around her
Suddenly, she screamed, “someone help me, please”
Father rushed in and asked, “what is the matter”
“there is a spider on my bed,” Sraddha screamed
But when Father checked, he discovered the spider was not real. it was a toy. it
was a prank her younger brother had pulled
All this time, he had been hiding under the bed. he suddenly came out of hiding
He was laughing at his sister

Practice set F: Reading and writing practice
Read a literary work (eg. a story) and find five sentences of each type in the text.
Discuss in class the effect of the sentence – meaning and emotion.

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Practice set G: Punctuating different kinds of sentences
Correctly punctuate the beginning and ending of the following sentences.
1. most often people like the hero of a story
2. how much I love my mother
3. prateek lost his sweater in school last week
4. please, find my lost sweater
5. come to my home to play snakes and ladders
6. how excited Maya must have been
7. Show us how to draw a circle
8. what a great solution this is
9. do you know your neighbour’s name
10. tell me the story again

Practice set H: Identifying simple and compound sentences
Write whether each of the following sentences is simple or compound.
1. Nita and Sita like good fairy stories.
2. He was a traveller, and he has visited many countries around the globe.
3. The boy lost his job, so he sold fruits from his garden for a while.
4. Tarun read about endangered animals, and he wrote about endangered
animals.
5. Will Anubhav read about history, study navigation and go to Nepal?
6. No one thought about him, but he was there rescuing the injured.
7. She travelled to a city and worked as a sales girl.
8. The shop sold clothes, but Indu found an opportunity to sell ice cream.
9. Indu sold ice cream, and the customers liked it.
10. He read an email from his mother and wrote a quick reply to it.

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2 Nouns

Common and Proper Nouns

Teacher: The earth revolves
around the sun. Can you give us
an example of something else that
revolves, Pradeep?

Pradeep: Well, in a sweet shop,
flies revolve around sweets.

A noun is a word that names a person, place, thing or idea.

Person athlete, Binita, student, teacher
Place village, home, forest, Nepal
Thing book, pencil, pen, table
Idea pride, love, hatred, democracy

A common noun names a person, place, thing or idea in general.

Person boy, girl, actor, singer
Place city, village, country
Thing chair, tree, building
Idea loss, success, achievement, rank

A proper noun, on the other hand, names a particular person, place, thing or
idea.

Proper nouns always begin with a capital letter. When a proper noun is made up
of more than one word, all the words must begin with a capital letter.

People Common Nouns Proper Nouns
boy Ankit
girl Anjali
actor Rajesh Hamal
singer Nima Rumba

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Place city Pokhara
Thing village Birbas
country Nepal
book Muna Madan
film Deuta
building Dharahara

1. Circle the nouns in the following sentences.
i. Madan Krishna Shrestha is a Nepali comedian.

ii. He represents one half of the MaHa Jodi.

iii. Hari Bansha Acharya represents the other half.

iv. The duo has performed in many parts of the world.

v. Recently, they completed a tour of Australia, the U.S.A. and the U.K.

vi. In the U.K., they performed in front of a large crowd of cheerful fans.

vii. The audience ranged from young kids to elderly folk.

viii. Together, they have acted in many TV programmes and performed in
theatres in front of live audiences.

ix. They have also received many accolades and awards, both together
and individually.

x. The MaHa Jodi is the special attraction at the annual Rastriya Gaijatra
Mahotsav.

2. Circle the common nouns and underline the proper nouns in the
following sentences.
i. Young or old – everyone enjoys watching the MaHa Jodi.

ii. They have acted in many TV serials together. One of the most popular
among these is Fifty-Fifty.

iii. They also have done movies such as Lobhi Paapi.

iv. Their play Bigyapan broke records in the country.

v. They also have their own production house called MaHa Sanchar.

vi. Bigyapan was a production of Maha Sanchar.

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3. Rewrite the proper nouns in the following sentences using capital
letters.
i. The year 2032 B.S. represented a turning point in the careers of madan
krishna shrestha and hari bansha acharya.

ii. In that year’s rastriya gaijatra mahotsav, they had performed together
for the first time, and that was how the maHa jodi came into existence.

iii. From that point onwards, the maHa jodi had started gaining popularity
among Nepali audiences.

iv. After the creation of the maHa jodi, the duo had acted in many TV
serials such as fifty-fifty, santati and bhakunde bhoot.

v. hari bansha acharya and madan krishna shrestha are two of the
greatest icons of nepal’s entertainment industry.

Singular and Plural Nouns

English teacher: I have a flower. If I get
one more flower, I will have two flowers.

Student: But, madam, the Maths teacher
would disagree. He would say that you
have a flower square.

A singular noun is one in number.

A plural noun is more than one in number.

Most singular nouns are made plural by adding -s at the end, but the rules differ
according to the word endings.

Nouns ending with Add Singular Plural
-s, -ss, -ch, -sh, -zz, -x Add –es bus buses
loss losses
watch watches
bush bushes
buzz buzzes
fox foxes

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-o, preceded by a vowel Add –s radio radios

video videos

-o, preceded by a Add –es studio studios
consonant cargo cargoes

tomato tomatoes

-y, preceded by a vowel Add –s hero heroes
key keys

day days

ray rays

-y, preceded by a Delete y and add -ies valley valleys
consonant story stories

city cities

-f or -fe copy copies
Delete f or fe and add -ves knife knives

leaf leaves

Exceptions half halves
roof roofs

chief chiefs

belief beliefs

Some irregular plural forms: woman – women ox – oxen
child – children man – men foot – feet tooth – teeth
person – people mouse – mice

1. Circle the correct plural form of the nouns given in brackets.

i. It is a story about three (monsters/monsteres).

ii. It had been many (daies/days) since they had been looking for some
(restaurants/restauranties) to eat in.

iii. Finally arriving at one, they filled their (tummys/tummies) with all
the food they could.

iv. After taking a nap, they walked down the road, and soon saw some
(ditches/ditchs) filled with (tomatos/tomatoes).

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v. The one in front threw some (stoned/stones) into the ditch. They did
not sink.

vi. The one at the end threw two (stickes/sticks) in. They floated, too.

vii. Seeing this, they all jumped into the ditch, but they didn’t float. They
sank until only their (heades/heads) could be seen.

viii. All the (childs/children) laughed at the story!

2. Change the given singular nouns into the plural form as per the
rules.

Singular Plural Singular Plural

echo genius

piano cactus

volcano abacus

mosquito flash

tomato dish

potato dash

hero wish

box radio

tax video

fox studio

axe wolf

ox dwarf

match wife

coach knife

torch self

heiress proof

dress leaf

boss roof

loss half

business loaf

bus country

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butterfly ray
body tray
city kite
story book
ministry eagle
economy car
trophy banana
valley man
day woman
key child
boy mouse

Possessive Nouns

Boy: Can you repair my sister’s bicycle, please?
Mechanic: Where is it?
Boy: Well, right now, it is taking a little swim.

A possessive noun shows that something belongs to a person, place, animal or
thing. Possessive nouns can be singular as well as plural.

A possessive noun shows who or what the possessor (owner) of a thing/things
is.

Medha’s birthday was celebrated on August 9, 2014. (Whose birthday? Megha’s.)

Children’s dresses were very colourful that day. (Whose dresses? Children’s.)

Nouns Possessive form Examples

Singular nouns in Add ‘s (apostrophe + s) at the Shraddha has a red dress.
general
end of the noun Shraddha’s dress is red.

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Singular common Add ‘s (apostrophe + s) at the The boss has a brand new

nouns ending in –s end of the noun car.

The boss’s car is brand new.

Singular proper Either add ‘s (apostrophe + s) Mr. Jones’s restaurant is
nouns ending in
–s at the end of the noun, or nearby.

Plural nouns Add ’ (apostrophe only) at the Mr. Jones’ restaurant is
ending in –s
end of the noun nearby.

Add ’ (apostrophe only) at the The holidays of both the

end of the noun schools begin at the same

time.

Both the schools’ holidays
begin at the same time.

Plural nouns not Add ‘s (apostrophe + s) at the The men were wearing
ending in –s
end of the noun overcoats in winter.

The men’s overcoats kept
them warm in the winter.

In order to differentiate possessive nouns from plural nouns, look for the
apostrophe.

Plural noun: The kids are playing.

Singular possessive noun: The kid’s painting is amazing.

Plural possessive noun: The kids’ fun zone.

1. Circle the possessive nouns in the following sentences and write S
for singular and P for plural forms.
i. The boys’ gifts are very heavy.
ii. The woodcutter’s axe was lost in the pond.
iii. The Supreme Court’s decision is final.
iv. At Holi, people’s bodies turn colourful.
v. John Keats’ poems are some of my favourites.
vi. Anjali’s scarf is of a beautiful colour.

2. Identify the possessive form of the nouns given in the brackets
and rewrite the sentences.

i. (Holika) bonfire commences the Holi festival.

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ii. The (children) water balloons were filled and they were ready to play.
iii. How much for the (men) vest?
iv. The (participants) dresses were white.
v. The (day) festivities usually end with a bath.
vi. (Anil) photography captured the colours of the festival.
vii. (Shravan) face was completely colourful by the end of the day.

Practice exercises

Practice set A: Identifying common nouns, proper nouns and possessive
nouns
Read the story and make a list of the nouns you find: common nouns, proper
nouns and possessive nouns.

A Boy’s Dream

A boy from a distant land had always dreamed of travelling around the world.
The boy’s name was Amrit. What he was lacking in riches, he made up for in
determination. One day, he walked to the seashore and asked the captain of a
ship for a job.
The captain might have been severe in appearance, but he had a kind heart.
His crew called him Captain Cook, the Fearless, because of the courage he had
shown during many difficulties encountered at sea.
The captain looked at Amrit and commanded, “Take a broom and clean the
ship.”
Amrit cleaned till late night. The next morning, the ship was clean and sparkly.
From that day onwards, he became part of Captain Cook’s crew. He travelled
all around the world with them. The crew called him Rainbow because he was
always smiling and always full of hope.
Later in life, Amrit wrote many books on his travels and adventures. Captain
Cook’s favourite among them is the one called A Boy’s Dream.

Practice set B: Identifying the correct form
Circle the correct form of the plural nouns given in the brackets.
1. We had two (eggs/egges) and a slice of bread for breakfast.
2. There are many (buseis/buses) at the bus park.

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3. That shop has lovely (dresses/dresss) on display.
4. (Mosquitos/Mosquitoes) are very bothersome during summer nights.
5. The (taxes/taxs) paid by the people of the country helps national

development.
6. The boxer showered (punches/punchies) on his opponent.
7. The Chinese still use (abacuss/abacuses) to perform calculations.
8. There are four (dishes/dishs) on the table.
9. We have many FM (stations/stationes) in Nepal.
10. In the wild, (wolves/wolfs) live in hierarchical packs.
11. Many developed (economys/economies) are suffering from the obesity

problem.
12. Shakespeare’s (plays/plaies) are highly regarded all around the world.
13. I have read all the (books/bookes) written by my favourite author.
14. The (mouses/mice) finally succeeded in hanging a bell around the cat’s

neck.

Practice set C: Using possessive nouns
Rewrite the given phrases using possessive nouns and make your own sentences,
as per the example.
1. The suit of Mr. Adhikari
Mr. Adhikari’s suit looks elegant.
2. The hair of Akriti
3. The countryside of Nepal
4. The atmosphere of the Earth
5. The hair of Hari
6. The earning of the day
7. The cars of the travellers
8. The books of the children
9. The phone of the man
10. Poems of Keats

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Practice set D: Proofreading
Proofread and correct the mistakes in the story below.

A Boy’s Dream – II

The boy was deeply engrossed in cleaning the ship. Some memberes of the crew
were in the crows nest. Their names were as follows: santosh malik, tom carry
jr. and janak hamal.
They asked, “Hey, little rainbow. Can you see the western sky?
The boy looked at the western sky. At first, it appeared a bit hazy. The boy kept
on looking. The ship was moving towards the west. His eyess suddenly widened
at the appearance of a rainbows in the sky. That night, he considered himself
lucky and slept soundly.
Sometimes, the boy was also asked to help in loading and unloading cargoies at
the ports. Once, the ship loaded some wolf status to be delivered to Akardians
port.
The crew shared many wolf storys among themselfs – real and imaginary. By the
end, the boy was too scared to sleep. So, he counted staries all night long.
The next day, he was arguing with the crew, blaming them for his sleepless
night. Since he was too short, he stacked boxs on top of one another and stood
on them to look taller. The crew merely laughed at him.

Practice set E: Using common nouns
Correct the capitalisation of common and proper nouns in the following
sentences.
Example: Bhagwati dewan chose her Group, blue flower, to take part in the running

Competition.
Bhagwati Dewan chose her group, Blue Flower, to take part in the running competition.
1. The Group raced from jhapa in mechi zone to morang in koshi zone.
2. The Sun rose and with it started nepal’s first cross district running

competition.
3. It was more like Modern day Marathon.
4. As the Day got hotter, bhagwati and other participants took shelter under

trees.
5. Under the tree, Bhagwati dreamed of a small Lark singing on the Tree

branch.

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Practice set F: Using proper nouns
Replace the underlined nouns with proper nouns in the following sentences.
Example: A poet wrote Muna Madan.
Laxmi Prasad Devkota wrote Muna Madan.
1. The country is warmer for much of the year.
2. The parcel is for another person, not for him.
3. The man is one of the strongest men in the world.
4. You can take part in the game without any difficulty.
5. We followed all the instructions given by the guide.

Practice set G: Using singular and plural possessive nouns
Make the possessive form of the following nouns. Follow the instructions given
in the brackets.
Example: team (singular possessive)
the team’s leader
1. woman (plural possessive)
2. village (singular possessive)
3. family (plural possessive)
4. doctor (singular possessive)
5. dog (singular possessive)
6. tiger (plural possessive)
7. winner (singular possessive)
8. newspaper (plural possessive)
9. class (singular possessive)
10. mother (singular possessive)
11. bear (plural possessive)
12. country (singular possessive)
13. fox (singular possessive)
14. child (plural possessive)
15. fan (plural possessive)

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Practice set H: Forming plural nouns
Write the plural form of the nouns given in the brackets.
Example: The real (hero) of Nepal are the common people.
The real heroes of Nepal are the common people.
1. (Man) are responsible for making the world a better place to live.
2. The (life) of these animals are devoted to the sport.
3. The (reflex) of martial artists are very quick and fast.
4. Our country has more hills and (valley) than the plain areas.
5. During her recent visit Nita took many (photo) of the himalyas.

Practice set I: Proofreading
Write the possessive nouns in the following sentences correctly.
Example: Rita Ale father encouraged her to enter the race.
Rita Ale’s father encouraged her to enter the race.
1. The men faces were bright with delight when they heard the news.
2. Hunters depend on their dog guidance to locate their prey.
3. Mother advice also helped her during tough times.
4. The wind blew a young man hat off his head.
5. Her parents eyes filled with tears when Taniya Basnet won.

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3 Tenses

Present – Simple, Continuous, Perfect and Perfect Continuous

Son: Mother, we are getting a health
check-up at school today.
Mother: Well, that is good. Have you
eaten an apple today? Because an apple
a day keeps the doctor away.
Son: Really? Then I am taking an apple
to the school to keep the doctor away.

The present tense can be divided into: 1) Present simple, 2) Present continuous,
3) Present perfect and 4) Present perfect continuous.

The present simple is basically used for three types of actions:
1. Repeated actions, daily routines and permanent states

Does he work in a bank? Yes, he works in a bank.
What do they do in the office? They operate computers and serve customers.

2. General truths and laws of nature
Gravity pulls things to the ground.
There are many stars in the sky.

3. Timetables
Most schools start at 9 a.m.
The flight to Birgunj leaves at 11 a.m.

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1. Fill in the blanks with the correct words or phrases from the
brackets.
i. Bhawana ........................ an athlete. (is/are/am)
ii. She usually ........................ up early in the morning. (does not wake/do
not wakes)
iii. We ........................ with our coach every day. (train/trains)
iv. The earth ........................ around the sun. (revolves/revolve)
v. Leap years ........................ 366 days. (have/has)
vi. The dashain party ........................ at 6 p.m. (start/starts)
vii. ...................... they always .................... to school? (does, walks/do, walk)

2. Change the verbs into the third-person singular form of the simple
present tense.

Rule 1: Generally, add -s at the end of the verbs. Example: get – gets

Rule 2: For verbs ending in –ss, –sh, –ch, –o, –x, add -es. Example: watch –
watches

Rule 3: For verbs ending in consonant + y, replace y with –ies. Example: carry
– carries

i. sit viii. punch xv. pay

ii. work ix. smash xvi. slay

iii. get x. dash xvii. play

iv. read xi. wash xviii. fry

v. talk xii. go xix. try

vi. mix xiii. do xx. cry

vii. bless xiv. lay

The present continuous is used for:

1. Actions in progress at the moment of speaking

She is not sleeping in bed. She is training for the competition.

What are the coaches doing? The coaches are motivating the athletes to perform
better.

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2. Near future actions, especially when the action is already decided
The girls are going to Dharan this evening at 6 p.m.
The competition is starting on Friday at 10 a.m.

3. Changing or developing situations
Forest area is decreasing due to rampant urbanisation.
Obesity is rising rapidly around the world.

1. Fill in the blanks with the present continuous form of the verbs in
the brackets.
i. Chandana ................................... her favourite book. (read)
ii. The world’s population ................................... rapidly. (increase)
iii. They ................................... to Manakamana tomorrow. (go)
iv. Bipin ................................... in the garden. (play)
v. The trekkers ................................... the mountain. (climb)
vi. We ................................... the flight at 5 p.m. (board)
vii. Global warming ................................... more severe. (get)
viii. Asian economies ................................... stronger. (grow)

2. Change the verbs below into the present continuous form.

Rule 1: Generally, we add -ing at the end of verbs. Example: listen – listening

Rule 2: For verbs ending in e, we delete the e and add -ing. Example: write –
writing

Rule 3: With short verbs (one syllable) ending in vowel + consonant, we double
the consonant and add -ing. Example: sit – sitting

i. listen ii. play iii. read

iv. speak v. catch vi. miss

vii. act viii. push ix. arrest

x. write xi. make xii. come

xiii. have xiv. dance xv. take

xvi. close xvii. agree xviii. use

xix. swim xx. run xxi. stop

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xxii. drip xxiii. aim xxiv. plan
xxv. cut

The present perfect is used for:
1. Actions completed recently

Have they finished? Yes, they have finished the task.
She has bought some vegetables from the market, but she has not bought a cake.

2. Actions that happened in the past, and whose effects are being felt in the
present (here, time is unimportant or unknown)

He has lost his phone.

The rain has flooded the village.

3. Experiences/changes that happened over a period of time
I have got slim.
You have grown older.

4. Emphasising on quantity/number
I’ve written five letters to my mother.
They have complained thrice in vain.

Fill in the blanks with the present perfect form of the verbs in the
brackets.
i. Her brother ...................................... his homework. (finish)
ii. The water level of the river ...................................... (rise)
iii. They ...................................... at the camp. (arrive)
iv. The boxer ...................................... five of his opponents. (knock down)
v. You ...................................... your vegetables. (eat)
vi. The old man ...................................... his hearing. (lose)
vii. I ...................................... a lot of weight this winter. (gain)
viii. We ...................................... three bridges to get here. (cross)

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The present perfect continuous is used for:

1. Actions that started in the past and are continuing in the present
The children have been working on their project since last Friday.
He has been searching for his wallet for five hours now.

2. Actions that had started and had finished in the past and lasted for a time,
but whose effects are visible in the present
He has been playing cricket.
He has been relaxing.

3. Actions expressing negativity – anger, irritation, annoyance, explanation
or criticism
Who has been stealing money from my piggy bank?
He has been snoring all night.

4. Emphasising on duration (when accompanied by words like ‘since’, ‘for’
or ‘how long’)
Our pet has been missing since yesterday morning.
They have been singing for an hour now.
How long have they been doing this?

Fill in the blanks using the present perfect continuous form of the
verbs in the brackets.
i. Anita and Sunita ....................................... for an hour. (jog)
ii. He ....................................... very weird lately. (act)
iii. We ....................................... street children for three months. (educate)
iv. I ....................................... for my keys for more than an hour. (look)
v. Who ....................................... my diary behind my back? (read)
vi. Since yesterday, she ....................................... not ......................................
. to him. (talk)
vii. They ....................................... hopscotch for two hours. (play)
viii. Uncle ....................................... to call his family. (try)

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Practice exercises

Practice set A: Spelling practice

Change the following verbs into the third-person singular form of the simple
present tense.

jump walk run

do go echo

dance sing touch

bless cross miss

mix fix wax

teach march fetch

apply buy copy

crush dash slash

play delay fly

Practice set B: Spelling practice

Change the following verbs into the present continuous form.

1. bring 9. go

2. listen 10. cry

3. lie 11. die

4. use 12. come

5. rub 13. travel

6. tie 14. put

7. dive 15. sit

8. hope 16. mix

Practice set C: Identifying the tense
Identify the tenses in the given sentences.
1. Deepak is a student.
2. She goes to the art and craft class every Saturday.
3. Rekha has injured her hand.
4. Indu has been writing essays for five hours.

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5. Gita is reading a book written by Ani Choying Dolma
6. We are helping the victims of the flood.
7. She has been avoiding her work.
8. Hari has tilled the field.
9. Nepal is in Asia.
10. The crops have ripened.
11. This year, we have harvested 10 quintals of rice.
12. The farmers have been working on the field since early morning.
13. Are they coming over for dinner?
14. The robbers are robbing the store at the moment.
15. How long has he been working with the clients?

Practice set D: Changing the tenses
Change the tenses of the given sentences, as instructed.
Present simple to present continuous
1. Ankur goes for a walk in the morning.
2. He walks with his dog.
3. Many children catch buses to school.
4. Some parents drop their children off at school.
5. Mr. Thapa makes people laugh.

Present continuous to present perfect
1. We are enjoying being part of the hospitality industry.
2. Customers are demanding more of our products.
3. Our business is growing every year.
4. We are throwing a party to celebrate three years of existence in this
business.
5. We are inviting a lot of people to the celebration.

Present perfect to present perfect continuous
1. Deepika has started her university course.
2. The university’s administration has warned her about her lateness.

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3. She has made many new friends.
4. Deepika has passed most of her subjects.
5. She has done very well in her subjects.

Present perfect continuous to present perfect
1. Sujan and Kunti have been going to the park for five years every morning.
2. Sujan has been trying to lose weight by jogging.
3. Kunti has been supporting him.
4. They have been doing exercises in the evenings as well.
5. Sujan and Kunti have also been making jewellery to sell at the market.

Practice set E: Using the tenses
Fill in the blanks with the present simple, present continuous, present perfect or
present perfect continuous forms of the verbs in the brackets.
1. Elsa ............................... (be) a teacher for many years now.
2. I often ............................... (wake) up at 4:30 a.m. in the morning.
3. Bivek ............................... (score) three goals in this match so far.
4. I ............................... (try) to learn to bake cakes since last year.
5. The show ............................... (start) at 7:30 p.m. in the evening.
6. They ............................... (watch) cartoons for over an hour.
7. Rajesh Hamal ............................... (act) very well in his films.
8. Raju ............................... (complete) his homework. So, he is playing outside.
9. Sunita ............................... (stay) at a hotel at present.
10. At the moment, I ............................... (fly) a kite.
11. We ............................... (celebrate) her birthday at the restaurant this evening.
12. Who ............................... (use) my toothbrush?
13. My plants ............................... (grow) taller since the last time I saw them.
14. I ............................... (lose) my hair.
15. Rohit ......................................... (work) on the project for two hours.

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Practice set F: Writing a diary
Write a diary entry describing your activities throughout the day. You should
use all the forms of the present tense in your writing. Write at least two sentences
using each form.

Practice set G: Proofreading
Read the short extract from a play and correct the mistakes where they occur.
(Walking into a dark room in the castle, Avinash comes across a ghost.)
Simple Present Ghost: My friend, I am trapped in this room forever. But you can
set me free by saying three present simple sentences, please.
Avinash: He is a ghost. I walked to school every day. The earth rotated around
the sun.
Simple Present Ghost: Thanks for setting me free. Long live your wisdom!
(Avinash moves on to another room, where he finds a second ghost.)
Present Continuous Ghost: You helped my brother. Help me, too, please! Just
say three present continuous sentences.
Avinash: I am go to the school on top of the mountain. Indu, Bindu and I am
playing hopscotch in the evening at 5 p.m. My mango tree growing.
Present Continuous Ghost: Thanks for your help. May your wisdom live long!
(Avinash moves on to another room, where a ghost is in tears.)
Avinash: What is the matter? Are you trapped, too?
Present Perfect Ghost: Yes, I am! Please say four present perfect sentences to set
me free. Otherwise, I’ll cry my eyes out.
Avinash: Okay, I will helps you out.
I have walked up to the third floor so far. Renuka have grown over the years.
Sapana has eat an apple for the day. You have cried for 10 hours.
Present Perfect Ghost: Thank you, I won’t cry anymore. May your wisdom live
long!
(Avinash moves on and meets another ghost. He is reading a big book on English
grammar.)
Avinash: Let me guess. I have to say a few present perfect continuous sentences
to set you free.

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Present Perfect Continuous Ghost: That’s right, three sentences.
Avinash: Avinash has been playing badminton. I have been meet ghosts since
morning. Gautam have been ride his bicycle for an hour.
Present Perfect Continuous Ghost: Thank you, young friend. May your wisdom
live long!
(Suddenly, Avinash’s mother wakes him up… It was all a dream!)

Past Tense – Simple, Continuous, Perfect and Perfect Continuous

Friend 1: How did you end up in hospital?
Friend 2: I threw a banana skin on the street
and went inside the house. I had forgot
about the banana skin, and I was walking
out the door to go to a party. I slipped on
it on my way to the bus stop and broke my
leg.

The past tense can be divided into: 1) Past simple, 2) Past continuous, 3) Past
perfect and 4) Past perfect continuous.

The past simple is used for:
1. Past actions that happened in a sequence i.e. one after another

You ate breakfast, wore your uniform and went to school.
We lit the candles and celebrated his birthday.

2. Past actions that happened at a specific time
They watched the movie an hour ago.
She showered at 9 a.m.

3. To talk about people who are no longer alive, describe the actions performed
by them
Keats wrote many romantic poems in his short life.
He lived for only 25 years.

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4. Past habits or states
Mahendra used to live in Jhapa. (He doesn’t live there anymore.)
He suffered from malaria for quite a while. (He doesn’t suffer from it anymore.)

1. Change the verbs below into the simple past form.

Rule 1: For verbs ending in –e, add -d. Example: dance – danced

Rule 2: For verbs ending in vowel + consonant, double the consonant and add
-ed. Example: rob – robbed

Rule 3: For verbs ending in consonant + y, delete y and add -ied. Example:
empty – emptied

Rule 4: For verbs ending in vowel + y, add -ed. For example: play – played

bake smile free rub

refer equal try cry

tidy sway employ cook

2. Fill in the blanks with the past simple form of the verbs in the
brackets.

i. He ........................... on the road, ........................... up and ...........................
the bus. (slip, stand, board)

ii. First, we ........................... the joke, and then we ........................... (read,
laugh)

iii. They ........................... the mountain last year. (climb)

iv. She ........................... the office early this afternoon. (leave)

v. Shakespeare ........................... many sonnets. (write)

vi. He ........................... in Ilam two months ago. (arrive)

vii. Samantha ........................... her bicycle to school every morning when
she was younger. (ride)

The past continuous is used for:
1. Past actions that were happening side by side

While Sapana was reading, Taniya was singing.
He was sleeping while she was reading the story.

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2. A past action in progress at a specific time
Kritika was helping her little brother with his homework at 6 p.m. yesterday
evening.
On Friday night, Anusha was watching a movie.

3. A past action in progress that was interrupted by another past action. We
write the action that interrupted the action in progress in the past simple
form.
They were crossing the road when the bus passed by them.
While he was walking to the market, he slipped on a banana skin.

4. Describing the setting of a story
The sun was shining in the sky.
The perfume of the flowers was wafting through the air.

1. Fill in the blanks with the past continuous form of the verbs in the
brackets.
i. My sister ........................... a novel and I ........................... through a
comic book. (read, flip)
ii. Ankur ........................... while Aditi ........................... for him. (paint,
pose)
iii. They ........................... his birthday at the hotel. (celebrate)
iv. Our boys ........................... football last Saturday at 10 a.m. (play)
v. The soldiers ........................... forward when a barrage of bullets
........................... them. (move, interrupt)
vi. A leaf ........................... on the river. (float)
vii. My brother ........................... the car when the police ...........................
him to check his licence. (drive, stop)

The past perfect is used for:
1. A past action completed before another past action or before a specific time

She had gone to the shop by the time he got home.

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They had arrived at the summit by 8 p.m.

2. A past action completed in the past whose results were visible in the past
Samip was sad because he had failed the test.
Germany had suffered heavy casualties in World War II.

1. Fill in the blanks with the past perfect form of the verbs in the
brackets.
i. By the time the doctor arrived, the patient........................... already
........................... .(die)
ii. Mohan ........................... his daughter off at school at 9 a.m. (drop)
iii. They ........................... the battle and won it. (fight)
iv. The comedian ........................... his lines, so the audience laughed at
him. (forget)
v. Mahat was late to the event because he ........................... his way. (lose)

The past perfect continuous is used for:

1. Emphasising on the duration of a past action that ended before another
action or at a specific time
She had been working for a month before she was bored to death.
The robbers had been looting houses for a month before they were arrested.

2. A past action that lasted for a certain duration, and which had visible
results in the past
They were tired because they had been playing in the evening.
I had been working hard and so managed to finish it on time.

1. Fill in the blanks with the past perfect continuous form of the
verbs in the brackets.
i. The preparation ...................................... on for a month before the
festival began. (go)
ii. They ...................................... for a week by the time they got to the
island. (fly)
iii. The last concert was disrupted because it ................................ all day.
(rain)

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iv. The scientific community ...................................... many papers on
global warming. (publish)

v. The Japanese economy ...................................... before it was hit by the
recent crisis. (grow)

Practice exercises

Practice set A: Spelling practice

Change the verbs below into the past simple form.

dye live like

stop travel prefer

study fry carry

stay enjoy pray

Practice set B: Identifying the tenses
Identify the tenses of the given sentences.
1. Keshab was laughing when Balram was dancing on the stage.
2. Bimal wrote and posted a letter to his family.
3. They went to watch the fireworks at 9 p.m. on New Year’s Eve.
4. He was doing his homework at 7 p.m. yesterday evening.
5. It has been raining for a week. The rain has caused floods in the city.
6. Albert Einstein published more than 300 scientific papers in his lifetime.
7. Meena used to go to the same school as Ravi.
8. The mountaineers had been climbing up the mountain for the last three
weeks.
9. A cat was running after a mouse when a dog appeared out of nowhere.
10. The cherry flowers were blooming in the countryside.
11. The meeting had been continuing for two days before it ended
yesterday.
12. The athlete had failed the fitness test and was resting at home.
13. You fought hard to defend the country.
14. They had been studying late at night.

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15. We rode the bus to Pokhara before taking a jeep to the village.

Practice set C: Changing the tenses
Change the tenses of the given sentences, as instructed.
Past simple to past continuous
1. Vishal ran to school because he was late.
2. The teacher praised him in front of all his classmates.
3. Sabita offered Vishal her pencil to do his work.
4. He packed his bag before he stepped out of his house.
5. Suman wanted to ask me a question.
Past continuous to past perfect
1. Rosaline was watering the flowers and her mother was trimming the

bushes.
2. The phone was ringing but no one was answering.
3. Rajiv was going to the Terai that summer.
4. His mother was asking him to cut his hair.
5. The nurse was offering him some water.
Past perfect to past perfect continuous
1. Mamta had worked as a waiter before she became a film star.
2. She had auditioned for many roles in big films.
3. Her health had deteriorated due to old age.
4. He had practised a lot so that he could perform better this time.
5. My mother had played the piano all her life.
Past perfect continuous to past perfect
1. Ravi had been teaching English in schools for three years.
2. The children had been playing in the mud all day.
3. The phone had been ringing for hours.
4. I couldn’t go to the party because I had been feeling sick.
5. He had been hoping to talk to his father about his grades.

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Practice set D: Using the tenses
Fill in the blanks with the past simple, past continuous, past perfect or past
perfect continuous forms of the verbs in the brackets.
1. Rabin ................................ for his parents to come home so that he could

show them his report card. (wait)
2. Nabin ................................ at the target and ................................ an arrow in

that direction. (aim, release)
3. While Biraj ................................ dressed, the bell rang. (get)
4. His mother ................................ him home a few hours ago. (call)
5. He ................................ cricket at 4:30 p.m. yesterday. (play)
6. Bhanubhakta ................................ many poems. (write)
7. She ................................ to Nepalgunj on foot last year. (travel)
8. The thieves ................................ the house by the time police arrived. (leave)
9. Kiran isn’t here right now; he ................................ the office at 5 p.m. (leave)
10. Sagar was disappointed because he ................................ the goal. (miss)
11. He ................................ for 30 years before he retired. (work)
12. Raju ................................ a novel when his friend called him. (read)
13. They were wet because they ................................ in the rain all day. (walk)
14. When she ................................ out of the window, she ................................ a

monkey in the tree. (look, see)
15. Martin ................................ to the market when I ................................ him on

the street. (go, meet)

Practice set E: Writing a diary
Write a diary entry about what you did in the last week. Use all the forms of the
past tense in your writing. Write at least two sentences for each form.

Practice set F: Proofreading
Read the following conversation and correct the mistakes where they occur.
Bhagwati: What happened to you?

Bikram: Well, I break my right leg.

Bhagwati: How did that happened?

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Bikram: I slip on a banana skin, fall into a gutter and break my leg.
Bhagwati: When did it happen?
Bikram: Yesterday evening when I walk home.
Bhagwati: But you don’t often walk.
Bikram: Yes, I use to ride my bike in the past. But now, I prefer walking.
Bhagwati: What were your friends doing yesterday evening?
Bikram: When I walk, they go home in their car.
Bhagwati: Did anyone help you?
Bikram: My neighbour walk down the road at the same time. He see me and
he take me to the nearest hospital.
Bhagwati: You had a performance the next morning. How did you manage?
Bikram: I miss it. I call the organisers and tell them I cannot make it.
Bhagwati: I am so sorry to hear that!
Bikram: I was sad at the beginning, but I relieved because I do not practise
enough.
Bhagwati: Well, I hope you get to perform when you feel better.
Bikram: Yes, the organisers tell me I can come back when my leg is healed.

Future Tense – Simple, Continuous, Perfect and Perfect
Continuous

Politician: I will make homes for
the poor. I will even offer old-age
pension to senior citizens. I will bring
development to our country.
Reporters: But when will all this
happen, sir?
Politician: Didn’t I tell you? Sometime
in the future.

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The future tense can be divided into: 1) Future simple, 2) Future continuous, 3)
Future perfect and 4) Future perfect continuous.

The future simple (will/shall + base form of a verb) is used for:

1. On-the-spot decisions taken at the moment of speaking
It is raining. I will get the umbrella.
You are getting naughty. Your parents will deduct your pocket money.

2. Expressing hopes, fears, threats, offers, promises, predictions, requests
and comments with phrases such as ‘I am afraid’, ‘I hope’, ‘I am sure’ and
‘probably’

I am afraid their team will lose the game.

I hope they will win the game.

I am sure Father will buy me something nice on my birthday.

3. Predictions based on how we think or imagine future events will occur
We will probably arrive there in two days.
I think our team will make it to the final.

4. Things or events that are sure to happen in the future
Rakhi is 10 now. She will not be 12 in a year’s time.
He is nine now. He will be 10 next year.

5. Asking questions, making suggestions or offers or requesting for advice.
The word ‘shall’ can be used with ‘I’ and ‘we’.

Shall we play hide-and-seek?

What shall I do?

1. Fill in the blanks with will, will not, shall or shall not.

Father: Mohini, ......................... you please stop your loud singing? I am
working on a report.

Mohini: Father, if I don’t practise, I ......................... make it into the school
choir.

Father: Well, if I can’t finish the report, I ......................... get in a trouble
with my boss.

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Mahini: What ......................... I do then? ......................... I go to Shanti’s
house and practise?
Father:
Mohini: That is a great idea. Go to Shanti’s home.

Father: Yes! Perhaps if we practise together, both of us ......................... be
in the choir.

That ......................... be wonderful! I ......................... pick you up
later in the evening.

2. Fill in the blanks with the future simple form of the verbs in the
brackets.
a. She is sleeping in class. I ....................... (wake) her up before the teacher
notices.

b. He is falling down. Bhola ........................ (support) him.

c. They .................... probably .................... (arrive) in Jhapa in a few days.

d. ......................... we ......................... (go) to the party?

e. They hope they ......................... (make) it to the final.

f. In a year, my father ......................... (retire) from the army.

g. What ......................... I ......................... (do) with this bag of chocolates?

h. Global warming .................... (create) greater environmental challenges
in future.

i. The lawyer ......................... (not support) the liar.

The future continuous (will be + ing form) is used for:
1. Actions in progress at a stated time in future

He will be flying back to Nepal on Sunday.
I will be visiting my village this Dashain.

2. Actions that are definitely going to happen in the future due to a schedule
or arrangement

She will be catching the bus to school as always.

He will be going to the shop like he usually does on Saturday.

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3. Asking politely about someone’s plans or arrangements to see if they can
do us a favour or vice-versa
Father, will you be going to the market? Could you bring me some sweets?
Will you be watching the movie? Could you tell me about it later on?

1. Fill in the blanks with the future continuous form of the verbs in
the brackets.
a. Kajal and her family ....................... back next week. (come)
b. Tara, what ....................... you ....................... on Saturday? (do)
c. We ....................... Mt. Everest next year. (climb)
d. Trishna, .............. you ....................... Aditi at the office later today? (see)
e. My mother ....................... me up from school as always. (pick)
f. Sara, ....................... you ....................... out for lunch? (go) Can you buy
me a plate of momos?

The future perfect (will + have) is used for future actions that will be completed
before a stated time in the future. We use expressions like ‘by... not’, ‘until/till’
with the future perfect.

We will have reached home by 5 p.m.
He will not (won’t) have completed his work until late at night.

The future perfect continuous (will + have + been + ing form) is used for
emphasising the duration of an action up to a certain time in the future. We use
expressions like ‘by ... for’ with the future perfect continuous.
By next year, she will have been studying here for 10 years.
By the time Lila arrives, we will have been working on our project for more than five
hours.

1. Fill in the blanks with the future perfect or future prefect continuous
forms of the verbs in the brackets.

Teacher: When will you have finished your project work?
Sandeep: I ..................................... it by next Friday. (finish)
Teacher: But, I want you to hand it over tomorrow so that the class can move

on.

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Sandeep: I’m sorry, sir, I can’t. I ..................................... it by tomorrow. (not
complete)

Teacher: How much time have you spent on it?
Sandeep: By the end of today, I ..................................... on it for three days.

(work)
Teacher: Fine. You can hand it in on Friday.
Sandeep: Thank you, Sir. I ..................................... (submit) it by Friday.

Practice exercises

Practice set A: Identifying the tenses
Identify the tenses in the following sentences.
1. Shall I go to the zoo with the class, Father?
2. Shall we go to Pokhara for the summer?
3. I am afraid he will be late by a few hours.
4. By 5 p.m., you will have been watching TV for five hours.
5. We will drink coffee on our way to the office.
6. Their get-together will have finished by 8 p.m.
7. It will probably rain tomorrow afternoon.
8. The little panda will be meeting its mother for the first time next week.
9. What will you do on New Year’s Eve?
10. He will not have finished his project work until Friday.
11. Sugam will be picking up his daughter from her singing class at 5 p.m. as

always.
12. By the time we pass the S.L.C., we will have been studying in this school

for 10 years.

Practice set B: Changing the tenses
Change the tenses in the following sentences, as instructed.
Future simple to future continuous
1. We will play Deusi during Tihar this year!
2. I fear they will find it difficult this time.

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3. Rohit will probably pass the exam.
4. Will you see Jharana this afternoon?
5. He will not sleep all night.

Future continuous to future perfect (change the sentence structure, if necessary)
1. He will be sleeping by the time his mother comes home.
2. She will be performing on stage.
3. I will be seeing the doctor tomorrow.
4. Will you be going out this weekend?
5. She will be studying all day tomorrow.

Future perfect to future perfect continuous (change the sentence structure, if
necessary)
1. She will have eaten the cake.
2. I will have walked out of the building by the time you arrive.
3. Do you think astronauts will have landed on Mars by the year 2020?
4. I will have done the dishes by the time you finish eating.
5. He will have earned some money if he works at the shop during his

vacation.

Future perfect continuous to future perfect (change the sentence structure, if
necessary)
1. By the end of this year, Srijana will have been working in this office for 20

years.
2. By the time you reach home, we will have been waiting for hours.
3. In two years’ time, I will have been running my business for a decade.
4. James will have been teaching at the university for more than a year by

next summer.
5. We will have been driving for over three days straight.

Practice set C: Using the tenses
Complete the following sentences using the future simple and future continuous
forms of the verbs in the brackets.

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Mother: Have we lost our way?
Daughter: I think so. I ..................................... at the map to find out where we

are. (look)
Mother: Where are we?
Daughter: We are in Thamel.
Mother: We have to reach Jawalakhel by 2 p.m.
Daughter: I am afraid we ..................................... a little late. (be)
Mother: I wonder what Surya ..................................... by the time we reach

home. (do)
Daughter: He ..................................... probably ..................................... TV. (watch)
Mother: What ..................................... we ..................................... now? (do)
Daughter: We ..................................... probably ..................................... there on

time if we catch a taxi. (arrive)

Practice set D: Using the tenses
Complete the sentences using the future perfect and future perfect continuous
forms of the verbs in the brackets.
1. By 4 p.m., I ..................................... (read) for seven hours.
2. She .................................. (finish) the homework by the time we reach home.
3. By the end of this week, I ..................................... (travel) for exactly two

years.
4. Sushila ..................................... (write) 10 essays by the end of September.
5. By the time she arrives in Ilam, Akriti ............................. (drive) for 10 hours.
6. This drama ..................................... probably ..................................... (not

finish) in an hour.
7. By the evening, they ..................................... (play) for two hours.

Practice set E: Writing a diary
Write a diary entry about the things you will do in the next week. Use all the forms
of the future tense in your writing. Write two sentences at least for each form.

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Practice set F: Proofreading
Read the following conversation and correct the mistakes where they occur.
(Ajeeta is talking to her father, who is an inventor)
Ajeeta: Father, I want to walk through the wall.
Father: I will invented a gadget for it.
Ajeeta: No, I will have open the door.
Father: Ha, ha, ha... I think you will be become a comedian one day.
Ajeeta: Father, I will am 10 on this birthday.
Father: Will I get a mini-coat for you?
Ajeeta: No, thanks. I will be grown out of it by my next birthday.
Father: Then shall I made a robo-cat for you?
Ajeeta: Yes, please. Are you going to the post office? Can you take my letters

with you?
Father: I will be dropped them off on my way to the office.
Ajeeta: Father, shall you be going to supermarket in the evening?
Father: Yes, do you want anything?
Ajeeta: I would like to have a storybook.
Father: Ok, I will got it for you on my way back home.
Ajeeta: I will waited eagerly.
Father: You shall not had to wait for long. By the time you are back from the

karate club, I will having arrived home with a book for you.
Ajeeta: Where will we be celebrate my birthday this time, Father?
Father: We will celebrated it at the Three Monkey Party Palace, as usual.
Ajeeta: Father, by the end of this party, we will have celebrate there for three

years.
Father: Indeed. It is such a wonderful place for a party, isn’t it?

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4 Verbs

Main Verbs and Helping Verbs

Father: How did you do in the
exam, my son?
Son: I was the first one to hand in
the paper.
Father: Very good! Did you
answer all the questions?
Son: Well, I wrote down all the
questions, but not their answers!

A verb expresses an action or a state of being. It can be made of one word or
more than one word.

Ekaraj is a traveller.
Ekaraj has travelled a lot.
He walks in the woods.
When a verb has more than one word (as in the second sentence), then the verb
is made of a main verb and one or more than one helping verb.
A main verb describes/carries the weight of the action or state, and the helping
verb helps the main verb to describe the action or state in full.
Geet is enjoying a milkshake.
Himal has been waiting at the airport for hours.
Indra can speak Nepali as well as Chinese.
They will be coming to Itahari for the concert.

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The main verb and its helping verb together make a verb phrase.
is enjoying

Helping verb Main verb

can speak

Helping verb Main verb

has been waiting

Helping verb Main verb

will be coming

Helping verb Main verb

The most commonly used helping verbs are:

am is are be been being

can could do did does must

have had has may might shall

should was were will would

Some verbs can be used as helping verbs and main verbs, depending on the
situation.

She is a girl. (Is is used as a main verb.)

She is reading a book. (Is is used as a helping verb.)

Sometimes, another part of a sentence comes in between a verb phrase, such as
in a question or a negative sentence.

Do you want some more? (Here the verb phrase do want is interrupted by
the subject – you.)

I am not listening to music. (Here the verb phrase am listening is interrupted
by the negative – not.)