Englishfor English speakers
be
Verb
—
This verb tells us that a thing is present, or in a place.
The book is on the table.
There was someone in the room.
Were you at the party?
—
Happen
The party was on Saturday.
The next meeting will be here.
—
Go somewhere; visit someone (only in the present perfect tense)
I've never been to Disneyland.
—
A verb we use when describing.
The book is blue.
They were sad about losing the match.
John is 35 years old this year.
Im fine.
He'd like to be a doctor.
The film was terrible!
The book is 5 euro.
—
Act like someone or something
Look, Mummy! I'm being a dog! Woof, woof!
—
We use a form of be and a gerund-participle to make progressive verb forms.
He is sitting on the chair.
I've been waiting for half an hour.
They will be leaving on Tuesday.
waiting
—
adjective
(= ready and waiting)
being and remaining ready and available for use
waiting cars and limousines lined the curb
found her mother waiting for them
an impressive array of food ready and waiting for the guests
military forces ready and waiting
—
noun
(= wait)
the act of waiting (remaining inactive in one place while expecting something)
the wait was an ordeal for him
a
Determinative
—
A is used when the following word could be any of a certain type.
Compare "A book I saw on the shelf" and "The book I gave you yesterday".
a
Noun
—
A is the first letter of the alphabet.
The letter "a" comes before "b".
—
In some schools, an A is a very high grade.
Ron got an A on his earth science test.
long
Adjective
—
If something is long, it takes a lot of time.
At 3 hours and 24 minutes, it's a very long movie.
That was a long time ago, when I was a child.
How long is it until we have our trip?
He was often quiet for long periods of time.
—
If something is long, it has a large distance from end to end.
It belonged to a woman in her thirties with long brown hair.
The paper was about 20 cm long and 12 cm wide.
You can hear it across long distances.
She wore a long gray skirt with a black jacket.
long
Adverb
—
If something takes long, it takes a lot of time.
We had dinner together not so long ago.
I do not know how long I was standing there.
She left home long before I did.
I could not go on any longer.
Those days are so long gone.
This change is long overdue.
long
Verb
—
If you long for something, you wish for or really want it.
Carol still longs for David to come back to her even though she knows he has a new wife.
time
Noun
—
Time is what we measure with a clock.
"What time do you finish work?" "At four o'clock (4:00)."
I don't have time to talk to you right now. Can we do it later?
—
If you do something one time, you do it once.
time
Verb
—
If you time something, you measure how long it takes in seconds, minutes, hours, etc.
Take out your watch and time yourself during the test.