Grammar Development: B1–B2
A detailed intermediate-to-upper-intermediate grammar reference covering tense/aspect, modality, passives, conditionals, reporting, relative clauses and complex sentence building.
1. Present perfect vs past simple
Finished time vs present connection
Use past simple with finished time: yesterday, last week, in 2024. Use present perfect when the time is unfinished/not stated and present relevance matters.
Model
The second strongly presents the loss as relevant now; the first simply locates the event in the past.
2. Perfect continuous
Duration and process
I've been working all morning emphasises ongoing activity/duration; I've completed three tasks emphasises result/number.
3. Past perfect
Earlier past
By the time we arrived, the meeting had started. Use it to establish a past-before-past relationship, not simply because something happened long ago.
4. Conditionals
First, second, third and mixed
| Type | Form | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | if + present, will | real future possibility |
| 2nd | if + past, would | hypothetical present/future |
| 3rd | if + past perfect, would have + pp | counterfactual past |
| mixed | mixed time references | past cause + present result, etc. |
5. Modals and modal perfects
Certainty, possibility, criticism
must/might/can't + base for present deduction; must/might/can't have + pp for past deduction. should have + pp often expresses criticism/regret.
6. Passive voice
From basic to advanced passive
Use be + past participle. Advanced: is believed to…, is thought to have…, should have been informed.
7. Causatives
have/get something done
I had my laptop repaired. = another person repaired it for me. We got the office painted.
8. Reported speech
Statements, questions and reporting verbs
Backshift depends on viewpoint. Reported questions use statement order. Learn patterns: admit doing, advise someone to do, deny doing, insist on doing, promise to do.
9. Relative clauses
Defining, non-defining and reduced
Defining clauses identify; non-defining add extra information with commas. Reduced forms: people living nearby; documents submitted yesterday.
10. Participle clauses
Condensing clauses
Having finished the report, she left. / Feeling unwell, he went home. Avoid dangling participles.
11. wish / if only / would rather
Hypothetical distance
I wish I knew. / I wish I'd known. / I wish you would stop. / I'd rather you came tomorrow.
12. Verb patterns
Gerunds, infinitives and meaning changes
remember doing vs remember to do; stop doing vs stop to do; try doing vs try to do.
13. Articles and determiners at B2
Specificity and discourse
Article choice depends on whether a referent is identifiable in the discourse, not merely first/second mention.
14. Cohesion and linkers
although, whereas, despite, however, therefore
Control grammar after linkers: although + clause; despite + noun/-ing; however links independent statements.
Practice checkpoint
Answers
1) would have come 2) to be living/to live 3) sending 4) whose
Source note
Original Corrigan School explanations, examples and exercises. Coverage is aligned to CEFR progression and cross-checked against authoritative learner-grammar references; wording and tasks are newly written.