When we offer to help someone we say
Can I help you...? Can
I help you wash the dishes? Can I help you do the shopping? Can I help you with anything?
It’s polite to not immediately accept an offer. When someone
asks if they can help, it’s polite to say: You’re very kind. or No, there’s no need.
Can I help you wash the dishes? No, there’s no need.
You then offer again by saying: Can
I help you wash the dishes? No, there’s no need. I want to help.
SARAH Can I help you find your
brother?
ANNE You’re very kind.
But it’s not your problem.
SARAH I
want to help. What can I do?
2. ADJECTIVES
Adjectives are used to describe people and things. He’s
tall and handsome. It’s
a red ball.
Adjectives are the words that tell you what colour something is:
A red ball
A green ball
What size something is:
A big ball
A small ball
You use adjectives to express your opinion about something: A
beautiful ball
An ugly ball
And the type something is: A plastic
ball
A leather ball
Adjectives often go before the noun, or the thing they describe. A tall building (adj) (noun) A clever idea (adj) (noun)
Adjectives don’t always come before the noun, or the thing described.
They can also come after the noun and a verb, especially the verb is/are. The
building is tall (noun)
(verb) (adj) Your ideas
are clever (noun)
(verb) (adj)
3. DESCRIBING PEOPLE
When we are describing people or ourselves, we often use a pronoun (I,
he, she, we they), is/are/am and then the adjective: I am tall.
She is clever.
Usually we say and write I’m
tall.
She’s clever.
ANNE He’s
clever, but he prefers to do things with his hands.
Other verbs used before adjectives and after pronouns are look
and sound : You
look wonderful.
You sound tired.
SARAH He
sounds nice.
Questions
When you are asking about someone, you change the word order so the pronoun
comes after is/are: He is tall.(statement) Is
he tall?(question)
SARAH He’s
very good looking. Such a nice smile. Is he tall?
We describe people’s complexions, or whether their skin is dark
or light She has a fair
complexion.
She is fair.
Their
hair: She has blonde hair.
She’s blonde.
And
eye colour: She has blue eyes.
Her eyes are blue.
Their build: He has a slim
build.
He’s slim.
Their
height: He’s tall.
4. A BIT, VERY, FAIRLY, QUITE
We can modify the meaning of adjectives by using words such as a
bit, fairly, very
and quite.
We can use the adjective hot to describe the temperature
It’s hot
We change or modify the meaning of hot like this: It’s a bit hot.
It’s fairly hot.
It’s very hot.
Fairly hot means hot, but not very hot.
Another word we use to mean the same is quite: It’s quite
hot. It’s fairly
hot.
SARAH Is he tall?
ANNE Fairly
tall
Watch Living English and get to know the characters of our drama 'Sisters and Brothers' as you learn and revise your basic English skills.