Day 12 Adjective order and Present perfect and ‘for’/’since’

1.Adjective order

Adjective order can be tricky, so it’s useful to note down some examples. Writing adjectives before a noun, separated by categories, can be a good way to help you to remember the order. Here are some examples:

Size - age - colour - material:

A big old red leather sofa

Opinion - colour - material:

Some lovely pink and white silk curtains

Size - age - quality:

A big old smelly dog

2.Present perfect and ‘for’/’since’

Meaning and use
The present perfect is often used to talk about situations that started in the past and are continuing now. We sometimes use the present perfect in a question with how long to ask about how long a present situation has continued.

How long have Sasha and Tanya been married?

We talk about how long using the words for and since.

For = throughout (a period of time).

They’ve been married for six months.

Since = from (an exact point in time) until now.

They’ve been married since March.

We can also use present perfect + since + past simple.

I haven’t seen Tanya since we graduated.

Form
The present perfect is made with subject + have/has (positive) or haven’t/hasn’t (negative) + past participle.

For is used with a length of time.

Since is used with a specific point in the past.

for: ten minutes, one hour, two days, a week, three years, a long time

since: 10 o’clock, Friday, November, 2013, Easter

Positive

I’ve lived here since 2012.

I’ve worked for this company for20 years.

Negative

We haven’t seen her for ages.

She hasn’t been back to the UK since 2009.

Question

Have you known Sasha since last year?

Have you lived here for more than two years?

How long have you known him?

Have you known Sasha a long time?

Take note: present simple and present continuous
We cannot use the present simple or present continuous with for and since.

WRONG: I know him for ten years.

CORRECT: I’ve known him for ten years.

WRONG: I’m living here since 2002.

CORRECT: I’ve lived here since 2002.

Take note: present perfect / present perfect continuous
With verbs like work and live, which can describe permanent or temporary situations, we usually use the present perfect + ‘for’ / ‘since’ for a long period of time. For a short period, we use the present perfect continuous.

I’ve worked for this company for 20 years. (present perfect)

I’ve been working here for a week. (present perfect continuous)

Take note: present perfect / past simple

If a situation is finished, we use the past simple + ‘for’, not the present perfect:

I worked for that company for 20 years and then I retired.

Spoken English

In informal writing and in speech, we often use a contraction with the auxiliary verb.

I’ve lived in Amsterdam for twelve years.

When you listen to someone using a sentence with for +a period of time, listen carefully to the verb. It is sometimes difficult to hear the difference between, for example, I’ve lived in New York for five years and I lived in New York for five years, but it makes a big difference in meaning. It tells us whether the speaker still lives there or not.

3.Vocabulary Reference

awful
very bad or unpleasant

bricks and mortar
the physical building of a place

bespoke
specially made

charm
the power of delighting people

a rabbit warren
a network of rabbit tunnels, here it means it’s a place with winding, interconnected corridors

rank
horrible and disgusting

muttering
saying something in a low, quiet voice, especially if you are not happy or it’s something secret

conspiratorially
doing something like it was a conspiracy, a secret plan to do something unlawful

pips
a series of short, high sounds

a send-off
an occasion to express good wishes and say goodbye to someone who is leaving a place

leather
a material made from the skin of a dead animal

sofa
a type of seat with a back and arms, big enough for two or more people

kilim
a type of carpet or rug, made in Turkey, Kurdistan and surrounding areas

stripy
striped, patterned with stripes

cotton
a type of fabric made from fibers that grow on cotton plants

recipe
a set of instructions for preparing a dish, including the ingredients needed

editor
a person who is in charge of and determines the final content of a publication (for example, magazine, newspaper, radio programme)

collaboration
working together with someone to produce something

integration
(here) combining to work with others in an organisation

silo
(here) a department that operates separately from the other parts of an organisation

online content
the text, video and audio content that make up the user experience on the internet, including text, images, sounds, videos, and animations

radio broadcasting
one-way wireless transmission over radio waves designed to reach a wide audience

tremendously
(here) in a big way

broadcast journalist
a journalist who works on news reports that are published electronically, on TV or radio

label
(here) the brand name of a fashion designer

accessories
(here) small items of clothing or jewellery that can be added to an outfit to make it more complete or attractive

stressful
causing stress

upload
(here) put documents, including text, audio and video, on to a website

the Oscars
the American Academy Awards, celebrating achievement in film and cinema

brilliant
(here) very good**

riots
a noisy, violent, and uncontrolled public meeting

relocate
to move to a new place

half a century
a period of 50 years

score a century
score 100 runs in cricket

change beyond recognition
when something changes so much that you cannot recognise it

settled
(here) living somewhere, especially permanent

spray
spread very small drops of liquid through the air

several
some; more than two

opportunity
chance to do something which you want to do

building site
a piece of land where a building is being constructed

local
in or near the place where you are

give up
quit; stop trying

economy
the system of trade and industry, which can create wealth

rapidly
quickly

migrant
someone who travels from one country or area to another, for a long period

do well
be successful

shed
(here) a large, simple building, normally for making or storing something

deliver
take things (especially goods or letters) to the people who need them

ambitious
determined to achieve goals

morgues
(singular: morgue) places where dead bodies are kept

cemeteries
(singular: cemetery) places where dead bodies are buried

coffins
(singular: coffin) wooden boxes in which dead bodies are placed when put underground in the cemetery

worm
small animal with a long body that lives in the ground

flesh
soft part of the body between the bone and the skin

wires
(singular: wire) thin metal lines that carry electricity from one place to another