My lesson "H"

the black hairs on the back of his hands.

Each of the fine threads that grow on your head and body is a hair. You can talk about several of these things as hairs.

I washed my hands and combed my hair.

You talk about all the hairs on your head as your hair, not your hairs.

hand

Your hand is the part of your body at the end of your arm. It includes your fingers and your thumb.

The man held a letter in his hand.

You talk about a particular person's hand as his hand, her hand, or my hand, not the hand.

Dad took Mum by the hand.

However, if you say that someone does something to someone else's hand, you usually use the.

Then a strange thing happened.

Something that happens takes place without being planned.

The discussions took place in Paris. The crash occurred at night.

You use happen after words like something, thing, what, or this. After nouns with a more exact meaning, you usually use take place or occur.

The first meeting took place on 9 January.

Don't say that a planned event happens. Say that it takes place.

I wonder what's happened to Jeremy?

When something happens to someone or something, it takes place and affects them.

Looking after three babies is very hard work.

If something is hard, it is not easy to do.

Many old people have worked hard all their lives.

If you work hard or try hard, you do it with a lot of effort.

Nick hardly slept that night.

Hardly is an adverb that has a totally different meaning from hard. You use hardly to say that something is only just true

We could hardly move.

If you use an auxiliary verb with hardly, you put it first. You say, for example, I can hardly see.

I hardly ever spoke to them.

If something hardly ever happens, it almost never happens.

I have to speak to your father.

If someone has to do something, they must do it.

Have a look at this! We had dinner together.

You can use have in front of a noun phrase to talk about an action.

The children are having a party.

You use a progressive form to say that an activity is taking place.

He had a small hotel.

You can use have to show that someone owns something.

Do you have any brothers or sisters?

You also use have to talk about friends and family.

You have beautiful eyes.

You use have to talk about a person's appearance or character.

I've got her address. He's got a beard now.

You can often use have got in spoken English with the same meaning as have. You do not usually pronounce have got, has got, and had got in full. You use 've got, 's got, or 'd got instead.

I've got a rather unusual house. She's got two sisters. He's got a lovely smile.

Have got is mostly used to talk about owning things, relationships, and appearances.

I've got an awful cold.

You often use have got to talk about illnesses.

I have a bath every morning.

You don't use have got for all meanings of have. Don't use it when you are talking about an event or action. Don't use have got in formal English.

I haven't got any more paper.

In negative sentences, not, or usually n't, goes between have and got.

Have you got enough money for a taxi?

In questions, you put the subject between have and got.

I can hear a car.

If you can hear a sound, you know about it because it has reached your ears.

She heard another sound. She could hear music in the distance.

The past tense form and past participle of hear is heard. If you want to say that someone was aware of something in the past, you use heard or could hear.

He helped us to raise a lot of money. I helped him fix his car.

If you help someone, you make something easier for them. You can use it with an infinitive, with or without to.

My mum helps cook the meals for the children. Dora helped to carry the boxes.

You can also use help without an object, followed by an infinitive with or without to. If someone helps do something or helps to do it, they help other people to do it.

I couldn't help laughing when I saw her face.

If you cannot help doing something, you cannot stop yourself from doing it.

We can come here at any time.

You use here to talk about the place where you are.

Here's your coffee. Here are the addresses that you need.

You can use here is or here are at the beginning of a sentence when you want to show or give something to someone. You use here is in front of a singular noun and here are in front of a plural noun.

the high mountains of northern Japan.

You use high to describe things which measure a long way from the bottom to the top. For example, you talk about a high hill or a high wall.

a field of tall waving grass.

You use tall to describe things that are high but not very wide. So, for example, you talk about a tall tree or a tall chimney.

a tall handsome man.

You always use tall when you are talking about people.

a large room with a high ceiling.

High also means a long way above the ground. For example, you talk about a high window or a high shelf.

We hired a car and drove across the island. He rented a car for the weekend.

If you pay to use something for a short time, you can say that you hire it or rent it. Hire is more common in British English an d rent more common in American English.

She rents the house with three other women.

If you pay regularly in order to use something for a long period, you say that you rent it. You do not usually say that you hire it.

The cottage was let to an actress from London.

If you rent a building or piece of land from someone, you can say that they let it to you. The past tense form and past participle of let is let.

The house was rented to a farmer.

Let is more common in British English. In American English, you use rent.

I can't wait for the summer holidays.

In British English, you talk about yhe time that you spend away from work or schools as the holiday or the holiddays.

I went to Marrakesh for a holiday.

You talk about time that you spend away from home enjoying yourself as a holiday.

Where are you going for your holidays?

When you spend a period of time like this each year, you talk about your holidays.

Remember to turn off the gas when you go on holiday.

If you are on holiday, you do not have to go to school or work, or you are spending some time away from home enjoying yourself.

Harold used to take a vacation at that time.

The usual American word for a period of time spent away from work or school, or away from home enjoying yourself, is vacation.

He never did any homework.

Homework is work that pupils take home to do in the evening or at the weekend. You say that pupils do homework.

He does most of the housework.

Housework is work that you do to keep a house clean and tidy.

He hoped she wasn't going to cry. I sat down, hoping they wouldn't notice me.

If you hope that something is true or will happen, you want it to be true or to happen.

I hope you'll enjoy your stay in Britain. I hope you get well soon.

You often use I hope to show that you want something to be good or successful. After hope you can use either a future form or the present simple.

Will you be home at six? - I hope so. Have you lost the ticket? - I hope not.

If someone asks you whether something is true, or whether something will happen, you can answer yes by saying I hope so or no by saying I hope not.

We bought this house because of the garden.

You use house to talk about the building where you live.

Brody arrived home a little before five. I'll finish the report at home.

You say I'm going home or She was at home.

My father works away from home. Dublin will always be home to me.

Your home is the place where you live or feel that you belong. Home can be used to talk about a person's house or to a town, a region, or a country.

How do you spell his name? This is how I make a vegetable curry.

You use how when you are talking about the way something is done.

How are you? How is she? All right?

You use how with be to ask about someone's health.

How was your trip? How was the smoked fish?

You use how with be to ask someone whether something was good.

What's his mother like? What is Fiji like?

Don't use how to ask for a description of something or someone. For example, if you want a description of someone's boss, say What is your boss like?

Losing at games doesn't matter to some women. Most men, however, can't stand it.

You use however when you want to add something new and different or unexpected after what you've already said.

You can do it however you want.

You also use however to say that it is not important how something is done.

How ever did you find me?

Sometimes people use ever after how at the beginning of a question. They do this to show that they are surprised. For example, instead of saying How did you get here?, they say How ever did you get here?

I like that dress - how much was it?

You use how much when you are asking about the price of something. For example. you say How much is that T-shirt?

What is his income? What does he earn? or How much does he earn?

Don't use how much and price in the same sentence. Only use how much with be when you are asking about the price of something. Don't use it to ask about other amounts of money.

100

A hundred or one hundred is the number 100.

1,000

A thousand or one thousand is the number 1,000.

1,000,000

A million or one million is the number 1,000,000.

We'll give you a thousand dollars for the story.

You usually say that there are a hundred/thousand/million things.

Over one thousand students applied. The total amount was one hundred and forty-nine pounds and thirty pence.

You say one hundred/thousand/million things when you want to emphasize the nymber, or when you want to be very clear and precise.

There are more than two hundred languages spoken in Nigeria.

Don't add -s to hundred, thousand or million when you put another number in front of them.