Eguria

TENSES - PRESENT PROGRESSIVE AND PAST PROGRESSIVE BY EGURIASE S. M. OKAKA Tense refers to the time the action of a verb took place or is taking place whether in the present or in the past or in the future. We identified the various types of tenses and how they are used in everyday speech or conversation. However we shall concentrate more on the three basic types of tenses- the present, past and future tense-in the progressive form. In this article, we shall refresh our memory on what we have learnt before. Present progressive The present progressive tense expresses actions that happen at the time of speaking. We also use it to say someone does something every time, always, regularly, and so on? Look at these sentences. They are all simple sentences. • Olu sings beautifully. • I go to school every weekday. • I watched cartoons every Saturday morning at 7 o’clock. • She lives close by. • Plants take their food from the sun. All the sentences above are written in the present tense, bu...

WRITING: MORE ON FORMAL LETTER BY EGURIASE S. M. OKAKA Remember that a formal letter is an official letter or business letter. It is a letter written to someone in his/ her official post. The method of writing this type of letter is purely different from that of the inform letter. Let us consider some examples of formal letters. Examples of formal letters: • Letters to heads of school / institutions – headmasters / headmistresses, principals, vice-chancellors. • Letters to political office holders – presidents, vice-president, ministers, Inspector-General of Police. • Letters to heads of companies, managers, marketing managers. • Business letters such as letters for business transaction. • Letters of applications for jobs. Features of a former letter: a) Address of the receiver and at the top right-hand side of the letter. b) Designation and address of the recipient at the left-hand of the letter, below the date. c) Salutation: Dear Sir, / Dear Madam. Do not write Dear Ma. That ...

WRITING: MORE ON INFORM LETTERS BY Eguriase S. M. Okaka Remember that informal letters are letters you write to your friends, your parents, your brothers and sisters, aunties and uncles, cousins and nephews, or generally to any relation or friend. Informal letters are friendly in style and you are expected to use every day conversational English. You do not use formal language at all. Features of an informal letter • Writer’s address and date: This is usually written at the top right side of the letter. You can use the straight form of the indented / slanting form. • Greetings / salutation: It is written at the left side just below the date, e.g. Dear or My dear plus the first name of the receiver. Example Dear Pat, or My dear Pat; dear mum, Dear Dad, Dear Uncle John, etc. take note of the capital letters. • Introduction: This is usually used for exchange of pleasantries. This is because of the close relationship with the receiver. • The body of the letter is subdivided into parag...