Have a go — no notes, and don't worry about getting it perfect first time.
Start with a form you already use without thinking. Complete this sentence:
"I'm really looking forward to (see) you next week."
Say two things you noticed someone doing recently — not the whole story, just what you happened to catch a glimpse of them in the middle of. Any two examples from your day.
Jen: Did you hear? Marcus quit.
Tom: What? I saw him leaving the office at five, like normal.
Jen: Apparently he'd already handed in his notice weeks ago — he just hadn't told anyone.
Tom: Typical. Nobody enjoys being the one to announce bad news.
Look closely at what Tom says. He says "I saw him leaving the office" — not "I saw him leave the office." Why might that tiny difference matter? Say your idea out loud before you check.
For talking about something that happened before another point in time — before now, or before you found out.
Three everyday remarks:
Before you check: what do all three bold phrases have in common, and what time are they really pointing to?
The losing happened first; the "seeming" is now. "To have lost" places the action clearly before the moment you're speaking.
Complete each sentence. Type only the missing verb phrase.
1. The window's wide open and there's mud on the sill — somebody clearly got out that way.
Report what you think happened: "The thief seems through the back window."
2. David didn't finish the marathon — he gave up at mile 20 — but he's telling everyone he did.
Call him out: "David the marathon."
3. It took him years, but he finally owned up to it — he'd lied about his exam results, right back when he applied for the job.
Explain what happened: "He finally admitted about his exam results."
Think of someone who claims to have done something impressive that you're not sure you believe. Say two sentences about it: "[Name] claims to have..." and "I don't remember [him/her] ever..."
Two more choices that native speakers make automatically — passive non-finite forms, and how much of an action you actually witnessed.
Three everyday complaints and updates:
What's the structure this time — and who's doing the action?
1. The plumber promised he'd come and fix the leak — it hasn't happened yet, but it's arranged for tomorrow.
Update your flatmate: "The leak's due tomorrow."
2. People often stop him in the street to ask for directions, and he really can't stand it.
Describe how he feels: "He dislikes in the street by strangers."
3. Everyone kept talking over her in the meeting, and she hated every second of it.
Tell a friend afterwards: "She hated in the meeting."
Say two things that annoy you being done to you regularly — interrupted, kept waiting, told what to do — and one thing that's due or supposed to happen soon, using "to be...".
Three things people noticed:
Two of these use the bare verb, one always uses -ing. What's the difference in meaning?
1. You glance out at the garden for a second and spot something — it's mid-stride, going over the fence.
Describe the glimpse: "I noticed a fox over the fence."
2. From your window you watched the whole thing happen: a cyclist lost control on the ice and landed hard right in front of the shop.
Tell the full story: "I watched a cyclist on the ice and land right in front of the shop."
3. Security reviewed the footage and discovered what she'd been doing at the till.
Report the finding: "Security caught the employee cash from the register."
Tell me about something you once saw happen completely, start to finish, and something you only caught a glimpse of, still in progress. Use "I saw/watched... [do]" for the whole thing and "...[doing]" for the glimpse.
Four phrasal verbs that sound completely natural in conversation — and would sound stiff if you replaced them with their one-word equivalents.
Three things you might say to a friend:
Try saying each one with a single formal verb instead — tolerate, depend on, finally do. Does it still sound like something you'd say to a friend?
1. He hates the noise from the upstairs flat but never complains — he just deals with it quietly, night after night.
Say what you think: "I can't imagine that kind of noise every night."
2. Looking back at the trip that almost didn't happen, everyone agreed on one thing afterwards.
Sum it up: "It really money, in the end."
3. You keep meaning to reply to his message. Somehow, every day, you don't actually do it.
Admit it: "I keep meaning to reply to his message, but I never ."
4. Which sounds most natural in a casual chat with a friend about a pointless rule at work?
Think of a rule or habit you'd get rid of if you could, and something you keep meaning to do but never find time for. Say one sentence with "do away with" and one with "get around to."
Time to bring perfect forms, passive forms and today's phrasal verbs together in one real update — out loud, then in writing.
Think of a change happening in your life right now — a move, a new job, a relationship, a decision you're wrestling with. (If nothing comes to mind, invent one.)
Talk about it out loud for one minute. Try to answer:
Write a short message (3–5 sentences) to a friend about the same situation. Try to include a perfect form (to have.../having...), a passive form (being.../to be...), and one of today's phrasal verbs. The checker will tell you which ones it finds.
Nothing here is sorted by type. Everything's mixed — you decide which form fits.
Each sentence has one grammar mistake. Rewrite the whole sentence correctly.
1. "She denied to have taken the money."
2. "The room needs to being cleaned before the guests arrive."
3. "I saw him to leave the party early last night."
4. "I really can't put up his complaining anymore."
5. "He ___ recently — I heard he lost his job and it's been a rough few weeks."
6. "I really don't enjoy ___ mid-sentence — it's so rude."
7. "I looked over and ___ quietly out of the meeting halfway through — I don't think anyone else even noticed."
One-minute challenge: describe an office or shared house you know. Say what someone claims to have already sorted out, what still needs to be done, and something everyone just puts up with. Use the timer above if you like the pressure.
1. A simpler form you already knew before today — complete it: "I (stop) five years ago and I feel so much healthier now."
2. Say it out loud: what's the difference in meaning between "I stopped to smoke" and "I stopped smoking"?
3. He's acting completely surprised, but honestly, you think he already knew — for ages. Say it: "He about this for ages."
4. Someone keeps making people wait outside in the rain for a bus that never comes, and it's driving everyone mad. Complain about it: "Nobody enjoys to wait in the rain."
5. After years of noise complaints, the council finally stopped allowing late-night deliveries downtown. Report it: "The city finally late-night deliveries downtown."
Which was hardest to hear the difference in today — "saw him leave" versus "saw him leaving," or "having done" versus "to have done"? Say why you think that one is trickier for you.
At the start we said: perfect and passive forms, whole actions versus glimpses, and four phrasal verbs. Tick what's true: