Language, when you need it

Soften absolute claims with degree adverbs (broadly, largely), modals (would, tend to) and frequency phrases (more often than not).

After a negative or restrictive adverbial in front position, invert subject and auxiliary: Never have I seen… / Not only does it…, but…

Split a clause to foreground new information: 'It was the deadline that worried me.' / 'What surprised us was the cost.'

Move a non-subject element to the front for emphasis: 'Down the corridor walked the inspector.' / 'Such ideas we rarely hear today.'

Perfect = looking back from a reference point. Choose present / past / future perfect by which time-point you're looking back from.

Use 'must / can't / might / could + have + p.p.' to deduce or speculate about the past; 'will/would' for confident present deduction.

Mixed: past condition → present result ('If I had studied medicine, I would be a doctor now'). Inverted: drop 'if' and invert ('Had I known…').

Reporting passive: 'It is said that…' / 'She is believed to have…'. Causative: 'have / get + object + p.p.' = arranging for someone to do it.

Defining = essential, no commas. Non-defining = extra info, with commas, no 'that'. Reduce with -ing / -ed for elegance.

Turn verbs/adjectives into nouns for formal register and density: 'They decided quickly' → 'Their swift decision'.

Hold long texts together with pronouns ('this', 'such'), ellipsis (cutting repeated words) and substitution ('do so', 'one').

Signal stance, contrast, addition or concession: admittedly, mind you, having said that, on balance, all things considered.

Present perfect simple = result now. Present perfect continuous = ongoing / recent process. Past perfect = background before another past point. Add an evaluative adverbial (admittedly, mercifully, surprisingly, increasingly, on balance) to show how you hold the fact.

Backshift tenses one step back. Use varied reporting verbs: claim, urge, deny, acknowledge, admit, point out, insist (+ patterns).

Build C1 forms with prefixes (mis-, over-, under-), suffixes (-ance, -ity, -ship), internal change (long → length) and zero-derivation.

Use 'whereas', 'while', 'although', 'despite + -ing/noun', 'much as', 'for all + noun' to balance ideas.

Match the form to the speaker's stance: will (decision/prediction), going to (intention/evidence), present continuous (arrangement), present simple (timetable), future continuous (in progress), future perfect (completed by).

Replace a finite clause with -ing (active), -ed (passive) or having + p.p. (perfect) to compress meaning: 'Walking into the room, she froze.' / 'Asked about it later, he refused to comment.'

After demand/insist/suggest/recommend + that, use the bare infinitive: 'It is essential that he be informed.' Formal 'should' is also common: 'They insisted that he should attend.'

Phrasal verbs (verb + particle) can be separable (turn it down) or inseparable (look after him). Many have a one-word Latinate equivalent (work out → calculate) — match register.

Some verbs change meaning with -ing vs to- infinitive: remember/forget/regret/try/stop/mean. Learn pairs: 'I remember locking the door' (memory of doing) vs 'Remember to lock the door' (a task).