Tag: softskills

With 'either/or', the verb agrees with the nearest subject. 'Maria' is singular (third person), so use 'has'. 'Either Carrie or Maria has been writing' means one of them (individually) has been doing it. Option A ('are') is plural, B ('is') would need 'has', and C ('have') is plural.

With 'either/or', the verb agrees with the nearest subject. 'Her parents' is plural, so use 'are'. The sentence means either Diane (singular) or her parents (plural) will pay, and we match the verb to 'parents'. Option A ('is') would be correct if the order were reversed: 'Either her parents or Diane is going'.

We agree 'with' someone's arguments or opinions. The preposition 'with' is used after 'agree' when indicating the person or position you're in concurrence with. 'Agree to' is used for proposals or suggestions, while 'agree about' works for topics or subjects. 'Agree for' is not standard English usage.

The verb 'differ' is idiomatically followed by the preposition 'from' when comparing two distinct entities. While 'differ with' can be used for disagreements in opinion, 'differ from' is the standard choice for physical or characteristic distinctions between people or objects.

'It's' is a contraction of 'it is', which is required here to form the sentence 'It is raining today.' 'Its' is a possessive pronoun (e.g., 'the dog wagged its tail'), which does not fit the grammatical structure of the sentence.

The correct phrase is 'beside the Thames', meaning 'next to' or 'at the side of'. 'Beside' is a preposition indicating location. 'Besides' (with an 's') means 'in addition to' or 'other than'. The forms 'beside of' and 'beside from' are grammatically incorrect - 'beside' doesn't require these additional prepositions.

When describing how long an action has continued, use 'for' with a duration. 'I have been working here for 2 years' indicates the length of time the action has been happening. 'Since' would be used with a specific starting point (since 2020), 'from' indicates origin, and 'by' indicates deadline. The present perfect continuous tense requires 'for' with duration expressions.

'How do you do' is a formal greeting, and the correct response is to repeat the same phrase back. Unlike 'How are you?' which asks about wellbeing, 'How do you do' is a traditional formal introduction that doesn't require a literal response about your state. Responding with 'I'm fine' or 'I'm doing great' would be incorrect in this formal context.

Use 'fewer' for countable nouns (days, people, items). 'Days' is countable, so 'fewer days' is correct. 'Few' can also work but is less precise here. 'Less' and 'lesser' are used for uncountable nouns (less water, less time) or for comparative degree (lesser importance). This distinction between countable and uncountable nouns is a key grammar rule.

When agreeing with a negative statement, use 'either' after a negative auxiliary. 'Too' and 'as well' are used for positive agreement (e.g., 'I like cheese' → 'I like it too'). 'Also' is awkward in this position and rarely used with negatives in short responses.