Grammar Review: Tenses, Future in the Past, Habits, and Unreal Past

• Let's review advanced structures we've covered, including the future in the past, causative verbs, habits with will and would, and the unreal past for hypothetical situations.
• Category
• Structure
• Example
• Future in the Past
• was/were going to / about to / supposed to
• Mark was going to announce the new Chicago office reorg.
• Verb + Object + Infinitive
• allow / expect / encourage + someone + to do
• We expect the London product team to adopt the new topology.
• Habits & Annoying Behaviour
• will / would / be always + -ing / keep + -ing
• Claire is always questioning our matrix reporting lines.
• Unreal Past
• it's high time / would rather / suppose + past
• It's high time we consolidated the Boston and Seattle chapters.
• Remember
• Use 'was going to' or 'was supposed to' to talk about past plans that were interrupted or changed.
• Use 'will' or 'be always + -ing' to highlight habitual or annoying traits in colleagues.
• Use the past simple after 'it's high time' and 'would rather' to express current preferences or urgent needs.
• Ensure causative verbs like 'let', 'make', and 'help' are followed by the bare infinitive (without 'to').
• Examples
• David was supposed to present the London platform team topology on Friday.
• Sarah is always interrupting during our weekly town hall meetings.
• It's high time the Seattle studio restructured its product-aligned chapters.
• Management made the design leads communicate the matrix structure clearly.
• Common mistakes
• It's high time we consolidate our teams in Boston.
• It's high time we consolidated our teams in Boston.
• Brian made Sarah to update the platform team layout.
• Brian made Sarah update the platform team layout.

Complete the sentences

• When the Seattle director arrived, she (be about to) ____ announce the new matrix structure.
• It's high time we (consolidate) ____ our design chapters in Boston.
• Mark (keep on) ____ questioning the new span of control in Austin.
• The studio director made Kevin (redraw) ____ the dotted lines on the chart.
• I would rather our London team (work) ____ inside a product-aligned structure.
• Emma (be always) ____ complaining about transition anxiety in Manchester.

Sources: photo by MART PRODUCTION on Pexels