The correct answers are Shouldn't we ask someone for directions? and Isn't that map upside down?
Negative questions are an excellent way to politely express an opinion or seek agreement from others.
"Shouldn't we to ask..." is incorrect because modal verbs (like should) must be followed by a bare infinitive (without "to").
"Is not that map..." is incorrect because in formal uncontracted negative questions, "not" must follow the subject ("Is that map not upside down?").
Negation
- ✅ I don't see anything. — ❌ I don't see nothing. (double negative in standard English)
- ✅ She never goes out. — never already negates (no doesn't needed)
- ✅ He doesn't like coffee. — do-support for negation
- ✅ Nobody came. — negative subject (no auxiliary needed)
Negation uses not after an auxiliary/modal, or do-support when there's no auxiliary. One negative per clause in standard English — never, nobody, nothing already negate without adding not.
Rule: one negative element per clause. I don't see anything or I see nothing — never both together in standard English.
Questions
- ✅ Do you like coffee? — do-support (no existing auxiliary)
- ✅ Can she swim? — inversion (auxiliary before subject)
- ✅ Where does he live? — wh-question
- ✅ You're coming, aren't you? — tag question
Questions require inversion (auxiliary before subject) or do-support (add do/does/did). Types: yes/no (Do you…?), wh- (What/Where/When…?), negative (Don't you…?), tag (…isn't it?).
Rule: find the auxiliary. Move it before the subject. No auxiliary? Add do/does/did. Never use just intonation in written English (You like coffee? is not standard).
Modal verb
- ✅ She can swim. — ❌ She can to swim. (modal + bare infinitive, no to)
- ✅ You must leave now. — strong obligation
- ✅ It might rain. — possibility (~50%)
- ✅ He should apologise. — advice/recommendation
Modal verbs (can, could, may, might, must, shall, should, will, would) are auxiliaries expressing ability, permission, possibility, obligation, or speculation. Always + bare infinitive. Never inflected (she can, not she cans).
Rule: modals never take to after them, never add -s for third person, and can't combine directly (must can ❌ — use must be able to).
Word order
- ✅ She (S) eats (V) cake (O). — standard SVO
- ❌ Cake eats she. — SOV (not English)
- ✅ a lovely little old rectangular green French silver whittling knife — adjective order (opinion→size→age→shape→colour→origin→material→purpose)
- ✅ Never have I seen… — inversion after negative adverb
English word order = SVO (subject-verb-object) as default. Adjectives follow a fixed sequence (opinion→size→age→shape→colour→origin→material). Adverb placement varies by type. Deviations signal questions, emphasis, or literary style.
Rule: when in doubt, default to SVO. English position = meaning. Move a word and you change the grammar or the emphasis.
Infinitive
- ✅ I want to go. — to-infinitive after want
- ✅ She can swim. — bare infinitive after modal
- ✅ Let me help. — bare infinitive after let
- ❌ I enjoy to read. — wrong (enjoy takes gerund, not infinitive)
The infinitive has two forms: to-infinitive (to go) after verbs like want, decide, plan, hope; bare infinitive (go) after modals and causatives (let, make, help).
Rule: after want, need, decide, plan, hope, expect, agree, refuse → to-infinitive. After can, will, must, let, make → bare infinitive. After enjoy, avoid, finish → gerund, NOT infinitive.
B1 | Intermediate
- ✅ If I had more time, I would travel more. — second conditional
- ✅ The bridge was built in 1920. — passive voice
- ✅ She said she was tired. — reported speech with backshift
- ✅ Although it rained, we enjoyed the trip. — complex sentence with concession
These are B1 patterns — the CEFR intermediate level. At B1 you link ideas, use passive voice, handle reported speech, and manage second conditional — enough for travel, work basics, and everyday independence.
Marker: if you can explain why something happened and follow a news story, you're B1.
Medium
- If I were you, I would apologise. — one rule (second conditional), but distractors like was tempt you
- Answers require active thought, not instant pattern recognition
- Vocabulary and context are realistic, not artificially simplified
- Usually tests one rule, but the wrong answers are plausible
Medium marks middle-difficulty challenges: A2–B1, one rule tested, but with realistic distractors that require genuine understanding.
Use "Medium" when Easy feels too obvious but Hard feels overwhelming. This is where most productive learning happens — the sweet spot of difficulty.