90%
Complete the camper's slightly embarrassing ghost story by selecting the correct option for each blank.
I was sitting by the dark campfire, convinced the woods were haunted, when I suddenly felt my phone _________________________ exactly once in my pocket. I pulled it out in a panic, only to see my best friend _________________________ me from the tent right behind me!

The correct answers are vibrate and calling.

Felt my phone vibrate: We use the bare infinitive (vibrate) after a verb of perception (feel) to describe a short, completed action. The clue here is "exactly once."

See my best friend calling: We use the gerund (calling) after a verb of perception (see) to describe an action that is currently in progress. The phone was actively ringing when the camper looked at it.

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Verb

Verb vs noun vs adjective: nouns name things. Adjectives describe. Verbs express what happens or what IS. The test: can it take tense (walked, will walk)? Can it take -ing? Can it follow to as an infinitive (to walk)? Yes to any → verb. English often converts freely between classes (run = noun or verb), so context decides.

A verb = action/state/occurrence word. 5 forms (base, -s, past, past participle, -ing). Carries tense, aspect, mood, voice. The one required element in every sentence.

Diagnostic: does it change for tense (walk → walked)? Can you put to before it (to walk)? Does it take -ing (walking)? → verb.

Gerund

Gerund vs infinitive: the biggest source of errors for non-native speakers. Some verbs take only gerund (enjoy reading ✅), some only infinitive (want to read ✅), some take both with different meanings (stop readingstop to read). There's no logical rule — these must be learned by verb.

A gerund is the -ing verb form used as a noun. After prepositions = always gerund. After certain verbs (enjoy, avoid, finish) = always gerund. After to (preposition, not infinitive marker) = gerund (I look forward to seeing you).

Diagnostic: can you replace the -ing word with "it" or "something"? I enjoy it → yes, it's acting as a noun = gerund.

Infinitive

Infinitive vs gerund: the #1 verb-pattern confusion. Some verbs take only infinitive (want to go ✅), some only gerund (enjoy going ✅), some both with different meanings (stop to smokestop smoking). No logical rule exists — learn by verb.

The infinitive = base verb form used non-finitely. To-infinitive (to go) after certain verbs. Bare infinitive (go) after modals and causatives.

Diagnostic: what's the main verb? Check whether it takes to-infinitive, bare infinitive, or gerund. If unsure, try both and see which sounds natural to native speakers.

B1 | Intermediate

B1 vs B2: B1 handles standard everyday communication and simple opinions. B2 handles abstract topics, sustained arguments, and nuanced register. If you can chat about your life but struggle to debate an issue or write a formal essay, you're B1.

B1 is the intermediate CEFR level: independent handling of familiar topics, second conditional, basic passive, reported speech, and linking words for cause and contrast.

Diagnostic: can you read a newspaper article on a familiar topic and summarise the argument? Comfortably → B2. Struggle with abstractions → still B1.

Medium

Medium vs Easy: Easy has one obviously correct answer and clearly wrong distractors. Medium has one correct answer but plausible distractors — you need to actually know the rule, not just guess from sound.

The Medium tag filters for A2B1 challenges with realistic difficulty: one rule per question, plausible alternatives, everyday contexts.

Diagnostic: if you're scoring 90%+ on Easy, move here. If you're below 60% on Medium, go back to Easy for that topic. Target 70–80% accuracy for maximum learning.