How long are you here for?
How long have you been here for?
Peter and Maria's children are really nice.
Peter's and Maria's children are really nice.
I don't really like Mark.
I really don't like Mark.
Julia sings as well as playing the guitar.
Julia sings as well as she plays the guitar.
All the present members are married.
All the members present are married.
I don't smoke, like my father.
Like my father, I don't smoke.
We haven't got enough long nails.
We haven't got long enough nails.
She didn´t speak for long.
She didn´t speak for a long time.
Martin and Lucy often talk to themselves.
Martin and Lucy often talk to each other.
I forgot to post the letter.
I forgot posting the letter.
All the families visited the festival.
The whole families visited the festival.
I put my mobile on the desk. It was broken.
I put my mobile on the desk. This was broken.
So, how many differences in meaning do you think you can explain? Time to check.
How long are you here for?
The question refers to the future so the answer could be: 'I'm here until the end of the month.'
How long have you been here for?
The question refers to the past so the answer could be: 'I've been here since the beginning of the month.'
Peter and Maria's children are really nice.
We are speaking about one lot (one couple or group) of children; Peter and Maria are their common parents.
Peter's and Maria's children are really nice.
We are speaking about two different lots of children; Peter is the father of one lot and Maria is the mother of another lot.
I don't really like Mark.
The sentence suggests mild dislike; I don't like Mark, but I don't hate him much either.
I really don't like Mark.
The sentence suggests strong dislike; I hate Mark.
Julia sings as well as playing the guitar.
The hearer/reader knows that Julia plays the guitar. Now, we are telling them that Julia not only plays the guitar, but also sings.
Julia sings as well as she plays the guitar.
We are saying that Julia's singing is as good as her playing the guitar.
All the present members are married.
We are speaking about those people who are members (of a club, for example) these days.
All the members present are married.
We are speaking about those people who are present here and now, who are not absent now (at a meeting, for example).
I don't smoke, like my father.
When we put a comparison with 'like' after a negative clause, it usually refers only to the positive part of what comes before. So in this context the speaker's father smokes.
Like my father, I don't smoke.
When we put a comparison before a negative clause, it refers to the whole clause. So in this context the speaker's father doesn't smoke.
We haven't got enough long nails.
The word 'enough' modifies the collocation 'long nails'. We are saying that we need more long nails.
We haven't got long enough nails.
In this sentence 'enough' modifies only the adjective 'long'. We are saying that we need longer nails.
She didn´t speak for long.
We want to express that she spoke for a short time, let's say, for about two minutes.
She didn´t speak for a long time.
We are saying that she was silent for a long time, let's say, for three hours.
Martin and Lucy often talk to themselves.
Martin often talks to himself and Lucy often talks to herself. They might not even know each other.
Martin and Lucy often talk to each other.
Each of them talks to the other. (= They talk to one another.)
I forgot to post the letter.
We are speaking about something we intended to do but we didn't. (I didn't post the letter because I had forgotten to do so.)
I forgot posting the letter.
We are speaking about something we did but didn't remember it later. (I posted the letter, but later I forgot about it.)
All the families visited the festival.
Every family (living in the village, for example) visited the festival.
The whole families visited the festival.
Complete families visited the festival. (No one from those families was absent.)
I put my mobile on the desk. It was broken.
We normally use 'it' for the first thing mentioned; my mobile was broken.
I put my mobile on the desk. This was broken.
'This' normally refers to a new thing that has been introduced; the desk was broken.
I have one more test question for you: what is the comparative form of the adjective common? Well, commoner used to be commoner, but more common is now more common.
Isn't English grammar interesting?
