Always–yet… still!

Fill in:
NASA __ does many tests before flying a new spaceship, __ the Boeing Starliner didn’t reach the space station. It went to the wrong orbit. Now the ship is __ in space.

a. yet
b. still
c. always

The answers are: c, a, b; look:
NASA _always_ does many tests before flying a new spaceship, _yet_ the Boeing Starliner didn’t reach the space station. It went to the wrong orbit. Now the ship is _still_ in space.


Explanation
The first answer.
Always refers to repeated, cyclic and unchanging conditions, habits, protocols or procedures. ‘Still’ would be grammatically okay here, but it is needed elsewhere in the passage, and in that place where it belongs, the other choices would also work grammatically but not be the best and/or not make sense.

The next answer,
‘yet’, provides a contrast with the information and adverb ‘always’ in the first answer; ‘always’ indicates something continuous or repeating without fail under certain conditions–and thereafter, ‘yet’ tells us a break in that consistency is coming. ‘Yet‘ also acts like the conjunction ‘but’.

Finally, the last answer, ‘still’ tells of a thing that has not ended. Again, all the options work in the space, but then in the other combinations would not make sense.

続ける: Continue….vs Keep vs Go on

The cop said “Carry on.”

From Twitter:
Choose:
Peter: So then I — wait, can I have another beer?
Bartender: One beer comin’ up.
Paul: __ your story; I wanna know the rest.
Peter: Where was I?
Mary: You were gonna tell us what happened next.
Paul: Yeah, __!
Peter: So, the cop said; __

a. carry on
b. go on
c. continue

Answers:
c, b and a

Look/Explanation:
Peter: So then I — wait, can I have another beer?
Bartender: One beer comin’ up.
Paul: Continue your story; I wanna know the rest.
Peter: Where was I?
Mary: You were gonna tell us what happened next.
Paul: Yeah, Go on! Go on means ‘Go on’ means ”keep telling your story.”
Peter: So, the cop said; carry on. ‘Carry on‘ sounds official and means go continue doing what you were doing (but can be casual, too–meaning the same thing as ”go on”–but this is less common.)

photo: by Elevate
photo: Clay Banks

使い分け: Keep On vs Keepin’ On

From Twitter:

Fill in:
Boss to Staff:
That’s good; __ doing it that way; when you’ve finished, __ the work from yesterday.

a. continuing doing
b. keep on
c. keeping doing
d. keep doing
e. keeps
f. keeps on

Girl to Mother about her annoying brother:
I said ”stop,” Mom, but he __ doing it!

Answers:
Sentence 1:
First Answer: b – That’s good; _keep on_ doing it that way;
Second Answer: a & d – when you’ve finished, _ keep on/continue doing _ the work from yesterday.

Sentence 2:
e – I said ”stop,” Mom, but he _keeps_ doing it!
f – I said ”stop,” Mom, but he _keeps on_ doing it!

Explanation:
Sentence 1
First Answer: That’s good; _keep on_ doing it that way;
a. continuing doing (‘continuing doing …’ – No.) We need the present Tense
b. keep on (keep on doing – Yes.)
c. keeping doing (keeping doing doing…’? – No.) Two ‘ing’ forms = bad style
d. keep doing (keep doing doing…’? – No.) Two ‘ing’ forms = bad style
e. keeps (keeps doing doing…’? –No.) We don’t need a 3rd Person verb + ‘ing`? No.
f. keeps on (keeps on doing…? – No.) We don’t need a 3rd Person verb.

Second Answer: a & d
When you’ve finished, _ continue doing _ the work from yesterday.
OR:
When you’ve finished, keep doing the work from yesterday.

a. continuing doing the work from yesterday. Yes.
b. keep on the work from yesterday. No. This one sort of makes sense but is dialectical.
c. keeping doing the work from yesterday. No. The basic verb and the gerund are mirroring each other in the ‘ing’ form so it is bad style.
d. keep doing the work from yesterday. Yes.
e. keeps the work from yesterday. No. The meaning here is totally different and not consistent with the context; it also suggests a 3rd person subject.
f. keeps on the work from yesterday. No. The meaning here is totally different and not consistent with the context. It also suggests a 3rd person subject.

Explanation:
Sentence 2
I said ”stop,” Mom, but he _keeps on_ doing it!
a. continuing doing (‘…continuing doing doing it’? – No.) – 2 ‘do’s? No. ‘continues going’ would be okay, but ‘continuing’ without a “be verb”; No.

b. keep on (‘He keep on doing it’? No.) – ‘Keep’ needs an ‘s’ in the 3rd Person Singular form, and it is that because of ‘he.’
c. keeping doing (‘He keeping doing…’? No.) – Two ‘ing’ forms = bad style
d. keep doing ‘Keep’ needs an ‘s’ in the 3rd Person Singular form, and it is that because of ‘he’, and again, two ‘ing’ forms?
e. keeps (‘He keeps doing it’? – Yes.) This is correct.
f. keeps on (‘He keeps on doing it’? – Yes.)

使い分け: 急ぐ・急だ: In A Hurry / an emergency / in a rush

From Twitter
Choose:
A. Are you __?
B. Yes. C’mon, give me my sandwich and let me pay.
A. Is it __?
B. If it were an emergency would I be buying a sandwich? I have __; I’m meeting my mother-in-law; if I’m late, I die.
A. Then, hurry!

a. an emergency
b. to hurry
c. in a rush

The Answers are:
‘in a rush’ (c)
‘an emergency’ (a)
‘to hurry’ (b)

Explanation:
The first answer can only be ‘in a hurry’:
‘Are you in a hurry? … because we wouldn’t say: ‘are you to hurry? or ‘are you an emergency?’ These expressions do not make sense.


The second answer is easy, because the question begins with ‘is it’, so we know a noun is needed and ‘is it in a rush’ doesn’t make sense, because it refers to something that has not been spoken about; so the only answer is the other noun, ‘an emergency’.

The Third answer must then be (b) ‘I have to hurry.’ Not only is it the only answer remaining, but we can’t say ‘I have in a hurry.’ We could say:I have an emergency‘, but this situation is not an emergency; emergencies are about physical danger or about having to go to the bathroom in a hurry.

Prepare for Christmas

From Twitter:
Choose:



The Answers Are: prepares (a), preparing (c), prepared (a)

Explanation:
After ‘always’, a simple tense verb, we can have a past tense or a present tense verb. If we look at the end of the sentence, we see ‘we always have a wonderful time’, meaning this is the present, not the past–so we need a present tense verb after always–so the answer to the first option is ‘prepares’.

After ‘by’ we need a gerund, because by introduces nouns of process or conveyance and actual things; think of how we say ‘go by train’, ‘solve the problem by using calculus’, the cat reached the window by jumping.

After ‘is always’ we need an adjective form or a continuous verb form, because ‘is’, a linking verb, and ‘always’ as an adverb require a description or a habitual action, but the choices offer only one ‘ing’ option and it is needed elsewhere!