English 24
22th February 2003
A little bit of GRAMMAR

Still
We use still to say that a situation or action is continuing. Still usually goes in the middle of the sentence with the verb

§ It's midday! Is Joanne still in bed?
§ Do you still go to Spain for your holidays?
§ Do you still see James?
§ Are you still friends with Charles?
§ Do you still want to go to the cinema tonight?

Yet
We use yet when we ask if something has happened or when we say that something has not happened. We use yet mainly in questions and negative sentence. Yet usually goes at the end of the sentence.

§ I'm really hungry. Is lunch ready yet?
§ Haven't you finished washing the car yet?
§ It's midday and Joanne isn't up yet!
§ We don't know what we're doing tomorrow night yet.
§ We haven't decide what to eat yet.

We often use yet with the present perfect tense (have you finished the housework yet?)

Compare still and yet in these sentences:
§ Sarah lost her keys this morning and she still hasn't found them
§ Sarah lost her keys this morning and she hasn't found them yet.
§ Is it still snowing?
§ Has it stopped snowing yet?

Still is also possible in negative sentences:
§ The meeting was supposed to start 40 minutes ago, but it still hasn't started.

This is similar to it hasn't started yet but "still … not" shows a stronger feeling of surprise or impatience. Compare:
§ Sean hasn't telephoned me yet. (but I expect he will telephone soon)
§ Sean still hasn't telephoned me. (he should have telephoned before now)

Practice Exercises

Exercise 1
You haven't seen your friend, Lisa for quite some time. But when you last saw her:
§ She was living in Manchester
§ She was married
§ She was working in an office
§ She had long hair
§ She was slim
§ She wanted to move to the United States
§ She wanted to be an artist
You meet a friend who has had lunch with Lisa last week. Ask questions about Lisa using still.
e.g. Is Lisa still living in Manchester?

1. …………………………………………… married?
2. ………………………………………………………….?
3. ……………………………………………………………?
4. ……………………………………………………………?
5. …………………………………………………………….?
6. …………………………………………………………….?

Exercise 2
This time write sentences with yet.
e.g. It's still snowing (stopped) It hasn't stopped snowing yet.
1. Sam is still in hospital. (left) Sam ……………………………………………..
2. Francesca is still at work. (finished)…………………………………………….
3. David still paints pictures, even though he has arthritis.(stopped)
4. The baby is still asleep (woken up) ………………………………………………..
5. The children are still awake (gone to bed)……………………………………
6. I still have to do the ironing (done)………………………………………………..

Answers

Exercise 1
1. Is Lisa/she still married? 2. Is Lisa/she still working in an office? 3. Does Lisa/she still want to be an artist? 4.Does Lisa/she still have long hair? 5. Is Lisa/she still slim? 6. Does Lisa/she still want to move to the United States?

Exercise 2
1. Sam hasn't left hospital yet ; 2.Francesca hasn't finished work yet; 3. Arthritis hasn't stopped David painting pictures yet; 4. The baby hasn't woken up yet; 5. The children haven't gone to bed yet; 6. I haven't done the ironing yet