Grammar
- Going To Usage And Illustrative Examples
Contents → Grammar in Dialogues → Going to Usage Another way of expressing a future action is the construction "to be going to + infinitive". It is mainly found with dynamic verbs; it is characterized by the following additional modal meanings:...
- To Be Going To + Infinitive
Contents → To Be Going to + Infinitive To Be Going To + Infinitive form for a future action I am He is She is It is We are You are They are going to do something. We often use the present form am/are/is/ going to + infinitive to talk about the future....
- Using Future Indefinite Tense Through Dialogues
Contents → Grammar in Dialogues → Using Future Indefinite This page shows different ways of using the Future Indefinite Tense (or Simple Future) through dialogues from English literature. The Future Indefinite expresses an action that will take place...
- Exploring Grammar - Verb Types
A recent discussion at GrammarGirl (link below) about the active voice talked a lot about unaccusative verbs and semantic patients in its explanation. I'm not convinced of the wisdom of using these specialist linguistic terms on a website read...
- Confusing Verbs - Lie, Lay, Lie
Two intransitive, one transitive One regular, one slightly irregular, one very irregular But which is which? Even native speakers have problems with this one. But you can master these tricky little verbs, and at the same time practise your prepositions...
Grammar
Q & A Does snow lay or lie?
Until recently I had the dubious pleasure of topping the list for longest blog posts on the register of language blogs at One Stop English. It was, I have to say, the only list I topped. Seeing I no longer have to defend my title, I've decided to go the other way occasionally, and write some really short posts.
So this is the first of what I intend to be a regular series answering some of the questions googled by people who have landed up on this blog. And if you think this is just a shameless attempt to get more hits, damn right it is.
Does snow lay or lie?
Snow lies - from lie, lay, lain, lying (intransitive). We use this expression especially at the beginning of snowy weather when talking about new snow:
- Look it's snowing. Is it lying?
- No. The snow's too wet. It's not lying.
In other words, is it staying or just disappearing? But in narratives you will also see expressions like:
- Snow lay all around the house.
- The snow lay deep and thick.
- A thick blanket of snow lay between the trees.
Remember that lay here is simply the Past Simple tense of lie. It has nothing to do with the transitive verb lay - lay, laid, laid, laying. Well it does etymologically, but that's another story.
Other weather phenomena like mist and water can also lie.
- In the early mornings light patches of mist often lie in the bottom of the valley.
- After the rain storm, water lay in puddles all over the road.
- A thick fog has been lying over the area all morning.
- The sun was hidden all day behind the low-lying stratus clouds.
Related posts and links
- Lie, lay, lie - confusing verbs
- Snow patrol - Chasing Cars - Why I think they got it right.
- OneStopEnglish - blog lists
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- Going To Usage And Illustrative Examples
Contents → Grammar in Dialogues → Going to Usage Another way of expressing a future action is the construction "to be going to + infinitive". It is mainly found with dynamic verbs; it is characterized by the following additional modal meanings:...
- To Be Going To + Infinitive
Contents → To Be Going to + Infinitive To Be Going To + Infinitive form for a future action I am He is She is It is We are You are They are going to do something. We often use the present form am/are/is/ going to + infinitive to talk about the future....
- Using Future Indefinite Tense Through Dialogues
Contents → Grammar in Dialogues → Using Future Indefinite This page shows different ways of using the Future Indefinite Tense (or Simple Future) through dialogues from English literature. The Future Indefinite expresses an action that will take place...
- Exploring Grammar - Verb Types
A recent discussion at GrammarGirl (link below) about the active voice talked a lot about unaccusative verbs and semantic patients in its explanation. I'm not convinced of the wisdom of using these specialist linguistic terms on a website read...
- Confusing Verbs - Lie, Lay, Lie
Two intransitive, one transitive One regular, one slightly irregular, one very irregular But which is which? Even native speakers have problems with this one. But you can master these tricky little verbs, and at the same time practise your prepositions...