Aptis for Teens key terms

A verb tense used for habits, routines, facts and things that are generally true, such as "she walks to school every day". It often appears with time words like always, usually or never.

A verb tense made with am/is/are plus an -ing verb, used for actions happening now or around now, such as "they are playing football". It can also describe fixed future plans.

A verb tense used for finished actions at a known time in the past, such as "we visited the museum yesterday". Regular verbs add -ed; irregular verbs change form.

The form of an adjective or adverb used to compare two things, usually made by adding -er or using "more", as in "taller" or "more interesting". It is often followed by "than".

The form of an adjective or adverb used to compare three or more things and show the most or least, usually made with -est or "most", as in "the tallest" or "the most popular".

A verb whose past forms do not follow the normal -ed pattern, such as go/went/gone or see/saw/seen. These forms must be learned and remembered individually.

A helping verb such as can, must, should or might that adds meaning like ability, obligation or possibility. It is followed by a base verb and does not add -s in the third person.

A helping verb used with a main verb to form questions, negatives or tenses, such as be, do and have. For example, "do" appears in "Do you like music?"

A small word placed before a noun: "a" or "an" for one non-specific thing, and "the" for something specific or already mentioned. Articles can be definite or indefinite.

A short word such as in, on, at, under or between that shows place, time or direction, or links a noun to another word. For example, "the book is on the table".

A preposition such as at, on or in used to say when something happens. We usually say "at 7 o'clock", "on Monday" and "in July".

A noun that can be counted and has a singular and plural form, such as "one book, two books". It can be used with numbers and with "a" or "an".

A noun that cannot usually be counted and has no plural form, such as water, information or advice. It is not used with "a" or "an" or with numbers.

A word or phrase that shows how much or how many, such as some, any, much, many, a lot of or a few. The choice often depends on whether the noun is countable.

A word like always, often, sometimes or never that says how often something happens. It usually goes before the main verb but after the verb "be".

A word that describes a verb, an adjective or another adverb, often telling how, when or where. Many adverbs are made by adding -ly to an adjective, such as "quickly".

A word that describes a noun or pronoun, giving more information about it, such as "a happy child" or "a red car". Adjectives can be compared using -er and -est forms.

A word used instead of a noun, such as I, you, he, she, it, they or mine. Pronouns help avoid repeating the same noun again and again in a sentence.

A word such as and, but, because or although that joins words, phrases or clauses together. It helps show how ideas in a sentence are connected.

The word order used to ask a question, usually with a helping verb before the subject, as in "Are you ready?" or "Where does she live?". It differs from normal statement order.

The arrangement of words in a sentence. In English statements the usual pattern is subject, then verb, then object, as in "The boy kicked the ball".

A group of words that contains a subject and a verb and forms part of a sentence. A main clause can stand alone, while a subordinate clause depends on it.

A pair or group of words that commonly go together in natural English, such as "make a decision" or "heavy rain". Knowing these combinations helps speech sound natural.

A word that has the same or a very similar meaning to another word, such as "big" and "large". Recognising synonyms helps you match ideas when reading.

A word that means the opposite of another word, such as "hot" and "cold" or "early" and "late". Antonyms are often used as clues in vocabulary tasks.

A reading skill where you look quickly through a text to find one specific detail, such as a date, a name or a number, without reading every word carefully.

A reading skill where you read quickly to get the general idea of a text without focusing on details. You might read headings, first sentences and key words.

The most important point that a paragraph or text is about. It is often stated in a topic sentence, and the other sentences give supporting details.

A sentence, usually near the start of a paragraph, that states the main idea. The rest of the paragraph then explains or supports it with examples and details.

A word or phrase around an unknown word that helps you guess its meaning. For example, a definition or an example nearby can show what a new word means.

A conclusion you reach by using evidence in a text plus your own reasoning, even though the text does not state it directly. It means reading between the lines.

To express the same meaning using different words, often to show you understand a text. Questions may ask which option restates a sentence in another way.

A short title placed above a section of text that tells the reader what that part is about. Headings help you predict content and find information quickly.

A group of sentences about one topic, usually starting on a new line. It normally contains a topic sentence and several supporting sentences that develop the idea.

Listening for the general meaning or main point of what is said, without trying to catch every word. It helps you answer questions about what a conversation is mainly about.

Listening in order to catch specific information such as times, prices, names or places. You focus on the parts of the recording that contain the answer.

An answer option or piece of information that seems correct but is not the right answer. Recordings often mention these words to test whether you listen carefully.

A word or phrase that guides the listener through what is being said, such as "first", "however" or "finally". These words show how ideas connect or change direction.

A word or phrase that links ideas and shows their relationship, such as "because", "so" or "on the other hand". Connectors help you follow the structure of a talk.

Writing short key words or phrases while listening so you remember important information. Good notes are brief and focus on the answers you will need later.