Always: How and When to Use in English
Quick and simple lesson to help you understand grammar better.
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Always
Always means 'forever', 'constantly', 'all the time':
Icarus is always punctual. Icarus is punctual all the time.
It's always hot in August. Every August, the weather is hot.
Sometimes, always is placed before the verb or the auxiliary verb to give the sentence more emphasis:
You always know just the right thing to say. You say the right thing all the time, you're good with words.
Note the difference between always and still:
Horatio always smokes his pipe in the lab. Horatio regularly, constantly smokes his pipe in the lab.
Horatio still smokes his pipe in the lab. Horatio continues to smoke his pipe in the lab (even though he's not supposed to).
Horatio still smokes his pipe in the lab. Horatio continues to smoke his pipe in the lab (even though he's not supposed to).
Always should not be confused with ever and never:
Do you ever go to the theater? Do you go to the theater at all, once in a while, sometimes?
- Sure, I always go to the theater.
- Sure, I always go to the theater.
Exercise 1
Use the following words to fill in the blanks in the text. Be careful! Some words may be used more than once.
still | yet | always
You have to take out the trash. Do it now!
The film begins in 10 minutes, we have some time to get to the theater!
Kevin has been known to disappear when the check arrives for dinner.
Luna has believed in spirits.
'Hey, Susie, have you been to the dentist ?'
Bob Carter has to send an email to technical support tonight.
Kevin hasn't earned enough money to buy a second Porsche.
still | yet | always
You have to take out the trash. Do it now!
The film begins in 10 minutes, we have some time to get to the theater!
Kevin has been known to disappear when the check arrives for dinner.
Luna has believed in spirits.
'Hey, Susie, have you been to the dentist ?'
Bob Carter has to send an email to technical support tonight.
Kevin hasn't earned enough money to buy a second Porsche.
Use the following words to fill in the blanks in the text. Be careful! Some words may be used more than once.
still | yet | always
You have yet 1 to take out the trash. Do it now!
The film begins in 10 minutes, we still 2 have some time to get to the theater!
Kevin has always 3 been known to disappear when the check arrives for dinner.
Luna has always 4 believed in spirits.
'Hey, Susie, have you been to the dentist yet 5?'
Bob Carter still 6 has to send an email to technical support tonight.
Kevin hasn't yet 7 earned enough money to buy a second Porsche.
still | yet | always
You have yet 1 to take out the trash. Do it now!
The film begins in 10 minutes, we still 2 have some time to get to the theater!
Kevin has always 3 been known to disappear when the check arrives for dinner.
Luna has always 4 believed in spirits.
'Hey, Susie, have you been to the dentist yet 5?'
Bob Carter still 6 has to send an email to technical support tonight.
Kevin hasn't yet 7 earned enough money to buy a second Porsche.
1 yet: In this sentence, 'yet' describes an action which has not yet been completed. Note that in spoken English, it is more common to say 'You still haven't taken out the trash', or 'You haven't taken out the trash yet'. 'To take out the trash' is to physically remove a garbage can from a home or office and bring it outside.
2 still: In this sentence, the speaker is saying that there is some time remaining, so it continues to be possible for them to get the movie theater in time to see the movie. A similar example: "We still have a few years to enjoy our youth before becoming parents".
3 always: 'Always' describes a habitual or repeating action or state. In this sentence, it tells us that Kevin is known to regularly avoid the bill, presumably because he doesn't like paying for things. The bill at a restaurant is the note indicating how much the meal cost. Note that 'always' (and other such adverbs) can split the auxiliary/verb combination: has always been known.
4 always: 'Always' describes a regular, habitual or repeating action or state. It is the only choice which fits in this sentence and expresses that from the beginning (since she was a little girl, for example), Luna has believed in spirits.
5 yet: We use 'yet' in questions to ask whether something expected has occurred. Here the speaker is asking whether or not Susie has gone to see her dentist, and we can assume that she was supposed to do this.
6 still: In affirmative constructions such as this one 'still' is used to describe an uncompleted action, or an action which remains to be finished. Here, this sentence indicates that Bob hasn't yet written an email, which he must do at some point this evening.
7 yet: In a construction like this one, 'yet' describes an action which is expected to be finished, but is not. Here, the sentence tells us that Kevin doesn't have enough money to buy a second car, however he plans on one day having enough money to do this.
Exercise 2
Bob: Hi, Polly.
Polly: Must you be so annoying?
Bob: I only said 'hello'.
Polly: I know. I'm sorry. It's just that I'm upset about this weekend. I broke up with my boyfriend and my dog ran away.
Polly: Must you be so annoying?
Bob: I only said 'hello'.
Polly: I know. I'm sorry. It's just that I'm upset about this weekend. I broke up with my boyfriend and my dog ran away.
Bob: Hi, Polly.
Polly: Must you always 1 be so annoying?
Bob: I only said 'hello'.
Polly: I know. I'm sorry. It's just that I'm still 2 upset about this weekend. I broke up with my boyfriend and my dog ran away.
Polly: Must you always 1 be so annoying?
Bob: I only said 'hello'.
Polly: I know. I'm sorry. It's just that I'm still 2 upset about this weekend. I broke up with my boyfriend and my dog ran away.
1 always: Polly says 'always' meaning that Bob is annoying every time she sees him. The term 'always' is used to describe a continual or perpetual action.
1 ever: We cannot use 'ever' here because it does not express a continuous time, which the sentence requires. 'Ever' is usually used to express the opposite, or the negative equivalent, of 'always'.
2 still: We use 'still' here to show that Polly was upset during the weekend, and continues to be upset at the present time. An 'upset' person feels angry, sad, annoyed or frustrated.
2 always: 'Always' does not make sense here. 'Always' is rarely used to describe actions in the past tense, although there are exceptions to this general rule.
Exercise 3
Use the following words to fill in the blanks in the text. Be careful! Some words may be used more than once, or not at all.
still | yet | always
Paola: Icarus, have you seen the new Mealworm film ?
Icarus: No, I haven't. I'm a little upset from the last Mealworm film I saw.
Paola: I understand. His films can be quite emotional.
Icarus: No, no. It wasn't the movie. I just ate too much popcorn.
Paola: And you don't feel well?
Icarus: To be honest, I've had digestive problems, ever since I was a little boy.
Paola: That's fascinating. Oh, look at the time. I should get going. Bye!
still | yet | always
Paola: Icarus, have you seen the new Mealworm film ?
Icarus: No, I haven't. I'm a little upset from the last Mealworm film I saw.
Paola: I understand. His films can be quite emotional.
Icarus: No, no. It wasn't the movie. I just ate too much popcorn.
Paola: And you don't feel well?
Icarus: To be honest, I've had digestive problems, ever since I was a little boy.
Paola: That's fascinating. Oh, look at the time. I should get going. Bye!
Use the following words to fill in the blanks in the text. Be careful! Some words may be used more than once, or not at all.
still | yet | always
Paola: Icarus, have you seen the new Mealworm film yet 1?
Icarus: No, I haven't. I'm still 2 a little upset from the last Mealworm film I saw.
Paola: I understand. His films can be quite emotional.
Icarus: No, no. It wasn't the movie. I just ate too much popcorn.
Paola: And you still 3 don't feel well?
Icarus: To be honest, I've always 4 had digestive problems, ever since I was a little boy.
Paola: That's fascinating. Oh, look at the time. I should get going. Bye!
still | yet | always
Paola: Icarus, have you seen the new Mealworm film yet 1?
Icarus: No, I haven't. I'm still 2 a little upset from the last Mealworm film I saw.
Paola: I understand. His films can be quite emotional.
Icarus: No, no. It wasn't the movie. I just ate too much popcorn.
Paola: And you still 3 don't feel well?
Icarus: To be honest, I've always 4 had digestive problems, ever since I was a little boy.
Paola: That's fascinating. Oh, look at the time. I should get going. Bye!
1 yet: We use 'yet' in questions to ask whether something expected has occurred. Paola is asking if Icarus has 'already' seen the film (directed by Mealworm).
2 still: 'Still' is used here to indicate that Icarus was 'upset' when he had seen the film before, and remains 'upset' at the moment he is speaking. The term 'still' is often used to describe a state or action which began in the past and continues into the present. An 'upset' person is irritated or agitated.
3 still: 'Still' expresses the fact that Icarus was 'upset' when he had seen the film before, and remains 'upset' at the moment he is speaking.
4 always: 'Always' is used to express a continuity in time, or repeated or regular actions. Icarus is telling Paola that he has had digestive problems as long as he can remember.
Exercise 4
Use the following words to fill in the blanks in the text. Be careful! Some words may be used more than once.
always | ever | still
Once, while he was living in the jungles of the Amazon, Horatio went for a walk. Horatio went for walks on Sunday evenings. On this night, Horatio met a baby anaconda. It was, by far, the smallest snake Horatio had seen. The anaconda seemed very kind, and Horatio had been fond of anacondas, so he took it home with him, and raised the snake as his own child. Sometimes, Horatio thinks about his pet anaconda, Slimy, and cries because he misses him so much. Then he drinks some whiskey, and he feels better.
always | ever | still
Once, while he was living in the jungles of the Amazon, Horatio went for a walk. Horatio went for walks on Sunday evenings. On this night, Horatio met a baby anaconda. It was, by far, the smallest snake Horatio had seen. The anaconda seemed very kind, and Horatio had been fond of anacondas, so he took it home with him, and raised the snake as his own child. Sometimes, Horatio thinks about his pet anaconda, Slimy, and cries because he misses him so much. Then he drinks some whiskey, and he feels better.
Use the following words to fill in the blanks in the text. Be careful! Some words may be used more than once.
always | ever | still
Once, while he was still 1 living in the jungles of the Amazon, Horatio went for a walk. Horatio always 2 went for walks on Sunday evenings. On this night, Horatio met a baby anaconda. It was, by far, the smallest snake Horatio had ever 3 seen. The anaconda seemed very kind, and Horatio had always 4 been fond of anacondas, so he took it home with him, and raised the snake as his own child. Sometimes, Horatio still 5 thinks about his pet anaconda, Slimy, and cries because he misses him so much. Then he drinks some whiskey, and he feels better.
always | ever | still
Once, while he was still 1 living in the jungles of the Amazon, Horatio went for a walk. Horatio always 2 went for walks on Sunday evenings. On this night, Horatio met a baby anaconda. It was, by far, the smallest snake Horatio had ever 3 seen. The anaconda seemed very kind, and Horatio had always 4 been fond of anacondas, so he took it home with him, and raised the snake as his own child. Sometimes, Horatio still 5 thinks about his pet anaconda, Slimy, and cries because he misses him so much. Then he drinks some whiskey, and he feels better.
1 still: We use 'still' here to indicate that the following actions take place in the period of time (in the past) when Horatio was living in the jungle. We can infer from this construction that Horatio 'no longer' lives in the jungle or that he now lives in a different place.
2 always: We use 'always' here to express that Horatio habitually goes for walks on Sunday evenings. Even though this action takes place in the past, the use of 'always' is appropriate here to express the regularity of Horatio's walks.
3 ever: 'Ever' is the correct choice. It expresses that Horatio had 'never' seen a snake as small as the anaconda he found in the jungle. When a sentence contains a superlative like 'smallest' and refers to an entire lifetime, or to the entirety of a person's experience, we use 'ever'. Another example: 'This is the best risotto I have ever eaten!'.
4 always: 'Always' is the best choice here. We use it to express that Horatio has been 'fond of' anacondas for a very long time, perhaps 'forever'. 'To be fond of (anacondas)' is to like them or appreciate them. An anaconda is a large snake native to the Amazon.
5 still: 'Still' is the only choice which fits in this sentence. 'Still' here expresses that Horatio 'continues' to think about his pet Anaconda, although he no longer sees him.
Exercise 5
Bob: I've been a fan of Microtosh products.
Susie: Are you crazy? They have a monopoly on the software industry, they control 90% of the operating systems in the world, and their CEO is an egocentric jerk, and you like them?
Bob: I like the noise my computer makes when I turn it on.
Susie: Are you crazy? They have a monopoly on the software industry, they control 90% of the operating systems in the world, and their CEO is an egocentric jerk, and you like them?
Bob: I like the noise my computer makes when I turn it on.
Bob: I've always 1 been a fan of Microtosh products.
Susie: Are you crazy? They have a monopoly on the software industry, they control 90% of the operating systems in the world, and their CEO is an egocentric jerk, and you still 2 like them?
Bob: I like the noise my computer makes when I turn it on.
Susie: Are you crazy? They have a monopoly on the software industry, they control 90% of the operating systems in the world, and their CEO is an egocentric jerk, and you still 2 like them?
Bob: I like the noise my computer makes when I turn it on.
1 always: We use 'always' in this construction to express that Bob has been appreciative of Microtosh products for some time. The term 'always' is used to describe a continual or perpetual action.
1 still: We cannot use 'still' in this particular construction to express that Bob has been a fan of Microtosh products for a long time. We usually use 'still' to express an action which has continued from the past to the present. However we might say 'Bob is still a fan of Microtosh products' to express a similar idea.
1 yet: We cannot use 'yet' in this construction to express that Bob has been a fan of Microtosh products for a long time. It is grammatically incorrect.
2 still: 'Still' is the best choice here. It expresses Susie's surprise that Bob likes Microtosh products even though Microtosh has a monopoly on the software market etcetera.
2 always: We cannot use 'always' here. As an adverb of frequency, we cannot use 'always' in English to express a continuous action in this type of contraction.
2 yet: We cannot use 'yet' here to express Susie's surprise that Bob continues to admire Microtosh products despite the negative points about the company. However, Susie might say 'They have a monopoly on the software industry, they control 90% of the operating systems in the world, and their CEO is an egocentric jerk, and yet you like them?' to express a similar idea.
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