Some in questions

You use "some" in questions usually when you want to ask for sth or you offer sth.

Examples:

- Can We have some menus?
- Would you lend me some money?
- Would you like some napkins?
- Can I have some water?

In negative sentences

- I don't like some kinds of music.
-  She didn't buy some shoes.

If you want to confirm and by the way you know the answer or you think you know.

- Do you have some money?
- Did you bring some paper and pen?
- Do you have some money I can borrow?
- Can I have some?
- Would you like some salad?

"in or at" a meeting

It depends on context.

For example, if you are in the meeting space and are participating in the meeting, we use "in."

In certain situations, you might use "at," but that indicates that perhaps the meeting is on break and you are outside of the actual meeting space.

For example, let's say that I attend a conference for Wizard professionals and I call my sister.

I might tell him: Hey darling, I'm at the conference.This means that I am at the venue where the conference is taking place. I am not, at this moment, actively participating in the conference.

Lets further say that while attending the conference, I meet with several other Wizard professionals. During this meeting, my sister calls me on my cell phone. I might answer it* and say: I can't talk right now. I'm in a meeting. In other words, I am actively participating in the proceedings.

You also can say "at" a meeting if you want to emphasize that you are, for example, out of the city attending a meeting.

Preposições - até

 Until: She worked until 10am.
 Up to: She walked up to the house.
 Even: She called even the beggars to the party.
 By: She will finish the report by 10pm. (deadline)

Expect to (do something)

To "expect" something is to think that it will happen. In the example above, "don't expect to get a high-paying job" means "don't think that you will get a high-paying job; realize that you might get a low-paying job"

When you use the phrase "expect to ___", the subject is both the person who's expecting, and the person who is doing the expected action. Take a look at this example:

I didn't expect to get a job offer so quickly.

In this sentence, the speaker ("I") is the person who didn't "expect" something, and also the person who got the job offer.

If the person who's expecting and the person who's doing the action are different, you use the structure "expect (someone) to (do something)":

I didn't expect him to get a job offer so quickly.


This phrase appears in these lessons:

“Don't expect to get a high-paying job right out of school.”

Wait for - Why?

The wait pattern uses a FOR...TO... clause. The subject comes after FOR. The verb comes after TO.

I waited for him to finish. = I waited for this: He finishes.
After the verb wait, the clause he finishes becomes for him to finish.

These can also show the purpose of the action. That is, the clause often answers the question Why?

I stepped aside for them to go by. = I stepped aside for this: They go by.
Why did I step aside? So that they could go by. = For them to go by.

The teacher gestured for the boys and girls to come in.
= The teacher gestured for this: The boys and girls come in.
Why did he gesture? So that the boys and girls would come in. = For the boys and girls to come in.

The FOR...TO... clause is much more common after adjectives:

He was eager for us to meet his brother.
It is important for the students to study hard.
It was not possible for people to buy tickets before noon.
__________

In the buy pattern there is no clause transformed into a FOR...TO... structure. FOR simply indicates the person who benefits from the action. In a way, it shows the purpose of the action by showing who is going to benefit from the action. A FOR phrase can be used after any action when you wish to mention the person who receives some benefit or advantage or favor because of the action.

I bought it for her. She got it for me. She wrote down the address for her sister. We cooked dinner for them. Joseph painted the kitchen for his wife. Susan saved a piece of cake for me. My brother kept the money in a safe place for us. My cousin will watch the children for me. We should hide the money for them. I cleaned the table for her. I can do a favor for her mother.

Other patterns, such as the pattern with give, simply indicate the direction of the action with a TO phrase. Here TO is followed by a noun, not a verb as shown for the FOR...TO... clauses (above). There is no sense of doing a favor for someone, as in the FOR phrases (above).

I gave the shirt to him. I showed the answer to Mary. He sent the money to the vendor. Gary mentioned the book to a friend. Sue made a promise to her mother.

 

To be "in or on" a phone call / conference call

The two are used interchangeably as to be in or on a call is a fairly new expression, with some very slight contextual differences.

"In" is more often used to describe whether someone has successfully connected (especially in conference calling): "Are you in yet?". However, it is sometimes used more generally "I'm sorry, he is in a call" because it sounds similar to "in a meeting". You wouldn't ask someone having technical problems "are you on yet?" though. (This is a bit confusing, because we talk about logging on, but once someone has logged on, they are usually described as "in".)

"On" is more often used to describe someone who is in the process of taking part in a call more generally. "Will you be on that call this afternoon?". But you could equally say "in" here.

Hope It helps!
Fabricio

Causative Verbs for the Toeic Test

Causative Verbs


Jack had his house painted.
This sentence is similar in meaning to: Someone painted Jack's house. OR Jack's house was painted by someone. Causative verbs express the idea of someone causing something to take place. Causative verbs can be similar in meaning to passive verbs.

Examples:
My hair was cut. (passive)
I had my hair cut. (causative)
Both 'make' and 'have' can be used as causative verbs.

Make
'Make' as a causative verb expresses the idea that the person requires another person to do something.
Construction Chart
Subject + Make + Person + Base Form of Verb

Examples:
Peter made her do her homework.
The teacher made the students stay after class.

Have
'Have' as a causative verb expresses the idea that the person wants something to be done for them. This causative verb is often used when speaking about various services. There are two forms of the causative verb 'have'.
Construction Chart: Use 1
Subject + Have + Person + Base Form of Verb

Examples:
They had John arrive early.
She had her children cook dinner for her.
Construction Chart: Use 2 Subject + Have + Object + Past Participle

Examples:
I had my hair cut last Saturday.
She had the car washed at the weekend.
Note: This form is similar in meaning to the passive.

The causative verb 'have' expresses the idea that the person causing the event chooses to do so. This causative verb is often used when speaking about various services. There are two forms of the causative verb 'have'

Example Sentences
I had my car washed last weekend.
They had the documents reviewed by a number of lawyers.

Causative form
Quando queremos dizer que mandamos alguém fazer algo, ou seja, alguém faz algo por nós, usamos o que é chamado de causative form. Veja alguns exemplos em português:
Mandei pintar meu quarto.
Você já mandou lavar seu carro?
O prefeito mandou construir uma nova escola.

O verbo mandar nesses casos não tem o significado de “ordenar”, nem de “enviar”. Usamos o verbo to have e o particiípio passado do verbo para fazer tal estrutura. Veja como ficam os exemplos acima.

I had my bedroom painted.
Have you had your car washed yet?
The mayor had a new school built.

A estrutura é sujeito + have + objeto + verbo no particípio passado. Mais alguns exemplos:
She’s having a new dress made for the party. – Ela vai mandar fazer um vestido novo para a festa.
Your watch was broken. Did you have it repaired? – Seu relógio estava quebrado. Você mandou consertar?

Do you usually have your shoes shined? – Você geralmente manda engraxar seus sapatos?

Todas as frases acima também podem ser usadas com o verbo to GET
I got my bedroom painted.
Have you gotten your car washed yet?
The mayor got a new school built.
She’s getting a new dress made for the party.
Your watch was broken. Did you get it repaired?
Do you usually get your shoes shined?

Quando mencionamos a quem mandamos fazer algo, temos duas possibilidades.
1. Usamos o verbo to tell + infinitivo com to.
I told the mechanic to fix my car. – Mandei o mecânico consertar meu carro.
Tell your secretary to type the letter. – Mande sua secretária digitar a carta.


2. Também usamos os verbos have e get. Quando usamos o verbo have, não acrescentamos o infinitivo com to. Quando usamos o get, usamos o infinitivo com to. Alguns exemplos:
I’ll have the secretary type the letters. – Mandarei a secretária digitar as cartas.
I’ll get the secretary to type the letters. – Mandarei a secretária digitar as cartas.


I had the secretary type the letters. – Mandei a secretária digitar as cartas.
I got the secretary to type the letters. – Mandei a secretária digitar as cartas.

A expressão get somebody to do something também é usada quando convencemos alguém a fazer algo.
She got him to do her homework for her. – Ela fez com que ele fizesse a tarefa para ela.
Form
Have + object + verb 3 (past participle) - have something done
Have + object + infinitive -- have someone do something

Meaning
We use causative when arranging for someone to do something for us.
They had their car repaired. (They arranged for someone to repair it)
Compare: They repaired their car. (They did it themselves)
I had my hair cut yesterday. (I went to the hairdresser)
Compare: I cut my hair yesterday. (I cut it myself)
We use causative when someone does something to us.
Bill had his money stolen.

We can use have someone do something to talk about giving instructions or orders (more common in American English).
I had my assistant type the report.
I'll have my lawyer look into it.

Additional points
Get is possible instead of have, usually in informal spoken English.
I'm going to get my car fixed tomorrow.

Let / Make / Have / Get
The following is a mini-tutorial on the use of the causative verbs "let," "make," "have," and "get." After you have studied the tutorial, complete the associated exercises. If you already know how to use these verbs, you can skip the explanation and go directly to the exercises.

Let
[let + person + verb]
This construction means "to allow someone to do something."
Examples:
John let me drive his new car.
Will your parents let you go to the party?
I don't know if my boss will let me take the day off.

Make
[make + person + verb]
This construction means "to force someone to do something."
Examples:
My teacher made me apologize for what I had said.
Did somebody make you wear that ugly hat?
She made her children do their homework.

Have
[have + person + verb]
This construction means "to give someone the responsibility to do something."
Examples:
Dr. Smith had his nurse take the patient's temperature.
Please have your secretary fax me the information.
I had the mechanic check the brakes.

Get
[get + person + to + verb]
This construction usually means "to convince to do something" or "to trick someone into doing something."
Examples:
Susie got her son to take the medicine even though it tasted terrible.
How can parents get their children to read more?
The government TV commercials are trying to get people to stop smoking.

Get vs. Have
Sometimes "get someone to do something" is interchangeable with "have someone do something," but these expressions do not mean exactly the same thing.
Examples:
I got the mechanic to check my brakes.
At first the mechanic didn't think it was necessary, but I convinced him to check the brakes.
I had the mechanic check my brakes.
I asked the mechanic to check the brakes.

Regards, 

Fabricio Santos