本书是一本以功能为体系的语法书：每一章都围绕英语的一项主要功能，针对每一项功能列出可以使用的语法结构，然后阐述其特征及规则。

本书的编著建立在语料库的基础上，它们是国际上三个大型的语料库：COBUILD语料库、LSWE语料库、CI语料库。书中例句均取自以上三个语料库，真实、鲜活、可靠，具有杜撰句所缺乏的交际价值；此外书中提供了大量的与语法结构相关的语料库检索结果，如某一结构的语域分布和使用频率、某一结构常用的单词等，对一些语法结构的实际使用情况提供了较为准确、深入、全面的信息。

本书为教师提供了适合语法教学的交际练习活动。语法练习类型有三种：以熟悉规则为目的的形式型练习、在理解意义基础上熟悉规则的意义型练习以及运用某一结构以交际为目的进行活动的交际型练习。我国语法书提供的多是前两种练习，缺乏具有实用价值和趣味性的交际型练习，本书提供的交际练习活动旨在填补这一空缺。

本书是一本以功能为体系的语法书，编著本书的目的是力求使语法发挥其应有的作用，成为交际的手段和工具，帮助英语学习者提高交际能力。本书实用，例句真实，具体体现在：

(1)以功能为体系的语法书，有别于传统的以结构为体系的语法书：

(2)建立在语料库(COBUILD语料库、LSWE语料库、CI语料库)的基础上，所有例句均来自以上语料库，真实、鲜活、可靠，具有杜撰句所缺乏的交际价值，此外书中还提供了相关的语料库检索结果：

(3)本书为教师提供了无确定答案的交际练习活动素材，具有实用价值和趣味性。

1 Reflerring to people and things

 1.1 Identifying people and things：nouns

1.1.1 Things that can be counted：countable nouns

1.1.2 Things not usually counted：uncountable nouns

1.1.3 Referring to groups：collectiVe nouns

1.1.4 Referring to materials：material nouns

1.1.5 Referring to abstract concepts，states，qualities and events：abstract

1.1.6 Referring to people and things by name：proper nouns

1.1.7 Nouns ending in-s

1.1.8 Sharing the same quality：adjectives as headwords

1.1.9 Specifying more exactly：compound nouns

Commuicative Practice Activities

 1.2 Referring to people and things without naming them：pmnouns

1.2.1 Referring t0 people and things：personal pmnouns

1.2.2 Mentioning possession：possessive pronouns

1.2.3 Referring back to the subject：renexiVe pronouns

1.2.4 Referring to a particular person or thing：demonstmtiVe pronouns

1.2.5 Referring to people and things in a general way：inde6nite pmnouns

1.2.6 Showing that two people do the same thing：recipmcal pmnouns

1.2.7 Joining clauses together：relatiVe pronouns

1.2.8 Asking questions：interrogative pronouns

CommuicatiVe Practice ActiVities

 1.3 Identifying what you are talking about：deternliners

1.3.1 Collocations between detenlliners and nouns

1.3.2 Collocations between deteminers

1.3.3 Definite specific reference：the definite article

1.3.4 Indefinite specific reference：the indefinite anicle

1.3.5 Generic reference：the zero anicle

1.3.6 Indefinite determiners

Commuicative Practice Activities

2 Giving inflomation about people and things

 2.1 Descrbing things：adjectives

2.1.1 One—word and compound adiectives

2.1.2 Centml and peripheral adjectives

2.1.3 Dynamic and stative adjectives

2.1.4 Grable and non—gradable adjectives

2.1.5 Panicipial adjectives

2.1.6 Descriptors and classifiers

2.1.7 AdjectiVe(phrase)as modifier in noun phmses

2.1.8 Adjective phrases as complement

2.1.9 C0mparison and Comparative Constmctions

Commuicative Practice Activities

 2.2 Indicating possession or association：genitive noun

2.2.1 Formation of genitive nouns

2.2.2 Meanings of genitive nouns

2.2.3 Uses of genitive nouns

2.2.4 The independent genitive

2.2.5 The double genitive

Commuicative Practice Activities

 2.3 Modifying using nouns：premodifying nouns

2.3.1 Meaning relations expressed by noun+noun sequences

2.3.2 Noun+noun sequences acmss registers

2.3.3 Plural nouns as premodifiers

 2.4 Talking about quantities and amounts：panitives

2.4.1 General partitives

2.4.2 Partitives related to the shape of things

2.4.3 Partitive related to volume

2.4.4 Partitives related to the state of action

2.4.5 PartitiVes denoting pairs，groups，flocks，etc.

2.4.6 Partitives denoting measures

 2.5 ReflerTing to an exact nunlber of things：numerals

2.5.1 Referring to the number of things：cardinal numbers

2.5.2 Referring to things in a sequence：ordinal numbers

2.5.3 Types of numerical expressions

2.5.4 Tlalking about age

2.5.5 Approximate numbers

Commuicative Practice Activities

 2.6 Expanding the noun phrase：postmodifiers

2.6.1 Nouns with prepositional phrases

2.6.2 Nouns with adjective phrases

2.6.3 Nouns with non-finite clauses

2.6.4 Nouns with appositive noun phrases

3 Making a message

 3.1 Describing actions or states: verbs

3.1.1 Main verbs and auxiliaries

3.1.2 Transitive verbs,intransitive verbs and linking verbs

3.1.3 Dynamic verbs and stative verbs

3.1.4 Regular verbs and irregular verbs

3.1.5 Single-word verbs and phrasal verbs

Commuicative Practice Activities

 3.2 Describing and identifying things: complementation

3.2.1 Adjective phrases as subject complements

3.2.2 Noun phrases as subject complements

3.2.3 That-clauses as subject complements

3.2.4 Infinitive clauses as subject complements

3.2.5 Intransitive verbs with subject complements

3.2.6 Describing the object of a verb : object complements

 3.3 Talking about closely linked actions : using two verbs together

3.3.1 Talking about two actions done by the same person: V1 +V2

3.3.2 Talking about two actions done by different people: V1 + O + V2

3.3.3 Verbs occurring in two patterns

Commuicative Practice Activities

4 Varying the message

 4.1 Using different kinds of sentence

4.1.1 Statements

4.1.2 Questions

4.1.3 Commands

4.1.4 Exclamations

Commuicative Practice Activities

 4.2 Using negation

4.2.1 Negative statements

4.2.2 The scope of negation

4.2.3 Multiple negation

4.2.4 Negative adverbs

4.2.5 Means to emphasize a negative meaning

Commuicative Practice Activities

 4.3 Using modals

4.3.1 Special features of modals

4.3.2 Indicating ability

4.3.3 Indicating permission and prohibition

4.3.4 Indicating possibility and likelihood

4.3.5 Indicating obligation

4.3.6 Indicating volition

4.3.7 Indicating suggestions and advice

4.3.8 Other modal meanings

Commuieative Practice Activities

5 Expressing time

 5.1 The present

5.1.1 The present in general: the simple present

5.1.2 Accent on the present: the present progressive

5.1.3 Contrast between present progressive and simple present

Commuicative Practice Activities

 5.2 The past

5.2.1 Stating a definite time in the past: the simple past

5.2.2 Accent on the past : the past progressive

5.2.3 The past in relation to the present : the present perfective

5.2.4 Contrast between present perfective and simple past

5.2.5 Events before a particular time in the past : the past perfeetive

5.2.6 Contrast between past perfeetive and simple past

Commuicative Practice Activities

 5.3 The future

5.3.1 Indicating the future using "will"

5.3.2 Other ways of indicating the future

5.3.3 Ways of indicating past future

Commuicative Practice Activities

 5.4 Timing by adjuncts

5.4.1 Adjuncts of relative time

5.4.2 Adjuncts emphasizing continuation, stop, occurrence, and not happening

5.4.3 Adjuncts of specific and non-specific times

5.4.4 Adjuncts of frequency

5.4.5 Adjuncts of duration

Commuicative Practice Activities

6 Expressing manner and place

 6.1 Introduction to adverbials

6.1.1 Classes of adverbials

6.1.2 Position of adjuncts

 6.2 Giving information about manner: adverbs

6.2.1 Syntactic roles of adverbs

6.2.2 Adverbs related to adjectives

6.2.3 Comparative and superlative adverbs

6.2.4 Adverbs of manner

Commuicative Practice Activities

 6.3 Giving information about place: prepositions

6.3.1 Prepositional phrases indicating place

6.3.2 Adverbs indicating place

Commuicative Practice Activities

7 Reporting people' s words or thoughts

 7.1 Reporting statements and thoughts

7.1.1 Omission of the conjunction that

7.1.2 Reporting verbs

7.1.3 Changes in indirect speech

 7.2 Reporting questions

7.2.1 General questions

7.2.2 Special questions

 7.3 Reporting commands and exclamations

7.3.1 Indirect commands

7.3.2 Indirect exclamations

Commuicative Practice Activities

8 Combining messages

 8.1 Nominal clauses

8.1.1 That-clauses

8.1.2 Wh-clauses

 8.2 Relative clauses

8.2.1 Restrictive relative clauses

8.2.2 Non-restrictive relative clauses

8.2.3 Choice of relative words

8.2.4 Omission of relative words

8.2.5 Complex relative clauses

Commuicative Practice Activities

 8.3 Adverbial clauses

8.3.1 Semantic categories

8.3.2 Positions of adverbial clauses

8.3.3 Subordinators with multiple semantic roles

Commuicative Practice Activities

 8.4 Non-finite clauses

8.4.1 Syntactic function as adverbial

8.4.2 Subordinators and subjects with non-finite clauses

8.4.3 Positions of non-finite clauses

8.4.4 Dangling participles

Commuicative Practice Activities

 8.5 Coordination

8.5.1 Formation of coordinate constructions

8.5.2 Coordinators

Commuicative Practice Activities

9 The Structure of information

 9.1 Passive constructions

9.1.1 Types of passive construction

9.1.2 Uses of short and long passives

9.1.3 Lexical associations of the passive

Commuicative Practice Activities

 9.2 Existential Sentence

9.2.1 Introductory there

9.2.2 The predicator in the existential sentence

9.2.3 The notional subject

9.2.4 Adverbial expansions

Commuicative Practice Activities

 9.3 It-patterns

9.3.1 Empty it

9.3.2 Anticipatory it

9.3.3 It as introductory word of cleft sentences

 9.4 Inversion

9.4.1 Full inversion

9.4.2 Partial inversion

9.4.3 Inversion in subordinate clauses