Try as I may I still confuse, as with has and to with too. I understand the basic use of these words 1 Jill has a new doll. correct -possession 2 as I was saying... ? I think this is correct 3 Debbie as/has phoned... this is were I get really confused 1. It is too big. correct 2 Jack along came too. correct - also 3 I walked to the shop correct- went 'to' something 4 Claire had resigned herself to/too the fact that... ? I'm unsure which word to use here. in spite of all the English books I have read on this subject, I still cannot get my head around it. I am begining to think the old adage 'You can't teach an old dog new tricks' my be true. Someone out there please prove this old saying wrong. Maybe one of you know of a little ditty that will get it into my head once and for all. Thank you Trilby
This is the present perfect tense, where the auxilliary verb is have or has: I have phoned. You have phoned. He has phoned. We have phoned. They have phoned. Too is an adverb, meaning excessively, that modifies an adjective or another adverb. It is not used with that meaning to modify verbs. When used to modify a verb, too means also, and most often follows the verb. To is (almost always) a preposition. For all four of these words (and others, for that matter), you should consult the dictionary when in doubt. These are words with multiple meanings and uses, so it is easy to get confused. For example. the word to has 22 definitions as a preposition in te dictionary I just consulted, and three more uncommon uses as an adverb. There's no shame in looking it up.
Thanks Cogito for your help. I'm sure that I will refere back to your answers a number of times until I get it into my head. Trilby
here's a good quick-check grammar site you should keep in your favorites, to save time and trouble: http://andromeda.rutgers.edu/~jlynch/Writing/index.html