Most Common English Words (no. 11)
From today until Saturday I will continue writing about the most common words in English. I have finished the top ten most common words in the previous posts, so this post is about the eleventh most common word, “it“.
“It” is a pronoun and there are basically three ways to use it. First, “it” is used to take the place of a thing or animal (or even a person) being talked about and has already been mentioned.
- I can’t find my pen. Do you know where it is?
- Someone is knocking on the door. Can you see who it is?
Next, it is used as an anticipatory subject, meaning that it represents a verb clause that will be mentioned later in the sentence.
- It is fun to play the piano. (It = “to play the piano”, which is a verb clause)
- It is important for you to study.
Finally, “it” is used to talk about the time, date, and weather.
- It is time to start.
- It’s spring so it’s getting warmer.
- It was sunny all day today.
I’ll continue the list with the twelfth word tomorrow.