Preface

Practice Makes Perfect: Advanced English Grammar for ESL Learners is designed to help advanced-level learners gain control over difficult areas of English grammar. This book is not a  systematic treatment of all areas of English grammar. Instead, it deals in depth with selected grammar topics that pose special problems for nonnative speakers. These topics fall into two areas:  (1) areas of grammar that are the source of persistent error and (2) areas of grammar that are so complex that even advanced nonnative speakers almost always avoid them.
Examples of the first type of persistent error would be using wrong articles, misusing the present and present progressive tenses, confusing present and past participles of verbs used as  adjectives, and using the wrong relative pronoun in adjective clauses.
Examples of the second type of constructions that are avoided because of their complexity would be gerunds and infinitives used as nouns,participial phrases, and wh- infinitive phrases. 
Each topic is explained in detail, often going far beyond what would be found in a more general grammar book. My hope is that by fully understanding the technical grammatical issues involved,  you will feel much more confident in using these difficult constructions. Each bit of grammatical analysis is supported by a series of practice exercises that will help you gain practical control over  the issues covered in the analysis.
New to this second edition, each of the three parts of the book begins with a set of diagnostic exercises. These exercises cover the main topics in each chapter, with answers to all questions given  at the end of the exercises.
Use any wrong answers to identify topics that you need to pay special attention to.