Grammar for Making New Year’s Resolutions

 

The New Year can come on different dates for different cultures. Most of the Western world, for example, celebrates it on January 1. This year, the Lunar New Year takes place on January 25. The Persian New Year, Nowruz, falls on March 20. And the Islamic New Year is August 19.

But one thing many cultures have in common is the idea of New Year's resolutions. A New Year's resolution is a personal goal to change unwanted behavior, make a life improvement¹ or try something new.

Popular New Year's resolutions in the United States, for example, include losing weight, improving your finances², volunteering for a charity and spending less time on social media.

On today's Everyday Grammar, we will show you how to talk about resolutions in English.

Asking a question

First, let's learn how to ask people about their resolutions.

Listen to a short conversation:

Hey there, Jill. Happy New Year! Great to see you.

Hi, Jonathan. Happy New Year to you too! How was yours?

It was crazy! We went to New York and watched the ball drop in Times Square. Really crowded and loud – but still really fun.

Sweet! Do you have any New Year's resolutions?

Jill asked Jonathan about resolutions simply by saying, "Do you have any New Year's resolutions?"

You can also say, "What are your New Year's resolutions?" to ask about more than one or "What is your New Year's resolution?" to ask about one.

Now, let's find out how to answer the question.

Using phrasal verbs

When we make statements about our resolutions, we often use phrasal verbs.

We can use the phrasal verb "take up" to say that we will start a new activity as a hobby.

Listen to Jill and Jonathan continue their conversation:

Sweet! Do you have any New Year's resolutions?

Yes, I do. I plan to take up kickboxing starting next week. I'm excited to finally do it rather than just talk about it! How about you?

Another phrasal verb for resolutions is "give up," which is to stop doing or using something. We can use this verb to talk about ending bad habits or changing a behavior for a time.

Let's hear Jill respond using the verb "give up":

How about you?

I am giving up sugar for the month of January. Then, for the rest of the year, I'm avoiding soft drinks.

Impressive³! I wish I could join you but kickboxing class starts soon. I'll probably want a sweet snack after class!

Another phrasal verb, "cut out," has the same basic meaning as "give up." For example, Jill could say, "I am cutting out sugar for the month of January."

But in many situations, we do not need phrasal verbs to talk about resolutions, as you will soon see.

Using future forms

Next, let's talk about verb tenses and forms. Jonathan talked about his new kickboxing hobby using the verb "plan" followed by the infinitive⁴ verb form and Jill talked about giving up sugar using the present continuous⁵ verb tense, also called "BE + ing."

We can also use the simple future tenses: one with "will" and the other with "going to." These tenses are especially useful when the New Year has not come yet.

Imagine it's the last week of the year and a few people are talking to each other about resolutions: Here are some things you might hear:

In 2020, I'm going to visit my parents every month.

By January 1, I will end a few unhealthy friendships.

In the new year, I'm going to walk 10,000 steps every day.

When we use simple future tenses to talk about resolutions, we're expressing that we are making a promise to or plan for ourselves. The noun⁶ "resolution" comes from the verb "resolve," which means to make a serious decision to do something.

Infinitives⁷ and gerunds

You may have noticed that the statements so far today did not actually use the word "resolution." That is because the subject was already known by the listeners. But it is still perfectly⁸ normal to start your statements with, "My New Year's resolution is..." or "My New Year's resolutions are..." An infinitive verb or a gerund must come after these phrases. Here is an example:

My New Year's resolution is to call my sister on video chat every week.

The infinitive verb here is "to call."

You can also use a gerund, like this:

My New Year's resolution is calling my sister on video chat every week.

Well, that's all for today's program. Tell us about your New Year's resolutions in the comments below.

Happy New Year!

Words in This Story

charity – n. an organization that helps people who are poor, sick, or otherwise in need

conversation – n. an informal talk involving two people or a small group of people

phrasal verb – n. a group of words that functions as a verb and is made up of a verb and a preposition⁹ or an adverb, or both

hobby – n. an activity that a person does for pleasure when not working

habit – n. something that a person does often in a regular and repeated way

impressive – adj. deserving¹⁰ attention, admiration¹¹, or respect

tense – n. a form of a verb that is used to show when an action happened

chat – n. a talk held over the internet by people using a computer or phone

1 improvement   

n.改进，增进；改进之处，改善的地方

参考例句：

• The doctor noticed a gradual improvement in his patient.医生注意到病人在逐渐恢复健康。
• I can detect signs of improvement in your thinking.我可以察觉出你思考问题方面的进步。

2 finances   

n.(pl.)财源，资产

参考例句：

• I need a professional to sort out my finances. 我需要专业人士为我管理财务。
• The company's finances are looking a bIt'shaky. 这个公司的财政情况看来有点不稳定。

3 impressive   

adj.给人深刻印象的，感人的

参考例句：

• This cinema is so impressive that we can't help crying.这影片如此感人以至我们禁不住流下泪来。
• The suit made him look especially impressive.他穿上这套衣服真精神。

4 infinitive   

n.不定词；adj.不定词的

参考例句：

• The use of the split infinitive is now generally acceptable.分裂不定式的用法现在已被广泛接受。
• Modal verbs generally take the bare infinitive.情态动词通常用不带to的不定式。

5 continuous   

adj.继续的，连续的，持续的，延伸的

参考例句：

• She finally got in after 10 years'continuous effort.坚持不懈地努力了十年后，她终于当选了。
• We must be continuous to study.我们必须不断学习。

6 noun   

n.名词

参考例句：

• What kind of noun is this?这是哪类名词？
• This word is a collective noun.这个词是个集体名词。

7 infinitives   

n.（动词）不定式( infinitive的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Her litmus test for good breeding is whether you split infinitives. 她测试别人是否具有良好教养的标准是看对方是否在不定式的动词前加修饰副词。 来自互联网
• Nouns, adjectives and infinitives can be used as objective complements. 名词，形容词及不定式可用作补语。 来自互联网

8 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

9 preposition   

n.介词

参考例句：

• You should cancel this preposition in the sentence.你应该删去句子中的这个介词。
• We use different preposition to talk about time,days,months and seasons.我们用不动的介词来谈论时间，日，月和季节等。

10 deserving   

adj.值得的；应得的；有功的；值得帮助的v.应得；值得；应得报酬；应得赔偿

参考例句：

• to give money to a deserving cause 把钱捐给值得赞助的事业
• All the causes seem equally deserving. 看来所有的这些事业都同样值得投身。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 admiration   

n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕

参考例句：

• He was lost in admiration of the beauty of the scene.他对风景之美赞不绝口。
• We have a great admiration for the gold medalists.我们对金牌获得者极为敬佩。