Book excerpt: This new edition of the Collins COBUILD English Grammar provides teachers and advanced learners with a detailed and thorough analysis of modern English grammar. Based on the evidence of the Bank of English corpus, part of the 2.5 billion-word Collins Word Web, it is an invaluable guide to the language as it is written and spoken today. The new second edition of the Collins COBUILD English Grammar is specially designed for advanced learners and teachers of English. It provides a comprehensive picture of modern English grammar, presented in a fresh style, and based on a thorough analysis of the Bank of English corpus, part of Collins Word Web. This edition has been updated with hundreds of new examples from the corpus, to ensure that users have an up-to-date picture of today's English. The Collins COBUILD English Grammar is a vital learning tool for all advanced learners of English, and a key reference work for teachers of English.