Learning English grammar is not as straightforward as studying through a list of words to memorize vocabulary. Despite the fact that English is one of the most widely used languages, with approximately 508 million native and second-language speakers worldwide, the grammar rules of the language are difficult to learn and use properly. However, a step-by-step approach, from the core elements of grammar to more advanced topics, will help learners understand the reason behind the rules and apply them to their speech.

Practice the use of pronouns. Replace names with subject pronouns (I, you, he...) and the object of the action with an object pronoun (me, you, him...). Remember that object pronouns are used after prepositions as well ("Look at me").

Use the definite article "the" when you are referring to something specific and the indefinite article "a," or nothing, before general statements. For example, when you are referring to a specific dog, you must say "The mutt was barking," while for general remarks you can say "A dog is my dream pet," or "Dogs are man's best friend."

Form sentences with auxiliary verbs, following the "subject + aux. verb + main verb + object" structure. These verbs are divided in the primary auxiliaries am, do and have and the modal auxiliaries will, shall, would, should, ought (to), may, might, can and could. Remember that in negative sentences, it's the auxiliaries that are changed, while in interrogative sentences, auxiliary verbs are moved to the beginning of the sentence.

Use possessives instead of the "noun + of" structure (house of Maria). An apostrophe and an s is used in most cases, while only an apostrophe is used in plurals ending in s, as well as in singular proper names with the same last letter. Practice simple phrases, such as Maria's house, Kids' playground and Chris' glove.

Transform affirmative sentences to negative and interrogative. When doing the affirmative-to-negative transformation, add "not" and the appropriate auxiliary verb (I walk--I do not walk, I will fly--I will not fly). For interrogative sentences, reverse the auxiliary verb and subject, or add an auxiliary verb at the start of the sentence (You go to school--Do you go to school?).

Identify when to use bare infinitive (learn), full infinitive (to learn) and gerund (learning). When not used as subject, each follows certain verbs and adjectives (want is always followed by full infinitive for example). Each time you come up with any case of infinitive or gerund usage, memorize their accompanying verbs and adjectives.

Use relative pronouns to connect two or more sentences and express more advanced thoughts. These pronouns include who, whom, whose, which, whose and that. Instead of creating two short sentences (This is the letter. I wrote the letter.), you can use the relative pronoun "that" to form one sentence (This is the letter that I wrote).