The present tense is a grammatical tense that locates a situation or event in present time.
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“The train will leave” vs. “is going to leave” vs. “leaves” vs. “is leaving”
From the grammatical point of view all are correct, just the meaning are different, please bring your clarification, thank you.
The Train will leave at 10:00 tomorrow morning.
The Train is ...
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1answer
497 views
What tense should be used here?
Is use of present simple correct in these examples?
My daughter goes to school tomorrow [for the first time].
I go to school to talk to my daughter's teacher tomorrow [and this happens ...
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3answers
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Differences between ways to express future actions
I asked this question on a different site but I haven't gotten a useful answer. Could you tell me the difference in meaning between these sentences?
Do you think you will visit them next week? ...
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2answers
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“Connection to/with the server was/has been lost”
Which one is correct?
Connection to the server was lost.
Connection to the server has been lost.
Also, should to or with be used with server?
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2answers
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Grammaticalization of third person singular -s
Is there any evidence that the third person singular -s can be traced back to a lexical item before it became an inflection ? I am trying to see if the theory of grammaticalization applies to its ...
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1answer
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Present Continuous or Present Simple in a Meeting
Which one of the following should be used if I am asking about an event or a meeting:
Are we meeting today?
Do we have a meeting today?
Are we going to have a meeting today?
Are we going ...
5
votes
1answer
529 views
Past simple with today
For example, I want to say that I found a ball today. But "today" means action in present, am I right?
I've already searched the Internet and it seems the right way is this:
I found a ball today
...
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vote
2answers
422 views
Can the preposition “in” be used instead of “for” in the following sentence?
English grammar books say that when you express a period of time in present perfect, the prepostions such as "for" or "since" should be used.
Example sentences:
I have lived here for 20 years.
...
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1answer
153 views
Is it appropriate to omit “will not be”?
Often, someone will say:
I'm not living in a senior's home!
When the intended meaning is:
I will not be living in a senior's home!
Is this acceptable?
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1answer
110 views
“Is someone covering/going to cover this event?”
Which one of the following is better or more correct?
Is someone covering this event?
Is someone going to cover this event?
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votes
2answers
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'I get it' vs. 'I got it'
When someone tells me something, how should I respond, "I get it" or "I got it"? I have a feeling that "I got it" means "I already knew the thing before you told me," and "I get it" means "Now I know ...
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2answers
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Does Caesar and Augustus refer to the same person? [closed]
In this recording of a Documentary about Dark Age
For three days, the great capital of Caesar and Augustusis ravaged by its unwelcome guests, the stunning architectural marvels that stood for ...
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3answers
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“I am gonna have to” vs. “I have to”
What is the difference between "I am gonna have to" and "I have to"?
When would you use the first one?
update: I am specifically asking about situations like the one described here.
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What's the difference between “I want” and “I am wanting”?
What is the difference between the two?
Why and where is the latter very strange sounding variant used?
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3answers
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Difference between “are you done” and “have you done.”
I was just wondering, how can we differentiate "are you done?" and "have you done?", and
what is the appropriate way to use each?
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votes
3answers
451 views
Present tense for future events
Why does it sound perfectly natural to say Our flight leaves tomorrow at 6pm but weird to say It rains tomorrow at 6pm? What kind of scenario, if any, could make the rain sentence sound natural?
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1answer
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“They develop skills at this age” vs. “they are developing skills at this age”
Which one is correct? If both are correct, are there any differences in meaning?
For children, the age of 3 is very
critical time, because they develop
their language skills rapidly at this
...
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3answers
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“Like” or “have liked”? [closed]
Is this sentence correct?
From early ages people like travelling.
Isn't it better to say:
Since early ages people have liked travelling.
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4answers
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Which is more correct here: “find” vs. “have found”?
I recently came across this sentence from an e-mail I received and have pondering thoughts about it:
I have completed an evaluation of your application file and find that the items listed below ...
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3answers
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How to use “have been” and be-verbs — what's the difference between them?
Consider these two sentences:
They have been disappointing.
They are disappointing.
Could you tell me how can I identify when to use have been and when to use be-verbs in sentences like ...
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vote
4answers
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“Done” vs. “did” & “seen” vs. “saw”
I am trying to find a logical way to explain how/when to use "done" vs "did" and "seen" vs "saw". The person I'm coaching uses the terms in the following manner and I just don't want to correct him, ...
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2answers
288 views
Present or Past tense to describe a past condition which is still present?
Scenario: My friend John has a personality disorder, intensely paranoid for example.
Can I say:
There were three events last year that told me John had a problem.
or can I say:
There were ...
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votes
2answers
897 views
“They knew what mercy is” vs. “they knew what mercy was”
They knew what mercy is.
They knew what mercy was.
Mercy is something that always exists so can I say is as in the above example?
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3answers
442 views
Tense change: previous actions on something that's currently true
I'm describing a situation that happened in the past. To explain it, I want to use a description that is both true now and true when the situation happened.
Specifically, I want something like:
...
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votes
3answers
522 views
Use of “I am having” in SO sites
I use Stackoverflow a lot and have noticed a certain trend that I myself got caught up in at one time of using the phrase "I am having a problem" in place of "I have a problem."
I would use this ...
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3answers
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“He didn't know where New Jersey was”
I know the past tense carries the past tense in every dependent clause, but referring specifically to places or to things that are eternal, like the Earth, seems a bit weird and therefore we sometimes ...
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3answers
2k views
Present Progressive or Present Continuous?
What is the correct term used to describe this tense in English — Present Progressive or Present Continuous? I see both terms used in grammar books.
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1answer
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“The news is good.” Why?
We use "the news is good" instead of "the news are good."
What is the rationale behind this? Are there similar situations in English?
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votes
1answer
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Why are the past and present tenses of “read” spelt the same?
and only have different pronunciations?
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2answers
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“Whenever you arrive/are arrived/were arrived”
Which one of these sentences is grammatically correct? Would it be alright if the other sentences were being used in daily conversations?
Let me know whenever you arrive.
Let me know whenever ...
