Questions tagged [tenses]

A set of forms taken by a verb to indicate the time and/or completeness and continuance of the action in relation to the time of the utterance.

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1 answer
61 views

Why is the subjunctive mood considered tenseless? Is "would be able to" not explicitly a future (perfect) construction?

I've read through the responses on this question, but I don't feel like they address the idea that English subjunctive clauses lack inflection (per Wikipedia). I'm looking at this sentence, for ...
-1 votes
0 answers
9 views

Find out the tense error in sentence [closed]

"I was having shower when the phone was ringing." In this sentence what is irror.
0 votes
1 answer
446 views

"Will have done" vs "would have done" in expressing certainty

Recently, I have been looking a little bit deeper into the modal verb “will”, its usage and properties. In the process I have been able to find the usage I have already encountered, though have seen ...
6 votes
6 answers
7k views

Is the use of future tense (especially "will" and "shall") going out of grammar?

My English teacher taught us that there is no such thing called "future tense" in existence. Instead we were asked to use present indefinite tense. He said that we should use "I am to go to London" ...
2 votes
1 answer
103 views

Two Infinitives in a Row, but Dropping “To”?

Was just thinking about English vs. Spanish and thought about the following sentence: “We can try to run” In Spanish, I believe this translates as: “Podemos intentar correr” In Spanish, intentar and ...
3 votes
3 answers
495 views

Using the conjunction "when" with the Present Perfect, Present Perfect Continuous, Past Simple and the Past Continuous Tense

From a grammatical point of view, I'm trying to understand the use of these tenses in the "when" clause. I'll give you an example. All of these example sentences are from native English ...
1 vote
1 answer
452 views

Finite and non-finite clauses: "We have washed the dishes"

I have a quick question regarding finite and non-finite clauses if I may? In clauses that contain modal or auxiliary verbs marked for tense AND a non-finite element, is the clause finite or non-...
0 votes
1 answer
27 views

Correct use of the verb in terms of pronoun and number

I'm an English student yet, and today I had this sentence and this question. In the sentence: "I am a person that does not like routine but rather tries to maintain an overall healthy lifestyle.&...
4 votes
2 answers
7k views

Using "had" vs "have" in conjunction with "previous"

This is a rather pedantic question and the only reason I ask is because something sounds wrong to me. Say someone is giving instructions to a person to write down a name they used to go by but no ...
1 vote
3 answers
227 views

Interpretation of “This to be love…” in Hodgson’s ‘The Night Land’

The Night Land by William Hope Hodgson, published in 1912, begins with the lines: This to be Love, that your spirit to live in a natural holiness with the Beloved, and your bodies to be a sweet and ...
0 votes
2 answers
145 views

A sentence without a predicate in the middle of narrative given in past tense [duplicate]

From William Gibson’s debut 1984 science-fiction novel, Neuromancer: Crossing the arcade to stand beside her, high on the deal he’d made, he saw her glance up. Gray eyes rimmed with smudged black ...
2 votes
3 answers
266 views

Tense to use with "has always been something that..."

I stumbled upon the following sentence on Huffington Post and noticed that it makes use of brings instead of brought. Music has always been something that brings people together. However, I also ...
1 vote
2 answers
108 views

All I was saying "is" ... or All I was saying "was"

Which of these is more appropriate? All I was saying is that you're the more responsible one or All I was saying was that you're the more responsible one Both feel correct to me.
0 votes
1 answer
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Sequence of tenses in dialogue: why is "No, can't say I had" used in response to "Perhaps you didn't notice?"?

From the movie "No Time to Die": Nomi: The world's moved on since you retired, Commander Bond. Perhaps you didn't notice? Bond: No, can't say I had." Why did Bond use "had" ...
0 votes
3 answers
75 views

If the first half of the sentence is a hypothetical scenario and other half is the postulated outcome, should one use "had been" or "was"?

Apologies for possibly a dumb question. Let's be honest, IF it was the other way around the build would have been blocked and if by any chance it was released, it would have caused some serious ...
2 votes
1 answer
643 views

Simple vs Continuous in the Past Tense and in the Future Tense

Even though I understand the difference between the simple and the continuous aspect of the English tense system, I sometimes struggle to understand what each of these two aspects expresses in some ...
-1 votes
1 answer
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has won her ... on Saturday

If the following extract of a news story was published on Saturday, is it okay to use the present tenses and expressions like "on Saturday" rather than simply "today"? American ...
0 votes
0 answers
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Continuous form of verb or Present participle?

Expanded version: Nobody likes to talk with the man who is sitting on the rock alone. Reduced version: Nobody likes to talk with the man sitting on the rock alone. How is it possible that in the ...
0 votes
0 answers
31 views

The crowd _____(was/were) dispersed by the police [duplicate]

Here, the people comprising the crowd are dispersing in different directions, right? So, the word 'crowd' is no longer a singular unit. Kindly, someone confirm the answer.
1 vote
0 answers
30 views

Modifying a sentence object

In one study, for instance, bar codes were placed on bees, tracking their activities. Is this correct? Or do we say... In one study, for instance, bar codes were placed on bees to track their ...
1 vote
1 answer
10k views

Someone says vs Someone said in reported speech [duplicate]

Is " someone says something" ( in the present) acceptable, and if yes , when? Let's say I just got off the phone with someone, and they said they wouldn't make it on time. I've got someone in front ...
0 votes
1 answer
23 views

Verb tense in academic writing [closed]

Consider this sentence. X studied fault structure using method A. Y studied fault structure using method B. However, the geometrical complexity of a fault remained poorly understood. Do I have to ...
3 votes
0 answers
97 views

Verb tense in Phineas and Ferb song “History of Rock”

I've been learning English for decades but I still don't get how its verb tenses work. The Phineas and Ferb episode “Dude, We're Getting the Band Back Together” has the song “History of Rock”. In its ...
1 vote
3 answers
2k views

Difference between 'willst' and 'wilt' in 'Shakespearean' English?

I am writing a scene from Macbeth detailing the battle before the play for my 11th-grade English class, and I decided to write it in Shakespearean for fun. I have been trying to figure out the ...
0 votes
2 answers
212 views

Should I use "could" with a present-tense verb or just the verb in past tense?

I'm writing a story in past tense as it's the recollection of a memory. I'm not sure if I should say "could feel" or "felt" in the following excerpts: ========== "Sue, I LOVE ...
0 votes
0 answers
33 views

Why do podcasters and writers do this - use of would? [duplicate]

I was listening to a true crime podcast this morning and it reminded me of several others I have heard in the past. They repetitively refer to an action that was going to happen after the point in the ...
1 vote
2 answers
262 views

a tense in a subordinate clause

I watched Ace Ventura - Pet Detective and didn't understand past continuous usage in the scene which can be watched here: ''https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuhPPOXnyKo'' (0:42). ''I wouldn't want ...
0 votes
1 answer
65 views

At this time tomorrow, I am playing cricket [closed]

I know that: At this time tomorrow, I will be playing cricket. is used since the so-called future continuous is used to talk about a continuous activity at a specific time in the future. Even ...
6 votes
2 answers
444 views

What is the grammatical mood of the sentence "Someone stop that person"?

I was discussing with some friends the grammatical tense of the verb stop in the sentence: Someone stop that person. Despite searching online we did not find a consensus/solution, so we have decided ...
1 vote
3 answers
145 views

There seem to be vs there seem to have been

I'm having trouble understanding the difference between those two, as I recently had to write a sentence "There seem to have been some missing keys" relating to receival of aforementioned ...
1 vote
1 answer
63 views

Can we mix past perfect, present progressive, etc. in conditionals? [duplicate]

Is it acceptable / possible to mix past perfect, present progressive, etc. in conditionals? In particular: The 2nd conditional (apologies to those who reject this common but by no means universal ...
3 votes
2 answers
37k views

Should I use present or past tense when referring to a (scientific) paper? [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: What (grammatical) tense to use when doing reference in a paper? In the two examples below, which tense is preferred? "Smith (2001) noted that ..." or "Smith (2001) notes ...
2 votes
0 answers
45 views

Someone "is" or "was" the first female surgeon if they're still alive and still a surgeon? [duplicate]

I'm proofreading something but --- you might say Obama "was" the first black president since he's no longer President. Or maybe it is "is"? Dead people are generally always "...
1 vote
2 answers
2k views

Can the modal auxiliary verbs be considered to be in the present tense (form, not meaning)?

According to Practical English Usage by Michael Swan, modal auxiliary verbs do not normally have past tenses: The modal auxiliary verbs are will, would, shall, should, can, could, ought, may, ...
0 votes
1 answer
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"As Puss has told them earlier, they all say the Marquis." How should I correct this sentence?

I was told that this sentence is so wrong, and after reading some related threads here, I now understand that "earlier" should be used with past tense. So is it okay if I change the sentence ...
1 vote
2 answers
2k views

Is there something wrong with using "said (that)" in this sentence?

Quick context, work as a translator. I had a short blurb I had to translate where I basically rendered it as: "Bob spoke about how Countryland was one of the countries that suffered greatly from ...
0 votes
0 answers
58 views

Do Interrogative Negative forms in the simple present tense imply only two situations?

Is it correct to say that, in English, when you use the Present Simple tense in the Interrogative Negative form you are either implying the negative or just confirming the affirmative (depending on ...
1 vote
2 answers
13k views

"should say that" vs "should have said that"

Example 1: It was odd (that) you should say that Example 2: It was odd (that) you should have said that I don't understand what the putative should implies when it's constructed with the present ...
1 vote
1 answer
48 views

Hello, I need help in understanding the grammatical tense of this phrase [closed]

It is easy to see how primitive warfare might sometimes have beneficial environmental effects; it is not clear how they could amount to a cause of primitive warfare. Could you tell me, please, what ...
0 votes
0 answers
57 views

Is the tense within this sentence consistent? Confusion between 'ed' and 'ing'

I have a few sentences in my resume that have been prompted by an auto-resume reviewer that my tenses may not be correct. Reading the sentence back to myself, it does feel a bit off now that they said ...
0 votes
1 answer
62 views

In the sentence “Generic Band releases their new album next month.” does the use of “releaseS” indicate present tense or future tense? [duplicate]

I think it’s present tense because of the active (?) verb ‘releases’, but I’m a little thrown because the action will be in the future. An answer for another question said when the action takes place ...
1 vote
2 answers
340 views

Incorrect use of 'had' in this past perfect tense

I saw this fill in the blanks question in my exam: Before we ___ our meal, he ___ us back to work. There were four options to this question: finished, had ordered have finished, ordered had ...
0 votes
2 answers
918 views

Why is the past tense used in this scenario?

Forms for user login typically contain links like these: Forgot password? I forgot my password Why is the past tense used? I would expect present perfect. I mean: I have forgotten my password
9 votes
2 answers
3k views

Why was the past tense used here? "I died an X"

In 2023 movie, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, this conversation took place when a character was dying: Dying character: (holding Scott's cheek) Thanks, Scott. You always were a brother to me. ...
9 votes
4 answers
4k 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: ...
2 votes
2 answers
703 views

Sequence of tenses when some temporary action is still true

I got confused with the rule of the sequence of tenses. I found that when the action in the subordinate clause is a habitual action or general truth, we can use the present tense in the clause even if ...
23 votes
7 answers
5k views

"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 ...
1 vote
2 answers
1k views

First-person narrative of a story occurring at the moment

When narrating a story from the first-person perspective in the present tense, would the following be correct? I wake up at 7 am and see no sunlight entering my room. Thinking I'm up too early, I ...
1 vote
2 answers
140 views

Is it correct to start a hypothetical or future tense sentence with "if I am..."? [closed]

My partner frequently starts sentences with "If <present tense statement>" where the present tense statement is referring to a future or hypothetical situation. Examples: "If I ...
3 votes
3 answers
239 views

Why is this habitual sentence wrong?

Why is the following sentence wrong? Usually we grow vegetables in our garden but this year we don't? Since the simple present shows habitual behavior, can we show an exception to the habit also ...

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