All Questions
Tagged with present-tense sequence-of-tenses
18 questions
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Is it idiomatic to shift from present progressive to present simple within single sentence? [duplicate]
One of my friends while writing a passage wrote the following sentence that contained both present progressive and present simple tense within a single sentence:
Road accidents are happening because ...
- 4,657
1
vote
1
answer
79
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talking about general things - choice of tense to "set the scene"
This is a question that I've been struggling with for quite a long time. I have asked a similar question in the ELL forum already but I didn't get an answer there and it is difficult to find ...
- 11
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1
answer
160
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Present Perfect in main clause
I cannot determine whether both of these instances are appropriate uses of present perfect.
Scenario: We just pull up to a restaurant and notice we are the first/last ones there, and someone utters:
&...
- 141
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1
answer
673
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What is a complex/difficult example of English tenses? [closed]
I'm a native English speaker, and while learning other languages, I've learned that English has more complex tenses than other languages. I don't know what all of the English tenses are, but the most ...
- 109
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1
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102
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Past tense and present tense in a same sentense. Tense consistent or logically correct?
I am trying to tell a thing that happened in the past. But that thing has a fact that is still true in the present. Could you tell me which one of the following is true?
I had a lesson with a tutor ...
1
vote
1
answer
43
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It was I or it is I (or both since it is just a matter of perspectives)
This confusion has been haunting me since I was fifteen. Please consider the following:
A. It was I who killed your mom.
B. It is I who killed your mom.
Question: As far as I know, we can apply two ...
- 304
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0
answers
224
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A specific example about past tense in subordinate clause
I've read several posts about "main clause past tense, can I use simple present tense in the subordinate clause?" and I think I get the basic idea.
General truth can use present.
He didn't know ...
- 143
2
votes
1
answer
231
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Knew, realized + the past/present
Please consider the following:
I knew the building (IS/WAS) thirty feet tall.
They realized I (AM/WAS) his son.
My question: both those clauses contain general truths. So, do I need to use ...
- 304
1
vote
1
answer
235
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For reports written in present tense, which time is usually used for "citations"? Present or past tense?
In German reports, most of the time the present tense is used when followed by any kind of citation.
E.g.
- There is a need for more biocompostable plastics. The XYZ CEO says that...
- The CEO ...
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votes
1
answer
133
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"I thought about how this machine works/worked." (confusion about past vs. present)
I'm not certain about which tense to use in this sentence: "I thought about how this machine _____." (This is coming from a scenario where I had previously used the machine and started to think about ...
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2
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1k
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asked + lived/lives
I asked where he lives/lived.
I'm confused between lives or lived. Some say only lived can be used while others say both lived and lives can be used.
- 470
2
votes
2
answers
740
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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 ...
- 243
1
vote
3
answers
3k
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Until you have confirmed + past or present?
Which one of these sentences is correct?
The contract will not be signed until you have checked the manuscript and confirmed that everything is
ok.
The contract will not be signed until you ...
- 805
2
votes
2
answers
58k
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past/present tense when telling a story in spoken English
I've noticed that, in daily conversations, when people are telling stories in the past, they often shift the tense back and forth between the past and the present - even they're native speakers. For ...
- 347
2
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2
answers
394
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Sequence of Tense [duplicate]
Which one is correct?
Centuries ago, people weren't aware that the planets revolved around the sun.
Centuries ago, people weren't aware that the planets revolve around the sun.
In my ...
- 51
1
vote
3
answers
2k
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Correct use of tense
Can you please confirm which of the following three is correct?
I shared some ideas with Jon, which he agrees is a good solution for the problem we are facing.
I shared some ideas with Jon, ...
- 11
34
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13
answers
4k
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Why do I instinctively want to use the present tense with a conditional?
My boss is not a native speaker of English, so he often asks me to correct his writing. The problem is, he wants me to explain why I make changes, and doesn't accept "it just sounds better that way" ...
- 33k
9
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4
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4k
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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:
...
- 2,370