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Questions tagged [present-tense]

The present tense is a grammatical tense that locates a situation or event in present time.

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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 ...
Josiah Sprague's user avatar
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"Is / was / has been / had been used" in a statement

I'm confused whether I should use are or were or have been or had been in the following statement when describing the use of language in a passage In paragraph 6, detailed adjectives ____ used to ...
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“You go and dry yourselves while I polish the car.” or "You go and dry yourselves while I'm polishing the car." [closed]

context i/Cleaning_the_Car/Transcript Oxford Dictionary says: "while-at the same time as sth else is happening eg: You can go swimming while I'm having lunch." so I am confused. Why doesn't ...
fei's user avatar
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If clause with a past tense about future for hypothetical condition

Is there any case in English were a future condition is represented with past tense? E.g. "If I saw you tomorrow, I will do ..." In some languages, it casts more doubt for the condition to ...
Ali's user avatar
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being removed vs gets removed?

Question I: Which one is grammatically correct? 1. Does order A remain effective after object B gets removed? or 2. Does order A remain effective after object B is being removed? Question II: What ...
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Present Tense and Past tense in context

Present Tense and Past tense in context There is a text/ paragraph as follows: If I have a description at the start, say "I visited Thailand. There were a lot of nice restaurants.", then if ...
Alan's user avatar
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Is it possible to use the past and present tenses in the same sentence? [closed]

Which sentence is grammatically correct? I did not complain and tell myself to calm down and try to solve this difficult problem. Or: I did not complain and told myself to calm down and try to ...
Ethan Z.'s user avatar
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What kind of verb phrase is it when “is” in the present tense is immediately followed by another verb that’s itself in the past tense?

Please con­sider this ex­am­ple of three sen­tences in se­quence: The build­ing is de­stroyed. The rub­ble is then re­moved. The rub­ble is bro­ken into smaller pieces. What kind of verb phrase is ...
Kevin the frog's user avatar
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The meaning of the sentence "Fortunately/Wisely, she consults her lawyer regularly."

In Quirk's A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language Section 8.128 (page 624): it says Fortunately/Wisely, she consults her lawyer regularly. [1] = It is fortunate/wise that she consult(s)/...
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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 ...
Антон Ершов's user avatar
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Mixing Past & Present Tense

Original: "These two peers would later become an advantageous support system for me personally, assisting as I struggled with the structural engineering portion of my internship project at the ...
Courtney Brown's user avatar
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Is participle clause commonly used in spoken English?

I have never heard a native speaker use sentence with participle clause such as ‘Thinking about her past, she cried bitterly.’; ‘Bitten by a snake, she died.’ in their day-to-day conversation although ...
Bhaskar Subba's user avatar
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Using the present tense or past tense for a fact

I know that we should use the present tense when talking about facts. However, in some instances I cannot decide which tense to use. For example, "The analysis assumes that a and b are ...
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"Hasn't been as bad as they had feared" or "hasn't been as bad as they feared"

I can't find other questions and/or information about the forms / tense I'm using in this sentence as most questions seem to be about the difference between "hasn't" or "hadn't". ...
Max Boone's user avatar
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"Many children don't play ball" or "Many children doesn't play ball" [closed]

I'm still learning English and the topic which I learn is about simple present tense. I'm learning from channel learnenglishlab. But there is one video I don't understand why it using do rather than ...
Muhammad Syabani Falif's user avatar
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I've studied vs I've been studying

What's the difference from these two phrases? How would I know if keep studying or if I did it in the past?
novemberfourteen's user avatar
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What does simple really mean in grammar?

Problems with explaining English grammar often reside in the terminology. There is often a big assumption that we understand what the terms mean. Simple is, in my opinion, one of the most important ...
Gary Moore's user avatar
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3 answers
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Present tense Used for Past event [duplicate]

I saw a news headline that reads: he admits accident was caused by drunk driving. My question is why they use present tense (admits) instead of past tense (admitted). The news was written after the ...
G SXXIII's user avatar
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Why are we using a past modal verb with a present verb in this sentence?

it is typically restricted to military aircraft except for the legendary Concorde, which was able to speeds of up to three times that of passenger planes today Why are we using 'was able to' with '...
Şey's user avatar
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present simple or would?

This sentence comes from Active Skills for Reading 3: In most parts of the world, storm clouds would be greeted with a frown. But in India, it's said that when the monsoon rains come, a billion ...
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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 ...
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Using Past Simple versus Present Simple in a commentary for a documentary

I've been translating a commentary to a history documentary and I'm not sure if my choice of tenses is optimal. In Polish, just like in English, the Present Simple tense is occasionally used for ...
IGO's user avatar
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Is sentence "I paint for 3 hours" grammatically correct? [closed]

Is the sentence below grammatically correct? "I paint for 3 hours" Google Translate translates from my native language to this sentence. Also, I checked this sentence on grammarly online ...
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using which in relative cause as an object

For example, is this sentence correct? “If your friend isn’t reliable, he/she can use the things which your friend knows about you against you.”
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"Report" in simple present where it apparently should be either in progressive or simple past

I was going through a piece of news at B.B.C at this link, when I came across this line: Israeli media report that the document did not include any references to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. I ...
Mushrraf Baig Ashraf's user avatar
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Which present tense should you use when talking about continuous pain?

The speaker can still feel the pain in the moment of speaking (he's asking if he's still able to go abroad with this back pain) & it's some sort of dialogue between some ordinary guy & a ...
cezar's user avatar
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Is this sentence of Vitalik Buterin correct?

I was reading A Philosophy of Blockchain Validation of Vitalik Buterin. The following sentence strikes me as odd: Data availability checks do rely on a very conservative assumption that there exists ...
John Smith's user avatar
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The Present Simple tense use

I would like to know why this tense is used instead of the present continuous in the following examples: As we speak (instead of - as we are speaking) something is taking place He joins us from (...
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Should I use "the" in the phrase "the check-in for a flight", in this context?

I have this sentence in Russian I need to translate into English: "Звучит объявление о регистрации на рейс Кабул - Гонконг." The best I can come up with is this: "An announcement rings ...
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Present simple vs. "Would"

Swift code has a column limit of 100 characters. Except as noted below, any line that would exceed this limit must be line-wrapped as described in Line-Wrapping. - https://google.github.io/swift/ ...
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What's difference between " I knew i loved you" and " i knew i love you"?

I can't understand when i can use past and present tenses in one sentence together and when i can use only past one. I knew you loved me I knew you love me they're both referring to present moment ...
darya meoww's user avatar
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Which one I should use? Infinitive or present participle?

Which sentence is grammatically correct? I think it is good for students to have cellphones. I think having cellphones is good for students.
Ayon Khan's user avatar
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“I am not going to use it recently” Is this technically correct?

I want to say I'm not going to use something in the recent future. Can I say it like “I am not going to use it recently”?
Techefy's user avatar
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usage of present perfect and past tense when it comes to people who passed away

If the persons I am referring to are no more, in that case which of these is right? a) He has met them (they are no more) many times, or b) He met them many times. ( Here I get confused whether the ...
user394556's user avatar
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If You Look vs. If You're Looking: When advertising a Product

Is it correct to use "if you look for" instead of "if you're looking for" when promoting a product? "If you look for creamy peanut butter spread, you may message me." I ...
Bea Rose's user avatar
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Question concerning tenses

Lauren has coaxed her brother many times to go cinema with her but he never listens Lauren has coaxed her brother many times to go cinema with her but he never listened Which sentence is correct? ...
Rich Handsome Guy's user avatar
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Differentiate between Present Simple vs Present Progressive (Continuous)

Is the following sentence in present simple or continuous tense? I am in class. How do you change it to the other tense?
Matho-Patho's user avatar
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How do you differentiate the use of "When I asked..." and "When I have asked..."

This might be a very basic question for native speakers of English, but I'd really appreciate if you could help me to understand the difference between "When I asked" and "When I have ...
user389465's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
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Should present tense be always used when completed works / published books etc. make reference to their contents?

When the subject is certain creation (created in the past) where there cannot be changes, like: The published book / The proposed plan / The play "Romeo and Juliet" / The poster that won the ...
wing8192's user avatar
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What is the correct way to ask about something that happened some time ago?

When I took one test I had to choose between four options: a) Did you hear that he has been assigned to a new project last week? b) Have you heard that he has been assigned to a new project last week? ...
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What’s a matter-of-fact tone?

I was wondering if a matter-of-fact tone was the same as a straightforward tone, and if these terms all mean “simple” or “without emotions”. (I am not a native speaker for that matter). If I speak or ...
Lou's user avatar
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What are the verbs that need a gerund after “to”?

So could someone tell me what the verbs are that must have “ing” (gerund) after “to”? (a small list) I know we have : “look forward to”, “admit to”, “be opposed to”... but are there other verbs?
Lou's user avatar
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"had spent" vs. "spent"

Which tense would be appropriate in this case - past perfect simple or past simple? "After he had spent some of the money, he decided to find his dream house." or "After he spent some ...
user388736's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
60 views

Perfect Tense Stative verbs

I'd like you to tell me which one of my following sentences is correct. I am not sure if I have to use the past simple or present perfect. I'd add that I want to talk about something which is still ...
Companion S9's user avatar
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The present perfect with distant actions in the past

The present perfect serves in different aspects and conveys different nuances two of which are these: 1) An action with a result in the present. I have bought a new sweater. = I have a sweater now. ...
user1425's user avatar
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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 ...
Fadli Sheikh's user avatar
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0 answers
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The present vs the past (when it comes to a range of possibilities covering dead and living people and if the answer is someone who has died)

Suppose there is a list of people who have been named as the candidates for being the best president ever. On the list are the incumbent and some ex-presidents, some of whom have died. How would we ...
Fadli Sheikh's user avatar
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0 answers
25 views

"The solution would be that he go and talk."

Just need to confirm if this construction is correct. Would also really appreciate it if it could be broken down too from a grammatical perspective. Many thanks!
Uhtvhiuhh's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
326 views

Should we always use the past if the person is no longer alive or when we refer to a past state

When I want to point out that the person is still regarded as the best student till now, tho they have been gone or they are not a student anymore, what tense should I use, the present or the past? ...
Fadli Sheikh's user avatar
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Is try to vs is trying to

I was taking a quiz at Coursera and there was a sentence What kitchen counter may be a better environment to help someone who is try to manage their weight? I was confused – shouldn't this be "is ...
Olga Erny's user avatar

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