Questions tagged [past-tense]
This tag is for questions about the usage of the past tense in English.
1,247
questions
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1answer
20 views
Which one is correct: have happened or had happened?
I'm wondering from these sentences which one is true:
1."So, which one have happened yesterday? You went for a walk or stay here?"
or
2."So which one had happened? You went for a walk or stay ...
3
votes
0answers
67 views
The preterite with imaginary situations in the future: “if tomorrow it was proven”
Is below sentence is correct?
If tomorrow it was proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that God does not and never did exist, would you want to remain a part of your religion.
This is because word ...
-1
votes
1answer
16 views
What is the tense used here?
I thought you would have eaten by now.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . (OR)
I thought you would have ate by now.
Which is correct?
What is the tense used here?
0
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0answers
19 views
Past perfect / present perfect
Which one is correct?
I had wet.
I had got wet.
I have wet.
I have got wet.
2
votes
1answer
19 views
Ali is a great manager. He is/was a born leader
I'm having trouble with the following sentence:
1) Ali is a great manager. He is a born leader.
2) Ali is a great manager. He was a born leader.
I'd say that (1) is the right one since Ali ...
0
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1answer
26 views
You were supposed to ask me something?
You were supposed to ask me something?
Could you please correct the above sentence? Can we use sentence like this ?
0
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1answer
29 views
Past Simple/Perfect + never
In an English textbook I come across an exapmle without any context
He went to Africa and never came back
What does it mean?
We use Present Simple + never when we are talking about a habit, a ...
0
votes
1answer
27 views
Should use present perfect tense or the past tense for this sentence
My father gave me \ has given me my name.
Well the action "giving my name" happened and finished in the past, but my name has never been changed since that time so the action still affects on the ...
0
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1answer
22 views
He prepared for school like he always does (or did?)
I think that the following sentence is grammatically incorrect:
He prepared for school like he always does.
Should it be more grammatical to say:
He prepared for school like he always did.
The ...
0
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0answers
49 views
Result in past simple
I was thinking a lot about result in present perfect, but when I reed a book, that character appeared just a moment ago (recently) they still use past simple (for example, "Why did it take you so long?...
0
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1answer
36 views
Can somebody help me with tenses?
I have a problem.
I don't understand what does this "result" should look like in present perfect, because when I see in movie that a character says: I forgot it. The result is that he doesn't ...
3
votes
1answer
36 views
Problem to use Past Perfect tense (Had met / met)
Sentence:
It was the first time I had met/met her.
Which tense form should be used, had met or met?
I have come across this sentence only, not from any specific context.
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0answers
25 views
Alternating between the past and the present perfect
I have a question about the use of the simple past and the present perfect in the same sentence. I heard a native saying the following:
"So far, I’ve sat for three exams, but I didn’t do well on ...
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0answers
33 views
Do I have to use the past continuous or the past perfect?
I’m working on mixed tenses exercises, and this sentence has confused me! I’d like to know whether my answer is correct or not please. This is the sentence:
“For the first eight years, she worked ...
1
vote
2answers
25 views
Why is present tense uses rather than past tense in this essay?
Grandpa liked chewing tobacco, and he carried a Styrofoam cup with him wherever he went. I remember him spitting in that cup with great regularity when I used to spend the night with him and ...
1
vote
1answer
34 views
Choice between past perfect vs simple past [closed]
John:Why did you not ask your father for money?
Paul:I did not ask him because I
had asked him before for money and (he had become very angry/he became very
angry) at that time.
Which ...
0
votes
1answer
42 views
use of double past tense in a sentence
The use of double past tense is always a bit problematic for me.
So far I have learned that when there is a time reference and two actions happening in past we use past and past perfect. The action ...
0
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0answers
39 views
Can't decide between simple past and present perfect
I know the rules and differences like simple past is finished actions and more like story telling while present-perfect emphasizes the experience and its about actions that still continue and past-...
1
vote
1answer
64 views
Can I use a past tense clause after a present perfect one?
Can I use a past tense clause after a present perfect one , for example, like this :
It has just crossed my mind so I added it.
In this sentence, I only want to emphasize the first action to be ...
2
votes
1answer
21 views
Have been Vs was/were
Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-birmingham-48339080
There have been seven weeks of protests outside the site from which
"hundreds" of pupils were kept away on Monday.
Why does the ...
2
votes
2answers
26 views
Can we use two different tenses in a sentence
Is this correct ? Can we use two different tenses , like this one for example : ( happened and drops )
“What my parents think happened when a bottle of shampoo drops on the bathroom floor.....” (...
1
vote
1answer
33 views
“spied” vs “was spying”
I'm studying Barron's 504 absolutely essential words and came across this sentence:
"When the bank guard spied the sinister-looking customer, he drew his
gun"
but it seems odd to me..we are ...
0
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0answers
24 views
the tense to use with “after” / word choice
The UK now faces the threat of £300m in fines after it (fail) ---------------------------- to meet legally binding EU targets to reduce pollution to safe levels.
failed or has failed
pollutants/ ...
1
vote
1answer
24 views
Using past simple or past perfect after *since*?
This is an exercise from my English book:
You three boys look very guilty! What did you do / have you done / have you been doing since I left / have left?
I chose have you been doing and have left....
0
votes
1answer
19 views
Why is past simple used here?
Here are two examples:
By the time I got to the station, the train had left.
and
The train left five minutes before I got to the station.
I don't understand why past simple is used in the ...
0
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1answer
24 views
In past tense which is right, 'I make them write' or 'I made them write?'
I want to know which is the correct past tense
I make them write
or
I made them write
0
votes
1answer
36 views
Why is past simple used in this sentence when it happened before?
Philippe Siegfried called me one day in February to announce that he
had unpublished titles of his group PANORAMAS. It was Emmanuelle
Jean-Luc Taccard's wife (LUCAS TROUBLE, TANGO LÜGER ...) who
...
1
vote
1answer
35 views
“where did you sit” vs. “where were you sitting”
I'm a little confused about the difference between this two sentences. Can you explain the exact meaning and all differences between this two?
Where did you sit last section?
Where were you ...
0
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0answers
19 views
past simple for a habit still in work
The train _ at 8.30 p.m. today, but as a rule it _ at 8.00 p.m. sharp.
ANSWER: left and started
but could left and starts be ok as it is a general habits still in work at the time of writing so ...
0
votes
2answers
31 views
Using will in interrogatives?
I really find it difficult to frame a proper English sentence.
I want to ask if this sentence is correct or not:
will she be happy if she comes to know that you bought it from the stolen money?
...
1
vote
1answer
42 views
why “wash” and not “washed”?
I helped my mother wash the dishes after dinner last night.
May I know last night is past, why wash is present?
0
votes
1answer
39 views
Why can't l chose much or far instead of quite?
I solved a problem in which l picked wrong answer and the question is the part of text which has blank to be filled . Text is very long so l want to give a part of the text .
"I don't like reading ...
0
votes
1answer
33 views
difference between past simple and past continuous - when I called her
When I called her, she was studying.
I know what it means.
When I called her, she studied.
But does the second sentence mean she started studying when I called her?
0
votes
1answer
24 views
implications of past simple tense - a few minutes ago
I learned that the past simple tense is used for actions which are completed at a definite point in time in the past.
Then, does the sentence below imply that they are not dancing anymore now (at the ...
1
vote
1answer
70 views
I didn't notice until now that he left - past simple or present perfect?
I have thought that that when something that I can notice continues up to the present, I should use present perfect.
For example:
I have not noticed until now that his car is white.
When the ...
0
votes
2answers
32 views
Past tenses of Scuba-diving
Are these two sentences correct?
A. Past continuous: We were mainly Scuba-Diving while we were there.
B. Past Simple: Last week we Scuba-dove?
0
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0answers
15 views
Some past tense question
I played football
I had played football
I have played football
I was playing football
Can someone tell me what is the differece between those sentences if they are correct. If they aren't correct, ...
0
votes
1answer
23 views
That's where past/present-tense [closed]
The bag where I buy at the shop is missing.
The bag where I bought at the shop is missing.
Which one is correct?
-1
votes
1answer
38 views
There are two different times so isn't it necessary to use past perfect instead of past simple with 'use'
Capital expenditure of their company in the year 2001 was clearly below the spending in the year 2000 when they used about half the investments for the concept conversion.
There are two years 2000 ...
0
votes
3answers
56 views
Present perfect simple for an unfinished action
I decided to walk back home. I had walked for about 200 meters when the storm began and I ran to the nearest cafe.
Would it be possible to use past perfect progressive since the walk was not ...
0
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0answers
16 views
“When” OR “Before” in this context
The patient had already died when the doctor came.
The patient had already died before the doctor came.
As many people use these interchangeably.
Do they convey the same meaning?
Thank you.
0
votes
2answers
24 views
Would past simple be ok in this case
Complete the passage with the correct form of the verbs in brackets.
Goldilocks is probably the most famous and most charming “squatter” of all times.While the Bear family was looking(look)for ...
0
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0answers
15 views
~all of which + having vs. have?
We had exams three days ago, and there's a question I still don't get. We had to correct (but were not allowed to split into two sentences):
Good papers do not merely review literature and then say ...
0
votes
1answer
27 views
When should we use present perfect tense
I am a English Learner. I am very bad regarding tense. Somewhere in the youtube in the comment section I got a comment about a topic How many match box have you used? . As per my knowledge the ...
0
votes
2answers
79 views
Which tense fits the context best? (“would win” or “won”)
Which tense fits the context best?
The Super Grocery Store organized a competition for kids. Whoever could guess the correct number of jellybeans in the big jar, would win a prize.
The Super ...
0
votes
1answer
18 views
Grammar: Past perfect tense
If someone just told me about some celebrity I didn't know about all my life. would it be natural to express this in past perfect tense.
For instance:
Someone tells me about me about Mohammed Ali and ...
2
votes
1answer
37 views
Is it not a strange past perfect here?
The rumor we heard at the time was that Chris D had a bunch of Upsetter overstock of this Tooth and Nail vinyl compilations and that he'd recently carried them down to Rhino for beer money.
the first ...
6
votes
2answers
186 views
Difference between did and does
I messaged my friend asking if a person(say Mr. ABC) replies to his messages. So I texted him saying: " Does Mr. ABC reply to your messages?"
He corrected me saying that it was "did" and not "does"
...
2
votes
1answer
16 views
Something that possibly happened in the past
On https://scifi.stackexchange.com/q/209550/1924 there was a comment
If someone thinks being able to find out more or less everything that happened in the past is less dangerous than a dragons, all ...
0
votes
1answer
26 views
Past tense or present tense with after
Some people after you help them, just go away.
Or
Some people after you helped them just go away.
Or
Some people after you’ve help them just go away?
Thanks
