Questions tagged [tense]
Tense is location in time by grammatical forms and constructions rather than by semantics.
1,726 questions
0
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2answers
37 views
“has not seen” versus “has not been seen”
In the sentence
The ocean, 95% of which has not (seen/been seen) before.
I know that the correct answer is "been seen". Why do I use been, the past tense of "to be"? Is there a better way to ...
0
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2answers
25 views
“was acquainted with” or “have acquainted with”?
I can not decide which one is correct or more accurate for using.
I have acquainted with structure of remote control in primary school.
I was acquainted with structure of remote control in ...
1
vote
1answer
25 views
Why is this grammatically correct? - “I would like to cancel the job that I had ordered”
As the title states, would you mind teaching me why this sentence is grammatically correct?
"I would like to cancel the job that I had ordered"
The reason I ask is that the below sentence doesn't ...
0
votes
1answer
20 views
“if talks were successful” VS “if talks are successful”
If the talks were successful between China and the US, they could lead to discussions in Washington, D.C., between senior officials of both countries.
If the talks are successful between China and ...
0
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0answers
26 views
I saw x while y
I stumbled across a sentence recently
I saw a baby bus while its proud mother showed it the way
I feel like while should be replaced with as, or saw with watched. Can anyone tell me if this ...
0
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1answer
37 views
What is name of structure Being + v3
I went to the hospital and I saw a patient being treated last night.
What kind of sentence it is being treated in the above sentence.
2
votes
2answers
34 views
Have got usage question
Consider this:
We have got to go back
- Luke Skywalker in Star Wars V
I don't think it is actually present perfect usage but certainly used like that syntactically. It is more like simple ...
0
votes
1answer
30 views
Should we use “would” or “will” in a true story?
Let's say Shiva has found a language exchange partner online. Her mother has asked her how long has she known the language exchange partner and then Shiva said:
Well, I've known him for about 2 ...
0
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1answer
24 views
Correct usage with that
He defined the dandy, in the later "metaphysical" phase of dandyism, as one who elevates æsthetics to a living religion, that the dandy's mere existence reproaches the responsible citizen of the ...
1
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3answers
76 views
+50
Could/could've- which of the two indicates that something has no chance of happening?
If there's no chance of something happening in the future, what tense do we use to indicate that?
Let's say I have a friend whom I'm not meeting tomorrow, and they call me and say "If you came over ...
0
votes
2answers
38 views
What is the correct tense I should use? [closed]
Harry stowed everything he needs into his trunk.
Harry stows everything he needs into his trunk.
Harry stowed everything he needed into his trunk.
May I know which of these sentences is correct?
I ...
2
votes
1answer
96 views
Tense problem: What is the difference in meaning?
1) Schools could ensure that motivated students participated.
2) Teachers could ensure that children gain more from working together.
Sentence 1 is about a hypothetical scenario in the future. This ...
2
votes
1answer
48 views
Past Tense or Past Continuous Tense with precise time
There's a sentence like:
I ____ television at 7pm last night.
a) was watching
b) watched
c) watch
Can we use a) and b) to complete the sentence?
Some friends here said a) because there'...
0
votes
2answers
15 views
What does “in more than two years” mean exactly in this sentence?
In the following sentence
The ceasefire's one of the agreements that was reached this past week in Sweden where the two sides fighting Yemen's war have been meeting. They've been having their first ...
1
vote
5answers
54 views
what's the tense of how about going?
So I searched before and found thread are related for my question:
Reference: ELL question on "How about going to the cinema tonight?"
But it hasn't solved my question. ( by the way is it correct ...
3
votes
1answer
20 views
“would have done” vs “did”
They couldn’t go as fast as they would have liked, for fear of
attracting too much attention.
If I change the "would have liked" to "liked". What's the difference between the meanings?
They ...
1
vote
1answer
22 views
This is already the level of my speaking skills BEFORE I GOT TO
Let's say you went to an English-speaking country, such as in the U.S.A. for work. You are born and raised in a non-English speaking nation for example in an asian country. And then, after several ...
0
votes
1answer
34 views
Is the past perfect necessary when one action clearly precedes another?
When I describe two actions in the past, one of which precedes the other, when is the Past Perfect more preferable than the Past Simple?
Jenny put on a mask after I put on goggles.
Jenny put ...
0
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1answer
23 views
Wrong Tense or Verb Form. Why is it? (-ing vs -to verb form)
1.Burnett,L., 2001, 15 frequently occuring grammatical mistakes, The Learning Centre, UNSW, Sydney
My questions:
Compare these sentences:
1.They were required filling out a long form before ...
0
votes
1answer
31 views
Past tense vs present tense
(1)The students who are good at math helped him solve the problems.
(2)The students who were good at math helped him solve the problems.
Let's say this happened 2 days ago. The students mentioned ...
0
votes
2answers
42 views
Proper tense in “I read the documentation but I didn’t find any information about requirements”
I read the documentation but I didn’t find any information about requirements.
Is it right to use the simple past here? Or should I say it like this:
I've read the documentation but I haven’t ...
1
vote
1answer
32 views
Which one is the correct form of reported speech for the following sentence?
Which one is the correct form of reported speech for the following sentence? why?
"When were you born?", he asked him.
=>
1- He asked him when he had been born.
2- He asked him when he was born....
1
vote
1answer
11 views
Tense consistency with “think that…”
Can I say
I think he was sick last night
or do I have to say
I thought he was sick last night.
1
vote
1answer
29 views
Arrive/ arrives/ arrived [closed]
I don’t know what is the exactly form of this verb in this sentence.
I would stay with the person until the emergency service arrives/arrive/arrived?
1
vote
3answers
60 views
Past Perfect Tense or Simple Past tense
"Qatar Petroleum is looking to invest at least $20b in the United States over the coming few years, its chief executive told Reuters, after the Gulf Arab state quit OPEC, freeing Doha from potential ...
0
votes
1answer
23 views
Had+simple vs. (1)simple past using BEFORE then (2)simple past
Let's say I was cooking for breakfast, what is the difference between:
My mom had warned me to be careful when using knives then I accidentally cut my finger with a knife.
Vs.
My mom warned me ...
2
votes
0answers
23 views
Is my “past perfect continuous tense” usage correct? [closed]
When I began studying XXX in my senior year, I realized that I had
been preparing for it for years unwittingly.
1
vote
1answer
33 views
Correct tense after I come to a country
Imagine I go to another country on a vacation to visit my friends. When I talk to the local people, should I say:
"I come here to visit my friends"
or
"I came here to visit my friends"
Also,...
1
vote
2answers
80 views
Hadn't/haven't- difference in meaning in the given context
Life would be so much easier if people could anticipate your needs and work to satisfy them.
Like, if somebody got you that cup of coffee you hadn't asked for yet.
Life would be so much easier if ...
0
votes
1answer
9 views
“They have lived here for 10 years”
What does this sentence tell about their current situation?are they still living here or is it obscure?
0
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2answers
34 views
Which one is the correct question? -“Are you still living in that apartment?”or“Do you still live in that apartment?”
The first one enquires if the listener is living in the apartment at present.The second one is a question of simple present type which deals with more obvious or general facts(here,is the listener’s ...
0
votes
1answer
32 views
Flowers “are” or “were” commonly used to design clothing worn in the 1960s?
May I know which sentence is correct?
1) Flowers were commonly used to design clothing worn in the 1960s.
2) Flowers are commonly used to design clothing worn in the 1960s.
0
votes
1answer
28 views
Type of sentence, its structure and its parts
I uttered these sentences in the class."First of all I will read a story for you people. Side by side I will give you the story map and you will do this activity in pairs."Is this utterance ...
1
vote
1answer
23 views
happened in the past, but used a simple present tense
Katie Brennan speaks for the first time publicly. ‘My pleas went unanswered' by Murphy administration
Brennan recounted the days, weeks and months after she says she was
raped by Albert J. ...
1
vote
1answer
19 views
Was one of those that “turned” or “turn” to…?
I think it should have been written "turned", right?
It was one of those scheduled ten-minute meetings that turn into a two-hour meeting. [The New Yorker]
2
votes
2answers
77 views
Do English speakers *really* routinely/widely use complex tenses? [closed]
My language (Russian) has just three tenses: past, present, future. Very convenient and simple.
Instead of
I will have been studying English for three years this summer.
we say (literally)
I ...
1
vote
1answer
22 views
future in the past + adverbial clause
I would like to ask a question about future in the past and the adverbial clause used in the sentence which indicates the future.
I know we can indicate future in the past, for example by using "...
-1
votes
1answer
18 views
Present Tense and Future Tense
The question, below, is in present tense but the answer, below in second clause, is in future tense. Why?
The question is " what does the headline suggest about the main idea of the article?".
The ...
-1
votes
0answers
13 views
Past simple vs past perfect simple in this sentence
I am not sure which of these is correct :
The place looked as if nobody lived there.
The place looked as if nobody had lived there.
I believe that the former means that the place ...
1
vote
2answers
41 views
The use of “be” in future tense in this sentence
I would like to visit NY in future if you are also there.
Is this a correct sentence? I am concerned about the "are" part.
2
votes
2answers
75 views
Question when we shift one tense back in reported speech
There is something makes me confused when I use reported speech. Please help me to understand this.
For example, in a three people conversation.
A said: I like ice-cream.
When I reported this ...
0
votes
1answer
29 views
Would have been … had been
I am writing an essay and would appreciate a little help with the language.
Social science is the knowledge (about the world) that would not have existed had human not existed.
Social science ...
0
votes
1answer
31 views
Past simple or continuous
I would like others to tell me the difference between these sentences.
It was being a beautiful sunny day.
It was a beautiful sunny day.
1
vote
1answer
23 views
Sentence in simple present tense in a past tense aticle
New york time - Mirgants ...
The unrest in Tijuana comes amid broader discussions about how to
deal with the growing number of migrants fleeing poverty and violence
in Central America who are ...
2
votes
2answers
202 views
“After you finish” vs. “After you have finished”
Is there any difference in meaning in the following sentence?
After you finish your homework, call me.
After you have finshed your homework, call me.
I pretty often hear natives use after and ...
3
votes
2answers
193 views
The teacher HADN'T informed us BEFORE the class started
Let's say a teacher surprised his students by a quiz without informing them beforehand. Then, one of his students reacted and say:
(Student to student talk): The teacher hadn't informed us before ...
0
votes
1answer
25 views
Since Mr. Joval IS absent or WAS absent?
I'm composing a minutes of the meeting, during that meeting Mr. Joval was absent, but I don't know which word should I use if is or was, could you please help me?
Since Mr. Joval is absent
or
...
0
votes
1answer
18 views
when to use base or based in sentences
when to use base or based in sentences
Currently having trouble understanding the differences between using base or based and their meaning
I base my decisions on...
I based my decision on...
For me ...
1
vote
1answer
37 views
Does the tense change when we convert between active and passive voice?
Here are some examples I know of:
Present:
The magic is performed on stage by the magician
The magician performs the magic on stage.
Past:
Chester kicked the ball.
The ball was kicked by ...
0
votes
1answer
41 views
Please keep calm and wait for the right time until
Which of the following sentence is grammatically correct?
1. Wait for the right time until the experiments are done.
2. Wait for the right time until the experiments will be done.
