Questions tagged [tense]
Tense is location in time by grammatical forms and constructions rather than by semantics.
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0answers
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What is the tense of these sentence? [on hold]
I want to know how to find the tense of a sentence.
I haven't received the letter.
I hadn't received the letter.
jojo is a good boy
I didn't know about the incident.
I will go to the party
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vote
1answer
22 views
“Why don't you” vs. “Why won't you” in suggestions and questions
What is the difference between,
Why don't you decorate the house yourself?
Why won't you decorate the house yourself?
Are both of these sentences grammatically correct?
And what changes ...
1
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1answer
13 views
Why is “lately” usually used in a perfect tense sentence?
When you look up "lately tense", google gives the top result from oxfordlearnersdictionaries.
I haven't heard from him lately.
Lately is usually used with a perfect tense of the verb.Look also ...
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1answer
25 views
Has? Had? Which one is right?
I saw a guy who has purple eyes
I saw a guy who had purple eyes
The color of eyes would not change, but . .
Which sounds natural?
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2answers
44 views
Is “this is the man who stolen my car” grammatically correct?
I had this in my last english exam and I had a to choose between 4 answers
"this is the man (who-whose-who's-which) stolen my car"
"who" is the only answer which makes sense to me although I think ...
1
vote
2answers
21 views
why the past tense in this sentence that appears in a dialogue?
can you fix me up with a part-time job?
-Anything in particular that appeals to you?
-I was rather hoping to find something in a school.
-Have you done that kind of thing before?
Yes, I was doing the ...
1
vote
4answers
27 views
“is made” vs. “was made” vs. “has been made"
I have a car that is made by Benz
I have a car that was made by Benz
I have a car that has been made by Benz
Which sounds natural? So confusing.
0
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2answers
16 views
Which is natural and unnatural when I want to say that I have a smart phone by Apple?
I have a smartphone which is made by Apple
I have a smartphone which was made by Apple
I have a smartphone which has been made by Apple
I am struggling with this matter. . . .
0
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1answer
17 views
Use of present perfect and comparison with other tenses
Gloves for goalkeepers restrict heat loss from the hands and cuase
discomfort. To alleviate this problem, material A has been
incorporated into gloves to reduce the amount of heat.
This is a ...
1
vote
1answer
27 views
amount and duration in one sentence
The present perfect is used for quantity = how much, how many:
I have done 100 push-ups.
The present perfect continuous is used to express how long something has been happening:
I have been doing ...
3
votes
1answer
25 views
“Words were different when they (lived / were living) inside of you”
“Words were different when they lived inside of you.”
― Benjamin Alire Sáenz, Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe.
Shouldn't it be "...when they were living inside of you."?...
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3answers
80 views
Equivalents to the present tense
Do this to avoid having to do the dishes.
Do this to not do the dishes.
I am not sure what tense the first sentence is, I feel it's in the simple present too, but I am not sure. Is there a ...
0
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1answer
20 views
“is built” vs “was built”
Is it okay to say :
This building is built by company A.
I thought this is okay because the sentense delivers truth.
But I am not sure since I haven't seen many examples of built with present ...
3
votes
2answers
48 views
Does this sentence need “will”?
The book I use to learn English has this example sentence,
To tell the truth, I do not want to go to the party tomorrow
because the examinations begin the day after tomorrow.
I think this should be '...
2
votes
3answers
37 views
Use of the present tense along with simple past
The following sounds awfully ungrammatical:
He called the cops on us before the show begins.
But can this be said if the show begins at 7:00 and the call was made before 7:00? What other cases ...
0
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2answers
32 views
By the age of 18, I (decided / had decided) not to go to university
Are both these versions of the sentence equally grammatical? If so, is there any significant difference in meaning?
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2answers
28 views
Present perfect simple vs present perfect progressive
Why we use the present perfect rather than the present perfect progressive?
Example:
Passengers who (have spent) days sleeping on the airport floor are perplexed as to why only one third of flights ...
0
votes
1answer
42 views
“I wish I would have been there”. Is this sentence gramatically correct, if so which tense is it? [closed]
I wish I would have been there
Is this sentence grammatically correct? If so, which tense is it?
6
votes
2answers
789 views
weren't playing vs didn't play
Did your team win the football match yesterday?
The weather was very bad, so we weren't playing.
vs
The weather was very bad, so we didn't play.
Is the first one not correct? Why is it?
1
vote
1answer
34 views
simple past + (modal verbs) have been VS. 3rd conditional clause
In English grammar, we have "3rd conditional clause" with the format of:
(modal verbs) have been+ IF past participle
Ex.If I had known you earlier, I could have hired you.
HOWEVER, there are some ...
1
vote
1answer
29 views
Using “will” after “if” in order to make a polite request
I've read somewhere that the "if + will" construction may be used to formulate a polite request but I can't recall the exact way as to how to use it correctly.
I've tried to find solutions on the ...
1
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1answer
21 views
IF Conditional Sentences Using Could + V2
If you could managed to reduce the crime rate and more promotion towards tourism in Mexico, I believe Mexico could easily be one of the top 10 most visited countries in the world.
a) What is the ...
3
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2answers
32 views
Which Tense should we use while telling Story/Experience?
In the Below link writer has written in his blog about his experience in one the famous fair in India. He has used Present Tense.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/blogs/toi-edit-page/magical-...
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vote
3answers
38 views
Past tenses in sequence: former and latter past events
I have a question about past tenses in sequence.
I studied that while describing connected past events in sequence:
event 1: former event is in past-perfect
event 2: latter event is in past-tense
...
0
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2answers
44 views
which tense I have to use with the word before
What tense do I need to use with the word before
They truly believe that the benefits we obtained are nothing compared
with the damage we caused/had caused before.
2
votes
3answers
74 views
“The English ____ won the World Cup” - what should I put in the blank?
This Question is in my Exam book.
Q1.The English __ won the world cup
A) Has
B) Have
C) Is
D) Are
Which is correct? Also explain why.
Because as far i know we use Have with I, We, They, ...
1
vote
2answers
29 views
Can we give the answer to the present perfect question in past simple?
I saw this in a Cambridge conversation book:
A: Have you gone to school today?
B: Yes, I went to school today.
Can you please tell me why B answered in the Past Simple instead of the Present ...
0
votes
1answer
29 views
Can "if + past simple be used in not conditional meaning?
I was told not to use the "if + past simple" construction outside of the second conditional, but is that truly correct?
What about:
A hundred years ago, people could bury their relatives in their
...
0
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1answer
21 views
I had never been here before or I have never been here before?
I had never been here before?
I have never been here before?
Which one from these two is correct? The one in present perfect or the other in past perfect?
I came across both.
The "before" in ...
0
votes
2answers
19 views
What tense should I use in the following sentence?
I am writing a descriptive essay about what my life will be like 30 yrs from now.
Which tense should I use?
"I will be wearing/wear the same boyish clothes I wear now".
I mean, I am speaking of a ...
0
votes
1answer
43 views
Which is correct when using 'say'?
Which sentence is correct?
The person in this photo says that he was in the wrong
or
The person in this photo said that he was in the wrong
or
The person in this photo says that he is in ...
0
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1answer
20 views
Are you completely sure anything you have done [is/has been] of your own free will?
Are you completely sure anything you have done is of your own free
will?
Are you completely sure anything you have done has been of your own
free will?
Might I trouble you to tell me whether ...
0
votes
2answers
32 views
goes/went/has gone, which tense is correct?
Dad, something goes wrong with the machine. Can you help me fix it?
Dad, something went wrong with the machine. Can you help me fix it?
Dad, something has gone wrong with the machine. Can ...
2
votes
2answers
34 views
What tense is used when we talk about future with “I wish” structure?
1) I wish I get to go to the first day show of Endgame.
Is the aforementioned sentence correct or do I need to change the verb from "get" to "got" as it done in the subjunctive mood.
2) I wish I ...
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2answers
30 views
He told me he plays table tennis well. Why didn't he use played
He told me he plays table tennis well. Why didn't he use played?
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1answer
27 views
would have been VS would been
If the Houses of Parliament had not been burned down in 1834, the great clock would not have been erected.
Can you use 'would not been' instead of 'would not have been'?
语法练习263
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2answers
33 views
has done or did when using “during”?
Which one is correct:
During the same trip, the couple ( a guy and a girl) has also visited Venice.
During the same trip, the couple ( a guy and a girl) visited Venice.
Thank you.
1
vote
1answer
30 views
was forced vs had been forced
Going through customs to leave a country can sometimes be very
frustrating. First she was asked why she was not rolling her carryon.
The handle got stuck when she got off the car so she had been ...
1
vote
1answer
25 views
Is there a subjunctive tense in English?
The following sentence come from The American Journal of the Medical Sciences by J.B. Lippincott:
Unless there be some lesion of the stomach, there is no blood, either
microscopic or occult.
Is "...
0
votes
1answer
64 views
Why can't we use the Present Perfect tense for dead people? [duplicate]
Immanuel Kant has been born in Europe.
I heard that the following sentence is wrong, but why can't we use Present Perfect for a dead person?
1
vote
1answer
39 views
What tenses can we use aside the simple present in clauses introduced by when, as soon as, the minute etc.?
I know we can use the simple present in those clause, with a potential (irrealis) meaning, but is there any other tense we can use?
ex:
Text me when you get there.
What other tenses can we use ...
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vote
1answer
23 views
tense: “are” or “were”
Is the present tense "are" properly used in the following?
Why wasn't "were" used instead?
"And it makes sense, up to a point, to debate ending remedies for discrimination that are more appropriate ...
1
vote
1answer
32 views
Difference in meaning of sentences when will and would are used
I asked him when he would go there.
vs
I asked him when he will go there.
Which one is correct? If both are correct, what is difference in meaning between them?
1
vote
3answers
41 views
To what extent is a tense mismatch allowed?
A tree stood in the middle of the plain, around which the children play.
A tree stood in the middle of the plain around which the children played.
I thought these two are near synonymous, with ...
0
votes
1answer
27 views
That would require that he imagine(s?) something
Which one is correct? And why?
"That would require that he imagine something."
"That would require that he imagines something."
0
votes
1answer
22 views
About tense in indirect speech
I (Chinese Premire) was asked in 2016 whether there will be significant change in China-US ties when a new president is elected.
I (Chinese Premire) was asked in 2016 whether there would be ...
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vote
1answer
36 views
What's the difference between “we've been getting the ball rolling” and “we've got the ball rolling”
The only difference I see is that "we've been getting the ball rolling" means that it has happened for a continuous time in the past, and "we've got the ball rolling" mean that the ball has rolled, ...
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1answer
26 views
I AM/WAS the one who was breaking up the fight
Let's say your boss didn't know the whole story about a fight in your workplace. There was a fight that happened between your 2 co-workers and you broke up the fight. You have successfully stopped it. ...
0
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1answer
30 views
Simple versus continuous tense in sentences
What is the difference between "When the teacher entered, the boys were all looking out the window." and "When the teacher entered, the boys all looked out the window."? Can someone please explain it? ...
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0answers
13 views
“Premier said that China has” Premier VS “Premier said that China had ”
Premier Li Keqiang said on Tuesday that China has the ability to pay pension benefits to the senior in time and in full.
Premier Li Keqiang said on Tuesday that China had the ability to pay pension ...
