Search results for 'tag:Past tenses tag:Present perfect' matching tags 'Past tenses' and 'Present perfect'

Re: tenses

Mister Micawber — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 12:36:48 GMT

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Were is also correct because there is no real confusion about the order of the past events. Says is common journalistic (historical present) narrative, but I don't like it here because it is inserted between two past tenses-- very sloppy. I suppose that if you keep it, you could use present perfect-- or present-- besides past:

A press release issued today says that security issues were/are/have been one of the chief topics of the talks.

It all depends on whether the talks were finished at the time.

some acceptable tenses

Anonymous — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 01:36:23 GMT

Hi,

Normally, I think a past continuous is used to denote an action that has been continuing to the moment of speaking.

He was making a noise when the teacher walked in.

But this element of "continuing upto a moment" seems to be missing here but they look to be correct. Am I missing some thing?

Can you tell me who was making a noise during the break?

I think you can use a past tense.

Can you tell me who made a noise during the break.

I even think a present perfect contiuous is good too.

Can you tell me who has been making a noise during the break?

But feel a present perfect is not a good choice, if not wrong.

Can you tell me who has made a noise during the break?

past in one and present perfect in another

Anonymous — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 04:49:16 GMT

Hi,
Whenever an error occurs in this forum, something like below seems to come up. I wonder why one sentence has a past tense and another has a present perfect tense. What could be the reason? If both are relevant, will it not be reasonable/correct to put both in present perfect? The same dilemma occurs in my writing situations too.
(I am talking about these part of the message below:
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tense questions

Anonymous — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 01:01:05 GMT

1. Do you think the past perfect tense is correct? I feel just a past tense is correct. I don't see a reason for the need for the past perfect tense. I thought what follows usually after a present perfect is a past tense, not a past perfect.

It has never played put the way I had intended.

2. I think the modal 'may' is not right. I think the phrase with it is denoting a past thought of his and to use 'amy" seem incorrect.

I am forced to concede that this may not have been the right one for my friends.

tense

Anonymous — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 01:36:44 GMT

Hi, Please tell me if tenses are correct. I am uneasy about having one present perfect tense and the other in past tense? Is it OK? Should I make them both present perfect tenses?

Let me introduce Joe Doe. He was an officer of our organization for two years and he has done a lot of great things for us. Mr. Doe, would you come out?

Re: DIARY TENSE

Mister Micawber — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 05:50:03 GMT

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Today, I visited the Plaza. It was full of people shopping for the latest fashion items. I didn't buy much, since I didn't have much money with me. On the way home, I met some handicapped people. After hearing their sad life stories, I feel I am blessed. Listening to their less joyful life experiences has made me aware of what I have and realize how fortunate I am. I think my stay in this city is going to change me for the better.

Should I write in past tenses those things that occurred/happened in the past and leave present perfect and present tenses to describe what is happening now or has present-time implications?-- Basically, yes.
.

Re: Cover letter help!(past tense or present perfect tense)

Mister Micawber — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 10:01:54 GMT

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Hello, lwg-- and welcome to EF. I suggest:

In my accounting course work, I emphasized financial and managerial accounting skills. In addition to my academic foundation, I gained working experience in accounting from my two summer internships in Hong Kong. I served as an accounting staff assistant to the Senior Accounting Manager at PoTak Limited Co., a logistics company. I assisted in managing the monthly payroll for more than 60 employees. I also managed the accounting of over a hundred shipping invoices daily. Through the hands-on experience of my internships, I have become well organized, with a strong attention to details and accuracy. Along with my accounting skills, I built up a solid foundation of general administrative skills as an Office Assistant at Foothill College. I gained experience in filing and data entry for student files.

Cover letter help!(past tense or present perfect tense)

lwg — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 01:58:44 GMT

Hi all,
I wonder which tense is more prefer for the following sentences, present perfect or past tense(underline ones) ?

In my accounting course work, I have emphasized in financial and managerial accounting skills. In addition to my academic foundation, I gained working experiences in accounting from my two summer internships in Hong Kong. I served as an assistant to the Senior Accounting Manager as an Accounting Staff at PoTak Limited Co., a logistic company. I assisted in managing payroll for over 60 employees monthly. I also managed the accounting of over a hundred of shipping invoices daily. Through my hands-on experience with my internships, I have become well-organized with high attention to details and accuracy. Along with the accounting skills, I have built up a solid foundation in general administrative skills as an Office Assistant at Foothill College. I gained experience in filing and data entry for students' files.

Thanks a lot! : )

Re: about tense

Clive — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 13:32:51 GMT

Hi,

I have a question about tense in this sentence below.

"My family has been in this rural village for generations,

so I never had to commute by crowded public transport."

The person " I " have no experience of commuting by crowded transport

until now. However, "had to" is the past tense.

Please teach me why "had " can be used in this case?

'I never had to commute . . . ' The use of the past tense suggests that the speaker no longer lives there at the present time.
eg "My family has been in this rural village for generations, so I never had to commute by crowded public transport until I moved to the big city where I live now."

'I have never had to commute . . . ' Use the Present Perfect to stress 'until now', ie this sounds like 'I' still live in the village.

Best wishes, Clive

chossing correct tense/tense consistency

MaxMaximus — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 21:08:59 GMT

Greetings,

I have a pretty big favour to ask.

I've been struggling with this topic for quite awhile now.It goes without saying that my English "leaves something to be desired".

Having in mind the subtle differences that occur from using particular tenses, I have often wondered how the authors of following exercises expect anyone to choose the correct form, without providing sound and unambiguous references.

I've uploaded 2 exercises that I stumbled upon :

1. http://rapidshare.com/files/138835945/HP.txt.html
and
2.http://rapidshare.com/files/138835946/redundancy.txt.html

I have converted them into .txt files to ease moderators' job.

They present the essence of my inability to comprehend and do right.

First text:
1. First sentence, adverb "always" stands before the verb (author did not bother to put it in the brackets (always/be)). If she is dead (we don't know that until we have finished reading) or if she is not "a fighter" anymore (we are clueless about that either), - we could use Past Simple. Of course, Present Perfect is more likely choice, but the position of adverb puzzles.

2."But, prior to..." - Past Continuous or Past Perfect?

3.The sentence : "it (be)__ slow to notice..".I'm not sure whether Past Simple or Past Perfect should be used here.There is no strong reference whether this "slow noticing" occurred prior to her arrival or about the time when she came on board.

4."Those three years are not over..". The starting point is present time, but, that has nothing to do with the moment when she realized how things stand, which I know nothing about.Even the Present Simple is possible if she keeps realizing everyday that things are harder than she expected.For the rest of the paragraph I'm not certain whether Present Perfect should be used.

5."Above all,.." - from Present Simple (finds, is trying, is going to embark)...to Present Perfect (has found, has tried/has been trying, has embarked)...The tenses chosen in these sentences determine the tenses of the last paragraph in the text.

Second text:
1. First sentence: we could use Future Simple as well as Present Simple for the verb "have to"?

2. "Although no business or industry..". If there was a recent survey - do interviewed subjects still claim what they have said - or the use of Past Tense is obligatory? The word "any" is used in interrogative or negative sentences - but here, no question is being asked nor it is possible to be negative. Instead, "some" should have been used, I think.

3. "Those who have..." - Present Continuous or Present Simple? Former is more likely choice although the latter is possible also.

4. "In the past.." - as far as I know this presents the "indefinite moment in time". The Present Perfect could be used - but the position of adverb "always" confuses, again.

I would be more than grateful to anyone who can shed some light on these issues.
If I could reach to any other decent credible source I wouldn't ask for help in this way.

Thanks in advance,
Georgie.