Search results for 'tag:Simple Tenses' matching tag 'Simple Tenses'

Re: Passive & Active Voice

tanit — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 19:29:57 GMT

Hi, I'd change these: 5. The sun was eclipsed by the moon. ACTIVE PASSIVE 9. This bone has been buried by the dog . PASSIVE 10. It takes a long time to think of these examples . PASSIVE ACTIVE 13. There was a cup of coffee on the table but now it's gone. ACTIVE 15. Mark was given one month to write this book . ACTIVE PASSIVE As far as your #14 is concerned, I am not sure everybody would agree on this. 14. I was born under a wandering star I was taught that this is technically a passive form, but some regard it as active (Cambridge dictionary lists the verb " be born "). For instance, here's what some of our most prominent members wrote in the forums. (Opinions are split) Clive ( from this post<

Re: HELP!!! independent clauses connected with ,and

billj — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 18:36:09 GMT

I thought have was needed before spread to keep a single tense. That would be a good solution: They have appeared on message boards and in blogs and have spread by word of mouth. There are no dependent clauses here, by the way --- just an independent clause with a compound predicate. CJ This is not a question of predicate, compound (whatever that means) or otherwise. This is a straightforward example of a compound sentence containing TWO independent clauses, linked by the conjunction ' and '' : and . You can tell there are two clauses because there are TWO VERBS ( have appeared and have spread , or the passive have been spread ). A clause...

Re: Problems with mixed tenses exercises

clive — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:07:25 GMT

Hi, Welcome to the Forum. Problem 1: img687.imageshack.us/img687/4138/testnx.jpg It's much easier for us to respond if you actually post the question here. Most of us don't want to go off and start searching other sites. It takes time and often makes it harder for us to make edits and to respond in a quick way. I've got doubts concerning number 7 (love). According to the key there are 2 possible answers "love/loved". My question is: why is Present Perfect impossible here? To my Polish ear, it just sounds perfect Problem 3: At the dentist's I was on time for my dentist's appointment, but the dentist was still busy with another patient, so I (1)..(sit) in the waiting room and (2).....

Problems with mixed tenses exercises

chudziol — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 12:14:40 GMT

Hi, I'm a Pole trying to explore the intricacies English This is my first post here so, welcome everybody. And here are my problems. I've done these tests and I even got the key, but there is no freaking way I can understand some answers. Wondering now if it's really so difficult or I'm just so stupid Ok, let's go: Problem 1: img687.imageshack.us/img687/4138/testnx.jpg I've got doubts concerning number 7 (love). According to the key there are 2 possible answers "love/loved". My question is: why is Present Perfect impossible here? To my Polish ear, it just sounds perfect Problem 2: img80.imageshack.us/img80/9406/focusj.jpg Number 20. Can we put "was shutting" here? Or maybe the action of...

Re: Is this sentence correct?

billj — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 23:26:38 GMT

Hi No, I'm afraid it's not correct. The problem is your use of the verb 'go'. You tried to use the negative form of the simple past tense and wrongly assumed it was 'did not went'. This is a tricky aspect of English verbs which causes many problems. I'll try to explain: In questions the simple present and past tenses are replaced by the the relevant tenses of the verb ' to do ' + the basic (infinitive) form of the verb. The same also applies to the simple tenses in conjunction with ' not ' when we want to form the negative: I really went there. (past tense - positive) Did you really go there? (past tense - question) You did not really go...

Re: Tenses

mister micawber — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:06:05 GMT

For most action verbs. present continuous refers to the present moment ('I am typing in this box') while simple present refers to an action that happens anytime in the past present and future ('I type in these boxes when I have free time').

"because malcolm had never become a cutthroat CEO, he had few enemies"

mkyol — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 02:22:46 GMT

I would like someone to confirm my thoughts on the following sentence, to see if I am on the right track or am just in fantasy lala land, going off on a tangent: "Because Malcolm had never become a cutthroat CEO, he had few enemies." I am pondering about the above sentence, in terms of the tense used. I think the sentence is trying to convey that sometime in the past, Malcolm had few enemies, and this is because going further back into the past from that point, Malcolm was never a cutthroat CEO (he never became one during that time). Compare the above sentence with the following sentence, written in simple past tense: "Because Malcolm never became a cutthroat CEO, he had few enemies." In this case, I think that...

Re: Passive

califjim — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 17:48:36 GMT

I just want to point out the word "could" is indicative of the subjunctive mood Modal verbs don't have tenses and moods in the way that other verbs do. could certainly acts like a past subjunctive in If I could help you, I would. but could , like several other modals, can act in other ways as well, including as a conditional or a simple past. CJ

Re: I bet...

yankee — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 01:12:48 GMT

The verbs in your sentences have different tenses. I bet I stopped listening before you did . bet = simple present tense stopped = simple past tense did = simple past tense (The word "did" is used as a replacement for "stopped".) Your second sentence contains a pretty unlikely tense combination, in my opinion. In fact, it strikes me as simply being bad grammar: I bet I' ve stopped listening before you did . bet = simple present tense

youngbuddy — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 13:43:49 GMT

1 Simple Past Where was he last night? >>> Simple Past He may have been at his house last night. >>> Present Perfect The question is in the form of " simple past " , so the answer should be as well. Where was he last night ? He was in the cinema yesterday. He would be in the cinema yesterday ( to show possibility ) 2 Present Perfect He may have been in this country for years. (Not a past probability; included present moment) >> present perfect is used to describe an action that happened in the past ( not a specific time ), that might not be finished yet. He may have been in this country for years. ( showing possibility, either been or not in the country for years) 3 Past...

Re: "Past Probability + Tenses" combo

akdom — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 06:06:25 GMT

Thank you, CalifJim, YoungBuddy, Mister Micawber Here are what I've learned so far. See if I got them right. Expressing Past Probability with "may have" in different scenarios: 1 Simple Past Where was he last night? He may have been at his house last night. 2 Present Perfect He may have been in this country for years. (Not a past probability; included present moment) 3 Past Perfect He may have left before we came. 4 Past Perfect Progressive He may have been taking the drug for years before we noticed anything. 5 Past Progressive When the cops showed up last night, what was he doing? I don’t know. He may have been taking a shower. 1, 2, 3...

Re: Verb tenses

youngbuddy — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 13:47:48 GMT

I never heard that there is such a rule that you can't use more than one tense in the same sentence , on the other hand, there is always a mixing of tenses in order to express the meaning in the best way, i will give you few examples - The phone rang while i was sleeping ( simple past - past continuous ) - I had left the party before she came ( past perfect - simple past ) - Her eyes are red, she must h ave cried ( simple present - present perfect) On the other hand, you can still use the same verb in the same sentence to show that two actions are happening simultaneously, for example - I was walking down the street while it was raining ( past continuous) I hope it's clear enough.

Re: PRESENT, PAST or FUTURE

youngbuddy — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 00:37:28 GMT

Talking about tenses, I would like to mention a piece of advice in here, concerning the use of present tesne specifically, because it is obvious that you just misunderstand the use of present tense in the sentences mentioned above. We use the simple present tense when: - the action is general - the action happens all the time, or habitually, in the past, present and future - the action is not only happening now - the statement is always true Looking at the sentences " 1- 3 - 4 " shows that you misunderstand the point that Present tense is not used to show that something is happening now For example : The sun rises in the East ( the sun rised today morning in the east, and will rise tomorrow as well in the east ... and so...

Telling a story... tenses ?

sarah88 — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 05:56:46 GMT

Do we always use simple past and past perfect for telling a story?

Re: Past Perfect and Simple Past

califjim — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 23:29:30 GMT

I remember the past perfect tense "had not seen" should be used to denote an event happened before another event at in the past Yes. That is one of the uses of the past perfect, and the most common one. In the case at hand, the clauses in the past perfect are all to be interpreted from the point of view of the clause "when we caught up". Chronologically we have the graduation, absence, then catching up. The events in normal order can all go in the past. I graduated, then we caught up, and I asked her about the past. From the point of view of the time of catching up, however, "I had not seen her" and "She had been doing things". 1. I graduated 2. I not seeing her -- she doing things 3. we...

Re: Blending the simple past and simple present tenses

califjim — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 05:42:35 GMT

"I never knew that you have such a callous heart." knew and thought in the main clause are almost never followed by a subordinate clause in the present tense. You'll rarely go wrong by backshifting, regardless of the verb in the main clause. Save yourself the trouble of determining who has a callous heart and when they had it. You'll drive yourself crazy. Backshift and be done with it! This is not advanced calculus. CJ

Re: Blending the simple past and simple present tenses

mister micawber — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 05:26:21 GMT

The rule is as you state it: if the condition still appertains now, then the present tense is also possible. I say 'also' because the natural tendency of the native speaker is to regress the verb of the independent clause. That is why it sounds more 'natural' in past tense.

Blending the simple past and simple present tenses

purveyor — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 04:38:13 GMT

Hello, I've recently developed a habit of wondering (often to the point of frustration) how and when best to combine the simple past and simple present tenses in a logical manner. I've looked at a number of guidelines establishing when to make the transition from one to the other, yet the confusion hasn't been dispelled. I understand that it's prudent to use the present tense in a dependent clause following an independent clause with a verb in the past tense where a condition is considered timeless or still true, but I can't help but feel that strictly following that criterion would result in some awkward constructions, for example this relatively simple one: "I never knew that you have such a callous...

Re: Tenses

philip — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 15:56:36 GMT

I think the simple past in the second half is not incorrect, but for the sake of sound, I would repeat the present perfect.

Re: Main and Auxiliary Verbs

yankee — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 22:21:33 GMT

Hi Anon What sort of course are you doing? Are you familiar with the names of vebs tenses? (simple present, present continuous, present perfect, simple past, etc.)

Re: Is past particple always an adjective?

alpheccastars — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 15:31:57 GMT

Hi Anon: If you look in any English language reference book under verb tenses, you will find the answer to your question. "be" is a helping verb (auxilliary) for the passive voice of verbs, and "have" is the helping verb for all the perfect tenses. "been" is the past participle of "be", and "have been" is the auxiliary for the present perfect passive voice of transitive verbs. The past participle is used in the verb phrase for passive voice. The past participle can also be used as an adjective. Examples: I send a letter to Bill every week. (active voice, simple present) A letter is sent by me to Bill every week. (the above, changed to passive voice) Mary baked a pie for dinner....

Re: Present perfect and past tense

goodman — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 09:10:05 GMT

Vctory, Many examples have been used and posted here in response to your questions. If you Google the two tenses, you will find all the answers that will clear all your doubts. But I will give you a few from the top of my head. I went to LA last weekend. - simple past. I drove nearly 700 miles on that trip - past I had a flat tire driving back- past. I have heard a lot about Las Vegas but never been there. - present perfect. This type of context does not require "time reference". It simply tells people that you had heard about it since time passed and you still have periodically. Same with " I have heard and seen enough of gossips about Michael Jackson ".

Re: Present Tense or Past Tense

avangi — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 08:47:28 GMT

Hi. Could you please show the example of infinitive that you refer to? In #1, I take "come" as subjunctive, referring to the future. I take "came" as a suggestion about what might have happened in the past. It sounds a bit foolish in the first person. I wonder when Rosie could have washed the dishes? Reply: Ali suggested that she came back in the afternoon. Edit. Okay, I see what you're talking about. We use the bare infinitive in forming tenses other than the simple present, but we don't "call it" the infinitive. She did come back in the afternoon. She will come back again tomorrow. You should come back later.

Re: If / When

grammar geek — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 19:24:08 GMT

Amy is right, of course. We DO use simple present, but so many of your sentences "he helps his mother" "he fishes by the river" "he calls for help" "he sees the robber" are going to describe situations that would be better using other tenses, either continuous or past.

Re: Tense

califjim — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 02:10:21 GMT

"If you knew what I had gone through, you would surely pity me." Can I change had into have in the sentence above? No. If you possibly can, you need to keep all the parts of the sentence in the same point of view with regard to tenses. knew is simple past . have gone is present perfect. They don't normally go together. Present point of view: Present tenses, tenses with auxiliary do, does, have, has, will, can, may, must, shall, should, ... Past point of view: Past tenses, tenses with auxiliary did, had, would, could, might, ... ( would, could, and might can sometimes be used in a present point of view as well.) So the following are not correct because they don't stay in the past point of view...

questions in reported speech?

anonymous — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 04:48:09 GMT

Hi. In a section called "Advanced Points in Reported Speech" in the LoreGate.com Learn English Easily site, these two things (exceptions) are what are written under the heading of "exceptions," in addition to one other exception. Backshift of Simple Present is optional if the situation is still unchanged or if you agree with the original speaker. Simple Past and Past Progressive do not normally change in sentences with when / if. Could they mean this? He said/reported/suggested/mentioned Jane is living with her parents and going to school full- time. -- Would this be correct if someone reporting it knows for sure (how about to the best of his/her knowledge?) that Jane is living with her parents...

Re: Correct sentence

alpheccastars — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 23:54:58 GMT

I agree with Philip - it takes several to assemble. That being said, all of the options would be correct with the compound subject - they are just different tenses and voices! Mr. Gupta and his friends assembled on the lawns. (simple past) Mr. Gupta and his friends were assembled on the lawns. (past with stative participle as predicate adjective) Mr. Gupta and his friends are assembled on the lawns. (present with stative participle as predicate adjective) Mr. Gupta and his friends have assembled on the lawns. (present perfect)

Re: Uses of the present form of verbs

avangi — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 04:15:54 GMT

what are the uses of the present form of verbs? Not sure what you mean. People have different names for the simplest form of the verb, as you find it in the dictionary. Sometimes it's called "the bare infinitive - without the 'to.' " Take a nice action verb like "to hit." "Hit" is used for the simple present tense in all persons except 3rd singular. It's also used for the simple past, although most verbs change, eg., "Today I take; yesterday I took." It's also used in forming more complicated tenses: I'm hit; I'm being hit; I shall hit. "Hit" is also special because the same "form" serves as past participle, so it's used for the perfect...

Re: 1 Voc Problem, Two Sentences

avangi — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 12:30:52 GMT

The school claims that their alumni were able to memorize. " I don't get the concept of the last option and I am not sure which one I need to chose. The implication with these tenses in reported speech ("claims" in simple present) is that the alumni were able to memorize in the past t but can no longer do so.

Re: A special discount

tanit — Sun, 31 May 2009 06:38:45 GMT

Vincent, With my previous post I wanted to draw your attention to the fact that you're repeating over and over the same sentences. I am not sure in what way this helps you improve your English. How come you're still focusing on the same stories after so many months? Why are they so important to you? I believe it's about time you started working on more complex grammatical features (simple present and simple past seem to be the only tenses you are using) and stylistic devices (for instance, using connectors to link short sentences and write nice paragraphs instead). This has already been suggested to you by others, right?

Re: When one past perfect is enough/correct?

clive — Tue, 26 May 2009 13:43:43 GMT

Hi, OK. Let's consider your examples. Would you say we normally use one past perfect tense in a sentence, whether the sentence is complex or compound? Do you perceive any sentential situation where two past perfect tenses would be used correctly in a sentence? After more thoughts on this, I think I am covering too broad a ground on this and it would be very hard for anyone do provide clear answers/responses. But any way I wish someone would catch the crux of my dilemma and come to the rescue by providing me with a good response (or responses) . 1. I had tried hard to learn Spanish, but I could not do it. OK,although I prefer 'but I hadn't been able to do it'. 2. I had pushed it hard, but he was...

Re: Post

kooyeen — Sun, 17 May 2009 20:28:24 GMT

I haven't read this thread, but I remember I used to be confused by this, so I will tell you what I now know. As if + simple past is just a way to stress the unreality in some situation. Using present tenses is ok too, and common, and the meaning is just the same. He's looking at that girl as if he wanted to eat her. He's looking at that girl as if he wants to eat her. No difference in meaning. The "backshift" is just a way to stress unreality, that's all. Without backshift, you can use "like" too: He's looking at that girl like he wants to eat her. (More informal and casual) Now I am gonna read this thread from the beginning, just in case, LOL.