Verb Tense, Mood and Voice - TTP Flashcards
How is present tense usually used?
The present tense is typically used in describing actions or events that are habitual or to state facts that remain true over time
She loves going to the beach (habit)
Brazilians celebrate carnival every year (Fact)
What is simple past tense?
Simple past tense denotes that the action mentioned in the sentence has already occured
What is the simple future tense?
Future tense denotes actions that have not yet occurred in the present but will occur in the future
Please note the below
I will go to the beach later today
vs
I am going to go to the beach later today
both the above sentences are the same, the difference is only in the construction i.e. we can either use ‘will’ or ‘to be form of verb + going to + base verb’
Using context to find the appropriate form of the sentence
Each time I traveled/travel/will travel to Colombia every summer, and I visited Medellin and Cartagena
To figure out what form of the verb should be used, we need to look at the sentence as a whole to evaluate the context. Sentence mentions ‘visited’ and thus we can tell that the sentence is about actions that, although habitual, began and ended in the past. Thus, we need the past tense ‘traveled’
Observe the below sentences
- Once the tickets go on sale, we will be in a better position to determine how big the audience will be
- Once Jane is healthier, she will resume working at the library
With both the sentences we are using simple present tense in the sentences that talk about future events. ‘go on sale’, ‘Jane is healthier’.
On noticing carefully you can observe that the events/actions described in the simple present tense are acting as a pre-condition i.e. once something exists then other thing will happen, in such cases it makes sense to use the sentence as is because by this it provides a clear timeline of what’s gonna happen when.
But had we written the sentence as below it would be incorrect because both events are mentioned to occur in the future, but we haven’t defined the timelines yet.
- Once the ticket will go on sale, we will be in a better position to determine how big the audience will be
The use of the above construction is called simple present tense in future events.
Also, we do this only when the pre-condition is part of a dependent clause
Usage of the future tense in the past tense
Sometimes sentences about past events refer to events that were in the future when the past events mentioned in the sentences occurred
At the rally, the candidate said that he would take campaign donations only from individuals
The cast was going to have a party after the final show
The future in the past tense works similar to the simple future tense
To create a simple future tense, we use ‘will’
To create a future in the past tense, we use ‘would’
Future tense: They are convinced that they will find gold soon
Future in the past: They were convinced that they would find gold soon
Future tense: He is going to speak after dinner
Future in the past: He was going to speak after dinner
Observe the below two sentences
Having seen his beautiful creations, it was predicted that the choregrapher will become well-known by the end of the decade
vs
Having seen his beautiful creations, many predicted that the choregrapher would become well-known by the end of the decade
In the first sentence, there are two issues
‘Having seen his beautiful creations’ is a present participle phrase and should not be modifying ‘it’ and more importantly notice carefully the sentence is about a future event in the past i.e. it was predicted in the past, that the choreographer will become famous so we should be using would instead of will, which the second sentence does appropriately and the present participle phrase also modifiers ‘many’ loically
What are simple future tense possibilites
Simple future
1. John will complete the job within a week
Future in the past
1. John said that he would complete the job within a week
- John said that he was going to complete the job within a week
Future in a statement made in the past about future events( accepted by some)
- John said that he will complete the job next week
- John said he is going to complete the job next week
What is the difference between the below two sentences?
Our guide said that he would be available to go whitewater rafting next week
vs
Our guide said that he will be available to go whitewater rafting next week
Both the sentences are about the predictions made in the past about the future event and that future event has not happened yet, So both are acceptable, some writers prefers the first version more but the second version is also acceptable
Usage of would
In a sentence that describes events in the past, the helping verb ‘would’ can be used to indicate that an action was habitual
Before he got into building companies, Jirka would spend long period alone in the mountains
How is are present perfect tenses used?
The present perfect tenses are used in a way that describes events in ways that connect the past to the present. So, if the event started in past and continues to go on in the present or if an event that happened in the past and continues to affect the present, we use the present perfect tense
e.g.
I have lived here for 5 years (the event lived began in past 5 years ago, but the effect is I still continue living here in the present as well)
Since 1904, the Explorer’s Club has served as a meeting point and unifying force for explorers and scientist worldwide (has served indicates it began in 1904 and is still used as a meeting point)
She has won the gold medal in the school spelling bee twice (Unlike the events described in previous sentences, the events described in this sentence are understood to have ended, however, the sentence connects the past to the present in another way by describing the subject as a two-time winner. The fact that she has won the gold medal twice continues to be true at this present moment)
What is the rule for using the present perfect tense?
There are certain situations in which the present perfect tense is used exclusively. For instance when ‘since’ is used to convey that a subject has engaged in an action ‘from the time when/of’. We use the present perfect tense
She has worked with a vocal coach ever since her early years as a singer (Subject is no longer in her early years but still continues to work with vocal coach )
Since he went to that seminar last week, he has been much more motivated to improve his health
What is the difference between the below two sentences?
Over the past year, Lydia has visited Mexico, Thailand and, Cuba
vs
Last year, Lydia visited Mexico, Thailand, and Cuba
The use of present perfect tense in the first sentence indicates that ‘past year’ continues to today, and that Lydia has traveled during a period that continues to the present. In contrast, the second sentence means that she visited three countries last year and that the action has completed
What is wrong with the below sentence?
While Fiona lives in a city in which cars are rarely used, she knows how to drive since she was sixteen
The use of simple tense does not make sense here, because it simply indicates that an event is occuring in the present, an implication that conflicts with the context clue ‘was sixteen’ which indicates that Fiona’s knowing began in the past and continues in the present
How are past perfect tenses used?
Sometimes a sentence describes two past events, one of which occurred earlier in time than the other. Such sentences often use past perfect tense
The tour guide directed the boat towards a location where whales had surfaced
Notice whales had surfaced happened first in the sentence and after that, the tour guided the boat in that direction
The other use of past perfect tense is to describe an action or event completed by a certain time in the past
By late Election day, it had become clear that the upstart candidate would soon be the president of the country
late Election day is a time in the past and we have an event becoming which was occurred by then so we have used past perfect tense.
If the sentence is not about an event/action then it is not necessary to use past perfect tense
