Post on 04-Oct-2015
description
Introduction to tense and aspect (1)
Tense
Tense is a grammatical category to do with
inflections (endings) attached to verbs.
There are only two tenses in English:
Present tense do/does have/has
Past tense did had
There is no future tense in English. Future time can be expressed in a variety of ways:
Im seeing him tomorrow.
Im going to take the dog for a walk when it stops raining
Im about to go out, can I do it later?
The train leaves at 6pm tonight
Time and Tense
Time and tense should not be confused:
The present tense can refer to past, present and future time e.g.
Yesterday a man comes up to me and says, Hey..
I work in Huddersfield
On the 3rd March 2015, Glynn leaves for China
The past tense can also refer to past, present and future time e.g.
I worked in Germany in 1999
I wondered if I could ask you to move your car
He said he would go later.
Aspect
Aspect refers to the way in which the action described by a verb should be regarded e.g. as extended, complete, temporary etc.
English has 2 aspects: the perfective and the
progressive.
FORM:
Progressive be + [verb]ING
Perfective have + past participle
Both progressive and perfective aspects can be freely combined with tenses to produce constructions which are often labelled tenses in pedagogic grammar
2 aspects can be combined in a single verb phrase:
Present perfect he has spoken
Past perfect he had spoken
Present progressive he is working
Past progressive he was working
Present perfect progressive he has been singing
Past perfect progressive he had been singing
Task
He is fishing
He was shopping
She had been travelling for hours
Hes lived here for 25 years
I am thinking of you
We had eaten dinner before she arrived.
They have been waiting for you for ages
Perfective aspect: meaning
The perfective can be used for actions continuing from the past into the present
Ive worked here for two years (and I still do)
Hes been a student since 2013 (and still is)
It also expresses anterior time (the time before)
I have already seen it
By 2016 they will have finished their course
When I got there the concert had started
Progressive Aspect: meaning
Used to indicate an action in progress at a given time.
It has 3 components of meaning which do not all need to be present at the same time:
Duration
Limited duration
Incompleteness
e.g. It rains a lot
It is raining a lot
Discovery Activity
Work individually
Look at the worksheet provided.
Read the speech bubbles and find mistakes in grammatical form or use of the present simple and continuous. SOME SENTENCES ARE CORRECT
Compare your answers with a partner
Write a summary of uses for the present simple and continuous
Present Simple Tense: Meaning State present: there is no limit on the extension
of the state from the past into the present into the future
The earth moves around the sun
Habitual present: expresses an unrestricted time span around the present. A series of events
He (often) walks to work
Instantaneous present: Used with dynamic verbs to indicate a single action
completed at the time of speaking I pronounce you man and wife (performatives)
Beckham kicks the ball into midfield
To refer to timetabled future events The train leaves at 6.30pm
To refer to the past (the historic past) A man comes into the pub and says..
Present Progressive
Present progressive can refer to:
Activity in progress at the moment of speaking
Wheres Jack? Hes playing tennis.
Long term changes, processes or developments
The earth is warming up
Temporary habits in the current period but not necessarily at the moment of speaking
Were eating in the kitchen this winter
Our neighbours are very kind
Our neighbours are being very kind
I feel its time you went home.
I am not feeling well
Charles looks like the Queen
Charles is looking more and more like the Queen
Stative and dynamic verbs Most verbs are dynamic and describe actions we can
take but a minority indicate stative situations which are: Qualities e.g.
Phil is Scottish. Jenny is kind.
States (of mind, ownership, sensation etc) e.g. I know the truth I feel sick
Stance (lie, stand, sit, live etc) e.g. Liverpool lies on the River Mersey.
Stative verbs are not normally found in the progressive form unless indicating a special meaning.
Carlas being stupid.
Charles is looking more and more like the Queen
Durative and punctual verbs
Durative verbs refer to situations which can be extended in time (have duration).
Punctual verbs refer to situations which do not have duration I.e. last a second or two e.g. kick, sneeze, tap
Progressive aspect is not normally used with these verbs. When it is used, it it usually refers to a repeated series of events e.g. He was sneezing
He was tapping his pen on the table
Anticipating Problems
What problems might students have with the present simple and present progressive?
Consider:
Form
Meaning/Use
Common problems
Many languages do not have a progressive form e.g. Arabic, German, Greek which leads to errors such as: Wheres Jason? He plays football
Look! It rains!
Different concepts expressed through one form
Over-use of present simple Form:
omission of auxiliary in progressive forms
Omission of 3rd person s in present simple
inclusion of third person s in question form Omission of auxiliary do/does in present simple
Spelling
ANY QUESTIONS?