MAKING SENSE OF ENGLISH

TENSES Do they make sense at all?

Simona Petrescu Oct 2013 sim.petrescu@googlemail.com

FIRST THINGS FIRST

Anchors:

Event:

Activity:

An important moment we

are looking at

Something happening at

a point in time

Something happening

and taking time

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AND A TIME LINE…

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SO THERE ARE SIMPLE TENSES, FIRST:

I usually follow the news on the internet, but sometimes I

watch it on TV.

When I got home I started the TV and the news came in about

the crash.

In this presentation I will first talk about basic meanings of

tenses, then I will give you some examples and in the end we

will have some practice.

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AND SOME CONTINUOUS TENSES:

Economy is growing slowly.

When I turned on the TV, they were reporting on the US

crisis.

In ten years‘ time everybody will be driving an e-car.

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BUT THE TRICKIEST OF ALL ARE THE

PERFECT ONES:

We‘ve started a new course.

The US have shut down the state services sector.

When I got home last night the movie had already started.

By 2040 the world population will have reached about 9 billion.

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AND AS IF THAT WASN‘T ENOUGH:

PERFECT AND CONTINUOUS

I‘ve been waiting here for two hours.

It‘s been raining heavily, so drive carefully!

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BEFORE WE GO DEEPER, LET‘S LOOK AT

THE FORMS:

Examples So the rule is…

Simple

follow, watch

got, started,

will talk

Continuous is growing,

were reporting

will be driving

Perfect have started, have

shut

had started

will have reached

Perfect +

continuous

has been raining,

have been waiting

V1

V2

Will V1

BE + Ving

HAVE + V3

HAVE +

BEEN + Ving

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NOW LET‘S GO DEEPER…

What do the simple tenses do?

They match one event to one anchor (one-to-one). The event is

like a closed book. You see the cover, the title, but you‘re not

interested to look inside. You just have one book after another

and another and another. You collect books – and events. The

simple tenses SIMPLY tell a story.

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SO FOR INSTANCE…

I always have black coffee in the morning, but

when I go out with friends I often take a

cappuccino.

Inflation rises every time the government prints

more money than there are goods on the markets.

He heard the bell but he didn‘t move.

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IN CONTRAST…

The continuous tenses zoom in on a PARTICULAR

time anchor: When you zoom in,

you actually open

the book and look

inside

Your events now take

time, they have a

beginning and an

ending, and you are

looking at them while

they are running.

They are no longer

events, they become

activities.

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SO COMPARE:

I always have black coffee in the morning, but

when I go out with friends I often take a

cappuccino. We see these events from outside, like points in time

(anchors)

Hi, I‘m just having a cappuccino with Carla so I‘ll

be a bit late, OK? We see the cappuccino event as taking longer, we are just in

the middle of it. The cappuccino event has a beginning and

a finish, and we are zooming in on a PARTICULAR

cappucino-drinking event.

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THERE ARE SOME PHILOSOPHICAL

PROBLEMS HERE

What is general, what is particular?

Whenever it‘s raining, I prefer to take the train.

In this picture, the woman is reading a book.

What can take time at all?

I‘m not understanding this.

He thinks English is difficult. He‘s thinking of

taking private lessons.

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AND IN CONTRAST TO THE SIMPLE AND TO

THE CONTINUOUS…

The perfect tenses look back over the shoulder

and say that at the anchor point we‘re interested

in, a specific event is already completed.

When you look

back over your

shoulder, you

are looking at

the book behind

you. It‘s closed,

and you are

finished with it.

You could be

happy,

disappointed

etc.

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COMPARE:

I tried that trick long ago and it didn‘t work. You‘re simply telling a story.

I‘ve tried this trick and it‘s worked! Hurrah! At the anchor point „present“ you‘re happy about something

completed. So you‘re looking back from NOW to something

that is finished and that makes you happy.

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AND SOME MORE LOOKING BACK:

Looking back from a present anchor:

I‘ve passed the exam. Eric has got married.

Autumn has set in.

Looking back from a past anchor:

When I told him the truth, he answered that he‘d

heard that before. At 3 a.m. they‘d finally

finished their party and gone to bed.

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AND SOME PHILOSOPHICAL PROBLEMS

HERE TOO:

What is SIMPLY at an anchor before another

anchor (a simple tense), and what is before a

particular anchor (perfect tense)?

I‘ve finished the book. (anchor NOW)

I finished the book last week and I took it back to the library. (two

past anchors)

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WELL, THAT‘S UP TO YOU REALLY…

Simple tenses are objective ways of placing

events in time (past, present, or future).

Continuous and perfect tenses are subjective

ways of looking at the events.

You use a continuous when you are zooming in (that‘s

YOUR view of the event).

You use a perfect when you are looking back from an

anchor point (that‘s YOUR view of the event).

Whichever decision you make, the time words you

use will have to match your vision.

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SO USE SUCH TIME WORDS…

With simple forms: usually, always, every…; last

night, yesterday, …ago, in 1989; in 2050, next

week etc.

With continuous forms: right now, today, this

week, this year, currently, at the moment etc.

With perfect forms: since, in the last…, recently,

already, yet, so far, until now / then, before (in

my life), ever, never, by that time; this week, this

morning etc.

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MOST OF ALL, TENSES MAKE SENSE FOR

THE GOAL YOU HAVE WHEN SPEAKING…

Simple present: talk about routines, job

descriptions, company activities (in general),

describe permanent facts, situations

Simple past: tell stories as a chain of events

Present perfect: give news, point out

achievements, talk about life experience etc

Present continuous: talk about a current project,

a temporary evolution in the economy, a specific

activity for today etc.

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