CHOOSING A VERB TENSE

Transcription

1 THE PRESENT TENSE CHOOSING A VERB TENSE Add -s to make the third person singular tense. Since most academic, scientific and technical writing is done in present tense, this is a very important reminder! The system permits Each operator controls Use the present tense --to show present states or conditions (often with linking and state-of-being verbs): --to show natural laws or eternal truths: The test program is ready. The bell sounds shrill. I believe we have the best product. The earth rotates around the sun. Carbon and oxygen combine to form carbon dioxide. The shortest distance between two points is a line. --to show habitual actions and repeated acts: We hold a staff meeting every Tuesday. The AUTOEXEC.BAT file boots the computer. Hint: Look for adverbs like always, never, usually, seldom, sometimes, rarely, on occasion, every, etc. to signal this situation. --to quote from or paraphrase published work: AT&T." Nagamichi claims that calcium inhibits the reaction. MCI's brochure reads "We are more efficient than --to define or explain procedures or terminology: The board fits in the lower right-hand slot. GE stands for "General Electric Corporation." --to show possible futures in time and conditional clauses:

2 she likes your work. type them. Your supervisor will recommend you for promotion if The minutes of the meeting will be circulated once I THE PAST TENSE Make the past tense by ending the proper suffix (frequently -ed) or infix to the verb stem. Consult a dictionary if you have questions as to what the correct past form is. Use the past tense --for events that happened at a specific time in the past: turn blue. The fax arrived at 4:59 PM. Kennedy died in Adding 2 ml of 0.1M NaCl to the solution caused it to --for repeated or habitual items which no longer happen: Tuesday. We used to have our department meetings on He smoked cigarettes constantly until his coronary. --for changing from direct to reported speech: schedule. Lee asked if Nesta had completed the tests. My supervisor said that she had approved the --after if or unless to write about events that are not true or are not likely to happen. Use would in the main clause: If we failed to test the system, we would be liable for damages. Unless he submitted the paperwork yesterday, we would never be able to enforce the patent. THE PRESENT PERFECT TENSE Make the present perfect tense by combining the helping verb have (has in 3rd singular) with the past participle form of the verb. Check your dictionary to identify this form.

3 Use the present perfect tense --to show an action that began in the past and is still going on: work. Genentech has been in business for a decade. The fax machine has changed the way businesses --to show an action that began in the past and was finished at an indefinite time but is closely related to the present or future: THE FUTURE TENSE I have just returned from vacation. SONY has recently announced three new products. You have been late six times in the last two weeks. Make the future tense by using shall (1st person) or will (2nd and 3rd persons) and the dictionary form of the verb. (In speaking, most Americans use will with all persons.) Use the future tense --for newly-made decisions: --for orders: They will explore our options. You will have the report on my desk by 2 PM. ALTERNATE FUTURE TENSE CONSTRUCTIONS --Be + going to Use this construction in conversation and in less formal writing: Andy is going to order new switches for the relays. The power bills are going to be high for this month. --Be + to + dictionary form Use this form to show regulations or obligations. Wiring is to meet local codes and state standards. We are to greet the visitors at the airport tomorrow. --Present tense Use this construction to show future events that are certain to happen, after if, unless, whether, and after some adverbs showing time.

4 Christmas falls on a Tuesday this year. My plane leaves at 5:10 PM. When you finish filling out the form, you can leave. If the bid is reasonable, you will get the contract. --Present progressive tense Use this construction for actions or events in the near future. year. We are having lunch on Thursday. The FDA inspectors are coming after Labor Day. The Cubs are not playing in the championship this THE PRESENT PROGRESSIVE TENSE Make the present progressive tense by combining the present tense of be and the -ing form of the verb. Use the present progressive tense --to show action in process now but soon to end: --simply to show action in progress: And use the present progressive The program is running as we speak. We are running tests to simulate the crash. It is snowing. --to show habitual action, usually with indications of dislike or disapproval: --to show future action that you are anticipating now: He is always borrowing disks without returning them. They are always taking time off during peak periods. I am leaving for the Bahamas on Friday. We are going to the concert next month. IBM is announcing a new product soon. SEQUENCE OF TENSES

5 Often, getting tenses into the right combination is more difficult than selecting individual tenses for one clause. Here are some tips to get the "sequence of tenses" right. --Choose one default tense (usually present, but sometimes, e.g. for meeting notes, past) and stick to it. NOT: We claimed that our product is a great improvement. We feel the competition hasn't got anything to match it. BUT: We claim that our product is a great improvement. We feel the competiton hasn't got anything to match it. --Use present tense for direct quotes but past tense for reported speech. Mehta said, "The tests are going well." [Direct quote] Mehta said that the tests were going well. [Reported] --If a sentence has a dependent clause beginning with an expression of time, use the present tense in the dependent clause and the future tense in the main clause. reimbursed. generated. Dana will read your report when she comes in. Until you hand in form 2398, you will not be As soon as the program runs, a status report will be --If you are talking about several events in the past, use past perfect for the more remote event and past for the event nearer to the current situation. After the tests had ended, Wai Chee wrote a report. TENSE EXERCISE (Don't get tense doing the exercise, but work on tenses in it!) 1. What's the difference between these two sentences? a. After discovering a bug in the program and submitting a rewritten version to her supervisor, the programmer had returned to her regular duties. b. After discovering a bug in the program and submitting a rewritten version to her supervisor, the programmer returned to her regular duties. 2. What's the difference between these two sentences?

6 a. The rate at which hydrogen reduction occurs with samples from different sources was found to depend upon the samples' impurities. b. The rate at which hydrogen reduction occurred with samples from different sources was found to depend upon the samples' impurities. 3. What's the difference between these two sentences? a. In the third quarter, we concentrated on legal issues; in the fourth quarter, we will turn our attention to a more aggressive marketing campaign. b. In the third quarter, we concentrated on legal issues; in the fourth quarter, we turned our attention to a more aggressive marketing campaign. 4. What's the difference between these three sentences? a. The customer survey shows that the competition's proposals are written in a more userfriendly fashion than ours. b. The customer survey showed that the competition's proposals are written in a more user-friendly fashion than ours. c. The customer survey showed that the competition's proposals were written in a more user-friendly fashion than ours.