English Tense Research Articles

English fronting constructions as a window to the semantics of tense: the case of belief reports

AbstractThis paper delves into the temporal interpretation of fronting constructions in English, a topic that has received limited attention in the literature on tense semantics. It presents new empirical findings revealing that specific fronting configurations, involving present tense morphology in a complement CP under a matrix past tense, can yield a theoretically unexpected simultaneous interpretation. A novel theoretical framework for understanding English tense is proposed, which accounts for the temporal interpretation of both fronting and non-fronting versions of attitude reports. The framework introduces a null simultaneous tense as a replacement for the conventional indexical present and the Sequence-of-Tense (SOT) de se tense. It is argued that in complement CPs the null simultaneous tense, as well as past tense, can be anchored either to the attitude time or to the utterance time. In either case, each tense receives a de re interpretation. Moreover, the paper contends that evidence from fronting constructions supports Kratzer’s (Proceedings of semantics and linguistic theory 8, pp. 92–110, 1998) proposal that the transmission of temporal features (as part of the mechanism of SOT) occurs at PF. Finally, the proposed revision of the English tense system contributes to a more unified cross-linguistic perspective on tense. It is demonstrated how the temporal readings of attitude reports arising in such non-SOT languages as Russian, Japanese, and Hebrew can be captured within the system developed for English, with known contrasts attributed to the absence of Feature Transmission in those languages. Further known and new data from English, Modern Greek, and German are examined, revealing variations in SOT effects across SOT languages. These data are used as additional evidence supporting the claim that cross-linguistic variation in the interpretation of complement tense stems solely from differences in Feature Transmission. Regarding the semantic profile of tenses, it can be considered largely invariant.

Tense Errors in Albanian Speakers Learning English (L2)

Albanian students learning English as a Second Language (ESL) face considerable challenges with the English tense system due to significant grammatical differences between the two languages. This study examines the specific difficulties that Albanian ESL learners in Kosovo experience with tense usage, drawing on responses from both questionnaires and written compositions. The results reveal a high frequency of errors, particularly in the Past Simple, Present Simple, Present Perfect, Past Perfect, and Future Simple tenses. The most common errors were related to incorrect tense construction. The frequent mistakes in the Past and Present Simple tenses suggest that native language interference and the overgeneralization of English rules contribute significantly to the learners' struggles. The study calls for further research, especially longitudinal and oral-based studies, to better understand these issues and to develop more effective teaching strategies to help Albanian learners improve their command of English tenses.

English Tense Analysis in Civil Engineering Book Using AntConc Application

English Tense Analysis in Civil Engineering Book Using AntConc Application

A Review of Research on Mother Tongue Transfer During English as a Second Language Acquisition

In the process of second language acquisition, learners are often influenced by native language transfer. The effect can be both positive and negative. That is, the impact of positive and negative migrations. This paper is aimed at learners who speak English as a second language. This paper mainly summarizes the influence of mother tongue transfer on grammar, pronunciation, and vocabulary. Mother tongue transfer may be challenging for English as a second language learners in terms of grammatical morphological changes, word order, virtual word functions, and syntactic component correspondence. The sentence structure in English is more complex than in Chinese. This makes it easy for learners to have difficulties in mastering English tenses, voice, singular and plural, etc. The second is the impact of native language transfer on English pronunciation. Native Chinese speakers are influenced by Chinese tones when learning English pronunciation. This results in a lack of fluency and accuracy in pronunciation. Finally, there is the impact of mother tongue transfer on English vocabulary. Since each language will have similarities, it indirectly enriches the vocabulary of the second language, and it is faster for us to learn and memorize. Learners should be aware to avoid the adverse effects of negative transfer of mother tongue.

VerbiCube—A New 3D Tool to Teach and Learn English Tenses

VerbiCube—A New 3D Tool to Teach and Learn English Tenses

A Comparative Study of the Error-Detection Accuracy of Grammarly and Microsoft Word Editor in Formal English Writing

This study attempts a comparative overview of Grammarly and Microsoft Word Editor, two software programs used extensively to check and improve English language mistakes, to determine their respective effectiveness across various types of writing. Both of these tools are used across documents ranging from blogs to articles, research reports, and newspapers; samples of these documents are part of the representative corpus. Based on this corpus, the study carries out a detailed analysis to establish the exactness and efficiency of these tools in determining and improving errors in the English language. The findings of this research align with those of other studies, establishing that both tools have different levels of effectiveness vis-à-vis the categories of errors and types of texts. Grammarly, for example, outperforms Microsoft Word Editor in several error categories, such as subject-verb agreement, prepositions, and pronouns, whereas Microsoft Word Editor excels in detecting errors in English tenses. As a result, the research recommends using both tools as complementary resources to ensure comprehensive error detection and correction in formal English writing. Also, the findings provide valuable insights for educators, students, and professionals seeking to advance their writing quality. They also offer a basis for further research into integrating these tools in writing instruction and developing more comprehensive language editing tools.

Tense in Mathematical English

Many authors have commented on the relative frequency of the present tense—and the relative infrequency of the past tense—in mathematical writing. However, none (to our knowledge) have provided an estimate for the size of this effect or explored how universal it is. In this short note we report an analysis of corpora of mathematical and day-to-day English. We conclude that the present-to-past ratio of tenses is at least 3:1 in mathematical English, compared to approximately 5:7 in day-to-day English. Further, we show that this tendency to favour the present tense is almost universally present in written mathematics.

Acoustic analysis of English tense and lax vowels: Comparing the production between Mandarin Chinese learners and native English speakers.

This study investigated how 40 Chinese learners of English as a foreign language (EFL learners) differed from 40 native English speakers in the production of four English tense-lax contrasts, /i-ɪ/, /u-ʊ/, /ɑ-ʌ/, and /æ-ε/, by examining the acoustic measurements of duration, the first three formant frequencies, and the slope of the first formant movement (F1 slope). The dynamic formant trajectory was modeled using discrete cosine transform coefficients to demonstrate the time-varying properties of formant trajectories. A discriminant analysis was employed to illustrate the extent to which Chinese EFL learners relied on different acoustic parameters. This study found that: (1) Chinese EFL learners overemphasized durational differences and weakened spectral differences for the /i-ɪ/, /u-ʊ/, and /ɑ-ʌ/ pairs, although they maintained sufficient spectral differences for /æ-ε/. In contrast, native English speakers predominantly used spectral differences across all four pairs; (2) in non-low tense-lax contrasts, unlike native English speakers, Chinese EFL learners failed to exhibit different F1 slope values, indicating a non-nativelike tongue-root placement during the articulatory process. The findings underscore the contribution of dynamic spectral patterns to the differentiation between English tense and lax vowels, and reveal the influence of precise articulatory gestures on the realization of the tense-lax contrast.

Syntactic variation in Hong Kong English

Kirkpatrick and Lixun (2021) maintain that two significant morphosyntactic processes have been at play in early Englishes. These are simplification and regularization. Simplification refers to the relatively simplified inflectional morphology in English today. Kirkpatrick and Lixun (2021) provide an example for the word stan (i.e., stone in Old English) that showed great differences in the singular and plural form in nominative, accusative, genitive and dative case in Old English. Another process is regularization, through which some of the strong verb forms for past tense in English have changed to take the weak or the regular form. To illustrate, the past tense of work was wrought but over time, it has changed to worked.

The Impact of Kahoot! And Quizizz to Teach English Tenses for Flyers

Mastering English tenses is crucial for A2 Flyers students, enabling them to expand their language proficiency and excel in English examinations such as the Cambridge test. However, many schools and centers solely rely on traditional grammar-based teaching methods and paper exercises, resulting in student disinterest. To address this issue, educators must incorporate modern technological tools to cultivate students’ enthusiasm for learning tenses. Kahoot! and Quizizz present promising opportunities for both teachers and students. This research aims to investigate the effectiveness of using Kahoot! and Quizizz in teaching English tenses to Flyers. Participants in the study are A2 level students at Phuong Nam Language Center. Quantitative data was gathered through pre-test and post-test assessments, while qualitative data was obtained through questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. The test scores indicated a significant improvement in students’ academic performance, with the mean score increasing from 4.50 in the pre-test to 7.55 in the post-test, indicating notable progress. Moreover, the results highlighted the students’ heightened engagement during the teaching and learning process, particularly with the use of Kahoot! and Quizizz. Consequently, these quiz applications proved to be beneficial tools for teaching English tenses to Flyers.

L1 Influence on the Use of the English Present Perfect: A Corpus Analysis of Russian and Spanish Learners’ Essays

Background: Mastering verbal tenses, especially those expressing aspect, in a second language presents a challenge as learners frequently link the semantic nuances of verbal forms in their second language (L2) to the characteristics of the verbal systems in their native languages (L1). This study explores the impact of L1 on the usage of the English Present Perfect (PP) among non-native speakers. Purpose: In an effort to contribute to the ongoing research on the mechanisms governing the acquisition of English tenses, this study focuses on the variations that affect the usage of the PP in the writing of English learners. The investigation is particularly centered on university students whose L1 is Russian and Spanish, seeking to delve into the ways in which their first language influences the utilisation of the PP in their English writing. Method: Analysis of L2 English by Russian and Spanish learners, based on corpora of argumentative essays written by undergraduate Russian and Spanish learners of English, controlled by a corpus of essays produced by native speakers of English; frequency and distribution of the PP in learner writings; examination of semantic contexts; identification of error types. Results: The findings indicate that, despite a higher occurrence of the PP in texts produced by Spanish learners compared to Russian learners, the rate of errors in its application is nearly identical in both learner corpora. These errors are likely attributable to challenges in comprehending the functions of the PP and in distinguishing its semantics from those of other English tenses, particularly the Past Simple. Conclusion: The study suggests that the increased prevalence of PP usage by L2 learners may be attributed to positive transfer from their L1 when it exhibits structures analogous to the English PP. Conversely, patterns indicative of, for example, undergeneralisation of semantic contexts suggesting the relevance of an action, or of overgeneralisation of adverbs compatible with the PP can be interpreted as evidence of negative transfer. The results of this study hold significance for language pedagogy, as they highlight potential challenges in acquiring the PP that learners from diverse L1 backgrounds may encounter.

An Exploration of Interdisciplinary Thinking Patterns in Secondary English Grammar Teaching-- Tenses

Interdisciplinary thinking is a way of thinking that utilizes the intersection and fusion between internal and external knowledge of disciplines to solve problems through cross-border integration of knowledge. The penetration of interdisciplinary thinking in secondary school grammar teaching is of great significance, which is conducive to change the conception of teacher’s focusing on the teaching and research of their own disciplines merely, enhances students' interest in grammar learning, and promotes the development of students' multiple intelligence. In this paper, the author takes the tenses in secondary school English grammar as an example to explore the penetration of interdisciplinary thinking in grammar teaching. Specifically, the author takes the combination of mathematical and physical thinking in mathematics as an starting point, combining the "coordinate axes" with the "union sets" in the set to discuss the use of single mathematical model and the multiple mathematical models during the teaching of English tenses.

A COMPACT ARRANGEMENT OF ENGLISH TENSES

There have been a wide range of books, journal articles, educational notes, etc. for many decades and all over the world about English grammar since it has been a global language. The literature abounds with materials treating English tenses in many different approaches. In this article, English tenses are structurally outlined and systematically tabulated, with all persons and all forms. The structural matrix of English tenses is based on four time and four aspect components, thus resulting the sixteen tenses in total. One single example sentence is utilised throughout the work for educational sake. With their compactness, the arranged tables have the potential to provide a first approach easy resource and so be helpful for new learners of English tenses, especially in the company of visual graphics, as recommended in the paper.<p> </p><p><strong> Article visualizations:</strong></p><p><img src="/-counters-/edu/0758/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /></p>

Influence of Welsh Inversion and Agreement on English Syntax

Introduction. Ordering the space and time elements in Welsh independent clause, when the subject is formed from a noun, is accompanied by a rather specific agreement of these elements in number. In the grammars of Welsh one can find various classifications of noninverse and inverse sentences and, mostly, practical notions concerning the peculiarities of the agreement of the main parts. Theoretical explanations are meanwhile quite poor. Because it can be proposed, that the peculiarities of sentence organization in Welsh could influence the syntax of English – the language of international communication, the theme under discussion is rather topical.Methodology and sources. The investigation is carried out on the base of four Welsh grammars, containing large chapters on syntax. We also used a collection of texts, from which the examples of non-inverse and inverse sentences were taken. The methodological base of the work is the binomiality idea.Results and discussion. In non-inverse Welsh sentences, the predicate agrees with the subject in number only in case the subject is formed from a pronoun; in case the subject is formed from a noun, the 3-rd person singular is always used. In mixed and abnormal sentences, the word order becomes inverse. The investigation of explicit elements of subject and predicate has turned to be not sufficient, and we were forced to apply the hypothesis on implicitness, inexplicitness and ellipsis of some elements. In doing so, we managed to match the analytic tense in Welsh with the continuous tense in English. It was also suggested, that (emphatic) Welsh constructions can influence the structure of English sentence.Conclusion. In Welsh independent clauses, the weak space specifier can be modified by an implicit strong pronominal semifinitive, after what an implicit element in function of the space element reveals in the subject. Developing the hypothesis about the possible inexplicitness of fixed semifinitives in the Welsh subject, we can also assume that abnormal and mixed sentences in Welsh originate from the subordinate clause of a complex sentence. Within the framework of the general model, it turns out that the arrangement of space and time elements does not contradict the Indo-European system, which fully manifests itself in the English sentence.

On the acquisition of tense and agreement in L2 English by adult speakers of L1 Chinese

Abstract This study investigates whether forms associated with verbal inflection can be acquired in relation to two UG-based L2 acquisition hypotheses: the Full Transfer Full Access (FTFA) Hypothesis (Schwartz, Bonnie & Rex Sprouse. 1994. Word order and nominative case in nonnative language acquisition: A longitudinal study of (L1 Turkish) German interlanguage. In Teun Hoekstra & Bonnie D. Schwartz (eds.), Language acquisition Studies in generative grammar, 317–368. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, Schwartz, Bonnie & Rex Sprouse. 1996. L2 cognitive states and the ‘full transfer/full access’ model. Second Language Research 12. 40–72) and the Interpretability Hypothesis (Tsimpli, Ianthi-maria & Maria Dimitrakopoulou. 2007. The Interpretability hypothesis: Evidence from wh-interrogatives in second language acquisition. Second Language Research 23. 215–242). The former captures the insight that convergence on grammars like those of native speakers is possible, whereas the latter argues that a native/non-native divergence results from the inaccessibility of some uninterpretable syntactic features. Ninety adult L1 speakers of Chinese of different English proficiency levels were asked to interpret and produce tense and agreement in various contexts in three tasks. Results suggest that the underlying grammatical representations in the end-state grammar may not be the same as native speakers’. We speculate that the inaccessibility of the uninterpretable [uInfl:] feature of v and the uninterpretable [uInfl:*] feature of be are the potential source of difficulty in acquiring verbal inflection in L2 English.

The Recognition of English Tenses by Thai EFL Learners

This study addresses the challenges encountered by Thai learners of English as a foreign language (EFL) due to the absence of a tense-aspect system in their native language. Emphasizing the prevalent reliance on classroom instruction for English tense acquisition, the primary research objective is to examine the proficiency of Thai EFL learners, stratified by varying levels of English grammar competency, in discerning English tenses and aspects. Through the administration of two evaluative instruments, encompassing 12 distinct English tenses and verb phrase structures, the findings reveal that initial recognition is centered on the present simple and past simple tenses. Proficiency levels significantly influence tense recognition, with the initial phase comprising the present simple, past simple, present continuous, and past continuous tenses, aligning with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). These insights hold pedagogical implications, suggesting practical applications for English instructors catering to Thai EFL learners, thereby enhancing overall classroom efficacy.

Teaching the English Tense System through Systemic Theoretical Instruction and Cognitive Grammar: Investigating Students’ Perceptions

Teaching the English Tense System through Systemic Theoretical Instruction and Cognitive Grammar: Investigating Students’ Perceptions

‘Tense Up?’: A Collaborative Gamification Approach in Enhancing Lower Secondary Students’ Utilisation of English Tenses

‘Tense Up?’: A Collaborative Gamification Approach in Enhancing Lower Secondary Students’ Utilisation of English Tenses

How Mr. Bean Film Influence Student’s Engagement in Learning Tenses

This research concentrates to analyze student’s engagement in learning English in online environment amid Covid 19. Mr. Bean film used in this study to help students understand English tenses for EFL classroom. A random choice of English subject was made with 21 students from Technique Information of Computer Science faculty at Universitas Al Asyariah Mandar Indonesia. The English tenses content and language level difficulty based on a Mr. Bean film was chosen in teaching were: simple present tense, present continuous, Present perfect, past simple. They looked at the Mr. Bean film, analyze the tenses, re write the tenses in sentences then create their own tenses. After the film, the participants replied to material understanding and questions by retelling on their video. The collected data were subject to descriptive qualitative. The findings showed that Mr. Bean film have a positive effect on English understanding of tenses content. It can be argued that the participants better understand the English tenses with film. In addition, it is found in this study student’s engagement increase and they were motivated to learn English tenses. The teacher's pedagogy is to use a certain Mr. Bean film to enhance the student’s motivation, engagement and help to be easier to understanding tenses.

Attitudes of EFL University Students towards the Application of Cognitive Grammar to Teaching Selected Grammar Topics


 
 
 
 
 
 This study is an attempt to investigate the attitude of EFL university students towards the application of Cognitive Grammar (henceforth CG) in the Kurdish context to teaching selected grammar topics, namely English tenses, passivization and modal auxiliary verbs. CG is an approach within the framework of Cognitive Linguistics (henceforth CL) to the meaning of grammatical structures and has two crucial guiding principles: the symbolic commitment and usage-based commitment. The study has used an attitude questionnaire as its data collection tool. Its participants were comprised of (27) EFL university students who had taken part in a 12-week course of Cognitive Grammar treatment focusing on the aforementioned grammatical phenomena. The data was analyzed descriptively through the Statistical Package for Social Sciences SPSS by finding the mean score, standard deviation and percentages of the respondents’ answers to the statements of the questionnaire. It was found that the participants generally had a positive attitude towards the application of CG to teaching the above-mentioned topics. The overall mean score of the questionnaire was (3.7680) which shows the students’ high agreement with the questionnaire’s items. It was also found that the approach had increased the students’ learning motivation and had a positive effect on the affective, behavioural and cognitive aspects of their attitude. The study has ended with some recommendations for further studies before being able to generalize the findings of the current study.