Section: Grammar 10 Date:
Heading: Unit 1 – Verbs: Avoiding Shifts in Tense
Verb: a word that indicates an action or a state of being
action verb / tells what its subject does
He climbs the Empire State Building.
linking verb / links its subject to a word in the predicate
King Kong is a huge gorilla.
helping verb / helps main verbs express precise shades of meaning
We have watched the movie four times.
Tense / Examples
Present / I work.
Jill works.
Past / Howard worked on the lawn.
Future / You will work overtime this week.
Present Perfect / have or has + past participle (the form of the verb that ends, usually, in –ed)
Gail has worked hard on the puzzle.
They have worked well together
Past Perfect / had + past participle (the form of the verb that ends, usually, in –ed)
They had worked eight hours before their shift ended.
Future Perfect / will have + past participle (the form of the verb that ends, usually, in –ed)
The volunteers will have worked many unpaid hours.
Present Progressive / am, is, are + present participle (the form of the verb that ends in –ing)
I am not working today.
You are working the second shift.
The clothes dryer is not working properly.
Past Progressive / was or were + present participle (the form of the verb that ends in –ing)
She was working outside.
The plumbers were working here this morning.
Future Progressive / will be + present participle (the form of the verb that ends in –ing)
The sound system will be working by tonight.
Present Perfect Progressive / have or has been + present participle (the form of the verb that ends in –ing)
Married life has not been working out for that couple.
Past Perfect Progressive / had been + present participle (the form of the verb that ends in –ing)
I had been working overtime until recently.
Future Perfect Progressive / will have been + present participle (the form of the verb that ends in –ing)
My sister will have been working at that store for eleven straight months by the time she takes a vacation next week.
Verbals / Examples
Infinitive / to + base form of the verb
I started to practice.
Don’t try to lift that table.
I asked Rashid to drive me home.
Participle / verb form used as an adjective
present participle: ends in –ing
past participle ends in –ed or has an irregular ending
Favoring his cramped leg, the screaming boy waded out of the pool.
The laughing child held up her locked piggy bank.
Gerund / the –ing form of the verb used as a noun
Studying wears me out.
Playing basketball is my main pleasure during the week.
Through jogging, you can get yourself in shape.
Active / Passive
subject performs the action of a verb
Lola ate the vanilla pudding.
The plumber replaced the hot water heater. / subject receives the action of a verb
The vanilla pudding was eaten by Lola.
The hot water heater was replaced by the plumber.
Rules:
1. An irregular verb is any verb that does not follow the –ed pattern for forming the past tense and past participle. Instead the spelling changes for these verbs.
Examples:
Present: We ride bareback most days.
Past: Yesterday we rode with saddles.
Past Participle: Many times we have ridden without saddling up first.
2. The subject and verb in a sentence must agree in number. A singular subject must be used with the singular form of the verb.
Example:
The cat eats from its own special bowl.
3. A plural subject must be used with a plural verb.
Example:
Some cats eat from garbage cans.
4. Some verbs like have and be are irregular and have special singular and plural forms.
Examples:
A cat is very fast. (singular subject with singular form of be)
Many cats are very fast. (plural subject with plural form of be)
My cat has sharp claws. (singular subject with singular form of have)
Many cats have sharp claws. (plural subject with plural form of have)
Avoid shifts in verb tense!
If you begin a sentence in the present tense, you must end it in the present tense. If you begin a sentence in the past tense, you must end in the past tense. For example, look at this sentence:
· Larry blew a tire and then just keeps on driving.
The problem with the sentence is that it begins with a verb in the past tense and ends with a verb in the present tense. Larry is made into a time-traveler--hopping from the past to the present in one breath. To be correct, the sentence must read:
· Larry blew a tire and then just kept on driving. (all past tense)
· Larry blows a tire and then just keeps on driving. (all present tense)
Your tense use must be consistent. You must not shift tenses unless there is a logical reason. Because we mix up our verb tenses all the time in everyday speech, your ear might mislead you into making the same mistake in writing. Be alert to this possible error. Make sure your verbs in a written sentence all use the same tense.