A Course of the English Verb

The verb is that part of speech which denotes actions such as: to go, processes in
the form of actions: to sleep, to lay or the appearance or modification of a characteristic
or attitude such as: to weaken, to harden. Verbs in English can be classified under
different heads such as in accordance with:
a. composition;
b. derivation;
c. basic forms;
d. semantic content;
e. leical aspect and predication.
a. According to their composition English verbs fall into:
! simple;
! compound;
! comple;
! verbal phrases.
Simple verbs are verbs which can not be decomposed into further morphological
units or elements: go, like, hate, come etc.
Compound verbs, on the other hand, are verbs which can be decomposed into one
or more morphological units " parts of speech# which are formed of two or more parts of
speech, which are written together and contribute to the respective meaning.
$t is to be stressed that compound verbs are a perfect semantic fusion.
%or eample, compound verbs ma& be formed b&:
! a noun' a verb: wa&" noun# ' la& " verb# ( wa&la& " verb# ) a tine calea;
! an ad*ective ' a verb: white " ad*# ' wash " verb# ( whitewash " verb# ! a
varui;
! an adverb ' a verb: broad " adv# ' cast " verb# ( broadcast " verb#
$n the case of such compounds, the grammatical fusion is so strong that
the& are inflected to the end of the +
rd
person con*ugation: whitewashes,
broadcasted.
Complex verbs are disconnected: verb ' an adverbial particle or a
preposition combinations which ma& function or ma& not function as a semantic
fusion. ,pecial attention should be paid to the combination of verbs with adverbs
in which there is no semantic fusion between the two words in the sense that
-uestions ma& be asked in connection with the respective comple verbs.
Compare, for eample: come in, go out, which are a verb ' an adverb
combination with such a combination as: to look after, to look out to, to look out,
when one has semantic fusion.
,uch combinations " comple verbs# as: to look after, to look for, to look
up to are also called phrasal verbs.
Verbal phrases are a verb ' a nominal part combination in which the
respective verb diminishes its leical value and the nominal element becomes
predominant: to have a look " ( to look#, to have a tr& " (to tr&# and the like.
$n point of their derivation, there are the following t&pes:
a. verbs formed b& prefiation that is the addition of prefies in front of a
noun or ad*ective to form verbs: danger! to indanger, noble! to inoble, large! to
inlarge.
b. verbs formed b& suffiation: light' en( lighten, broad' en ( broaden,
solid' if&( solidif&, vandal' i.e( vandali.e, local' i.e ( locali.e.
Conversion is a prolific wa& of forming verbs in English according to
which a number of nouns, ad*ectives, adverbs and pronouns are converted into
verbs *ust b& placing the infinitival particle to in front and treating them as verbs
proper.
The nouns: paper! to paper; book!to book; black! to black; blue! to
blue; down ) to down prices.
Classification of verbs in point of their basic forms
There are three basic forms in English as follows:
a. the $ndefinite $nfinitive form: to go;
b. the /ast Tense $ndicative form: went, looked;
c. the /ast /articiple form: gone, looked.
All these three forms are considered basic forms on account of their
etensive usage in the con*ugation of the English verb as well as in the formation of its
nonfinite " non!personal# forms.
As can be seen from the above classification, English irregular verbs have
special forms for /ast Tense and /ast /articiple.
A small group of verbs, the modal inflective verbs have either two forms
or even one form onl&. %or eample: can/ could, shall/ should, but ought to.
There are the following spelling rules of regular verbs in their /ast ,imple
and /ast /articiple.
%inal consonants of verbs are compressed if the preceding vowel sound is short
and stressed. As an observation to this, one should remember that one s&llable verbs are
considered stressed.
%or eample: stoop 0 stu:p1 ) stooped "it is not stressed# 2 stop 0 stop1 ) stopped
"it is stressed# , develop0 di3 velop1 ! developped.
Verbs ending in the consonant letter l double it no matter whether the respective
s&llable is stressed or not in 4ritish English while in American English l is onl& doubled
when the last s&llable is stressed. Thus we have travelled in 4ritish English and traveled
in American English.
5n the other hand, we do have compel ) compelled both in 4ritish and American
English.
The final e of the $nfinitive is dropped when adding the ed ending: love- loved.
The final y passes into i ' the respective ed ending: verify- verified.
$n point of pronunciation, the following rules are to be observed:
Verbs ending in a vowel sound or in all the voiced consonants with the
eception of do get the phonetic 0 d1:
to verif& ) verified; to bob! bobbed; to gag! gagged;
Verbs ending in voiceless consonant sounds with the eception of
consonant t get this consonant sound in pronunciation:
to look! looked; to wash! washed
Verbs ending in the consonant t, d get the phonetic 0id1:
to loot! looted; to trust! trusted.
Classification of verbs in point of semantic content
According to this classification, verbs fall into:
a. /rincipal or notional verbs which have a full leical meaning and do not
specificall& need an& other grammatical means when used as verbs: to love, to hate etc.
b. 6on!principal which have a diminished leical value or no leical value at all
as is the case of auiliar& verbs.
Classification of verbs in point of lexical aspect and predication
$n point of their leical aspect which is some kind of implied duration epressed
b& the respective verbs, the& fall into:
a. durative verbs;
b. time2 point verbs
c. verbs of double aspect.
urative verbs epress actions or states which last in time such as: to exist, to
live, to !ork;
"ime/ #oint verbs epress actions which occur in a fraction of time: to stop, to
start, to blo! up etc.
Verbs of aspect ma& be used either as durative verbs or time2 point verbs in
different contets.
%or eample:
Compare the leical meaning or aspect of the verb hear:
She hears !ell. // She heard a noise in the pantry.
$n point of their predication that is their capacit& of making sense b& themselves
or with the help of other grammatical means, verbs fall into: transitive verbs " which as a
matter of fact are also principal or notional verbs# and verbs of incomplete predication
which onl& make sense in connection with principal notional verbs which is the case of:
English auiliar& verbs, English link verbs, English modal defective verbs.
7ink verbs are a special categor& of verbs of incomplete predication. The& are
connected to a nominal part "called the predicative# in order to form the so!called
nominal predicate.
There are special cases when a verb ma& have a noun attached to it both as an
ob*ect or as a predicative and a difference between the two wa&s in which the same verb
is used that is as a notional! transitive verb of complete predication or as a link verb is
shown b& the possibilit& or impossibilit& of putting this verb into the passive voice.
%or eample, in the sentence:
$e made a fine soldier, the verb made is replaceable b& the auiliar& !as which
makes it a link verb and the passive transformation is not possible, while in the sentence:
"hey made a fine soldier out of him, the verb made is also a verb of full
predication and the passive transformation is possible:
$e !as made a fine soldier by them.
%uxiliary verbs
An auiliar& verb is a verb devoid of an& leical "semantic# value b& means of
which different tenses and moods are formed in English. A special categor& is formed b&
the so!called modal verbs which are, in fact, semi!auiliar& verbs that verbs which apart
from not having all the con*ugation possibilit& as the other auiliar& verbs proper, the&
also epress different modal connotations of command, interdiction, re-uest, supposition,
probabilit&, improbabilit& etc. There are the following proper auiliar& verbs in English:
"o have
$t helps the formation of the perfect tenses in English that is the #resent #erfect
and #ast #erfect as well as the formation of the #erfect &nfinitive 0the infinitive to have '
the past participle form of the respective verb1: to have! to have had; to be! to have been,
and finall& the #erfect (erund and the #erfect #articiple forms of the verbs in English.
Compare:
$aving finished !ork, they left for home.
with:
)y having gone there !as a terrible accident.
$n the first eample, the structure having finished represents the perfect participle
form of the verb to finish, having the s&ntactic function of an adverbial modifier of time.
$n the second eample, the structure having gone is a perfect gerund form and not
a participle form because in this contet it behaves rather than a noun preceded b& an
ad*ective, in this case a possessive pronominal ad*ective answering the -uestion: !ho*s
going+, !ho*s having gone+, than a verb.
"o be
The auiliar& to be is used to form:
a. The continuous aspect in English verbs;
b. The /assive Voice of the English verbs.
"o do
The auiliar& verb to do is used to form the interrogative and negative forms of an
English verb in the /resent Tense and /ast Tense con*ugations of $ndicative 8ood.
,bservation: The same auiliar& to do with its forms do/ did is used emphaticall&
in front of otherwise affirmative /resent Tense and /ast Tense $ndicative 8ood forms
such as in:
& do like it. $e does go there many times. $e did do it.
,bservation: The auiliar& verb to do is not used in an interrogative sentence in
connection with the #resent "ense Simple %spect or #ast "ense Simple %spect situation
when the sub*ect of the respective sentence is epressed b& the interrogative pronouns
!ho, !hat or !hich.
Eamples: -ho comes next+ -ho did it+ -hat happened+
The same applies to sub*ects within which the pronouns !hat and !hich function
as attributes.
Eamples: -hich boy comes next+ -hat .uestion you like best+
Shall/ -ill
The& help the formation of the %uture Tense proper as well as of the %uture
/erfect Tense $ndicative 8ood.
Eample: /y the time !e arrive there, (eorge !ill already have gone.
Should/ -ould
The& help the formation of the 0uture in the #ast, of the 0uture #erfect in the
#ast and of the Conditional #erfect forms of the same verbs.
"o let
This auiliar& verb helps the formation of some imperative ) first and third
singular and plural person forms such as:
1et him do it2 1et us do it2
)odal auxiliary verbs "also called modal defective verbs#
$t is common knowledge that an& linguistic utterance beside transmitting
information proper, it also epresses an attitude of the speaker towards the respective
communication, attitude which ma& be intellective, epressing the speaker3s attitude,
curiosit&, lack of curiosit&, agreement, disagreement as well as volitive epressing
determination, lack of determination, authorit&, lack of authorit& and above all emotional
epressing: pleasure, s&mpath&, lack of s&mpath& etc.
There are the following modal verbs in English: shall/ should3 !ill/ !ould3 may/
might3 can/could3 must3 ought to3 need3 dare.
There are the following characteristics of modal verbs:
! the& are followed b& a short infinitive or perfect infinitive;
! the& don3t have long infinitive;
! the& don3t have forms for past participle or for present participle "!ing#;
! the& don3t have all the basic forms, so the& can not be con*ugated in certain
tenses or moods; some of them have modal e-uivalents such as:
can! to be able to;
may! to be allowed to, to be permitted to;
must! to have to;
!ill! to want to.
! the& do not take the s ending in the third person of /resent Tense, $ndicative
8ood;
! the& add the negation not for their negative forms and change places with the
sub*ect for their interrogative forms.
8odal verbs have a weaken leical value epressing the wa& in which the speaker
considers the action or state epressed b& the respective verb such as: necessar&,
obligator&, desired, possible, probable, improbable etc.
Shall epresses:
! offer: Shall $ help &ou carr& &our bags9
! determination, resolution: ,tudents shall attend classes regularl&.
! promise " in the second and third person#: :ou shall have a present for &our
birthda&.
! threat " in the second and third person# : :ou shall do that whether &ou like it
or not.
! interdiction: /eople shall not bring dogs in the hotel.
Should epresses:
! present dut& " obligation# : :ou should pay &our debts to the bank.
! past dut& " obligation# : :ou should have contacted him as soon as &ou
arrived there.
! advice or opinion: :ou should do more eercise if &ou want to lose weight.
! present wish "in the first person singular with the verb to like# : $ should like
to see this concert.
! past wish: $ should have liked to go to the concert but $ couldn3t find m&
tickets.
! regulations, stipulations: The form should be filled in according to the pattern.
! probabilit& or deduction: The train should be coming into the railwa& station.
! surprise, disbelief, protest, revolt: ;ow should $ come when $ know he cannot
stand me9 ; <h& should he do this *ob9
! future chance " in conditional sentences# : $f an&one should call, tell
ever&bod& that $ am out of town.
Will epresses:
! promise, determination " in the first person#: $ will do that, $ refuse to be
defeated.
! habitual persistence " in the second and third person#: $f &ou will smoke, &ou
will get ill.
! command or rule: :ou will stay here until $ tell &ou to go.
! refusal " in the negative#: $ will not go on that trip.
! invitation: Will &ou join us at the part&9
! polite re-uest: Will &ou, please, close the window9
! habitual2 repeated action in the present: Ever& ,unda& the& will visit their
grandparents.
! supposition or deduction in the present: ;e will be there b& now.
Would epresses:
! past refusal: $ told him not to go there but he wouldnt listen.
! habitual2 repeated action in the past: <hen we were &ounger, we would go out
ver& often.
! polite re-uest or invitation: Would &ou mind waiting here9
! distrust, suspicion, unbelievable fact " in the second person# : :ou wouldnt
do that=
May epresses:
! granting of permission: :ou may leave when the meeting is over.
! official interdiction: :ou may not leave before finishing &our work.
! polite re-uest or refuse: May $ use &our phone9 ; $3m sorr&, &ou may not.
! possibilit& or probabilit& "in the future or present#: 8ar& may be working in
the garden at this hour. ; $t may rain tomorrow.
! suggestion " ma& ' as well#: :ou may as well take a bus if &ou don3t find a
cab.
Might epresses:
! polite re-uest " more polite than may# : $f &ou don3t mind, $ might ask &ou
something.
! possibilit& or supposition " in the future or present#: ,he might come toda&.
! reproach or complaint: :ou might have told us the dog was in the garden.
! anno&ance, irritation, dissatisfaction: :ou might tell me the truth.
an epresses:
! ph&sical or intellectual skill: ;e can speak English ver& well. ; ;e can see the
bird fl&ing.
! inabilit& " in the negative#: >randfather is getting old; he cannot hear ver&
well and cannot see without his glasses.
! logical impossibilit&: ,he cant be >erman, she has %rench accent.
! permission: an $ pay b& credit card, please9
! official interdiction: :ou cant smoke in the hospital.
! re-uest or offer of help: Can $ ask &ou something9
ould epresses:
! ph&sical or intellectual abilit& in the past: ;e could speak ,panish when he
was a child.
! logical impossibilit&: :ou couldnt have met m& father, he is not in town.
! permission: :ou could go into the doctor3s office when the previous patient
went out.
Must epresses:
! obligation: :ou must come back now.
! order or persuasive invitation: :ou must leave at once.
! interdiction: :ou must not move &our leg when it is broken.
! logical deduction or strong possibilit&: The building must be ver& old.
!ught to epresses:
! moral obligation: :ou ought to call &our mother at least once a week.
"eed epresses:
! necessar& or unnecessar& action: $ doubt whether an&one need know.;
:ou need not go to the office in week!ends.
#are epresses:
! daring: Ver& few people dared speak up at the reunion.
The grammatical categories of the English verb
The English verb has four specific grammatical categories: voice, aspect, mood
and tense as well as two other categories which are also common to other parts of speech:
person and number.
Voice is the grammatical categor& epressing the relation between the sub*ect of a
sentence and the direct ob*ect in the sentence.
$n English, there are two voices proper: active voice and passive voice.
%ctive voice shows that the action or state epressed b& the predicative verb is
performed b& the respective grammatical sub*ect.
Eample: 4ohn invited all his friends to his birthday party.
#assive voice shows that the action epressed b& the predicative verb is suffered
b& the grammatical sub*ect.
Eample: %ll of 4ohn*s friends !ere invited to his birthday party.
The passive form of an English principal verb is made up of the auiliar& to be
which is con*ugated in the re-uired mood, aspect and tense as well as form " affirmative,
negative, interrogative# followed b& the past participle form of the verb to be con*ugated.
#assive Voice
<hen an active voice turns in a passive voice form there are two situations:
a. the sub*ect of the active construction becomes an epressed or
unepressed ob*ect of instrument or ob*ect of agenc& in the respective passive
construction, while the direct ob*ect of the active construction becomes the sub*ect of the
new passive construction.
Eample: 4ohn broke the !indo!.
"he !indo! !as broken by 4ohn.
b. an indirect ob*ect in an active construction becomes the sub*ect of a
passive construction and the formal sub*ect " ob*ect of agenc&#.
& gave (eorge a ne! chance.
% ne! chance !as given to (eorge by me.
(eorge !as given a ne! chance by me.
,bservation5 As a rule, /assive Voice forms are not used in the continuous aspect
in the /erfect Tenses of $ndicative 8ood or in the Conditional /erfect forms. ;owever,
passive forms are used in the /resent Tense Continuous affirmative, more rarel& in the
negative as well as in the /ast Tense Continuous $ndicative 8ood.
Eample: "hey are reading a good book no!.
% good book is being read 6by them7 no!.
$e !as !riting a letter yesterday at five o*clock.
% letter !as being !ritten 6by him7 yesterday at five o*clock.
A special t&pe of passive is to be found especiall& in collo-uial speech in the
present form of the verb to get instead of the auiliar& to be which is con*ugated in its
past, present or future tense followed b& the respective past participle notional " principal#
verb.
,entences containing such a construction do not, as a rule, include the real sub*ect
the form of an adverbial modifier of agenc&.
Eample5 "housand of people get killed or in8ured on 9omanian roads each year.
,pecial care should be taken when the verb get is used as a link verb of becoming
in apparentl& passive constructions such as: to get dressed, to get bored, to get excited/
scared etc.
,imilarl&, the construction to get used to should be understood as a link verb of
being ' an ad*ectival construction represented either b& an -ing form or b& a noun or a
noun e-uivalent.
%or eample: %lthough he has never driven a foreign made car, he is no! getting
used to driving his %udi.
%lthough she*s not used to getting up early, she is doing her best to
go to !ork in time.
:lliptical passive
There are cases of ellipsis in passive constructions especiall& in relative
subordinate clauses.
Eample: /y orders from the police, all cars illegally parked 6all cars !hich have
been parked7 have been craned onto tracks and taken to a special parking lot.
"he use of #assive Voice in :nglish
Although the meaning of an active construction does not differ from its passive
counter part, there are not perfect semantic s&non&ms particularl& because of the sentence
stress which renders the meaning of one or the other sentence part more prominent.
There are about the following cases of passive voice instead of active voice
construction as follows:
a. <hen the active sub*ect is difficult to be established.
Eample: %pparently the house has not been lived in for many years.
b. <hen, for some reason or other, the active voice sub*ect is not worth
mentioning.
Eample: "hey !ere sho!n round the garden first and then they !ere invited in.
c. <hen the passive grammatical sub*ect is the all important element in the
sentence.
Eample: /en 4onson !as banned from all official rights for alleged drug usage.
There are cases in English when a passive sense ma& be implied in certain English
verbs which as a matter of fact are not in the passive voice.
"his coat !ears !ell. 6se poart; bine7
"he flo!ers sold .uickly. 6s-au vandut bine7
"he field did not flood. 6n-a fost inundat7
As can be noticed from the above eamples, a possible direct ob*ect from an
active construction is used as a grammatical sub*ect in a construction which preserves an
active voice structure with a definite passive meaning.
%or eample: "he overflo!ing !ater flooded the field.
"he field did not flood. instead of "he field !as not flooded.
(rammatical aspect of :nglish verbs
The English language has the grammatical categor& of aspect represented b&
special grammatical patterns or morphological forms of the English verb which allow one
to distinguish between durative or non!durative character of the action or state epressed
b& the respective verb.
This distinction is made b& contrasting two sets of verbal forms on the principal
of the use or non!use of the pattern be ' indefinite participle.
5bservation: Although from a theoretical point of view, an English verb can be
con*ugated in all moods, tenses and forms, in real practice, the continuous aspect is
almost never used in negative perfect tenses.
Although, & shall have been finishing is possible, the simple aspect form is usuall&
used in such a tense: & shall have finished.
$n actual practice, the usage or non! usage of simple aspect forms or of continuous
aspect forms of different forms is determined as the following:
?. their leical meaning;
@. their grammatical tense;
+. their different determiners.
As to no. ?. there is the case of the time2 point verbs whose action is understood
as instantaneous.
%or eample, one can hardl& sa& something like: "he athletes !ere starting !hen
they heard the pistol shot.
5n the other hand, in point of no. @., there are time2 point verbs which are used in
the continuous aspect when the action denoted b& them is viewed as repeated.
"he spectators !ere standing up and sitting do!n !hile cheering the singer.
As concerning no. +.:
-hile they drove home, they had a long discussion about !hat had happened.
There are the following cases when the continuous aspect is not as a rule used:
a. in the case of some English verbs whose basic meaning ecludes their
possibilit& to be used in a continuous aspect: to belong, to posses, to seem, to eist;
b. the English auiliar& to be when it epresses eistence.
5bservation: The same verb to be is used in the continuous aspect to epress a
temporar& state or a temporar& -ualit&.
Eample: 1eave little 4ohnny alone2 $e is 8ust being naughty.
Compare with: 4ohn is naughty. 6$e is generally naughty7.
c. the so!called verbs of perception: to see, to hear, to smell are not used in
the continuous aspect with their basic meaning, but the& can be used in the continuous
aspect when the speaker implies the voluntar& use or the voluntar& eertion of the
respective sense.
Compare: $e sees !ell although he is very old.
with: <ou are seeing things.
5bservation: The same verb to see is used in the continuous aspect with a change
of meaning such as in:
"he doctor is 8ust seeing the patient.
&*m seeing 4ohn tomorro!.
0inite and non-finite forms of the :nglish verb
The traditional forms of the English verb fall into two categories:
a. personal or finite that is: the $ndicative, the $mperative, the Conditional, the
,ub*unctive;
b. impersonal or non-finite that is: the $nfinitive, the >erund and the /articiple.
The personal forms of the English verb are directl& connected to the sub*ect and
the& perform in the sentence the function of predicate or part of a predicate.
7ike in Aomanian grammar, the& are called 8oods. The impersonal forms of the
English verb are not as a rule connected to the sub*ect and even when the& enter some
implied predicative relations with the agent of the action, the& onl& fulfill secondar&
functions in the sentence. These forms are not considered moods in modern English
grammar.
"he category of mood in :nglish verbs
The main grammatical categor& is the categor& of mood and it epresses the
modalit& in which the speaker considers the action or state epressed b& the verb as being
real, desirable or ordered, presupposed, advised or re-uested. $n contemporar& English,
the grammatical mood of the verb is also connected to its other categories of tense, voice
and aspect.
"enses of the &ndicative )ood
$n strictl& chronological order, starting from the past, there are the following
tenses of the $ndicative 8ood: /ast /erfect, /ast Tense or /reterite, /resent /erfect,
/resent Tense, %uture /erfect and %uture Tense.
"he #resent "ense &ndicative )ood- active voice
4& a simplified definition the grammatical tense called present epresses an
action or state which holds good at the present moment of speaking. $n realit&, the /resent
Tense ma& also be used as referring to the past in the case of the so!called historic past, in
order to make a description seem present and vivid in historical accounts as well as in
dramatic speech descriptions, in fiction and at the same time it ma& also be used as
referring to the future in conditional subordinate clauses or in main sentences having a
future reference such as in :
"he train leaves in five minutes.
$n point of form, the /resent Tense ,imple coincides with the indefinite short
$nfinitive in all persons with the eception of the third person singular which, apart from
the case of modal verbs, ends in s.
"he interrogative form of the /resent Tense ,imple is made up with the help of
the auiliar& to do con*ugated in the /resent Tense ,imple interrogative form and
followed b& the short $ndefinite $nfinitive of the English verb.
Eamples: o & come+
oes he/ she come+
id he come+
"he negative form of the ,imple /resent is made up with the help of the auiliar&
to do, con*ugated in the /resent Tense negative form and followed b& the $ndefinite short
$nfinitive.
There are the following rules to be observed when adding the s ending in the
third person singular:
a. Verbs ending in y preceded b& a consonant change y into i and add a linking
-e plus the -s ending:
& try- he tries3
b. Verbs ending in )ss, -sh, -ch, -x, -== add )es:
& fuss- he fusses3 & !ash- he !ashes3 & couch- he couches3 & bu==-he
bu==es.
c. The verbs to do and to go as well as their compounds add )es.
d. The verbs to be and to have have an irregular /resent Tense con*ugation.
e. 8odal verbs do not add s in the third person singular.
f. $n all the other cases, when verbs end in vowels or in a consonant, the s ending
is added.
Bses of the #resent "ense Simple:
?. to denote some general or universal truth as well as some general statement:
"he sun rises in the :ast and sets in the -est.
-ater free=es at =ero degrees Celsius.
@. to denote some action, state or abilit& which characteri.es the sub*ect:
"he herbivores feed on grass.
$e speaks three foreign languages.
+. to denote habitual or recurrent actions or states often with the help of an adverb
or adverbial phrase of fre-uenc& such as: alwa&s, often, seldom, usuall&, ever, never,
whenever, ever& da&, on weekends, as a rule, repeatedl&, now and then, from time to
time:
$e sits up late every night.
$e never misses ne!s on the radio.
-henever he visits us, he brings his dog along !ith him.
C. to show that the action simpl& occurs without stressing the idea of being in
progress:
-e ackno!ledge receipt of your letter sent yesterday.
D. with verbs epressing movements in radio or sports commentaries and
interviews, in eclamations, for dramatic narrative when describing the action of a pla&,
opera, game etc.:
"here comes 4ohn.
"here goes your train.
"he !hole team presses for!ard in a last attempt to appropriate victory.
-hen the curtain rises, 4uliet is sitting at the desk.
"he phone rings, she picks it up and listens .uietly.
E. to introduce -uotations directl& or indirectl& when the respective introductor&
verb does not epress an action which is going on at the present moment of speaking.
9abelais says5 %ppetite comes !ith eating.
F. instead of the /resent /erfect of some verbs denoting pieces of information
such as: to hear, to forget, to learn, to tell, to be told, to understand, to !rite.
& learn he is no longer in hospital.
& hear he has moved to another to!n.
&*m told he*s not a man to be trusted.
G. $t is used instead of the /ast Tense as a historic or narrative present, a case in
which it renders some past events more vivid and dramatic.
& !ent in and closed the door.
Suddenly a voice calls out of the dark and startles me.
This narrative present is ver& rarel& used in spoken English, being characteristic
of literar& English language.
H. The /resent Tense is used instead of the future in conditional or concessive
subordinate clauses as well as in time clauses. $n such a case, it is used after such
subordinators as: if, assuming that, presuming that, provided that, given that, unless, even
if, in case, !hatever, after, once, until, as soon as, before, !henever etc.
&f he comes again, & !ill not speak to him.
-hen you gro! up you !ill be allo!ed to do !hatever you !ant.
:ven if the meeting is cancelled, !e !ill continue to !ork on the pro8ect.
?I.After such verbs as: to hope, to suppose, to assume used in the imperative, the
/resent Tense can often be used instead of the !ill' infinitive future.
& hope that he comes in time.
1et*s assume our opponents !in the elections.
The /resent Continuous Tense
The /resent Tense Continuous form of an English verb denotes present tense. $t is,
as a rule, used for actions or states happening now in the present moment of speaking or
happening in a period of time including the present moment of speaking.
Compare, for eample:
7ook= $t is snowing outside. " now2 at this ver& moment#
;ave &ou heard it9 John is writing a book. " he started writing it da&s2
months before the present moment of speaking and supposedl& he is doing it at the
present moment of speaking and it3s going to be writing it da&s2 months after the present
moment of speaking.
The /resent Tense Continuous form is not alwa&s marked b& time markers
of the t&pe: no!, at this very moment etc. As a rule, the English speakers understand this
continuous tense to mean right no! or a period including right no!.
<hen time markers are used, especiall& for emphasis, the& are, besides the usual
ones: no!, right no!, at present, combinations of: this !eek, this month, this year, this
very moment, these days/ months/ years, also today, at the moment etc.
The form of the Continuous Aspect
All the forms of the #resent Continuous aspect are formed with the help of the
auiliar& verb to be, which is con*ugated for the respective affirmative, interrogative and
negative forms followed b& the indefinite2 present participle form of the verb to be
con*ugated.
,bservation: $n current speech, one emplo&s the respective contracted forms of
the auiliar& to be such as: $3m, :ou3re, ;e3s2 ,he3s2 $t3s, <e3re, :ou3re, The&3re
reading... 22 $3m not, :ou aren3t, ;e2 ,he2 $t isn3t, <e aren3t, :ou aren3t, The& aren3t
doing this now.
9ules concerning the spelling of the indefinite participle/ of forming the indefinite
participle
a. <hen an infinitive verb ends in e, it drops that e before the ing:
like- liking3 love- loving3 live- living, hope- hoping
5bservation: This rule does not appl& when an infinitive verb ends in double e5
see- seeing3 agree- agreeing.
b. <hen an one s&llable verb, which onl& has one letter vowel, ends in one
consonant, the respective consonant is doubled:
drop- dropping, stop- stopping, hop- hopping.
,bservation5 <hen there are two letters! vowel, the consonant is not doubled.
stop - stopping but stoop - stooping
c. Verbs of two or more s&llables whose last s&llable contains one vowel letter and
ends in a single consonant, double the respective consonant if that final s&llable is
stressed and contains one vowel! letter.
forget- forgetting
d. The consonant letter l is however alwa&s doubled in 4ritish English as
opposed to American English.
travel- travelling " 4ritish English# 2 travel- traveling " American English#
>se of the #resent Continuous
/resent Continuous is used:
a. to epress actions or states occurring at the ver& present moment of speaking:
&t is dri==ling outside no!.
b. to epress2 denote an act or state characteristic of the sub*ect at about this
present time2 moment of speaking " including a previous past moment2 the present
moment of speaking and perhaps some period of future time#.
John*s brother is living in the country side. " ;e started living some time
ago, he is living there now and he is going to live there for some &ears#.
c. to epress a definite arrangement in the near future usuall& with a suitable
adverbial modifier of near future time such as: tonight, tomorro!, next !eek, this summer,
this coming !inter etc.
-hat are !e having for dinner+ " needs no further time markers such as
tonight, but it is clear from the contet that the action epressed b& the continuous form is
not actuall& taking place at the ver& moment of speaking, but it is going to take place
after some minutes2 hours2 the ver& moment of speaking#.
-hen are you going to the country side+ " The speaker clearl& has in mind
a near future appointment in real time such as: for the !eekend, tomorro!, any!ay, a
period of time understood as ceaselessly7.
$o! long are they staying in #aris+
-ho else is coming to the party tomorro! night+
d. with such adverbs as: al!ays, forever, constantly, all the time, incessantly,
ceaselessly etc., the present continuous form is used for actions which to the speaker
seem either annoying, disturbing, unreasonable and the like.
-ife about husband5 "om is al!ays going a!ay for the !eekends to see his
parents in the country-side.
&t is forever sno!ing here.
5n the other hand, the continuous form of the verb, which is not as a rule
con*ugated in the continuous aspect, such as the auiliar& verb to be, is used to show that
an action or state is temporar&.
Verbs which are not as a rule used in the continuous aspect include:
! state verbs: to belong to, to concern, to consist of, to contain, to cost, to depend
on, to deserve, to hold, to keep on, to matter, to o!e, to o!n, to possess, to resemble.
Compare:
$o! much does this dictionary cost+ with
(od kno!s !hat this meal is costing me2 "temporar& meaning#
! perception verbs: to see, to hear, to look, to feel, to smell, to sound, to seem, to
appear, to taste.
& hear !henever you slam the door.
Can you hear the !ind+
! emotion and wishing verbs: to !ant, to prefer, to intend to, to refuse, to forgive,
to hope, to like, to dislike, to love, to hate, to en8oy, to !ish, to desire, can*t stand/ can*t
bear etc.
& like coffee cream.
& hate it. & prefer orange cream.
4ut: -hat a hat2 & am hating it2 6temporary feeling#
! verbs of thinking: to think, to feel, to imagine, to kno!, to mean, to suppose, to
understand, to believe, to reali=e, to doubt, to agree, to note, to remember, to forget, to
suspect, to consider, to expect etc.
& thought that they !ould dine out. " state#
4ut: /e .uiet2 & am thinking. " activit&#
5bservation: There are eceptions in connection with the above mentioned verbs,
cases in which the respective verbs either change their basic means or the action or state
epressed b& them is stressed upon.
The doctor is 8ust seeing the patient. " to consult#
"he manager is seeing the ne! employee tomorro!. " to meet#
&*m seeing it tomorro!. " to arrange#
&*ve been hearing all about it lately. " receiving news#
Stop talking, please2 &*m hearing a strange sound coming from the cellar. "
$3m making efforts to hear.#
$o! do you like life at >niversity+
&*m loving it. " to en*o&#
The /resent /erfect Tense
"he #resent #erfect "ense is a grammatical tense which refers to past and2 or
present together.
%or eample: $f the verb has a durative association, its present perfect form
signifies that an action or a condition which was begun in a certain moment in the past,
still continues at the present moment or when a verb has no durative association, a
present perfect form shows that an action or condition happened in the past, but has some
visible or implied conse-uences on the present moment of speaking.
Thirdl&, a present perfect form of a verb ma& refer to an action or condition
performed2 fulfilled in an indefinite moment of past time which can go back in time to
our earliest memories.
%orm of the /resent /erfect
The /resent /erfect tense form of a verb, simple aspect, is formed with the help of
present tense affirmative forms of the auiliar& to have which is con*ugated for the other
interrogative! negative forms followed b& the past participle form of the verb to be
con*ugated.
5bservation: $n current speech or when one wants to render other people3s
speech, the respective contracted forms of the auiliar& are used.
$ have2 $3ve 2 $ haven3t been there before.
:ou3ve2 :ou haven3t
;e3s2 ,he3s2 $t3s2 ;e hasn3t2 ,he hasn3t2 $t hasn3t
Bse of the /resent /erfect Tense
$t is used:
?. to show "epress# a recentl& finished action usuall& with the help of the adverb
8ust.
"hey have 8ust arrived.
,uch a combination is chiefl& used in the affirmative, and ver& rarel& in the
interrogative. <hen one uses a /resent /erfect Tense form to show a negative action in
connection with a period of past time which is close to the present moment of speaking,
the adverb to be used is yet and not 8ust.
"hey have 8ust arrived.
"hey have not arrived yet.
$ave they arrived yet+
@. to epress a past action whose time is not given and not definite.
& have seen this movie.
& have been there before. "some time in the past#.
+. to epress an action which has happened in an indefinite period of past time, of
an incomplete period of past time in con*unction with the adverbs: latel&, recentl&, &et, so
far, alread&, almost, alwa&s, ever, never and with combinations of this, these, these past
da&s etc.
& haven*t seen him lately. " indefinite period of past time#.
&*ve !orked a lot this !eek. " incomplete period#
C. to epress an action beginning in a past moment of time and still continuing in
the present moment of speaking " when one wants to stress the continuit& of the
respective action, one also uses the /resent /erfect Continuous#.
$e has lived here all his life.
& have smoked since & left school.
The /resent /erfect Continuous
The present perfect continuous form is formed with the help of the auiliar& to be
which is con*ugated in the affirmative, negative, interrogative and interrogative!negative
forms followed b& the indefinite participle form of the verb to be con*ugated.
5bservation: in current speech the respective contracted forms are used.
& have been talking for five minutes.
&*ve been talking for five minutes.
Bse of the /resent /erfect Continuous
5bservation: The same verbs which as a rule are not used in the continuous aspect
are not used in the present perfect continuous form as well.
/resent /erfect Continuous is used:
?. to epress an action which began in the past, has unfolded toward the present
moment of speaking and has *ust onl& finished before the present moment of speaking.
$ave you been !aiting long+ "evidentl& &ou are no longer waiting#
&*ve 8ust been talking to the o!ner of the shop and he said he could offer
you a temporary 8ob for the summer. " /resent /erfect Continuous implies the idea of an
action which has *ust finished#
&*ve talked to the o!ner of the shop " $ did it past, in a certain moment in
the past#.
@. for an action which began in a certain moment in the past and has or not
continued into the present moment of speaking.
&*ve been living in this to!n for t!enty years. " and $3m still living#
5bservation: The same idea can be epressed with the /resent /erfect ,imple
Tense form with the difference that b& using a /resent /erfect Continuous, the speaker
la&s stress on the continuing character of the action over the period implied and also on
its continuit& at the present moment of speaking.
Comparison bet!een #resent #erfect Simple and #resent #erfect Continuous

?. 5bservation: <hen the idea is of an action which began in the past and still
continues or has *ust finished, either form can be used "the difference being one of
emphasis in the case of the continuous form#.
&*ve lived here for ?@ years.
&*ve been living here for ?@ years.
&*ve !anted to teach him a lesson for a very long time.
&*ve been !anting to teach him a lesson for a very long time.
The special usage of the verb to !ant points to that feeling epressed in its high
degree, apart from the usage of the simple form which epresses something which has
been done in the past.
@. A repeated action in the /resent /erfect ,imple tense can be epressed in the
/resent /erfect Continuous tense with the following difference: the /resent /erfect
,imple form allows one to use a numeral to count the number of times the respective
action has taken place while with the Continuous /resent /erfect form no such thing is
possible.
Compare: &*ve !ritten six letters since breakfast.
&*ve been !riting several letters since morning. " a repeated action is
suggested, but the number of actions is not mentioned#.
5bservation: <ith /resent /erfect Continuous the eact number of actions can3t
be specified.
-hat have you been doing today+
& have been doing things around the house.
5bervation?: The /resent /erfect Continuous form of the verb can be used with
or without a time phrase to epress an action which began in the past and is still
continuing or has *ust onl& finished, while the /resent /erfect ,imple form can onl& do
these things with the help of suitable adverbs: 8ust, often, al!ays, ever, lately etc.
Compare: &*ve been thinking it over.
&*ve thought it over lately.
5bservation @: Aemember that without a time epression a ,imple /resent /erfect
form onl& refers to one past completed action.
&*ve talked to 4ohn and he saysA
&*ve talked to 4ohn only once. " some time in an indefinite past period of time
which is not worth mentioning it#.
&*ve talked to 4ohn several times.
&*ve 8ust talked to 4ohn.
&*ve been talking to 4ohn and he saysA
The /ast Tense ,imple
The affirmative form of this tense for regular verbs is formed with the help of ed
ending which is added to the short indefinite infinitive form of the verb to be con*ugated.
5bservation: <hen a verb ends in the letter !e, that e is dropped
to cook- cooked but to like- liked.
The negative, interrogative and interrogative! negative forms are built b&
con*ugating the past tense form of the auiliar& to do did followed b& the short
indefinite infinitive form of the respective verb:
$e did not play.
$e didn*t play.
id he play+
idn*t he play+
Bsage of the ,imple /ast Tense

The basic use of the ,imple /ast Tense in English is to describe " to epress# one
complete action in a definite moment in the past or to denote states or actions occurring at
a definite moment in the past. ,ometimes, even in a definite interval of past time.
The respective past moments or intervals are as a rule epressed b& time! markers
or are clearl& understood from the contet of the communication. $n detail, there are the
following uses:
a. for actions or states belonging to a definite past time marked b& such time
markers as: a fe! moments ago, yesterday, last !eek, last year etc. as well as b& specific
points of time with the help of such preposition as: in, at 6 at seven o*clock7, on 6 on
)onday7, in 6 in that !eek7.
Compare: & didn*t see him t!o minutes ago.
& haven*t seen him since he left.
b. when the specific time of the past action is asked about especiall& with the
interrogative adverb !hen:
-hen did you see him+
-hen did you meet him+
c. when a /ast Tense ,imple aspect form is supposed to denote repeated actions or
states which occurred in a definite period of past time which is either mentioned with the
help of such adverbs of fre-uenc&: every day, often, al!ays, repeatedly, sometimes,
rarely, ever, never whose fre-uentative character is specificall& placed in a definite period
of past time either b& the contet or b& the presence of an adverb of definite time such as:
-hen !e !ere younger "definite period of time, we are not so &oung
an&more# !e al!ays/ very rarely/ often/ never !ent out and danced all night.
5bservation: The idea of a repeated customar& action in the past can also be
epressed with the help of the modal auiliar& !ould "slightl& stressed in speech#
followed b& the short infinitive or with the help of the modal e-uivalent phrase used to:
-hen !e !ere younger, !e !ould go out a lot.
-hen !e !ere younger, !e used to spend our !eekends out.
d. to epress that an action or state did occur, clearl& took place, even though this
time is not mentioned, but is known b& both parties " speaker and listener# or it onl&
eists in the speaker3s mind.
$o! did you get to kno! him+
-here did you meet this man+
id you talk to 4ohn+
-hat did $elen tell you+
5bservation: <e usuall& use /resent /erfect when we speak about the past in the
present moment.
e. to show that a series of actions happened or began to happen one after the other
in the past:
"he thief drove into the car park, got out of his car, looked for a car !hose
doors !ere not locked and !hen he found one, he !ent in to steal !hatever he found in
there.
f. the /ast Tense ,imple aspect is the usual narrative tense to show actions which
took place in the past or to describe some future imaginar& realit&.
&t had been a long day and 4ohn !as tired. % touch and a scream set into
the real of the seat before him sprang to life.
,pecial uses of the ,imple /ast Tense
a. a special /ast Tense ,imple aspect replaces the ,imple /resent Tense in several
polite -uestions and re-uest such as in:
A: -hat can & do for you+
4: & !anted to see you for a moment.
A: -hat did you !ant to talk to me about+
5bservation: ,uch a situation is also to be met in indirect statements.
,ur motifs !ere not a total refusal of any suggestions by the opposition.
"he condition !as though a change in the spirit of the respective proposals.
b. instead of The /ast Continuous and assuming its function of showing
continuit&, as past tense form of that action:
%nd 4ulia sat !ith 4uan/ $alf embraced/ %nd half retiring from the
glo!ing arm.
5bservation: The ,imple /ast Tense ma& be used to show that two continuous
past actions were happening in parallel at the same time if the continuit& of the respective
actions is shown clearl& enough b& the sense of the respective sentence or b& the
presence of such con*unctions of duration such as !hile or !hilst.
"hey !ere singing happily !hile they !ere driving home after their picnic.
"hey sang happily !hile they drove home after their picnic.
"hey !ere singing happily !hile they drove after their picnic.
"hey sang happily !hile they !ere driving after their picnic.
c. a /ast Tense ,imple aspect form ma& be used instead of a /ast /erfect form
such as before a subordinate clause introduced b& the con*unction before or in
subordinate clauses in which the anteriorit& of the action which, as a rule, is epressed b&
a /ast /erfect form is clearl& understood from the contet.
4ohn left before !e arrived at the station.
4ohn had already left !hen !e arrived at the station.
-hen !e arrived at the station, 4ohn had left.
d. the /ast Tense ,imple aspect form is the tense to be used to render the ,imple
/resent Tense in $ndirect ,peech "with the respective eceptions#.
K.,.: & can*t come. &*m too tired.
$.,.: $e said he couldn*t come because he !as too tired.
4ut: K. ,.: 4ohn is surely married. & !ent to his !edding party t!o !eeks ago.
ma& become: $.,.: 4ane said that 4ohn is surely married. She had been to his !edding
party t!o !eeks ago.
e. a /ast Tense ,imple aspect form is used instead of the %uture in the /ast or
%uture /erfect in the /ast in temporal clauses.
-hen & last talked to 4ohn, he told me that he didn*t kno! !hen he !ould come to
see us, but he promised me that he !ould phone us as soon as he kne! !hen he !ould
come.
The /ast Continuous
The /ast Continuous is formed with the help of the affirmative, negative,
interrogative and negative!interrogative of the auiliar& to be con*ugated in its /ast Tense
followed b& the indefinite participle of the verb to be con*ugated.
5bservation: $n current speech, the respective contracted forms of the auiliar&
are used.

Bses of the /ast Continuous
a. to epress an action which was continuous at a given moment of past time
" usuall& epressed b& a suitable adverbial modifier of past time or b& a whole time
subordinate clause#.
<esterday at B o* clock p.m. & !as talking over the phone !ith a friend.
-hen the accident happened, & !as crossing the street myself.
b. to render the /resent Continuous aspect in $ndirect ,peech.
K.,.: &*m going to fly to 1ondon tonight.
$.,.: "hat person said he !as going to fly to 1ondon that night.
c. to epress disapproval of an action or situation which in the speaker3s opinion
happened much too often or was happening at some moment in the past on a temporar&
basis " as is the case of the /resent Continuous form used in similar circumstances#. The
usage of Continuous /ast Tense form epresses the speaker disapproval of some actions.
:verybody is glad they*ve left the neighborhood. "hey !ere al!ays
.uarrelling !ith everybody.
$n such cases of usage such adverbs of fre-uenc& as: al!ays, all the time,
incessantly are also present. As a rule, with such adverbs, the simple aspect is used.
"hey al!ays .uarrel !ith everybody. " but the continuous form is more
epressive#
& didn*t pay much attention to 4ohn. $e !as 8ust being naughty.
d. to stress the idea that an action was continuous over a period of past time
between two etremities epressed with suitable adverbial modifiers of time: betweenL
andL, fromL toL
/et!een the second and the seventh day of last month, they !ere staying
!ith the Smiths.
5bservation: The usage of a continuous form in such situations is rather optional,
being a matter of stronger modalit& rather than of grammar proper, the ,imple /ast Tense
form is epressing almost the same thing.
Compare: /et!een the second and the seventh day of last month, they stayed !ith
the Smiths.
$e can*t be the thief, Sir, bet!een nine and eleven last night !hen you say the
burglary took place, & and 4ohn !ere playing chess at my place. "the speaker is tr&ing to
be ver& convincing#.

The /ast /erfect Tense
The /ast /erfect Tense is formed with the help of the auiliar& had which is
con*ugated for the affirmative, negative, interrogative and negative!interrogative forms
followed b& the past participle of the verb to be con*ugated.
$n current speech, the usual contracted forms of the auiliar& are used: &*d come, &
hadn*t come.
There are the following uses of the /ast /erfect:
a. to show that an action took place before another past action: happened and
finished before a past moment of time which ma& be epressed b& a suitable adverbial of
past time or before another finished past action.
/y the end of that !eek, they had finished all their supplies so they had to
go and buy some more.
<esterday at three o*clock in the afternoon, they had all come back from
/ucharest.
-e had had lunch !hen the guests arrived at last. "the action was finished
before another action#.
b. to show " to epress# an action which had begun before some mentioned or
unmentioned moment of past time and was still going on that past moment pointed in
time, or *ust stopped before it.
$n such cases the /ast /erfect is used in connection with such words and
epressions which indicate the respective period of time such as: since, for, al!ays, never,
8ust, yet, already.
-hen & met them, they had been married for ten years.
Compare with: "hey had been married. " which onl& means that the& were
married at some moment or for a period in the past, but no longer married in the present
moment of speaking#.
The /ast Tense and /ast /erfect Tense in Time Clauses
a. 5bservation: The /ast ,imple Tense is used after the con*unction !hen in a
time subordinate clause when two simple past tenses forms: the one in the main clause
and the other in the time subordinate clause might give one the wrong impression that the
two actions happened simultaneousl&.
-hen he had told them everything he had to say, he sat do!n.
Compare with:
-hen he told them !hat he had to say, he sat do!n. " told after !hen
suggests that the action of telling took place at the same time with the action of sitting#.
5bservation: <hen things are ver& clear from the contet, when it is clearl&
understood that one action followed the other in the sense that the& didn3t happen
simultaneousl&, than two simple past tenses can be used in the respective sentence.
-hen he reached the house, he heard someone shutting inside.
-hen he thought better of it, he reali=ed he still had a slim chance of
recovering part of his money.
-hen he got out of his car, someone started shutting at him.
-hen has a double meaning: ! something happened on a certain moment;
! !hen in the sense of after.
5bservation: ;owever, when we wish to emphasis that the first action had taken
place before the second action, the /ast /erfect is used after when.
-hen he had inspected the ne! building, the managing director
congratulated the builders for their perfect 8ob.
b. <hen the "ime Clause is introduced b& the con*unction after, both #ast "ense
and #ast #erfect are used in alternation.
%fter he came/ had come // he finished / had finished the !ork.
c. with the adverbs: till, until or the adverbial compound con*unctions: as soon as,
before, the /ast /erfect Tense is onl& used for emphasis.
"he !itness refused to sign the testimony till he had read it through once
more.
Cot until he had read it through once more, did the !itness accept.
d. actions viewed in retrospect from a point in the past are as a rule epressed
with the /ast /erfect form.
"hey had been born there and had lived there all their life, so they
couldn*t decide to move else!here.
5bservation: <hen a /ast /erfect Tense simple aspect form is preceded b& a
negative, restrictive adverb of the t&pe: hardly, never, barely, scarcely, only and its
compounds, at no time or b& a whole time clause containing such an adverb or adverbial
phrases, one resorts to both grammatical and st&listic inversion of the auiliar& had with
the respective sub*ect.
Co sooner had they finished the first 8ob, than they started the second.
/arely/ Scarcely/ $ardly had they finished the first 8ob, !hen they started
the second.
5bservation: <hen the same adverbs are placed in their usual place " close to the
verb whose action the& modif&#, no such inversion takes place, onl& when the& are put at
the beginning of the sentence.
"hey had no sooner finished the first 8ob, than they started the second.
The /ast /erfect Continuous Tense
/ast /erfect Continuous Tense is formed with the help of the auiliar& to be
con*ugated in its affirmative, negative, interrogative and negative!interrogative /ast
/erfect forms followed b& the indefinite participle form of the verb to be con*ugated.
5bservation: 7ike in the case of similar anal&tical tenses or moods, the usual
place of different adverbs is after the first auiliar&, in this case, had.
$e told me that he had continuously been driving.
5bservation: The same verbs mentioned in the cases of other continuous tenses
are not, as a rule, con*ugated in the /ast /erfect Continuous.
5bservation: The /ast /erfect Continuous is not, as a rule, used in the /assive
Voice, the /ast /erfect Tense ,imple aspect being used instead.
The following eample: "hey had been !orking for several hours !hen & arrived
there, can onl& be rendered in the /assive Voice as: -ork had been done for several
hours and not -ork had been being done for several hours !hen & arrived there.
Bses of the /ast /erfect Continuous
5bservation: This continuous form of the /ast /erfect bears the same relationship
to the ,imple /ast /erfect form as the /resent /erfect Continuous form bears to the
,imple /resent /erfect form.
There are the following main uses:
a. to epress that an action or state had begun before the time of speaking in the
past " a definite past moment# and had been continuous up *ust before it.
& had been dressing !hen somebody knocked at the door.
5bservation: The /ast /erfect Tense simple aspect is clearer to be used to epress
the above:
& had 8ust dressed !hen somebody knocked at the door.
b. for actions which were continuous for a period of past time before an epressed
or unepressed past moment and were still continuous at the respective past moment.
Since his birth he had been living there !ith his parents.
c. repeated actions can be epressed in the /ast /erfect form in a similar wa& such
as an action can be epressed b& the /resent /erfect Continuous form.
Compare: $e had tried to contact her several times.
<ith: $e had been trying to contact her several times.
5bservation: The same difference between the /resent /erfect Tense simple
aspect and the /ast /erfect Tense continuous aspect when epressing a fi number of past
actions or an indefinite number of past actions hold true in the case of /ast /erfect Tense
Continuous and ,imple forms " the possibilit& referring to the number of past action can
count#.
5bservation: As concerns the difference between the possibilit& of the past simple
tense of the simple aspect to epress a single finished action and the wa& in which the
/ast /erfect Tense continuous form ma& epress about the same thing, things are as
follows:
!The /ast /erfect Tense simple aspect form onl& states that the respective action
took place "had taken place# once and had been finished at a certain past perfect moment
of time;
-hen & arrived home, & reali=ed that someone had broken into my absence " one
action! one finished action#.
4ut in the sentence: -hen & sa! my little boy*s smear face, & kne! he had been
stealing 8am from the pantry.
$n the case of this second eample, the speaker points both to a considerable
period of time the child had spent doing2 performing his thiever& acts and also to the fact
that the respective action might have taken several trips2 might have been repeated
several times " unspecified number of actions#.
d. in $ndirect ,peech to render /resent /erfect Tense continuous forms:
$e said he had been travelling since morning.
"he sno! had started to come do!n in the late afternoon. & sa! it through the
!indo! of my office building !here & !ork as a secretary. &t had been sno!ing for an
hour !hen & started to drive home. "he cars had been driving slo!ly because of the
dangerous roads. &t !as slippery sno! that fro=e !hen it hit the roads. :arlier, the sno!
had been melting, but by evening it !as staying on the roads. #olice cars had been
checking the traffic regularly. & had been driving for ?@ minutes !hen the accident
happened.



The %uture Tense
There are several possibilities in English to epress future time with the categories
of futurit&, modalit& and aspect contributing to it. Thus, apart from: shall/ !ill ' short
indefinite infinitive or perfect infinitive constructions, future time in English is also
epressed b& means of modal auxiliary ' infinitive constructions, as well as b& #resent
"ense Simple or Continuous forms, as well as b& a number of constructions such as: to be
going to, to be about to, to be to etc.
a. "he Simple #resent "ense is used to epress planned future actions, particularl&
when such plans impl& the idea of a travel such as in the following eamples:
-e leave here at six, arrive in /ucharest at eight and take a plane to #aris in the
afternoon.
A ,imple /resent Tense form is also used to epress future time in bus station
departure2 arrival etc. especiall& with d&namic transitional verbs of the t&pe: to arrive, to
leave, to take off, to lend, to come etc.
"he ,rient :xpress leaves in five minutes from platform one.
5bservation?: A /resent Tense ,imple aspect form is also used to epress future
time in the so!called t&pe one subordinate conditional clause or in time subordinate
clause.
&f & have time, &*ll come again tomorro!.
-hen & have some more time, &*ll attend to it myself.
5bservation@: A ,imple /resent Tense form can also be used in a main clause to
epress a marked future of unusual certaint& such as: statements about the calendar:
"oday is -ednesday, tomorro! is "hursday.
5bservation+: A ,imple /resent Tense form can also be used to epress the so!
called pictures-ue events in the near future with a fi hour of occurrence.
-hat time is the football match tomorro!+
"he exhibition opens on Saturday afternoon.
b. <hen used to epress a future action which in the speaker3s mind reali.ation is
not ver& far awa& in the future from the present moment of speaking, the Continuous
#resent "ense form implied is necessaril& accompanied, in the same sentence, b& suitable
adverbial modifier of near future time such as: in a fe! hours/ days/ !eeks/ months/
tonight/ this coming !eek/ these coming !eeks/ next month/ this coming summer and the
like.
-e are leaving tonight.
She is leaving at the end of the !eek.
5bservation?: The verb to go and to come can be used in their /resent Tense
Continuous form to epress a near future without an adverbial time modifier in the
sentence.
-here are you going+
&*m going to a cinema.
%re you coming !ith me+
<es, &*m 8ust coming. -ait for me, please.
5bservation@: The /resent Continuous Tense is used to epress near future
especiall& in connection with such d&namic transitional verbs "which show a transition
from a state to another# such as: to come, to go, to stop, to begin etc.
"he plane is taking off at D?.B@.
"he ne! manager is coming by the end of the !eek.
5bservation+: The verbs which are not used in the continuous aspect are onl&
used to epress near future with their continuous form with a change of their basic
meaning such as in: &*m seeing him again tomorro!. 6meeting7 or otherwise, the& are put
in their ,imple %uture Tense form to epress the same idea of near future.
-e shall kno! the results tomorro!.
5bservationC: The verb to be itself can be used in its continuous form to epress
near future within a /resent Tense Continuous /assive Voice construction.
)y ne! car is being delivered tomorro!.
c. "he (oing to form is in fact a combination of the /resent Tense Continuous
form of the verb to go ' an indefinite long infinitive form of the meaningful verb. $t is
mainl& used to epress the so!called 0uture of #resent &ntention, about a future action
with the additional sense that some preparations for the intended future action has alread&
been made at the moment of speaking. Thus in the sentence:
-e are going to leave for the seaside., the idea is that we have started making
preparations some time ago for this going to the seaside.
5bservation?: 4& comparison with the #resent "ense Continuous, the (oing to
form can be used to epress future of intention without an adverbial modifier of time in
which case the time of the future action can etend to ver& distant future to indefinite
future time such as in the eample:
-e are going to emigrate to the >S%., in which case the real future time of the
action can not be deduced ) the intention, on the other hand, is predominant, while b&
using an adverbial modifier of near future time, one has both near future and future of
intention.
-e are going to visit them next !eek. epresses both near future and future of
intention.
5bservation@: A particular case is the usage of the (oing to form which epresses
intention with the modal e-uivalent verbal form to have to such as in:
&*m going to have to punish my little 4ohnny. $e*s been acting too naughtily
lately.
0uture of &ntention is also present in the case of the special usage of the
auiliaries shall/ !ill in all the persons which is the case of shall in the second and third
persons or of the auiliar& !ill in the first person that is singular and plural in the
affirmative and negative slightl& accentuated with resulting modal connotations.
%or eample: &n the dialogue5
A: "he telephone is ringing.
4: & !ill go and ans!er it. "The auiliar& !ill epresses both futurit&, but also a
voluntar& action on the part of the second speaker, his willingness to perform that action.#
5n the other hand, in the sentence: "hose despicable people shall get !hat they
deserve. $n the verbal construction shall get, the idea is of futurit&, but also of threat.
$n the sentence: on*t !orry2 & !ill be there in time., the idea is both of futurit&,
but also of positive volition, while in the sentence: & !on*t do that no matter !hat they
say., the idea is of refusal, of stubbornness, but also of futurit&.
$f we are to compare the (oing to form to epress future of intention with the
!ill ' infinitive future, the difference is that the going to form epresses both premeditate
action and intention, while the !ill' infinitive future of intention onl& epresses intention
and not premeditation.
Compare:
A: "he telephone is ringing.
4: &*ll go and ans!er it. " onl& intention, willingness#
with:
A: -hy have you saved so much money in such a short time+
4: /ecause &*m going to buy a car. " premeditated intention#
The %uture Tense ,imple
The %uture Tense ,imple aspect in English is formed with the auiliar& shall for
the first person " singular and plural# and !ill for the second and third con*ugated as
auiliaries in the affirmative, negative, interrogative and negative! interrogative followed
b& the short indefinite infinitive form of the verb to be con*ugated.
5bservation?: $n current speech the respective contracted forms of the auiliaries
are used: &*ll/ &*ll not/ & !on*t/ & shan*t.
5bservation@: $n actual usage it is rather difficult to separate between the neutral
and modal functions of the auiliar& shall and !ill, that is wh& shall, for eample, is used
for a colourless neutral future in the first person singular and plural in 4ritish English
onl&, while !ill is used for the same purpose in the rest of the English speaking world.
That is wh&, in order to be on the safe sight, a neutral2 unstressed !ill is used in the first
person singular and plural instead of shall.
& !ill be there. "implies the idea of the %uture Tense proper, but also some kind of
modalit&#.
The %uture Continuous Tense
7ike an& other continuous tense, %uture Continuous is formed b& con*ugating the
auiliar& to be in its future affirmative, negative, interrogative, negative!interrogative
forms followed b& the indefinite participle of the verb to be con*ugated.
Bsage:
$t is used:
?. to epress a future action without intention, avoiding in this wa& an& possible
connotations especiall& the first person singular and plural.
Compare:
-hen !ill you come again+
with: -hen !ill you be coming+
$n the first eample, the message ma& be impaired b& the man& possible
connotations of the auiliar& !ill " volition, promise, determination#, while in the second,
no such possibilities are present and the idea is ver& clear, that of a casual non!definite
-uestion about a future possible action.
Compare again:
<ill &ou come again tomorrow9 " a possible command#
with: <ill &ou be coming again tomorrow9 " epresses the speaker3s curiosit&, no
idea of command or invitation implied#.
&*ll see you tomorro!. " The speaker3s determination or epressed intention to
meet the other person according to his own wish is -uite clear#.
&*ll be seeing you tomorro!. " The %uture Continuous form onl& indicates that the
two persons are going to see each other in the ordinar& course of future events such as at
the working place or at a place the&3ve been seeing each other in the past as well#.
5bservation: $f we are to compare the %uture Continuous with the /resent
Continuous form used to epress near future, we ma& have the following comments:
The /resent Continuous form used as such implies the idea of a future deliberate2
planned action.
Emplo&er: &*m seeing the ne! salesgirl tomorro!. " <e have arranged between us
for such a meeting tomorrow.#
whiles in the eample:
Emplo&er to the new salesgirl5 &*ll be seeing you tomorro! " $3ll see &ou the same
wa& as $ will see the other people in the department.#
5bservation: The /resent Continuous Tense can onl& be used with an adverbial
modifier of definite near future time, while the %uture Continuous form can be used
without an adverbial of definite time to epress both near and distant future.
Compare:
&*m coming again tomorro!/ next !eek/ month etc.
with: &*ll be coming again tomorro!/ next month etc.
@. to stress the idea that a future action2 state will be continuous for a period of
time in the future.
"omorro! &*ll be reading all day/ from morning till night.
+. for an action which will continue in the future without an& time limit, impl&ing
the idea that it will be continuous at a definite moment in the future, but it ma& have
begun minutes2 hours of that future moment and it might *ust go on for an indefinite
period of future time.
-hen !e arrive home, the children !ill be sleeping.
Compare:
& !ill go in 0rance. " $ am decided to go#
& !ill be going in 0rance. " $ intend to go#
The %uture /erfect Tense
The %uture /erfect Tense is formed with the auiliar& shall/!ill con*ugated in
their affirmative, negative, interrogative, negative!interrogative forms followed b& the
short perfect infinitive form of the verb to be con*ugated.
5bservation?: $n current speech the respective contracted forms of the auiliar&
are used.
5bservation@: $n its usage, the %uture /erfect Tense is usuall& associated with the
preposition by which epresses that the action of a %uture /erfect Tense form stops *ust
before the moment of future time epressed b& an adverbial modifier introduced b& this
preposition.
"he children !ill have gone to bed by ten o*clock.
Bsage of the %uture /erfect Tense
$t is used:
?. to epress an action which is begun before a given future moment and still
going on at the respective future moment and continuous especiall& when the preposition
for " and sometime since# is used.
/y this time next year B years !ill have passed since & entered >niversity.
Compare with:
B years have passed since & entered >niversity.
&t is B years since & entered >niversity.
5bservation: 5ne should be careful to interpret correctl& cases of modal !ill '
perfect infinitive to epress present supposition, assumption about a past action2 event, a
structure which ma& be forcedl& interpreted as a future perfect structure.
&t is after DD o*clock. "hey !ill already have gone to bed. " present deduction#
"hey have gone to bed.
<ou must be )r. Smith. "stronger supposition#.
<ou !ill be )r. Smith. $e called last night.
8odal verbs: shall/ !ill/ may/ must will send the action to the past as a present
supposition.
The %uture /erfect Continuous
$t is formed like an& other continuous form with the help of the %uture /erfect
,imple aspect form of the auiliar& to be such as shall/ !ill have been followed b& the
indefinite participle form of the verb to be con*ugated.
The auiliar& is con*ugated in the interrogative, negative, negative-interrogative
as usual.
"hey !ill have been !aiting.
"hey !ill not have been !aiting.
-ill they have been !aiting+
-ill they have not been !aiting+
Bsage of the %uture /erfect Continuous
$t is used to show that an action began before a future given moment, is
continuous until that future moment and continues into it.
/y the time !e arrive home, the children !ill have been sleeping.
5bservation: There is the same difference between the %uture /erfect ,imple and
%uture /erfect Continuous to epress an action which is continuous for a future period of
time and then continues into another future period of time epressed b& an adverbial
modifier of future time in the sense that the continuous form stresses, emphasi.es the
continuit& of the respective action over the whole period of time implied.
Compare: /y the time !e arrived home, the children !ill have slept for several
hours. " from a grammatical and semantical point of view it is correct, but the continuit&
of the action is not stressed#
<ith: /y the time !e arrived home, the children !ill have been sleeping for
several hours. " the continuit& of the action is ver& well stressed#.
5bservation: The same restrictions concerning the use of %uture Tense forms in
temporal and conditional subordinate clauses holds true in the case of the %uture /erfect
forms both in direct or indirect speech.
Voi veni cu siguranta, dar numai dup ace voi pune toate lucrurile la punct.
& !ill surely come/ & !ill come for sure, but only after & have set all my things
straight.
A promis ca va veni cu siguranta, dar numai dupa ce va pune toate lucrurile la
punct.
$e promised that he !ould surely come, but only after he had set all his things
straight.
The $mperative 8ood

The $mperative 8ood epresses a direct, positive or negative order, suggestion,
re-uest, piece of advice, a threat etc. $n point of form, it has onl& one form that is the
second person singular and plural which coincides with the short indefinite infinitive
form of the respective verb. %or eample: from to go go2, to !rite- !rite=
5bservation?: As a rule, when used alone, an imperative form is accompanied b&
an eclamation mark at the end.
5bservation@: The modal auiliar& verbs do not have imperative forms, nor do
the& function as modal imperative auiliaries. $n the first and third persons singular and
plural, the idea of the imperative is epressed with the help of the sub*unctive form of the
auiliar& let, which b& some grammarians is called the indirect imperative.
%or eample: 1et me think2 6D
st
sg7
"hink2 6?
nd
sg7
1et him/her think2 6 B
rd
sg7
1et us 6 1et*s7 think2 6D
st
pl7
"hink2 6 ?
nd
pl7
1et them think2 6 B
rd
pl7
The negative form of the $mperative is made with the help of the negative form of
the auiliar& do, followed b& the respective short infinitive of the verb.
o it2
on*t do it2
5bservation: <hen one uses such negation as: never, none, nobody, no one, the&
replace the negative form of to do.
Compare: on*t say such things again2
with: Cever say such things again2
on*t go a!ay2
with: Cone of you goes a!ay2
5bservation: $n poetr&, the auiliar& do is often dropped for the negative
imperative form." st&listic effect#
,, hart, loose not thy nature2
5n the other hand, in the first and third person in the singular and plural, both the
negative forms of the auiliar& do as well as the negative of let are used with the
difference that the negative forms of do are used in current speech or written English, in
ordinar& current speech or written language, whilst the negative forms with let are used in
the literar& English and in the formal official or rhetorical st&le.
Compare: on*t let me disturb you2
Kon*t let us do such a foolish thing again2
with: 1et us not fool ourselves !ith empty promises2

5ther uses of the $mperative:
The $mperative ma& also be used:
! to epress a threat.
%or eample: o that and you*ll get it2
o that and you*ll get !hat*s coming2
! in a subordinate clause with the conditional or a purpose concessive meaning
which is often connected with the con*unction and to its region clause which ma& have its
verb in the indicative or imperative mood.
on*t !orry, be happy2
1et her hide behind the moon, he !ill find her still2
! a special usage of the imperative is in connection with some diminutive words or
affective addresses appellations of the t&pe:
arling, please2
on*t forget to be early2
$ere, kitties2
The ,ub*ect of the $mperative
As a rule, the imperative form does not have a sub*ect and when it does it onl&
happens in the case of the second person singular and plural. ,uch a sub*ect is stressed
and conve&s a strong modalit& of positive or negative feelings on the part of the speaker
such as feelings of: anger, irritation or satisfaction.
This t&pe of sub*ect is represented b& the personal pronoun you , either b& a
common or proper name. <hen the personal pronoun you is used as a sub*ect, it either
precedes the imperative form such as in: <ou go there and solve the problem= " irritation,
dissatisfaction with the person implied# or, in certain epressions, the pronoun you
follows the imperative form: )ind you2
The following indefinite pronouns that is: everybody, somebody, someone are used
as sub*ects of the imperative form either in front of it or after it.
Somebody go and fetch a pail of !ater2


The ,ub*unctive 8ood
A traditional approach to the ,ub*unctive 8ood allows for its classification into
two categories:
a. the ,&nthetic ,ub*unctive
b. the Anal&tical ,ub*unctive
5bservation: 8ore recent grammars onl& mention as sub*unctive forms the
s&nthetic sub*unctive, also called present s&nthetic sub*unctive, while what in traditional
grammar is called the s&nthetic sub*unctive past tense and the s&nthetic sub*unctive past
perfect, with the eception of the form !ere of the verb to be as a s&nthetic past tense
sub*unctive form, are considered past tense2 past perfect indicative mood forms and
whatever anal&tical sub*unctive forms considered b& traditional grammar are considered
*ust sub*unctive mood e-uivalents.
,till: & !ish & had more time/ more possibilities.
& !ish & kne! the truth.
had, kne!! ,&nthetic ,ub*unctive /ast Tense " both the forms had and kne! refer
to a present moment and not to a past definite one#.
Compare: & kne! it yesterday.
& !ish & kne! it.
The ,&nthetic ,ub*unctive
The ,&nthetic ,ub*unctive has three tenses:
a. "he Sub8unctive #resent is a survivor of the old independent sub*unctive and
has the same form in all the persons singular and plural that is the indefinite short
infinitive form of the respective verb: & go- he go.
The same applies to the auiliar& to be with the form be as a /resent ,&nthetic
,ub*unctive for all the persons: )ay (od be !ith you2
The /resent ,&nthetic ,ub*unctive is used as follows:
! in official and elevated st&le in 4ritish England as well as a common form in
American English.
&t is important that he come here at once.
! in certain eclamations to epress wish and hope ver& often involving
supernatural powers: (od bless you2
(od forbid2
(od save the Eueen2
! in a number of set phrases such as in:
So be it2
! in a wide variet& of subordinate clauses as follows:
! in concessive subordinate clause without a con*unction in between its main
clause:
Come !hat may, &*ll help you2
Cost !hat it may, & !ill go there2
! in ob*ect clauses:
-e desire that this privilege be extended to others.
4oe suggested that #eter sho! this to his !ife.
! in concessive, conditional subordinate clauses beginning with a con*unction:
&f this rumour be true or not, !e can not remain here any longer.
&f !e be in time, !e shall find him at home.
5bservation: This kind of usage is onl& to be met in formal English, otherwise
present indicative forms " past indicative forms# are used instead:
&f this rumour is true or not, !e can not remain here any longer.
&f !e are in time, !e shall find him at home.
b. "he Synthetic Sub8unctive #ast "ense coincides in form with the /ast Tense of
the indicative mood, ecept the auiliar& to be which has the form !ere in all the persons,
being considered the onl& survival form of the former past tense sub*unctive, which in
old English had different endings " a different ending for each person#.
This t&pe of ,ub*unctive is used in variate subordinate clauses, after the verb
wish, as well as after the compound con*unctions: as if, as though, if only, even if, even
though, as well as after the con*unctions if and though to epress the idea of
improbabilit& or unrealit& in the present moment of speaking.
& !ish you didn*t go there so often. 6 but you do7
&f it rained for six months 6 !hich is improbable7, the !ater !ould fill all
the lakes.
&f only & !ere younger2 6 unreal7
$e bosses me around as if & !ere his suborder. 6 unreal, untrue7

"he Synthetic Sub8unctive #ast "ense is used after:
! &t is time 2 &t is high time 'sub8ect
5bservation: After these epressions, we can use either a synthetic
sub8unctive past tense form or for' ob8ect ' infinitive constructions.
&t is time !e left. as compared to:
&t is time for us to leave.
5bservation: There is a slight difference in meaning between the two: the
sub*unctive implies the idea that there is alread& too late for the action to leave,
while the construction for' ob8ect ' infinitive implies that the right time has come
for the action of leaving.
Compare:
0ather speaking to son5 &t is time for you to start earning your o!n living "
the right time has come#.
with: &t is time you started earning your o!n living. " the son has passed
the usual age for starting work#.
5bservation: The ad*ective high is sometimes implied with the sub*unctive
after it is. The ad*ective is used to increase the modalit& of impatience,
insatisfaction, criticism.
<ou are a big boy no!. &t*s high time you started making your o!n bed2
! the modal construction !ould sooner/ !ould rather
These constructions are followed b& a short infinitive when their sub8ect is
going to perform the action which follows, while when another sub8ect is going to
perform the respective action, the verb implied is put into its past tense/ past
perfect tense sub8unctive mood form.
Compare: & !ould rather go no!.
with: & !ould rather you !ent no!.
or: & !ould rather not go there tonight as compared to:
& !ould rather you didn*t go there tonight.
)y daughter !ants to go to the seaside this summer, but & !ould rather/
sooner she !ent up the mountains instead.
A special case is represented b& the modal past sub*unctive with !ould
after !ish in which case, the speaker not onl& epresses his criticism, disapproval,
but he also makes it clear that the other person does what he does, doesn3t do
what he doesn3t do in a persistent wa&.
Compare:
& !ould like you not to go there. "epresses desire, no special modal
connotation#
& !ish you didn*t go there so often. " &ou go there often and $ don3t like it#
& !ish you !ouldn*t go there so often. " &ou do so, though &ou know that $
don3t like it, but &ou do it nevertheless#
c. "he Synthetic Sub8unctive #ast #erfect "ense coincides in form with the
/ast /erfect Tense of the indicative mood, with the difference that it has onl&
affirmative and negative forms.
! ,uch sub*unctive forms are used after the compound con*unctions: as if,
as though in a subordinate comparative clause when we refer to an unreal or
imaginar& action in the past.
$e talks about 9ome as if he had spent all his life there. " but $ know he
hasn3t or nobod& knows about it#.
$e looks as if / as though he hadn*t had a decent meal for a !eek.
! The same /ast /erfect ,ub*unctive is used after the con*unction if.
&f & had kno!n him better/ $ad & kno!n him better, & should not have gone
into business !ith him. " but $ didn3t know him#.
! Another usage of the ,ub*unctive /ast /erfect is in a direct clause in
con*unction with a !ish or regret epressed in the regent clause with the verb
wish.
& !ish he had not behaved too foolishly.
& !ish he had behaved more !isely.
! A special usage is after the modal epression !ould rather/ !ould sooner
which has the same structural pattern as the !ish ' past perfect sub8unctive
structure.
Compare: & !ould rather he had not behaved so foolishly.
with: & !ish he had not behaved so foolishly.
5bservation: $n indirect speech situations, the past perfect sub*unctive
form sta&s unchanged including the !ould rather past perfect sub*unctive.
Kirect ,peech: & !ish he had not behaved so foolishly.
$ndirect ,peech: $e said he !ished he had not behaved so foolishly.
Kirect ,peech: & !ished & had never been born.
$ndirect ,peech: $e said that he had !ished he had never been born.
5bservation: There are cases when all the forms, including ,ub*unctive
/resent, ,ub*unctive /ast Tense and ,ub*unctive /ast /erfect, sta& unchanged.
Kirect ,peech: &t is important that you be there tomorro!.
$ndirect ,peech: $e said to me it !as important that & be there the next
day.
Kirect ,peech: & !ish you didn*t go there so often.
$ndirect ,peech: $e said he !ished & didn*t go there so often.
Kirect ,peech: & !ish you hadn*t gone there alone.
$ndirect ,peech: $e said he !ished & hadn*t gone there alone.
,ub*unctive forms after !ish, !ould rather, !ould sooner, have a strong
modalit& epressing the speaker3s disagreement, dissatisfaction, his criticism,
reproach of the respective realit& or unrealit&.
The Anal&tical ,ub*unctive
"he %nalytical Sub8unctive is a combination of a modal verb such as:
shall/ should, may/ might, !ill/ !ould, can/ could and an indefinite short infinitive
form. The most fre-uentl& used form of the Anal&tical ,ub*unctive is shall/
should ' short infinitive.
Shall ' short infinitive is used:
! in interrogative independent sentences
Shall & come !ith you+
! in Tag! -uestions
1et*s begin, shall !e+
Should ' short infinitive is used:
! in -uestions and sentences that begin with $o!+ or -h-+
$o! should & kno!+
-hy should you !aste your time+
! after the verbs: demand, insist, order, re.uest, propose, decide,
advise, expect, suggest, recommend etc. ' "$%"
"he manager ordered that the papers should be ready immediately.
! after the impersonal epressions 6 &t is ' ad8ective ' that#
&t is important/ strange/ advisable/ surprising/ absurd/ impossible/
vital etc. ' that
&t is important that everybody should be present.
- in adverbial clauses of purpose introduced b& so that/ lest.
$e said he !as competent at his 8ob, so that !e might trust him.
The use of the sub*unctive tenses in !ish
The past and past perfect sub*unctive forms are used after the verb !ish to
epress or indicate an unreal situation in the present or in the past about which the
speaker essentiall& epresses his regret or disagreement as follows:
a. !ish ' a past tense sub8unctive epresses the speaker3s regret or
disagreement about a present action or state:
& !ish & kne!. " $3m sorr& $ don3t know#
& !ish that girl !ere not so arrogant. " ,he is arrogant and $
disagree with it#.
5bservation: -ish ' past tense sub8unctive sometimes takes the form of
!ish ' modal sub8unctive with !ould in which case the speaker also indicates that
the other person persists in doing something which he considers2 which the&
consider negative as a negative attitude or action performed b& the other person.
& !ish it !ould stop raining.
b. <hen the action regretted, critici.ed etc. occurred or didn3t occur in the
past " as viewed from the present moment of speaking#, the sub*unctive past
perfect is used after it:
& !ished & had not gone to #eter*s party. " $ did go, but $ regret it#
& !ish you had been driving more carefully. " &ou didn3t drive
carefull&, $3m dissatisfied with it#
5bservation: $n changing epression of realit& into wishes, without reall&
changing the meaning of communication, one should remember the following:
a. positive realit& becomes a negative wish;
b. negative realit& becomes a positive wish.
&*m sorry & don*t like he does such things.
& !ish he didn*t do such things. " positive realit& ) negative wish#
&*m sorry she*s not here !ith me.
& !ish she !ere here !ith me. " negative realit&! positive wish#
5bservation: 6ormall&, the verb !ish is followed b& an infinitive form and
it is used in the same sense as !ant ' infinitive or the modal epression !ould
like ' infinitive.
& !ish to see )r. Smith.
& !ant to see )r. Smith.
& !ould like to see )r. Smith.
The& are all perfectl& s&non&ms in meaning. The difference though is that
in actual usage, !ish ' infinitive is felt as more authoritative 2 demanding than
!ant/ !ould like' infinitive.
& !ish to kno! implies, for eample, the idea that the speaker reall& wants
that someone answer him2 give him an answer, while & !ould like to kno!/ & !ant
to kno! epress the respective desire without pointing to another person to
answer.
The Conditional 8ood
The Conditional 8ood has two forms: the conditional present and the
conditional past2 perfect.
"he conditional present is formed with the help of the auiliaries should
" for the first person singular and plural# and !ould " for the rest of the persons#
which are con*ugated for the affirmative, interrogative and negative followed b&
the indefinite infinitive form of the verb to be con*ugated.
& should not do that.
& shouldn*t do that.
Should & do that+
There are the following uses of the conditional present form:
! in independent sentences to epress intention or desire about the future, a
case in which there is still a hidden idea of a condition on whose fulfillment
depends the reali.ation of the respective wish, desire etc.
& should go there sometime in the future, you kno!. " in this
eample it is ver& difficult to distinguish between the modal meaning of should
and the neutral should as an auiliar&.
$n the eample: & should be very happy to meet him, there is still felt the
eistence of the accompan&ing condition implied here " if & met him#.
! a second usage of the conditional present is in connection with verbs
epressing desire: to !ish, to like, to !ant in which case, the idea of condition can
be ecluded all together and the conditional form epresses onl& desire; one3s
wish resembling in that matter the Aomanian optativ.
& should like to see your cousin $enry.
! a third usage is with a number of modal defective verbs in their past
tense form in which case the idea of condition is also ecluded. This combination
of a modal verb ' short indefinite infinitive is also called the modal conditional
present which epresses the respective modal connotations of the auiliaries.
<ou should go there tomorro!.
$e might already be there.
5bservation: <ith some grammarians such modal conditional forms are
onl& considered modal constructions without a grammatical model attributed to
them.
"he conditional present continuous is formed with the conditional present
simple aspect of the auiliar& to be " which is con*ugated in its affirmative,
negative and interrogative forms# followed b& the indefinite participle form of the
verb to be con*ugated: & should be doing/ should be sleeping/ should not be going/
shouldn*t be going/ should & not be going+/ shouldn*t & be going+
"he conditional present continuous forms are onl& used in con*unction
with modal defective verbs such as in:
)other speaking to children5F Shouldn*t you be sleeping+
"he conditional past or perfect conditional is formed with the same
auiliaries should/ !ould followed b& the short perfect infinitive form of the verb
to be con*ugated such as: you !ould have gone/ you !ould not have gone/ you
!ouldn*t have gone/ !ould you have gone+/ !ouldn*t you have gone+
5bservation: 7ike in the case of the conditional present, the passive voice
forms of the conditional past are formed with the help of the conditional past form
of the auiliar& to be followed b& the past participle form of the verb to be
con*ugated: <ou !ould be asked.2 <ou !ould have been asked.
"he conditional past is mostl& used in the main clause of a conditional
sentence to denote an action or state whose fulfillment depends on the fulfillment
of a condition epressed in a subordinate clause of condition.
&f you had hurried, you !ould/ could have caught the G o*clock train in
the morning.
$ad you hurried, you !ould/ could have caught the G o*clock train in the
morning.
&f you hadn*t taken a taxi, you !ouldn*t have caught that train.
7ike the present conditional, the conditional past can be used in
independent sentences with verbs epressing desire: wish, want, like, desire etc., a
case in which the idea of condition is ecluded.
Compare:
$e !ould have liked to spend a fe! more days there.
with:
$e !ould have stayed a fe! more days there, you kno!. 6 ifA7
5bservation: <hen a modal verb is used instead of the auiliaries should2
would " or when should2 would are used as modal auiliaries#, the resulting
construction is called a modal perfect conditional or a modal past conditional.
<ou should have read that book more attractively.
The Bse of Tenses in Conditional ,entences
Conditional sentences have two parts: the so! called if clause and the main
clause. The operating principle of a conditional sentence is as follows: in the
conditional clause is set a condition on whose fulfillment depends the fulfillment
of the action epressed b& the predicate in the respective main clause.
There are three more common kinds of t&pes of conditional sentences,
each of them containing set2 fied pairs of tenses and moods.
"ype & epresses a probable condition, the verb in the if clause is in the
present tense and the verb in the main clause is in the future tense, indicative
mood.
&f they try hard, they !ill succeed.
5bservation: $n $ndirect ,peech, the respective rules are applied.
$e said that if they tried hard, they !ould succeed.
There are different other combinations of tenses in the conditional
sentence within the indicative mood as follows:
a. /resent Tense! /resent Tense
A: -hat do you usually do on !eekends+
4: -ell, if & have both money and time, & go places.
b. /resent Tense in the if clause! $mperative 8ood in the main clause
&f you have time tomorro!, go and speak !ith 4ohn about our
problem2
c. /resent /erfect in the if clause ) $mperative 8ood in the main clause
&f you have finally come at this late hour, come and help me !ash
the dishes2
d. /resent /erfect in the if clause ) a wh& negative!interrogative /resent
Tense in the main clause
&f you have travelled so much, !hy don*t you lay do!n for a fe!
hours+
e. /ast Tense! /ast Tense
A: -hat did you use to do on !eekends there+
4: -ell, if & had money and time, & !ent picnicking.
f. /ast /erfect in the if clause! /ast Tense in a !hy negative! interrogative
main clause
&f you had arrived there first, !hy didn*t you make the fire+
5bservation: $n the more common t&pe $ conditional clause "/resent Tense
in the if clause#, one can also use the modal verbs should, may, can.
Should is used to epress the speaker3s uncertaint&, disbelief as to the
probable fulfillment of the condition in the if clause.
Compare: &f you see 4ohn, tell him & !ant to talk to him. " action probable,
no personal opinion of the speaker#
with: &f you should see 4ohn, tell him & !ant to talk to him.
Should you see 4ohn, tell him & !ant to talk to him. " the action is
possible, but the speaker doesn3t believe personall& it is possible#
&f by any chance you happen to see 4ohn,A "the verb keeps its
proper meaning#
&f you may see 4ohn, A 6 the verb keeps its meaning of possibilit&#
&f you !on*t go there tonight, & !ill punish you/ & !ill have to
punish you.
"ype && of conditional sentence implies that the action in the main clause is
improbable or unreal, following an improbable or unreal condition set in the if
clause.
The verb in the main clause is in the Conditional /resent or in the 8odal
Conditional /resent and the verb in the if clause is in the /ast Tense ,ub*unctive
or in the 8odal ,ub*unctive /ast Tense.
&f you !ent there tomorro!, you could talk to 4ohn.
&f he invited me, & !ould go there.
5bservation: Should is also possible in if clause if there is a certain
modalit& on the part of the speaker.
-hat !ould you do if you should meet a bear in the !oods+
if you !ere to meet a bear in the !oods+
"ype &&& of conditional sentence epresses an impossible condition in the
idea that the respective condition can no longer be fulfilled in the moment of
speaking since it refers to past events.
&f you had gone there 6 but you didn*t go7, you could have talked to
4ohn.
4esides the con*unction if, a conditional clause can also be introduced b&
the following compound con*unctions or simple con*unctions such as: if only, in
case, on condition that, provided, provided that, providing that, suppose, suppose
that etc.
5bservation: There are cases when conditional se-uence of tenses in the
three t&pes of conditional sentences is not observed and one ma& have such
combinations called mied t&pe conditional sentence as:
&f & hadn*t lost my !atch, & should/ !ould kno! the time no!.
& !ant to talk to you if you !ould call tomorro!.
& should like to go there myself if you say you are not going.
&f you had told him to come, !e shouldn*t/ !ouldn*t be !aiting for
him here.
&f you had told him to come, !e !ouldn*t have been !aiting here
for t!o hours.
8odal verbs
Shall as a modal auiliar& is used to connote the following:
a. asking for advice, offer " to help, to do something#! in the first person:
Shall & do this tomorro!+
Shall & help you+
Shall & come !ith you+
b. the speaker3s promise or threat in the future! in the second and third
persons:
)other to child5 <ou shall get a nice present if you behave yourself
!hen the guests are here. " promise#
:li=a speaking: <ou shall have it, )r. $iggins2 "threat#
c. an indirect order or command such as in regulations, legal documents,
on certain official occasions with the observation that in current English must and
its e-uivalents to have to or to be to are to be used instead:
<achts shall go round the course passing the marks in the correct
order.
)embers shall enter the names of their guest in the book provided.
5bservation: <hen sentences of this t&pe are put in $ndirect ,peech, the
auiliar& shall is replaced b& the forms of must: to have to, to be to.
Should as a modal auiliar& is used in all the persons to epress:
a. the idea of dut&, as well as to indicate whatever the speaker considers to
be a correct or sensible action to be performed b& the other persons.
& think & should leave.
& think & should be leaving no!.
<ou should do more exercises if you !ant to loose !eight.
<ou*ve spelt the !ord !rong. "here should be another HsF in the
middle of it.
"hey shouldn*t allo! teenagers to smoke. &t*s bad for their health.
5bservation: $n contemporar& English, these meanings of should are
considered the same with those of ought to. 4ut, the usage of should points to the
speaker3s own attitude towards the communication or opinion about it, while in
the case of ought to, the speaker onl& knows about whatever is either sensible,
correct or common practice or customar& without giving his own piece of mind
about the communication at the same time. $n all cases of usage, should is less
forceful than must or have to and conse-uentl& it is used in all cases when no
authorit& is implied on the part of the speaker and the speaker himself avoids such
a situation of authorit& on his part towards the other persons.
b. a past sensible action which was or was not performed "when it is
followed b& a /erfect $nfinitive#.
5bservation: The accompan&ing modalit& in such cases of usage is also
one of disagreement, dissatisfaction, criticism or reproach on the part of the
speaker as well.
<ou should have stopped seeing him !hen you found out he !as not a
honest person. " action not finished#
<ou shouldn*t have told them !e !ere going to visit them, & meant it as a
surprise to them. " action stopped#
c. The present !ish or desire can be epressed with the modal epression
should like ' long indefinite infinitive form with the observation that recent
grammar of the language recommend the usage of !ould like ' infinitive instead
of should like in the first person, perhaps on account of the strong modalit& of
should epressing obligation.
& should like to leave no later than six o*clock tonight.
<hen the present !ish/ desire refers to something in the past, the
epression is followed b& the long /erfect $nfinitive form:
)other talking to daughter5 & should like to have had even a .uarter of the
opportunities in life that you have had so far.
<hen one wants to epress a past wish2 desire, one uses should have liked
followed b& long $ndefinite $nfinitive form.
& should have liked to go to a concert last night, but my !ife had a terrible
headache and !e !atched television instead.
d. $n a subordinate conditional clause of so!called t&pe one "$#, should is
used followed b& a short $ndefinite $nfinitive to epress the idea of future chance
that is of an action which is onl& going to take place b& chance " the speaker
doesn3t reall& think that the respective future action epressed b& the &nfinitive
form following should is going to take place#.
Compare:
&f you see (eorge, tell him & !ant to talk to him.
&f you should see (eorge, tell him & !ant to talk to him.
$n the first eample, in the speaker3s mind there is a fair chance for the
other person to meet >eorge in the future, while the other person ma& feel under
the obligation to look out for >eorge.
$n the second eample, on the other hand, the speaker considers it unlikel&
for the other person to meet >eorge in the future course of events, but he asks the
other person something in connection with >eorge *ust in case.
e. An unstressed should in the third person singular and plural is used in
official st&le for epressing regulations, stipulations, replacing must which ma&
sound too categorical or authoritative.
%pplication should be made by filling in this form.
f. Should is also used idiomaticall& with the pronouns: !ho, !hat, !here
in dramatic epressions of surprise.
%nd after !alking for hours on end through the thick 8ungle, !hat should
!e come across in the middle of the path but this enormous snake.
g. Should is used after the con*unction lest, mostl& in official st&le and in
written legal documents followed b& present or perfect infinitive affirmative form
onl&.
$e !as terrified lest he should be attacked by !ild animals at night.
$e began to !orry lest the children should have met !ith some accident.
Will as a modal auiliar& is used to epress the following:
a. determination both in the present or in the future or persistence in
performing a negative action from the point of view of the speaker.
& !ill do it. 6& refuse to be defeated by it.7
&f you !ill smoke so much, you mustn*t be surprised that you have
such a nasty cough.
b. refusal, stubbornness both in the future and in the present b& an
emphasi=ed !ill ' not ' short indefinite infinitive as well as b& an unemphasi=ed
!ill ' emphasi=ed not' indefinite infinitive or b& an emphasi=ed !on*t '
infinitive.
& !ill not go there !hatever you might say.
& !ill not go there !hatever you might say.
& !on*t go there !hatever you might say.
c. /ositive volition, willingness, epressed b& an unemphasi=ed !ill in all
persons.
$e says he !ill agree to our proposal no!.
d. an offer or invitation.
-ill you have some more coffee+
-ill you come to tea tomorro!+
e. a re-uest, not an invitation, concerning both the present and the future
" it can be epressed b& an unemphasi.ed !ill ' &ndefinite &nfinitive in the first
and second person singular and plural#.
-ill you, please, close the door for me+
Come here, !ill you+
5bservation: <hen !ill is used after imperatives it is to be used carefull&,
for eample, among e-uals, the same age, the same position or from superior to
inferior, otherwise, it ma& sound rather offensive.
Close the door, !ill you+
f. a present supposition epressed in connection with the second or the
third persons can be made b& !ill ' short #erfect &nfinitive form if we refer to the
past and !ill ' &ndefinite &nfinitive form if we refer to the present.
&t is after eleven o*clock. "hey !ill have gone to bed already.
"hree hours have passed. $e !ill be there by no!.
g. -ill as a modal auxiliary or as an aspect auxiliary ' an indefinite
infinitive form can epress in the present, not onl& the idea of the repetition of an
action, but also the idea of habit. This fre-uentative character of will can be
emphasi.ed b& the usage of some adverbs of fre-uenc&: often, al!ays, many
times etc.
$e !ill al!ays do things !hich later on he regrets.
"hey !ill go to the country side every other !eek.
:very Sunday they !ill go for a short !alk.
5bservation: $t is to be noticed however that this use of will to epress
habits, as in the above eamples, is becoming somewhat rare and the ,imple
/resent is used instead of such cases:
:very Sunday they go for a long !alk.
The modal defective would epresses:
a. determination, persistence in the past, a situation in which it is slightl&
stressed.
$e !ould smoke heavily in spite of his doctors* advice.
& told the young boy not to climb that tree, but he !ould.
b. refusal in the past can be epressed with the negative form of !ould
with the accent placed either on !ould or on the negation not or on the contracted
form !ouldn*t.
$e !ould not follo! his doctors* advice.
c. a habitual action in the past can be epressed b& an unemphasi.ed
!ould in all the persons.
-hen they !ere younger, they !ould get out a lot.
d. a polite re-uest in the present in the second person singular and plural
such as:
-ould you do that for me+
-ould you kindly pass the salt+
-ould you hold on a minute+
5bservation: -ould is considered more polite than !ill in similar
contets.
e. an offer or invitation in the first, second or third person epressed with
!ould ' like, which replaces should ' like in contemporar& English.
Compare the following eamples:
Client to secretary5
H& !ant to see )r. SmithF
<ith: H& !ould like to see )r. Smith.F " more polite re-uest#
f. /resent wish or present desire about a situation in the past can be
epressed like in the case of should like with !ould like ' long #erfect &nfinitive.
& !ould like to have been there myself, but & couldn*t. " wish ' /ast
/erfect ,ub*unctive is a proper e-uivalent: & !ish & had been there myself#.
g. /ast wish, past desire can be epressed with !ould have liked ' long
&ndefinite &nfinitive5
She !ould have liked to go to a concert last night.
or even with !ould have liked ' long perfect infinitive:
She !ould have liked to have gone to a concert last night.
h. -ould is used after !ish to form the so!called )odal %nalytical #ast
Sub8unctive to epress a not ver& hopeful wish about the future on the part of the
speaker as well as the idea that someone or something performs, from the
speaker3s point of view, a negative action purposefull&.
& !ish it !ould stop raining.
Compare:
& !ish you !ere more attentive. 6,omeone is not attentive- The
teacher considers it a pit& someone is not attentive in a necessar& degree ) some
kind of reproach is contained in the teacher using a ,ub*unctive /ast Tense form#.
<ith:
& !ish you !ould be more attentive 6 ,omeone is not attentive )
The teacher doesn3t like it, teacher disagrees, teacher points out that the other
person is perfectl& aware of his not being attentive, but he *ust does so willingl&#.
5bservation: A special use of !ould is in the conditional subordinate
clause epressed either as a form of polite address or a ver& polite re-uest:
&f you !ould be so kind as to help me, & !ould be very thankful to
you.
May as a modal auiliar& can epress the following:
a. eistence of permission for the first person singular and plural
-e may go no!.
b. granting for permission for the second and third person
$e may go no!.
<ou may go no!.
c. denial of permission " refusal# in the second and third person
"he castle grounds may not be visited by the public.
5bservation: &f & may/ &f & may say so are polite set phrases used in formal
speech.
$3ll let you kno! my ans!er in ?I hours, if & may.
&f & may say so, you !ere completely !rong.
d. possibilit&, probabilit& in the affirmative or negative followed b& an
indefinite short infinitive.
She may not kno! you are here.
e. present supposition about a past moment can be epressed b& ma& '
shot perfect infinitive
<ou should stop. $e may have left already.
1et*s try and ring him up again. $e may not have gone to bed yet.
Might as a modal auiliar& can epress:
a. possibilit& or probabilit& with a present or future reference epressing a
greater degree of an unlikeliness for the respective action to take place or to be
true.
Compare: $e may come by a night train. " a certain degree of certitude#
<ith: $e might come by a night train. " a lesser degree of certitude#
b. supposition about past actions " epressed b& might' perfect infinitive#
1et*s not go to his place. $e might have fallen asleep already.
c. the speaker3s reproach for or disapproval of or irritation at the non!
performance or non!occurrence of an action in the past epressed b& might'
perfect infinitive.
<ou might have !arned us that the paint on that bench !as fresh.
d. A ver& emphatic intention in the first person can be epressed with
might in combination with the adverbial phrase as !ell ' &ndefinite &nfinitive or
Short #erfect &nfinitive.
& might as !ell stat at once.
e. a recommended action with the same might ' as !ell structure.
<ou might as !ell try again. <ou never kno!.
f. a ver& casual command or re-uest used between close persons.
<ou might post this letter for me in your !ay to university.
an as a modal auiliar& has two forms: can! considered a /resent Tense
$ndicative 8ood and could ) /ast Tense $ndicative 8ood which is also used as a
modal /resent or /ast Conditional.
Bsages:
! present ph&sical abilit&, intellectual capacit& can be epressed b& can
followed b& short infinitive:
$e is very strong. $e can lift a D@@ kg.
$e is very gifted. $e can speak three foreign languages.
$e can play the piano as !ell as the violin.
<hen such ph&sical abilit& is epressed in connection with the past action,
can' short perfect infinitive is used.
Compare:
& can*t imagine ho! he managed to go home.
-ell, he can have taken the J o*clock train. " there is a train of G o3clock,
one points the ver& circumstance#
<ith: & can*t imagine ho! he managed to go home.
-ell, he may have taken the J o* clock train. " supposition#
5bservation: <hen one epresses mental activities such as the idea of to
hear, to see, to think, to imagine etc., the respective verbs are usuall& preceded b&
the verb can in order to stress that activit& of the senses.
& hear- & can hear3 & see- & can see.
The idea is that the usage of can in such instances points to the momentar&
eertion of the respective sense: & can hear no! as opposed to: & see !ell. & don*t
need spectacles.
! a special usage of can for all the persons, singular and plural, is to
epress permission.
Compare: <ou may go no!. / )ay & take a chair+
<ith: <ou can go no!. / Can & take a chair+
The usage of can is felt as collo-uial, while the usage of may is felt as
rather formal.
! possibilit& in the present or logical lack of possibilit& can be epressed in
the present with an affirmative or negative can.
Cars can cost thousands of dollars no!adays.
<ou can*t s!im here on account of the sharks.
5bservation: <hen one wants to refer to the future, one resorts to to be
able to in order to epress the same.
$e !ill not be able to s!im there on account there are a lot of
sharks.
! logical impossibilit& " the so!called negative deduction# about a present
event can be epressed b& the negative form can*t.
$ere comes #eter.
$e/ &t can*t be #eter. & talked to him over the telephone a half an
hour ago and he said he !as in 1ondon.
& hear the police accuse #eter of stealing that car.
&t can*t be #eter, & kno! him very !ell.
<hen the negative deduction is made about a past situation, than can*t ' a
short perfect infinitive form is used.
1ondon policeman talking5 -e*re looking for your husband, madam. -e
suspect he broke into the corner shop last night.
1ady ans!ering5 /ut he can*t have done that, he phoned me from #aris
last night. " a logical negative deduction#
5bservation: Could ' perfect infinitive can epress the same idea
"couldn*t have done it# with perhaps a slight difference in emphasis 6 accent,
stress7. The emphasis is stronger in case of can.
The form could is also used:
! in polite re-uests in the present as a more polite perhaps e-uivalent of
!ould in: !ould you9
Compare: Could you lend me your pen+
<ith: -ould you lend me your pen+
-ould ma& be felt as too strong on account of its referring to the other
person3s willingness in certain contets. $n such a re-uest could does not possibl&
refer to the other person abilit&.
! past abilit& is epressed with could ' a short infinitive with the
following observation: in the affirmative, when onl& one particular action which
onl& occurs once is referred to, then one uses !as able to and not could.
%lthough there !as a strong frontal !ind blo!ing, they !ere finally able
to sail to the shore.
5bservation?: Compare the above with: -hen he !as a young man, he
could sail his boat to practically any corner of the !orld, a case in which could
sail refers to a habitual past abilit&.
5bservation@: <hen there is again a case of onl& one action which didn3t
take place once couldn*t can be used.
/ecause there !as a strong frontal !ind blo!ing, they couldn*t sail to the
shore.
! could ' perfect infinitive can also be used to epress the idea of past
abilit&2 capabilit&. There are the following situations:
! the action was clearl& not performed " which is the case of the modal
past conditional such as: $e could have caught the J o*clock train if he had
hurried.
! the speaker doesn3t reall& know whether the action was performed or not,
he onl& mentions the ph&sical possibilit&2 capabilities which someone might have
resorted to or not:
A: "he money has disappeared. -ho could have taken it+
4: "om could have taken it. $e !as the last to leave the office yesterday.
Must has onl& one form " present tense indicative form# with the following
modal connotation:
! self! imposed obligation b& the speaker himself: & must !ork more if &
!ant to make any visible progress.
<hen used in connection with the first person, the idea is that the speaker
acknowledges of an eisting obligation at the same time declaring himself under
the respective obligation: &t*s getting late, & must really go no!. " the speaker both
mentions the respective obligation: it*s late, but also shows his willingness to
leave#. 4& comparison: &t*s getting late, & have to go no!. "obligation, but this
time, eternal obligation to the speaker who onl& let us know that some eternal
authorit&, circumstance, realit& imposes it on him to leave without epressing his
willingness to do so#.
! obligation in the form of order, command from the first person to the
second or third person with must' short infinitive: <ou must leave right no!2
5bservation: A ver& special case is represented b& must ' short infinitive,
which onl& epresses the idea of necessit& for the other person to perform an
action with the speaker letting him know that the respective action is going to be
-uite beneficial to the person addressed to.
/ut, sir, you must really go there, it*s a !onderful place.
<ou must really read this book. <ou are going to like it very much.
! strong supposition " emphatic# in the present close to real certaint&
epressed with must ' short infinitive, a case in which the speaker relies on some
epressed circumstantial evidence in support of his supposition.
"hey must be at home already, the lights are on.
1ook2 "he lights are on, they must have arrived.
5bservation: $n this sense, must' perfect infinitive has no possible
negative form.
$n a similar wa&, when must epresses the idea of the so!called self!
imposed obligation in the first person singular or plural, must is not necessar&
changed to had to in $ndirect ,peech.
Kirect ,peech: <ou mustn*t come here again, she said.
$ndirect ,peech: She said he mustn*t go there again.
There are contets in which mustn*t doesn3t epress an interdiction, but, on
the contrar&, it epresses an emphatic piece of advice, a warning for somebod& or
someone not to perform an action which ma& prove dangerous.
1ook out2 <ou mustn*t strike a match2 "he room is full of gas.
<ou mustn*t go there alone, sir. &t*s dangerous.
!ught to is a modal verb with onl& one form which accounts for an
indicative past tense mood as well as for a modal present conditional form. There
are two grammatical interpretations of:
! as ought followed b& a long infinitive form or
! as ought to " a modal verb ' an obligator& particle# followed b& a
short infinitive.
The first interpretation seems more logic in the sense of its formal
con*ugation "affirmative, negative, interrogative#, the negation not being placed
near ought5
& ought notK oughtn*t
,ught & to go+
,ughtn*t & to go+
5bservation: $n conversation, ought or ought to can be used alone in
answers, a case in which the long infinitive to follow is understood from the
contet.
<ou kno! you ought to buy a ne! car.
<es, & kno! & ought to.
! Essentiall&, the modal meaning of ought is that of dut& or moral
obligation with no authorit& implied.
-e ought to be going 6 &t*s the right time for us to be goingK &t*s so early /
or late hour7.
as compared to:
-e should be going 6 the speaker also expresses his !illingness to go7.
$n $ndirect ,peech, a ought ' long indefinite infinitive form sta&s
unchanged.
-e ought to be going no!, he said.
$e said 6that7 they ought to be going then.
! Kisapproval of or reproach for a dut& which was or was not done in the
past can be epressed b& ought ' infinitive form.
<ou ought to have told me that the paint on that bench !as fresh.
5bservation: Contemporar& grammars mention the possibilit& of using
should ' perfect infinitive in alternation with ought to and epressing the same
thing.
5bservation: At the same time, there is a slight difference in the modal
connotation of ought to and should ' perfect infinitive in the sense that in the case
of ought to, the speaker doesn3t implicate himself directl&, while b& using should,
the speaker involves his own opinion.
Should is stronger, alwa&s involving the speaker3s opinion.
Comparison between ought, have to and must
a. "om, you ought to attend the funeral. "no authorit& involved on the part
of the speaker. The speaker is onl& reminding Tom that his relation with his own
relatives imposes on him, as a moral obligation, to participate to the funeral.#
b. 0ather talking to son5 <ou have to obey your teachers, son= " father
reminds his son of eisting school regulations which he considers an eternal
obligation having nothing to do with his parental obligation#.
c. Son, you must obey your teachers2 " the speaker epresses his own
direct authorit& in connection with an issue he totall& agrees with#.
,ught and must can both be used to epress advice, with must a lot
stronger than ought.
<ou ought to go to #aris, sir, it*s the most !onderful city in the !orld.
The non! personal " non! finite# forms of the English verb
$n contrast with the personal forms, the non!personal forms do not contain2
epress the grammatical categor& of person, number or mood and can not be used as such
as predicates in the sentence " the& can onl& be parts of the sentence#.
As the categor& of tense, one can still distinguish between a present
" indefinite# form and a perfect form.
Compare: to go " indefinite or present infinitive# with to have gone
" perfect infinitive# or going " indefinite participle or gerund form# with having
gone " perfect participle or perfect gerund form#.
There are five such non!finite or impersonal forms of the English verb in
contemporar& English, mainl&: the infinitive, the gerund, the participle, the verbal
noun and the verbal ad*ective.
$n the case of a number of grammarians, the verbal noun is included in the
larger categor& of the gerund and the verbal ad*ective is *ust considered an
ad*ective proper:
Eamples: an interesting book ) ad*ective proper;
a flying ob8ect ) a verbal ad*ective coming from a participle " suggests
movement#.
The Infinitive Mood
An infinitive form names an action or a state epressed b& the respective
verb without reference to the grammatical categories of person, number or mood.
Eample: to go! we can not distinguish the author of the action of going, if
there is onl& one or more persons performing the action.
The infinitive form! the basic form of the verb " which is used with or
without the particle to# helps the formation of various moods and tenses.
5bservation: The auiliar& modal verbs do not have long infinitive form
or usage.
The grammatical categories of aspect, voice and tense with the infinitive
An infinitive form2 verb has both simple and continuous aspect in the
active or passive voice as well as two so!called tenses " present2 indefinite and
perfect infinitive#.
Eample: the form to begin is a present2 indefinite tense, simple aspect,
active voice form.
to have begun is a perfect tense, simple aspect, active voice form.
to be going is identified as an present tense, continuous aspect, active
voice.
to have been going is a perfect tense, continuous aspect, active voice.
5n the other hand, the form: to be built is a present tense, simple aspect,
passive voice.
to have been built ) present tense, simple aspect, passive voice.
5bservation: ,uch a form as: to be being built as a present tense,
continuous aspect, passive voice form is almost never used and there is no perfect
correspondent, no passive perfect continuous correspondent to it.
The $resent %nfinitive has two forms: a long form " with the particle to#
and a short one " without the particle to#.
5bservation: A present/ indefinite infinitive epresses the same tense,
present, past or future as the verb preceding it.
Eample: $e !anted to go there yesterday.
$e !ants to leave tomorro!.
&*m sure he !ill !ant to leave tomorro!.
Compare: to go, to have gone, not to have gone.
5bservation: As can be seen, the negative form of a non!finite form adds
the negation not.
;owever, there are situations in which a number of adverbs, including the
adverbial particle not are interpolated in between to have and the respective
participle, either for st&listic effect or in cases in which the placing of such
adverbs including not in front of the perfect infinitive form would affect the
meaning of the communication.
,uch an interpolation of the negation not or of an adverb between the
particle to and the infinitival particle proper " to go- to not go# or in between to
have and the respective past participle form to have gone to have al!ays gone,
to have not gone is called split infinitive form which is such a ver& particular case
of the infinitive usage and not a rule.
&he $erfect %nfinitive is formed with the indefinite infinitive form of the
auiliar& verb to have followed b& the past participle form of the verb in -uestion:
to have been, to have gone, to have seen.
The usual negative form is made b& placing the negation not in front: to
have been! not to have been.
Although the perfect infinitive is a non!finite form of the English verb, it
does have a tense distinction. $t refers the action of its past participle verb to an
earlier time than that epressed b& the tense of the verb preceding it, which
*ustifies its denomination of perfect infinitive.
Compare: (eorge is kno!n to do such things.! to do has a present tense
reference on the account of the form is kno!n.
with: 4ohn is kno!n to have done such things in the past.! to have done,
b& its ver& form, refers to a past situation when John used to do such things.
<ou !ill !ant to have finished all your office !ork for this year by
ecember the ?G
th
if you !ish to begin your vacation then. ) to have finished
refers to a period of time before the time epressed b& the future form you !ill
!ant.
'ses of the %ndefinite %nfinitive( $erfect %nfinitive

An indefinite infinitive form is used to form:
! the present tense affirmative form of the English principal verbs: & do/
he does.
! the future tense simple aspect of the English principal verbs5 & !ill do it.
- future in the past: he !ould go.
! the imperative: (o2 Come2
! the s&nthetic sub*unctive present: &t is important that he go.
! part of the anal&tical sub*unctive: &t is important that he should go.
A perfect infinitive form is used to form:
! the future perfect: & shall have finished.
! future perfect in the past: $e said that he !ould have finished.
! perfect conditional: should/ !ould have gone.
! modal perfect conditional: & could have gone there.
Other uses of the Infinitive:
! in the so!called to be ' infinitive construction to conve& an order or
instructions in general: <ou are to stay here 6 until told other!ise7.
! to conve& the idea of a plan or the occurrence of a future event especiall&
in mass!media2 communication2 news: "he middle- east peace talks are to take
place in #aris.
"he foreign football delegation !as to be put up at a four star hotel.
! in the so!called to be about ' infinitive construction to epress
immediate future with the adverb 8ust stressing the idea of immediate2 near future:
"he match is 8ust about to begin.
! to epress purpose: $e hurried to catch an early bus.
5bservation: $n the case of the imperative forms: go and come, the
infinitive of purpose is changed into another imperative linked to the former b&
the con*unction and: (o and tell him2 Come and help me2
! after the adverb only to epress a disappointing result of some situation:
$e hurried to arrive home only to find nobody there.
$n the case of the infinitive forms of the verbs: to learn, to find, to see, to
hear used without the adverb only, the idea of misfortune disappears:
$e returned home after a long absence to find everybody safe and sound.
! after such numeratives as: the first, the second, the last, the only one to
replace a whole subordinate relative clause.
"hey !ere the last that came.
"hey !ere the last to come.
"his is the best action !hich can be taken under the circumstances.
"his is the best action to be taken under the circumstances.
! after it is, it !as' an ad8ective ' of followed b& pronoun: of me, of you.
&t !as very kind of you, )r. Smith to let me kno! about this possible post
of your firm.
! after the adverbs too or enough or so and the adverb so as.
Another important use of an infinitive form is as sub*ect or as part of the
sub*ect in the sentence:
"o go there !ould be a stupid mistake.
&he %nfinitive ) *ccusative represents a combination of a noun or
pronoun in the accusative " following a transitive verb# and a short or long
infinitive form which is in a predicative relationship with the respective
accusative form. " the& form together a comple direct ob*ect#
& helped him finish the 8ob/ to finish the 8ob.
$n all the cases of usage, the action suggested b& the infinitive form is
seen as finished.
$n such a construction, one uses a short infinitive form after the verbs of
the senses: to see, to hear, to perceive, to !atch etc., as well as after the verbs: to
make, to let, to help " followed also b& a long infinitive form#.
& sa! him do it.
& let him do it.
but: & helped him do it.
& helped him to do it.
5bservation?: $t is to be kept in mind that in the case of a passive
transformation, which turns the infinitive ' accusative construction into a
nominative ' infinitive construction, the respective infinitive form is alwa&s long.
& sa! him do it.
$e !as seen to do it.
5bservation@: A long infinitive form is used in this construction after the
following categories of verbs:
! verbs of wish: & !ant you to do that.
! verbs epressing mental activities: to think, to suppose, to imagine, to
guess etc.
& imagine him to be a tall man.
! verbs epressing feelings and emotions: to hate, to love, to like, to dislike etc.
& hate him to behave like that to!ards his dog.
&*d like you to come !ith us.
! verbs with obligator& prepositions such as: to !ait for, to rely on, to count on, to
count upon.
& count upon you to solve this situation.
-e are !aiting for him to come.
&he "ominative ) %nfinitive construction is made up of a noun or a pronoun in
the nominative case followed b& a predicative verb either in the passive or active voice
and a long infinitive form in all cases. The nominative noun or pronoun and the long
infinitive form together the comple sub*ect of the respective sentence.
,uch a Cominative ' &nfinitive construction is used as follows:
! as a substitute for a sub*ect clause depending on such verbs as: to see, to appear,
to happen, to turn out etc.
&t appears/ seems that (eorge is L@ years old.
(eorge appears to be L@ years.
(eorge seems to be L@.
! as a passive e-uivalent of an %ccusative ' &nfinitive construction with verbs of
the senses and verbs of mental activities:
& think him to be very clever.
$e is thought to be very clever by me.
! it is also found in the form of is/ are certain ' the !ord groups: is/ are likely3 is/
are sure3 is/ are certain or other combinations of the verb to be ' ad8ective ' long
infinitive5 "hey are likely/ are expected/ are sure/ are certain to come tonight.
The so!called for ' to infinitive construction contains a long infinitive which
stands in a predicative relationship to the noun and pronoun in the accusative case
preceded b& the preposition for.
,uch constructions are used as sub*ects introduced b& the pronoun it following a
nominal predicate whose predicative part is represented b& such ad*ectives as: necessary,
advisable, possible, impossible, imperative, difficult, easy and the like.
&t is absolutely necessary for you to go there.
! as a sub*ect in front position in the sentence
0or her to do such hard !ork !as all but pleasant.
The ing form in English
$n traditional grammar, this form includes: the indefinite/ present participle, the
indefinite / present gerund, the verbal noun and the verbal ad8ective denominated as the
ing form on account of the respective suffi.
The grammatical agreement of these four ing forms can onl& be established in a
contet depending on their respective determinatives or on their s&ntactical functions.
Thus, the participle is a strictl& verbal form and, as a conse-uence to this, its
determinatives are verbal.
"he gerund has a double nature. $t has both the characteristics of a noun and those
of a verb, which allows its recognition on the basis of both noun determiners and
functions in the sentence as well as verbal determiners.
The verbal noun has all the characteristics of a noun functioning as a noun
properl&. The verbal ad*ective is used either as part of a nominal predicate or as an
attribute determining a noun.
$e is al!ays willing. " ad*. ) binevoitor#
$e is a strapping fello!. " ad*.! de n;de8de#
Consider also the following eample:
"he messenger had important ne!s regarding( concerning the missing person.
" preposition! despre, privitoare la#
"he &ndefinite #articiple is a non!finite form of the English verb which denotes an
action or a state like a principal verb, without being able, at the same time, to form a
predicate b& itself.
The form of the indefinite participle originates in a short indefinite form to which
the ing suffi ending is attached.
The main use of the indefinite participle form is that of building a continuous
aspect of the English principal verbs in three of the four moods: indicative, conditional
and sub*unctive.
& !ish you wouldnt be driving so fast. " modal anal&tical sub*unctive continuous
form! points to the speaker3s dissatisfaction#
"he &ndefinite #articiple has two voice forms:
! active voice: asking, going, doing etc.
! passive voice: being asked, being gone, being finished etc.
5bservation: There are no interrogative and interrogative-negative forms with the
indefinite participle, but it does have negative forms, a case in which the negation not is
placed in front: having asked- not having asked.
,ince the indefinite participle has onl& verbal characteristics, it onl& has verbal
determinatives. Thus, in a sentence, an indefinite participle form can be determined as
follows:
?. can be followed2 determined b& an &ndirect ,b8ect:
& !as not talking to you.
@. can be followed b& a irect ,b8ect like an& other principal verb:
& !as 8ust helping him to pick up his things.
+. can be followed b& a #repositional ,b8ect, introduced b& a preposition, other
than to or for in certain contets:
$e !as talking about his parents.
C. can be followed b& an adverbial modifier:
%ll of a sudden, he sa! a man hiding 6 !ho !as hiding7 behind some
trees.
,&ntactical functions of the indefinite participle
The indefinite participle can function:
a. as part of the verbal predicate " in the continuous aspect situation#
$e is sleeping.
b. as a predicative ad*unct in a double predicate, after such verbs as: to come, to
go, to pass or after the direct ob*ect of the verbs: to keep, to set and to start.
"he little girl came running at her mother*s urgent call.
came ' running K double predicate 6 she came and she !as running7
She passed smiling by us.
$e set the engine running.
$e kept us !aiting for hours.
$e started the engine running.
c. as part of an attribute:
"he little boy crying out loud is my nephe!.
d. as part of an adverbial modifier:
*rriving late, he found no dinner !aiting for him. 6 adverbial modifier of cause#
+inishing work, he left. " adverbial modifier of time#
$e stopped as if not knowing !hat to do next. " adverbial modifier of
comparison#
e. in a number of parenthetical participial phrases of the t&pe: generally speaking,
8udging by appearances, taking everything into consideration, admitting that,
considering that, leaving aside, talking about, strictly speaking etc.
#erfect #articiple is made up of the indefinite participle form of to have followed
b& the past participle form of the verb in -uestion:
being- having been3 having- having had3
seeing- having seen.
$n a sentence, a perfect participle form denotes the idea of an action or a state
prior to the action or state denoted b& the personal verb in the respective sentence:
$aving finished the 8ob, they left.
$aving said good-bye to all !ho have seen him off, #eter started the engine of the
boat !hich !as to take him round the !orld.
A perfect participle form has active and passive voice distinctions:
active voice: having set.
passive voice: having been set.
$n the sentence, the perfect participle functions as:
a. adverbial modifier of time or part of an adverbial modifier of time:
$aving bought all the items on the list, they returned home.
b. adverbial modifier or part of an adverbial modifier of cause:
$aving finished all their fuel and food supplies, the captain and all his
brave companions died one after the other from cold, hunger and starvation.
,pecial constructions with the participle
"he %ccusative ' #articiple construction is almost homon&mous with the
%ccusative' &nfinitive construction form which differs slightl& in the sense that it la&s
stress on the continuit& of a state or of an action at a certain moment, which are
denominated b& the participle form of the verb.
4& comparison, in the %ccusative' &nfinitive construction the stress is laid on the
finished character of the action or state denominated b& the infinitive verb.
& sa! him cross the street. " action finished#
& sa! him crossing the street. " action in progress# ( & sa! him !hile he
!as crossing the street.
As can be seen in the above eample, the construction is made up of a principal
transitive verb, followed b& a common or proper noun2 pronoun in the accusative case '
the principal verb in its indefinite participle form. %rom a s&ntactical point of view, it is
considered2 denominated as an ob*ective predicative " nume predicativ al obiectului
direct# which forms a double predicate with the respective principal verb in the sentence.
,uch a construction is used in con*unction with the following verbs:
a. verbs of perception: to see, to hear, to perceive, to smell, to taste etc.
& heard him opening the door.
& smelt smog coming out of the room.
b. after a number of verbs including: to find, to imagine, to keep, to leave, to set,
to start, to have, to catch.
#oliceman talking5 <ou can go no!, young man, but don*t you ever let me
catch you shoplifting again.
$e left her crying.
She kept him !aiting.
$e set the engine running.
"he Cominative ' #articiple construction represents the passive e-uivalent of the
%ccusative ' #articiple construction. $t is a construction analogous to the Cominative'
&nfinitive construction. Again, it la&s stress, b& comparison, on the continuit& of the
action of the participle form and not on the finished character of the actions as is the case
of the other construction, the Cominative' &nfinitive.
Compare: "he burglar !as seen climbing up the drainpipe.
with: "he burglar !as seen to climb up the drainpipe.
"he Cominative %bsolute #articipial construction is a special construction in
which the indefinite perfect participle form stands in a predicative relation to a noun or
pronoun in the nominative case which is not the sub*ect of the sentence but onl& a part of
an adverbial modifier of time, cause, condition or of attending circumstances.
a. part of an adverbial modifier of time:
"he shelling having stopped, they rushed to give first aid to the !ounded. ( %fter
the shelling had stopped, they rushed to give first aid to the !ounded.
b. part of an adverbial modifier of cause:
"he #resident being absent, no final decision could be taken. K /ecause the
#resindent !as absent, no final decision could be taken.
c. part of an adverbial modifier of condition:
"he ceasefire !ill be total, all the belligerent factions agreeing to sit do!n at the
negotiation table. ( "he ceasefire !ill be total, if all the belligerent factions agreeing to
sit do!n at the negotiation table.
d. part of an adverbial modifier of attending circumstances:
%t that moment, the !hole building collapsed, the smog and soot reaching the lo!
ceiling of dark clouds.
The >erund
The forms of the (erund in English are similar those of present2 perfect
participle: going- having gone, with the observation that while indefinite2 perfect
participle forms have onl& verbal functions or behaviour, the >erund has both nominal
functions and verbal features. 4oth aspects " nominal and verbal#, are in most cases
present or appear in the same contet.
5n the one hand, b& the presence of noun determiners such as: possessive
ad8ectives or prepositions, as well as verbal determiners such as: direct ob*ects following
or adverbs defining them.
There are C distinctive features of the gerund in English:
a. it has voice and tense distinctions:
& dislike his smoking so much.
5bservation: There are special cases when an active voice gerund form is implied
with a passive content meaning:
"his boy deserves punishing. K "his boy deserves being punished.
$n a similar wa&, in connection with the verbs: to need, to re.uire, to !ant as well
as the ad*ective !orth, the gerund complement is alwa&s in the active voice, in man&
cases with a passive meaning.
"his book is !orth reading.
"he place is !orth seeing.
<our garden !ants !etting.
"his house !ill need a total doing over before !e can even think of moving in.
The verbal characteristics of the >erund:
?. $t can be followed b& a Kirect 5b*ect in the sentence:
"he garden !ants !eeding.
"his book is !orth reading it.
@. A gerund form can be characteri.ed b& an adverbial modifier:
&f a thing is !orth doing, it is !orth doing !ell.
+. $t ma& have a sub*ect, which is not the sub*ect in the sentence:
She got a sense of it being her duty.
The nominal characteristics of the >erund:
?. $t can be determined b& possessive ad*ectives or b& nouns in the s&nthetic
genitive:
-ould you mind my smocking here+
"he sound of a baby*s crying helped the fireman locate the !hole family.
@. $t ma& be preceded b& a preposition:
4ane doesn*t care for cooking very much.
+. $t can be part of a sub*ect, part of a predicative or part of the predicate, part of
an ob*ect or of an adverbial modifier.
)y suggestion is going there at once. " it is not the continuous aspect, the gerund
form going is part of the nominal predicate#
C. A number of verbs: to admit, to avoid, to consider, to dislike, to like, to hate, to
keep etc. are specificall& followed b& a gerund form as well as some
phrasal verbs: to accuse of, to be afraid of, to be surprised at, to consist of/ in, to give up,
to ob8ect to, to prevent from, to rely on, to !orry about.
D. A number of nouns followed b& obligator& prepositions are also followed b&
gerund forms: addiction to taking drugs, astonishment at seeing something, strong belief
in doing something, habit of doing something, interest in, reason for, pleasure in,
possibility of, skill in etc.
E. A number of ad*ectives and participles followed b& obligator& prepositions are
followed b& gerund forms: to be angry about, certain about, happy about, interested in,
late in, afraid of etc.
,&ntactical functions of the >erund
a. part of a sub*ect:
9eading books is his favourite activity.
b. adverbial modifier of time or part of an adverbial modifier of time:
Compare:
0inishing !ork, they left.
<ith:
%fter finishing !ork, they left.
c. direct ob*ect:
$e stopped going there after that night.
& like going there from time to time.
"he #erfect (erund denotes an action or a state prior to that epressed b& the
notional verb in the sentence while displa&ing one or the other of its noun functions.
,&ntactical functions:
a. direct ob*ect or part of the direct ob*ect:
& remember having seen him before.
b. part of an adverbial modifier of time:
%fter having rested for an hour, they started again.
c. adverbial modifier of cause:
/ecause of his having arrived late, the meeting !as postponed.
"he %ccusative !ith the (erund " the so! called gerundial construction# is a
construction in which the gerund form displa&s its verbal characteristics, establishing a
predicative relation with a noun or pronoun in the genitive case.
-ould you mind my staying here doing this+ " the respective gerund form
functions as a direct ob*ect in the accusative case, but at the same time it is in a
predicative relationship with the preceded noun2 pronoun in the genitive case, functioning
as a predicate.
-ould you mind my smocking here+
"he Verbal Coun is an abstraction or an abstract word or noun in ing formed
from a verb' ing ending which denotes an action or a state without discharging an&
verbal function in the sentence.
$n man& dictionaries such ing forms are registered as nouns proper.
Eamples: sa&ing! sa&ings " proverbe#; leave! leavings " resturi#; filling!
fillings " plombe# etc.
The differences between a verbal noun and the gerund can be eemplified as
follows:
The verbal noun The >erund
a. it can form the sub*ect b& itself:
9eading is useful.
Seeing is believing.

a. it can onl& be part of the sub*ect in the
sentence:
$is coming !as .uite unexpected.
b. it can be preceded b& articles:
"he reading of the book lasted a !eek.
b. it can not be preceded b& articles:"he
reading of the book ( verbal noun
c. it can be determined b& an ad*ective
proper
(ood reading is useful.
c. it can be accompanied b& adverbs and
possessive ad*ectives.
$is coming late !as unusual.
d. it can not be followed b& a direct ob*ect d. it can be followed b& a direct ob*ect:
9eading books is useful.
e. it has no voice or tense distinctions. e. it has tense and voice distinctions:
reading- having read3
asking- being asked3 having asked- having
been asked.
"he verbal ad8ective

English ad*ectives ending in ing can be divided into three categories:
a. ing ad8ectives which have degrees of comparison: comparative and
superlative and from a s&ntactical point of view behave like ad*ective proper:
interesting, surprising etc.
b. ing ad8ectives which are clearl& derived from an )ing participle form
having a verbal nature, but not discharging a verbal function " the& do not have
degrees of comparison#, the& suggest a temporar& state or -ualit& which allows
one to assimilate them with -ualitative ad*ectives: aching leg/ tooth, boiling
!ater, running !ater, flying carpet etc.
"he #ast #articiple is a non!finite form of the English verb with the help
of which are built certain compound tenses such as: perfect infinitive, past perfect,
present perfect, the perfect participle and perfect gerund as well as passive voice
of English notional verbs.
$n point of form, there are regular past participle forms formed with the
help of the ed suffi from short indefinite infinitive forms: to like- liked, or the&
eist as such in the case of English irregular verbs: be- been, have- had, !rite-
!ritten.
A number of past participle forms have parallel ad*ectival forms which
forms originate in past participle forms. The& also discharge no verbal functions
and are considered ad*ectives proper:
bound- bounded 6 obliged7 died dead
drunk- drunken loved- beloved.
,&ntactical functions:
a. predicative or part of the predicative:
"he old oak tree !as struck do!n by lightening.
b. part of an attribute:
% !hite- haired man !as sitting in the corner of the room.
"he misrelated participle
$n a sentence, an indefinite participle form or perfect participle form
usuall& refers its meaning to the noun or pronoun which precedes it.
"he burglar believing that he !as alone in the building, turned the "V set
on.
There are also cases when the participle form such as the past participle
form is separated b& the noun or pronoun to which it refers b& a predicate or b& a
notional verb.
"om and his girlfriend came first, follo!ed 6 being follo!ed7 by #eter and
)ary.
A participle form can also be placed at the beginning of the sentence
referring its meaning to the sub*ect of the notional verb in the sentence.
/elieving that he !as alone in the building, the burglar turned the "V on.
6ow, if the rule is broken in the sense that b& wrongl& placing the
participle form in the sentence and as a conse-uence its meaning is referred to the
wrong noun or pronoun in the sentence, such a participle form is said to be
misrelated " that is connected in the wrong wa& and the meaning of the respective
utterance is affected#.
Climbing up the !rong side of the mountain an avalanche caught them
una!ares.
,uch a sentence should be reformulated:
Climbing up the !rong side of the mountain, they !ere caught una!are by
an avalanche.
The Adverb
The function of the adverb in the English sentence is to be a -ualifier of a verb, of
an ad*ective, of another adverb. $n special contets an adverb ma& function as a -ualifier
for a whole sentence:
$e laughs longer, !ho laughs last. " Cine rMde la urm;, rMde mai bine#
"he first act is ingenious, the second beautiful, the third abominably clever.
A: M(ood morning, )rs. 4ones, ho! are you+ M
4: M&*m .uite !ell, thank you. $o! are you+F
5bservation: An adverb can also determine2 -ualif& a noun or a pronoun:
,nly 4ohn could have done it.
#ractically everyone did their share.
$n a similar wa&, an adverb can determine a participle, a gerund as well as an
infinitive form:
a !ell done thing. " past participle#
4ohn !as coming .uickly to!ards us. " indefinite participle#
rinking heavily is bad for health. " gerund#
The form of the adverb in English
As a rule, adverbs are formed b& the addition to ad*ectives of the ly suffi:
clever- cleverly3 sharp- sharply3 short- shortly3
There are the following orthographical situations when the ly suffi is added:
! ad*ectives ending y preceded b& a consonant change -y into i5
naughty- naughtily
5bservation: A number of ad*ectives do not obe& this rule:
shy- shyly3 dry- dryly3 sly- slyly.
! after a vowel, the ending y is preserved as a rule:
gay 6 vesel7 gayly, but also gaily.
! final -e is dropped in the following three ad*ectives:
due 6 care se cuvine7 - duly, true- truly, !hole- !holly.
! the ending le with s&llabic value is dropped:
noble- nobly3 simple- simply3 notable- notably.
! ad*ectives ending in double l drop one before the ly ending:
full- fully3 dull- dully.
! the ad*ectives: public and politic have regular corresponding adverbial
forms: publicly and politicly , but the other ad*ectives ending in ic add al before the )
ly suffi: magestic- ma8estically, drastic- drastically, emphatic- emphatically.
Classification of adverbs can be done according to their form and to their
meaning.
According to their form, adverbs fall into:
a. simple;
b. derived;
c. compound;
d. adverbial phrases;
e. other adverbial constructions.
a. ,imple adverbs are: in, out, up, do!n etc.
b. Kerived adverbs are formed from other parts of speech with the help of suffies
and prefies: long- along3 sleep- asleep etc.
c. Compound adverbs are made of two or several parts of speech forming a
perfect semantic fusion: some' timesK sometimes; here ' by K hereby.
d. Adverbial phrases are groups of words which can function as adverbs in the
sentence and the& are felt as semantic fusion b& their high fre-uenc& of usage:
topsy turny K neorMnduial;
to and fro K Nncolo Oi Nncoace.
e. Adverbial constructions are combinations of different parts of speech with
prepositions functioning as adverbs, constructions which are not perfect semantic fusion.
$n man& cases, other parts of speech can be introduced in between the respective
preposition and the other parts of the construction. 8ore than that, such constructions can
easil& be replaced b& other correspondent constructions with the same meaning.
She came to me to ask for advice.
She came to me for help.
$e came in out of the dark.
$e came in out of the rain.
There are the following t&pes of adverbs:
a. adverb of time which shows the time when an action occurs2 takes place or the
time of a state or of a -ualit&; the usual -uestion: !hen+
,uch adverbs are represented b& simple words referring to past, present or future
periods of time of the t&pe: tomorro!, next, before, !eekly, monthly etc. or in the form of
adverbial phrases in the above mentioned combinations: in these past !eeks, in the
future, in the long run, for a short time, for a long time etc.
There are about the following usual positions of adverbs of time in a sentence:
?. end position in the sentence: 4ohn !ill come tomorro!.
@. front position " with the respective emphasis on the importance of the
respective time dimension#: "oday !e are going to take a long rest and tomorro! !e
leave at sunrise.
+. mid position in the sentence: -e !ill soon kno! the truth about the matter.
5bservation: 5nl& a number of short adverbs of time go into mid position in the
sentence. A list of such short adverbs will include: no!, then, 8ust, recently, immediately,
finally, since, already etc.
There are cases when an adverb of time can modif& a noun b& preceding it.
:xports last year !ere at their lo!est.
,pecial uses of adverbs of time such as5 yet, still, already.
<et is used at the end of a -uestion. $t epresses an action which has alread&
happened or happened ver& soon.
The same adverb yet is placed at the end of a negative statement in connection
with the respective -uestion:
%5 $as (eorge arrived yet+
/5 Co, not yet.
5bservation: <hen yet is placed in mid position in connection with a negative
statement, it sounds rather formal.
-e have not reached a reasonable conclusion yet.
-e have not yet reached a reasonable conclusion.
Still is used in mid position in positive statements and -uestions.
Co, !e have not finished yet. -e are still !orking on it.
A special usage of still is after the sub*ect in negative statements to epress an
unfulfilled action " an action which has not taken place# like yet in end position to which
meaning it adds the modalit& of either surprise or discontent.
Compare: "hey haven*t arrived yet. " onl& the time dimension is mentioned#
with: "hey still haven*t arrived.
%lready is used to epress something happening sooner than epected, is mainl&
used in mid position, in positive statements or in -uestions.
"hey have already finished.
$ave they already arrive+
<hen used in end position, the respective time dimension is emphasi.ed.
The same adverb already is used immediatel& after the sub*ect or before a stressed
auiliar&.
& have already finished.
& already have finished !ork, sir.
The adverbs no longer, anymore, any longer.
As a rule, no longer is used in mid position to show the end of an action or state:
(eorge is no longer ill.
)r. Smith no longer !orks !ith us.
As a less formal alternative to no longer in mid position, one uses anymore or any
longer in end position in negative statements.
Compare: )r. Smith no longer !orks !ith us.
with: )r. Smith doesn*t !ork !ith us anymore/ any longer.
The adverb long is used in front or end position in -uestions and negative
statements.
$ave you been !aiting long+
$o! long have you been !aiting+
The word after can not be used as an adverb of time on its own, but in the form of
a compound adverb or a compound prepositional adverbial phrase such as: after!ards,
after that, after a day, after a !eek, the day after, the !eek after etc.
b. adverbs of manner show the manner in which an action or state or a -ualit&
occurs; the usual -uestion5 ho!+, in !hat manner+
The& are usuall& formed from an ad*ective' the suffi -ly: .uickly, shortly,
immediately etc.
5bservation: A number of adverbs of manners ending in ly have corresponding
ly ad*ectives or vice versa.
The ad*ective! adverb friendly:
Compare: a friendly gesture3 a lovely girl
with: $e al!ays behaves friendly.
She looks lovely in green.
A number of ad*ectives function as adverbs of manner without adding the ly b&
the same form:
% fast car goes fast.
% hard 8ob. $e !orks hard.
5bservation: 8anner can also be epressed with prepositional phrases of such as:
!ith luck, !ith care, on purpose, in a nice !ay, in a proper manner, in a deliberate
manner, by mistake etc.
The adverbs of manner are usuall& placed at the end of the sentence.
<hen placed in a front position, the adverbs of manner give emphasis on the
respective action or state as follows:
%nd !ithout any further delay, they started climbing the mountain.
5bservation: An adverb of manner can also modif& an ad*ective b& preceding it.
"hey !ere .uietly confident.
c. adverbs of place show the place where an action takes place or a state or a
-ualit& eists; the usual -uestion: !here+, in !hat place+
A special list of adverbs of place would include the following: hence, thence,
!hence, hither, thither, !hither.
-e !ent by boat to C;l;raOi, !hence by train to /ucharest.
"he little girl !as running hither and thither.
The adverbs of place are usuall& placed at the end of the sentence.
-e are going to spend the night at #eter*s place.
<hen there are more than one adverbial of place in the sentence, the shorter one
precedes the longer one:
-e spent the night at #eter*s, in his native village.
The adverb of place is used right after the verb if there is a close link in meaning "
between the verb and the respective adverb#: $e !ent there alone.
#hrases of place often go in either order with the observation that a smaller place
usuall& comes before a larger place.
<hen there are two adverbs, one of time and one of place, the& can be placed
either wa&.
"hey left it there at eight.
"hey left at eight from there.
Adverbs of place often come in the sentence after a direct ob*ect or an indirect
ob*ect.
& met him here on the stairs.
& gave the book to him at school.
%or emphasis, adverbs of place take first position in the sentence.
&n my room upstairs & sat in front of my computer, not really kno!ing !hat
& !as going to !rite about.
5ther adverbs: of cause, reason and result show the cause, the purpose of an
action answering the -uestions: !hy+, for !hat reason+
Eamples: conse.uently, on purpose, for that reason, for that purpose, therefore
etc.
An adverbial of cause can also take the form of a prepositional phrase' other parts
of speech.
$e allegedly resign because of ill health. $e died of pneumonia.
Concessive adverbs are represented b& such adverbs as: ho!ever, still, yet.
%lthough he is .uite old, he is still sound of mind.
%dverbs of fre.uency show the repetition of an action or state and are represented
b& such adverbs as: fre.uently, rarely, ever, never, often etc. ,uch adverbs usuall& go in
mid position of the sentence.
#eople are often manipulated in their opinion by mass- media.
<hen such adverbs are placed in front position, their degree of emphasis is
obtained and in such cases grammatical and st&listic inversion takes place or occurs with
the part of the predicate coming in front of the sub*ect.
Cever in my life have & seen such a beautiful place.