English verb system – contrastive approach 2

Oral exam
1. A General Theory of Tense
Short def: TENSE is a grammaticalized location in time (when sth happened).
Long def: TENSE is relating the situation denoted by the verb to the time of utterance (the point of speech).
TIME is a physical category (of physical entity), of our reality which consists of time and space.
TENSE is a grammatical category (a grammatical way to express time). They are related.
In Western civilisations, time is understood as linear, we have a time-line, or time-axis, presented as a
straight line (an arrow) because time represents a continuous flow.
now
past future
Speed is an important component. In order to discuss time in linguistics we have to assume that time flows
at the same speed. Relativity theory is disregarded by linguistics.
Relations can be grammaticalised, then we talk about tenses (inflections, have grammatical markers) and
lexicalised – we use lexical items or adverbials to express time.
Time-line: there is no natural orientation point, that is why we have to determine the deictic centre (NOW)
– an arbitrary point. This way, we get 3 segments:
a) Present – a section of time which is simultaneous or almost simultaneous with NOW
b) Past – before NOW
c) Future – after NOW

But, sometimes, it is not enough to have just three segments, so we need subdivisions:
now
past: before past and past future: before future and future

Serbian division of past is more complex (pluskvamperfekat, imperfekat, perfekat, aorist). There is no one-
to-one correspondence between temporal segments (present, past, future) and tenses on the time axis.
Other concepts of time: Hopi Indians – do not divide time into past, present and future, but into subjective
(future, myths, legends) and objective (sth that was witnessed by the senses).
Traditional grammar divides tenses into 2 kinds:
1) Absolute – those which could be defined on the basis of the deictic centre NOW, e.g. simple past:
before point of speech, you don’t need other points to define it.
2) Relative – need NOW and other points to be defined, e.g. past perfect: now+past point.
Present Tense can be simultaneous and almost simultaneous with the point of speech. If this present
denotes just one point it’s simultaneous, but if it’s habitual present, containing past and future, denotes
eternal truths & laws, it is almost simultaneous.
Real Present is completely simultaneous with the point of speech (performatives):
I pronounce you husband and wife!

2. Time-line and the Tenses in English

There are several temporal segments in English language.
BEFORE PAST PAST NOW BEFORE FUTURE FUTURE
- past perfect (non- - past (non- - present (non- - future perfect - future (non-prog,
progressive, progressive, prog, progressive) (non-prog, progressive)
progressive) progressive) progressive) - present (non-prog,
- present non- progressive)
prog (narrative) - be going/about to
Present Perfect –we did not place it in the time-axis because it doesn’t occupy only one segment, that’s
why we don’t have a clear temporal segment for it. Grammarians treat it as aspect. There is no one-to-one
correspondence (there are 2 or 3 forms for temporal segments).

1
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
Binary opposition and tenses: There are past, present and future. But, as categories normally have binary
opposition, and are divided into marked and unmarked members, some grammarians insist that it is also
the case with tense. In GCs, marked member always carries more morphological information than the
unmarked member, and it is less frequent and less general. Grammarians usually do not include future in
this primary (binary) opposition. Arguments for not treating future as a tense:
a) no inflections
b) conceptual reason (past and present are factual, future is more like a speculation)
c) shall and will for future
Some grammarians use the term modal present for future because the speaker has some expectations.
You ‘shall do that! (order)
They ‘will leave that window open. (habit)
Tense is thus divided into past and non-past. Past is seen as the marked member here, as it requires
special morphology, is less general, that is why we do not have the division into, for example, present and
non-present.

3. Functions of Tense Forms in English

a) temporal location – basic function; specifies location in time.
b) speaker’s attitude – subjunctive and conditionals; past tense in the subjunctive is not used for past, but
for making comments about the present (possibility, etc.)
c) sequence of tenses – no relocation of the events in time, simply following a rule for back-shifting.

A. TEMPORAL LOCATION – specifying when and locating events in time. For example, present locates
events in the present section, but also has different uses and implications:
- habitual present – most typical (He drives to work.)
- eternal truths (The Earth turns around the Sun.)
- real present, as in sports commentaries, instructions and performatives.
I open the cage. (a series of acts, and a single sudden act) vs. I’m opening the cage. (a
gradual process)
We accept your offer. (a performative) vs. We are accepting your offer. (discussing, thinking
about it, but not yet fully accepting it)
He scores a goal. (real present) vs. He scores goals. (habitual)
- future implication: The bus leaves soon.
- past reference:
a) historic present: Then comes my secretary and tells me…
b) with verbs of communication: learn, write, hear
He tells me that you’re moving out. (the event seems nearer thus)
c) in literary criticism and essays:
He was the last great representative of romanticism. (simply stating fact); with
present (He is…), it seems as a generally accepted fact.
d) newspaper headlines: X wins lottery. (sounds more dramatic)
- Past non-progressive – locates events in the past, but sometimes it can be used for events in the
present: I wanted to ask you… (seems more polite, indirect)

B. SPEAKER’S ATTITUDE:
a) SUBJUNCTIVE – productivity: NOT very productive, because we need a specific CONTEXT to be
able to use it:
- dependent THAT-clause - verbs exist, require, demand more used in AmE. The form of subj.
BARE INF. (no suffixes):

2
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
We ask that the individual citizen inform himself on these matters.
 without THAT we use TO inf.
They recommended that the company invest in new property.
It is necessary/important that every member inform himself of these rules.
 use +should to avoid subjunctive
- set expressions: God Save the Queen (and Her Fascist Regime.); God Forbid!
- wish:
 followed by past nonprogressive (past simple) or past perfect:
I wish I were there.
I wish I had understood you.
 modals (could/would): I wish I could help you. (present temporal reference)
- it's (high) time – past nonprogressive (simple past): It's high time we left.
- as if/as though:
 indicative/subjunctive (both; depending on your attitude):
He talks as if he owns/owned the place. (indicative – fact, no comment; subjunctive
– annoying, don't believe it)
 past perfect:
He talks about Paris as if he had been there himself. (not a fact about sth in the past)
- had better, would rather:
 had better + bare inf: You better go.
 would rather + bare inf (sb + past nonp./perfect): I'd rather he hadn't said that.
b) CONDITIONALS – reality/unreality:
If they arrive, she will leave.
If they arrived, she would leave.
If they had arrived, she would have left.

4. Sequence of Tenses
Some verbs are back-shifted. If the reporting verb is in the past tense, it triggers the shift of the verbs, and
of some pronouns and adverbials. In some cases, we might not use the rule, we have another option.
Marked case: no application of the rule – adds some comment or attitude (most often that something is still
valid or true).
She told me that she was/is getting married in June.
He said he would visit us when the weather is/was finer.
Exceptions:
a. Present non-progressive: does not have to be backshifted if it is generally true: He proved that
the earth is round.
OR if it is still a valid habit: He said that he always gets up early.
OR if the situation hasn’t changed: He said that his mother is always ill.
b. Present progressive: always changes when it denotes the real present, but when it denotes the
future, we can choose: She said she was visiting her grandmother.
c. Shall/will future is shifted to should/would
d. Present perfect: back-shifted, situation is still valid: He said that the bridge has (had) collapsed.
e. Past non-progressive: backshifted; specific past time adverbial: She said that the letter (had)
arrived last Friday.
f. subjunctives and conditionals: don’t change subjunctive:
I wish I were there. She said she wished she were there. It’s time we went home.
Real conditional – changed; unreal – not changed.
g. Would, could, might

3
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
h. Must, mustn’t, needn’t: MUST changed to HAD TO or remains must; MUST’NT: didn’t have
to/was were not to; NEEDN’T: didn’t have to/I needn’t do it now.
Permanent commands: Children mustn’t swim in this river. Children must obey their parents.
Strong probability:
He must be at least 60. She is fond of music. (generally valid fact)
They are opening the bottle – were opening.
He wishes he knew her name.
The employees demanded that he resign.

5. Tenses in Serbian
When forming a sentence, one uses a string of lexical items, to which grammatical meanings are added
(agreement, attitude, voice, tense in finite clauses, etc.). Temporal determination is placing this situation
into a temporal segment. Tenses are used to place a situation in a temporal segment, as well as some lexical
items (PPs) and subordinate clauses – temporal.
Tenses: temporal determination could be viewed as a gradual quantification from a certain point
(illustration). As far as tenses in Serbian are concerned, they start from the assumption that Serbian is a
highly inflected lg, with both finite and nonfinite forms. Finite verb forms show tense and person. You have
to add temporal determination and tense, and you do it within the predicate.
Several other divisions and terminologies:
Indicative (absolute) vs. relative temporal determination: Indicative temporal determination is measured
from the point of speech, and can tbe simultaneous, anterior and posterior. Relative is measured from some
other point, not point of speech:
Tada je primetio da se po obali pale svetla. (present relatively used for past)
Večeras ćemo posmatrati kako se otvaraju Olimpijske igre. (present relatively used for future)
Naši takmičari nisu znali da će već prvog dana imati utakmicu. (future used for past)
Sutra ćete znati ko je položio ispit. (past for the future)
Sequence of tenses doesn’t allow these combinations in English.
Temporal transposition: a certain tense used for a non-typical temporal segment:
Idem ja juče i sretnem…
Referential use: for a specific situation, one specific temporal segment:
Juče su otputovali.
Sutra će kupiti nov računar.
Nonreferential use: repetition, several occasions, several temporal segments:
Svakog leta putuju na more.
Svakog dana ćemo imati predavanja.
In English we have no such distinction, in English it is called habitual.
Tenses:
1) Prezent – the only present tense in Serbian.
- Real present (pravi, aktuelni) – referential situations and imperfective verbs:
Oni pišu domaći zadatak. (more or less simultaneous with now)
- Extended present: Čekaju ga od juče. (includes much larger period of time)
- Omnitemporal present (svevremenski): Zemlja se okreće oko Sunca.
- Qualificative present: characteristic. Ona obično malo jede.
- Non-referential use: Ona redovno posećuje roditelje.
- Transposition of present for past and future: Do tog razgovora, on pokazuje veću uzdržanost.
Avion polazi tek ujutro.
2) Perfekat – general past tense, happened before now, no further specifications:
Kiša je padala to veče.

4
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
Nad rekom se nadnela visoka planina. (qualificative?)
Redovno je prisustvovao tim sastancima. (non-referential use)
Relative use: Zaboravio sam šta mi je sve pričala. (treba pluskvamperfekat)
3) Pluskvamperfekat – pluperfect denotes anteriority in the past, before past:
Kada je digla pogled, sve je već bilo prošlo.
4) Aorist – 1st use – situations happened immediately before the point of speech; 2nd use: some time
before the point of speech: Pade ti olovka. Rekoh li ti da ćeš položiti?
5) Imperfekat – duration in the past: Oni ga uporno gledahu.
6) Futur I:
- after now: Sutra ćemo sve nadoknaditi.
- non-referential use: Više neće dolaziti svakodnevno.
- relative use: Pomislio je da će imati dovoljno vremena.
- modal use: (1) initiative: Nećeš više izlaziti bez kape. (2) certainty: Sigurno će biti još ovakvih
primera.
7) Futur II – subordinate clauses, used for an event that is:
a. simultaneous with another future situation: Dok budemo putovali, razgovaraćemo.
b. anterior to another future situation: Kada bude svanulo, izaći ćemo napolje. (most typical)
c. posterior to another future situation: Ova ponuda važi dok se ne bude usvojila druga.

6. Reichenbach’s Approach to Tenses

Hans Reichenbach, “Elements of symbolic logic”, one section called Tenses of verbs – basis of theory of
tense.
Temporal points and relations:
a) temporal points: S – point of speech, E – point of event (when it happened), R – point of
reference (context).
b) relations: anterior, posterior, simultaneous
Tense is location in relation to the point of speech. Notion of tense is complex. In relation to S we have 3
tenses (present, past and future). We need a more complex interpretation. Formal view: every finite verb
form is a tense.
Peter had gone. (implies 2 events S&R (context) and E (when it happened))
Three points used for all the tenses. R used for relative tenses, can be simultaneous with S, or
precedes/follows. If you use a comma between 2 points they are simult, a hyphen-sth precedes/follows.
Present: I see John. (presented on a time line); three points, S, R and E – formal approach always uses this
formula. It’s a formal approach, we use formulas but it denotes real present.
FORMULAS:

7. Reichenbach’s Permanence of the Reference Point in English and Serbian

In compound sentences, the R point in each clause should be in the same column (when you write formulas
for each clause, it should be in the same column – should be common for all the clauses for the sentence to
be grammatical). * examples in my notes
Positional use of the R point: R is referentially used in the context.
With three points, there are 13 possible combinations, 9 fundamental. In the English language, there are 6
combinations:
E-R-S: anterior past (new name) vs. past perfect (traditional name)
E,R – S: simple past (both new and traditional)
E – S,R: anterior present/present perfect.

5
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
Logical categories were not clearly seen in the beginnings of language, but are results of long
developments. The actual language doesn’t always fit the schema we try to construct in symbolic logic.
Language is actually not logical, you cannot always apply the rules of logic.
8. Future Time in English
Not a typical tense (no inflections, conceptual problem). There is a distinction between PLAIN FUTURE
(denotes only time after now) and MODAL FUTURE (after now + additional information).
PLAIN FUTURE: there is a limited number of examples, we need specific context. No human control
over the events, no volition, intention, e.g.
Most areas will have rain.
Tomorrow will be Wednesday.
Bill won’t come / won’t be coming tomorrow. – no progressive -includes volition, modal.
With the progressive, we have expression of plain future, it’s a fact about his arrival.
MODAL FUTURE: broadly understood modal future shows willingness, plan, arrangement, etc.
Peter shall do that.
Tom ‘will walk on that side.
It’s going to rain soon. (circumstances/cause)
I’m going to tell him about it. (plan/intention)
It is going to cost me a fortune. (certainty, speaker makes a conclusion for this situation)
It will… (more neutral, statement or fact, usually happens)

9. Expressing of Future Time in English

There are different ways to express future and they are not always mutually interchangeable, and there are
different implications.
I. SHALL/WILL FUTURE (SIMPLE FUTURE) – most frequent and most natural, used for
making predictions; these forms have double function – as modal aux and as future aux; it is
sometimes difficult to differentiate between modal and future meaning.
II. SHALL/WILL HAVE Ven (FUTURE PERFECT) – denotes an action which will be completed
before or up to a point in the future;
By Friday, she’ll have moved to a new house.
Some grammarians say that this is Past in the future: past from a future point of view. Exception:
sometimes
By next week, we’ll be tired of all the exams;
By next week, we’ll have had two exams last week, and another one in the coming week.
Specific case: sth which is after our point of view.
III. SHALL/WILL BE Ving (FUTURE PROGRESSIVE) – a process in the future, that is going to
be somewhere around a point in the future. Subject is going to be in the middle of a certain
process.
Don’t call me at 7 o’clock. I’ll be having dinner. (in the middle of dinner)
I’ll drive to London next week. (statement as a fact, typical future)
I’ll be driving to London next week. (future as a matter of cause, sth usually, typically done),
in the future, sounds like an offer, indirectly offering a lift.
The sun will set in a minute. (typical future, complete)
The sun will be setting… (begin to set)
*A specific situation: momentary verbs + progressive (ironic tone)
He’ll be losing his head one of these days.
Future Progressive in use:
a) in future situations/processes around a point in the future
Next June she’ll be sailing across the Adriatic Sea.
b) when another future situation begins:
6
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
When you arrive, I’ll be writing letters. (somewhere in the middle)
c) Expressing: from….to, between…and, all morning, etc.
She’ll be working all morning. (emphasized duration)
She’ll work all morning. (stated fact/plan)
IV. BE GOING TO – a very frequent way to express future. When we use be going to we relate
future with present, that is why we have 2 types: (1) future fulfillment of the present CAUSE,
and (2) future fulfillment of the present INTENTION.
INTENTION: we expect human subject, with intention, control, willingness:
I’m going to visit my grandmother.
They are getting married next April.
I am going to work harder next week. – more likely to happen than I intend to work harder
next week. (1st one shows stronger determination, greater possibility)
CAUSE: circumstances, make a certain conclusion, different types of subjects: human, animal
subjects, inanimate subjects:
This box is going to fall.
There is going to be a storm in a minute.
Usually, it is immediate future, but somehow also distant:
They are going to move to a new flat.
I’m going to be a painter when I grow up.
They are going to arrive late. (both intention and cause).
Shifting be going to to the past:
The car was going to crash, but I brought it to safety. (not realized)
V. PRESENT PROGRESSIVE – implication: after now + plan, arrangement, programme.
She is inviting us to the party. (to emphasize her plan)
They are getting married next month. (emphasize)
I’m sorry, I’d like to play chess with you but… I’m taking Mary out. (no speaker’s intention but
shows a plan)
Expresses near future, but there are examples like: When he grows up, he is joining the army.
Subjects can be animate or inanimate:
Bill is rising at 5 o’clock tomorrow. (plan) vs. The sun is rising at 5. (difficult to plan for the
sun)
It is going to rain tomorrow. (cause) vs. It is raining tomorrow. (a kind of arrangement but
not logical with this context)
VI. PRESENT NONPROGRESSIVE – used both in subordinate and main clauses.
In subordinate clauses:
a) temporal: When they arrive, we’ll go fishing.
b) if-clauses: If he arrives, we’ll go.
He will tell you [when he has a necessary information]. (temporal adv.cl. - present simple)
He will tell you [when he will have…] (nominal object clause - future simple)
In main clauses:
- After NOW + meaning of certainty, “future as a fact”; context of organized events, time-tables,
schedules, calendars. Verbs: arrive, start, leave:
The term starts on October 16th. The plane leaves at 7 pm.
- If used with momentary verbs with situations which are not so certain to happen, we get an
ironic comment: Next week he starts doing drugs.
- Decision can be subject’s or sb else’s:
His train leaves at 5 o’clock. (future or habitual present)
*He knows the answer tomorrow. (not grammatical because stative verbs are not used with
present simple for future, they don’t imply an arrangement)
My doctor won’t let me get up yet. (modal meaning)
7
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
I’m seeing Kate tomorrow. (present prog., arrangement, plan)
I’ll be seeing Kate tomorrow. (not a plan but there are chances that I’ll see her - future as a
matter of cause)

10. Serbian Equivalents of English Future Forms

MAIN CLAUSES:
a. SHALL/WILL V: most frequent way to express future, most natural, used in a variety of contexts;
can be used in all contexts, except in some subordinate clauses (temporal for example). S
equivalent: futur I.
b. SHALL/WILL BE Ving: futur I
c. SHALL/WILL HAVE Ven: futur II
d. BE GOING TO: the 2nd most frequent; futur II; in colloquial speech: Idem da… In English, there
is a distinction between intention and cause: I’m going to eat/ I’m going to make a phone call.
Serbian: Idem da jedem/telefoniram. (both indicate movement)
English:after now, temporal distance (future), intention and cause.
Serbian: physical movement, special distance, also after now, intention.
It’s going to rain. Ide da pada kiša.
With cause we can’t translate with IDEM DA, the subject is inanimate, and we don’t have
movement:
On ide da proda tv. (ok)
...da peva glasno. (ok, ako će biti neko kretanje)
…da postane doktor. (not ok - a stative verb, (become) no movement)
e. PRESENT PROGRESSIVE – futur I, present of imperfective verbs. In English-plan,
arrangement, programme:
It’s raining tomorrow. (* we can’t have a plan for the weather)
I’m leaving tomorrow.
Sutra pada kiša. (normalno ne bismo ovako rekli, ali ako smo sigurni ok)
Sutra odlazim. (futur I, animate subject)
f. PRESENT NONPROGRESSIVE – future as a fact, unalterable, almost certain:
Train leaves at 5. Voz polazi/kreće u 5. (present of imp. verbs)
*He knows the answer tomorrow. *Sutra zna odgovor. (stative)

SUBORDINATE CLAUSES:
a. Temporal clauses:
While he is sleeping, we’ll go away. When he falls asleep, we’ll go away.
Dok bude spavao… Kad zaspi… (present of perf. verbs) Dok on spava… (future II)
Čim stigne, ja ću ti javiti. As soon as he arrives… (imediately) ...has arrived (not necessary
immediately, emphasis on completion)
b. Conditional clauses – IF-clause:
If I know the answer, I’ll raise my hand. If I *will know (not possible)
Kad znam odgovor, podignem ruku.
c. Some types of relative clauses:
Nagradu će osvojiti [ onaj ko bude imao najviše bodova]. (futur II) The prize will win [the
one who has the largest number of points].
d. Što god/ko god:
[Što god budete činili] gledajte da se ne osramotite. (futur II)
Whatever you do, make sure you don’t embarrass yourself. (present simple)
e. Some adverbial clauses of purpose/manner:
[Što više budeš učio] više ćeš znati. The more you study , the more you’ll know.

8
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam

11. Nonfinite forms and temporal relations

Nonfinite forms: not denoting tense (present/past/future). Temporal relations in a clause: anteriority,
posteriority and simultaneousness. Orientation point: point from the context, not necessarily point of
speech.
Infinitives:
- TO inf: They planned to get to the seaside. They wanted to see you. (simultaneous or posterior
action in the nonfinite clause)
- perfect infinitive: precedes: She wished to have seen that film.
Participles:
- present participle: simultaneous action (knowing Japanese…). Exceptions with momentary verbs
of perception (hear, see):
[Hearing father’s steps below,] she went downstairs.
[Arriving at the station,] they took a taxi. – precedes
- having Ven: precedes
- Past participle: precedes:
Encouraged by success, she continued.
The police burst in and arrested [the man sitting on the sofa].
Temporal relation is measured from a contextually given orientation point which is not necessarily now.

12. Older Definitions of Aspect

Aspect is a more controversial category than tense. There are different definitions and terminology.
Controversial especially in English, even the very existence of the category is controversial.
Overview of aspect definitions:
Oldest definitions:
- in Ancient Greece, Aristotle – predicate denotes time, and from this assumption we developed the
category of tense.
- However, the first meanings we now relate to aspect we can find in the group of the philosophers,
the Stoics. They analyzed the Greek verb, used the term completion, and divided Greek verbs into
completed and incomplete. Complete are perfect, pluperfect; incomplete are present, imperfect.
Philosophers described language within their philosophical systems. Their terminology reflects
philosophical assumptions, not linguistic. We can be critical now, it doesn’t mean we can use these
terms now if we want to use them linguistically.
- Varro (Latin grammarian) included tenses and notion of completion in his description of Latin
verbs and Latin grammar. Latin grammar was the model for other languages.

Older English grammar books and studies – definitions and terminology:

I. Henry Sweet: A New English Grammar I&II (1st edition 1891 and 1899) - in the introduction he
specifies the goals he wants to achieve: coin new terminology and new expressions where the
existing terminology is defective; choose the best terms and achieve uniform terminology. He
was aware of the problem with terminology. His solution is the division of tenses into:
a. simple and compound (with or without auxiliaries)
b. complete and incomplete – The clock is striking noon. (IC). vs. The clock has struck noon.
(C) – but, present perfect is not always complete, there is no correspondence between form
and meaning.

9
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
c. definite and indefinite tenses: Def – more precise location in time, Indef – not so precise.
He is writing a letter/He writes his letters in the evening.
d. long and short tenses: theoretically problematic; tenses specify WHEN and not how long. I
have been writing. I go to France twice a year. - long tenses can be continuous or recurrent.
Short tenses: a brief moment of time: We passed through…
- Inchoative verbs: mark the beginning of a situation. We began to walk. (seems more like an
aspectual notion).
- Conclusion: Sweet had good ideas, saw where the problem was with the terminology, but it is not
always acceptable in modern linguistics, not always logical.

II. Otto Jaspersen: The Philosophy of Grammar, 1924. Aspectual meanings put in oppositions:
aorist/imperfect; conclusive-non-conclusive; permanent-punctual; repeated-non-repeated, etc.
Some of these oppositions are formal (1st), others are more or less semantic.

III. George Curme: English Grammar (1966). Terminology - aspect uses the following terms:
a. terminative: actually sth habitual, characteristic; present simple
b. progressive: not complete yet.
c. point-action (ingressive and effective) - momentary: It is beginning to rain. He ate up all the
sandwiches.

IV. Palmer, The English Verb (1987). Aspect: progressive and non-progressive. Phase: not his term,
not the 1st one to use it, he simply used phase as a specific category (situation that started
before, but continued up to a point – present/past/future perfect) – not accepted in grammar
books. Palmer is right in one point – division of aspect. Phase: perfect and non-perfect; aspect:
progressive and perfect? – he had two categories to link them, we cannot have this binary
opposition, they have to be mutually exclusive, but they are not – perfect progressive is a
possible combination in English. In English, you might have two aspects, A1 and A2.

V. Quirk et. al.: A Grammar of Contemporary English (1985): This is a standard description of
English aspect, and the authors include aspect as a category in English. Simple definition: it is a
manner in which a verb situation is experienced. It represents a comment of the author. Two
pairs of aspectual oppositions: progressive and non-progressive and perfective and non-
perfective. Difference between perfect and perfective: perfect is related to the form (present
perfect), while perfective is related to completion, at least in Slavic grammars (semantic notion).
It’s maybe better to call it perfect, than perfective.

13. B. Comrie and L. Brinton on aspect and Aktionsart

I. Laurel Brinton: The Development of English Aspectual System (1988) – two trends in aspectual studies
– notional and formal. Notional starts from the meanings/concepts; and then sees how they are expressed.
Formal starts from tenses and aspects – usage.
He walks/is walking to work. He *has worked/worked all day yesterday.
In notional approach, you start from notional concepts, like durative/momentary/stative/dynamic, etc. For
example, stative verbs cannot be used in the progressive.
Set of aspectual meanings:
a. perfective: expressed by non-progressive: present simple, past simple. Denote the whole situation.
b. imperfective (progressive): situation viewed as a structure.
c. phase: ingressive and egressive – segment – ingressive =beginning; egressive=end?)
d. habitual: nonprogressive, used to
e. perfect: Have Ven
10
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
Criteria for division: semantic, also some formal (perfect - form)

Aspect vs. Aktionsart

Aspect: grammatical, subjective, related to speaker’s standpoint, progressive/non-progressive –
speaker can choose which one to use.
Aktionsart: lexical, semantic, more objective, related to meaning, similar to Vendler’s
classification, if you have a momentary or a stative verb, it is an objective difference.

Lexical-grammatical interaction: grammatical – aspect; lexical: meaning of verbs (stative, momentary,

etc.). Pattern: If you want to make a statement, you start from your mental lexicon, you want to find the
words that convey your message. If you choose the verb RUN, you use the knowledge of that verb (denotes
activity, dynamic, intransitive, requires animate subject, etc). Grammatical part: you have to have an
animate S, you can use it both in the progressive and in non-progressive, in the past and in the present –
features of the lexical item influence morphological structure.

II. Bernard Comrie, Aspect (1976). Definition: Aspect is view of the internal temporal constituency of a
situation (general, refers to more languages than one). View – subjective, S’s standpoint; temporal – related
to time; internal temporal – tense is internal time, while this is internal, inside the situation; constituency –
arrangement. Tense is external time – present, past and future. Objective choice: structure (impf) and whole
(pf). He mentions in his book basic opposition, uses terms perfective and imperfective; but he gives them a
different meaning, not related to completion.
Perfective aspect: key word is whole, we present a situation as a whole; we present the situation as a
single unanalyzable whole; we talk about entire situation; we look situation from the outside; there is no
division into phases.
Imperfective aspect: the key word is situation, we present phases of a situation, we look at a situation
from the inside, most oftes speaker’s/writer’s choice. Not an objective difference between the two.
I entered (pf/nonprog.) while he was reading (impf/prog). – simultaneous, but not complete overlapping,
only partial.
Helen read that book yesterday. While she was reading it, a postman came. (we can present the
same situation (reading) in two different ways; choice of pf/impf is subjective; depends on the
context)
Aspect and time: L both tense and aspect are related to time, but in a different way. Tense is related to
external time – present, past or future; and it is deictic (related to the point of speech). Aspect is internal
time, time inside the situation. We can represent it as a whole or as a structure. Aspect is not a deictic
category, and we do not need context.
Aspect and inherent meaning: this is grammatical interaction; some semantic properties of verbs interact
with aspectual oppositions, prohibiting some combinations and restricting their meaning. She painted/was
painting a picture. – with past simple, there is a goal and it is accomplished; in the second we still have a
goal and don’t know if it is reached; it is neutralized. For -durative and progressive it means repetition. If
we have a stative verb, we cannot use it in the progressive.
Marked and unmarked member: perfective is marked and impfective is unmarked, as it is more general.
It is not as clear as some categories.

14. Aspect and Metalanguage

Metalanguage the terminology used to describe time, tense and aspect/grammatical categories. As an
example we have the notion of perfective/imperfective that can mean different things in different
languages. In Slavic languages it stands for finished/nonfinished, in English for whole/structure.
---

11
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
Broadly, any metalanguage is language or symbols used when language itself is being discussed or
examined. In logic and linguistics, a metalanguage is a language used to make statements about statements
in another language (the object language). Expressions in a metalanguage are often distinguished from
those in an object language by the use of italics, quotation marks, or writing on a separate line.
There is a variety of recognized metalanguages, including embedded, ordered, and nested (or, hierarchical).
Metalanguage is language that describes language.

15. Aspect in Serbian

Serbian grammars: Definitions are language-specific. Most typical distinction is into complete and
incomplete verbs. Also, PF: momentariness, short duration. Momentariness: PF. Arguments against the
definition: there is only a small number of momentary verbs which are perfective (reći, skočiti). Others,
like prepisati, prepisivati are not momentary.
Pisao je oko pola sata.
Napisao je pismo za pola sata. (napisati je imperfective, but they are both used with the same
temporal adverbial)
Momentariness: not significant, not crucial notion for aspect.
Complete/incomplete distinction: the most frequent distinction. We need aspectually relevant contexts,
both general and lg-specific definitions can be applied.

Contexts:
a) glagolski prilog sadašnji: pevajući, plivajući – only perfective vs. imperfective: Čitajući tu knjigu,
setio se/sećao se svog detinjstva.
Temporal relations: Čitajući - not complete, simultaneous with sećao se.
Whole vs. structure: imperfective is structure, setio se (perfective) is whole.One point in the
structure is simultaneous with the whole. 2nd sentence: two structures, complete overlapping.
b) Glagolski prilog prošli: perfective verbs. Pročitavši tu knjigu, setio se. (*sećao se).Two complete
situations, whole and whole – two different definitions.
c) Fazni glagoli: phase verbs. – početi, prestati, nastaviti: Počeo je da čita/*pročita. (perfective verb
does not have phases, it is a whole)
Summary: general vs. language-specific definition in Serbian. For comparison between E and S we use a
general definition. For Serbian and Slavic languages both definitions can be used.

16. English Equivalents of the Serbian Verbs with Prefixes

Aspect in Serbian is usually related to prefixes. Aspect:
a. Prefixes added to imperfective: pre+plivati
b. a prefix + infix: preplivavati – imperfective (secondary imperfective).
c. stress: pasti, zapevati
Function of prefixes in English and Serbian: In Serbian verbs, they have double function:
grammatical/aspectual and lexical (pre)pisati – you modify the meaning as well. In English verbs, lexical
function: (re)write.
Specific examples of translation: context is necessary. Prefix DO: dokuvati – to cook some more, to cook
additional part; doliti: to pour some more, or an additional part. Meaning: there might be several meanings
of the prefix, here it means additional quantity or activity. Doleteti – fly up to a certain position, come
flying; dotrčati – come running; dobrati – pick the final part, finish picking; dobrojati – count the final
part; dopisivati – be writing, keep writing the additional part; dograđivati – keep/be building; nagriznuti –
bite slightly/a small quantity; ponjuškati – sniff slightly.

Translations:
12
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
a. Verb + adv. modifications: pogurnuti
b. Verb with an object: dobrati (…the additional part)
c. Come Ving: doleteti
d. Finish Ving: dobrojati
e. Begin V: zavladati
f. Get Ven: zabrinuti se
g. Decomposed predicate: zagristi (make a bite)
h. Phrasal verbs: pojesti (eat up)
i. Keep Ving
j. Copula + adj: naljutiti se (become angry)
k. V one’s fill (do mile volje): našetati se, nagledati se
l. Prefixes: nadživeti, prejesti se (nemaju aspectual role, only lexical)
m. Adjective followed by –en: skratiti
NB: Prefixes in English and Serbian don’t have exactly the same function.

17. Decomposed Predicate

M. Radovanović, Spisi iz sintakse i semantike.
In English, it is a complex predicate, consisting of a verb and a deverbal N. The entire predicate can be
replaced by a verb, which is morphologically and semantically related to the deverbal noun. The most
frequent verbs which are found in the decomposed predicate are give, have, make and take. Other verbs: to
pay a visit, to have a look, give a hug, make a bite, take a glance.
V+deverbal noun: to get the meaning, we look at the noun. Verb has the function to denote the dynamic
situation. He had a look/looked at the castle.
Typical syntactic structure or idiomatic structure? It is idiomatic but only to a certain extent (because
they do have transparent meaning).
a. subject and the determiner in the Od: She gave me her/*his usual look. her/his book (there is
agreement restriction in the decomposed predicate)
b. Premodification of deverbal noun: They gave her many black books/He gave one of his long
laughs. (in idioms, you cannot do this, so it’s not a fixed structure, obviously)
c. Relativisation: The look she gave me was charged with horror. (pro-syntactic structure argument,
since you can’t do this with idioms)
d. Coordination: The woman gave Bill the finger and a quick, cold smile. – only one verb, and 2
deverbal nouns, you cannot do this in idioms.
Idioms: to kick the bucket, to kick the first bucket (only possible in literal sense).
Pro-syntactic structure: premodification, relativization, coordination, transparent meaning.
Pro-idiomatic structure: agreement, some verbs used only (restricted) and you have to have a deverbal
noun – restricted form. Summary: typical syntactic structure, with some idiomatic elements.
Deverbal nouns can denote: movement (give a kick), vision (take a glance), speaking (make a remark),
sounds (give a moan), cleaning (give a polish), drinking (take a sip).
Decomposed predicate in Serbian: analizirati – vršiti analizu; prodavati – vršiti prodaju.

18. Smith, Carlota, A Speaker-based Approach to Aspect

Sentential aspect: consists of two elements/components – viewpoint aspect and situation type. These
components interact, and they give the interpretation of a sentence. The author follows the pattern for the
process of how speaker forms the sentence. The speaker wants to start with conveying a certain message
and chooses words (lexical items), then determines the situation type of these words (verbs) which were
chosen. When the situation type is determined (ac/st), then the speaker chooses the appropriate structure for
13
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
a specific situation type. If the speaker chooses to talk about an activity then the viewpoint aspect can be
PF or IMPF. If a situation type is state we use PF. With activity we can choose both.
A speaker can make a standard or non-standard aspectual choice.
Standard is a typical choice, what is expected in a language (state -> nonprog (PF)).
* He is known the answer. (states don’t go with progressives).
Non-standard - something that is an exception, not typical.
She is resembling her great-uncle. (we presented states with prog (IMPF)).
We can also represent states as if they were dynamic situations.
The wheel is in motion.
The birds were in flight. (dynamic situations as if they were stative)
Perfective viewpoint – presents the whole situation as whole, not progressive; present simple and past
simple; includes endpoints.
Imperfective viewpoint: process or a structure, in English it is progressive, endpoints are excluded.
Situation type: Vendler’s types + habitual and generics.

19. Situation Type and Viewpoint Aspect

Idealized Situation Types – to the speaker determining the situation type, wants to describe the mental
process going on when S makes choices. IST are general mental images which we have in our mind, they
are not language specific and they belong to the general characterization that human beings make. Specific
features used to define the these situations (st, act, ach..). SWIM-we compare lexemes with mental images-
looks like an activity in our mind. The author proceeds to explain the interaction of these components
VIEWPOINT+ASPECT & SITUATION TYPE.
Viewpoint can be perfective (whole) and imperfective (structure), situation types - related to lexical
aspect - Vendler’s types+ habitual and generic. She adds the notion of ENDPOINTS - the beginning and
the end of a situation (so we have 2 points).
With ACT endpoints are not included in the notion of the activity itself.
ST-no endpoints, also not implied.
ACC- endpoints implied because accomplishments have a goal.
ACH-endpoints implied, momentary situations.
These features interact with viewpoint aspect.
He fixed the clock. – acc (has a goal)
She reached the lighthouse- ach (momentary)
Lilly strolled along the beach. (act, nonp) nonprog (PF) whole
The visitors lived in London. (state)
They always swam in the pond. (habitual)

Applied the tests: adds and he/she still may be Ving that
He fixed the clock and he may still be doing it. (doesn’t work because we have an endpoint)
….she may still be reaching it. (doesn’t work again, we have an endpoint)
….she still may be strolling. (possible, act we do not imply endpoints)
….they still may be living. (possible, no endpoints)
….they still may be swimming. (possible, no endpoints)

Interaction between situation type and VP aspect: we start from the SA.
(1st) Acc+PF – endpoint implied
(3rd) Act+PF – endpoint still not implied
Rule: in sentential aspect. endpoints are implied if the situation type implies them. Endpoints depend on the
situation type.

14
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
Imperfect (progressive): situation type+prog (impf):
Act+prog – no endpoints
Ach + prog – repetition, with endpoints implied
Acc + prog – endpoints are natural (was writing a letter)
Conclusion: situation type and VP aspect interact. Endpoint depends on the situation type.

20. Progressive-Nonprogressive opposition in English: Tense or Aspect

Aspect 1 – there are several theories to explain this progressive-nonprogressive opposition:
a. Incompletion – progressive. But this is a problematic theory, because you need an object, GOAL
(NP → Od):
He was reading/he read. → He was reading that book.
b. Duration – progressive:
They were running/ran. She is running. (real present)
c. Overlapping (temporal frame) – sequence, in some cases:
When I saw them, they were running away./ran away.

But, in order to explain one notion, we need several theories, several oppositions.
Quirk et al. say that there are 4 oppositions:
i. Temporariness – general characteristic (sb's skill, ability), momentary:
He is playing the piano. (real present)
He plays the piano. (skill, ability)
ii. Limited duration & habitual:
He started typing his own letters these days. (adverbial of time) (limited duration)
He types his own letters. (habitual)
iii. Emotionally-coloured tone & objective (neutral) tone:
Helen is always arriving late. (sporadic repetition; contunually; disapproval, negative,
implied)
He is always reading The Times. (ignoring)
- Stative verbs: He is always believing what she says.
He is always hearing noises.
He is always knowing the answer.
*She is continually hating Bill.
- inanimate subjects: The train is always arriving late.
My car is always breaking down at the wrong time.
iv. Completion: He was reading a book that evening.
He read a book that evening.
- Momentary verbs + prog. usually imply:
a. Repetition: He was nodding.
He was knock knock knocking on Heaven's door.
b. Preparation for the realisation: The plane was landing.
The train was arriving.
- Construction: Beaux + Beingcop + N/Adj
*He is being tall./He is tall.
*The trees are being green./The trees are green.
She is being kind./She is kind. (implication: temporary behaviour)

21. Non-progressive verbs

15
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
Non-progressive verbs: stative verbs are not usually found in progressive. There are 3 groups of non-
progressive verbs:
(1) Verbs of perception (see, hear, smell, feel, taste)
(2) Verbs of cognition & emotions (think, believe, love, hate)
(3) Relational verbs (resemble, own)
Explanation to why stative verbs are not found in the progressive: duration? This explanation is not
acceptable, because duration is an essential part of the meaning of stative verbs. But, dynamic verbs swim,
run also have duration, and we use them in progressive. A better explanation is through Vendler's types:
states have no development, no progress; if there is no progress, it is not compatible with progressive.

(1) VERBS OF PERCEPTION: when they denote an unintentional situation, they are non-
progressive (not on purpose, not controlling the situation):
This medicine tastes bitter.
Do you hear the noise outside?
This material feels like wool.
- Voluntary situation with a slightly different meaning: then they ARE in the progressive:
Hear: The judge is hearing the witnesses. (interrogating)
See: The director is seeing the candidates. (interviewing)
They are seeing the sights of London.
He is seeing his girlfriend off.
Feel: This fork feels heavy. (simply perception)
She felt that she was making a mistake. (cognition)
The doctor was feeling the boy’s arm. (touching)
Smell: The dog was smelling the fish. (sniffing, activity)
Taste: The cook is tasting the dish. (voluntary)
- Palmer: POLYSEMY – SMELL, FEEL, TASTE have different, related meanings. Three kinds of
related meaning:
a. Involuntary, nonprogressive, Vt, “having a sensation” – subject is not doing it on purpose:
I smell the flowers. I taste salt in the soup. I feel sth smooth.
b. involuntary, nonprogressive, copula + Cs, “having the quality to produce a sensation”, the
object of the 1st type becomes the subject of the 2nd:
The flowers smell lovely. The soup tastes nice. The cloth feels smooth.
c. Progressive, voluntary, Vt: “act in order to achieve a sensation” – voluntariness related to
the subjects: I’m smelling the flowers. The cook is tasting the soup. I’m feeling the cloth.
- However, SEE, HEAR have different lexemes used for these 3 related meanings:
I see my sister. She looks well. I’m looking at my sister.
I hear music. It sounds nice. I’m listening to music.

(2) VERBS OF COGNITION AND EMOTION - in progressive when they have an emotionally
coloured tone, or in specific contexts or meanings:
o differ: He is always differing from his colleagues.
o find: She is continually finding faults with me.
o forget: Are you forgetting your manners?
o hope: They are always hoping to win the first prize.
o imagine: He is always imagining dangers that do not exist.
o mind: Do you mind if I smoke? / She is minding the baby. (not emotionally coloured,
dynamic verb)
o think: I think he is the right person for the job. We are thinking of going to Italy.

16
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
(3) RELATIONAL VERBS – only exceptionally in progressive, with a slightly different, specific
meaning:
hold: This bottle holds 2 liters of milk. (stative) I’m holding a piece of paper. (dynamic)
resemble: She is resembling her father more and more. (gradual process)

22. Progressive aspect and Lexical-Grammatical Interaction

Some semantic features of verbs interact with the progressive aspect: duration, telicity, and stativity.
a. Duration:
+dur, +prog
-dur, +prog (but, meaning of repetition or preparation)
b. Stativity:
+stat, +prog* (not possible)
- stat, - prog
c. Telicity:
 V+ NP: He painted a picture. (goal) / He was painting a picture. (goal is neutralized,
but still there)
 Phrasal verbs: The house burnt down. (telic)
The house was burning down, but the firemen arrived in time. (started
to develop, but didn’t reach the goal – it was again neutralized)
 Verbs with prefixes: He rewrote a novel.(+telic) / He was rewriting (goal
neutralized)
 Copulas + Cs: The leaves turned yellow/are turning.
 Decomposed predicate: She was making a remark.
NB. Style: They began crying. (nonprog, -ing)
They are beginning to cry. (prog, inf)
*They are beginning crying. – stylistically inacceptable, you should avoid using
Ving/prog+Ving.

23. Perfect-Nonperfect opposition in English: Aspect or Tense?

Is Present Perfect a location in time (when)? Not really.
They bought a new book. They have bought a new book.
Meaning is UP TO NOW, not exactly when it happened. It is more aspect than tense. Arguments: tense
should imply location in time; it’s not a present tense, because present should be having sth to do with
present actions, it should be denoting real present:
He has bought that book now. (finally, eventually)
It’s not a past tense, because it cannot be used with specific time adverbials

Present Perfect vs. Past Nonprogressive: (Quirk et al.) several oppositions used to show how they differ:
1) He lived in Paris for 10 years. (now excluded)
He has lived (now included)
2) His father has been a butler his whole life. (still alive)
His father was a butler... (may not be alive)
3) For years Nepal has produced world’s greatest soldiers.
Sparta produced/*has produced... (does not exist anymore, that iss why we cannot use it in the
present perfect) (extralinguistic knowledge necessary )
4) Did you hear him play?
Have you heard him play?

17
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
Present Perfect vs. Past simple:
He has cut/cut his finger.
He has injured his ankle and it is still bad/but it is better now. (contradictory)
Meaning is UP TO NOW; vague temporal component/temporal segment. Has an aspectual component.
Represents continuation, result, consequences, not temporal location.

Past & Future Perfect:

Clearer temporal component; it is up to then – past or future; aspectual component:
By 10 o’clock he had been working for 3 hours.
In 2007 he had known them for 7 years.
He was ill because he had eaten so much. (consequence, result)
By 8 o’clock I’ll have repaired the car.
By August, we’ll have been at the seaside for a fortnight.
It is systematically expressed in a language, in all temporal segments: past, present and future. There are
temporal and aspectual component (but it is more treated as aspect); not saying anything about the situation
itself – links the situation to a specific point in time (now, future…).
Definition of perfect aspect: it represents a link between a situation and a point/period of time.

Restrictions on the use of Present Perfect: – there has to be a link with now; active/passive differ:
*Einstein has visited Princeton.
Princeton has been visited by Einstein. (Princeton still exists)
*Marco Polo has climbed that mountain. (but if you add “and many others have” there is a link to
now and it is acceptable)
Shakespeare has written impressive dramas. (there is a link to now)
*Shakespeare has met every playwright in London.

Present perfect and adverbials:

a. Without any adverbial: Her car has been stolen. (recent); She has been to Oslo. (experiential)
b. Experiential pp (ever, never, many times, since, so far, up to now): They have never been to India.
c. Recent past (just, recently): Have you been there recently?
d. Persistent (since, for some time)
e. Same adverbials with pp and past simple: specific past time adverbials are not used with present
perfect; always, often, this week – are used.
You have always been kind to them.He always traveled with him.
Did he ever go t see his parents?Have you ever tried that?
He often met her parents. He has often told that story.

24. Perfect aspect and lexical-grammatical interaction

Stativity, duration and telicity – no blocking.
Types of present perfect and tendencies related to these types:
+st – persistent situations
+dur – experiential situations
-dur – result, recent past (momentary verbs)
+telic – result

25. Theories about present perfect and types of present perfect

3 most frequent theories about present perfect:

18
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
1. Current relevance (CR): a link UP TO NOW, we use present perfect because situation is still
relevant/valid because it is:
A. Recent (just happened): They have just arrived.
B. Continuation :They have lived here since 1957.
C. Consequence/result: They have arrived.
Problem? No objective external measure of relevance. What is in use is relevant, so it is difficult for
the learners. Also, there are other uses of present perfect besides this.
2. Indefinite past: refers to past section, but we’re not sure exactly when; this past segment is
narrowed down by using just/recently.
*He has left yesterday.He has just left.
3. Extended now (EN) – refers to present segment, around now, refers to consequences.

Types of Present Perfect:

A link between a situation and now. On the basis of this link we have four types of pp:
a. Present Perfect of result – results or consequences are still present in the present segment
(now):
Bill has arrived. (emphasizes that he is still present here; notion of consequence is
rather relative/subjective)
b. Experiential – at least once in sb’s lifetime, negative experience: never in sb’s lifetime. You
can narrow it down: She has been/gone to Brazil since the war.
c. Persistent situation – continuation up to now:
She has shopped here for a long time. I’ve known her since childhood.
d. d. Recent past – couple of minutes ago: She has just gone to bed.

26. Perfect and progressive aspect combined

Present Perfect Progressive (Aspect 1 + Aspect 2):
Uses:
 Process, possible duration, not completed: She has been writing a letter to her sister. Who has
been eating my dinner?
 Momentary verbs: repetition – She has been starting her car. and continuation + repetition: I’ve
been knock knock knocking on Heaven's Door for 10 minutes.
 Effects still present, explanation: You’ve been fighting again. I’ve been painting the flat.
 Temporary habit, up to now: He’s been scoring plenty of goals this season.
 Passive? This organization has been being run by volunteers.
 Some stative verbs: They have been wanting to tell you. We have been wishing to speak to you.
He has painted the bathroom. (completed)
He has been painting. (indicates the kind of activity)
 Specifies the number: How many pages of that book have you read?*been reading

27. Past perfect – temporal and aspectual components

In past perfect, we have 2 past situations, one preceding one following; before PAST, up to then (in the
past). It has both temporal and aspectual component. Requires a specific time adverbial:

Aspectual component:
This letter had arrived on April 10th.
The house had been empty for 10 years.
The goalkeeper had injured his leg and could not play.

19
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
Past simple: I had my lunch when my wife came/had come back from shopping. (we need context)
Past perfect: This book had been lying there for years. (continuation up to then)
When I arrived, he had just left. (recent, “before past”)

Temporal relations of the two past situations:

a) The first past situation is still continuing when the second past situation begins: She had lived in
that flat for years and did not want to move.
b) Stopped some time before: He had served in the army for 20 years, and then he retired and
married.
c) Stopped immediately before: He had been waiting for his sister and was angry when she
arrived.

Rule for use of Past Perfect: we need two past situations and a chronological inversion: “looking back”
– past is the starting point, and then you look back further into the past. If the situations are mentioned in
their chronological order, there is no need to use past perfect.
He met her in 1999 when she was a student. He met her again when she was a lawyer. (past
simple) She heard voices and realized that there were three persons in the next room.
- Chronological inversion:
She graduated at 24. Her parents had divorced 2 years before.
She saw empty glasses and realized that three persons had been in the room.

Past Perfect in Temporal clauses:

a. When, as soon as – we need context; if an earlier situation is short and immediately preceding,
you don’t have to use past perfect: When she opened the window, the bird flew out.
When he had closed the window, they opened the cage. (emphasis on completion)
b. Before – in main and in subordinate clauses:
[They had cleaned the house] before the guests arrived.
Subordinate clauses – specific:
The teacher took my paper before I had finished the test. (took-finish-now).
Before we had walked/walked 10 miles, he complained of his sore feet. (complain/10
miles/now)
c. After: After the will was/had been read, there were angry exclamations.

Past Perfect Progressive – uses:

A. Continuation up to then (in the past):
It was 6 and he was tired because he had been working since dawn. (persistent situation up to then)
B. Repetition – used with momentary verbs: He had been trying to call her.
C. Incompletion – progressive suggests no specification of completion: He had been repairing his
car. vs. He had repaired the car. (indicates that it was completed)

28. Past Perfect and its Serbian equivalents (L. Spalatin)

L. Spalatin: The English Past Perfect and its Serbo-Croatian equivalents (1971).
Topics:
i) Uses of past perfect nonprogressive as secondary past in main and subordinate clauses, and as
primary past:
 secondary (before past):
o main clauses
o subordinate clauses
 primary past (before NOW)
20
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
ii) Author’s hypothesis (centre of interest)
iii) SC equivalents

Primary and secondary past: not a point in the past, but segments (several past situations): before now is
a segment of primary past. We have several past situations in the segment of primary past, and you don’t
have to use past perfect even if you have several past situations:
He was punished because he broke the window.
Centre of interest (the author’s hypothesis): if you don’t use past perfect for the past situation, you
emphasize temporally last member (note that this is only a hypothesis). If you use past perfect, you
emphasize an earlier situation, give it prominence, and this allows us to shift interest.
When he heard that he turned pale. (past simple, emphasized)
When she reached her house, she found that burglars had broken into and had taken the silver.
(underlined clearly belongs to secondary past section, that’s why we use past perfect)

Uses of Past Perfect in:

1.Main clauses/simple clauses:
I hardly knew Bill. He had always been a loner.
- Serbo-Croatian equivalent is pluperfect (pluskvamperfekat) even though it is rare and obsolete; a
better equivalent is perfect (perfekat).
Nothing so thrilling had happened there for years.
- In Serbian, you can use adverbials such as već, ranije + perfekat:
Već godinama se tamo nije desilo nešto tako uzbudljivo.
He had been a butler in very good families. – Nekada je bio…
2.Subordinate clauses:
- Temporal:
He got up from the table where he had been reading. > Ustao je od stola gde je čitao. (zbog
semantike glagola ustati vidi se koja je radnja bila pre, pa je moguće upotrebiti perfekat u
prevodu)
When I arrived, he left/had left. Kada sam stigla, on je već (bio) otišao. (both possible;
otišao – ambiguous)
When I arrived, he was leaving. (simultaneous) On je odlazio.
- Sequence of tenses:
He said that he had lived in Madrid for 5 years. (ambiguous because it can be either present
perfect or simple past shifted) Prevod: you can use either present or perfect to disambiguate
(živi/živeo je).
- Some other clauses:
He stayed at home because it was raining. – padala kiša
He stayed at home because it had rained. – pala kiša (again, impf/pf distinction in Serbian)
3. Primary past: not typical section, used for exceptions; in the conditionals and subjunctive:
I wish he had explained it properly. (past)
If he had bought the tickets, we would have…
You talk as if you had been there.
Primary past is used to emphasize nonrealisation of past situations:
I had expected to overtake him, but he was nowhere to be seen.
If there is no emphasis, you can use simple past.

29. Multi-word verbs in English

This is a significant topic, often discussed in the workbooks . You need to learn phrasal verbs in order to
sound natural.

21
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
Terminology: multi-word verbs (višečlani glagoli) is a cover term, general, tells only that we have more
than one element and that we are talking about verbs. E.g. to double-cross & to double check are not
phrasal verbs – this shows that the term is too general and that it implies things that are not phrasal verbs.

Used terms:
 Two-word verbs – doesn’t say which elements, too general (?to take part)
 Verb-adverb combination – could be any combination, like run quickly, but this is too general.
 Phrasal verbs – some grammarians use it only for the idiomatic combinations like bring up. But,
e.g. eat up would ot be included according to some authors.
 Separable and inseparable combinations: brought them up, *looked them at
 Discontinued verbs: to take part – doesn’t say which elements
 Compound verbs – compounds are single lexemes with 2 bases, too general term, you cannot
include all the compounds (to househunt).

Types of phrasal verbs:

o Phrasal verb: combination of verb+adverbial particle (bring up)
o Prepositional verbs: verb+prepositional particle (look at)
o Phrasal-prepositional verb: verb+adverb particle+prepositional particle: put up with

Characteristics of phrasal verbs:

a) Not completely freely formed. If you want to get the opposite meaning you cannot
simply use the opposite particle: look after, *look before.
b) Highly productive constructions. For two reasons: style (often informal), variation and
familiarity of elements: frequent domestic/not borrowed verbs and frequent, usually
monosyllabic particles which makes them easy to form and combine.

Criteria for delimitation:

Dwight Bolinger – being a phrasal verb is a matter of degree. There are many borderline cases. Especially
difficult to make a distinction between a multi-word verbs and V+PP. That is why we need criteria and
tests.
I. The combination should have semantic coherence – it should be a semantic unit, have its own
meaning. E.g. look after – has a meaning as a unit; look before sb – every unit keeps its meaning.
II. Replaceability by one-word verb (not always possible): count out = exclude.
III. Passivisation: if Vt, we should be able to passivise it: They turned down the proposal. (The
proposal was turned down.)
IV. PP – adverbials: The postman turned [down the road]. vs. The manager [turned down] [the
proposal].
V. Questions: when, where, what, whom: Where did the postman…? (for adverbials) What/to whom
did…? (for Od)

30. Phrasal verbs

Definition : Vt/i + adverb particle
He called the conference off. vs. The plain had taken off.
The same combination can sometimes be used both transitively and intransitively:
Turn the car around and back it up.vs. You’ll have to turn around and back.

Characteristics:
A. PHONOLOGICAL: stress – the adverbial particle is usually stressed especially if it’s in the final
position.
22
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
He called up the man. The man was called up.
This is not the man I was looking ‘up. I was ‘looking at. (preposition, not adverbial particle)
If you want to emphasize something else you might stress the V: Shall we sell it or ‘throw it away?
B. SYNTACTIC characteristics:
1. Position of the particle:
 if Vt and the Od is a relatively short NP, both are possible: Ken looked up the words.
or Ken looked the words up.
 If the object is rather long the other version is not possible: Tom sent away the boy
who brought the message.
 If the object is a pronoun, particle has to follow it: *Mary looked up them/them up.
Exceptions:
a) If the pronoun is stressed: Live out ‘them if you don’t have the money…
b) Coordinated pronouns: Bring along him and her.
c) Stressed reflexive pronouns: Am I supposed to check off ‘myself on this list?
d) Other: Take up dancing. Carry on eating. Start out thinking.
 If Vi – word order: Come ‘you in Potter! (addressee, inserted for emphasis)
 non-interrogative inversion (stylistic effect): Out go the candles.
*The car picked the speed up. (abstract noun mora da bude ispred)
The car picked the hitchhikers up. (depends on the type of noun)
She cried her eyes out/*out her eyes. She laughed her head off/*off her head.
(fixed word order)
2. Adverbial insertion:
Helen quickly picked up her leg. (typical)
Helen picked up her leg quickly. (typical)
* Helen picked quickly up her leg. (cannot insert it between V and particle)
3. Particle in relative clause: particle + relative pronoun:
* The man up whom they called/whom they called up.
C. SEMANTIC characteristics: at the border between syntax (the particle can change position) and
morphology(they are lexical units). D. Bolinger discusses idiomaticity and divides them into:
a) first-level metaphors – verb retains its basic meaning, particle has extended meaning
(load up)
b) second-level metaphors – both verb and particle extend their meaning (make up)
c) third-level metaphor – completely idiomatic, they even have a specific NP with which
they occur (turn over a new leaf, out on air).

Level of idiomaticity is significant also for syntactic behaviour, not just meaning. Tendencies for
behaviour:
a) highly idiomatic – fronting of the particle is less possible: down they sat/away he flew (less
idiomatic), *out they found (not possible)
b) adverbial insertion: usually, highly idiomatic combinations do not allow it: the money he gave
happily away/*the subject he brought angrily up.

F. Palmer (semantic features) also writes about idiomaticity.

- some phrasal verbs have a literal meaning: verbs of motion + direction (particle denotes it); the
entire combination denotes the resulting position (RUN UP: He ran the flag up.), but, there is a
limited number of examples.
- not literal meaning: The work piled up. They speeded up.
- completely idiomatic combinations: give up.
- Often, the position of the particle depends on idiomaticity. Fully idiomatic combinations do not
usually separate verb and particle:

23
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
They covered up the crime. The covered the body up. (possible, not idiomatic)
*He put the fight up.*They found the truth out.

31. Prepositional verbs

Definiton: V + prepositional particle: account for, deal with, believe in…
Not V + PP!
The verb is always Vt and we have a unit which is always followed by an NP (require complementation):
He took me for a man he knew.
They deprived the children of their rights. (two NPs, one is an Od, the second a compliment of the
preposition)
Passivisation proves which one is which: set fire to sth.
Characteristics:
i. PHONOLOGICAL (stress): prepositional particle here is usually not stressed:
He is not the person I was ‘looking at.
Stressed only to emphasize the contrast: He ran ‘up the hill, not ‘down. (two-syllable particles are
stressed, at least one syllable must be stressed)
ii. SYNTACTIC characteristics:
i. position of the particle –particle always has to precede the Od:
Look at these pictures. Look at them. *Look these pictures at.
ii. adverbial insertion – usually possible:
He laughed heartily at the joke.
The pupils listened carefully to the lecturer.
iii. relative clause - you can have a particle followed by a relative pronoun.
The man at whom they looked.
iv. Passivisation - usually not possible, but there are some exceptions:
They were being looked after.
?This bed has been slept in. (šta je zapravo subjekat/objekat)
iii. SEMANTIC characteristics: different levels of IDIOMATICITY – usually less idiomatic than
phrasal verbs. There are different levels of idiomaticity:
She looked after the children. (highly idiomatic)
He came into a fortune. (not so much)
You can [see through] [his deception].
You can [see] [through the glass].

Particle, adverb or preposition?

They came in. (adverb)
They sat in the chair. (preposition)

We need TESTS to establish the nature of the particle:

1. PHONOLOGICAL (stress): possible, yet not reliable (a lot of exceptions)
2. SYNTACTIC:
a) position of the particle – NP/pronoun particle: He called off the conference/the
conference off. He called it off/*off it. Prepositional particle can only preceed.
b) relative clause: *the conference off which he called, the girl at which he was looking

Coordinated particles - we can coordinate them without repeating the verb:

He wrote it over and over. He went on and on. (emphasis and continuation)
He switched the light on and off. She was pulling her gloves on and off. (opposite meaning)

24
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
32. Phrasal-prepositional verbs
Definition: v + adverbial particle + prepositional particle
catch up with, come/go down with, cut down on, walk out on

Characteristics of phrasal-prepositional verbs:

a. Meaning - all the 3 elements represent a unit, not a phrasal verb + a particle:
I can’t put up with her. (tolerate) / You can put up with Mrs Brown. (stay)
The thief got away with her purse. / He can get away with anything.
b. Both particles + wh-word:
*The woman with whom I cannot put.
*This is something up with which I cannot put.
c. Passivisation:
You can’t put up with her.She can’t be put up with.
He walked up with his friends.*His friends were walked up with.
d. Questions: Od (what/who)
Tom will keep on with his work. > What will he keep on with?
She will fill in for the CEO. > Whom will she fill in for?
e. Adverbial insertion: The policeman caught up quickly with the criminals. * Caught up with
quickly criminals.
f. Od and prepositional object: He can put his successes down to hard work.
g. Idiomaticity:
carry on with – not highly idiomatic
get along with – highly idiomatic (get – not the basic meaning)
stay away from – not idiomatic
go down with – idiomatic

33. Nouns and adjectives formed from multi-word verbs

Three basic ways:
a. change the stress: run away – runaway - in the second word its on the first part, written as 1
word, or it can be written with a hyphen: make up – make-up.
b. particle used as a prefix: break out – outbreak
c. derivational affixes (-ing): growing up, dressing up
d. adjectives – past participle (-en) + hyphen (a broken-down car, a built-in element, an off-putting
person).

34. Multi-word verbs and collocations in English

Different meanings (up to 15), depending on the collocation (NP which follows):
PUT ON – a cap/jacket/glasses, perfume/makeup, a CD/DVD, a show/exhibition/play, a lamp,
coffee/steak, a new lock, weight, speed, put the money on sb, emphasis, a tattoo, airs, the dog (behave in a
grand, unpleasant way).
DO UP – a house (repair), face, hair (make tidy), a book/dress (put together).
PICK UP – a book/bag, the newspaper/phone, somebody, a habit, signals, information, speed, the word,
the pieces, the questioning, top assignments.

25
 English verb system – contrastive approach 2
Oral exam
35. Multi-word verbs and idiomaticity in English
Meaning and idiomaticity: The combinations have a specific meaning they have a special level of
idiomaticity. There are three levels of idiomaticity:
a) Fully transparent – both parts retain their basic meaning (stand up, run away)
b) Semi-idiomatic – verb retains its basic meaning, meaning of the particle is extended, it is an
intensifier, denotes completion (drink up, wipe down)
c) Fully idiomatic – both have completely abstract meaning (turn down, give up)
COMPARE: The committee went into the room/into the problem.

36. Particles in phrasal verbs – aspect or Aktionsart (L. Brinton)

L. Brinton – Verb Particles in English – Aspect or Aktionsart?
Verbs and particles form cohesive meaning units. They create some syntactic and semantic problems:
1. Syntactic: particles can take different positions.
2. Semantic: meaning of the particle and its function. Particles have to do something with aspect,
but in a non-systematic way. That’s why the particles are called resultative, conclusive,
terminative…
She believes that it is important to make that distinction between aspect and Aktionsart; particles do not
denote perfective aspect, but telic Aktionsart (they are related to telicity). But this distinction is a blurred
one. Grammatical and lexical opposition.

Arguments for telic Aktionsart:

1. Phasal verbs: you can use V + particle with these:
The shoes are starting to wear out.
She continued tearing up the letter.(if particles were denoting perfective aspect (whole), this
structures would not be possible)
2. The structure: Take some time to. It took her a year to use up the supplies. (proof that it is telic
(achievement or accomplishment) *Vendler’s tests )
3. In an hour: They carried out the order in an hour. (again, this is a proof that it is telic (behaves like
ach or acc))
4. Almost: They almost voted down the proposal. (started but did not finish)
Particles denote telicity, not perfect aspect.

However, there are two problems:

A. ach/acc (telic) + particle (denotes telicity) – why add a particle to something that is already telic?
We haven’t found out the answer – re-emphasizes telicity:
The party is breaking up.
The speakers of that language are dying off. (used in the progressive, has distributive
meaning, gradually happening)
B. on, along, away - do not denote telicity, but continuation:
We drove on/along.
You should carry on with your work. (sometimes they denote continuative Aktionsart)

States and particles – particles which denote telicity are not combined with stative verbs. It’s another
argument for telicity. Particles denote telicity, but states are not telic.
I had some friends over. (here it’s not a stative verb, it has a dynamic meaning)

26