There are four past tense forms in English: We use these forms: to talk about the past: He worked at McDonald's. A present-tense sentence that uses a present participle becomes the past tense through the main verb of the sentence, not through the participle that accompanies it as auxiliary verb, verb-into-noun or modifier. to talk about hypotheses (when we imagine something) for politeness. In non-finite clauses, present participles are verbs in a dependent clause that joins to an independent clause: "Sitting alone, I am perfectly content." Change the main verb, and it's just as easily past tense: "Sitting alone, I was perfectly content." Even used as nouns or adjectives, they are appropriate in past tense: "That was good thinking on her part" and "The sinking sun was beautiful." Present Participles Work AnywhereĪ writer can successfully use present participles in past-tense narratives, as long as he remembers that the word "present" in the "present participle" is its form, not its tense. Thus, a continuous tense formation in a past-tense narrative is simple: "John was thinking about Mary" or "Alice was running home" or "She was drinking too heavily." Incidentally, the present participle lends itself just as easily to future tense: "One day, John will be thinking about Mary more and more." Any Usage Worksīy the same token, the other usages of present participles are perfectly appropriate in past-tense narratives. past tense and past participle of think (7) Crossword Clue Past tense and past participle of fling (5) FLUNG Past tense and past participle of swing (6). However, the same present participle can be used in past tense: "I was thinking." The main verb "was," not the participle, determines the tense. Present Participles Don't Determine Tense
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