Use of the correct verb tense allows you to express clearly the time relationships among your ideas. When deciding which verb tense to use, aim for consistency, simplicity, and clarity. Whenever possible, keep verbs in the same tense consistency , and use either the simple present or the past tense simplicity. Above all, choose the verb tense that most clearly expresses the idea you want to convey clarity. In general, use the present tense to describe actions and states of being that are still true in the present use the past tense to describe actions or states of being that occurred exclusively in the past. use the present tense to make generalizations about your topic or the views of scholars: the two indus artifacts provide insight into ancient hindu culture.

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use the present tense to cite an author or another source except in science writing, where past tense is used see below. the universal declaration of human rights of 1948 reflects the idealism of the second world war. The historian donna harsch states that social democrats tried to prevent the triumph of nazism in order to save the republic and democracy 3. use the past tense to describe actions or states of being that occurred exclusively in the past: hemingway drew on his experiences in world war i in constructing the character of jake barnes.

present and past tense together

at times you will use both present and past tense to show shifts between time relationships. Use present tense for those ideas/observations that are considered timeless and past tense for actions occurring in the past: the padshahnama is an ancient manuscript owned by the royal library at windsor castle.

This manuscript details the history of shah jahan, the muslim ruler who commissioned the building of the taj mahal webb et al. Flynn 19 concluded that high school students are more likely to smoke cigarettes if they have a parent who smokes. Simon 20 observed that neutered cats spend less time stalking their prey. use the present tense to describe fictional events that occur in the text: this use of present tense is referred to as the historical present. Voltaire 39 s candide encounters numerous misfortunes throughout his travels. also use the present tense to report your interpretations and the interpretations of other sources: odysseus represents the archetypal epic hero. Flanagan suggests that satan is the protagonist of paradise lost.

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use the past tense to explain historical context or elements of the author 39 s life that occurred exclusively in the past: hemingway drew on his experiences in world war i in constructing the character of jake barnes. when writing about literature, use both present and past tense when combining observations about fictional events from the text present tense with factual information past tense: james joyce, who grew up in the catholic faith, draws on church doctrine to illuminate the roots of stephen dedalus 39 guilt. Simone de beauvoir accurately portrays the complexities of a marriage even though she never married in her lifetime. use the present perfect tense to describe an event that occurs in the text previous to the principal event you are describing: the governess questions the two children because she believes they have seen the ghosts. Convinced that desdemona has been unfaithful to him, othello strangles her. use the past tense when referring to an event occurring before the story begins: in the opening scenes of hamlet.

The men are visited by the ghost of hamlet 39 s father, whom claudius murdered. use past tense to discuss completed studies and experiments: we extracted tannins from the leaves by bringing them to a boil in 50% methanol. use past tense when referring to information from outside sources: paine 1966 argued that predators and parasites are more abundant in the tropics than elsewhere. Kerr 1993 related the frequency of web decorating behavior with the presence of birds on different pacific islands. A common mistake in science writing is the use of present tense when referring to what other authors have written. as in writing for other disciplines, use present tense in science writing when describing an idea or fact that is still true in the present: genetic information is encoded in the sequence of nucleotides on dna.

Previous research showed that children confuse the source of their memories more often than adults lindsey et al. also use present tense in science writing when the idea is the subject of the sentence and the citation remains fully in parentheses: sexual dimorphism in body size is common among butterflies singer 1982. Contrast the above sentence to the following, also correct, construction: singer 1982 stated that sexual dimorphism in body size is common among butterflies. The logic and practice of the discipline for which you write determine verb tense. If you have questions about tense or other writing concerns, check with your professor.

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The reason we are devoting nearly an entire section to tips on removing the passive voice from your writing is that it is both a very common flaw and very easily correctable. Within this section we also will explain how to choose more active language even when passive voice is not involved. Passive voice occurs when the subject and object of an action are inverted, so the subject is the recipient of the act instead of its performer. A sentence can be passive without the word by, but it is always at least implied.

Later we will discuss ways to avoid to be verbs even when they are not in passive voice constructions. There are generally two cases when passive voice is acceptable: 1 when there is no defined or tangible subject 2 when the emphasis really should be on the object of the action. awkward alternative: the general public refers to him as the great one. case 2: for the fifth time this year, johnson was hit by a pitch. awkward alternative: for the fifth time this year, a pitch hit johnson. As we have already shown, the basic approach to avoiding passive voice is quite simple. Identify the subject of the action the noun that follows by or is otherwise implied and bring that to the front of the clause.

Try these five examples as an exercise:

he was given too many chances to start over by his friends. active language comes not just from avoiding passive voice but further requires the use of strong action verbs. In addition to avoiding to be verbs, you should try to replace helping verbs such as have, had, has, do, does, did and other vague verbs like got and get. before: i had opportunities to develop my skills. after: i sought opportunities to develop my skills. after: i earned the promotion through hard work. before: she did well in this competitive environment.

after: she thrived in this competitive environment. before: my mother didn't want to show up without a gift. after: my mother hesitated to show up without a gift. before: the salesman told the audience about his products. after: the salesman promoted his products to the audience. The last two examples demonstrate the lack of clear distinction between strong and weak verbs. There is nothing in the dictionary that will tell you that promoted sounds stronger than told.

You can certainly develop a strong eye for these subtle issues, but active writing is an area where professional editing can make a substantial difference. See how essayedge experts from schools including harvard, yale and princeton can help you get into graduate school! review our services. contributors: chris berry, allen brizee, elizabeth angeli last edited: 2013 02 21 1:38 throughout this document, example sentences with nonstandard or inconsistent usage have verbs in red.

controlling shifts in verb tense

writing often involves telling stories. Sometimes we narrate a story as our main purpose in writing sometimes we include brief anecdotes or hypothetical scenarios as illustrations or reference points in an essay.