Verb Forms

1
Verb Forms

• Take care to choose the
• correct verb form.

2
What are common verb errors?

• Wrong verb tense
• Later, they tell the teacher.
• Later, they tell the teacher.
• Irregular verb errors
• However, they had came up with an error.
• However, they had come up with an error.

• Which sentence alternate is correct?
• Subject-verb misfits
• Eddie and Bonnie know the answer.
• Eddie and Bonnie knows the answer.
• Verb tense shifts
• They wanted to say it, but they cant.
• They wanted to say it, but they couldnt.

Is there a time shift here?
3
Here are corrected verb answers

• Wrong verb tense
• Later, they tell the teacher.
• Later, they told the teacher.
• Irregular verb errors
• However, they had came up with an error.
• However, they had come up with an error.

• Here are the correct alternates
• Subject-verb misfits
• Eddie and Bonnie know the answer.
• Eddie and Bonnie knows the answer.
• Verb tense shifts
• They wanted to say it, but they cant.
• They wanted to say it, but they couldnt.

Is there a time shift here?
4
When dont subjects match verbs?

• Nonstandard English incorrectly puts an s on
  third person plural verbs.
• Which alternate is correct?
• 1. The dogs barks.
• 2. The dog barks.

Is there a time shift here?
5
What results from verb shifts?

• Writing often involves telling stories.
• Changes in verb tense help readers understand the
  temporal relationships among various narrated
  events.
• Unnecessary or inconsistent shifts in tense can
  cause confusion.

Is the test confusing, or is the student confused?
6
Can we ever shift verbs?

• Rule 1 Do not shift from one tense to another if
  the time frame for each action or state is the
  same.
• Then, what is wrong with one of the verbs in this
  sentence?
• The ocean contains rich minerals that washed down
  from rivers and streams.

Is there a time shift here?
7
Here is the solution

• The ocean contains rich minerals that washed
  down from rivers and streams.
• Contains refers to a current state washed down
  is past, but should be present (wash down)
  because the minerals are currently continuing to
  wash down.
• Corrected The ocean contains rich minerals that
  wash down from rivers and streams.

How well is her time argument going over?
8
Which verb should be fixed?

• How should this sentence be corrected?
• About noon the sky darkened, a breeze sprang up,
  and a low rumble announces the approaching storm.

Isnt it odd how time changes things?
9
Here is the solution

• Original About noon the sky darkened, a breeze
  sprang up, and a low rumble announces the
  approaching storm.
• Darkened and sprang up are past tense verbs
  announces is present but should be past
  (announced) to maintain consistency within the
  time frame.
• Corrected About noon the sky darkened, a breeze
  sprang up, and a low rumble announced the
  approaching storm.

Does time change viewpoints?
10
How do we fix the verb shift?

• In the sentence below, which verb is wrong?
• After all, arent both verb phrases already in
  the past?
• Yesterday we had walked to school but later rode
  the bus home.

How early is this kid?
11
How do we match tenses?

• Original Yesterday we had walked to school but
  later rode the bus home.
• Had walked is past perfect tense but should be
  past to maintain consistency within the time
  frame (yesterday) rode is past, referring to an
  action completed before the current time frame.
• Corrected Yesterday we walked to school but
  later rode the bus home.

Is the little boy verbally confused?
12
Must verb tense always agree?

• Rule 2 Do shift tense to indicate a change in
  time frame from one action or state to another.
• Are these two verbs used correctly?
• The children love their new tree house, which
  they built themselves.

Is there are problem with verb tense here?
13
Why tenses can vary

• Original The children love their new tree house,
  which they built themselves.
• It is correct as is
• Love is present tense, referring to a current
  state (they still love it now) built is past,
  referring to an action completed before the
  current time frame (they are not still building
  it.)

Is the pesky guy about to be removing or removed?
14
When verb tenses must differ

• Before they even began deliberations, many jury
  members had reached a verdict.
• Began is past tense, referring to an action
  completed before the current time frame had
  reached is past perfect, referring to action from
  a time frame before that of another past event
  (the action of reaching was completed before the
  action of beginning.)

What is the purpose of rush hour?
15
Another case for varying tenses

• Workers are installing extra loudspeakers because
  the music in the concert will need them.
• Are installing is present progressive, referring
  to an ongoing action in the current time frame
  will need is future, referring to action expected
  to begin after the current time framethe concert
  will start in the future, and that's when it will
  need amplification.

Does this guy ever change?
16
Do we need a main verb tense?

• Rule 3 Establish a primary tense for the main
  discourse, and use occasional shifts to other
  tenses to indicate changes in time.
• Rely on past tense to narrate events and to refer
  to an author or an author's ideas as historical
  entities.
• Use present tense to state facts, to refer to
  perpetual or habitual actions, and to discuss
  your own ideas or those expressed by an author in
  a particular work. Also use present tense to
  describe action in a literary work, movie, or
  other fictional narrative.

17
How do we narrate the past?

• Simple past narration with perfect and
  progressive
• By the time Tom noticed the doorbell, it had
  already rung three times. As usual, he had been
  listening to loud music on his stereo. He turned
  the stereo down and stood up to answer the door.
  An old man was standing on the steps. The man
  began to speak slowly, asking for directions.
• Here the progressive verbs had been listening
  and was standing suggest action underway at the
  time some other action took place. The
  stereo-listening was underway when the doorbell
  rang. The standing on the steps was underway when
  the door was opened. The past perfect progressive
  verb had been listening suggests action that
  began in the time frame prior to the main
  narrative time frame and that was still underway
  as another action began.

18
Are the verbs right or wrong?

• If the club limited its membership, it will have
  to raise its dues.
• While Barbara puts in her contact lenses, the
  telephone rang.
• Thousands of people will see the art exhibit by
  the time it closes.
• By the time negotiations began, many pessimists
  have expressed doubt about them.
• After Capt. James Cook visited Alaska on his
  third voyage, he is killed by Hawaiian islanders
  in 1779.

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Here are the verb corrections

• If the club limited its membership, it will/would
  have to raise its dues.
• While Barbara puts/put in her contact lenses, the
  telephone rang.
• Thousands of people will have seen the art
  exhibit by the time it closes.
• By the time negotiations began, many pessimists
  have/had expressed doubt about them.
• After Capt. James Cook visited Alaska on his
  third voyage, he is/was killed by Hawaiian
  islanders in 1779.

20
How should the verbs be fixed?

• I was terribly disappointed with my grade because
  I studied very hard.
• The moderator asks for questions as soon as the
  speaker has finished.
• Everyone hopes the plan would work.
• Harry wants to show his friends the photos he
  took last summer.
• Scientists predict that the sun will die in the
  distant future.

21
Here are the verb corrections

• I was terribly disappointed with my grade because
  I had studied very hard.
• The moderator asks/asked for questions as soon as
  the speaker has/had finished.
• Everyone hopes the plan would/will work.
• Harry wants to show his friends the photos he
  took last summer. OK
• Scientists predict that the sun will die in the
  distant future. OK