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ANA-MARIA TRANTESCU
EDITURA UNIVERSITARIA
Craiova, 2018
Referenți științifici:
Prof. univ. dr. Ioana MURAR (Universitatea din Craiova)
Conf. univ. dr. habil. Titela VÎLCEANU (Universitatea din
Craiova)
Lect. univ. dr. Alina REȘCEANU (Universitatea din Craiova)
The author
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CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................ 5
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION TO THE ENGLISH VERB PHRASE ….... 13
1.1. Definition …………………………………………… .......... 13
1.2. Classification of verbs ………………………………… ....... 13
CHAPTER 2
AN OVERVIEW OF THE GRAMMATICAL
CATEGORIES OF THE VERB .................................................. 38
2.1. The categories of person and number ............................. ...... 39
2.2. The category of tense ....................................................... ..... 39
2.3. The category of aspect .................................................... ...... 42
2.3.1. The perfective vs. non-perfective / imperfective ............. 43
2.3.2. The progressive (or continuous) vs. simple aspect …...... 43
2.3.3. Verbs which are not normally used in the continuous/
progressive aspect …..………………………….………. 43
2.3.3.1. Dynamic (activity / action) verbs................................ 43
2.3.3.2. State (stative) verbs ..................................................... 44
2.4. Voice ...................................................................................... 50
2.5. Mood ..................................................................................... 50
CHAPTER 3
THE INDICATIVE MOOD.
THE TENSE - ASPECT SYSTEM IN ENGLISH ..................... 53
3.1. The Present Tense ................................................................. 53
3.1.1. The Present Tense Simple ............................................... 53
3.1.2. The Present Tense Continuous (Progressive) .................. 59
3.2. The Past Tense ...................................................................... 65
3.2.1. The Past Tense Simple .................................................... 65
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3.2.2. The Past Tense Continuous/Progressive ......................... 71
3.3. The Perfect Tenses ................................................................ 76
3.3.1. The Present Perfect .......................................................... 76
3.3.1.1. The Present Perfect Simple ........................................ 76
3.3.1.2. The Present Perfect Continuous/ Progressive ............ 83
3.4. The Past Perfect .................................................................... 86
3.4.1. The Past Perfect Tense Simple ........................................ 86
3.4.2. The Past Perfect Progressive/Continuous ........................ 90
3.5. Means of Expressing Future Reference ................................ 92
3.5.1. The Future Tense Simple (Shall / Will Future) ............... 93
3.5.2. The Future Continuous/ Progressive ............................... 95
3.5.3. The Future Perfect ........................................................... 98
3.5.3.1. The Future Perfect Simple ......................................... 98
3.5.3.2. The Future Perfect Progressive ................................ 100
3.5.4. Other means of expressing futurity ............................... 101
3.6. Future Actions Seen from Past Perspective
(Future in the Past) ............................................................. 105
3.7. Tense and aspect use across registers and dialects .............. 107
3.7.1. Tense use across registers .............................................. 107
3.7.2. Perfect and Progressive Aspect across registers
and dialects .................................................................... 108
CHAPTER 4
THE GRAMMATICAL CATEGORY OF VOICE ................ 110
4.1. Introduction ......................................................................... 110
4.2. Language levels of the passive transformation ................... 111
4.2.1. The morphological level (the form of the verb) ….…… 111
4.2.2. The syntactic level ………………………………..…… 114
4.2.3. Passive-like causatives …………………………...…… 116
4.2.4. Classes of verbs used in passive constructions ……...…117
4.2.4.1. Transitive verbs ........................................................ 117
4.2.4.2. Intransitive verbs ...................................................... 120
4.2.4.3. Complex verbs ......................................................... 121
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4.2.4.4. Passivals (Pseudo-Passives) ..................................... 122
4.3.1. Passive voice in legal language ..................................... 123
4.3.2. Passive voice across registers ........................................ 124
CHAPTER 5
THE SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD ................................................... 126
5.1. Indicative versus Subjunctive ............................................. 126
5.2. The forms of the Subjunctive .............................................. 128
5.2.1. The Synthetic Subjunctive ............................................. 128
5.2.1.1. The Present Subjunctive .......................................... 128
5.2.1.2. The Past Subjunctive ............................................... 130
5.2.1.3. The Perfect Subjunctive ........................................... 133
5.2.2. The Analytic(al) Subjunctive ........................................ 134
5.2.2.1. Should ...................................................................... 135
5.2.2.2. May / Might ............................................................. 138
5.2.2.3. Will / Would ............................................................ 140
5.2.2.4. Can / Could .............................................................. 141
5.3. The distribution of the Conditional Mood
in various registers ............................................................. 141
5.4. The distribution of Subjunctive forms
in subordinate clauses ......................................................... 143
CHAPTER 6
THE IMPERATIVE MOOD ..................................................... 145
6.1. Imperative sentences (Commands) ..................................... 145
6.1.1. Commands without a subject ......................................... 145
6.1.2. Commands with subject ................................................ 146
6.1.3. Commands with LET .................................................... 146
6.1.4. Negative commands ...................................................... 147
6.1.5. Persuasive commands .................................................... 148
6.1.6. Other constructions having the value of a command .... 148
6.2. The form and function of Imperative Clauses ..................... 148
6.3. The use of the Imperative Mood in different registers ........ 149
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CHAPTER 7
MODALITY AND MODAL VERBS ....................................... 151
7.1. Formal characteristics ......................................................... 152
7.2. Semantic characteristics ...................................................... 153
7.2.1. Ability ............................................................................ 156
7.2.2. Permission ..................................................................... 157
7.2.3. Obligation ...................................................................... 160
7.2.4. Possibility ...................................................................... 166
7.2.5. Probability ..................................................................... 170
7.2.6. Volition, Willingness ..................................................... 173
7.2.7. Habit .............................................................................. 175
7.2.8. Dare ............................................................................... 177
7.3. Pragmatic values of modal verbs ........................................ 179
7.4. Modal and semi-modals across registers ............................ 180
7.4.1. The distribution of modal and semi -modal verbs ......... 180
7.4.2. Extrinsic versus intrinsic uses of modals
in different registers ...................................................... 182
CHAPTER 8
THE NON-FINITE FORMS OF THE VERB .......................... 184
8.1. The Infinitive ....................................................................... 184
8.1.1. The forms of the Infinitive ............................................. 184
8.1.2. The grammatical categories of the Infinitive .................. 187
8.1.2.1 The category of aspect ............................................... 187
8.1.2.2. The category of voice ............................................... 188
8.1.3. The subject of the Infinitive ........................................... 189
8.1.4. The syntactic functions of the Infinitive ......................... 190
8.1.4.1. Subject ..................................................................... 190
8.1.4.2. Predicative (Subject Complement) ........................... 195
8.1.4.3. Attribute ................................................................... 195
8.1.4.4. Object ....................................................................... 196
8.1.4.5. Adverbial Modifier ................................................... 201
8.1.4.5.1. Adverbial Modifier of Purpose............................ 201
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8.1.4.5.2. Adverbial Modifier of Result .............................. 201
8.1.4.5.3. Adverbial Modifier of Condition ........................ 202
8.1.4.5.4. Adverbial Modifier of Comparison ..................... 202
8.1.4.5.5. Adverbial Modifier of Exception ........................ 202
8.1.5. The Infinitive in parenthetic constructions ..................... 202
8.1.6. Grammatical patterns of post-predicate infinitive clauses ...203
8.2. The –ing Forms .................................................................... 204
8.2.1. The Gerund ..................................................................... 205
8.2.1.1. The features of the Gerund ...................................... 205
8.2.1.2. The grammatical categories of the Gerund .............. 206
8.2.1.3. The subject of the Gerund ........................................ 207
8.2.1.4. The syntactic functions of the Gerund ..................... 208
8.2.2. The Participle ................................................................ 216
8.2.2.1. The grammatical categories of the Present Participle ..216
8.2.2.2. The syntactic functions of the Present Participle ... 217
8.3. The Past Participle .............................................................. 224
8.3.1. The uses of the Past Participle ....................................... 224
8.3.2. The syntactic functions of the Past Participle................. 225
8.4. Complex Constructions ........................................................ 230
8.5. Non-finite clauses across registers ....................................... 230
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CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION TO THE ENGLISH VERB PHRASE
1.1. Definition
Linguists define the verb as the part of speech which expresses
actions or states perceived as processes. This semantic definition must be
completed with morphological and syntactic criteria. From the
morphological point of view, the verb has forms according to the
grammatical categories of person, number, mood, tense, aspect and voice.
A finite verb discharges the function of predicate (syntactic criterion).
A verb phrase may consist of a main verb alone, or a main verb
plus any modal and/or auxiliary verbs. The main verb always comes
last in the verb phrase (Carter at al., 2011):
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A. In accordance with the criterion of form, verbs may be
classified taking into consideration their morphological structure and
their base forms.
Classification of verbs according to their morphological structure
According to their morphological structure verbs fall into:
One-word verbs:
a) Simple verbs: verbs which cannot be further subdivided into
other morphological elements, e.g. get, read, study, swim, work;
b) Compound verbs: verbs formed of two or more morphological
elements written together, e.g. babysit, broadcast, underline,
blackmail, spotlight;
c) Derivative verbs, i.e. verbs formed by means of affixes (prefixes
and suffixes): discourage, enlighten, encourage, misprint,
amplify, symbolize.
Verbal derivational prefixes usually do not modify the word class,
that is, a verb-forming prefix is attached to a verb base to form a new
verb with another meaning:
move- remove
do- undo
black- blacken
category- categorize
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registers. The research showed that the prefix re- and the suffix -ize
are the most productive, both in terms of the total number of verb
lexemes formed, and in terms of the number of relatively rare words.
There is a great similarity between conversation and academic
register concerning the frequency of derivational affixes.
The prefix re- is utterly productive in academic prose and news.
The most productive suffixes in conversation and academic style are:
-ize: familiarize
-ate: differentiate
-ify: simplify
-en: awaken
The authors also mention that all these four frequent suffixes are
used to form verbs meaning ‘become’ or ‘cause to be’.
The Longman Grammar of Spoken and Written English (1999)
describes the actual use of grammatical characteristics in various
registers of English: conversation, fiction, news, and academic prose.
The LGSWE adopts a corpus-based approach, i.e. the grammatical
descriptions are based on the patterns of structure and use found in an
impressive collection of spoken and written text, stored electronically,
and which can be searched by computer.
The book complements other grammatical descriptions by
investigating the linguistic structures actually used by the speakers and
writers in the last part of the twentieth century.
This is a proof that structure in use are not independent aspects in
a language; analysis of both is necessary to understand how English
grammar really works in the everyday communicative activities of
speakers and writers.
d) Conversion or zero derivation refers to the derivational process
by which a word belonging to a word class is changed into
another word class, without the addition of an affix.
- a large number of nouns can be converted to verbs: to book, to paper,
to park, to service, to process, to water. Most nouns representing
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various parts of the body can be used as verbs: to head, to elbow, to
eye, to face.
- adjectives may also be converted to verbs: to clean, to dirty, to wet.
Multi-word verbs:
A multi-word verb is a lexical verb which may be combined with
a particle, with a preposition or with a particle and a preposition
functioning as a verb with a unitary meaning. Grammarians divided
multi-word verbs into three categories: phrasal verbs, prepositional
verbs, phrasal-prepositional verbs.
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There is also a large number of phrasal verbs whose idiomatic
meaning cannot be inferred from the individual meanings of the (base)
verb and the adverbial particle.
The meaning of the phrasal verb is opaque. The particle changes
the meaning of the base verb to such an extent, that we have to learn
their meanings as a single unit, almost without association with the
base verb: to carry on (= to continue), make up (= to invent), to show
up (= to appear, arrive).
Phrasal verbs are quite common in informal English. In formal
language, they are sometimes replaced by one-word verbs (if there is
a synonym):
He was warned not to give away any information. (= reveal)
Some phrasal verbs are polysemantic and, depending on the
context, they can have a literal or an idiomatic meaning (Murar, 2010:
14). For instance, bring up:
Bring the fridge up. (the phrasal verb has a literal meaning,
i.e. carry the fridge up)
He brought his nephew up as his own child. (the phrasal verb
has an idiomatic meaning: ‘to raise’, ‘to educate’)
2. Syntactic issues of transitive phrasal verbs:
When the direct object is expressed by a noun, the object is placed
either before or after the adverbial particle):
He let Peter down again.
He let down Peter again.
The verb and particle may be separated by a short noun phrase. If
the direct object is expressed by a long noun phrase, the particle comes
immediately after the verb (the object is placed after verb + adverbial
particle):
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When the direct object is expressed by a pronoun, the adverbial
particle is placed after the object, i.e. a pronoun object always comes
before the adverbial particle:
b) Prepositional verbs
There are verbs which take an obligatory preposition (e.g. look at,
look after, listen to, wait for, take after, dream at, think of, etc.). The
verb and the preposition express a single idea.
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The noun phrase following the preposition is termed Prepositional
Object. In fact, the purpose of the preposition is to connect the NP, i.e.
the object to the verb. With prepositional verbs, the objects are always
placed after the preposition, for instance:
He ran down his own friend. / He ran him down. (phrasal verb)
He ran down the hill. / He ran down it. (prepositional verb)
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say to NP +quote is very common in conversation
think of- in fiction
depend on, be based on – academic prose.
c) Phrasal - Prepositional verbs are combinations consisting of
three items: a base verb, an adverbial particle, and a preposition (e.g.
look forward to, look down on, catch up with, put up with, run out of,
stand up for, etc.). The adverbial particle changes the meaning of the
base verb and the preposition links the Noun Phrase Object to the verb.
Both the particle and the preposition come immediately after the verb.
Phrasal - prepositional verbs are quite common in informal English.
In formal English, single-word verbs are preferred.
I get on with my neighbours very well. (= to have a good,
friendly relationship with);
I can’t put up with his behaviour any longer (=tolerate);
d) Idiomatic expressions
These are combinations of a verb + other parts of speech,
especially nouns, e.g. give way (= yield), make haste (= hurry, hasten),
make fun of / poke fun at (= ridicule), etc. In these expressions, the
verb itself has a diminished lexical value, while the main semantic
load is carried by the Nominal Phrase (Murar, 2010: 17).
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2. The Past Tense Form (V-ed): lived, ate, read, studied, slept,
ran, walked.
3. The Past Participle Form (V-en): lived, eaten, read, studied,
slept, run, walked.
4. The –(e)s form: is added to the base for the 3rd person singular
Simple Present Tense: lives, eats, reads, studies, sleeps, runs,
walks.
5. The –ing form, also called the form for the Present Participle.
It is formed by adding –ing to the base: living, eating, reading,
studying, sleeping, running, walking.
The conjugation of the English verb is based on the first three
forms (they are the dictionary forms of the English verbs): live – lived
- lived; swim – swam - swum. Depending on how they form the Past
Tense and the Past Participle, the English verbs are either regular
(live) or irregular (swim).
Regular verbs: Verbs like live which have the Past Tense and the
Past Participle in –ed are called regular: Regular means that we can
predict all the verb forms of the English verb once we know the base
form and the rule of forming the Past Tense and the Past Participle by
adding –ed to the base. Most English verbs are regular. There is a
general tendency to regularization, especially in American English.
All new verbs that are coined or borrowed from other languages adopt
this pattern, for example xerox – xeroxes - xeroxed, xeroxing.
Irregular verbs: Verbs like eat, read, sleep, run, swim are
irregular in that we cannot predict their form for Past Tense and Past
Participle according to the rule. For an irregular verb, we must learn
the three forms (the base form, the Past Tense and the Past Participle)
individually. The irregular verbs form a small but very important
group of verbs from the point of their frequency in the lexicon.
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1. A full (main / lexical / ordinary) verb has a full lexical
meaning and can form the predicate by itself.
He studies hard every day.
He had always enjoyed life.
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Affirmative: Jean is reading now.
Negative: Jean is not reading now.
Affirmative: Jean could read when she was five.
Negative: Jean could not read when she was five.
Main verbs require the use of the operator do in order to form this
inversion:
For emphasis:
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3) Auxiliaries can be contracted in speech and in informal writing.
Contraction is a short form of a word, when we spell and
pronounce it. The contraction is added to the end of a word and
is marked in writing by an apostrophe (’).
All auxiliaries can be contracted when used in the negative:
usually not is spelled n’t and is added to the auxiliary:
Be (am, are, is), have (has, had), will (would) can be contracted in
the affirmative. The word which precedes the contraction is usually a
personal pronoun:
I’m working.
I’ve seen everything.
I’ll open the window.
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Is and has use the same contraction: ’s
Main verbs in the Present Tense Simple and Past Tense Simple
require the use of do as their substitute:
25
‘Mike lives here.’ ‘Yes, he certainly does.’
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main verb be is used with the auxiliary do in negative imperative
sentences and in emphatic imperative sentences:
Don’t be naive!
Do be quiet, will you?
2. Auxiliary verb:
Be + -ing form (present participle) of a main verb forms the
progressive aspect of that verb:
John is studying.
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He’s got a new fancy car.
2. Auxiliary verb:
Have + the past participle of a main verb is used to form the
perfective aspect, i.e.: The Present Perfect, The Past Perfect, The
Future Perfect, The Perfect Infinitive, The Perfect Participle, The
Perfect Gerund.
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I have to be at my office at 7 o’clock.
Have is contracted only when got is added to it:
I’ve got to be there.
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The interrogative and negative of Present and Past Simple are
formed with the auxiliary do:
2. Auxiliary verb:
Do / did + the base form of the main verb is used to form the
negative of the main verb in the Present and Past Simple:
He wants to read.
He doesn’t want to read.
He wanted to read.
He didn’t want to read.
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Do / did + the base form of the main verb is used to form inversion:
a) in interrogative sentences:
He wants to read.
Does he want to read?
He wanted to read.
Did he want to read?
Most frequent verbs that occur with emphatic do are: have, get,
know, go, look, say, want, come, feel, see, think, make, like, need, take,
tell, work, believe, happen, hope, seem, occur (ibid.: 434).
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The pro-verb do is very frequently used in conversation, relatively
common in fiction and rarely found in journalistic and academic prose
(ibid: 432).
When a verb phrase consists of more than one verb, they are
combined according to certain rules.
There are four basic types of complex finite verb phrase (Quirk et
al., 1979: 73):
A. MODAL or PERIPHRASTIC type: A modal auxiliary is followed by
the base form of the verb (a verb in the Infinitive, the phrase head):
He has studied.
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C. PROGRESSIVE type: the auxiliary be is followed by a verb in the
Present Participle:
He is studying.
These four basic patterns may also combine with each other to
form more complex verb phrases (longer strings of verbs in one single
phrase). The order of the auxiliaries is a fixed one (alphabetical order):
(A) + (B) + (C) + (D) (Murar, 2010:32).
Quirk et al. (1979: 73) provide the types of combinations. Some
of these are:
In these chains, the complex verb phrase types are telescoped into
one another, i.e. combinations of the basic types form structures where
the head of the first is the auxiliary of the second (ibid.: 73-74)
The lexical meaning is contained in the last word: the main verb.
But the grammatical categories of person, number, or tense are
rendered by the first auxiliary (it is the first auxiliary that makes the
verbal group finite).
The first auxiliary in a verb phrase is called the operator. It performs
several important operations: negation, inversion, substitution.
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1. Intransitive complementation refers to the use of verbs
without any other objects being necessary to complete their
meaning, for example verbs such as arrive, appear, come, die,
go, laugh, run, swim, etc. An intransitive verb is a verb of
complete predication. It does not need an object to complete
its meaning:
Birds fly.
He is smoking. (intransitive V)
He is smoking a cigar. (transitive V)
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or an adjective which completes the meaning of the subject. The most
common linking verb is be which is practically devoid of meaning and
only serves to link the subject with the subject complement:
Roger is polite.
Roger is a doctor.
He felt dizzy.
The doctor stood firm: he must avoid the sweets.
The cake tastes delicious.
It sounds interesting.
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He looked so sad.
The threat of misery looms large in Janet’s mind.
It seems a nice place.
He is a doctor/incompetent/impressed.
This book is mine.
They were only four.
To succeed is to try.
His pleasure was reading old books.
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The copula be is the most frequent verb taking an adjectival
complement and the pattern is more common in academic prose and
fiction. This linking verb displays all the possible combinations. The
verbs become, get, look, and feel are the next four most common
linking verb which take an adjectival complement.
Sensory copula verbs (feel., taste, smell) are present especially in
fiction.
The copular verb look is very common in fiction and relatively
common in informal style. It usually takes the adjective nice as subject
complement.
Seem is the most frequent in fiction, combining with adjectives to
express personal opinions.
Remain, keep, and stay express continuation of a certain state. Of
these verbs, the most common is remain, often encountered in
academic prose and journalistic style. Remain is associated with static
adjectives: constant, intact, low, open, closed, etc.
The resulting verb become is utterly frequent in academic register
and relatively common in fictional style, but rarely encountered in
informal English, in conversation. On the contrary, get is very
common in conversation. It is also common in fiction register and has
a number of uses, expressing an experience, a change to a new state.
The link verbs be, seem, and appear can take a larger range of
valency patterns than the other link verbs. The complement of these
verbs can be an Adjectival Phrase, a Noun Phrase, Prepositional
Phrase, or complement clause.
She is a doctor.
This seems a good reason.
Peter seemed in charge.
This seems to prove the facts. (To Infinitive Clause)
The problem was that he rejected the proposal. (That Clause,
Predicative Clause)
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CHAPTER 2
AN OVERVIEW OF THE GRAMMATICAL
CATEGORIES OF THE VERB
The finite forms of the verb in English are: the Indicative, the
Imperative, the Subjunctive and the Conditional.
The non-finite forms of the verb are represented by the Infinitive,
the -ing forms (Present Participle, Gerund) and Past Participle. The
non-finite forms lack the categories of person, number, and tense.
Syntactically, they cannot form the predicate in a sentence; they occur
on their own only in subordinate /dependent clauses (called non-finite
clauses, i.e. clauses without a finite verb):
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2.1. The categories of person and number
The English verb has only one formal marker for these categories,
namely the -s for the 3rd person singular Present Tense, Indicative Mood:
I / you study.
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Then Now
PAST PRESENT FUTURE
X X X
Temporal axis
Unlike other languages, where there is only one term for both
concepts (extralinguistic and linguistic), cf.. Romanian timp, French.
temps, English grammatical terminology has two terms: time for the
extralinguistic concept and tense for the linguistic notion, i.e. for the
verbal forms.
In English, there is little morhological indication of tense. The Present
Tense is actually the base form of the verb, except in the third person
where -s is added, and the Past Tense is realized by adding -(e)d.
The correlation between tense and time is not straightforward,
according to Wales (2001: 389), since there are only two tenses in
English, but three main distinctions past, present and future.
As Lyons (1977) notices tense is a deictic category since temporal
reference is settled in relation to the speker’s now or then in the
discourse situation.
In fictional register where the world of the fiction intersects with
the world of narration, and also the world of the reader, temporal
relations are very complex (Wales, 2001: 389).
The grammatical category of tense relates the time of an event to the
moment when the utterance is produced about the respective event
(Ștefănescu, 1988: 320). Since the category of tense is obviously dependent
both upon the speaker (i.e. the person who produces the utterance) and upon
the time of the communication, tense is a deictic category.
Deictic is a term which subsumes those items of the language
which refer to the personal, temporal or locational characteristics of
the situation within which an utterance takes place, whose meaning is
thus relative to the situational context: personal pronouns (I, you),
demonsratives, place and temporal adverbials.
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Ștefănescu (1988: 226) and Murar (2010: 38-39) adopt
Reichenbach’s (1947) tense theory, according to which three concepts
are necessary for the temporal characterization of an event:
1. The speech time (ST): it is the time when the utterance is
produced, i.e. when the communication takes place (the NOW
of the deictic system).
2. The event time (ET): it is the time at which the event takes place.
3. The reference time (RT): it is the time represented on the
temporal axis (present, past, future) specified in the sentence.
A sentence specifies the reference time by the combination of
tense inflections and time adverbs.
Taking the three divisions of time on the temporal axis as
reference points, events may be viewed in two ways: as being either
simultaneous with the reference points (i.e. they are performed at
these reference points) or perfected / completed before these
reference points.
If the reference point of time is PRESENT (symbolized by the
deictic adverb now), events can be expressed by means of two forms:
- events simultaneous with the present moment (i.e. performed at the
present moment) are expressed by the Present Tense;
- events completed before the present moment are expressed by the
Present Perfect Tense.
If the reference point of time is PAST (marked by the deictic
adverb then) events can be expressed by means of two forms:
- events simultaneous with the past moment (i.e. performed at the past
moment) are expressed by the Past Tense;
- events perfected before the past moment are expressed by the Past
Perfect.
If the reference point of time is FUTURE, events can be expressed
by means of two forms:
- events simultaneous with the future moment (performed at the future
moment) are expressed by the Future Tense or by other means
expressing futurity.
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- events finished before the future moment are expressed by the
Future Perfect.
English tenses are verbal constructions expressing points of time
combined with the category of aspect.
Biber et al. (2005: 156) make a review of the category of tense:
The verb in English is marked only for two tenses: present and
past.
Verbs that are marked for tense are more frequent than those
with modal verbs.
Future time is usually marked with modal verbs.
Verbs expressing mental states are commonly in the Present
Tense and activity and communication verbs are frequently
used in the Past Tense.
42
2.3.1. The perfective vs. non-perfective / imperfective:
The perfective indicates that an event was finished (perfected or
completed) at / before a certain point in time: before present (NOW),
before past (THEN), before future.
The perfective aspect is formed by the auxiliary have + the Past
Participle of the main/lexical verb.
43
write, translate, sing, paint), process (change, grow, increase) and
bodily sensation (ache, hurt). Dynamic verbs are normally used in the
continuous aspect. These verbs fall into two subclasses:
a) Durative verbs, i.e. verbs denoting actions that last in time, i.e.
have duration: read, write, work, play, eat, paint, build, etc. This
is a class of verbs typically used in the progressive aspect,
showing that the action is in progress at a certain time (past,
present, future).
44
These verbs are subdivided into the following classes:
a) Relational verbs (verbs which express the idea of being or
possessing): be, belong, comprise, consist, contain, deserve,
have, include, lack, need, owe, own, possess, require, etc. Since
these verbs indicate permanent duration, they do not normally
occur in the progressive forms:
He has / owns / possesses a fancy car.
Jean is a good student.
The book includes all the details.
Have is used in the continuous aspect when it does not mean ‘to
possess, to own’, when it is semantically recategorized. Compare:
I have a new bike.
I am having lunch.
They are having an English class.
45
I feel a little bit awkard.
Do you hear the music?
I see Jane coming in.
The food tastes delicious.
These verbs commonly occur with the modal verb can / could to
show that a sense experience is going on at a given moment, or we can
use a synonym: watch, look at, listen to.
46
I’m smelling the rose. (voluntary, deliberate action: the
progressive aspect refers to an activity taking place at the moment of
speaking and limited in duration; it is a transitive verb).
The soup tastes delicious.
I am tasting the soup.
47
Peter is expecting guests (expect =‘wait for’)
48
Progressive aspect signals an event in progress in the present
or one in the future that is quite certain.
Continuous aspect is more frequently used in spoken English,
and American English conversation uses the progressive
forms far more than British English conversation.
Surprisingly, the most common verbs in continuous aspect
include both dynamic and stative verbs.
Future will eat will have eaten will be eating will have been eating
will study will have will be studying will have been
studied studying
49
2.4. Voice is the grammatical category that concerns not only the
verb phrase but also other constituents of the sentence.
Voice expresses the relationship between the verb (the predicate)
on the one hand and the subject and object of the verb, on the other.
There are two voices in English: The Active and the Passive.
In the Active Voice, the grammatical subject and the agent / doer
of the action are identical:
50
1. [+ real], i.e. actual, factual, existing in fact;
2. [- real], i.e. not real, non-factual, hypothetical, possible, probable,
necessary, desirable, etc.
There are grammarians who distinguish four finite moods: the
Indicative, the Subjunctive, the Conditional and the Imperative (Leon
Levițchi, Alice Bădescu).
Some grammar books (see Carter and McCarthy, 2006: 911)
distinguish three moods:
1. Indicative expressing a factual meaning: Margaret studied here
four years.
2. Imperative expressing a directive meaning: Let’s study!
3. Subjunctive expressing a non-factual meaning: We insist that
he study Chemistry.
Other grammars limit the number of moods to only two: the
Indicative and the Subjunctive.
According to modern grammarians, the Conditional should be
analysed as a type of the Subjunctive on account of its form and
meaning. From the point of view of its form, the Conditional is
identical with some forms of the Analytical Subjunctive (it is formed
with the auxiliaries should and would); in point of meaning, just like
the Subjunctive, the Conditional expresses hypothetical values.
In our book we shall deal with three moods: the Indicative, the
Subjunctive and the Imperative. The conditional Mood will be
analysed as a subtype of the Analytical Subjunctive.
The Indicative and the Subjunctive are seen as the two basic
propositional modalities of English (Murar, 2010: 129).
The Indicative Mood is the mood of assertion, it presents the
action as real (or in close relation to reality) or as factual (i.e. as
existing in fact). It is the most common form and involves all the
categories: person, number, tense, aspect, modality and voice. The
tenses of the Indicative Mood cover all the divisions of time on the
temporal axis: past, present or future (as we will discuss them in the
next chapter).
51
The Subjunctive Mood is non-assertive, it presents non-factual,
hypothetical situations. By using the Subjunctive, the speaker sees the
action not as a real one, but as a hypothetical, possible, probable,
necessary action. Unlike the Indicative, the Subjunctive lacks deictic
temporal orientation.
The category of mood will be further dealt with in the chapter The
Subjunctive Mood.
52
CHAPTER 3
THE INDICATIVE MOOD. THE TENSE - ASPECT
SYSTEM IN ENGLISH
53
He watches a movie every night.
Gina brushes her hair daily.
She always goes to visit her parents.
P
α X X X X X α
54
None of these sentences refers to a specific situation. The sentences
do not specify a particular moment or interval of time. The verb is
completely timeless: it refers to what is eternally true. In fact, generic
statements imply the presence of the adverb always in the deep structure.
55
complete acts; he is merely reporting the events, he is not
interested in their duration:
Jones passes the ball to Brown who misses it.
The reason for not using the progressive aspect here – points b)
and c) is that it is the idea of repetition which is implied rather than
something going on at the moment of speaking. In other words, these
actions will happen each and every time the same circumstances are
created (viz. cooking that dish or performing that particular play)
(Murar, 2010: 52)
d) In exclamations introduced by here, there:
56
e) In assertions that use performative verbs. Performative verbs are
those verbs for which the event consists in the very uttering of
the statement; the action happens at the moment of speaking
when we describe what we are saying: accept, apologize, admit,
deny, hope regret, thank etc. Syntactically, they usually occur in
the 1st person:
3. The Present Simple is used with state verbs (verbs which cannot
be used in the progressive aspect):
I love you.
She knows all the facts.
57
What time does our holiday begin?
58
In telling stories, both Present Tense Simple and Progressive can
be used, although there is a difference. The Simple Present is used for
events which happen one after another, the Present Continuous is
employed in background situations, that is with activities that are
already happening when the story starts or at a certain moment in the
development of events (Paidos, 2001: 8):
I am studying.
make-making
hate-hating
59
agree-agreeing
see-seeing
If the verb of one syllable has a single vowel and ends in a single
consonant, this consonant is doubled:
run-running
put-putting
refer-referring
begin-beginning
study-studying
try-trying
60
Time markers (adverbs of time) are optional with the Present
Continuous because the tense itself is understood to mean ‘right now’.
These adverbials of time can be: now, right now, just now, at the
(present) moment:
61
4. The Present Continuous expresses a developing or changing
activity, a transition from one state to another, which therefore
implies limited duration. It usually occurs with adverbials of
degree and adjectives expressing gradual comparison, such as
more and more, faster and faster, gradually, increasingly, etc.:
62
used when the future action is the result of a personal arrangement of
the subject, while the Present Simple is used when the future activity
is regarded as part of a settled programme, timetable, schedule, etc.
The difference between the Present Progressive and the Present
Simple can be seen in the following sentences:
63
a) The Present Progressive indicates a limited, temporary action
and is, thus, distinguished from the unlimited (Generic and
Habitual Present Simple). The difference between the limited
and unlimited duration is evident from the following examples
in which the Present Simple (expressing unlimited, permanent
situations) contrasts with the Present Progressive (expressing
limited, temporary situations):
64
In each case the actions or phenomena are the same, but the speaker
looks at them differently (Leech, 1978, apud Murar, 2010: 59).
c) Another contrast is complete action versus incomplete action.
The Present Continuous indicates that the action is not complete
and, thus, it is again distinguished from the Present Simple. This
difference between complete and incomplete actions is
illustrated by event verbs (become, fall, get, go, stop) which
express a transition from one state to another.
The train stops. (The Present Simple indicates that the vehicle
arrived at a state of rest) [+complete].
The train is stopping. (The Present Continuous indicates that the
vehicle is only slowing down (in order to stop) [-complete].
stop-stopped
refer-referred
travel-travelled
study-studied
cry-cried
65
try-tried
play-played
b) Irregular verbs form their Past Tense in various ways: sing - sang
(internal vowel change); send - sent (change in the last
consonant); hurt – hurt (invariable forms); be – was/were-been
(different roots: suppletive forms). The Past Tense of such verbs
is the second form listed in dictionaries or grammars: I / you / he
made.
PAST Present
X
The definite past moment denoted by the verb in the Past Simple may
be expressed explicitly by adverbs or may be implied from the context.
The definite past moment is expressed explicitly by time markers
(adverbials of definite time): yesterday, combinations with last (last
night, last month, last year), combinations with ago (five days ago, ten
years ago, a long time ago), once, the other day; specific points in time
introduced by in, at, on (in 1989, at 3 o’clock p.m., at noon); special
questions introduced by when, what time (because we expect the answer
to contain the exact moment or date when the action took place):
66
When did you meet him? (the definite time is asked about)
I met him two days ago.
‘What time did Mike come?’
‘Last night.’
I found the letter in the room. (the definite time in the past is
identified by the adverbial of place which, indirectly, shows when the
action took place).
- the Past Simple is used for an action whose time is not given but
which took place in a period of time now finished:
67
normally continues in the Past Tense. This is because the action
previously mentioned has now become definite in the minds of the
interlocutors.
The fact that by using the Past Tense the speaker has a definite time
in mind differentiates this use of the past simple from the indefinite use
of the Present Perfect. According to Leech, a parallel can be drawn
between the Past Tense / Present Perfect pair and the definite / indefinite
article pair. The difference between: I met him and I have met him is
therefore parallel to that between the author and an author.
Just as, at the beginning of a narrative, the definite article tends to
be preceded by the indefinite article, which establishes the initial
framework of reference, so the Past Tense tends to presuppose a
framework of time reference already established by the Present Perfect
(Leech, 1978: 144).
Both aspects can be noticed in the following examples:
68
a) Past habit: with dynamic verbs it expresses repeated actions in
the past, i.e. a past habit which contrasts with the present. A time
expression is not necessary:
I used to drink a lot of coffee, but now I drink only green tea.
When I was young I used to go fishing every summer.
b) Used to + the infinitive of state verbs can also describe past states
(a permanent state in the past, a state which no longer exists:
69
3. The Present Tense Simple is changed into the Past Tense
Simple in Reported Speech after a Past Tense in the main
clause:
The effect of the Past Tense in a question such as Did you want to
talk to me? is to make the inquiry indirect and therefore more polite
than a question with the Present Tense: Do you want to talk to me?
The Present Tense in this case would seem rather brusque and
demanding (Leech, 1978: 15)
70
c) The Past Tense with future time reference:
- the Past Tense can refer to future actions in temporal and
conditional clauses when the main verb is in the past:
The particular past moment (which is the time of reference for the
verb in the past progressive) can be explicit or can be implicit.
a) The particular past moment is rendered explicitly by an adverbial
of time or by a clause:
71
- an adverbial of definite time: at 6 o’clock, at that time, all day, this
time yesterday/ last year, etc.
When she heard the bell, she went to open. But nobody was there.
72
progress which contrast with non-durative, successive or completed
actions rendered by the Past Simple:
73
The use of an adverb of time is compulsory: the next day, on
Monday, etc.
The past progressive can refer to Future- in- the- Past, especially
in Indirect Speech (the past equivalent of the Present Continuous):
When I told Vanessa I was moving to New York the next
month, she was very surprised.
The Continuous can also refer to plans that did not materialize
(unfulfilled past intention):
I was packing to leave town, the next day, but something went
wrong and I could not leave.
The sentence with the Past Simple implies that the event actually
took place (death,), while in the second sentence with the Past
Progressive, the event did not take place if it was interrupted:
74
Mary was dying when the doctor giving that medicine saved her.
c) The Past Simple sees the event as fulfilled, with no room for
change; the Past Progressive indicates that an event has already
begun and extends the event in time and, thus, a change or
interruption is possible (Murar, 2010):
e) The Past Progressive with the verb wonder has a polite nuance:
75
3.3. The Perfect Tenses
The three perfect tenses (The Present Perfect, the Past Perfect, the
Future Perfect) render the completion of an action before, by a given
time or leading up to another time, e.g. Present Perfect leads to present,
Past Perfect leads to past.
76
1. Present Perfect Simple expresses an action anterior to the present,
i.e. happened in the past, but whose moment is not specified:
I have studied a lot.
I have met Eric.
77
introduced by since (to denote the beginning of the period of time that
continues up to the present moment); by for (to denote duration, the
length of time); other adverbials of duration are also expressed by
long, how long. The present Perfect Simple has this meaning for those
verbs that are not normally used in the progressive aspect (state verbs):
But the Present Perfect is also used in the Temporal Clause if the
action expressed is still going on, i.e. if the two actions are parallel
(with verbs such as be, live, stay):
I’ve known all these good people since I’ve lived in this town.
78
in the future. This use is accompanied by adverbs of
frequency: always, often, never, ever, sometimes, etc.
In these cases Present Tense Simple can also be employed, but the
use of the Present Perfect emphasises the idea of anteriority.
The values of the Present Perfect Tense Simple can be synthesized
as follows:
I. Resultative Value
The present perfect is used to express an action which was
completed in the past, but which still has present significance, its
effect being felt in the present. The value of the present perfect is
called resultative because, although no longer continuing in the
present moment, the verbal form stresses the result, the effect of the
action at the present time.
With this value, the present perfect does not need adverbials (it is
used without any time adverbials), since we are not interested when
the action happened, we are interested only in the fact that the past
action has some effect at the present time, has present relevance:
79
He has left town.
I called him several times this morning. (It is two o’clock now).
80
III. Continuative Value
The verb in the Present Perfect denotes a state or an action which
began in the past and is still going on in the present and maybe in the
future. The verb expressing this use is compulsorily accompanied by
an adverbial of duration. The usual adverbials of duration are those
introduced by since (to denote the beginning of the period of time that
continues up to the present moment); by for (to denote duration, the
length of time that continues up to the present moment); other
adverbials of duration are also expressed by long, how long. The
present perfect simple has this meaning for those verbs that are not
normally used in any of the continuous forms (state verbs):
b) Indefinite time
The Present Perfect is used for a temporally indefinite action while
the Past Tense for a definite action. When using the Present Perfect,
the time of the action is not given, and it is not important. We are
81
especially interested in the result. The Past Tense is used when our
interest falls not only on the occurrence but also on the moment of the
event (when there is specific indication of past time in the sentence).
Have you seen the movie? (it is still running on the cinema)
Did you see the movie? (it is not running any longer)
a) There are some adverbials which occur only with a certain tense:
- The Past Tense is used with definite adverbials naming a specific
time in the past: yesterday, in 1572, ago (four years ago), the other
day, then, when, last week, on Monday, in July what time
- The Present Perfect goes with some indefinite adverbials describing
a period up to the present: so far, until now, by now, up to now, yet,
already, since, lately, of late.
82
present), while with the Past Tense the period of time is completed
(it excludes the present): always, ever, never, often, seldom, for
five months, all life, today, this morning, how long:
83
The period / length of time that has elapsed before the present time
is indicated by an adverbial phrase introduced by since (when the
starting point is given), for (when the duration is given), all, long:
84
3. Resultative use: The present perfect progressive indicates a
recently finished action which explains a present result, a
present effect. (the results of the past action are still
apparent). The verb is used without any adverbial of time:
She has been working in the garden. That’s why she’s exhausted.
There are contextual situations in which both verbal forms are possible
but with some slight shades of different meaning:
I’ve worked on this project since last year. (I’ve just finished it)
85
I’ve been working on this project since last year (I haven’t
finished it - I’m still working)
They’ve built a new resort. (The work is finished)
They’ve been building a new resort. (They are still working)
86
action. It actually indicates a time further back than a certain
point in the past.
87
I had scarcely got into the room when it started to rain.
I had hardly/just got into the house when the phone rang.
They had no sooner entered the house than they started to argue.
No sooner had they entered the house than they started to argue.
- The main clause contains a Past Tense while the subordinate Clause
of Time contains a Past Perfect:
i. in Adverbial Clauses of Time introduced by after, until, as soon as,
when:
2. The Past Perfect Simple expresses a past action that took place
over a period of time. The action began before a given past
moment or past action and continued up to that past moment or
88
action. The Past Perfect Simple is used with this continuative
value for those verbs which cannot be used in the continuous
aspect.
In this case, this tense is associated with two time markers:
a time marker introduced by for or since to show the
length/period of time or the starting point of time
a time marker to express the past point of time / action
The divers came across a wreck that had lain on the seabed for
over 200 years.
I had been in this town for five years when the accident
happened.
89
5. In reported speech (Object Clauses), the Past Perfect replaces both
the Present Perfect and the Past Tense when the reporting verb is
in the Past Tense (said, asked, told, explained, thought, etc.):
Direct speech:
Indirect speech:
Elizabeth said she had seen Mary. She added that she had told
her everything the day before.
90
When this tense is used with this Continuative value, two time
markers are required:
- an expression of time (a prepositional phrase) introduced by for or
since usually accompanies the Past Perfect Progressive.
- the past point of time or activity before which the action expressed
by the verb in the Past Perfect progressive takes place. This past point
of time may be indicated by:
i. an adverbial phrase introduced by the preposition by:
How long had you been working on your project when your
funds were increased?
She had been studying Chemistry for 15 years when she met
her husband.
91
2. Resultative value: The Past Perfect Progressive expresses an
action started before a given past moment but no longer going
on at that moment. The verb in the Past Perfect Continuous
explains the cause of an effect which was felt at a certain
moment in the past. The verb in the Past Perfect Progressive
usually occurs with this value in Adverbial Clauses of Cause
or Reason:
She was exhausted because she had been studying hard all day.
‘When I was living in the capital I often visited them’is changed into:
He said that when he was living in the capital he he (had) visited
them.
92
Thomson & Martinet (1969: 168) distinguish between future with
intention and future without intention :
Future with intention: a form which expresses a future action
which will be accomplished by the speaker in accordance with his
wishes. The Future Simple, Be Going To- form and Present
Continuous can be used in this way.
Future without intention: a verbal form which merely states that a
certain action will happen (The Present Simple and Future
Progressive)
93
by in (in the future, in ten years, in ten days’ time), expressions with
from now (two months from now) etc.
This verbal form is tinged with modal values due to modal
auxiliaries will and shall, that is why it is not so common, other means
of expressing future reference being preferred. Besides future
reference, shall and will can acquire modal value when used in other
persons than specified above, or when used in some special
constructions (interrogative, negative).
It seems that the double function of shall and will as ‘future
auxiliaries’ and as ‘modal auxiliaries’ lies in the very nature of
futurity. We cannot be as certain of future happenings as we are of
events past and present and for this reason even the most confident
prognostication must indicate something of the speaker’s attitude and
so, be tinged with modality (Leech, 1978: 52).
- making an offer:
94
This construction is mainly used in regulations, legal documents,
or older texts (e.g. the Bible “Thou shalt not kill”). In informal English
must, have to or be to are used instead of shall.in the above sentences.
The same modal verbs replace shall in indirect speech.
‘Somebody is knocking.’
‘I’ll go to see who it is.’
95
in progress at a certain future time or when another action takes
place (Murar, 2010: 100).
Time markers to indicate the given future time are expressed by:
- an adverbial phrase denoting a point of time: at 2 o’clock, this time
tomorrow / next year etc.:
96
in affirmative sentences: unlike the Future Simple which
expresses the speaker’s intention of a future action, the Future
Progressive does not express intention:
When will you come again? (is a question about the listener’s
intentions)
When will you be coming again? (simply asks the interlocutor
to specify the time of his next visit)
‘Will you bring the books here?’
‘Yes, of course’
Will you be bringing the books here?
‘No, I think I will move them upstairs’.
97
‘I won’t come to the party if that woman is driving’.
‘She won’t be driving’.
The verb in the future perfect is used with a reference point (a time
marker) to indicate the future moment / action before which this future
action is seen as accomplished. The future moment from which the
action is viewed as completed may be indicated by means of:
- an adverbial phrase introduced by the prepositions by, before, in:
I will have finished studying this chapter by Monday.
98
In four years’ time, I’ll have graduated this university.
2. Continuative use
With verbs which cannot be used in the progressive forms, the
Future Perfect Simple expresses an action started before a given future
moment and still going on at that future moment.
99
If we compare the Future Perfect to Simple Future, we notice that
like other perfect aspects, the Future Perfect denotes an event/ activity
that is completed prior to a future moment or action while the Simple
Future merely suggests that the event starts with that future moment:
I will have decorated all my house by the time the guests arrive.
I will decorate my house next week.
With all perfect tenses (Present Perfect, Past Perfect, Future Perfect)
the adverb already emphasizes that the action expressed by the verb is
completed immediately before another reference point:
100
Use:
It expresses an action started before a certain future moment or
future action and still going on at that future moment or action and
maybe after.
Two time markers are usually required with this verbal form:
- a time marker introduced by the preposition for to indicate the length
of time (duration) of the activity
- a time marker which expresses the reference point (a given future
moment). The given future moment can be rendered by:
a) an adverbial phrase usually containing the word by:
By the end of the summer we will have been living in London
for ten years.
By five o’clock I will have been studying for 3 hours.
b) a subordinate Clause of Time (with the verb in the present tense):
When my father retires he will have been working in the same
company for 37 years.
a) Be Going To
Form: the be going to - construction is formed of the progressive
form of the verb go + the long infinitive of the main verb: I am going
to study, etc. In this structure, go loses its meaning as a verb of
movement and becomes a mere auxiliary)
101
Intention: The be going to – form expresses the subject’s present
intention (plan, decision) to perform a certain future action. This
use is found mainly with human [+animate] subjects:
102
The present progressive is not used to express the future with
stative verbs or where the subject is inanimate:
b) Be To + Infinitive
The construction has the following values:
103
You are to be here by 1 o’clock.
If he is to become famous.
c) Be about to + Infinitive
The construction expresses an imminent future. It may be seen as
an equivalent to the be going to – form and Present Progressive.
The construction is used with animate and inanimate subjects.
Time markers are usually not required since the construction itself
means ‘soon’, ‘right away’.
104
e) The Present Continuous (with future meaning) expresses
one’s immediate plans for the future. It is personal plan, not an
official one.
3.6. Future Actions Seen from Past Perspective (Future in the Past)
Future in the past means a future action regarded from a viewpoint
in the past.
There are several means in English for describing future actions
viewed from a point further in the past: would + infinitive; was/were
+ infinitive; was/were going to + infinitive; was/were about to +
infinitive; Past Tense Continuous.
a) Would + Infinitive
It is also used in Object Clauses, after a past tense in the main clause:
105
b) Was / Were to + Infinitive. The construction occurs in the
literary style to express:
- plan, arrangement:
They were packing because they were leaving the next day.
106
‘I will be meeting him tomorrow.’ → She said he would be
meeting him the next day.
He asked me whether I would come back soon.
He hoped that by his return Janet would have forgiven him.
107
Present tense has also past or future value;
Past tense especially refers to past time, but it is sometimes
used to mark present time.
Future time is usually marked with modal verbs.
108
Referring to aspect and dialect (AE vs BE) differences, Biber et
al. point out that:
Perfect aspect is most common in fiction and news.
British English newspaper writing employs perfect aspect
more than American English newspapers do.
Progressive aspect is used especially in conversation than in
writing.
American English conversation uses continuous aspect the
most, far more than British English conversation register.
109
CHAPTER 4
THE GRAMMATICAL CATEGORY OF VOICE
4.1. Introduction
Voice is the grammatical category which expresses the
relationship between the verb (the predicate) on the one hand and the
subject and object of the verb, on the other. Voice gives information
about the roles of different participants (agent or recipient) in an event
(Carter, 2006: 929). There are two voices in English: the active and
the passive voice.
Choice of voice represents one of several ways of organizing the
content of clauses.
The active voice is the most common and unmarked form of
voice, typically chosen to state something about the agent of an action,
the agent being expressed as the grammatical subject and naturally
begins the action (ibid.: 793). So, when the verb is in the active voice,
the grammatical subject and the agent / doer of the action are the same:
All the aspects of the problems have been studied by the officers.
110
The criminal was caught by the police.
The cat was hurt by the dog.
111
aspect and mood. Finite forms as well as non-finite forms have the
grammatical category of voice. A verb has forms corresponding to the
active voice for all the tenses of the Indicative Mood, simple aspect.
The English verb has passive forms in the continuous aspect only
for two tenses: the present and past:
112
He got wounded in that terrible accident.
All my things got burnt in the fire.
b) Verbs like dress, engage, marry, mix. In this case the auxiliary
get implies actions that we do to ourselves. The actions seem to
be reflexive rather than passive. The sentences cannot be derived
from active counterparts.
c) With other verbs, the passive with the auxiliary get indicates
involvement of the grammatical subject in the action. Compare:
She was invited to the wedding. (Someone invited her to the party)
She got invited to the wedding. (She managed to be invited)
be-passive get-passive
A: Was he hurt? A: Did he get hurt?
B: No, he wasn’t hurt. B: No, he didn’t get hurt.
113
The news on the Internet have become widely read.
The house was a mess. The paintwork was peeling and the
windows were broken. (participle is adjectival)
The windows were broken by the force of the explosion.
(participle is passive).
114
- the subject of the active sentence becomes an object of agent
introduced by the preposition by;
- the object of the active sentence becomes the subject in the passive
sentence.
The active – passive correspondence (passive transformation) can
be expressed by the following formula:
NP1 + Vactive + NP2 → NP2 + Vpassive (+ By – NP1)
(S) (P) (O) (S) (P) (O Agent)
The prepositional object of agent (the by-phrase) is often an
optional element and can be deleted. The object of agent is only
expressed when it conveys relevant information:
115
Peter and James had an argument yesterday and Peter was
defeated.
Carter and McCarthy (2006: 799) also take into account the following
situations when the agent is omitted:
116
I can’t paint the walls, so I hired someone else to do this. →
I had my house painted.
The have-passive is used in formal English, while the get-
passive is specific for informal register:
She has her hair cut once a month. (formal)
She gets her hair cut once a month. (informal)
Tom has eaten all the apples. → All the apples have been
eaten by Tom.
The mechanic has attentively checked the car. → The car has
been attentively checked by the mechanic.
He lacks courage.
117
Jane resembles her grandma.
With some verbs, the passive is not possible when they refer to
states, but it is possible when they express an activity:
Verbs like allot, allow, award, deny, grant, hand, lend, offer,
pay, present, promise, recommend, refuse, send, show, tell are
followed by two objects: a [+animate] indirect object and a [-
animate] direct object. There are two possible passive
118
transformations: either the indirect object or the direct object can
become the grammatical subject of the passive construction:
-the direct object becomes the subject of the passive sentence: in such
cases the NP expressing the indirect object (the retained indirect
object) is usually preceded by the preposition to:
119
It is considered that he is a good student.
Nobody has slept in this bed. → The bed has not been slept in.
Some prepositional verbs (look into, go into, arrive at) accept the
passive only when they have an abstract, figurative use. Notice the
difference:
120
4.2.4.3. Complex verbs:
Phrasal verbs:
They put off the wedding. → The wedding was put off.
Idiomatic verbal expressions as: lose sight of, make fun of,
make use of, pay attention to, put an end to, take notice of can
be used in the passive. Because of the close connection of the
verb with the noun within the verb phrase the noun is not
normally separated from the verb (and it is not used as the
subject of the passive construction). Through passivization
the object of the preposition becomes subject and the verb
retains the preposition.
121
(2) Great care was taken of his books (noun within the VP as
subject)
122
4.3.1. Passive voice in legal language.
The passive voice is a typical feature of the legal register. In legal
texts passive sentences are frequently used for strategic imprecision:
the passive is useful when the agent is not known to the speaker or
when it can only be vaguely defined. Passive sentences are sometimes
used to deliberately de-emphasize, defocus or obscure the agent
(actor). Thus, passive sentences allow the speaker or writer to omit
direct reference to the agent as in:
123
4.3.2. Passive voice across registers
According to Biber et al. (2005: 167), short passives (agenlesss
passives) are about six times as frequent as long passives. The same
authors show that the frequency of both forms of the passive voice
varies greatly across registers. Passive sentences are most common in
academic prose (about a quarter of all finite verbs). They are also
frequent in news, but very rare in conversation.
In expository prose, passives give a sense of objective detachment.
This sense of objectivity is essential for scientific culture and is often
expected in scientific prose (ibid., 2005: 168).
Spoken language is focused on experiences and actions of people, so
it often expresses the agent as subject, and seldom uses passive voice.
News also makes the agent less prominent.
Even though the long passive (with a by-phrase) is much less
common than the short passive, it is similar in being most frequent in
academic writing, and least frequent in conversation.
There are three interrelated reasons (principles) for choosing the
long passive instead of the active voice (idem: 169):
Principle 1: The long passive is chosen to accord with the
information flow principle: the preference for presenting new
information at the end of a clause.
Principle 2: The long passive is chosen to accord with the end-
weight priciple. This means that a more lengthy or heavier item of
the clause, i.e. the agent, is placed at the end, where it does not hold
up the processing of the rest of the clause.
Principle 3: the long passive is preferred to place initial stress on
an element of the clause which is the topic, or theme, of the discourse.
The same linguists (idem: 174) emphasize some major aspects
concerning the category of voice:
There are three types pf passive voice verb phrases : short
pasives, long and get-passives.
124
Unlike, active voice, passive voice reduces the importance of
the agent of the action and permits the receiver of the action
to become the subject of the sentence.
Passive voice is most common in the expository registers, where
agents are often unknown and irrelevant. In academic prose,
passives often relate to scientific methods or logical relations. In
news, passives often report negative events.
Get-passives are rare and used almost exclusively in informal
style.
There are some verbs which usually occur as passives ( be
born, be based on) other verbs rarely are used in the passive
voice ( hate, like, want)
Voice and aspect combinations are possible; the perfect passive
is moderately common and the progressive passive is rare.
125
CHAPTER 5
THE SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD
126
existing in fact). It is the most frequent form and involves all he
choices of person, number, tense, aspect, modality and voice. The
tenses of the Indicative Mood cover all the divisions of time on the
temporal axis: past, present or future. (see the third chapter).
The Subjunctive Mood is non-assertive, it denotes non-factual,
hypothetical situations. By using the Subjunctive, the speaker
considers the action not as real (as existing in reality) but as
hypothetical (as existing in his/her mind as a possibility, necessity,
supposition, doubt, wish, purpose, etc.). Unlike the Indicative, the
Subjunctive lacks deictic temporal orientation, i.e. it is not actualized
in time.
The Synthetic Subjunctive has three forms: The Present
Subjunctive, The Past Subjunctive and the Perfect Subjunctive.
Actually, the Subjunctive lacks deictic temporal orientation, i.e. it is
not actualized in time. So, these forms are improperly called tenses
since they do not mark temporal distinctions as the Indicative Mood
does. The so-called ‘tenses’ of the Subjunctive are used to indicate
remoteness from reality in various degrees. The Present and Past
Subjunctive are both used for present time reference with the
difference that the Present Subjunctive expresses a greater degree of
probability than the Past Subjunctive (which expresses doubt, and is
more remote from reality).
127
The absence of these temporal distinctions in the Subjunctive
Mood is relevant for the fact that the Subjunctive describes only
possible, not accomplished actions.
Uses:
The Present Subjunctive occurs in both independent sentences and
subordinate clauses:
128
1) Independent Sentences (Formulaic Subjunctive)
The Present Subjunctive in independent sentences is not a
productive form in contemporary English. It occurs in some set
phrases (formulaic expressions):
wishes:
oaths, curses:
129
In subjunctive clauses, the negation element is always placed directly
before the main verb, thus, no addition of the do operator is possible.
Attributive-appositive clauses, after abstract nouns belonging
to the same semantic field: demand, request, idea, suggestion,
proposal:
I told her she could stay with me until she found a place, but
she insisted that she pay her own way. (FICTION)
The way in which we work, whether it be in an office or on the
factory floor, has undergone a major transformation in the past
decade. (NEWS)
130
were. Yet, in informal language there is a tendency to replace the
invariable subjunctive form were with was in the 1st and 3rd person sg,
so as to follow the paradigm of the Past Tense Indicative.
It expresses a hypothetical meaning, an unreal event, contrary to
the present reality.
Uses:
The Past Subjunctive occurs in subordinate clauses.
1) Subject Clauses: The Past Subjunctive occurs after the
construction It is (about / high) time:
131
Would rather, would sooner express preference. They are
followed by a that-clause (with Past Subjunctive) when the subjects
are different: the person expressing the preference is not the subject of
the action that follows in the secondary clause:
3) Conditional Clauses:
The Past Subjunctive is employed in Conditional Clauses of unreal
condition which refers to the present or future to express an imaginary,
situation contrary to present fact (Type2 Conditional Clause):
132
4) Adverbial Clauses of Unreal Comparison (introduced by as
if, as though). The Past Subjunctive expresses doubt with
reference to a present action, or a hypothetical situation
simultaneous with the action in the main clause:
The Past Subjunctive is used in both the formal and informal style.
133
2) Conditional Clauses (Type 3): The Perfect Subjunctive
occurs in Conditional Clauses of unreal condition which refers
to the past:
If you had studied more, you would have passed the exam.
134
subsequence to the action of the main clause, the Perfect Infinitive is
used for anteriority. The modal auxiliary verbs employed for the
Analytic Subjunctive are: should, may / might, can / could, will / would.
The modal -auxiliary verbs have the following distribution:
5.2.2.1. Should
The modal-auxiliary should occur in:
2) Subordinate clauses:
Subject clauses:
After the construction It is + adjective (advisable, essential, desirable,
important, recommendable, necessary, etc.) the Analytic Subjunctive
with should occurs as an alternative to the Synthetic Subjunctive
present or to for-to infinitive:
135
Analytic Subjunctive with should is used as an alternative to the
Indicative Mood:
The difference between the sentences (a) and (b) is the difference
conveyed by the two moods. In the Subjunctive Mood the stress is on
the idea of a possible event, while in the Indicative Mood the stress is
on the description of a real, actual event.
According to G. Leech (1978: 72), the subjunctive with should
expresses a non-factual meaning which leaves open the question of the
truth or falsehood of the statement.
This use of should expressing something as a neutral idea rather
than as a fact is called putative should.
Object clauses:
After verbs expressing command, decision, order, suggestion like
agree, command, demand, insist, order, propose, recommend,
suggest, etc. the Analytic Subjunctive with should is an alternative to
the Present Synthetic Subjunctive:
136
Depending on the main verb, other structures can be used in these
clauses:
Conditional clauses:
The Analytic Subjunctive with should occurs in conditional
clauses as an alternative to the Present Tense Indicative Mood
(Conditional Clause Type1), or to the Past Synthetic Subjunctive
(Conditional Clause Type 2) in order to express a higher degree of
doubt, more uncertainty (an action less likely to happen):
Type 1: If he calls, tell him I will call him back. (Indicative Mood)
If he should call, tell him I will call him back. (Subjunctive
with should = If he happens to call/ If by any chance he calls.)
or: Should he call, tell him I will call him back.
138
Subject clauses after the construction It is + adjective (possible,
probable, likely) as an alternative to the Indicative Mood:
139
5.2.2.3. Will / Would
Will / would occurs in:
2) Subordinate clauses:
I wish you would study more. (= but I don’t think you would)
Helen has just given him the money so that he will pay the fee.
She gave me the money so that I would buy the dictionary.
140
Clauses of Concession introduced by as:
Thus, in 1., you might or might not believe me, and in 2., the
temperature may or may not fall below 22 degrees. These clauses do
not commit themselves to the truth or falsehood of the proposition
they contain.
b) hypothetical (also called unreal) condition: A hypothetical
condition implies that the condition is not accomplished:
141
4. If I could correct this I certainly would. (news) <unfulfilled
in the present/future>
5. If he had had a coin he would have tossed it. (Fiction)
<unfulfilled in the past>
In 4., it is clear that I cannot correct this, and in 5., that he did not
have a coin.
You may think that I want to destroy the milk boards, but if
you believe that you will believe anything. (NEWS)
If we move some of these off the table, we’ll have more room
to do our pictures. (CONVERSATION) <real>
If we could afford it we’d get one. (CONVERSATION)
<unreal>
142
A conditional clause can soften the suggestion or command (a
strategy of politeness). It suggests that the action is the hearer’s choice.
143
SUBORDINATE Synthetic S. Analytic S. Main Clause Subord. conj.
CLAUSE Pres Past Perf Modal- Constr. (that
Auxiliary requires the
Subj.)
WILL/WOULD so that
SHOULD lest, for fear,
so that
144
CHAPTER 6
THE IMPERATIVE MOOD
The Imperative is not only a verbal form, but also a type of the
sentence whose function is to express orders, commands, or requests.
Thus, from the functional point of view, the Imperative is opposed to
the declarative pattern not to the Indicative Mood (Murar, 2010: 129).
The Imperative Mood must be analysed within the framework of
the Imperative Sentences.
145
or if one changes the command into a question or a statement:
You lay the table, Jane, and you bring the drinks, Peter!
146
Let me study!
Let us go! or Let’s go!
147
Don’t let anyone turn on the light!
No smoking!
No entry!
Wet paint!
Out with it!
The book, please!
The question tag will you does not soften the command so much.
Please has a softening effect but is not a strong politeness strategy. Just
makes the imperative less demanding and, thus, easier to comply with.
It is clear that an imperative can express a range of directive speech acts,
148
starting from commands to offers and invitations, depending on the
situation and the kind of demand made on the addressee.
A different kind of function is performed by the following
imperative clause, which is coordinated with a following declarative
clause. The coordinated clause expresses a conditional relation: ‘if you
touch them the telly goes wrong’.
c) interrogative-form sentences:
149
It is more surprising that the written informative registers need
imperatives. In fact, imperatives are more frequent than questions in
news and academic writing, presumably because writers can use them
as a strategy to manipulate the reaction and behaviour of the reader
(Biber et al., 2005: 255). For example:
For full details of performances, talks, workshops, contact the
Third Eye Centre. (NEWS)
Biber et al. (1999: 221-222) concluded that specification of the
subject and the use of softening devices are generally rare: less than
20 % of all imperatives in conversation and fiction have such
characteristics. The most common modifications are an overt subject
you and a final vocative.
Surprisingly, these modifications are slightly more frequent in
fiction than in conversation and are rare in news and academic prose,
where the imperative is addressed to the general reader and does not
demand any favours. The low proportion in spoken language is due to
the informal situations and the intimate relationship between the
interlocutors. Disjunctive questions, please, and do are rare in
conversation and fiction. The main difference between the two
registers is the higher frequency of just in conversation.
150
CHAPTER 7
MODALITY AND MODAL VERBS
151
7.1. Formal characteristics
1) The modal verbs are uninflected: they don’t add -s for the 3rd
person singular, i.e. all persons have the same form, probably
due to their being felt as subjunctives:
152
7.2. Semantic characteristics
The modal verbs form a system of items specialized for expressing
the speaker’s attitude towards the action of the utterance: the action
can be considered as: possible, obligatory, probable, etc. The modals
are also used for requests, offers, suggestions as strategies of
politeness or to express our wishes and intentions.
Modals are polysemantic words: each modal verb has at least two
semantic values, a semantic property also reflected by the syntax of
these verbs.
Modals and semi-modals are grouped into three main categories
according to their main meanings:
1. ability/permission/possibility: can, could, may, might;
2. obligation /necessity: must, should, had better, have got to,
need to, ought to, be supposed to;
3. volition/prediction: will, would, shall, be going to.
Each modal can have two different types of meaning, namely
intrinsic (deontic) and extrinsic (epistemic).
Intrinsic or deontic (root, primary) modality refers to actions that
humans or other agents directly control: ability, permission,
obligation, volition, intention:
153
If we admit that elements expressing modality mark possibility or
the related notion of permission, probability or the related notion of
obligation, certainty or the related concept of requirement, the following
sentences can be interpreted either in terms of possibility, probability
and necessity, or in terms of permission, obligation and requirement, i.e.
either as deontic or epistemic values. (Croitoru, 2002: 48):
Pam may go to the party.
Perhaps Pam will go to the party. (possibility)
Pam is permitted to go to the party. (permission)
The following tables are relevant for the semantic deontic and
epistemic values of modal verbs and for their syntactic behaviour
(Croitoru, 2002: 49-50):
154
Deontic value Epistemic value
1. may = permission 1. may = possibility
May I come in? He may come tomorrow.
You may enter. He may have studied.
2. can = ability and permission 2. can = possibility
He can type very well. Can it be true?
Can I come in?
3. must = obligation 3. must = certainty
He must be there at two o’clock. He must be at the office now.
4. will = volition 4. will = prediction, high
I will do this! probability
She will manage somehow.
5. should = obligation 5. should = probability
You should visit him since he He should be there by now.
was ill.
Syntactic characteristics
Deontic value Epistemic value
a) They are not used in the a) They can be used in the
Perfective and in the Perfective and in the Progressive
Progressive Aspect: Aspect
You may leave now. He can’t have behaved like that.
(permission) He is very polite. (impossibility,
*He can be swimming. (ability) negative deduction)
b) The subject must be animate: b) There is no selection restriction
*The fruit must fall from the on the subject:
tree. (obligation) The fruit must have fallen from
the tree. (certainty)
c) They have Past Tense forms: c) The forms might, could, would
might, could, would are Subjunctives, not past
They asked if they might leave. equivalents:
I wish he might succeed.
She wishes he could be there.
155
7.2.1. Ability
The modal verbs can / could express the deontic concept of ability,
i.e. physical or mental ability to perform a certain activity.
Can + present infinitive is used for present and future actions.
156
In affirmative sentences, a particular event which was successfully
performed in the past under unfavorable circumstances is expressed
by was able, managed to, succeeded in. Could is not used.
He said he had fallen ill and hadn’t been able to get out of bed.
Other verbs which can replace can/could for rendering the concept
of ability are: manage, succeed in, be capable, know how:
This woman is over ninety, but she is still able to work in the
garden.
This woman is over ninety, but she is still capable of working
in the garden.
7.2.2. Permission
This concept is expressed by may / might and can / could.
Asking and giving permission is a matter of politeness, so the
forms we use vary in different situations and registers. Can / could is
157
used in less formal situations (in a familiar environment). may / might
express permission in a formal register.
a) Informal requests for permission:
Can/ could we leave now?
Might and could imply respect, that is why they are more natural
in questions, in requests for permission than in giving it:
158
Can has a wider use than may, for it can be used not only to express
permission given by the speaker, but also to express the idea of having
permission. In You can smoke here – can expresses both meanings: i.
permission given by the speaker (I give you permission); ii. the idea
of having permission (You have a right to smoke/you are allowed to
smoke) (Murar, 2010: 153)
159
7.2.3. Obligation
Obligation is expressed by the following modal verbs: must, need,
shall, should, ought to.
Must expresses:
1) Present/future time reference. Several distinctions can be made
within the concept of obligation:
a) internal versus external obligation:
- internal obligation, i.e. obligation imposed by the speaker, or derived
from the speaker’s conviction or point of view is expressed by must.
Must conveys a personal feeling of duty, urgent obligation, strong
advice.
- external obligation, i.e. external authority, circumstances,
regulations, orders issued by someone else. It is expressed by have to:
160
I must be at work at 7 o’clock a.m. today. (important, urgent
obligation).
I must be at hospital at 8 o’clock for some tests. (important,
urgent obligation).
I’ve got to write an essay. (single, limited obligation).
161
the long infinitive of another verb; it is used in all types of
sentences (affirmative, interrogative, negative):
It needs to be repaired.
I need another smart dress for the party.
162
Didn’t need to + present infinitive expresses lack of obligation of
an action which was probably not performed (the unnecessary action
presumably did not occur). It is synonymous with didn’t have to:
He didn’t need to take the test. (it was unnecessary for him to
take the test and probably he didn’t).
You don’t look too well: you should go to the doctor. (direct
personal statement).
Children ought not to spend too many hours in front of a
computer. (impersonal statement).
163
Obligation can also be expressed by other means:
1) Shall in the 2nd and 3rd persons (it has future time reference).
The construction is chiefly used in formal style (official
regulations, legal language):
Each employee shall wear a uniform.
164
3) The verbs oblige, compel:
165
7.2.4. Possibility
The epistemic concept of possibility is expressed by may / might,
can / could.
1) present or future time reference:
a) affirmative sentences: may is used to denote factual possibility
(i.e. the actual chances of something happening), while can is
used to denote a more general, theoretical possibility (Murar,
2010: 160)
Compare:
166
b) Interrogative sentences: can is very common in interrogative and
negative sentences whereas may is not. In the interrogative
sentences may is replaced by can / could, is it likely:
Note the difference between may not and cannot in these contexts:
167
Marion can’t be there. (= It is not possible, it is impossible
that she should be there)
In certain contexts, may denotes the fact that the possibility of the
past action still exists, while might expresses the idea that a past action
was possible but was not accomplished:
‘Can they have missed the flight?’ ‘Yes, they may have.’
Could he have told a lie?
- negative:
In the negative, the meanings between might not and could not
differ:
You might not have read the letter yesterday (= perhaps you
didn’t read it).
You couldn’t have read the letter yesterday (negative
deduction about a past event).
You couldn’t have seen Jim yesterday. He is out of town.
(negative deduction about a past event)
169
c) nouns: possibility:
7.2.5. Probability
The extrinsic modality concept of probability, supposition,
likelihood, assumption, logical deduction, i.e. what we deduce or
conclude to be the most likely interpretation of a situation or a state–
is expressed by must, ought to, will, would.
She must have left. It’s very late. (= I suppose she left).
Joan must have missed the bus.
170
MUST
171
That will be the man we are looking for. (= That is probably the
man we are looking for).
b) adverbs: probably
172
d) verbal expressions: expect, suppose, daresay, be going to:
a) With a 1st person subject, the speaker makes his own volition and
determination very clear:
173
c) with a 2nd and 3rd person will, expresses obstinate determination,
insistence (strong volition). It has present time reference and it is
always stressed:
He will go there although he knows nobody wants to see him.
b) With a 2nd and 3rd person subject, would shows strong determination,
even obstination. It has past time reference:
174
She would have her way and refused to listen to our advice.
Shall used in the 2nd and 3rd persons expresses speaker’s volition,
determination:
He shall graduate.
7.2.7. Habit
The concept of habit which refers to a habitual, repeated action or
state (i.e. what is characteristic under certain circumstances) is
expressed by will, would, used to.
Will + present infinitive is used with present time reference. It
expresses present repeated, habitual actions or specific, predictable
behaviour. The construction is used when we wish to emphasize the
characteristics of the performer rather than the action performed. With
this value will is used especially in the 3rd person (ibid.: 171)
As the construction with will is normal for the 3rd person, the Present
Tense Simple is used when reference is made to the other persons:
Would + present infinitive has past time reference and expresses habitual,
repeated actions in the past or predictable behaviour in the past:
He would solve problems for hours when he was in high school.
Mary would keep silent when you ask something she
considered embarrassing.
175
In these sentences we could use the simple Past Tense or used to
instead of would.
b) a state that existed in the past (to contrast a past and present
state). Would may not be used as an alternative. Would cannot be
used for states, but only for past repeated actions:
176
Did you use to play football at college?
I didn’t use to like tea but now I drink it with pleasure.
Tom was used to training hard so that was not a problem for
him. (= was accustomed to…)
177
b) As a modal auxiliary, dare is used without –s in the 3rd person
singular; it forms questions and negations without do; it is
followed by the short infinitive of another verb. It is used only in
the interrogative and negative sentences:
Ellen dare not have shown up if the bride hadn’t invited her.
178
The following table is very relevant for the multiple semantic values
of the modal verbs (Murar, 2010: 176)
MODAL VERBS
179
7.4. Modal and semi-modals across registers
7.4.1. The distribution of modal and semi -modal verbs
In their corpus-based grammar book, LGSWE, Biber et al. (1999:
486-495) discuss the distribution of modals across registers:
The modals can, will, and would are extremely frequent.
At the other pole, shall is relatively rare.
Considering the pairs of central modals, the tentative/past time
member is less common than its partner in all cases, except for
shall and should.
Modal and semi-modal verbs are especially common in spoken
English, and not so frequent in news and academic prose.
The register differences in the use of semi-modals are very
striking: semi-modals are five times more common in
conversation than they are in written language.
Semi-modals are considerably less frequent than modal verbs.
The greater frequency of both modals and semi-modals in
conversation is understandable considering that these forms
mostly express stance-type meanings. The predominance of
semi-modal verbs in conversation can be explained
historically. The central modals pre-date the tenth century,
whereas the semi-modals developed much more recently.
In fiction and conversation, many modal verbs are more
frequent in BrE than Am E. This applies especially in the case
for modals marking obligation/necessity-must and should-and
modals marking volition and prediction-will, would, and shall.
On the contrary, semi-modals tend to be more common in
American English (especially have to and be going to.
Modals expressing permission /possibility and volition /
prediction are considerably more common than those marking
obligation/necessity.
Most modals display strikingly different distributions across
registers.
180
Can and could are common in all types of registers.
May is very common in academic style, but rare in conversation.
Must and should are relatively common in academic register.
Will and would are frequent in all registers.
Be going to (including the form gonna) is the most common
semi-modal in spoken English. The same is true for have to.
The semi-modals bad better, have got to, and used to are also
relatively common in conversation.
It is interesting that British English is more innovative now than
American English regarding the use of semi-modals. Thus, the more
recent had better and have got to also transcribed gotta are more
frequent in spoken British English:
181
We’re going to wait. (CONV)
I think I’m going to die. (FICT)
This was before I used to speak to her. (CONV)
He used to sleep-walk. (CONV)
The semi-modals have to, need to, and be going to can occur
in sequences following another modal or semi-modal:
The researchers warn that they will have to treat many more
patients before they can report a cure. (NEWS)
I’m gonna have to stay. (CONV)
These two will need to rest for a good long time. (FICT)
I thought, perhaps, you might be going to be married. (FICT)
182
The obligation/necessity modals and semi-modals
Obligation/necessity modals and semi-modals are less
frequent than the other modal verbs.
Have to is very common in conversation to mark personal
obligation.
Should is common in both conversation and academic register
to express personal obligation.
Must is the only modal verb commonly used for logical
necessity and personal obligation.
Surprisingly, must in spoken English is used specially to mark
logical necessity.
183
CHAPTER 8
THE NON-FINITE FORMS OF THE VERB
184
The Long Infinitive / the to-Infinitive (the verbal form
preceded by the particle to) is generally used after verbs of full
lexical meaning:
When these verbs are in the passive, they are followed by the to-
Infinitive in the Nominative with Infinitive construction:
Mary was heard to come.
185
◊ In two Infinitive structures joined by the conjunctions
and, but, or, having the same function, the particle to is
placed before the first Infinitive only:
I’d like to collect the last data and finish the project.
3) The Implicit Infinitive: the particle to is used alone, and the verb
is omitted if the latter is clearly understood from the context.
The Implicit Infinitive is used in spoken English to avoid the
unnecessary repetition of the verb. It mainly occurs after such
verbs as hope, tell, want, wish as well as after some semi-modal
verbs such as ought to, used to:
He invited the woman although I had told him not to.
‘Did you attend the optional course?’ ‘No, I wanted to, but I
didn’t have the time.’
186
8.1.2. The grammatical categories of the Infinitive
The Infinitive has the grammatical categories of aspect and voice:
187
b) The Simple Infinitive and the Progressive Infinitive:
The present progressive Infinitive indicates an action in progress
at the same time as the action of the finite verb. The Present
Progressive Infinitive is used after:
some auxiliary and modal verbs:
He must be having a party.
The Passive Infinitive may vary with the Active Infinitive after
certain constructions with be:
Be + Long Infinitive:
The land is to sell (= to be sold).
188
There is / was + NP + Long Infinitive:
b) As a NP in the accusative:
The Accusative + Infinitive construction:
189
The For to-Infinitive construction: the construction contains
an Infinitive which is in predicate relation to a NP preceded
by the preposition for:
8.1.4.1. Subject
The Infinitive can be the subject of:
some transitive verbs: need, require, take:
190
Complex constructions (Complex Subject)
The Infinitive as Subject can have its own subject, i.e. a NP in the
Nominative or Accusative.
191
verbs of physical perception: feel, hear, notice, observe, see:
He seems to be lying.
Do you happen to know the name of that king?
Verbs such as appear to, seem to, happen to, come to, get to, fail
to, tend to, followed by a lexical verb make up catenative verb
phrases. Catenative is a term referring to a lexical verb which governs
the non-finite form of another lexical verb, as with try in She tried to
escape. (Crystal, 1999: 50). In generative grammar such constructions
are known as control and raising constructions (Cornilescu, 2012).
These verbs have meanings which are similar to some of the
modal verbs or meanings similar to those indicated by aspect choices.
Yet, they behave like lexical verbs in that they form their complex
forms with auxiliary do, be and have.
192
The catenative verbs express modal meanings, indicating whether
something is probable or certain, or aspectual meanings, indicating
whether something is completed (Murar, 2010).
He is sure to succeed.
He is unlikely to come.
193
The complex subject for + NP Accusative + to-Infinitive occurs
when the predicate of the sentence is expressed by a copular verb (be)
+ an adjective (advisable, difficult, easy, essential, important,
impossible, necessary).
It is essential for you to take the medicine.
194
The indirect/prepositional object becomes the subject (the
preposition is retained):
8.1.4.3. Attribute
The Infinitive can function as an attribute after the following
categories of nouns (NP antecedents):
a) The Infinitive as an appositive complement, after some abstract
nouns (derived from verbs or adjectives): ambition, attempt,
decision, desire, difficulty, idea, intention, order, reason, wish, etc.:
195
He is the first man to succeed in doing this.
The rain was the only sound to be heard.
8.1.4.4. Object
The Infinitive discharges the function of Direct Object after
certain transitive verbs:
a) Transitive verbs followed by an Infinitive only: afford, fail,
manage, prepare, threaten:
He threatened to resign.
We managed to finish the project.
196
verbs such as agree, arrange, decide, forget, hope are
followed by an Infinitive if the subjects are co-referential or
by a that-clause if there are different subjects:
We have agreed to continue the research.
We have agreed that the research should be continued.
197
and at the same time the logical subject of the Infinitive. In this
case the relation between the nominal element and the non-finite
form (the Infinitive) is similar to that between subject and
predicate. The construction has the syntactic function of Complex
Object and it occurs after the following classes of transitive verbs:
Note: When the verbs see, feel indicate mental not physical
perceptions they cannot be followed by an Accusative + Infinitive, but
by a that clause (Murar, 2010: 192):
198
I consider that he is a famous scholar.
He made me laugh.
He tried to get me to agree.
199
8.1.4.5. Adverbial Modifier
The Infinitive is frequently used in adverbial clauses that express
possible rather than real action. It is thus used in adverbial clauses of
purpose, adverbial clauses of result, as well as in a few other clauses, for
instance, unreal comparative clauses, conditionals, clauses of exception.
200
8.1.4.5.2. Adverbial Modifier of Result
The Infinitive discharges this function in several structures:
a) The subject of the finite verb is also the subject of the Infinitive
(the Infinitive has an active meaning):
Too + adj. / adv. + Infinitive (the adverb too implies a negative
result):
b) The subject of the finite verb is the object of the Infinitive (the
Infinitive has a passive meaning):
c) The subject of the finite verb is (at the same time) the prepositional
object of the Infinitive:
201
d) The complex construction for + to-Infinitive is used when the
Infinitive has its own subject:
The book was too difficult for me to understand.
202
To be honest, I have never heard about this.
Hire a Daily Mirror van and wait for him to arrive. (CONV)
203
The police didn’t dare touch them because of United Nations.
(FICT)
I could have helped clarify a number of issues. (NEWS)
204
8.2.1. The Gerund
In some grammar books (see Carter & McCarthy, 2006: 905; Swan,
2009), the term ‘Gerund’ refers only to the verb form ending in –ing
which functions as a noun (also termed verbal noun or –ing noun):
b) Verbal characteristics:
A Gerund may be determined by an adverb, and it may take
an object if the verb is transitive:
205
It has the grammatical categories of aspect and voice.
206
the grammatical subject is the affected participant of the event
expressed by the verb, thus creating a meaning similar to a passive
voice structure:
207
- with certain types of NPs which cannot take the ’s: inanimate nouns,
demonstrative pronouns, compound constructions, the formal subject
there, etc.:
Greenbaum and Quirk (1990: 312-313) consider that the common case
is preferred where the subject is a non-personal NP and not a pronoun
and the style is not formal:
208
The Gerund and the Infinitive compared
There are cases when either form (Infinitive or Gerund) is used:
2) Predicative
3) Premodifier
209
4) Object
The Gerund is used as a direct object after many transitive verbs.
These transitive verbs also take the Infinitive as object or a that-clause.
They fall into the following classes:
a) Transitive verbs followed by the Gerund only: avoid, enjoy,
escape, excuse, fancy, forgive, can’t help, keep (continue), risk,
can’t bear / stand:
The students admitted having studied very little for the exam.
The students admitted that they had studied very little for the
exam.
210
When the verbs begin, start are used in the continuous aspect, the
Infinitive is preferred (to avoid the repetition of –ing):
When love, like, prefer are used in the Conditional (would love /
like / prefer) the verbs are followed by the Infinitive:
211
I remember paying the bill.
I must remember to pay the bill.
212
The shoes need repairing.
The shoes need to be repaired.
5) Prepositional Object
The prepositional context is the most characteristic environment
for Gerund complements, being the only context that they do not have
in common with Infinitives or that-clauses. Unlike other types of
complements (Infinitives or that-clauses), Gerunds behave like NPs
with respect to prepositions, i.e. the preposition is not deleted before
Gerunds and NPs (Murar, 2010: 208).
Some verbs like: aim at, decide on, long for can be followed by
either a preposition + Gerund or by an Infinitive:
A few adjectives like afraid of, ashamed of, delighted at, pleased
at, sorry for, surprised at etc. can be followed by a preposition +
Gerund or by an Infinitive / that-cause:
6) Prepositional Attribute.
The Gerund is used after nouns with preposition: difficulty in,
doubt about, objection to, opportunity of, pleasure of, cause for,
reason for, thought of:
214
It was an honour to have you here.
7) Adverbial Modifier
a) Adverbial Modifier of Time:
The Gerund is preceded by the prepositions after, before, on:
According to Carter & McCarthy (2006: 31), the verb in the –ing
form is many times more frequent in written than in spoken English.
In informal register there is a strong preference for a full finite clause.
215
For a particular purpose the Infinitive is used:
216
8.2.2.2 The syntactic functions of the Present Participle
1) With the auxiliary be, the –Ing Participle is used to form the
continuous aspect of the verb:
I am studying.
He was working.
2) Noun Modifier
As a noun modifier (attribute), equivalent to a relative attributive
clause, the Participle can occur either before or after the noun it
determines:
a) Before the noun as premodifier: If the Participle has no other
determination (e.g. object or adverbial) it occurs before the noun.
When the Present Participle is used as an attribute, it usually
expresses a characteristic feature of the thing referred to by the noun:
217
He looked after the children playing in the park. (the children
who were playing in the park)
When you get there, please, look carefully at the girl sitting in
the front line. = …who is sitting /…who will be sitting).
The –ing Participle Clause need not carry the meaning of the
continuous aspect:
3) Complex constructions
a) The Nominative + Participle construction: The Nominative
with the Participle consists of a NP in the Nominative case and
a Participle. It is actually a passive construction, similar to the
Nominative with the Infinitive construction from which it differs
in that it implies an event in progress, an incomplete action or
state. Syntactically, the construction discharges the function of a
Complex Subject. The Nominative with the Participle is required
by the following verbs:
- Verbs of physical perception: hear, notice, observe, see in the passive
voice):
218
b) The Accusative + Participle construction:
The Accusative with the Participle consists of a NP in the
Accusative and a Participle. Syntactically, the Accusative with
Participle has the function of a Complex Object. This pattern is
required after transitive verbs:
- Verbs denoting physical perception: feel, hear, notice, see, smell,
watch:
I saw her cross the street. – (complete action: from one side
to another)
I saw her crossing the street – (incomplete action: on the way
to the other side).
219
The policeman caught them stealing.
The doctor left me waiting more than I had expected.
4) Adverbial Modifier
This function is expressed by the Participle alone or by an
Absolute Participial Construction. The Absolute Participial
Construction contains a Participle which stands in predicate relation
to a noun / pronoun in the Nominative case, but the NP is not the
subject of the sentence. The Absolute Participial Construction is quite
common in literary English.
Greenbaum and Quirk (1990: 327) define this type of construction
as non-finite adverbial clause that have an overt subject but are not
introduced by a subordinator, so termed because they are not explicitly
bound to the matrix clause syntactically.
220
The Perfect Participle expresses an action anterior to that of the
finite verb. The Perfect Participle can replace the Present Perfect or
Past Perfect in adverbial clauses of time.
Having got their grades, the students left the class. (= When
they had got their grades, they left the class)
221
c) Adverbial Modifier of Manner
222
Opening the door, the thief took all he could find. = The thief
opened the door and took all he could find.
- With certain verbs, when the subject of the participle is the indefinite
pronoun one:
The sentence makes it appear that the brick was waiting for the
bus, which is nonsensical. The correct form is:
223
Comparison between the Participle and the Gerund
a) If the –ing form determining a noun can be expanded into a
relative clause, it is a participle, if it cannot, it is a Gerund:
224
Together with a form of the auxiliary verb be, the Past
Participle is used to form the passive voice: is studied, was
studied, etc.
225
b) The Past Participle as postmodifier (after a noun): The Past
Participle is a postmodifier similar in meaning to a relative
clause, passive voice.
2) Complex Object:
The construction consisting in a NP in the Accusative and a Past
Participle has the syntactic function of a complex object. The
construction is required after the following verbs:
a) Verbs of physical perception see, hear, feel:
He left me amazed.
I want this project carried out.
226
I had my house redecorated last month.
If he continues this way, I’ll have him punished by Mum.
experience sufferings:
Have/get + NP Acc. + Past Participle can be used informally to
replace a passive verb (usually one referring to some misfortune):
Her money was stolen before she had the chance to buy the PC.
She had her money stolen before she had the chance to buy
the PC.
I got my leg hurt in the conflict.
227
3) Adverbial Modifier:
The Past Participle construction is used to reduce an adverbial
clause. This function can be expressed by a Past Participle alone or by
an Absolute Participial Construction (the Past Participle is preceded
by a NP functioning as its subject).
a) Adverbial Modifier of Time
The Past Participle is usually preceded by the conjunctions when,
until, once:
228
d) Adverbial Modifier of Reason
229
8.4. Complex Constructions (Gălățeanu and Comișel, 1992: 194)
with the Accusative with the Nominative Absolute Nominative
Accusative + Nominative + Absolute Nominative
Infinitive Infinitive +Infinitive
I want you to study I was ordered to leave. He sent a message
this. first, the letter to post
later.
Accusative + Present Nominative + Present Absolute Nominative
Participle Participle + Present Participle
230
Post-predicate to-clauses controlled by adjectives express someone’s
stance towards his or her activities. This structure is relatively
common in news:
CONV: keep, start, go, stop, see NP, remember, think, get NP, sit
FICT: keep, see NP, go, start, stop, begin, hear NP, come,
spend, remember, think, get NP, sit, feel NP, stand/stood
NEWS: start, keep, begin, see, NP, go, spend, come, stop, be
accused of
ACAD: be used for, involve, be achieved by/with
231
News and academic prose have more specialized verbs that control
ing-clauses:
232
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233
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