0
Marcelinx Posted 19 years ago
Grammar

I would

In my language there are two types (among others) of past:
1. the one that happened once, like "I had lunch at McDonald's yesterday".
2. the one that shows repeated actions in the past

In the first one you use simple past, but in the second one...
1) Do you use would+infinitive? I would stare out my window. (repeated actions in the past)
2) Or you use simple past? I stared out my window. (in this case, repeated actions in the past and not something that happened once in the past)
3) Or you use both - are they interchangeable?
4) Or you can use both, but in different situations - in this case, how do I decide which one to use?

Thank you in advance.
  

Top answer

In my language there are two types (among others) of past: 1. the one that happened once, like "I had lunch at McDonald's yesterday". 2.

— Doll

  • In my language there are two types (among others) of past: 1.
  • the one that happened once, like "I had lunch at McDonald's yesterday".
  • 2.
  • the one that shows repeated actions in the past In the first one you use simple past, but in the second one...
  • 1) Do you use would+infinitive?
Free · every Monday

Get the Weekly English Kit 📬

New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.

10 Answers
0
In my language there are two types (among others) of past:
1. the one that happened once, like "I had lunch at McDonald's yesterday".
2. the one that shows repeated actions in the past

In the first one you use simple past, but in the second one...
1) Do you use would+infinitive? I would stare out my window. (repeated actions in the past) Yes
0
0
As a footnote:

You can use the simple past to express a repeated action if you supplement the verb with an appropriate adverbial phrase, e.g.

1. Every day, I stared out of my window.

Best wishes,

MrP
0
0
Yeah! I forgot to add it but dear Mr. Pedantic [L] solved everyhing. Emotion: big smile
0
0
Ok, so you CAN'T use simple past to show a repeated action in the past? (unless you put "every day" or something similar)
0
0
Oh, I think you can, at least for some actions that are obviously habitual: When I was a boy, I brushed my teeth and combed my hair before school.
0
0
Good example MM, but I think the context help us comment it as a habitual action or else it wouldn't give us the meaning of a habitual action if I made a sentence as follows:

I combed my hair after I had a shower yesterday.
0
0
That's not my point, Doll. My point is that some actions are generally considered habitual, so do not require the time reference. It does not preclude at all the possibility of considering it as a single activity when appropriate.
0
0
Ok, so you CAN'T use simple past to show a repeated action in the past?
No. Not true at all. The idea is that you need context to create the situation in which the exact aspect of the simple past is known. This is true whether the simple past (or any other tense, for that matter) is used to express a single action or a habitual action. This context can come from
0
0
I think in BrE, for the first case, you would tend to use the present perfect:

1. "How's dinner coming along?" "Well, I've chopped the onions..."

But a similar pair could be generated:

2. "Who did the cooking last night?" "Well, I chopped the onions, and Scarlett ground the cardamoms..." = "Well, I chopped the onions last night..."

3. "Who did the cooking, in th
0
0
I think in BrE, for the first case, you would tend to use the present perfect
I think so too, but you'd know better than I on that score.

They were a one-recipe household.
So are we, but our servants do all the cardamom grinding.

CJ
0

Related Questions