In the monrning, in the mornings, mornings

Question

Hi everybody,I would like to express the same as: 'I work every morning'Do the following examples convey the same idea?- I work in the morning.- I work in the mornings.- I work mornings.What does 'They left early in the morning.' mean? Does it mean that they left early in this particular day?Monolingual dictionaries don't give detailed answers.Thanks for your help in advance.

AlpheccaStars · Accepted Answer

Hole One a New SeeDo the following examples convey the same idea?

Yes.
- I work mornings. (But this indicates that you work the morning shift. The company has evening shifts, morning shifts, etc.)

Hole One a New SeeWhat does 'They left early in the morning.' mean? Does it mean that they left early in this particular day?

Yes. The simple past tense means a one-time event. It could have been in the past, though. The context will tell what day it was:

Mrs. and Mrs. Chambers prepared carefully for their long trip across the country. In 1845, the roads were dangerous. One day, in early spring, they left early in the morning to begin a new life in the west.

Hole One a New See · Answer

Thank you very much, AlpheccaStars

I ask more (only because it connects to the previous one). Does the following statement true?

Simple past means 'repeated actions' ONLY IF it is explicitly indicated by something (for example frequency adverbs, adverbials). (as a comparison with 'simple present' where it is not necessary)

For example: 'I went parachuting every summer.'

And what happens in simple past when I use 'in the morningS'? As I can see it doesn't give another meaning in the above mentioned examples in simple present. But I guess it functions as a frequency adverbial in:

-They left early in the morningS.

Thanks for your answer in advance.

AlpheccaStars · Answer

Hole One a New See-They left early in the morningS.

No, that is not correct. Use "every + time expression" for repeated action.

-They left early every morning.
-The train left early every hour, on the hour.

Hole One a New See · Answer

Thank you, AlpheccaStars

Does 'in the morning' behave differently in different tenses? Does 'in the morning' in simple past show that it is a one-time event?

' I work in the morning. ' was a repeated event but 'They left early in the morning.' was a one-time event.

I didn't except answer so I opened a new thread. Now it is a little bit embarrassing because I got answer there, too. I'm sorry for the mess. That is the new topic (where I ask the same):

http://www.EnglishForward.com/English/OneRepeatedHabitSimplePast/bgdccg/post.htm

Thanks for your answer in advance.

In the monrning, in the mornings, mornings

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