0
J4mes_bond25 Posted 19 years ago
Linguistics Studies

Languages without tense ???

0 I would like to know if there are any languages in the world in which02br
00the only existing tense is the present tense? I mean the language which02br
00doesn't possess any past or future tense. 0-
  

Top answer

02br 02br 00Best wishes, Clive0-

— Clive

  • 02br 02br 00Best wishes, Clive0-
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
0Hi,02br
02br
00My understanding from my Chinese students is that the Chinese language does not use verb tenses, but instead expresses time in another way.02br
02br
00I look forward to the comments of others.02br
02br
00Best wishes, Clive0-
0
0
0It is better to think of such languages as only having one form of a verb. The verb can be used to indicate the past and future as well as the present. The meaning has to be ascertained form the context, though means of indicating whether the past present or future are referred to are usually available.02br
02br
00It is also important to remember that in a language like Engl
0
0
0 It would be interesting to construct a language that had no verb tenses, and no way of expressing time--such as words like "now", or "then" or "yesterday", etc. If they taught that language to a baby, the baby would have a very different worldview. 0-
0
0
0 01blockquote
01cite10Marvin A.12cite10It would be interesting to construct a language that had no verb tenses, and no way of expressing time--such as words like "now", or "then" or "yesterday", etc. If they taught that language to a baby, the baby would have a very different worldview.12blockquote
10You are entering into the realm
0
0
0 01blockquote
01cite10Clive12cite10Hi,12br
12br
10My understanding from my Chinese students is that the 10Chinese language10 does not use verb tenses, but instead expresses time in another way.12br
12br
10I look forward to the comments of others.12br
12br
10Best wishes, Clive12br
0
0
0Hi,02br
02br
01font00I do not think that even a language without adverbs of time could prevent its speakers from having a concept of time. 02font02br
02br
01font00My wife has no concept of time.00 01i00(Cheap joke, rim-shot. And not actually true, in case she reads this.)02i
0
0
0 01blockquote
01cite10Marvin A.12cite10It would be interesting to construct a language that had no verb tenses, and no way of expressing time--such as words like "now", or "then" or "yesterday", etc. If they taught that language to a baby, the baby would have a very different worldview.12blockquote
10I agree with the others, that t
0
0
So if you are "next" to *** remember that English has two tenses only: present & past

I am not Britsh and am not ***!!
0
0
AnonymousEnglish has two tenses only: present & past

That is true if you are using "tense" in the strict sense that some linguists use it. It does not not of course mean that English does not have a fairly rich array of compound verb forms that can express time.
0
0
Sure there is. Chinese doesn't have tense. We only have normaexis tense. And we simply add the time point when we talking about the past or future.
0

Related Questions