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Wstuppert Posted 12 years ago
Grammar
Present and past tense in one sentence
Dear native speakers,
I have a dispute with my colleague regarding the use of present and past tense when presenting research findings. She claims that two tenses in one sentence don't work gramatically. I think, however, that the following sentence is illogical if I use either the past tense or the present tense instead of both - first past, then present tense.
Please consider the following example:
The study [to identify] eight different configurations of conditions that [to lead] to project effectiveness.
Now - as the study identified the configurations in the past, I would use past tense for the first verb in the sentence. However, those configurations still lead to project effectiveness, that is they continue to do so. After all, it is a finding/ a rule, not just something that happened in the past. Therefore, I would use the present tense for the second verb in the sentence.
Would that sound akward? What other solutions are there?
(The example above is only one of many. The problem occurs every time, we report findings - study in the past, finding still valid. When discribing a graph or a plot, the problem can appear inverse: "As the graph shows, the number of cases with XYZ went up in 1990.")
I am looking forward to your answers.
Best
Wolf
I have a dispute with my colleague regarding the use of present and past tense when presenting research findings. She claims that two tenses in one sentence don't work gramatically. I think, however, that the following sentence is illogical if I use either the past tense or the present tense instead of both - first past, then present tense.
Please consider the following example:
The study [to identify] eight different configurations of conditions that [to lead] to project effectiveness.
Now - as the study identified the configurations in the past, I would use past tense for the first verb in the sentence. However, those configurations still lead to project effectiveness, that is they continue to do so. After all, it is a finding/ a rule, not just something that happened in the past. Therefore, I would use the present tense for the second verb in the sentence.
Would that sound akward? What other solutions are there?
(The example above is only one of many. The problem occurs every time, we report findings - study in the past, finding still valid. When discribing a graph or a plot, the problem can appear inverse: "As the graph shows, the number of cases with XYZ went up in 1990.")
I am looking forward to your answers.
Best
Wolf
Top answer
Hi English is fairly loose in this way. There are quite a number of possibilities and these are a few examples that I would say are all acceptable ... - The study identified eight conditions that had lead to greater effectiveness - The study identified eight conditions that are leading to greater effectiveness - The study identifies eight conditions that will lead to greater effectiveness - The study identifies eight conditions that lead to greater effectiveness Dave
- Hi English is fairly loose in this way.
- There are quite a number of possibilities and these are a few examples that I would say are all acceptable ...
- - The study identified eight conditions that had lead to greater effectiveness - The study identified eight conditions that are leading to greater effectiveness - The study identifies eight conditions that will lead to greater effectiveness - The study identifies eight conditions that lead to greater effectiveness Dave
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4 Answers
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Hi
English is fairly loose in this way. There are quite a number of possibilities and these are a few examples that I would say are all acceptable ...
- The study identified eight conditions that had lead to greater effectiveness
- The study identified eight conditions that are leading to greater effectiveness
- The study identifies eight conditions that will l
English is fairly loose in this way. There are quite a number of possibilities and these are a few examples that I would say are all acceptable ...
- The study identified eight conditions that had lead to greater effectiveness
- The study identified eight conditions that are leading to greater effectiveness
- The study identifies eight conditions that will l
00
Dear Dave, thank you for your answer! If you say that English is fairly loose in this way - would you say that the rule my colleague mentions does not exist, or is it maybe a stilistic "best practice" rule or something like that?
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Just as an extra note:
You have to bear in mind that 'to lead' is an irregular verb - the past looks the same as the present. So:
- The study identifies eight conditions that lead to greater effectiveness
... can mean ...
- The study identifies eight conditions that tend toward greater effectiveness
... or ...
- The study identifies eight cond
You have to bear in mind that 'to lead' is an irregular verb - the past looks the same as the present. So:
- The study identifies eight conditions that lead to greater effectiveness
... can mean ...
- The study identifies eight conditions that tend toward greater effectiveness
... or ...
- The study identifies eight cond
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Hi
Yes, I suppose it is stylistic. It has to do, partly, with the present historic tense - which some people prefer to avoid in English. Strictly, we should say something like:
- The study identified the factors that were leading to improved efficiency
But, commonly, we bring the event into the present by saying something like:
- The study identifies the facto
Yes, I suppose it is stylistic. It has to do, partly, with the present historic tense - which some people prefer to avoid in English. Strictly, we should say something like:
- The study identified the factors that were leading to improved efficiency
But, commonly, we bring the event into the present by saying something like:
- The study identifies the facto
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