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Gene93 Posted 11 years ago
Vocabulary
take off/is taking off
Hello,
I often tend to use present simple tense when talking about things that are parts of a schedule (departures,arrivals, etc). I was told that this sentence: "The plane takes off in one hour" does not make much sense. They told me I should have said "The plane is taking off in one hour." When I was a student I was taught that we can use present simple in such contexts, but that doesn't seem to be the case. Could you, please tell me where I go wrong?
Thank you in advance
I often tend to use present simple tense when talking about things that are parts of a schedule (departures,arrivals, etc). I was told that this sentence: "The plane takes off in one hour" does not make much sense. They told me I should have said "The plane is taking off in one hour." When I was a student I was taught that we can use present simple in such contexts, but that doesn't seem to be the case. Could you, please tell me where I go wrong?
Thank you in advance
Top answer
Present Simple is OK there.
- Present Simple is OK there.
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9 Answers
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Is it more natural to use "Present Continuous" though? Which tense would you use, Clive?
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There is no big difference.
If the focus of the conversation is the schedule, I'd use Simple Present.
If there is no schedule, or if the focus is 'Hurry up', I might use Continuous.
eg My wife and I are sitting in the airport.
If the focus of the conversation is the schedule, I'd use Simple Present.
If there is no schedule, or if the focus is 'Hurry up', I might use Continuous.
eg My wife and I are sitting in the airport.
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Thank you, Clive. Do you think that a native speaker could also use Simple Present in your airport context? I probably wouldn't but someone else might do. Just asking, Clive, no offense meant
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I find that "departs" is more common than "takes off". Technically, I think when the plane ceases to accept passengers and taxis to the runway, it has 'departed' the terminal. Until it lifts off, it has not taken off. I'm not disagreeing, mind you.
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wilpeterI find that "departs" is more common than "takes off". Technically, I think when the plane ceases to accept passengers and taxis to the runway, it has 'departed' the terminal. Until it lifts off, it has not taken off. I'm not disagreeing, mind you.I'd never use 'departs'. Depending on what I was thinking of, I'd say either "(The) Gate closes at ...' o
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fivejedjonActually, given the lack of reliability of published times, I'd be more likely to say "The plane is due to take off atThen you've encountered variances, too! Perhaps it should be "The plane might take off at.." Then the lounge would be renamed, "Hopeful take-offs" instead of "Departures".
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The answer to your question was lost in the laments about the inconvenience of air travel. English expands the present to include planned (and particularly scheduled) events, so I see nothing wrong with either the simple present or the present progressive to describe lift-off.
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