Simple present and past are the most commonly used statistics in English. How to distinguish past simple from present simple / perfect and use them appropriately?
The use of the past or present depends on the context, and confusing simple times is usually difficult. The main difficulties arise when it is necessary to talk about recently completed events, those that are repeatedly repeated in the past and in the present, events that continue to this day.
The present
Using a simple present tense, we are talking about facts, habits, routine, feelings and emotions, and conditions. Time is used when talking about things / events "in general" or about the frequency of actions.
In the present simple time, they speak not only of facts known to everyone, but also of what we personally consider to be a fact. So it can be said about the future action, which is a fact for us: I start my new job on Friday.
Marker of this time can be considered adverbs of frequency. If the sentence contains the words “always”, “often” (often), “usually” (usually) and other adverbs of frequency of action, most likely, this sentence is best formulated in present simple.
Time is not used to describe events that occur at the current time. To do this, use a long time.
In the present simple, they usually formulate what always happens. But if it is implied that something negative is constantly happening, i.e. there is condemnation or annoyance in the message, use the present continuous time.
For example, using the continued aspect, it is worth formulating the sentence "I constantly lose things", bearing in mind that a person does this too often than he would like: I'm always losing things.
Past
The simple past is used to describe actions that began and ended in the past. In addition, it is used to talk about events that happened one after another in the past.
A key condition for using time is to relate the events described to a certain point in the past. Usually, a particular moment is either implied, and listeners know about it, or this moment is said in the story itself. For example: Yesterday I lost my book (yesterday I lost my book).
Markers of the simple past are words and expressions indicating the period that has already passed: last week (last week), yesterday (yesterday). To the simple past, it’s easy to ask the question When? (When?).
Present and past
Times present simple and past simple are similar in aspect. With the help of the first, they talk about facts that are always true, describe objects or talk about states. The second serves to describe events related to a certain point in the past.
Difficulties usually arise with the separation of the perfect present and just the past. The differences between past simple and present perfect and present simple lie in the nuances of the described actions and situations. The timing affects the context:
- time of action;
- connection of the described action with the present.
The key difference between past and present is the relevance of the situation they are talking about. Present covers all those “situations” in which a person lives, including his life. Therefore, if we talk about something “I never did this”, then such an expression in English is present in time.
Time and aspect
Past - everything that is no longer relevant, the irrelevance of which can be concluded either from the context or from a direct indication. The most obvious indication of past is to attribute the action to a clearly ended period.
Simple is one aspect of time. In simple they talk about actions "in general." As a rule, in past these actions are not related to the real result or its duration. They just exist in the past. In present, they are descriptions, statements of states of objects or of the person himself.
Perfect is another aspect of the time, present perfect is often confused with past simple due to the fact that Russian speakers do not have the habit of dividing situations into “relevant” and “irrelevant”. For us, the action either happened, or is happening (in principle, or right now), or will happen. The shades of time in Russian can be indicated indirectly.
Relevance of the situation
The sentence in Russian "the rain has ended" can be transmitted both through the simple past and through the completed present:
- It has stopped raining.
- It stopped raining.
In the first case, the speaker indicates that there is no rain now, this is the current situation, the rain has stopped raining and the speaker is reporting this. The statement is true at the time of the speech.
In Russian, we could say "the rain has just stopped" or "the rain is no longer coming." In English, additional words may not be needed, the grammar quite unequivocally associates the action with the time axis.
In the second case, the speaker indicates that it basically rained, it used to be in the past, it can go again, we can’t conclude anything about the present situation from this sentence, because the situation is irrelevant. The second sentence is a statement of the cessation of rain in the past, once, maybe a few minutes ago, or maybe not.
Repeated and ongoing actions
How to distinguish present perfect from past simple when we talk about actions several times committed in the past? To describe the sequence of different actions that relate to the past, use past simple. When talking about the same repeated actions in the past, they use present perfect.
You can determine the perfect aspect by keywords that can easily be inserted into a sentence in present perfect: already (already), just (just), yet (yet), this week (this week), in life (in my life), never (never). They show that the action is completed, although it refers to a still-lasting period of time, focus on the result or its absence in the context of a continuing situation (I have never traveled).
How to distinguish past simple from present simple when we talk about current actions that began in the past? Usually, in this case they use the present perfect long, but if they talk about the states, they discard the long aspect (the verbs of the state include the words: love, wish, like, etc.).
Past related to the present
How to distinguish past simple from present simple when the action happened just literally? The action refers to the present moment, but it has already been completed.
When we talk about the actions that have taken place, which relate to the actual situation (lasting, unfinished), we are talking about the present with a perfect aspect. A simple past tense always refers to a past situation, to a situation that was relevant in the past.
In English, past simple and present perfect are often used together. When it is necessary to emphasize a fact that has been valid up to the present moment, it is expressed in the simple past, and then information is added that has become clear only now and brings something new to the old fact, formulating it in the present perfect.
Thus, the difference of situations is emphasized, the transition from one situation to another, the first is past, not relevant, therefore it is expressed through past simple. For example, if Natasha lost her keys, and today her friends found them, then the first part can be formulated in the simple past (Nataly lost her key), and the second in the present perfect (but now we have found it).
If you use present simple or past simple instead of the real perfect, then the sentence loses its meaning or loses its emphasis on the fact that keys were found recently, that this is an actual situation.
Summary
How to distinguish past simple from present simple / perfect and how to use:
Pay attention to what period of time the described action belongs to, whether the situation to which the action relates is relevant or not. When the situation is not relevant, and it refers to the past, use past simple. If the situation is relevant and the result of this situation is important, use present perfect. When they talk about facts that are always relevant - present simple.
To distinguish between the usual actions that are repeated in a person’s life, from those that simply repeated for some time. Habitual repetitive actions refer to a simple present. Repeated actions in the past - to the present perfect. A series of actions that occurred in the past - to a simple past.
New information is told in present perfect, but they continue to talk about it in past simple. When it is required to say about a general fact, to describe one’s or someone else’s state, which we consider a fact, we use present simple. When it is necessary to say about the fact of the past, which refers to an irrelevant situation that has already been experienced, past simple is necessary. The action / inaction, which refers to the current situation, but the result of the action is already there, that is, it is completed, they say in present perfect.