Grammar Review 2: Verbs

Present Simple • To describe general states, truths, habits, or recurring actions that are not limited to

past, present or future • I am a UTS student. • UTS is the best university in Ultimo. • I wake up at 6.00 am every morning to get ready for uni. • The train for Central leaves at 7.00 am on Mondays.

Past Simple • To talk about finished activities – things that happened in the past, are finished and

have no connection with the present. We usually know when the action happened. • I chatted with my tutor on Skype last night as I missed the tute during the day.

Present Perfect Simple • To talk about things that have happened in an unfinished period of time that includes

the present. It is used with expressions like this morning, this week, this month, this year. • Have you seen Joe this morning? VS Did you see Joe this morning?

• To talk about the duration of an action that started in the past and continues up to

and includes the present. It is often used with for and since. • She has studied here for three years.

• To talk about the present result of an action completed at an unspecified time in the past. • I have completed my assignment.

• To talk about experiences people have had at some time in their lives. When it

happened is not specified. • He has travelled all around Australia.

Past Perfect • To talk about two actions in the past and to make clear the sequence of events. It

shows that one action happened before the other. • The tute had already finished when he arrived.

Present Continuous • To talk about an activity in progress, which includes the present moment. It implies

that it started in the past, is happening in the present, and may continue into the future.

• I am studying for my master’s degree at UTS.

• To talk about definite future events. This is sometimes called the diary future. The

time reference is given or understood. • I am meeting my tutor at 3.30 pm on Friday.

Past Continuous • To talk about an action that was in progress at a past point in time.

• I was doing my assignment at 8.00.

• To talk about an activity that was in progress and interrupted by a single complete

action in the past. It is made with the Past Continuous, the Past Simple and the words when or while. • I was doing my assignment when the phone rang.

Present Perfect Continuous • To talk about the duration of an activity that started in the past and continues up to

and includes the present. • He has been working on his assignment since 8.00.

• To talk about the result of a recently stopped activity. The result of the activity is

evident in the present. • He has been working on his assignment. He is exhausted.

Past Perfect Continuous • To describe a past event which continued until or just before another past event.

• They had been researching in the library for 2 hours when the siren went off.

• To show cause and effect of a past event.

• I got home last night and the place was a mess. My flatmates had been partying.

Zero Conditional • To express a general rule or scientific fact that is always true.

• If you click on this button, the trash is gone forever.

First Conditional • To talk about a situation that we see as possible in the future. It is called the

‘possible conditional’. It can be used to express a variety of functions, e.g. an offer, a threat, a warning, a consequence.

• If it rains, I will not go to uni.

Second Conditional • The Second Conditional is used to talk about a situation that we see as either

improbable or unreal. It is called the ‘improbable conditional’. It can be used to give advice, make offers, and talk about a variety of hypothetical situations. • If I won a lot of money, I would quit uni and travel around the world. • If I were you, I would stop worrying about the assignment.

Third Conditional • To speculate about the consequences of something that did not happen in the past.

It is called the ‘impossible conditional’. It can be used to express regret or relief. • If I had studied harder, I would have passed the exam.

Verb tense in academic writing Use past tense… • To describe your methodology and report your results

• The respondents were divided into groups according to their gender and age. • More than 80% of the female respondents in the age group 20-29 preferred assignments to exams.

• When referring to the work of other researchers • Smith (2015) reported that male adult respondents in his study were in favour of exams.

• To describe a fact, law or finding that is no longer valid/relevant. • Up to the 20th century, doctors believed that men suffered from migraines because they were the weaker

sex. However, current research shows that the factors contributing to migraines are not gender-related (Jones 2016).

Use present tense… • To present findings that continue to be true

• Smith (1995) asserts that the causes of migraines are unrelated to gender.

• To refer to tables and figures within the writing • Table 4 displays the reasons why male respondents preferred exams to assignments.

• To discuss your findings and present your conclusions • The majority of male respondents preferred exams to assignments. The result suggests that male students

perform best in short bursts of time rather than over a continuous, lengthy period of time.

Use present perfect simple… • To refer to previous research where the result is still true and relevant

• Some studies have shown that female students prefer group assignments as they enjoy the interactions with other students (Jones 1995; Smith 2010; Wiley et al. 2008).

• To connect the past (previous research) with the present (your writing) • Some studies have shown that female students prefer group assignments as they enjoy the interactions

with other students (Jones 1995; Smith 2010; Wiley et al. 2008). However, the same cannot be said about the Australian context as these are European data.

• To describe the results of your research or to draw conclusions • A survey has been developed to measure… • This has led to the conclusion that…

Reporting verbs Choosing the ‘right’ reporting verb depends on: • what the author is doing • the extent to which you agree with the author • the significance the author has placed on the information • the way the reporting verb fits together with other words in a sentence

What the author is doing • ARGUE: verbs concerned with writing or saying argue, suggest, propose, point out, observe, explain, conclude, claim, state • THINK: verbs concerned with thinking, knowing, understanding think, believe, assume, feel, hold, hope • SHOW: verbs concerned with indicating a fact or situation show, demonstrate, reveal, indicate, confirm, imply • FIND: verbs concerned with the research process find, discover, observe, establish, identify, infer

Agreement with author You can indicate, through a choice of reporting verbs, your viewpoint: • a belief that the information is correct

acknowledge, define, demonstrate, explain, identify, observe, outline, show, throw light on

• a neutral attitude towards the accuracy of the information add, argue, claim, clarify, conclude, describe, express, feel, find, indicate, inform, present, propose, remark, remind, report, state, use

• a belief that the information is incorrect allege, confuse, disregard, ignore

Significance of information It is possible to indicate whether the author is positive or negative in their attitude to the content of the information. • Positive accept, advise, affirm, agree, applaud, assert, concur, insist, maintain, note, praise,

point out, posit, recommend, remark, stress, subscribe to, suggest, support, think, urge

• Negative/uncertain: attack, challenge, disagree, dismiss, dispute, doubt, mistrust, oppose, question,

reject, suspect, warn

• The author is very assertive/certain: argue, challenge, claim, insist, refute, reject • The author is tentative: propose, speculate, suggest • The author believes the information is very important: contend, emphasise, stress • The author believes the information is of lesser importance: mention, note, say • The author is offering advice to the reader: caution, recommend, warn, urge

How it fits in the sentence • Mostly in the present tense ARGUE (concerned with writing or saying), THINK (concerned with thinking,

knowing and understanding) and SHOW (concerned with indicating a fact/situation) verbs

• Occasionally in the present perfect tense ARGUE, FIND and SHOW verbs • Mostly in the past tense FIND (concerned with the research process) verbs