tailieunhanh - Teaching academic ESL writing part 17

Tham khảo tài liệu 'teaching academic esl writing part 17', ngoại ngữ, toefl - ielts - toeic phục vụ nhu cầu học tập, nghiên cứu và làm việc hiệu quả | 148 CHAPTER 7 Functions and Uses Verbs used in the past tense refer to actions events or states that took place or existed in the past and no longer continue in the present. The meaning of the past tense in reference to specific past-time activities can be somewhat distinct from those in constructions with state past Quirk et al. 1985 p. 186 as Sentences 2 and 3 show. For example 2. In early American history the family assumed responsibility for educating its children. The past tense necessarily marks an action or a state for the past time and no longer continuing at the present time. Specifically the past tense refers to activities and states that are not connected to the present . the historical past . In this context it is important to note the role of time adverbs that can gready assist in identifying the time of the action or event. Sentence 2 is marked by the past time adverb phrase in early American history. However even if the adverb phrase is omitted the action remains in the past time for example 3. The family assumed responsibility for educating its children. The meaning of the past-tense use with the verb assumed implies that the action was performed or a state existed in the past and was finished in the past. The past tense usually refers to specific and finished past time actions events and states. An important point about past-tense uses is that in academic writing they necessarily require a past time adverb or adverbial phrase clause . some type of a past time marker that warrants the employment of the past tense . The past time marker does not apply only to the sentence in which it is used but can extend to an entire text excerpt until a new time marker is used to flag that the time and the tense can be switched Hinkel 2002c . For example 4. In the summer of1994 the Gatorade Company introduced Gatobarinto test markets. The fruit flavored energy bar was the company s first effort to extent its name beyond its sports drink. Gatobar with only .