Her voice was poised,
and when she addressed us
for the first time
a wave of silence descended
as if it were preordained
that a shrilled silence would dawn
when she worded the thoughts
she had in her mind,
for silence was a word
not in the dictionary
the students of St Mary’s used.
In one of our previous posts, we had explained the rules of the simple present tense and the present perfect tense besides some vital differences between the two. In this lesson, we have listed out some more differences between these tenses that learners ought to keep in mind so they don’t make embarrassing mistakes. To ensure that you comprehend the differences well, we have explained them with the help of several example sentences. So, if you’re ready, let’s begin!
We generally use the present perfect tense to talk about actions that have a link with the present. Nonetheless, it is also possible to use the past tense to express such actions. Also, the adverbs βjustβ, βrecentlyβ and βlatelyβ can be used to denote that the action being spoken about happened in the recent past. It is also possible to use the adverb βalreadyβ to denote that the action is completed. However, if the sentence happens to be negative, we oftentimes use the adverb βyetβ provided the sentence is said in the present perfect tense. Look at the example sentences given below:
‘Autistic kids are very particular about certain things. They want everything to be organised. Yes, they are aloof and they hardly mingle with others, but their innocence is something that moves my heart and soul. Some of them do end up finding good jobs.’
