1ense

1he Lemporal lnLerpreLauon of

senLences
8elchenbach 1947
Speech 1lme / uuerance 1lme
8eference 1lme / Asseruon 1lme
LvenL 1lme / SlLuauon 1lme

a. Penry was born ln 1980.
b. Penry wlll be 30 nexL !anuary.
c. Penry's son wlll already have been born nexL
!anuary.
Comrle 1983

1ense relaLes S1 & 81 - !"# %#&#'#()# *+,-+(#(.

AspecL relaLes 81 & L1 - !"# %#/01+( *+,-+(#(.

2345.#(10/ 5.0.65 +& 0 5#(.#()#: Lhe relauon
beLween Lhe reference componenL and Lhe relauon
componenL
a. AL ve l was pollshlng Lhe sllver.
b. l have pollshed Lhe sllver.
c. Pe had pollshed Lhe sllver aL ve o'clock.
1emporal adverblals:
anchored, delcuc, S1-orlenLed: now,
yesLerday, Lhe day before yesLerday, nexL
year, lasL year
unanchored: ln !une, ln a week
1emporal adverblals
durauonal: for an hour
frequency: every hour
compleuve: ln an hour
resenL Slmple
1. resenL:
generlc, hablLual
lnsLanLaneous
aLemporal
2. asL
3. luLure

Cenerlc/hablLual value
characLerlzlng senLences
whaL ls Lhe dlerence?

!ohn drlnks wlne.
Mllk ls good for Lhe bones.
CaLs drlnk mllk.
A caL drlnks mllk.
CaLs are wldespread.
non-sLauve predlcaLes ln Lhe slmple presenL
Lense ln Lngllsh have defaulL hablLual readlng

!ohn drlnks wlne.
PablLual predlcaLes
sLage-level
dlsposluons, poLenual for lndlvlduals (ob[ecL-
level)
generallzauons over ume, pauerns of evenLs
usu. wlLh frequency Av, bare plurals, mass nouns

a. !ohn drlnks a glass of wlne every evenlng.
b. !ohn drlnks wlne. c. !ohn eaLs sandwlches.
PablLual senLences
Lrue lf Lhere are enough evenLs Lo warranL a
generallzauon - also presuppose fuLure
occurrences
pragmauc facLors:
Mary murders chlldren.
Mary reads Lhe 1lmes.
Mary drlnks beer.
conLexLs:
1. WhaL should l serve Mary?
2. l only have beer.
3. ls Mary a LeeLoLaler?
*Mary drlnks a glass of wlne.
vs.
Mary drlnks a glass of wlne when she's upseL.
-> overLly quanued envlronmenL

1he new guy ls a plg. Pe always eaLs every
donuL.
*Pe eaLs every donuL.
Cenerlc senLences
analyucal
klnd-level or ob[ecL-level sub[ecL
aLemporal
predlcaLes LhaL only occur wlLh klnd-level
sub[ecLs: !"# %&'( )# *"!#+,-#.!( )# "/ +0%-'
+&,,12( )# 3%44%/( )# "/!"5#/%&+ '%( 3%4# "/
.11 +"6#+
klnd-referrlng expresslons: bare plurals,
denlLe slngular ns, mass nouns
ulnosaurs are exuncL.
1he dlnosaur ls exuncL.
*A dlnosaur ls exuncL.
A dlnosaur ls a nlce Loy Lo glve Lo a chlld.
A symphony has four movemenLs.
baslc sLage level predlcaLes recaLegorlzed as
lndlvldual level predlcaLes
generallzauons, characLerlzlng senLences, l-
generlcs
descrlbe properLy whlch holds for mosL
members: excepuons!
generallze over properues, noL pauerns of
evenLs (hablLuals)
lnsLanLaneous Slmple resenL
! marked use of Lhe perfecuve vlewpolnL
performauve verbs:
I agree. I hereby declare
percepuon predlcaLes:
I see the moon.
runnlng commenLarles and demonsLrauons
I add two cups of flour and fold
in gently
Here comes the bus.
aLemporal use (commenLarles, synopses, 1v programmes, sLage
dlrecuons, capuons, lllusLrauons, reclpes, hlsLory books)
A snowy owl slLs on Lhe awnlng of an omce bulldlng ln downLown
WashlngLon
asL value
lnformal
It wasnt more than about half a minute
when one of these palookas suddenly
pulls out a young carving knife and
sticks me in the wish-bone with it.
Good and hard it sticks me, and it got
me plenty sore. And I says to myself,
what the hell?
narrauve (novels)
His lordship had no sooner disappeared
behind the trees of the forest, but Lady
Randolph begins to her confidante the
circumstances of her early life.
headllnes

Passport Theft Adds to Mercy and Social Media
Mystery of Missing Slow the Noose in Iran
Malaysia Airlines Jet

Sovereignty vs. Self-Rule: Crimea Reignites Battle
wlLh verbs of communlcauon
I hear you're in London.
I have just seen Angela, and she
tells me she is engaged to this
Bottle.
Letters were written, he tells me,
which had to be seen to be
believed.
luLure value
obllgaLory ume Av
hlgh degree of cerLalnLy: calendar, cycllc
evenLs, scheduled evenLs
This year Easter falls on April 20
th
.
The semester ends on May 31
st
.


subordlnaLe clauses: ume and condluonal
l wlll brlng lL Lo you when l have lL.
lf l nd lL, you wlll be Lhe rsL Lo know.
a. 1he 8ed Sox play Lhe ?ankees Lomorrow.
b. *1he 8ed Sox defeaL Lhe ?ankees Lomorrow.
c. 1he 8ed Sox wlll defeaL Lhe ?ankees
Lomorrow.
1he asL Slmple
delcuc/exlsLenual value
non-delcuc: narrauve
" narrauve ume advances wlLh perfecL evenL
senLences
" bounded evenLs occur ln sequence
" sLaLes are slmulLaneous wlLh Lhe ume of Lhe
precedlng evenL
a. Pe lled Lhe lld from a huge poL and Look a snl,
Lhen he rushed over and dlpped a nger lnLo a
barrel of sucky yellow sLu and had a LasLe, Lhen he
'0( over Lo anoLher machlne, a small shlny aalr
LhaL kepL golng phuL-phuL-phuL-phuL-phuL.
b. ln Lhe caravanseral all was busLle and hum.
Anlmals were cared for, horses, camels, bullocks,
asses, goaLs, whlle oLher, unLameable anlmals '0(
wlld: screechy monkeys, dogs LhaL were no man's
peLs. 1urbaned coolles ln red shlrLs and dhous '0(
ceaselessly hlLher and yon wlLh bundles of
lmprobable slze and welghL upon Lhelr heads.

a. 1hen he ran over Lo anoLher machlne, a small
shlny aalr LhaL kepL golng phuL-phuL-phuL-
phuL-phuL, and every ume lL wenL phuL, a large
green marble dropped ouL of lL lnLo a baskeL on
Lhe oor.
b. ln Lhe caravanseral all was busLle and hum.
Anlmals were cared for, horses, camels,
bullocks, asses, goaLs, whlle oLher, unLameable
anlmals ran wlld: screechy monkeys, dogs LhaL
were no man's peLs. Shrleklng parroLs exploded
llke green reworks ln Lhe sky.

pasL progresslve: Lemporal frame:
Mrs Cedge was ln Lhe omce of her lawyer ln
London. Pls operauons on her behalf ln Lhe
mauer of evaslon of Lngllsh lncome 1ax had
dlssaused her, and she was Lalklng preuy
sLralghL Lo hlm. Lady 8eaLrlce 8racken was ln Lhe
garden of her faLher's seaL ln uorseLshlre. She
was readlng for Lhe Lhlrd ume acky's leuer
announclng hls deparLure for SL 8oque. SenaLor
Cpal was Laklng a brlsk walk ln Lhe grounds.
8laLul se urnl de lng poarL sl lnLr in und. AlLurl de
vaLr, prlns inLre dou crmlzl, clocoLea o oal cu ceva
verde inunLru. C(lva mlel srlser pe prlsp sl llngeau
sare. una dlnLre ele, care sLLea alLurl de blaL, frec
pmnLul cu coplLa el mlc sl se culc inceL, susplnnd.
Lra o oale bLrn sl blnd, care mergea LoLdeauna in
urma crdulul.
ulmlnea(a ne vesLea o arzLoare zl de lulle. Cu cL
inalnLam, cu aLL mal grele nl se preau boccelele
noasLre. Mergeam alene sl Lcu(l. oLeca, pe unde
mergeam, se deschldea la vale lung sl dreapL. 1oL pe
aceeasl poLec mergea ca la o zvrllLur de b( inalnLea
noasLr un bleLan, care (lnea pe cap o puun, era inalL sl
zdravn, puuna de pe cap il mal lungea inc.

reporL: delcuc (reporLer)
Cuesuons such as Lhese were more common Lhan
answers 7+(809 as searchers kepL looklng for Lhe
8oelng 777 LhaL vanlshed wlLhouL a Lrace ."'## 8095 0:+.
As boaLs and planes scoured Lhe waLer, chaslng a serles
of leads LhaL proved false, auLhorlues revealed new
deLalls ln Lhelr lnvesugauon and speculauon surged.
8uL we're sull hearlng dlscouraglng news Lhls mornlng .
1he uS navy's 7
Lh
eeL says no alrcra was spoued
durlng .+809;5 search.
no emergency slgnal has been deLecLed by any search
vessel or alrcra.
A week LhaL began ln vlolence ended vlolenLly "#'#.
hablLual
Susan rode a byclcle lasL summer.
Susan moved lasL year. <- pragmauc knowledge
# progresslve:
Lvery mornlng, when he was havlng hls
breakfasL, hls dog was sLarlng aL hlm.
Pe looked aL her repeaLedly when she was noL
looklng.
Whenever l looked up he was looklng.
pasL perfecL value
a. Aer she llsLened Lo Lhe explanauons, she
sald.
b. 1he nlghL before he reLurned she slepL
poorly.
c. Pe shaved and llsLened Lo Lhe radlo.
d. Pe knocked and enLered.

a. When Parry woke up Mary was sleeplng.
b. When Parry woke up Mary slepL.
c. When he was a sLudenL he slepL poorly.
d. When he goL Lhe leuer he burned lL.
e. *When he read Lhe leuer he burned lL.
f. When he had read Lhe leuer he had burned
lL.

modal remoLeness
" presenL reference:
l wlsh Lhey were allve.
lf Lhey were allve Lhey would be horrled.
" pasL reference:
l wlsh he had le.
lf Lhey had le Lhey would noL have Lold her.
backshl
She sald she had Loo many commlLmenLs.



LaLer Monday, a law enforcemenL omclal Lold
Cnn LhaL lnformauon has been shared wlLh
varlous agencles LhaL lncludes whaL may be Lhe
names of Lhe Lwo men who used sLolen
passporLs, and LhaL so far noLhlng has come up
Lo cause concerns.

amLudlnal pasL
l wanLed Lo ask you someLhlng.
l wanL Lo ask you someLhlng.
1he erfecL
marker of ASLC1: represenLed as Lhe spauo-
Lemporal predlcaLe Al1L8
(uemlrdache&urlbe-LxLebarrla)
She may have le lasL week.
Per havlng le early surprlsed everyone.
resenL erfecL
'paruclpanL properLy' (SmlLh 1991) - currenL
relevance
*LlnsLeln has llved ln rlnceLon.
rlnceLon has been vlslLed by LlnsLeln.
dlerences ln slLuauon Lype + conLexL =>
dlerenL values of Lhe perfecL (resulLauve,
conunuauve) -> no dlerences ln lnLerpreLauons
of Lhe perfecL lLself
8eference 1lme: 8LSLn1, lnLerval lncludlng
8LSLn1
She has llved ln London (slnce she marrled).
She has broken her leg.
" conunuauve 81 = lnLerval lncludlng S1
open, ln Lhe absence of conLexLual lndlcauons ->
fuLure
1hey have always been frlends.
" experlenual : Pe has wrluen many books.
" resulLauve : l have repalred Lhe car.
81 = S1, L1 before 81
focus on presenL relevance
paruclpanL properLy
resulung sLaLe: valld aL presenL momenL
" recenL pasL: lndenlLe pasL
Malcolm !ones has [usL been assasslnaLed!
presenL perfecL progresslve: recenLly nlshed
acuvlues Lhe eecL of whlch ls sull apparenL
a. l've been chopplng onlons.
b. ?ou've been ghung agaln.
c. Pe has noL been coughlng slnce noon.
We've already dlscussed Lhls yesLerday.
Pe has goL up aL ve o'clock (before).
!ohn has oen le aL four.

-> resulLauve
sLaLes: experlenual/conunuauve: amblgulLy
We have llved ln London.
acuvlues: resulLauve/conunuauve
Mary has rehearsed slnce noon.
cf. Mary has been rehearslng slnce noon.
amblguous adverbs:
eggy has been ln Asla (ever) slnce !anuary.
l've been a Leacher for 30 years.
lor 30 years, l've been a Leacher.
-> senLence lnlual posluon: amblgulLy resolved
resenL perfecL ln ume clauses
varlauon wlLh slmple presenL
" slLuauon Lype: durauve/non-durauve
Come over and see us when our guesLs leave/
have le.
We can go ouL as soon as we have had /*have
dlnner.
narrauve cuonal value + presenL slmple

When he learns LhaL hls long-ume barber has
passed away, Sheldon decldes Lo embrace hls
lnner hlpple ln an auempL Lo maLch hls new
shaggy halrsLyle.
presenL perfecL vs. pasL Lense
81 = S1 81 before S1
+ space-ume coordlnaLes
+ clrcumsLances

'WhaL abouL a Leaspoon?'
'l've surred lL, Crandma. l surred lL well.'

Where/Pow/Why/When dld you geL/*have you goL lL?
AuvL88S 1PA1 CCCu8 Wl1P:
Slmple asL
noL resenL erfecL
boLh Slmple asL and
resenL erfecL
resenL erfecL
noL Slmple asL
.ago
once (=formerly)
Lhe oLher day
Lhose days
lasL .
ln 1930
aL 3 p.m.
aer/before Lhe war
no longer
long slnce ln Lhe pasL
once (1x) Loday
ln my llfe for.
recenLly [usL now
oen yeL
always ever
never already
before Lhls mornlng
aL presenL
up ull now
so far
as yeL
durlng .
herewlLh
laLely
slnce.
before now
before S1 conLexL dependenL S1 orlenLed
a. *l was lll laLely.-> S1 orlenLed
b. l have been / was lll recenLly.
c. now my ambluon has been fullled.
d. now my ambluon was fullled.
e. Pe was once an honesL man.
f. l have vlslLed Lhe Plghlands once.

1he resenL erfecL uzzle (Clorgl&lanesl 1998)
" ban on speclc Lemporal adverbs wlLh presenL
perfecL
" (osluon)-uenlLeness ConsLralnL (kleln 1992)
81 and L1 cannoL boLh be lndependenLly -denlLe
presenL Lense: -denlLe: llnked Lo nCW
-> clash wlLh speclc pasL Av
pasL Lense: non--denlLe: unspecled pasL
-> any pasL Av
'Lhere are many *.+es buL only one "+'
Means of expresslng fuLure ume
o presenL slmple
o presenL progresslve
o golng Lo
o wlll
o be Lo, be abouL Lo, eLc.
" modallzed fuLure





no fuLure Lense
resenL Slmple: lu1u8L AS lAC1
presenL Lense: hlgh degree of cerLalnLy
obllgaLory ume Av
fuLure slLuauon <= Lhe sLaLe of Lhe world now
Lhe clause musL lnvolve smLh. LhaL can be
assumed Lo be known
lL's ChrlsLmas Lomorrow.
*lL snows Lomorrow.
resenL rogresslve
personal plans: arrangemenL already made
human agency
l'm spendlng ChrlsLmas wlLh my slsLer.
*1he sun ls rlslng aL 3 Lomorrow.
*lL ls ralnlng Lomorrow.

lmmlnence
a. She has her operauon Lomorrow.
b. She's havlng her operauon Lomorrow.
c. ?She's havlng her operauon ln Lhree monLhs'
ume.

d. lL explres Lomorrow/ln ve years.
e. lL's explrlng Lomorrow /?ln ve years.

lmmlnence:
a. l'm phonlng her LonlghL.
= she's expecung my call
b. l phone her LonlghL.
= l phone her every Monday (Loday ls Monday)
= l phone her LonlghL and Lhen Lomorrow we
go and Lalk Lo Lhe wlLnesses and Lhen we have
Lhree weeks Lo prepare our defence because we go
Lo courL on Lhe 30
Lh
.
c. l'm golng Lo phone her LonlghL.
= lnLenuon: she does noL know abouL lL


8L CClnC 1C
$ fuLure fulllmenL of presenL lnLenuon
l'm golng Lo call her LonlghL.

$ fuLure fulllmenL of presenL cause -> predlcuon
Look ouL, Lhe boxes are golng Lo fall down!
lL's golng Lo raln.
lf WlnLerbouom's calculauons are correcL, Lhls planeL ls golng
Lo burn lLself ouL 200,000,000 years from now. -> remoLe
evenLs

*l wonder wheLher she's golng Lo know you.
*lf you accepL Lhls [ob you are never golng Lo regreL lL. (fuLure
cause)
WlLL
predlcuon
WhaL wlll follow? Pearlng hlm auacked, my Cousln
Angela's womanly hearL wlll be as slck as mud. 1he
maLernal ugress ln her wlll awake.
volluon
l wlll marry you. l wlll do my besL Lo make you a
good wlfe.
lf you wlll Lhrow your mlnd back Lo Lhe evenlng of
our arrlval.
l'll make some Lea.


WlLL + 8CC8LSSlvL
aspecLual meanlng:
1hls ume nexL week l wlll be salllng across Lhe
ALlanuc. 81 aer S1, L1 lncludes 81


fuLure meanlng: &6.6'# 05 0 ,0<#' +& )+6'5#
volluon
a. l'll drlve lnLo London nexL week. (volluon)
b. l'll be drlvlng lnLo London nexL week.
c. Wlll you puL on anoLher play soon (volluon)
d. Wlll you be pumng on anoLher play soon?
e. ??1he unlLed SLaLes wlll be declarlng war on
lraq.
modallzed fuLure, no 'neuLral' way of expresslng
fuLure: no fuLure Lense
a. Pe vlslLs Lhe caLhedral Lomorrow. -> omclal
schedule, fuLure as facL
b. Pe ls vlslung Lhe caLhedral Lomorrow. ->
personal plan
c. Pe ls golng Lo vlslL Lhe caLhedral Lomorrow. ->
lnLenuon
d. Pe ls golng Lo be dlsappolnLed.->predlcuon
e. Pe wlll/won'L vlslL Lhe caLhedral Lomorrow. ->
volluonal colourlng
f. Pe wlll be vlslung Lhe caLhedral Lomorrow. ->
fuLure as a mauer of course
luLure ln Lhe pasL
would -> acLuallzed
golng Lo - (non)-acLuallzed

a. Cne day, a hundred years from now hls descendanLs
would see Lhe LenL pulled down and all hls glory
vanlsh.
b. Pe plnched hlm [usL ln ume, hard enough Lo make
hlm forgeL whaL he was golng Lo /*would say.
c. l suddenly remembered Lhe recenL mlsundersLandlng,
and wlLh a ash of clear vlslon saw LhaL Lhls was
where lL was golng Lo come ln handy.
a. A blrLhday presenL for Lucllle! Pe groaned ln
bluerness of splrlL. She would be comlng back Lo-
nlghL, dear glrl, all smlles and happlness, wonderlng
whaL he was golng Lo glve her Lomorrow. And when
Lo-morrow dawned, all he would be able Lo glve her
would be a klnd smlle.
b. lf Squly was golng Lo reform because he LhoughL he
had seen an lmaglnary snake, beuer noL Lo leL hlm
know LhaL Lhe snake was a real one.
c. l suggesLed LhaL, as l was dlnlng ouL, why dldn'L he
Lake Lhe evenlng o and go Lo some lmprovlng
plcLure or someLhlng.
d. And he was auendlng LhaL fancy-dress ball, mark
you--noL, llke every oLher well-bred Lngllshman, as a
lerroL, buL as MephlsLopheles.