If you already know how to use the Present Tense, then the Past Tense will be easy.. He explained that he had just turned out the light. In general, the Past Tense is used to talk about something that started and finished at a definite time in the past.. How to form the Past Tense in English. See Spanish-English translations with audio pronunciations, examples, and word-by-word explanations. He said that Bill had arrived on Saturday. Pride and prejudice - mix of present & past tense - past tense novel. Present perfect: Past perfect "I have been to Spain", he told me. While past tense dialogue is the most common, it’s up to you which one you use. And, the more I … In each case the first sentence is direct speech and the second sentence is in reported speech. Translate say in context, with examples of use and definition. In this case, the verb that you are relating moves one step back into the past. Unlike direct speech, which occurs in the present tense, indirect speech usually occurs in the past tense. Conjugate the English verb say: indicative, past tense, participle, present perfect, gerund, conjugation models and irregular verbs. So when you’re reporting something someone said in the past and just once, “said” is more logical. Using "says" for tags is just weird. This is the standard he said, she said style that you see in most fiction novels or even short stories.. “Says” is present tense and describes an ongoing action. Past Tense: said She said that she came from Viet Nam.. Infinitive: She wants to say something. It may be used with or without an adverb of time. The most common form you see is dialogue using past tense. Hello Elissa, The verb 'say' is part of a group of verbs called 'irregular verbs' which do not follow a fixed pattern in order to chane from simple form into past form. The Simple Past Tense, often just called the Past Tense, is easy to use in English.. Past perfect: Past perfect "I had just turned out the light," he explained. I hope I have answered your question satisfactorily. Look at these examples. However, it is possible to use simple present tense dialogue. As for “said” versus “says,” the former is usually more precise. All that changes is the dialogue tag, which becomes she says, he says.. “Said” may be used for the following actions: For example, the verbs "say" and "tell" are used to relate a conversation that you have had with someone. In reported speech it is common to shift the tense back. It can also show that something happened before a specific time in the past. The verbs in the past simple form are shown in bold. Translate Said past tense. So for example, if someone said something to you in the present tense, you would report it in the past tense. The word said is the past tense of the verb "say," but it can also be used as an adjective to refer to something that has been previously introduced. Using the Past Tense . "Bill arrived on Saturday", he said. “Said” is used in the simple past tense. When you use the past perfect, and only specify one event, the other event is understood by context, or you are signaling to the reader/listener that there is another event. So I edit according to these principles. This is just wrong. Past Tense The past tense is used to indicate any action which has been completed in the past. Present Tense: say / says She says she’s from Viet Nam. Present Continuous Tense: saying What is she saying?. In the case of 'say', its past form is 'said' (pronounced as SED). He told me that he had been to Spain. In addition, the first sentence is present & last one is past. As clearly shown on page 1, she uses a mix of present & past - past dialogue tags & present dialogue. The Past Perfect expresses the idea that something occurred before another action in the past. Gerund: Do you practice saying things in English? 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