eslHQ

eslHQ (http://www.eslhq.com/forums/)
-   English Questions (http://www.eslhq.com/forums/esl-forums/english-questions/)
-   -   when + a present situation (http://www.eslhq.com/forums/esl-forums/english-questions/when-present-situation-12687/)

ordeal May 27th, 2009 08:06 am

when + a present situation
 
I know the use of when, if, as soon as, until, etc. + present simple when we refer to future time.

Can I use "when" + present continuous in this case?
e.g. "I like the winter when it's raining."

Thanks. :)

susan53 May 27th, 2009 12:16 pm

Re: when + a present situation
 
Yes - though note that your example is not future time : it's a case of the present simple used for permanent, or recurrent, events ( = I always like it in any winter when it's raining)

However, it is possible to use the continuous form to express a future event after a conjunction when the event is on-going: When you're speaking to David tomorrow, don't forget to saythat ...

To go into the "real" rule means changing the terminology that you've used, but staying with your terminology, you could say that the rule is "if you want to state a future event after a conjunction - if, when, as soon as etc - use a present verb"

But what aspect that verb has (simple, continous, perfect) will depend on the type of event the speaker wants to portray (neutral, ongoing, completed). So :

When/As soon as John arrives, call me. (future event - neutral : present simple)
When/While you're doing your homework,turn the spell check off. (future event - ongoing : present continuous
When/After you've phoned everyone, let me know what they said. (future event -completed : present perfect)

Incidentally, I hope your site name isn't a reflection of your feelings towards English grammar .... :lol:

ordeal May 31st, 2009 04:12 pm

Re: when + a present situation
 
Thank you very much for your help!

About my username, this word came to my mind after trying other names such as "estrella" (star), my name, etc. But they were unavailable. In spite of its meaning, I like the way it sounds. :)


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 08:20 pm.

Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.6.8
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Content Relevant URLs by vBSEO 3.6.0 PL2