Present Tense (definition)

The present tense indicates that the action being described happens at the same time as the speech time (the time the sentence is being spoken). In English, we have such forms as John eats apples, which is in the present tense.

In Gaelic only one verb has a true present tense: the verb Bi (irregular verb). Present tense is typically expressed using the verb bi in combination with a verbal noun in an auxiliary construction. For example, the present tense for a verb like kiss would be expressed by literally saying X is kissing Y:

1)

Tha	Muirgheal	a'	pògadh	Pòl
Be.pres	Muriel	prog	kiss.vn	Paul
Muriel is kissing Paul/ Muriel kisses Paul

In English, the present tense is often used to indicate a habitual action (e.g. John runs). In Gaelic, this usage is typically expressed by the future tense instead.

See Also

• Past Tense (definition)
• Future Tense (definition)
• Tense (definition)

External Links

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Present_tense

References

• Crystal, David. (1997) A Dictionary of Linguistics and Phonetics. Oxford, UK: Blackwell.