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Simple vs Continuous in the Past Tense and in the Future Tense

English Language & Usage Asked by user122524 on May 5, 2021

Even though I understand the difference between the simple and the continuous aspect of the English tense system, I sometimes struggle to understand what each of these two aspects expresses in some past and future contexts. Let me give you two examples:

1a. When I was a teenager I sometimes called my father.

1b. When I was a teenager I sometimes was calling my father.

2a. This is the last time we are seeing each other. I will sometimes call you.

2b. This is the last time we are seeing each other. I will be sometimes calling you.

I get the meaning expressed by the past simple and the future simple in the above example sentences but I`m not feeling the continuous. Could you tell me what meaning does the continuous aspect convey in those?

One Answer

I hope the following will be useful, though I am not sure I can express it in the correct grammatical terms

When I was a teenager I sometimes called my father
-- the phrase above is ok

When I was a teenager I sometimes was calling my father
-- the phrase above sounds wrong

Can I suggest the following two modified sentences, which both sound correct to illustrate the difference.

When I was a teenager I always called my father on Sunday evenings

When I was a teenager I was always calling my father

same for the future

  • This is the last time we are seeing each other. I will sometimes call you
    vs
  • This is the last time we are seeing each other. I will be sometimes calling you

The first phrase sounds ok, but the second one sounds wrong because sometimes means only from time to time, not continuously.

Answered by tom on May 5, 2021

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