Use of Simple Present tense

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TS

Use of Simple Present tense

Post by TS »

Simple Present is said to express Habit, Routine, Permanency, etc. But examples (below) from newspapers usually stay out of these functions: :? :?

Ex1: Recent POLLS show Bush's standing with the public has weakened as Americans.....
Ex2: It WARNS that "a new boom and bust is in the making and will likely start to show up at the end of next year or the beginning of 2005".
Ex3: The reality REMAINS that Tung will be at the helm until and unless Beijing leaders think otherwise.
Ex4: The 30 new candidates COME from around the world, from Australia to Zagreb, Vietnam to Venice, and on the whole follow John Paul's conservative bent.
Ex5: Several groups, including the National Abortion Federation and the Center for Reproductive Rights, PLAN to challenge the measure in court as soon as it is signed into law.
Ex6: A final vote in the U.S. Senate B REMAINS before Congress sends the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act (S. 3) to President Bush for his signature. The bill REPRESENTS the first direct national restriction on any method of abortion since the Supreme Court legalized abortion on demand in 1973.
Ex7: Nevertheless, some Democratic senators who OPPOSE the bill, including Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Ca.) and Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), prevented the vote from occurring before the Senate began a 10-day recess on October 3. This MEANS that the necessary Senate vote cannot occur earlier than mid-October.
Ex8: Seventy percent of Americans SUPPORT a ban on partial-birth abortion.
Ex9: Italy's U.N. Ambassador Marcello Spatafora, whose country HOLDS the EU presidency, moved between the two groups, sometimes with the British or French ambassadors alongside......

May you explain why? What do you think is the main use of Simple Present?
:?: :?:
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Pirate
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Post by Pirate »

What did u mean with ur “etc”? That’s the point!
PS is used for HABIT, ROUTINE, PERMANENCY – yes, but not enough.

Is PRESENT SIMPLE (PS) the tense u were taught first when getting acquainted with English? That’s becuz PS is used to express what SIMPLY take place at PRESENT! This means : the obvious & clear fact, what is always true or what is (believed to be) true at the moment (Today is cold, i’m a writer , the sun rises up in the East, there is no living on Mars ...) -> These are not habits or routines. All ur examples belong to this kind. But for the 9th one, i suggest using “is holding” instead.

When u make an order, ask a favour, direct/instruct someone ..., u use PS!
When u commentate a contest or a match or anthing like that, u use PS!
When u read the sumary of a story, a movie, a film, a play (Act, Chapter), they use PS!

Some verbs can’t be used in Present Continuous, so u have to use them in PS :
want need remember forget like dislike love hate know believe understand belong mean promise swear agree ... etc

PS is also used for something planned to happen in a near future in some public cases :
- “Spider man” is shown on TV tonight. (not shown yet now)
- The train leaves at 7 p.m. (the train hasn’t left, even hasn’t moved an inch)

We also use PS after if when as soon as until/till before after in some situations, not necessarily concerned to Present.

Do i forget something?

Oh i’m not very sure about the 5th example, what do u think?
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