# present perfect continuous / past continuous



## milik

Which of the two sentences is correct?


I find it difficult to get up early, especially when *I have been studying *all night.


I find it difficult to get up early, especially when *I was studying *all night.
I think that the first one is correct but I need confirmation.


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## Jimbob_Disco

I agree, the first one is indeed correct.


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## lingobingo

Correct and incorrect don’t really apply in most of the questions put to this forum. English is amazingly versatile. Here, again, you could use either verb tense. However… the more logical one to use is the present perfect continuous. 

You’re referring (in a generalised way) to situations (plural) in which you *have been studying* all night,* from the perspective of the morning – the very time at which it becomes difficult to get up:_ 
Especially when/after *I’ve been* studying all night, I find it difficult to get up early. _

* An exaggeration, otherwise you would never even have gone to bed at all, so “getting up” early wouldn’t be an option!


Now let’s rephrase that to try and justify using the past continuous instead:

You’re referring (in a generalised way) to situations (plural) in which you *were studying* all night, from the perspective of the morning – the very time at which it becomes difficult to get up: 
_Especially when/after__ I *was* studying all night, I find it difficult to get up early_.


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## cointi

_I find it difficult to get up early, especially when *I had been studying *all night._

Would this sentence work better perhaps?


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## Jimbob_Disco

No, this is worse! Stick to (1) in the OP (or (2), as _lingobingo _pointed out).


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## cointi

Thank you, Jimbob. I gather the sentence below would be the most natural, then?

[at uni, 9 a.m.]

A: Why are your eyes red?
B: I have been studying all night. (I did get a few hours of sleep.)


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## Jimbob_Disco

Giesiek said:


> Thank you, Jimbob. I gather the sentence below would be the most natural, then?
> 
> [at uni, 9 a.m.]
> 
> A: Why are your eyes red?
> B: I have been studying all night. (I did get a few hours of sleep.)


Absolutely.


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## cointi

Jimbob_Disco said:


> Absolutely.



Thanks. Would it still make sense if said at 5 p.m.?


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## Jimbob_Disco

I don't quite understand your question.  Please can you put it into a full sentence?


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## cointi

[at home, 5 p.m.]

A: You look tired.
B: I have been studying all night. (I did get a few hours of sleep.)


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## Jimbob_Disco

Giesiek said:


> [at home, 5 p.m.]
> 
> A: You look tired.
> B: I have been studying all night. (I did get a few hours of sleep.)


Assuming that, at 5pm, you're referring to the previous night, I would change it to:
_A: You look tired.
B: I was studying all night.
_
I can't explain why, but this is what sounds right in this context!


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## cointi

Yes, it makes sense. Thank you.


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## cointi

On second thought, would you kindly provide your opinion on the sentence below as well?

[at home, 5 p.m.]

A: You look tired.
B: I studied all night. (I did get a few hours of sleep.)


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## lingobingo

By 5 pm the *next day*, most people would be likely to say “I was studying all *last* night.”


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## cointi

lingobingo said:


> By 5 pm the *next day*, most people would be likely to say “I was studying all *last* night.”



Thanks. While it sounds perfectly idiomatic, I wonder what accounts for the continuous aspect. Perhaps the focus on duration.

Would the past simple sound odd?


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## lingobingo

Yes, the focus on duration. And on continuity. The point is not that just that I was studying last night, but that I carried on doing it all night long.

Going back to the original sentence: _I find it difficult to get up early, especially when I have been studying all night. _


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## Phoebe1200

lingobingo said:


> Here, again, you could use either verb tense.





lingobingo said:


> You’re referring (in a generalised way) to situations (plural) in which you *were studying* all night, from the perspective of the morning – the very time at which it becomes difficult to get up:
> _Especially when/after I *was* studying all night, I find it difficult to get up early_.


I'm sorry but I didn't really understand this. You said that either tense could be used but then put next to it. Could you please explain?


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## Forero

Phoebe1200 said:


> I'm sorry but I didn't really understand this. You said that either tense could be used but then put next to it. Could you please explain?


A clause with "when" or "after" should not be in past tense (except for modal past tenses used as "conditional" forms) if its main clause is in present tense.

What LingoBingo meant was that you could use either verbal aspect (simple or continuous), not present tense mixed with past tense.


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## lingobingo

Phoebe1200 said:


> I'm sorry but I didn't really understand this. You said that either tense could be used but then put next to it. Could you please explain?


A cross means wrong, a tick means right; a thumbs-down means not the best option, a thumbs-up means the best option. As I said in #3, one tense is more appropriate than the other.


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## Phoebe1200

Forero said:


> A clause with "when" or "after" should not be in past tense (except for modal past tenses used as "conditional" forms) if its main clause is in present tense.
> 
> What LingoBingo meant was that you could use either verbal aspect (simple or continuous), not present tense mixed with past tense.


Hi, Forero. 
Thank you very much for addressing my question. I'm sorry to say but I didn't understand what you explained. I'd appreciate it a lot if you could explain it using an example sentence.


lingobingo said:


> A cross means wrong, a tick means right; a thumbs-down means not the best option, a thumbs-up means the best option. As I said in #3, one tense is more appropriate than the other.


Thank you. Now I get it. I hadn't realized that a thumbs-down meant "not the best option" and not that it's incorrect.


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## Forero

Phoebe1200 said:


> Hi, Forero.
> Thank you very much for addressing my question. I'm sorry to say but I didn't understand what you explained. I'd appreciate it a lot if you could explain it using an example sentence.


The original sentence 2 has present tense "find" in the main clause but past tense "was" in the subordinate clause, so the tenses do not match.

If the subordinate clause is meant as a time adverbial, the tenses have to match. (At least I have not been able to think of an exception to this "sequence of tenses" rule.)

On the other hand, if by "when" you mean "considering that" or "given that" the tenses don't have to match since then the subordinate clause has to do with circumstances rather than time, but is that what you mean?


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## Phoebe1200

Forero said:


> The original sentence 2 has present tense "find" in the main clause but past tense "was" in the subordinate clause, so the tenses do not match.
> 
> If the subordinate clause is meant as a time adverbial, the tenses have to match. (At least I have not been able to think of an exception to this "sequence of tenses" rule.)
> 
> On the other hand, if by "when" you mean "considering that" or "given that" the tenses don't have to match since then the subordinate clause has to do with circumstances rather than time, but is that what you mean?


Thanks so much, Forero. I understood what you've explained in this post.

However, I'm still confused about your previous post. I mean, these parts:


Forero said:


> except for modal past tenses used as "conditional" forms


Would you be kind enough to give an example of this?


Forero said:


> What LingoBingo meant was that you could use either verbal aspect (simple or continuous),


An example would help here too.


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## Forero

Main clause in present tense and "when" time adverbial in "conditional":

I find it difficult to get up early, especially when I *might* be studying all night.
"Might" is the past tense of "may", but here it is being used as a "conditional" form, so it does not break the "sequence of tenses" rule.

EDIT: Deleted stray part caused by hitting a wrong key or something.


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## Jimbob_Disco

Forero said:


> I find it difficult to get up early, especially when *I was studying *all night


Maybe this is one of our transatlantic differences, but I would never say this.  I’d say:
_I find it difficult to get up early, especially when *I’ve been studying *all night._


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## Forero

Jimbob_Disco said:


> Maybe this is one of our transatlantic differences, but I would never say this.  I’d say:
> _I find it difficult to get up early, especially when *I’ve been studying *all night._


Sorry. I was having a fight with my browser and must have hit a wrong key, leaving both the original sentence 2 and my edited version with "might". Obviously the original is not an example with a modal verb.

It was LingoBingo who said sentence 2 could be used but was not the best choice. I said it can only work if "when" means something unrelated to time, such as "considering that" or "given that".





Phoebe1200 said:


> An example would help here too.


I was confused when I tried to speak for LingoBingo (obviously not a good idea).

I saw a question (#15) about what accounts for "was studying" as opposed to "studied". At that point I lost track of the original question.

I imagined we were talking about something like "I *found* it difficult to get up early, especially when I *was studying *all night" compared with "I *found* it difficult to get up early, especially when I *studied *all night", or about "I *find* it difficult to get up early, especially when I *am studying *all night" vs. "I *find* it difficult to get up early, especially when I *study *all night." All four of these sentences are correct. Either aspect (simple or continuous) is fine if the tenses match (found...was / found... studied / find...am / find...study).


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## Phoebe1200

Forero said:


> Main clause in present tense and "when" time adverbial in "conditional":
> 
> I find it difficult to get up early, especially when I *might* be studying all night.
> "Might" is the past tense of "may", but here it is being used as a "conditional" form, so it does not break the "sequence of tenses" rule.


Thank you very much for your explanation. I understand this now.


Forero said:


> I imagined we were talking about something like "I *found* it difficult to get up early, especially when I *was studying *all night" compared with "I *found* it difficult to get up early, especially when I *studied *all night", or about "I *find* it difficult to get up early, especially when I *am studying *all night" vs. "I *find* it difficult to get up early, especially when I *study *all night." All four of these sentences are correct. Either aspect (simple or continuous) is fine if the tenses match (found...was / found... studied / find...am / find...study).


Thank you for this. I'm just struggling with the question of when each of these sentences can be used. So many variations and you said all are correct. But what context could there be for each sentence? Would you mind telling me that?


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## Forero

Phoebe1200 said:


> Thank you very much for your explanation. I understand this now.
> Thank you for this. I'm just struggling with the question of when each of these sentences can be used. So many variations and you said all are correct. But what context could there be for each sentence? Would you mind telling me that?


The context may be the same for all four sentences, and the meaning may even be the same.

We usually ask the original poster to provide context so we don't have to guess. For example, I guessed the original poster meant "when" in a time sense, which would make sentence 2 wrong, in my opinion. Unfortunately, we seem to have lost our original poster.

I will therefore continue to assume than "when" is meant in a time sense.

Now, before I answer your question about continuous vs. simple tenses, I think Cointi's questions deserve at least one AmE speaker's answers:





cointi said:


> _I find it difficult to get up early, especially when *I had been studying *all night._
> 
> Would this sentence work better perhaps?


The use of the perfect here makes it almost certain that "when" is meant in a time sense, but "find" and "had" are different tenses, so the sentence does not work.





cointi said:


> Thank you, Jimbob. I gather the sentence below would be the most natural, then?
> 
> [at uni, 9 a.m.]
> 
> A: Why are your eyes red?
> B: I have been studying all night. (I did get a few hours of sleep.)


Except for saying "all night" when something less was meant, this conversation sounds normal to me.





cointi said:


> [at home, 5 p.m.]
> 
> A: You look tired.
> B: I have been studying all night. (I did get a few hours of sleep.)


At 5 p.m., the original logical disconnect is exacerbated by the fact that hours have passed since "all night" and no mention is being made about what speaker B did during all those hours.





Jimbob_Disco said:


> Assuming that, at 5pm, you're referring to the previous night, I would change it to:
> _A: You look tired.
> B: I was studying all night.
> _
> I can't explain why, but this is what sounds right in this context!


This does not fix the problem.





cointi said:


> On second thought, would you kindly provide your opinion on the sentence below as well?
> 
> [at home, 5 p.m.]
> 
> A: You look tired.
> B: I studied all night. (I did get a few hours of sleep.)


This actually sounds to me more like a legitimate answer to A's question than the other 5 p.m. versions. Yes, there are hours between the studying and now, but we are clearly talking about two different times in one day that are logically connected: I studied all night, so now I am tired and can be expected to show it.

If I were B, though, I still would probably not stop at this short sentence alone.

"Studied" is a general purpose past tense, and "was studying" is restricted to a situation in which a time interval in the speaker's mind ended when the action (studying) was in progress, or continued. The speaker may be thinking of multiple occurrences, in which case "was studying" says the repetition of the action continued.

I think the most likely context for the original sentence 1 is that the speaker finds it to be difficult, on multiple occasions, to get up early, and finds it especially difficult on those mornings that follow upon multiple occurrences of studying all night, repetitions that have not ended before trying to get up early.


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## Phoebe1200

Thank you for your kind answers, Forero.

_I find it difficult to get up early, especially when *I’ve been studying *all night.
_
The above sentence is about a general case, right? The meaning is that the person finds it difficult to get up early whenever he's been studying all night, right?


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## VicNicSor

Forero said:


> _I find it difficult to get up early, especially when *I had been studying *all night._
> 
> 
> 
> The use of the perfect here makes it almost certain that "when" is meant in a time sense, but "find" and "had" are different tenses, so the sentence does not work.
Click to expand...

It's interesting, I've come across a similar usage several times in American movies, where I would have expected the present perfect rather than the past perfect. It got me perplexed too, but I guessed like this: all the instances of getting up early that have happened so far are technically in the past — "points" in the past, and before each such instance there's a period of studing all night, hence they could be expressed in the past perfect. I don't remember the thread, but (a) native speaker(s) agreed to that point. What would you say?


Phoebe1200 said:


> The meaning is that the person finds it difficult to get up early whenever he's been studying all night, right?


He finds it difficult usually/always, and it's especially true for the times when he's been studying all night.


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## Forero

Phoebe1200 said:


> Thank you for your kind answers, Forero.
> 
> _I find it difficult to get up early, especially when *I’ve been studying *all night.
> _
> The above sentence is about a general case, right? The meaning is that the person finds it difficult to get up early whenever he's been studying all night, right?


Yes, and some other times too. The times he's been studying all night, he finds it especially difficult.


VicNicSor said:


> It's interesting, I've come across a similar usage several times in American movies, where I would have expected the present perfect rather than the past perfect. It got me perplexed too, but I guessed like this: all the instances of getting up early that have happened so far are technically in the past — "points" in the past, and before each such instance there's a period of studing all night, hence they could be expressed in the past perfect. I don't remember the thread, but (a) native speaker(s) agreed to that point. What would you say?


For me, present tense in the main clause precludes "had" in an adverbial clause of time.

The time sense of "when" makes the two clauses refer to the same time or times. In the time sense of sentence 1, in other words, "when I find it especially hard to get up early" refers to the same time(s) as "when I have been studying all night", i.e. after I study all night.

I don't know what you have heard in movies, but I suppose if that time is in the past, one clause that refers to it could be in historical present:

_Just when I had to stay up all night studying, my "friend" walks up to me and ....

When I had been studying all night, my "friend" walks up to me, takes out his bugle, and starts playing "Reveille" over and over.
_
Historical present is present tense that means the same as past tense. In a narrative such as this, it is a colloquial way to solve the problem of a long series of past tenses becoming tiresome.


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## VicNicSor

Forero said:


> _Just when I had to stay up all night studying, my "friend" walks up to me and ....
> 
> When I had been studying all night, my "friend" walks up to me, takes out his bugle, and starts playing "Reveille" over and over.
> _
> Historical present is present tense that means the same as past tense. In a narrative such as this, it is a colloquial way to solve the problem of a long series of past tenses becoming tiresome.


One question, please: in these two sentences, it's about one single episode, not about what happened regularly, right?


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## Forero

VicNicSor said:


> One question, please: in these two sentences, it's about one single episode, not about what happened regularly, right?


Yes.


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## VicNicSor

Thank you


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## Phoebe1200

VicNicSor said:


> He finds it difficult usually/always, and it's especially true for the times when he's been studying all night.





Forero said:


> Yes, and some other times too. The times he's been studying all night, he finds it especially difficult.


Thank you both.  But then what is the difference between these two sentences?

_
I find it difficult to get up early, especially when *I’ve been studying *all night.
I find it difficult to get up early, especially when I *study *all night._


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## Forero

Phoebe1200 said:


> Thank you both.  But then what is the difference between these two sentences?
> 
> _
> I find it difficult to get up early, especially when *I’ve been studying *all night.
> I find it difficult to get up early, especially when I *study *all night._


Probably not much. If getting up early and studying all night could be simultaneous, the difference would be more obvious, but I can say this:

First, suppose I find it difficult to get up early this morning because I studied all night last night, and the night before, and the night before, but I know I will not have to study all night again for a long time. Then "I have been studying all night" fits the situation better than "I study all night".

On the other hand, suppose I find it difficult to get up early this morning because I studied all night a couple of days ago and know I will study all night again tonight or tomorrow night. Then "I study all night" fits the situation a little bit better than "I have been studying all night".

The whole sentence "I find it difficult to get up early, especially when ..." says I find it especially difficult to get up early on the occasions described by what follows, either ones like my first scenario for the first "I find" sentence, or ones like my second scenario for the second "I find" sentence, or a combination of scenarios that may be described equally well either way for both "I find" sentences.


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## Phoebe1200

Thank you very much Forero. I'm getting a little confused though. Does using the present perfect _"when *I’ve been studying *all night" _necessarily have to include several previous nights? I thought it only covered one last night in the speaker's mind, no?


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## Forero

Phoebe1200 said:


> Thank you very much Forero. I'm getting a little confused though. Does using the present perfect _"when *I’ve been studying *all night" _necessarily have to include several previous nights? I thought it only covered one last night in the speaker's mind, no?


"Especially" means more (so) at some times than at others. Each time "I have been studying" could be each morning after having studied that one night or each morning that follows upon several nights of studying. If the speaker is thinking "each morning after having studied", "when I've been studying" and "when I've studied" mean almost the same thing. But if the speaker is thinking of several previous nights, "I have studied" seems more out of place compared with "I've been studying".

I hope this makes sense.


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## Phoebe1200

Forero said:


> "Especially" means more (so) at some times than at others. Each time "I have been studying" could be each morning after having studied that one night or each morning that follows upon several nights of studying. If the speaker is thinking "each morning after having studied", "when I've been studying" and "when I've studied" mean almost the same thing. But if the speaker is thinking of several previous nights, "I have studied" seems more out of place compared with "I've been studying".
> 
> I hope this makes sense.


Thank you so much, Forero. I understood what you've explained here. 

If I omit the word "especially" and if I want to describe a general case, which of these sentences should I use?

_ I find it difficult to get up early when *I’ve been studying *all night.
I find it difficult to get up early when I *study *all night.
_


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## VicNicSor

I don't quite understand this idea though. I mean, how "_I’ve been studying all night" _could mean a number of successive nights.

Shouldn't we make it more explicit, for example: 


I find it difficult to get up early, especially *on the days *when *I study *all night.

?

Because, "_I’ve been studying all night_" itself means *one *night. It could be said in the morning after the sleepless night for example...


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## Forero

Phoebe1200 said:


> Thank you so much, Forero. I understood what you've explained here.
> 
> If I omit the word "especially" and if I want to describe a general case, which of these sentences should I use?
> 
> _ I find it difficult to get up early when *I’ve been studying *all night.
> I find it difficult to get up early when I *study *all night._


Either one.





VicNicSor said:


> I don't quite understand this idea though. I mean, how "_I’ve been studying all night" _could mean a number of successive nights.


Just as "I find" could mean a number of successive "findings", a "when" clause subordinate to it can also mean a number of successive whatevers.





> Shouldn't we make it more explicit, for example:
> 
> 
> I find it difficult to get up early, especially *on the days *when *I study *all night.
> 
> ?


To me, "I study all night" in this last version has to be referring to one night for each day. Is that what you mean?





> Because, "_I’ve been studying all night_" itself means *one *night. It could be said in the morning after the sleepless night for example...


Yes, "I have been studying all night" could mean one night, but it can also mean a number of successive nights. In our context, it could mean one night per "finding", or a number of successive nights per "finding".


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## Phoebe1200

My sincere thanks to you for your kind replies, Forero. I just have a few more questions if I may.


Forero said:


> Either one.


1) And there's no nuance between the tenses?

2) And what about the versions with "especially"? Which one should I use for expressing a general case?
_
I find it difficult to get up early, especially when *I’ve been studying *all night.
I find it difficult to get up early, especially when I *study *all night.
_
3) When can I use either of these sentences?
_
I *find* it difficult to get up early, especially when I'*m studying *all night.
I *find* it difficult to get up early when I'*m studying *all night._



Forero said:


> Yes, "I have been studying all night" could mean one night, but it can also mean a number of successive nights.


I just noticed that the sentence ends with "night" in the singular, so how can it refer to a number of successive nights?
_




_


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## Forero

Phoebe1200 said:


> My sincere thanks to you for your kind replies, Forero. I just have a few more questions if I may.1) And there's no nuance between the tenses?
> 
> 2) And what about the versions with "especially"? Which one should I use for expressing a general case?
> _
> I find it difficult to get up early, especially when *I’ve been studying *all night.
> I find it difficult to get up early, especially when I *study *all night.
> _
> 3) When can I use either of these sentences?
> _
> I *find* it difficult to get up early, especially when I'*m studying *all night.
> I *find* it difficult to get up early when I'*m studying *all night._
> 
> I just noticed that the sentence ends with "night" in the singular, so how can it refer to a number of successive nights?


If I studied from dusk Tuesday evening till dawn Wednesday morning, then I studied all night once. If I studied from dusk again Wednesday evening till dawn Thursday morning, then I studied all night again, so I studied all night twice, on two successive nights.

I don't know what you mean by "a general case".


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## Phoebe1200

Thank you for replying, Forero.


Forero said:


> I don't know what you mean by "a general case".


I mean like cases (situations) where we would normally use the present simple tense for expressing general, regular actions, for something that often happens.

e.g. John sleeps eight hours every night during the week.


Phoebe1200 said:


> If I omit the word "especially" and if I want to describe a general case, which of these sentences should I use?
> 
> _ I find it difficult to get up early when *I’ve been studying *all night.
> I find it difficult to get up early when I *study *all night._





Forero said:


> Either one.


But then what did you understand "general case" to mean here when you replied?


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## Forero

Phoebe1200 said:


> Thank you for replying, Forero.
> 
> I mean like cases (situations) where we would normally use the present simple tense for expressing general, regular actions, for something that often happens.
> 
> e.g. John sleeps eight hours every night during the week.
> 
> But then what did you understand "general case" to mean here when you replied?


I thought you might have meant "in general", "without regard for external context".

The continuous/progressive aspect is used for actions that are in progress at the time or times specified or that continue beyond the logical end of the time or ends of the times specified.

And in general, the same aspect can be used with essentially the same meaning even when no particular time or times are explicitly specified.

I don't think regularity or frequency of an action constitutes a reason for choosing simple aspect over continuous/progressive aspect.


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## Phoebe1200

Thank you for your reply. 


Forero said:


> I thought you might have meant "in general", "without regard for external context".


Yes, I meant "in general". Doesn't "a general case" and "in general" mean the same thing?

So I'm still unclear on which one of these to use if I mean "in general". Could you please tell me?

_I find it difficult to get up early (especially) when *I’ve been studying *all night.
I find it difficult to get up early (especially) when I *study *all night._


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## Forero

Phoebe1200 said:


> Thank you for your reply.
> 
> Yes, I meant "in general". Doesn't "a general case" and "in general" mean the same thing?
> 
> So I'm still unclear on which one of these to use if I mean "in general". Could you please tell me?
> 
> _I find it difficult to get up early (especially) when *I’ve been studying *all night.
> I find it difficult to get up early (especially) when I *study *all night._


In the absence of context, any difference in meaning between the aspects is small.

Adding or deleting "especially" will make a bigger difference, but it is up to the speaker to decide whether any difference matters. If, for example, the speaker knows the difficulty only happens when she or he is studying all night, "especially" does not fit.


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## Phoebe1200

Please forgive me for the delay. Thank you for all your replies, Forero.

I'm sorry to keep bothering you with these questions but I'm still confused.

So if I'm making a general statement I can use either of these with no nuance between them?
_
I find it difficult to get up early when *I’ve been studying *all night.
I find it difficult to get up early when I *study *all night._


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## Forero

Phoebe1200 said:


> Please forgive me for the delay. Thank you for all your replies, Forero.
> 
> I'm sorry to keep bothering you with these questions but I'm still confused.
> 
> So if I'm making a general statement I can use either of these with no nuance between them?
> _
> I find it difficult to get up early when *I’ve been studying *all night.
> I find it difficult to get up early when I *study *all night._


Each has different nuances, and each is affected by context. Without context, we might guess almost equivalent meanings for them, but the speaker may feel there is a difference and should provide context if it matters.


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## Phoebe1200

Thank you for replying.

Then I guess that the sentence with the present perfect continuous "_I find it difficult to get up early when *I’ve been studying *all night."_ simply emphasizes the continuity and as if puts the speaker in the state of that having studied all night while the sentence with the present simple _"I find it difficult to get up early when I *study *all night." _just states a fact.

Is that right?


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## Forero

Phoebe1200 said:


> Thank you for replying.
> 
> Then I guess that the sentence with the present perfect continuous "_I find it difficult to get up early when *I’ve been studying *all night."_ simply emphasizes the continuity and as if puts the speaker in the state of that having studied all night while the sentence with the present simple _"I find it difficult to get up early when I *study *all night." _just states a fact.
> 
> Is that right?


That's one valid way to look at it.


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## Phoebe1200

Forero said:


> That's one valid way to look at it.


Thank you.

And my explanations in 49 can be applied to the below sentences respectively with the word "especially" in them too? I mean in the absence of context I can use either of these, right?

_ I find it difficult to get up early especially when *I’ve been studying *all night. _(simply emphasizes the continuity and as if puts the speaker in the state of that having studied all night)_

I find it difficult to get up early especially when I *study *all night. _(just states a fact)


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## Forero

Phoebe1200 said:


> Thank you.
> 
> And my explanations in 49 can be applied to the below sentences respectively with the word "especially" in them too? I mean in the absence of context I can use either of these, right?
> 
> _ I find it difficult to get up early especially when *I’ve been studying *all night. _(simply emphasizes the continuity and as if puts the speaker in the state of that having studied all night)
> _
> I find it difficult to get up early especially when I *study *all night. _(just states a fact)


Yes.

You have expressed "when I've been studying" as "in the state of having studied", which is correct. "When I've been studying" means "after I've been studying", so the times when "I've been studying" are later than the times when "I study".

Either sentence can be said to be "just stating a fact".


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## Phoebe1200

I cannot thank you enough for all your kind replies, Forero.
 Thank you for your time and patience.


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## Ivan_I

Forero said:


> If the subordinate clause is meant as a time adverbial, the tenses have to match. (At least I have not been able to think of an exception to this "sequence of tenses" rule.)


This is my sentence which was discussed in another thread. I wonder why it's OK to use PRESENT + PAST. 

Every time I *am *asked to tell someone about what I *did *earlier the same day I can't properly remember what I did.

(I am asked + what I did)

Does it work because we don't have *WHEN*?


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## lingobingo

It works because you are talking about a habitual action (present tense) related to something that happened at an earlier time (past tense).


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## Ivan_I

What if we switch "all night" to "the night before"?

I find it difficult to get up early, especially when *I (study) the night before*. 

Which tense would fit? To me, it seems like "past" is OK.

I find it difficult to get up early, especially when *I was studying/studied the *night before. 

I find it difficult to get up early, especially when *I study/have studied/ have been studying *night before. (  ?)


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## lingobingo

Again, the *when* means every time / whenever. If you replaced *when* with *if*, it would be a classic “zero conditional”: 

 I find it difficult to get up early, especially if I study the night before.​
The whole statement is about a habitual action/situation, so it makes sense to use the same tense in both clauses. The past tense in the condition clause is also possible, since the studying, by definition, comes before the getting up the next morning. But the most natural way to say it (in BE) is:

 I find it difficult to get up early, especially when I’ve been studying the night before. ​


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## Ivan_I

1 is the better, right?

1 People usually don't remember what dream they *have had *the night before.
2 People usually don't remember what dream they *had* the night before.


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## Forero

Ivan_I said:


> 1 is the better, right?
> 
> 1 People usually don't remember what dream they *have had *the night before.
> 2 People usually don't remember what dream they *had* the night before.


I would say version 2, not version 1. "The night before" does not extend up to the present.


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## lingobingo

Both of those are fine. I would use 2. The time marker is “the night before”, which can hardly be misconstrued, so which tense you use is immaterial. But without a time marker, the present perfect would be the obvious choice: People usually don't remember what dream they’ve had.


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## Ivan_I

*So, what makes this: "*I find it difficult to get up early, especially _*when*_ *I have studied *the night before." *be used with the present perfect?
But this: *"People usually don't remember what dream they *had* the night before."* with the past simple? (preferable even thought the present perfect is possible)

Both* have "the night before". Maybe it has something to do with "*when*"?

It seems to me that WHEN adds the idea of recurring while without "when" a sentence means that something happens only once (or can happen only once). (Not sure, just a speculation).
PS: I have merged the two:

People usually don't remember what dream they *had* the night before *when* they have *studied all night.*


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## lingobingo

The first one would normally be said using the progressive aspect. I have trouble getting up early when/after *I’ve been studying*. The time marker “the night before” is somewhat redundant, since that can pretty-much be taken as read. It differs from your next example in that it’s cause and effect. It’s hard to get up because you’re still tired.

The answer to your question about the second one is given in #59.


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## Forero

Ivan_I said:


> Both[/B] have "the night before". Maybe it has something to do with "*when*"?


Yes, _when_ means "at the same time" or "on the occasions on which". Whenever "when" is used in this sense, the tenses need to match: past with past, present with present (e.g. "I find" when "I have", both present tense).

"What" does not connect times or occasions.


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