---
title: Identify the principal means whereby English expresses future time. — Tenses: past, present and future · tree and pragmatics
description: Identify the principal means whereby English expresses future time. Exam question 2 of lesson 8 «Tenses: past, present and future» of the language course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the question and of each option; Mova's choice was right.
---

<!-- md -->
[Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/language/8-tenses-past-present-future/e2/)

<!-- crumbs -->
[home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [questions](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/) / [Language](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/language/) / [Tenses: past, present and future](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/language/8-tenses-past-present-future/) / e2

# Exam question 2 · Tenses: past, present and future

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Identify the principal means whereby English expresses future time.

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 1 · right ✓ · **Who acts:** you, principal, English · **What happens:** identify, mean, express

<!-- .vabout -->
This is exam question 2 of lesson 8 «Tenses: past, present and future» of the language course of Mova's primary school, asked in stiff, formal language. The page gives the question's syntax tree — a dependency tree in the style of Universal Dependencies — and its pragmatics clause by clause, then the 4 options as the student saw them, each with its tree and pragmatics. Every text is parsed by Mova itself. How the student answered it, with the score of every option and why: [the test at school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/language/8-tenses-past-present-future/#e2).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:language:8-tenses-past-present-future:e2:1
# text = Identify the principal means whereby English expresses future time.
1	Identify	identify	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	principal	principal	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	1	acl:relcl	_	_
5	whereby	whereby	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	7	advmod	_	_
6	English	English	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
7	expresses	express	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	advcl	_	_
8	future	future	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	_
9	time	time	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **identify** | imperative | you *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn empathize-88.2 «NP V»: agent=Experiencer |
| 2 | **mean** | present | the principal |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **express** | present | English |  |  |  | time | whereby *property* | vn reflexive\_appearance-48.1.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent |

<!-- .note -->
One row per clause the reader finds. «not said here»: a role filled from the clause above. «roles by»: a VerbNet class and frame when one fits the verb, else the reader's rules on the tree.

## The options {#options}

### Option 1 · ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Auxiliary forms such as "will" and "going to", or the present with an adverb of time

<!-- fold The tree, 16 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:language:8-tenses-past-present-future:e2:o1:1
# text = Auxiliary forms such as "will" and "going to", or the present with an adverb of time
1	Auxiliary	auxiliary	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	compound	_	_
2	forms	form	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	10	nsubj	_	_
3	such	such	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos|ExtPos=ADP	6	case	_	_
4	as	as	ADP	IN	_	3	fixed	_	_
5	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	will	will	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	10	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	6	punct	_	_
8	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	10	cc	_	_
9	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	10	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	going	go	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	_
11	to	to	PART	TO	_	10	fixed	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	10	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	16	punct	_	_
14	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	16	cc	_	_
15	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	16	det	_	_
16	present	present	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	conj	_	_
17	with	with	ADP	IN	_	19	case	_	_
18	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	19	det	_	_
19	adverb	adverb	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	16	nmod	_	_
20	of	of	ADP	IN	_	21	case	_	_
21	time	time	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	19	nmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **go** *in a quote* | future | Auxiliary forms |  |  |  |  |  | vn disappearance-48.2-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A distinct inflectional ending appended to the verb

```conllu
# sent_id = question:language:8-tenses-past-present-future:e2:o2:1
# text = A distinct inflectional ending appended to the verb
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
2	distinct	distinct	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	amod	_	_
3	inflectional	inflectional	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	amod	_	_
4	ending	ending	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
5	appended	append	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	to	to	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	verb	verb	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **append** | past | a distinct inflectional ending |  |  |  |  | to the verb | tree rules |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
English possesses no means of expressing future time

```conllu
# sent_id = question:language:8-tenses-past-present-future:e2:o3:1
# text = English possesses no means of expressing future time
1	English	English	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	possesses	possess	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	no	no	DET	DT	PronType=Neg	4	nsubj	_	_
4	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	ccomp	_	_
5	of	of	SCONJ	IN	_	6	mark	_	_
6	expressing	express	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	4	advcl	_	_
7	future	future	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
8	time	time	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **possess** | present | English |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **mean** | present | no |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **express** | gerund | no *not said here* |  |  |  | time |  | vn reflexive\_appearance-48.1.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The exclusive employment of the word "tomorrow"

```conllu
# sent_id = question:language:8-tenses-past-present-future:e2:o4:1
# text = The exclusive employment of the word "tomorrow"
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	exclusive	exclusive	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	employment	employment	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
4	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	word	word	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nmod	_	_
7	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	8	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	tomorrow	tomorrow	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	8	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **employ** |  |  | the word |  |  |  |  | nom employment «state transitive»: of=patient |

<!-- div src -->

**Text:** the tests of Mova's primary school, written for Mova (`world/data/school/`), as the course runner gave them to the student. **Trees:** Mova's own parse — the `en` model on the CPU, when the site is built — not checked by a teacher; they may be wrong. **Frames:** Mova's frames reader (`prag`), each text read on its own. Elamur Cosmic License.

<!-- /div -->

<!-- pn -->
- ← previous: [Tenses: past, present and future, exam 1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/language/8-tenses-past-present-future/e1/)
- next →: [Tenses: past, present and future, exam 3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/language/8-tenses-past-present-future/e3/)
- ↑ back to [Tenses: past, present and future](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/language/8-tenses-past-present-future/)