Job Discussion Forums

[fluffyhamster]

That is, a thread in which we take certain conflicting terms and rank them in a rough (tentative) order of preference, while giving our reasons for doing so. I'll go first, to give an example of what I mean.

1st place: 'Third form'
Although dictionaries usually only list three forms for irregular verbs, often in the form of a supplementary table, it won't take too much to get students used to visualizing regular verbs in this way too (and for regular verbs, the Second and Third forms obviously always look the same):

bear, bore, borne
beat, bat, beaten
bet, bet, bet
buy, bought, bought

talk, talked, talked
walk, walked, walked

2nd place: '-en form'
This is preferable to the term '-ed form' (see below), which is ambiguous in that it could be taken to be referring to the past tense form of regular verbs (i.e. their Second form) rather than to the Third form of any verb (including irregular verbs, quite a few of which do end in -en). '-en form' is thus similar to 'Third form' (above), in that it can only be referring to the third form of a verb, but lacks that term's simplicity and straightforward universality, hence the 2nd placing.

Joint 3rd: '-ed form'
As explained above, more ambiguous (having two meanings rather than just one) than '-en form'.

Joint 3rd: Past participle
This may be a recognizable and "time-honoured" term, but what's past about examples like This must be done soon?

[scot47]

Base (Infinitive ?)
Preterite
Past Participle

or if you prefer
1
2
3

But a stickler would also insist that a learner gets the third person present simple form.

So they SHOULD learn 4 parts !"!!!!!!

[johnslat]

Dear fluffyhamster,

beat, bat, beaten

Hmm - I'm not familiar with that irregular past. Beats me.

Regards,
John

[scot47]

Johnslat
Some people are orthographically challenged. You should welcome them into our community and not ridicule their foolish errors !

Even I have been known to have a spil of the nep !

[fluffyhamster]

Sh*t, sh*t, sh*t! (And with that, Johnslat swooped once again, this time to tell me that's an interjection or noun or something rather than the verb ).

[johnslat]

Dear fluffy,

Don't feel too bad. You'll have to go some to beat (couldn't resist) my "ten thousand teats" for "ten thousand tests."

Well, the "a" and the "s" ARE right next to each other on the keyboard.

Regards,
John

[grahamb]

Make a clean breast of it, John; it was a Freudian slip.

[johnslat]

Dear grahamb,

Mama mia, you're as bad - if not worse - than I am. And that's setting the bar way high.

Regards,
John

[grahamb]

You sure know how to pay a compliment, John!