MyLeoNes™

Words can show when something happens — Language, 4–6

We can talk about something happening now or something that already happened. Small changes in words help place an event in time.

Now and before

Words can help us tell whether an action is happening now or happened before. “I jump” belongs to now; “I jumped” tells about an earlier jump. The action is related, but the word gives it a place in time.

Why place actions in time?

If someone says “The glass falls,” you may reach for it, even if it fell yesterday. People need time words and changing action words to share memories, warnings and plans. They help us know whether to act now or simply listen.

The muddy boot

At the door, Ana says, “My boot is muddy.” This tells us the mud is there now. Later she says, “My boot got muddy in the garden.” The word “got” tells us the change happened before, in the garden.

Yesterday can sound like now

A child may say “I jump yesterday” because the jump itself is easy to name and the time word already says when. That is a sensible shortcut. In many languages, the action word changes too, so the listener gets two clues about the past.

Time in daily talk

You use these forms when telling what you did at the park, what you are doing now or what you will do after lunch. They matter when explaining a missing toy, remembering a trip or making a plan with someone else.

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