© 2010 Ugur Akinci
Don’t go time-traveling from one clause to another. If you have multiple clauses in a sentence, try to make sure their verbs are in the same tense.
EXAMPLE: “The circuit started to overheat [PAST] when the operator shuts down the relay [SIMPLE PRESENT].”
BETTER 1: The circuit started to overheat [PAST] when the operator shut down the relay [PAST].”
BETTER 2: The circuit starts to overheat [SIMPLE PRESENT] when the operator shuts down the relay [SIMPLE PRESENT].”
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EXAMPLE: “ How the wires connect [PRESENT] was explained [PAST] in the Wiring Installation Manual.”
BETTER 1: “How the wires connected [PAST] was explained [PAST] in the Wiring Installation Manual.”
BETTER 2: “How the wires connect [PRESENT] is explained [PRESENT] in the Wiring Installation Manual.”
Hi,
I totally agree, this is so important for clarity and consistency, but also for translation. If you have complex tenses and are doing machine translation, it is likely that the output quality would not be as good with simple, clear and consistent tenses in the source documentation
tom
Just my personal opinion: If you’re heaving problems with this, you’re not a writer.
You should seriously reconsider your career choice. Sorry.