ABSTRACT
Tense relates to the time of a situation or event. In English, there are three categories of grammar that establish a broad frame of basic time reference: past tense, present tense, and future tense. Aspect works within these temporal frames of time to provide additional detail revealing perspectives and viewpoints concerning how those events, processes, and actions unfold. Categories of aspect include progressive aspect, perfect aspect, and perfect progressive aspect. Genres of discourse exhibit variations in the uses of tense and aspect in order to express details related to states, actions, and events in the past, present, and future. Tense and aspect marking also provides mechanisms through which speakers and writers express their stances, perspectives, and opinions about events, actions, and states.
