Preterite (Noun)
Meaning
A term formerly used to refer to the simple past tense.
Classification
Nouns denoting relations between people or things or ideas.
Examples
- The English language has largely replaced the term "preterite" with "simple past" in modern grammatical discussions.
- In the early 20th century, linguists still commonly referred to the completed past tense as the preterite.
- Historical grammars of the English language often include the preterite as a distinct verb form.
- Some dialects of English still preserve distinct preterite forms that have been lost in standard English.
- In some linguistic contexts, the preterite is contrasted with the imperfect to distinguish between completed and ongoing past actions.