The Tiny Sound Change That Changes Everything
The Two Messages Problem
A student came to class looking puzzled about his performance review.
"My boss said something confusing," he explained.
"He said, 'I think you do good work. I thought you did good work.'"
"Why did he change his mind in the same breath?"
His boss hadn't changed his mind at all.
The boss was ratifying his opinion - confirming it had been consistent over time.
"I think you do good work" = my current opinion. "I thought you did good work" = my previous opinion was the same.
He was being reassuring, not contradictory.
But the student heard flip-flopping instead of confirmation.
Beyond Simple Time
Present vs past tense isn't just about when something happened.
It's about the speaker's relationship to the information across time.
When used together, they can show:
- Consistency: "I think... I thought..." (same opinion then and now)
- Change: "I thought he was nice, but I don't think so now"
- Evolution: "I used to think differently, but now I think..."
The tiny sound change carries huge meaning weight.
High-Stakes Examples
These distinctions can completely change what you understand:
"I know John" vs "I knew John"
- Present = John and I have a current relationship
- Past = John and I had a relationship (maybe he moved away, or died, or we lost touch)
"I live in Tokyo" vs "I lived in Tokyo"
- Present = Tokyo is my current home
- Past = Tokyo was my home (but I moved somewhere else)
"I work at Sony" vs "I worked at Sony"
- Present = Sony is my current employer
- Past = Sony was my employer (but I changed jobs)
Back-to-back ratification: "I like this restaurant. I liked it when I first came here too." = Consistent positive opinion over time
Why This Is Challenging for Learners
Many languages handle time and attitude differently than English.
Some languages rely more on context for timing information.
Others don't use tense changes to show speaker attitude.
Students often focus on content over these subtle distinctions.
They catch the main meaning but miss the tense nuances that carry crucial information.
When your native language uses different tense patterns, these English distinctions can sound meaningless or contradictory.
The Listening Strategy
To catch these crucial distinctions:
- Train your ear for verb endings
- "think" vs "thought"
- "know" vs "knew"
- "like" vs "liked"
- Listen for ratification patterns
- Present + past often confirms consistency
- "I think... I thought..." = same opinion then and now
- Use context + tense together
- Back-to-back statements usually reinforce each other
- Contradictions are usually signaled clearly
Recognition Exercise: Ratification vs Change
Listen to these patterns. Is the speaker confirming consistency or indicating change?
Pattern 1: "I think you're ready for promotion. I thought you were ready last month too."
Pattern 2: "I thought he was qualified, but I don't think so anymore."
Pattern 3: "I like this approach. I liked it when you first suggested it."
Pattern 1 and 3 = ratification (consistent opinion) Pattern 2 = change (opinion shifted)
Practice with The Less Said Podcast
This week's podcast episode contains many present vs past distinctions.
Try this exercise:
- Listen for present and past tense combinations
- Notice when they confirm consistency vs indicate change
- Practice identifying ratification patterns
- Pay attention to context clues that support the meaning
Remember:
Present and past tense combinations often confirm consistency, not contradiction.
When someone says "I think... I thought..." they're usually reinforcing their opinion.
Missing this pattern can make reassurance sound like confusion.
Tomorrow, we'll explore when mixing tenses in dialogue is correct vs when it's confusing!