- historical present
- noun Date: 1867 the present tense used in relating past events
New Collegiate Dictionary. 2001.
historical present
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historical present — n. the present tense used for the narration of past events … English World dictionary
Historical present — In linguistics and rhetoric, the historical present (also called dramatic present or narrative present) refers to the employment of the present tense when narrating past events. Besides its use in writing about history, especially in historical… … Wikipedia
historical present — noun the use of the present tense to describe past actions or states • Hypernyms: ↑present, ↑present tense * * * noun : the present tense used in telling of past events * * * Gram. the present tense used in narrating a past event as if happening… … Useful english dictionary
historical present — /hɪsˌtɒrɪkəl ˈprɛzənt/ (say his.torikuhl prezuhnt) noun the present tense of a verb when it is used for stylistic effect in a narrative to indicate past events, as in I walk in yesterday and what do I find? Also, historic present …
historical present — Gram. the present tense used in narrating a past event as if happening at the time of narration. [1960 65] * * * … Universalium
historical present — histor′ical pres′ent n. gram. the present tense used in narrating a past event • Etymology: 1960–65 … From formal English to slang
present — [prez′ənt; ] for v. [ prē zent′, prizent′] adj. [OFr < L praesens, prp. of praeesse, to be present < prae , before (see PRE ) + esse, to be (see ESSENCE)] 1. a) being at the specified or understood place; at hand; in attendance b) existing… … English World dictionary
présent — 1. présent, ente [ prezɑ̃, ɑ̃t ] adj. et n. m. • fin XIe sens A et B; lat. præsens, præsentis, p. prés. de præesse « être en avant » I ♦ Adj. A ♦ (Opposé à absent) 1 ♦ Qui est dans le lieu, le groupe où se trouve la personne qui parle ou de… … Encyclopédie Universelle
Present tense — For other uses, see Present tense (disambiguation). The present tense (abbreviated pres or prs) is a grammatical tense that locates a situation or event in present time.[1] This linguistic definition refers to a concept that indicates a feature… … Wikipedia
present tense — noun a verb tense that expresses actions or states at the time of speaking • Syn: ↑present • Derivationally related forms: ↑present (for: ↑present) • Hypernyms: ↑tense … Useful english dictionary
