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The Past III

Introdução


The modal auxiliary of the Past – DID



The emphatic form:

Pronoun + modal + action

He did play


Negative phrases are essentially emphatic:


Pronoun + modal + negative + action

He did not play


The separation of the modal and negative elements produces a stronger hammered negative. When the two are contracted, the negative form becomes less marked, making the sound and our expression smoother:


Pronoun + modal /negative + action

He didn’t play


The modal DID is thrown behind the verb to reduce the emphatic weight in the affirmative:


Pronoun + action/ modal

He play (did)


The standard written form results in the -ed ending: He play -ed

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