how to express ?

[billy]

how to tell something, in terms of fact or tense (such as simple past ,simple present ...)?

fact: I found that there is a mistake ( it is still there)
tense: I found that there was a mistake (the mistake might be there)

fact: Mom said we are going to need some apple ( means "we do need some apple . " do i understand right ?)

tense: Mom said we were going to need some apple ( I don't know exactly what it means )

could you possibly tell me Which one , fact or tense?

[RonBee]

• fact: Mom said we are going to need some apple ( means "we do need some apple . " do i understand right ?)

Yes, that's what it means.

(Say: "Do I understand right?")

• tense: Mom said we were going to need some apple ( I don't know exactly what it means )

Absent context, I can't be sure what it means either.

I'm afraid I am not sure what you mean by fact or tense. :?

[billy]

sorry, I didn't make me clear

tense refers to grammar including simple past, simple present, present perfect tense and so on.



fact means if it 's true now. use simple present

e.g. :Mom said that we 're going to need some apple ( it's ture , so use" we're , instead of we were ) is it right?

[Casiopea]

Originally Posted by billy

How to tell if something, in terms of fact or tense (such as simple past ,simple present ...) has been realized?

Fact has nothing to do with tense. Tense is used to express when an action takes place in Time.

I found that there is a mistake.
Fact: The mistake was found.
Tense: 'there is a mistake' (Simple Present)
Meaning: The mistake still exists in the Present time.

I found that there was a mistake.
Fact: The mistake was found.
Tense: 'there was a mistake' (Simple Past)
Meaning: The mistake existed in the Past.

Whether the mistake still exists in the Present time is unknown to us. Maybe the mistake was corrected, maybe it wasn't. We don't know. In order to know the answer, we need to read more about it, but we can't because there is only one sentence.

Mom said we are going to need some apples.
Fact: We are going to need apples in the Future.
Tense: 'are going to' (Future plan made in the Present)
Meaning: The need still exists in the Present.

Mom said we were going to need some apples.
Fact: We were going to need some apples in the Past.
Tense: 'were going to' (Future plan made in the Past)
Meaning: The need existed in the Past.

Whether or not we still need apples at the Present time is unknown to us. Maybe we bought the apples and maybe we didn't buy the apples. The point, here, is not the apples. It is when Mom said it: At some time in the Past she said, "We are going to need apples" and when we relate those words we use Past 'were' because Past is when the conversation took place. The focus here is not on what Mom said; it's on when Mom said it. When we alter the focus in that way, what Mom said (i.e. 'going to need apples') becomes part of the Past conversation, so we are not sure if the apples have been bought or not in the Present time.

:D

[RonBee]

Excellent!

:D

[billy]

thank all of you for the reply!