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Journal of English Linguistics
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The Markers of Habitual Aspect in English

Robert I. Binnick

University of Toronto

Contrary to the traditional account of habitual aspect in English, the only marker of habituality is will, with its past tense, would. Used tofunctions as a kind of anti-presentperfect tense, contrasting past states of affairs with present ones. In certain contexts, various tenses, and not merely the simple ones, may receive habitual interpretations, but these are not their meanings. Generic readings are contextual interpretations; there are no markers of generic aspect in English.

Key Words: habitual aspect • generic aspect • would • used to

Journal of English Linguistics, Vol. 33, No. 4, 339-369 (2005)
DOI: 10.1177/0075424205286006
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