When Was Last Tuesday?
2020-05-23
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1This week received a question about time expressions from Dara in Cambodia. He asks,
2Do you use the phrase "last Tuesday?" If so, what does it mean? Does it mean "on Tuesday last week" or "on Tuesday this week?" I have the same question for "next Tuesday." Thank you. - Dara, Cambodia.
3Dear Dara,
4That is a great question.
5Even native English speakers can misunderstand these expressions.
6"Last" and "next" are both adjectives.
7When we use them with a day of the week, their meaning can change depending on the time we are speaking.
8"Last" means the most recent. If today is Wednesday, and I tell you,
9"I talked with her last Tuesday," you might think I meant I talked with her eight days ago.
10The reason is if I had talked with her only one day ago, I would have said, "I talked with her yesterday."
11So, when I say, "I talked with her last Tuesday," I mean the Tuesday of the week before.
12Now imagine that today is Thursday or Friday.
13That means Tuesday is only a few days ago.
14Here is what I would probably say: "I talked to her on Tuesday."
15But now imagine it is Saturday or Sunday, a little further away from the day I talked with her.
16If I say, "I talked with her last Tuesday" you would probably ask me, "Do you mean on Tuesday of this week?" to make certain of the exact day.
17Note that people in different places where English is spoken use these expressions in somewhat different ways.
18So it is not unusual for native speakers to ask questions when they hear someone using "last" or "next" with a day.
19"Next" means "coming after the one that just came or happened."
20Suppose you get a message by email that says, "The meeting is next Tuesday."
21Since today is Wednesday, it is clear that the meeting will be in six days.
22But if you have not been reading your email regularly and you get the message on Monday, you may want to check the date on the message.
23If you did not look at the date of the email, you would probably think the meeting is in eight days.
24The reason is that the writer would have said, "The meeting is tomorrow" if it was on Tuesday of the current week.
25You can check your understanding.
26Imagine that today is Friday.
27You are having a party eight days from now.
28Which expression is the best to use?*
291. Can you come to my party next Saturday?
302. Can you come to my party on Saturday?
31What question do you have about English? Send us an email at learningenglish@voanews.com.
32And that's Ask a Teacher for this week.
33I'm Jill Robbins.
1This week received a question about time expressions from Dara in Cambodia. He asks, 2Question: 3Do you use the phrase "last Tuesday?" If so, what does it mean? Does it mean "on Tuesday last week" or "on Tuesday this week?" I have the same question for "next Tuesday." Thank you. - Dara, Cambodia. 4Answer: 5Dear Dara, 6That is a great question. Even native English speakers can misunderstand these expressions. "Last" and "next" are both adjectives. When we use them with a day of the week, their meaning can change depending on the time we are speaking. 7Last 8"Last" means the most recent. If today is Wednesday, and I tell you, 9"I talked with her last Tuesday," you might think I meant I talked with her eight days ago. The reason is if I had talked with her only one day ago, I would have said, "I talked with her yesterday." So, when I say, "I talked with her last Tuesday," I mean the Tuesday of the week before. 10Now imagine that today is Thursday or Friday. That means Tuesday is only a few days ago. Here is what I would probably say: "I talked to her on Tuesday." 11But now imagine it is Saturday or Sunday, a little further away from the day I talked with her. If I say, "I talked with her last Tuesday" you would probably ask me, "Do you mean on Tuesday of this week?" to make certain of the exact day. 12Note that people in different places where English is spoken use these expressions in somewhat different ways. So it is not unusual for native speakers to ask questions when they hear someone using "last" or "next" with a day. 13Next 14"Next" means "coming after the one that just came or happened." Suppose you get a message by email that says, "The meeting is next Tuesday." Since today is Wednesday, it is clear that the meeting will be in six days. But if you have not been reading your email regularly and you get the message on Monday, you may want to check the date on the message. If you did not look at the date of the email, you would probably think the meeting is in eight days. The reason is that the writer would have said, "The meeting is tomorrow" if it was on Tuesday of the current week. 15Quiz 16You can check your understanding. Imagine that today is Friday. You are having a party eight days from now. Which expression is the best to use?* 171. Can you come to my party next Saturday? 182. Can you come to my party on Saturday? 19Your Question 20What question do you have about English? Send us an email at learningenglish@voanews.com. 21And that's Ask a Teacher for this week. 22I'm Jill Robbins. 23*Write your answer in the comments. 24Dr. Jill Robbins wrote this story for Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. 25_____________________________________________________________ 26Words in This Story 27previous - adj. earlier in time or order 28certain - adj. not having any doubt about something; convinced or sure 29Do you have a question for the teacher? We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section or send us an email at learningenglish@voanews.com.