{"id":1456,"date":"2022-12-08T12:09:45","date_gmt":"2022-12-08T04:09:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cslds.org\/apsl-consortium\/?page_id=1456"},"modified":"2025-07-28T15:36:49","modified_gmt":"2025-07-28T07:36:49","slug":"module-11-use-of-space-in-sign-languages-marking-temporal-relations","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/www.cslds.org\/apsl-consortium\/sign-linguistics\/module-11-use-of-space-in-sign-languages-marking-temporal-relations\/","title":{"rendered":"Module 11 &#8211; Use of Space in Sign Languages: Marking Temporal Relations"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/cuhk.ap.panopto.com\/Panopto\/Pages\/Embed.aspx?id=c7d37800-a929-4c8e-bd83-af730099f51e&amp;autoplay=false&amp;offerviewer=false&amp;showtitle=false&amp;showbrand=false&amp;captions=false&amp;interactivity=none\" height=\"285\" width=\"720\" style=\"border: 1px solid #464646;\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"font-size:15px\">\n<p style=\"font-size:15px\">In linguistics, tense is a grammatical category that locate situations in time (Fabricius-Hansen, 2006). Some spoken languages e.g., European languages like English, German and Spanish, have elaborate verbal morphological systems to differentiate past, present, and future tenses. In English, tense can be expressed by morphological markers on verbs (e.g., <em>play-s<\/em> vs. <em>play-ed<\/em>, <em>go<\/em> vs. <em>went<\/em>) or auxiliary words (e.g., <em>has played, had played, will play<\/em>)(Example 1a &amp; 1b). Some languages do not have grammatical tense, e.g., Chinese, Vietnamese, Indonesian. In these languages, the temporal ordering of events is mainly expressed by temporal adverbials (e.g., <em>yesterday, last week, tomorrow<\/em>) without any inflection markings on the verbs (Example 2a &amp; 2b).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Example (1a) He played basketball yesterday. (English)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Example (1b) He will play basketball tomorrow. (English)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Example (2a) <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table is-style-stripes\"><table><tbody><tr><td>\u4ed6<\/td><td>\u6628\u5929<\/td><td>\u6253<\/td><td>\u7c43\u7403<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>ta<\/td><td>zuotian<\/td><td>da<\/td><td>lanqiu<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>he<\/td><td>yesterday<\/td><td>hit\/play&nbsp;<\/td><td>basketball<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"> He played basketball yesterday. (Chinese)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Example (2b) <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table is-style-stripes\"><table><tbody><tr><td>\u4ed6<\/td><td>\u660e\u5929<\/td><td>\u6253<\/td><td>\u7c43\u7403<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>ta<\/td><td>mingtian<\/td><td>da<\/td><td>lanqiu<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>he<\/td><td>tomorrow<\/td><td>hit\/play&nbsp;<\/td><td>basketball<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">He will play basketball tomorrow. (Chinese)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/cuhk.ap.panopto.com\/Panopto\/Pages\/Embed.aspx?id=157923b2-eb43-4f7c-8266-af730099787e&amp;autoplay=false&amp;offerviewer=false&amp;showtitle=false&amp;showbrand=false&amp;captions=false&amp;interactivity=none\" height=\"285\" width=\"720\" style=\"border: 1px solid #464646;\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p style=\"font-size:15px\">Previous studies suggest that verbs in sign languages do not inflect for tense in the way they do in European languages (Schermer &amp; Koolhof, 1990; Wilbur, 1979; Leeson, 1996). Hence, sign languages can be categorized with other \u2018tenseless\u2019 languages such as Chinese (Binnick, 1991). Similar to other sign languages, HKSL does not have tense markings on verbs. Whether the event is past, present, or future is determined by the temporal adverbials or contexts (3a and 3b). In (3a), the time frames of two sentences are set by YESTERDAY and TODAY respectively. In (3b), the adverb ALWAYS and TOMORROW suggest that the first clause is about the present situation &#8211; the person is habitually late.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:15px\">Example (3a)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:15px\">YESTERDAY&nbsp;&nbsp; HEAVY-RAIN&nbsp;&nbsp; TODAY&nbsp; MORNING&nbsp;&nbsp; RAIN-STOP&nbsp; SUN-SHINING<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:15px\">\u2018It rained heavily yesterday. This morning the rain stopped and the sun shone brightly.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:15px\">Example (3b)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:15px\">IX[=he]&nbsp;&nbsp; LATE&nbsp; ALWAYS,&nbsp;&nbsp; TOMORROW&nbsp; LATE&nbsp;&nbsp; CERTAIN <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:15px\">\u2018He is always late. He will be late tomorrow, for sure.&#8217;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/cuhk.ap.panopto.com\/Panopto\/Pages\/Embed.aspx?id=bc9f45ad-a733-4185-8e04-af73009978aa&amp;autoplay=false&amp;offerviewer=false&amp;showtitle=false&amp;showbrand=false&amp;captions=false&amp;interactivity=none\" height=\"285\" width=\"720\" style=\"border: 1px solid #464646;\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p style=\"font-size:15px\">Although sign languages in general do not have tense markings on verbs, it is actually quite common for sign languages to mark time spatially through \u2018timelines\u2019. In such timelines, specific times are localized in space, and the procession of time can be represented metaphorically by movements among the locations (Engberg-Pederson, 1992; Winston, 1995; Arik, 2012). Some of these timelines are illustrated by Hong Kong Sign Language below.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/cuhk.ap.panopto.com\/Panopto\/Pages\/Embed.aspx?id=1caddfb5-b53e-4de5-a26c-afb700a72d2d&amp;autoplay=false&amp;offerviewer=false&amp;showtitle=false&amp;showbrand=false&amp;captions=false&amp;interactivity=none\" height=\"285\" width=\"720\" style=\"border: 1px solid #464646;\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"font-size:15px\">\n<p>Deictic Timeline (front\/back):<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The deictic timeline is an abstract line that extends from behind the signer\u2019s dominant-hand shoulder to the space in front of it, with the signer\u2019s location as the reference point for the utterance time (i.e., the present time\/now)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"290\" height=\"241\" src=\"http:\/\/www.cslds.org\/apsl-consortium\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/module11.4-pic1.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1576\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>As the reference point, the location of the signer divides the line into three parts: \u2018before now\/past\u2019 (behind the reference point), &#8216;now&#8217; (reference point), and \u2018after now\/future\u2019 (in front of the reference point) (Engberg-Pederson, 1992). This timeline can be reflected in the articulatory characteristics of some temporal adverbials in HKSL, e.g., A-LONG-TIME-AGO, PAST, NOW, TODAY, FUTURE, DISTANT-FUTURE.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A-LONG-TIME-AGO, PAST, NOW, TODAY, FUTURE, DISTANT-FUTURE<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/cuhk.ap.panopto.com\/Panopto\/Pages\/Embed.aspx?id=7caf0fe4-be68-466d-b23a-b14d007ed185&amp;autoplay=false&amp;offerviewer=false&amp;showtitle=false&amp;showbrand=false&amp;captions=false&amp;interactivity=none\" height=\"285\" width=\"720\" style=\"border: 1px solid #464646;\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"font-size:15px\">\n<p>Sequence Timeline (left\/right)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The sequence timeline is an abstract line in parallel with the signer\u2019s surface plane, which extends from the signer\u2019s left to right. For a right-handed signer, the sequence line runs from left to right. This means that, if locus A is located left to locus B, A would stand for a time earlier than B (Engberg-Pederson, 1992).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"375\" height=\"279\" src=\"http:\/\/www.cslds.org\/apsl-consortium\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/module11.5-pic1.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1577\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.cslds.org\/apsl-consortium\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/module11.5-pic1.png 375w, http:\/\/www.cslds.org\/apsl-consortium\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/module11.5-pic1-300x223.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 375px) 100vw, 375px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The sequence timeline can be manifested in signs such as NEXT and ONE-AFTER-ANTOHER. It may also be invoked when a signer wants to describe a sequence of acts, as in the following HKSL example (Example 4):<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Example (4):<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>IX[=me] MORNING BUSY ALWAYS, FIRST COOK<sub>a<\/sub> FINISH, CLEAN-UP-PLACE<sub>b<\/sub> FINISH, IN-ADDITION CLOTHES<sub>c<\/sub> WASH<sub>c <\/sub>, REALLY HARD<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:15px\">\u2018I am always very busy in the morning. First I cook, then clean up my home, and then wash the clothes. This is really tiring.\u2019<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/cuhk.ap.panopto.com\/Panopto\/Pages\/Embed.aspx?id=8b7ed5a7-4036-448f-90c1-b14d007ed359&amp;autoplay=false&amp;offerviewer=false&amp;showtitle=false&amp;showbrand=false&amp;captions=false&amp;interactivity=none\" height=\"285\" width=\"720\" style=\"border: 1px solid #464646;\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"font-size:15px\">\n<p>Calendar Timeline (left\/right, vertical)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The calendar plane is a two-dimensional plane in parallel with the surface plane of the signer\u2019s body. This plane looks like a calendar with columns that stand for days of the week, and rows that stand for weeks of the month. With this plane, the progression of time proceeds from the left to right (e.g., if the time change is related to the days of the week), or proceeds vertically from a higher locus to a lower one. In HKSL, the calendar plane is manifested in signs related to days of the week (Examples 5 &amp; 6):<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:15px\">Example (5)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:15px\">NOW (this) WEEK&nbsp; IX[=me]&nbsp; WORK&nbsp; TUESDAY, THURSDAY<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:15px\">&#8216;This week I work on Tuesday and Thursday.&#8217;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:15px\">Example (6) <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:15px\">IX[=me]&nbsp; WORK&nbsp; MONDAY-TO-FRIDAY-OVER-A-LONG-PERIOD-OF-TIME (with a downward movement)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:15px\">&#8216;I work from Monday to Friday, and this work pattern continues for many weeks.&#8217;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/cuhk.ap.panopto.com\/Panopto\/Pages\/Embed.aspx?id=01b78901-da28-4871-9724-af730099d6aa&amp;autoplay=false&amp;offerviewer=false&amp;showtitle=false&amp;showbrand=false&amp;captions=false&amp;interactivity=none\" height=\"285\" width=\"720\" style=\"border: 1px solid #464646;\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"font-size:15px\">\n<p>The vertical, downward progression of time is also manifested in adverbials such as ALWAYS and NEVER, or lexical signs such as TRADITION. The above examples illustrate how temporal relations can be metaphorically expressed through the use of space, and such timelines have been observed in quite a lot of sign languages studied to date.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:15px\"><strong>Reference:<\/strong><strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul style=\"font-size:15px\" class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li class=\"has-small-font-size\">Arik, E. (2012). Space, time, and iconicity in Turkish Sign Language (TID). <em>Trames journal of the humanities and social science, 16<\/em> (4), 345-358.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"has-small-font-size\">Binnick, R. I. (1991). <em>Time and the verb: A guide to tense an aspect. <\/em>Oxford University Press.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"has-small-font-size\">Brentari, D. (1998). <em>A prosodic model of sign language phonology<\/em>. Mit Press.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"has-small-font-size\">Catherine, F. H. (2006). Tense. In E.K. Brown, A. Anderson (Eds.).&nbsp;<em>Encyclopedia of language and linguistics<\/em>&nbsp;(2nd&nbsp;ed.) (pp. 566-573). Elsevier.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"has-small-font-size\">Leeson, L. M. (1996).&nbsp;<em>The expression of time in sign languages with special reference to Irish Sign Language<\/em>. [Master\u2019s thesis, University of Dublin].<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"has-small-font-size\">Nilsson, A. L. (2016). Embodying metaphors: Signed language interpreters at work.&nbsp;<em>Cognitive Linguistics<\/em>,&nbsp;<em>27<\/em>(1), 35-65.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"has-small-font-size\">Schermer, T., &amp; Koolhof, C. (1990). The reality of time-lines: Aspects of tense in Sign Language of the Netherlands (SLN).&nbsp;In S. Prillwitz, &amp; T. Vollhaber (Eds.), <em>Current trends in European sign language research<\/em> (pp. 295-305). Signum.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"has-small-font-size\">Wilbur, R. B. (1979).&nbsp;<em>American Sign Language and sign systems<\/em>. University Park Press.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"has-small-font-size\">Winston, E. (1995). Spatial mapping in comparative discourse frames. In K. Emmorey, &amp; J. S. Reilly (Eds.), Language, gesture and space (pp. 87-114). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.cslds.org\/apsl-consortium\/sign-linguistics\/module-10-use-of-space-in-sign-languages-referent-localization\/\">&lt; Module 10 \u2013 Use of Space in Sign Languages: Referent Localization<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-text-align-right has-small-font-size\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.cslds.org\/apsl-consortium\/sign-linguistics\/module-12-use-of-space-in-sign-languages-more-on-verb-agreement\/\">Module 12 \u2013 Use of Space in Sign Languages: More on Verb Agreement &gt;<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pvc_clear\"><\/div><p id=\"pvc_stats_1456\" class=\"pvc_stats all  \" data-element-id=\"1456\" style=\"\"><i class=\"pvc-stats-icon small\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" version=\"1.0\" viewBox=\"0 0 502 315\" preserveAspectRatio=\"xMidYMid meet\"><g transform=\"translate(0,332) scale(0.1,-0.1)\" fill=\"\" stroke=\"none\"><path d=\"M2394 3279 l-29 -30 -3 -207 c-2 -182 0 -211 15 -242 39 -76 157 -76 196 0 15 31 17 60 15 243 l-3 209 -33 29 c-26 23 -41 29 -80 29 -41 0 -53 -5 -78 -31z\"\/><path d=\"M3085 3251 c-45 -19 -58 -50 -96 -229 -47 -217 -49 -260 -13 -295 52 -53 146 -42 177 20 16 31 87 366 87 410 0 70 -86 122 -155 94z\"\/><path d=\"M1751 3234 c-13 -9 -29 -31 -37 -50 -12 -29 -10 -49 21 -204 19 -94 39 -189 45 -210 14 -50 54 -80 110 -80 34 0 48 6 76 34 21 21 34 44 34 59 0 14 -18 113 -40 219 -37 178 -43 195 -70 221 -36 32 -101 37 -139 11z\"\/><path d=\"M1163 3073 c-36 -7 -73 -59 -73 -102 0 -56 133 -378 171 -413 34 -32 83 -37 129 -13 70 36 67 87 -16 290 -86 209 -89 214 -129 231 -35 14 -42 15 -82 7z\"\/><path d=\"M3689 3066 c-15 -9 -33 -30 -42 -48 -48 -103 -147 -355 -147 -375 0 -98 131 -148 192 -74 13 15 57 108 97 206 80 196 84 226 37 273 -30 30 -99 39 -137 18z\"\/><path d=\"M583 2784 c-38 -19 -67 -74 -58 -113 9 -42 211 -354 242 -373 16 -10 45 -18 66 -18 51 0 107 52 107 100 0 39 -1 41 -124 234 -80 126 -108 162 -133 173 -41 17 -61 16 -100 -3z\"\/><path d=\"M4250 2784 c-14 -9 -74 -91 -133 -183 -95 -150 -107 -173 -107 -213 0 -55 33 -94 87 -104 67 -13 90 8 211 198 130 202 137 225 78 284 -27 27 -42 34 -72 34 -22 0 -50 -8 -64 -16z\"\/><path d=\"M2275 2693 c-553 -48 -1095 -270 -1585 -649 -135 -104 -459 -423 -483 -476 -23 -49 -22 -139 2 -186 73 -142 361 -457 571 -626 285 -228 642 -407 990 -497 242 -63 336 -73 660 -74 310 0 370 5 595 52 535 111 1045 392 1455 803 122 121 250 273 275 326 19 41 19 137 0 174 -41 79 -309 363 -465 492 -447 370 -946 591 -1479 653 -113 14 -422 18 -536 8z m395 -428 c171 -34 330 -124 456 -258 112 -119 167 -219 211 -378 27 -96 24 -300 -5 -401 -72 -255 -236 -447 -474 -557 -132 -62 -201 -76 -368 -76 -167 0 -236 14 -368 76 -213 98 -373 271 -451 485 -162 444 86 934 547 1084 153 49 292 57 452 25z m909 -232 c222 -123 408 -262 593 -441 76 -74 138 -139 138 -144 0 -16 -233 -242 -330 -319 -155 -123 -309 -223 -461 -299 l-81 -41 32 46 c18 26 49 83 70 128 143 306 141 649 -6 957 -25 52 -61 116 -79 142 l-34 47 45 -20 c26 -10 76 -36 113 -56z m-2057 25 c-40 -58 -105 -190 -130 -263 -110 -324 -59 -707 132 -981 25 -35 42 -64 37 -64 -19 0 -241 119 -326 174 -188 122 -406 314 -532 468 l-58 71 108 103 c185 178 428 349 672 473 66 33 121 60 123 61 2 0 -10 -19 -26 -42z\"\/><path d=\"M2375 1950 c-198 -44 -350 -190 -395 -379 -18 -76 -8 -221 19 -290 114 -284 457 -406 731 -260 98 52 188 154 231 260 27 69 37 214 19 290 -38 163 -166 304 -326 360 -67 23 -215 33 -279 19z\"\/><\/g><\/svg><\/i> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"16\" height=\"16\" alt=\"Loading\" src=\"http:\/\/www.cslds.org\/apsl-consortium\/wp-content\/plugins\/page-views-count\/ajax-loader-2x.gif\" border=0 \/><\/p><div class=\"pvc_clear\"><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In linguistics, tense is a grammatical category that locate situations in time (Fabricius-Hansen, 2006). Some spoken languages e.g., European languages like English, German and Spanish, have elaborate verbal morphological systems to differentiate past, present, and future tenses. In English, tense can be expressed by morphological markers on verbs (e.g., play-s&#8230; <a href=\"http:\/\/www.cslds.org\/apsl-consortium\/sign-linguistics\/module-11-use-of-space-in-sign-languages-marking-temporal-relations\/\">Read more &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"pvc_clear\"><\/div>\n<p id=\"pvc_stats_1456\" class=\"pvc_stats all  \" data-element-id=\"1456\" style=\"\"><i class=\"pvc-stats-icon small\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" version=\"1.0\" viewBox=\"0 0 502 315\" preserveAspectRatio=\"xMidYMid meet\"><g transform=\"translate(0,332) scale(0.1,-0.1)\" fill=\"\" stroke=\"none\"><path d=\"M2394 3279 l-29 -30 -3 -207 c-2 -182 0 -211 15 -242 39 -76 157 -76 196 0 15 31 17 60 15 243 l-3 209 -33 29 c-26 23 -41 29 -80 29 -41 0 -53 -5 -78 -31z\"\/><path d=\"M3085 3251 c-45 -19 -58 -50 -96 -229 -47 -217 -49 -260 -13 -295 52 -53 146 -42 177 20 16 31 87 366 87 410 0 70 -86 122 -155 94z\"\/><path d=\"M1751 3234 c-13 -9 -29 -31 -37 -50 -12 -29 -10 -49 21 -204 19 -94 39 -189 45 -210 14 -50 54 -80 110 -80 34 0 48 6 76 34 21 21 34 44 34 59 0 14 -18 113 -40 219 -37 178 -43 195 -70 221 -36 32 -101 37 -139 11z\"\/><path d=\"M1163 3073 c-36 -7 -73 -59 -73 -102 0 -56 133 -378 171 -413 34 -32 83 -37 129 -13 70 36 67 87 -16 290 -86 209 -89 214 -129 231 -35 14 -42 15 -82 7z\"\/><path d=\"M3689 3066 c-15 -9 -33 -30 -42 -48 -48 -103 -147 -355 -147 -375 0 -98 131 -148 192 -74 13 15 57 108 97 206 80 196 84 226 37 273 -30 30 -99 39 -137 18z\"\/><path d=\"M583 2784 c-38 -19 -67 -74 -58 -113 9 -42 211 -354 242 -373 16 -10 45 -18 66 -18 51 0 107 52 107 100 0 39 -1 41 -124 234 -80 126 -108 162 -133 173 -41 17 -61 16 -100 -3z\"\/><path d=\"M4250 2784 c-14 -9 -74 -91 -133 -183 -95 -150 -107 -173 -107 -213 0 -55 33 -94 87 -104 67 -13 90 8 211 198 130 202 137 225 78 284 -27 27 -42 34 -72 34 -22 0 -50 -8 -64 -16z\"\/><path d=\"M2275 2693 c-553 -48 -1095 -270 -1585 -649 -135 -104 -459 -423 -483 -476 -23 -49 -22 -139 2 -186 73 -142 361 -457 571 -626 285 -228 642 -407 990 -497 242 -63 336 -73 660 -74 310 0 370 5 595 52 535 111 1045 392 1455 803 122 121 250 273 275 326 19 41 19 137 0 174 -41 79 -309 363 -465 492 -447 370 -946 591 -1479 653 -113 14 -422 18 -536 8z m395 -428 c171 -34 330 -124 456 -258 112 -119 167 -219 211 -378 27 -96 24 -300 -5 -401 -72 -255 -236 -447 -474 -557 -132 -62 -201 -76 -368 -76 -167 0 -236 14 -368 76 -213 98 -373 271 -451 485 -162 444 86 934 547 1084 153 49 292 57 452 25z m909 -232 c222 -123 408 -262 593 -441 76 -74 138 -139 138 -144 0 -16 -233 -242 -330 -319 -155 -123 -309 -223 -461 -299 l-81 -41 32 46 c18 26 49 83 70 128 143 306 141 649 -6 957 -25 52 -61 116 -79 142 l-34 47 45 -20 c26 -10 76 -36 113 -56z m-2057 25 c-40 -58 -105 -190 -130 -263 -110 -324 -59 -707 132 -981 25 -35 42 -64 37 -64 -19 0 -241 119 -326 174 -188 122 -406 314 -532 468 l-58 71 108 103 c185 178 428 349 672 473 66 33 121 60 123 61 2 0 -10 -19 -26 -42z\"\/><path d=\"M2375 1950 c-198 -44 -350 -190 -395 -379 -18 -76 -8 -221 19 -290 114 -284 457 -406 731 -260 98 52 188 154 231 260 27 69 37 214 19 290 -38 163 -166 304 -326 360 -67 23 -215 33 -279 19z\"\/><\/g><\/svg><\/i> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"16\" height=\"16\" alt=\"Loading\" src=\"http:\/\/www.cslds.org\/apsl-consortium\/wp-content\/plugins\/page-views-count\/ajax-loader-2x.gif\" border=0 \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"pvc_clear\"><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":763,"menu_order":11,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"page-templates\/full-width.php","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1456","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.cslds.org\/apsl-consortium\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1456","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.cslds.org\/apsl-consortium\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.cslds.org\/apsl-consortium\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.cslds.org\/apsl-consortium\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.cslds.org\/apsl-consortium\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1456"}],"version-history":[{"count":19,"href":"http:\/\/www.cslds.org\/apsl-consortium\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1456\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2770,"href":"http:\/\/www.cslds.org\/apsl-consortium\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1456\/revisions\/2770"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.cslds.org\/apsl-consortium\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/763"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.cslds.org\/apsl-consortium\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1456"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}