Grammatical tense as a rhetorical resource in academic and medical writing

In academic writing, tense is often treated as a matter of grammatical correctness. In reality, it is one of the most overlooked tools for managing authority, critique, and scholarly relationships.

Understanding tense as a rhetorical resource, rather than a grammatical rule, allows you to write with greater transparency, confidence, and professionalism. In academic writing, grammatical tense is often treated as a matter of correctness or convention: methods are typically in the past tense, results are sometimes in the present tense, and the tense applied to literature reviewed usually accords with journal preference. While these conventions matter, they only tell part of the story. At a more subtle level, tense functions as a rhetorical resource. It helps writers establish authority without arrogance, critique others’ work without confrontation, anticipate objections, and maintain scholarly modesty over their own findings. In short, tense is one of the quiet mechanisms through which academics manage relationships - with readers, reviewers, and other researchers.

Basic concepts of tense

Tense as a marker of time

In journal article writing, tense indicates when an action occurred, but it also signals the kind of information being presented. Editors expect a consistent and logical sequence of tenses because it guides readers through the timeline and key phases of the research. 

• Past tense communicates completed actions: what you did or found. Example - We analysed 200 patient records to identify patterns of cardiac adaptation.
• Present tense conveys accepted knowledge or current interpretation. Example - Exercise-induced cardiac remodelling is common in endurance athletes.
• Present perfect tense bridges past and present, indicating that the past observation or action still bears relevance now, often used in literature reviews. Example - Several studies have demonstrated an association between atrial fibrillation and training volume.

Typical expectations of tense usage in an academic paper

Academic readers - journal reviewers, clinicians, researchers - scan for structure. They expect tense shifts to reflect the logic of your manuscript. While the following is not prescriptive, it shows the typical expectations of tense usage in an academic paper.

• Introduction: Use present tense for established facts and present perfect when summarising prior research that still bears relevance to the current state. Example - Endurance exercise is known to influence cardiac morphology. Several studies have shown an increase in right ventricular size among elite athletes.
• Methods: Use past tense exclusively - your procedures are complete. Example - Participants were recruited from three cardiology clinics.
• Results: Stay in past tense - this section reports findings, not interpretations. Example - VO2max increased by 8% following 12 weeks of training.
• Discussion and Conclusion: Blend past and present. Past tense for what you found; present tense for interpretation and implications that bear relevance to current state of knowledge. Example - Our findings support existing evidence that endurance exercise modifies right ventricular function.

Rhetorical functions of tense

The rhetorical functions of tense refer to how writers use grammatical tense not just to place events in time, but to signal stance, authority, and relationship to knowledge. Through tense choices, writers can position findings as established or tentative, align with or distance themselves from prior research, manage critique politely, and guide readers’ interpretation of certainty, relevance, and continuity in scholarly discourse

Tense and the construction of authority

Academic authority is rarely asserted directly. Instead, it is built through careful positioning.

• The present tense is commonly used when writers want to frame claims as current, relevant, and intellectually active; for example - This study demonstrates a clear association between training load and injury risk. Here, the present tense signals confidence in the contribution without overstating certainty. The claim is active but not inflated.
• By contrast, the past tense can subtly narrow the scope of authority; for example - This study demonstrated an association between training load and injury risk. This formulation confines the claim more explicitly to the completed study, which may be appropriate when findings are preliminary or context-specific.

Neither choice is “right” or “wrong”; each conveys a different level of authorial commitment.

Positioning other research: Distance without disrespect

One of the most delicate tasks in academic writing is engaging critically with previous studies while maintaining collegiality. Tense plays a central role here.

• When referring to specific studies, writers often use the past tense; for example - Smith et al. reported a significant increase in adherence following the intervention. This subtly positions the finding as bounded — a result observed in a particular study, under particular conditions.
• By contrast, present tense is often reserved for broadly accepted knowledge; for example - Previous research shows that adherence declines over time. The shift signals alignment with disciplinary consensus. Importantly, this allows writers to critique selectively. By keeping contested or limited findings in the past tense, they can question or qualify them without explicit negative evaluation.

Polite critique shaped by tense and modality

Academic disagreement is rarely expressed bluntly. Instead, it is softened through tense, modality, and careful phrasing. Compare the following examples where the underlying critique remains the same but grammatical choice controls tone.

• Strong/Direct (least polite): Example - Lee et al. failed to consider socioeconomic context. This formulation is explicit and evaluative. It states what was observed but assigns responsibility and implies error. It may be appropriate in some review contexts, but it risks sounding confrontational.
• Moderate (neutral): Example - Lee et al. did not consider socioeconomic context. This removes overt judgement but still presents the omission as fact. It is more neutral, but it is still firm.
• Cautious (polite): Example - Lee et al. may not have fully considered socioeconomic context. Here, the modal verb, may, introduces interpretive space. The critique is preserved but softened. The writer signals awareness of alternative explanations (e.g., scope, design constraints) and avoids imputing error or negligence. This kind of grammatical politeness is not evasive; it reflects the norms of scholarly exchange, where critique is expected but personal judgement is discouraged.

Hedging, tense, and anticipating objections

Hedging - the use of cautious language to manage the strength of a claim - is sometimes misunderstood as weakness. In reality, it is a sophisticated strategy for anticipating alternative interpretations and signalling intellectual honesty. Tense interacts closely with ‘hedging’ verbs and modals.

• The present tense of a hedging verb (suggest) combined with a modal verb (may) allows the writer to advance an interpretation while acknowledging uncertainty. This pre-empts likely reviewer objections (for example, concerns about causality or generalisability) without needing to address them explicitly. Example - These findings suggest that early intervention may improve outcomes
• Past tense can also be used to anchor claims to observation rather than general truth; for example - The intervention was associated with improved outcomes in this cohort. The grammatical restraint (limiting the intervention to a past, completed activity) reassures the reader that the writer understands the limits of their data.

Maintaining modesty over one’s own findings

Academic writing values contribution, but it also values restraint. Tense helps writers maintain modesty, particularly in discussion sections. Overconfident claims often arise not from what is said but from how it is grammatically framed. Compare the following:

This study proves that workload monitoring prevents injury versusThis study provides evidence that workload monitoring may reduce injury risk.

The second version uses present tense softened with a modality to align with disciplinary expectations. It maintains credibility precisely because it does not overreach. Such choices are particularly important for early-career researchers and postgraduate students, whose work is often closely scrutinised for tone as well as content.

Tense and reader alignment

While scientific writing prioritises objectivity, it still engages an audience. Readers interpret tense as a cue to importance and immediacy, as the following examples illustrate.

• Present tense keeps ideas alive and relevant, sustaining engagement. It can be a way to invite readers into consideration of multiple perspectives and processes of shared reasoning; for example - This analysis highlights several implications for policy development.
• Past tense distances the reader slightly, signalling that the information is descriptive rather than interpretive and relates to a specific study or event completed in the past (which may or may not be aligned with the current state of knowledge). For example - The survey revealed moderate awareness of overtraining symptoms.
• Future tense can be applied to help as a signpost to guide readers courteously through longer, dense, and technical texts. For example -The following section will examine stakeholder responses in more detail.

Thus, tense choices facilitate a reader’s engagement with the content. A writer's strategic variation of tense can subtly draw attention to key insights and emphasise to the reader a preferred approach towards considering or navigating the content in a text.

In summary

The application of tense in academic writing is not merely a technical or linguistic skill. It is a key mechanism by which writers manage authority, politeness, critique, and intellectual humility. Writers who understand these subtleties do more than meet grammatical expectations. They engage more effectively in the scholarly conversation - advancing knowledge with confidence, care, and respect.

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Grammatical tense as rhetorical resource in academic writing

Q: Why does grammatical tense matter in academic writing beyond “correctness”?
A: Tense does more than locate events in time. It signals a writer’s stance — how strongly a claim is held, how findings are positioned, and how the writer relates to readers and other researchers.

Q: Is there a “correct” tense to use in each section of an academic paper?
A: There are common expectations (for example, past tense in Methods and Results, present or present perfect in Introductions and literature reviews), but effective tense use also reflects rhetorical intent, not just convention.

Q: How does tense help writers convey authority without overstating findings?
A: Present tense can frame interpretations as current and relevant, while past tense can appropriately limit claims to what was observed. Deliberate choices allow writers to sound confident without over-stretching their claims.

Q: How can tense be used to critique other research politely?
A: Referring to specific studies in the past tense and using modal verbs (such as may or might) allows writers to question or qualify earlier work without sounding confrontational or dismissive.

Q: What role does tense play in hedging and anticipating reviewer objections?
A: Tense works alongside hedging language to acknowledge uncertainty and pre-empt concerns about causality, generalisability, or scope — expectations commonly held by reviewers and editors.

Q: Can tense influence reader engagement in dense academic writing?
A: Yes. Present tense can invite readers into active reasoning, past tense situates descriptive findings, and future-oriented tense helps guide readers through complex arguments.

How a professional editor can help

A skilled academic or medical editor not only corrects grammar but aligns tense, tone, and structure with disciplinary expectations. At KMG Communications, we ensure your writing reflects both scientific precision and narrative flow. We fine-tune the us of tense to maintain logical transitions between sections of a manuscript, preserve the integrity of data and interpretation, enhance engagement while retaining formality, and subtly express professional judgment without overstatement.

Contact KMG Communications for expert medical and academic editing.

For more information on KMG Communication's professional editing and proofreading services, refer to our page: Medical Editing and Proofreading Services