The grammatical category of tense as a means of expressing temporal deixis in the Belarusian and the English languages (the comparative and typological aspect)

The article analyzes the grammatical category of tense as a means of actualizing temporal deixis in the Belarusian and English languages in the comparative and typological aspect. It is revealed that the absolute time model represented by verbal forms in Belarusian and English languages is not identical to the physical objective temporal model and has an indexical and subjective nature with the reference point that depends on the congruence or divergence of the moment of perception and the time of the speech act. In the narrative mode of interpretation, where the action or event expressed by the verb-predicate in the principal clause is the reference point, the Belarusian language is characterized by the shift of the personal deictic centre in the subordinate clause in contrast to the English language, where there is a shift of the personal and temporal deictic centres as well.