Towards a Common Language for the Discussion of Time Based on Prior’s Tense Logic

Time is not definable in terms of other concepts. On the other hand, it is generally accepted that Augustine was right in claiming that we as human beings have a tacit knowledge of what time is. But how can this tacit knowledge be explored and discussed, if time as such cannot be defined? This paper suggests that temporal logic, and in particular the hybrid logic corresponding to A.N. Prior’s 3rd grade of tense-logical involvement, may be useful as a precise conceptual basis of a common language for the formal discussion of time. The paper offers a general investigation of this suggestion illuminating the conceptual potential and also some of the open questions within the study of temporal logic. It is argued that the endeavour of the logic of time can be seen as the study of some important manifestations and structures of our tacit knowledge of time.