Tense

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Tenses

The English Tense System

The text below are to lessons for each of the 12 basic English tenses. In each lesson we look at two aspects of the tense:

  • Structure: How do we make the tense?
  • Use: When and why do we use the tense?

 

Verbs come in three tenses: past, present, future. The past is used to describe things that have already happened (e.g. earlier in the day, yesterday, last week, three years ago). The present tense is used to describe things that are happening right now, or things that are continuous. The future tense describes things that have yet to happen (e.g. later, tomorrow, next week, next year, three years from now).

The Present Tenses

  • Simple present
  • Present perfect
  • Present continuous
  • Present perfect continuous

The Past Tenses

  • Simple past
  • Past perfect
  • Past continuous
  • Past perfect continuous

The Future Tenses

  • Simple Future
  • Future perfect
  • Future continuous
  • Future perfect continuous

 

 

 

 

Types of Tenses

  • Present tense
    I do, I do do
  • Present Continuous tense
    I am doing
  • Present Perfect tense
    I have done
  • Present Perfect Continuous tense
    I have been doing
  • Past tense
    I did, I did do
  • Past Continuous tense
    I was doing
  • Past Perfect tense
    I had done
  • Past Perfect Continuous tense
    I had been doing
  • Future tense
    I will do
  • Future Continuous tense
    I will be doing
  • Future Perfect tense
    I will have done
  • Future Perfect Continuous tense
    I will have been doing

 

 

 

 

 

 

tense

Affirmative/Negative/Question

Use

Signal Words

Simple Present

A: He speaks.
N: He does not speak.
Q: Does he speak?

  • action in the present taking place once, never or several times
  • facts
  • actions taking place one after another
  • action set by a timetable or schedule

always, every …, never, normally, often, seldom, sometimes, usually
if sentences type I (
If Italk, …)

Present Progressive

A: He is speaking.
N: He is not speaking.
Q: Is he speaking?

  • action taking place in the moment of speaking
  • action taking place only for a limited period of time
  • action arranged for the future

at the moment, just, just now, Listen!, Look!, now, right now

Simple Past

A: He spoke.
N: He did not speak.
Q: Did he speak?

  • action in the past taking place once, never or several times
  • actions taking place one after another
  • action taking place in the middle of another action

yesterday, 2 minutes ago, in 1990, the other day, last Friday
if sentence type II (
If Italked, …)

Past Progressive

A: He was speaking.
N: He was not speaking.
Q: Was he speaking?

  • action going on at a certain time in the past
  • actions taking place at the same time
  • action in the past that is interrupted by another action

when, while, as long as

Present Perfect Simple

A: He has spoken.
N: He has not spoken.
Q: Has he spoken?

  • putting emphasis on the result
  • action that is still going on
  • action that stopped recently
  • finished action that has an influence on the present
  • action that has taken place once, never or several times before the moment of speaking

already, ever, just, never, not yet, so far, till now, up to now

Present Perfect Progressive

A: He has been speaking.
N: He has not been speaking.
Q: Has he been speaking?

  • putting emphasis on the course or duration (not the result)
  • action that recently stopped or is still going on
  • finished action that influenced the present

all day, for 4 years, since 1993, how long?, the whole week

Past Perfect Simple

A: He had spoken.
N: He had not spoken.
Q: Had he spoken?

  • action taking place before a certain time in the past
  • sometimes interchangeable with past perfect progressive
  • putting emphasis only on thefact (not the duration)

already, just, never, not yet, once, until that day
if sentence type III (
If Ihad talked, …)

Past Perfect Progressive

A: He had been speaking.
N: He had not been speaking.
Q: Had he been speaking?

  • action taking place before a certain time in the past
  • sometimes interchangeable with past perfect simple
  • putting emphasis on theduration or course of an action

for, since, the whole day, all day

Future I Simple

A: He will speak.
N: He will not speak. 
Q: Will he speak?

  • action in the future that cannot be influenced
  • spontaneous decision
  • assumption with regard to the future

in a year, next …, tomorrow
If-Satz Typ I (
If you ask her, she will help you.)
assumption: I think, probably, perhaps

Future I Simple

(going to)

A: He is going to speak.
N: He is not going to speak.
Q: Is he going to speak?

  • decision made for the future
  • conclusion with regard to the future

in one year, next week, tomorrow

Future I Progressive

A: He will be speaking.
N: He will not be speaking.
Q: Will he be speaking?

  • action that is going on at a certain time in the future
  • action that is sure to happen in the near future

in one year, next week, tomorrow

Future II Simple

A: He will have spoken.
N: He will not have spoken.
Q: Will he have spoken?

  • action that will be finished at a certain time in the future

by Monday, in a week

Future II Progressive

A: He will have been speaking.
N: He will not have been speaking.
Q: Will he have been speaking?

  • action taking place before a certain time in the future
  • putting emphasis on the courseof an action

for …, the last couple of hours, all day long

Conditional I Simple

A: He would speak.
N: He would not speak.
Q: Would he speak?

  • action that might take place

if sentences type II
(
If I were you, I would go home.)

Conditional I Progressive

A: He would be speaking.
N: He would not be speaking.
Q: Would he be speaking?

  • action that might take place
  • putting emphasis on the course/ duration of the action

 

Conditional II Simple

A: He would have spoken.
N: He would not have spoken.
Q: Would he have spoken?

  • action that might have taken place in the past

if sentences type III
(
If I had seen that, Iwould have helped.)

Conditional II Progressive

A: He would have been speaking.
N: He would not have been speaking.
Q: Would he have been speaking?

  • action that might have taken place in the past
  • puts emphasis on the course /duration of the action

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Level-I

 

  1. I _________ ice-cream.

A.) likes

B.) liked

C.) have been liking

D.) like

 

 

 

  1. Children generally _________ quarrels easily.

A.) forgets

B.) forget

C.) forgot

D.) will forget

 

 


  1. She ________ to school every day.

A.) goes

B.) go

C.) will go

D.) gone

 

 


  1. At present, he _______ in Mahindra Satyam.

A.) works

B.) work

C.) is working

D.) worked

 

 


  1. I _______ just ___________ my homework.

A.) have, completed

B.) has, completed

C.) had, completed

D.) will, complete

 

 


  1. He ________ for him for two days.

A.) have been waiting

B.) had been waiting

C.) has been waiting

D.) is waiting

 

 


  1. I _______ him yesterday.

A.) meets

B.) met

C.) meeting

D.) meet

 

 


  1. She _________ food when the guests arrived yesterday.

A.) preparing

B.) was preparing

C.) is preparing

D.) has been preparing

 

 


  1. Mishra ______ for Bombay before Praveen reached the station.

A.) have left

B.) has left

C.) left

D.) had left

Show Answer

 


  1. The president ___________ for about half an hour when trouble started.

A.) has been speaking

B.) have been speaking

C.) had been speaking

D.) was speaking

 

Level-II

 

  1.  They __________ tomorrow.

A.) will arrive

B.) arrive

C.) is arriving

D.) arrives

 

 

  1.  I _________ the test tomorrow at this time.

A.) shall write

B.) will writew

C.) writing

D.) shall be writing

 

 

 

  1.  You ________ the task by tomorrow.

A.) will complete

B.) complete

C.) will have completed

D.) shall complete

 

 

 

  1.  They ________ for her for 2 hours by the time she cooks the food.

A.) will have been waiting

B.) will has been waiting

C.) will had been waiting

D.) will be waiting

 

 

 

  1.   If I _______ the news, I would have informed.

A.) has known

B.) had known

C.) have known

D.) knew

 

 

 

  1.   Rahul enquired the guard whether anyone _______ in his absence.

A.) has come

B.) have come

C.) had come

D.) will have come

 

 

 

  1.  Children will not learn anything if they __________.

A.) are discouraged

B.) have been discouraged

C.) had been discouraged

D.) is discouraged

 

 

 

  1.  He _______ here for 6 years by next year.

A.) will has been working

B.) will be working

C.) will had been working

D.) will have been working

 

 

 

  1.  I ________ Ruchi lately.

A.) hasn’t seen

B.) haven’t seen

C.) wasn’t seen

D.) hadn’t seen

 

 

 

  1.   At this moment, I _______ a letter.

A.) am writing

B.) writing

C.) writes

D.) wrote

 

 

 

Answers:

 

Level-I

1. D

2. B

3. A

4. C

5. A

6. C

7. B

8. B

9.  D

10. C

 

Level-II

1. A

2. D

3. C

4. A

5. B

6. C

7. A

8. D

9. B

10. A


,

Tense

Tense is a grammatical category that indicates the time of an action or event. In English, there are six tenses: simple present, simple past, simple future, present continuous, past continuous, and future continuous.

Simple present tense

The simple present tense is used to talk about things that happen regularly or repeatedly, or things that are true in general. It is also used to talk about future events that are planned or scheduled.

Simple past tense

The simple past tense is used to talk about things that happened in the past. It is also used to talk about habits or activities that were done regularly in the past but are not done anymore.

Simple future tense

The simple future tense is used to talk about things that will happen in the future. It is also used to talk about predictions or possibilities.

Present continuous tense

The present continuous tense is used to talk about things that are happening now or that are happening around the time of speaking. It is also used to talk about temporary or ongoing situations.

Past continuous tense

The past continuous tense is used to talk about things that were happening at a specific time in the past. It is also used to talk about temporary or ongoing situations in the past.

Future continuous tense

The future continuous tense is used to talk about things that will be happening at a specific time in the future. It is also used to talk about temporary or ongoing situations in the future.

Perfect tenses

The perfect tenses are used to talk about things that have happened or will have happened by a certain time. They are also used to talk about things that have been happening or will have been happening for a certain amount of time.

Simple perfect tense

The simple perfect tense is formed with the present tense of the verb “to have” and the past participle of the main verb. It is used to talk about things that have happened or will have happened by a certain time.

Continuous perfect tense

The continuous perfect tense is formed with the present tense of the verb “to be” and the present participle of the verb “to have” and the past participle of the main verb. It is used to talk about things that have been happening or will have been happening for a certain amount of time.

Modal verbs

Modal verbs are used to express possibility, necessity, permission, or obligation. They are not conjugated for tense.

Passive voice

The passive voice is used to focus on the action rather than the person or thing doing the action. It is formed with the verb “to be” and the past participle of the main verb.

Tense is a complex and important topic in English grammar. By understanding the different tenses and how they are used, you can communicate more effectively in English.

1. What is the difference between past, present, and future tense?

The past tense is used to talk about things that happened before now. The present tense is used to talk about things that are happening now or that happen regularly. The future tense is used to talk about things that will happen in the future.

2. What are the different types of verb tenses?

There are three main types of verb tenses: simple, progressive, and perfect. Simple tenses are used to talk about general facts or events. Progressive tenses are used to talk about things that are happening or were happening at a specific time. Perfect tenses are used to talk about things that have happened or will have happened by a specific time.

3. How do I use verb tenses correctly?

To use verb tenses correctly, you need to know the difference between the different types of tenses and when to use each one. You also need to be able to conjugate verbs correctly in each tense.

4. What are some common verb tense errors?

Some common verb tense errors include using the wrong tense for the time frame you are talking about, using the wrong tense for the type of action you are describing, and using the wrong tense for the subject of the sentence.

5. How can I improve my verb tense skills?

The best way to improve your verb tense skills is to practice using them correctly. You can do this by reading books and articles, watching movies and TV shows, and listening to podcasts and music. You can also practice by speaking with native speakers and by taking online grammar quizzes.

6. What are some tips for using verb tenses correctly?

Here are some tips for using verb tenses correctly:

7. What are some common verb tense mistakes?

Some common verb tense mistakes include using the wrong tense for the time frame you are talking about, using the wrong tense for the type of action you are describing, and using the wrong tense for the subject of the sentence.

8. How can I avoid making verb tense mistakes?

The best way to avoid making verb tense mistakes is to be aware of the different types of tenses and when to use each one. You should also practice using verb tenses correctly. You can do this by reading books and articles, watching movies and TV shows, and listening to podcasts and music. You can also practice by speaking with native speakers and by taking online grammar quizzes.

9. What are some Resources for Learning more about verb tenses?

There are many resources available for learning more about verb tenses. You can find books, articles, websites, and online courses on the subject. You can also find native speakers who can help you practice using verb tenses correctly.

Sure, here are some MCQs without mentioning the topic Tense:

  1. The man was walking down the street when he saw a dog. The dog was running towards him. The man was scared. He ran away. The dog chased him. The man ran faster. The dog ran faster. The man tripped and fell. The dog jumped on him. The man screamed. The dog licked his face. The man laughed. The dog wagged its tail. The man petted the dog. The dog was happy. The man was happy.

  2. The sun was shining. The birds were singing. The flowers were blooming. The children were playing. The adults were relaxing. It was a beautiful day.

  3. The rain was pouring. The wind was blowing. The thunder was roaring. The lightning was flashing. The people were running for cover. The animals were hiding. It was a terrible storm.

  4. The snow was falling. The ground was covered in a blanket of white. The trees were bare. The air was cold. It was a winter wonderland.

  5. The leaves were changing color. The air was crisp and cool. The days were getting shorter. The nights were getting longer. It was fall.

  6. The flowers were blooming. The bees were buzzing. The birds were singing. The sun was shining. It was spring.

  7. The sun was setting. The sky was ablaze with color. The birds were singing their evening songs. The crickets were chirping. It was a beautiful evening.

  8. The moon was full. The stars were twinkling. The night was quiet. It was a perfect night for a walk.

  9. The clock struck midnight. The world was still. The only Sound was the ticking of the clock. It was the witching hour.

  10. The sun was rising. The birds were singing. The flowers were blooming. The day was starting anew. It was a beautiful day.

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