1. Verb Tenses
GRAMMAR LESSON #2

2. Tenses of Verbs

3. Present Past Future
Simple
Function
Talk about facts, habits
or rituals.
Talk about something that
started and ended in the past
at a particular time
Talk about something that
will/won’t happen in the future;
express willingness.
Conjugation Subject + verb Subj. + v. + d/ed Subj. + will + v.
Example
I walk. You don’t talk.
She knows. We go.
I walked. You didn’t talk. She
knew. We went.
I will walk. You will not talk. She
will know.
Progressive or Continuous
Function
Talk about something:
• in progress
• generally happening at
this time
• future
Talk about:
• something that was in
progress at a particular time in
the past until it got
interrupted;
• 2 activities in progress
simultaneously in the past
Talk about an activity that will
be in progress at some time in
the future.
Conjugation Subj. + am/are/is + v.-ing Subj. + was/were + v. -ing
Subj. + will be + v. –ing
To be + going to be + v.-ing
Example
I am teaching ESL. We
aren’t going. Tonight, he
is cooking dinner for us.
I was studying when the phone
rang. The baby was crying
when we were trying to sleep.
I will be vacationing in France. I
am going to be vacationing in
France. They’ll be coming soon.

4. What are past participles?
 Form of verbs that can also be used as adjectives. Examples:
 He had swollen eyes.
 There was a broken plate on the table.
 Past participles (p.p) usually end in –ed, -d, -t, -en, or –n.
Examples:
 Battered by the wind, the roof fell.
 The boy taken to the hospital has recovered.
 I had broken my knee.
 Here is a list of past participle forms for irregular verbs:
http://www.teaching-esl-to-adults.com/irregular-verbs-list.html

5. Present Past Future
Perfect
Function
Talk about:
•Unspecified time;
•Repetition;
•Something that started in
the past and continues until
present, but may/may not
continue into the future
Talk about an event/activity
that was completed before
another event/activity or
time in the past.
Note: When using this tense,
there will always be two
activities.
Talk about an activity that
will be completed by
another time or event in the
future.
Conjugation Subj. + have/has + p.p. Subj. + had + p.p. Subj. + will have + p.p.
Example
I have lost my keys. I’ve
travelled to Brazil many
times.
You’ve lived here since 1995.
I had already gone to bed by
the time you got home.
We had fallen asleep by 9
o'clock.
By the time I finish dinner,
you will have eaten two
desserts!
We will have learned all the
ESL verb tenses by the end
of the semester.

6. Present Past Future
Perfect Progressive or Perfect Continuous
Function
Show the duration of an
activity that began in the
past and continues until the
present time;
Talk about something that
has been in progress
recently or lately
Emphasize the duration of an
activity that was in progress
before another activity or
time in the past;
Show an activity that was in
progress close in time to
another activity or time in
the past.
Emphasize the duration of
an activity that will be in
progress before another
time or event in the future;
Emphasize the duration of
an activity before the other
time or event in the future
may be something that
started in the past.
Conjugation Subj. + have/has been + -ing Subj. + had been + -ing Subj. + will have been + -ing
Example
She has been working on
this project for three years.
What have they been doing
since they arrived?
I had been waiting for them
for thirty minutes before they
finally showed up.
She was all wet because she
had been jogging in the rain.
We will have been driving
for fifteen hours by the time
we arrive in Los Angeles.
At midnight, I will have been
studying English grammar
tenses for three hours.