Verb tenses

ONLINE COURSE: “IMPROVING GRAMMAR FOR TOEFL
TEST”
UNIT ONE: VERB TENSES

Verb forms indicate tense, number and person, voice and
mood.
There are twelve tenses in English:
 Present Tense
 Simple Present Tense
 Present Continuous Tense
 Present Perfect Tense
 Present Perfect Continuous Tense
 Past Tense
 Simple Past Tense
 Past Perfect Tense
 Past Continuous Tense
 Past Perfect Continuous Tense
 Future Tense
 Simple Future Tense
 Future Perfect Tense
 Future Continuous Tense
 Future Perfect Continuous Tense

Use 1: Repeated actions
When something happens regularly or is a
permanent situation we usually use the simple
present tense.
 The present tense of any verb other than be is the
same as the base form of the verb. To form the
third-person singular of these verbs, add –s or –es
to the base form.
 (verb + s with he/she/it).

SINGULAR PLURAL
FIRST PERSON I play. We play.
SECOND PERSON You play. You play.
THIRD PERSON She, he, or it plays They play.
Ronnie plays The children play.
VERB TO BE
FIRST PERSON I am happy. We are happy.
SECON You are happy. You are happy.
THIRD PERSON She, he or it is
happy.
They are happy.
Ronnie is happy. The children are
happy.

 The present tense expresses a constant,
repeated, or habitual action or condition.
It can also express a general truth.
e.g. The Hudson River flows into the Atlantic.
(not just now but always: a constant action).
Jessy plays the flute superbly. (now and
always: a habitual action).
Uranium is radioactive. (a condition that is
generally true).

 The present tense can also express an action
or condition that exists only now.
e.g.
- Ronnie feels sick. (not always but just now).
- I declare these game over. (at this very
moment)

 The present tense is sometimes used in
historical writing to express past events and,
more often, in poetry, fiction, and reporting
(especially in sports) to convey a sense of
“being there”
e.g.
- Above the crowd the Hindenburg suddenly
bursts into flame.
- I watch as my sister runs after the ducks ans
slips in the mud.
- The pitch gets away from the catcher and
bounces into the fence.

Use 2: Facts or Generalization.
 The Simple Present can also indicate the
speaker believes that a fact was true before, is
true now, and will be true in the future. It is
not important if the speaker is correct about
the fact. It is also used to make generalizations
about people or things.
 Examples:
 Cats like milk.
 Birds do not like milk.
 Do pigs like milk?
 California is in America.
 California is not in the United Kingdom.

 USE 3 Scheduled Events in the Near Future
Speakers occasionally use Simple Present to talk
about scheduled events in the near future. This
is most commonly done when talking about
public transportation, but it can be used with
other scheduled events as well.
 Examples:
 The train leaves tonight at 6 PM.
 The bus does not arrive at 11 AM, it arrives at
11 PM.
 When do we board the plane?

 Continuous tenses are also
called progressive tenses. So the present
progressive tense is the same as the present
continuous tense.
 subject+ auxiliary verb+ main verb be base +
ing
 [am/is/are + present participle]

 Examples:
 Are you still watching TV?
 I am studying to become a engineer.
 She is loving this chocolate ice cream.
 She loves this chocolate ice cream.
Incorrect
Correct

Here is how we make the positive:
Positive Positive Short Form
I am sleeping I'm sleeping
you are sleeping you're sleeping
he is sleeping he's sleeping
she is sleeping she's sleeping
it is sleeping it's sleeping
we are sleeping we're sleeping
they are sleeping they're sleeping

We can make the negative by adding 'not':
Negative Negative Short Form
I am not sleeping I'm not sleeping
you are not playing you aren't playing
he is not reading he isn't reading
she is not working she isn't working
it is not raining it isn't raining
we are not cooking we aren't cooking
they are not listening they aren't listening

 The English Present Perfect tense is used to
express actions which have already been
completed, or perfected, at the time of
speaking or writing.
 Form:
[ has/have + past participle of the verb ]

 Examples:
 I have done the work.
 She has answered half the questions.
In the first example, the use of the Present Perfect
tense emphasizes the fact that, at the time of
speaking or writing, the work has already been
completed.
In the second example, the use of the
Present Perfect indicates that, at the time of
speaking or writing, half the questions have been
answered.

I have played I've played
you have worked you've worked
he has written he's written
she has walked she's walked
it has rained it's rained
we have travelled we've travelled
they have studied they've studied

I have not eaten breakfast today I haven't eaten
you have not been to Asia you haven't been
he has not seen the new film he hasn't seen
she has not played tennis she hasn't played
it has not snowed this winter it hasn't snowed
we have not slept all night we haven't slept
they have not tried the food they haven't tried

To make a question, put 'have' or 'has' in
front of the subject.
'Yes / No' Questions
have I missed the bus?
have you visited London?
has he worked as a waiter before?
has she met John?
has it been cold this week?

 Present perfect continuous tense is used for
an action which began at some time in past
and is still continuing.
 Syntax:
Has/have + been + Present participle

 Examples:
 He has been sleeping for 5 hrs.
 James have been teaching at university since last
year.
 Sam has been having his car for 2 years.
 Sam has had his car for 2 years.
Incorrect
correct

Luckily, it's very easy to make. Here's the positive
(it's the present perfect of 'be' + verb -ing):
I have been walking I've been walking
you have been running you've been running
he has been cooking he's been cooking
she has been swimming she's been swimming
it has been raining it's been raining
we have been studying we've been studying
they have been sleeping they've been sleeping

To make the negative, just add 'not':
I have not been walking I haven't been walking
you have not been running you haven't been running
he has not been cooking he hasn't been cooking
she has not been swimming she hasn't been swimming
it has not been raining it hasn't been raining
we have not been studying we haven't been studying
they have not been sleeping they haven't been sleeping

 This tense is usually used for those actions
which are already over.
 It's syntax is given as:
(subject + V2 + object)
where V2 - second form of the verb

 Examples:
 She lived in Tokyo for seven years.
 They were in London from Monday to Thursday of
last week.
 I went to all the art exhibitions I could.

Use 1: Completed action in the past.
Use the Simple Past to express the idea that an
action started and finished at a specific time in the
past. Sometimes, the speaker may not actually
mention the specific time, but they do have one
specific time in mind.
Examples:
I saw a movie yesterday.
I didn't see a play yesterday.
Last year, I traveled to Japan.
Did you have dinner last night?
She washed her car.

Use 2: A series of completed actions.
We use the Simple Past to list a series of
completed actions in the past. These actions
happen 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and so on.
Examples:
I finished work, walked to the beach,
and found a nice place to swim.
He arrived from the airport at 8:00, checked into
the hotel at 9:00, and met the others at 10:00.
Did you add flour, pour in the milk, and
then add the eggs?

Use 3: Duration in past.
The Simple Past can be used with a duration which
starts and stops in the past. A duration is a longer
action often indicated by expressions such as: for
two years, for five minutes, all day, all year, etc.
Examples:
I lived in Brazil for two years.
Shauna studied Japanese for five years.
They sat at the beach all day.
They did not stay at the party the entire time.

Use 4: Habits in the past.
The Simple Past can also be used to describe a habit which
stopped in the past. It can have the same meaning as
“used to”. To make it clear that we are talking about a
habit, we often add expressions such as: always, often,
usually, never, when I was a child, when I was younger,
etc.
Examples:
I studied French when I was a child.
He played the violin.
He didn't play the piano.
Did you play a musical instrument when you were a
kid?
She worked at the movie theater after school.
They never went to school, they always skipped class.

 In the Past Continuous tense, the action was
ongoing till a certain time in the past. This
tense is used to talk about an action at a
particular time in the past.
 Syntax:
Subject + Auxiliary verb + main verb
(Present participle) + Object + Time reference

For positive sentences:
SUBJECT WAS / WERE VERB + ing
REST OF THE
SENTENCE
I was sleeping at 11 p.m. last night.
You were sleeping at 11 p.m. last night.
He was sleeping at 11 p.m. last night.

 Examples:
 I burned my finger while I was cooking breakfast.
 I was practicing the guitar when he came home.

Next, here's the negative - it's very easy, just
add 'not‘:
•I was not (wasn't) sleeping
•you were not (weren't) working
•he was not (wasn't) coming
•she was not (wasn't) reading 'War and Peace'
•it was not (wasn't) raining
•we were not (weren't) shopping
•they were not (weren't) watching a film

 It is used to express an action which has
occurred in past (usually, a long time ago) and
action which has occurred in past before
another action in past.
 Syntax:
Subject + auxiliary verb + main verb
(past participle) + object

 Examples:
 They had visited a doctor.
 I had not finished my work last year.
 It have not rained heavily last month.
 It had not rained heavily last month
Incorrect
correct

Using the past perfect
1: A completed action before something else in the past.
•When we arrived, the film had started. (= first the film started,
then later we arrived)
2: To explain or give a reason for something in the past.
•I'd eaten dinner so I wasn't hungry.
•It had snowed in the night, so the bus didn't arrive.
3:Stative Verbs only: something that started in the past and
continued up to another action in the past.

subject auxiliary verb main verb
 I had finished my work.
You had stopped before me.
She had not gone to school.
We had not left.
Had you arrived?
Had they eatendinner?

 It is used to express a continued or ongoing
action in past, an ongoing action which
occurred in past and completed at some point
in past.
 Syntax:
Auxiliary verb + Subject + Main verb
(present participle) + object

 For negative sentences in the past perfect
continuous tense, we insert not after the first
auxiliary verb. For question sentences, we
exchange the subject and first auxiliary verb:
subject auxiliary
verb
auxiliary
verb
main verb
+ I had been working.
+ You had been playing tennis.
- It had not been working well.
- We had not been expecting her.
? Had you been drinking?
? Had they been waiting long?

 Examples:
 Tania had been waiting for two hours when his
friend arrived.
 Students had been asking for an off lecture
before sir scolded them.
 We had'nt exposed to programming before joining
the IT Dept.
Incorrect
 We had'nt been exposed to programming before
joining the IT Dept.
correct

Form
A: He had been talking.
N: He had not been talking.
Q: Had he been talking?

Action taking place before a
certain time in the past.
Sometimes interchangeable with
past perfect simple.
Puts emphasis on the course or
duration of an action.

I had been working.
You had beenplaying tennis.
It had not been working well.

 It is used to express an action which has not
occurred yet and will occur after saying or in
future.
 Syntax:
Subject + auxiliary verb + main verb (present
participle) + object

USE
1. We often use this tense with particular
verbs; such as think – know – believe –
suppose – expect – hope to express
beliefs, convictions, hope, expectations,
knowledge and opinions about the future.
Examples
I think Brazil will win.
I don’t suppose she will be promoted
now

 Examples:
 He will start a business.
 I will not give you a pen tomorrow.
 When you will arrive tonight, we will go out for
dinner.
Incorrect
 When you arrive tonight, we will go out for
dinner.
correct

 The auxiliary verb going to is used in talking
about intentions. (An intention is a plan for the
future that you have already thought about.)
 We're going to buy a new car next month.
 I'm going to work in a bank when I leave school.
 In the new year I'm going to stop eating so much
junk.
 He's not going to go to the dance. He's got too
much work.
 I'm not going to watch TV until my science
project is finished.

 Note: going to is often used in the past tense
to talk about an unfulfilled intention.
 Examples: I was going to study for my
grammar test, but I had no time.
 He was going to call you, but he couldn't find
his mobile phone.
 My grandmother was going to visit us, but
she fell and broke her arm.

 The present continuous tense is used in
talking about arrangements. (An
arrangement is a plan for the future that you
have already thought about and discussed
with someone else.)
 I'm meeting my mother at the airport
tomorrow.
 Our grandparents are visiting us this
Christmas.
 Sorry, I can't stay after school today; I'm
playing tennis with Jun-Sik.
 My sister's going to the dentist tomorrow.

Scheduled events
The present simple tense is usually used to refer
to future events that are scheduled (and outside
of our control).
Exercise:
Hurry up! The train departs in 10 minutes.
I leave Frankfurt at 5 o'clock in the morning
and arrive in New York at midnight the next day.
She has an appointment with the headmaster
after school today.
There's no need to hurry. The train doesn't
leave for another 30 minutes.

 It is used to express a continued or an ongoing
action in future.
 Syntax:
(present participle) + object

 Examples:
 While I am finishing my homework, she is going
to make dinner.
 You are going to be waiting for her when her
plane arrives tonight.
 Jane will be being at my house when you arrive
Incorrect
 Jane will be at my house when you arrive.
correct

 I will be working at 10am.
 You will be lying on a beach
tomorrow.
 She will not be using the car.
 We will not be havingdinner at home.
 Will you be playing football?
 Will they be watching TV?

 It is used to express an action which will occur
in future and is thought to be completed in
future.
 Syntax:
(past participle) + object

Examples:
 They will have completed the Presentation
before the deadline.
 You are going to have perfected your English by
the time you come back from the U.S..
 I am going to see a movie when I will have
finished my homework.
Incorrect
 I am going to see a movie when I have
finished my homework.
correct

 I will have finished this book
 You will have studied the English tenses
 She will have cooked dinner
For the short form, we change will to 'll.
But, when we are speaking, we also make
'have' shorter, so it sounds like I'll've finished
(don't write this!).

 It is used to express a continued or ongoing
action that will start in future and is thought
to be continued till sometime in future.
 Syntax:
Subject + Auxiliary verb + main verb
(Present participle) + Object + Time reference

 Examples:
 The famous artist will have been painting the
mural for over six months by the time it is
finished.
 You will have been waiting for more than two
hours when her plane finally arrives.
 Vidya will have been having his driver's license
for over two years.
Incorrect
 Vidya will have had his driver's license for over
two years.
correct

Positive Form Positive Short Form
I will have been working I'll have been working
You will have been sleeping You'll have been sleeping
She will have been studying She'll have been studying
He will have been cooking He'll have been cooking

Negative Form Negative Short Form
I will not have been working I won't have been working
You will not have
been sleeping
You won't have been sleeping
She will not have
been studying
She won't have been studying

Verb tenses

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