English verb tenses can be confusing for ESL students. This blog post will explain the different verb tenses in English and how to use them. There are many different verb tenses in English, but we will focus on the most common ones. The three main verb tenses in English are the present tense, past tense, and future tense. The present tense is used to talk about what is happening now, the past tense is used to talk about what happened in the past, and the future tense is used to talk about what will happen in the future. Each of these verb tenses has its own unique uses and forms. Let’s take a closer look at each one.
12 Verb Tenses in English
Present Indefinite Tense
The present indefinite tense is used to talk about what is happening now. It expresses the ‘simple present’ concept in some other languages such as French and Spanish.
Structure:
The structure of the present indefinite tense is very simple. It has no auxiliary verb or helping verbs.
(subject) + (verb)
Examples:
- I walk to work every day.
- We are having dinner now.
- She is studying English right now.
Present Continuous Tense
The present continuous tense is used to talk about things that are in progress.
Structure:
They don’t have an auxiliary verb or helping verb.
(subject) + (verb) + (ing)
Examples:
- She is walking to work right now.
- We are having a party this weekend.
- They are studying English at school right now.
The present continuous tense is formed by using ‘be’ + the present participle (verb+ing.)
For example: I am walking to work.
Present Perfect Tense
The present perfect tense is used to express the concept of ‘finished actions’ or ‘actions that started in the past and continue to influence the present.’ For example, it can be used to express the idea that ‘I have studied English for several years.’
Structure:
The structure of the present perfect tense is formed with the helping verb ‘have’ + the past participle.
(subject) + (helping verb) + (past participle)
Examples:
- I have studied English for several years.
- She has eaten dinner already.
- The children have gone home already. (implication that they are no longer at the park)
The present perfect tense is formed with the helping verb ‘have’ + the past participle of the verb. For example, ‘He has gone home.’
The helping verb ‘have’ is used to make the present perfect tense. For example: I have gone home, she has eaten dinner and he has arrived late.
Present Perfect Continuous Tense
The present perfect continuous tense is used to express the idea that something started in the past and continues into the present or recently stopped. It is often used to express the idea that something started in the past and continues into the present.
Structure:
The structure of this tense is formed with the helping verb ‘have’ + been + (subject) + (verb+ing).
(helping verb) + (subject) + have/has been + (verb+ing)
Examples:
- I have been walking to work every day.
- She has been studying English at school since September 2013.
- They have been here for three hours already. (implies they are still here)
The present perfect continuous tense is formed with the helping verb ‘have’ + been + (subject) + (verb+ing). For example, ‘I have been studying English.’
Simple Past Tense
The simple past tense is used to talk about events that happened at a specific time in the past. It expresses the idea of ‘past action’ or ‘finished actions.’ It can also be used to talk about things in general in the past. This is called ‘general past tense’
Structure:
The structure of the simple past tense is formed with the helping verb ‘did’ + (subject) + (verb).
(helping verb) + (subject) + did/did not + (verb)
Examples:
- I walked to work yesterday.
- She studied English in college.
- They ate dinner early last night.
The simple past tense is formed with the helping verb ‘did’ + (subject) + (verb). For example, ‘I walked to work yesterday.’
Past Continuous Tense
The past continuous tense is used to express an action that was in progress at a specific time in the past.
Structure:
The structure of the past continuous tense is formed with the helping verb ‘was’ + (subject) + (verb+ing).
(helping verb) + (subject) + was/was not + (verb+ing)
Examples:
- I was walking to work when it started to rain.
- She was studying English while we were eating dinner.
- They were playing outside when it started to rain.
The past continuous tense is formed with the helping verb ‘was’ + (subject) + (verb+ing). For example: ‘I was walking to work.’
Past Perfect Tense
The past perfect tense is used to talk about actions that happened earlier than another action in the past. For example, ‘I had walked to work when it started to rain.’
Structure:
The structure of the past perfect tense is formed with the helping verb ‘had’ + (subject) + (past participle).
(helping verb) + (subject) + had/had not + (past participle)
Examples:
- I had walked to work when it started to rain.
- She had studied English since September 2013 before she went to college.
- They had eaten dinner early yesterday before they went home.
The past perfect tense is formed with the helping verb ‘had’ + (subject) + (past participle). For example: ‘I had walked to work.’
Past Perfect Continuous Tense
The past perfect continuous tense is used to express an action that happened earlier than another action in the past. It is often used to express something started in the past and was completed before another action in the past.
Structure:
The structure of this tense is formed with the helping verb ‘had’ + been + (subject) + (verb+ing).
(helping verb) + (subject) + had/had not been + (verb+ing)
Examples:
- I had been walking to work every day when it started to rain.
- She had not been studying English for very long when she went to college.
- They had been playing outside all day before it started to rain.
The past perfect continuous tense is formed with the helping verb ‘had’ + been + (subject) + (verb+ing). For example: ‘I had been walking to work.’
Future Simple Tense
The future simple tense is used to talk about actions that will happen in the future. It is often used with time expressions such as ‘tomorrow,’ ‘next week,’ and ‘in four days.’
Structure:
The structure of this tense is formed with the helping verb ‘(to) be’ + (subject) + going to + (verb).
(helping verb) + (subject) + going to + (verb)
Examples:
- I am going to walk home from work tomorrow.
- She is going to study English after she finishes work today.
- We are going to eat dinner early tonight before we go out.
The future simple tense is formed with the helping verb ‘(to) be’ + (subject) + going to + (verb). For example: ‘I am going to walk home from work tomorrow.’
Future Continuous Tense
The future continuous tense is used when talking about actions that will be in progress at a specific time in the future.
Structure:
The structure of this tense is formed with the helping verb ‘(to) be’ + (subject) + going to be + (verb+ing).
(helping verb) + (subject) + going to be + (verb+ing)
Examples:
- I am going to be walking home from work at 10am tomorrow.
- She is going to be studying English when her class starts at 8pm.
- We are going to be eating dinner later tonight before we go out for the evening.
The future continuous tense is formed with the helping verb ‘(to) be’ + (subject) + going to be + (verb+ing). For example: ‘I am going to be walking home from work at 10am tomorrow.’
Future Perfect Tense
The future perfect tense is used to talk about actions that will be finished by a specific time in the future. In English, this time marker is often ‘by’ or ‘before.’
Structure:
The structure of this tense is formed with the helping verb ‘(to) have’ + (subject) + (past participle).
(helping verb) + (subject) + had/had gone to+ (verb)+ing
Examples:
- I will have walked home from work by 7pm.
- She will have studied English for two years by the time she graduates college.
- We will have eaten dinner at a restaurant before we come home.
The future perfect tense is formed with the helping verb ‘(to) have’ + (subject) + (past participle). For example: ‘I will have walked home from work by 7pm.’
Future Perfect Continuous Tense
The future perfect continuous tense is used when talking about how long something will continue before something else in the future.
Structure:
The structure of this tense is formed with the helping verb ‘(to) have’ + (subject) + been + (verb+ing).
(helping verb) + (subject) + had/had not been + (verb+ing)
Examples:
- I will have been walking to work for three years by the time I retire.
- She will have been studying English since she was a child by the time she graduates from college.
- We will have been eating dinner at home all week before we go out to eat on Saturday.
The future perfect continuous tense is formed with the helping verb ‘(to) have’ + (subject) + been + (verb+ing). For example: ‘I will have been walking to work for three years by the time I retire.
