ENGLISH GRAMMAR TENSES

TENSE MEANS TIME____ PRESENT TIME PAST TIME FUTURE TIME

Simple Present I play. Simple Past I played. Simple Future I will play. Present Continuous I am playing. Past Continuous I was playing. Future Continuous I will be playing. Present Perfect I have played. Past Perfect I had played. Future Perfect I will have played. Present Perfect Continuous I have been playing for two hours. Past Perfect Continuous I had been playing when you came. Future Perfect Continuous I will have been playing for two hours at 2 oclock.

There are three Main tenses The Present The Past The Future EACH TENSE HAS FOUR FORMS SIMPLE: Present, Past, Future CONTINUOUS: Present, Past, Future PERFECT: Present, Past, Future PERFECT CONTINUOUS: Present, Past, Future

SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE Present Form Of verb OR Present Form Of Verb + s or es USES Repeated Actions Habitual Actions Universal Truth A Future Action Examples: 1.I drink tea daily. 2. She drinks tea daily. 3. I sing well. 4. She sings well. 5. Honesty is the best policy. 6. Our school re-opens in July. 7. Ram doesnt go to school. 8. I dont like to read sad stories. 9. Does he know the way? 10. Doesnt he play rugby?

Simple Past Tense Past Form Of Verb Uses: o PAST ACTION o NARRATION OF STORIES o DESCRIPTION OF SERIES OF PAST EVENTS Examples: 1. I / She received your letter yesterday. 2. It rained last week. 3. She watched her brother being awarded. Simple Future Tense Will + Present form of the Verb Uses: o FUTURE ACTIONS Examples: 1.She will receive your letter tomorrow. 2.It looks like it will rain tomorrow. 3.She will watch her brother being awarded.

PRESENT CONTINUOUS TENSE Is, am, are + Present Participle Uses: To describe an action that : Is happening at the moment of speaking. Going on over a period of time. Examples: 1. It is raining. 2. She is watching her brother play. 3. My sister is singing on the stage. PAST CONTINUOUS TENSE Was, were + Present Participle Uses: To describe an action that Was going on at a point of time, When another action took place. Examples: 1. It was raining at this time yesterday. 2. She was watching her brother play when the thieves entered the house. 3. He was typing in his office when the fire broke out. FUTURE CONTINUOUS TENSE Will be +Present Participle Uses: To describe an action: That will be in progress at a given point of time in the future. Examples: 1.This time tomorrow, I shall be flying over London. 2. I wont be going for the party tomorrow. 3. The school team will be going to Agra next week.

PRESENT PERFECT TENSE has/ have +Past Participle Uses: To describe an action: Which has been completed or done just now, near the present time. An action that has taken place In the past, but the action has Its effect In the present. An action that began in the past, and is continuing in the present. Examples: 1.He has eaten all the biscuits. 2.He has lived here for ten years. PAST PERFECT TENSE Had + Past Participle Uses: To describe an action that had already taken place in the past before another action took place In the past. Examples: 1.When I reached the station, the train had left. 2. They had already pulled down the old building before the order was given. FUTURE PERFECT TENSE Will/ shall have + Past Participle Uses: To describe an action that will be completed by some point of time in the future. Examples: 1.He will have left before you reach. 2. They will have cleaned the streets in an hour.

PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS Has been/ have been + Present Participle Use: To describe an action which began in the past but Is still continuing in the present. Examples: 1.He has been sleeping for five hours. 2.They have been working since 9a.m. PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS Had been + Present Participle Use: To describe an action that began in the past and continued in the past for sometime. Examples: 1.When I visited him, he had been teaching there for five years. FUTURE PERFECT CONTINUOUS Will have been + Present Participle Use: To describe an action That will be in progress even after a given point of time. Examples: 1.By next December, We will have been living here for five years.

PRESENT TENSE SIMPLE PRESENT I/WE/THEY/YOU READ. SHE/HE/IT READS. PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS I/ WE/ THEY/YOU HAVE BEEN READING +TIME. SHE/HE/IT HAS BEEN READING +TIME. PRESENT PERFECT I/WE/THEY/YOU HAVE READ. SHE/HE /IT HAS READ. PRESENT CONTINUOUS I AM READING. YOU/WE/THEY ARE READING. SHE/HE/IT IS READING.

SIMPLE PAST I/WE/THEY/YOU/SHE/HE/IT READ. PAST PERFECT I/HE/SHE/YOU/WE/THEY HAD READ THE BOOK LAST WEEK. PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS I/WE/SHE/HE/THEY/YOU HAD BEEN READING THE BOOK WHEN THE TEACHER WENT INTO THE CLASSROOM. PAST CONTINUOUS I/SHE/HE/IT WAS READING. YOU/WE/THEY WERE READING. PAST TENSE

FUTURE TENSE FUTURE PERFECT I/WE/YOU/SHE/HE/THEY WILL HAVE READ THE BOOK BY NEXT WEEK. FUTURE PERFECT CONTINUOUS I/WE/YOU/SHE/HE/THEY WILL HAVE BEEN READING THE BOOK FOR FIVE DAYS ON MONDAY. SIMPLE FUTURE I/WE/YOU/SHE/HE/THEY WILL READ THE BOOK TOMORROW. FUTURE CONTINUOUS I/WE/YOU/THEY/HE/SHE WILL BE READING THE BOOK SOON.

COMMON MISTAKES IN TENSES 1.It is raining since yesterday. X It has been raining since yesterday. 2. I reached the station before the train had arrived. X I had reached the station before the train arrived. 3. Yesterday we had seen the panther. X Yesterday we saw the panther. 4. I had been playing a match. I had been playing a match yesterday, so couldnt go out with my friends.

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