Tenses The English Tense System

Tenses



The links below are to lessons for each of the 12 basic 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?
  

Some lessons look at additional aspects, and most of them finish with a quiz to check your understanding.Many
English learners worry too much about tense. If you stopped 100 native
English speakers in the street and asked them about tense, 1 of them
might give you an intelligent answer - if you were lucky. The other 99
would know little about terms like "past perfect" or "present
continuous". And they would know nothing about aspect, voice or mood.
But they can all speak fluent English and communicate effectively. Of
course, for ESL it helps to know about tenses, but don't become obsessed
with them. Be like those native speakers! Speak naturally!

Simple Present Tense

I sing

How do we make the Simple Present Tense?

subject	+	auxiliary verb	+	main verb
		do		base

There are three important exceptions:

1. For positive sentences, we do not normally use the auxiliary.
   
2. For the 3rd person singular (he, she, it), we add s to the main verb or es to the auxiliary.
   
3. For the verb to be, we do not use an auxiliary, even for questions and negatives.
   

Look at these examples with the main verb like:

	subject	auxiliary verb		main verb
+	I, you, we, they			like	coffee.
	He, she, it			likes	coffee.
-	I, you, we, they	do	not	like	coffee.
	He, she, it	does	not	like	coffee.
?	Do	I, you, we, they		like	coffee?
	Does	he, she, it		like	coffee?

Look at these examples with the main verb be. Notice that there is no auxiliary:

	subject	main verb
+	I	am		French.
	You, we, they	are		French.
	He, she, it	is		French.
-	I	am	not	old.
	You, we, they	are	not	old.
	He, she, it	is	not	old.
?	Am	I		late?
	Are	you, we, they		late?
	Is	he, she, it		late?

How do we use the Simple Present Tense?

We use the simple present tense when:

• the action is general
  
• the action happens all the time, or habitually, in the past, present and future
  
• the action is not only happening now
  
• the statement is always true
  

John drives a taxi.
past	present	future
It is John's job to drive a taxi. He does it every day. Past, present and future.

Look at these examples:

• I live in New York.
  
• The Moon goes round the Earth.
  
• John drives a taxi.
  
• He does not drive a bus.
  
• We meet every Thursday.
  
• We do not work at night.
  
• Do you play football?
  

Note that with the verb to be,
we can also use the simple present tense for situations that are not
general. We can use the simple present tense to talk about now. Look at these examples of the verb "to be" in the simple present tense - some of them are general, some of them are now:

Am I right? Tara is not at home. You are happy.
past	present	future
The situation is now.

I am not fat. Why are you so beautiful? Ram is tall.
past	present	future
The situation is general. Past, present and future.

This page shows the use of the simple present tense
to talk about general events. But note that there are some other uses
for the simple present tense, for example in conditional or if sentences, or to talk about the future. You will learn about those later.

Present Continuous Tense

I am singing

We
often use the present continuous tense in English. It is very different
from the simple present tense, both in structure and in use.In this lesson we look the structure and use of the present continuous tense, followed by a quiz to check your understanding:

Continuous tenses are also called progressive tenses. So the present progressive tense is the same as the present continuous tense.

[ندعوك للتسجيل في المنتدى أو التعريف بنفسك لمعاينة هذا الرابط]


How do we make the Present Continuous Tense?

The structure of the present continuous tense is:

subject	+	auxiliary verb	+	main verb
		be		base + ing

Look at these examples:

	subject	auxiliary verb		main verb
+	I	am		speaking	to you.
+	You	are		reading	this.
-	She	is	not	staying	in London.
-	We	are	not	playing	football.
?	Is	he		watching	TV?
?	Are	they		waiting	for John?

[ندعوك للتسجيل في المنتدى أو التعريف بنفسك لمعاينة هذا الرابط]


How do we use the Present Continuous Tense?

We use the present continuous tense to talk about:

• action happening now
  
• action in the future
  

Present continuous tense for action happening now

a) for action happening exactly now

I am eating my lunch.
past	present	future
	The action is happening now.

Look at these examples. Right now you are looking at this screen and at the same time...

...the pages are turning.	...the candle is burning.	...the numbers are spinning.

b) for action happening around nowThe
action may not be happening exactly now, but it is happening just
before and just after now, and it is not permanent or habitual.

John is going out with Mary.
past	present	future
	The action is happening around now.

Look at these examples:

• Muriel is learning to drive.
  
• I am living with my sister until I find an apartment.
  

Present continuous tense for the future

We can also use the present continuous tense to talk about the future - if we add a future word!! We must add (or understand from the context) a future word. "Future words" include, for example, tomorrow, next year, in June, at Christmas
etc. We only use the present continuous tense to talk about the future
when we have planned to do something before we speak. We have already made a decision and a plan before speaking.

I am taking my exam next month.
past	present	future
!!!
	A firm plan or programme exists now.	The action is in the future.

Look at these examples:

• We're eating in a restaurant tonight. We've already booked the table..
  
• They can play tennis with you tomorrow. They're not working.
  
• When are you starting your new job?
  

In these examples, we have a firm plan or programme before speaking. The decision and plan were made before speaking.

How do we spell the Present Continuous Tense?

We
make the present continuous tense by adding -ing to the base verb.
Normally it's simple - we just add -ing. But sometimes we have to change
the word a little. Perhaps we double the last letter, or we drop a
letter. Here are the rules to help you know how to spell the present
continuous tense.

Basic rule	Just add -ing to the base verb:
	work	>	working
	play	>	playing
	assist	>	assisting
	see	>	seeing
	be	>	being
Exception 1	If the base verb ends in consonant + stressed vowel + consonant, double the last letter: s t o p consonant stressed vowel consonant (vowels = a, e, i, o, u)
	stop	>	stopping
	run	>	running
	begin	>	beginning
	Note that this exception does not apply when the last syllable of the base verb is not stressed:
	open	>	opening
Exception 2	If the base verb ends in ie, change the ie to y:
	lie	>	lying
	die	>	dying
Exception 3	If the base verb ends in vowel + consonant + e, omit the e:
	come	>	coming
	mistake	>	mistaking