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Category: Basic English Tenses

The English Tense System

The below are to lessons for each of the 12 basic English tenses. For each tense we look at:

• Structure: How do we make the tense?
• Use: When and why do we use the tense?
  
  

Some lessons look at additional matters, and most of them finish with a quiz to check your understanding.

Present Simple

Example: I do, I do do

The Present Simple tense is the most basic tense in English and uses the base form of the verb (except for the verb be). The only change from the base is the addition of s for third person singular.

How do we make the Present Simple tense?

There are two basic structures for the Present Simple:

1. Positive sentences

subject	+	main verb
		Present Simple

2. Negative and question sentences

subject	+	auxiliary do	+	main verb
		conjugated in Present Simple
		do, does		base

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?

From the above table, notice the following points...

For positive sentences:

• There is no auxiliary verb.
• We conjugate the main verb by adding s to the third person singular.

For negative and question sentences:

• The auxiliary verb (do) is conjugated in the Present Simple: do, does
• The main verb is invariable in base form: base
• For negative sentences, we insert not between the auxiliary verb and the main verb.
• For question sentences, we exchange the subject and the auxiliary verb.

Present Continuous:

Present Continuous tense(also called Present Progressive)

We often use the Present Continuous tense in English. It is very different from the Present Simple tense, both in structure and in use.

Example: I am doing

How do we make the Present Continuous tense?

The structure of the Present Continuous tense is:

The auxiliary verb (be) is conjugated in the Present Simple: am, are, is

The main verb is invariable in present participle form: -ing

For negative sentences we insert not between the auxiliary verb and the main verb.

For question sentences, we exchange the subject and the auxiliary verb.

Look at these example sentences with the Present Continuous tense:

Present Perfect

Present Continuous

The Present Perfect tense is a rather important tense in English, but it gives speakers of some languages a difficult time. That is because it uses concepts or ideas that do not exist in those languages. In fact, the structure of the Present Perfect is very simple. The problems come with the use of the tense. In addition, there are some differences in usage between British and American English.

In this lesson we look at the structure and use of the Present Perfect tense, as well as the use of for and since, followed by a quiz to check your understanding.

Example: I have done

Present Perfect Continuous

The Present Perfect Continuous uses two auxiliary verbs together with a main verb.

In this lesson we look at the structure and use of the Present Perfect Continuous tense, as well as the use of for and since, followed by a quiz to check your understanding.

 

Example: I have been doing

Past Simple

The Past Simple tense is sometimes called the "preterite tense". We can use several tenses and forms to talk about the past, but the Past Simple tense is the one we use most often.

Example: I did, I did do

Past Continuous

The Past Continuous tense is an important tense in English. We use it to say what we were in the middle of doing at a particular moment in the past.

Example: I was doing

Past Perfect

The Past Perfect tense is quite an easy tense to understand and to use. This tense talks about the "past in the past".

Example: I had done

Past Perfect Continuous

The Past Perfect Continuous is another tense that expresses the "past in the past".

Example: I had been doing

Future Simple

The Future Simple tense is often called the "will tense" because we make the Future Simple with the modal auxiliary will.

Example: I will do

Future Continuous

The Future Continuous tense is often used in English as a way to talk about something happening at a given point in the future.

Example: I will be doing

Future Perfect

The Future Perfect tense is quite an easy tense to understand and use. The Future Perfect talks about the past in the future.

How do we make the Future Perfect tense?

The structure of the Future Perfect tense is:

Look at these example sentences in the Future Perfect tense:

Contraction with Future Perfect

In speaking with the Future Perfect tense, we often contract the subject and will. Sometimes, we may contract the subject, will and have all together:

I will have	I'll have	I'll've
you will have	you'll have	you'll've
he will have she will have it will have	he'll have she'll have it'll have	he'll've she'll've it'll've
we will have	we'll have	we'll've
they will have	they'll have	they'll've

• I'll have finished when you arrive.
• She'll have forgotten everything.
• They'll've had their dinner by then.

In negative sentences, we may contract with won't or won't've, like this:

• Anthony won't have arrived by then.
• They won't've finished the car tomorrow.

Example:I will have done

Future Perfect Continuous

The Future Perfect Continuous tense looks at the past from the future.

How do we make the Future Perfect Continuous Tense?

The structure of the Future Perfect Continuous tense is:

For negative sentences in the Future Perfect Continuous tense, we insert not between will and have. For question sentences, we exchange the subject and will. Look at these example sentences with the Future Perfect Continuous:

Example: I will have been doing

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