Verb Forms In English
Most verbs in English are regular. Regular verbs add -ing to the base form to make the -ing form, and -ed to the base form to make the past simple and the -ed form. The verb be has different forms for different persons in the present simple and past simple. Present simple. Past simple-ed form.
The tense of a verb tells you when a person did something or when something existed or happened. In English, there are three main tenses: the present, the past, and the future.
The present
The present tense (e.g. I am, she works, we swim, they believe) is also called the present simple or simple present. It's mainly used in the following ways:
to describe things that are currently happening or that are currently or always the case (I love chocolate ice cream; my parents are in New York this week; he has fair hair and blue eyes; some birds eat worms and insects).
to talk about something that exists or happens regularly (she goes out every Saturday night; it always rains here in winter; I start work at 7.30 a.m.).
to refer to a future situation in certain cases and in some subordinate clauses (the bus arrives in London at 6 p.m.; I'll make us some coffee when we get home).
Find out how to form the present simple tense.
The past
The past tense (e.g. I was, he talked, we had, they worked) is also called the past simple or simple past. As its description implies, it’s used to talk about things or situations which happened in the past, that is, before the present time of speaking. Its main uses are as follows:
to refer to an event or situation which happened once and is now finished (I met Lisa yesterday; we ate a huge breakfast this morning; they walked ten miles that day; you told me that before).
to describe a situation that lasted for a longer time in the past but is now finished (he went to college for four years; my family lived in Oxford in the 1980s; I loved her for ages but never told her).
to talk about an event that happened regularly or repeatedly but is now over (she called for help over and over again; we ate out every night last week; I phoned him three times today).
Find out how to form the past simple tense.
The future
The future tense (e.g. I shall [or will] go; he will talk; we shall [or will] have; they will work) is used to refer to things that haven’t yet happened at the present time of speaking, but which are due, expected, or likely to occur in the future. Here are the main situations in which the future is used:
List Of Verb Forms In English
to give or ask for information about the future (you will be in California tomorrow; how long will the journey take?; OK, I’ll write that report on Thursday).
to talk about things that we think are likely or possible to happen in the future, but which aren’t completely certain (I think she’ll retire soon; he won’t [will not] stay married to her for long; you’ll never lose weight, you like food too much).
to refer to conditional situations, namely things that will or may happen if something else occurs (if it’s hot I’ll go swimming later; you’ll get stressed out if you work all the time).
to make promises or threats, or to state decisions at the time of speaking (Fine,I’llcall you soon; Are you going into town? We’ll give you a lift; I’ll never speak to you again).
The future tense is formed with will (or shall) and the infinitive of the verb without ‘to’. Learn more about when to use will or shall.
Continuous and perfect tenses
There are two further types of tense: the continuous and the perfect. These tenses are sometimes referred to as aspects rather than tenses. The term aspect is used in grammar to talk about the form of a verb that shows, for example, whether the action happens once or repeatedly, is completed or still continuing.
Continuous
Hotstar tv shows star jalsha. These tenses (also called progressive tenses) are used to talk about actions that continue for a period of time. They are formed with the relevant tense of the auxiliary verbto be and the present participle of the main verb. There are three main continuous tenses:
the present continuous (I am working)
the past continuous (I was working)
the future continuous (I will be working)
Perfect
Perfect tenses are typically used to talk about actions that are completed by the present or a particular point in the past or future. They are formed with the relevant tense of the auxiliary verb to have and the past participle of the main verb. There are three main perfect tenses:
the present perfect (I have worked)
the past perfect (I had worked)
Verb Forms In English 100
the future perfect (I will have worked)
Perfect continuous
There is a final set of tenses which combine features of the perfect and continuous tenses. They are formed and used as follows:
50 Verb Forms In English Grammar
the present perfect continuous (I have been working): used to talk about how long something has continued up till now (I have been working there for a week)
the past perfect continuous (I had been working): used to talk about something which continued up to a particular moment in the past but is now completed (I had been working there for a week before I resigned)
the future perfect continuous (I will have been working): used to talk about something which is expected to end by a particular time in the future (By December, I will have been working there for 6 months)
Read more about:
See more from Verbs
| Tense | Form | Uses | Example Sentences |
|---|---|---|---|
| Present Simple[1] | Verb + s/es in third person. | Repeated actions. Facts or generalizations. Scheduled events in the near future. Now (non-continuous verbs). | I play football. Cats like milk. The match starts at 2 o'clock. I am here now. |
| Present Continuous[2] | Am/is/are + present participle. | Now. Longer actions in progress now. Near future. Repetition and irritation with 'always'. | I am sitting. I am studying to become a doctor. I am meeting some friends after work. She is always coming to class late. |
| Past Simple[3] | Verb + ed, or irregular verbs. | Completed action in the past. A series of completed actions. Duration in the past. Habits in the past. Past facts or generalizations. | I saw a movie yesterday. I finished work, walked to the beach, and found a nice place to swim. I lived in Brazil for two years. I studied French when I was a child. She was shy as a child, but now she is very outgoing. |
| Past Continuous[4] | Was/were + present participle. | Interrupted action in the past. Specific time as an interruption. Parallel actions. Atmosphere. Repetition and irritation with 'always'. | I was watching TV when she called. Last night at 6 PM, I was eating dinner. I was studying while he was making dinner. The sun was shining. She was always coming to class late. |
| Present Perfect[5] | Has/have + past participle. | Unspecified time before now. Duration from the past until now (non-continuous verbs). | I have seen that movie twenty times. I have had a cold for two weeks. |
| Present Perfect Continuous[6] | Has/have + been + present participle. | Duration from the past until now. Recently, lately. | They have been talking for the last hour. Recently, I have been feeling really tired. |
| Past Perfect[7] | Had + past participle. | Completed action before something in the past. Duration before something in the past (non-continuous verbs). | You had studied English before you moved to New York. By the time Alex finished his studies, he had been in London for over eight years. |
| Past Perfect Continuous[8] | Had been + present participle. | Duration before something in the past. Cause of something in the past. | They had been talking for over an hour before Tony arrived. Jason was tired because he had been jogging. |
| Simple Future[9] | Will + verb. Am/is/are + going to + verb. | 'Will' to express a voluntary action. 'Will' to express a promise. 'Be going to' to express a plan. 'Will' or 'be going to' to express a prediction. | I will send you the information when I get it. I will call you when I arrive. He is going to spend his vacation in Hawaii. The year 2222 will be a very interesting year. |
References[changechange source]
- ↑'Simple Present'. Englishpage.com. Retrieved 18 March 2014.
- ↑'Present Continuous'. Englishpage.com. Retrieved 18 March 2014.
- ↑'Simple Past'. Englishpage.com. Retrieved 18 March 2014.
- ↑'Past Continuous'. Englishpage.com. Retrieved 18 March 2014.
- ↑'Present Perfect'. Englishpage.com. Retrieved 18 March 2014.
- ↑'Present Perfect Continuous'. Englishpage.com. Retrieved 18 March 2014.
- ↑'Past Perfect'. Englishpage.com. Retrieved 18 March 2014.
- ↑'Past Perfect Continuous'. Englishpage.com. Retrieved 20 March 2014.
- ↑'Simple Future'. Englishpage.com. Retrieved 20 March 2014.