Tense in English Grammar

The Tense stands for a verb form or series of verb form used to express a time relation.

for examples:-

is reading / is coming / is playing   - Present Progressive Tense.

  has been waiting / has been raining   -  Present perfect continuous Tense.

saw / Played/ ate / did   -   Simple Past Tense.

will go / shall come / shall eat   - Simple Future Tense.

There are Three Tenses:-

1. Present Tense

2. Past Tense

3. Future Tense

Again, Present Tense has been sub-divided four types, these sub-divisions are:-

a. Simple Present Tense

b. Present Continuous Tense / Present progressive Tense

c. Present perfect Tense

d. Present Perfect Continuous Tense

Also, Past Tense has been sub-divided four types, these sub-divisions are:-

a. Simple Past Tense

b. Past Continuous Tense/ Past Progressing Tense

c. Past Perfect Tense

d. Past Perfect Continuous Tense

Again, Future Tense has been sub-divided Four types, these sub-divisions are:-

a. Simple Future Tense

b. Future Continuous Tense

c. Future Perfect Tense

d. Future Perfect Continuous Tense

Let us discuss these types one by one in brief:-

 SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE

In the Present Indefinite (Simple Present) Tense the first form of the verb is used as-

Examples:- I learn my lesson, You fly kites. etc.

If the subject is of the third person and singular in number, we add 's' or 'es' to the first of the verb; as-

Examples:- Ram tells a lie. ,  She speaks the truth.

'Do' or 'does' is used in Interrogative, Negative and Emphatic sentences.

e.g:- Do you like your new school?   ,      Does he know you well?

           I donot tell a lie.   ,    Rakesh does not learn his lesson.

USES OF THE SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE

(a) to express some habitual action, daily routine or custom; as- e.g- I go out for a walk daily. 

(b) to express certain fact that is true at the time of speaking. e.g- Our school opens at 10 a.m. these days.

(c) to expression a situation or a fact that is permanent. e.g- Agra stands on the bank of the Yamuna. , This road leads to Gurgaons.

(d) to express a past event through a dramatic narrative for the sake of vividness.

e.g- When the curtain rises, Ravana is seen sitting on his throne.

(e) to express a planned Future action. e.g,- I leave for Kolkata tomorrow., The Trains steams off at 11 0'clock.

(f) to being Imperative Sentences. e.g,- Obey your teachers., Always speak the truth.

(g) to quote someone ;as, 

Kalidas says, "Beauty needs no ornaments".

Shelly says, "If winter comes, can spring be far behind?"           

 Form:- subject + verb (either singular or plural) + object.

PRESENT CONTINUOUS TENSE

In order to form the Present Continuous Tense, we add Present Participle to is, am, or are. The Present Participle is formed by adding 'ing' to the first form of the verb. 'Is' is used with he, she, it or Third person Singular Noun, 'am' is used with 'I' and 'are' is used with we, you, they and plural Nouns. e.g- She is singing a song., Bird are flying in the sky.

In Interrogative form, the helping verb is used before the subject. and In Negative form, we add 'not' between the principal Verb and the operative helping verb.

[Is/am/are + Subject + (Verb + ing)....?] for example:- Are you going home?

[Subject + is/am/are + not + (Verb + ing)..] for example:- She is not weeping.

USES OF THE PRESENT CONTINUOUS TENSE

This tense is used with the words-at this time, at present, at the moment, now, nowadays, still etc. and also in the following cases:-

(a) To describe an action in progress and/or the continuity of the action.

e.g- The girl are singing a chorus., The ducks are swimming in the pond.

(b) To describe an action in progress, but not necesarily at the time of speaking.

e.g- I am writing a book on Mathematics.

(c) To express an action definitely planner for the near future. e.g- I am not going to Amritsar tomorrow.

(d) To express an action that has become a habit for doing it over and over again.

e.g- Manu is always asking questions. 

 Form:-Subject + am/is/are + Verb-ing + Object.

PRESENT PERFECT TENSE

In the Present Perfect Tense the past  participle (III) form of the verb is used with has or have. 'Has' is added with third person singular subjects, as- 'he', 'she', 'it' and 'Have' is added with 'I', 'we', 'you', 'they', and plural nouns. e.g- He has won a prize.

                                            You have insulted me.

In Interrogative form [Has, have are placed before the subject.] and In Negative form ['not' is used between the main verb and the helping verb.]

(Has/have + Subject + III form of verb...?) for e.g- Have they crossed the river?

(Subject + has/have + not + III for of the verb...) for e.g- She has not come yet.

USES OF THE PRESENT PERFECT TENSE

The present perfect Tense is used with the words: yet, as yet, already, just , just now, so for, since, ever since, presently, once, twice, thrice, etc. and in the following cases:

(a) To express an action that has been recently completed.

E.g- I have just receive a letter.

       we have won the match.

(b) To describe an action the time of which is not given. E.g- The train has steamed in.

(c) To describe a past experience. E.g- I have seen this picture several time.

(d) To express an action that began in the past and still continues.

For eg- He has worked in his school for five years. (is still working) 

Form:-Subject + have/has + Verb -3rd Form + Object.

PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS TENSE

In order to form the Present Perfect Continuous Tense, we put has been or have been before the Present Participle Form of the verb; as-

Example:-It has been raining for five hours.

                 I have been flying  a kite since 2 o'clock.

USES OF THE PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS TENSE

(a) The Present Perfect Continuous Tense is used to describe an action that began in the past, is still continuing and may extend into the Future; as-

Examples:- She has bee waiting for you for three hours.

                   They have been playing cards since 10 a.m.

(b) This Tense is also used to express an action in a sentence which begins with 'For how long ' or 'Since when', as in -

Examples:-For how long have you been sitting here?

                  Since when has he been living in this house? 

(c) This tense is also used to express an action which began in the past and has been just completed. However, its result is visible in the present, as in-

Examples:-I have been studying since morning and I am much tired now.

                  She has been washing the dresses for an hour and her clothes are dirty now.

NOTE:- Since is used for a point of time.

               For is used for a period of time.

Form:-Subject + have been/has been + Verb-ing + Object.

SIMPLE PAST TENSE

In the Simple Past (Past Indefinite) Tense the second form of the verb is used ; as-

Examples:-He came here yesterday.

                  They killed a lion

'Did' is used in the Interrogative and Negative Sentences. and only the first form of the verb is used with 'did'.

(Did + Subject + I form of the verb...?)  eg- Did you show me your homework?

(Subject + did + not + I form of the verb...)   eg- I never told a lie.


USES OF THE PAST INDEFINITE TENSE

The Past Indefinite (Simple Past) Tense is used :-

(a) To express an action completed in the past with reference to the time of speaking. 

Examples:- I saw many birds in the Zoo.

                   You reached the school late (on) that day. 

(b) To express habitual or regular action in the past. for eg- Gandhiji always spoke the truth.

(c) To express an event which occurred at a particular point in the past.

Example:-She walked very slowly.

(d) To express an action which occupied a period of time in the past, which is now ended. 

Example:-We lived in this house for ten years.

                 I stayed at the Green Hotel for two months.

(e) To express an action where some word, showing past action (yesterday, ago, last, etc.) is given in the sentence. as, Example- He received your message yesterday.

(f) To express two actions taking place simultaneously (at the same time).

Example:-While I snipped coffee, I revised my lesson.

(g) To express two actions, where the first action leads instantly to the second action as,-

Example:-When he called her a flirt, she hit him.

(h) When 'when' or 'while' is used in simple past tense, it indicates that both the actions took place in the same duration of time, as-

Example:- I played chess, while he slept.

(i) When 'till', 'until', 'as soon as', 'before' are used in simple past tense, they indicate that one action follows the other, as-

Example:- She waited for her mother till/until it got dark.

(j) Verbs of 'Knowing', 'Understanding', etc, are generally used in Simple Past Tense in time clause, as- eg- As soon as he understood his mistake he bagged for excuse.

Form:-Subject + Simple Past Form (V2) + Object.

PAST CONTINUOUS TENSE

The Past Continuous Tense denotes an action going on inn the past. In order to form Past Continuous Tense we add Present Participle to was or were; as-

Examples:- The train was running at full speed.

                  The boys were taking a test in English.

In Negative form 'not' is placed between the helping verb and the principal verb and In Interrogative form, the helping verb is placed before the subject; as - 

(Subject + was/were + not + Verb + ing....)    Example - She was not weeping.

(Was/were + Subject + verb + ing + ....?)         Example - Were the sheep grazing in the field?

USES OF THE PAST CONTINUOUS TENSE

(i) The Past Continuous Tense is used to express an action that was happening in the past at the time of speaking. The time of the action may or may not be mentioned.

Examples:- The old lady was crying at the top of her voice.

                       They were not making a noise.

(ii) The use of this tense with Simple Past Tense denotes that the previous action was going on when the latter action took place ; as - 

Examples:- My mother was cooking the food when I reached home.

                   Rohit was taking tea when I visited his house.

Form:-Subject + was/were + V-ing + object.

PAST PERFECT  TENSE

Past Perfect Tense is in reality, the past of the past. It is used when we say that an action was completed before another action took place.Both the action are related to each other in some way. Of the two actions the one that took place first is given by Past Perfect Tense. The action which takes place late is expressed by Simple Past or Past Indefinite Tense as- 

The Train had left before I reached the station.

In Order to form the Past Perfect Tense we use 'had' before the Past Participle (III) form of the Verb. In Interrogative form "Had" is used before subject. In Negative form "not" is used after "had".

(Had + Subject + not + III form of the verb +.....?)   Example - Had he left when you came?

(Subject + had + not + III form of the verb + .....?)   Example - I had not seen you before.

USES OF THE PAST PERFECT TENSE

(a) The Past Perfect Tense is used to express an action completed before another action took place ; as - Example - When he came to me, I had posted the letter.

(b) In a Simple Sentence we never use the Past Perfect Tense unless it has in it some words ; as- still, before, never, already, till, since etc ; 

Examples - The Mother had already cooked the food.

                   She had never seen such a terrible sight before.

(c) It is also used to express an unfulfilled action in the past ; as - 

Example:- If she had worked hard she would have passed

(d) To denote the action or event which has been completed before some point of time.

for Example - By afternoon he had completed much work.

               At 9 P.M. all the members had come.

Form:-Subject + had + Verb- 3rd form + Object.

PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS TENSE

(a) The Past Perfect Continuous Tense expresses an action that had been going on for some time in the past. In order to use this tense we use "had been" with Present Participle (ing) form of the verb. Example:- Children had been plying since morning.

(b) The Past Perfect Continuous Tense is also Used to express an action that had been going on for some time before another action took place in the past ; as - 

Examples:- They had been playing chess for two hours when I joined them.

                         We had been standing in a queue for half an hour before the bus arrived.

Form:-Subject + had been + V-ing + Object.

SIMPLE FUTURE TENSE

The Future Indefinite Tense (Simple Future Tense) is used to express the action or event which is  likely to happen in Future. In this tense we use shall/will between the subject and the first form of the verb. Normally we use 'shall' with pronouns of first person (I, We). In the same way, we use 'will' with pronouns of second person (you) and thirs person (he, she, it they).

In Negative sentence 'not' is added after 'shall/will'  and In Interrogative sentence 'will/shall' is placed before the subject and first form of the verb after it ; as - 

Examples:- Will you go to college today?

                        Shall we play now?  

USES OF THE SIMPLE FUTURE/FUTURE INDEFINITE TENSE

There are several used of expressing Future Time in English. We can express future actions/events in the following ways:-

(a) By using Present IndefiniteTense. Example:- We stay there for two days.

(b) By using Present Continuous Tense. Example:- Are you coming on Monday?

(c) By using "going to". Example:- I am going to buy  a new pen.

(d) By using 'be + to + Verb'. Example:- I am to reach school at 7 a.m.

(e) By denoting the Principal Clause of a conditional sentence. Example:- If you run fast, you will win the race.

Form:-Subject + shall/will + Verb + object.

FUTURE CONTINUOUS TENSE

The Future Continuous Tense is used to express an event that is expected to take place in the normal course or at some time in the future ; as -

 Examples:- We Shall be playing a football match on sunday.

                    The new edition of this book wil be coming out shortly.

                    Will you be taking part in the debate?

Form:-Subject + shall/will + be + V-ing + Object.

FUTURE PERFECT TENSE

(i) The Future Perfect Tense expresses an action which is expected to be completed by a certain time in the Future ; as - 

  Example:- She will have covered half of her journey by Monday next.

                    I Shall have revised my lesson by 9 P.M tomorrow. 

(ii) The Future Perfect Tense sometimes expresses the speaker's belief that something has taken. In such sentences it does not express the future ; as - 

Example:- "You will have discussed the plans how to celebrate the function", said my mother.

(iii) It is also used for an action which at given future time will be in the past ; as - 

Example:- In two year;s time (i.e., two year from now ) I Shall have taken my degree.

Form:-Subject + shall/will + have + Verb-3rd form + Object.

FUTURE PERFECT CONTINUOUS TENSE

The Future Perfect Continuous Tense is used to express an action that will have been going on at or before some point of time in the Future ; as - 

 Examples:-We Shall have been waiting for you for a long time.

                    She will have been weeping since 3 p.m.

                    The boys will not have been flying kites since noon.

Form:-Subject + shall/will + have been + Verb - ing + Object.