English Grammar: Tenses

Tenses

Overview

• Verbs can express different times and aspects through various tenses
• Tenses indicate when an action takes place (past, present, future) and its duration (simple, progressive, perfect)

Types of Tenses

• Simple Tenses:
  • Present Simple (e.g., I go)
  • Past Simple (e.g., I went)
  • Future Simple (e.g., I will go)
• Progressive Tenses:
  • Present Progressive (e.g., I am going)
  • Past Progressive (e.g., I was going)
  • Future Progressive (e.g., I will be going)
• Perfect Tenses:
  • Present Perfect (e.g., I have gone)
  • Past Perfect (e.g., I had gone)
  • Future Perfect (e.g., I will have gone)
• Perfect Progressive Tenses:
  • Present Perfect Progressive (e.g., I have been going)
  • Past Perfect Progressive (e.g., I had been going)
  • Future Perfect Progressive (e.g., I will have been going)

Verb Forms

Overview

• Verb forms indicate the verb's grammatical function and relationship with the subject
• Verb forms can be classified into finite and non-finite forms

Finite Verb Forms

• Base Form (e.g., go, eat, write)
• Singular and Plural Forms (e.g., I go, you go, he/she/it goes, we go, they go)
• Tense Forms (e.g., go, goes, went, going)

Non-Finite Verb Forms

• Infinitive (e.g., to go, to eat, to write)
• Gerund (e.g., going, eating, writing)
• Participle (e.g., going, eaten, written)
• Past Participle (e.g., gone, eaten, written)

Tenses

• Verbs can express different times and aspects through various tenses.
• Tenses indicate when an action takes place (past, present, future) and its duration (simple, progressive, perfect).

Types of Tenses

• Simple Tenses:
  • Indicate a completed or habitual action.
  • Include Present Simple, Past Simple, and Future Simple.
• Progressive Tenses:
  • Indicate an ongoing action.
  • Include Present Progressive, Past Progressive, and Future Progressive.
• Perfect Tenses:
  • Indicate an action that started in the past and has a connection to the present.
  • Include Present Perfect, Past Perfect, and Future Perfect.
• Perfect Progressive Tenses:
  • Indicate an ongoing action that started in the past and has a connection to the present.
  • Include Present Perfect Progressive, Past Perfect Progressive, and Future Perfect Progressive.

Verb Forms

• Verb forms indicate the verb's grammatical function and relationship with the subject.
• Verb forms can be classified into finite and non-finite forms.

Finite Verb Forms

• Base Form:
  • The basic form of a verb (e.g., go, eat, write).
• Singular and Plural Forms:
  • Change depending on the subject (e.g., I go, you go, he/she/it goes, we go, they go).
• Tense Forms:
  • Change depending on the time of the action (e.g., go, goes, went, going).

Non-Finite Verb Forms

• Infinitive:
  • A verb form starting with "to" (e.g., to go, to eat, to write).
• Gerund:
  • A verb form ending in "-ing" that functions as a noun (e.g., going, eating, writing).
• Participle:
  • A verb form ending in "-ing" or "-ed" that functions as an adjective (e.g., going, eaten, written).
• Past Participle:
  • A verb form used to form the present perfect tense (e.g., gone, eaten, written).

Learn about the different types of tenses in English grammar, including simple, progressive, and perfect tenses, and how they indicate time and aspect.