English Tenses

The Simple Present

A: s+v Note: Third person singular: s+v-s(-es) I: Do+s+v NOTE: Third person singular: Does+s+v N: s+do not(didnt)+v NOTE: Third person singular: s+does not(doesnt)+v Adverbs: OFTEN, USUALLY, AS A RULE, ALWAYS, EVERY DAY/WEEK/MONTH/YEAR, etc. -it expresses habitual, repeated actions which take place in the morning/afternoon/evening, every day/week/month/year, etc.
We have lunch and dinner avery day. I often go to church.

-it expresses general actions:

He goes to work by bus. She has a very difficult job. -it expresses general truths: Birds fly.

Water freezes at 0 degrees C.

-it is used in schedules, in official programs:

The train leaves at 6 oclock. The plane arrives at nine thirty.

-it is used in TV announcements, demonstrations, for director indications:

I will leave after he comes. When she sees the manager, she says a few words then she leaves without even looking at him.

-it expresses a future event:

He comes to see me this evening. He arrives tomorrow morning.

The Present Continuous

A: s + to be(present) + v-ing. I: to be (present) + s + v-ing. N: s + to be (present) not + v-ing. Adverbs: NOW, AT PRESENT, AT THE MOMENT, etc. -it expresses an action that takes place in the moment of speaking: Im reading now.

She is watching TV at the moment. -it expresses a temporary action which includes the moment of speaking: My brother is studying in Paris. They are working in Spain. -it expresses repeated action that irritates, annoys: My mother is always telling me what to do. My brother is always telling my mother when I go out with my friends. -it expresses a future action (personal arrangement): Im meeting my friend tonight. Im leaving tomorrow. There are some verbs which can not be used in the continuous aspect: feeling the emotional verbs: to like, to love, to adore, to hate, to dislike, to mind, to detest, to fear; mental verbs(thinking, believing): to think, to understand, to know, to mean, to realize, to recognize, to remember, to consider; wants verbs: to want, to prefer, to wish, to desire; verbs of perception: to see, to hear, to taste, to feel, to smell, to notice, to observe; verbs of being, having, owning: to appear, to seem, to consist, to belong, to matter; link verbs: to be, to become, to look, to sound.

NOTE: Several of these verbs may be used in the continuous aspect with a change in meaning: TO SEE: I am seeing Mary tomorrow. (it has the meaning of to meet); John is seeing his friend to the door. (it has the meaning of to accompany); I shall be seeing them tomorrow. (it has the meaning of to pay a visit to); Who is seeing to the arrangements? (it has the meaning of to attend, to take care of); My father is seeing the dentist these days. He has postponed this for a long time. (it has the meaning of to go to the doctor). TO HEAR: The judge is hearing the witness. (it has the meaning of a audia); TO SMELL, TO TASTE, TO FEEL can be used in the continuous aspect when they express a voluntary action : Aunt Emily is smelling the roses in the garden. BUT: They smell nice. The cook is tasting the soup. ( But when these verbs express an involuntary action they cannot be used in the continuous aspect.) TO DIFFER: He is always differing with his friends. (with the meaning of to quarrel with);

TO LIKE: How are you liking your new job? (it is assumed that the person has not arrived at a final stage of either like or dislike the job); TO MIND: John is minding the baby when Mary is out. (with the meaning of to look after); TO THINK: I am thinking of changing my job. ( it has the meaning of to have the intention to, when to think doesnt have the meaning of to have an opinion it can be used in the continuous aspect); TO HAVE: it is used in the continuous aspect when it doesnt have the meaning of to own, to posses): They are having a walk right now. She is just having a shower.

TO BE: it is used in the continuous aspect when it shows a temporary state in opposition to a general one: He is such a good boy, but now he is being naughty. You are being so rude today. NOTE: The progressive forms may also be used with these verbs if we wish to stress the idea that something is happening by degrees: Now that Im getting used to the dark, I can see things more clearly. He is finding that English is rather difficult.

The Simple Present Perfect

A: s + have/has + 3rd form I: have/has + s + 3rd form N: s + have not( havent ) / has not ( hasnt ) + 3rd form

Adverbs: JUST, ALREADY, NEVER, EVER, OFTEN, SELDOM, ALWAYS, SOMETIMES, GENERALLY ( in front of the verb), TODAY, THIS WEEK/MONTH/SUMMER/YEAR,LATELY, RECENTLY, SO FAR, UP TO NOW, UNTIL NOW, OF LATE, BEFORE (after the verb), YET(in the negative and interrogative sentences), SINCE (shows the moment of the beginning of the action, while FOR shows the length of the action). Both SINCE and FOR are used with the present perfect and they show that the action is continued in the present as well. -it expresses an action that took place in the past, it is related to the present as well or it is continued in the present as well (the present perfect of experience): I have never heard such a stupid idea. I have not been in France so far. - it expresses an action that took place in the past without saying the definite moment of the action: I have read the instructions, but I didnt understand them. I have seen him but I forgot to tell him about the party.

- it expresses an action that took place in the past and which has effects in the present ( the resultative present perfect): I have forgotten my book, so I cant read the lesson. I have read the novel, so I can tell you what is about.

The Present Perfect Continuous

A: s + have/has + been + v-ing. I: have/has + s + been + v-ing. N: s + have not(havent)/has not(hasnt) + been + v-ing. Adverbs: JUST, ALREADY, NEVER, EVER, OFTEN, SELDOM, ALWAYS, SOMETIMES, GENERALLY ( in front of the verb), TODAY, THIS WEEK/MONTH/SUMMER/YEAR,LATELY, RECENTLY, SO FAR, UP TO NOW, UNTIL NOW, OF LATE, BEFORE (after the verb), YET(in the negative and interrogative sentences), SINCE (shows the moment of the beginning of the action, while FOR shows the length of the action). - It expresses an action that started in the past, it had continuity and it is continued in the moment of speaking as well: I have been running for two hours.(and I am still running) I have been reading for half an hour.(and I am still reading)

Past Tenses The Simple Past

A: s + V-2nd form I: did + s + v-1st form N: s + did not(didnt) + v-1st form Adverbs: YESTERDAY, LAST WEEK/MONTH/YEAR, AGO. - It is a tense of narration. - It expresses an action which took place in a definite moment of the past and which is over in the moment of speaking. I arrived home a moment ago. I saw him yesterday. The Past Tense Continuous A: s + was/were + v-ing. I: was/were + s + v-ing. N: s + was not(wasnt)/were not(werent) + v-ing. Adverbs: AT THAT MOMENT, THEN, AT THAT HOUR, THIS TIME YESTERDAY, LAST WEEK . - It expresses an action which took place continuously in a definite moment in the past: I was making a cake at five oclock yesterday. She was trying to do her homework yesterday afternoon.

- It expresses an action which took place in the past and which was interrupted by another action(the related word is when): I was listening to music, when the light went off. I was watching TV when you phoned me. - It expresses two past actions which took place in the same time(the related word is while): While I was cooking, my children were playing scrabble. While I was reading my cousin was playing on the computer. - It expresses a future action seen from the past: I was packing my things because I was leaving the next day. I was running because the plane was leaving in ten minutes. - It expresses an action that changed step by step: It was getting darker and colder. He was making more and more progress. - It expresses a repeated action from the past that irritated us: My mother was always talking to my teachers. My brother was always stealing my pens. The Simple Past Perfect A: s + had + 3rd form I: had + s + 3rd form N: s + had not(hadnt) +3rd form Adverbs: BEFORE, THEN, ALREADY, JUST, NEVER, EVER. - It expresses a past action which took place before another past action:

They had locked the gate when John came back home. They had already left when we arrived there. - It expresses a wish, an intention which was not accomplished: We had hoped to start our own business but we have never had enough money. We had wished to visit Paris but we have never had time. The Past Perfect Continuous A: s + had been + v-ing. I: had + s+ been + v-ing. N: s + had not (hadnt) + been + v-ing. - It expresses an action that started in the past and it was continued with another past action: We had been listening to the radio for ten minutes when we heard the bad news. I had been waiting for you for half an hour when my mother called me.

The Future Tenses The Future Simple A: s + shall/will + v I: shall/will + s + v

N: s + shall not(shant)/ will not(wont) + v Adverbs: TOMORROW, IN THE FUTURE, NEXT WEEK/MONTH/SUMMER/YEAR - It expresses an action that will take place in the future: I shall read this book. They will do their homework. The Future Continuous A: s + shall/will + be + v-ing. I: shall/will + s + be + v-ing. N: s + shall not ( shant)/ will not (wont) + be + v-ing. Adverbs: THIS TIME TOMORROW, NEXT WEEK/, AT THAT MOMENT. - It expresses an action that will take place in a definite miment in the future: He will be working at this time tomorrow. He will be working on Christmas day. The Future Perfect A: s + shall/will + have + 3rd form I: shall/will + s + have + 3rd form N: s + shall not ( shant )/will not ( wont ) + have + 3rd form

Adverbs: BY THE TIME, BY TIS TIME TOMORROW, NEXT YEAR/ - It expresses an action that hasnt taken place yet but which will be finished in a future moment: By the time the general manager arrives at the office, the assistant will have typed the letters to be send. By this time tomorrow, I will have finished typing my graduation paper. Going To Future A: s + to be (present) + going to + v (infinitive) I: to be (present) + s + going to + v (infinitive) N: s + to be (present) not + going to + v (infinitive) - It expresses a future intention or action based on certain present situation ( the verb to go cant be used with going to ): They are going to work together. It is going to rain. ( I can see the clouds. ) Be To A: s + to be (present) + v ( infinitive) I: to be ( present) + s + v ( infinitive) N: s + to be ( present negative) + v ( infinitive)

- It expresses an anterior arrangement: Mother is to arrive tomorrow. I am to leave this afternoon.

Be About To A: s + to be ( present) + about to + v ( infinitive) I: to be ( present) + s + about to + v ( infinitive) N: s + to be ( present negative ) + about to + v ( infinitive) - It expresses an event, an action that you expect to take place in the near future: She is about to lose her job. I am about to find out the truth about the night of September 23, 2007. Be Due To A: s + to be ( present) + due to + v ( infinitive) I:To be ( present) + s + due to + v ( infinitive ) N: s + to be (present negative) + due to + v ( infinitive) - It expresses an action that was scheduled to take place at a certain moment in the future: This ship is due to arrive this morning. The plane is due to take off at ten.

Ways of Expressing Future Time 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. THE PRESENT SIMPLE: Our next meeting is on Monday. THE PRESENT CONTINUOUS: They are getting married on July. THE FUTURE SIMPLE: Susan will come soon. THE FUTURE CONTINUOUS: Mary will be staying with us for two weeks. THE FUTURE PERFECT: By the time Mary comes home, John will have washed the car. BE GOING TO FUTURE: They are going to have a party. BE TO: Mr. Johnson is to arrive tomorrow. BE ABOUT TO : A lot of students are about to listen to the conference. BE DUE TO: He is due to start the conference tour in America.