Tenses

Tenses

Tense is that form of verb which shows the time and state of action.

The word “Tense “comes from the Latin root word “Tempus “which means “time “.

Tenses are divided into 3 kinds. They are:

1. Present Tense

2. Past Tense

3. Future Tense

Each tense is sub divided into 4 divisions:

1. Simple / Indefinite – States an action.
2. Continuous / Progressive – Action going on.
3. Perfect – Action completed.
4. Perfect Continuous / Perfect Progressive – Action started earlier but still going on.

1. Present Tense

The time of action which takes place in the present is called “Present Tense “.

Present Tense is sub divided into 4 kinds. They are:

1. Simple Present or Present Indefinite

2. Present Continuous or Present Progressive

3. Present Perfect

4. Present Perfect Continuous or Present Perfect Progressive

1. Simple Present or Present Indefinite

Form:

Assertive Affirmative: Sub + V₁ + obj or Sub + V₁ + s / es

Assertive Negative: Sub + do not / does not + V₁

Interrogative Affirmative: Do / Does + Sub + V₁

Interrogative Negative: Do / Does + Sub + not + V ₁

Assertive Affirmative: I/ We / You / They work. He/ She / It works. Children work. Suman works	Assertive Negative: I/ We / You / They do not work. He / She / It does not work. Children do not work. Suman does not work.
Interrogative Affirmative: Do I / We/ You / They work? Does he / she / it work? Do children work? Who works hard? Why does he work? When do they work?	Interrogative Negative: Do I / We/ You / They not work? Does he / she / it not work? Do children not work? Who does not work hard? Why does he not work? When do they not work?

Usage:

1. To describe habitual actions;

E.g. I go for a walk every morning.

I get up at 5o’clock every morning.

2. To describe habitual actions;

E.g. The sun sets in the West.

Sugar is sweet.

Water boils at 100⁰ c.

3. To express a future event which is planned in advance, or is a part of a fixed programme.

E.g. The match starts at 4 p.m.

When does the shop reopen?

I go to Delhi tomorrow.

4. In conditional clauses;

E.g. If we work hard, we often succeed.

5. in running commentaries on matches;

E.g. Sachin hits the ball but the fielder misses the catch.

6. To express a repeated action;

E.g. She often comes to my house.

I sometimes go to the cinema.

7. In vivid narratives in a dramatic manner. (A past event);

E.g. Lord Krishna carries the chariot forward. Arjun shoots arrows and Bhishma collapses.

8. To introduce quotations:

E.g. Wordsworth says, “The world is too much with us.”

Note: Adverbs or Adverbial phrases like often, generally, usually, sometimes, always, never, occasionally, rarely, ever, on Sundays, once a week / month / year, etc.

E.g. They always help us.

He generally misses his lunch.

We meet on Sundays.

Present Continuous Tense( or) Present Progressive Tense

Form :

Assertive Affirmative: Sub + am / is / are + v₁ + ing

Assertive Negative: Sub + am / is / are + not + v₁ + ing

Interrogative Affirmative: Am / is / are + Sub + V₁ + ing ?

Interrogative Negative: Am / is / are + Sub + not + V₁ + ing

Assertive Affirmative: I am working. We/ You / They are working. He/ She / It is working. Suman is working. Children are working.	Assertive Negative: I am not working. We/ You / They are not working. He/ She / It is not working. Suman is not working. Children are not working.
Interrogative Affirmative: Am I working? Are you / we / they working? Is he / she / it working? Is Suman working? Are children working?	Interrogative Negative: Am I not working? Are you / we / they not working? Is he / she / it not working? Is Suman not working? Are children not working?

Usage:

1. For actions in progress at the time of speaking ;

E.g. Ravi is speaking very fast.

Raju is sitting on the front bench.

2. For actions in progress about this time, but not necessarily at the time of speaking. i.e; during the course of time.

E.g. They are building a dam here.

He is reading “The wings of fire.” these days.

3. To describe a definite action in the near future ;

E.g. I am going to Mumbai tonight.

My father is arriving tomorrow.

4. To express an undesirable practice or habit ;

E.g. She is always backbiting.

5. To express an action which begins before a specific time and ever continues after it.

E.g. We are having our lunch at 3 o’clock.

Verbs not normally used in this tense are :

1. Verbs of the Senses. ( involuntary action )

See, smell, hear, feel, look, taste, notice, observe (notice)

2. Verbs expressing feelings and emotions :

Love, hate, want, wish, desire, fear, like, dislike, value, adore, appreciate (= value), admire (= respect), care for (= like), forgive, etc.

3. Verbs of thinking or mental activity :

Think, know, feel, recollect, remember, suppose, understand, recall, recognize, forget, believe, expect, etc.

4. Verbs of possession:

Have, belong, owe, own, possess.

5. Other Verbs :

Seem, appear, keep, consist, etc.

Note: These verbs may be used in the simple present tense. However, some of these verbs can be used in the Present Continues Tense with different meanings:

E.g. I am seeing(meeting) Suman at 2 o’clock.

I am minding( looking after) my own business.

Present Perfect Tense

Form:

Assertive Affirmative: Sub + has / have + V₃

Assertive Negative: Sub + has / have + not + V₃

Interrogative Affirmative: Has / Have + sub + V₃?

Interrogative Negative: Has / Have + sub + not + V3?

Assertive Affirmative: I / We / You / They have worked. He / She / It has worked. Suman has worked. Children have worked.	Assertive Negative: I / We / You / They have not worked. He / She / It has not worked. Suman has not worked. Children have not worked.
Interrogative Affirmative: Have I / w e / you / they worked? Has he / she / it worked? Has Suman worked? Have children worked?	Interrogative Negative: Have I / w e / you / they not worked? Has he / she / it not worked? Has Suman not worked? Have children not worked?

Usage:

1. To express the completion of an action in the immediate past ;

E.g. She has just left the room.

He has already met me.

2. To express past actions without any specific time ;

E.g. Have you read “Gulliver’s Travels”?

I have never seen him angry.

3. To show past events when their effect in the present is more important.

E.g. I have finished my work.

She has cut her finger.

Children have eaten all the biscuits.

4. To express an action that began at some moment in the past and is continuing up to the present moment ;

E.g. He has lived here for two years. (He is still here.)

Suman has been ill since morning (She is still ill.)

They have always helped their brothers.(They still help them.)

Note :

1. This tense denotes the completion of an action.
2. It reveals the present state of a completed action.
3. It does not reveal an action done at a definite time in the past. So it cannot be used with adverbs or Adverbial phrases like yesterday, last year / week / month, a week / year ago, etc.
4. The adverbials which are often used in this tense are: just, already, never, always, ever, lately, recently, before, today, this week / year, etc.

Present Perfect Continuous (or) Present Perfect Progressive :

Form:

Assertive Affirmative: Sub + has / have + been + V₁ + ing.

Assertive Negative: Sub + has / have + not + been + V₁ + ing.

Interrogative Affirmative: Has / Have + sub + been + V₁ + ing?

Interrogative Negative: Has / Have + sub + not + been + V₁ + ing?

Assertive Affirmative: I / We / You / They have been working for an hour. He / She / It has been working since 3o’clock. Suman has been working for three hours. Children have been working since morning.	Assertive Negative: I / We / You / They have not been working for an hour. He / She / It has not been working since 3o’clock. Suman has not been working for three hours. Children have not been working since morning.
Interrogative Affirmative: Have I / w e / you / they been working for three hours? Has he / she / it been working since Monday? Has Suman been working since 5o’clock in the morning? Have children been working for an hour?	Interrogative Negative: Have I / w e / you / they not been working for three hours? Has he / she / it not been working since Monday? Has Suman not been working since 5o’clock in the morning? Have children not been working for an hour?

Usage :

1. It is generally used to denote an action which started in the past, and has gone till the present, and is still continuing. In this duration continuity of the action is stressed or to express an action still in progress ;

E.g. Ravi has been swimming in the pool for 5 hours.

It has been raining since 9 o’clock.

2. To describe an action which has already finished but its effect continues ;

E.g. We have been busy all the day and we are now on our bed at last.

They are panting because they have been digging for 2 hours.

Use of “for”

For is used to show period of time or duration of an action.

I.e. four hours, two days, three years, for a long time, five months, two minutes, etc.

Use of “since”

Since is used to say about the point of time or starting point of an action.

i.e. 2o’clock, yesterday, since 1990, since Monday, since my arrival, since 20^th September, etc.

Present Perfect and Present Perfect Continuous Tense:

1. We use “For” to denote a period of time and “Since” to denote a point of time in both the tenses.
2. Both the tenses can describe an action that has its beginning in the past, and is still going on.

E.g. i) I have lived here for ten years (I am still living here.) (Present Perfect)

I have been living here for ten years. (Present Perfect Continuous)

ii) She has researched for five years. (Present Perfect)

She has been researching for five years. (Present Perfect Continuous)

Note: Verbs which are not normally used in continuous tenses are not used in this case.

3. If an action gets interrupted for some reason, we use the Present Perfect tense to describe it:

E.g. I have written four pages since morning. (It is wrong to say: I have been writing four pages since morning.)

D) A single action has different meanings in the two tenses:

E.g. I have written all the letters. (The action is over)

I have been writing letters. (The action is still in progress.)

E) Verbs of Static or Passive nature stay, sit, wait, rest, lie, learn, live, study, are not often used in the Present Perfect tense. They may be used in the present perfect continuous tense.

Past Tense

The time of action which takes place in the past is called “Past Tense”.

Past Tense is sub divided into 4 kinds. They are:

1. Simple Past or Past Indefinite

2. Past Continuous or Past Progressive

3. Past Perfect

4. Past Perfect Continuous or Past Perfect Progressive

1. Simple Past or Past Indefinite

Form:

Assertive Affirmative: Sub + V₂ + obj

Assertive Negative: Sub + did not + V₁

Interrogative Affirmative: Did + Sub + V₁

Interrogative Negative: Did + Sub + not + V ₁ or didn’t + Sub + V₁

Assertive Affirmative: I/ We / You / They / He / She / It worked. Suman / Children worked.	Assertive Negative: I/ We / You / He / She / It / They did not work. Suman / Children did not work.
Interrogative Affirmative: Did I / We/ You / he, she / it / They work ? Did Suman / children work? Why did you come late? Who worked hard? Why did he work? When did they work? Which book did you read?	Interrogative Negative: Did I / We/ You / he / she / it / They not work? Did Suman / children not work? Who did not work hard? Why did he not work? When did they not work? Which book did you not read?

Usage:

1. To describe an action / event that happened in the past ;

E.g. He came yesterday. (The time is given.)

Nehru died in 1964. (The time is given.)

Alexander defeated Porus in a fierce battle. (The time is implied.)

When did the builder build the house? (The time is asked for?)

When did you watch this film? (The time is asked for)

2. To describe a habitual or repeated action in the past;

E.g. We studied eight hours every day.

He never smoke or drank.

3. To denote an action which continued for some time in the past ; as

E.g. I lived at Hyderabad for a longtime.

We studied Chemistry for two hours.

Note: “For” in this tense refers to the duration of the past action and not to a period of time from the past to the present, as in the present perfect and Perfect Continuous Tenses.

Past Continuous Tense( or) Past Progressive Tense

Form :

Assertive Affirmative: Sub + was / were + v₁ + ing

Assertive Negative: Sub + was / were + not + v₁ + ing

Interrogative Affirmative: was / were + Sub + V₁ + ing?

Interrogative Negative: was / were + Sub + not + V₁ + ing?

Assertive Affirmative: We/ You / They were working. I / He/ She / It was working. Suman was working. Children were working.	Assertive Negative: We/ You / They were not working. I / He/ She / It was not working. Suman was not working. Children were not working.
Interrogative Affirmative: Were you / we / they working? Was I / he / she / it working? Was Suman working? Were children working?	Interrogative Negative: Were you / we / they not working? Was I / he / she / it not working? Was Suman not working? Were children not working?

Usage:

1. To show an action in progress at some moment in the past ; as

E.g. They were playing at 5o’clock.

She was weeping bitterly.

2. To show the continuity of two or more actions at the same time in the past ; as,

E.g. She was dancing while Rajesh was singing.

They were talking when I was teaching.

3. To describe a past action which is often repeated ; as

E.g. Ram was always spitting here and there.

He was always frowning at his children.

4. To describe a continuing action in the past as the other related action is complete ; as,

E.g. As he was telling us a joke, she stole in,

It began to rain just as we were leaving the house.

I was digging in the garden when I came upon this statue.

Past Perfect Tense

Form:

Assertive Affirmative: Sub + had + V₃

Assertive Negative: Sub + had + not + V₃

Interrogative Affirmative: Had + sub + V₃?

Interrogative Negative: Had + sub + not + V3?

Assertive Affirmative: I / We / You / They / He / She / It had worked. Suman / Children had worked.	Assertive Negative: I / We / You / They / He / She / It had not worked. Suman / Children had not worked.
Interrogative Affirmative: Had I / w e / you / they / He / She / It worked? Had Suman / children worked? Who had worked? Whom had you met? Where had he gone?	Interrogative Negative: Had I / w e / you / they / He / She / It not worked? Had Suman children not worked? Who had not worked? Whom had you not met? Where had he not gone?

Usage :

1. To describe an action completed before a definite point in the past ; as,

E.g. He had sold all his eatables at 2o’clock.

Lata had got married at 15.

2. To describe a completed action in the past before another action in the past began ; as,

E.g. The bell had rung when we entered the school.

The patient had died before the doctor arrived.

The letter came after he had left for the office.

3. To denote past desires which remained unfulfilled ; as’

E.g. If only I had studied hard. (But I did not do.)

I wish I had met her in my youth. (But I could not.)

4. In the conditional clauses to describe something which did not really happen ; as,

E.g. If he had met us, we would have helped him.

If you had studied seriously, you would have passed.

If she had listened to my advice, she would not have married that man.

Simple Past and Past Perfect Tenses

1. The simple past tense is used to describe a series of events that happened one after the other;

E.g. He stopped the work at 2o’clock. He put on his coat and went out for lunch. He had lunch at a restaurant with a friend. After lunch he came back to the office.

B) When the order of events is not followed, the past perfect tense is used to tell the correct order:

E.g. Before going out for lunch, he had put on his coat.

Before coming back to the office, he had had lunch at a restaurant with a friend.

C) The Past Perfect Tense is used to express a completed action before some special event / action that we have in our mind:

E.g. By the time it began to snow, they had reached home.

D) The simple Past Tense is used to express a single past action:

E.g. He came yesterday.

Past Perfect Continuous (or) Past Perfect Progressive :

Form :

Assertive Affirmative: Sub + had + been + V₁ + ing.

Assertive Negative: Sub + had + not + been + V₁ + ing.

Interrogative Affirmative: Had + sub + been + V₁ + ing?

Interrogative Negative: Had + sub + not + been + V₁ + ing?

Assertive Affirmative: I / We / You / They / He / She / It had been working for an hour. Suman had been working for three hours. Children had been working since morning.	Assertive Negative: I / We / You / They / He / She / It have not been working for an hour. Suman had not been working for three hours. Children had not been working since morning.
Interrogative Affirmative: Had I / w e / you / they / He / She / It been working since Monday? Had Suman been working since 5o’clock in the morning? Had children been working for an hour? Who had been working? Why had he been working?	Interrogative Negative: Had I / w e / you / they / He / She / It not been working for three hours? Had Suman not been working since 5o’clock in the morning? Had children not been working for an hour? Who had not been working? Why had he not been working?

Usage :

1. To describe an action that began before a certain moment in the past, and continued up to that moment or stopped just before it ; as,

E.g. When I met her, she had already been studying French for the last two years.

When he arrived, we had been waiting for him since last week.

Until he married her, she had been working as a steno.

2. To describe a repeated action in the Past Perfect ; as,

E.g. She had tried many times to learn classical dance.

She had been trying to learn classical dance.

The Future Tense

The time of action which will take place in the future is called “Future Tense”.

Future Tense is sub divided into 4 kinds. They are:

1. Simple Future or Future Indefinite

2. Future Continuous or Future Progressive

3. Future Perfect

4. Future Perfect Continuous or Future Perfect Progressive

1. Simple Future or Future Indefinite

Form:

Assertive Affirmative: Sub +will / shall + V₁ + obj

Assertive Negative: Sub + will / shall + not + V₁

Interrogative Affirmative: Will / Shall + Sub + V₁

Interrogative Negative: Will / Shall + Sub + not + V ₁ or Won’t + Sub + V₁

Assertive Affirmative: I/ We / You / They / He / She / It will work. Suman / Children will work.	Assertive Negative: I/ We / You / He / She / It / They will not work. Suman / Children will not work.
Interrogative Affirmative: Will I / We/ You / he , she / it / They work ? Will Suman / children work?	Interrogative Negative: Did I / We/ You / he / she / it / They not work? Will Suman / children not work?

Usage:

1. The Simple Present is used to describe a definite future arrangement :

E.g. Rajesh starts school next week.

We leave to night.

Note: This tense is less commonly used to express the future time as it is quite formal or impersonal.

2. The Present Continuous Tense is often used to express a definite arrangement in the near future :

E.g. We are leaving at six.

We are opening a new shop next week.

I am seeing her tonight.

Note: We can use “come” and “go” in this way without time expressions:

E.g. She is going on a picnic.

Is she coming for the show?

3. The Future Simple (will / shall + V₁₎ is used to express a future action. We use will / shall for the first persons and will for the other persons.

Usage of “Will / Shall”

	Obligatory Action		Optional Action
	Singular	Plural	Singular	Plural
First Person	Will ( I)	Will (We)	Shall (I)	Shall (We)
Second Person	Shall (You)	Shall (You)	Will (You)	Shall (You)
Third Person	Shall (He /She /It)	Shall (They)	Will (He / She / It)	Shall (He / She / It)

E.g. He will solve your problem.

I will come at 9o’clock.

Lata will not buy a new car.

Shall I do it?

4. The “Be(H.V.) + going to + V₁ “ form is used to describe the speaker’s intention to do something in the fairly immediate future :

E.g. I am going to see her soon.

I am going to think about it.

This form can be used to express something likely to happen in a distant future:

E.g. He is going to be a doctor when he grows up.

I am going to enjoy when I go to my native place.

This form can also be used to denote certainty or probability about an event in the near future:

E.g. As our country is at war, things are going to be tough for our people.

Prices of petrol and diesel are going to soar high with the ever – growing increase in their demand.

5. The “Be + about to + V₁” form is used for the action to be continued in the next moment.

E.g. I am about to go out.

She is about to teach a lesson.

They are about to continue the practice.

Future Continuous Tense( or) Future Progressive Tense

Form:

Assertive Affirmative: Sub + will / shall + be + v₁ + ing

Assertive Negative: Sub + will / shall + not + be + v₁ + ing

Interrogative Affirmative: Will / Shall + Sub + be + V1 + ing ?

Interrogative Negative: Will / Shall + Sub + not + be + V₁ + ing?

Assertive Affirmative: I / We / You / He / She / It / They will be working. Suman / Children will be working.	Assertive Negative: I / We / You / He / She / It / They will not be working. Suman / Children will not be working.
Interrogative Affirmative: Will I / We / You / He / She / It / They be working? Will Suman / children be working?	Interrogative Negative: Will I / We / You / He / She / It / They not be working? Will Suman / children not be working?

Usage:

1. It is used to express a future without intention:

E.g. I will be seeing Gopal tomorrow.

2. This tense is used to express a future action that starts before a particular time and probably continues after it; as,

E.g. We will be playing tennis at 9o’clock tomorrow.

He will be having his lunch at this time.

3. To describe an action which is expected to occur in the normal course :

E.g. I will be seeing the President tonight.

He will be going to Delhi next week.

4. In the negative, this tense indicates that a particular action will not occur in the normal course :

E.g. She will not be playing as she is having fever.

5. In the Interrogative, this tense is used to ask a polite question:

E.g. Will you be doing it in our absence?

Future Perfect Tense

Form:

Assertive Affirmative: Sub + will / shall + have + V₃

Assertive Negative: Sub + will / shall + not + have + V₃

Interrogative Affirmative: Had + sub + V₃?

Interrogative Negative: Will / Shall + sub + not + V3?

Assertive Affirmative: I / We / You / They / He / She / It will have worked. Suman / Children will have worked.	Assertive Negative: I / We / You / They / He / She / It will not have worked. Suman / Children will not have worked.
Interrogative Affirmative: Will I / w e / you / they / He / She / It have worked? Will Suman / children have worked?	Interrogative Negative: Will I / w e / you / they / He / She / It have not worked? Will Suman / children have not worked?

Usage :

1. It is used for an action which will just have finished at a given future time. It is often used with a time expression ;

E.g. India will have made a lot of progress in IT by 2018.

Before you come, he will have slept.

We will have reached there by the time it begins to rain.

2. This tense is also used to reveal that something has taken place ; as,

E.g. You will have heard about my marriage.

Future Perfect Continuous (or) Future Perfect Progressive :

Form:

Assertive Affirmative: Sub + will / shall have + been + V₁ + ing.

Assertive Negative: Sub + will + not + have + been + V₁ + ing.

Interrogative Affirmative: Will + sub + have + been + V₁ + ing?

Interrogative Negative: Will + sub + not + have + been + V₁ + ing?

Assertive Affirmative: I / We / You / They / He / She / It will have been working for an hour. Suman / Children will have been working for three hours.	Assertive Negative: I / We / You / They / He / She / It will not have been working for an hour. Suman / Children will not have been working for three hours.
Interrogative Affirmative: Will I / w e / you / they / He / She / It have been working since Monday? Will Suman / children have been working since 5o’clock in the morning?	Interrogative Negative: Will I / w e / you / they / He / She / It not have been working for three hours? Will Suman / children not have been working since 5o’clock in the morning?

Usage :

1. This tense is used to express a continuous future action at a given future time. It is also used with a time expression (since / for) ; as,

E.g. We will have been studying English for a decade by 2014.

He will have been living here for over six months by the end of this year.

The use of Tense in a Time Clause

A time clause is introduced by the following Conjunctions:

After, before, when, while, whenever, till, until, before, since, as soon as, etc.

Note: It is to be remembered that the future tense is not used in time clauses:

E.g. We will go when you come back. (Wrong to say: We will go when you will come back.)

We shall start studying seriously after the guests have left. (Wrong to say: We shall start studying seriously after the guests will have left.)