English Verb Tenses: A Comprehensive Overview
Present Simple
I play. She plays. I don’t play. She doesn’t play. Do I play? Does she play? Yes, I do. No, I don’t. Yes, she does. No, she doesn’t.
Usage:
- Every day, sometimes, always, often, usually, seldom.
- General facts that are always true.
- General truths and laws of nature.
- Repeated and habitual actions.
- In narratives as a historical present.
- In sports commentaries.
- In news and newspaper headlines.
- To give instructions.
- With expressions indicating frequency (twice a day, usually, often, sometimes).
Present Continuous
I am playing. I am not playing. She is playing. She isn’t playing. Am I playing? Yes, I am. No, I am not. Is she playing? Yes, she is. No, she isn’t.
Usage:
- Actions happening at the moment of speaking.
- Events or actions taking place in this period, not necessarily at the moment of speaking.
- To describe photos or illustrations.
- With ‘always’ to indicate irritation for a repeated action.
- Planned future.
- With ‘now’, ‘at the moment’.
State Verbs
Hear, appear, look, see, taste, smell, believe, enjoy, desire, wish, like, hate, love, prefer, know, understand, think, agree, believe, remember, have, own, cost, need.
Past Simple
With ‘last’, ‘ago’, ‘yesterday’, ‘in 1980’. The same for all persons. Base form of the verb + ed. I played. I didn’t play. Did I play? Yes, I did. No, I didn’t.
Usage:
- Actions or situations concluded in the past.
- With ‘last night/week/month/summer/year’ etc.; ‘two years ago’.
- To narrate a story or series of connected events in the past with ‘first’, ‘then’, ‘next’, ‘after that’.
Past Continuous
I/she was listening. They were listening. I/she wasn’t listening. They weren’t listening. Was I/she listening? Yes, I was. No, I wasn’t. Were they listening? Yes, they were. No, they weren’t.
Usage:
- An action that was in progress at a defined moment in the past.
- To describe two actions that were taking place simultaneously at a defined moment. “At 5 o’clock yesterday afternoon, I was studying while my mum was ironing.”
- Past Continuous = action in progress in the past and Past Simple = sudden action, are linked by ‘when’ or ‘while’. “While I was having a shower, I heard the phone ring.”
Present Perfect
I have lived. I haven’t lived. She has lived. She hasn’t lived. Have I lived? Yes, I have. No, I haven’t. Has she lived? Yes, she has. No, she hasn’t.
Usage:
- With ‘just’, ‘yet’, ‘never’, ‘ever’, ‘already’, ‘so far’, ‘since’, ‘for’.
- A concluded action or situation that has a connection with the present.
- With ‘this morning’, ‘today’, ‘this afternoon’, ‘this month’, ‘this week’, ‘this year’.
Present Perfect Continuous
I have been cooking. She has been cooking. I haven’t been cooking. She hasn’t been cooking. Have I been cooking? Has she been cooking? Yes, I have. No, I haven’t. Yes, she has. No, she hasn’t.
Usage:
- An action that started in the past and has an unpleasant result in the present.
- Temporary situations that started in the past and continue in the present.
- ‘All day’, ‘all morning’, ‘for ages’, ‘lately’, ‘recently’.
Past Perfect
I had gone. I hadn’t gone. Had I gone? Yes, I had. No, I hadn’t.
Usage:
- An action that occurred before another in the past. “Kate arrived at the station at 9:15. The train left at 9:12.”
- With ‘when’, ‘since’, ‘for’, ‘already’, ‘yet’, ‘by the time’.
Past Perfect Continuous
Had been + -ing form for everyone. Had I been living? Yes, I had. No, I hadn’t.
Usage:
- Emphasizes the duration of an action in the past that ended when another action started. “I had been studying history for a year. Then in 2004, I decided to change to Economics.”
- An action that was in progress in the past when another action occurred. “We had been waiting for the bus for a long time when we decided to call a taxi.”
Will
Usage:
- Predictions, intuitions, often with ‘think’, ‘believe’, ‘hope’, ‘expect’.
- Offers and requests.
- Promises and refusals.
- Decisions made at the moment.
Be Going To
Usage:
- Intentions, predictions based on the observation of facts, decisions about the future made previously.