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Core English Verbs Tenses

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A challenging but important part of learning English is understanding verb tenses.

In this article we introduce the 12 areas of present, past and future versions of the simple, continuous (progressive), perfect and continuous (progressive) perfect verb aspects.

Introduction to Verb Tense

  • past – present -future
    • past simple 
    • present simple
    • future simple
  • examples
    • worked– past simple
    • work – present simple
    • will work – future simple
  • example sentences
    • I worked yesterday- past simple
    • I work today – present simple
    • I will work tomorrow- future simple
  • past – I talked – I liked – I helped
  • present- I talk – I like – I help
  • future – I will talk – I will like – I will help

Practice your present simple verb use with simple games (e.g. https://www.gamestolearnenglish.com/present-simple)

past simple - future simple

simple verb tense

  • simple past – yesterday
  • simple present – today
  • simple future – tomorrow

simple verb tense

  • simple past – worked
  • simple present – work
  • simple future – will work

simple verb tense

  • simple past – I worked yesterday
  • simple present – I work today
  • simple future – I will work tomorrow

Examples

  • past – I talked, I liked, I helped
  • present- I talk, I like, I help
  • past – I will talk, I will like, I will help

past – present – future

  • walked  – walk  – will walk
  • was walking   – walking  – will be walking
  • had walked – have walked – will have walked
  • had been walking – have been walking – will have been walking

Present

  • Present Simple: – I walk to the park every day.
  • Present Continuous: – I am walking to the park right now.
  • Present Perfect: – I have walked to the park many times.
  • Present Perfect Continuous: I have been walking to the park for hours.

Past

  • Past Simple: – Yesterday, I walked to the park.
  • Past Continuous: – While it was raining, I was walking to the park.
  • Past Perfect: – By the time I arrived, I had walked to the park.
  • Past Perfect Continuous: – I had been walking to the park when it started raining.

Future

  • Future Simple: – Tomorrow, I will walk to the park.
  • Future Continuous: –  At 3 pm tomorrow, I will be walking to the park.
  • Future Perfect: –  By this time next year, I will have walked to the park 100 times.
  • Future Perfect Continuous: -By the end of the week, I will have been walking to the park for seven days straight.

Present Continuous (progressive)

past continuous (progressive) - future continuous (progressive)

The continuous verb form adds -ing to the simple form to make a verb describing a continuous action/verb. It is commonly called the ‘continuous’ verb form, or in the United States it is called the progressive verb form.

  • past continuous (UK) = past progressive (US)
  • present continuous (UK) = present progressive (US) 
  • future continuous (UK) = future progressive (US) 

Show action – present simple

  • The bear growls
  • The bear runs
  • The bear sleeps

Continuous action – present continuous (-ing)

  • The bear is growling
  • The bear is running
  • The bear is sleeping

Past Verb Tense

Regular Verbs

  • The bear growled
  • I liked it
  • We walked there
  • I watched TV
  • We wanted it
  • They worked
  • opened / closed

Irregular Verbs

  • The bear ran
  • The bear slept
  • I ate the apple

  • You studied

simple present

  • The bear growls
  • The bear runs
  • The bear sleeps

present continuous (-ing)

  • The bear is growling
  • The bear is running
  • The bear is sleeping

simple past

  • The bear growled
  • The bear ran
  • The bear slept

past  continuous (-ing)

  • The bear was growling
  • The bear was running
  • The bear was sleeping

Future Verb Tense

simple present

  • The bear growls
  • The bear runs
  • The bear sleeps

present continuous (-ing)

  • The bear is growling
  • The bear is running
  • The bear is sleeping

simple future

  • The bear will growl
  • The bear will run
  • The bear will sleep

future continuous (-ing)

  • The bear will be growling
  • The bear will be running
  • The bear will be sleeping

Perfect

  • past – had worked – I had worked all day.
  • present – have worked – I have worked for an hour.
  • future will have worked – I will have worked by the time you arrive.

Present Perfect

present perfect verb tenses example

Single

first person –

  • I have completed my homework

  • I have traveled to Paris

second person

  • You have read the book
  • You have visited the museum

third person

  • He has received the email
  • She has finished her meal
  • It has snowed outside

Plural

first person –

  • We have finished our project
  • We have eaten lunch

second person

  • You have met many people
  • You have watched the movie

third person

  • They have gone to the beach.
  • They have played soccer.

Past Perfect

past perfect verb tenses example

Future Perfect

future perfect verb example

Verb Tense Exercises

Exercise 1

Fill the blanks with verbs (in brackets) with the present continuous form.

Greetings from our holiday destination!  Sally and I are having a fantastic time here.

  1. We are ______ here for a week (stay)
  2. The sun ________ brightly, (shine)
  3. so we like ________ refreshing drinks (drink)
  4. whilst ________ by the pool. (sit)
  5. Before breakfast it is good to go ________  (swim)
  6. And after relax ________ others having fun in the water. (watch)
  7. During the day, we like ________ to nearby towns and explore their charm.(travel)
  8. Sally likes ________ books, (read)
  9. on the other hand, I am always ________ postcards. (write)

Exercise 2

Put the words in brackets in the present simple or present continuous.

0. What ____________ (you/do)?       A. What are you doing (you/do)?

  1. They __________ (play) soccer every weekend.
  2. What __________ (you/do) after school?
  3. Look! The cat __________ (chase) its tail.
  4. She __________ (study) English at the moment.
  5. What __________ (you/wear) to the party tonight?
  6. We __________ (watch) a movie right now.
  7. It usually __________ (rain) a lot in this season.
  8. What are you currently ______ on? (work)
  9. The teacher __________ (explain) the lesson to the students

Exercise 3

Complete the sentences with the following verbs but use the present continuous form

eat    meet    play    study    swim    watch

  1. _____ Maths at home these days
  2. _____ lunch with friends tomorrow.
  3. _____ at the pool later.
  4. _____ a new TV series tonight.
  5. _____ the piano this evening.
  6. _____ my friends for coffee later.

Exercise 4

Complete the sentences with the following verbs but use the present continuous form

  1. Emma: What are you _______? (do)                      John: I’m _______? TV. (watch)
  2. Sarah: Where are you _______?                              David: I’m _______? to the park. (go)
  3. Lisa: Who are you _______ to on the phone?      Michael: I’m _______? to my sister. (talk)
  4. Emily: What are you _______ to the party?         Daniel: I’m _______? a red dress. (wear)
  5. Olivia: What are you _______ to?                            Sophie: I’m _______? to my favorite song. (listen)
  6. Alex: Why are you _______?                                     Grace: I’m _______? because I’m happy. (smile)

Past Verb Tense Exercises

Exercise 1

Write the past form of the verb in the following sentences:

  1. I like ice cream.
  2. She walks to school.
  3. They play football every Saturday.
  4. He reads books in his free time.
  5. We visit our grandparents regularly.
  6. The sun sets in the evening.
  7. You drink coffee in the morning.
  8. It rains in the summer.
  9. Cats chase mice.
  10. Birds sing in the trees.
  11. The train arrives at 9 AM.
  12. We study English at school.

Exercise 2

Write the following sentences using the past simple verb tense:

  1. I work in an office.
  2. The weather is sunny today.
  3. My friends and I hang out at the park.
  4. She travels to different countries for work.
  5. We go to school from Monday to Friday.
  6. They play football every weekend.