TENSES

ENGLISH GRAMMAR

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TENSE MEANS TIME____

PRESENT PAST

TIME

TIME TIME

FUTURE

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Simple Present I play.

Present Continuous
I am playing.

Present Perfect
I have played.

Present Perfect Continuous

I have been playing for two hours.

Simple Past
I played.

Past Continuous
I was playing.

Past Perfect
I had played.

Past Perfect Continuous

I had been playing when you came.

Simple Future
I will play.

Future Continuous
I will be playing.

Future Perfect
I will have played.

Future Perfect Continuous

I will have been playing for two hours at 2 oclock.

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There are three Main tenses

The Present The Past The Future

EACH TENSE HAS FOUR FORMS

SIMPLE: Present, Past, Future CONTINUOUS: Present, Past, Future PERFECT: Present, Past, Future PERFECT CONTINUOUS: Present, Past, Future
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USES SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE Present Form Of verb OR Present Form Of Verb + s or es

Repeated Actions Habitual Actions Universal Truth A Future Action

Examples: 1.I drink tea daily. 2. She drinks tea daily. 3. I sing well. 4. She sings well.
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5. Honesty is the best policy. re6. Our school re-opens in July. 7. Ram doesnt go to school . 8. I dont like to read sad stories. 9. Does he know the way? 10. Doesnt he play rugby?
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Simple Past Tense

Past Form Of Verb
Uses:
oPAST ACTION PAST oNARRATION OF STORIES NARRATION oDESCRIPTION OF SERIES OF DESCRIPTION PAST EVENTS Examples:

Simple Future Tense

Will + Present form of the Verb Uses:

oFUTURE ACTIONS FUTURE

Examples:

1. I / She received your letter yesterday. 2. It rained last week.

1. She will receive your letter tomorrow. 2.It looks like it will rain tomorrow.

3. She watched her brother 3.She will watch her brother being awarded. being awarded.
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PRESENT CONTINUOUS TENSE Is, am, are + Present Participle

Uses: To describe an action that : Is happening at the moment of speaking. Going on over a period of time.

PAST CONTINUOUS TENSE Was, were + Present Participle Uses:

To describe an action that Was going on at a point of time, When another action took place. Examples: 1. It was raining at this time yesterday. 2. She was watching her brother play when the thieves entered the house. 3. He was typing in his office when the fire broke out.
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FUTURE CONTINUOUS TENSE Will be +Present Participle

Uses: To describe an action: That will be in progress at a given point of time in the future. Examples: 1.This time tomorrow, I shall be flying over London. 2. I wont be going for the party tomorrow. 3. The school team will be going to Agra next week.

Examples: 1. It is raining. 2. She is watching her brother play. 3. My sister is singing on the 06/10/12 stage.

PRESENT PERFECT TENSE has/ have +Past Participle

Uses: To describe an action: Which has been completed or done just now, near the present time. An action that has taken place In the past, but the action has Its effect In the present. An action that began in the past, and is continuing in the present. Examples: 1. He has eaten all the biscuits. 2. He has lived here for ten years.
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PAST PERFECT TENSE Had + Past Participle

Uses: To describe an action that had already taken place in the past before another action took place In the past. Examples:

FUTURE PERFECT TENSE Will/ shall have + Past Participle

Uses: To describe an action that will be completed by some point of time in the future.

Examples: 1. When I reached the station, the train had left. 2. They had already pulled down the old building before the order was given.
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1.He will have left before you reach. 2. They will have cleaned the streets in an hour.

PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS

Has been/ have been + Present Participle

PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS

Had been + Present Participle

FUTURE PERFECT CONTINUOUS

Will have been + Present Participle Use: To describe an action That will be in progress even after a given point of time. Examples: 1. By next December, We will have been living here for five years.

Use: Use: To describe an action which began in the past but To describe an action Is still continuing in the that present. began in the past and continued in the past for sometime. Examples: Examples: 1. He has been sleeping for five hours. 1. When I visited him, he had been teaching there 2. They have been working for five years. since 9a.m.
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PRESENT
SIMPLE PRESENT

TENSE
PRESENT CONTINUOUS

I/WE/THEY/YOU READ. SHE/HE/IT READS.

PRESENT PERFECT

I AM READING. YOU/WE/THEY ARE READING. SHE/HE/IT IS READING.

PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS

I/WE/THEY/YOU HAVE READ. SHE/HE /IT HAS READ.

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I/ WE/ THEY/YOU HAVE BEEN READING +TIME. SHE/HE/IT HAS BEEN READING +TIME. Created By A.T.Vagadia

PAST TENSE
PAST CONTINUOUS SIMPLE PAST I/WE/THEY/YOU/SHE/HE/IT READ. I/SHE/HE/IT WAS READING. YOU/WE/THEY WERE READING. PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS
I/WE/SHE/HE/THEY/YOU HAD BEEN READING THE BOOK WHEN THE TEACHER WENT INTO THE CLASSROOM.
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PAST PERFECT
I/HE/SHE/YOU/WE/THEY HAD READ THE BOOK LAST WEEK.
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FUTURE
SIMPLE FUTURE I/WE/YOU/SHE/HE/THEY WILL READ THE BOOK TOMORROW. FUTURE PERFECT I/WE/YOU/SHE/HE/THEY WILL HAVE READ THE BOOK BY NEXT WEEK.
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TENSE
FUTURE CONTINUOUS I/WE/YOU/THEY/HE/SHE WILL BE READING THE BOOK SOON. FUTURE PERFECT CONTINUOUS I/WE/YOU/SHE/HE/THEY WILL HAVE BEEN READING THE BOOK FOR FIVE DAYS ON MONDAY.

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COMMON MISTAKES IN TENSES

1.It is raining since yesterday. X It has been raining since yesterday.

2. I reached the station before the train had arrived. X I had reached the station before the train arrived. 3. Yesterday we had seen the panther. X Yesterday we saw the panther. 4. I had been playing a match. I had been playing a match yesterday, so couldnt go out with my friends.
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06/10/12