UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY

BUILDING & CONSTRUCTION ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

TECHNICAL WRITING FOR POSTGRADUATE DR. RASHA AL-RUBAEE

VERB TENSES
EXERCISES
1. Hi, I (be) Robert, a friend of Mike.

2. Oh, yes. Ali (mention) you the other day. You (not look) like a detective.

3. Well, that's good, I (guess).

4. I'm curious. Tell me, how you (decide) to become an undercover cop?

5. Well, when I (be) a kid; I (love) to read detective novels. By the time I (be)

ten, I (read) every book in the Hardy Boys series. I (know) that I (want) to go

into law enforcement.

6. But according to Ali, you (attend) law school nowadays.

7. Right. I (get) married last month. I (not mind) being on the police force when

I (be) single, but ever since I (meet) Nicole, my wife, I (want) to do something

less dangerous.

8. I (understand). By the way, you (have) any luck yet with those counterfeiters?

9. Well, I (follow) them for more than a month now, but so far I (not be able to)

catch them in the act. Sometimes I (worry) that by the time they're caught, I'll

have my law degree and I'll be defending them!

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 UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
BUILDING & CONSTRUCTION ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
TECHNICAL WRITING FOR POSTGRADUATE DR. RASHA AL-RUBAEE

10. Every Monday, Sally (drive) her kids to football practice.

11. Usually, I (work) as a secretary at an office, but this summer I (study)

French at a language school in Paris. That is why I am in Paris.

12. Shhhhh! Be quiet! John (sleep).

13. Don't forget to take your umbrella. It (rain).

14. I hate living in Seattle because it (rain, always).

15. I'm sorry I can't hear what you (say) because everybody (talk) so loudly.

16. Justin (write, currently) a book about his adventures in Tibet. I hope he can

find a good publisher when he is finished.

17. Jim: Do you want to come over for dinner tonight?

Denise: Oh, I'm sorry, I can't. I (go) to a movie tonight with some friends.

18. The business cards (be, normally) printed by a company in New York. Their

prices (be) inexpensive, yet the quality of their work is quite good.

19. This delicious chocolate (be) made by a small chocolatier in Zurich,

Switzerland.

20. It is already 9:30 PM and I (wait) here for over an hour. If John does not get

here in the next five minutes, I am going to leave.

21. I was really angry at John yesterday. By the time he finally arrived, I (wait)

for over an hour. I almost left without him.

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 UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
BUILDING & CONSTRUCTION ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
TECHNICAL WRITING FOR POSTGRADUATE DR. RASHA AL-RUBAEE

22. Did you hear that Ben was fired last month? He (work) for that import

company for more than ten years and he (work) in almost every department.

Nobody knew the company like he did.

23. I (see) many pictures of the pyramids before I went to Egypt. Pictures of the

monuments are very misleading. The pyramids are actually quite small.

24. Sarah (climb) the Matterhorn, (sail) around the world, and (go) on safari in

Kenya. She is such an adventurous person.

25. Sarah (climb) the Matterhorn, (sail) around the world and (go) on safari in

Kenya by the time she turned twenty-five. She (experience) more by that age

than most people do in their entire lives.

26. When Melanie came into the office yesterday, her eyes were red and watery.

I think she (cry).

27. When I (arrive) home last night, I discovered that Jane (prepare) a beautiful

candlelight dinner.

28. Since I began acting, I (perform) in two plays, a television commercial and a

TV drama. However, I (speak, never even) publicly before I came to Hollywood

in 1985.

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 UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
BUILDING & CONSTRUCTION ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
TECHNICAL WRITING FOR POSTGRADUATE DR. RASHA AL-RUBAEE

29. By the time I got to the office, the meeting (begin, already) without me. My

boss (be) furious with me and I (be) fired.

30. When I (turn) the radio on yesterday, I (hear) a song that was popular when I

was in high school. I (hear, not) the song in years, and it (bring) back some great

memories.

31. Last week, I (run) into an ex-girlfriend of mine. We (see, not) each other in

years, and both of us (change) a great deal. I (enjoy) talking to her so much that I

(ask) her out on a date. We are getting together tonight for dinner.

32. When Jack (enter) the room, I (recognize, not) him because he (lose) so

much weight and (grow) a beard. He looked totally different!

33. The Maya established a very advanced civilization in the jungles of the

Yucatan; however, their culture (disappear, virtually) by the time Europeans first

(arrive) in the New World.

34. I (visit) so many beautiful places since I (come) to Utah. Before moving

here, I (hear, never) of Bryce Canyon, Zion, Arches, or Canyonlands.