República Bolivariana de Venezuela

Universidad de Oriente

Escuela de Ingeniería

Extensión Cantaura

Simple And Compound Verb Tenses

Estudiantes:

Josenny Díaz Olivo CI: 29.962.146

Mariangel Mendoza CI: 29.660.275

Cantaura, Marzo de 2020

 Simple and Compound Verb Tenses

•Simple Tenses
SIMPLE PAST

The past tense describes an action that happened in the past and has ended. It is the
simplest form of the past. To change a verb from present to past, it will depend on
whether the verb is regular or irregular.

REGULAR ADD THE TERMINATION -ED

IRREGULAR WE USE THE IRREGULAR FORM OF THE VERB IN THE PAST

Examples:

Regular:

“Bailé toda la noche: I danced all night.”

“Lisa bailó ayer: Lisa danced yesterday.”

“Le creímos: We believed him”

“Las llaves estaban en el cajón: The keys were in the drawer”

“Era doctora: She was a doctor”

In this way, we will have to differentiate the third person singular, as to this we add the -s.

 Negative Form

The structure is like this, only the auxiliary verb (DO), switches to its past form (DID) is
added and the negative particle; the verb remains in the infinitive regardless of whether it
is regular or irregular: subject + Auxiliary in past form + negative particle + Verb in
Infinitive + Rest of phrase.

For the verb to be, you don’t need the auxiliary did. When the subject of the sentence is
singular, use was not or wasn’t. When the subject is plural, use were not or weren’t.

“Yo no bailé toda la noche: I didn’t dance all night”

“Yo no jugué al tenis ayer: i didn't play tennis yesterday”

 “El ganador del cuarto lugar no estaba contento en absoluto: The fourth-place
winner wasn’t happy at all”

“Los concursantes no estaban listos para salir bien: The contestants weren’t ready to

leave either.”

“No quería bailar: I didn’t want to dance”

 Interrogative Form

The structure is: interrogative Particle + Auxiliary in past form (DID) + subject + Verb in
Infinitive + Rest of phrase.

“¿Por qué bailé toda la noche?: Why did I dance all night?”

“¿Era doctora?: Was she a doctor?”

“¿Jugaste al tenis ayer?: did you play tennis yesterday?”

“¿Aprendieron ingles?: Did they learn English?”

“¿Querías bailar?: Did you want to dance?”

SIMPLE PRESENT

Generally, simple describes an action that happens at this time.

The structure is simple: Subject + Verb + Rest of phrase

Be careful, because when we form the third person singular (she / he / it), the verb is
added a –S; although this can be altered depending on the ending of the said verb, if it
ends in: -sh, -o, -z, -ch, -s, -x, the verb ending in –es.

Another meaning is in those verbs that its ending is -y, and it goes right after a consonate.
In this case, the -y disappears, giving rise to the ending -ies.

Examples:

“Yo escribo en mi ordenador: I write in my personal computer”

“Ella come arroz: She eats rice”

“Él mira la mesa: He watches the table”

“Ella estudia cada día: She studies every day”

Although very careful, there are verbs that do not adhere to the particularities mentioned
above, such as the verb play or buy.

“Ella juega con sus amigos: She plays with her friends”

We cannot finish this part without making a note of the two irregular verbs: to have and
to be. Which have concrete forms for people (have / has- am / are / is).

 Negative Form

We will use the same structure as in the positive form, but adding the auxiliary and the
negative particle: Subject + Auxiliary verb (DO) + Negative particle + Verb in infinitive +
Rest of phrase

“Yo no leo libros: I don’t read books”

“Él no sabe inglés: He doesn’t know English”

“Yo no hablo : I do not [don’t] talk”

“Él no come: He does not [doesn’t] eat”

“Ellos no aprenden: They do not [don’t] learn”

In the negative form, the verb, if used with the third person singular, no ending will be
added; because the auxiliary verb is the one that gives that information.

 Interrogative Form

This estructure is the next one: (Interrogative Particle) + Auxiliary Verb (DO) + Subject +
Verb in infinitive + Rest of phrase

“¿Qué me gusta?: What do me like?”

“¿Qué le gusta?: What does she like?”

You can see that when we explain the structure, the interrogative particle, we have put it
in parentheses; this is because in many occasions we will not need to use an interrogative
particle; so we start the question directly with the auxiliary verb.

“¿Come él pasta?: Does he eat pasta?”

“¿Escuchas la música?: Do you listen the music?”

“¿Ellos aprenden?: Do they learn?”

SIMPLE FUTURE

It is used for actions that are believed will happen in the future. The future can be formed
in different ways, today we will discuss how it is created with the modal verb “will”.

The structure remains the same as that of the present simple, including in it, the verb will:
Subject + Verb Modal + Verb in infinitive + rest of phrase.

“Te llamaré la próxima semana:I will [I‘ll] call you the next week”

“Él será un buen maestro: He will [He‘ll] be a good teacher”

“Estarán felices de verte: They will [They’ll] be happy to see you“

“Llegará tarde: She will [She’ll] arrive late“

“Nosotros bailaremos mañana: We will [we’ll] dance tomorrow”

 Negative Form

The modal verb undergoes a change here, and goes from being will to become won’t. So
this contraction is what we should use in the negative form: Subject + modal verb
(WON’T) + Infinitive Verb + Rest of phrase.

“No la vas a llamar: You will not [won’t] call her”

“Ella no vendrá a casa: She will not [won’t] come at home”

“Nosotros no bailaremos mañana: We will not [won’t] dance tomorrow”

“No llegará tarde: She will not [won’t] arrive late”

“No estarán felices de verte: They will not [won’t] be happy to see you”

 Interrogative Form

We maintain the same structure as in the interrogative form of the present simple, but
with the corresponding modal verb: (Interrogative Particle) + Modal Verb + Subject +
Infinitive + Rest of Phrase.

“¿Me ayudarás?: Will you help me?”

“¿Por qué no harás esto por mí?: Why won’t you do that for me?”

“¿Me llamarás esta noche?: Will you call me tonight?”

 “¿Llegará tarde?: Will she arrive late?”

“¿Estarán felices de verte?: Will they be happy to see you?”

If you look, in the future, it does not matter if it is a third person singular or not; neither
the infinitive verb varies, nor the modal verb is modified.

• Compound Tenses

Compound verb tenses are basically modifications of simple tenses that provide more
specific information as to when the action occurred, started, or ended. Think of simple
times like the first card in a deck, and compound times like the cards that follow in the
deck.

PRESENT CONTINUOS

The present continuous is used to indicate that an event is happening right now. Use this
time to talk about things that are happening.

For example, if someone asks "what are you doing?" ("What are you doing?"), you
commonly respond in the present continuous.

To form this tense, you need the auxiliary verb “to be” in the present simple conjugate
according to the subject of the action (I am, he is, you are, etc.). Then add the suffix "-ing"
to the main verb.

Let's say we want to describe a singer's performance while singing. The main verb will be
"sing" and the subject will be "she". So we would say:

“Ella está cantando muy bien: She is singing beautifully.”

The verb "to be" is conjugated in the present simple and coincides with "she" and then we
add the verb "sing" in its "-ing" form. As you will see in this article, the suffix “-ing” is a
good indicator of the presence of a continuous time, that is, that the action is continuous
(it is happening).

In the following examples, watch for the auxiliary verb and the suffix "-ing" that modifies
the main verb:

“Le escribo una carta a Marta: I am writing a letter to Marta.”

“Rohan está regando las plantas: Rohan is watering the plants.

 “Ellos están durmiendo en la habitación de invitados: They are sleeping in the guest
room.”

“No estás prestando atención en clase: You are not paying attention in class.”

“Nosotros estamos jugando un videojuego: We are playing a video game.”

PRESENT PERFECT

We use this time to describe actions in progress. The action may have ended or still
continue, depending on the context (we will see it well below).

To form this time, you have to use the verb “to have”, conjugated according to the
subject, in the present simple (I have, she has, they have, etc.). Then you add the main
verb in its past participle form.

Ahora veamos un ejemplo con el verbo “choose”. El past participle de “choose” es

“chosen”.

“Has elegido el libro equivocado: You have chosen the wrong book.”

Often, you will hear this verb tense being used with words like "just" to show the exact
moment that a recent event has happened.

“Acabo de almorzar: I have just eaten my lunch.”

You can also use this time with the expression "since" + [specific moment in time] or "for"
+ [duration in time] to show the duration of something.

“Se ha sentido enferma por tres días: She has felt sick for three days.”

“Han sido amigos desde 2010: They have been friends since 2010.”

“Here we leave you other examples. Pay attention to auxiliary verbs and past participles.”

“Acabo de terminar mi trabajo de investigación: I have just finished my research paper.”

“Han vivido en este departamento desde antes de que yo naciera: They have lived in this
apartment since before I was born.”

“Tridib ya ha visitado: Tridib has visited already.”

PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOS

This compound time is used to demonstrate an action that continues (or continues) that
started long ago. For example, if you spent a quiet Sunday night in front of the TV, you can
use this time to describe your day.

At this time you have to use the auxiliary verb "to have" followed by "been" and then add
the suffix "-ing" to the main verb.

Let's see how it is conjugated with the verb “to crave” (which means to desire a lot,
especially food).

“He estado deseando helado toda la semana: I have been craving ice cream all week.”

“He estado mirando "Doctor Who" todo el día: I have been binge-watching “Doctor Who”
all day.”

“Te has estado perdiendo el trabajo últimamente: You have been missing work lately.”

“Hemos estado trabajando incansablemente en este proyecto: We have been

working tirelessly on this project.”

“Laura ha estado escribiendo el boletín de la compañía por un tiempo: Laura has been
writing the company newsletter for a while.”

“Descubrimos que han estado robando en la oficina: We discovered that they have been
stealing from the office.”

PAST CONTINUOS

This verb tense is used to talk about an action that happened for a while and has already
ended.

The action does not happen now but it was happening in the past. Imagine that you are
counting a memory. The events are over but you remember them as a movie that is
played in front of you.

To use this tense, you need the auxiliary verb "to be" and then you add the suffix "-ing" to
the main verb.

For example, I can say:

“Estaba cantando en el concierto anoche: I was singing at the concert last night.”
This means that although I have already finished singing, there was an extended period of
time during which I sang.

Let's see other examples:

“Sheila tocaba la flauta toda la mañana: Sheila was playing the flute all morning.”

“Ellos se reían de sus chistes sin parar: They were laughing at his jokes no stop.”

“Estabas comiendo una pizza cuando te vi: You were eating a pizza when I saw you.”

“El agua estaba hirviendo, así que sabía que era hora de poner la pasta: The water was
boiling, so I knew it was time to put the pasta in.”

PAST PERFECT

The perfect past is used to describe actions that ended before another event happens.

It is similar to the present perfect; the difference is that we use the past participle of the
main verb but preceded by “had”.

If you have told a story and want to put people in context and explain what was going on
before the main event of the story, you could say something like:

“Me había acostado cuando escuché un ruido extraño en mi puerta: I had gone to bed
when I heard a strange noise at my door.”

"Gone" is the past participle of the verb "to go". "I heard" is in the past simple. You will
often see that these two verb tenses - past perfect and simple past - are often used in the
same expression.

Some more examples:

“Había probado el violín pero rápidamente dejé de practicar: I had tried the violin but
quickly stopped practicing.”

“Roya se había quedado dormida cuando la campana la despertó: Roya had dozed
off when the bell woke her up.”

“Habían cenado antes de que llegara el extraño: They had eaten their dinner before the
stranger arrived.”

“Habíamos completado la fotografía en la mañana, así que fuimos al parque por la tarde
para relajarnos: We had completed the picture in the morning so we went to the park in
the evening to relax.”
PAST PERFECT CONTINUOS

This verb tense is similar to the past perfect but the word "continuous" should give you an
idea of how it differs.

Use this verb tense to describe continuous actions that happened in the past and ended in
the past. For example, if you want to comment on a habit that you used to have and have
no more, you can use this time.

To form this verb tense, we first say "had", then "been", and finally add the suffix "-ing" to
the main verb.

Take for example the habit we are talking about. Our main verb is “to smoke” (“fumar”):

“Había estado fumando tantos cigarrillos que mi médico me dijo que no tenía más
remedio que dejar de fumar: I had been smoking so many cigarettes my doctor told me I
had no choice but to quit.”

“Llevabas más de una semana faltando a clases antes de que la escuela llamara a tus
padres: You had been skipping class for over a week before the school called your
parents.”

“Habían estado bebiendo a escondidas hasta que Max los atrapó: They had been
drinking on the sly until Max caught them.”

“Vin había estado haciendo un carrito de juguetes cuando su hermano regresó a casa: Vin
had been making a toy cart when her brother returned home.”

“Habíamos estado trabajando horas extras durante más de un mes hasta que el gerente
nos prometió un aumento de sueldo: We had been working overtime for over a month
until the manager promised us a pay rise.”

FUTURE CONTINUOS

This verb tense is used to show an action that will end in a long time. The action has not
yet happened! But it will happen. Or, at least, we hope so.

If you want to talk about your future projects or life plans, you probably use the future
continuous.

To form it, we start with "will be" and then add the suffix "-ing" to the main verb.

Let's see an example with the verb “to ing”:

 “Estaré cantando en el concierto mañana por la noche: I will be singing at the concert
tomorrow evening.”

In this sentence, I speak of continuous action that has not yet happened.

We leave you some other examples so you can see what the continuous future looks like:

“Estudiará matemáticas cuando comience la universidad: He will be studying math when

he starts college.”

“Ellos encabezarán un importante festival de música el próximo mes: They will be

headlining a major music festival next month.”

“Deberíamos irnos ahora. Los caminos se volverán helados pronto: We should leave
now. The roads will be getting icy soon.”

FUTURE PERFECT

We use this time to talk about an action that will be completed but has not yet happened.
In other words, we wait for the moment when an action or event has ended.

For example, it is the time used when you make a promise to someone or when you have
a deadline for a project.

To form this verb tense, we use “will” followed by “have” and then add the past participle
conjugation of the main verb.

Let's see an example that can take you back to your high school days:

“¡Mamá, habré terminado mi tarea antes de ir al cine!: Mom, I will have finished my
homework before I go to the movies!”

If you pay attention, you will see that there are two events happening in this sentence:
finish the task and go see a movie. Future perfect verb tense demonstrates the action that
will end earlier.

Let's see some other examples:

“Nos vemos al mediodía. Habré enviado mi informe para entonces: Let’s meet at noon. I
will have submitted my report by then.”

“Él habrá comido su pizza antes de que aparezca el resto del grupo: He will have eaten his
pizza before the rest of the group shows up.”
 “Habremos construido esta casa para cuando nuestros hijos estén en la escuela: We will
have built this house by the time our children are in school.”

FUTURE PERFECT CONTINUOS

We come to the end of the list. We use this verb tense to talk about an ongoing event that
has already started and is expected to last up to a certain point in the future. In other
words, the action will continue until or before another event happens.

To form this verb tense, we again use the formula "will have" followed by "been" and add
the suffix "-ing" to the main verb.

For example, I could say:

“A las 9:00, habré esperado aquí por dos horas: By 9:00, I will have been waiting here for
two hours.”

This means that the action of “waiting” happens both in the present and in the future
(that is, until 9: 00).

The following examples will give you a better idea of the context in which the future
perfect continuous tense is usually used:

“Para la próxima primavera, habrás estado viviendo en esta ciudad durante cinco años: By
next spring, you will have been living in this town for five years.”

“Habremos estado trabajando aquí durante nueve meses en diciembre: We will have
been working here for nine months in December.”

“A finales de este año, habrán estado tocando como una banda de rock durante más de
una década: By the end of this year, they will have been playing as a rock band for over a
decade.”

Modal Auxiliaries
They are auxiliary verbs expressing possibility, necessity, ability, obligation and
permission, among other things.

Modal verbs in English and their uses are presented in the table below.

Hablar de una habilidad o posibilidad en el presente, o para pedir

CAN permiso.
 Hablar de una habilidad o posibilidad en el pasado o el futuro, o para
COULD pedir algo de manera educada.

Hablar de una posibilidad en el futuro o el presente, o para pedir algo de

MAY manera educada.

Hablar de una posibilidad en el futuro o el presente, o para pedir algo de

MIGHT manera educada.

Hablar de algo que se hará en el futuro.

WILL

Hablar de algo que se hará en el futuro.

SHALL

Hablar de una obligación o una recomendación.

SHOULD

Hablar de una obligación o una recomendación.

OUGHT TO

Hablar de una obligación, una prohibición o una necesidad.

MUST

Hablar de una preferencia o una costumbre en el pasado, o para pedir

WOULD algo de manera educada.

Now let's look at some examples with modal verbs in English!

CAN I can call you later. Te puedo llamar más tarde.

COULD I could help you if you want. Te podría ayudar si quieres.

MAY I may be late. Tal vez llegue tarde.

MIGHT The teacher might get mad. Puede que el maestro se enoje.

WILL Will you be here tomorrow? ¿Vas a estar aquí mañana?

 SHALL I shall not give up! ¡No me voy a rendir!

SHOULD Everyone should be on time. Todo el mundo debe llegar a tiempo.

OUGHT TO They ought to fix this pothole. Deberían arreglar este bache.

MUST He must be crazy. Tiene que estar loco.

WOULD Grandma would ride her bike to La abuela iba al trabajo en bici cuando

work when she was younger. era joven.

Formas –ING
The -ing form of verbs can function as either a gerund or a present participle in English,
but both are frequently translated as infinitives.

PRESENT PARTICIPLE

The "present participle" is usually used above all as a component of the progressive form
of a verb, after verbs of perception and movement, or as an adjective.

 "PRESENT PARTICIPLE" IN THE PROGRESSIVE FORM OF THE VERB: The "present

participle" is one of the elements that make up the progressive forms
("continuous") of the verbs in English, whether in the present, past, future,
conditional, etc. The auxiliary verb is the one that is conjugated to indicate the
verb tense, while the "present participle" remains unchanged.

EXAMPLES:
“Él está pintando: He is painting.”

“Ella estaba esperando: She was waiting.”

“Ellos vendrán: They will be coming.”

“Nosotros nos quedaríamos: We would be staying.”

“Me hubiera ido: I would have been leaving.”

  "PRESENT PARTICIPLE" AFTER VERBS OF PERCEPTION: The "present participle" can
be used after verbs that express perception, following the verb + object + "present
participle" construction, to indicate the perceived action.

EXAMPLES:

“Lo vimos nadar a través del estanque: We saw him swimming across the pond.”

“La vi pintar el retrato de Sarah: I watched her painting Sarah's portrait.”

“No podía escucharla cantar por el ruido: I couldn't hear her singing because of the
noise.”

“Me gustaría verte tejer alguna vez: I would like to see you knitting sometime.”

 "PRESENT PARTICIPLE" AFTER VERBES OF MOVEMENT, ACTION OR POSITION TO

INDICATE PARALLEL ACTIVITIES.

EXAMPLES:

“Ella se sentó mirando el mar: She sat looking at the sea.”

“Él camina leyendo su periódico: He walks reading his newspaper.”

“Cocino escuchando la radio: I cook listening to the radio.”

“Sally yacía escuchando los insectos en la hierba: Sally lay listening to the bugs in the
grass.”

 "PRESENT PARTICIPLE" AS AN ADJECTIVE

EXAMPLES:

“¿Leíste ese libro asombroso?: Did you read that amazing book?”

“¡Esta película es muy emocionante!: This movie is so exciting!”

“Su clase de economía es aburrida: His economics class is boring.”

GERUND

The English "gerund" always has the same function as a noun, despite looking like a verb.
It can be used in the same way as a noun.
  THE "GERUND" AS THE SUBJECT OF PRAYER

EXAMPLES:

“Comer gente está mal: Eating people is wrong.”

“Conducir demasiado rápido es peligroso: Driving too fast is dangerous.”

“Caminar es bueno para ti: Walking is good for you.”

“Tu tejido es hermoso: Your knitting is beautiful.”

 THE "GERUND" AFTER PREPOSITION

EXAMPLES:

“¿Puedes estornudar sin abrir la boca?: Can you sneeze without opening your mouth?”

“Ella es buena pintando: She is good at painting.”

“Fui la más rápida en escalar la cuerda: I was the fastest at climbing the rope.”

“Aprende música escuchando los acordes: He learns music by listening to the chords.”

 THE "GERUND" AFTER CERTAIN VERBS

EXAMPLES:

“Me gusta cocinar: I like cooking.”

“Le gusta caminar: He enjoys walking.”

Ellos odian las vacas de ordeño: They hate milking cows.”

“Me imagino a la deriva en un globo: I can imagine drifting away in a balloon.”

 THE "GERUND" IN COMPOSITE NAMES

EXAMPLES:

“La llevé a sus clases de manejo: I took her to her driving lessons.”

“Nosotros vamos a la piscina: We are going to the swimming pool.”

“Mi tío observa muchas aves: My uncle does a lot of bird-watching.”

“Encontré este pastel haciendo basureros: I found this pie by dumpster-diving.”