English Verb Tenses Explained: Simple to Advanced
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Mastering English Verb Tenses
Present and Past Tense of the Verb To Be
| Subject | Affirmative | Negative | Question |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | Am (=I'm) / Was | Am not (=I'm not) / Wasn't | ...am I? / Was I...? |
| You, We, They | Are (=You're / We're / They're) / Were | Are not (=Aren't) / Weren't | ...are you/we/they? / Were you...? |
| He, She, It | Is (=He's / She's / It's) / Was | Is not (=Isn't) / Was not | ...is he/she/it? / Was he...? |
The verb to be is also used for the following:
- I'm hot, I am cold, it was very cold. (I am hot/cold = I feel hot, I feel cold)
- Note: I have a cold (I have a cold)
- I am seventeen years old.
- I'm in a hurry.
- You are right!
- You are late. Why are you late?
Present Continuous = Present Progressive
| Subject | Affirmative | Negative | Question |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | Am + gerund (-ing) | Am not + gerund (-ing) | Am I + gerund (-ing)? |
| You, We, They | Are + gerund (-ing) | Are not + gerund (-ing) | Are + subject + gerund (-ing)? |
| He, She, It | Is + gerund (-ing) | Isn't + gerund (-ing) | Is + subject + gerund (-ing)? |
When do you need to use this tense?
When the action is happening at the moment of speaking:
- You are being too demanding.
- What is happening in the world?
- Many youngsters are working for NGOs.
Do you understand the difference in meaning between A and B?
- A) Hi Jon! Where are you going? (at this moment)
- B) Hi Jon! Where do you go (on holidays)?
- A) My brother is working in Madrid. (He is working now, at this moment)
- B) My brother works in Madrid. (He has a permanent job in Madrid)
- A) What are you doing? (What are you doing at this moment?)
- B) What do you do? (What is your occupation?)
Simple Present
| Subject | Affirmative | Negative | Question |
|---|---|---|---|
| I, You, We, They | + Infinitive (Go, do, play, work) | + don't + Infinitive | Do + subject + infinitive? |
| He, She, It | + Infinitive + "s" (goes, does, plays, works) + Infinitive + "es" (watches, tries, carries, kisses, flies, catches) | + doesn't + Infinitive | Does + subject + infinitive? |
Simple Past
| Subject | Affirmative | Negative | Question |
|---|---|---|---|
| All | a) Regular past: "-ed" b) Irregular past | + did not + Infinitive (Didn't live, didn't go) | Did + subject + infinitive? |
When do you need to use this tense?
When you want to talk about an action that started and finished at a specific time in the past:
- Columbus discovered America in 1492.
- What did you do last summer?
- What happened three years ago in September?
- My grandfather worked in Germany for twenty years, from 1940 until 1960.
Past Continuous
| Subject | Affirmative | Negative | Question |
|---|---|---|---|
| I, he, she, it | was + gerund (-ing) | wasn't + gerund (-ing) | Was + subject + -ing? |
| You, we, they | were + gerund (-ing) | weren't + gerund (-ing) | Were + subject + -ing? |
Remember that:
- It is often combined with a punctual action in the Simple Past.
- You will often find these adverbs of time:
- Suddenly
- As (when)
- While
Present Perfect
| Subject | Affirmative | Negative | Question |
|---|---|---|---|
| I, You, We, They | have + participle (watched, played, seen, done, given) | Haven't + participle | Have + subject + participle? |
| He, She, It | has + participle | Hasn't + participle | Has + subject + participle? |
Reflect on the following sentences:
- Gasol usually plays very well, but today he's (=he has) played rather badly.
- Use with NEVER: I often talk to girls, but I've (=I have) never kissed any so far.
- Use with JUST: My brother has just found a job. At last!
- Use with EVER: Tell me, have you ever been in Japan?
- Use with ALREADY: I have already walked to Santiago de Compostela three times.
- Use with YET: Have you finished yet?
- Use with HOW LONG: For + period of time elapsed / Since + specific moment in the past (1990, last year...).
Present Perfect Continuous
| Subject | Affirmative | Negative | Question |
|---|---|---|---|
| I, You, We, They | Have + been + gerund | Haven't + been + gerund | Have + subject + been + gerund? |
| He, She, It | Has + been + gerund | Hasn't + been + gerund | Has + subject + been + gerund? |
Note the difference between saying:
- Today I have worked hard.
- Today I have been working hard.
Past Perfect
Note: As you can see, I had, you had, he had, etc. can be contracted to I'd, you'd... But as you already know, I would, you would, she would, etc. are also contracted to I'd, you'd... So, how will you distinguish them? Look at this example!
I'd watched that film twice before, but I'd watch it again if I could.
- a) Subject + had + participle
- b) Subject + hadn't + participle
Contracted forms:
I'd... you'd... he'd... we'd + participle