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Foundations
The verb system
Describing and connecting
- 09 Adjectives and adverbs
- 10 Prepositions
- 11 Conjunctions
- 12 Building longer sentences
- 13 Punctuation and capital letters
Words and sounds
Practice and progress
05Core
The twelve tenses
There are not twelve separate things to learn. There are three times (present, past and future) and four ways of looking at each one. Three multiplied by four is twelve. Read the map, then take one tense a day.
The map
SimpleContinuousPerfectPerfect ContinuousPresentPresent Simple
V1 / V5Present Continuousam / is / are + V-ingPresent Perfecthave / has + V3Present Perfect Continuoushave / has been + V-ingPastPast SimpleV2Past Continuouswas / were + V-ingPast Perfecthad + V3Past Perfect Continuoushad been + V-ingFutureFuture Simplewill + V1Future Continuouswill be + V-ingFuture Perfectwill have + V3Future Perfect Continuouswill have been + V-ingHow to read the map. Simple = the action as a whole fact. Continuous = the action in the middle of happening. Perfect = the action finished before a point in time. Perfect Continuous = how long it had been going on up to that point. The colour on the left of each card tells you which time it belongs to. Click any one to open its page.
The master table
Print this page and keep it beside you. Each tense then has its own page with the uses, the signal words, five examples with Urdu, and the mistake almost everyone makes.
| Tense | Positive | Negative | Question | Example | Urdu marker |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present Simple | Subject + V1 (+ s/es with he / she / it) | Subject + do not / does not + V1 | Do / Does + subject + V1 ? | I go to college every day. | ‑تا ہوں / ‑تی ہے / ‑تے ہیں |
| Present Continuous | Subject + am / is / are + V-ing | Subject + am / is / are + not + V-ing | Am / Is / Are + subject + V-ing ? | I am reading an English book. | ‑رہا ہوں / ‑رہی ہے / ‑رہے ہیں |
| Present Perfect | Subject + have / has + V3 | Subject + have / has + not + V3 | Have / Has + subject + V3 ? | I have finished my homework. | ‑چکا ہوں / ‑چکی ہے (وقت نہ بتایا جائے) |
| Present Perfect Continuous | Subject + have / has + been + V-ing | Subject + have / has + not + been + V-ing | Have / Has + subject + been + V-ing ? | I have been studying since seven o'clock. | ‑سے ‑رہا ہوں (کام جاری ہے) |
| Past Simple | Subject + V2 | Subject + did not + V1 | Did + subject + V1 ? | I visited my uncle last week. | ‑ا / ‑ی / ‑ے (کام ختم ہو گیا) |
| Past Continuous | Subject + was / were + V-ing | Subject + was / were + not + V-ing | Was / Were + subject + V-ing ? | I was watching television at nine o'clock. | ‑رہا تھا / ‑رہی تھی / ‑رہے تھے |
| Past Perfect | Subject + had + V3 | Subject + had + not + V3 | Had + subject + V3 ? | The train had left before we reached the station. | ‑چکا تھا / ‑چکی تھی |
| Past Perfect Continuous | Subject + had + been + V-ing | Subject + had + not + been + V-ing | Had + subject + been + V-ing ? | He had been driving for six hours before he stopped. | ‑سے ‑رہا تھا |
| Future Simple | Subject + will + V1 | Subject + will not (won't) + V1 | Will + subject + V1 ? | I will call you tomorrow morning. | ‑گا / ‑گی / ‑گے |
| Future Continuous | Subject + will be + V-ing | Subject + will not be + V-ing | Will + subject + be + V-ing ? | I will be studying at nine tonight. | ‑رہا ہوں گا / ‑رہی ہوگی |
| Future Perfect | Subject + will have + V3 | Subject + will not have + V3 | Will + subject + have + V3 ? | I will have completed the course by June. | ‑چکا ہوں گا / ‑چکی ہوگی |
| Future Perfect Continuous | Subject + will have been + V-ing | Subject + will not have been + V-ing | Will + subject + have been + V-ing ? | By next month I will have been working here for two years. | ‑سے ‑رہا ہوں گا |
A page for each tense
- 01Present SimpleA habit, a routine, a fact that stays true.
- 02Present ContinuousAn action happening right now, or around this period of your life.
- 03Present PerfectA finished action, but the exact time is not important. The result matters now.
- 04Present Perfect ContinuousAn action that started earlier and is still going on, and the length of time matters.
- 05Past SimpleA finished action at a finished time in the past.
- 06Past ContinuousAn action that was in progress at a moment in the past.
- 07Past PerfectThe earlier of two past actions: the past before the past.
- 08Past Perfect ContinuousAn action that had been going on for a while before another past moment.
- 09Future SimpleA decision, a promise, a prediction about the future.
- 10Future ContinuousAn action that will be in progress at a moment in the future.
- 11Future PerfectAn action that will be finished before a future deadline.
- 12Future Perfect ContinuousHow long an action will have been going on by a future point.
Check yourself
Name the tense, or put the verb in the right form.
- She ___ (study) English every evening.
Show the answer
studies: present simple
- Listen! The baby ___ (cry).
Show the answer
is crying: present continuous
- I ___ (not / see) him since Monday.
Show the answer
have not seen: present perfect with since
- We ___ (wait) here for two hours.
Show the answer
have been waiting: present perfect continuous
- He ___ (leave) before I ___ (arrive).
Show the answer
had left … arrived: the earlier action takes the past perfect
- At eight last night I ___ (watch) the news.
Show the answer
was watching: past continuous
- By June I ___ (complete) the course.
Show the answer
will have completed: future perfect, because of by
- Name the tense: They will be travelling next week.
Show the answer
Future continuous
- Fix: I have seen him yesterday.
Show the answer
I saw him yesterday. A stated past time takes the past simple.
- Fix: I am knowing the answer.
Show the answer
I know the answer. Know is a state verb.