What is Tense?
Tense means time. It shows when the action happens—now, before, or after. Different verb forms express different times.
Tense overview
- Present: Simple Present, Present Continuous, Present Perfect, Present Perfect Continuous
- Past: Simple Past, Past Continuous, Past Perfect, Past Perfect Continuous
- Future: Simple Future, Future Continuous, Future Perfect, Future Perfect Continuous, Going to
Present tense — usage
Daily actions, habits, facts, scheduled events, instructions.
I wake up early. (daily actions)
The sun rises in the east. (facts)
The Rajdhani Express leaves at 8 am. (scheduled events)
Simple present
Positive: Subject + verb + object (He/She/It: verb + s)
Negative: Subject + do/does not + base verb
Question: Do/Does + Subject + base verb + object?
I play cricket. He plays cricket. Do they eat rice? She does not play.
Present continuous
Action happening now, temporary situations, fixed future plans.
Formula: Subject + am/is/are + verb+ing
I am eating. She is cooking. They are playing. (Negative: am/is/are + not + verb+ing)
Present perfect
Connects past and present; action occurred earlier, result evident now.
Formula: have/has + past participle
I have eaten. She has finished work. Have they arrived? (Negative: have/has + not + past participle)
Present perfect continuous
Action started in the past and still continuing; focus on duration.
Formula: have/has + been + verb+ing
I have been working. She has been studying. Have they been waiting?
Past tense
Simple past
Action happened before now, completely finished.
Positive: Subject + verb (past form). Negative: did not + base verb. Question: Did + subject + base verb?
I ate rice. He worked yesterday. Did she watch TV? They did not go.
Past continuous
was/were + verb+ing — action in progress at a specific time in the past.
I was reading. They were playing. Was he sleeping?
Past perfect
had + past participle — action completed before another past action.
I had eaten. She had finished work. Had they left?
Past perfect continuous
had + been + verb+ing — long action before another past action.
I had been working. She had been studying.
Future tense
Simple future
will + base verb — promises, predictions, future facts.
I will eat rice. She will come tomorrow. Will they help? (Negative: will not / won't)
Going to
am/is/are + going to + base verb — plans and intentions already decided.
I am going to eat rice. She is going to study tonight. Are they going to travel?
Future continuous
will + be + verb+ing — action in progress at a specific future time.
I will be working tomorrow. Will she be cooking?
Future perfect
will + have + past participle — action finished before a specific future time.
They will have arrived by 6 p.m. Will he have completed the task?
Future perfect continuous
will + have + been + verb+ing — long action continuing until a future time.
I will have been working for five hours. Will they have been waiting long?
Recap
- ✓ Tense shows time — Present (now), Past (before), Future (later)
- ✓ Simple — regular actions
- ✓ Continuous — action in progress
- ✓ Perfect — finished action (with relevance)
- ✓ Perfect continuous — long action with duration
- ✓ Practice makes tenses easy.
Practice — Answers from the video
Present simple tense
She ___ (play) piano. He ___ (work) every day. Do they ___ (eat) rice? Does she ___ (like) coffee?
1. She plays piano. — Third-person singular: verb + 's'.
2. He works every day. — Same rule.
3. Do they eat rice? — After Do/Does use base verb.
4. Does she like coffee? — After Does use base form.
Present continuous tense
She is ___ (cook). They are not ___ (play). Is he ___ (sleep)?
1. She is cooking. — am/is/are + verb-ing.
2. They are not playing. — am/is/are + not + verb-ing.
3. Is he sleeping? — am/is/are + subject + verb-ing.
Present perfect tense
She has ___ (finish) work. They have not ___ (come). Has he ___ (call) you?
1. She has finished work. — have/has + past participle.
2. They have not come. — 'come' past participle is 'come' (irregular).
3. Has he called you? — have/has + subject + past participle.
Present perfect continuous tense
She has been ___ (study). They have not been ___ (wait). Has he been ___ (work) here long?
1. She has been studying. — have/has + been + verb-ing.
2. They have not been waiting. — have/has + not + been + verb-ing.
3. Has he been working here long? — have/has + subject + been + verb-ing.
Simple past tense
She ___ (go) home. They did not ___ (play). Did he ___ (work) yesterday?
1. She went home. — Past form of 'go' is 'went'.
2. They did not play. — After 'did not' use base verb.
3. Did he work yesterday? — After 'Did' use base verb.
Past continuous tense
She was ___ (cook). They were ___ (run). Was he ___ (sleep) at that time?
1. She was cooking. — was/were + verb-ing.
2. They were running. — 'run' → 'running' (double n).
3. Was he sleeping at that time? — was/were + subject + verb-ing.
Past perfect tense
She had ___ (finish). They had not ___ (leave). Had he ___ (complete) the work?
1. She had finished. — had + past participle.
2. They had not left. — Past participle of 'leave' is 'left'.
3. Had he completed the work? — had + subject + past participle.
Past perfect continuous tense
They had been ___ (wait). She had not been ___ (study). Had he been ___ (work) there long?
1. They had been waiting. — had + been + verb-ing.
2. She had not been studying. — had + not + been + verb-ing.
3. Had he been working there long? — had + subject + been + verb-ing.
Simple future tense
She ___ (call) you later. They will not ___ (come). Will he ___ (help) you?
1. She will call you later. — will + base verb.
2. They will not come. — will + not + base verb.
3. Will he help you? — will + subject + base verb.
Future continuous tense
She will be ___ (study). They will not be ___ (wait). Will he be ___ (work)?
1. She will be studying. — will + be + verb-ing.
2. They will not be waiting. — will + not + be + verb-ing.
3. Will he be working? — will + subject + be + verb-ing.
Going to future
She is going to ___ (play). They are not going to ___ (come). Is he going to ___ (call)?
1. She is going to play. — am/is/are + going to + base verb.
2. They are not going to come. — am/is/are + not + going to + base verb.
3. Is he going to call? — am/is/are + subject + going to + base verb.
Future perfect tense
She will have ___ (finish) work. They will not have ___ (arrive). Will he have ___ (complete) the task?
1. She will have finished work. — will + have + past participle.
2. They will not have arrived. — will + not + have + past participle.
3. Will he have completed the task? — will + subject + have + past participle.
Future perfect continuous tense
They will have been ___ (wait). She will not have been ___ (study). Will he have been ___ (work) here long?
1. They will have been waiting. — will + have + been + verb-ing.
2. She will not have been studying. — will + not + have + been + verb-ing.
3. Will he have been working here long? — will + subject + have + been + verb-ing.