this is a review of the English tenses. The table is provided to help recall the form and use of the different English tenses studied in previous lessons.

Simple Present
Affirmative	She drinks.
Negative	She does not drink.
Interrogative	Does she drink?
Form	I, you we they play | he, she, it plays
Uses	action in the present taking place once, never or several times facts actions taking place one after another action set by a timetable or schedule

Present Progressive
Affirmative	He is reading.
Negative	He is not reading.
Interrogative	Is he reading?
Form	To be (in the simple present) + verb + ing
Uses	action taking place at the moment of speaking action arranged for the future

Simple Past
Affirmative	I cried.
Negative	I did not cry
Interrogative	Did I cry?
Form	Regular verbs: Verb + ed | Irregular verbs: forms differ and should be learned by heart. This is a list of irregular verbs
Uses	action in the past taking place once, never or several times actions taking place one after another

Past Progressive
Affirmative	He was driving.
Negative	He was not driving.
Interrogative	Was he driving?
Form	to be (in the simple past) + verb + ing
Uses	action going on at a certain time in the past actions taking place at the same time action in the past that is interrupted by another action

Present Perfect Simple
Affirmative	They have slept.
Negative	They have not slept.
Interrogative	Have they slept?
Form	Have / has + past participle (past participle of regular verbs: verb + ed | Past participle of irregular verbs: forms differ and should be learned by heart. This is a list of irregular verbs)
Uses	emphasis is on the result (not the duration) action that started in the past & is still going on action that stopped recently finished action that has an influence on the present

Present Perfect Progressive
Affirmative	He has been thinking.
Negative	He has not been thinking.
Interrogative	Has he been thinking?
Form	have or has + been + verb + ing
Uses	putting emphasis on the course or duration (not the result) action that recently stopped or is still going on finished action that influenced the present

Past Perfect Simple
Affirmative	She had won.
Negative	She had not won.
Interrogative	Had she won?
Form	had + past participle (past participle of regular verbs: verb + ed | Past participle of irregular verbs: forms differ and should be learned by heart. This is a list of irregular verbs)
Uses	action taking place before a certain time in the past sometimes interchangeable with past perfect progressive putting emphasis only on the fact (not the duration)

Past Perfect Progressive
Affirmative	He had been waiting.
Negative	He had not been waiting.
Interrogative	Had he been waiting?
Form	had + been + verb + ing
Uses	action taking place before a certain time in the past sometimes interchangeable with past perfect simple putting emphasis on the duration or course of an action

Future Simple
Affirmative	You will win.
Negative	You will not win.
Interrogative	Will you win?
Form	will + verb
Uses	action in the future that cannot be influenced spontaneous decision assumption with regard to the future

Near Future (going to)
Affirmative	He is going to watch TV.
Negative	He is not going to watch TV.
Interrogative	Is he going to watch TV?
Form	to be (in the simple present) + going + to + verb
Uses	decision made for the future conclusion with regard to the future

Future  Progressive
Affirmative	She will be listening to music.
Negative	She will not be listening to music.
Interrogative	Will she be listening to music?
Form	will + be + verb + ing
Uses	action that is going on at a certain time in the future action that is sure to happen in the near future

Future Perfect
Affirmative	He will have spoken.
Negative	He will not have spoken.
Interrogative	Will he have spoken?
Form	will + have + past participle (past participle of regular verbs: verb + ed | Past participle of irregular verbs: forms differ and should be learned by heart. This is a list of irregular verbs)
Uses	action that will be finished at a certain time in the future

Future Perfect Progressive
Affirmative	You will have been studying.
Negative	You will not have been studying.
Interrogative	Will you have been studying?
Form	will + have + been + verb + ing
Uses	action taking place before a certain time in the future putting emphasis on the course of an action

THE SIMPLE PRESENT OF THE VERB TO BE

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The simple present of the verb to be

This page will present the simple present of the verb to be:

• its form
• and its use

The verb to be

The verb to be is the most important verb in the English language.  It is difficult to use because it is an irregular verb in almost all of its forms.  In the simple present tense, to be is conjugated as follows:

Affirmative forms of the verb to be

Subject Pronouns	Full Form	Contracted Form
I	am	'm
you	are	're
he/she/it	is	's
we	are	're
you	are	're
they	are	're

Interrogative forms of the verb to be:

Am	I?
Are	you?
Is	he/she/it?
Are	we?
Are	you?
Are	they?

Negative Forms of the verb to be:

Subject Pronouns	Full Form	Contracted Form
I	am not	'm not
you	are not	aren't
he/she/it	is not	isn't
we	are not	aren't
you	are not	aren't
they	are not	aren't

Examples:

• Is Brad Pitt French?
• No, he isn't. He's American.
• What about Angelina Joli? Is she American, too?
• Yes, she is. She is American.
• Are brad Pitt and Angelina Joli French?
• No, They aren't. They are American.

Remember:

• I, you, he, she, it, you, they are subject pronouns (also called subject pronouns.)
• am, are, is are forms of the verb to be in the simple present.
• 'm, 're, 's are short (contracted) forms of  am, are, is
• 'm not, aren't, isn't are short (contracted forms) of am not, are not, is not
• Use the simple present tense to indicate:
1. Routine actions, habits
2. Facts

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THE SIMPLE PRESENT

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The simple present tense

This page will present the simple present tense:

• its form
• and its use.

Before you continue the lesson read the following passage and try to see how the verbs are formed and used.

James is a taxi driver. He drives a taxi. But on Sundays he doesn't drive his taxi. Hestays at home. The verb be, drive, stay are in the simple present. (more on the simple present of the verb to be)

The forms of the simple present

The affirmative form of the simple present:

I, you, we, they	play.
He, she, it	plays.

Remember the verbs in the third person singular (he,she and it) always take an "s". For example, "he plays, she sings,it works..."
Examples:

• Nancy and James speak good German.
• Nancy works in a restaurant downtown.
• The children play in the garden every weekend.

The interrogative form of the simple present:

Do	I, you, we, they	play?
Does	he, she, it

Examples:

• Do you speak good German?
• Does Nancy work in a restaurant downtown?

The negative form of the simple present:

I, you, we,they	do not	play.
	don't
He, she, it	does not
	doesn't

Examples:

• No, I don't speak German.
• No, she doesn't work in a restaurant downtown

The use of the simple present:

The simple present is used:

• to give your opinion - I like ice cream. I don't like spicy food.
• to talk about schedules - The library opens at eight. It doesn't open at 7.
• to talk about daily habits (routine actions)- Sara eats a cheese for breakfast every day. Shedoesn't eat cereal.
• to give facts - The earth circles the sun. The moon doesn't circle the sun.

The spelling of the third person singular form of the simple present:

All the verbs take an "s" in the simple present when conjugated in the third person singular (he, she, it) form:

Examples:

• I visit my parents every summer holiday. But my wife visits her parents every weekend.
• My brother meets his girlfriend everyday.

So the rule is:

He / she / it + Verb + S

There are however some special cases. Here are the spelling rules:

Silent e	Vowel + y	Consonant + y	Verbs ending ino	Verbs ending in s, z, sh, tch,ch
close = closes note = notes	play = plays say = says	study = studies marry = marries	go = goes do = does	miss = misses buzz = buzzes hatch = hatches finish = finishes teach = teaches

Examples:

• She drives to work every morning.
• He says he plays football on the weekends

Exception:

• The verb to have changes its forms as follows:
  I have two sisters and two brothers. But she has one sister and two brothers.
  I have = he / she / it has

Things to remember about the simple present:

1.In the interrogative forms, we use "do" or "does".

• "Do you like the house?"
• "Does she go to school?"

2; Verbs never take an "s" in the the negative and interrogative forms.

• "Does he speak German?"
• "Do they play soccer?"
• She doesn't like ice cream.

3. don't is the short form of "do not". You can say either:

• I do not speak Italian, or
• I don't speak Italian.

4.doesn't is the short form of "does not". you can say either:

• He does not listen to jazz music, or
• He doesn't listen to jazz music.

THE PRESENT CONTINUOUS / PROGRESSIVE

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John is in his car. He is in his way to work. He is driving to work This means he is driving now: “at the time of speaking” This is the present continuous.

The past continuous (progressive) tense

This page will present the present continuous:

• its form
• and its use.

You may also be interested by the past continuous

The form of the present continuous tense

The verb to be (in the simple present)	verb + ing

The affirmative forms of the present continuous:

I	am	eating.
	’m
You, we, they	are
	’re
He, she, it	is
	's

The interrogative forms of the present continuous

Am	I	eating?
Are	you, we, they
Is	he, she, it

The negative forms of the present continuous

I	am not	eating.
	’m not
You, we, they	are not
	aren't
He, she, it	is not
	isn't

The use of the present continuous tense

• The present continuous is used to talk about actions happening at the time of speaking.Example:
  
  • Where is Mary? She is having a bath. (Not she has a bath)
  • What are you doing at the moment in front of your screen? Don't you know? Well … you are reading this lesson. You are learning English.
• The present continuous can also be used when an action has started but hasn’t finished yet.

  Example:
  

  • I am reading a book; it’s a nice book. (It means = I am not necessarily reading it; I started reading it but I haven’t finished it yet

Special verbs

There are verbs which are normally not used in the present continuous.

Examples:

be, believe, belong, hate, hear, like, love, mean, prefer, remain, realize, see, seem, smell, think, understand, want, wish
It's not correct to say:

He is wanting to buy a new car.*

You must say:

He wants to buy a new car.

SPELLING OF THE -ED FORMS

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The spelling of the simple past form (-ed forms)

You will learn the spelling of the simple past form (-ed form.) But before you continue the lesson study the following examples and try to see how the verbs are spelled.

Verbs ending in a...
1. silent e	2. vowel + y	3. consonant + y	4. other forms
close = closed  die = died  phone = phoned	play = played  destroy = destroyed show = showed	marry = married carry = carried study = studied	visit = visited miss = missed watch = watched finish = finished fix = fixed  buzz = buzzed

The rules of the simple past tense forms:

Here are the rules:

1. Regular verbs ending in a silent e take /-d/ in the simple past and past participle:
   Example:
   close=closed
2. Regular verbs ending in a vowel + y take /-ed/ in the simple past and past participle:
   Example:
   play=played
3. Regular verbs ending in a consonant + y take /-ied/ in the simple past and past participle (the ybecomes an i followed by /-ed/)
   Example:
   marry=married
4. All the other regular vebs take /-ed/ in the simple past and past participle.
   Example:
   visit=visited

Special cases of the -ed forms:

Follow these rules when there is a consonant after a vowel (stop, ban, open, offer...)

• If there is a consonant after a stressed vowel at the end of the word, double the consonant
  stop – stoppedban - banned 
  swap - swapped
• If the vowel is not stressed, we do not double it:
  open - opened (Here the stress is on'o', not the 'e'.)
  offer - offered ( Here the stress is on 'o', not the 'e'.)

In British English we double the last l even though the last vowel is not stressed. Here are some examples:

• travel - travelled
• cancel - cancelled
• level - levelled
• marvel - marvelled

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THE PAST CONTINUOUS / PROGRESSIVE

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The past continuous:

The past continuous, also called past progressive, is used to refer to an action that was continuous (i.e. an action that was going on) at a particular time in the past.
This page will present the form and the use of the past continuous (progressive.)
(More on the present continuous / progressive)
Before you continue the lesson, read the following passage and try to see how the verbs in bold are formed and used.

Yesterday, Liza and Jim played tennis. They began at 10:00 and finished at 11:30. So at 11:00, they were playing tennis. They were playing="they were in the middle of playing." They had not finished yet. Was/were playing is the past continuous.

The form of the past continuous:

The past continuous is formed as follows:

to be in the simple past	+ verb	+ ing

The affirmative form:

I, he, she, it	was	playing.
you, we, they	were

Examples:

• Yesterday evening I was watching a film, when someone knocked on the door.
• This morning I was revising my lessons when my father came in.
• Jim and Liza were playing tennis yesterday at 11:00.

The interrogative form:

Was	I, he, she, it	Playing?
were	you, we, they

Examples:

• What were you doing yesterday evening?
• And what was your mother doing?
• Where were you going, this morning at 7:30?
• What were Jim and Liza doing?

The negative form:

I, he, she, it	was not / wasn't	playing.
you, we, they	were not / weren't

Examples:

• I wasn't reading a book yesterday evening; I was watching a film.
• My mother wasn't preparing dinner; she was working on the computer.
• We weren't playing cards.

The use of the past continuous:

• We use the past continuous to say that somebody was in the middle of doing something at a certain time in the past.
  Example:
  "This time yesterday, I was doing my homework."
• We use the past continuous to say that something happened in the middle of something else:
  Example:
  "Bob burnt his hand when he was cooking dinner yesterday"
   "While I was working in the garden, I hurt my back."

Remember:

• "Wasn't playing" and "weren't playing" are the short forms of "was not playing" and "were not playing"

Exercises on the past continuous.

GOING TO AND PRESENT CONTINUOUS

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Future plan

In addition to the simple future we can talk about future events by using either:

• the present continuous, or
• to be (in the simple present) + going to +verb.

These two forms are used to talk about future plans. There are, however, some differences between the two forms.

1. The present continuous for future plans:

The present continuous is used when we say what we have planned and arranged to do at a specific time in the future. These are fixed plans with definite time and/or place.
Examples:

• I'm doing my homework this evening.
• I'm starting university in September.
• Sally is meeting John at seven o'clock this evening in a restaurant downtown.

2. To be + going to + verb:

A. We use 'going to' to express the future when we intend to do something or have decided to do something but did not arrange it. It is just an intention.
Example:

• A: The windows are dirty.
  B: Yes I know. I'm going to clean them later.
   = I've decided to clean them ,but I haven't arranged to clean them.

B. We also use 'going to' to make predictions.

• Watch out! you are going to break the glass.
• It's so cloudy! I think it's going to rain.

FUTURE PROGRESSIVE

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Form of the future progressive

The future progressive tense is formed by adding will be to the ing form (gerund form) of the main verb.

will	be	verb+ing

Affirmative:

I will/'ll be watching TV.

Negative

I will not/won't be watching a football match.

Interrogative

Will you be watching TV?

NOTE:

will be watching = 'll be watching
will not be watching = won't be watching

Use of the future progressive

Future progressive tense is used to indicate action which will be taking place at some time in the future.
Examples:
I will be watching a football match next Sunday afternoon.
We'll be working on our project this morning..
When you arrive, I'll be sleeping .
I will be leaving in a few minutes.
We will be working tomorrow morning.

Exercises on the future continuous/progressive.

PRESENT PERFECT SIMPLE

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The present perfect tense:

This page will present the present perfect simple:

• its form
• and its use.

You may also be interested in the present perfect continuous

The form of the present perfect simple tense:

Have (in the simple present) + Verb (in the past participle form)

Positive	Negative	Interrogative
I have worked.	I have not worked.	Have you worked?

NOTE:

I have worked = I've worked He has worked = He's worked

I have not = I haven't worked He has not = He hasn’t worked

Examples:

• Have you finished the job?
• No, I haven't finished yet.
• Yes, I have already finished.
• She's just finished her job.

Remember:

1. The past participle of regular verbs is :
   
   

   Rule	Examples
   Verb + ed	play - played visit - visited finish -finished

2. The past participle of irregular verbs can't be predicted (there is no rule .) But there is a list of irregular verbs that you have to learn by heart. Here are some examples:
   
   

   Infinitive	Simple past	Past participle
   be come go do meet	was/were came went did met	been come gone done met

The uses of the present perfect simple tense:

1. To emphasize on the result of a past action without mentioning the actual time when it happened:
Examples:

•  I have met that girl before.
• We have discussed this issue a few times.

2. Action performed in a period that has not finished yet (the same day, week, month, etc.):
Examples:

•  Have you seen Lacy today? (The day is not over yet.)
•  I have had several tests this month. (The month has not finished yet.)

3. Action that started in the past and has continued until now. Often used with since (indicating the beginning of action) or for (indicating the duration of action):
Examples:

• They have lived here for ten years.
•  I have not seen her since we left high school.
• Clare and John have known each other since they were at primary school.

4. It is used to indicate completed activities in the immediate past (with just).
Example:

•  " He has just taken the medicine."

Present perfect vs past simple tense:

The use of past simple instead of present perfect requires clear reference to a past period/moment:

Present perfect	Simple past
I have met that girl before	I met that girl at the beach last Saturday.
Have you seen Nancy recently?	Did you see Nancy yesterday?
We have discussed this issue a few times.	We discussed this issue last month.
I have had some tests this week.	I had some tests last week.

PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS

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Present perfect continuous

This page will present the present perfect continuous tense:

• its form
• and its use

You may also be interested in the present perfect simple.

The form of the present perfect continuous:

Have (in the simple present)	been	verb + ing

Affirmative	Negative	Interrogative
I have been working.	I have not been working.	Have you been working?

Note:

I have been driving = I've been driving I have not been driving = I haven't been driving

He has been sleeping = He's been sleeping He has not been sleeping = He hasn't been sleeping

Examples:

• I have been studying English for two years.
• Have you been studying English for two years?
• She's been revising her lessons.
• She hasn't been hanging around with her friends.

The use of the present perfect continuous:

1. We use the Present Perfect Continuous to show that something started in the past and has continued up until now indicating a duration. "For an hour", for two weeks", etc ...are used to indicate duration.

Examples:

• They have been watching TV for the last three hour.
• She has been studying at that institution for three years.
• What have you been doing for the last 30 minutes

2. The present perfect continuous is also used without indication of duration. This use indicates an action that has occurred "lately" or "recently".

Examples:

• I have been feeling really tired, recently.
• She has been smoking too much lately.

PAST PERFECT SIMPLE

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Past perfect tense

Form of the past perfect simple:

Had	Past Participle Form

Affirmative	Negative	Interrogative
I had worked.	I had not worked.	had I worked?
You had worked.	You had not worked.	had you worked?

NOTE:

I had not worked = I hadn't worked
I had worked = I'd worked

Use of the past perfect simple:

Use the past perfect tense to show an action that was completed prior to another action that took place in the past.
Examples:

•  "President Lincoln had attended the theater regularly before his assassination."
•  "They had had lunch when I arrived."

PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS (PROGRESSIVE)

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Past perfect continuous tense

Form of the past perfect continuous:

had	been	verb +ing

Affirmative	Negative	Interrogative
I had been working.	I had not been working.	Had I been working?
You had been working.	You had not been working.	Had you been working?

Examples:

• You had been waiting there for more than two hours when she finally arrived.
• Had you been waiting there for more than two hours when she finally arrived?
• You had not been waiting there for more than two hours when she finally arrive.

Use of the past perfect continuous:

1. We use the past perfect continuous to show that something started in the past and continued up until another action stopped it.

Example:

• We had been playing soccer when the accident occurred

2. We use the past perfect continuous to show that something started in the past and continued up until another time in the past. "For five minutes" and "for two weeks" are both durations which can be used with the Past Perfect Continuous.

Example:

• I had been living in that small town for three years before I moved to New York.

3. We use the Past Perfect Continuous before another action in the past to show cause and effect.

Example:

• I was so tired. I had been revising my lessons for hours.

FUTURE PERFECT SIMPLE

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Future perfect simple

Form of the future perfect simple:

will	have	past participle

Affirmative	Negative	Interrogative
I will / 'll have finished.	I will not / won't have finished.	will you have finished?

NOTE:

I will have finished = I'll have finished

I will not have finished = I won't have finished

Examples:

• I will have finished my English homework by the time my mother arrives.
• Will you have finished your English homework by the time your mother arrives?

Use of the simple future simple:

The Future Perfect shows that something will occur before:

1. another action occurs in the future
2. or before a specific time in the future.

Examples:

• By the end of this weekend, I will have revised my lessons.
• By the time her husband arrives home, she will have prepared dinner.
• I won't have finished this task by the end of June

FUTURE PERFECT CONTINUOUS (PROGRESSIVE)

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Future Perfect Continuous:

Form of the simple future continuous:

will	have	been	verb+ing

Affirmative	Negative	Interrogative
I will have been teaching.	I will not/won't have been teaching.	will you have been teaching?

NOTE:

I will have been teaching = I'll have been teaching

I will not have been teaching = I won't have been teaching

Examples:

• I will have been teaching for more than 35 years when I retire.
• Will you have been teaching for more than 35 years when you retire?

Use of the future perfect continuous:

It is used to show that an action will continue up until a particular event or time in the future. "For five minutes," and "for two weeks," are all durations which can be used with the Future Perfect Continuous.

Examples:

• She will have been working for over 8 hours by the time her children arrive. .
• He will have been studying English for three years next month.