When describing the time frame of an action, we use different verb tenses. Suppose you are conversing with someone and they ask what you have eaten during breakfast; what are you going to answer? Is it “I ate bread”, “I have eaten bread” or “I have been eating bread”?
Here, to describe the exact time frame of your action (eating breakfast), you will need correct verb tenses. When speaking or writing in English, we use a wide variety of tenses; however, the good news is that they are all grounded in a simple and consistent pattern.
This guide includes everything you need to know about the 12 verb tenses, along with examples that make it easy to understand exactly when and how they should be used.
What are Verb Tenses and Why They Matter
Verb tense plays a critical role in the English language, as it highlights the time frame of an action or event.
It answers the questions:
Has it already happened or is it happening? Did it occur or is it occurring? Has it occurred recently or is it finished?
In short, by the change in verb tenses in a sentence, you will be able to clarify yourself in front of others about the time. These verb tenses are not something you should ignore. A wrong tense changes the intended meaning of the sentence immediately.
For example, if a person says, “I lived in Texas for 8 years”, it clearly means that he or she is no longer living there. On the other hand, if the person says, “I have lived in Texas for 8 years,” it means that the person is still living there.
Notice that it is the same city and the same time duration, but a small change in the verb sentence has changed the entire story.
Verb tenses are subtle, but they change how confident you sound in everything you write or talk about, from writing an essay and filling in journals to conversing with others. Imagine you are writing an essay about your achievements in the past simple tense; it will give the impression that you are done with all of your achievements. However, using the perfect tense will suggest that the skills are current as well as growing.
The Three Time Frames: Past, Present and Future
Imagine the twelve different English tenses as a grid, instead of trying to learn them. Remember, there are three columns in this grid, which are past, present and future. Then, each column is separated into four “aspects” or ways of categorizing tenses. They are:
| Simple | Used to express general facts, habits, or single events. |
| Continuous | Used to describe an ongoing activity |
| Perfect | Describes an action completed at a certain point in time |
| Perfect Continuous | Highlights the duration of an activity |
By multiplying three time frames (past, present, future) by four aspects, you will get twelve English tenses. This is the main rule of forming tenses in the English language. Hence, learning each tense is learning the same pattern, simply applied to different periods of time.
Present Tenses: Simple, Continuous, Perfect, and Perfect Continuous
Present Simple Tense:
You can use the present simple tense to express actions like habits, facts, routines, and general truths.
- Formation: Base form of the verb (with +s/es for third person singular)
- Example: “She checks her e-mail everyday after logging in to the office.”
Present Continuous tense:
This tense is used to express actions that are ongoing at the moment or around the present time.
- Formation: am/is/are + present participle (verb+ -ing)
- Example: “He is checking the report before submission.”
Present Perfect tense:
It is used to refer to an action that happened in the past, but its effects are visible in the present. This is by far the most common tense confused by learners, mainly because it refers to both the past and the present time.
- Formation: have/has + past participle
- Example: “They have already given out the flood relief items.”
Present Perfect Continuous Tense:
This tense form is used to emphasize the continuity of an action, which either continues to be repeated in the present moment or has just finished.
- Formation: Have/has been _verb-ing
- Example: “I have been taking Spanish class for almost six months.”
Past Tenses: Simple, Continuous, Perfect and Perfect Continuous
Past Simple Tense:
This tense form describes an action that happened in the past and was completed at a specific time.
- Formation: Verb + ed (or its irregular past form)
- Example: “We visited the zoo last month.”
Past Continuous Tense:
It focuses on an action that was in progress at a specific time in the past and was interrupted by a different action, which is the reason why it is commonly used to set the scene.
- Formation: was/were + verb-ing
- Example: “She was studying for the maths exam when the power suddenly went off.”
Past Perfect Tense:
It describes an action that happened in the past before another past action.
- Formation: had + past participle
- Example: “By the time we arrived, the award ceremony had already started.”
Past Perfect Continuous Tense:
It describes an action that had been going on for some time before another action or event that occurred in the past.
- Formation: had been + verb – ing
- Example: “She had been working there for the last 10 years before the company closed.”
Future Tenses: Simple, Continuous, Perfect, and Perfect Continuous
Future Simple Tense:
It is used to express what will happen, a spontaneously decided future action, or prediction.
Formation: will + base form of a verb.
Example: “I will send an email as soon as the meeting ends.”
Future Continuous Tense:
It focuses on the action that will be in progress at a specific moment in the future.
Formation: will be + verb – ing
Example: “This time next month, we will be getting married.”
Future Perfect Tense:
It denotes an action that will be finished before a specific point in the future. Among the 12 different verb tenses, this is considered one of the trickiest to understand. By imagining a future moment, you can describe the action as though it has already happened.
Formation: will have + past participle
Example: “She will have completed her diploma by December.”
Future Perfect Continuous Tense:
This tense is concerned with actions that will have been continually happening up to a particular point in the future.
Formation: will have been + verb -ing
Example: “They will have been living in the rental place for 6 years by next month.”
Signal Words That Help You Choose the Right Tense
One of the easiest ways to determine the correct tense is to look out for signal words, which act as hints as to what tense needs to be used in the sentence. Sometimes indicators can help you with choosing positive, negative, or neutral statements as well.
Example of signal words:
- “Ago, yesterday, last week, in 2016”: these are some signal words indicating past simple tenses, which describe completed actions in the past.
- “Now, at the moment, right now, currently”: These words indicate actions that are happening now or around now, mainly the present continuous tense.
- “Already, just, since, yet, for, ever, never”: These words highlight the present perfect tense, indicating the duration or the starting point of an ongoing action. For example: Since 2019, or for the last three years.
- “By the time, before, after”: These are the signal words for a perfect tense, which describe an action completed at some point before another action.
- “By next month, next week, tomorrow, soon”: These signal words are for the future tense that indicates a deadline for completion of an action.
Memorizing signal words is one of the easiest and quickest ways to determine the tense needed.
Common Mistakes: Mixing Tenses in a Sentence
Even skilled writers tend to mix up verb tenses within one sentence or paragraph needlessly. This error usually occurs due to changing the tense unnecessarily and not indicating a clear shift in time.
For example:
Incorrect: He was walking to the park when he sees his best friend.
Correct: He was walking to the park when he saw his best friend.
Mixing past continuous and simple tense makes the sentence incorrect. It happens because there is no sufficient reason to change tenses as both actions relate to the same period of time – the past.
This type of error can also happen within paragraphs, rather than a single sentence.
For example: “Yesterday we met the doctor. We discuss about the treatment and agreed on the surgery date.”
The second sentence of the paragraph should be changed to “we discussed” because it refers to the time frame introduced in the first sentence, the day when the meeting took place. If time indicators such as ‘yesterday’, ‘last night’, ‘since then’, ‘from now on’, etc., are present in the paragraph, it is important to maintain the tense throughout the whole paragraph. The best way to check if it has been done correctly is to go through the paragraph’s verbs in order and see if they tell a consistent story. If yes, then everything is fine. If not, then check if the tense has been changed inappropriately.
Important: Try to maintain one tense within one paragraph; however, if you decide to change the tense, make sure it happens for a good reason. It is crucial to remember that mixing tenses can confuse a reader, as it may be unclear when exactly some action occurred. To avoid such confusion, it is important to double-check if the tense switch was necessary before submitting any written work.
In short, if the time frame within the sentence has not changed, tenses should not have to either.
Quick Reference: A Verb Tenses Chart With Examples
You can use this verb tense chart below as a reference table any time you need reminding. It has formation and examples for all 12 verb tenses right next to each other for fast comparison.
| Tense | Formation | Example |
| Present Simple | Verb (+s/es) | I check my work email daily. |
| Present Continuous | am/is/are + verb-ing | I am currently editing the video. |
| Present Perfect | have/has + past participle | They have completed the teamwork. |
| Present Perfect Continuous | have/has been + verb-ing | I have been taking dance lessons. |
| Past Simple | verb + ed / irregular | We visited the zoo earlier. |
| Past Continuous | was/were + verb-ing | She was singing. |
| Past Perfect | had + past participle | The competition had already started. |
| Past Perfect Continuous | had been + verb-ing | She had been cleaning there for a few months. |
| Future Simple | Will + verb | I will send a message tomorrow. |
| Future Continuous | will be + verb-ing | We will be travelling next month. |
| Future Perfect | will have + past participle | He will have completed it by May. |
| Future Perfect Continuous | will have been + verb-ing | They will have been living there for two years. |
Save this table. Every time you are confused about which of the above verb tense examples best fits your sentence, just match your timeline to the tense in this table.
Frequently Asked Questions About Verb Tenses
What are verb tenses?
Verb tenses are the different forms of a verb that indicate the time of the action, whether the action is completed or not, and whether it is happening now or habitual.
How many verb tenses are there in English?
There are twelve verb tenses in English. We get them by combining the three aspects of time, past, present, future, with the four aspects of verb tenses which are simple, continuous, perfect and perfect continuous.
What is the difference between the present perfect and simple past?
The simple past tense refers to actions that happened at a specific time in the past, but the present perfect tense refers to an action that occurred at an unspecified time in the past and continues up to the present. For example, the sentence “She visited Paris last year” uses the simple past tense. However, “She has been to Paris” uses the present perfect tense.
What are signal words in verb tenses?
Signal words in verb tenses are usually the words that indicate what tense needs to be used, such as yesterday for the simple past, already and yet for the present perfect, and by the time for the future perfect.
Why is it a mistake to mix tenses in a sentence?
It would be wrong to use mixed tenses because it is very confusing for the readers or listeners to understand what time frame you are talking about; therefore, you must maintain the same tense throughout the writing unless you mean something different.
What is the easiest way to remember all 12 verb tenses?
The easiest way to learn the 12 verb tenses is to classify them according to the three tense categories (past, present, future) and the four aspect categories (simple, continuous, perfect, and perfect continuous). Additionally, you can also remember their primary definitions and the signal words and phrases that indicate their use.
