English
Tenses
English tense is the combination of two dimensions: time (past, present, future) × aspect (simple, progressive, perfect, perfect progressive), which gives 16 cells in theory. I used to treat a common claim as a rule: English verbs have no morphological future — the will in will do is a modal, be going to is a phrase, so futurity is expressed with lexical means. Below is the full 16-cell picture first, then the nine tenses that carry the actual load; the key sentence of each tense reads aloud on tap.
The 16-cell picture
| Time \ Aspect | Simple | Progressive | Perfect | Perfect progressive |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present | do / does | am / is / are doing | have / has done | have / has been doing |
| Past | did | was / were doing | had done | had been doing |
| Future | will do | will be doing | will have done | will have been doing |
| Past future | would do | would be doing | would have done | would have been doing |
Do not spread yourself evenly across all 16. Everyday use and the exam concentrate on simple present, present progressive, simple past, past progressive, present perfect, past perfect, simple future, present perfect progressive and past future; you only need to recognize the other seven. The "past future" row mostly shows up in reported speech and narration (see below).
The nine tenses that matter
Simple present
Structure: do / does (third person +s)
- Habit and routine:
- Objective truth: Water boils at 100 degrees.
- Schedules and fixed arrangements (a future stated as settled by a timetable):
Common errors: dropping the third-person s; stative verbs (know, belong, love, want) are not used progressively — I am knowing is wrong.
Present progressive
Structure: am / is / are + doing
- Happening right now:
- An ongoing stretch of time (not necessarily this instant): I am writing a book these days.
- With always, an emotional charge of complaint or praise:
Simple past
Structure: did (regular verbs +ed)
- An action that happened in the past and is cut off from the present: I saw him yesterday.
- Often paired with explicit past-time adverbials: last year, in 2010, two days ago. That is the root of its exclusivity with the present perfect.
Past progressive
Structure: was / were + doing
- A background action in progress at a past moment: (read sets the background, ring is the interrupting event)
- Two parallel backgrounds joined by while: While she was cooking, he was setting the table.
Present perfect
Structure: have / has + done
The core idea is "something in the past leaves a result or a connection with now", so it speaks to the present and never appears in the same sentence as an explicit past time point:
- Result in the present: I have lost my keys. (I still have not found them.)
- Continuing to the present: We have lived here for ten years. (We still live here.)
- Experience (the list of a life so far): She has been to Japan twice.
Markers: already, yet, just, ever, never, since, for, so far, recently. The number one error: it cannot be combined with an explicit past time point — I have seen him yesterday is wrong. Say either I saw him yesterday or I have seen him recently. The rule of thumb: if the sentence names a specific past time, use the simple past; if it names none and stresses a connection to now, use the present perfect.
Past perfect
Structure: had + done
"The past of the past" — looking back from a past moment at something earlier:
- (arrival is past, the start is earlier)
- Setting the scene in narrative: She told me she had finished the report.
- The inverted hardly … when / no sooner … than construction: Hardly had he sat down when the phone rang.
It does not stand alone: the past perfect needs a past reference point. Without one, use the simple past.
Simple future (five ways to say it)
| Form | Emphasis | Example |
|---|---|---|
| will do | spontaneous decisions, predictions, promises | |
| be going to do | prior intention, a prediction with visible signs | Look at those clouds. It is going to rain. |
| present progressive | an arrangement already fixed | We are meeting the clients at ten. |
| simple present | timetables (see above) | The plane takes off at six. |
| be about to do | imminent | Hurry up! The show is about to start. |
How will and be going to divide up the work: an empty glass on the table prompts I will get some water (a decision made on the spot); We are going to move next month (decided in advance).
Past future
Structure: would do / was going to do
Speaking of "later" from inside the past: the one-step backshift in reported speech (He said he would come), and "future that did not happen" in narrative: I was going to call you, but I forgot (I intended to, but did not).
Present perfect progressive
Structure: have / has been + doing
An action that began at a point in the past and runs to the moment of speaking (and usually keeps running), carrying the "strain and quantity" of the process itself:
- (two hours of waiting, and still waiting)
- Contrast with the result-reading of the present perfect: vs
Three high-frequency contrasts
Simple past vs present perfect — it is a fight between "cut off" and "connected":
| Simple past | Present perfect | |
|---|---|---|
| Timeline | a past point, the door is shut | happened in the past, the line runs to now |
| Typical adverbials | yesterday, in 2010, ago | already, yet, since, for |
| Example | I lost my keys yesterday. | I have lost my keys. (still can't find them) |
have been to vs have gone to: He has been to Paris (went and came back); He has gone to Paris (went and is not back yet). One is experience, the other is whereabouts.
when vs while: the action in a when-clause can be long, short or instantaneous (I was reading when he called); while takes a durative action, usually with the progressive (While she was cooking, …), and can also express contrast (I like tea while he likes coffee).
Main future, subordinate present
In adverbial clauses of time (when, once, until, as soon as), condition (if, unless) and concession (even if), the simple present stands in for the future, which is what lets the main clause use will:
- (not as soon as I will arrive)
- Unless it rains, the match will go on.
Know the three common exceptions: if expressing willingness — If you will follow me, please (a request); whether … or not can take will — I don't know whether it will rain or not (that is an object clause, not a conditional clause, so the rule does not apply); present perfect in the conditional clause marks a completed precondition (If you have finished, let's go).
Tense concord (reported speech)
When the main verb is in the past, the whole object clause shifts back one step: simple present → simple past, present perfect / simple past → past perfect, will → would, can → could:
- (original words: I am busy.)
- He told me he had seen the film. (original words: I have seen the film.)
Cases that do not shift: when the clause states an objective truth (The teacher said that water boils at 100 degrees.), or when the reported matter is still true now (She said she is coming tomorrow — tomorrow has not arrived, so is is still natural in context).
Further reading
- Grammar: the backbone outside tense — sentence patterns, clauses, non-finite verbs, the subjunctive.
- High-frequency grammar and translation: tense points counted across the real papers, plus breakdowns of long translation sentences.
- Pronunciation: can't hear the linking or weak forms in these examples? Go to the pronunciation page and drill /ə/ and stress.