Table of all tenses in English. Schemes for constructing English sentences in groups of Simple, Continuous, Perfect tenses

Hello guys! Many will agree that the topic of this article evokes fear. Times in English language- this combination of words can scare even an experienced student learning English, not to mention beginners.

Just about English times

• It is worth understanding that in English there are 3 pillars on which all grammar rests - “ to be», « to have" And " to do».
• Each of these whales can swim in three times: Present,Past And Future.
• In turn, Present, Past and Future will flow into the seas Simple,Continuous, Perfect And Perfect Continuous.
• In the meantime, whales (or whales) swim in these seas, they have babies, or rather, new forms are formed.

Are you confused? Let's take a closer look.

How to learn all tenses in English

You just need to sort everything out and systematize your learning until it becomes automatic. You will know how much you have studied and how much is still to come, then the study of times will not seem like something limitless and endless.

• Present Simple used to express a common, regularly repeated action.
• Past Simple used to express an action that happened in the past.
• Future Simple used to express an action that will happen in the future.

• Present Continuous used to express an action taking place in this moment.
• Past Continuous used to express an action that occurred at a certain point in time in the past.
• Future Continuous used to express an action that will occur at a certain point in time in the future.

• Present Perfect used to express a completed (or still ongoing) action, the result of which is associated with the present.
• Past Perfect used to express an action that ended earlier than another action or a specific moment in the past.
• Future Perfect used to express an action that will be completed by a specific point in time in the future.

Important! There is also the time Future in the Past, which we talked about in the corresponding article.

• Present Perfect Continuous used to express an action that began in the past and continues in the present, or the duration of the action is important.
• Past Perfect Continuous used to express an action that began at a certain point in the past and continued for some time before the beginning of another action.
• Future Perfect Continuous used to express an action that, having begun at a certain moment, will still continue at some point in time in the future.

How not to be afraid of tenses in English?

• Be prepared for the fact that you should have a good feel for the difference between times, from a logical point of view. The tenses in English and Russian are not 100% similar, so it is not always possible to draw a parallel.
• After getting acquainted with each new tense, you must practice it well by completing various grammatical exercises in order to remember the construction and, of course, the situation where we use this tense.
• It is important to learn irregular verbs. For this purpose, there are now special songs that consist of all irregular verbs. Give it a try. This is a very effective method for learning irregular verbs. Especially for music lovers.
• Study English tenses systematically, without trying to learn everything in one day. As soon as you begin to navigate one time, you can move on to the next. Then be sure to practice the mixed exercises where the tasks will be collected in order to check if you are not confused about these tenses.
• It is advisable to practice English every day for 15 minutes. In this case, the new store of knowledge will be stored in your memory for a long time and you will use it automatically.
• If you are studying English tenses on your own, look for useful videos on the Internet. On our website you will find many useful grammar video lessons. This is much more interesting and reliable than looking for rules anywhere on the Internet.
• Don't overwork yourself! It's important to give yourself rest. If you turn English into daily hard labor, it will not benefit you, but will only discourage you from learning it.
• When learning tenses in English, pay attention to whether your memory is visual or auditory. Based on this, you can understand which tasks are best to give preference to achieve the most effective result.
• Don't try to learn all tenses in English at once. To start, learn 5-6 basic tenses. This will be quite enough to communicate in English competently.
• As a result, it is important to be able to use these tenses in a conversation. This is quite difficult to do on your own. Suppose you can find rules, exercises and answers to them on your own, but understanding whether you use English tenses in your speech is not an easy task.

Conclusion

WITH English times Usually there are 3 scenarios:

• The student decides that he doesn’t need tenses in English because he just wants to improve his conversational skills.
• The student finds a popular grammar textbook and slowly studies each tense on his own.
• The student turns to the teacher and trusts him on his path to mastery at times in full.

Which one do you choose?

Definitely the second and third! It is impossible to communicate in a language like a native speaker without knowing the tenses. Definitely, if you want to know English, tenses are very important. So which side should you approach them from?

The EnglishDom online school employs many experienced teachers who have already proven to many students that learning tenses is not a disaster.

Many students come to a free introductory lesson with the request “just not grammar,” and after a few lessons with the teacher, they take grammar tests and other interactive tasks with great pleasure. So don't be afraid! U can do it! Times are waiting for you :)

Big and friendly EnglishDom family

They are divided into 4 groups: simple (Simple/Indefinite), continuous (Continuous/Progressive), perfect (Perfect) and perfect continuous (Perfect Continuous) tenses. What will help us choose the right option?

Marker words tenses in English help to correctly determine the tense form, so it is recommended to learn them by heart. With an asterisk* Ambiguous time indicators that may occur in different cases are marked.

Table of satellite words for all tenses of the English language

Used to describe actions in the present that occur regularly, with repetition, and not just at the moment of speech. Used to describe a routine, schedule, habits, etc.

Usually- usually
I usually wake up at 7 o’clock. I usually wake up at 7 o'clock.
Always- Always
Alice always gets good marks at school. Alice always gets good grades at school.
Often- often
Terry often drinks tea in the morning. Terry often drinks tea in the morning.
Every day / morning / week – every day/every morning/every week
Every week Rob goes to the gym. Rob goes to the gym every week.
Sometimes / from time to time / occasionally - Sometimes
Sometimes I visit my Granny in the suberbs of Moscow. Sometimes I visit my grandmother in the suburbs of Moscow.
At the weekend / on weekends / on Saturdays / on Friday – On weekends / Saturdays / Fridays
We have a party on Fridays. On Fridays we have a party.
Seldom/rarely- rarely
We rarely go to the swimming pool. We rarely go to the pool.
Never* / hardly ever– never / almost never
Ann never watches horror films. Ann never watches horror films.

2. Companion words Past Simple

Used to describe actions that happened in the past.

Yesterday- yesterday
Yesterday we were at home. Yesterday we were at home.
A week / a year ago– a week/year ago
Alex moved to the USA a week ago. Alex moved to the USA a week ago.
Last month/year– last month/year
Last month Fred sold his car. Last month Fred sold his car.
When*- When
I was in the kitchen, when you came. I was in the kitchen when you came.

3. Future Simple satellite words

Used to describe actions that will occur in the uncertain future.

Tomorrow- Tomorrow
Tomorrow Jared will go to London. Jared is leaving for London tomorrow.
Next month/year– next month/year
Jack will finish school next year. Jack will graduate from school next year.
In…days/years– in … days/years
Ronald will arrive in 2 days. Ronald will arrive in 2 days.

4. Companion words Present Continuous

Used to describe actions occurring at the moment, at the time of speech.

Now- Now
Mary is playing the guitar now. Now Mary plays the guitar.
At the moment- At the moment
The refrigerator isn’t working at the moment. The refrigerator is not working at the moment.
Still*- still
John is still washing the dishes. John is still washing the dishes.

5. Companion words Past Continuous

Used to describe actions that occurred at some point or period in the past.

From…till…*- From to …
Helen was watching a movie at the cinema yesterday from 5 till 7. Helen yesterday watched a movie at the cinema from 5 to 7.
- all day
He was working hard all day long. He worked hard all day.

6. Future Continuous satellite words

Used to describe actions that will occur at a specific moment or period in the future.

from…till…*- From to …
Tony will be working in the office tomorrow from 9 to 11 o’clock. Tony will work in the office tomorrow from 9 to 11 o'clock.
All day long* / for the whole day* - all day
He will be writing an article all night long. He will write the article all night.

7. Companion words Present Perfect

Used to describe actions that have completed at the time of speech or the present as a whole.

Just- just now
Harry has just made a cake. Harry has just made a cake.
Already- already
I have already done my homework. I've already done my homework.
Yet- still
Liza hasn’t chosen the flowers yet. Lisa still hasn't chosen flowers.
Since- With
I haven’t played football since finishing the university. I haven't played football since graduating from university.
Recently- recently
Sally has recently been at the theater. Sally was recently at the theater.
Never* / ever*– never / ever
I have never been to London. I've never been to London.

8. Companion words Past Perfect

Used to describe an action that was completed at some point in the past.

Before* / after*- before after
I had brushed my teeth before I went to bed. I brushed my teeth before going to bed.
By*- To
Ann had spoken with her boss at 12 o’clock yesterday. Yesterday at 12 o'clock Ann spoke to her boss.

9. Future Perfect satellite words

Used to describe actions that will last until a specific point or period in the future.

By*- To
I will have been finished my project by the end of the month. I will finish my project by the end of the month.
Before*- before
Chris will have found a job before Christmas. Chris will find a job before Christmas.

10. Word-markers of Perfect Continuous tenses

As the name suggests, the band's Perfect Continuous times are a mixture of Perfect and Continuous. Therefore, their function is a long-term action that led to a result in the past / present / future.

for*- during
I had been reading for 5 hours. I've been reading for 5 hours already.
I have been reading for 5 hours. I've been reading for 5 hours already.
I will have been reading for 5 hours. I'll be reading for 5 hours already.

WARNING: marker words are not a panacea! As we see, some of them occur in several times at once. Often this can be explained like this: take the phrase “from ... till …” and see that it is a sign of the duration of an action, and duration can be in the past, present and future tenses. However, the presence of a companion word is a very good sign of the correct tense form.

Oh, the times! Oh, morals! Tenses in the English language are considered to be the most difficult section of grammar. But this is one of the most common misconceptions. Along with the fact that the majority distinguishes a dozen tenses in English, and three in Russian. So: don’t trust anyone :) In the English language, experts will highlight more than 12 tenses (take at least Future-in-the-Past for warming up). And in Russian, in theory, there are also more than three. Need proof? Yes please.

Times in the Great and Mighty

Only a first grader thinks that we have past, present and future tense. But at the same time, everyone will feel the difference in these proposals:

I was walking home through the park yesterday.
I walked home through the park yesterday

Immediately a quick question: what is the tense in the sentences? Yeah, past. What verb did “went” come from? Well, yes, from the verb “to go.”

The English language also has tricky irregular verbs, which in the past tense take on such a form that you can try to guess the original one. So the myths that camouflage is practiced only in the English language can already be safely considered debunked.

Let's go back to "went" and "went". Can we smell the difference? In the first case, we are talking about some long time: I walked to myself and walked through the park, without touching anyone. And in the second - about what has already happened. The questions answered by “went” and “went” are also different: “what did you do?” and “what did you do?” Such forms of verb tenses in Russian are usually called imperfect/non-perfect form (what to do) and perfect/perfect (what to do).

And that is not all. For example, when we want to emphasize the duration of an action, we become more sophisticated and use synonyms of verbs that are very close in meaning. For example:

Yesterday I walked around the park in a great mood.

Now you can imagine how difficult it is for a foreigner when he wants to convey a long action using the verb “go”. Surely he will come up with something like “Yesterday I walked... mmm... walked... walked... through the park in a great mood.” And try to explain to him that to convey a long-term action, it is better to take the verb “to walk” and put it in the past tense in the non-perfect form.

Whose tense system is easier?

This is ours:

	Imperfect form (Indefinite)	Perfect form ( Perfect)
		long-term	regular
Present	I'm playing	—	—
Past (Past)	played	played	played
Future (Future)	I will play	I'll play	I'll play

Moreover, in order to denote the present continuous or past imperfect tense, we will have to explain this further. Compare:

I play the guitar (that is, in principle I know how to play this instrument).
And
I'm currently playing the guitar (that is, I'm sitting and playing right now, I have nothing else to do).

Tenses in English

While we are getting more sophisticated with perfect/non-perfect forms of the verb, and also practicing finding synonyms, the English have created a completely logical and understandable system of tenses. Each verb easily forms 12 main groups. Let’s take the same “walk” (walk) and use it by default with the pronoun I (I).

Table of tenses in English with examples

	Simple	Continuous	Perfect	Perfect Continuous
Present	I walk I walk (in general, in principle)	I am walking I'm walking/walking (right now)	I have walked I went (already)	I have been walking I walked (did it and completed it by now)
Past	I walked I went (in general, in principle)	I was walking I was walking/walking (a while ago)	I had walked I was walking (the action had already ended at a certain point in the past)	I had been walking I have walked (done this and completed it by a certain point in the past)
Future	I will walk I will walk (in general, in principle)	I will be walking I will walk/walk (for a while)	I will have walked I'm like (the action will end at a certain point in the future)	I will have been walking I will walk (and complete it by some point in the future)

Thus, when reading a sentence in English, one can easily understand what the person means. While in our country the use of explanatory words is mandatory. While we need to use explanatory words for this. For example, to transfer time Future Perfect we will add “will finish” to the main semantic verb: “I will finish my homework by 5 pm.” These are the simple rules of English tenses that, thanks to exercises, are quickly memorized.

And whose tense system is ultimately easier?

Here you can find English tenses in tables with examples / Tenses in English in tables with examples.

1.The Present Perfect Tense

The Present Perfect is formed using the auxiliary verb have/has and the past participle form of the verb (Past Participle). The ways of forming sentences with regular and irregular verbs are different.

• With regular verbs

• With irregular verbs.

Please note these rules in the examples in the table below.

Education Present Perfect
Affirmative form	Negative form	Interrogative form
He (she, it) has seen her We have seen her You have seen her They have seen her	I have not seen her He (she, it) has not seen her We have not seen her You have not seen her They have not seen her	Have I seen her? Has he (she, it) seen her? Have we seen her? Have you seen her? Have they seen her?
Cases of using the Present Perfect
1. If an action is described, the result of which is visible in the present tense	The prisoners have laid an escape plan; here it is.	The prisoners made an escape plan; here he is.
2. Instead of Present Perfect Continuous with verbs that are not used with Continuous tenses (know, recognize, see, etc.)	Tom has known Mary for ten years	Tom has known Maria for 10 years

2. The Past Perfect Tense

The Past Perfect is formed using the auxiliary verb had and the past participle form of the verb (Past Participle). The ways of forming sentences with regular and irregular verbs are different.

• With regular verbs

The ending -ed is added to the infinitive form.

• With irregular verbs.

The Past Participle form is used (third column of the table of irregular verbs).

Education Past Perfect
Affirmative form	Negative form	Interrogative form
He (she, it) had seen her You had seen her They had seen her	I had not seen her He (she, it) had not seen her We had not seen her You had not seen her They had not seen her	Had he (she, it) seen her? Had we seen her? Had you seen her? Had they seen her?
Cases Past usage Perfect
1. When describing an action that occurred before a certain point in the past or before another past action.	The students had shown us the presentation by three o"clock We had called them when you came	The students gave us a presentation at three o'clock We called them when you arrived
2. An action that began before another action in the past and was still being performed at the time of its occurrence.	Mary had waited for me for several hours, when I found her	Maria had already been waiting for me for several hours when I found her

3. The Future Perfect Tense

The Past Perfect is formed using the auxiliary verb have in the form of the future tense (will have) and the past participle form of the verb (Past Participle). The ways of forming sentences with regular and irregular verbs are different.

• With regular verbs

The ending -ed is added to the infinitive form.

• With irregular verbs.

The Past Participle form is used (third column of the table of irregular verbs).

Education Future Perfect
Affirmative form	Negative form	Interrogative form
I will have seen her He (she, it) will have seen her We will have seen her You will have seen her They will have seen her	I will not have seen her He (she, it) will not have seen her We will not have seen her You will not have seen her They will not have seen her	Will I have seen her? Will he (she, it) have seen her? Will we have seen her? Will you have seen her? Will they have seen her?
Uses of Future Perfect
1. When a future action is described that will occur before a certain point in the future.	The students will have shown the presentation when your manager comes	The students will have already shown the presentation when your manager arrives.

Perfect Continuous Times

1. The Present Perfect Continuous Tense

This tense is formed using the verb to be in the Present Perfect form (have been/has been) and the present participle form of the verb (Present Participle). In other words, the Present Perfect Continuous is formed by using the auxiliary verb have/has been and adding the ending -ing to the semantic verb.

Education Present Perfect Continuous
Affirmative form	Negative form	Interrogative form
I have been waiting for you He (she, it) has been waiting for you We have been waiting for you You have been waiting for me	I have not been waiting for you He (she, it) has not been waiting for you We have been waiting for you You have been waiting for me They have been waiting for you	Have I been waiting for you? Has he (she, it) been waiting for you? Have we been waiting for you? Have you been waiting for me? Have they been waiting for you?
Cases of using the Present Perfect Continuous
1. A continuous action that occurs in the present tense with an indication of how long it takes to complete.	They have been painting the walls since nine o"clock	They've been painting the walls since nine o'clock.
2. A long-term action that began in the past and ended immediately before the moment of speech.	Although the sun is shining, it is still cold as it has been raining hard.	Although the sun is shining, it is still cold as it has been raining heavily.

2. The Past Perfect Continuous Tense

This tense is formed using the verb to be in the Past Perfect form (had been) and the present participle form of the verb (Present Participle). In other words, the Present Perfect Continuous is formed by using the auxiliary verb had been and adding the ending -ing to the semantic verb.

Formation Past Perfect Continuous
Affirmative form	Negative form	Interrogative form
I had been waiting for you He (she, it) had been waiting for you We had been waiting for you You had been waiting for me They had been waiting for you	I had not been waiting for you He (she, it) had not been waiting for you We had not been waiting for you You had not been waiting for me They had not been waiting for you	Had I been waiting for you? Had he (she, it) been waiting for you? Had we been waiting for you? Had you been waiting for me? Had they been waiting for you?
Cases of using Past Perfect Continuous
1. A continuous action in the past that occurred at the time of the occurrence of another past action, indicating how long it took to occur.	They had been painting the walls for three hours when we came	They had already been painting the walls for three hours when we arrived.
2. A long action in the past that ended just before the moment of another past action.	John felt tired as he had been playing tennis for four hours.	John felt tired because he had been playing tennis for four hours.