In english grammar, study of tense is the foundation stone of learning. Here I am going to explain different types of tense and their structure.
Mainly tense is classified into three categories. These are:-
Present tense
Past tense
Future tense
Further these three types are again classified into four categories each.These are:-
Present tense:-
Simple present tense
Present continuous tense
Present perfect tense
Present perfect continuous tense
Past tense:-
Simple past tense
Past continuous tense
Past perfect tense
Past perfect continuous tense
Future tense:-
Simple future tense
Future continuous tense
Future perfect tense
Future perfect continuous tense
Structure of these different types of tense are given below:-
Simple present tense:-
subject + verb1 + object
Present continuous tense:-
subject + am/is/are + verb1 + ing + object
Present perfect tense:-
subject + have/has + verb3 + object
Present perfect continuous tense:-
subject + have/has + been + verb1 + ing + since/for + time/period
Simple past tense:-
subject + verb2 + object
Past continuous tense:-
subject + was/were + verb1 + ing + object
Past perfect tense:-
subject + had + verb3 + object
Past perfect continuous tense:-
subject + had + been + verb1 + ing + time/period
Simple future tense:-
subject + shall/will + verb1 + object
Future continuous tense:-
subject + shall/will + be + verb1 + ing + object
Future perfect tense:-
subject + shall/will + have/has + verb3 + object
Future perfect continuous tense:-
subject + shall/will + have/has + been + verb1 + ing + time/period
Some examples are given below:-
Simple present tense:-
(1) He always goes to school in the morning.
(2) The boys dance well.
(3) The sun rises in the east.
Present continuous tense:-
(1) The workers are constructing the road.
(2) kids are playing in the park.
(3) He is doing his homework.
Present perfect tense:-
(1) He has done his homework.
(2) I have written the letter to my brother.
(3) She has finished her home work just now.
Present perfect continuous tense:-
(1) Mr C has been cleaning his room since morning.
(2) She has been living in London for years.
(3) The little boy has been making kite for two hours.
Simple past tense:-
(1) He decorated the house very carefully.
(2) They repaired the table.
(3) Mr K described carefully.
Past continuous tense:-
(1) She was singing a song at the event
(2) Boys were narrating the story.
(3) I was making toys.
Past perfect tense:-
(1) He had reached there.
(2) The bus had arrived on time.
(3) They had finished their work.
Past perfect continuous tense:-
(1) He had been reconstructing his house.
(2) They had been publishing magazines.
(3) The boys had been arranging the tournament.
Simple future tense:-
(1) The bus will arrive on time.
(2) They will definitely inform me.
(3) He will decorate the stage properly.
Future continuous tense:-
(1) The teacher will be teaching in this school.
(2) He will be working in his shop.
(3) The group will be performing the programme.
Future perfect tense:-
(1) He will have performed there.
(2) The director will have released his movie.
(3) They will have reached on time.
Future perfect continuous tense:-
(1) He will have been doing his job.
(2) The group will have been arranging the new year party.
(3) Mr J will have been staying there for a long time.
Basic meaning of 12 types of tense :-
Simple present tense :-
The simple present tense is used to express universal truths, habitual actions, routines, or facts that are always true in nature. It is also applicable to permanent situations or states of being that are constant or fixed over time.
Present Continuous tense :-
The present continuous tense is used to describe actions or events that are happening right now, at the moment of speaking, or around the present time. It is continuous in nature in the present scenario.
Present Perfect tense :-
The present perfect tense is used to describe actions or events that occurred at an unspecified time in the past, but have impact or consequences for the present scenario. It indicates that something has happened and has an impact on the current context.
Present Perfect Continuous tense :-
The present perfect continuous tense focuses on actions that started in the past and are still happening. It signifies continuity of an action over a period of time.
Simple past tense :-
The simple past tense is used to describe actions or events that were completed at a specific time in the past. It is used for events that have no direct connection to the present moment. This tense is typically used when the exact time of the action is known.
Past Continuous tense :-
The past continuous tense is used to describe actions or events that were in progress or happening at a specific moment in the past. It highlights the ongoing nature of an action at a particular point in time in the past.
Past Perfect tense :-
The past perfect tense is used to express actions that were completed before another action or event in the past. It highlights the sequence of events, showing that one action happened earlier than another past action. It is usually used to clarify which of two past events happened first.
Past Perfect Continuous tense :-
The past perfect continuous tense is used to describe actions that were ongoing in the past up until a certain point or upto a specific period of time.
Simple future tense :-
The simple future tense is used to describe actions or events that will take place in the future.
Future Continuous tense :-
The future continuous tense describes actions or events that will be in progress or happening at a specific moment in the future. It focuses on the ongoing nature of future action.
Future Perfect tense :-
The future perfect tense is used to describe actions that will be completed before a certain point or specific event in the future.
Future Perfect Continuous tense :-
The future perfect continuous tense is used to describe actions that will be ongoing up until a specific point in the future. This tense describes the continuous nature of an action in the future, focusing on how long it will have been happening by a certain future time.
Tenses are the basic and fundamental concept of sentence formation. I hope students will get benefitted from these explanation.
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