Tenses/Tense errors

• There are three different times in English:

• The past,• The present• The future

• Each of these has four aspects; simple, continuous, perfect, and perfect continuous

Present simple

• Form Affirmative - subject+ base form (+s/es)

Negative – subject+ aux verb ‘be’+ not + base form

Question – aux. verb ‘do’ + subject + base form

Usage • Habitual actions• He goes fishing every week.• Permanent situations and facts• The sun sets in the west.• Commentaries• Beckham passes to Fowler who shoots and scores.• Directions and instructions• First you go left, then you go straight on.• Newspaper headlines• Stock market falls to all time low.• Present stories• So I open the door and what do I see but a policeman in a blue

uniform.

Typical mistakes

• She walk to school everyday.• He no like to watch T.V.• Where lives your father?• She go often to Paris.• She doesn’t likes football.• I’m go to the post office tomorrow.

Ideas to Practice Simple Present

• Interview people to know more about them• Questionnaires where you ask each other

questions about your habitual actions.• By looking at visual prompts, construct the

daily life of someone.• Looking at diagrams and maps and then giving

directions.

Present Continuous

• Form • Affirmative – sub.+aux. verb ‘be’+verb+ing• I am learning.• Negative – sub.+ aux. verb ‘be’+not+verb+ing• I am not learning.• Question – aux. verb ‘be’+ sub.+verb+ing• Am I learning?

Usage

• To talk about an action in progress while speaking.• Please be quiet. I’m watching T.V.• Talk about temporary action not necessarily in

progress at the time of speaking• I am reading a good book at the moment.• Emphasize a recent action• She is always biting her nails.• Regular action around a point of time

Contd.-

• Regular action around a point of time• He’s is usually working at this time.• Background event in present story• So I’m standing there when a policeman

comes in.• Describe developing situation• It’s getting dark.

Non-action verbs

• Non-action verbs are not normally not used in continuous forms, we use the simple present for them. For example:

• Hate, love, understand, believe, hear, seem, appear, wish, mean, remember, own, owe, want, like

Categories of non-action verbs• Verbs of senses• Expressing feelings and emotions• Verbs of mental activity• Verbs of possession• But some verbs have different meanings

depending upon whether they are used in simple or continuous, for example:

• She thinks you are right. (opinion)• She is thinking about it. (considering)

Typical mistakes

• He watching T.V.• We are have a meeting.• Do you not coming to the cinema?• I’m believing in God.

How to practice Present Continuous

• Describing changes in a graph or chart or table.

• Narrating stories using simple present and continuous based on visual prompts

• Mime games

Present Perfect

• It relates the past to the present • Form

• I/you/we/they have or he/she/it has, + past participle (with regular verbs the past participle is verb plus ed – worked. But in irregular verbs, the form changes, like write- written)

Form • Affirmative• Subject + aux. verb ‘have’+ past participle• I have written.• Negative• Subject + aux. verb ‘have’ + not + past

participle• I haven’t written• Questions• Aux. verb ‘have’ + subject + past participle• Have I written?

Usages • Talking about finished actions/states at

indefinite time, a general experience without specific detail

• I have eaten food.• Thinking about completed past actions carried

out in an unfinished time period at the time of speaking.

• It has rained a lot today. (the rain has stopped but it is still today)

• I have eaten eight sandwiches this afternoon.

Contd.-• Talking about something which began in the

past but is still true now, at the time of speaking. We don’t know it will continue or not

• We have lived in Paris for five years.• She has been a vegetarian since 1988.• Describing past actions with present results• I have left my purse at home.• Can you help me? I’ve lost one of my contact

lenses.

‘Since’ or ‘for’ with present perfect• We use ‘for’ with periods of time.(e.g. a week,

6 moths)

• We use ‘since’ with points of time. (e.g. Monday, 1984) means ‘from’

• Examples:• We’ve lived here for five years.• I haven’t slept for 48 hours.• She has been a doctor since September.

Gone or Been• He’s been to Turkey.• He’s gone to Turkey.

• The first sentence shows that the trip is finished.

• The second sentence means he is still on the trip.

Ideas to practice present perfect

• Finding people who have done something• What have you done today• Mentioning the changes – for e.g. the setting

of a room• Job interview- answering questions what you

have done

Present Perfect Continuous

• Relates past activities to present, meaning that either

• the activity is likely to continue in the future, or

• Activity was in progress for some length of time

• Or both

Form • Affirmative• Subject + aux. verb ‘have’ + been + verb + ing• I have been dancing.• Negative• Subject + aux. verb ‘have’ + not + been + verb

+ ing• I haven’t been dancing.• Questions• Aux. verb ‘have’ + subject + been + verb + ing• Have I been dancing?

Usages • Communicate an incomplete and ongoing

activity, when we want to say how long it has continued

• I’ve been singing for the last 20 years.

• Describing a recently finished, uninterrupted activity having a present result

• I’m tired because I’ve been working all day.

Typical Error

• Using verbs that don’t take the continuous forms, for example:

• Like, perfect, believe

• I’ve been knowing her for three months.

Comparing Present perfect with Present Perfect Cont.

• With present perfect continuous, the emphasis is on the action/activity NOT the result or completed action

• What have you been doing today?• I’ve been cleaning the car.• For number of things that we have done or

completed, we use present perfect• I’ve written six letters since breakfast.• I’ve been writing letters since breakfast.

How to practice present perfect continuous

• Write a past activity and its result• You have been chopping onions. You are

crying.• You have been running. You are sweating.

• You tell the result and the other person guesses the activity

• Student A: I’m crying• Student B: Have you been watching a sad

movie?

Past tense: Past Simple• Form• Affirmative (add –ed or –d to the verb)• I worked• Negative ( add did not or didn’t before the

verb)• I didn’t work• Question (add did + subject before verb)• Did you work?

Usage of Past Simple• Actions completed at a definite time in the past:• Past actions when time is given• I met him yesterday, he died in 1990• When time is asked about• When did you meet him?• When action took place at a definite time even

though time is not mentioned• How did you get your present job?• Sometimes time becomes definite as a result of a

question and answer in present perfect• Where have you been?- I have been to the movie- Did

you enjoy it?

How to practice the tense

• Writing your CV• Interview role-play• Discussing past holidays/major events, etc.• Narrating story along with past continuous

and past perfect

Past Continuous• Past tense of the auxiliary verb be (was/were)

+ the present participle (verb + ing)• Affirmative – subject + was/were + verb + ing• He was working.• Negative – subject + was/were + not + verb +

ing• He was not working.• Question – was/were + subject + verb + ing• Was he working?

Usage • For interrupted past actions• While I was having a bath, the phone rang.• Used without a time expression, indicating gradual

development that took place in the past• It was getting darker.• Ca express an action, which began before that time

and probably continued after it.• At 8 he was having breakfast.• In description• When I woke up, the sun was shining and the birds

were singing.

Remember • The past continuous almost always requires

some form of time reference. For e.g., I was playing tennis simply doesn’t make any sense because we don’t know when.

• Typical mistakes:• Omission of the verb ‘to be’• Omission of the -ing• Use of –ing with state verbs• Confusion with past simple

Ideas to practice Past Continuous• Detective games: • where were you yesterday at 7:00 p.m.? What

were you doing?• Use of diaries/journals: • what were you doing at 7:00 p.m. on Monday?• Telling stories:Narrating and describing a story

using simple past and past continuous • He was going at night when he saw a

snake……

Past Perfect• Form • Affirmative – subject + had + past participle• Negative – subject + had not + past participle• Question – had + subject + past participle

• Usage• It is the past in past or the past viewed from

another past viewpoint

Look at the following sentences• When I got to the car park I realized that I had

lost my key.• She told me she had worked in France and

Germany.• He arrived late; he hadn’t realized the roads

would be so crowded.

• In these examples, past perfect verbs represent actions that occurred before other actions in the past.

Completely Finished Actions• Try completing these sentences with a word

to show that the past perfect action is 100% complete

• ………………….he had painted the kitchen, he decided to rest.

• ……………………….she had finished the report, she realized that it was too late to post it.

Ideas to practice Past perfect

• Story telling or writing in conjunction with other past tenses

• Look at a situation and think of reasons why the situation had happened

• See a story and retell the story backwards, starting from the end and describing what had happened before.

Past Perfect Continuous• Form• Affirmative – subject + had been + verb+ ing• Negative – subject + had not + been + verb +ing• Question – had + subject + been + verb + ing• Usage• Most commonly used, but one important use• To talk about longer actions in the past that had

been going on continuously up to the past moment that we are thinking about.

• Before eating lunch, she had been doing her homework for two hours.

Future Tense• Present simple – the train leave platform in five

minutes• Present cont. – I’m meeting her for coffee tomorrow• Be going + infinitive – it’s going to rain• Future simple – I’ll pick you up later• Future cont.- I’ll be getting on the train at 10.00• Future perf.- I’ll have finished my exams by Monday• Future perf. Cont.-he’ll have been driving for two

hours before he reaches Delhi

Present Simple• Usage:• To suggest a more formal situation• Our new shop opens next month• For timetables and schedules• The train to Delhi leaves at 10.30 a.m• Suggesting a more impersonal tone (implying

an outside compulsion)• We start filming tomorrow• They leave tomorrow for London

Practice ideas

• Writing press releases about your company’s future plans

• Discussing weekly timetables

• Compiling or sharing information from airport or railways

Present Continuous• For definite arrangements• We are taking our holiday in July.• For decisions and plans without a time frame• I’m leaving the company.• Practice ideas• Diaries/schedules- writing about future

schedules• Role-plays- like trying to fix appointment as a

client to see a busy boss

Be going + Infinitive• Intentions• I’m not going to do it.• Predictions based on present evidence• I think it is going to rain later!• Plans (decisions made before speaking)• I’m going to visit my family in April.• Practice ideas• Making b’day/holiday plans• Plan what you are going to do when you grow up• Make predictions based on evidence, like weather forecast• Songs, for e.g., “Mannish Boy” by Muddy Waters.

Future SimpleForm • Affirmative – I/we shall/will + verb• Negative – I will not + verb• Question – Will I + verbUsageWill/shall• Will is used for information and predictions• Shall is used in making suggestions, invitations• Will expresses stronger intention, force,

determination

Will/shall• Future facts and certainties• Spring will start in March as usual.• Promises• I’ll call you up today.• Predictions based on no present evidence, as opposed to ‘going to’• It’ll rain before morning.• Assumptions/speculations• They’ll have to sell the house, I expect.• Threats• You’d better go or I will throw you out.• Spontaneous decisions• I’ll get my coat.

Practice ideas• Fortune telling/palm reading• Going on a holiday/lost in a desert- what will you

take?• Winning a lottery-what will you do?• Songs:• “when I am 64” by Beatles• “That’ll be the day” Buddy Holly• Predicting what others will be like in X year• Predicting future changes

Future continuous• To say that something will be in progress at a particular moment in

the future• This time tomorrow I’ll be boarding a train.• To ‘predict the present’ to say what we think or guess might be

happening now• John will probably be having lunch now.• For polite enquiries referring to other people’s plans, but not to

influence the listener’s intentions• Will you be coming to the party?• Referring to future events which are fixed/decided• Professor Smith will be giving another lecture at the same time

next week.

Practice Ideas• Form • Subject + will + be + verb + ing

• Arranging diaries/dates “what will you be doing at 2.00pm on Tuesday?”

• Illustrative Situations

• “3 police cars are speeding through the night. ……………………………………..

Future Perfect• Form • Will + have + past participle• Affirmative – I will have worked here• Negative – she will not have worked here• Questions – will she have worked here?• Usage• The future perfect tense is used to say that

something will have been done, completed or achieved by a certain time in future.

• The car will soon have done 100,000 miles.

• Future perfect refers to completion of action by a certain time in future and

• Continuous refers to by what time or how long something would have continued for by a certain time

• Future perfect is “past in future”. We look back on the past (a completed action) from future standpoint.

• By the end of the summer I will have completed this course.

• When they arrive, I will have finished dinner

Practice ideas• Filling future diaries, elicit questions in the future

perfect• “what will you have done by…………………..• Choose a famous historical person and note down imp.

dates in his/her life• “by 1796 he will have completed his education.”• A novelist writes a 300 page books. He/she writes 10

pages a day and takes no holidays. Use future perfect to answer the questions:

• How many pages will she have written after ten day?

Future perfect continuous• Form • Will + have + been + verb + ing• Usage• To say how long something will have continued by a

certain time• By the time you get here, I’ll have been working for six

years• Practice ideas• How long will you have been learning

English/working/etc. by next summer?