Verb Tenses in English

Rodrigo Krebs

Este manual tem como objetivo auxiliar

na compreenso dos diferentes tempos
verbais no idioma ingls.

The wisest mind has something yet to learn.

George Santayana (1863 - 1952)

ndice
Present...............................................................................................................

Simple Present Verb to be .....

Simple Present Other Verbs

Present Continuous ....

Past ...

Simple Past Verb to be

Simple Past Other Verbs.

10

Past Continuous ......

11

Future.

12

Simple Future

13

Future Continuous

14

Perfects..

15

Present Perfect.

16

Present Perfect Continuous

17

Past Perfect .....

18

Past Perfect Continuous

19

Future Perfect / Future Perfect Continuous.

20

Future Perfect / Future Perfect Continuous Exercise.

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SIMPLE PRESENT: Usa-se este tempo verbal para se expressar sobre coisas que acontecem em um exato momento
no presente.

There are 2 forms

With Verb to Be:

Aff.:
Subject / Am, Is, Are / Complement
Ex.: I am a Student.

Neg.:
Subject / Am, Is, Are + not / Complement
Ex.: I am not a Student.

Inter.:
Am, Is, Are / Subject / Complement / ?
Ex.: Am I a student?

Put in am / is / are:

She is a teacher.

1. We __________ hungry.

10. You __________ beautiful.

2. Luke __________ late.

11. I __________ hot.

3. They __________ Spanish.

12. I __________ from London.

4. You __________ happy.

13. You __________ a doctor.

5. I __________ thirsty.

14. Emily __________ my sister.

6. It __________ cold.

15. He __________ in the garden.

7. She __________ German.

16. They __________ on the bus.

8. He __________ early.

17. We __________ friends.

9. We __________ tired.

18. I __________ 25 years old.

Other Verbs
Aff:
Subject / Verb (Infinitive form To) / Complement
Ex.: I study English. / He studies English.

Neg.:
Subject / do, does + not / Verb (Infinitive form To) / Complement
Ex.: I dont study English. / He doesnt study English.

Inter.:
Do, Does / Subject / Verb (Infinitive form To) / Complement / ?
Ex.: Do I study English? / Does he study English?

Make the present simple (choose positive, negative or question):

1. (he / drive to work every day)
__________________________________________________________________
2. (I / not / think you're right)
__________________________________________________________________
3. (we / have enough time?)
__________________________________________________________________
4. (I / eat cereal in the morning)
__________________________________________________________________
5. (they / write e-mails every day?)
__________________________________________________________________
6. (you / watch a lot of TV)
__________________________________________________________________
7. (he / not / read the newspaper)
__________________________________________________________________
8. (she / dance often?)
__________________________________________________________________

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2

Todo verbo na 3 pessoa do singular, no presente, recebe um S no final.

Na 3 pessoa do singular usa-se Does ao invs de Do

PRESENT CONTINUOUS: Usa-se este tempo verbal para se expressar sobre acontecimentos que esto ainda
ocorrendo no presente.
Aff:
Subject / Am, Is, Are / Verb (Infinitive form To) + ing / Complement
Ex.: I am studying English now.

Neg.: Subject / Am, Is, Are + not/ Verb (Infinitive form To) + ing / Complement
Ex.: I am not studying English now.

Inter.: Am, Is, Are / Subject / Verb (Infinitive form To) + ing / Complement / ?
Ex.: Are you studying English now?
Make the present continuous:

(he / walk to school now)

Hes walking to school
_______________________
1. (I / study at the moment)
_______________________________________________________________
2. (I / not / sleep)
_______________________________________________________________
3. (you / play badminton tonight)
_______________________________________________________________
4. (we / watch TV)
_______________________________________________________________
5. (she / not / work in Spain)
_______________________________________________________________
6. (he / not / wait for the bus)
_______________________________________________________________
7. (they / read)
_______________________________________________________________

SIMPLE PAST: Usa-se este tempo verbal para se expressar a respeito de um fato isolado em um determinado
momento do passado.
There are 2 forms
With Verb to Be:
Aff.:
Subject / was, were / Complement
Ex.: I was a Student.

Neg.:
Subject / was, were + not / Complement
Ex.: I was not a Student.

Inter.:
Was, Were / Subject / Complement / ?
Ex.: Was I a student?

Make the past simple positive or negative:

1. It ________________ (be) cold yesterday.
2. She ________________ (be) hungry.
3. We ________________ (be) late for the meeting.
4. I ________________ (be) tired last night.
5. The exam ________________ (be) difficult.
6. They ________________ (be) in Berlin.
7. You ________________ (be) in the library when I called you.
8. The holiday ________________ (be) fun.
9. He ________________ (be) early for the interview.
10. The people we met last night ________________ (be) French.
11. That woman ________________ (not / be) Spanish.
12. Julie ________________ (not / be) late for the class.
13. The food ________________ (not / be) very good.
14. They ________________ (not / be) my uncle and aunt.
15. I ________________ (not / be) rude to the waitress.
16. The test ________________ (not / be) easy.
17. We ________________ (not / be) tired when we arrived.
18. They ________________ (not / be) on the bus when I called.
19. You ________________ (not / be) here when she came.
20. He ________________ (not / be) my boyfriend.

Other Verbs
Aff:
Subject / Verb (Past Form) / Complement
Ex.: I studied English yesterday.

Neg.: Subject / did + not / Complement

Ex.: I didnt study English yesterday.

Inter.: Did / Subject / Verb (Past Form) / Complement / ?

Ex.: Did I study English yesterday?

Make the past simple, positive, negative or question:

1. I _________________ (work) in a bank for ten years.

2. Where _________________ (you / live) when you were young?
3. She _________________ (not / study) French at university.
4. He _________________ (travel) through the Middle East last year.
5. _________________ (they / visit) the Louvre in Paris?
6. She _________________ (not / watch) TV yesterday.
7. We _________________ (buy) a new car last weekend.
8. Where _________________ (you / teach) before you came here?
9. He _________________ (not / think) that he was right.
10. I _________________ (cook) steak last night.
11. _________________ (Lucy / read) War and Peace at school?
12. She _________________ (not / write) to her grandmother.
13. We _________________ (have) a computer when I was a child.
14. Where _________________ (you / go) on holiday?
15. I _________________ (love) ice cream when I was a child.
16. They _________________ (not / meet) yesterday.
17. _________________ (she / swim) in the sea in Greece?
18. We _________________ (not / play) tennis yesterday because it was raining.
19. He _________________ (try) to lift the box but he couldnt.
20. What _________________ (you / eat) for lunch?

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PAST CONTINUOUS: Usa-se este tempo verbal para se expressar a respeito de um fato que tenha ocorrido em um
perodo de tempo no passado porm no ocorre mais no presente.

Aff:
Subject / Was, Were / Verb (Infinitive form To) + ing / Complement
Ex.: I was studying English yesterday.

Neg.: Subject / Was, Were + not/ Verb (Infinitive form To) + ing / Complement
Ex.: I was not studying English yesterday.

Inter.: Was, Were / Subject / Verb (Infinitive form To) + ing / Complement / ?
Ex.: Are you studying English yesterday?

1) Fill the gaps using the verb in brackets in the past continuous tense.
a) I ____________________________________ letters all day yesterday. (write)
b) You ____________________________________ very slow about it. (be)
c) You ____________________________________on the phone for hours and hours. (talk)
d) They ____________________________________much business before lunch. (do NEGATIVE)
e) She ____________________________________to me all week. Silly cow. (speak NEGATIVE)
f)

It ____________________________________for long. (rain NEGATIVE)

g) What _________________________you _____________________________when I phoned yesterday? (do)

h) _________________________________you ___________________________TV when it happened? (watch)
i)

What ________________________________ you _______________________________at the party? (wear)

j)

He ____________________________________horrible to everyone, the nasty pig! (be)

k) I ____________________________________computer games all morning. (play)

l)

We ____________________________________all afternoon in the library. (revise)

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SIMPLE FUTURE: usa-se este tempo verbal para se expressar sobre fatos que tm uma boa possibilidade de chance
de acontecer no futuro.
Aff:
Subject / Will / Verb (Infinitive form To) / Complement
Ex.: I will study English.

Neg.: Subject / will + not / Verb (Infinitive form To) / Complement

Ex.: I wont study English.

Inter.: Will / Subject / Verb (Infinitive form To) / Complement / ?

Ex.: Will I study English?

Write positive or negative sentences about Mary, Rob, Pat and Paul.
Mary

Rob

Pat and Paul

be a pilot

wear a uniform

work at night

read a book

drive a car

make beds

study Maths

travel a lot

sleep only four hours

do homework

Example: Mary will be a pilot. Rob wont be a pilot. Pat and Paul wont be pilots.
a. _____________________________________________________________________________.
b. _____________________________________________________________________________.
c. _____________________________________________________________________________.
d. _____________________________________________________________________________.

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PRESENT PERFECT: Usa-se este tempo verbal para se expressar a respeito de fatos que ocorreram no passado,
porm tm uma conexo com o presente.

Aff:
Subject / Have, Has / Verb (Past Participle Form) / Complement
Ex.: I have studied English recently. / He has studied English recently.

Neg.: Subject / Have, Has + not / Verb (Past Participle Form) / Complement
Ex.: I havent studied English recently. / He hasnt studied English recently.

Inter.: Have, Has / Subject / Verb (Past Participle Form) / Complement / ?

Ex.: Have you studied English recently? / Has he studied English recently?

Using the Present Perfect tense, fill in the blanks with the correct forms of the verbs shown in brackets.

We_________________the contest. (to enter)

We have entered the contest.

He___________________the work. (to finish)

He has finished the work.
1. They___________________________a pizza. (to order)
2. It___________________________to rain. (to start)
3. You___________________________the question. (to answer)
4. I___________________________the eggs. (to cook)
5. We___________________________the sauce. (to heat)
6. He___________________________the room. (to clean)
7. She___________________________the car. (to start)
8. They___________________________on the door. (to knock)
9. You___________________________on the lights. (to turn)
10. She___________________________them to come. (to ask)

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PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS: Usa-se este tempo verbal para se expressar a respeito de fatos que
aconteceram no passado e por algum motivo ainda acontecem no presente.

Aff:
Subject / Have, Has + been / Verb (Infinitive form To) + ing / Complement
Ex.: I have been studying English recently. / He has been studying English recently.

Neg.: Subject / Have, Has + not + been / Verb (Infinitive form To) + ing / Complement
Ex.: I havent been studying English recently. / He hasnt been studying English recently.

Inter.: Have, Has / Subject /Been / Verb (Infinitive form To) + ing / Complement / ?
Ex.: Have you been studying English recently? / Has he been studying English recently?

Read the situations below and write a sentence using the present perfect progressive tense to say how long the
situation has been happening. Use For & Since

The baby is crying. She started to cry twenty minutes ago.

The baby has been crying for twenty minutes.

1. The tap is leaking. It started to leak last week.

_________________________________________________________________________
2. It is snowing. It began to snow last night.
_________________________________________________________________________
3. The children are studying now. They started to study an hour ago.
_________________________________________________________________________
4. Willie smokes. He started to smoke when he was a teenager.
_________________________________________________________________________
5. Andrea works in a bank. She got her bank job last April.
_________________________________________________________________________
6. Mrs. Neville teaches French. She started to teach French 15 years ago.
_________________________________________________________________________
7. Sue and Joe are planning their vacation. They started planning last winter.
_________________________________________________________________________
8. The mechanic is fixing my car. He started working on it this morning.
_________________________________________________________________________

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PAST PERFECT: Usa-se este tempo verbal para se expressar a respeito de dois fatos que ocorreram no passado,
um antes do outro.
Aff:
Subject / Had / Verb (Past Participle Form) / Complement
Ex.: I had already studied English when my friend arrived.

Neg.: Subject / had + not / Verb (Past Participle Form) / Complement

Ex.: I hadnt already studied English when my friend arrived.

Inter.: Had / Subject / Verb (Past Participle Form) / Complement / ?

Ex.: Had you already studied English when your friend arrived?

These situations describe new experiences. Use the phrases below and the past perfect with never and before to
describe the things that the people had never done before. Then add one of your own ideas.

1. Brian and Jo Ann have just had their first child.

a. diaper a baby
_________________________________________________________________________________
b. bathe a baby
_________________________________________________________________________________
c.
_________________________________________________________________________________

2. Irina started college last fall.

a. live on her own

_________________________________________________________________________________
b. sleep in a dormitory
_________________________________________________________________________________
c.
_________________________________________________________________________________

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PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS: Usa-se este tempo verbal para expressar que algo iniciou-se no passado, terminou
ainda no passado mas levou um tempo para que fosse concludo.

Aff:
Subject / Had + been / Verb (Infinitive form To) + ing / Complement
Ex.: I had been studying English before the test.

Neg.: Subject / Had + not + been / Verb (Infinitive form To) + ing / Complement
Ex.: I hadnt been studying English before the test.

Inter.: Had / Subject / Been / Verb (Infinitive form To) + ing / Complement / ?
Ex.: Had you been studying English before the test?

Write two different sentences that tell how long each situation lasted. Use the past perfect continuous with for and
since and simple past time clauses with when.

Elena worked from 1992 to 1994. Then she went back to school.

When Elena went back to school, she had been working for two years.

When Elena went back to school in 1994, she had been working since 1992.

1. Brigitte began to work at C & M in 1997. Her fianc joined the company in 1999.
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
2. The chicken started baking at 5:30. The electricity went off at 5:45.
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
3. Lisa went to sleep at 11:00 P.M. The phone woke her up at 2:00 A.M.
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
4. Paulo and Celia started dating in 1998. They got married in 2000.
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________

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FUTURE PERFECT: Usa-se este tempo verbal para expressar que algo vai ter acontecido em uma determinada data
no futuro.
Aff:
Subject / Will / Have, Has / Verb (Past Participle Form) / Complement
Ex.: I will have studied English in 2020.

Neg.: Subject / Will + not / Have, Has / Verb (Past Participle Form) / Complement
Ex.: I wont have studied English in 2020.

Inter.: Will / Subject / Have, Has / Verb (Past Participle Form) / Complement / ?
Ex.: Will you have studied English in 2020?

FUTURE PERFECT CONTINUOUS: Usa-se este tempo verbal para expressar que algo que est acontecendo no
presente mas com relao um momento especfico no futuro.
Aff:
Subject / Will / Have, Has / Been / Verb (Infinitive form To) + ing / Complement
Ex.: I will have been studying English for 6 years in 2020.

Neg.: Subject / Will + not / Have, Has / Been / Verb (Infinitive form To) + ing / Complement
Ex.: I wont have been studying English for 6 years in 2020.

Inter.: Will / Subject / Have, Has / Been / Verb (Infinitive form To) + ing / Complement / ?
Ex.: Will you have been studying English for 6 in 2020?

Fill the gaps with the verb in brackets using either the future perfect simple or continuous tenses.

1 By the time we get to the party, Fat Bob _______________________________ everything.(eat)

2 When we get to March, Jimbo _______________________________ in Thailand for 18 months.(live)
3 There's no point going now. The bus _______________________________ by the time we get there.(leave)
4 Be prepared to stand up during the concert as they_______________________________ all the seats by now.
(take)
5 Come June, we _______________________________ out together for four months.(go out)
6 When you get to L.A., you _______________________________for seven hours.(fly)
7 I'm sure that when we go to the meeting, all the important decisions _______________________________
beforehand.(take PASSIVE)
8 This time tomorrow I _______________________________ all my exams.(finish)
9 A week Friday we _______________________________ the course.(complete)

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