SUMMARY OF The main ENGLISH VERB TENSES
Present FORM
tENSEs
I watch / He watches
I don’t watch /
PRESENT He doesn’t watch
SIMPLE
(Wh-)Do you watch?/
(Wh-)Does he watch?
I am watching/
You are watching/
PRESENT I’m not watching/
CONTINUOUS You aren’t watching
(Wh-)Are you watching?
(Wh-)Is he watching?
(+)I have watched / driven
He has watched/ driven
(-)I haven’t watched/ driven
PRESENT He hasn’t watched/ driven
PERFECT (?) (Wh-)Have you watched/
driven?
Has he watched /driven?
USES TIME EXPRESSIONS EXAMPLES
a. Routines - Frequency adverbs: usually, a. I don’t usually go to
b. General truths always, never, often… work by car
/facts b. The Earth goes
c. Timetables - Other expressions: once a around the Sun
d. Stative verbs: week, twice a month, three c. The train leaves at
 Opinion times a year, on Sundays, in the 6pm.
 Feeling morning, every day… d. Do you know the
 Knowledge answer?
 Likes
 Possession
a. Current actions a. Now, right now, today, a. He’s studying Law
at the moment, this morning, this year
b. Complaint about a this year, currently… b. She’s always
repetitive annoying shouting! I can’t stand
action (‘always’) it any more!
c. This afternoon, tonight,
c. Future arrangement tomorrow, next week,… c. What time are you
meeting the Dr. Herb
tomorrow?
a. Actions which -Ever /Never a. We’ve already seen
happened at an unspecified -Already /Yet this film.
time in the past and are -How long? For / Since b. I’ve known Susan
relevant at present - Just for ten years.
b. Actions which started - Lately/ recently She’s been my best
in the past and continue friend since we were at
until now (stative verbs) school.
PAST FORM
TENSES
You watched / drove
PAST SIMPLE You didn’t watch/ drive
(Wh-)Did you watch/ drive?
I was watching
You were watching
He was watching
PAST
CONTINUOUS I wasn’t watching
You weren’t watching
(Wh-)Were you watching?
Was he watching?
You had watched / driven
You hadn’t watched / driven
PAST PERFECT
(Wh-)Had you watched/
driven?
USES
a. Finished past action
b. Past action which
happened in the middle of
another past action in
progress
a. Action which was in
progress at a specific time
in the past
b. Action which was in
progress and was
interrupted by another
action
a. A past action which was
complete before another
past action took place
(i.e. past in the past)
b. Third type of
conditional sentences
TIME
EXPRESSIONS
-Yesterday, last night,
the day before yesterday,
five years ago, this morning,
in 1765, when he was in
America
-At 9pm last night…
- While…./ As…
- When/By the time + past
simple past perfect
- Before +past simple past
perfect
- After + past perfect past
simple
EXAMPLES
a. He met his wife when
he was in America
b. I fell off the bike
while I was riding to
school
a. What were you doing
at 11 pm last night?
b. I fell off the bike
while I was riding to
school
a. By the time we
arrived, she had
already left home
She had left before we
arrived
We arrived after she
had left.
b. If I had known you
were sick, I would have
visited you.
FUTURE FORM USES TIME EXAMPLES
TENSES EXPRESSIONS
You will watch a. Subjective predictions - In the future, a. Students will study
in the year 2089, from home in the future
You will not watch/ b. Decisions made at the tomorrow,
You won’t watch time of speaking next year… b. - I think I’ll have a
FUTURE WITH sandwich now
WILL (Wh-)Will you watch? c. Promises
c. I promise I’ll write
d. Requests/ Offers every week.

d. –Will you help me?

I’m going to watch
FUTURE ‘BE
GOING TO’ You aren’t going to watch
(Wh-)Is he going to watch?
You will be watching
FUTURE You won’t be watching
CONTINUOUS
(Wh-)Will you be watching?
You will have watched/driven
FUTURE
PERFECT You won’t have watched
(Wh)Will you have watched?
a. Objective predictions
b. Plans/ Future
arrangements
a. Action which will be in
progress at a specific time
in the future
a. An action completed at
a specific time in the
future
-I’ll do that for you
Next week, this afternoon, a.Look! It’s going to
tomorrow, tonight… rain
b. We’re going to spend
the summer in Dover
This time next year… This time next month,
This time tomorrow… I’ll be driving to San
In ten years’ time… Francisco
Five months from now…
In two years, she’ll be
working as a lawyer
By… We’ll have finished the
project by Friday
By the time… By the time you decide
to come back, I’ll have
forgotten you