English grammar

The 12 tenses

Verbs come in three tenses: past, present, and future. The past is used
to describe things that have already happened (e.g., earlier in the day,
yesterday, last week, three years ago). The present tense is used to
describe things that are happening right now, or things that are
continuous. The future tense describes things that have yet to happen
(e.g., later, tomorrow, next week, next year, three years from now).

Present simple
• Form

(Subject + Verb “base”) + (s)

I\They\We\You - write the homework every day
He\She\It - plays with the ball all the time
He goes to school every morning
The bird flies in the sky

If the subject is a 3rd person singular (He\She\It) we add "s" to

the verb… if the verb ends with (o, ch, sh, th, ss, gh, z,) we add
"es"… if the verb ends with (Y) after a consonant, we replace
the "y" with "ies"

1st and 2nd person verbs' examples:

eat – write – like – go – teach – crash – play – cry – fly
3rd person singular verbs' examples:
writes – likes – goes – teaches – crashes – cries – flies

I am a teacher
He\She\It is old
They\We\You are doctors

▪ Use
Usual, regular actions
I usually go fishing at the weekends
He plays the violin
General existence, stating facts
The earth goes around the sun
Water boils at 100 degrees
Dramatic narrative (theatre, sports or events)
Ali takes the ball
Ali passes the ball
Timetables
The train leaves at two o’clock
The class starts at 9 am
• Negative
I\They\We\You = Do
He\She\It = Does

I am a teacher
Subject + V-be + NOT
I am not a teacher

I play football
Subject + V-do + NOT + Verb“base”
I do not play football

He plays football
He does not play football
• Question
He is a doctor
V-be + Subject + ?
Is he a doctor?

They watch TV
V-do + Subject + Verb“base” + ?
Do they watch TV?

He watches TV
Does he watch TV?
Question word + V-do + Subject + Verb“base” + ?
Where does he watch TV?

Present continuous
▪ Form
( Subject + V-be + Verb--ing )
I - am playing football.
He\She\It - is jumping over the wall.
They\We\You - are watching a video.
▪ Use
Action happening now
I am watching a film on TV now
My brother is sleeping
Action happening about this time, but not necessarily now
He is studying English language
She is visiting her mother while she is here
Definite arrangement in the near future
My father is travelling tomorrow
My son is having an exam this afternoon
▪ Negative
She is studying for the exam
Subject + V-be + NOT + Verb--ing
She is not studying for the exam
▪ Question
He is studying for the exam
V-be + Subject + Verb--ing + ?
Is he studying for the exam?
Question word + V-be + Subject + Verb--ing + ?
Where is he studying for the exam?

past simple
▪ Form
( Subject + Verb “P.S”) + (ed)
I\They\We\You - jumped over the wall yesterday
He\She\It - jumped over the wall yesterday
He went to Paris last week
▪ Use
Actions or events at a certain time in the past
He did the shopping this morning
I wrote a report last week
▪ Negative
I was a teacher
Subject + V-be“P.S” + NOT
I was not a teacher

He played football
Subject + Did + NOT + Verb“base”
He did not play football
▪ Question
He was a doctor
V-be“P.S” + Subject + ?
Was he a doctor?
Question word + V-be“P.S” + Subject + ?
When was he a doctor?

He watches TV
Did + Subject + Verb“base” ?
Did he watch TV?
Question word + Did + Subject + ?
Where did he watch TV?

past continuous
▪ Form
( Subject + V-be“P.S”+ Verb--ing )
I\He\She\It - was having a shower
They\We\You - were reading a book
▪ Use
Action in progress in the past at a certain time
My father was playing with us from 8 to 10 in the morning
Ali was practicing from Sunday to Wednesday
Action in the past that is interrupted by another action
I was watching TV when my brothers started fighting
While the cat was eating, the mouse appeared
Actions taking place at the same time
My friends were playing while I was working
Adam was coming while they were leaving
▪ Negative
She was studying for the exam
Subject + V-be“P.S” + NOT + Verb--ing
She was not studying for the exam
▪ Question
He was studying for the exam
V-be“P.S” + Subject + Verb--ing + ?
Was he studying for the exam?
Question word + V-be“P.S” + Subject + Verb--ing + ?
Where was he studying for the exam?

future simple
▪ Form
( Subject + (will\V-be + going to + Verb “base”)
I - am going to play football.
He\She\It - is going to jump over the wall.
They\We\You - are going to watch a video.
I\They\We\You\He\She\It - will play with the ball now
▪ Use
Fact, action or event in the future “Will” or “V-be + going
to”
I will travel next April
I am going to travel next April
Spontaneous decisions, voluntary, promises and predictions
“Will”
I will go home
I will bring you a glass of water
I will do the homework
It will rain tomorrow
Plans and future facts “V-be + going to”
I am going to travel tomorrow
It’s going to rain tomorrow
▪ Negative
I will be a president
Subject + Will + NOT + Verb“base”
I will not be a president

I am going to be president
Subject + V-be + NOT + going to + Verb“base”
I am not going to be a president
▪ Question
He will be a president
Will + Subject + Verb“base” + ?
Will he be a president?
Question word + Will + Subject + Verb“base” + ?
When will he be a president?

He is going to be a president
V-be + Subject + going to + Verb“base” + ?
Is he going to be a president?
Question word + V-be + Subject + going to + Verb“base” + ?
When is he going to be a president?

future continuous
▪ Form
( Subject + Will be + Verb--ing )
I - will be playing football tonight
He\She\It - will be having a big meal this evening
They\We\You - will be flying to Australia
 ▪ Use
Action in progress at a given time of the future
They will be travelling tomorrow at 9 am
He will be studying from seven to twelve
Action that is sure to happen
We will be meeting next week
She will be waiting for you at the airport tomorrow
▪ Negative
She will be studying for the exam
Subject + Will + NOT + be + Verb--ing
She will not be studying for the exam
▪ Question
He will be studying for the exam
Will + Subject + be + Verb--ing + ?
Will he be studying for the exam?
Question word + Will + Subject + be + Verb--ing + ?
Where will he be studying for the exam?

Present perfect
▪ Form
( Subject + V-have + Verb“P.P” )
I - have eaten my lunch here
He\She\It - has been here before
They\We\You - have already met
▪ Use
Action that occurred at indefinite time in the past
He has been here before
We have met before
Action that just happened not a while ago
She has just finished her homework
They have just arrived
Something happened in the past and has results in the present
I have printed the letter
He has cleaned his room
▪ Negative
She has finished her work
Subject + V-have + NOT + Verb“P.P”
She has not finished her work
▪ Question
He has parked his car
V-have + Subject + Verb“P.P” + ?
Has he parked his car?
Question word + V-have + Subject + Verb“P.P” + ?
Where has he parked his car?

Present perfect continuous

▪ Form
( Subject + V-have + been + Verb--ing )
I - have been waiting for a long time
He\She\It - has been eating for hours
They\We\You - have been teaching since 2012
▪ Use
Action beginning in the past and still continuing
I have been waiting for two hours
He has been studying for 6 hours
▪ Negative
She has been waiting for so long
Subject + V-have + NOT + been + Verb--ing
She has not been waiting for so long
▪ Question
He has been missing lectures lately
V-have + Subject + been + Verb--ing + ?
Has he been missing lectures lately?
Question word + V-have + Subject + been + Verb--ing + ?
Why has he been missing lectures lately?

past perfect
▪ Form
( Subject + Had + Verb“P.P” )
I - had finished my lunch before they brought the ice-cream
He\She\It - had flied in the sky before the night came
They\We\You - had met before the class
▪ Use
Action in the past before another
I had left before the teacher came
The time had finished before the students finished writing
▪ Negative
She had finished her work
Subject + Had + NOT + Verb“P.P”
She had not finished her work
▪ Question
He had parked his car
Had + Subject + Verb“P.P” + ?
Had he parked his car?
Question word + Had + Subject + Verb“P.P” + ?
When had he parked his car?

past perfect continuous

▪ Form
( Subject + Had + been + Verb--ing )
I - had been living in Italy before I moved to Spain
He\She\It - had been drinking before you came
They\We\You - had been studying before he interrupted
▪ Use
A continuous action in the past before another one
My wife had been working for that school for a long time before
she retired
My parents had been living in England before they moved to
Sweden
▪ Negative
She had been waiting for so long
Subject + Had + NOT + been + Verb--ing
She had not been waiting for so long
▪ Question
He had been missing lectures the whole semester
Had + Subject + been + Verb--ing + ?
Had he been missing lectures the whole semester?
Question word + Had + Subject + been + Verb--ing + ?
Why had he been missing lectures the whole semester?

future perfect
▪ Form
( Subject + will have + Verb“P.P” )
I - will have done this assignment by the end of the day
He\She\It - will have gone by the time you arrive
They\We\You - will have eaten the meal by the next minutes
▪ Use
Action completed by a given time of the future
I will have done this homework by tomorrow
By the next hour, he will have finished cooking
▪ Negative
She will have finished her work
Subject + Will + NOT + Have + Verb“P.P”
She will not have finished her work
▪ Question
He will have parked his car
Will + Subject + Have + Verb“P.P” + ?
Will he have parked his car?
Question word + Will + Subject + Have + Verb“P.P” + ?
Where will he have parked his car?
 future perfect continuous
▪ Form
( Subject + Will have + been + Verb--ing )
I - will have been working for two weeks tomorrow
He\She\It - will have been staying here for a month
tomorrow
They\We\You - will have been sleeping for a day in the
next hour
▪ Use
Action started in the past, still in progress at the present time and
will continue until a certain time in the future
We will have been living here for 10 years next month
By the next year, my father will have been working for the
company for 20 years
▪ Negative
She will have been waiting for so long
Subject + Will + NOT + Have been + Verb--ing
She will not have been waiting for so long
▪ Question
He will have been teaching for 10 years
Will + Subject + Have been + Verb--ing + ?
Will he have been teaching for 10 years?
Question word + Will + Subject + Have been + Verb--ing + ?
Where will he have been teaching for 10 years
 V1 V2 V3
BASE FORM OF VERB PAST SIMPLE PAST PARTICIPLE
be (is, am, are) was, were been
beat beat beaten
become became become
begin began begun
bend bent bent
bet bet bet
bid bid bid
bite bit bitten
blow blew blown
break broke broken
bring brought brought
build built built
burn burned/burnt burned/burnt
buy bought bought
catch caught caught
choose chose chosen
come came come
cost cost cost
cut cut cut
dig dug dug
dive dove dived
do did done
draw drew drawn
dream dreamed/dreamt dreamed/dreamt
drive drove driven
drink drank drunk
eat ate eaten
fall fell fallen
feel felt felt
fight fought fought
find found found
fly flew flown
forget forgot forgotten
forgive forgave forgiven
freeze froze frozen
get got gotten
give gave given
go went gone
grow grew grown
hang hung hung
have had had
hear heard heard
hide hid hidden
hit hit hit
hold held held
hurt hurt hurt
 keep kept kept
know knew known
lay laid laid
lead led led
leave left left
lend lent lent
let let let
lie lay lain
lose lost lost
make made made
mean meant meant
meet met met
pay paid paid
put put put
read read read
ride rode ridden
ring rang rung
rise rose risen
run ran run
say said said
see saw seen
sell sold sold
send sent sent
show showed shown
shut shut shut
sing sang sung
sit sat sat
sleep slept slept
speak spoke spoken
spend spent spent
stand stood stood
swim swam swum
take took taken
teach taught taught
tear tore torn
tell told told
think thought thought
throw threw thrown
understand understood understood
wake woke woken
wear wore worn
win won won
write wrote written