Tenses in English language, Exams of English Language

Download Tenses in English language and more Exams English Language in PDF only on Docsity! Tenses FUNCTIONS OF THE PRESENT SIMPLE The simple present tense is one of several forms of present tense in English. It is used to describe habits, unchanging situations, general truths, and fixed arrangements. The simple present tense is simple to form. Just use the base form of the verb: (I take, you take, we take, they take) The 3rd person singular takes an -s at the end. (he takes, she takes) THE SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE IS USED: § To express habits, general truths, repeated actions or unchanging situations, emotions and wishes: I smoke (habit); I work in London (unchanging situation); London is a large city (general truth) § To give instructions or directions: You walk for two hundred meters, then you turn left. § To express fixed arrangements, present or future: Your exam starts at 09.00 § To express future time, after some conjunctions: after, when, before, as soon as, until: He'll give it to you when you come next Saturday. § Be careful! The simple present is not used to express actions happening now. FORMING THE SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE: TO THINK Affirmative Interrogative Negative I think Do I think? I do not think You think Do you think? You do not think He thinks Does he think? He does not think She thinks Does she think? She does not think It thinks Does it think? It does not think We think Do we think? We do not think. Affirmative Interrogative Negative They think Do they think? They do not think. NOTES ON THE SIMPLE PRESENT, THIRD PERSON SINGULAR § In the third person singular the verb always ends in -s: he wants, she needs, he gives, she thinks. § Negative and question forms use DOES (= the third person of the auxiliary 'DO') + the infinitive of the verb. He wants ice cream. Does he want strawberry? He does not want vanilla. § Verbs ending in -y : the third person changes the -y to -ies: fly --> flies, cry --> cries Exception: if there is a vowel before the -y: play --> plays, pray --> prays § Add -es to verbs ending in:-ss, -x, -sh, -ch: he passes, she catches, he fixes, it pushes EXAMPLES § He goes to school every morning. § She understands English. § It mixes the sand and the water. § He tries very hard. § She enjoys playing the piano. FUNCTIONS OF THE PRESENT CONTINUOUS As with all tenses in English, the speaker's attitude is as important as the time of the action or event. When someone uses the present continuous, they are thinking about something that is unfinished or incomplete THE PRESENT CONTINUOUS IS USED: § to describe an action that is going on at this moment: You are using the Internet. You are studying English grammar. § to describe an action that is going on during this period of time or a trend: Are you still working for the same company? More and more people are becoming vegetarian. MEASUREMENT § to contain § to cost § to hold § to measure § to weigh OTHERS § to look (=resemble) § to seem § to be (in most cases) § to have(when it means "to possess")* EXCEPTIONS Perception verbs (see, hear, feel, taste, smell) are often used with can: : I can see... These verbs may be used in the continuous form but with a different meaning § This coat feels nice and warm. (your perception of the coat's qualities) § John's feeling much better now (his health is improving) § She has three dogs and a cat. (possession) § She's having supper. (She's eating) § I can see Anthony in the garden (perception) § I'm seeing Anthony later (We are planning to meet) FUNCTIONS OF THE SIMPLE PAST The simple past tense, sometimes called the preterite, is used to talk about a completed action in a time before now. The simple past is the basic form of past tense in English. The time of the action can be in the recent past or the distant past and action duration is not important. EXAMPLES § John Cabot sailed to America in 1498. § My father died last year. § He lived in Fiji in 1976. § We crossed the Channel yesterday. You always use the simple past when you say when something happened, so it is associated with certain past time expressions § frequency: often, sometimes, always I sometimes walked home at lunchtime. I often brought my lunch to school. § a definite point in time: last week, when I was a child, yesterday, six weeks ago We saw a good film last week. Yesterday, I arrived in Geneva. She finished her work atseven o'clock I went to the theatre last night § an indefinite point in time: the other day, ages ago, a long time agoPeople lived in caves a long time ago. § She played the piano when she was a child. Note: the word ago is a useful way of expressing the distance into the past. It is placed after the period of time: a week ago, three years ago, a minute ago. Be Careful: The simple past in English may look like a tense in your own language, but the meaning may be different. FORMING THE SIMPLE PAST TENSE PATTERNS OF SIMPLE PAST TENSE FOR REGULAR VERBS Affirmative Subject + verb + ed I skipped. Negative Subject + did not + infinitive without to They didn't go. Interrogative Did + subject + infinitive without to Did she arrive? Interrogative negative Did not + subject + infinitive without to Didn't you play? TO WALK Affirmative Negative Interrogative I walked I didn't walk Did I walk? You walked You didn't walk Did you walk? He walked He didn't walk Did he walk? We walked We didn't walk Did we walk? They walked They didn't walk Did they walk? SIMPLE PAST TENSE OF TO BE, TO HAVE, TO DO Subject Verb Be Have Do I was had did You were had did He/She/It was had did We were had did You were had did They were had did Subject was/were base + ing She was reading Negative She wasn't reading Interrogative Was she reading? Interrogative negative Wasn't she reading? TO PLAY, PAST CONTINUOUS Affirmative Negative Interrogative I was playing I was not playing Was I playing? You were playing You were not playing Were you playing? He was playing He wasn't playing Was he playing? We were playing We weren't playing Were we playing? They were playing They weren't playing Were they playing? FUNCTIONS OF THE PRESENT PERFECT The present perfect is used to indicate a link between the present and the past. The time of the action is before now but not specified, and we are often more interested in the result than in the action itself. BE CAREFUL! There may be a verb tense in your language with a similar form, but the meaning is probably NOT the same. THE PRESENT PERFECT IS USED TO DESCRIBE § An action or situation that started in the past and continues in the present. I have lived in Bristol since 1984 (= and I still do.) § An action performed during a period that has not yet finished. She has been to the cinema twice this week (= and the week isn't over yet.) § A repeated action in an unspecified period between the past and now. We have visited Portugal several times. § An action that was completed in the very recent past, expressed by 'just'. I have just finished my work. § An action when the time is not important. He has read 'War and Peace'. (= the result of his reading is important) FORMING THE PRESENT PERFECT The present perfect of any verb is composed of two elements : the appropriate form of the auxiliary verb to have (present tense), plus the past participle of the main verb. The past participle of a regular verb is base+ed, e.g. played, arrived, looked. For irregular verbs, see the Table of irregular verbs in the section called 'Verbs'. Affirmative Subject to have past participle She has visited. Negative Subject to have + not past participle She has not (hasn't) visited. Interrogative to have subject past participle Has she visited? Negative interrogative to have + not subject past participle Hasn't she visited? NOTES ON THE PRESENT PERFECT ACTIONS STARTED IN THE PAST AND CONTINUING IN THE PRESENT § They haven't lived here for years. § She has worked in the bank for five years. § We have had the same car for ten years. § Have you played the piano since you were a child? WHEN THE TIME PERIOD REFERRED TO HAS NOT FINISHED § I have worked hard this week. § It has rained a lot this year. § We haven't seen her today. ACTIONS REPEATED IN AN UNSPECIFIED PERIOD BETWEEN THE PAST AND NOW. § They have seen that film six times § It has happened several times already. § She has visited them frequently. § We have eaten at that restaurant many times. ACTIONS COMPLETED IN THE VERY RECENT PAST (+JUST) § Have you just finished work? § I have just eaten. § We have just seen her. § Has he just left? Event A Event B John had gone out when I arrived in the office. Event A Event B I had saved my document before the computer crashed. Event B Event A When they arrived we had already started cooking. Event B Event A He was very tired because he hadn't slept well. FORMING THE PAST PERFECT The Past Perfect tense in English is composed of two parts: the past tense of the verb to have (had) + the past participle of the main verb. Subject had past participle Affirmative She had given Negative She hadn't asked. Interrogative Subject had past participle Had they arrived? Interrogative Negative Hadn't you finished? TO DECIDE, PAST PERFECT Affirmative Negative Interrogative I had decided I hadn't decided Had I decided? You had decided You hadn't decided Had you decided? She had decided She hadn't decided Had she decided? We had decided We hadn't decided Had we decided? They had decided They hadn't decided Had they decided? PAST PERFECT + JUST 'Just' is used with the past perfect to refer to an event that was only a short time earlier than before now, e.g. § The train had just left when I arrived at the station. § She had just left the room when the police arrived. § I had just put the washing out when it started to rain. FUNCTIONS OF THE PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS The past perfect continuous corresponds to the present perfect continuous, but with reference to a time earlier than 'before now'. As with the present perfect continuous, we are more interested in the process. EXAMPLES § Had you been waiting long before the taxi arrived? § We had been trying to open the door for five minutes when Jane found her key. § It had been raining hard for several hours and the streets were very wet. § Her friends had been thinking of calling the police when she walked in. This form is also used in reported speech. It is the equivalent of the past continuous and the present perfect continuous in direct speech: § Jane said, "I have been gardening all afternoon." = Jane said she had been gardening all afternoon. § When the police questioned him, John said, "I was working late in the office that night." = When the police questioned him, John told them he had been working late in the office that night. FORMING THE PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS The past perfect continuous is composed of two elements - the past perfect of the verb to be (=had been) + the present participle (base+ing). Subject had been verb + ing I had been walking Affirmative She had been trying Negative She hadn't been sleeping Interrogative Had you been eating? Interrogative negative Hadn't they been living?