Simple and progressive tenses
Simple verb tenses
The infinitive, or base, form of a word is its to form: to walk, to run, to jump, to fly.
When we use verbs, we conjugate, or change, them to indicate the verb’s tense in a particular sentence. There are three categories of verb tenses: simple, perfect, and progressive.
English verbs divide into two categories: those that are regular and those that are irregular. Regular verbs all follow the same conjugation patterns, whereas irregular verbs do not. Instead, their conjugations must be memorized. However, the good news is that you probably know most of them already. Use the irregular verbs chart to quiz yourself and learn the ones you do not know. :contentReference[oaicite:0]{index=0}
Simple present tense
We use simple present tense in five situations:
- When things are happening in the present moment: I eat my lunch.
- To state a general truth: Pollution is bad.
- A regular event: The sun comes up in the morning.
- A habit: I brush my teeth before bed.
- When we discuss art and literature: Bilbo Baggins is unwilling to go on an adventure at first.
Simple present tense
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| I run | we run |
| you run | you run |
| he/she/it/one runs | they run |
The most common irregular present tense verb is probably to be, but many students do not recognize it because the letters be do not appear in its conjugation.
To be
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| I am | we are |
| you are | you are |
| he/she/it/one is | they are |
Practice question
When the doorbell rings, the dog _____ and wakes the baby, who _____.
Choose the correct answer:
a. Barks…cried
b. Bark…cries
c. Barks…cries
d. Barks…cryes
e. Barks…cry
Correct answer:
The correct answer is c.
Barks…cries is correct because both verbs are conjugated correctly in the third-person present tense.
a. Barks…cried is incorrect because cried is past tense.
b. Bark…cries is incorrect because the third-person singular form of bark is barks.
d. Barks…cryes is incorrect because cryes is misspelled. It should be cries.
e. Barks…cry is incorrect because the third-person singular form of cry is cries.
Simple past tense
The simple past tense is used to describe actions that began and ended in the past. It does not identify how far in the past the action took place, nor does it indicate how long the action lasted.
Example:
The cat meowed.
Regular verbs in the simple past tense are created by adding -ed to the end of the infinitive form of the verb.
Regular past tense
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| I jumped | we jumped |
| you jumped | you jumped |
| he/she/it/one jumped | they jumped |
The simple past tense forms of irregular verbs are listed in the left-hand column of the irregular verbs chart. Like the regular past tense verbs, they have only one form. Quiz yourself and learn the ones you do not know. :contentReference[oaicite:1]{index=1}
Practice question
The coach grabbed the bag of equipment and _____ it towards the bus.
Choose the correct answer:
a. Carry
b. Carries
c. Carryies
d. Carried
e. Carryed
Correct answer:
The correct answer is d.
Carried is correct. When a past tense verb ends in y, change it to i and add -ed: carried.
a. Carry is incorrect because it is either the infinitive form of the verb or the first-person singular present-tense form.
b. Carries is incorrect because it is present tense.
c. Carryies is incorrect because it is both present tense and misspelled.
e. Carryed is incorrect because it is a misspelling of carried.
Simple future tense
The simple future tense is formed by adding will or shall in front of the infinitive form of a verb. No other change is required.
- An action decided at that moment: I am tired, so I will go to bed.
- A promise or plan: I will complete my homework on time from now on.
- The arrival of an inevitable event: The sun will come up soon.
- An offer: Your salary will be $80,000 a year.
- A threat: If you don’t eat your meat, you won’t get any broccoli.
To express that an event will not occur, insert not after will or shall. The contraction of will not is won’t.
Shauna will not complete her errands today.
Shauna won’t complete her errands today.
To decide which verb tense to use in a particular sentence, look for context clues in the rest of the sentence.
Practice question
Tom _______ the cake yesterday, but I saved a slice for you.
Choose the correct answer:
a. Finish
b. Finishes
c. Finished
d. Will finish
e. Is finishing
Correct answer:
The correct answer is c.
Finished is correct because the context clue yesterday indicates the need for simple past tense. Another clue is that saved is also in the past tense.
a. Finish is incorrect. It can be the infinitive form of the verb or the first-person singular present tense.
b. Finishes is incorrect because it is present tense.
d. Will finish is incorrect because it is future tense and cannot logically take place yesterday.
e. Is finishing is incorrect because it is present progressive tense.
Practice question
Martin will complete his homework after he walks the dog.
Choose the correct answer:
a. Complete
b. Completes
c. Completed
d. Will complete
e. Has completed
Correct answer:
The correct answer is d.
Will complete is correct. The context clue after indicates that the sentence is organizing events in the present and future.
a. Complete is incorrect because it is the infinitive form of the verb.
b. Completes is incorrect because it is present tense.
c. Completed is incorrect because past-tense actions cannot occur after those taking place in the present.
e. Has completed is incorrect because it indicates a past action, not a future one.
Practice question
Select the group of words that contains only present-tense verbs.
Choose the correct answer:
a. Had, were, are
b. Is, am, ran
c. Sings, flies, wobbles
d. Swam, eat, sit
e. Felt, has, have
Correct answer:
The correct answer is c.
Sings, flies, wobbles is correct. All three words are third-person present-tense verbs.
a. Had, were, are is incorrect because had and were are in the past tense.
b. Is, am, ran is incorrect because ran is the past tense of run.
d. Swam, eat, sit is incorrect because swam is the past tense of swim.
e. Felt, has, have is incorrect because felt is the past tense of feel.
Progressive tenses
The progressive tenses are used to express actions that progress as time passes.
To form a progressive tense verb, add -ing to the end of the verb and place the appropriate form of to be before it.
Present progressive tense
Present progressive tense
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| I am sleeping | we are sleeping |
| you are sleeping | you are sleeping |
| he/she/it/one is sleeping | they are sleeping |
As always, context clues within the sentence help you determine verb tense.
Practice question
Krissy _____ to finish her novel before her plane _____ because she will be too busy to read after that.
Choose the correct answer:
a. Trying…lands
b. Is trying…lands
c. Is trying…is landing
d. Tried…is landing
e. Tries…is landing
Correct answer:
The correct answer is b.
Is trying…lands is correct because it organizes the events logically from present progressive to present to future.
a. Trying…lands is incorrect because progressive verbs require a form of to be.
c. Is trying…is landing is incorrect because both actions become ongoing rather than sequential.
d. Tried…is landing is incorrect because a past-tense verb cannot precede a present-tense one.
e. Tries…is landing is incorrect because it is unidiomatic.