TENSES
SIMPLE
PRESENT TENSE
The PRESENT
TENSE uses the verb's base form (write, work), or, for third-person
singular subjects, the base form plus an -s ending (he writes,
she works).
The
PRESENT TENSE indicates that an action is present, now, relative to the speaker
or writer. Generally, it is used to describe actions that are factual or
habitual -- things that occur in the present but that are not necessarily
happening right now: "It rains a lot in Portland" is
a kind of timeless statement. Compare that to the present progressive --
"It is raining in Portland" -- which means that
something is, in fact, going on right now. "I use my bike
to get around town." is in the present, but I'm not actually on my bike
right now. An instantaneous sense of the present can be conveyed with either
the simple present or the progressive: "Watch him now: he holds [is
holding] down the control key at the same time that he presses [is
pressing] the letter d."
The
present tense is used to describe events that are scheduled (by nature or by
people): "High tide is at 3:15 p.m. The Super Bowl starts at
6:15 p.m."
The
present tense can be used to suggest the past with what is sometimes called the
fictional (or historic) present: "We were watching the back door when, all
of a sudden, in walks Dierdre." With verbs of
communicating, the present tense can also suggest a past action: "Dierdre tells me
that she took her brother to the dentist." Most oddly, the present tense
can convey a sense of the future, especially with verbs such as arrive,
come, and leave that suggest a kind of plan or schedule:
"The train from Boston arrives this afternoon at two
o'clock.
1.
he, she,
it: in the third person singular
the verb always ends in -s:
he wants, she needs, he gives, she thinks.
he wants, she needs, he gives, she thinks.
2.
Negative and question forms use DOES
(=the third person of the auxiliary'DO') +the infinitive of the
verb.
He wants. Does he want? He does not want.
He wants. Does he want? He does not want.
3.
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
fly
flies, cry criesException: if there is a vowel before the -y:
play
plays, pray prays
4.
Add -es to verbs
ending in:-ss, -x, -sh, -ch:
he passes, she catches, he fixes, it pushes
he passes, she catches, he fixes, it pushes
There are
only two basic forms for the simple present tense; one ends with -s and the
other doesn't. Here are the rules, using the example verb "sing":
|
Subject
|
Verb Form
|
Example
|
|
I
|
simple form
|
I sing
|
|
You
|
simple form
|
You sing
|
|
He
|
simple form + S
|
He sings
|
|
She
|
simple form + S
|
She sings
|
|
It
|
simple form + S
|
It sings
|
|
We
|
simple form
|
We sing
|
|
They
|
simple form
|
They sing
|
SIMPLE PAST TENSE
The simple past or past simple, sometimes called the preterite, is the basic form of the past tense in Modern English. It is used principally
to describe events in the past, although it also has some
other uses. Regular English verbs form the simple past in -ed; however
there are a few hundred irregular verbs with different forms.
The term "simple"
is used to distinguish the syntactical construction whose
basic form uses the plain past tense alone, from other past tense constructions
which use auxiliaries in combination with participles, such as the past
perfect and past
progressive.
The PAST TENSE indicates that an action is in the past relative to
the speaker or writer.
when the time period has finished: "We went to Chicago last Christmas."
when the time period is definite: "We visited Mom last week."
with for, when
the action is finished: "I worked with the FBI for two months."
Regular verbs use the verb's base form (scream, work) plus
the -ed ending
(screamed, worked). Irregular verbs alter their form in some other way (slept,
drank, drove).
We
make the past form of regular verbs by adding -ed to the infinitive.
There is no change for the third
person singular:
{subject} + {past form}
I worked hard.
She walked to
the supermarket.
They laughed at the joke
stop > stopped
tip > tipped
If
the verb already ends in -e then just add the -d:
love > loved
pile > piled
If
the verb ends in consonant + -y then take off the -y and add -ied:
pity >
pitied
sully >
sullied
SIMPLE FUTURE TENSE
The FUTURE TENSE indicates that an action is in the future relative to
the speaker or writer. There are no inflected forms for the future in English
(nothing like those -ed or -s endings in the other tenses). Instead, the future
tense employs the helping verbs will or shall with the base form of the verb:
- She will leave soon.
- We shall overcome.
The future is also
formed with the use of a form of "go" plus the infinitive of the
verb:
- He is going to
faint.
FORM
Will
[will + verb]
Examples:
· You will help him later.
· Will you help him
later?
· You will not help him later.
FORM
Be Going To
[am/is/are + going to + verb]
Examples:
· You are going to meet Jane tonight.
· Are you going
to meet Jane tonight?
· You are not going to meet Jane tonight.
We use the
future simple tense when there is no plan or decision to do something before we
speak. We make the decision spontaneously at the time of speaking. Look at
these examples:
- Hold on. I'll get a
pen.
- We will see what
we can do to help you.
- Maybe we'll stay in and watch television
tonight.
In these
examples, we had no firm plan before speaking. The decision is made at
the time of speaking.
We often
use the future simple tense with the verb to think before it:
- I think I'll
go to the gym tomorrow.
- I think I will
have a holiday next year.
- I don't think I'll
buy that car.
·
The structure of the future simple
tense is:
|
subject
|
+
|
auxiliary
verb WILL
|
+
|
main
verb
|
|
invariable
|
base
|
|||
|
will
|
V1
|
|||
PRESENT PERFECT TENSE
The PRESENT PERFECT TENSE is formed with a present tense form of "to
have" plus the past participle of the verb (which can be either regular or
irregular in form). This tense indicates either that an action was completed
(finished or "perfected") at some point in the past or that the
action extends to the present:
I have walked two miles already [but I'm still walking].
I have run the
Boston Marathon [but that was some time ago].
The critics have praised the film Saving
Private Ryan since it came out
[and they continue to do so].
The choice between Present Perfect and Simple Past is often determined by the adverbial accompanying the verb. With adverbs referring to a period gone by, we would use the simple past:
I studied all night/yesterday/on Wednesday.
The present
perfect is
formed from the present tense of the verb have and the past
participle of
a verb:
The present perfect continuous is formed with have/has been and the -ing form of the verb:
Use
We use the present perfect tense:
·
for
something that started in the past and continues in the present:
They’ve
been married for
nearly fifty years.
She has lived in Liverpool all her life.
She has lived in Liverpool all her life.
Note: We normally use the
present perfect continuous for this:
She has been
living in
Liverpool all her life.
It’s been raining for hours.
It’s been raining for hours.
·
for something we have done several
times in the past and continue to
do:
I’ve played the guitar ever since I was a
teenager.
He has written three books and he is working on another one.
I’ve been watching that programme every week.
He has written three books and he is working on another one.
I’ve been watching that programme every week.
We
often use a clause with since to show when something started in
the past:
They’ve been staying with us since last
week.
I have worked here since I left school.
I’ve been watching that programme every week since it started.
I have worked here since I left school.
I’ve been watching that programme every week since it started.
·
when we are talking about our experience
up to the present:
Note: We often use the adverb ever to talk about experience up to the present:
My last birthday was the worst day I have ever had.
Note: and we
use never for the negative form:
Have you ever met George?
Yes, but I’ve never met his wife.
Yes, but I’ve never met his wife.
·
for something that happened in the
past but is important at the time of speaking:
I can’t get in the house. I’ve lost my keys.
Teresa isn’t at home. I think she has gone shopping.
I’m tired out. I’ve been working all day.
Teresa isn’t at home. I think she has gone shopping.
I’m tired out. I’ve been working all day.
TUGAS
Exercises
1. I
spend my money
a) I
spent my money
b) I
will spend my money
c) I
have spent my money
2. They
use that one
a) They
used that one
b) They
will use that one
c) They
have used that one
3. We
study English together
a) We
studied English together
b) We
shall study English together
c) We
have studied English together
4. They
discuss their work
a) They
discussed their work
b) They will
discuss their work
c) They
have discussed their work
5. They
have enough time
a) They
had enough time
b) They will
have enough time
c) They
have had enough time
6. I
do all of the Jessons
a) I
did all of the Jessons
b) I
will do all of the jessons
c) I
have done all of the Jessons
7. He
sits in that row
a) He
sat in that row
b) He will
sit in that row
c) He
has sat in that row
8. I
drive my car
a) I
drove my car
b) I
will drive my car
c) I
had driven my car
9. She
hides her money
a) She
hid her money
b) She
will hide her money
c) She
has hidden her money
10. We
go to school
a) We
went to school
b) We
will go to school
c) We
have gone to school
11. He
takes much time
a) He
took much time
b) He
will take much time
c) He
had taken much time
12. Does
he eat there?
a) Did he
eat there?
b) Will he
eat there?
c) Has he
eaten there?
13. Do
you enjoy that work?
a) Did
you enjoy that work?
b) will
you enjoy that work?
c) have
you enjoyed that work?
14. Does
he write many latters ?
a) Did
he write many latters ?
b) Will he
write many latters ?
c) has
he written many latters ?
15. Do
you send many letters?
a) Did
you send many letters?
b) Will you
spend many letters?
c) Have you
sent many letters?
16. Do
they explain everything?
a) Did they
explain everything?
b) Will they
explain everything?
c) Have
they explained everything?
17. Does
she attend that class?
a) Did
she attend that class?
b) Will
she attend that class?
c) Has she
attended that class?
18. Do
you have enough time?
a) Did
you have enough time?
b) Will you
have enough time?
c) Have you
had enough time?
19. Do
they copy the sentences
a) Did they
copy the sentences
b) Will they
copy the sentences
c) Have they
copied the sentences
20. Does
she have much touble?
a) Did she
have much touble?
b) Will she
have much touble?
c) Has
she had much touble?
21. Does
she do good work?
a) Did she
do good work?
b) Will
she do good work?
c) Has she
done good work?
22. Do
the students practice?
a) Did the
students practice?
b) Will the
students practice?
c) Have
the students practice?
23. I
don’t stay there?
a) I
didn’t stay there?
b) I
won’t stay there?
c) I
haven’t stayed there?
24. He
doesn’t work hard
a) He
didn’t work hard
b) He
won’t work hard
c) He
hasn’t worked hard
25. I
don’t have any energy
a) I
didn’t have any energy
b) I
won’t have any energy
c) I
haven’t had any energy
26. He
doesn’t pay his bills
a) He
didn’t pay his bills
b) He
won’t pay his bills
c) He
hasn’t payed his bills
27. We
don’t see that fellow
a) We
didn’t see that fellow
b) We
won’t see that fellow
c) We
haven’t seen that fellow
28. She
doesn’t use this one
a) She
didn’t use this one
b) She
won’t use this one
c) She
hasn’t used this one
29. They
don’t remember it
a) They
didn’t remember it
b) They
won’t remember it
c) They
haven’t remembered it
30. I
don’t do much work here
a) I
didn’t do much work here
b) I
won’t do much work here
c) I
haven’t done much work here
31. He
doesn’t listen carefully
a) He
didn’t listen carefully
b) He
won’t listen carefully
c) He
hasn’t listened carefully
1. Mr. Harris taught English at this school for five years.
2. I writen three
or four letters to that company.
3. The students in this class done those two lessons already.
4. I known professor
moore for more than twelve years.
5. Richard taken three
courses in English at this school.
6. These steps are dangerous. I fallen on them several times.
7. Mr. Kramer been in the United States for three years.
8. The janitor already shut the
back door.
9. The students read all
the stories in that book.
10. Marjorie choosen a pretty dress for the party.
11. I spoken to my boss about the problem
several times.
12. That
tree grown at least five
feet since last year.
13. Miss
King spent over eighteen
hundred dollars since May.
14. Mr.
and Mrs. Smith bought a
new house in North Plains.
15. The
real estate agent sold the
Smith’s house.
16. Charless had a bad cold for a whole week.
17. I’m
sorry. I forgotten the name of
that book.
18. We already heard that new song several times.
19. Mr.
Wilson isn’t here. He gone out
of town for the weekend.
20. Mr.
Kennedy worn his blue suit to
the office only twice.
21. I sat in this same seat since the first day
of classes.
22. The
money isn’t in this drawer. Someone stolen it
!
23. Up
to now, I understood every
lesson in the book.
24. We had absolutely no trouble with our car so
far.
25. No
one found that girl’s
purse and gloves yet.
26. The
weather been very warm ever
since last Thursday.
27. Mr.
Anderson and Mr. Brown had lunch
already.
28. I seen the Empire State Building hundreds of
time.
29. We already spoken to thr director and given him the message.
30. Grandmother never flown in an airplane before.
31. You torn your shirt ! There’s a hole in the
left sleeve.
32. I already read the customer’s letter
and written a reply to
him.
