16 Tenses

HOW TO UNDERSTAND AND
MASTER THE 16 TENSES

EASILY
ASINAN GROUP :
CHRISTIAN AGAPE (1200944893)
JIMMY (1200943070)
EZRA RICARDO(1200943013)
CHAIDIR YUDITAMA) (1200941834)
JUSTIAN (1200944501)
1. The Simple Present Tense
 Regular or permanent situations
 When something happens regularly or is a

permanent situation we usually use the simple
present tense. When using the simple present the
verb (with the exception of the auxiliary verbs)
remains in the dictionary form (verb + s with
he/she/it).
Simple Present Timeline
For example:
Q) "Where do you
live?"
A) "I live in
Germany."
Q) "Where does he
live?"
A) "He lives in
Germany."
2. Present Continuous
When we talk about events that are actually

happening now, we use the present continuous
tense.
Present Continuous Timeline
For example:
Q) "What are you

doing?“
A) "I'm building a
website."
We also use the present

continuous tense to talk
about things that are
happening around now
but are temporary.
3. Present Perfect
 The present perfect simple tense is used to talk

about a past time, which has very strong meaning
for the present
Present Perfect Simple Timeline
For example:
Q) Where's Jane?
A) She has gone out. She should

be back in an hour.
We form the present perfect

simple by using the auxilliary
verb have/has and the -ed form
of the regular verb (the past
participle) irregular verb forms
have to be learned:
Example
 For example:
 Q) Have you done your homework?"

 A) "Yes, I've just finished it."
 It is often used to suggest that a past action still has an effect upon something happening in the present.
 For example:
 "The pound has fallen against the dollar."
 It is also used to discuss unfinished time.
 For example:
 Q) Have you done your homework today?

 A) No, I haven't done it yet.
 Note - You are talking about today and today isn't finished, so you may do your homework later!
4. Present Perfect Continuous
 The present perfect continuous tense is often used
(with for or since) to describe how long something
has been happening up to now.
Present Perfect Continuous
Timeline
Example
 For example:-
 Q) How long have you been studying English?"

 A) I've been studying English for four years."
Note - You can just say "For four years."

 Q) How long have you been living in Germany?
 A) I've been living here since 1998.
Note - You can just say "Since 1998".

5. Past Simple Tenses
 The simple past tense is used to talk about actions
that happened at a specific time in the past. You
state when it happened using a time adverb.
Simple Past Timeline
Example
 For example:
 "Last year I took my exams."
 "I got married in 1992."
 It can be used to describe events that happened over a period of time in the past but not now.
 For example:
 "I lived in South Africa for two years."
 The simple past tense is also used to talk about habitual or repeated actions that took place in the past.
 For example:
 "When I was a child we always went to the seaside on bank holidays."

6. Past Continuous Tense
 We use the past continuous tense to describe a

past action over a period of time.
Past Continuous Timeline
Example
 For example:
 Q) "What were they doing yesterday?"

 A) "They were working all day."
 It can be used to describe what someone was doing at a particular point in time.
 For example:
 Q) "What were you doing at 7.30 last night?“

 A) "I was watching television."
 The past continuous can also be used to show that an activity frequently took place over a period of time.
 Q) "What did you do on holiday?"

 A) "I went skiing a lot."
 Often the past continuous is mixed with the past simple to show what was happening when something happened. The past
continuous refers to the longer event and the simple past to the event that interrupted it.
7. Past Perfect
 The past perfect simple tense is used to go
further back in time when we are already talking about
the past. It can make it clear that something had already
happened at the time we are talking about.
 We form the past perfect simple by using the auxilliary
verb had and the -ed form of the regular verb (the past
participle)
Past Perfect Timeline
Example
 For example:
 "I had already done the shopping by the time she came
home."
 "I was late for work, by the time I arrived the client had
already left."
The past perfect simple can be used to show how often

something happened in the past.
8. Past Perfect Continuous
 The past perfect continuous tense is used to talk
about longer situations that continued up to the
moment in the past we are talking about.
Past Perfect Continuous
Timeline
Example
 For example:
 "By the time I left England we had been living in Bristol for five years."
 "His back was sore because he had been sitting at the computer all day."
 It is also used to say how long something went on for up to a past time.
 For example:-
 We apologised because we had kept them waiting for 3 hours.
 We apologised because we had kept them waiting since lunchtime.
 !Note It is always for a length of time and since a point in time.

9. Future Simple
 We sometimes use the simple present form to
discuss future events. Especially when talking
about official events that happen at a set time such
as timetables, meetings, itineraries, programmers
etc.
Example
 Q) "What time does the train leave?"

 A) "It leaves at 17.30."
 Q) "What time does the meeting begin tomorrow?“

 A) "It begins at 8.00am."
 Q) "What time do you arrive at the airport tomorrow?“

 A) "I arrive at 6.30pm."
10. a. Future Continuous
 The present continuous tense is often used to ask
about and discuss future arrangements or plans
with just the addition of a future time, but only
when these arrangements are certain.
Example
 For example:
 Q) What are you doing next week?"

 A) "I'm working."
 Q) What's he doing tomorrow?“

 A) "He's playing tennis."
 The present continuous tense is also used to talk about

and make future appointments and arrangements using
the words go or come....
10. b. Future Continuous
(will be doing)
 The use of 'will be doing' in a sentence is often
referred to as the future continuous. It is used to
talk about activities that will be happening at a
particular time or over a particular time in the
future.
Example
 For example:
 Next week we will be having a party. Can you come?
 You can also use it (or the present continuous form) to

talk about future plans.
 For example:
 We will be leaving here at 7.30pm.

11. Future Perfect
 Discussing the future using the present perfect simple form
 You can use the present perfect simple form to say that something
will have happened by a certain time in the future.
 "This time next year I will have finished my exams."

 Discussing the future using the present perfect continuous form (also
known as the future perfect continuous using will have been doing).
 You can use the present perfect continuous form to say how long
something will have been happening by a certain time in the future.
 "This time next year I will have been teaching English for 9 years."
12. Future Perfect Continuous
 The Present Perfect Future Tense
 Discussing the future using the present perfect simple form
 You can use the present perfect simple form to say that something will
have happened by a certain time in the future.
 "This time next year I will have finished my exams."

 Discussing the future using the present perfect continuous form (also
known as the future perfect continuous using will have been doing).
 You can use the present perfect continuous form to say how long
something will have been happening by a certain time in the future.
 "This time next year I will have been teaching English for 9 years."
13. Future Simple in the past
 Like Simple Future, Future in the Past has two
different forms in English: "would" and "was going
to." Although the two forms can sometimes be used
interchangeably, they often express two different
meanings.
FORM Would &
FORM Was/Were Going To
 FORM Would
[would + VERB]
 Examples:
I knew you would help him.
I knew you would not help him.
 FORM Was/Were Going To

[was/were + going to + VERB]
 Examples:
I knew you were going to go to the party.
I knew you were not going to go to the party.
14. Future Continuous in the
past
 The future continuous verb tense is used basically
in 3 situations. When a future action is going a
specific time in the future.
 Note: the a future time doesn't not have to be a

specific time according to the clock, it can be
virtual, such as during dinner.
Examples
Examples:
 The girls will be at eating lunch at school, during the lunch break.
 I will be working tomorrow night until late.
 When will you be calling next week?
 When one future action interrupters an other other future action. The longer action
is represented by the future continuous verb tense, and the short action or the
action that does the interrupting is represented by the present simple verb tense.
Examples:
 Tomorrow night I will be watching the football game, when you come home.
 Tonight everyone will be sleeping, when you leave for work.
 Will you be coming home tonight before I come come home?
 When 2 future actions will be taking place at the same time in the future.
15. Future Perfect in the past
 Expresses a past action which is future with respect
to a past action which itself is prior to another past
action.
 An example might help: I would have played
Future Perfect in the past
Timeline
FORM
 should / would have +P2 (verb + ed)
 Example
She would have worked.
16. Future Perfect Continuous in the
past
 To predict something that done for a while until the
time in the future
FORM
 should / would have been + P1 (verb + ing)
Example
He would have been working.

16 Tenses

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16 Tenses

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HOW TO UNDERSTAND AND

MASTER THE 16 TENSES

 When something happens regularly or is a

When we talk about events that are actually

Q) "What are you

We also use the present

 The present perfect simple tense is used to talk

A) She has gone out. She should

We form the present perfect

 Q) Have you done your homework?"

 "The pound has fallen against the dollar."

 It is also used to discuss unfinished time.

 Q) Have you done your homework today?

 Q) How long have you been studying English?"

Note - You can just say "For four years."

 A) I've been living here since 1998.

Note - You can just say "Since 1998".

 "Last year I took my exams."

 "I got married in 1992."

 "I lived in South Africa for two years."

 "When I was a child we always went to the seaside on bank holidays."

 We use the past continuous tense to describe a

 Q) "What were they doing yesterday?"

 Q) "What were you doing at 7.30 last night?“

 Q) "What did you do on holiday?"

The past perfect simple can be used to show how often

 We apologised because we had kept them waiting for 3 hours.

 We apologised because we had kept them waiting since lunchtime.

 !Note It is always for a length of time and since a point in time.

 Q) "What time does the train leave?"

 Q) "What time does the meeting begin tomorrow?“

 Q) "What time do you arrive at the airport tomorrow?“

 Q) What are you doing next week?"

 Q) What's he doing tomorrow?“

 The present continuous tense is also used to talk about

 Next week we will be having a party. Can you come?

 You can also use it (or the present continuous form) to

 We will be leaving here at 7.30pm.

 "This time next year I will have finished my exams."

 "This time next year I will have finished my exams."

 FORM Was/Were Going To

 Note: the a future time doesn't not have to be a

 I will be working tomorrow night until late.

 When will you be calling next week?

 Tonight everyone will be sleeping, when you leave for work.

 Will you be coming home tonight before I come come home?

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