Tenses

All 12 tenses with formulas, uses, examples and signal words.

All 12 tenses at a glance

	Simple	Continuous	Perfect	Perfect continuous
Present	V1 (+ s/es with he, she, it)	am/is/are + V-ing	has/have + V3	has/have + been + V-ing
Past	V2	was/were + V-ing	had + V3	had + been + V-ing
Future	will + V1	will + be + V-ing	will + have + V3	will + have + been + V-ing

Present Simple

Present

positive

Subject + V1 (+ s/es with he, she, it)

She reads the newspaper every morning.

negative

Subject + do/does + not + V1

She does not read the newspaper every morning.

question

Do/Does + subject + V1?

Does she read the newspaper every morning?

When to use

Habits and routines
General truths and facts
Fixed timetables

Signal words

alwaysusuallyoftensometimesneverevery day

Present Continuous

Present

positive

Subject + am/is/are + V-ing

They are playing cricket now.

negative

Subject + am/is/are + not + V-ing

They are not playing cricket now.

question

Am/Is/Are + subject + V-ing?

Are they playing cricket now?

When to use

Actions happening now
Temporary situations
Fixed plans for the near future

Signal words

nowat the momentcurrentlythese daysLook!Listen!

Present Perfect

Present

positive

Subject + has/have + V3

He has finished his homework.

negative

Subject + has/have + not + V3

He has not finished his homework.

question

Has/Have + subject + V3?

Has he finished his homework?

When to use

Actions finished at an unstated time before now
Experiences
Actions that started in the past and continue (with since/for)

Signal words

alreadyyetjusteverneversinceforso far

Present Perfect Continuous

Present

positive

Subject + has/have + been + V-ing

It has been raining since morning.

negative

Subject + has/have + not + been + V-ing

It has not been raining since morning.

question

Has/Have + subject + been + V-ing?

Has it been raining since morning?

When to use

Actions that started in the past and are still going on
Emphasis on how long something has lasted

Signal words

sinceforall dayhow long

Past Simple

Past

positive

Subject + V2

We visited Lahore last year.

negative

Subject + did + not + V1

We did not visit Lahore last year.

question

Did + subject + V1?

Did we visit Lahore last year?

When to use

Completed actions at a specific time in the past
A series of past actions

Signal words

yesterdaylast weekagoin 2010when

Past Continuous

Past

positive

Subject + was/were + V-ing

I was studying when the lights went out.

negative

Subject + was/were + not + V-ing

I was not studying when the lights went out.

question

Was/Were + subject + V-ing?

Were you studying when the lights went out?

When to use

Actions in progress at a moment in the past
An action interrupted by another action

Signal words

whilewhenat 8 pm yesterdayall evening

Past Perfect

Past

positive

Subject + had + V3

The train had left before we reached the station.

negative

Subject + had + not + V3

The train had not left before we reached the station.

question

Had + subject + V3?

Had the train left before you reached the station?

When to use

An action completed before another past action

Signal words

beforeafterby the timealreadywhen

Past Perfect Continuous

Past

positive

Subject + had + been + V-ing

She had been waiting for two hours when the bus arrived.

negative

Subject + had + not + been + V-ing

She had not been waiting long when the bus arrived.

question

Had + subject + been + V-ing?

Had she been waiting long when the bus arrived?

When to use

An action that continued for some time before another past action

Signal words

forsincebeforehow long

Future Simple

Future

positive

Subject + will + V1

I will call you tomorrow.

negative

Subject + will + not (won't) + V1

I will not call you tomorrow.

question

Will + subject + V1?

Will you call me tomorrow?

When to use

Predictions
Decisions made at the moment of speaking
Promises and offers

Signal words

tomorrownext weeksoonin 2030probably

Future Continuous

Future

positive

Subject + will + be + V-ing

This time tomorrow, we will be flying to Karachi.

negative

Subject + will + not + be + V-ing

This time tomorrow, we will not be flying to Karachi.

question

Will + subject + be + V-ing?

Will you be flying to Karachi this time tomorrow?

When to use

Actions that will be in progress at a time in the future

Signal words

this time tomorrowat 9 am tomorrowall day tomorrow

Future Perfect

Future

positive

Subject + will + have + V3

By next year, they will have completed the bridge.

negative

Subject + will + not + have + V3

By next year, they will not have completed the bridge.

question

Will + subject + have + V3?

Will they have completed the bridge by next year?

When to use

An action that will be completed before a time in the future

Signal words

by tomorrowby next yearby the timebefore

Future Perfect Continuous

Future

positive

Subject + will + have + been + V-ing

By June, she will have been teaching for ten years.

negative

Subject + will + not + have + been + V-ing

By June, she will not have been teaching for ten years.

question

Will + subject + have + been + V-ing?

Will she have been teaching for ten years by June?

When to use

How long an action will have been going on by a future time

Signal words

for … byby next monthby the time

V1 = base form (write), V2 = past form (wrote), V3 = past participle (written), V-ing = present participle (writing).

Ready to test yourself?

Practise English MCQs

Simple

Continuous

Perfect

Perfect continuous

Present

V1 (+ s/es with he, she, it)

am/is/are + V-ing

has/have + V3

has/have + been + V-ing

Past

Future

will + have + been + V-ing