Overview: Tenses | Basic English Grammar for Competitive Exams - Bank Exams PDF Download

Introduction of Tense 

English tenses are the form the verb takes to show the time of an action.

Types of Tenses

1. Present Tense - It is used to describe actions that are happening currently or habits that are ongoing. In Hindi, there are three types of present tense:
a. Simple Present - Describes general facts or habits.

• I eat.

b. Present Continuous - Describes actions that are currently happening.

• I am eating.

c. Present Perfect- Describes actions that have recently been completed.

• I have eaten.

2. Past Tense - It is used to describe actions that have already happened. In Hindi, there are three types of past tense:
a. Simple Past- Describes actions that happened in the past and are completed.

• I ate

b. Past Continuous - Describes actions that were happening in the past.

• I was eating. 

c. Past Perfect - Describes actions that were completed before another action in the past.

• I had eaten.

3. Future Tense- It is used to describe actions that will happen in the future. In Hindi, there are three types of future tense:
a. Simple Future- Describes actions that will happen in the future.

• I will eat.

b. Future Continuous- Describes actions that will be happening in the future.

• I will be eating.

c. Future Perfect- Describes actions that will be completed before another action in the future.

• I will have eaten.

Rules Related to Tenses

1. Simple Present Tense: This tense is used to express general truths, habits, or routines. The verb remains in its base form.

• Rule 1: The subject is singular, add 's' or 'es' to the verb.
  Example: He works every day.
• Rule 2: For plural subjects, or 'I' and 'you,' no change is made to the verb.
  Example: They work every day.

2. Present Continuous Tense: This tense indicates an action that is currently happening. The verb is formed by adding 'is/are/am' + present participle (-ing form).

• Rule: Add 'is' for singular subjects, 'are' for plural subjects, and 'am' for 'I.'
  Example: She is working. They are working. I am working.

3. Simple Past Tense: This tense expresses actions that have already occurred in the past. The verb is changed to its past form.

• Rule: Regular verbs take '-ed' in the past tense, while irregular verbs have different forms.
  Example: She worked yesterday. They ate breakfast.

4. Past Continuous Tense: This tense is used to describe an ongoing action in the past. The verb is formed by adding 'was/were' + present participle (-ing form).

• Rule: Use 'was' for singular subjects and 'were' for plural subjects.
  Example: He was working when she called.

5. Simple Future Tense: This tense is used to express actions that have not yet occurred but will happen in the future. The verb is formed using 'will' + base form of the verb.

• Rule: Use 'will' for all subjects.
  Example: They will work tomorrow.

6. Future Continuous Tense: This tense indicates an ongoing action that will occur in the future. The verb is formed by adding 'will be' + present participle (-ing form).

• Rule: Use 'will be' for all subjects.
  Example: She will be working when you arrive.

7. Present Perfect Tense: This tense is used to describe actions that have been completed at an unspecified time in the past. The verb is formed by adding 'has/have' + past participle.

• Rule: Use 'has' for singular subjects and 'have' for plural subjects.
  Example: She has worked here for five years.

8. Past Perfect Tense: This tense is used to describe actions that were completed before another past action. The verb is formed by adding 'had' + past participle.

• Rule: Use 'had' for all subjects.
  Example: They had eaten before the movie started.

9. Future Perfect Tense: This tense is used to describe actions that will be completed before another future action. The verb is formed by adding 'will have' + past participle.

• Rule: Use 'will have' for all subjects.
  Example: She will have finished her work by the time you arrive.

10. Present Perfect Continuous Tense: This tense is used to describe actions that started in the past and continue to the present. The verb is formed by adding 'has/have' + been + present participle (-ing form).

• Rule: Use 'has been' for singular subjects and 'have been' for plural subjects.
  Example: She has been working here for five years.

11. Past Perfect Continuous Tense: This tense is used to describe actions that were ongoing in the past and were completed before another past action. The verb is formed by adding 'had been' + present participle (-ing form).

• Rule: Use 'had been' for all subjects.
  Example: They had been waiting for two hours when the bus finally arrived.

12. Future Perfect Continuous Tense: This tense is used to describe actions that will be ongoing in the future and will be completed before another future action. The verb is formed by adding 'will have been' + present participle (-ing form).

• Rule: Use 'will have been' for all subjects.
  Example: She will have been working for three hours by the time you arrive.

Functions of Tesnse

1. Simple Present Tense

• Function: It is used to express a general truth, habitual actions, and present states.
  Example: She writes a letter.

2. Present Continuous Tense

• Function: It is used to express an action that is happening right now, at the moment of speaking.
• Example: She is writing a letter.

3. Present Perfect Tense

• Function: It is used to describe an action that has recently occurred or just been completed.
• Example: She has written a letter.

4. Present Perfect Continuous Tense

• Function: It is used to describe an action that began in the past and is still ongoing.
• Example: She has been writing a letter.

5. Simple Past Tense

• Function: It is used to describe a completed action in the past.
• Example: She wrote a letter.

6. Past Continuous Tense 

• Function: It is used to describe an action that was ongoing in the past.
• Example: She was writing a letter.

7. Past Perfect Tense

• Function: It is used to describe an action that was completed before another action in the past.
• Example: She had written a letter.

8. Past Perfect Continuous Tense

• Function: It is used to describe an action that had been ongoing for some time before another action in the past.
• Example: She had been writing a letter.

9. Simple Future Tense

• Function: It is used to describe an action that will occur in the future.
• Example: She will write a letter.

10. Future Continuous Tense

• Function: It is used to describe an action that will be ongoing in the future.
• Example: She will be writing a letter.

11. Future Perfect Tense

• Function: It is used to describe an action that will be completed before another action in the future.
• Example: She will have written a letter.

12. Future Perfect Continuous Tense

• Function: It is used to describe an action that will have been ongoing for some time before another action in the future.
• Example: She will have been writing a letter.

Solved Exercises

1. Present Simple Tense:
Exercise: Fill in the blanks with the correct form of the verb in brackets.
(a) She always _______ (drink) coffee in the morning.

She always drinks coffee in the morning.
We use the present simple tense for habits and routines. The verb "drink" is changed to "drinks" because it is the third person singular (she).

(b) They _______ (live) in London.

They live in London.
We use the present simple tense for facts and general truths. The verb "live" remains the same because it's in the plural form (they).

(c) He _______ (work) as a teacher.

He works as a teacher.
We use the present simple tense for occupations. The verb "work" is changed to "works" because it is the third person singular (he).

2. Past Simple Tense:
Exercise: Rewrite the sentences in the past simple tense.
(a) She eats pizza.

She ate pizza.
We change the verb "eats" to its past simple form "ate" to show that the action happened in the past.

(b) They travel to Paris.

They traveled to Paris.
We change the verb "travel" to its past simple form "traveled" to show that the action happened in the past.

(c) He writes a letter.

He wrote a letter.
We change the verb "writes" to its past simple form "wrote" to show that the action happened in the past.

3. Present Continuous Tense:
Exercise: Change the sentences into the present continuous tense.
(a) She reads a book.

She is reading a book.
We change the verb "reads" to its present continuous form "is reading" to show that the action is happening now.

(b) They play football.

They are playing football.
We change the verb "play" to its present continuous form "are playing" to show that the action is happening now.

(c) He cooks dinner.

He is cooking dinner.

We change the verb "cooks" to its present continuous form "is cooking" to show that the action is happening now.

4. Past Continuous Tense:
Exercise: Complete the sentences with the past continuous form of the verbs in brackets.
(a) She ________ (watch) TV when the phone rang.

She was watching TV when the phone rang.
We use the past continuous tense to show that an action was in progress when another action occurred. The verb "watch" is changed to "was watching" to show the past continuous tense.

(b) They ________ (eat) dinner when the guests arrived.

They were eating dinner when the guests arrived.
We use the past continuous tense for actions that were happening when another action occurred. The verb "eat" is changed to "were eating" to show the past continuous tense.

(c) He ________ (drive) when it started to rain.

He was driving when it started to rain.
We use the past continuous tense for actions that were happening when another action occurred. The verb "drive" is changed to "was driving" to show the past continuous tense.