Verbs and the different tenses | Year 6 English PDF Download

What is a verb?

A verb is a word that indicates an action, state, or event.
Verbs are used to describe actions, such as 'jumping' in this sentence:
Example: "The rabbit was jumping in the field."
They can also describe a state of being, like 'likes' here:
Example: "The monster likes rollercoasters."
Or a verb can describe an occurrence, as in 'became' in this sentence:
Example: "The caterpillar became a butterfly."
When writing, ensure that every sentence contains a verb.

Types of Tenses

1. Present Tense

• Simple Present: Describes habits, general truths, and repeated actions.
  Example: She walks to school.
• Present Continuous: Describes actions happening now or around the present moment.
  Example: She is walking to school.
• Present Perfect: Describes actions completed at some point before now.
  Example: She has walked to school.
• Present Perfect Continuous: Describes actions that started in the past and continue into the present.
  Example: She has been walking to school.

2. Past Tense

• Simple Past: Describes actions that occurred at a specific time in the past.
  Example: She walked to school.
• Past Continuous: Describes ongoing actions in the past.
  Example: She was walking to school.
• Past Perfect: Describes actions completed before another action in the past.
  Example: She had walked to school before it rained.
• Past Perfect Continuous: Describes past actions that continued up to a certain point.
  Example: She had been walking to school for an hour when it started raining.

3. Future Tense

• Simple Future: Describes actions that will happen in the future.
  Example: She will walk to school.
• Future Continuous: Describes ongoing actions in the future.
  Example: She will be walking to school.
• Future Perfect: Describes actions that will be completed by a certain point in the future.
  Example: She will have walked to school by 8 a.m.
• Future Perfect Continuous: Describes ongoing actions in the future that will continue until a specific time.
  Example: She will have been walking to school for an hour by 8 a.m.

Using verb tenses

When writing, the verbs you choose indicate whether events occurred in the past, are happening presently, or will happen in the future.
The past tense is used for events that have already occurred.
Past tense verbs frequently end in '-ed', although there are exceptions.
Example: "I walked to the shop."
The present tense describes actions occurring now or regularly.
Example: "I am walking to the shop."
The future tense is used for events yet to occur.
Example: "I will walk to the shop."