The present perfect continuous (or present perfect progressive) describes an action that started in the past and has either just been completed or still continues at the present moment.
Form
The present perfect continuous is formed by combining have been (or has been)with the present participle:
Note that there is no present perfect continuous for the verb to be. You would not say have been being. You can just say have been.
Negative Form
Simply add not:
We have not beenlying to you.
Asking Questions
Use the regular form:
Hashebeen jogging again?
Uses
Recently Completed Actions
The present perfect continuous can be used to describe actions that started in the past and have recently been completed:
They have been lobbying the government to change the law.
She has been complaining again.
Ongoing Actions
The present perfect continuous can also describe actions that started in the past and are still ongoing:
I have been sneezing constantly.
We have been searching for hours now.
More Information
For more information, please see our introduction to all twelve verb tenses in English.
The present perfect tense describes an action that happened in the past or is still happening now.
Form
The present perfect is formed using have (or has) and the past participle:
Note that irregular verbs form the past participle differently (e.g., eaten, bought, swum). They do not add –ed to the base.
Negative Form
Simply add not:
I have not confessed.
Asking Questions
Use the regular form to ask questions:
Have they seen the light?
Sample Uses
Past Events
We have visited Burundi.
While the verb often refers to the recent past, there is no exact time limit to how long ago the action may have occurred.
Events Still Happening
I have completed two exercises and am almost done.
Change
We have learned a great deal.
Unknown Duration
They had worked together for some time.
Accomplishments
You have mastered the art of origami.
Conclusion
The time frame of the present perfect is more open ended than with the simple past. Use the simple present when you need to be more specific about the timing of the action.
That’s why you cannot use the present perfect with certain adverbs of time (e.g., yesterday):
Incorrect: I have skipped school yesterday.
Correct: I skipped school yesterday.
On the other hand, you can use the present perfect with adverbs that are less specific (e.g., already, ever, never, etc.):
I have already finished my assignment.
More Information
For more information, please see our introduction to all twelve verb tenses in English.
The past continuous (or past progressive) is a tense that describes an unfinished action in the past. By unfinished we don’t mean that the action never ended. Rather, the action continued or progressed over a period of time.
Form
To form the past continuous, use was or were and the present participle:
Negative Form
The negative form simply adds not:
We were not dating.
Asking Questions
Use the regular form to ask questions:
Were you holding hands?
Uses
Incomplete Actions
I was mowing the lawn at the time.
We were drawing penguins.
With Other Actions
The past continuous is often used in conjunction with other verbs. Together they relate actions in time:
While we were messaging, Tom’s dad grabbed his phone and threw it out of the window.
Before I went to school, I was readingAsterix and Obelix.
Repeated Actions
Every day we were conjugating verbs.
It was raining constantly.
To Show Change
Times were changing.
They were learning so many life lessons.
The tomatoes were ripening quickly.
More Information
For more information, please see our introduction to all twelve verb tenses in English.
The future simple tense expresses that an action will happen at some future moment. The future simple tense can be used to talk about future events, make predictions, declare one’s intentions, and state a spontaneous decision.
The future simple tense is not the only way to talk about a future action. A somewhat less formal way is to use an am going to construction (e.g., I am going to walk five miles).
Form
To form the future simple tense, use will or shall and the base of the verb:
We will wash your car.
They will finish their homework.
I shall keep my promise.
Note that shall is more common in British English and is used primarily in the first person (I, we). For more info, check out our separate discussion of shall.
As mentioned, in some instances you can also form the future with amgoing to:
We are going tosee the play.
I am going to read that book.
You are going to clean your room!
They are going to tour Ireland.
In general, using will expresses greater certainty. However, there is a lot of overlap. The am going to construction is typically used for planned and predetermined events, for indicating one’s intentions, for making predictions, and for ordering people around. In most cases, the use of am going to is closely tied to some knowledge or evidence drawn from the present moment.
Negative Form
The negative form simply adds not.
We will not accept your demands.
You won’t believe this!
Note that the verb won’t is a contraction of will not.
Asking Questions
Use the regular form to ask questions:
Will you visit?
Shall I make a cup of tea?
In this case shall is clearly preferred when speaking in the first person (I, we).
Uses
Future Actions
She will meet you at the airport.
We will be glad to host you.
Spontaneous Actions
I will do the dishes.
We will do it right now.
Intentions / Promises
I will write the report.
You will never walk alone.
Predictions
The Pittsburgh Penguins will win the Stanley Cup this year.
He will crash his car before the year is out.
Tricky Cases
One of the most confusing things about verbs has to do with dependent clauses. If your native language is not English, you may sometimes be tempted to use the future simple when the present simple tense will do.
This applies especially to some sentences where the main clause contains the future simple tense and the dependent clause does not. Let’s review these cases.
References to Time
When a clause starts with a reference to time (before, after, when, as soon as, etc.), you often need to use the present simple instead of the future simple:
Incorrect: After we will milk the cows, we will have breakfast.
Correct: After we milk the cows, we will have breakfast.
Conditional Statements
In some if statements you may not need to use the future simple tense:
Awkward: I will buy your guitar, if you will teach me some simple chords.
Better: I will buy your guitar, if you teach me some simple chords.
Even though the action of teaching will take place in the future, we tend to use the present simple. One way to think about it is to consider that from the perspective of the moment when the action of buying takes place, the act of teaching is simultaneous (and thus present). Another explanation is that hypothetical statements like this have a timeless quality to them. Either way, the present simple is better.
That Clauses
Here’s one more example where the dependent clause does not necessarily need the future simple tense:
Incorrect: I will talk to that girl that you will want to go out with.
Correct: I will talk to that girl that you want to go out with.
Here too the present simple tense is preferred.
More Information
For more information, please see our introduction to all twelve verb tenses in English.
The present simple tense describes an action happening at the present time.
However, the present simple tense often has a timeless quality to it, and is not necessarily happening right now.
Form
The present simple is easy to form. Use the base form of the verb and add an s for the third person singular:
Note too that verbs that end in –y often change their ending to –ies (e.g., cry becomes cries) in the third person singular. The exception is if a vowel precedes the –y (e.g., slay becomes slays).
In addition, some verbs add –es in the third person singular (e.g., he stitches, she caresses). This is because the base form ends with a sound such as “s” or “ch.”
Negative Form
The negative form consists of do not (or don’t) and the base of the verb:
We don’t smoke.
I don’t drink and drive.
Asking Questions
To ask a question, use do and the base of the verb:
Do you think so?
Do you subscribe?
Uses
Habitual / Repeated Actions
The monks prune the hedges faithfully.
On the first day of each month, Fred cuts his fingernails.
General Statement
Female lions hunt more than males.
Arranged or Scheduled Actions
They always catch the 7:30 train.
With the Future Tense
Sometimes the present simple is used together with a future tense verb:
George will not be happy once he finds out.
Instructions
Please come and have a look at this document.
Historical Present
You can occasionally use the present simple to talk about something that happened in the past:
We were in the Cheesecake Cafe when out of the blue he proposes to me!
This use is more common in literature and in casual conversation.
Conclusion
The present simple is rarely used to describe an action that is immediate to the speaker. For that you are more likely to use the present progressive (e.g., I am typing right now). Instead, the present simple is primarily used to describe recurring, timeless, and habitual actions. That’s why the present simple is often accompanied by references to time (every day, tomorrow, sometimes, etc.).
More Information
For more information, please see our introduction to all twelve verb tenses in English.
In English there are twelve tenses (or forms). Each one is characterized by its tense (past, present, or future) and its aspect (simple, continuous, perfect, or perfect continuous).
Native speakers intuitively grasp which tense is correct. ESL students have a much harder time. However, everyone can benefit from understanding what makes each tense unique.
Twelve Tenses
The following chart breaks down all twelve tenses. For the examples we’ve used the regular verb to walk and the irregular verb to sing:
Past
Present
Future
Past Simple
I walked / I sang
Present Simple
I walk / I sing
Future Simple
I will walk / I will sing
Past Continuous
I was walking / I was singing
Present Continuous
I am walking / I am singing
Future Continuous
I will be walking / I will be singing
Past Perfect
I had walked / I had sung
Present Perfect
I have walked / I have sung
Future Perfect
I will have walked / I will have sung
Past Perfect Continuous
I had been walking / I had been singing
Present Perfect Continuous
I have been walking / I have been singing
Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been walking / I will have been singing
Note that another name for the continuous is the progressive tense.
Tense
While there are twelve tenses, we also use the word tense to refer specifically to the present, past, and future tense.
The way to think about these tenses is that they are the point in time from which an action is measured. The action might take longer, and its actual timing may even surprise you, but the tense make sense from the perspective of the speaker.
For instance, if you say “I have been studying guitar” (present perfect continuous), then the action clearly happened in the past, but it is being measured in relation to the present moment. It may even spill over in the present, as the speaker is likely still studying the guitar.
Similarly, if you say “I am leaving soon” (present continuous) you are using the present tense, even though you are describing an action that will take place in the future.
In other words, the concept of tense is flexible, so be prepared for some odd uses.
Aspect
The aspect of a verb refers to how the action relates to time. Some actions happen just once, others are repeated, and still others extend over a longer period of time. The aspect indicates how the action extends over time.
Simple
The simple aspect describes a simple fact:
He drove.
I love chocolate.
The simple aspect doesn’t say anything about whether the action is finished or continued for a certain amount of time. That’s why the simple aspect is not all that specific, and we often have to add more context to make sense of what is going on:
He drove for an hour before I took the wheel.
Continuous
The continuous or progressive aspect describes actions that take place over a period of time and may be unfinished:
I am writing a book about Mozart.
In this example, the act of writing is a process that is incomplete and takes a certain amount of time.
To form the continuous aspect, use a present participle and one or two helping verbs. Note, however, that not all verbs have a continuous forms. For more information, check out our lesson on stative and dynamic verbs.
Perfect
The perfect aspect describes a completed action:
We had performed a funny skit.
She will have finished her course by then.
To form the continuous aspect, use a past participle and one or two helping verbs.
Perfect Continuous
The perfect continuous combines elements of the previous two aspects. The action has an element of continuation, but it also has an end point. It is a completed action that takes place over a certain amount of time:
We had been watching Youtube videos, when suddenly the teacher walked in.
You can form the perfect continuous by combining the present participle with a number of helping verbs.
More Information
For more information, please check out the individual pages for each verb tense (by clicking on the tense of your choice):
