To be (or not to be): Tenses in English grammar

Tenses in English can be divided into three groups – present, past and future. Within each group there are several variations of each tense, all of which serve a different purpose and require changes to the verb forms used. Perhaps one of the most common verb forms is the infinitive “to be”: I am, you are, she is (present tense), I was, you were, she was (past tense) and so on. Let’s look at the tenses in more detail.

Present simple (verb + s/es in third person)

This is used to talk about the here-and-now, plus things done on a regular basis or preferences:

I am in the office. I walk to work. I read books. I like chocolate.

Present continuous (am/is/are + present participle)

You can use this tense to talk about the here-and-now as well as plans for the future. The “ing” form (gerund) of the verb is always used after the infinitive “to be”:

I am reading a book – please be quiet. I am travelling to Scotland tomorrow.

Present perfect (has/have + past participle)

This tense is used to talk about experiences in our lives – what we have or haven’t done. Here, the time when we did things is not important:

Have you ever travelled to Scotland? He has never liked chocolate. She has read the book.

Present perfect continuous (has/have + been + present participle)

We use this tense to show that something was started in the past and is still ongoing, that is, it hasn’t finished yet. Note that a time scale (hours, days, weeks etc) is always included:

He has been travelling for five hours. She has been reading the book all day.

Past simple (verb +ed, also irregular verbs)

This shows what we did in the past: He walked to the office. She liked the book.

Past continuous (was/were + present participle)

This tense often “sets the scene” for recounting a story. We use it to describe an action that took place at a specific period of time. It is often joined with “while” or “when”:

I was watching television when he called. I was reading a book while he cooked dinner.

Past perfect (had + past participle)

We use this tense to talk about an action that had been carried out in the past prior to another past action:

I missed the bus because it had left early. I wasn’t hungry – I had eaten at home.

Past perfect continuous (had been + present participle)

This tense describes something that began in the past and continued up until another point of time in the past:

They had been waiting over an hour for the bus when it finally arrived.

Future simple (will + verb) and (am/is/are + going to + verb)

We normally use either “will” or “be going to” in this tense, both of which talk about a task being carried out at a specific time in the future:

I will travel to Scotland tomorrow. I am going to travel to Scotland tomorrow.

Future continuous (will be + present participle) and (am/is/are + going to be + present participle)

We use this tense to show that a longer action in the future will be interrupted by a shorter action, also taking place in the future. This can be an actual interruption or an interruption in time. This tense also has two different forms:

I will be waiting for you when you arrive in Scotland tomorrow. I am going to be travelling all day tomorrow.

Future perfect (will have + past participle) and (am/is/are + going to have + past participle)

This tense states the idea that something will happen before another action in the future. It can also show that something will occur before a certain time in the future. Once again, there are two forms:

You will have travelled for many hours by the time I meet you in Scotland. I am going to have waited for hours by the time your plane lands.

Future perfect continuous (will have been + present participle) and (am/is/are + going to have been + present participle)

This tense is used to show that something will continue up until a specific event or time in the future. "For ten minutes," "for three weeks," and "since Tuesday" are all durations in time which can be used with this tense.