All tenses with examples There are three main tenses: 1. Present 2. Past 3. Future Example: 1) I write this letter to please you. (Present) 2) I wrote the letter in his very presence. (Past) 3) I shall write another letter tomorrow. (Future)

1. Tenses
Tense: The Tense of a Verb shows the time of an action or event.(the word tense comes from
the Latin tempus,time.)
There are three main tenses:
1. Present
2. Past
3. Future
Example:
1) I write this letter to please you. (Present)
2) I wrote the letter in his very presence. (Past)
3) I shall write another letter tomorrow. (Future)
Present Tense:
The simple Present tense is used:
To express a Habitual action ; as,
He drinks Tea every morning.
My watch keeps good Time.
To Express as General Truth; as,
The Sun rises in the east.
Fortune favours the brave.
In Exclamatory sentences beginning with here and there to express what is actually taking place
in the present; as,
Here comes the Bus!
There she goes!
Example;
I speak.
I work.
I sleep.
I play.

2. Present Continuous Tense:
When we talk about events that are actually happening now, we use the present continuous tense.
This is formed by using the stem of the verb and adding -ing to the end, for example the verb
"work" becomes "working". In some cases you need to alter the spelling a bit for example the
verb "play" becomes "playing".
Example:
The boys are playing hockey.
She is singing.
For an action that has already been arranged to take place in the future : as,
I am going to the cinema tonight.
My uncle is arriving tomorrow.
Example:
I am speaking.
I am playing.
I am singing.
Present Perfect Tense:
The present perfect simple tense is used to talk about a past time, which has very strong meaning
for the present.
Example:
I have spoken.
He has just gone out.
We have lived here for ten years.
Have you read ‘Gulliver’s Travel’?
Present Perfect Continuous Tense:
The Present Perfect Continuous is used for an action which began at some time in the past and is
still continuing; as,
They have been building the bridge for several months.
They have been playing since four o’clock.
He has been sleeping for five hours (and is still sleeping).

3. Past tense: The simple past tense is used to talk about finished actions that happened at a
specific time in the past. It often occurs with adverbs or adverb phrases of past time.
Example:
The steamer sailed yesterday.
I received his letter a week ago.
She left school last year.
The simple past is also used for past habits; as,
He studied many hours ago.
She always carried an Umbrella.
Last year, I traveled to Japan.
They sat at the beach all day.
Past Continuous Tense: The Past Perfect describes an action completed before a
certain moment in the past; as,
Examples:
I was watching TV when she called.
While we were having the picnic, it started to rain.
The light went out while I was reading.
When I saw him, he was playing chess.
We were listening to the radio all evening.

4. Past Perfect Tense: The Past Perfect describes an action completed before a certain
moment in the Past; as,
Examples:
I had done my exercise when Hari came to see me.
I did not have any money because I had lost my wallet.
I had written the letter before he arrived.
We were not able to get a hotel room because we had not booked in advance.
She had visited her Japanese relatives once in 1993 before she moved in with them in
1996.
The Past Perfect expresses the idea that something occurred before another action in the past. It
can also show that something happened before a specific time in the past.
Past Perfect Continuous Tense: The past perfect continuous is used for an action
that began before a certain point in the past and continued up to that time ; as,
Example:
At that time he had been writing a novel for two months.
She had been working at that company for three years when it went out of business.
How long had you been waiting to get on the bus?
By the time I left England we had been living in Bristol for five years.
I had been speaking for two minutes.

5. Future Tense: The simple future tense is used to talk about things which we cannot
control. It expresses the future as fact. Especially when talking about official events that happen
at a set time such as timetables, meetings, itineraries, programmes etc.
Example:
I shall be twenty next Saturday.
It will be Diwali in a week.
We will know our exam result in May.
You are going to meet Jane tonight.
I will send you the information when I get it.
Future Continuous Tense: We use future continuous tense to talk about action which will
be in progress at a time in the future.
Examples:
I suppose it will be raining when we start.
You are going to be waiting for her when her plane arrives tonight.
At midnight tonight, we will still be driving through the desert.
I am going to be studying and he is going to be making dinner.
Future Perfect Tense: The Future Perfect Tense is used to talk about actions that will be
completed by a certain future time.
Example:
You will have perfected your English by the time you come back from the U.S.
By next November, I will have received my promotion.
By the time I finish this course, I will have taken ten tests.
He will have left before you go to see him.
I shall have written my exercise by then.

6. Future Perfect Continuous Tense: The Future Perfect Continuous tense is used for
action which will be in progress Over a period of time that will end in the future.
Example:
By next March we shall have been living here for four years.
I will have been teaching for twenty years next July.
They will have been talking for over an hour by the time Thomas arrives.
She is going to have been working at that company for three years when it finally closes.
How long will you have been studying when you graduate.