VERB TENSESA Quick Review

Principle Parts of a Verb

Base• call• drive• quit

Past Tense• called• drove• quit

Past Participle

• called• driven• quit

Principle Parts of a Verb1. Base Form

The base form is the unchanged verb form.

It has no endings such as –ing, –s, or –ed. run buy hear eat play sleep

Principle Parts of a Verb2a. Regular Past Tense Form

base -edregul

ar past tense

laughcookhate

-edlaughe

dcookedhated*

Principle Parts of a Verb2b. Irregular Past Tense Form

Irregular verbs don’t use –ed endings. They change spelling:

or they don’t change at all:

Irregular verbs must be memorized or acquired. Rules won’t work.

eatswim

ateswam

quitcost

quitcost

Principle Parts of a Verb3. Past Participle Form

It is used with helping verbs has, have, and had:

It is sometimes the same as the past tense, but sometimes it is not:Past

criedsaw

Past Participlecriedseen

hashavehad

begunfoundgone

Principle Parts of a Verb3. Past Participle Form

It usually adds –ed to the base form

but may add –en, change spelling, or remain the same as the base & past tense form:Base

givebeginburst

Past Participlegiven

begunburst

Basefollow

Past Participlefollowed

Principle Parts of a Verb Summary

Base Past tense Past Participle

work worked workedfall fell fallengo went goneread read readbe was been

Present Tense The present tense is usually used to

indicate a general truth: The President serves for four years. Cal Poly Pomona is part of the California State

University system. or a recurring event:

I drink a latte at Café Splurge every morning. The marching band plays “Conquest” at every

game.

Present Tense The present tense is also used with

special verbs that relate to our senses: I smell smoke in the kitchen. I feel hot. I hear the neighbors arguing about the cell

phone bill. I see a raccoon in my back yard. I sense trouble on the street.

Simple Past Tense The past tense is used to indicate an

event that occurred at some previous past time. The car enthusiasts started the annual “Classic

Car” celebration back in 1978. I saw “Transformers” when it first came out. He ate three chili dogs and a large bag of chips

yesterday. Last night, I felt sick, but now I feel better.

Common Past Tense Errors Non-native speakers of English sometimes add

time words like “yesterday” to a sentence without making the verb past tense. [incorrect] Yesterday Miguel move out of the

apartment. [correct] Yesterday Miguel moved out of the

apartment. One common phrase that gives trouble is "I

remember" because students tend to write "I remembered" in order to make the past tense consistent. [incorrect] I remembered what my sixth-grade teacher

told me. [correct] I remember what my sixth-grade teacher

told me.

Simple Future Tense

My hybrid car will save me a lot on gas. Mickey will enjoy attending Berkeley next

year. Because Ellen has a degree in engineering,

she will be very marketable.

willbase

form

future

tense

Another Way to Form the Future Tense

You can also express future tense with the phrase “be + going to” + the base form. ( “Be” must be conjugated.)

I am going to study firefighting. That problem is going to come back to haunt you

later. If you continue to talk back like that, you are

going to be grounded.

be(am, is,

are)

going to

base form

future tense

Using the Simple Future Tense

Use WILL to express willingness: “Who will help me wash the car?” “I will.”

Use BE + GOING TO to express an established plan: She is going to drive to San Francisco

tonight. Use either WILL or BE + GOING TO to

express prediction: It looks like it will rain today. It looks like it is going to rain today.

Present Perfect Tense

I have lived in the United States all my life. Henry has earned two advanced degrees, one

in physics and one in computer science. George has seen “Napoleon Dynamite” twelve

times.

have or has

past particip

le

present perfect tense

Using the Present Perfect Tense

The PRESENT PERFECT tense is really a PAST tense. “Perfect” in this case has the archaic sense of “complete.” Use it for—1. A past event or experience:

I have eaten (present perfect) caviar. (This event happened at an unspecified time in the

past.) I ate (simple past) caviar last night. (The event happened at a specific time in the past, so

simple past tense is used in this case.)

Using the Present Perfect Tense

2. An action that occurred in the past that may recur: I’ve gone (present perfect) bungie jumping many times. (The speaker may go again.) I went (simple past) bungie jumping during my vacation. (The speaker will probably not go again or completed the

action(s) at a specific past time.)3. A situation that began in the past and continues into the present:

I have lived (present perfect) in Monterey Park for three years.

(The speaker still lives there.) I lived (simple past) in Monterey Park for three years. (The speaker no longer lives there.)

Past Perfect Tense

Kevin had seen the movie twice, so he didn’t want to go again.

She wasn’t hungry for dinner because she had eaten an ice cream cone.

Before we arrived, the train had left the station.

hadpast

participle

past perfect tense

Using the Past Perfect Tense The past perfect describes one action or situation that occurs

before a 2nd action or time, all taking place in the past. It is usually combined with another event expressed in the simple past. The 1st event is in the past perfect and the 2nd in the simple past.

Example: When the police arrived (event 2), the bank robbers had already escaped (event 1).

PastEvent 1

Past perfectRobbers had

escaped

PastEvent 2

Simple pastPolice arrived