Overview of English Tenses and Their Usages

Here’s a simplified explanation of the 12 English tenses, their usage, and the common time-
related words used with them:

1. Present Tenses

1.1 Present Simple

 Usage: Facts, habits, and routines.

 Time Words: Always, usually, often, every day, sometimes, never.
 Example: She writes emails every morning.

1.2 Present Continuous

 Usage: Actions happening now or temporary situations.

 Time Words: Now, at the moment, currently, today.
 Example: She is writing an email right now.

1.3 Present Perfect

 Usage: Actions completed at an unspecified time in the past or continuing until now.
 Time Words: Already, yet, just, for, since, ever, never.
 Example: She has written three emails today.

1.4 Present Perfect Continuous

 Usage: Actions that started in the past and continue until now (focus on duration).
 Time Words: For, since, all day, lately, recently.
 Example: She has been writing emails since morning.

2. Past Tenses

2.1 Past Simple

 Usage: Actions completed at a specific time in the past.

 Time Words: Yesterday, last week, in 2020, ago.
 Example: She wrote an email yesterday.

2.2 Past Continuous

 Usage: Actions in progress at a specific time in the past or interrupted actions.

 Time Words: While, when, at 3 PM.
 Example: She was writing an email when the phone rang.
2.3 Past Perfect

 Usage: Actions completed before another past action.

 Time Words: Before, after, by the time.
 Example: She had written the email before the meeting started.

2.4 Past Perfect Continuous

 Usage: Actions that were ongoing before another past action.

 Time Words: For, since, before, by the time.
 Example: She had been writing emails for two hours before the meeting.

3. Future Tenses

3.1 Future Simple

 Usage: Spontaneous decisions, promises, or predictions.

 Time Words: Tomorrow, next week, soon, in the future.
 Example: She will write an email tomorrow.

3.2 Future Continuous

 Usage: Actions in progress at a specific time in the future.

 Time Words: At this time tomorrow, by then.
 Example: She will be writing an email at 10 AM tomorrow.

3.3 Future Perfect

 Usage: Actions completed before a specific time in the future.

 Time Words: By, by the time, before.
 Example: She will have written the email by the time the meeting starts.

3.4 Future Perfect Continuous

 Usage: Actions ongoing up to a specific time in the future (focus on duration).

 Time Words: For, by, by the time.
 Example: She will have been writing emails for three hours by noon.

Revision Exercises

Present Tenses

1. Choose the correct tense: Present Simple or Present Continuous.

a) She ______ (read) a book right now.
b) They ______ (play) soccer every Saturday.
2. Fill in the blank: Present Perfect or Present Perfect Continuous.
a) I ______ (live) here for five years.
b) She ______ (already/finish) her homework.

Past Tenses

1. Complete the sentences: Past Simple or Past Continuous.

a) I ______ (watch) TV when the lights went out.
b) He ______ (finish) the project yesterday.

2. Fill in the blank: Past Perfect or Past Perfect Continuous.

a) They ______ (already/eat) dinner when we arrived.
b) She ______ (work) there for five years before moving to another city.

Future Tenses

1. Choose the correct tense: Future Simple or Future Continuous.

a) I ______ (help) you tomorrow.
b) This time next week, they ______ (travel) to Japan.

2. Fill in the blank: Future Perfect or Future Perfect Continuous.

a) By next month, she ______ (complete) her course.
b) By 5 PM, he ______ (work) on the project for three hours.
Exercise: Multiple-Choice Questions on Future Tense

Instructions: Choose the correct answer for each question.

1. Which sentence uses "be going to" correctly?

a) She will play soccer this weekend.
b) He is going to play soccer this weekend.
c) They will study for the exam tomorrow.
d) I will start a new book next week.

2. What is "be going to" used for?

a) Immediate decisions
b) Plans or intentions
c) Promises
d) Commands

3. Which of these sentences expresses a future plan?

a) I will decide later.
b) She is going to visit her grandma next Saturday.
c) We will eat lunch now.
d) He will be home at 6 PM.

4. When do we use "will"?

a) For decisions made earlier
b) For decisions made at the moment of speaking
c) For actions happening now
d) For commands

5. Which sentence is a prediction with "be going to"?

a) It is going to snow tomorrow.
b) I will call you later.
c) They will clean the house tomorrow.
d) We will travel to France next year.

6. Choose the correct sentence with "will" for a promise:

a) She is going to finish her homework tonight.
b) He will always be there for you.
c) We are going to play soccer tomorrow.
d) They are going to clean the house later.

7. What is the difference between "It is going to rain" and "It will rain"?
a) "It is going to rain" is for past events, and "It will rain" is for future predictions.
b) "It is going to rain" suggests evidence like dark clouds, while "It will rain" is a general
prediction.
c) There is no difference.
d) "It will rain" is more formal than "It is going to rain."
8. Which sentence describes a future plan already made?
a) I will buy groceries later.
b) He is going to buy groceries after work.
c) They will call the doctor soon.
d) She will decide what to do later.

9. Fill in the blank: "We __________ a movie tonight."

a) will watch
b) are going to watch
c) watched
d) watching

10. Which verb form follows "be going to"?

a) Past tense
b) Base form
c) Present participle
d) Future tense

11. What does "will" often express?

a) Plans and intentions
b) Decisions made earlier
c) Promises or immediate decisions
d) Actions in the past

12. Identify the sentence that predicts based on present evidence:

a) She will be a great doctor one day.
b) It is going to rain because the sky is cloudy.
c) We will travel to Spain next year.
d) He will study for the test tomorrow.
Simplified Explanation: Complex Sentences

A complex sentence combines two parts:

1. Independent clause: A complete thought that makes sense on its own.

o Example: "Sara watched TV in the living room."
2. Dependent clause: A fragment that does not make sense alone.
o Example: "After she finished studying."

When joined, they make a complex sentence:

"Sara watched TV in the living room after she finished studying."

Key Points:

1. Use subordinating conjunctions like: after, when, as soon as, before to connect the
two clauses.
2. If the dependent clause comes first, use a comma:
o "After she swam in the pool, she had some dinner."
3. If the independent clause comes first, no comma is needed:
o "She had some dinner after she swam in the pool."

Examples of Subordinating Conjunctions:

 After: After + first action

o Example: "After she swam in the pool, she had some dinner."
 When: When + first action
o Example: "When my brother got his degree, he went to work straight
away."
 As soon as: As soon as + first action
o Example: "As soon as my money was transferred, I booked a ticket for my
winter vacation."
 Before: Before + second action
o Example: "Before I travelled with my family, I packed my bag."

Practice Exercise

Instructions: Rewrite the two sentences as a complex sentence using the subordinating
conjunction provided. Add a comma if needed.

1. She finished her homework. She went out to play. (After)

2. The rain stopped. We went outside. (When)
3. My friend arrived. We started the movie. (As soon as)
4. I packed my bag. I left for the airport. (Before)
5. They ate dinner. They washed the dishes. (After)

Instructions: Identify if the following sentences are correct or incorrect. If incorrect, fix
them.

6. After he completed the test he went home.

7. Before we traveled to Dubai, we booked our tickets.
8. As soon as they saw the storm, they stayed indoors.
9. When I arrived at the meeting I introduced myself to everyone.
10. After I saw the movie I read the book.

Complex Sentences about the Future

1. Complex Sentences Structure

o A complex sentence has one independent clause (complete idea) and one
dependent clause (incomplete idea).
o Future tense ("be going to" or "will") is used in the independent clause.
o Simple present tense is used in the dependent clause, often introduced by
subordinating conjunctions like after, when, before, as soon as, or if.
2. Examples:
o Subordinating Clauses:
 Mishary will call his friend after he finishes his homework.
 Latifa is going to read the recipe before she starts cooking.
o If Clauses (Condition):
 They will not be allowed to do the test if they are late.
 She is going to need an umbrella if it starts to rain.
o Reason Clauses (Why):
 They are going to travel to Barcelona because they want to watch the
football game.
 She will cook lunch because her mother is still at work.

Practice Exercise:

Instructions: Complete the sentences by choosing the correct option. Use the correct verb
tense based on the rule.

1. Latifa ______ the cake before she ______ the frosting.

a) will bake, makes
b) is going to bake, make
c) will bake, make
d) is going to bake, makes
2. They ______ to the park if the weather ______ nice.
a) are going to go, is
b) will go, will be
c) go, is
d) will go, is

3. Mishary ______ his teacher as soon as he ______ his assignment.

a) calls, completes
b) will call, completes
c) is going to call, complete
d) will call, complete

4. She ______ lunch because her family ______ home late.

a) cooks, comes
b) will cook, is coming
c) is going to cook, come
d) will cook, comes

5. They ______ the movie when their friends ______ to the theater.
a) are going to watch, arrives
b) will watch, arrive
c) are going to watch, arrive
d) watch, arrive

6. If it ______ outside, we ______ coats.

a) is cold, will wear
b) gets, will wearing
c) is cold, are going to wear
d) gets, are going to wearing

7. The children ______ in the park after they ______ their homework.
a) will play, finish
b) are going to play, finish
c) will play, finishes
d) are going to play, finishes
8. Latifa ______ the recipe before she ______ cooking.
a) will read, start
b) will read, starts
c) is going to read, start
d) is going to read, starts

9. Mishary ______ his jacket if the weather ______ cold.

a) is going to bring, is
b) is going to bring, be
c) will bring, will be
d) brings, is

10. She ______ to the meeting because her manager ______ it is important.
a) will go, says
b) will go, say
c) is going to go, says
d) is going to go, say

Simplified Rule: Adjective Clauses

An adjective clause describes a noun (like an adjective) and makes sentences more detailed.

 It has:
o A subject and a verb.
o Words like who, that, or which to connect it to the noun.
 It often follows the noun it describes.

Examples:

1. The woman who lives next door is a talented musician.

2. The students that participated in the talent show won awards.
3. The book that I borrowed from the library is exciting.

Practice Exercise

Instructions: Combine the two sentences into one using an adjective clause.

1. The girl is wearing a red dress. She is my cousin.

a) The girl that is wearing a red dress is my cousin.
b) The girl who is wearing a red dress is my cousin.
c) Both a and b.

2. The dog barked all night. It belongs to our neighbor.

a) The dog who barked all night belongs to our neighbor.
b) The dog that barked all night belongs to our neighbor.
c) The dog which barked all night belongs to our neighbor.

3. The house is very old. It is on the corner.

a) The house which is on the corner is very old.
b) The house that is on the corner is very old.
c) Both a and b.

4. The teacher was very kind. She helped us with our homework.
a) The teacher who helped us with our homework was very kind.
b) The teacher that helped us with our homework was very kind.
c) Both a and b.

5. The book is on the table. It is my favorite novel.

a) The book which is on the table is my favorite novel.
b) The book that is on the table is my favorite novel.
c) Both a and b.

6. The boy won the race. He trained very hard.

a) The boy who trained very hard won the race.
b) The boy which trained very hard won the race.
c) The boy that trained very hard won the race.

7. The car was expensive. It was parked outside the mall.

a) The car which was parked outside the mall was expensive.
b) The car that was parked outside the mall was expensive.
c) Both a and b.
Simplified Rule: Using Modals to Add Meaning

Modals are helping verbs that are used before the base form of a verb to add specific
meanings.
They can be used in positive or negative forms (by adding not).

 Should → To give advice.

o Example: You should eat healthy food.
 Must → To show necessity or obligation.
o Example: You must wear a seatbelt in the car.
 Might → To show possibility.
o Example: It might rain tomorrow.
 Can → To show ability or permission.
o Example: She can speak three languages.

Practice Exercise

Instructions: Fill in the blanks with the correct modal: should, must, might, or can.

1. You ______ study for the exam to pass it.

a) should
b) must
c) might
d) can

2. She ______ not be at the party because she has work to do.
a) should
b) must
c) might
d) can

3. They ______ finish their homework before watching TV.

a) should
b) must
c) might
d) can

4. He ______ play the piano beautifully.

a) should
b) must
c) might
d) can

5. You ______ talk to your teacher about your grades; it will help.
a) should
b) must
c) might
d) can

6. We ______ bring jackets because it ______ get cold tonight.

a) should, might
b) must, should
c) can, might
d) might, can

7. Everyone ______ follow the rules to stay safe.

a) should
b) must
c) might
d) can

8. She ______ not find her keys in the bag because it is full of other items.
a) should
b) must
c) might
d) can

9. You ______ practice every day to improve your skills.

a) should
b) must
c) might
d) can

10. If you want to join the team, you ______ attend the training sessions.
a) should
b) must
c) might
d) can