Tense – Definition, Examples, Types and Rules: English Grammar

Tense – Definition, Examples, Types and Rules: English Grammar. Tense Examples of Present, Past and Future Tense with rules, structure, and exercises. Do you know what is Tense? What is the definition of Tense with examples?

We learn the tenses so that we may speak and write the sentences correctly. Let’s observe the examples below:

• He opens his store at five every day.
• She met me with her husband yesterday
• Jack will have a party tomorrow.

In the above examples, the underlined verbs are expressing the tense of the sentences.

• In the first example, the verb ‘opens’ tells us that action happens in the present.
• In the second example, the verb ‘met’ shows that the action happened in the past.
• In the last example, the verb ‘will have’ expresses that the action will happen in the future.

Now it is clear that the verb ‘opens‘ has been used for the present tense. The verb ‘met‘ has been used for the past tense and the verb of the last example ‘will have has been used for the future tense. The above sentences are examples of tense.

What is Tense with examples?

Definition of Tense: ‘Tense’ denotes the time in which the action takes place. This time is denoted by the form of the verb and the form of the verb determines the nature of the tense in a sentence.

‘Tense’ refers to the form of a verb from the grammatical point of view. There are three types of tenses in the English language.

Examples:

1. George delivers a variety of food. (Simple Present)

2. This girl is reading a story about Sherlock. (Present Continuous)

3. My grandfather has just arrived. (Present Perfect)

4. Your son has been watching a new web series since last night. (Present Perfect Continuous)

5. I saw a big airplane yesterday. (Simple Past)

6. The doctor was examining the patients when I came. (Past Continuous)

7. People had already arrived before the president came. (Past Perfect)

8. She had been sitting at the beach for an hour. (Past Perfect Continuous)

9. The teacher will give us a new assignment on Monday. (Simple Future)

10. Johnson will be walking at the platform. (Future Continuous)

11. She will have fed her child before her guest come. (Future Perfect)

12. Your dad will have been working in the office for two weeks. (Future Perfect Continuous)

Kinds of Tenses

A verb refers to the present, past, and future time. Thus there are three tenses;

• Present Tense
• Past Tense
• Future Tense

Note – The Tense is a part of a verb. A verb is used to form tense which tells us the action of a thing. We cannot form a tense without verbs.

Read also:

• Parts of Speech Exercises
• Tense Exercises with Answers

Tense Examples

Read the examples of Present, Past, and Future Tense. These examples of tenses are formed using the verbs:

Examples –

• Jack learns French.

In the above sentence, the verb ‘learns‘ describes the action Jack takes. The verb ‘learns’ is in the present tense.

• Jack learned French.

In the above sentence, The verb ‘learned‘ describes the action Jack took. The verb ‘learn’ is in the past tense.

• Jack will learn French.

In the above example, the compound verb ‘will learn‘ is in the past tense which describes the action Jack will take action.

Remember: You have read in the above examples that verbs express the actions of a person or thing. They do not just tell us the actions of things. They also express a state of being, Here are some examples of the verb ‘to be’;

Examples:

1. She is very excited.
2. They are happy.
3. I am fine here.

In the above sentences, the verbs ‘is, am, are‘ are in the present tense.

1. The girl was ill.
2. We were busy.

In the above sentences, the verbs ‘was and were’ are in the past tense.

1. I shall be there.
2. He will be sad.

In the above sentences, the verbs shall be and will be are in the future tense.

Present Tense with Examples and Parts

The action of the present tense gives the sense of being in the present time. The verb of the present tense tells us that an action is done at present; as ‘He plays.’

The Present Tense shows an action that is done at the present. Read the examples of Present Tense. for example;

• You play the match.
• You are playing the match.
• You have played the match.
• You have been playing the match for two hours.

According to the above present tense examples, this tense has four parts; simple, continuous, perfect, and perfect continuous.

There are four Parts of this tense.

• Simple Present Tense (Present Indefinite Tense)
• Present Continuous Tense
• Present Perfect Tense
• Present Perfect Continuous tense

Simple Present Tense (Present Indefinite Tense)

The simple present tense expresses general actions, habits, facts, future, and repeated actions. Here are some examples of simple present tense.

Examples of Simple Present Tense:

1. They play at 4 pm.
2. She goes to bed at 10 pm.
3. I take a bath early in the morning.
4. We start our work on Monday.
5. The sun is a star.
6. I am a teacher of English.
7. She does not like our house.
8. They never play cricket on the road.
9. Do you not know this address?
10. Our kids never hurt anyone.
11. She is a very intelligent girl.
12. How do you swim in water?
13. I have a red cap.
14. She doesn’t want to talk to her sister.
15. The players don’t play well in winter.
16. She never goes to his office late.
17. Where does the prime minister every day?
18. Who helps you in your work?
19. The players of our team score more than one hundred runs.
20. Sohan often abuses his friends.

Read also:

• Use of Do and Does
• Use of Is Am and Are
• Use of Was and Were
• Use of Has and Have
• Use of Has to and Have to
• Use of Had
• Noun definition and kinds
• Examples of nouns in sentences
• Examples of Present Perfect Tense

Present Continuous Tense

The Present Continuous Tense expresses an ongoing action in the present time. The tense tells us that the action is continuing or not completed. It is also called the Present Progressive Tense.

Examples of Present Continuous Tense:

• The team is playing well.
• I am writing a review now.
• They are studying in the library.
• The machine is working.
• The PM is arriving here tonight.
• She is working on this project.
• I am not talking to her.
• The child is sleeping. Don’t shout here.
• They are searching a treasure on this island.
• The man is washing my car right now.
• Those girls are making a noise here.

Read also:

• Use of Is, Am, and Are Rules and Examples
• Use of Was and Were Rules and Examples
• Use of Has and Have Rules and Examples

Present Perfect Tense

The Present Perfect tense expresses the action that has finished shortly which began in the past.

Examples of Present Perfect Tense:

1. She has reached the office.
2. I have already sent the mail to my workers.
3. He has discovered a new species of fish.
4. You have lived in a house in New York for two days.
5. We have accepted our mistakes.
6. The man has found his purse.
7. She has lost purse in the market.
8. Have you ever seen the Taj Mahal?
9. Why have they not cleared their dues?
10. I haven’t told her anything.

Present Perfect Continuous Tense

The Present Perfect Continuous Tense is used for an action that started in the past and is still going on. It is also called the Present Perfect Progressive Tense.

Examples of Present Perfect Continuous Tense:

1. I have been waiting for my turn for two hours.
2. The girl has been working in this shop for three years.
3. They have been investigating the matter since January.
4. I have been washing my clothes for ten minutes.
5. The child has been sleeping for two hours.
6. The players have been playing the cricket match since morning.
7. I haven’t been waiting for the players on the ground for 3 hours.
8. She hasn’t been waiting for you since 2 o’clock.
9. Has the man been playing football since morning?
10. Have you win learning music for 3 years?

Examples of the Past Tense and Parts

The Past Tense is used to express an action of past time. The verbs of past tense tell us that the action is done in the past time is called the past tense. There are four parts of this tense;

• Simple Past Tense 
• Past Continuous Tense
• Past Perfect Tense
• Past Perfect Continuous Tense

Past Tense with Examples and Parts

The Past Tense shows that an action is done in the past.  This tense shows that action happened in the past, was happening, had happened, or had been happening.” Here are some examples of past tense:

Examples of Past Tense:

• You played the match.
• You were playing the match.
• You had played the match before he came.
• You had been playing the match for two hours.

Simple Past Tense (Past Indefinite Tense)

The simple past tense is used to express the general actions in the past time. It also expresses an action that occupied a period in the past but has ended now. It is also called the Past Indefinite Tense.

Examples of Simple Past Tense –

1. He met me two hours ago.
2. They played well yesterday.
3. We went to the cinema hall last night.
4. The police officer checked my passport at the airport.
5. Mr. Verma ordered a new book from Amazon.
6. He sold his house 2 years ago.
7. Did you met him last week?
8. Why did she not listen to you?
9. Who invented the gramophone?
10. What did they tell you about the incident?

Past Continuous Tense

The past continuous tense is used to express an action that was happening in the past. It also expresses an action that was happening when another action took place. Read the following examples of past continuous tense;

Examples of Past Continuous Tense:

1. The man was driving his car.
2. When I reached her house, she was sleeping.
3. I was going through the forest.
4. Our soldiers were fighting with courage.
5. The scientists were sending signals.
6. I was opening the door when you came yesterday.
7. Who was singing a song on the stage?
8. Why did she not do her work when I was taking to her?
9. The girl was dancing in the room when her father came.
10. Which book was he reading in the library?

Past Perfect Tense

The past perfect tense expresses an action completed in the past. It is called the past of past tense. Shyam adverbs like already before never still are used in this tense. Let’s study the following examples;

Examples of Past Perfect Tense:

1. The killer had run away before the police reached.
2. They told me that Jack had gone to Egypt.
3. He had already arrived at the airport.
4. My grandfather had not used his debit card yet.
5. Rita came from Japan after her brother had gotten a new job.
6. You had washed your car before she came out the room.
7. He had done his work before morning.
8. The man stole money after the police had gone.
9. The girl head driver for a long distance before she stopped.
10. I came forward after the teacher had asked the question.

Past Perfect Continuous Tense

The past perfect continuous tense describes an action that continued in the past for a given period. We use since and for in this tense. Here are some examples of this tense;

Examples of Past Perfect Continuous Tense:

1. We had been working with John for two years.
2. The Pilot had been waiting for the next flight since evening.
3. They had been writing their exams for three hours.
4. She had been enjoying herself at the party for a long time.
5. Tom has been developing new apps since 2016.
6. You had been working on this project for 3 months.
7. The man had been searching his purse for 2 days.
8. Why had she been opposing you for many days?
9. What had the children been playing for five hours?
10. Who had been writing emails to you for five years?

Future Tense with Examples and Parts

The Future Tense shows an action that will take place in the future. It has four parts that express that the action will happen, will be happening, will have happened, or will have been happening. The examples of future tense are given below:

Examples of Future Tense:

• You will play the match.
• You will be playing the match.
• You will have played the match.
• You will have been playing the match for two hours.

Simple Future Tense (Future Indefinite Tense)

The Simple future tense is used to express the action which will happen in the future. There is no verb to can we future directly. But we can express the future excess by using shall and will with the base form of the verb. It is also called the future indefinite tense. Here are some examples of the simple future tense;

Examples of Simple Future Tense:

1. He will buy a scooter tomorrow.
2. We shall have a party on Sunday.
3. John will water the plants.
4. Amy will drive to work in the morning.
5. Bonny will join this college in July.

Future Continuous Tense

The Future Continuous Tense is used to express an action that will be happening in the future. This tense is formed by using shall be and will be with the verb I +ing. Let’s observe the examples below:

Examples of Future Continuous Tense:

1. He will be painting the pictures at this time.
2. Your cousin will be helping solve your problems.
3. My family will be traveling by train.
4. I shall not be explaining the matter.
5. Will you be taking a leave from your office tomorrow?

Future Perfect Tense

The future perfect tense is used to describe an action that will be completed at some point of time in the future. The future tense is formed using shall and will with the past participle form of the verb. Read the following examples;

Examples of Future Perfect Tense:

1. He will have got a job by the end of this year.
2. Jacqueline will have returned home before sunset.
3. The old man will have to cross the road before the vehicles come.
4. Shall I have bought a new iPad why the end of this month?
5. The teacher will have taught this lesson by three o’clock.

Future Perfect Continuous Tense

The future perfect continuous tense is used to express an action that will be in progress even after a given point in time in the future. Read the following examples;

Examples of Future Perfect Continuous Tense:

1. I shall have been sitting there for an hour.
2. They have been writing an essay for 30 minutes.
3. The people will have been traveling by airplane for two days.
4. My driver will have been driving the car for 2 hours.
5. She will have been learning English since July.
6. You will have been waiting for me for 2 hours.
7. She will not have been working with me for 3 years.
8. The cow will have been eating the green grass by three o’clock.
9. I shall have been preparing for this exam for ten years.
10. Will she have been driving the car from January?

Watch this video on the tense examples

Conclusion

Tense examples of the present, past, and future are very easy to understand. As we know that we have to learn tenses when we learn English Grammar. Tense is the most important topic in the English language. Nobody can understand the language if he doesn’t know verbs and tenses. Learn tense with examples from our free grammar lessons. Happy Learning!!