The Tenses in English Grammar - Reference

One sentence is put into different tenses. You can see how the meaning changes. The words in green are signal words. They tell you which tense you have to use.

Tense Simple Present Present Progressive Simple Past Past Progressive Present Perfect Present Perfect Progressive Past Perfect Past Perfect Progressive will-future going tofuture Future Progressive Future Perfect Conditional Simple Conditional Progressive Conditional Perfect Conditional Perfect Progressive

Example

Explanation

I play football every week. Here you want to say that it happens regularly. I'm playing football now. I played football yesterday. I was playing football the whole evening. I have just played football. I have been playingfootball for 2 hours. I had played football before Susan came. I had been playing football for two hours when Susan came. I will play football next week. I'm going to play football this afternoon. I will be playing football next Sunday. I will have played football by tomorrow. I would play football. I would be playingfootball. I would have playedfootball. I would have been playing football. Here you want to say that it is happening at the moment. You did it yesterday, it happened in the past. You were doing it in the past. It's not sure whether the action was finished or not. You have just finished it. So it has a connection to the present. Maybe your clothes are dirty. You want to say how long you have been doing it. (You started in the past and it continues up to the present. The two actions are related to each other: you had finished to play football and after that the girl arrived. Here you want to point out how long you had been doing it before the girl came. This is a prediction, you can probably do something else. This is a plan you've made. You do it every Sunday (as usual) You will have done it before tomorrow. You'll probably do it. You'll probably do it. Here you concentrate more on the progress of the action. You'll probably have finished playing football at a special time in the future. Here you concentrate on the fact (football). You'll probably have finished playing football at a special time in the future. Here you concentrate on the progress of playing (football).

Negations of the sentences

Tense Simple Present Present Progressive Simple Past Past Progressive

Example I do not play football every week. I don't play football every week. I am not playing football now. I'm not playing football now. I did not play football yesterday. I didn't play football yesterday. I was not playing football yesterday. I wasn't playing football yesterday. I have not played football. I haven't played football. I've not played football. I have not been playing football. I haven't been playing football. I've not been playing football.

Present Perfect

Present Perfect Progressive

Past Perfect

I had not played football. I hadn't played football. I'd not played football. I had not been playing football. I hadn't been playing football. I'd not been playing football. I will/shall not play football next week. I won't play football next week. I am not going to play football this afternoon. I'm not going to play football this afternoon. I will/shall not be playing football. I won't be playing football. I will/shall not have played football. I won't have played football. I would not play football. I'd not play football. I would not be playing football. I wouldn't be playing football. I'd not be playing football. I would not have played football. I wouldn't have played football. I'd not have played football. I would not have been playing football. I wouldn't have been playing football. I'd not have been playing football.

Past Perfect Progressive

will-future going to-future Future Progressive Future Perfect Conditional Simple

Conditional Progressive

Conditional Perfect

Conditional Perfect Progressive

Questions

Tense Simple Present Present Progressive Simple Past Past Progressive Present Perfect Present Perfect Progressive Past Perfect Past Perfect Progressive will-future going to-future Future Progressive Future Perfect Conditional Simple Conditional Progressive Conditional Perfect Conditional Perfect Progressive

Example Do you play football? Are you playing football? Did you play football? Were you playing football? Have you played football? Have you been playing football? Had you played football? Had you been playing football? Will you play football? Are you going to play football? Will you be playing football? Will you have played football? Would you play football? Would you be playing football? Would you have played football? Would you have been playing football?

tense
Simple Present

Affirmative/Negative/Question
A: He speaks. N: He does not speak. Q: Does he speak?

Use

Signal Words

always, every , action in the present taking never, normally, place once, never or often, seldom, several times sometimes, usually facts if sentences type actions taking place one I (If Italk, )

after another Present A: He is speaking. Progressive N: He is not speaking. Q: Is he speaking? action set by a timetable or schedule action taking place in the at the moment, just, just now, moment of speaking Listen!, Look!, action taking place only for now, right now a limited period of time Simple Past A: He spoke. N: He did not speak. Q: Did he speak? action arranged for the future action in the past taking place once, never or several times actions taking place one after another action taking place in the middle of another action action going on at a certain time in the past actions taking place at the same time action in the past that is interrupted by another action putting emphasis on the result action that is still going on action that stopped recently finished action that has an influence on the present action that has taken place once, never or several times before the moment of speaking putting emphasis on the course or duration (not the result) action that recently stopped or is still going on all day, for 4 years, since 1993, how long?, the whole week already, ever, just, never, not yet, so far, till now, up to now when, while, as long as yesterday, 2 minutes ago, in 1990, the other day, last Friday if sentence type II (If I talked, )

Past A: He was speaking. Progressive N: He was not speaking. Q: Was he speaking?

Present Perfect Simple

A: He has spoken. N: He has not spoken. Q: Has he spoken?

Present A: He has been speaking. Perfect N: He has not been speaking. Progressive Q: Has he been speaking?

 Past Perfect Simple A: He had spoken. N: He had not spoken. Q: Had he spoken?

finished action that influenced the present action taking place before a certain time in the past sometimes interchangeable with past perfect progressive putting emphasis only on the fact (not the duration) action taking place before a certain time in the past sometimes interchangeable with past perfect simple putting emphasis on the duration or course of an action action in the future that cannot be influenced spontaneous decision assumption with regard to the future decision made for the future conclusion with regard to the future action that is going on at a in one year, next week, tomorrow certain time in the future action that is sure to happen in the near future action that will be finished at a certain time in the future action taking place before a certain time in the future putting emphasis on the course of an action action that might take if sentences type by Monday, in a week in a year, next , tomorrow (If you ask her, she will help you.) assumption: I think, probably, perhaps in one year, next week, tomorrow for, since, the whole day, all day already, just, never, not yet, once, until that day if sentence type III (If I had talked, )

Past A: He had been speaking. Perfect N: He had not been speaking. Progressive Q: Had he been speaking?

Future I Simple

A: He will speak. N: He will not speak. Q: Will he speak?

Future I Simple (going to)

A: He is going to speak. N: He is not going to speak. Q: Is he going to speak?

Future I A: He will be speaking. Progressive N: He will not be speaking. Q: Will he be speaking?

Future II Simple

A: He will have spoken. N: He will not have spoken. Q: Will he have spoken?

Future II A: He will have been speaking. Progressive N: He will not have been speaking. Q: Will he have been speaking? Conditional A: He would speak.

for , the last couple of hours, all day long

I Simple

N: He would not speak. Q: Would he speak?

place

II (If I were you, I would go home.)

Conditional A: He would be speaking. I N: He would not be speaking. Progressive Q: Would he be speaking?

action that might take place putting emphasis on the course / duration of the action action that might have taken place in the past if sentences type III (If I had seen that, I would have helped.)

Conditional A: He would have spoken. II Simple N: He would not have spoken. Q: Would he have spoken?

Conditional A: He would have been II speaking. Progressive N: He would not have been speaking. Q: Would he have been speaking?

action that might have taken place in the past puts emphasis on the course / duration of the action

Explanation

Past

Present

Future

Simple Past

Simple Present

Future I Simple

action that takes place once, never or several times actions that happen one after another state

He played football every Tuesday. He played football and then he went home. He loved football. Past Progressive

He plays football every Tuesday. He plays football and then he goes home. He loves football. Present Progressive He is playing football.

He will / is going to play football every Tuesday. He will play football and then he will go home. He will love football. Future I Progressive He will be playing football.

action going on at that moment actions taking place at the same time

He was playing football. He was playing football and she was watching. Past Perfect Simple

He is playing football and He will be playing football she is watching. and she will be watching. Present Perfect Simple Future II Simple

action taking place before a certain moment in time; emphasises the result

He had won five matches until that day.

He has won five matches He will have won five so far. matches by then.

Past Perfect Progressive action taking place before a certain moment in time (and beyond), emphasises the duration He had been playing football for ten years.

Present Perfect Progressive He has been playing football for ten years.

Future II Progressive He will have been playing football for ten years.