UNIVERSIDAD GERARDO BARRIOS

English Grammar I Lab II

Students names: Celina Estela Flores Luna
Sandra Mabel Villatoro Canales

Licda. Vanessa Guardado

SMLI
SMLI007514

INSTRUCTIONS: COMPLETE THE CHART WITH THE USES OF EACH TENSE AND ONE EXAMPLE FOR EACH USE.
N

TENSE

USES

EXAMPLES FOR EACH USE

Use present simple for:

1

Facts, or things that always happen.

Plants die without water.

Routines and habits.

I take a shower every day.

Timetable events

The English class starts every Tuesday at 2:20

pm

PRESENT SIMPLE

Plots of films, stories and plays.

Robin Hood finds the diamonds, saves the girl
and stops the baddie. Its great.
Use present perfect continuous:

PRESENT CONTINUOUS

For actions happening at the moment of Sara is sleeping at the moment.

speaking, and not finished.
For continuing, unfinished actions which
Andrea is learning kitchen recipes.
are not actually happening at the moment
of speaking, with verbs like work, learn,
read, study, etc.
The global warming is increasing more and
For changing situations, with verbs like
more.
become, get, grow, change, increase, or
with expressions such as more and more.
For a future arrangement, with a time
reference.

I am meeting my father tomorrow.

Use present perfect simple:

PRESENT PERFECT

To describe an event in the past without

a definite time.

Allice has decided to buy a house.

To describe what someone has

completed or achieved in a period of
time.

I have completed my English homework

They have planted forty trees in their school.

To describe how many things someone

has done.

She has studied English, but she has never

studied Japanese.

To describe someone's experiences, what

he or she has done in life.
The gangs have become a big problem in El
Salvador.
To describe changes, comparing past and
present.
Use present perfect continuous:
To talk about recent continuing activities. He has been cooking the dinner.
4

PRESENT PERFECT
CONTINUOUS

To explain how recent continuing

activities have caused the present
situation.
To talk about recent continuing activities
which will probably continue in the
future.
With how long questions.
With time words lately, recently, all
(day), every (morning), for, since.

PAST SIMPLE

Use past simple

I'm so tired. I've been studying.

The graph shows how the world people has
been increasing.
How long have you been living in Mxico?
She has been working here since 2005.

 To talk about finished events in the past,

when we think about a definite time.

I went to the park yesterday.

To describe the events in a story.

He went at the school, sat down and wrote in

his notebook.
He walked 5 kilometers to work every day.

To describe habits and routines in the

past. We usually use a time word or
phrase.
Use past continuous:
For a continuing unfinished action in the
past.
6

PAST CONTINUOUS

When I ate my lunch in a restaurant, many

people were waiting to order.
I was taking a bath when my friend called me.

For a continuing unfinished action

interrupted by a
sudden past action.
For activities as background description.
For two continuing events happening at
the same time.

It was a beautiful day. The birds were singing,

the sun was shining and my friends were
laughing.
While he was watching TV, his wife was
reading a book.

Use past perfect:

PAST PERFECT

To describe a past event which happens

before another event in the past. Only
when it is important to make clear that
one event in the past happened before
another.

When we arrived, the film had started.

I had eaten dinner so I wasn't hungry.

To explain or give a reason for something
in the past.
Stative verbs only: something that started
in the past and continued up to another
action in the past.
As part of the third conditional.

When she graduated, she had been in the

United States for five years.
If I had known you were ill, I would have
visited you.

Use past perfect continuous:

PAST PERFECT
CONTINUOUS

In a past tense narrative, to describe a

continuing action in a period of time
before something else happened.

He had been working at that company for a

year when he met Ashley.

To explain a past situation, by describing

the events happening before.

The ground was wet, it had been raining.