Tenses forms of Verbs
A verb is a word or phrase indicating an action, an event or a state Eg run, exist, etc., Examples: I speak English We play games She wrote a letter They have completed the work I shall meet you tomorrow There are three types of Tenses in English:
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Simple Tenses Progressive Tenses And Perfect Tenses
Auxiliaries Do is used with simple tenses, Be with progressives, and Have with Perfect Tenses. The time is divided into three parts: The Past, the Present, and the Future, so each type of tenses has three part.
The tense forms of verbs are as follows: Simple Present Tense The simple present is used: 1. To express a habitual action as, a) He drinks tea every morning. b) My watch keeps good time. c) I go to college by bus. d) He comes here every evening. 2. To express general truths as, a) Honesty is the best policy. b) We see with our eyes. c) Birds fly but cattle don’t.
3. To express a situation that is permanent as,
a) Their house faces south. b) The path runs through the forest. 4. To indicate a future event that is part of a fixed programme or time table as, a) The match starts at 10 o’clock. b) The train leaves at 6:10 c) When does the college re-open? d) We leave for Singapore next week. 5. The following verbs (of perception, thinking, emotion, possession) are normally used in the simple present tense. See Recognize Want Like Refuse Believe Remember Imagine Possess hear appear wish love prefer agree forget mean belong smell look desire hate think consider know mind contain notice seem feel hope trust trust understand own consist of
Examples: • • • • • • • • I see a train coming. (Not ‘I am seeing’) I hear a strange noise in the next room. I smell something burning. I notice a change in her behavior. He has a car. My uncle owns a mill. I have a sister. Do you recognize me
Present Continuous Tenses The present continuous form is am + (v + ing) is + (v + ing)
are + (v + ing) Examples: I am doing my homework....