Mastering English Verb Tenses: Simple & Continuous Forms

Simple Past Tense: Usage & Formation

This tense is often used to refer to actions that took place at a particular time in the past. In this case, time expressions like yesterday or last year are commonly used.

It also refers to actions that occurred and were completed in the past, even without mentioning the exact moment.

To form the Simple Past, we put the verb in its past form. This is where the difficulty arises. First, we must distinguish between two kinds of verbs: regular and irregular. Due to their complexity, we will cover irregular verbs in an upcoming lesson and focus on regular verbs here.

Using "When" for Consecutive Past Actions

The word when is used to speak of two consecutive actions in the past.

Forming Simple Past Sentences

• For regular verbs, we add -ed to the base form (e.g., walked, played).
• To form negative sentences, we use did not (didn't) before the base form of the verb (e.g., I did not walk).
• To form questions, we use Did before the subject and the base form of the verb (e.g., Did you walk?).

Past Continuous Tense: Actions in Progress

The Past Continuous is used to discuss an action that was in progress at a specific point in the past, or to talk about two actions where one longer action was interrupted by another shorter action.

Using "While" with Past Continuous

The word while is often used with the Past Continuous tense to indicate simultaneous actions.

Forming Past Continuous Sentences

To form the Past Continuous, we use the past tense of the verb to be (was or were) + the verb's –ing form.

• Affirmative: Subject + was/were + verb-ing (e.g., I was eating, They were playing).
• Negative: Subject + was not/were not (wasn't/weren't) + verb-ing (e.g., She wasn't sleeping).
• Question: Was/Were + Subject + verb-ing? (e.g., Were you studying?).

Simple Present Tense: Daily Actions & Facts

The Simple Present tense is formed using the base form of the verb. An infinitive verb consists of "to" plus the base form (e.g., to eat).

The main challenge arises when conjugating verbs in the third person singular (he, she, it). This form is unique. As a general rule, an -s is added to the verb, but there are some exceptions.

Third Person Singular Exceptions

For the third person singular (he, she, it), an -s is usually added. However, there are exceptions:

• When the verb ends in -s, -sh, -ch, -x, or -o, we add -es (e.g., pass → passes, wash → washes, watch → watches, fix → fixes, go → goes).

Present Continuous Tense: Ongoing Actions

This tense expresses actions happening now, with specific nuances that differentiate it from the Simple Present.

Usage: Actions Happening Now

Used to refer to actions that are developing at the exact moment of speaking (e.g., I am reading now).

Usage: Temporary Situations

Also used to describe things that are happening around the present time, but not necessarily at the exact moment of speaking (e.g., I'm reading a great book this week).

Usage: Planned Future Actions

Used for future actions that have already been decided and planned. In this case, we often mention the specific time the action will take place (e.g., We are meeting at 7 PM tomorrow).

Forming Present Continuous Sentences

The Present Continuous is formed using the present tense of the verb to be (am, is, are) + the verb's –ing form.

• Subject-Verb Agreement:
  • I am
  • He / She / It is
  • You / We / They are
• For negation, not is placed between the auxiliary verb (am, is, are) and the main verb's –ing form (e.g., I'm not eating now).
• To form a question, the auxiliary verb (am, is, are) is placed before the subject (e.g., Are you eating?).