Tenses

 Tenses in English grammar refer to the time of action or state indicated by a verb. They show when an action happens: in the past, present, or future. There are three main tenses— Present, Past and Future—and each is further divided into four aspects: Simple, Continuous (Progressive), Perfect, and Perfect Continuous. This results in a total of 12 tenses.

1. Present Tense

The present tense describes actions happening now, habits, general truths, or ongoing actions.

Present Simple: Used for habitual actions, facts, and general truths.

Example: She writes every day.

Present Continuous (Progressive): Describes an action that is happening right now.

Example: She is writing a letter.

Present Perfect: Indicates an action that happened at an unspecified time in the past but is relevant to the present.

Example: She has written a letter.

Present Perfect Continuous: Refers to an action that started in the past and is still continuing or has recently stopped.

Example: She has been writing for two hours.

2. Past Tense

The past tense is used to describe actions that happened in the past.

Past Simple: Used for completed actions in the past.

Example: She wrote a letter yesterday.

Past Continuous: Describes an action that was ongoing in the past.

Example: She was writing when I called.

Past Perfect: Refers to an action that was completed before another action in the past.

Example: She had written the letter before he arrived.

Past Perfect Continuous: Indicates a continuous action that was happening before another action in the past.

Example: She had been writing for an hour before the power went out.

3. Future Tense

The future tense refers to actions that have not yet happened but will occur in the future.

Future Simple: Used to express actions that will happen in the future.

Example: She will write a letter tomorrow.

Future Continuous: Describes an action that will be happening at a particular moment in the future.

Example: She will be writing a letter at 5 PM.

Future Perfect: Refers to an action that will be completed by a specific time in the future.

Example: She will have written the letter by 6 PM.

Future Perfect Continuous: Indicates a continuous action that will have been happening up until a specific future point.

Example: She will have been writing for two hours by the time you arrive.

Each tense helps indicate the time, continuity, and completion of an action, giving context to when and how events unfold.