Definition of Tense
From the Latin word ‘Tempus’ for tense or tense. Tense means Time. Tense is the lifeblood of English grammar. It acts as an indicator of the form of the verb. Read the sentences below-
- Liton goes to Rangpur today.
- He went to Dhaka yesterday.
- He will go to Chittagong tomorrow.
The action of the first sentence means that it is happening today, the action of the second sentence means that it happened yesterday, that is, the past tense. The third sentence means that the action will be tomorrow, that is, in the future. Each of these refers to the tense of the verb.
Therefore, the time in which the action of a verb is completed is called Tense.The Tense is the changing form of a verb to express the time of action or event.
Kinds of Tense
Tense is mainly of three types according to the function of the verb. Namely:
1. Present tense
2. Past tense
3. Future tense.
Now each type is discussed in detail-
Present Tense
The Present tense describes an action in the present time.
There are four types of Present Tense. Namely:
(i)Present Indefinite Tense,
(ii) Present Continuous Tense,
(iii) Present Perfect Tense and
(iv) Present Perfect Continuous Tense.
(i) Present Indefinite Tense
Present Indefinite tense denotes an action in the present time or habitual truth or eternal truth.
Structure : Subject + present form of verb + extension (if any).
For example – The river flows.The baby cries.
(ii) Present Continuous Tense
Present Continuous tense is used when an action is going on or going to be continued in near future.
Structure : Subject + am/is/are + base form of verb + ing + extension (if any).
For example-
- I am learning English.
- He is looking at the blackboard.
- They are reading book.
(iii) Present Perfect Tense
Present Perfect tense is used when the work has been done but its effect lasts.
Structure : Subject + have/has + past participle of main verb + extension (if any).
For example-
He has eaten rice.
I have done the work.
They have gone to the fair.
(iv) Present Perfect Continuous Tense
The form of the verb which indicates that an action has already started and is still going on is called Present Perfect Continuous Tense.
Structure : Subject + have been / has been + main verb + ing + remaining part (if any). If period of time is for and if point of time is since.
For example-
I have been eating rice for ten minutes.
I have been reading for one hour.
They have been living in Dhaka since 2001.
Past Tense
The Past tense describes an action in the past time.
There are four types of Past Tense , Namely:
(i) Past Indefinite Tense.
(ii) Past Continuous Tense.
(iii) Past Perfect Tense.
(iv) Past Perfect Continuous Tense.
(i) Past Indefinite Tense
Past Indefinite tense is used to denote an action completed in the past or a past habit.
Structure : Subject + Past form of main verb + extension (if any).
For example-
I ate rice.
I saw him in the market.
He did the work yesterday.
(ii) Past Continuous Tense
Past Continuous tense is used when the action was going on for sometime in the past.
Structure : Subject + was/were + main verb + ing + extension (if any).
For example-
I was eating rice.
The farmer was cutting his corn.
Birds were twittering.
(iii) Past Perfect Tense
Past Perfect tense is used in the former action between two completed actions of the past. Simple past is used in the later action.
Structure : Subject + had + Past participle form of main verb + remainder (if any). (The second work will be Past indefinite tense.)
For example-
I had done the work before you came.
They left the place after I had arrived.
(iv) Past Perfect Continuous Tense
Past Perfect Continuous tense is used for an action that began before a certain point in the past and continued upto that time.
Structure : Subject + had been + main verb + ing + remainder (if any).
For example-
I had been doing sums for an hour before I read English.
They had been playing in the field for an hour before they came home.
Future Tense
The Future tense describes an action in the future time.
There are four types of Future Tense. Namely:
(i) Future Indefinite Tense
(ii) Future Continuous Tense
(iii) Future Perfect Tense
(iv) Future Perfect Continuous Tense
(i) Future Indefinite Tense
Future Indefinite tense is used when an action will be done or will happen in future.
Structure : Subject + shall/will + main verb + remainder (if any).
For example-
I will go home.
He will go home.
They will run for sometime.
(ii) Future Continuous Tense
Future Continuous tense is used when an action is thought to be going on in the future.
Structure : Subject + shall be/ will be + main verb + ing + extension (if any).
For example-
I shall be eating rice.
I shall be going to school.
They will be playing football.
(iii) Future Perfect Tense
Future Perfect tense is used to indicate the completion of an action by a certain time in the future.
Structure : Subject + shall have/will have + past participle form of main verb + remainder (if any). (The second function will be Future indefinite tense.)
For example-
I shall have done the sum before I will go to school.
You will have gone to the field before they will reach.
They will have done this work before Karim arrives here.
(iv) Future Perfect Continuous Tense
Future Perfect Continuous tense is used when the doer will have been doing the work by a certain future time.
Structure : Subject + shall have been/will have been + main verb + ing + remainder (if any). The second task will be Future Indefinite Tense.
For example –
I shall have been reading the book before you come.
He will have been singing before he goes to bed.
They will have been writing an essay for an hour before they go home.
Exercise for you
- I- -(are/am) reading a story now.
- He will – (came/come) here.
- Hasem – (go/goes) to school everyday.
- I- -(has/have) just eaten meal.
- They — (done/did) the work yesterday.