What is verb tense?
Verbs tell us what happens. Verb tense tells us when it happens.
- I walk to school. (now)
- I walked to school. (before)
- I will walk to school. (later)
There are three main times: past, present and future. Each time has four forms, giving us twelve tenses in total. In grades 3 to 5, you will mainly use the simple, progressive and perfect forms.
The simple tenses
Simple present
The present tense shows actions happening now or regularly (habits, facts).
- She reads every night.
- Water boils at 100°C.
- I like pizza.
Add -s or -es for he, she, it or one person or thing: He plays. The dog barks. She watches.
Simple past
The past tense shows actions that already happened.
- We played soccer yesterday.
- The baby laughed.
Regular verbs add -ed: jump → jumped, bake → baked, hop → hopped, cry → cried.
Simple future
The future tense shows actions that will happen. Use will + the base verb.
- I will visit Grandma tomorrow.
- They will win the game.
You can also use going to: We are going to bake cookies.
Irregular verbs
An irregular verb does not add -ed in the past tense. You must learn these by heart.
| Present | Past | Past participle (with have/has/had) |
|---|---|---|
| go | went | gone |
| see | saw | seen |
| eat | ate | eaten |
| run | ran | run |
| come | came | come |
| take | took | taken |
| write | wrote | written |
| swim | swam | swum |
| begin | began | begun |
| bring | brought | brought |
| think | thought | thought |
| is / are | was / were | been |
The progressive tenses
The progressive tense shows actions that are (or were, or will be) ongoing. Use a form of be + verb-ing.
- Present progressive: I am reading right now. They are playing.
- Past progressive: She was sleeping when the phone rang.
- Future progressive: We will be travelling all day tomorrow.
The perfect tenses
The perfect tense uses has, have or had + a past participle. It shows actions that are completed or connected to another time.
- Present perfect: an action that started in the past and connects to now.
I have finished my homework. She has lived here for five years. - Past perfect: an action that happened before another past action.
By the time we arrived, the movie had started. - Future perfect: an action that will be completed before a future time.
By June, I will have read twenty books.
Twelve tenses at a glance
| Simple | Progressive | Perfect | Perfect progressive | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present | I walk | I am walking | I have walked | I have been walking |
| Past | I walked | I was walking | I had walked | I had been walking |
| Future | I will walk | I will be walking | I will have walked | I will have been walking |
You do not need to memorize them all now, but it is helpful to see the pattern.
Time clue words
Certain words give clues about which tense to use.
| Past | Present | Future |
|---|---|---|
| yesterday, last week, ago, in 2010 | now, today, every day, always | tomorrow, next week, soon, later |
Tense consistency
Tense consistency means keeping verbs in the same tense unless the time actually changes.
✗ Yesterday I go to the park and saw a dog.
✓ Yesterday I went to the park and saw a dog.
✗ She opens the door and walked inside.
✓ She opened the door and walked inside.
When writing a story, choose past or present tense and stick with it.
Worked examples
Example 1: Change to past tense: We swim in the lake.
We swam in the lake. (irregular)
Example 2: Change to future tense: He bakes a cake.
He will bake a cake.
Example 3: Choose the right verb: Right now, the children (play / are playing) outside.
Right now shows an ongoing action: are playing.
Example 4: Fix the tense: Last summer, we visit our cousins and go fishing.
Last summer, we visited our cousins and went fishing.
Common mistakes
- Adding -ed to irregular verbs: goed, eated, runned.
- Mixing tenses in the same sentence or story.
- Forgetting -s in present tense with he/she/it: She walk → She walks.
- Using the wrong participle: I have went → I have gone.
Try it yourself
- Write the past tense: jump, eat, think, carry.
- Write the future tense: They paint the fence.
- Choose: By the time I woke up, my dad (has made / had made) breakfast.
- Fix: I seen that movie twice.
- Fix the consistency: The dog barked and runs to the door.
Answers: 1. jumped, ate, thought, carried. 2. They will paint the fence. 3. had made. 4. I have seen that movie twice (or I saw). 5. The dog barked and ran to the door.
Study tip
Make flashcards of irregular verbs with the present on the front and the past and past participle on the back. Practise five a day, and say a sentence for each one.
Quick recap
- Verb tense shows when an action happens: past, present or future.
- Simple, progressive and perfect forms add detail about time.
- Regular verbs add -ed; irregular verbs change in special ways.
- Time clue words help choose the right tense.
- Keep tenses consistent unless the time changes.