Tenses in English: All 12 Tenses with Rules, Chart & Examples

There are 12 tenses in English: 4 forms each of the present, past and future. Each form is simple, continuous, perfect or perfect continuous. If your child learns the formula for each one and when to use it, most grammar questions in school become easy.

What Is a Tense?

A tense tells us when an action happens and in what state it is (just a fact, still going on, completed, or going on for some time).

V1 (base)	V2 (past)	V3 (past participle)	V-ing
play	played	played	playing
write	wrote	written	writing
go	went	gone	going
eat	ate	eaten	eating

Present Tense

1. Simple Present — Subject + V1 (+s/-es). Habits, routines, facts. "She plays badminton every evening." Negative: "She does not play." Question: "Does she play?"

2. Present Continuous — Subject + is/am/are + V-ing. Happening now, or fixed near-future plans. "I am reading a story." "We are going to Lucknow tomorrow."

3. Present Perfect — Subject + has/have + V3. Just completed, or past action whose result matters now. "He has finished his homework." "I have seen the Taj Mahal."

4. Present Perfect Continuous — Subject + has/have been + V-ing + since/for. Started in the past, still going on. "She has been studying since 6 o'clock."

Since or for? Use since with a point of time (since Monday) and for with a length of time (for three days).

Past Tense

5. Simple Past — Subject + V2. Completed at a definite past time. "We visited Sarnath last Sunday." Negative: "We did not visit" (not "did not visited").

6. Past Continuous — Subject + was/were + V-ing. In progress at a past time, often interrupted. "I was having dinner when the lights went out."

7. Past Perfect — Subject + had + V3. The earlier of two past actions. "The train had left before we reached the station."

8. Past Perfect Continuous — Subject + had been + V-ing + since/for. "He had been practising for a month before the competition."

Future Tense

9. Simple Future — Subject + will + V1. "I will call you tonight."

10. Future Continuous — Subject + will be + V-ing. "At 8 pm tomorrow, I will be travelling to Delhi."

11. Future Perfect — Subject + will have + V3. "By March, she will have finished the syllabus."

12. Future Perfect Continuous — Subject + will have been + V-ing + since/for. "By December, he will have been teaching here for ten years."

One-Page Tense Chart (verb: study)

Tense	Formula	Example
Simple Present	S + V1(s/es)	She studies.
Present Continuous	S + is/am/are + V-ing	She is studying.
Present Perfect	S + has/have + V3	She has studied.
Present Perfect Continuous	S + has/have been + V-ing	She has been studying since 6.
Simple Past	S + V2	She studied.
Past Continuous	S + was/were + V-ing	She was studying.
Past Perfect	S + had + V3	She had studied.
Past Perfect Continuous	S + had been + V-ing	She had been studying for an hour.
Simple Future	S + will + V1	She will study.
Future Continuous	S + will be + V-ing	She will be studying.
Future Perfect	S + will have + V3	She will have studied.
Future Perfect Continuous	S + will have been + V-ing	She will have been studying for two hours.

Signal Words That Point to a Tense

Signal words	Usual tense
always, usually, every day, often	Simple Present
now, at the moment, look!, listen!	Present Continuous
just, already, yet, ever, never	Present Perfect
since, for (ongoing action)	Present Perfect Continuous
yesterday, last week, ago, in 2019	Simple Past
when, while (ongoing past action)	Past Continuous
before, after, by the time	Past Perfect
tomorrow, next week, soon	Simple Future

Common Mistakes Indian Students Make

Wrong	Right	Why
I have seen him yesterday.	I saw him yesterday.	A finished time (yesterday) needs the simple past.
He did not went.	He did not go.	After did, always use V1.
I am knowing the answer.	I know the answer.	Know, like, want aren't normally used in the continuous form.
I am waiting since 2 hours.	I have been waiting for 2 hours.	An ongoing action from the past needs the perfect continuous; a length of time takes "for".
When I will reach, I will call.	When I reach, I will call.	After when/if/as soon as, use present tense for the future.

For more of these, read Common English Mistakes Indian Students Make.

Practice Questions

1. Look! The baby ______ (sleep).
2. Water ______ (boil) at 100°C.
3. We ______ (live) in Noida since 2018.
4. I ______ (meet) Riya last week.
5. By the time the guests arrived, Mummy ______ (cook) dinner.
6. This time tomorrow, I ______ (write) my exam.

Answers: 1. is sleeping   2. boils   3. have been living   4. met   5. had cooked   6. will be writing

Frequently Asked Questions

How many tenses are there in English?
12 — present, past and future, each in four forms (simple, continuous, perfect, perfect continuous).

What is the difference between the present perfect and the simple past?
Use simple past when a finished time is mentioned ("I met him yesterday"); present perfect when no exact time is given and the result matters now.

When do we use "since" and "for"?
Since with a starting point (since Monday); for with a length of time (for two days).