Here's a comprehensive guide to English verb tenses.

This guide
includes explanations, structures, and examples for each tense.
1. Present Simple
 Structure:
o Affirmative: Subject + base form of the verb (e.g., She
works)
o Negative: Subject + do/does + not + base form of the verb
(e.g., She does not work)
o Interrogative: Do/Does + subject + base form of the verb?
(e.g., Does she work?)
 Usage:
o Regular actions or habits (e.g., He reads every day.)
o General truths (e.g., Water boils at 100°C.)
o Timetables/schedules (e.g., The train leaves at 6 PM.)
2. Present Continuous (Progressive)
 Structure:
o Affirmative: Subject + am/is/are + verb + -ing (e.g., She is
working)
o Negative: Subject + am/is/are + not + verb + -ing (e.g., She
is not working)
o Interrogative: Am/Is/Are + subject + verb + -ing? (e.g., Is
she working?)
 Usage:
o Actions happening right now (e.g., She is reading a book.)
o Temporary situations (e.g., He is staying with a friend.)
 o Future arrangements (e.g., They are meeting us
tomorrow.)
3. Present Perfect
 Structure:
o Affirmative: Subject + have/has + past participle (e.g., She
has finished)
o Negative: Subject + have/has + not + past participle (e.g.,
She has not finished)
o Interrogative: Have/Has + subject + past participle? (e.g.,
Has she finished?)
 Usage:
o Actions that occurred at an unspecified time and are
relevant now (e.g., I have seen that movie.)
o Life experiences (e.g., She has traveled to France.)
o Actions that started in the past and continue to the
present (e.g., He has lived here for five years.)
4. Present Perfect Continuous
 Structure:
o Affirmative: Subject + have/has been + verb + -ing (e.g.,
She has been working)
o Negative: Subject + have/has not been + verb + -ing (e.g.,
She has not been working)
o Interrogative: Have/Has + subject + been + verb + -ing?
(e.g., Has she been working?)
 Usage:
o Actions that started in the past and are still continuing
(e.g., They have been studying for hours.)
 o Actions that have recently stopped but have a result in the
present (e.g., She looks tired because she has been
running.)
5. Past Simple
 Structure:
o Affirmative: Subject + past form of the verb (e.g., She
worked)
o Negative: Subject + did not + base form of the verb (e.g.,
She did not work)
o Interrogative: Did + subject + base form of the verb? (e.g.,
Did she work?)
 Usage:
o Actions completed in the past (e.g., He visited Paris last
year.)
o A series of completed actions (e.g., She finished her
homework and went to bed.)
6. Past Continuous (Progressive)
 Structure:
o Affirmative: Subject + was/were + verb + -ing (e.g., She
was working)
o Negative: Subject + was/were + not + verb + -ing (e.g., She
was not working)
o Interrogative: Was/Were + subject + verb + -ing? (e.g.,
Was she working?)
 Usage:
o Actions that were ongoing at a specific time in the past
(e.g., He was watching TV when she called.)
 o Interrupted actions (e.g., They were playing soccer when
it started to rain.)
7. Past Perfect
 Structure:
o Affirmative: Subject + had + past participle (e.g., She had
finished)
o Negative: Subject + had not + past participle (e.g., She had
not finished)
o Interrogative: Had + subject + past participle? (e.g., Had
she finished?)
 Usage:
o Actions completed before another action in the past (e.g.,
They had left before I arrived.)
o The cause of a past situation (e.g., She was tired because
she had worked all day.)
8. Past Perfect Continuous
 Structure:
o Affirmative: Subject + had been + verb + -ing (e.g., She
had been working)
o Negative: Subject + had not been + verb + -ing (e.g., She
had not been working)
o Interrogative: Had + subject + been + verb + -ing? (e.g.,
Had she been working?)
 Usage:
o Actions that were ongoing in the past up until another
past action (e.g., They had been traveling for hours before
they found a hotel.)
 o The duration of an action up to a certain point in the past
(e.g., He was exhausted because he had been running.)
9. Future Simple
 Structure:
o Affirmative: Subject + will + base form of the verb (e.g.,
She will work)
o Negative: Subject + will not + base form of the verb (e.g.,
She will not work)
o Interrogative: Will + subject + base form of the verb?
(e.g., Will she work?)
 Usage:
o Predictions or spontaneous decisions (e.g., It will rain
tomorrow.)
o Promises or offers (e.g., I will help you with that.)
10. Future Continuous (Progressive)
 Structure:
o Affirmative: Subject + will be + verb + -ing (e.g., She will
be working)
o Negative: Subject + will not be + verb + -ing (e.g., She will
not be working)
o Interrogative: Will + subject + be + verb + -ing? (e.g., Will
she be working?)
 Usage:
o Actions that will be ongoing at a specific future time (e.g.,
They will be watching TV at 8 PM.)
o Actions that will be in progress during another future
event (e.g., I will be studying when you arrive.)
11. Future Perfect
 Structure:
o Affirmative: Subject + will have + past participle (e.g., She
will have finished)
o Negative: Subject + will not have + past participle (e.g.,
She will not have finished)
o Interrogative: Will + subject + have + past participle? (e.g.,
Will she have finished?)
 Usage:
o Actions that will be completed before a specific future
time or event (e.g., By next year, I will have graduated.)
12. Future Perfect Continuous
 Structure:
o Affirmative: Subject + will have been + verb + -ing (e.g.,
She will have been working)
o Negative: Subject + will not have been + verb + -ing (e.g.,
She will not have been working)
o Interrogative: Will + subject + have been + verb + -ing?
(e.g., Will she have been working?)
 Usage:
o Actions that will have been ongoing up to a certain point
in the future (e.g., By next month, they will have been
living here for a year.)
o Emphasizing the duration of an action up to a future point
(e.g., He will be tired because he will have been working
all day.)
Summary
 Present Tenses: Describe current actions, habitual actions, and
ongoing actions.
 Past Tenses: Describe actions completed in the past, ongoing
past actions, and actions before other past actions.
 Future Tenses: Describe actions that will happen, ongoing
future actions, and actions that will be completed by a certain
future time.