Lesson 1 : TENSES

Tenses indicate the time of an action or event. They can be divided

into three main categories: past, present, and future. Each
category has simple, continuous (progressive), perfect, and perfect
continuous forms.

1. Present Tenses

 Simple Present: Describes habits, general truths, or routines.

o Structure: Subject + base form of the verb (add "s" for
third person singular).
o Example: She reads every morning.
 Present Continuous: Describes actions happening right now or
ongoing actions.
o Structure: Subject + am/is/are + verb + -ing.
o Example: They are studying for their exams.
 Present Perfect: Describes actions that happened at an
unspecified time (time is not important) or that started in the past
and continue to the present.
o Structure: Subject + has/have + past participle.
o Example: He has visited Paris.
 Present Perfect Continuous: Describes actions that started in
the past and are still continuing or have recently stopped,
emphasizing the duration.
o Structure: Subject + has/have been + verb + -ing.
o Example: We have been working on this project for two
weeks.

2. Past Tenses

 Simple Past: Describes completed actions that occurred at a

specific time in the past.
o Structure: Subject + past form of the verb.
o Example: She visited her grandmother last weekend.
 Past Continuous: Describes actions that were ongoing at a
specific time in the past.
o Structure: Subject + was/were + verb + -ing.
 o Example: They were playing football when it started to
rain.
 Past Perfect: Describes actions that were completed before
another action in the past.
o Structure: Subject + had + past participle.
o Example: He had finished his homework before dinner.
 Past Perfect Continuous: Describes actions that were ongoing
up to a specific point in the past.
o Structure: Subject + had been + verb + -ing.
o Example: She had been studying for hours before the
exam started.

3. Future Tenses

 Simple Future: Describes actions that will happen at a later

time.
o Structure: Subject + will + base form of the verb.
o Example: They will travel to Spain next month.
 Future Continuous: Describes actions that will be ongoing at a
specific time in the future.
o Structure: Subject + will be + verb + -ing.
o Example: I will be working late tomorrow.
 Future Perfect: Describes actions that will be completed before
a specific time in the future.
o Structure: Subject + will have + past participle.
o Example: By next year, she will have graduated.
 Future Perfect Continuous: Describes actions that will be
ongoing until a specific point in the future.
o Structure: Subject + will have been + verb + -ing.
o Example: They will have been living here for five years by
the end of this month.
Regular and irregular verbs in English

Verbs are words that express actions, states, or occurrences. They are
essential in constructing sentences.

1. Regular Verbs : regular verbs form their past tense and past
participle by adding -ed to the base form.

Rules for Regular Verbs:

 For most verbs, simply add -ed.

 If the verb ends in e, just add -d (e.g., live → lived).
 If the verb ends with a consonant followed by a “y”, change y to
i and add -ed (e.g., carry → carried).
 If a verb ends with a vowel followed by a “y,” you simply add "-
ed" to the base form of the verb. (eg.,play→played) If the verb is
one syllable with a single vowel followed by a single consonant,
double the consonant before adding -ed (e.g., stop → stopped).

2. Irregular Verbs : Irregular verbs do not follow a set pattern for

forming the past tense and past participle. Their forms must be
memorized.

 Most commonly used regular and irregular verbs in English

Type Base Form Simple Past Past Participle

Regular Verb to play played played
Regular Verb to walk walked walked
Regular Verb to cook cooked cooked
Regular Verb to laugh laughed laughed
Regular Verb to clean cleaned cleaned
Regular Verb to arrive arrived arrived
Regular Verb to finish finished finished
Regular Verb to call called called
Regular Verb to help helped helped
Regular Verb to jump jumped jumped
Irregular Verb to go went gone
Irregular Verb to eat Ate eaten
Irregular Verb to be was/were been
Irregular Verb to have Had had
Irregular Verb to see Saw seen
Irregular Verb to take Took taken
Irregular Verb to come came come
Irregular Verb to write wrote written
Irregular Verb to speak spoke spoken
Irregular Verb to read read read
(pronounced (pronounced
"red") "red")
Irregular Verb to drink drank drunk
Irregular Verb to begin began begun
Irregular Verb to choose chose chosen
Irregular Verb to fly Flew flown
Irregular Verb to forget forgot forgotten
Irregular Verb to sell sold sold
Irregular Verb to think thought thought
Regular Verb to dance danced danced
Regular Verb to paint painted painted
Regular Verb to travel traveled traveled
Regular Verb to visit visited visited
Regular Verb to open opened opened
Regular Verb to repair repaired repaired
Regular Verb to study studied studied
Regular Verb to change changed changed
Regular Verb to snow snowed snowed
Irregular Verb to begin began begun
Irregular Verb to choose chose chosen
Irregular Verb to drink drank drunk
Irregular Verb to drive drove driven
Irregular Verb to fall fell fallen
Irregular Verb to forget forgot forgotten
Irregular Verb to get got gotten/got
Irregular Verb to know knew known
Irregular Verb to ride rode ridden
Irregular Verb to sell sold sold
Irregular Verb to sing sang sung
Irregular Verb to sit sat sat
Irregular Verb to speak spoke spoken
Irregular Verb to tell told told
Irregular Verb to wear wore worn
Irregular Verb to win won won
Regular Verb to arrive arrived arrived
Regular Verb to celebrate celebrated celebrated
Regular Verb to decorate decorated decorated
Regular Verb to explain explained explained
Regular Verb to introduce introduced introduced
Regular Verb to connect connected connected
Regular Verb to encourage encouraged encouraged
Regular Verb to participate participated participated
Regular Verb to report reported reported
Regular Verb to return returned returned
Irregular Verb to break Broke broken
Irregular Verb to catch caught caught
Irregular Verb to choose Chose chosen
Irregular Verb to draw Drew drawn
Irregular Verb to feel Felt felt
Irregular Verb to lay Laid laid
Irregular Verb to lead Led led
Irregular Verb to ring Rang rung
Irregular Verb to run Ran run
Irregular Verb to show showed shown
Irregular Verb to steal stole stolen
Irregular Verb to swim swam swum
Irregular Verb to take took taken
Irregular Verb to think thought thought
Irregular Verb to throw threw thrown
Irregular Verb to weave wove woven
Regular Verb to adjust adjusted adjusted
Regular Verb to compare compared compared
Regular Verb to develop developed developed
Regular Verb to encourage encouraged encouraged
Regular Verb to imagine imagined imagined
Regular Verb to notice noticed noticed
Regular Verb to prepare prepared prepared
Regular Verb to realize realized realized
Regular Verb to recommend recommended recommended
Regular Verb to satisfy satisfied satisfied
Irregular Verb to arise arose arisen
Irregular Verb to bear bore borne
Irregular Verb to choose chose chosen
Irregular Verb to dig dug dug
Irregular Verb to forget forgot forgotten
Irregular Verb to freeze froze frozen
Irregular Verb to grow grew grown
Irregular Verb to know knew known
Irregular Verb to ride rode ridden
Irregular Verb to shake shook shaken
Irregular Verb to sleep slept slept
Irregular Verb to tear tore torn
Irregular Verb to wear wore worn
Irregular Verb to win won won
Irregular Verb to write wrote written
Regular Verb to annoy annoyed annoyed
Regular Verb to calculate calculated calculated
Regular Verb to demonstrate demonstrated demonstrated
Regular Verb to educate educated educated
Regular Verb to form formed formed
Regular Verb to improve improved improved
Regular Verb to maintain maintained maintained
Regular Verb to participate participated participated
Regular Verb to respond responded responded
Regular Verb to subtract subtracted subtracted
Irregular Verb to awake awoke awoken
Irregular Verb to bend bent bent
Irregular Verb to bite bit bitten
Irregular Verb to blow blew blown
Irregular Verb to cost cost cost
Irregular Verb to draw drew drawn
Irregular Verb to eat ate eaten
Irregular Verb to feel felt felt
Irregular Verb to give gave given
Irregular Verb to know knew known
Irregular Verb to say said said
Irregular Verb to spend spent spent
Irregular Verb to teach taught taught
Irregular Verb to throw threw thrown
Irregular Verb to understand understood understood
Regular Verb to attempt attempted attempted
Regular Verb to classify classified classified
Regular Verb to explain explained explained
Regular Verb to inform informed informed
Regular Verb to organize organized organized
Regular Verb to paint painted painted
Regular Verb to protect protected protected
Regular Verb to suggest suggested suggested
Regular Verb to travel traveled traveled
Regular Verb to visit visited visited
Irregular Verb to arise arose arisen
Irregular Verb to bear bore borne
Irregular Verb to begin began begun
Irregular Verb to choose chose chosen
Irregular Verb to drink drank drunk
Irregular Verb to find found found
Irregular Verb to give gave given
Irregular Verb to hold held held
Irregular Verb to lie lay lain
Irregular Verb to ride rode ridden
Irregular Verb to shake shook shaken
Irregular Verb to sing sang sung
Irregular Verb to sit sat sat
Irregular Verb to take took taken
Irregular Verb to write wrote written
Regular Verb to accept accepted accepted
Regular Verb to celebrate celebrated celebrated
Regular Verb to encourage encouraged encouraged
Regular Verb to generate generated generated
Regular Verb to introduce introduced introduced
Regular Verb to participate participated participated
Regular Verb to recognize recognized recognized
Regular Verb to subtract subtracted subtracted
Regular Verb to translate translated translated
Regular Verb to update updated updated
Irregular Verb to bite bit bitten
Irregular Verb to blow blew blown
Irregular Verb to come came come
Irregular Verb to do did done
Irregular Verb to get got gotten/got
Irregular Verb to know knew known
Irregular Verb to lay laid laid
Irregular Verb to lead led led
Irregular Verb to meet met met
Irregular Verb to pay paid paid
Irregular Verb to quit quit quit
Irregular Verb to sell sold sold
Irregular Verb to spend spent spent
Irregular Verb to steal stole stolen
Irregular Verb to tear tore torn
Regular Verb to adjust adjusted adjusted
Regular Verb to assist assisted assisted
Regular Verb to behave behaved behaved
Regular Verb to deliver delivered delivered
Regular Verb to establish established established
Regular Verb to explain explained explained
Regular Verb to finish finished finished
Regular Verb to improve improved improved
Regular Verb to participate participated participated
Regular Verb to suggest suggested suggested
Irregular Verb to arise arose arisen
Irregular Verb to begin began begun
Irregular Verb to choose chose chosen
Irregular Verb to do did done
Irregular Verb to eat ate eaten
Irregular Verb to go went gone
Irregular Verb to know knew known
Irregular Verb to see saw seen
Irregular Verb to take took taken
Irregular Verb to throw threw thrown
Irregular Verb to wear wore worn
Irregular Verb to win won won
Irregular Verb to write wrote written
Irregular Verb to break broke broken
Irregular Verb to build built built