The Present Perfect Tense – Feb.

3,2022
In this lesson we look at the structure and use of the Present Perfect
tense, as well as the use of for and since, followed by a quiz to check
your understanding.

Use the present perfect tense to talk about happenings in the past
that explain or affect the present. The verbs have and has are used
as “helping” or auxiliary verbs to form the present perfect tense
 The problems come with the use of the tense.
 In addition, there are some differences in usage between British
and American English.

How do we make the Present Perfect tense?

The structure of the Present Perfect is:
subject + auxiliary have + main verb

conjugated in Present Simple

have, has past participle

 The auxiliary verb (have) is conjugated in the Present

Simple: have, has
 The main verb is in past participle form: -ed (or irregular)

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  For negative sentences we insert not between the auxiliary verb
and the main verb.
 For question sentences, we exchange the subject and the
auxiliary verb.

Look at these example sentences with the Present Perfect tense:

subject auxiliary verb main verb

+ I have seen ET.

+ You have eaten mine.

- She has not been to Rome.

- We have not played football.

? Have you finished?

? Have they done it?

More Examples:
 Sam has scored two goals.
 I’ve just finished my shower.
 Uncle Tom has lost his wallet.
 John has gone out.
 The Lees have moved to Ohio.
 It has not rained for months.
 Have you found your keys yet?
 Tim has made two spelling mistakes.
 They have opened a new shop

Contraction with Present Perfect

When we use the Present Perfect in speaking, we often contract the
subject and auxiliary verb. We also sometimes do this in informal
writing.

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 I have I've
You have You've
He has He's
She has She's
It has It's
We have We've
They have They've
John has John's
The car has The car's

He's or he's??? Be careful! The 's contraction is used for the auxiliary
verbs have and be. For example, "It's eaten" can mean:
 It has eaten. (Present Perfect tense, active voice)
 It is eaten. (Present Simple tense, passive voice)
It is usually clear from the context.

How do we use the Present Perfect tense?

This tense is called the Present Perfect tense.
There is always a connection with the past and with the present.
We use the Present Perfect to talk about:
 experience
 change
 continuing situation

To form the present perfect tense join have or has to the past
participle of the verb:
have + past participle
has + past participle
The past participle of a regular verb usually ends in -ed, just
like the simple past tense. But the past participles of irregular
verbs don’t follow this rule.
 We often use the Present Perfect to talk about experience from
the past.
 We are not interested in when you did something.
 We only want to know if you did it:

I have seen an alien.

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 He has lived in Bangkok.
Have you been there?
We have never eaten caviar.

Past present
future

!!!

The action or state was in In my head, I have a

the past. memory now.

 Connection with past: the event was in the past

 Connection with present: in my head, now, I have a memory of the event;
I know something about the event; I have experience of it

Present Perfect for change

We also use the Present Perfect to talk about a change,
or new information:
I have bought a car.

past present future

- +

Last week I didn't have a Now I have a car.

car.

John has broken his leg.

past present future

+ -

Yesterday John had a good Now he has a bad

leg. leg.

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 Has the price gone up?

past present future

+ -

Was the price $1.50 Is the price $1.70

yesterday? today?

The police have arrested the killer.

past present future

- +

Yesterday the killer was Now he is in

free. prison.
Connection with past: the past is the opposite of the present
Connection with present: the present is the opposite of the past
Americans do use the Present Perfect but less than British speakers.
Americans often use the Past Simple tense instead.
 An American might say "Did you have lunch?",
 British person would say "Have you had lunch?"

Present Perfect for continuing situation

We often use the Present Perfect to talk about a continuing situation. This is a state
that started in the past and continues in the present (and will probably continue into
the future). We usually use for or since with this structure.
I have worked here since June.
He has been ill for 2 days.
How long have you known Tara (for)?

past present future

The situation started in the It continues up to now. (It will probably

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 past. continue into the
future.)
Connection with past: the situation started in the past.
Connection with present: the situation continues in the present.

For and Since with Present Perfect tense

We often use for and since with perfect tenses:
 We use for to talk about a period of time: five minutes, two weeks, six years
 We use since to talk about a point in past time: 9 o'clock, 1st January,
Monday
for Since
a period of time a point in past time
20 minutes 2. 15pm
Three days Monday
6 months January
4 years 1994
2 centuries 1800
A long time ago I left school
ever the beginning of time
Look at these example sentences using for and since with the Present
Perfect tense:
 I have been here for twenty minutes.
 I have been here since 9 o'clock.
 John hasn't called for six months.
 John hasn't called since February.
 He has worked in New York for a long time.
 He has worked in New York since he left school.

The Past Perfect/Progressive Tense

In this lesson we look at the structure and use of the Past Perfect
tense, followed by a quiz to check your understanding.

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Use the past perfect tense to talk about actions that were going
on at a certain moment in the past.
The Past Perfect tense is quite an easy tense to understand and to
use. This tense talks about the "past in the past".

How do we make the Past Perfect tense?

You form the past progressive tense like this:
 was + present participle
 were + present participle
The structure of the Past Perfect tense is:
subject + auxiliary have + main verb

conjugated in Past Simple

had past participle

 The auxiliary verb (have) is conjugated in the Past

Simple: had
 The main verb is in past participle form: -ed (or irregular)
 For negative sentences we insert not between the auxiliary
verb and the main verb.
 For question sentences, we exchange the subject and the auxiliary verb.
In the examples above, was and were are called helping verbs, or
auxiliary verbs. They help to form the past progressive tense
when you join them to the present participle (the form of verbs
ending in -ing). For example
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  Ben was doing his homework.
 Peter was making a model of a bridge.

Look at these example sentences with the Past Perfect tense:

subject auxiliary verb main verb

+ I had finished my work.

+ You had stopped before me.

- She had not gone to school.

- We had not left.

? Had you arrived?

? Had they eaten dinner?

More Examples:
Miss May was cleaning the chalkboard.
Sally was packing her books into her schoolbag.
Jenny and I were tidying the classroom.
The twins were fighting in the corner.
Michael and John were washing the paint brushes.
Mom was cooking our supper when I came home

Contraction with Past Perfect

When we use the Past Perfect in speaking, we often contract the
subject and the auxiliary verb. We also sometimes do this in informal
writing:
I had I'd

you had you'd

he had he'd
she had she'd
it had it'd

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 we had we'd

they had they'd

 I'd eaten already.
 They'd gone home.

In negative sentences, we may contract the auxiliary verb and "not":

 I hadn't finished my meal.
 Anthony hadn't had a day off for months.
The 'd contraction is also used for the auxiliary verb would. For
example, we'd can mean:
 We had, OR
 We would
But usually, the main verb is in a different form, for example:
 We had arrived (past participle)
 We would arrive (base)
It is always clear from the context.

How do we use the Past Perfect tense?

The Past Perfect tense expresses action in the past before another action in the past.
This is the past in the past.
For example:
 The train left at 9am.
 We arrived at 9:15am.
 When we arrived, the train had left.

The train had left when we arrived.

past present Future

Train leaves in past at 9:00

9:00 9:15

We arrive in past at 9:15

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Look at some more examples:
 I wasn't hungry. I had just eaten.
 They were hungry. They had not eaten for five hours.
 I didn't know who he was. I had never seen him before.
 "Mary wasn't at home when I arrived." / "Really?
Where had she gone?"

You can sometimes think of the Past Perfect tense like the Present
Perfect tense, but instead of the time being now the time is before.

have
done
→

had
done
→

past present Future

For example, imagine that you arrive at the station at 9:15am. The
stationmaster says to you:
 "You are too late. The train has left."

Later, you tell your friends:

 "We were too late. The train had left."

We often use the Past Perfect in reported speech after verbs

like: said, told, asked, thought, wondered

 Look at these examples:

 He told us that the train had left.
 I thought I had met her before, but I was wrong.

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  He explained that he had closed the window because of the
rain.
 I wondered if I had been there before.
 I asked them why they had not finished.

1. Lindsay _____ not been to France.

a. has
b. Is
c. have

2. _____ you finished your homework?

a. Have
b. Has
c. Is

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3. They___ gone to a rock concert.

a. ‘s
b. ‘es
c. ‘eve
4. _____ you been to Japan?
a. Is
b. Have
c. Has
5. We _____ never eaten Mexican food.
a. have
b. has
c. are

6. Andrea has _____ her umbrella.

a. forget
b. forgetting
c. forgotten

7. _____ the sun come up?

A. Was
b. Have
c. Has

8. The children ________ the lost puppy.

a. have find
b. is finding
c. have found

9. Wiwi's been a vegetarian _____ three years.

a. since
b. for
c. after

10. I haven't worked _____ last December.

a. since
b. for
c. by
Exercise 1
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Fill in the blanks with was or were.
1 We ________ the champions last year.
2 Where is James? He ________ here just now.
3 Mom and Dad ________ on vacation last week.
4 The weather ________ fine this morning.
5 There ________ a lot of people at our party yesterday.
6 There ________ a small lake here many years ago.
7 He ________ sick yesterday.
8 Don’t blame him. It ________ my mistake

Exercise 2
When Miss May walked into the class what were the children
doing? Fill in the blanks with the correct past progressive
tense of the verbs in brackets.

1 James ______________ to Peter. (talk)

2 Sue ______________ a storybook. (read)

3 Rudy ______________ the chalkboard. (erase)

4 David ______________ his math exercise. (do)

5 Peter ______________ Joe his new watch. (show)

6 Jane ______________ a horse in her notebook. (draw)

7 Ahmad ______________ for his pencil. (look)

8 Some children ______________ a lot of noise. (make)

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Present Continuous

(also called Present Progressive)

We often use the Present Continuous tense in English. It is very different from
the Present Simple tense, both in structure and in use.
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How do we make the Present Continuous tense?
The structure of the Present Continuous tense is:

subject + auxiliary be + main verb

conjugated in Present
Simple

am, are, is present participle (-

ing)
 The auxiliary verb (be) is conjugated in the Present
Simple: am, are, is
 The main verb is invariable in present participle form: -ing
 For negative sentences we insert not between the auxiliary
verb and the main verb.
 For question sentences, we exchange the subject and the
auxiliary verb.

Look at these example sentences with the Present Continuous tense:

subject auxiliary verb main verb

+ I am speaking to you.

+ You are reading this.

- She is not staying in London.

- We are not playing football.

? Is he watching TV?

? Are they waiting for John?

How do we use the Present Continuous tense?

We use the Present Continuous to talk about:

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  action happening now
 action in the future
Present Continuous for action happening now
a) for action happening exactly now
I am eating my lunch.

past present future

The action is happening now.

Look at these images. Right now, you are looking at this screen and at the same time...

the pages are the candle is the numbers are

turning burning spinning

b) for action happening around now

The action may not be happening exactly now, but it is happening

just before and just after now, and it is not permanent or habitual.
Look at these examples:
 John is looking for a new job.
 Muriel is learning to drive.
 I am living with my sister until I find an apartment.
 The action is happening "around" now.

Present Continuous for the future

We can also use the Present Continuous tense to talk about the future - if we add
a future word!! We must add (or understand from the context) a future word. "Future
words" include, for example, tomorrow, next year, in June, at Christmas etc. We
only use the Present Continuous tense to talk about the future when we have planned

16 | P a g e
to do something before we speak. We have already made a decision and a
plan before speaking.

Look at these examples:

 We're eating at Joe's Cafe tonight. We've already booked the table.
 They can play tennis with you tomorrow. They're not working.
 When are you starting your new job?
 I am taking my exam next month.

In these examples, a firm plan or program exists before speaking. The decision and
plan were made before speaking.

How do we spell the Present Continuous tense?

We make the Present Continuous tense by adding -ing to the base verb. Normally it's
simple: we just add -ing. But sometimes we have to change the word a little. Perhaps
we double the last letter, or we drop a letter. Here are the rules to help you know how
to spell the Present Continuous tense
Just add -ing to the base verb:
Basic rule
work → working

play → playing

assist → assisting

see → seeing

be → being

If the base verb ends in consonant + stressed vowel + consonant,

Exception double the last letter:
s t o p

consonant stressed consonant

vowel

vowels = a, e, i, o, u

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 stop → stopping

run → running

begin → beginning

Note that this exception does not apply when the last syllable of the
base verb is not stressed:

open → opening

If the base verb ends in ie, change the ie to y:

Exception
lie → lying

die → dying

If the base verb ends in vowel + consonant + e, omit the e:

Exception
come → coming

mistake → mistaking
Note that continuous tenses are also called progressive tenses. So the Present
Continuous tense is sometimes called the Present Progressive tense.

Present Continuous Quiz

You can do this grammar quiz online or print it on paper. It tests what you learned on
the Present Continuous page.

1. _____ they coming over for dinner?

Is
Are
Am

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2. Maxwell _____ not sleeping on our sofa.

is
are
am

3. My mother-in-law is _____ at our house this week.

stay
staying
be staying

4. I _____ my dinner right now.

eat
eating
am eating

5. My sister _____ Spanish.

learn
is learning
learning

6. I _____ at the hair salon until September.

work
be working
am working

7. We _____ at a fancy restaurant tonight. Jason decided this yesterday.

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 eat
are eating
eats

8. Why ________ playing football tomorrow?

he not is
he isn't
isn't he

9. They are _____ a new shopping mall downtown.

opening
openning
oppening

10. Melissa is _____ down on her bed.

lieing
liying
lying

Present Perfect Continuous

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The Present Perfect Continuous uses two auxiliary verbs together with a main verb.

In this lesson we look at the structure and use of the Present Perfect Continuous
tense, as well as the use of for and since, followed by a quiz to check your
understanding.

Note that continuous tenses are also called progressive tenses. So the Present Perfect
Continuous tense is sometimes called the Present Perfect Progressive tense.

How do we make the Present Perfect Continuous tense?

The structure of the Present Perfect Continuous tense is:

subject + auxiliary have + auxiliary be + main verb

conjugated in Present Simple past participle

have, has been present participle

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The first auxiliary (have) is conjugated in the Present Simple: have, has

The second auxiliary (be) is invariable in past participle form: been

The main verb is invariable in present participle form: -ing

For negative sentences we insert not after the first auxiliary verb.

For question sentences, we exchange the subject and first auxiliary verb.

Look at these example sentences with the Present Perfect Continuous tense:

subject auxiliary verb auxiliary verb main verb

+ I have been waiting for one hour.

+ You have been talking too much.

- It has not been raining.

- We have not been playing football.

? Have you been seeing her?

? Have they been doing their homework?

Contraction with Present Perfect Continuous

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When we use the Present Perfect Continuous tense in speaking, we often contract the
subject and the first auxiliary verb. We also sometimes do this in informal writing.

I have been I've been

You have been You've been

He has been He's been

She has been She's been
It has been It's been
John has been John's been
The car has been The car's been

We have been We've been

They have been They've been

 I've been reading.

 Jenny's been helping us recently.

In negative sentences, we may contract the first auxiliary verb and "not":

 I haven't been playing tennis.

 It hasn't been snowing.

How do we use the Present Perfect Continuous tense?

This tense is called the Present Perfect Continuous tense. There is usually a
connection with the present or now.

We use the Present Perfect Continuous to talk about:

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  past action recently-stopped
 past action still-continuing

Present Perfect Continuous for past action just stopped

We use the Present Perfect Continuous tense to talk about action that started in the
past and stopped recently. There is usually a result now.

I'm tired because I've been running.

past present future

!!!

Recent action Result now

 I'm tired [now] because I've been running.

 Why is the grass wet [now]? Has it been raining?
 You don't understand [now] because you haven't been listening.

Present Perfect Continuous for past action continuing now

We use the Present Perfect Continuous tense to talk about action that started in the
past and is continuing now. This is often used with for or since.

I have been reading for 2 hours.

past present future

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 Action started in past. Action is continuing now.

 I have been reading for 2 hours. (I am still reading now.)

 We've been studying since 9 o'clock. (We're still studying now.)
 How long have you been learning English? (You are still learning now.)
 We have not been smoking. (And we are not smoking now.)

For and Since with Present Perfect Continuous tense

We often use for and since with perfect tenses:

 We use for to talk about a period of time: three hours, two months, one decade
 We use since to talk about a point in past time: 9 o'clock, 1st January, Monday

for since

a period of time a point in past time

------------ -•----------

30 minutes 10.00am

four days Friday

25 | P a g e
 3 months March

2 years 2010

3 centuries 1700

ages I left school

ever the beginning of time

etc etc

Look at these example sentences using for and since with the Present Perfect
Continuous tense:

 I have been studying for three hours.

 I have been watching TV since 7pm.
 Tara hasn't been feeling well for two weeks.
 Tara hasn't been visiting us since March.
 He has been playing football for a long time.
 He has been living in Bangkok since he left school.
For can be used with all tenses. Since is usually used with perfect tenses only.

Past Continuous
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The Past Continuous tense is an important tense in English. We use it to say what we
were in the middle of doing at a particular moment in the past.

In this lesson we look at the structure and the use of the Past Continuous tense,
followed by a quiz to check your understanding.

Note that continuous tenses are also called progressive tenses. So the Past
Continuous tense is sometimes called the Past Progressive tense.

How do we make the Past Continuous tense?

The structure of the past continuous tense is:

subject + auxiliary be + main verb

conjugated in Past Simple

was, were present participle

The auxiliary verb (be) is conjugated in the Past Simple: was, were

The main verb is invariable in present participle form: -ing

For negative sentences we insert not between the auxiliary verb and the main verb.
27 | P a g e
For question sentences, we exchange the subject and the auxiliary verb.

Look at these example sentences with the Past Continuous tense:

subject auxiliary verb main verb

+ I was watching TV.

+ You were working hard.

- He, she, it was not helping Mary.

- We were not joking.

? Were you being silly?

? Were they playing football?

The spelling rules for adding -ing to make the Past Continuous tense are the same as
for the Present Continuous tense.

How do we use the Past Continuous tense?

The Past Continuous tense expresses action at a particular moment in the past. The
action started before that moment but has not finished at that moment. For example,
yesterday I watched a film on TV. The film started at 7pm and finished at 9pm.

28 | P a g e
 At 8pm yesterday, I was watching TV.

past present future

8pm

At 8pm, I was in the middle of

watching TV.

When we use the Past Continuous tense, our listener usually knows or understands
what time we are talking about. Look at these examples:

 I was working at 10pm last night.

 They were not playing football at 9am this morning.
 What were you doing at 10pm last night?
 What were you doing when he arrived?
 She was cooking when I telephoned her.
 We were having dinner when it started to rain.
 Ram went home early because it was snowing.
Note that some verbs cannot be used in continuous/progressive tenses.

We often use the Past Continuous tense to "set the scene" in stories. We use it to
describe the background situation at the moment when the action begins. Often, the
story starts with the Past Continuous tense and then moves into the Past Simple tense.
Here is an example:

"James Bond was driving through town. It was raining. The wind was blowing hard.
Nobody was walking in the streets. Suddenly, Bond saw the killer in a telephone
box..."

Past Continuous + Past Simple

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We often use the Past Continuous tense with the Past Simple tense. We use the Past
Continuous to express a long action. And we use the Past Simple to express
a short action that happens in the middle of the long action. We can join the two
ideas with when or while.

In the following example, we have two actions:

1. long action (watching TV), expressed with Past Continuous

2. short action (telephoned), expressed with Past Simple

past present future

long action:
I was watching TV from 7pm to
9pm.

8pm

short action:
You phoned at 8pm.

We can join these two actions with when:

 I was watching TV when you telephoned.

Notice that "when you telephoned" is also a way of defining the time (8pm).

We use:

 when + short action (Past Simple)

 while + long action (Past Continuous)

There are four basic combinations:

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 I was walking past the car when it exploded.

When the car exploded I was walking past it.

The car exploded while I was walking past it.

While I was walking past the car it exploded.

Notice that the long action and short action are relative.

 "Watching TV" took two hours. "Telephoned" took a few seconds.

 "Walking past the car" took a few seconds. "Exploded" took milliseconds.

Past Continuous Quiz

You can do this grammar quiz online or print it on paper. It tests what you learned on the Past
Continuous page.

1. My brother and sister _____ playing tennis at 11am yesterday.

are
was
were

2. _____ you still working at 7pm last night?

Were
Are
Was
31 | P a g e
3. At 8.30am today I _____ driving to work.

was
am
were

4. We _____ sleeping when the police came.

was
weren't
won't

5. Why _____ he having lunch at 4pm?

was
does
were

6. Was he not _____ his homework?

doing
do
done

7. Snow _____ lightly. Suddenly a reindeer appeared.

fell
was falling
is falling

8. Somebody threw a shoe at him _____ he was speaking.

32 | P a g e
 after
when
while

9. They ________ TV when I arrived.

were watching
were watched
watched

10. I was reading a detective story _____ I heard a noise.

during
while
when
1. were

2. Were

3. was

4. weren't

5. was

6. doing

7. was falling

8. while

9. were watching

10. when

33 | P a g e
The Past Perfect tense is quite an easy tense to understand and to use.
This tense talks about the "past in the past".

In this lesson we look at the structure and use of the Past Perfect
tense, followed by a quiz to check your understanding.

How do we make the Past Perfect tense?

The structure of the Past Perfect tense is:

subject + auxiliary have + main verb

conjugated in Past Simple

had past participle

 The auxiliary verb (have) is conjugated in the Past

Simple: had
 The main verb is invariable in past participle form: -ed (or
irregular)
 For negative sentences we insert not between the auxiliary
verb and the main verb.
 For question sentences, we exchange the subject and the auxiliary verb.
Look at these example sentences with the Past Perfect tense:
subject auxiliary verb main verb

+ I had finished my work.

34 | P a g e
 + You had stopped before me.

- She had not gone to school.

- We had not left.

? Had you arrived?

? Had they eaten dinner?

Contraction with Past Perfect

When we use the Past Perfect in speaking, we often contract the

subject and the auxiliary verb. We also sometimes do this in informal
writing:
I had I'd

you had you'd

he had he'd
she had she'd
it had it'd

we had we'd

they had they'd

 I'd eaten already.
 They'd gone home.

In negative sentences, we may contract the auxiliary verb and "not":

 I hadn't finished my meal.
 Anthony hadn't had a day off for months.
The 'd contraction is also used for the auxiliary verb would. For
example, we'd can mean:
 We had, OR
 We would
But usually, the main verb is in a different form, for example:
35 | P a g e
  We had arrived (past participle)
 We would arrive (base)
It is always clear from the context.

How do we use the Past Perfect tense?

The Past Perfect tense expresses action in the past before another action in the past.
This is the past in the past.
For example:
 The train left at 9am.
 We arrived at 9:15am.
 When we arrived, the train had left.

The train had left when we arrived.

past present future

Train leaves in past at 9:00

9:00 9:15

We arrive in past at 9:15

Look at some more examples:

 I wasn't hungry. I had just eaten.

 They were hungry. They had not eaten for five hours.
 I didn't know who he was. I had never seen him before.
 "Mary wasn't at home when I arrived." / "Really?
Where had she gone?"

You can sometimes think of the Past Perfect tense like the Present
Perfect tense, but instead of the time being now the time is before.

have
done

36 | P a g e
 →

had
done
→

past present future

For example, imagine that you arrive at the station at 9:15am. The
stationmaster says to you:
 "You are too late. The train has left."

Later, you tell your friends:

 "We were too late. The train had left."

We often use the Past Perfect in reported speech after verbs

like: said, told, asked, thought, wondered

 Look at these examples:

 He told us that the train had left.
 I thought I had met her before, but I was wrong.
 He explained that he had closed the window because of the
rain.
 I wondered if I had been there before.
 I asked them why they had not finished.

Past Perfect Continuous

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The Past Perfect Continuous is another tense that expresses the "past in the past".

In this lesson we look at the structure and use of the Past Perfect Continuous tense,
followed by a quiz to check your understanding.

Note that continuous tenses are also called progressive tenses. So the Past Perfect
Continuous tense is sometimes called the Past Perfect Progressive tense.

How do we make the Past Perfect Continuous tense?

The structure of the Past Perfect Continuous tense is:

subject + auxiliary have + auxiliary be + main verb

conjugated in Past Simple past participle

had been present participle

The first auxiliary verb (have) is conjugated in the Past Simple, invariable: had

The second auxiliary verb (be) is invariable in past participle form: been

The main verb is invariable in present participle form: -ing

For negative sentences we insert not after the first auxiliary verb.
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For question sentences, we exchange the subject and the first auxiliary verb.

Look at these example sentences with the Past Perfect Continuous tense:

subject auxiliary verb auxiliary verb main verb

+ I had been working.

+ You had been playing tennis.

- It had not been working well.

- We had not been expecting her.

? Had you been drinking?

? Had they been waiting long?

Contraction with Past Perfect Continuous

When we use the Past Perfect Continuous in speaking, we often contract the subject
and the first auxiliary verb. We also sometimes do this in informal writing.

I had been I'd been

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 you had been you'd been

he had been he'd been

she had been she'd been
it had been it'd been

we had been we'd been

they had been they'd been

 He'd been drinking all day.

 It'd been pouring with rain.

In negative sentences, we may contract the first auxiliary verb and "not":

 We hadn't been living there long.

 They hadn't been studying very hard.

How do we use the Past Perfect Continuous tense?

The Past Perfect Continuous tense is like the Past Perfect tense, but it expresses longer
actions in the past before another action in the past. For example:

 Ram started waiting at 9am. I arrived at 11am. When I arrived, Ram had been
waiting for two hours.

past present future

Ram starts waiting in past at 9am.

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 9 11

I arrive in past at 11am.

Ram had been waiting for two hours when I arrived.

Here are some more examples:

 John was very tired. He had been running.

 I could smell cigarettes. Somebody had been smoking.
 Suddenly, my car broke down. I was not surprised. It had not been
running well for a long time.
 Had the pilot been drinking before the crash?

You can sometimes think of the Past Perfect Continuous tense like the Present Perfect
Continuous tense, but instead of the time being now the time is before.

have
been
doing
→

had
been
doing
→

past present future

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For example, imagine that you meet Ram at 11am. Ram says to you:

 "I am angry. I have been waiting for two hours."

Later, you tell your friends:

 "Ram was angry. He had been waiting for two hours."

Future Simple

The Future Simple tense is often called the "will tense" because we make the Future
Simple with the modal auxiliary will.

How do we make the Future Simple tense?

The structure of the Future Simple tense is:

subject + auxiliary will + main verb

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 invariable base

will V1

For negative sentences in the Future Simple tense, we insert not between the auxiliary
verb and main verb. For question sentences, we exchange the subject and auxiliary
verb. Look at these example sentences with the Future Simple tense:

subject auxiliary verb main verb

+ I will open the door.

+ You will finish before me.

- She will not be at school tomorrow.

- We will not leave yet.

? Will you arrive on time?

? Will they want dinner?

We sometimes use shall instead of will, especially for I and we.

Contraction with Future Simple

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When we use the Future Simple tense in speaking, we often contract the subject and
auxiliary verb:

I will I'll

you will you'll

he will he'll
she will she'll
it will it'll

we will we'll

they will they'll

In negative sentences, we contract with won't, like this:

I will not I won't

you will not you won't

he will not he won't

she will not she won't
it will not it won't

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 we will not we won't

they will not they won't

How do we use the Future Simple tense?

No Plan
We use the Future Simple tense when there is no plan or decision to do something
before we speak. We make the decision spontaneously at the time of speaking. Look
at these examples:

 Hold on. I'll get a pen.

 We will see what we can do to help you.
 Maybe we'll stay in and watch television tonight.

In these examples, we had no firm plan before speaking. The decision is made at the
time of speaking.

We often use the Future Simple tense with the verb to think before it:

 I think I'll go to the gym tomorrow.

 I think I will have a holiday next year.
 I don't think I'll buy that car.

Prediction
We often use the Future Simple tense to make a prediction about the future. Again,
there is no firm plan. We are saying what we think will happen. Here are some
examples:

 It will rain tomorrow.

 People won't go to Jupiter before the 22nd century.
 Who do you think will get the job?

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Be
When the main verb is be, we can use the Future Simple tense even if we have a firm
plan or decision before speaking. Examples:

 I'll be in London tomorrow.

 I'm going shopping. I won't be very long.
 Will you be at work tomorrow?
Note that when we have a plan or intention to do something in the future, we usually
use other tenses or expressions, such as the present continuous or going to.

Future Simple Quiz

You can do this grammar quiz online or print it on paper. It tests what you learned on
the Future Simple page.

1. He _____ arrive on time.

will
is
not

2. Will your folks _____ before Tuesday?

leaving
leave
leaves

3. We _____ get there until after dark.

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 will
won't
will'nt

4. We will _____ what your father says.

see
to see
seeing

5. I don't ________ go swimming today.

think I
think I'll
thinking

6. It ________ tomorrow.

will snow
snows
is snowing

7. We won't ________ until we get there.

knowing
have know
know

8. I ________ back before Friday.

'll be
will
am being

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9. Will you _____ at the rehearsal on Saturday?

go
be
have

10. I'm going to the grocery store. I think _____ buy a turkey.

I've
I'll
I'd

Future Continuous

The Future Continuous tense is often used in English as a way to talk about something
happening at a given point in the future.

How do we make the Future Continuous tense?

The structure of the Future Continuous tense is:

subject + auxiliary verb WILL + auxiliary verb BE + main verb

invariable invariable present participle

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 will be base + ing

For negative sentences in the Future Continuous tense, we

insert not between will and be. For question sentences, we exchange
the subject and will. Look at these example sentences with the Future Continuous
tense:

subject auxiliary verb auxiliary verb main verb

+ I will be working at 10am.

+ You will be lying on a beach tomorrow.

- She will not be using the car.

- We will not be having dinner at home.

? Will you be playing football?

? Will they be watching TV?

We sometimes use shall instead of will, especially for I and we.

Contraction with Future Continuous

When we use the Future Continuous tense in speaking, we often contract the subject
and WILL:

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 I will I'll

you will you'll

he will he'll
she will she'll
it will it'll

we will we'll

they will they'll

In negative sentences, we may contract with won't, like this:

I will not I won't

you will not you won't

he will not he won't

she will not she won't
it will not it won't

we will not we won't

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 they will not they won't

How do we use the Future Continuous tense?

The Future Continuous tense expresses action at a particular moment in the future.
The action will have started before that moment but it will not have finished at that
moment. For example, tomorrow I will start work at 2pm and stop work at 6pm:

At 4pm tomorrow, I will be working.

past present future

4pm

At 4pm, I will be in the middle

of working.

When we use the Future Continuous tense, our listener usually knows or understands
what time we are talking about. Look at these examples:

 I will be playing tennis at 10am tomorrow.

 They won't be watching TV at 9pm tonight.
 What will you be doing at 10pm tonight?
 What will you be doing when I arrive?
 She will not be sleeping when you telephone her.
 We'll be having dinner when the film starts.
 Take your umbrella. It will be raining when you return.
Note that continuous tenses are also called progressive tenses. So the Future
Continuous tense is sometimes called the Future Progressive tense.

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Future Perfect

The Future Perfect tense is quite an easy tense to understand and use. The Future
Perfect talks about the past in the future.

How do we make the Future Perfect tense?

The structure of the Future Perfect tense is:

subject + auxiliary verb WILL + auxiliary verb HAVE + main verb

invariable invariable past participle

will have V3

Look at these example sentences in the Future Perfect tense:

subject auxiliary verb auxiliary verb main verb

+ I will have finished by 10am.

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 subject auxiliary verb auxiliary verb main verb

+ You will have forgotten me by then.

- She will not have gone to school.

- We will not have left.

? Will you have arrived?

? Will they have received it?

Contraction with Future Perfect

In speaking with the Future Perfect tense, we often contract the subject and will.
Sometimes, we may contract the subject, will and have all together:

I will have I'll have I'll've

you will have you'll have you'll've

he will have he'll have he'll've

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 she will have she'll have she'll've
it will have it'll have it'll've

we will have we'll have we'll've

they will have they'll have they'll've

 I'll have finished when you arrive.

 She'll have forgotten everything.
 They'll've had their dinner by then.

In negative sentences, we may contract with won't or won't've, like this:

 Anthony won't have arrived by then.

 They won't've finished the car tomorrow.
We sometimes use shall instead of will, especially for I and we.

How do we use the Future Perfect tense?

The Future Perfect tense expresses action in the future before another action in the
future. This is the past in the future. For example:

 The train will leave the station at 9am. You will arrive at the station at 9.15am.
When you arrive, the train will have left.

The train will have left when you arrive.

past present future

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 Train leaves in future at 9am.

9 9:15

You arrive in future at 9.15am.

Look at some more examples:

 You can call me at work at 8am. I will have arrived at the office by 8.
 They will be tired when they arrive. They will not have slept for a long time.
 "Mary won't be at home when you arrive." / "Really? Where will she have
gone?"

You can sometimes think of the Future Perfect tense like the Present Perfect tense, but
instead of your viewpoint being in the present, it is in the future:

have
done
→

will
have
done
→

past present future

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Future Perfect Continuous

The Future Perfect Continuous tense looks at the past from the future.

How do we make the Future Perfect Continuous Tense?

The structure of the Future Perfect Continuous tense is:

subject + auxiliary will + auxiliary have + auxiliary be + main verb

invariable invariable past present

participle participle

will have been base + ing

For negative sentences in the Future Perfect Continuous tense, we

insert not between will and have. For question sentences, we exchange
the subject and will. Look at these example sentences with the Future Perfect
Continuous:

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 subject auxiliary auxiliary auxiliary main
verb verb verb verb

+ I will have been working for four

hours.

+ You will have been travelling for two

days.

- She will not have been using the car.

- We will not have been waiting long.

? Will you have been playing football?

? Will they have been watching TV?

We sometimes use shall instead of will, especially for I and we.

Contraction with Future Perfect Continuous

In speaking with the Future Perfect Continuous tense, we often contract
the subject and WILL:

I will I'll

you will you'll

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 he will he'll
she will she'll
it will it'll

we will we'll

they will they'll

 I'll have been driving for five hours.

 She'll have been watching TV.

In negative sentences, we may contract with won't, like this:

I will not I won't

you will not you won't

he willnot he won't
she will not she won't
it will not it won't

we will not we won't

58 | P a g e
 they will not they won't

 You won't have been drinking, will you?

 We won't have been driving for long.

How do we use the Future Perfect Continuous Tense?

The Future Perfect Continuous tense is like the Future Perfect tense, but it expresses
longer actions or states extending up to some specific event or time in the future. For
example:

 Ram starts waiting at 9am. I am late and cannot arrive before 10am. Ram will
have been waiting for an hour by the time I meet him.

Ram will have been waiting for one hour when I arrive.

past present future

Ram starts waiting at 9am.

9 10

I will arrive in future at 10am.

Notice that the long action or state can start at any time in the past, present or future,
but of course it always ends in the future.

Next Monday we will have been living here for exactly five years.

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 past present future

next
Mon.
5 yrs ago

Look at these examples:

 He'll be tired when he gets here. He'll have been travelling all day.
 How long will Jo have been working when he retires?
 Next month I'll have been studying Chinese for two years.
 Will you have been working when I arrive?
 He won't have been studying long enough to qualify.
 Next week Jane is going to swim from England to France. By the time she gets
to France she'll have been swimming non-stop for over thirteen hours.
Note that continuous tenses are also called progressive tenses. So the Future Perfect
Continuous tense is sometimes called the Future Perfect Progressive tense.

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