GRA620103-2

ENGLISH GRAMMAR:
TENSES AND ASPECTS

Dr. DIARASSOUBA M.
PhD. Language Didactics
Understanding The Tense
and Aspect System
Formal Characteristics of the Tense-Aspect
System
The distinction between tense and aspect is
simple but confusing.
Tense: relates to time.
There are three main tenses or times at which
actions occur, namely: Present, Past, Future
Aspect: relates to the internal structure of the
action occurring at any time.
The 4 aspects are: Simple, Perfect,
Progressive, and Perfect progressive
 TENSE (in more details)
Tense is how we show when something
happens in time. In English, we have three
main tenses:

1.Past Tense: Used for actions that

happened before now. Example: I walked to
school yesterday.

2.Present Tense: Used for actions

happening now or facts that are always
true. Example: I walk to school every day.
Diagram of tense
 TENSE (in more details)
Tense is how we show when something
happens in time. In English, we have three
main tenses:

3. Future Tense: Used for actions that will

happen after now. Example: I will walk to
school tomorrow.

Note: Think of tense as answering the

question “When?”
 ASPECT (in more details)
Aspect describes how an action happens over time
or whether it is completed. It focuses on whether
the action is finished, ongoing, or repeated. It
gives us more information about the nature of the
action. There are four main aspects in English:

1.Simple Aspect: Shows a complete action or a

general fact. Example: I play tennis. (This is a
general fact about me)

2.Progressive (or Continuous) Aspect: Shows an

ongoing or incomplete action. Example: I am
playing tennis. (I'm in the middle of playing right
 ASPECT (in more details)
3. Perfect Aspect: Shows an action that is complete
by a certain time. Example: I have played tennis. (I
finished playing at some point before now)

4. Perfect Progressive Aspect: Shows an ongoing

action up to a certain time. Example: I have been
playing tennis. (I started playing in the past and
I'm still playing)

Note: Think of aspect as answering the question

“How does the action unfold over time?”
 Combining Tense and Aspect
When we combine tense and aspect, we get a
more precise description of when and how an
action happens. English Tenses combine Tense
and Aspect.
By understanding tense and aspect, you can
express actions with much more precision in
English. Tense tells you when the action
happens, while aspect tells you how the
action unfolds over time.

Let’s see how:

EXERCISE: COMBINE THE 3 TENSES AND 4

 Tense-Aspect Combinations
Recap

Simple Perfect Progressive Perfect

(complet have + - be + -ing Progressive
e, no en (incomplet have + -en
change) (prior) e) be + -ing
Presen drive/ have/has am/is/are has/have been
t drives driven driving driving
Past drove had driven was/were had been driving
driving
Future will drive will have will be will have been
driven driving driving
1) Past Simple 2) Past Progressive

3) Past Perfect 4) Past Perfect

Progressive

5) Present Simple 6) Present

Progressive

7) Present Perfect 8) Present Perfect

Progressive

9) Future Simple 10) Future

Progressive
Handling the 12 English Verb
Tenses
Simple Present Tense

Otherwise known as the

Timeless Present
 Simple Present Tense is used:
• When you are referring to habitual actions--
actions that you always or never do
• When you are referring to unchanging
truths
• When you are making general statements of
fact
 Examples
• (habit) He always comes late to class.
• (unchanging truth) The sun rises in the east.
• (general statement of fact) They are
friendly.

simple present tense

 Indicators
Always Whenever Everyday

Usually Often Frequently

Sometimes Rarely Occasionally

never

simple present tense

 Form
I study I wait
You study You wait
S/he/it studies s/he/it waits
We study we wait
They study they wait

simple present tense

Diagram--time on a line

simple present tense

Let’s practice
Simple Past Tense or Preterit
 The Simple Past Tense is Used:
• When an activity or situation began and
ended at a particular time in the past--in
other words, when an activity or situation is
completed in the past
• To refer to past habits
 Examples
• (Completed action in the past) He was late
to class yesterday.
• (Completed action in the past) We arrived
three weeks ago.
• (Past habit) She always wrote a letter to her
mother on Sunday night.

Simple Past Tense

 Indicators
Last night, week, year, month, Saturday,
semester, etc.
Yesterday

ago

Simple Past Tense

 Form
I studied I waited
You studied You waited
S/he/it studied S/he/it waited
We studied We waited
They studied They waited

Simple Past Tense

Diagram--time on a line

Simple Past Tense

 The Present Perfect

A tense very commonly used in

English to refer to past actions with
consequences on the present!
 The Present Perfect is Used:
• When an activity happened at an
unspecified time in the past (before the
present)
• When an activity has been repeated several
times before now
• When an activity was very recently
completed before now
• When an activity is not completed in the
past
 Examples
• (unspecified time before now) They have
already seen that movie.
• (repeated activity before now) We have
visited New York City many times.
• (an action has recently been completed
before now) I have just eaten.
• (action not completed in the past) I have
studied Spanish for many years.
Present Perfect Tense
 Indicators
Before Ever Never

So far Already Yet

Just Recently For

since

Present Perfect Tense

 Form 1
have or has + past participle
I have studied . . . I have seen . . .
You have studied . . . You have seen . . .
S/he/it has studied . . S/he/it has seen . . .
We have studied . . . We have seen . . .
They have studied . . . They have seen . . .

Present Perfect Tense

 Form 2
I've walked . . . I've grown . . .
You've walked . . . You've grown . . .
S/he/it's walked . . . S/he/it's grown . . .
We've walked . . . We've grown . . .
They've walked . . . They've grown . . .

Present Perfect Tense

Diagram 1--time on a line

Present Perfect Tense

Diagram 2--time on a line

Present Perfect Tense

The Present Progressive Tense

Sometimes called the

Present Continuous Tense
The Present Progressive Tense is
Used:
• When an activity is in progress now at the
moment of speaking
• When an activity began before now and
continues into the future without stopping.
• When an activity is temporary.
• When an activity is developing and
changing.
 Examples
• I’m explaining something to the class right
now.
• He’s taking 16 credits this semester.
• She is understanding English more and
more because she moved into the dorm.

Present Progressive Tense

 Indicators
Right now, at this Still
moment

This year, week, As we speak

month, etc.

Present Progressive Tense

 Form
I am studying I'm studying
You are studying You're studying
S/he/it is studying S/he/it's studying
We are studying We're studying
They are studying They're studying

Present Progressive Tense

Diagram--time on a line

Present Progressive Tense

Future Tense
 The Future Tense is Used:
• To indicate that an activity or event will
take place at a time in the future
 Examples
• When I’m retired, I’m going to travel.
• Next week, we will work on punctuation.
• He is going to get his car fixed tomorrow.
• Our plane departs at noon next Friday.

Future
 Indicators
Tomorrow

Next Saturday, week, month, year, etc.

Future
 Form 1
I will stay I'll stay
You will stay You'll stay
S/he/it will stay S/he/it'll stay
We will stay We'll stay
They will stay They'll stay

Future
 Form 2
I am going to stay I'm going to stay
You are going to stay You're going to stay
S/he/it is going to stay S/he/it's going to stay
We are going to stay We're going to stay
They are going to They're going to stay
stay
Future
 Form 3
Sometimes the simple present tense or the
present progressive tense are used to express a
future meaning. Usually these tenses are used
when scheduled events are being discussed.
I arrive I am arriving
You arrive You are arriving
S/he/it arrives S/he/it is arriving
We arrive We are arriving
They arrive They are arriving
Future Tense
Diagram--Time on a Line

Future
Other English Verb Tenses

These tenses are combinations of the

tenses we have just reviewed
 Past Perfect
• This tense is not used a lot. It can often be
used interchangeably with the simple past
because these tenses do not differ much in
meaning. The past perfect tense refers to
activities that happened before a specific
time in the past.
• Example, He had visited her many times
before she died.
• Form: had + past participle
 Past Progressive
• This tense is used to refer to activities
continuously in progress around a time in
the past.
• Example: They were eating when the taxi
arrived.
• Form: was or were + verbing
 Past Perfect Progressive
• This tense is used when an activity was
continuously in progress before a specific
time in the past.
• Example: I had been thinking about her
before she called.
• Form: had + been + verbing
 Present Perfect Progressive
• This tense is used to describe actions that
have been continuously in progress before
now. These actions are not completed.
• Example: I have been waiting here for the
last two hours.
• Form: have or has + been + verbing
 Future Perfect
• The future perfect expresses the idea that an
activity will occur before some future time.
• Example: She will have finished dinner
before the game starts.
• Form: will + have + past participle
 Future Progressive Tense
• This tense is used to refer to activities that
will be continuously in progress around
some future time.
• Example: We will be flying over New York
at noon tomorrow.
• Form: will + be + verbing
 Future Perfect Progressive
• This tense is used to refer to activities that
will be continuously in progress before a
future time.
• Example: He will have been working for 3
hours before you arrive.
• Form: will + have + been + verbing
 Overview of the English Verb Tense/Aspect System
Simple Perfect Progress- Perfect
(HAVE + ive Progress-
verb+en) (BE +
verb+ing) ive (HAVE
+ BEEN +
verb+ing)

Present * * *

Past *

Future *
 Acknowledgments
• The charts in this presentation were adapted
from the work of Betty Schrampfer Azar.
She is the author of Understanding and
Using English Grammar and many other
useful ESL texts.
The End

October 2024