12 Verb Tenses in English Grammar, Example Sentences, & Worksheet

The tenses in English grammar are important for us to understand. They tell the time of an event or action. There are 12 tenses in English Grammar, and they can be classified into simple tenses, perfect tenses, continuous tenses and modal tenses. This article will provide you with all twelve tense examples that exist in English grammar!

Simple tenses are made up of two parts- the base form and the past tense. The base form is just the verb without any endings, and the past tense is just the ending -ed added to the base form. For example, in “I eat”, “eat” is the base form, and “ate” is the past tense.

Perfect tenses are made up of three parts- have/has taken, a past participle and an auxiliary verb such as ‘been’ or ‘had’. For example in the sentence, “I had been living on my own for five years before I got married”, “had been living” is the past participle and “been” is the auxiliary verb.

Continuous tenses are made up of two parts- the base form and the present participle. The present participle is just the -ing form of the verb added to the base form. For example, in “I am living on my own”, the base form is the verb ‘live’ and present participle is ‘living.

Modal tenses are made up of three parts- a modal auxiliary verb such as can/could or would, have taken and an infinitive without to. For example, in the sentence “I might have to leave early”, the modal auxiliary verb is ‘might’, and the infinitive without to is ‘leave’.

Now that we know what each tense is made up of, let us take a look at all twelve tenses in English grammar and their examples.

Major Tenses

– Past tenses

– Present tenses

– Future tenses

12 Verb Tenses Chart

Let us deep dive into all the 12 tenses in grammar:

All 12 Tenses in English + Definition + Examples

Present Indefinite Tense:

This tense is used to express an action that happens regularly or habitually. It can also be used to talk about general truths.

Form: Subject + base form of the verb + object

Example: I eat food every day.

Present Continuous Tense:

This tense is used to express an action that is happening now but is not a habit. It can also be used to express an action that will happen in the future and it represents a form of future simple.

Form: Subject + base form of the verb + object + present participle (+ auxiliary verb)

Example: I am eating my lunch right now!

Present Perfect Tense:

This tense is used to express an action that happened in the past but has some connection with the present. It can also be used to express how long something had already happened before another event took place.

Form: Subject + have/has taken + base form of verb + object+ adverbial phrase or clause

Example: I have lived here for a long time.

Present Perfect Continuous Tense:

This tense is used to talk about an action that started in the past and still going on until now or recently. It can also be used to express how much something has already been done before another event took place.

Form: Subject + have/has been taking + base form of verb + object+ adverbial phrase or clause

Example: I have been living on my own for five years before I got married.

Past Indefinite Tense:

This tense is used to talk about an action that took place in the past but it is not known when it happened.

Form: Subject + past simple form of the verb + object

Example: I ate lunch at 12 pm yesterday.

Past Continuous Tense:

This tense is used to talk about an action that was happening in the past but it stopped before it finished. It can also be used to describe two actions that were happening at the same time in the past.

Form: Subject + was taking/were taking + base form of verb + object+ adverbial phrase or clause

Example: I was eating my lunch when he called.

Past Perfect Tense:

This tense is used to talk about an action that happened in the past but it is not known when it happened. It also describes two actions that were happening at different times in the past or one action that happened before another specific time in the past, but not for a very long time.

Form: Subject + had taken/had been taking + base form of verb+ adverbial phrase

Example: I had eaten lunch before he arrived.

Past Perfect Continuous Tense:

This tense is used to talk about an action that started in the past and continued until a certain time in the past but it stopped before it finished. It can also be used to describe two actions that were happening at different times in the past, but not for very long.

Form: Subject + had been taking/had taken+ base form of verb+ adverbial phrase

Example: I had been living on my own for five years before I got married, but now I am living with my husband.

Future Indefinite Tense:

This tense is used to talk about an action that will happen in the future.

Form: Subject + will/shall+ base form of verb+ object

Example: I think I’m going to go home now. It’s already late and tiring here!

Future Continuous Tense:

This tense is used to talk about an action that will be happening in the future but it is not a habit and it can also be used to express an action that will happen in the future.

Form: Subject + will/shall+be taking+ base form of verb+ object

Example: I am going to eat my lunch at 12 pm tomorrow.

Future Perfect Tense:

This tense is used to talk about an action that will happen in the future and it represents a form of future perfect simple.

Form: Subject + will/shall+ have taken+ base form of verb+ object

Example: I will have eaten lunch by the time he arrives.

Future Perfect Continuous Tense:

This tense is used to talk about an action that will be happening in the future and it represents a form of future perfect continuous.

Form: Subject + will/shall+ have been taking+ base form of verb+ object

Example: I will have been eating my lunch by the time he arrives.

Verb Tense Worksheet Grades 1-2