VERBS: PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE TENSEBy :Alexis Kitchens

Verbs A verb is a word used to describe an action, state, or

occurrence , and forming a main part of the predicate of a sentence, such as, hear, become, and happen

A verb can express a physical action, a mental action or a state of being

These are examples of some verbs… Abide ,accelerate ,accept, accomplish ,achieve

acquire, acted, back ,bake ,balance ,ban , bang, bare, drop,end,escape,fasten,fix,gather,grab..etc

Verbs are perhaps the most important part of speech in the English language.

Verbs that express physical actions

Many verbs express physical actions. She sells pegs and lucky heather. (In this example, the word sells is a verb. It

expresses the physical activity to sell.) The doctor wrote the prescription. (In this example, the word wrote is a verb. It

expresses the physical activity to write.) Alison bought a ticket. (The word bought is a verb. It expresses the

physical activity to buy.)

Verbs that express mental actions

She considers the job done. (The word considers is a verb. It expresses

the mental activity to consider.) Peter guessed the right number. (The word guessed is a verb. It expresses

the mental activity to guess.) I thought the same thing. (The word thought is a verb. It expresses

the mental activity to think.)

Verbs that express a state of being A small, but extremely important group of verbs do

not express any activity at all. The most important verb in this group being the verb to be.

this is seen in forms like is, are, were, was, will be, etc.

Edwina is the largest elephant in this area. (The word is is a verb from the verb to be.)

It was a joke. (The word was is a verb from the verb to be.)

I am. (The word am is a verb from the verb to be.)

(I am is the shortest sentence in English.)

Cart of the verb to beSubject Verb to be in

the past tense

Verb to be in the present tense

Verb to be in the present tense

I was am Will be

You were are Will be

He/she/It was is Will be

We were are Will be

You were are Will be

They were are Will be

Helping verbs Helping verbs, also called auxiliary verbs, do not

stand alone or express action but are apart of verb phrases that “help” the main verb.

Helping verbs define the tense (past, perfect, future) or change the meaning of the main verb

Do you need a tissue?  ( do is the helping verb) We are helping the third-grade class. ( are is the helping verb) Hank might have been driving the wrong way. (have is the helping verb

Helping verbs These are some common helping verbs… May, might, must, be, being, been, am, are, is, was, were, do,

does, did, should, could, would, have, had, has, will, can, shall The three primary helping verbs are be, do, and have Be is used .. to make continuous tenses (He is watching TV.) to make the passive (Small fish are eaten by big fish.) Have is used .. to make perfect tenses (I have finished my

homework.) Do is used… to make negatives (I do not like you.) to ask questions (Do you want some coffee?) to show emphasis (I do want you to pass your exam.) to stand for a main verb in some constructions (He speaks

faster than she does.)

Linking verbs Linking verbs do not express action. Instead, they

connect the subject of the verb to additional information about the subject.

Some words can function both as a linking verb and an action verb

My sister is smart.( is is the linking verb)

The picture appeared blurry. ( appeared is the linking verb)

Your supper smells delicious. (smells is the linking verb)

Linking verbs The following are some linking verbs.. Am, are, are, being, appear, be, become, feel,

get, grow, have/has, been, is, lie, look, might be, might have been, prove, remain, seem, sit, smell, sound, stay, taste, turn, were

Forms of to be are sometimes used as linking verbs such as is, am, are, was, were, be, being, been etc.

Linking verbs can describe and rename the subject

Irregular verbs and regular verbs Irregular verbs are unlike regular verbs whose

conjugation follows the typical pattern of the language it belongs to.

Therefore irregular verbs’ conjugation follows a different pattern

Some irregular verbs are.. Awake, be, beat, become, bend, bite, blow, buy,

come, dig, do ,draw, drink, eat, fall, feel, fight, forget, get, go, grow, hang, have, hit, keep, lay, lead, make, read..etc

With regular verbs the past simple and past particle always end in –ed

With irregular verbs, there is no rule.

Irregular verbs and regular verbs chart

Base Form

Past Simple

Past Participle

finish finished

finished

stop stopped

stopped

work worked

worked

Regular verbs

Irregular verbs

Base Form

Past Simple

Past Participle

sing sang sung

buy bought boughtcut cut cut

Conjugation of verbs A verb will change it’s form depending on the subject Ex: I write / He writes Ex: The camel laughs / The jackals laugh When verbs change in this way it is called

conjugation. The subject of the verb can be in six forms: I, You,

He/she/it , We, You ,and They The first three forms are singular forms (first person,

second person and third person singular) The second three are plural forms ( first person,

second person, and third person plural)

Conjugation of verbs The infinitive form of a verbs is when a verb is

preceded by the word to it is said to be in it’s infinitive form or most basic form

I have to smoke that!(to smoke - infinitive form of the verb) The infinitive form is the verb that Is modified to

conjugate it. Therefore the infinitive form cannot have a -s, -es, -ed,

or -ing ending. Infinitives can lose their to when it follows certain

verbs like feel, hear, help, let, make, etc. Infinitives can be used as nouns adjective or adverbs

Past tense verbs Past tense Is one of the three main tenses Verbs whish express actions in the past are in

the past tense It thus provides a grammatical means of

indicating that the event being referred took place in the past

The past tense of regular verbs is made by adding –d or –ed to the base form of the verb

The past tense of irregular verbs is made in a various ways that depend on which irregular verb you use

Past tense verbs He talked with more claret than clarity. (Susan

Ertz) (talked - past tense of the verb to talk) I ran to the lake.(ran - past tense of the verb to run) They were all there.(were - past tense of the

verb to be) The past tense is categorized further depending on

whether the action was in progress or has been completed. There are four parts of past tense.

These four parts are simple past tense, past progressive past tense, past perfect tense and past perfect progressive tense.

Past tenseThe four past tenses

Examples Uses

simple past tense

•I went.•The Martians landed near the aqueduct.

The simple past tense is used to describe a completed activity that started in the past and ended in the past.

past progressive tense

•I was going.•He was painting the door when a bird struck the window.

The past progressive tense is used to describe an on-going activity in the past. Often, it is used to set the scene for another action

past perfect tense

•I had gone.•Bob had taken the pill before the team reached him.

The past perfect tense is used to emphasize that an action was completed before another took place.

past perfect progressive

•I had been going.•She had been painting the door before the dog scratched it.

The past perfect progressive tense is used to show that an on-going action in the past has ended.

Present tense verbs Present tense is another one of the three main tenses Verbs that express actions present are said to be present tense. Present tense is often used to refer to future events (I am seeing

James tomorrow; My train leaves at 3 o'clock this afternoon). John jumps out the window. (jumps - present tense of the verb to jump) Who is ill? (is - present tense of the verb to be) He is the kind of a guy who lights up a room just by

flicking a switch. (is - present tense of the verb to be)

(lights up - present tense of the verb to light up) The four present tenses are simple present tense, present

progressive tense, present perfect tense, and present perfect progressive

Present tense verbThe 4 Present Tenses

Examples Uses

simple present tense •I go.•I like chocolate.•The train gets in at 5 o'clock.•A horse walks into a bar, and the barman says, "why the long face?"

(1) To describe facts and habits.(2) To describe scheduled events in the future.(3) To tell stories to make your listener or reader feel more engaged with the story.

present_progressive tense

•I am going.•Barny is looking for the latest brochure.

The present progressive tense is used for an on-going action in the present.

present perfect tense •I have gone.•David has worked .

The present perfect tense is used to describe actions that began in the past and are still continuing into the present.

present perfect progressive

•I have been going.•Amanda has been relying on a pay rise to pay her student loan.

(1) a continuous activity that began in the past and continues into the present, or(2) a continuous activity that began in past but has now finished (usually very recently).

Future tense verbs Verbs which express actions in the future are said to be in

the future tense. These are usually formed by preceding the verb with the word will.

I will take the blame. (will take - future tense of the verb to take) They will surrender. (will surrender - future tense of the verb to surrender) Give me where to stand, and I will move the earth.

(Archimedes, 287-212 BC) (will move - future tense of the verb to move) The four future tenses are simple future tense,future

progressive tense, future perfect tense, and future perfect progressive.

Future tense verbsThe 4 Future Tenses

Examples Uses

simple future tense •I will go.•We will celebrate our anniversary by flying to New York.

The simple future tense is used for an action that will occur in the future.

future progressive tense

•I will be going.•The Moscow State Circus will be performing in Cheltenham for the next 3 weeks

The future progressive tense is used for an on-going action that will occur in the future

future perfect tense •I will have gone.•By the time you arrive, we will have finished the meal and the speeches.

The future perfect tense is used to describe an action that will have been completed at some point in the future.

future perfect progressive

•I will have been going.•In July next year, you will have been studying for 3 years.

The future perfect progressive tense is used for an on-going action that will be completed at some specified time in the future.

Gerunds A gerund is a verb form ending in –ing. A gerund can be the subject, object of a verb ,subject

complements, direct objects, and indirect objects because gerunds function as nouns. It can also act as the object of a preposition.

Smoking can cause cancer. (Here the gerund smoking acts as the subject of the verb.)

I am thinking of taking a break. (Here the gerund taking is the object of the preposition of.)

She is confident of winning. (NOT She is confident of to win.) (NOT She is confident to win.)

Subject of a verb The person or thing performing the action

of the verb is said to be the subject of the verb or the subject of the sentence.

Tony stole the boat. (Tony - subject of the verb to steal) Tony is guilty. (Tony - subject of the verb to be) Who was that? (Who - subject of the verb to be, i.e., was)

Direct object of a verb Many verbs perform an action on

something. This is called the direct object of the verb.

Terry kissed her hand. (her hand - direct object of the verb to

kiss) Beverly will eat a whole chicken. (a whole chicken - direct object of the

verb to eat)

Indirect object of a verb Some verbs have two objects, a direct object (see

above) and an indirect object. The indirect object is the person or thing for whom the action was performed.

Jamie read the children a story. (a story - direct object; the children - indirect

object)  I will bake him a cake. (a cake - direct object; him - indirect object)  The postman gives Anne a letter everyday. (a letter - direct object; Anne - indirect object)

Intransitive verbs Some verbs cannot have a direct object. These verbs are said

to be intransitive verbs. The rain fell heavily. (The rain fell, but it did not perform an action on anything. In

this example, the verb to fall is an intransitive verb.) Jack protested in the street. (Jack protested, but he did not perform an action on anything.

In this example, the verb to protest is an intransitive verb.)

Verbs that can have a direct object (most of them) are called transitive verbs.

Barney copied the answer. (the answer - direct object of the transitive verb to copy)

Passive sentence The subject of a sentence does not always do the action of the

verb. Sometimes, the action is done to the subject. Such sentences are called passive sentences, because the subjects are being passive, i.e., not doing anything. 

Carl was arrested. (Carl is not doing anything, but he is the subject of the sentence.)

(Note: Carl is the subject of the verb to be, i.e., was.) Passive verbs always comprise two parts (was arrested in this

example). The person doing the action of the verb in a passive sentence is usually shown with the word by.

Carl was arrested by PC Adams. Passive verbs are said to be in the passive voice. Passive

sentences are quite useful: The carpet was damaged. (< passive sentence - no blame) We damaged the carpet. (< active sentence)

Active sentences Active sentences are the opposite to passive

sentences (see above). In an active sentence, the subject of the verb performs the action.

We damaged the carpet. (This is an active sentence. We is the subject. 

We damaged the carpet.) Jamie read a story. (This is an active sentence. Jamie is the

subject.Jamie read a story.)

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