Jinjin D.

Baldosa BSA-1B

Verb Tenses
Simple Tenses

These are probably the first tenses you learned in English. Simple tenses usually refer to a single
action. In general, simple tenses express facts and situations that existed in the past, exist in the
present, or will exist in the future.

Simple present: I drive home every day.

Simple past: I drove home yesterday.

Simple future: I will drive home later.

Progressive (Continuous) Tenses

We use progressive tenses to talk about unfinished events. Progressive tenses are also
called continuous tenses.

Past progressive: I was driving when you called.

Present progressive: I am driving now.

Future progressive: I will be driving when you call.

Perfect Tenses

Perfect tenses cause the most confusion. To put it simply, they express the idea that one event
happens before another event.

There are many tricky exceptions with the perfect tenses, which we will discuss in a future episode.
The adverbs never, yet and already are common in perfect tenses.

Present perfect: I have driven that road.

Past perfect: I had already driven that road in the past.

Future perfect: I will have driven 200 miles by tomorrow.

Perfect Progressive Tenses

Generally, perfect progressive tenses express duration, or how long? Perfect progressive tenses
usually include the adverbs for or since.

Present perfect progressive: I have been driving since this morning.

Past perfect progressive: I had been driving for three hours before I stopped to get gas.

Future perfect progressive: I will have been driving for five hours by the time I arrive.

VERB TENSES Past Present Future

Simple It snowed yesterday. It snows every winter. It is going to snow

tonight.
Simple past verb Simple present verb
It will snow this winter.

Will / be going to +
simple present

Progressive It was snowing when I It is snowing. It will be snowing by

drove to work. the time I get home.
Am/is/are+-ing verb
Was/were + -ing verb Will be + -ing verb

Perfect It had already snowed I have driven in snow It will have snowed 6
before I left. many times. inches by the end of the
day.
Had + past participle Have/has + past
verb participle verb Will have + past
participle verb

Perfect progressive It had been snowing for It has been snowing all It will have been
two days before it month long. snowing for three days
stopped. by the time it stops.
Has/have + -ing verb +
Had been + -ing verb for/since Will have been + -ing
+ for/since verb + for/since
 English Sentence Structure: 4 Types Of English Sentences

SIMPLE SENTENCE
A simple sentence contains one independent clause.
What’s an “independent clause”? It’s one subject followed by one verb or verb phrase. It
expresses a single idea.
Examples of simple sentences:
 I‘m happy.
 Robert doesn’t eat meat.
 My brother and I went to the mall last night.
 This new laptop computer has already crashed twice.
Notice that a “simple sentence” isn’t necessarily short. The subject can be a single word like “I”
or “Robert,” or it can be a double subject like “my brother and I,” or it can be multiple words
describing a single person/object, like “This new laptop computer.”

COMPOUND SENTENCE
A compound sentence has two independent clauses joined by a linking word (and, but, or, so,
yet, however). Each independent clause could be a sentence by itself, but we connect them with
a linking word:
 I‘m happy, but my kids are always complaining.
 Robert doesn’t eat meat, so Barbara made a special vegetarian dish for him.
 My brother and I went to the mall last night, but we didn’t buy anything.
 This new laptop computer has already crashed twice, and I have no idea why.
Note that each sentence has TWO subjects and TWO verb phrases.

COMPLEX SENTENCE
A complex sentence has one independent clause and one or more dependent clauses.
A dependent clause cannot be a complete sentence by itself.

 I’m happy, even though I don’t make much money.

 Robert, a friend I’ve known since high school, doesn’t eat meat.
 After getting home from work, my brother and I went to the mall last night.
 This new laptop computer, which I bought yesterday, has already crashed twice.

COMPOUND-COMPLEX SENTENCE
A compound-complex sentence contains 3 or more clauses: 2 independent and at least
1 dependent clause.
 I’m happy, even though I don’t make much money, but my kids are always complaining
since we can’t afford to buy the newest toys.
Independent clauses: “I’m happy” and “my kids are always complaining”
Dependent clauses: “even though I don’t make much money” and “since we can’t afford to buy
the newest toys”
Linking word: “but”
 Robert, a friend I’ve known since high school, doesn’t eat meat – so Barbara made a
special vegetarian dish for him.
Independent clauses: “Robert doesn’t eat meat” and “Barbara made a special vegetarian dish
for him”
Dependent clause: “a friend I’ve known since high school”
Linking word: “so”
 After getting home from work, my brother and I went to the mall last night, while my sister
stayed home and studied.
Independent clauses: “My brother and I went to the mall last night” and “my sister stayed home
and studied”
 Dependent clause: “After getting home from work”
Linking word: “while”
 This new laptop computer, which I bought yesterday, has already crashed twice; however,
I have no idea why.
Independent clauses: “This new laptop computer has already crashed twice” and “I have no
idea why”
Dependent clause: “which I bought yesterday”
Linking word: “however”