Verbs - Tenses (Part 2)

Actions, however, can and do take place at different times. For instance, verbs can show an action in the past, an action in the present and an action in the future. To define when an action takes place, a verb is written in a “tense” form. These tenses include the following:

PRESENT TENSE: A verb that shows an action that is taking place at that very moment (in the present) is a present tense verb. An example of this tense of a verb would be: “Johnny is kicking the ball on the playground.” From this sentence, we can tell that the action is currently taking place. Present tense verbs often end with and “s.” For example: “To speak” is the root verb. “Carl speaks” shows a current action.

PAST TENSE: A verb that shows that an action took place in the past is a past tense verb. For example, let’s look at the following sentence. “Alfred sailed around the harbor before docking his boat.” In this sentence “sailed” is the past tense of the verb “to sail” and it tells us that the action took place in the past. Many past tense verbs end in “d” or “ed.” For example: “To jog” is the root verb. “Phillip jogged” shows us an action that took place but is not currently taking place in the present.

PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS TENSE: A verb that shows an action that started in the past but was completed is known as a past perfect continuous tense. It is a verb that is preceded by the words “had been.” An example would be as follows: “Annabel had been singing when the phone rang.” We know the action took place in the past and was a continuous action. A continuous action is shown by the “ing” at the end of a verb. But since Annabel is no longer singing (we know this because the words “had been” precede the verb telling us that the singing had ended), “singing” in this sentence is a past perfect continuous tense.

FUTURE TENSE: A verb that tells us that an action is not taking place but will take place sometime in the future is a future tense verb. An example of this verb usage is as follows: “Betty will act in the next performance.” When the word “will” appears before a verb, it tells us that the action has not yet taken place but will take place in the future.