Understanding verb tense

Understanding verb tense What are the verb tenses? Present and present perfect Past and past perfect Future and future perfect Consistency of tense Modals Review A Review B

What are the verb tenses? Verbs do a lot of work in sentences. They show actions and states of being. They even take different forms to show time. flies flew will fly

What are the verb tenses? The tense of a verb indicates the time of the action or state of being expressed by the verb. Perfect tenses indicate that something happened or existed before a specific point in time. Present Future Past Past Future Present Past Perfect Present Perfect Future Perfect She will have played inten concerts by April. She has played in the band for three years. Gwen will play in a concert tomorrow. She had played violin before then. Gwen plays guitar in a jazz band. Gwen played last year as well.

What are the verb tenses? The tenses of verbs are formed from the four principal parts of verbs. Base Form smile choose Present Participle [is] smil ing [is] choos ing Past smile d cho se Past Participle [have] smile d [have] cho sen

What are the verb tenses? Each tense has a progressive form, which is used to express continuing action or state of being. am, are, is talking Present progressive was, were talking Past progressive will (shall) be talking Future progressive has, have been talking Present perfect progressive had been talking Past perfect progressive will (shall) have been talking Future perfect progressive

What are the verb tenses?Present and present perfect The present tense expresses an action or a state of being that is occurring now, at the present time. Today we honor our veterans. Polly is marching in the parade. (Progressive form)

to show a customary or habitual action or state of being We recycle our aluminum cans. to express a general truth The sun rises in the east. to make historical events seem current (historical present) In 1927, Charles Lindbergh flies nonstop across the Atlantic. to discuss a literary work (literary present) In Grapes of Wrath, Steinbeck shows us the extremes of life during the depression. to express future time We travel to Utah next month. What are the verb tenses?Present and present perfect The present tense is also used in these ways:

What are the verb tenses?Present and present perfect The present perfect tense • expresses an action or a state of being that occurred at an indefinite time in the past • is usually formed using the helping verbhave or has plus the past participle Mike has been in several parades. He has played the drum in all of them.

What are the verb tenses?Present and present perfect The present perfect tense is also used to express an action or state of being that began in the past and continues into the present. In this case, perfect means complete. Mr. Lee has taught music at our school since 2004. (Progressive form) Yoko has been taking flute lessons for six years.

What are the verb tenses?Past and past perfect The past tense expresses an action or a state of being that occurred in the past but did not continue into the present. The two friends shared the large swing. They were swinging for a long time. (Progressive form)

What are the verb tenses?Past and past perfect The past perfect tense • expresses an action or a state of being that ended before another past action or state of being occurred • is usually formed using had plus the past participle After Maria had gone home, Kim was bored. She asked her dad about the time that he had been a lifeguard at the beach.

What are the verb tenses?Future and future perfect The future tense • expresses an action or a state of being that will occur • is usually formed using will or shall plus the base form My family will ride the train to Chicago. We will bearriving at five o’clock. (Progressive form)

What are the verb tenses?Future and future perfect The future perfect tense • expresses an action or a state of being that will end before another future action or state of being • is usually formed using will have or shall have plus the past participle By the time you receive this letter, she will have returned home. After this trip, he will have been to Chicago three times.

What are the verb tenses? On Your Own Change the tense of the verb in each sentence, as indicated in parentheses. 1. I do not miss the bus. (Change to future.) 2. Were they at the party? (Change to past perfect.) 3. By then, Keith had returned. (Change to future perfect.) 4. The team will practice for an hour with no break. (Change to future perfect progressive.) 5. My sister dances well. (Change to past.) [End of Section]

Consistency of tense Do not change needlessly from one tense to another. To describe events that occur at the same time, use verbs in the same tense. past tense past tense Sara peeked over the fence and saw a cornfield. present tense present tense Sara peeks over the fence and sees a cornfield.

Consistency of tense For events that occur at different times, use verbs of different tenses to show the sequence of events. past tense past perfect tense The pitcher wished that he had practiced more before the game. The action of wishing happened after the action of practicing was complete.

Consistency of tense For events that occur at different times, use verbs of different tenses to show the sequence of events. past tense present tense Yesterday, Nina told us that her brother works every week at the senior center. The action of telling occurred at a specific time in the past. The action of working occurs now.

Consistency of tense On Your Own Proofread the paragraph for unnecessary changes of verb tense. Change the verbs to make the tenses consistent. (1) I was in my room Saturday morning, planning to study for two hours. (2) To my surprise, Nancy Chang drops by. (3) She dashed into the house, runs up the stairs, and calls my name. (4) What she wanted was a fishing companion. (5) As I get my fishing gear together, I was so happy. (6) On our way to the lake, we notice some dark clouds. (7) We wished we checked the weather first. [End of Section]

Modals A modal is a helping verb that is joined with a main verb or an infinitive to express an attitude toward the action or state of being of the main verb.

Modals The modal canor could is used to express ability. Tammy can play point guard in the second half. The team could have made better shots.

Modals The modal mayis used to express permission or possibility. Yes, you may borrow my sweater. Permission My clothes closet may be too full. Possibility The modal mightis used to express possibility. I mightgive some of my clothing to charity.

Modals The modal mustis used most often to express a requirement. Sometimes, mustis used to express an explanation. Requirement We mustconserve energy in our homes. Explanation My brother musthave left the lights on.

Modals The modal oughtis used to express an obligation or a likelihood. Reggie ought to study harder for math quizzes. Obligation The next quiz ought to be more difficult than the last one. Likelihood

Modals The modal willor shallis used to express future time. I shallenter my painting in the contest. After reviewing the entries, the panel will announce the winner.

Modals The modal shouldis used to express a recommendation, an obligation, or a possibility. Terrell should leave soon to catch the bus. Recommendation All students should get to school on time. Obligation Should you arrive late, please go to the office first. Possibility

Modals The modal wouldis used to express the conditional form of a verb. In other words, it is used to express a situation that is contrary to fact. If the weather had been more pleasant, they wouldhave gone on a picnic. Mrs. Chang wouldbe happy to prepare food if you bring the plates and forks.

They promised us that they wouldbring the music. Modals Would can also be used to express future time in a subordinate clause when the main verb in the independent clause is in the past tense. past tense verb modal expresses future time They promised us that they would bring the music. Main clause Subordinate clause

Modals Would is sometimes used to express • an action that was repeated in the past Every day she would wake early and feed the hens. • an invitation or offer Wouldyou like a nice, fresh salad? • a polite request Wouldyou please bring me those books?

Modals On Your Own Supply an appropriate modal for each sentence. 1. Jen _____ have cleaned out the garage yesterday. 2. _____ you please help Merrill with that large box? 3. You _____ probably guess what I am about to say. 4. If the train had been faster, we _____ have arrived sooner. 5. I’m not certain, but I think Dad _____ be cooking stew for dinner tonight. [End of Section]

Review A Change the tense of each boldface verb to the tense indicated in parentheses. 1. The otter swam to the edge of the pond. (present perfect) 2. Our class will read Shakespeare’s Macbeth. (future progressive) 3. The three sisters regularly meet for lunch. (past) 4. Each student chooses a lab partner.(past perfect) 5. Wasps were entering the house through the torn screen. (present)

Review B Supply an appropriate modal, helping verb, or main verb to complete each sentence correctly. The hints in parentheses will help you. 1. Colleen _____ almost reach the light bulb. (shows ability) 2. Jack _____ repair the bicycle tomorrow. (future tense) 3. Most of the girls _____ already left. (present perfect) 4. I _____ attend the concert if only I had more time. (shows a condition) 5. Tamara opens the refrigerator and _____ inside. (consistent tense) [End of Section]

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Understanding verb tense