Tense for Class 7

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What are Tenses?

What are Tenses?

In our day-to-day life, we talk about our past, present and future. This is accomplished by using the verb "tenses" denoting time—past, present, and future.

Let's understand it further. To convey when events occur, we must conjugate our verbs differently. The three most important verb tenses are mentioned below:

→ Jack plays in the park. (Present tense)
→ Jack played in the park. (Past tense)
→ Jack will play in the park. (Future tense)

As you notice the forms of the verbs alter with each tense. By adding a precise time to the sentence, we may make this more clear:

→ Jack played in the park yesterday.
→ Jack plays football with Samuel every day.

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Types of Tenses

There are three types of tenses: past, present, and future. Nonetheless, the following categories - simple, continuous, perfect, and perfect continuous - allow us to communicate more effectively within each tense.

1. Present Tense

Present Indefinite Tense

Singular	Plural
Rule: Subject + V1 + s/es + Object	Rule: Subject + V1 + Object

The present indefinite tense is used to describe actions that happen regularly, repeatedly or are generally true. It is also used for scheduled events in the future.

Examples of present indefinite tense:

→ Jessica plays badminton every morning.
→ She eats breakfast at 7 o'clock in the morning.
→ They visit their grandparents every summer.

Present Continuous Tense

Rule: Subject + is/am/are + V1 + ing + object

The present continuous tense is used to talk about actions that are happening right now or are currently in progress. It's formed by using the base form of the verb and adding "-ing" to it.

Examples of present continuous tense:

→ We are reading a novel to write a synopsis.
→ Samuel is practising football for his Sunday match.
→ They are watching a horror movie in the drawing room.

Present Perfect Tense

Singular	Plural
Rule: Subject + has + V3 + Object	Rule: Subject + have + V3 + Object

The present perfect tense is used to show an action that started in the past and is still relevant in the present. It is formed by using the base form of the verb "have" (have/has) and the past participle of the main verb.

Examples of present perfect tense:

→ The children have eaten lunch.
→ She has visited the museum.
→ They have played soccer for three hours.

Present Perfect Continuous Tense

Singular	Plural
Rule: Subject + has been + V1 + ing + Object	Rule: Subject + have been + V1 + ing + Object

The present perfect continuous tense is used to talk about actions or events that started in the past and continue up to the present or have just finished. It emphasizes the duration or ongoing nature of the action.

Examples of present perfect continuous tense:

→I have been playing cricket for two hours.
→ She has been studying English since morning.
→ They have been watching a movie for three hours.

2. Past Tense

Past Indefinite Tense

Rule: Subject + V2 + Object

A past tense is used to describe actions, events, or states that have already happened in the past. It is often formed by adding "-ed" to regular verbs.

Examples of past indefinite tense:

→ They played chess yesterday.
→ She watched a movie last night.
→ We visited our grandparents on the weekend.

Past Continuous Tense

Singular	Plural
Rule: Subject + was + V1 + ing + Object	Rule: Subject + were + V1 + ing + Object

The past continuous tense is used to describe actions that were happening in the past over a period of time. It is formed by using "was" or "were" with the base form of the verb, and it often includes a time reference.

Examples of past continuous tense:

→ She was reading a book yesterday.
→ They were playing football when it started raining.
→ I was watching TV at 7 o'clock last night.

Past Perfect Tense

Rule: Subject + had + V3 + Object

The past perfect tense is used to talk about an action that happened before another action in the past. It helps to show the order of events. We form the past perfect tense by using "had" + the past participle form of the verb.

Examples of past perfect tense:

→ She had finished her homework before she went to play outside.
→ He had already eaten breakfast when his friend came over.
→ They had watched the movie before they had dinner.

Past Perfect Continuous Tense

Rule: Subject + had been + V1 + ing + Object

The past perfect continuous tense is used to show an action that started in the past and continued for some time before another action took place. It is formed using "had been" + the base form of the verb + "-ing".

Examples of past perfect continuous tense:

→ She had been dancing for two hours before she got tired.
→ They had been studying all night before the exam.
→ He had been working at the company for five years before he got promoted.

Click Here to Read About: Adjectives for Class 8

3. Future Tense

Future Indefinite Tense or Simple Future Tense

Rule: Subject + will/shall + V1 + Object

The simple future tense is used to talk about things that will happen in the future. It is formed using the modal verb "will" followed by the base form of the main verb.

Examples of future indefinite tense:

→ I will go to the park tomorrow.
→ She will visit her grandparents next weekend.
→ They will have a party on Friday.

Future Continuous Tense

Rule: Subject + will be/shall be + V1 + ing + Object

The future continuous tense is used to describe actions that will be happening at a specific time in the future. It is formed by using the helping verb "will" or "shall" and the base form of the verb with "ing" added to it.

Examples of future continuous tense:

→ I will be studying for my exam tomorrow evening.
→ She will be playing with her friends at 4:00 p.m.
→ They will be watching a movie on Saturday.

Future Perfect Tense

Rule: Subject + will have/shall have + V3 + Object

The future perfect tense is used to talk about an action that will be completed in the future before another action takes place. It's formed by using "will have" followed by the past participle form of the verb.

Examples of future perfect tense:

→ By the time I arrive, they will have finished the project.
→ She will have read the book before the movie comes out.
→ They will have eaten dinner by the time we get to the restaurant.

Future Perfect Continuous Tense

Rule: Subject + will have been + V1 + ing + Object

The future perfect continuous tense is used to describe actions or events that will be ongoing (happening continuously) at a specific point in the future. It is formed using "will have been" + the base form of the verb + "-ing" (present participle).

Examples of future perfect continuous tense:

→ By 7 o'clock tonight, I will have been studying for three hours.
→ She will have been dancing in the recital for two hours by the time it ends.
→ They will have been playing all afternoon.

FAQs

1. What are tenses?

Answer: Tenses help to understand when an action took place. For example, Moana sings in the present tense, meaning Moana is currently singing.

2. What is the difference between simple present and present continuous tense?

Answer: Simple present tense talks about things that are generally true, habits, and routines and the present continuous tense talks about actions happening right now, temporary actions and future plans or arrangements. For example, a simple present: "I read books" and a present continuous: "I am reading a book."

3. What are irregular verbs in the past tense?

Answer: Irregular verbs do not follow a specific pattern when changing to past tense. For example, "go" becomes "went," and "eat" becomes "ate".

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