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Basic Tenses
For past and present, there are 2 simple tenses + 6 complex tenses (using auxiliary verbs). To these, we can add 4 "modal tenses" for the future (using modal auxiliary verbs will/shall). This makes a total of 12 tenses in the active voice. Another 12 tenses are available in the passive voice. So now we have 24 tenses. 24 Tenses simple tenses past past past perfect ACTIVE past continuous complex tenses formed with auxiliary verbs PASSIVE past perfect continuous past past perfect past continuous past perfect continuous present present present perfect present continuous present perfect continuous present present perfect present continuous present perfect continuous future* future future perfect future continuous future perfect continuous future future perfect future continuous future perfect continuous
Some grammar books use the word progressive instead of continuous. They are exactly the same.
The use of tenses in English may be quite complicated, but the structure of English tenses is actually very simple. The basic structure for a positive sentence is: subject + auxiliary verb + main verb
An auxiliary verb is used in all tenses. (In the simple present and simple past tenses, the auxiliary verb is usually suppressed for the affirmative, but it does exist for intensification.) The following table shows the 12 tenses for the verb to work in the active voice. structure past auxiliary main verb normal simple intensive Do perfect Have base past participle present participle ing present participle ing I did work I had worked I was working I had been working I do work I have worked I am working I have been working I will have worked I will be working I will have been working I worked I work I will work present future*
continuous
Be
continuous perfect
have been
* Technically, there are no future tenses in English. The word will is a modal auxiliary verb and future tenses are sometimes called "modal tenses". The examples are included here for convenience and comparison.
English Tenses Graphic Comparison Language Guide German + Dictionary for iPhone and iPodTouch (made by ego4u) Problems with the English tenses? Have a look at the time line, it might help you understand when to use which tense. As there is a similarity between past, present and future tenses, there are just a few rules to keep in mind.
If you know how to use the present progressive correctly to express present actions, you will as well be able to use the past progressive correctly to express past actions.
Legend
Legend
moment in time
action that takes place once, never or several times actions that happen one after another actions that suddenly take place action that started before a certain moment and lasts beyond that moment actions taking place at the same time action taking place before a certain moment in time puts emphasis on the result action taking place before a certain moment in time puts emphasis on the course or duration of the action
period of time
Result
Course / Duration
Use
action in the present taking place once, never or several times facts actions taking place one after another action set by a timetable or schedule
Signal Words
always, every , never, normally, often, seldom, sometimes, usually if sentences type I (If I talk, )
Present Progressive
action taking place in the moment of speaking action taking place only for a limited period of time action arranged for the future action in the past taking place once, never or several times actions taking place one after another action taking place in the middle of another action action going on at a certain time in the past actions taking place at the same time action in the past that is interrupted by another action putting emphasis on the result action that is still going on action that stopped recently finished action that has an influence on the present action that has taken place once, never or several times before the moment of speaking putting emphasis on the course or duration (not the
at the moment, just, just now, Listen!, Look!, now, right now
Simple Past
yesterday, 2 minutes ago, in 1990, the other day, last Friday if sentence type II (If I talked, )
Past Progressive
Present Perfect A: He has spoken. N: He has not spoken. Simple Q: Has he spoken?
already, ever, just, never, not yet, so far, till now, up to now
Present Perfect A: He has been speaking. N: He has not been speaking. Progressive Q: Has he been speaking?
long?, the result) whole week action that recently stopped or is still going on finished action that influenced the present action taking place before a certain time in the past sometimes interchangeable with past perfect progressive putting emphasis only on the fact (not the duration) action taking place before a certain time in the past sometimes interchangeable with past perfect simple putting emphasis on the duration or course of an action action in the future that cannot be influenced spontaneous decision assumption with regard to the future already, just, never, not yet, once, until that day if sentence type III (If I had talked, )
A: He had been speaking. N: He had not been speaking. Q: Had he been speaking?
Future I Simple
in a year, next , tomorrow If-Satz Typ I (If you ask her, she will help you.) assumption: I think, probably, perhaps
decision made for the in one year, next week, future tomorrow conclusion with regard to the future in one year, action that is going on at a certain time in next week, tomorrow the future
action that is sure to happen in the near future action that will be finished at a certain time in the future action taking place before a certain time in the future putting emphasis on the course of an action action that might take place by Monday, in a week for , the last couple of hours, all day long
A: He will have spoken. N: He will not have spoken. Q: Will he have spoken?
A: He will have been speaking. N: He will not have been speaking. Q: Will he have been speaking?
Conditional I Simple
Conditional I Progressive
action that might take place putting emphasis on the course / duration of the action action that might have taken place in the past if sentences type III (If I had seen that, I would have helped.)
Conditional II Simple
A: He would have spoken. N: He would not have spoken. Q: Would he have spoken?
Conditional II Progressive
A: He would have been speaking. N: He would not have been speaking. Q: Would he have been speaking?
action that might have taken place in the past puts emphasis on the course / duration of the action
Prepositions
Every language has a categorization of words according to their functions. Same is the case with the English language. This traditional categorization of words is called parts of speech. The parts of speech in the English language are nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions and interjections. In this article we will deal with prepositions in general, and
English Prepositions
gurinchi
Telugu Prepositions
about
Above
paina
Across
dati,addamgaa -
After
taruvatha -
Against
edurugaa -
Among
madhyalo -
Around
chuttoo
As
alaga
At
vadda
Before
mundhu
Behind
venauka
English Prepositions
krindha
Telugu Prepositions
Below
Beneath
krindha
beside
prakkana
between
madhyalo -
beyond
paina
But
kani
By
che,cheta,daggara -
despite
aaina,undi -
down
krindha
during
ala
except
tappa
for
kroraku
from
nunchi
English Prepositions
lo, lopala ,
Telugu Prepositions
In
inside
lopalipakka -
into
lo, laopalaki -
Near
daggara
Next
taruvatha -
Of
yaokka
On
meedi
opposite
edurugaa -
Out
ba yata -
outside
bayativaipu -
Over
paina,minchi -
per
ku
plus
koodi
English Prepositions
chutti
Telugu Prepositions
round
since
nunchi
than
kante
through
gunda,dwara -
Till
varaku
To
ku
toward
vaipu
under
krindha
unlike
alaakaakunda -
Until
antavaraku -
Up
ppakkana -
via
dvaraa -
with
to
English Prepositions
lo, lopala ,
Telugu Prepositions
within
without
leka,lekunda,bayata -
two words
rendu matalu -
according to
prakaaram
because of
anduvalana
close to
antaramgika,daggara -
due to
kaaranamga
except for
tappa,tappinchi -
far from
chaalaadooram,jraragani -
inside of
lopal,lopali -
instead of
badhuluga
near to
daggaramsa, sameepamlo -
next to
prakkane
English Prepositions
bayatane
Telugu Prepositions
outside of
prior to
,kritam,mundauga - ,
three words
moodu matalu -
as far as
veelainamtavaraku
as well as
adikooda,danimadire -
in addition to
paipechhu,paiga -
in front of
mundauga
in spite of
aainakooda
on behalf of
tarafuna
on top of
paipechhu,paiga -
demonstrative prepositions
upadha pratyayaalu -
this
idi
that
adi
English Prepositions
ivi\ \
Telugu Prepositions
these
those
avi
Question words
Question words are also called wh questions because they include the letters 'W' and 'H'. Question words who where why Person place reason Meaning Examples Who's that? That's Nancy. Where do you live? In Boston Why do you sleep early? Because I've got to get
Basics of day to day English up early when how what which whose whom what kind what time how many how much how long how often how far how old how come time manner object, idea or action choice possession object of the verb description time quantity (countable) amount, price (uncountable) duration, length frequency distance age reason When do you go to work? At 7:00 How do you go? By car What do you do? I am an engineer Which one do you prefer? The red one. Whose is this book? It's Alan's. Whom did you meet? I met the manager. What kind of music do you like? I like quiet songs What time did you come home? How many students are there? There are twenty. How much time have we got? Ten minutes How long did you stay in that hotel? For two weeks. How often do you go to the gym? Twice a week. How far is your school? It's one mile far. How old are you? I'm 16. How come I didn't see at the party?
Asking questions
1.If you ask about the subject of the sentence, simply add the question word at the beginning: Example: James writes good poems. Who writes good pems? 2.If you ask about the predicate of the sentence (the part of a sentence which contains the verb and gives information about the subject), there are three options:
If there is a helping (auxilary) verb that precedes the main verb ( foe example, can, is, are, was, were, will, would...), add the question word and invert the subject and the helping (auxilary) verb. Examples:
Basics of day to day English He can speak Chinese. What can he speak? They are leaving tonight. When are they leaving? If you ask about the predicate and there is no helping (auxilary) verb and the verb is "to be", simply add the question verb and invert the subject and the verb. Example: The play was interesting. How was the play? If there is no helping (auxilary) verb in the the predicate and the main verb is not "to be", add the auxilary "do" in the appropriate form. Examples: They go to the movies every Saturday. Where do they go to the movies? He wakes up early. When does he wake up? They sent a letter. What did they send?
Do vs. Does
English Grammar Rules
To make a question in English we normally use Do or Does. It has no translation in Spanish though it is essential to show we are making a question. It is normally put at the beginning of the question. Affirmative: You speak Spanish. Question: Do you speak Spanish? You will see that we add DO at the beginning of the affirmative sentence to make it a question. We use Do when the subject is I, you, we or they. Affirmative: He speaks Spanish. Question: Does he speak Spanish? When the subject is he, she or it, we add DOES at the beginning to make the affirmative sentence a question. Notice that the letter S at the end of the verb in the affirmative sentence (because it is in third person) disappears in the question. We will see the reason why below. We DON'T use Do or Does in questions that have the verb To Be or Modal Verbs (can, must, might, should etc.)
Word Order of Questions with Do and Does The following is the word order to construct a basic question in English using Do or Does.
Do/Does Do Does
*Verb: The verb that goes here is the base form of the infinitive = The infinitive without TO before the verb. Instead of the infinitive To have it is just the have part. Remember that the infinitive is the verb before it is conjugated (changed) and it begins with TO. For example: to have, to eat, to go, to live, to speak etc.
Do you speak English? Does John speak French? Do we have time for a quick drink? Does it rain a lot in the South? Do they want to come with me? Does she like chocolate?
Short Answers with Do and Does In questions that use do/does it is possible to give short answers to direct questions as follows: Sample Questions Do you speak English? Do I need a dictionary? Do you both speak English? Do they speak English? Does he speak English? Does she speak English? Short Answer (Affirmative) Yes, I do. Yes, you do. Yes, we do. Yes, they do. Yes, he does. Short Answer (Negative) No, I don't. No, you don't. No, we don't. No, they don't. No, he doesn't.
Basics of day to day English Does it have four legs? Yes, it does. No, it doesn't.
However, if a question word such as who, when, where, why, which or how is used in the question, you can not use the short answers above to respond to the question.
Question Words with Do and Does The order for making sentences with Questions words is the following: Question Word What What Where When How Do/Does do does do do do Subject you she you you you Verb have for breakfast? have for breakfast? live? study? spell your name?
TO vs FOR
English grammar rules
TO
is used with verbs as you all know (e.g. the verb "to be").
t is also used in cases where a "transfer" happens. E.g. I will give this book to you. (from me to you) I will go to work. (from home to work) I will talk to her. (information goes from me to her)
FOR is used in the following situations: for the benefit of e.g. I will do that for you. purpose e.g. This brush is for painting.
Those aren't rules written in stone, they are just general guidelines to help ESL students (especially Portuguese speakers) better grasp this concept. Here is an example with both: Give this book to him but it is for his father. Another: I will speak to her for you.
WHILE vs WHEN
You can choose either one of your whiles. lasting action: More seriously, while is often used to refer to long-
The phone rang while/when I was taking a bath. But: I bumped into an old friend when I turned a corner. ( It doesn't take you a long time to turn a corner.) While I went out, it was raining. -- unacceptable When I went out, it was raining. -- acceptable While it was raining, I went out. -- acceptable When it was raining, I went out. also acceptable ?While it was raining, I was going out. -- questionable ?When it was raining, I was going out.-- questionable
Comment: They can have the same meaning if one or both of the actions is/are long. However, if both actions are short, we use "when." e.g. When/While I was eating dinner, I was watching TV. When/While I was watching TV, I threw up! When I threw up, I dropped my fork. We prefer when to refer to ages and periods of life. When I was a child we lived in London. -- acceptable *While I was a child we lived in London. unacceptable His parents died when he was twelve. -- acceptable *His parents died while he was twelve. -- unacceptable
PERHAPS
Pronunciation (US):
Dictionary entry overview: What does perhaps mean?
PERHAPS (adverb) The adverb PERHAPS has 1 sense: 1. by chance Familiarity information: PERHAPS used as an adverb is very rare.
PERHAPS (adverb)
Sense 1
Meaning: By chance Synonyms: maybe; mayhap; peradventure; perhaps; possibly; perchance Context examples: perhaps she will call tomorrow / we may possibly run into them at the concert / it may peradventure be thought that there never was such a time
have to vs need to
'Have to' means must. I have to go = I must go. Whether this is because someone is requiring you to go or whether you have your own urgent reasons for going is not specified. 'Need to' is more specific. It means you must do something for your own reasons, and usually that there is some urgency involved.
May vs might
may
We can use 'may' to ask for permission. However this is rather formal and not used very often in modern spoken English May I borrow your pen? May we think about it? May I go now? We use 'may' to suggest something is possible It may rain later today. I may not have time to do it today. Pete may come with us
might
We use 'might' to suggest a small possibility of something. Often we read that 'might' suggests a smaller possibility that 'may', there is in fact little difference and 'might is more usual than 'may' in spoken English. She might be at home by now but it's not sure at all. It might rain this afternoon. I might not have time to go to the shops for you. I might not go. For the past, we use 'might have'. He might have tried to call while I was out. I might have dropped it in the street.
No, Alice and Bob (they) were not (weren't) in an accident. No, they weren't. No. I don't know. etc. Special Notes: 1. Contractions are very common in complete answers--with both Yes and No: Were Alice and Bob in an accident? Yes, they were in an accident. No, they weren't in an accident. Am I on time? Yes, you're on time. No, you aren't (you're not) on time. 2. Contractions are also common in"abbreviated" answers, but onlywith No: Is Joe here today? Yes, he is. No, he isn't (he's not). wrong: *Yes, he's. Was Joe here yesterday? Yes, he was. No, he wasn't. 3. The full form for "I don't know" is almost never
used, but it is "I don't know whether (or not) _____ (or not)" or "I don't know if _____ or not): Is Joe here today? ---> I don't know whether or not he's here today. / I don't know whetherhe's here today or not. / I don't knowif he's here today. / I don't know ifhe's here today or not. Were Alice and Bob in an accident? ---> I don't know whether or not theywere in an accident. / I don't know whether they were in an accident or not. / I don't know if the were in an accident. / I don't know if they were in an accident or not. etc.
If the sentence to which a simple question is related does not have BE or an auxiliary verb (BE, has / have / had, modal auxiliary), use do, does, or did. The form is Do / Does / Did + subject + verb + other words?
Do
Use do for yes/no questions in simple present tense if the subject is (or means) I, you, we, or they: I need this. ---> Do I need this? You understand me. ---> Do you understand me? We have a test tomorrow. ---> Do we have a test tomorrow? They like sashimi. ---> Do they like sashimi?
Does
Use does for yes/no questions in simple present tense if the subject is (or means) he, she, or it: He loves her. ---> Does he love her? She misses him. ---> Does she miss him? His computer works. ---> Does his computer work?
Did
Use did for yes/no questions in simple past tensefor all subjects--I, you, he, she, it, we, they: I forgot something. ---> Did I forget something? You lost something. ---> Did you lose something? He left. ---> Did he leave? She quit her job. ---> Did she quit her job? Her computer crashed. ---> Did her computer crash? We needed that. ---> Did we need that?
They had a good time. ---> Did they have a good time?
Yes, Bill went to the party. Yes, he did. Yes. No, Bill didn't go to the party. No, he didn't. No. I don't know. etc.
Special Notes:
1. The common verbs do and have can be both main verbs and auxiliary verbs: Toby did a good job. (main verb) Did Toby do a good job? (auxiliary verb, main verb)
Toby didn't do a good job. (auxiliary verb,main verb) Alice has two brothers. (main verb) Alice doesn't have any brothers. (auxiliary verb: does(n't); main verb: have. Does Alice have two brothers? (auxiliary verb: does; main verb: have.
We have had enough.(auxiliary verb: have; main verb: have (past participle) They had had breakfast before we saw them. (auxiliaryverb: had; main verb: have (past participle)
2.
Contractions are also common in "abbreviated" answers, but only with No: Does Joe have red hair? Yes, he does. No, he doesn't.
Do you want something to eat? Yes, I do. No, I don't. Did Marcia call you? Yes, she did. No, she didn't.
3.
When does is the auxiliary verb, there is no -s ( -es, -ies ) on the main verb: wrong: *Does she wants something? right: *Does she want something? wrong: *Does he has a new car? right: *Does he have a new car? 4. When did is the auxiliary verb, the main verb is in simple form, not past:
wrong: *Did she wanted something? right: *Did she want something? wrong: *Did they had a good time? right: *Did they have a good time?
5.
Remember: Do, does, and did are used when the sentence on which the question is based does not have BE or an auxiliary + a main verb. wrong: *Does she is here today? wrong: *Did she was here yesterday? wrong: *Did she already been here? etc.
Did or Done?
Many people tend to misuse did and done, using done when they should use did. Use did for the simple past tense, use done for the present perfect and past perfect tenses. (forms of to do)
Examples:
. . . .We did all our chores.................................... simple past tense . . . .She has already done the work...................... present perfect tense . . . .We have done many things........................... present perfect tense . . . .No one had done that before......................... past perfect tense
Have done" is used when you say you've done something before at a unspecified time, as in "I have done that before", "I have seen that movie before" "did" is used when talking about a specific point in the past "I did that yesterday" "I did that when I went to Canada". You would never used "I have done that a week ago" or "I did that before". It would always be: "I did that a week ago" and "I've done that before".
ANYWAY vs ANYWAYS
The adverb "anyway" is the correct word. However, you will hear people say "anyways" throughout North America. It is very casual, but it is certainly not "ghetto English."