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12 Jun 2015, 03:22
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Tense
Tense is a method that we use in English to refer to time - past, present and future. It is basically a form of a verb used to indicate the time and, sometimes, the continuation or completeness of an action in relation to the time of speaking.
Common sense dictates that there can only be three time periods – the past, the present and the future.
Hence we have three types of tenses:
· The Past Tense
· The Present Tense
· The Future Tense
Note: If you are a grammar whiz you might contradict us by saying there are actually only 2 and not 3 tenses. We agree! There are no future tenses in English. The word ‘will’ is called a modal auxiliary verb and future tenses are sometimes called "modal tenses". However for practical purposes (and to avoid getting too technical) we’ll consider ‘Future’ tense to be an actual tense form.
So the grammar whiz may please excuse us. (On second thoughts a grammar whiz shouldn’t need to be going through this book anyway).
There are 4 variations of each of these three tenses:
1. The Simple Tense - The simple tenses are used to show permanent characteristics of people and events or what happens regularly, habitually or in a single completed action.
2. The Continuous Tense - Verbs in Continuous Tenses always express "actions" that are in progress during the time framework indicated: present, past, future, or any of the perfect timeframes.
Note: The Continuous tense is sometimes referred to as the Progressive tense. The two are exactly the same.
3. The Perfect Tense - The perfect tenses are used when an action or situation in the present is linked to a moment in the past. It is often used to show things that have happened up to now but aren't finished yet or to emphasize that something happened but is not true anymore. When they end determines which of them you use (past or present perfect).
4. The Perfect Continuous Tense – Used to denote an ongoing action either starting and ending in the past or starting in the past and continuing into the present.
So altogether we have the following 12 tenses
1. Simple Present
2. Present Continuous
3. Present Perfect
4. Present Perfect Continuous
5. Simple Past
6. Past Continuous
7. Past Perfect
8. Past Perfect Continuous
9. Simple Future
10. Future Continuous
11. Future Perfect
12. Future Perfect Continuous
Out of these the GMAT will mostly test you on either the simple or the perfect tenses. Please remember the GMAT does like the use of continuous tenses (verbs with an ‘–ing’ at the end), so avoid these as much as you can, unless the sentence emphasizes the ongoing nature of an action.
In this chapter we will primarily be concentrating on those aspects of tenses that are frequently tested on the GMAT. For a more detailed explanation of tenses in general, please download the FREE tense tutorial from our website
THE SIMPLE TENSES
1) The Simple Present Tense
The simple present tense is used to discuss permanant situations and the frequency of events
· I like to read books
· The earth is round
· The bus leaves at 10 pm
2) The Simple Past Tense
The simple past tense is used to talk about actions that happened at a specific time in the past. You form the simple past of a verb by adding ‘-ed’ at the end of a regular verb (irregular verb forms are different and will have to be learned)
· I saw a play yesterday
· She washed her car
· Did you complete your assignment?
3) The Simple Future Tense
Simple Future has two different forms in English: "will" and "be going to." Although the two forms can sometimes be used interchangeably, they often express two very different meanings.
Use ‘will’ to express a voluntary action or a promise,
· I will send you the report when I get it.
· I will translate the email, so that Jerry can read it.
· I won’t tell anyone your secret
Use ‘be going to’ to express a plan,
· He is going to spend his holidays in Jamaica
· Who are you going to invite to the dinner?
THE PERFECT TENSES
1) The Present Perfect Tense
Use the Present Perfect to denote an action that happened at an unspecified time before now. You can also use the Present Perfect to describe your experience or to talk about change that has happened over a period of time.
FORM - [has/have + past participle]
· You have seen that play many times.
· Have you seen that play yet?
· You have changed since the last time I saw you.
2) The Past Perfect Tense
If a sentence involves two actions taking place in the past with one action taking place before the other, then use the past perfect tense to refer to the earlier action and simple past tense to refer to the latter action.
FORM - [had + past participle]
· You had studied French before you moved to London.
· She only understood the movie because she had read the book.
· You did well on the test because you had studies very hard
(OG 12 – Q 90, 139)
3) The Present Perfect Continuous Tense
This is used to denote an action that started in the past and continues into the present.
FORM - [has/have + been + present participle]
· John has been waiting here for two hours
· They have been talking for the last hour
· Recently, I have been feeling really tired.
4) The Past Perfect Continuous Tense
Use the Past Perfect Continuous Tense to show that something started in the past and continued up until another time in the past.
FORM - [had + been + present participle]
· They had been talking for over an hour before Tony arrived.
· She had been working at that company for three years when it went out of business.
· How long had you been waiting to get on the bus?
Tense is a method that we use in English to refer to time - past, present and future. It is basically a form of a verb used to indicate the time and, sometimes, the continuation or completeness of an action in relation to the time of speaking.
Common sense dictates that there can only be three time periods – the past, the present and the future.
Hence we have three types of tenses:
· The Past Tense
· The Present Tense
· The Future Tense
Note: If you are a grammar whiz you might contradict us by saying there are actually only 2 and not 3 tenses. We agree! There are no future tenses in English. The word ‘will’ is called a modal auxiliary verb and future tenses are sometimes called "modal tenses". However for practical purposes (and to avoid getting too technical) we’ll consider ‘Future’ tense to be an actual tense form.
So the grammar whiz may please excuse us. (On second thoughts a grammar whiz shouldn’t need to be going through this book anyway).
There are 4 variations of each of these three tenses:
1. The Simple Tense - The simple tenses are used to show permanent characteristics of people and events or what happens regularly, habitually or in a single completed action.
2. The Continuous Tense - Verbs in Continuous Tenses always express "actions" that are in progress during the time framework indicated: present, past, future, or any of the perfect timeframes.
Note: The Continuous tense is sometimes referred to as the Progressive tense. The two are exactly the same.
3. The Perfect Tense - The perfect tenses are used when an action or situation in the present is linked to a moment in the past. It is often used to show things that have happened up to now but aren't finished yet or to emphasize that something happened but is not true anymore. When they end determines which of them you use (past or present perfect).
4. The Perfect Continuous Tense – Used to denote an ongoing action either starting and ending in the past or starting in the past and continuing into the present.
So altogether we have the following 12 tenses
1. Simple Present
2. Present Continuous
3. Present Perfect
4. Present Perfect Continuous
5. Simple Past
6. Past Continuous
7. Past Perfect
8. Past Perfect Continuous
9. Simple Future
10. Future Continuous
11. Future Perfect
12. Future Perfect Continuous
Out of these the GMAT will mostly test you on either the simple or the perfect tenses. Please remember the GMAT does like the use of continuous tenses (verbs with an ‘–ing’ at the end), so avoid these as much as you can, unless the sentence emphasizes the ongoing nature of an action.
In this chapter we will primarily be concentrating on those aspects of tenses that are frequently tested on the GMAT. For a more detailed explanation of tenses in general, please download the FREE tense tutorial from our website
THE SIMPLE TENSES
1) The Simple Present Tense
The simple present tense is used to discuss permanant situations and the frequency of events
· I like to read books
· The earth is round
· The bus leaves at 10 pm
2) The Simple Past Tense
The simple past tense is used to talk about actions that happened at a specific time in the past. You form the simple past of a verb by adding ‘-ed’ at the end of a regular verb (irregular verb forms are different and will have to be learned)
· I saw a play yesterday
· She washed her car
· Did you complete your assignment?
3) The Simple Future Tense
Simple Future has two different forms in English: "will" and "be going to." Although the two forms can sometimes be used interchangeably, they often express two very different meanings.
Use ‘will’ to express a voluntary action or a promise,
· I will send you the report when I get it.
· I will translate the email, so that Jerry can read it.
· I won’t tell anyone your secret
Use ‘be going to’ to express a plan,
· He is going to spend his holidays in Jamaica
· Who are you going to invite to the dinner?
THE PERFECT TENSES
1) The Present Perfect Tense
Use the Present Perfect to denote an action that happened at an unspecified time before now. You can also use the Present Perfect to describe your experience or to talk about change that has happened over a period of time.
FORM - [has/have + past participle]
· You have seen that play many times.
· Have you seen that play yet?
· You have changed since the last time I saw you.
2) The Past Perfect Tense
If a sentence involves two actions taking place in the past with one action taking place before the other, then use the past perfect tense to refer to the earlier action and simple past tense to refer to the latter action.
FORM - [had + past participle]
· You had studied French before you moved to London.
· She only understood the movie because she had read the book.
· You did well on the test because you had studies very hard
(OG 12 – Q 90, 139)
3) The Present Perfect Continuous Tense
This is used to denote an action that started in the past and continues into the present.
FORM - [has/have + been + present participle]
· John has been waiting here for two hours
· They have been talking for the last hour
· Recently, I have been feeling really tired.
4) The Past Perfect Continuous Tense
Use the Past Perfect Continuous Tense to show that something started in the past and continued up until another time in the past.
FORM - [had + been + present participle]
· They had been talking for over an hour before Tony arrived.
· She had been working at that company for three years when it went out of business.
· How long had you been waiting to get on the bus?
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18 Sep 2022, 02:01
Kudos
Bookmarks
Hello from the GMAT Club VerbalBot!
Thanks to another GMAT Club member, I have just discovered this valuable topic, yet it had no discussion for over a year. I am now bumping it up - doing my job. I think you may find it valuable (esp those replies with Kudos).
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Thanks to another GMAT Club member, I have just discovered this valuable topic, yet it had no discussion for over a year. I am now bumping it up - doing my job. I think you may find it valuable (esp those replies with Kudos).
Want to see all other topics I dig out? Follow me (click follow button on profile). You will receive a summary of all topics I bump in your profile area as well as via email.
Archived Topic
Hi there,
This topic has been closed and archived due to inactivity or violation of community quality standards. No more replies are possible here.
Where to now? Join ongoing discussions on thousands of quality questions in our Verbal Questions Forum
Still interested in this question? Check out the "Best Topics" block above for a better discussion on this exact question, as well as several more related questions.
Thank you for understanding, and happy exploring!
