Grammar is always a word that frightens a lot of people. Among many other things that can be classified under this umbrella term, verb tenses can be an especially difficult aspect for English as an additional language learners to master. This is due to the fact that each of them has a very specific reference to certain aspects of the past, present, or future time.
If you’re one of those people who are afraid of verb tenses in English, this overview of all 12 tenses will help you out.
All Verb Tenses In English
There are 12 verb tenses in English. Their names are past simple, past continuous, past perfect, past perfect continuous, present simple, present continuous, present perfect, present perfect continuous, future simple, future continuous, future perfect, and future perfect continuous.
If you think there are too many names to remember, the table below will make it a lot easier for you to remember them.
All Verb Tenses in English in a Table
PAST | PRESENT | FUTURE | |
SIMPLE | past simple | present simple | future simple |
CONTINUOUS | past continuous | present continuous | future continuous |
PERFECT | past perfect | present perfect | future perfect |
PERFECT CONTINUOUS | past perfect continuous | present perfect continuous | future perfect continuous |
You can see all verb tenses, their uses and example sentences for each tense below.
Past Simple
The past simple is used to describe something that happened in a finished period of time in the past.
If you want to see examples of the past simple tense, visit our very informative article with 100 past simple tense examples!
AFFIRMATIVE | NEGATIVE | QUESTION | |
I | I studied | I didn’t study | Did I study? |
You | You studied | You didn’t study | Did you study? |
He/she/it | He/she/it studied | He/she/it didn’t study | Did he/she/it study? |
We | We studied | We didn’t study | Did we study? |
You | You studied | You didn’t study | Did you study? |
They | They studied | They didn’t study | Did they study? |
Past Continuous
The past continuous is used to describe something that was happening in the past, especially when another thing happened.
If you want to see examples of the past continuous tense, visit our very informative article with 100 past continuous tense examples!
AFFIRMATIVE | NEGATIVE | QUESTION | |
I | I was sleeping | I wasn’t sleeping | Was I sleeping? |
You | You were sleeping | You weren’t sleeping | Were you sleeping? |
He/she/it | He/she/it was sleeping | He/she/it wasn’t sleeping | Was he/she/it sleeping? |
We | We were sleeping | We weren’t sleeping | Were we sleeping? |
You | You were sleeping | You weren’t sleeping | Were you sleeping? |
They | They were sleeping | They weren’t sleeping | Were they sleeping? |
Past Perfect
The past perfect is used to describe something that happened before another thing in the past.
If you want to see examples of the past perfect tense, visit our very informative article with 100 past perfect tense examples!
AFFIRMATIVE | NEGATIVE | QUESTION | |
I | I had eaten | I hadn’t eaten | Had I eaten? |
You | You had eaten | You hadn’t eaten | Had you eaten? |
He/she/it | He/she/it had eaten | He/she/it hadn’t eaten | Had he/she/it eaten? |
We | We had eaten | We hadn’t eaten | Had we eaten? |
You | You had eaten | You hadn’t eaten | Had you eaten? |
They | They had eaten | They hadn’t eaten | Had they eaten? |
Past Perfect Continuous
The past perfect continuous is used to describe something that started, developed, and finished (there’s an emphasis on the ongoing action) before another thing in the past.
If you want to see examples of the past perfect continuous tense, visit our very informative article with 100 past perfect continuous tense examples!
AFFIRMATIVE | NEGATIVE | QUESTION | |
I | I had been playing | I hadn’t been playing | Had I been playing? |
You | You had been playing | You hadn’t been playing | Had you been playing? |
He/she/it | He/she/it had been playing | He/she/it hadn’t been playing | Had he/she/it been playing? |
We | We had been playing | We hadn’t been playing | Had we been playing? |
You | You had been playing | You hadn’t been playing | Had you been playing? |
They | They had been playing | They hadn’t been playing | Had they been playing? |
Present Simple
The present simple is used to describe routine activities, facts, and general truths.
If you want to see examples of the present simple tense, visit our very informative article with 100 present simple tense examples!
AFFIRMATIVE | NEGATIVE | QUESTION | |
I | I work | I don’t work | Do I work? |
You | You work | You don’t work | Do you work? |
He/she/it | He/she/it works | He/she/it doesn’t work | Does he/she/it work? |
We | We work | We don’t work | Do we work? |
You | You work | You don’t work | Do you work? |
They | They work | They don’t work | Do they work? |
Present Continuous
The present continuous is mainly used to talk about something that is happening at the moment. It can, however, be used to describe something that is happening these days and future actions, too.
If you want to see examples of the present continuous tense, visit our very informative article with 100 present continuous tense examples!
AFFIRMATIVE | NEGATIVE | QUESTION | |
I | I’m going | I’m not going | Am I going? |
You | You’re going | You’re not going | Are you going? |
He/she/it | He/she/it’s going | He/she/it’s not going | Is he/she/it going? |
We | We’re going | We’re not going | Are we going? |
You | You’re going | You’re not going | Are you going? |
They | They’re going | They’re not going | Are they going? |
Present Perfect
The present perfect is used to describe something that started in the past but is true (or has an impact) until the present moment.
If you want to see examples of the present perfect tense, visit our very informative article with 100 present perfect tense examples!
AFFIRMATIVE | NEGATIVE | QUESTION | |
I | I’ve done | I haven’t done | Have I done? |
You | You’ve done | You haven’t done | Have you done? |
He/she/it | He/she/it’s done | He/she/it hasn’t done | Has he/she/it done? |
We | We’ve done | We haven’t done | Have we done? |
You | You’ve done | You haven’t done | Have you done? |
They | They’ve done | They haven’t done | Have they done? |
Present Perfect Continuous
The present perfect continuous is used to describe something that started in the past and is still ongoing in the present.
If you want to see examples of the present perfect continuous tense, visit our very informative article with 100 present perfect continuous tense examples!
AFFIRMATIVE | NEGATIVE | QUESTION | |
I | I’ve been saying | I haven’t been saying | Have I been saying? |
You | You’ve been saying | You haven’t been saying | Have you been saying? |
He/she/it | He/she/it’s been saying | He/she/it hasn’t been saying | Has he/she/it been saying? |
We | We’ve been saying | We haven’t been saying | Have we been saying? |
You | You’ve been saying | You haven’t been saying | Have you been saying? |
They | They’ve been saying | They haven’t been saying | Have they been saying? |
Future Simple
The future simple is used to describe something that will happen at a specific time in the future.
If you want to see examples of the future simple tense, visit our very informative article with 100 future simple tense examples!
AFFIRMATIVE | NEGATIVE | QUESTION | |
I | I’ll think | I won’t think | Will I think? |
You | You’ll think | You won’t think | Will you think? |
He/she/it | He/she/it’ll will think | He/she/it won’t think | Will he/she/it think? |
We | We’ll think | We won’t think | Will we think? |
You | You’ll think | You won’t think | Will you think? |
They | They’ll think | They won’t think | Will they think? |
Future Continuous
The future continuous is used to describe events that will take place in the future and are expected to last for a while.
If you want to see examples of the future continuous tense, visit our very informative article with 100 future continuous tense examples!
AFFIRMATIVE | NEGATIVE | QUESTION | |
I | I’ll be helping | I won’t be helping | Will I be helping? |
You | You’ll be helping | You won’t be helping | Will you be helping? |
He/she/it | He/she/it’ll be helping | He/she/it won’t be helping | Will he/she/it be helping? |
We | We’ll be helping | We won’t be helping | Will we be helping? |
You | You’ll be helping | You won’t be helping | Will you be helping? |
They | They’ll be helping | They won’t be helping | Will they be helping? |
Future Perfect
The future perfect is used to describe events that someone will complete in a time span between the present moment and a specific time in the future.
If you want to see examples of the future perfect tense, visit our very informative article with 100 future perfect tense examples!
AFFIRMATIVE | NEGATIVE | QUESTION | |
I | I’ll have talked | I won’t have talked | Will I have talked? |
You | You’ll have talked | You won’t have talked | Will you have talked? |
He/she/it | He/she/it’ll have talked | He/she/it won’t have talked | Will he/she/it have talked? |
We | We’ll have talked | We won’t have talked | Will we have talked? |
You | You’ll have talked | You won’t have talked | Will you have talked? |
They | They’ll have talked | They won’t have talked | Will they have talked? |
Future Perfect Continuous
The future perfect continuous is used to describe events that will take place between the present moment and a specific moment in the future, emphasizing their duration.
If you want to see examples of the future perfect continuous tense, visit our very informative article with 100 future perfect continuous tense examples!
AFFIRMATIVE | NEGATIVE | QUESTION | |
I | I’ll have been waiting | I won’t have been waiting | Will I have been waiting? |
You | You’ll have been waiting | You won’t have been waiting | Will you have been waiting? |
He/she/it | He/she/it’ll have been waiting | He/she/it won’t have been waiting | Will he/she/it have been waiting? |
We | We’ll have been waiting | We won’t have been waiting | Will we have been waiting? |
You | You’ll have been waiting | You won’t have been waiting | Will you have been waiting? |
They | They’ll have been waiting | They won’t have been waiting | Will they have been waiting? |
All Verb Tenses In English
Now you know all the basics of all 12 verb tenses in English.
Don’t forget to use them whenever you have the opportunity to so you’ll eventually master them.
If you want to master every aspect of English grammar, take a look at our awesome article on the best books to learn English grammar.