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A verb is a word that expresses an action, state of being, or an occurrence. If you ask a linguist, they’ll tell you there are only two verb tenses in the English language—past and present; however, you’re more likely to be told there are three—past, present, and future.
For most people, including writers, we consider verbs to have three main tenses—past, present, and future—and four sub-tenses—simple, progressive (or continuous), perfect, and perfect progressive (or continuous).
Writers use the different verb tenses to tell readers when in time events or actions occurred. A chart has been provided below to show examples, usage, and the formula for each verb tense.
| Past | Present | Future | |
| Simple |
The author ate cheesecake yesterday. Usage: To indicate a past habit or an action already completed. |
The author eats cheesecake every day. Usage: To express habits or general truth; to indicate a future event on a designated date as part of a plan or arrangement. |
The author will eat cheesecake tomorrow. Formula: will + present tense verb Usage: To indicate an action, condition, or circumstance which hasn’t taken place yet. |
| Progressive (or Continuous) |
The author was eating cheesecake when his friends arrived. Formula: was/were + (-ing verb form) Usage: To indicate uncompleted action of the past (with or without time reference); to indicate persistent habits of the past (with continuously, always, forever, etc.) |
The author is eating cheesecake right now. Formula: am/is/are + (-ing verb form) Usage: To indicate action occurring at the time of speaking; to indicate temporary action which may not be occurring at the time of speaking. |
The author will be eating cheesecake when his friends arrive. Formula: will be + (-ing verb form) Usage: To indicate what will be going on at some time in the future; to indicate planned future events. |
| Perfect |
The author had eaten all the cheesecake when his friends arrived. Formula: had + past participle Usage: To indicate a completed action of the past that happened before another event took place. |
The author has eaten all the cheesecake. Formula: have/has + past participle Usage: To indicate past action which is not defined by a time of occurrence; to indicate an action that started in the past and has continued up until now. |
The author will have eaten all the cheesecake by the time his friends arrive. Formula: will have + past participle Usage: To indicate an action that will be complete before another event takes place. |
| Perfect Progressive (or Continuous) |
The author had been eating cheesecake for two hours when his friends arrived. Formula: had been + (-ing verb form) Usage: To indicate an action in the past that began before a certain point in the past and continued up until that point in time. |
The author has been eating cheesecake for two hours. Formula: have/has been + (-ing verb form) Usage: To indicate an action which started at some point in the past and may or may not be complete. |
The author will have been eating cheesecake for two hours when his friends arrive. Formula: will have been + (-ing verb form) Usage: To indicate an action that will have happened for some time and will not be complete yet at a certain point in the future. |
Thank you for this post. All explanations are easy to understand and the chart looks good and very easy to remember.