Simple, Continuous, and Perfect Tenses in English

Simple, Continuous, and Perfect Tenses in English

English has many tenses, including the simple, continuous, and perfect tenses. These tenses exist in the present, past, and future. In this posting I talk about how to use all theses tenses, how they are similar, and how they are different. There will be many example sentences. It it important to note that in both conversation and writing, we use the simple tenses most often. The download at the end will give you additional practice using the simple, continuous, and perfect tenses in English.

The present

We will look at the simple, continuous, and perfect tenses in the present. We use the simple present most often.

The simple present

We use the simple present to talk about habits and routines we do over and over again.

I go to work every morning.  I don’t go to the park.

Every Tuesday they eat in a restaurant.  Joe doesn’t go with them.

We also use the simple present to talk about facts or give information.

Carlos works downtown.  He doesn’t work in an office.

The United States has a president. It doesn’t have  a king.

The present continuous

The present continuous shows us what is happening right now. It may not be the same as what you do every day.

Right now she is eating breakfast. She isn’t driving her car.

This year I’m learning to play the piano. I’m not learning to play the drums.

The present perfect

The present perfect (have/has + the past participle) talks about an action that started in the past, but the action is not yet finished. The action is continuing into the present.

I have worked as a secretary  for 8 years. I started working as a secretary 8 years ago, I still work as a secretary now.

I have never worked as a banker.  This includes my whole life up until now.

Have you ever seen the Statue of Liberty?  This includes your entire life up until now.

The past

We can also talk about the past using simple, continuous, and perfect tenses. We use the simple past most often.

The simple past

The simple past talks about and action that happened in the past and is now finished. It is not going on now.

I lived in California for 10 years. This was in the past. I no longer live in California.

I didn’t live in Texas.

The simple past is also used to give us facts or information about the past.

Abraham Lincoln was the 16th president of the United States.

Germany didn’t win World War 2.

Alaska once belonged to Russia.

The past continuous

The past continuous (was/were + the ing form of the verb), like the simple past, talks about an action in the past that is now finished. This action, however, continued over time. During that time another action happened, often just once. The new action interrupted the continuing action. We express the continuing action in the past continuous, and the new action in the simple past. Look at the following sentences.

While I was living in California, and earthquake struck. I was living in California over a period of time (past continuous). During that time, there was an earthquake (simple past).

I wasn’t living in California when the city of Paradise burned down.

When I left work, it was raining. It has raining over time (past continuous). During the rainstorm, I left work (simple past).

It wasn’t snowing when I left work.

The past perfect

The past perfect (had + the past participle) is also used to talk about an actions that were finished in the past. In this case, though, one action happened earlier than the other. The earlier action takes the past perfect. The later action takes the simple past.

I had already finished eating when she arrived at my house. First I finished eating (past perfect). Then she arrived at my house (simple past).

I had not yet gone to bed (when she arrived at my house).

The United States had been independent for many years when World War 1 began. First the United States was an independent country. Then World War 1 started.

The future

We use the simple future more often than the continuous or perfect tenses inn the future.

The simple future

We use the simple future to talk about or predict an action that has not yet happened. However, we expect it to happen in the future.

Tomorrow my son will graduate from high school.  He won’t go to college.

My aunt is going to move to a new house in two weeks. She isn’t going to leave Denver.

The future continuous

This is the formula for the future continuous:

subject + will be + ing form of the verb

I will be traveling.

The future continuous is used to talk about an action that will happen in the future, but it will continue over time. We express the continuing action in the future continuous. We often pair this action with another action that will happen later in the future. We express this later action in the simple present.

I will be traveling when you get to work tomorrow. Neither event has happened yet. However, first I will be traveling (future continuous). My travels will continue over time. Then you will get to work (simple present).

I won’t be drinking coffee when you get to work tomorrow.

The future perfect

We do not use the future perfect very often in English. This is how you form it:

subject + will have + past participle of the verb

They will have worked.

We use the future perfect to discuss two events that will happen in the future, one earlier and one later. The earlier even takes the future perfect. The later event takes the simple present.

I will have worked at my job for 2 years when you join our company. Neither of these events have happened yet. However, I have worked at the company for nearly two years, and I still work there, so that is the earlier action (future continuous). The later action is that you will join the company (simple present).

I won’t have worked there 3 years (when you join us).

You now know that you can use the simple, continuous, and perfect tenses in English to talk about all three time periods: the present, past, and future. We use the simple tenses most often. The simple tenses talks about routines or habits, give us information, or make predictions. The continuous tenses talk about actions that  continue over time. Finally, the perfect tenses talk about earlier actions followed by later actions. The earlier actions take the perfect tenses, and the later actions take simple tenses. The download will give you additional practice using the simple, continuous, and perfect tenses.

Idioms of the day

1. monkey business — This means silly or inappropriate (bad or wrong) behavior. Martha told her children not to try any monkey business while they were at the movies
2. to smell a rat — This means to suspect that something is wrong.  When Maria saw her husband eating in a restaurant with her best friend, she smelled a rat.

Are you an ESL teacher searching for past perfect continuous tense exercises? In the article below we have prepared past perfect continuous tense exercises with answers. Practice with students and compare their answers with the correct answers given in the article.

Also Read:

Past Perfect Continuous Tense Exercises

Exercise 1:

Complete the sentences in the Past Perfect Progressive.
1. Laura needed a break because she (solving)______________________ past perfect continuous tense exercises all morning.
2. When Lorraine moved to England, she (learn)______________________ English for 12 years.
3. I did not go out last night because I (work)____________________________________ all day.
4. Orla felt fit for the marathon because she (exercise)___________________________ a lot.
5. When I went to see Miss. Winter, her secretary told me that she (speak)________________________on the phone for two hours.
6. You got sick because you (eat)_____________________________ all the time.
7. When the musician became director of the opera house, he (live)__________________________ in this town for ten years.
8. We (go)____________________________ out together for two years before I met his family.
9. The passengers (wait)_____________________ for four hours before the ground staff could finally give them information on the delay of their flight.
10. When I noticed my mistake, I (drive)__________________________for an hour in the wrong direction.

Exercise 2:

Complete the sentences using Past Perfect Continuous:
1. She ___________________________________________ (not/sit) at home for long before she went out.
2. Had _____________________________ (they/stay) in a hotel before they found a flat in Warsaw?
3. Mary __________________________________________ (not/wait) long when he turned up.
4. How long ______________________________(you/ learn) English before you took TOEFL?
5. Jack ______________________________(work) on the project for at least half an hour when the boss came in.
6. Had __________________________ (she/sing) for a long time when that crazy fan attacked her?
7. Why were you so hot when we met? ____________________________(you/run)?
8. She ______________________________ (see) Mike for only six months before she married him.
9. Had _________________________ (you/think) about that problem before Tom started talking about it?
10. They ______________________________________ (not/fly) for a long time when the plane crashed.
11. Had______________________(Mark/do) such kind of things before or was that the first time?
12. We _______________________________________________ (travel) all day before we got to Madrid.
13. __________________________ (you/work) in a garage? Why were you so dirty when I saw you?
14. They ____________________________ (not/practice) the piano for long before they were ready to perform.
15. Had __________________ (she/train) guide dogs for a long time before she changed her job?
16. My friends _____________________________ (not/drink) alcohol before they went to that club.
17. Had ________________________(Maria/drive) for many hours when that accident happened?
18. The man ______________________________________________(not/paint) the walls all day long.
19. It ________________________________( not/rain) before we went out.
20. Why _______________________ (you/behave) so strangely before I talked to you?

Exercise 3:

A) Make the past perfect continuous positive sentences:
1. I _______________________________________________(work) all day, so I didn’t want to go out.
2. She __________________________________________(sleep) for ten hours when I woke her up.
3. They ______________________________(live) in Beijing for three years when he lost his job.
4. When we met, you ______________________________ (work) at that company for six months.
5. We (eat) __________________________________ all day, so we felt a bit ill.
6. He was red in the face because he ___________________________(run).
7 . It ___________________________________________(rain), and the road was covered in water.
8. I was really tired because I _________________________________(study).
9. We ____________________________________(go) out for three years when we got married.

B) Make the past perfect continuous negative sentences:
1. I _____________________________________________________ (not / work) there long when she quit.
2. She _________________________________________________ (not / work) but she was tired anyway.
3. It __________________________________________________________(not / rain) long when I got home.
4. He was in trouble with the teacher because he___________________________________(not / go) to classes.
5. We ____________________________(not / live) in London for three years when we got married.
6. Although it was hot in the kitchen, Julie ________________________________ (cook) for hours.
7. I _____________________________________not / sleep) long when there was a knock on the door.

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Answers

Exercise 1.
Exercise 2.
Exercise 3.

1. had been solving
1. had not been sitting

(A)

2. has been learning
2. they been staying
1.  had been working

3. had been working
3. had not been waiting
2. had been sleeping

4. had been exercising
4. had you been learning
3. had been living

5. had been speaking
5. had been working
4. had been working

6. had been eating
6. she been singing
5. had been eating

7. had been living
7. had you been running
6. had been running

8. had been going
8. had been seeing
7. had been raining

9. had been waiting
9. you been thinking
8. had been studying

10. had been driving
10. had not been flying
9. had been going

11. Mark been doing

(B)

12. had been traveling
1. had not been working

13. Had you been working
2. had not been working

14. had not been practicing
3. had not been raining

15. she been training
4. had not been going

16. had not been drinking
5. had not been living

17. Maria been driving
6. had been cooking

18. had not been painting
7. had not been sleeping

19. had not been raining

20. had you been behaving

Conversation using past perfect continuous tense:

S1: How long had you been living in the USA before you decided to move back into your homeland?

S2: I guess we`d been living there for over fifteen years by the time we left.

S1: That was a long time

S2: Yeah, it sure was.

S1: So tell me what had you been doing for a living over there?

S2: Well, I`d been a student the whole time, but my father and older brothers had been working in different fields until we decided to leave the USA.

S1: And when did you get back to your country.

S2: I think it was 2010.

S1: So what have been doing over here since then?

S2: I have been a student at SBK University since we returned to Quetta.

Conclusion:

Solve past perfect continuous tense exercises then compare your answers and with the correct answers given above, and if you find any mistake in the article, please feel to mention it in the comment section below.

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