- •Contents
- •The Future-In-The-Past Tense……………………………………………………………..45 the present indefinite (simple) tense
- •I. The formation of the Present Indefinite.
- •1. The Present Indefinite is formed from the infinitive without the particle to.
- •9. To denote future actions in adverbial clauses of time after conjunctions when
- •10. To denote future actions in adverbial clauses of condition after conjunctions if
- •In case
- •11. To denote future actions in adverbial clauses of concession after conjunctions
- •What do we do next?
- •The present continuous tense
- •III. The Present Continuous Tense is used to denote:
- •Actions or events which are in progress at the moment of speaking. To emphasize this, we often use adverbials like now, at the moment, just, etc.:
- •6. For a frequently repeated action, usually when the frequency annoys the speaker or
- •7. For an action which appears to be continuous:
- •8. To describe current trends:
- •Verbs not normally used in the continuous tenses
- •VII. Verbs denoting effect or influence: astonish, impress, please, satisfy, surprise. Feel, look, smell and taste used in the continuous forms
- •2. Look
- •3. Smell
- •4.Taste
- •See and hear used in the continuous forms
- •Think, assume and expect used in the continuous forms
- •The past indefinite (simple) tense
- •I. The formation of the Past Indefinite.
- •Verbs ending in -e add -d only:
- •3. The contracted negative forms are:
- •4. The negative-interrogative forms are:
- •Irregular verbs: form
- •If the period is over or reference is made to a particular past point of time within that
- •2. In narrations to express a succession of action of past actions.
- •3. To express recurrent actions. It is generally supported by the use of adverbial modifiers
- •4. To express the immediate past. We can sometimes use the simple past without a time
- •6. To express permanent actions which indicate continuous, uninterrupted processes in the past, giving a general characteristic of the person or thing denoted by the subject.
- •The past continuous tense
- •2. The Past Continuous is used to express an action going on at a given period of time in the past.
- •The future indefinite (simple) tense
- •I. The formation of the Future Indefinite Tense
- •1. The Future Indefinite is formed by means of the auxiliary verbs shall/will
- •3. To denote future habitual actions which we assume will take place.
- •4. In sentences containing clauses of condition, time and sometimes purpose
- •The future continuous tense
- •The present perfect tense
- •III. The use of the Present Perfect
- •Have you been to Denmark?
- •Is this the first time you’ve been in hospital?
- •The present perfect continuous tense
- •I. The formation of the Present Perfect Continuous Tense
- •The past perfect tense
- •Had he not worked?
- •Hadn’t you worked?
- •The Squire was purple with anger before his son had done speaking.
- •With verbs not admitting of the Continuous form:
- •In negative sentences:
- •II. The contracted affirmative forms are:
- •Had he not been working?
- •Hadn’t you been working?
- •III. The use of the Past Perfect Continuous
- •The future perfect tense
- •I. The formation of thePerfect Continuous Tense
- •Will he not have worked?
- •Shan’t we have worked?
- •III. The use of the Future Perfect
- •The future perfect continuous tense
- •I. The formation of the Future Perfect Continuous Tense
- •II. The contracted affirmative forms are:
- •The Future Perfect Continuous denotes an action begun before a definite moment in the future and continued into that future moment;
- •The future-indefinite-in-the-past
- •I. The formation of the Future-Indefinite-in-the-Past
- •II. The contracted affirmative forms are:
- •Shouldn’t I work/
- •III. The use of the Future-Indefinite-in-the-Past.
- •The future-continuous-in-the-past
- •I. The formation of the Future-Continuous-in-the-Past
- •II. The contracted affirmative forms are:
- •I. The formation of the Future-Continuous-in-the-Past
- •I. The formation of the Future-Perfect-in-the-Past
- •II. The contracted affirmative forms are:
- •Should I not have been working?
- •Wouldn’t he have been working?
- •III. The use of the Future-Perfect-Continuous-in-the-Past
- •List of irregular verbs
- •Appendix
- •I. Some spelling rules
- •I. Doubling the final consonant.
- •II. Mute Final e.
- •III. Final -y and Its Modifications.
The present perfect tense
I. The formation of the Present Perfect Tense
The Present Perfect is built by means of the auxiliary verb to have in the Present Indefinite and Participle II of the notional verb (with regular verbs the Participle is formed by adding the suffix –ed, irregular verbs are used in the form of Participle II according to the list of irregular verbs).
In the interrogative form the auxiliary verb is placed before the subject.
In the negative form the negative particle not is placed after the auxiliary verb.
Affirmative |
Interrogative |
Negative |
I have worked |
Have I worked? |
I have not worked |
You have worked |
Have you worked? |
You have not worked |
He/She/It has worked |
Has he/she/it worked? |
He/She/It has not worked |
We have worked |
Have we worked? |
We have not worked |
They have worked |
Have they worked? |
They have not worked |
II. The contracted affirmative forms are:
I’ve worked
He’s worked
You’ve worked
The contracted negative forms are:
I haven’t worked
He hasn’t worked
You haven’t worked
The negative-interrogative forms are:
Has she not worked?
Hasn’t she worked?
Have you not worked?
Haven’t you worked?
III. The use of the Present Perfect
1. In English we usually use the Present Perfect to talk about actions in the past when we are not thinking or talking about the exact time that they took place. The time is not important. However there may be results or effects now.
Have you met Peter?
(We are not interested in when you met him, only if you have or not.)
Vicky has already eaten her lunch.
(We are not interested in when.)
I’ve broken the window.
(It doesn’t matter when I broke the window. What matters is that now I’m in trouble!)
2. We can use the Present Perfect for longer actions which started in the past and are still happening.
I have lived in Vienna for two years.
(I was in Vienna two years ago. I am still in Vienna now.)
I have worked for this company for over two years.
3. We use the present perfect to show that an action happened during a period of time up to now.
I’ve only seen six tigers.
(In my life up to now.)
Have you been to Denmark?
(In your life up to now.)
This means that we can use the present perfect for actions where the time has not yet finished.
Thursday: I’ve seen two films this week.
(The week has not finished yet.)
4. We use the Present Perfect for an action that happened in the past and may happen again. We can show that something will not happen again by using the past simple.
I have been to the Moscow State Circus.
(And may go again.)
Compare:
I went to the circus last year.
(Now it has left and I can’t go again.)
◆BEEN and GONE
He has gone to Spain. (He has left and is still there.)
He has been to Spain. (He has visited and come back.)
He has been in Spain for a week. (He left a week ago and is still there.)
5. We can use the Present Perfect with the following “time guides”: just, already, yet, always, ever, never, often, lately, of late, recently, so far, up to now, repeatedly.
Hello, have you just arrived?
I have already started my new job.
We haven’t seen George recently.
They haven’t had any problems so far.
6. We use the Present Perfect after a superlative.
What a boring film! It’s the most boring film I’ve ever seen.
7. We use the Present Perfect with This is the first time…, It’s the first time….
Ron is driving a car. It’s his first time behind the wheel of a car. This is the first time he has driven a car.