What You Need to Know

Key Concept Diagram

Simple past tense describes completed actions (e.g. "She walked to school")

Simple present tense describes current actions or general truths (e.g. "He walks to school")

Simple future tense describes actions that have not yet happened (e.g. "They will walk to school")

Perfect tenses show an action completed before or connected to another time (e.g. "She has walked five km today")

Key Vocabulary

Verb tense

The form of a verb that shows when an action takes place (past, present, or future)

Past tense

The verb form used to describe actions that have already happened

Present tense

The verb form used to describe actions happening now or regularly

Future tense

The verb form used to describe actions that will happen later

Knowledge Check

Select the correct answer for each question. Click "Check Answer" to see if you are right.

Question 1

Identify the verb tense in this sentence: "The children played in the park."

Past tense Future tense Present tense Perfect tense

Question 2

Which sentence uses the future tense correctly?

She went to the shops. She will go to the shops. She is going to the shops. She goes to the shops.

Question 3

Which sentence has an inconsistent (incorrect) tense?

They will come tomorrow and bring food. She ate breakfast and brushed her teeth. He runs to the bus and caught it. I study hard and always do my best.

Grammar: Verb Tenses