CAMBODIAN MEKONG UNIVERSITY

Is the university that cares for the value of education

Tutor: VinhSovann

ENGLISH TENSES

Form and Usage of Verb Tenses in English

Simple Present
Formation: Subject + Verb1 + …

Usages and Examples:

1. To express a habitual and repeated actions

 I usually get up at 6:00 in the morning.
 Rithy rides her bicycles to school everyday.
2. To express general truths or scientific facts.
 The sun rises in the East and sets in the West.
 Ice melts when we heat it.
 Water boils at 100oc.
3. To talk about permanent state.
 I am a student in Cambodian Mekong University.
 I live in Phnom Penh with my parents.
 My uncle lives in Kampong Speu.
4. To show opinion (state verbs) that related to people‟s emotion.
 I have a new car.
 I love her so much how.
5. To show about timetable or schedule
 The concert starts at 7:00 PM tomorrow night.
Note:
Verbs used with He, She, It or singular noun:
1. Most verbs are added „s‟
 She works in a bank.
 My mother lives in the countryside.
2. Verbs ending in a consonant plus „y‟ are changed „y‟ to „i‟ and added „es‟.
 He studies English with me very day.
3. Verbs ending in „sh, ch, ss, x, o‟ are added „es‟.
 My teacher finishes his work at 6:00 every evening.
 The cat watches TV like the human.
Taught by Mr. Vinh Sovann
  My sister dresses very well.
 He boxes every Saturday.
 She goes to school every morning.

Present Progressive or Continuous

Formation: Subject + (am/is/are) + Present Participle (Verb-ing) + …

Usages and Examples:

1. To indicate that an action is in progress now or around now.

 I am teaching grammar at the moment.
 Tammy is working on the first draft of her essay.
2. To indicate that temporary action.
 I am visiting Siem Reap.
 Mark is working for his uncle. (he may not work for his uncle permanently)
3. To express the action is change.
 We are getting older and older.
 The weather in Cambodia is getting hotter and hotter.
4. To show about repeated or annoying action.
 She is always coming late.
 He is always speaking fast.
 My mother is always blaming me.
5. To show about the future arrangement
 I am meeting my boss tonight.
Note:
Rules of using Verb + ing
1. Verbs ending in a consonant + „e‟ are omitted „e‟ and added „ing‟.
Write writing
Come coming
One-syllable verbs ending in a vowel + a consonant are doubled consonant and added „ing‟
Cut cutting
Run running
Box boxing except ending in „x and w‟
Flow flowing
Two-syllable verbs ending a vowel + a consonant and having stress in first syllable are doubled consonant and
added „ing‟.
Refer referring
Cancel Cancelling
but
Visit visiting
Taught by Mr. Vinh Sovann
 Listen listening

Simple Past
Formation: Subject + Past form(V2) + …

Usages and Examples:

1. To express an action that began happening and ending in a specific time in the past.
 I met Mr. Sovann at the airport yesterday.
2. To express an action that occurred over a period of time and was completed in the past.
 He built his house since 1999.
 He built his house for five years.
3. To express an action that toke place regularly in the past.
 She trained every morning before work.
 He always carried an umbrella last year.
4. To tell a story in past time or narrated
 The Titanic sank at 2:20 A.M at the morning of April 15th. Until the moment that it sank, the band, under the
direction of bandmaster Wally Hartley, played hymns.
Formation of verbal past form
1. Regular verb
- Many verbs used as past simple add „ed‟.
Ex: Present Past
Work worked
Walk walked
Kick kicked
- Verbs ending in „e‟ add „d‟.
Ex: Present Past
Love loved
Hate hated
Complete completed
- Verbs ending in a vowel and a consonant;
the consonant is doubled and add „ed‟.
Ex: Present Past
Occur occurred
Stop Stopped
Admit admitted
- Verbs ending in a consonant + y; change „y‟
to „i‟ and add „ed‟.
Ex: Present Past
Taught by Mr. Vinh Sovann
 Carry carried
Study studied
Try tried
2. Irregular verb
Read irregular verb list.
Pronunciation of ‘ed’.
1. „ed‟ is pronounced „id‟ when the verb
ending in „t, te, d, de.‟
Ex: Present Past
Want wanted
Wait waited
End ended
Add added
2. „ed‟ is pronounced „t‟ when the verb ending
in „k, ke, p, pe, gh, ch, sh, ss, se, ce, x, ge.‟
Ex: Present Past
Look looked
Smoke smoked
Stop stopped
Hope hoped
Laugh laughed
Watch watched
Finish finished
Dress dressed
Please pleased
Produce produced
Box boxed
Engage engaged
3. Besides 1 and 2, „ed‟ is pronounced „d.‟

Taught by Mr. Vinh Sovann

 Past Progressive or Continuous
Formation: Subject + (was/were) + Present Participle (-ing)

Usages and Examples:

1. For a temporary action that was happening in the past.

 At the time of robbery, they were staying with my parents.
2. For an action which was occurring at some specific time in the past.
 Henry was eating a snack at twelve last night.
3. For two actions that were occurring at the same time in the past.
 Martha was watching TV while Mary was reading book.
4. For an action which was occurring in the past and was interrupted by another action.
 I was watching TV when Mark came home.
When and While with Simple Past and Past Continuous Tense
Clause with when are most often in the simple past tense. If both verbs are in the simple past, the action
in the when clause happened first.
Form
Sub + past simple + when + sub + past simple
Or
When + sub + past simple, + sub + past simple
 We went home when the movie ended.
 When the movie ended, we went home.
Clause with while are most often in the past continuous tense. If both verbs are in the past continuous, it
means the two actions were going on at the same time.
Form
Sub + past progressive + while + sub + past progressive
Or
While + sub + past progressive, + sub + past progressive
 She was watching TV while her husband was using the computer.
 While she was watching TV, her husband was using the computer.

The simple past and the past continuous can appear in the same sentence. In these cases, while begins
clause with the past continuous and when begins clause with the past simple. One event began before the others
and was in progress when the second event interrupted it.
Form
Sub + past progressive + when + sub + past simple
Or

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 Sub + past simple + while + sub + past progressive
 My mother was listening to the radio when she got the call.
 My mother got the call while she was listening to the radio.

Present Prefect Simple

Formation: Subject + (have/has) + Past Participle

Usages and Examples:

1. To show an action that happened in the past and continues to the present.
 I have taught in Cambodian Mekong University for 2 years.
 Hiroaki has lived in Japan for three years.
2. To show an action that happened in the past and just finished recently and completely.
 We have already eaten breakfast.
3. To indicate an experience.
 I have been to Siem Reap 2 times.
 My friend has never eaten dog meat.
4. To express an action that happens at an indefinite time (unspecific time) in the past.
 I have met her somewhere before.
5. To answer the questions like: how many, how much, how often, how far
 I have spent 5,000 Riels this morning for my breakfast.
 I have run 3 kilometers.

Present Perfect Progressive

Formation: Subject + (have/has) + been + Present Participle (-ing)

Usages and Examples:

1. An action that happened in the past and continues to the present but talk about long duration and still
continue.
 He has been teaching in Cambodian Mekong University for 2 years.
2. An action that just finished but not fully completely.
 I am soaked because I have been washing my car.
3. To answer the questions like: how long (duration)
 I have been working here for 3 years.

Taught by Mr. Vinh Sovann

 Past Perfect
Formation: Subject + had + Past Participle

Usages and Examples:

1. To indicate an action that was completed before another action was completed in the past.
 Sam had already left by the time Ann got there.
 The thief simply walked in. someone had forgotten to lock the door.

Past Perfect Progressive

Formation: Subject + had + been + Present Participle (-ing)

Usages and Examples:

1. It emphasizes the duration of an activity that was in progress before another activity or time in the pas.
 The police had been looking for the criminal for two years before they caught him.
 Eric finally came at six o‟clock. I had been waiting for him since four-thirty.

Future Simple
There are four form of future simple.
1. Present Simple as Future
We use present simple as future to describe organizational timetable/schedule.
Ex: The bus leaves at 8:00 tomorrow morning.
Your plane leaves London at 8:00 and arrives in Chairo at 12:00.
2. Present Continuous as Future
We use present continuous as future to talk about future arrangement (near future).
Ex: I am meeting Soriya tonight.
What are you doing on Friday night?
3. Will/shall
i. Future fact (the real future)
Ex: Today is Friday, so tomorrow will be Saturday.
Next year, I will be 20 years old.
ii. Promise/willingness/request/offer
Ex: I will love you only one.
I commit that I will study hard.
Shall I close this computer?
iii. Prediction and unintentional decision
Ex: Today, it will rain a lot.
I will go to market tomorrow.
4. Be going to
i. Future plan
Ex: They are going to open the new office on 1st March.
We are going to get married next month.
ii. Future prediction base on evidence

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 Ex: Look at the snow. It is going to be difficult to get there.
There are a lot of black clouds and cold wind. It is going to rain now.

Future Continuous
Form of the future continuous:
will be Verb + ing

Affirmative Negative Interrogative

I will /‟ll b finishing. I will not / won‟t be finishing. Will you be finishing?

Use of the future progressive

We use the future continuous to talk about something that will be in progress at or around a time in the future.
 Don’t phone grandma now, she’ll be having dinner.
 The kids are very quiet. They’ll be doing something wrong, I know it!
 Don’t ring at 8 o’clock. I’ll be watching Who Wants to be a Millionaire.
 This time tomorrow we’ll be sitting on the beach. I can’t wait!

Future perfect simple

Form of the future perfect simple:
will have past participle

Affirmative Negative Interrogative

I will /‟ll have finished. I will not / won‟t have finished. will you have finished?

Use of the simple future simple:

The Future Perfect shows that something will occur before:

1. another action occurs in the future.
2. or before a specific time in the future.
Ex:
 By the end of this weekend, I will have revised my lessons.
 By the time her husband arrives home, she will have prepared dinner.
 I won't have finished this task by the end of June.
 I will have finished my English homework by the time my mother arrives.
 Will you have finished your English homework by the time your mother arrives?

Future Perfect Continuous

Form of future perfect continuous:
will have been verb+ing

Affirmative Negative Interrogative

I will have been teaching. I will not/won't have been teaching. will you have been teaching?
Use of the future perfect continuous:

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It is used to show that an action will continue up until a particular event or time in the future. If we are talking
about actions which are not finished, we can use the Perfect Continuous. “For five minutes,” and “for two
weeks,” are all durations which can be used with the Future Perfect Continuous.
Examples:
 She will have been working for over 8 hours by the time her children arrive. .
 He will have been studying English for three years next month.
 I will have been teaching for more than 35 years when I retire.
 Will you have been teaching for more than 35 years when you retire?

Taught by Mr. Vinh Sovann