43
a.
Simple Verb Tenses• These verb tenses are used to express actions in their simplest form. There are three forms of the simple tense: past, present and future. Simple past I walked to the store today. To create this tense use the second principal part of the verb, from Column II. Simple present He walks to school. To create this tense use the first principal part of the verb, from Column I. Simple future They will walk to the movies tomorrow. To create this tense use shall or will as auxiliaries along with the first principal part of the verb from Column I. Notice that the future tense always contains an extra word: shall or will. Today, “will” is almost always used when speaking about the future, but the correct written form uses “shall” in the first person, I and we; will in the second and third person. I shall walk to the store. We shall walk home You (singular-one person) will sing a song. You (plural) will write that test. He will talk to them They will attend the lecture. She will make the cake. It will be here.
SUMMARY OF SIMPLE TENSES TENSE
AUXILIARY
PRINCIPAL PART
EXAMPLE
Simple past
none
Column II - past
I walked
Simple present
none
Column I - present
I walk, he walks
Column I - present
They will publish
Simple future
b.
will or shall
Perfect Tenses The three forms of the perfect tense (past, present and future) are used to express a single action which has been, or is about to be, completed. The perfect tenses are often used to show which of two actions happened first. It is built using