English Tenses – Simple Study Notes
(For Arunachal Pradesh Patwari / Lekhpal – Beginner Level)
1. Why Tenses Matter
- Tenses tell us when something happens.
- They help us share our daily work clearly.
| Time | What we use it for | Everyday analogy |
|---|---|---|
| Past | Things that already happened | Looking at a photo |
| Present | Things happening now | Watching TV |
| Future | Things that will happen | Planning a trip |
2. The Three Main Times
| Time | How we say it | Tiny Example |
|---|---|---|
| Past | Add “‑ed” for regular verbs (or use the past form). | I wrote a report. |
| Present | Use the word as it is. | I write a report. |
| Future | Put “will” before the verb. | I will write a report. |
3. Simple Tenses
These are the most basic forms.
| Tense | When to Use | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Present Simple | Habits, general facts | I file land records every day. |
| Past Simple | Completed actions | I filed the record yesterday. |
| Future Simple | Planned actions | I will file the record tomorrow. |
4. Continuous (Progressive) Tenses
Show actions that are in progress.
| Tense | How to build | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Present Continuous | am/are/is + verb‑ing | I am filing the record now. |
| Past Continuous | was/were + verb‑ing | I was filing the record when the phone rang. |
| Future Continuous | will be + verb‑ing | I will be filing the record at 3 pm. |
5. Perfect Tenses
Show actions that completed before another time.
| Tense | How to build | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Present Perfect | have/has + past‑participle | I have filed the record. |
| Past Perfect | had + past‑participle | I had filed the record before the meeting. |
| Future Perfect | will have + past‑participle | I will have filed the record by 5 pm. |
6. Perfect Continuous Tenses
Show actions that started earlier and continued.
| Tense | How to build | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Present Perfect Continuous | have/has been + verb‑ing | I have been filing reports all morning. |
| Past Perfect Continuous | had been + verb‑ing | I had been filing reports when the computer crashed. |
| Future Perfect Continuous | will have been + verb‑ing | I will have been filing reports for 3 hours by noon. |
7. Quick Reference Cheat‑Sheet
| Situation | Tense to Use | Quick Sentence |
|---|---|---|
| Habitual work | Present Simple | I file records. |
| Completed yesterday | Past Simple | I filed records. |
| Work now | Present Continuous | I am filing records. |
| Planned tomorrow | Future Simple | I will file records. |
| Work finished before a meeting | Past Perfect | I had filed records before the meeting. |
| Work finished before a planned time | Future Perfect | I will have filed records by 5 pm. |
8. Practice – Fill in the Blanks
-
(Today) I ___ (file) the land record.
Answer: am filing -
(Yesterday) I ___ (file) the land record.
Answer: filed -
(Tomorrow) I ___ (file) the land record.
Answer: will file -
(Now) The clerk is ___ (file) the report.
Answer: filing -
(Before the meeting) I ___ (file) the record.
*Answer: had