Quick summary
Tense tells the time of an action: present, past or future. Each time has 4 forms – simple, continuous, perfect and perfect continuous – so there are 12 tenses in all. Learn the formula of each and you can make any sentence.
Short forms used below: S = subject, V1 = base verb (write), V2 = past form (wrote), V3 = past participle (written), ing = verb + ing (writing).
Present tense (वर्तमान काळ)
| Tense | Formula | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Simple Present | S + V1/V1+s/es + O | She writes a letter. |
| 2. Present Continuous | S + is/am/are + V-ing + O | She is writing a letter. |
| 3. Present Perfect | S + has/have + V3 + O | She has written a letter. |
| 4. Present Perfect Continuous | S + has/have been + V-ing + O + since/for | She has been writing since 9 o'clock. |
- Simple present: habits, daily work, universal truths (The sun rises in the east).
- Add s/es with he, she, it and singular nouns: He plays, Seema goes.
- Negative: She does not write. Question: Does she write?
Past tense (भूतकाळ)
| Tense | Formula | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 5. Simple Past | S + V2 + O | He wrote a letter. |
| 6. Past Continuous | S + was/were + V-ing + O | He was writing a letter. |
| 7. Past Perfect | S + had + V3 + O | He had written a letter before I came. |
| 8. Past Perfect Continuous | S + had been + V-ing + O + since/for | He had been writing for two hours. |
- Negative and question of simple past use did + V1: He did not write. Did he write?
- Past perfect shows the earlier of two past actions.
Future tense (भविष्यकाळ)
| Tense | Formula | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 9. Simple Future | S + will/shall + V1 + O | They will write a letter. |
| 10. Future Continuous | S + will/shall be + V-ing + O | They will be writing a letter. |
| 11. Future Perfect | S + will/shall have + V3 + O | They will have written the letter by evening. |
| 12. Future Perfect Continuous | S + will/shall have been + V-ing + O + since/for | They will have been writing for an hour. |
Key points
- Since = a point of time (since Monday, since 2020). For = a length of time (for two days, for 3 hours).
- is with he/she/it/singular, am with I, are with we/you/they/plural.
- Continuous tenses are not normally used with verbs of feeling or owning: know, like, love, want, own (say "I know him", not "I am knowing him").
- Time words help you find the tense: every day, always → simple present; now, at present → present continuous; already, just, yet → present perfect; yesterday, last year, ago → simple past; tomorrow, next week → simple future.
Practice questions
Q1. Fill in the blank with the correct form: "My father ___ (read) the newspaper every morning."
reads (simple present – daily habit).
Q2. "Look! The children ___ (play) in the rain."
are playing (present continuous – "Look!" shows happening now).
Q3. "I ___ (live) in Gondia since 2018."
have been living (present perfect continuous – started in the past, still going on, "since").
Q4. "When we reached the station, the train ___ (leave)."
had left (past perfect – earlier of two past actions).
Q5. Name the tense: "By next June, she will have completed her course."
Future perfect tense.
Q6. Change into negative: "He went to the market."
He did not go to the market.
Exam tip
First find the time word in the sentence, then pick the tense, then apply its formula. Remember: after did/does/do and after will, use V1 only.