Tenses - General English - TNPSC

 

TENSES

Tense	Signal Word	Use	Example Sentence
Simple Present/Present Simple	• Every day • Sometimes • Always • Often • Usually • Seldom • Never • First ... then	• Something that happens repeatedly • How often something happens • One action follows another • Things in general • With the following verbs (to love, to hate, to think, etc.) • Future meaning: timetables, programmes	The sun rises in the east.
Present Continuous	• Now • At the moment • Look! • Listen! • Last ... • ... ago • In 1990 • Yesterday	• Something is happening at the same time of speaking or around it • Future meaning: when you have already decided and arranged to do it (a fixed plan, date) • Action finished in the past, mostly connected with an expression of time	The boys are playing hockey.
Past Continuous	• While	• An action that happened in the middle of another action • Someone was doing something at a certain time (in the past) that you do not know whether it was finished or not	She was singing.
Present Perfect	• Just • Yet • Never • Ever • Already • So far • Up to now • Since • For • Recently	• You say that something has happened or is finished in the past and it has a connection to the present • An action that was started in the past and continues up to the present	He has just gone out.

Present Perfect Continuous	• All day • The whole day • How long • Since • For	• An action that began in the past and has just stopped • How long the action has been happening • Emphasis: length of time of an action	Mala has been suffering from cold for the last two days.
Past Perfect	• Already • Just • Never	• Mostly when two actions in a story are related to each other: the action which had already happened is put into past perfect, the other action into simple past • The past of present perfect	The train had started when he came.
Past Perfect Continuous	• How long • Since • For	• How long something had been happening before something else happened	Anand had already been teaching there for five years.
Will - future	• Predictions about the future (you think that something will happen) • You decide to do something spontaneously at the time of speaking (you haven't made a decision before) • The main clause in type I of the ‘if clauses’	I'm sure Helen will get a first class.
Going to - future	• When you have already decided to do something in the future • What you think what will happen	I am going to the cinema tonight.
Future Continuous	• An action will be in progress at a certain time in the future. This action has begun before the certain time • Something happens because it normally happens	My friend will be meeting me by this time tomorrow.
Future Perfect	• Something will have already happened before a certain time in the future	By the end of this month, I will have worked here for five years.
Future Perfect Continuous	• Something will have already happened before a certain time in the future • Emphasis: length of time of an action	By next March, we shall have been living here for four years.

Tense	Form
Simple Present	S + V1 + O
Present Continuous	S + am/is/are + (V + ing) + O
Present Perfect	S + have/has + V3 + O
Present Perfect Continuous	S + have/has been + (V + ing) + O
Simple Past	S + V2 + O
Past Continuous	S + was/were + (V + ing) + O
Past Perfect	S + had + V3 + O
Past Perfect Continuous	S + had been + (V + ing) + O
Future Simple	S + will + V + O
Future Continuous	S + will be + (V + ing) + O

Exercise
1. The Earth ________ round the Sun.
(move/moves/moved)
2. My friends _________ the Prime Minister yesterday.
(see/have seen/saw)
3. I ______ him only one letter up to now. (sent, have sent,
send)
4. She ________ worried about something. (looks/looking/is
looking)
5. It started to rain while we _________ tennis. (are
playing/were playing/had played)
6. He _________ fast when the accident happened. (is
driving/was driving/drove)
7. He _______ asleep while he was dining. (falls/fell/has
fallen)
8. I'm sure I ________ him at the party last night. (saw/have
seen/had seen)
9. He _____ a mill in this town. (have/has/is having)
10. He ______ here for the last five years. (worked/is
working/has been working)
11. He thanked me for what I _______. (have done/had
done/have been doing)
12. I _________ a strange noise. (hear/am hearing/have been
hearing)
13. I _______ him for a long time. (know/have known/am
knowing)

14. I ___________ English for five years (study/am
studying/have been studying)
15. Don't disturb me, I _________ my homework. (do/did/am
doing)
16. Abdul _______ to be a doctor. (wants/wanting/is
wanting)
17. The soup ________ good. (taste/tastes/is tasting)
18. He __________ TV most evenings. (watches/is watch/is
watching)
19. He _________ out five minutes ago. (has gone/had
gone/went)
20. When he lived in Hyderabad, he ______ to the cinema
once a week. (goes/went/was going)

Answers
1.	moves	11.	had done
2.	saw	12.	hear
3.	have sent	13.	have known
4.	looks/is	14.	have been studying
5.	were playing	15.	am doing
6.	was driving	16.	wants
7.	fell	17.	tastes
8.	saw	18.	watches
9.	has	19.	went
10.	has been working	20.	went

Fill in the blanks with the past perfect tense of the given
word.
1. When Usha looked out of the window, dark clouds
__________ (gather) over the mountains.
2. She had no umbrella with her. The weather
__________________ (seem) so fine just a few hours ago.
3. All was dark again. Night __________ (fall).
4. She ran towards the big gap in the wall through which she
___________ (enter).
5. Usha looked back at the ruins. The sun ____________
(come) up and was touching the top of the walls.

Answers
1. had gathered 2. had seemed
3. had fallen 4. had entered 5. had come
Fill in the blanks with the appropriate form of the verbs
given in the brackets.
1. When the burglars broke into the house, everybody
_________ (have) sound sleep.
2. The milk ____ (spill) over as she went to see the crowd
passing by with loud slogans.
3. If Karthik _________ (not + make) any mistake, he will be
rewarded.
4. They were watching the TV when they _________ (hear) a
loud bang at the door.
5. The bus _________ (leave) the stop before we could catch
it.
6. Arya _______ (play) the same song for the last three days.
It has become boring now.
7. Manju _______ (call) after we reached home.
8. The show _______ (complete) one thousand episodes by
next month.
9. Don’t worry, we will be _______ (reach) the airport in
time.
10. Prasanna has _______ (fall) sick after eating some snacks
at the street side shop.

Answers:
1. was having a 2. was spitting
3. did not make 4. heard
5. left 6. had been playing
7. called 8. will have been completed
9. reaching 10. fallen
Choose the correct form of the present tense of the verb
from the options given.
1. All children __________ something new every day.
(learn/learns/learned)
2. A good student always ________ hard.
(work/works/worked)
3. Engineers ___________ bridges. (build/builds/built)
4. My sister is an architect. She __________ skyscrapers.
(design/designs/designed)
5. The Himalayas ______________ India from the cold winds.
(protect/protects/protected)
6. It always ________ here in the afternoon.
(drizzle/drizzles/drizzled)
7. My mother _____________ in a factory.
(work/works/worked)
8. Kamali ________ English very well, but she doesn’t
understand Hindi. (speak/speaks/spoke)
9. Cows __________ us milk. (give/gives/gave)
10. The trains to Chennai always _________ on time.
(run/runs/ran)

Answers
1. learn 2. works 3. build 4. designs
5. protect 6. drizzles 7. works 8. speaks
9. give 10. run

Fill in the blanks using the verbs in the brackets in the future
form.
1. We ________ not ________ to the market, in case it
rains. (go)
2. Keerthi ________ his work by next week. (do)
3. The peon ________ the bell by the time I reach the school.
(ring)
4. I ________ my sister's house next April if I go to
Uttarkhand. (visit)
5. If you listen carefully, you ________ my point.
(understand)
6. By next year, I ________ in Chennai for fifteen years. (live)
7. The new edition of this book ________ out shortly. (come)
8. She hopes you ________ her. (help)
Answers
1. will, go 2. will do/will be doing
3. will be ringing 4. will visit
5. will understand 6. shall have lived
7. will come 8. will help

Fill in the blanks with the correct form of the verbs in
brackets.
The people of India, as a whole, (1) ___________ (be) warm
hearted and hospitable. Any calamity in any part of the world
immediately (2) ___________ (arise) their charity and
generosity and a committee (3) ___________ (be) promptly
(4) ___________ (set) up to collect funds to help the
distressed. The most endearing quality in them (5)
___________ (be) the respect they show for the work done
in any capacity. They (6) ___________ (believe) in what we
(7) ___________ (call) the dignity
of labour.

Answers
1. are 2. arouses 3. is 4. set
5. is 6. believe 7. call

Fill in the blanks using the past tense form of the verbs.
1. I ____________ never _______ (see) such a beautiful
sunrise before I came here.
2. We were not able to stay overnight as we ___________
not (reserve) the tickets in advance.
3. Nirmala ___________ (be) to the concert several times.
4. Mariappan knew Pudukottai so well because he
____________ (live) there for five years.
5. Yusuf understood the problem because he __________
(experience) the situation earlier.
6. Catherine did not have any cash because she
____________ (lose) her purse.
7. My father _________ (be) to Mumbai once before.
8. The cat ___________ (chase) the bird before it flew out of
the yard.
9. Edith _____________ (visit) several doctors before she
found out what the problem was with her knee.
10.If we _______ (call) the manager ahead, we would not
have needed to wait so long for a table.

Answers
1. had never seen 2. did not reserve 3. had been
4. had lived 5. had experienced 6. had lost
7. had been 8. had chased 9. visited
10. had called

Fill in the blanks with the correct form of the verbs given in
the brackets.
1. Everyone ___________ when the earthquake hit the small
town. (sleep)
2. Evangelene ___________ her job a couple of years ago.
(quit)
3. Where ___________ your last holidays? (you spend)
4. I think Suresh ___________ for Tiruvallur next morning.
(leave)
5. I was angry___________ that I such a mistake. (make)
6. My mother was tired yesterday because she ___________
well the night before. (not sleep)
7. Her parents___________ in Coimbatore for two weeks
from today. (be)
8. Nothing much ___________ when I got to the meeting.
(happen)
9. Scientists predict that by 2050, man ___________ on Mars.
(land)
10. Sh! Someone ___________ to our conversation. (listen)
11. The plane ___________ off in a few minutes. (take)
12. They ___________ about me when I interrupted their
conversation. (talk)
13. Justin and his parents ___________ in an apartment right
now because they can’t find a cheap house. (live)
14. Rajini Prem’s family ___________ in Chengalpet now.
(be)
15. Yusuf ___________ to the movies once in a while. (go)
16. This ___________ an easy quiz so far. (be)
17. Our team ___________ any games last year. (not win)
18. We ___________ a wonderful film at the cinema last
night. (see)
19. Hurry up! The movie __________. (already begin)

Answers
1. was sleeping 2. had quit 3. did you spend
4. left 5. had made 6. had not slept 7. will be
8. had happened 9. will land 10. is listening
11. will take 12. were talking
13. are living 14. is 15. goes
16. has been 17. did not win
18. saw 19. may have already begun