English Grammar - Tenses

Front

What is a tense in English grammar?

Back

A tense is a grammatical category that locates a situation in time, indicating when an action takes place (past, present, future).

Tags

CCSS.L.4.1B

CCSS.L.5.1.B-D

CCSS.L.5.1B

CCSS.L.5.1C

CCSS.L.5.1D

Front

What is the present continuous tense?

Back

The present continuous tense describes actions that are currently happening or ongoing. It is formed using 'am/is/are' + verb-ing (e.g., 'I am doing').

Tags

CCSS.L.3.1E

CCSS.L.4.1B

CCSS.L.5.1.B-D

CCSS.L.5.1C

CCSS.L.5.1D

Front

What is the simple past tense?

Back

The simple past tense describes actions that were completed in the past. It often uses the second form of the verb (e.g., 'I walked').

Tags

CCSS.L.3.1E

CCSS.L.4.1B

CCSS.L.5.1.B-D

CCSS.L.5.1C

CCSS.L.5.1D

Front

What is the future simple tense?

Back

The future simple tense describes actions that will happen in the future. It is formed using 'will' + base form of the verb (e.g., 'I will go').

Tags

CCSS.L.3.1E

CCSS.L.4.1B

CCSS.L.5.1.B-D

CCSS.L.5.1C

CCSS.L.5.1D

Front

What is the past continuous tense?

Back

The past continuous tense describes actions that were ongoing in the past. It is formed using 'was/were' + verb-ing (e.g., 'I was reading').

Tags

CCSS.L.3.1D

CCSS.L.4.1B

CCSS.L.5.1.B-D

CCSS.L.5.1C

CCSS.L.5.1D

Front

What is the present perfect tense?

Back

The present perfect tense describes actions that occurred at an unspecified time before now. It is formed using 'have/has' + past participle (e.g., 'I have eaten').

Tags

CCSS.L.4.1B

CCSS.L.5.1.B-D

CCSS.L.5.1B

CCSS.L.5.1C

CCSS.L.5.1D

Front

What is the difference between 'shall' and 'will'?

Back

'Shall' is often used for first-person future actions, while 'will' is used for all persons. 'Shall' can also express determination or obligation.

Tags

CCSS.L.3.1E

CCSS.L.4.1B

CCSS.L.5.1.B-D

CCSS.L.5.1C

CCSS.L.5.1D

Front

What is the subjunctive mood?

Back

The subjunctive mood is used to express wishes, hypotheticals, or conditions contrary to fact (e.g., 'If I were a bird').

Tags

CCSS.L.8.1C

CCSS.L.8.1D

CCSS.L.8.3A

Front

What is an example of a conditional sentence?

Back

A conditional sentence expresses a condition and its result, often using 'if' (e.g., 'If it rains, I will stay home').

Tags

CCSS.L.2.1F

CCSS.L.8.1C

CCSS.L.8.3A

Front

What is the past perfect tense?

Back

The past perfect tense describes actions that were completed before another action in the past. It is formed using 'had' + past participle (e.g., 'I had finished').

Tags

CCSS.L.4.1B

CCSS.L.5.1.B-D

CCSS.L.5.1B

CCSS.L.5.1C

CCSS.L.5.1D