Verbs
Verbs show actions, occurrences, or states of being.
When writing, it is important to use the appropriate verb tenses to convey information.
| There are many different tenses of verbs - including simple present, past, and future. Verbs sometimes change form based on the tense and the subject of a given sentence.
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PRESENT: I jump. You jump. He jumps. We jump. They jump.
PAST: I jumped. You jumped. He jumped. We jumped. They jumped.
FUTURE: I
will jump. You will jump. He will jump. We will jump.
They will jump.
| There are more tenses than simple PRESENT, PAST, and FUTURE. Verbs can also be in the PERFECT TENSES. These tenses indicate actions that are, were, or will be already completed at the time being discussed.
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This sentence is somewhat in the present, as indicated by the present tense of the verb, to have. However, the jumping that is presently being discussed has already been completed in the past.
The present perfect is very similar to the simple past.
I jumped over that hurdle many times.
I have jumped over that hurdle many times.
However, the present perfect tense indicates a connection of the past action to a present condition. The speaker probably still jumps over hurdles in the present perfect sentence. In the simple past sentence, the jumping of hurdles may be only in the past.
Everything in this sentence occurred in the past. The writer “was shocked” that he missed the hurdle last night. However, the main verb, “had jumped,” is in the past perfect tense. It indicates an action that was already completed before the writer was shocked last night.
This overall sentence is looking into the future, but the action will have been already completed by that time in the future — after tomorrow’s race.
Notice that all the perfect tenses use a past, present, or future form of the helping verb to have.
They also use a form of the verb called the past participle.
Because the verb jump is a regular verb, the past participle is the same as the simple past tense. However, irregular verbs often have different forms for their past participles.
PRESENT: I speak. You speak. He speaks. We speak. they speak.
PAST: I spoke. You spoke. He spoke. We spoke. They spoke.
FUTURE: I will speak. You will speak. He will speak. We will speak.
They will speak.
Notice that the past tense of the verb speak is not formed by adding
-ed to the end of the base verb. Instead, speak becomes spoke in the past tense.
PAST PERFECT: We had spoken.
FUTURE PERFECT: They will have spoken.
The past participle used with the appropriate tenses of the helping verb to have is not the same as the simple past tense of the irregular verb to speak. It has a different form: spoken.
| Sometimes, a past participle is the same as the simple past tense of an irregular verb. Other times, it has a different form.
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I fought the urge to respond with a sarcastic comment. (simple past)
I had fought against such urges successfully in the past. (past perfect)
She grew vegetables in her garden. (simple past)
She has grown vegetables in her garden for decades. (present perfect)
*Since many verbs are irregular verbs, it is important to memorize
the correct past tense and past participle forms of these verbs.* |
| Aside from the simple and perfect tenses, verbs can also be in the PROGRESSIVE TENSES. These tenses indicate ongoing or continuing action that occurs at some point in time.
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The
progressive tenses use a
past,
present, or
future form of the helping verb
to be + a
present participle.
This sentence is in the present and indicates an action that is currently ongoing. Barking is an action that the dogs are doing in the immediate, present moment.
The action in this sentence took place in the past. It shows a continuous action that was happening at a specific point in the past ("last night").
This sentence talks about actions that have yet to occur. The dogs are not barking now, but when the mail carrier comes (future event), they will be.
| Go to the next page to learn about using verb tenses consistently. |
6th Grade Writing - Verb Tenses Lesson