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PRESENT SIMPLE

 

Affirmative/Negative/Question

A: He speaks.
N: He does not speak.
Q: Does he speak?

 

Use:

  • action in the present taking place once, never or several times

  • facts

  • actions taking place one after another

  • action set by a timetable or schedule

 

Signal Words

  • always

  • every â€¦

  • never

  • normally

  • often

  • seldom

  • sometimes

  • usually

  • if sentences type I (If Italk, â€¦)

 

 

 

PRESENT CONTINUOUS

 

Affirmative/Negative/Question

 

A: He is speaking.
N: He is not speaking.
Q: Is he speaking?

 

Use:

 

  • action taking place in the moment of speaking

  • action taking place only for a limited period of time

  • action arranged for the future ( I am going to Brasil next week )

 

Signal Words

 

  • at the moment

  • just

  • just now

  • Listen!

  • Look!

  • now

  • right now

 

 

 

PAST SIMPLE

 

 

Affirmative/Negative/Question

A: He spoke.
N: He did not speak.
Q: Did he speak?

 

Use:

  • action in the past taking place once, never or several times

  • actions taking place one after another

  • action taking place in the middle of another action

 

Signal Words

  • yesterday

  • 2 minutes ago

  • in 1990

  • the other day

  • last Friday

  • if sentence type II (If I talked, â€¦)

PAST CONTINUOUS

 

Affirmative/Negative/Question

 

A: He was speaking.
N: He was not speaking.
Q: Was he speaking?

 

Use:

  • action going on at a certain time in the past

  • actions taking place at the same time

  • action in the past that is interrupted by another action

 

Signal Words

 

  • when

  • while

  • as long as

 

 

PRESENT PERFECT SIMPLE

 

 

Affirmative/ Negative/ Question

 

A: He has spoken.
N: He has not spoken.
Q: Has he spoken?

 

Use:

 

  • putting emphasis on the result

  • action that is still going on

  • action that stopped recently

  • finished action that has an influence on the present

  • action that has taken place once, never or several times before the moment of speaking

 

Signal Words

 

  • for

  • since

  • just

  • already

  • ever

  • never

  • not yet

  • so far

  • till now

  • up to now

 

PAST PERFECT SIMPLE

 

 

Affirmative/Negative?Question

 

A: He had spoken.
N: He had not spoken.
Q: Had he spoken?

 

Use:

 

  • action taking place before a certain time in the past

  • sometimes interchangeable with past perfect progressive

  • putting emphasis only on the fact (not the duration)

 

 

Signal Words

 

  • already

  • just

  • never

  • not yet

  • once

  • until that day

  • if sentence type III (If I had talked, â€¦)

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