Tenses: An Intrinsic Part of English Language

Introduction:

No one can deny this fact that the English language has become a predominant and commanding language around the globe. Effective communication skills of English language are important for the general population. One ought to consistently remember that English is a sequential language where the speakers need to know when some move or action took place. Sequence, or occasions and dates are arranged in order of their occurrence, are communicated by English speakers through verb tenses. Therefore, idea of English verb tenses is imperative in setting up compelling correspondence.

What is a Tense?

The term, tense, has been derived from the Latin word “tempus” meaning time.  Tenses can be classified as the part which enables one to frame short/long sentences, write stories, essays etc. English tenses are devices that are there to assist speakers with expressing time in the language. They are of incredible use and significance in the two different ways of communication, verbal and written. They can be utilized to express a variety of meanings from similar verbs and help the audience comprehend the significance and meaning behind your story. In this manner, English has a great deal of verb tenses with some communicating an association between two time periods while others show the specific time of an action taking place or even the progress of an action. Further, the profundity of the English tenses ought not to be undermined. We can, in fact, express altogether different things by just changing the tense of the verb; or using tenses as rhetorical devices.

Types:

The common Tenses in English are

	positive	negative	question
present simple	subject + verb (+ s ) I eat. She eats toast.	subject + do / does + not + verb I don’t eat toast. She doesn’t eat fish.	(question word +) do / does + subject + verb? Do you eat breakfast every day? When does she eat lunch?
present simple with ‘be’	subject + am / is / are I am hungry. She is in a cafe.	subject + am / is / are + not I’m not hungry. She isn’t happy.	(question word +) am / is / are + subject…? Is he at home? Why are you hungry?
present continuous	subject + am / is / are + verb-ing She’s eating toast. They are eating lunch now.	subject + am / is / are + not + verb- ing He isn’t eating. We are not eating at home.	(question word +) am / is / are + subject + verb-ing? When are they eating? Is he eating now?
present perfect	subject + have / has + past participle I’ve eaten breakfast. He has eaten lunch.	subject + have / has + not + past participle We haven’t eaten yet. She hasn’t eaten the chocolate.	(question word +) have / has + subject + past participle? What have you eaten today? Has she eaten lunch?
present perfect continuous	subject + have / has + been + verb- ing I’ve been eating. She’s been eating biscuits all day.	subject + have / has + not + been + verb-ing They haven’t been eating. He has not been eating toast.	(question word +) have / has + subject + been + verb-ing? What has she been eating? Have they been eating breakfast?
past simple	subject + past simple (verb +ed) I ate an apple. She ate some rice.	subject + did + not + verb She didn’t eat anything. They did not eat breakfast.	(question word +) did + subject + verb? Did you eat the chocolate? What did they eat for lunch?
past simple with ‘be’	subject + was / were I was hungry. They were in a restaurant.	subject + was / were + not We weren’t hungry. She wasn’t at home.	(question word +) was / were + subject…? Why was she hungry? Were you hungry?
past continuous	subject + was / were + verb-ing I was eating. They were eating lunch.	subject + was / were + not + verb- ing You weren’t eating. She wasn’t eating a sandwich.	(question word +) was / were + subject + verb-ing? Where were you eating? Was she eating an apple?
past perfect	subject + had + past participle I had eaten. She’d eaten lunch.	subject + had + not + past participle We hadn’t eaten. He had not eaten an apple.	(question word +) had + subject + past participle Why had you eaten? Had they eaten fish before?
past perfect continuous	subject + had + been + verb-ing I had been eating chocolate all day. She’d been eating breakfast.	subject + had + not + been + verb- ing I hadn’t been eating. She hadn’t been eating an apple.	(question word +) had + subject + been + verb-ing? Why had he been eating? Had they been eating enough fruit?
future simple	subject + will + verb I will eat later. She will eat at home.	subject + will + not + verb We won’t eat anything tonight. He will not eat fish.	(question word +) will + subject + verb? What will you eat for lunch? Will she eat meat?
future continuous	subject + will + be + verb-ing I will be eating at 8pm. She will be eating a sandwich.	subject + will + not + be + verb-ing They won’t be eating. He will not be eating anything.	(question word +) will + subject + be + verb-ing? What will you be eating? Will they be eating at 6pm?
future perfect	subject + will + have + past participle I will have eaten lunch by 3 o’clock. She’ll have eaten all the chocolate.	subject + will + not + have + past participle He won’t have eaten lunch yet. They will not have eaten their sandwiches.	(question word +) will + subject + have + past participle? When will you have eaten? Will she have eaten dinner by nine?
future perfect continuous	subject + will + have + been + verb-ing They will have been eating fruit. We’ll have been eating all day.	subject + will + not + have + been + verb-ing I won’t have been eating fish. They will not have been eating lunch.	(question word +) will + subject + have + been + verb-ing? What will she have been eating? Will you have been eating chocolate?

Verb Tense Consistency:

Verb tense consistency alludes to keeping a similar tense all through a clause. We would prefer not to have one time period being described in two different tenses. Changes in verb tense help readers understand the transient relationships among different described events. Be that as it may, pointless or conflicting movements in tense can create confusion. If you have two or more time periods, start a new clause or a new sentence.

INCORRECT: 

 

CORRECT: 

                         

Since there is no indication that the actions happened apart from one another, there is no reason or need to shift the tense of the second verb.

By and large, writers maintain one tense for the main discourse and demonstrate changes in time frame by changing tense relative to that primary tense, which is typically either simple past or simple present. Even apparently non-narrative writing should employ verb tenses consistently and clearly.

Keep the following points in mind to maintain tense consistency

• Rely on past tense to narrate events and to allude to an author or an author's ideas as historical entities (biographical information about a historical figure or narration of developments in an author's ideas over time).
• Use present tense to state facts, to allude to perpetual or routine actions, and to discuss your own ideas or those expressed by an author in a specific work. Likewise, use present tense to talk about action in a literary work, movie, or other fictional narratives. Occasionally, for dramatic effect, you may wish to portray an event in present tense as though it were happening now. If you do so, use present tense consistently throughout the narrative, making shifts only where appropriate and required.
• Future action may be expressed in a variety of ways, including the use of will, shall, is going to, are about to, tomorrow and other adverbs of time, and a wide range of contextual cues.

Conclusion:

It must be borne at the top of the priority list that in a given circumstance or as per the time, one should utilize a proper tense in order to keep up compelling correspondence. Right now, is important to decide different viewpoints regarding English verbs, for example, the condition, proceeding with activity or activity finished. In doing as such, you have to realize how to conjugate action words appropriately by concentrating on the structures of tenses and modular tenses, with the goal that you can make clear and powerful sentences.

References:

“IMPORTANCE OF TENSES IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE.” BijouLanguageTrainingCenter, bijoubltc.blogspot.com/2017/12/importance-of-tenses-in-english.html.

Https://Www.perfect-English-Grammar.com/Support-Files/all_tenses_form_cheatsheet.Pdf.

Purdue Writing Lab. “Verb Tense Consistency // Purdue Writing Lab.” Purdue Writing Lab, owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/grammar/verb_tenses/verb_tense_consistency.html.

“ Verb Tense Consistency.” HOME, webapps.towson.edu/ows/tenseconsistency.htm.