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Modern standardEnglish has variousverb forms, including:
They can be used to expresstense (time reference),aspect,mood,modality andvoice, in various configurations.
For details of how inflected forms of verbs are produced in English, seeEnglish verbs. For the grammatical structure of clauses, including word order, seeEnglish clause syntax. For non-standard or archaic forms, see individual dialect articles andthou.
A typical English verb may have five differentinflected forms:
The verbbe has a larger number of different forms (am,is,are,was,were, etc.), while themodal verbs have a more limited number of forms. Some forms ofbe and of certain otherauxiliary verbs also havecontracted forms ('s, 're, 've, etc.).
For full details of how these inflected forms of verbs are produced, seeEnglish verbs.
In English, verbs frequently appear in combinations containing one or moreauxiliary verbs and anonfinite form (infinitive or participle) of a main (lexical) verb. For example:
The first verb in such a combination is thefinite verb, the remainder arenonfinite (although constructions in which even the leading verb is nonfinite are also possible – see§ Perfect and progressive nonfinite constructions below). Such combinations are sometimes calledverb catenae. As the last example shows, the words making up these combinations do not always remain consecutive.
For details of the formation of such constructions, seeEnglish clause syntax. The uses of the various types of combination are described in the detailed sections of the present article. (For another type of combination involving verbs – items such asgo on,slip away andbreak off – seePhrasal verb.)
As in many other languages, the means English uses for expressing the three categories oftense (time reference),aspect andmood are somewhat conflated (seetense–aspect–mood). In contrast to languages likeLatin, though, English has only limited means for expressing these categories through verbconjugation, and tends mostly to express themperiphrastically, using the verbcombinations mentioned in the previous section. The tenses, aspects and moods that may be identified in English are described below (although the terminology used differs significantly between authors). In common usage, particularly inEnglish language teaching, particular tense–aspect–mood combinations such as "present progressive" and "conditional perfect" are often referred to simply as "tenses".
Verb tenses areinflectional forms which can be used to express that something occurs in the past, present, or future.[1] In English, the only tenses are past and non-past, though the term "future" is sometimes applied toperiphrastic constructions involving modals such aswill andgo.
Present tense is used, in principle, to refer to circumstances that exist at the present time (or over a period that includes the present time) and general truths (seegnomic aspect). However the same forms are quite often also used to refer to future circumstances, as in "He's coming tomorrow" (hence this tense is sometimes referred to aspresent-future ornon-past). For certain grammatical contexts where the present tense is the standard way to refer to the future, seeconditional sentences anddependent clauses below. It is also possible for the present tense to be used when referring to no particular real time (as when telling a story), or when recounting past events (thehistorical present, particularly common inheadline language). Thepresent perfect intrinsically refers to past events, although it can be considered to denote primarily the resulting present situation rather than the events themselves.
The present tense has twomoods, indicative and subjunctive; when no mood is specified, it is often the indicative that is meant. In a present indicative construction, the finite verb appears in its base form, or in its-s form if itssubject isthird-person singular. (The verbbe has the formsam,is,are, while themodal verbs do not add-s for third-person singular.) For the present subjunctive, seeEnglish subjunctive. (The present subjunctive has no particular relationship with present time, and is sometimes simply called the subjunctive, without specifying the tense.)
For specific uses of present tense constructions, see the sections below onpresent simple,present progressive,present perfect, andpresent perfect progressive.
Past tense forms express circumstances existing at some time in the past, although they also have certain uses in referring to hypothetical situations (as in someconditional sentences,dependent clauses andexpressions of wish). They are formed using the finite verb in its preterite (past simple) form.[2]
Certain uses of the past tense may be referred to assubjunctives; however the only distinction in verb conjugation between the past indicative and past subjunctive is the possible use ofwere in the subjunctive in place ofwas. For details seeEnglish subjunctive.
For specific uses of past tense constructions, see the sections below onpast simple,past progressive,past perfect, andpast perfect progressive. In certain contexts, past events are reported using thepresent perfect (or even other present tense forms—see above).
English lacks a morphological future tense, since there is no verbinflection which expresses that an event will occur at a future time.[2] However, the term "future tense" is sometimes applied toperiphrastic constructions involving modals such aswill,shall, andto be going to. For specific uses of future constructions formed withwill/shall, see the sections below onfuture simple,future progressive,future perfect, andfuture perfect progressive.
The morphological present tense can be used to refer to future times, particularly inconditional sentences anddependent clauses.
The morphologically past variants of future modals can be used to create a periphrasticfuture-in-the-past construction.[3][4] Here the sentence as a whole refers to some particular past time, butwould win refers to a time in the future relative to that past time. SeeFuture tense § Expressions of relative tense.
"Simple" forms of verbs are those appearing in constructions not marked for eitherprogressive orperfect aspect (I go,I don't go,I went,I will go, etc., but notI'm going orI have gone).
Simple constructions normally denote a single action (perfectiveaspect), as inBrutuskilled Caesar, a repeated action (habitual aspect), as inIgo to school, or a relatively permanent state, as inWelive in Dallas. They may also denote a temporary state (imperfective aspect), in the case of stative verbs that do not use progressive forms (see below).
For uses of specific simple constructions, see the sections below onpresent simple,past simple,future simple, andconditional simple.
Theprogressive orcontinuous aspect is used to denote a temporary action or state that began at a previous time and continues into the present time (or other time of reference). It is expressed using the auxiliary verbto be together with thepresent participle (-ing form) of the main verb:Iam reading;Were youshouting?;Hewill be sitting over there.
Certainstative verbs make limited use of progressive aspect. Their non-progressive forms (simple or non-progressiveperfect constructions) are used in many situations even when expressing a temporary state. The main types are described below.
For specific uses of progressive (continuous) constructions, see the sections below onpresent progressive,past progressive,future progressive, andconditional progressive. For progressive infinitives, see§ Perfect and progressive nonfinite constructions. For the combination of progressive aspect with the perfect (he has been reading) seeperfect progressive.
Theperfect aspect is used to denote the circumstance of an action's being complete at a certain time. It is expressed using a form of theauxiliary verbhave (appropriately conjugated for tense etc.) together with thepast participle of the main verb:Shehas eaten it;Wehad left;Whenwill youhave finished?
Perfect forms can also be used to refer to states or habitual actions, even if not complete, if the focus is on the time period before the point of reference (We had lived there for five years). If such a circumstance is temporary, the perfect is often combined with progressive aspect (see the following section).
The implications of thepresent perfect (that something occurred prior to the present moment) are similar to those of thepast simple, although the two forms are generally not used interchangeably—the past simple is used when the time frame of reference is in the past, while the present perfect is used when it extends to the present. For details, see the relevant sections below. For all uses of specific perfect constructions, see the sections below on thepresent perfect,past perfect,future perfect, andconditional perfect.
By usingnon-finite forms of the auxiliaryhave, perfect aspect can also be marked on infinitives (as inshouldhave left andexpectto have finished working), and on participles and gerunds (as inhaving seen the doctor). For the usage of such forms, see the section below onperfect and progressive non-finite constructions.
Although all of the constructions referred to here are commonly referred to as perfect (based on their grammatical form), some of them, particularly non-present and non-finite instances, might not be considered truly expressive of the perfect aspect.[5] This applies particularly when theperfect infinitive is used together withmodal verbs: for example,he could not have been a genius might be considered (based on its meaning) to be a past tense ofhe cannot/could not be a genius;[6] such forms are considered true perfect forms by some linguists but not others.[7] For the meanings of such constructions with the various modals, seeEnglish modal verbs.
Theperfect andprogressive (continuous) aspects can be combined, usually in referring to the completed portion of a continuing action or temporary state:Ihave been working for eight hours. Here a form of the verbhave (denoting the perfect) is used together withbeen (the past participle ofbe, denoting the progressive) and thepresent participle of the main verb.
In the case of the stative verbs, which do not use progressive aspect (see the section above about theprogressive), the plain perfect form is normally used in place of the perfect progressive:I've been here for half an hour (not *I've been being here...).
For uses of specific perfect progressive (perfect continuous) constructions, see the sections below on thepresent perfect progressive,past perfect progressive,future perfect progressive, andconditional perfect progressive. For perfect progressive infinitives, participles and gerunds, see§ Perfect and progressive nonfinite constructions.
Indicative mood, in English, refers to finite verb forms that are not marked assubjunctive and are neitherimperatives norconditionals. They are the verbs typically found in themain clauses ofdeclarative sentences and questions formed from them, as well as in mostdependent clauses (except for those that use the subjunctive). The information that a form is indicative is often omitted when referring to it: the present simple indicative is usually referred to as just thepresent simple, etc. (unless some contrast of moods, such as between indicative and subjunctive, is pertinent to the topic).
Certain types of clause, mostlydependent clauses, use a verb form identified with thesubjunctive mood. The present subjunctive takes a form identical to thebare infinitive, as inIt is necessary that hebe restrained. There is also a past subjunctive, distinct from the indicative only in the possible use ofwere in place ofwas in certain situations:If Iwere you, ...
For details of the formation and usage of subjunctive forms in English, seeEnglish subjunctive.
An independent clause in theimperative mood uses the base form of the verb, usually with no subject (although the subjectyou can be added for emphasis). Negation usesdo-support (i.e.do not ordon't). For example:
Sentences of this type are used to give an instruction or order. When they are used to make requests, the wordplease (or other linguistic device) is often added forpoliteness:
First person imperatives (cohortatives) can be formed withlet us (usuallycontracted tolet's), as in "Let's go". Third person imperatives (jussives) are sometimes formed similarly, withlet, as in "Let him be released".
More detail can be found in theImperative mood article.
The status of theconditional mood in English is similar to that of thefuture tense: it may be considered to exist provided the category ofmood is not required to be markedmorphologically. The English conditional is expressedperiphrastically with verb forms governed by theauxiliary verbwould (or sometimesshould with a first-person singular subject; seeshall andwill). Themodal verbcould is also sometimes used as a conditional (ofcan).
In certain uses, the conditional construction withwould/should may also be described as "future-in-the-past".
For uses of specific conditional constructions, see the sections below onconditional simple,conditional progressive,conditional perfect, andconditional perfect progressive, as well as the section onconditional sentences (and the main article onEnglish conditional sentences).
Theactive voice (where the verb'ssubject is understood to denote the doer, oragent, of the denoted action) is the unmarkedvoice in English. To form thepassive voice (where the subject denotes the undergoer, orpatient, of the action), aperiphrastic construction is used. In the canonical form of the passive, a form of the auxiliary verbbe (or sometimesget) is used, together with thepast participle of the lexical verb.
Passive voice can be expressed in combination together with tenses, aspects and moods, by means of appropriate marking of the auxiliary (which for this purpose is not a stative verb, i.e. it hasprogressive forms available). For example:
The uses of these various passive forms are analogous to those of the corresponding tense-aspect-mood combinations in the active voice.
The passive forms of certain of the combinations involving theprogressive aspect are quite rare; these include thepresent perfect progressive (it has been being written),past perfect progressive (it had been being written),future progressive (it will be being written),future perfect progressive (it will have been being written),conditional progressive (it would be being written) andconditional perfect progressive (it would have been being written). Because of the awkwardness of these constructions, they may beparaphrased, for example using the expressionin the process of (it has been in the process of being written,it will be in the process of being written, and similar).
For further details of passive constructions, seeEnglish passive voice.
Negation of verbs usually takes place with the addition of the particlenot (or its shortened formn't) to an auxiliary or copular verb, withdo-support being used if there is otherwise no auxiliary. However, if a sentence already contains a negative word (never,nothing, etc.), then there is not usually any additionalnot.
Questions (interrogative constructions) are generally formed usingsubject–auxiliary inversion, again usingdo-support if there is otherwise no auxiliary. In negative questions, it is possible to invert with just the auxiliary (should we not help?) or with the contracted negation (shouldn't we help?).
For full details on negation and question formation, seedo-support,English auxiliaries and contractions, and theNegation andQuestions sections of the English Grammar article.
English has themodal verbscan,could,may,might,must,shall,should,will,would, and also (depending on classification adopted)ought (to),dare,need,had (better),used (to). These do not add-s for the third-person singular, and they do not form infinitives or participles; the only inflection they undergo is that to a certain extentcould,might,should andwould (and sometimesdared) function as preterites (past tenses) ofcan,may,shall andwill (anddare) respectively.
A modal verb can serve as the finite verb introducing a verbcatena, as inhemight have been injured then. These generally express some form ofmodality (possibility, obligation, etc.), althoughwill andwould (and sometimesshall andshould) can serve—among their other uses—to expressfuture time reference andconditional mood, as described elsewhere on this page.
For details of the uses of modal verbs, seeEnglish modal verbs.
Thepast simple orsimple past, sometimes also called thepreterite, consists of the bare past tense of the verb (ending in-ed for regular verbs, and formed in various ways forirregular ones, with the following spelling rules for regular verbs: verbs ending in -e add only –d to the end (e.g. live – lived, not *liveed), verbs ending in -y change to -ied (e.g. study – studied) and verbs ending in a group of a consonant + a vowel + a consonant double the final consonant (e.g. stop – stopped) —seeEnglish verbs for details). In most questions (and other situations requiringinversion), when negated, and in certainemphatic statements, aperiphrastic construction consisting ofdid and thebare infinitive of the main verb is generally used instead—seedo-support.
The past simple is used for a single event in the past, for past habitual action, or for a past state:
However, for action that was ongoing at the time referred to, thepast progressive is generally used instead. For stative verbs that do or do not use progressive aspect when expressing a temporary state, see§ Progressive aspect. For the use ofcould see in place ofsaw etc., seehave got andcan see below.
The past simple is often close in meaning to thepresent perfect. The past simple is used when the event is conceived as occurring at a particular time in the past, or during a period that ended in the past (i.e. it does not last up until the present time). This time frame may be explicitly stated, or implicit in the context (for example the past tense is often used when describing a sequence of past events).
For further discussion and examples, see§ Present perfect below.
Various compound constructions exist for denoting past habitual action. The sentenceWhen I was young, I played football every Saturday might alternatively be phrased usingused to (... I used to play ...) or usingwould (... I would play...).
In exceptional cases, the present simple can be used instead of the past simple as a stylistic tool, both as a way of literary expression and in everyday speech. Typical examples include telling jokes (as inThree men walk into a bar), emotional storytelling (as inSo I come home and I see this giant box in front of my door) and referring to historical events (as inKing Henry wins his last victory in 1422.).
The past simple is also used without past reference in some instances: in condition clauses and some other dependent clauses referring to hypothetical circumstances (see§ Conditional sentences and§ Dependent clauses below), and after certainexpressions of wish. For the past subjunctive (were in place ofwas), seeEnglish subjunctive. For the use of the past tense in indirect speech and similar contexts, see§ Indirect speech below.
The -ed ending of regular verbs is pronounced as follows:
Thepast progressive orpast continuous construction combinesprogressive aspect withpast tense, and is formed using the past tense ofbe (was orwere) with thepresent participle of the main verb. It indicates an action that was ongoing at the past time being considered:
Forstative verbs that do not use theprogressive aspect, thepast simple is used instead (At three o'clock yesterday wewere in the garden).
The past progressive is often used to denote an action that was interrupted by an event,[8][9] or for two actions taking place in parallel:
(Interrupted actions in the past can also sometimes be denoted using thepast perfect progressive, as described below.)
The past progressive can also be used to refer to past action that occurred over a range of time and is viewed as an ongoing situation:
That could also be expressed using the past simple, asI worked..., which implies that the action is viewed as a unitary event (although the effective meaning is not very different).
The past progressive shares certain special uses with other past tense constructions; see§ Conditional sentences,§ Dependent clauses,§ Expressions of wish, and§ Indirect speech.
Thepast perfect, sometimes called thepluperfect, combinespast tense withperfect aspect; it is formed by combininghad (the past tense of the auxiliaryhave) with thepast participle of the main verb. It is used when referring to an event that took place prior to the time frame being considered.[10] This time frame may be stated explicitly, as a stated time or the time of another past action:
The time frame may also be understood implicitly from the previous or later context:
CompareHehad left when we arrived (where his leaving preceded our arrival), with the form with thepast simple,Heleft when we arrived (where his leaving was concurrent with or shortly after our arrival). Unlike the present perfect, the past perfect can readily be used with an adverb specifying a past time frame for the occurrence. For example, while it is incorrect to say *I have done it last Friday (the use oflast Friday, specifying the past time, would require thepast simple rather than thepresent perfect), there is no such objection to a sentence like "I had done it the previous Friday".[11] The past perfect can also be used for states or repeated occurrences pertaining over a period up to a time in the past, particularly in stating "for how long" or since when". However, if the state is temporary and the verb can be used in theprogressive aspect, thepast perfect progressive would normally be used instead. Some examples with the plain past perfect:
For other specific uses of the past perfect, see§ Conditional sentences,§ Dependent clauses,§ Expressions of wish, and§ Indirect speech.
Thepast perfect progressive orpast perfect continuous (also known as thepluperfect progressive orpluperfect continuous) combinesperfect progressive aspect withpast tense. It is formed by combininghad (the past tense of auxiliaryhave),been (the past participle ofbe), and thepresent participle of the main verb.
Uses of the past perfect progressive are analogous to those of thepresent perfect progressive, except that the point of reference is in the past. For example:
This form is sometimes used for actions in the past that were interrupted by some event[12] (compare the use of thepast progressive as given above). For example:
This implies that I stopped working when she came in (or had already stopped a short time before); the plain past progressive (I was working...) would not necessarily carry this implication.
If the verb in question does not use theprogressive aspect, then the plainpast perfect is used instead (see examples in the previous section).
The past perfect progressive may also have additional specific uses similar to those of the plain past perfect; see§ Conditional sentences,§ Dependent clauses,§ Expressions of wish, and§ Indirect speech.
Thepresent simple orsimple present is a form that combinespresent tense with"simple" (neither perfect nor progressive) aspect. In the indicative mood it consists of the base form of the verb, or the-s form when the subject isthird-person singular (the verbbe uses the formsam,is,are). However, with non-auxiliary verbs it also has a periphrastic form consisting ofdo (or third-person singulardoes) with the bare infinitive of the main verb—this form is used in questions (and other clauses requiringinversion) and negations, and sometimes for emphasis. For details of this, seedo-support.
The principal uses of the present simple are given below. More examples can be found in the articlePresent simple.
In colloquial English it is common to usecan see,can hear for the present tense ofsee,hear, etc., andhave got for the present tense ofhave (denotingpossession). Seehave got andcan see below.
For the present subjunctive, seeEnglish subjunctive. For uses of modal verbs (which may be regarded as instances of the present simple) seeEnglish modal verbs.
Thepresent progressive orpresent continuous form combinespresent tense withprogressive aspect. It thus refers to an action or event conceived of as having limited duration, taking place at the present time. It consists of a form of the present simple ofbe together with thepresent participle of the main verb and the ending-ing.
This often contrasts with thepresent simple, which expresses repeated or habitual action (Wecook dinner every day). However, sometimes the present continuous is used withalways, generally to express annoyance about a habitual action:
Certainstative verbs do not use the progressive aspect, so the present simple is used instead in those cases (see§ Progressive aspect above).
The present progressive can be used to refer to a planned future event:
It also appears with future reference in many condition and time clauses and other dependent clauses (see§ Dependent clauses below):
It can also refer to something taking place not necessarily at the time of speaking, but at the time currently under consideration, in the case of a story or narrative being told in the present tense (as mentioned above underpresent simple):
For the possibility of a present subjunctive progressive, seeEnglish subjunctive.
Thepresent perfect (traditionally called simply theperfect) combinespresent tense withperfect aspect, denoting the present state of an action's being completed, that is, that the action took place before the present time. (It is thus often close in meaning to thepast simple tense, although the two are not usually interchangeable.) It is formed with the present tense of the auxiliaryhave (namelyhave orhas) and thepast participle of the main verb.
The choice of present perfect or past tense depends on the frame of reference (period or point in time) in which the event is conceived as occurring. If the frame of reference extends to the present time, the present perfect is used. For example:
If the frame of reference is a time in the past, or a period that ended in the past, the past tense is used instead. For example:I wrote a letter this morning (it is now afternoon);He produced ten plays (he is now dead or his career is considered over, or a particular past time period is being referred to);They never traveled abroad (similarly). See underPast simple for more examples. The past simple is generally used when the occurrence has a specific past time frame—either explicitly stated (I wrote a bookin 1995;the water boileda minute ago), or implied by the context (for example, in the narration of a sequence of events). It is therefore normally incorrect to write a sentence like *I have written a novel yesterday; the present perfect cannot be used with an expression of past time such asyesterday.[15]
Withalready oryet, traditional usage calls for the present perfect:Have you eaten yet? Yes, I've already eaten. Current informal American speech allows the past simple:Did you eat yet? Yes, I ate already., although the present perfect is still fully idiomatic here and may be preferred depending on area, personal preference, or the wish to avoid possible ambiguity.
Use of the present perfect often draws attention to the present consequences of the past action or event, as opposed to its actual occurrence.[13] The sentenceshe has come probably means she is here now, while the past simpleshe came does not.[16] The sentence, “Have you been to the fair?” suggests that the fair is still going on, while the sentence, “Did you go to the fair?” could mean that the fair is over.[17] (See alsobeen andgone below.) Some more examples:
It may also refer to an ongoing state or habitual action, particularly in sayingfor how long, orsince when, something is the case. For example,
This implies that I still live in Paris, that he still holds the record and that we still eat together every morning (although the first sentence may also refer to some unspecified past period of five years). When the circumstance is temporary, thepresent perfect progressive is often appropriate in such sentences (see below); however, if the verb is one that does not use theprogressive aspect, the basic present perfect is used in that case too:
The present perfect may refer to a habitual circumstance, or a circumstance being part of a theoretical or story narrative being given in the present tense (provided the circumstance is of an event's having taken place previously):
The present perfect may also be used with future reference, instead of thefuture perfect, in those dependent clauses where future occurrence is denoted by present tense (see§ Dependent clauses below). For example:
For the possibility of a present perfect subjunctive, seeEnglish subjunctive. For special use of the present perfect ofget to express possession or obligation, seehave got below. For the use ofhave been in place ofhave gone, seebeen andgone below.
Thepresent perfect continuous (orpresent perfect progressive) construction combines some of thisperfect progressive aspect withpresent tense. It is formed with the present tense ofhave (have orhas), the past participle ofbe (been), and thepresent participle of the main verb and the ending-ing.
This construction is used for ongoing action in the past that continues right up to the present or has recently finished:
It is frequently used when statingfor how long, orsince when, something is the case:
In these sentences the actions are still continuing, but it is the past portion of them that is being considered, and so the perfect aspect is used. (A sentence without perfect aspect, such asI am sitting here for three hours, implies an intention to perform the action for that length of time.) With stative verbs that are not used in theprogressive, and for situations that are considered permanent, the present perfect (non-progressive) is used instead; for examples of this see§ Present perfect above.
The termfuture simple,simple future orfuture indefinite, as applied to English, generally refers to the combination of the modal auxiliary verbwill with thebare infinitive of the main verb. Sometimes (particularly in more formal or old-fashioned English)shall is preferred towill when the subject isfirst person (I orwe); seeshall andwill for details. The auxiliary is often contracted to 'll; seeEnglish auxiliaries and contractions.
This construction can be used to indicate what the speaker views as facts about the future, including confident predictions:
It may be used to describe future circumstances that are subject to some condition (see also§ Conditional sentences):
However English also has other ways of referring to future circumstances. For planned or scheduled actions thepresent progressive orpresent simple may be used (see those sections for examples). There is also agoing-to future, common in colloquial English, which is often used to express intentions or predictions (I am going to write a book some day;I think that it is going to rain). Use of thewill/shall construction when expressing intention often indicates a spontaneous decision:
CompareI'm going to use..., which implies that the intention to do so has existed for some time.
Use of present tense rather than future constructions in condition clauses and certain otherdependent clauses is described below under§ Conditional sentences and§ Dependent clauses.
The modal verbswill andshall also have other uses besides indicating future time reference. For example:
For more examples seewill andshall in the article on modal verbs, and the articleshall andwill.
Thefuture progressive orfuture continuous combinesprogressive aspect withfuture time reference; it is formed with the auxiliarywill (orshall in the first person; seeshall andwill), the bare infinitivebe, and thepresent participle of the main verb. It is used mainly to indicate that an event will be in progress at a particular point in the future:
The usual restrictions apply, on the use both of the future and of the progressive: simple rather than progressive aspect is used with some stative verbs (see§ Progressive aspect), and present rather than future constructions are used in many dependent clauses (see§ Conditional sentences and§ Dependent clauses below).
The same construction may occur whenwill orshall is given one of its other uses (as described under§ Future simple), for example:
Thefuture perfect combines§ Perfect aspect withfuture time reference. It consists of the auxiliarywill (or sometimesshall in the first person, as above), the bare infinitivehave, and thepast participle of the main verb. It indicates an action that is to be completed sometime prior to a future time of perspective, or an ongoing action continuing up to a future time of perspective (compare uses of thepresent perfect above).
For the use of the present tense rather than future constructions in certain dependent clauses, see§ Conditional sentences and§ Dependent clauses below.
The same construction may occur whenwill orshall is given one of its other meanings (see under§ Future simple); for example:
Thefuture perfect progressive orfuture perfect continuous combinesperfect progressive aspect withfuture time reference. It is formed by combining the auxiliarywill (or sometimesshall, as above), the bare infinitivehave, the past participlebeen, and thepresent participle of the main verb.
Uses of the future perfect progressive are analogous to those of thepresent perfect progressive, except that the point of reference is in the future. For example:
For the use of present tense in place of future constructions in certain dependent clauses, see§ Conditional sentences and§ Dependent clauses below.
The same construction may occur when the auxiliary (usuallywill) has one of its other meanings, particularly expressing a confident assumption about the present:
Theconditional simple orsimple conditional, also calledpresent conditional, and in some meaningsfuture-in-the-past simple, is formed by combining the modal auxiliarywould with thebare infinitive of the main verb. Sometimes (particularly in formal or old-fashioned English)should is used in place ofwould when the subject is first person (I orwe), in the same way thatshall may replacewill in such instances; seeshall andwill. The auxiliary is often shortened to 'd; seeEnglish auxiliaries and contractions.
The conditional simple is used principally in a main clause accompanied by an implicit or explicit condition (if-clause). (This is described in more detail in the article onEnglish conditional sentences; see also§ Conditional sentences below.) The time referred to may be (hypothetical) present or future. For example:
In some varieties of English,would (or'd) is also regularly used in theif-clauses themselves (Ifyou'd leave now, you'd be on time), but this is often considered nonstandard (standard:If you left now, you'd be on time). This is widespread especially in spoken American English in all registers, though not usually in more formal writing.[18] There are also situations wherewould is used inif-clauses in British English too, but these can usually be interpreted as amodal use ofwould (e.g.If youwould listen to me once in a while, you might learn something).[19] For more details, seeEnglish conditional sentences § Use of will and would in condition clauses.
For the use ofwould after the verbwish and the expressionif only, see§ Expressions of wish.
The auxiliary verbscould andmight can also be used to indicate the conditional mood, as in the following:
Forms withwould may also have "future-in-the-past" meaning:
See also§ Indirect speech and§ Dependent clauses. For other possible meanings ofwould andshould (as well ascould andmight), see the relevant sections ofEnglish modal verbs.
Theconditional (present) progressive orconditional continuous combinesconditional mood withprogressive aspect. It combineswould (or the contraction'd, or sometimesshould in the first person, as above) with the bare infinitivebe and thepresent participle of the main verb. It has similar uses to those of theconditional simple (above), but is used for ongoing actions or situations (usually hypothetical):
It can also havefuture-in-the-past meanings:
For the use ofwould in condition clauses, see§ Conditional simple above (see also§ Conditional sentences and§ Dependent clauses below). For use in indirect speech constructions, see§ Indirect speech. For other uses of constructions withwould andshould, seeEnglish modal verbs. For general information on conditionals in English, seeEnglish conditional sentences (and also§ Conditional sentences below).
Theconditional perfect construction combinesconditional mood withperfect aspect, and consists ofwould (or the contraction'd, or sometimesshould in the first person, as above), the bare infinitivehave, and thepast participle of the main verb. It is used to denote conditional situations attributed to past time, usually those that are or may be contrary to fact.
For the possibility of use ofwould in the condition clauses themselves, see§ Conditional simple (see also§ Dependent clauses below). For more information on conditional constructions, see§ Conditional sentences below, and the articleEnglish conditional sentences.
The same construction may have "future-in-the-past" meanings (seeIndirect speech). For other meanings ofwould have andshould have, seeEnglish modal verbs.
Theconditional perfect progressive orconditional perfect continuous construction combinesconditional mood withperfect progressive aspect. It consists ofwould (or sometimesshould in the first person, as above) with the bare infinitivehave, the past participlebeen and thepresent participle of the main verb. It generally refers to a conditional ongoing situation in hypothetical (usually counterfactual) past time:
Similar considerations and alternative forms and meanings apply as noted in the sections above about other conditional constructions.
In colloquial English, particularly British English, thepresent perfect of the verbget, namelyhave got orhas got, is frequently used in place of thepresent simple indicative ofhave (i.e.have orhas) when denotingpossession, broadly defined. For example:
In American English, the formgot is used in this idiom, even though the standard past participle ofget isgotten.
The same applies in the expression of present obligation:I've got to go now may be used in place ofIhave to (must) go now.
In very informal registers, the contracted form ofhave orhas may be omitted altogether:I got three brothers.[20]
Another common idiom is the use of the modal verbcan (orcould for thepast tense orconditional) together with verbs of perception such assee,hear, etc., rather than the plain verb. For example:
Aspectual distinctions can be made, particularly in the past tense:
Inperfect constructions apparently requiring the verbgo, the normal past participlegone is often replaced by the past participle of thecopula verbbe, namelybeen. This gives rise to sentences of contrasting meaning.
Whenbeen is used, the implication is that, at the time of reference, the act of going took place previously, but the subject is no longer at the place in question (unless a specific time frame including the present moment is specified). Whengone is used, the implication is again that the act of going took place previously, but that the subject is still at (or possibly has not yet reached) that place (unless repetition is specified lexically). For example:
Been is used in such sentences in combination withto as if it were a verb of motion (being followed by adverbial phrases of motion), which is different from its normal uses as part of the copula verbbe. Compare:
The sentences above with thepresent perfect can be further compared with alternatives using thepast simple, such as:
As usual, this tense would be used if a specific past time frame is stated ("in 1995", "last week") or is implied by the context (e.g. the event is part of a past narrative, or my father is no longer alive or capable of traveling). Use of this form does not in itself determine whether or not the subject is still there.
Aconditional sentence usually contains two clauses: anif-clause or similar expressing the condition (theprotasis), and a main clause expressing the conditional circumstance (theapodosis). In English language teaching, conditional sentences are classified according to type as first, second or third conditional; there also exist "zero conditional" and mixed conditional sentences.
A "first conditional" sentence expresses a future circumstance conditional on some other future circumstance. It uses thepresent tense (withfuture reference) in the condition clause, and thefuture withwill (or some other expression of future) in the main clause:
A "second conditional" sentence expresses a hypothetical circumstance conditional on some other circumstance, referring to nonpast time. It uses thepast tense (with the pastsubjunctivewere optionally replacingwas) in the condition clause, and theconditional formed withwould in the main clause:
A "third conditional" sentence expresses a hypothetical (usually counterfactual) circumstance in the past. It uses thepast perfect in the condition clause, and theconditional perfect in the main clause:
A "mixed conditional" mixes the second and third patterns (for a past circumstance conditional on a not specifically past circumstance, or vice versa):
The "zero conditional" is a pattern independent of tense, simply expressing the dependence of the truth of one proposition on the truth of another:
See also the following sections onexpressions of wish anddependent clauses.
Particular rules apply to the tenses and verb forms used after the verbwish and certain other expressions with similar meaning.
When the verbwish governs afinite clause, the past tense (past simple orpast progressive as appropriate) is used when the desire expressed concerns a present state, thepast perfect (orpast perfect progressive) when it concerns a (usually counterfactual) past state or event, and theconditional simple withwould when it concerns a desired present action or change of state. For example:
The same forms are generally used independently of the tense or form of the verbwish:
The same rules apply after the expressionif only:
In finite clauses afterwould rather,imagine andit's (high) time, the past tense is used:
Afterwould rather the presentsubjunctive is also sometimes possible:I'd rather you/hecome with me.
After all of the expressions above (though not normallyit's (high) time) thepast subjunctivewere may be used instead ofwas:
Other syntactic patterns are possible with most of these expressions. The verbwish can be used with ato-infinitive or as an ordinarytransitive verb (I wish to talk;I wish you good health). The expressionswould rather andit's time can also be followed by ato-infinitive. After the verbhope the rules above do not apply; instead the logically expected tense is used, except that often the present tense is used with future meaning:
Verbs often undergo tense changes inindirect speech. This commonly occurs incontent clauses (typicallythat-clauses andindirect questions), when governed by a predicate of saying (thinking, knowing, etc.) which is in thepast tense orconditional mood.
In this situation the following tense and aspect changes occur relative to the original words:
Verb forms not covered by any of the rules above (verbs already in the past perfect, or formed withwould or other modals not having a preterite equivalent) do not change. Application of the rules above is not compulsory; sometimes the original verb tense is retained, particularly when the statement (with the original tense) remains equally valid at the moment of reporting:
The tense changes above do not apply when the verb of saying (etc.) is notpast orconditional in form; in particular there are no such changes when that verb is in thepresent perfect:He has said that he likes apples.For further details, and information about other grammatical and lexical changes that take place in indirect speech, seeindirect speech andsequence of tenses. For related passive constructions (of the typeit is said that andshe is said to), seeEnglish passive voice § Passive constructions without an exactly corresponding active.
Apart from the special cases referred to in the sections above, many otherdependent clauses use a tense that might not logically be expected – in particular thepresent tense is used when the reference is to future time, and thepast tense is used when the reference is to a hypothetical situation (in other words, the form withwill is replaced by the present tense, and the form withwould by the past tense). This occurs in condition clauses (as mentionedabove), in clauses of time and place and in many relative clauses:
In the examples above, thepresent simple is used instead of thefuture simple, even though the reference is to future time. Examples of similar uses with other tense–aspect combinations are given below:
The past tense can be used for hypothetical situations in some noun clauses too:
The use of present and past tenses without reference to present and past time does not apply to all dependent clauses, however; if the future time or hypothetical reference is expressed in the dependent clause independently of the main clause, then a form withwill orwould in a dependent clause is possible:
The main uses of the various nonfinite verb forms (infinitives, participles and gerunds) are described in the following sections. For how these forms are made, see§ Inflected forms of verbs above. For more information on distinguishing between the various uses that use the form in-ing, see-ing: Uses.
A bareinfinitive (the base form of the verb, without the particleto), or an infinitive phrase introduced by such a verb, may be used as follows:
The form of the bare infinitive is also commonly taken as the dictionary form or citation form (lemma) of an English verb. For perfect and progressive (continuous) infinitive constructions, see§ Perfect and progressive nonfinite constructions below.
Theto-infinitive consists of the bare infinitive introduced by the particleto.[21] Outside dictionaryheadwords, it is commonly used as acitation form of the English verb ("How do we conjugate the verbto go?") It is also commonly given as a translation of foreign infinitives ("The French wordboire means 'to drink'.")
Other modifiers may be placed betweento and the verb (as into boldly go;to slowly drift away), but this is sometimes regarded by some as a grammatical or stylistic error – seesplit infinitive for details.
The main uses ofto-infinitives, or infinitive phrases introduced by them, are as follows:
In many of the uses above, the implied subject of the infinitive can be marked using a prepositional phrase withfor: "This game is easyfor a child to play", etc. However this does not normally apply when the infinitive is the complement of a verb (other than the copula, and certain verbs that allow a construction withfor, such aswait: "They waited for us to arrive"). It also does not apply in elliptical questions, or in fixed expressions such asso as to,am to, etc. (although it does apply inin order to).
When the verb is implied, theto-infinitive may be reduced to simplyto: "Do I haveto?" Seeverb phrase ellipsis.
For perfect and progressive infinitives, such as(to) have written and(to) be writing, see§ Perfect and progressive nonfinite constructions below.
Thepresent participle is one of the uses of the-ing form of a verb. This usage isadjectival oradverbial. The main uses of this participle, or ofparticipial phrases introduced by it, are as follows. (Uses of gerunds and verbal nouns, which take the same-ing form, appear in sections below.)
For present participle constructions with perfect aspect (e.g.having written), see§ Perfect and progressive nonfinite constructions below.
Present participles may come to be used as pure adjectives (seeTypes of participle). Examples of participles that do this frequently areinteresting,exciting, andenduring. Such words may then take various adjectival prefixes and suffixes, as inuninteresting andinterestingly.
Englishpast participles have bothactive andpassive uses. In a passive use, an object or preposition complement becomeszero, the gap being understood to be filled by the noun phrase the participle modifies (compare similar uses of theto-infinitive above). Uses of past participles and participial phrases introduced by them are as follows:
The last type of phrase can be preceded with the prepositionwith:With these wordsspoken, he turned and left.
As with present participles, past participles may function as simple adjectives: "theburnt logs"; "we were veryexcited". These normally represent the passive meaning of the participle, although some participles formed fromintransitive verbs can be used in an active sense: "thefallen leaves"; "ourfallen comrades".
An English irregular verb’s past simple tense form is typically distinct from its past participle (with which the auxiliaryto have constructs the past perfect), as inwent vs.havegone (ofto go), despite them being the same for regular verbs, as indemanded vs.havedemanded (ofto demand). However, not all irregular verbs distinguish them from each other and their unmarked form (with which the particleto constructs the full infinitive, as intogo): the participle may use the past simple form as intosay,said, havesaid, or use the unmarked form as intocome,came, havecome. For verbs with three distinct such forms in standardized Englishes (go/went/gone), many speakers use the same form for the past tense and past participle. The standardized past tense form is likely used for the participle, as in "I should have went" vs. "I should have gone" and "this song could've came out today" vs. "this song could've come out today". With a few verbs (such asto see,to do,to ring andto be), the standardized past participle form is used for the past simple, as in "I seen it yesterday" vs. "I saw it yesterday", "I done it" vs. "I did it" and "I been there" vs. "I was there". This pattern is found in multiple otherwise not closely related varieties.
Thegerund takes the same form (ending in-ing) as the present participle, but is used as a noun (or rather the verb phrase introduced by the gerund is used as a noun phrase).[23] Many uses of gerunds are thus similar to noun uses of the infinitive. Uses of gerunds and gerund phrases are illustrated below:
It is considered grammatically correct to express theagent (logical subject) of a gerund using apossessive form (they object tomy helping them), although in informal English a simple noun or pronoun is often used instead (they object tome helping them). For details seefused participle.
For gerund constructions with perfect aspect (e.g.(my) having written), see§ Perfect and progressive nonfinite constructions below.
There are also nonfinite constructions that are marked forperfect,progressive orperfect progressive aspect, using the infinitives, participles or gerunds of the appropriate auxiliaries. The meanings are as would be expected for the respective aspects: perfect for prior occurrence, progressive for ongoing occurrence at a particular time. (Passive voice can also be marked in nonfinite constructions – with infinitives, gerunds and present participles – in the expected way:(to) be eaten,being eaten,having been eaten, etc.)
Examples of nonfinite constructions marked for the various aspects are given below.
Bare infinitive:
To-infinitive:
Present participle:
Past participle:
Gerund:
Other aspectual, temporal andmodal information can be marked on nonfinite verbs usingperiphrastic constructions. For example, a "future infinitive" can be constructed using forms such as(to) begoing to eat or(to) beabout to eat.
Certain words are formed from verbs, but are used as common nouns or adjectives, without any of the grammatical behavior of verbs. These are sometimes called verbal nouns or adjectives, but they are also calleddeverbal nouns anddeverbal adjectives, to distinguish them from the truly "verbal" forms such as gerunds and participles.[24]
Besides its nonfinite verbal uses as agerund orpresent participle, the-ing form of a verb is also used as a deverbal noun, denoting an activity or occurrence in general, or a specific action or event (or sometimes a more distant meaning, such asbuilding orpiping denoting an object or system of objects). One can compare the construction and meaning of noun phrases formed using the-ing form as a gerund, and of those formed using the same-ing form as a deverbal noun. Some points are noted below:
Some-ing forms, particularly those such asboring,exciting,interesting, can also serve as deverbal adjectives (distinguished from the present participle in much the same way as the deverbal noun is distinguished from the gerund). There are also many other nouns and adjectives derived from particular verbs, such ascompetition andcompetitive from the verbcompete (as well as other types such asagent nouns). For more information seeverbal noun,deverbal noun anddeverbal adjective. For more on the distinction between the various uses of the-ing form of verbs, see-ing.