Cuadro De Tiempos Gramaticales En Ingles

Tense Signal words Use Form Examples

affirmative Examples

negative Examples

interrogative

Simple

Present

or

Present Simple

every day

sometimes

always

often

usually

seldom

never

first ... then something happens repeatedly

how often something happens

one action follows another

things in general

with the following verbs (to love, to hate, to think, etc.)

future meaning: timetables, programmes infinitive he/she/it + -s I work. I don't work. Do I work?

He works. He doesn'twork. Does hework?

I go. I don't go. Do I go?

He goes. He doesn't go. Does he go?

Present

Progressive or

Present Continuous

now

at the moment

Look!

Listen! something is happening at the same time of speaking or around it

future meaning: when you have already decided and arranged to do it (a fixed plan, date) to be (am/are/is) +infinitive + -ing I'm working. I'm not working. Am Iworking?

He's working. He isn'tworking. Is heworking?

I'm going. I'm not going. Am I going?

He's going. He isn't going. Is he going?

Simple

Past

or

Past

Simple

last ...

... ago

in 1990

yesterday action finished in the past, mostly connected with an expression of time (no connection to the present)

regular:

infinitive + -edirregular:

2nd column of table of irregular verbs I worked. I didn't work. Did I work?

He worked. He didn't work. Did he work?

I went. I didn't go. Did I go?

He went. He didn't go. Did he go?

Past

Progressive or

Past Continuous

while an action happened in the middle of another action

someone was doing sth. at a certain time (in the past) - you do not know whether it was finished or not was/were +infinitive + -ing I was working. I wasn'tworking. Was Iworking?

He wasworking. He wasn'tworking. Was heworking?

I was going. I wasn't going. Was I going?

He was going. He wasn'tgoing. Was hegoing?

Simple

Present

Perfect

or

Present

Perfect

just

yet

never

ever

already

so far,

up to now,

since

for

recently you say that sth. has happened or is finished in the past and it has a connection to the present

action started in the past and continues up to the present have/has + past participle*

*(infinitive + -ed) or (3rd column of table of irregular verbs) I have worked. I haven'tworked. Have Iworked?

He has worked. He hasn'tworked. Has heworked?

I have gone. I haven't gone. Have I gone?

He has gone. He hasn't gone. Has he gone?

Present Perfect

Progressive or

Present

Perfect

Continuous

all day

the whole day

how long

since

for action began in the past and has just stopped

how long the action has been happening

emphasis: length of time of an action have/has +been + infinitive+ -ing I have beenworking. I haven't beenworking. Have I beenworking?

He has beenworking. He hasn't beenworking. Has he beenworking?

I have beengoing. I haven't beengoing. Have I beengoing?

He has beengoing. He hasn't beengoing. Has he beengoing?

Simple

Past

Perfect

or

Past

Perfect

(Simple)

already

just

never mostly when two actions in a story are related to each other: the action which had already happened is put into Past Perfect, the other action into Simple Past

the past of the Present Perfect had + past participle*

*(infinitive + -ed) or (3rd column of table of irregular verbs) I had worked. I hadn'tworked. Had Iworked?

He had worked. He hadn'tworked. Had heworked?

I had gone. I hadn't gone. Had I gone?

He had gone. He hadn't gone. Had he gone?

Past Perfect Progressive or

Past Perfect Continuous

how long

since

for how long something had been happening before something else happened had + been +infinitive + ing I had beenworking. I hadn't beenworking. Had I beenworking?

He

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