English Grammar tense for Class 7

Tenses are an indispensable part of English grammar. It is essential to know the tenses and use them appropriately to construct grammatically and semantically correct sentences. Tenses are a grammatical category that indicates when a particular action or event has taken place. If a sentence does not convey the time of an event, then it relays an incomplete meaning to the reader.

In this blog, we are not only elucidating the different tenses but citing examples for each category to explain English grammar tenses better. This article will be helpful for students of junior classes like class 7. PlanetSpark is an online portal that trains children to be confident public speakers and creative writers. So, visit the platform today and book a free trial for your child.

Tenses

The word ‘Tense’ means time. Tense is the form adopted by a verb to denote the time of an action. English grammar tenses complete the meaning of a sentence by indicating at what point of time an event has happened: has the event already occurred, is it occurring right now, or will it occur in the future.

Time can be divided into past, present, and future. Since the verbs not only indicate actions but also give information on the time of an action, English grammar tenses can be primarily divided into three types:

Past Tense
Present Tense
Future Tense

Present Tense

The present tense is a division of English grammar tenses. English present tense can be of the following types:

Simple Present Tense

Simple present tense can be used in the following cases:

i) To express general/ universal truths

Honesty is the best policy.
All the planets move around the sun.

ii) To express an action/event taking place in the present time

Here comes the bus.
Watch the sunrise.

iii) To express a habit

Rohan plays piano.
He goes to school every day.
The shops close at 10 PM.

iv) To express a future action that happens according to a fixed schedule

They travel to their hometown every weekend.
The bus leaves at 7 AM.

Present Continuous Tense

Present continuous tense is another division of English present tense, and it is used as follows.

i) To express an event that is happening at the time of speaking

He is playing outside.
The child is laughing.

ii) To express an event going on for some time, even if it is not taking place at the exact time of speaking.

I am learning German.
He is running an orphanage.

iii) To mark an action that will take place in the future

We are going to Delhi tomorrow.
He is getting a promotion next month.

Present Perfect Tense

i) To express an event that has concluded in the immediate past or the recent past

The train has departed.
I have finished the homework just now.

ii) To describe an action that started in the past but is continuing in the present

He has worked in this factory for twelve years.
They have known each other for a couple of years.

iii) To express an event that has started in the past but its effect is continuing in the present

He has completed his homework. (So, he is free now).
The dog has made a mess in the garden. (It is dirty now).

iv) To express a past event whose time is not definite

Sushmita has written many novels.
I have been to Dubai.

v) To indicate an event that has not been completed yet

The workers have not received their wages.
She has not been to the zoo yet.

Present Perfect Continuous Tense

i) To indicate an incident that began in the past and is continuing in the present

He has been studying for two hours.
It has been pouring since morning.

Past Tense

Past tense is another division of English grammar tenses.

Simple Past Tense

i) To indicate an event completed in the past

He completed his essay an hour back.
She left her job last month.

ii) To express a custom/habit of the past

He walked 3 miles every day to reach his office before buying a cycle.
My father taught orphans when he was in college.

Past Continuous Tense

i) To express an action that was going on for some time in the past

He was sleeping in the afternoon.
She was writing an essay on global warming yesterday.

ii) To indicate a past event by another event that took place at the same time

They were singing in the choir when the priest entered the church.
She was leaving when you called.

Past Perfect Tense

i) To indicate that an action was completed in the past before another event took place

The robbers had run away by the time police came.
The patient had died before the ambulance could reach the hospital.

Note- For two actions that occurred in the past, the past perfect tense denotes the earlier past event, while the simple past tense indicates the later past action.

Past Perfect Continuous Tense

i) To describe an event that started in the past and continued a while in the past

She had been playing in the park for an hour before it started raining.
They had been living in New York for five years when he lost his job.

Future Tense

Another primary division of English grammar tense is future tense. It is of the following types.

Simple Future Tense

i) To indicate an event yet to occur

He will win the race.
Sunita shall go to Australia next year.

The expression of the future tense is one of the most exciting aspects of English grammar tenses. Some of them are:

By using simple present tense

We have a doctor’s appointment the day after tomorrow.

By using present continuous

They are travelling to Ranchi on 3rd April.

By using am/is/are + infinite verb

He is to meet my mother.

By using is/are/am going + infinite verb

She is going to quit her job.

Future Continuous Tense

i) To express an event that will happen for some time in the future

They will be playing the match tomorrow.
He shall be teaching the 2022 batch.

Future Perfect Tense

i) To denote an event that will be completed at some point of time in the future

The house will have been built by 2023.
He shall have returned home by next week.

Future Perfect Continuous Tense

i) To express an action that will be in progress even after some time in the future.

You will have been working in this company for four years by this year.
They will have been preparing for the fest for two months.

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Conclusion

This article explains the different tenses like English present tense, past tense, and future tense with illustrations to better explain the concepts. The various types of tenses have been organised to be helpful to class 6 or 7 students of all boards, like CBSE class 7 students.

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FAQs

What are the twelve types of tenses in English grammar?

English has three primary tenses- present, past, and future. These are further categorised as:

Simple present
Present continuous
Present perfect
Present perfect continuous
Simple past
Past continuous
Past perfect
Past perfect continuous
Simple future
Future continuous
Future perfect
Future perfect continuous

How do we form interrogative and negative sentences in the present indefinite form?

A set pattern follows the structure of interrogative and negative sentences.

Interrogative sentence- Does/Do + Subject + Verb + Object

Examples- Does he play football?

Negative sentence- Subject + does/do + not + verb + object

Examples- They do not speak foreign languages.

How do we form interrogative sentences in the present perfect continuous tense?

Affirmative sentences in present perfect continuous tense are formed as: Subject + Helping Verb I + Helping Verb II (&III) + Main verb. However, interrogative sentences are formed by interchanging the positions of the subject and helping verb I. For example, Has (Verb I) he (subject) been (verb II) sleeping (Main verb)?

How to avoid errors in tenses while speaking and writing?

Analyse the context of the action to determine which tense of the verb. It is crucial to be aware of the verb forms in the case of tenses. For example, generally -ed is added to verbs in the past tense.