| Examples: | ||
| Incorrect: | When I open the door, my dog greeted me. | |
| Correct: | When I opened the door, my dog greeted me. (past tense) | |
| When I open the door, my dog greets me. (present tense) |
The present tense shows that an action is taking place in the present but does not indicate when the action will end.
| Examples: | We go to the store. | |
| They study at the university. |
Special uses of the present tense:
Use the present tense to describe something that is universally true and not limited to a particular time.
| Example: | The boiling point of water is 100 degrees Celsius. |
Use the present tense to discuss the contents of a book, a poem, or an essay even though the work might be written in the past.
| Example: | Julius Caesar is murdered by Brutus in Shakespeare's play. |
The present continuous tense shows that something is happening in the present and will have a definite end.
| Examples: | We are going to the store now. | |
| They are studying at the university. |
The past tense shows that something was completed in the past.
| Examples: | We went to the store yesterday. | |
| They studied at the university in 1980. |
The past participle tense shows that something was completed in the past before another action. Usually, the past participle and the past tense are used in the same sentence.
| Examples: | We had gone to the store when she arrived. |
| They had studied at the university before they found jobs. |
The future tense shows that something will happen in the future.
| Examples: | We will go to the store later today. |
| They will study at the university in the coming September. |