Subject: English
Book: English Grammar
English has many tenses to show when actions happen (past, present, future) and whether they’re ongoing, finished, or repeated. It can seem big, but let’s break it down.
### Simple Tenses
1. **Simple Present**: “I eat an apple,” or “He runs.” (Habitual or general truth)
2. **Simple Past**: “I ate an apple,” or “He ran.” (Action done before now)
3. **Simple Future**: “I will eat an apple,” or “He will run.” (Action not yet done)
### Continuous (Progressive) Tenses
1. **Present Continuous**: “I am eating,” happening right now.
2. **Past Continuous**: “I was eating,” happening in the past over some duration.
3. **Future Continuous**: “I will be eating,” will happen over time in the future.
### Perfect Tenses
1. **Present Perfect**: “I have eaten,” something happened at an unspecified time or still has an effect now.
2. **Past Perfect**: “I had eaten,” finished before another past action.
3. **Future Perfect**: “I will have eaten,” will finish before another future time.
### Perfect Continuous Tenses
1. **Present Perfect Continuous**: “I have been eating,” started in the past, continues now.
2. **Past Perfect Continuous**: “I had been eating,” went on for a while before another past event.
3. **Future Perfect Continuous**: “I will have been eating,” will be ongoing up to a future point.
### Kid-Friendly Example
- Past: “Yesterday, I **ate** cake.”
- Present: “Right now, I **am eating** cake.”
- Future: “Tomorrow, I **will eat** cake.”
Tenses help us travel in time with our words. They let us talk about what already happened, what’s happening, or what might happen later. It’s like having a superpower to show time in language!