Tenses Rules and Examples, Learn Rules and Types of All Tenses

Tenses can be referred to as a word form that signifies the time period of the event, a task, or an incident related to the period of time. It reflects the continuation or completion of any activity or task. Whether you are studying in a school or college, preparing for any competitive exam or other English mastership exams, good command over tenses can help you score good grades. Knowledge of tenses is very important, as it is a crucial part of the English language. Whatever we speak, write, and present, we have to do it as per the rules of tenses.

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Therefore, learning the types and rules of tenses becomes crucial when it comes to learning and working on the English language. Read the complete blog to learn the types and rules for all types of Tenses. 

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Table of Content

All Tenses Rules Chart

Types of Tenses

Past Tense Rules

Simple Past Tense

Past Continuous Tense

Past Perfect Tense

Past Perfect Continuous Tense

Present Tense Rules

Simple Present Tense

Present Continuous Tense

Present Perfect Tense

Present Perfect Continuous Tense

Future Tense Rules

Simple Future Tense

Future Continuous Tense

Future Perfect Tense

Future Perfect Continuous Tense

Tenses Rules and Applications

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In almost all the government and competitive exams, tenses are one of the most significant sections of the English section. Candidates can score good grades if they know and are well aware of the rules of tenses to avoid any mistakes. To learn and understand the tenses rules, we have tabulated the rules for all types of Tenses below.
 

All Tenses Rules Chart

Tenses	Rules
Simple Past Tense	Subject + V2 + Object
Past Continuous Tense	Subject + was + V1 + ing + Object (Singular) Subject + were + V1 + ing + Object (Plural)
Past Perfect Tense	Subject + had + V3 + Object
Past Perfect Continuous Tense	Subject + had been + V1 + ing + Object
Simple Present Tense	Subject + V1 + s/es + Object (Singular) Subject + V1 + Object (Plural)
Present Continuous Tense	Subject + is/am/are + V1 + ing + object
Present Perfect Tense	Subject + has + V3 + Object (Singular) Subject + have + V3 + Object (Plural)
Present Perfect Continuous Tense	Subject + has been + V1 + ing + Object (Singular)Subject + have been + V1 + ing + Object (Plural)
Simple Future Tense	Subject + will/shall + V1 + Object
Future Continuous Tense	Subject + will be/shall be + ing + V1 + Object
Future Perfect Tense	Subject + will have/shall have + V3 + Object
Future Perfect Contnuous Tense	Subject + will have been + V1 + ing + Object

We will now talk about each section with different types of Tenses, rules for tenses, and their examples.

Types of Tenses

There are three types of Tenses

• Past Tense 
• Present Tense 
• Future Tense

These four tenses are further categorized into four more tenses-

• Simple
• Continuous 
• Perfect 
• Perfect Continuous 

Past Tense Rules

The Past Tense describes a Past activity or task. It is a type of verb that describes the tasks that have already taken place. 

For Example-

• Rohan attended the music class.
• She departed before I reach home.
• Priya wrote a letter to her friends.

Simple Past Tense Rules

Subject + V2 + Object 

For Example-

• Sheetal ate dinner.
• I prepared for the exam.

Past Continuous Tense Rules

Subject + was + V1 + ing + Object (Singular) Subject + were + V1 + ing + Object (Plural)

For Example-

• I was eating dinner.
• Sia was writing a letter to the principal.

Past Perfect Tense Rules

Subject + had + V3 + Object

For Example-

• He had taken the receipt.
• I had washed my clothes.

Past Perfect Continuous Tense Rules

Subject + had been + V1 + ing + Object

For Example-

• He had been standing at your gate the whole night.
• I had been drinking plenty of water for the whole summer.

Present Tense Rules

The Present Tense describes the present events or tasks. It is a type of verb that signifies the tasks that are recently taking place. 
 

Simple Present Tense Rules

Subject + is/am/are + V1 + Object (Singular Verb s/es)

Subject + were + V1 + ing + Object (Plural Verb (V1)

For Example-

• I go to school daily.
• She enjoys eating fast food.
• Rohan studies well.

Present Continuous Tense Rules

Subject + was + V1 + ing + Object (Singular) Subject + were + V1 + ing + Object (Plural)

For Example-

• I am eating Chinese food.
• Sia is writing a letter to her friend.

Present Perfect Tense Rules

Subject + had + V3 + Object

For Example-

• He has taken the ticket.
• I have brushed my teeth.

Present Perfect Continuous Tense Rules

Subject + had been + V1 + ing + Object

For Example-

• He has been waiting for your call the whole night.
• I have been studying for UPSC for the whole year.

Future Tense Rules

The Future Tense denotes the events and occurrences that haven’t taken place yet but will occur in the future. It is a type of verb that will take place in the future.

For Example-

• She will attend the piano classes from tomorrow 
• The train will depart in 20 minutes. 
• Rohit will shift to Delhi next month.

Simple Future Tense Rules

Subject + will/shall + V1 + Object

For Example-

• I shall go to the music class tomorrow.
• My mother will pick me up from school. 

Future Continuous Tense Rules

Subject + will be/shall be + ing + V1 + Object

For Example-

• He shall be preparing for the exam.
• We will be going to Mumbai.

Future Perfect Tense Rules

Subject + will have/shall have + V3 + Object

For Example-

• I shall have started exercising by that time.
• We will have reached Kerala by then.

Future Perfect Continuous Tense Rules

Subject + will have been + V1 + ing + Object

For Example-

• By next year we will be shifting to London.
• They shall be providing food in the slum area tomorrow.

Tenses Rules and Application 

Sometimes learning and understanding the Rules and types of Tenses can be confusing. To make it easy for you, we have compiled the tenses rules and their application with the help of examples in the table below. 

Tenses	Application	Example
Simple Past Tense	Past Events	Rohan wrote a letter.
Past Continuous Tense	Past events associated with occurence of other tasks	Rohan was writing a letter.
Past Perfect Tense	Events that occured before past events	Rohan had written a letter.
Past Perfect Continuous Tense	Past events associated with a past task	Rohan had been writing a letter.
Simple Present Tense	Facts and truths	Rohan writes a letter.
Present Continuous Tense	Current Events	Rohan is writing a letter.
Present Perfect Tense	Tasks of past and continuing or expected to be continued in present	Rohan has written a letter.
Present Perfect Continuous Tense	Past tasks, continued & finished in the current time	Rohan has been writing a letter.
Simple Future Tense	Coming Events	Rohan will write a letter.
Future Continuous Tense	Future occurences & are expected to go on	Rohan will be writing a letter.
Future Perfect Tense	Current tasks finished in the given time period in future	Rohan will have written a letter.
Future Perfect Continuous Tense	Actiivities continue in the future & highlighting the period	Rohan will have been written a letter.