Simple PresentPresent | - P: He speaks.
- N: He does not speak.
- Q: Does he speak?
| - a single or repeated action in the present
- general validity
- actions happening one after the other
- confirmed future actions (time table, schedule)
| always, every …, never, normally, often, seldom, sometimes, usually if-clause type I (If I talk, …) |
Present ProgressivePresent Continuous | - P: He is speaking.
- N: He is not speaking.
- Q: Is he speaking?
| - action currently taking place
- action limited to a particular timeframe
- already planned or agreed-upon future action
| at the moment, just, just now, Listen!, Look!, now, right now |
Simple PastPreterite | P: He spoke.
N: He did not speak.
Q: Did he speak? | - a single or repeated action in the past
- actions happening one after the other in the past
- a new action that interrupts an action that was already taking place
| yesterday, 2 minutes ago, in 1990, the other day, last Friday
if-clause type II (If I talked, …) |
Past ProgressivePreterite Continuous
Past Continuous | P: He was speaking.
N: He was not speaking.
Q: Was he speaking? | - emphasis on the process of an action taking place in the past
- multiple actions taking place at the same time
- an action that was taking place when interrupted by a new action
| when, while, as long as |
Present Perfect SimplePerfect | P: He has spoken.
N: He has not spoken.
Q: Has he spoken? | - the result is emphasised
- action that lasts to the present moment
- action that has just been completed
- completed action with influence on the present
- an action that has never/once/more than once taken place up to the time of speaking
| already, ever, just, never, not yet, so far, till now, up to now |
Present Perfect ProgressivePerfect Continuous | P: He has been speaking.
N: He has not been speaking.
Q: Has he been speaking? | - the action is emphasised (not the result)
- action that has lasted until the present time
- completed action with influence on the present
| all day, for 4 years, since 1993, how long?, the whole week |
Past Perfect SimplePluperfect
Past Anterior | P: He had spoken.
N: He had not spoken.
Q: Had he spoken? | - action taking place before a certain time in the past
- sometimes interchangeable with past perfect progressive
- emphasises only the fact that something took place before a certain point in the past
| already, just, never, not yet, once, until that day
if-clause type III (If I had talked, …) |
Past Perfect ProgressivePluperfect Continuous
Past Anterior Continuous | P: He had been speaking.
N: He had not been speaking.
Q: Had he been speaking? | - action before a certain point in the past
- sometimes interchangeable with past perfect simple
- emphasises the action or length of the action
| for, since, the whole day, all day |
Future I Simple(will)
Future I | P: He will speak.
N: He will not speak.
Q: Will he speak? | - events in the future that cannot be influenced
- spontaneous decision
- suppositions about the future
| in a year, next …, tomorrow
if-clause type I (If you ask her, she will help you.)
supposition: I think, probably, perhaps |
Future I Simple(going to) | P: He is going to speak.
N: He is not going to speak.
Q: Is he going to speak? | - pre-existing intention regarding the future
- logical conclusion regarding the future
| in one year, next week, tomorrow |
Future I ProgressiveFuture Continuous | P: He will be speaking.
N: He will not be speaking.
Q: Will he be speaking? | - action that will be taking place at a certain point in the future
- certain or obvious events
| in one year, next week, tomorrow |
Future II SimpleFuture II
Future Perfect | P: He will have spoken.
N: He will not have spoken.
Q: Will he have spoken? | - action that will have been completed by a future time
| by Monday, in a week |
Future II ProgressiveFuture II Continuous
Future Perfect Progressive | P: He will have been speaking.
N: He will not have been speaking.
Q: Will he have been speaking? | - action that will have been completed by a future time
- emphasises the length of the action
| for …, the last couple of hours, all day long |
Conditional I SimpleSubjunctive II (Present)
Form of Possibility | P: He would speak.
N: He would not speak.
Q: Would he speak? | - action that could possibly take place
| if-clause type II
(If I were you, I would go home.) |
Conditional I ProgressiveSubjunctive II Continuous (Present)
Continuous Form of Possibility | P: He would be speaking.
N: He would not be speaking.
Q: Would he be speaking? | - action that could possibly take place
- emphasises the action or the length of the action
| |
Conditional II SimpleSubjunctive II (Past)
Perfect Form of Possibility | P: He would have spoken.
N: He would not have spoken.
Q: Would he have spoken? | - action that otherwise might have taken place in the past
| if-clause type III
(If I had seen that, I would have helped.) |
Conditional II ProgressiveSubjunctive II Continuous (Past)
Continuous Perfect Form of Possibility | P: He would have been speaking.
N: He would not have been speaking.
Q: Would he have been speaking? | - action that otherwise might have taken place in the past
- emphasises the action or length of the action
|