Kamis, 14 Oktober 2010

Future Perfect Continuous Tense

I will have been singing

How do we make the Future Perfect Continuous Tense?

The structure of the future perfect continuous tense is:

subject+auxiliary verb WILL+auxiliary verb HAVE+auxiliary verb BE+main verb

invariable
invariable
past participle
present participle
willhavebeenbase + ing

For negative sentences in the future perfect continuous tense, we insert not between will and have. For question sentences, we exchange the subject and will. Look at these example sentences with the future perfect continuous tense:

subjectauxiliary verb
auxiliary verbauxiliary verbmain verb
+Iwill havebeenworkingfor four hours.
+Youwill havebeentravellingfor two days.
-Shewillnothavebeenusingthe car.
-Wewillnothavebeenwaitinglong.
?Willyou havebeenplayingfootball?
?Willthey havebeenwatchingTV?

When we use the future perfect continuous tense in speaking, we often contract the subject and auxiliary verb:

I willI'll
you willyou'll
he will
she will
it will
he'll
she'll
it'll
we willwe'll
they willthey'll

For negative sentences in the future perfect continuous tense, we contract with won't, like this:

I will notI won't
you will notyou won't
he will not
she will not
it will not
he won't
she won't
it won't
we will notwe won't
they will notthey won't

How do we use the Future Perfect Continuous Tense?

We use the future perfect continuous tense to talk about a long action before some point in the future. Look at these examples:

  • I will have been working here for ten years next week.
  • He will be tired when he arrives. He will have been travelling for 24 hours.

Future Perfect Tense

I will have sung

The future perfect tense is quite an easy tense to understand and use. The future perfect tense talks about the past in the future.

How do we make the Future Perfect Tense?

The structure of the future perfect tense is:

subject+auxiliary verb WILL+auxiliary verb HAVE+main verb

invariable
invariable
past participle
willhaveV3

Look at these example sentences in the future perfect tense:

subjectauxiliary verb
auxiliary verbmain verb
+Iwill havefinishedby 10am.
+Youwill haveforgottenme by then.
-Shewillnothavegoneto school.
-Wewillnothaveleft.
?Willyou havearrived?
?Willthey havereceivedit?

In speaking with the future perfect tense, we often contract the subject and will. Sometimes, we contract the subject, will and have all together:

I will haveI'll haveI'll've
you will haveyou'll haveyou'll've
he will have
she will have
it will have
he'll have
she'll have
it'll have
he'll've
she'll've
it'll've
we will havewe'll havewe'll've
they will havethey'll havethey'll've
TIPS:
We sometimes use shall instead of will, especially for I and we.

How do we use the Future Perfect Tense?

The future perfect tense expresses action in the future before another action in the future. This is the past in the future. For example:

  • The train will leave the station at 9am. You will arrive at the station at 9.15am. When you arrive, the train will have left.
The train will have left when you arrive.
pastpresentfuture
Train leaves in future at 9am.
9 9.15


You arrive in future at 9.15am.

Look at some more examples:

  • You can call me at work at 8am. I will have arrived at the office by 8.
  • They will be tired when they arrive. They will not have slept for a long time.
  • "Mary won't be at home when you arrive."
    "Really? Where will she have gone?"

You can sometimes think of the future perfect tense like the present perfect tense, but instead of your viewpoint being in the present, it is in the future:

present perfect tense future perfect tense

|
have |
done |
> |




will |
have |
done |
> |


pastnowfuture pastnowfuture

Future Continuous Tense

I will be singing

How do we make the Future Continuous Tense?

The structure of the future continuous tense is:

subject+auxiliary verb WILL+auxiliary verb BE+main verb

invariable
invariable
present participle
willbebase + ing

For negative sentences in the future continuous tense, we insert not between will and be. For question sentences, we exchange the subject and will. Look at these example sentences with the future continuous tense:

subjectauxiliary verb
auxiliary verbmain verb
+Iwill beworkingat 10am.
+Youwill belyingon a beach tomorrow.
-Shewillnotbeusingthe car.
-Wewillnotbehavingdinner at home.
?Willyou beplayingfootball?
?Willthey bewatchingTV?

When we use the future continuous tense in speaking, we often contract the subject and will:

I willI'll
you willyou'll
he will
she will
it will
he'll
she'll
it'll
we willwe'll
they willthey'll

For spoken negative sentences in the future continuous tense, we contract with won't, like this:

I will notI won't
you will notyou won't
he will not
she will not
it will not
he won't
she won't
it won't
we will notwe won't
they will notthey won't
TIPS:
We sometimes use shall instead of will, especially for I and we.

How do we use the Future Continuous Tense?

The future continuous tense expresses action at a particular moment in the future. The action will start before that moment but it will not have finished at that moment. For example, tomorrow I will start work at 2pm and stop work at 6pm:

At 4pm tomorrow, I will be working.
pastpresentfuture

4pm
At 4pm, I will be in the middle of working.

When we use the future continuous tense, our listener usually knows or understands what time we are talking about. Look at these examples:

  • I will be playing tennis at 10am tomorrow.
  • They won't be watching TV at 9pm tonight.
  • What will you be doing at 10pm tonight?
  • What will you be doing when I arrive?
  • She will not be sleeping when you telephone her.
  • We 'll be having dinner when the film starts.
  • Take your umbrella. It will be raining when you return.

Simple Future Tense

I will sing

The simple future tense is often called will, because we make the simple future tense with the modal auxiliary will.

How do we make the Simple Future Tense?

The structure of the simple future tense is:

subject+auxiliary verb WILL+main verb

invariable
base
willV1

For negative sentences in the simple future tense, we insert not between the auxiliary verb and main verb. For question sentences, we exchange the subject and auxiliary verb. Look at these example sentences with the simple future tense:

subjectauxiliary verb
main verb
+Iwill openthe door.
+Youwill finishbefore me.
-Shewillnotbeat school tomorrow.
-Wewillnotleaveyet.
?Willyou arriveon time?
?Willthey wantdinner?

When we use the simple future tense in speaking, we often contract the subject and auxiliary verb:

I willI'll
you willyou'll
he will
she will
it will
he'll
she'll
it'll
we willwe'll
they willthey'll

For negative sentences in the simple future tense, we contract with won't, like this:

I will notI won't
you will notyou won't
he will not
she will not
it will not
he won't
she won't
it won't
we will notwe won't
they will notthey won't

How do we use the Simple Future Tense?

No Plan

We use the simple future tense when there is no plan or decision to do something before we speak. We make the decision spontaneously at the time of speaking. Look at these examples:

  • Hold on. I'll get a pen.
  • We will see what we can do to help you.
  • Maybe we'll stay in and watch television tonight.

In these examples, we had no firm plan before speaking. The decision is made at the time of speaking.

We often use the simple future tense with the verb to think before it:

  • I think I'll go to the gym tomorrow.
  • I think I will have a holiday next year.
  • I don't think I'll buy that car.

Prediction

We often use the simple future tense to make a prediction about the future. Again, there is no firm plan. We are saying what we think will happen. Here are some examples:

  • It will rain tomorrow.
  • People won't go to Jupiter before the 22nd century.
  • Who do you think will get the job?

Be

When the main verb is be, we can use the simple future tense even if we have a firm plan or decision before speaking. Examples:

  • I'll be in London tomorrow.
  • I'm going shopping. I won't be very long.
  • Will you be at work tomorrow?
Note that when we have a plan or intention to do something in the future, we usually use other tenses or expressions, such as the present continuous tense or going to.

Past Perfect Continuous Tense

I had been singing

How do we make the Past Perfect Continuous Tense?

The structure of the past perfect continuous tense is:

subject+auxiliary verb HAVE+auxiliary verb BE+main verb

conjugated in simple past tense
past participle
present participle
hadbeenbase + ing

For negative sentences in the past perfect continuous tense, we insert not after the first auxiliary verb. For question sentences, we exchange the subject and first auxiliary verb. Look at these example sentences with the past perfect continuous tense:

subjectauxiliary verb
auxiliary verbmain verb
+Ihad beenworking.
+Youhad beenplayingtennis.
-Ithadnotbeenworkingwell.
-Wehadnotbeenexpectingher.
?Hadyou beendrinking?
?Hadthey beenwaitinglong?

When speaking with the past perfect continuous tense, we often contract the subject and first auxiliary verb:

I had beenI'd been
you had beenyou'd been
he had
she had been
it had been
he'd been
she'd been
it'd been
we had beenwe'd been
they had beenthey'd been

How do we use the Past Perfect Continuous Tense?

The past perfect continuous tense is like the past perfect tense, but it expresses longer actions in the past before another action in the past. For example:

  • Ram started waiting at 9am. I arrived at 11am. When I arrived, Ram had been waiting for two hours.
Ram had been waiting for two hours when I arrived.
pastpresentfuture
Ram starts waiting in past at 9am.
9 11


I arrive in past at 11am.

Here are some more examples:

  • John was very tired. He had been running.
  • I could smell cigarettes. Somebody had been smoking.
  • Suddenly, my car broke down. I was not surprised. It had not been running well for a long time.
  • Had the pilot been drinking before the crash?

You can sometimes think of the past perfect continuous tense like the present perfect continuous tense, but instead of the time being now the time is past.

past perfect continuous tense present perfect continuous tense
had |
been |
doing |
>>>> |
|
|
|
|


|
|
|
|
have |
been |
doing |
>>>> |



pastnowfuture pastnowfuture

For example, imagine that you meet Ram at 11am. Ram says to you:

  • "I am angry. I have been waiting for two hours."

Later, you tell your friends:

  • "Ram was angry. He had been waiting for two hours."

Past Perfect Tense

I had sung

The past perfect tense is quite an easy tense to understand and to use. This tense talks about the "past in the past".

In this lesson we look at:

Past Continuous Tense

I was singing

The past continuous tense is an important tense in English. We use it to say what we were in the middle of doing at a particular moment in the past.

In this lesson we look at the structure and the use of the past continuouse tense, followed by a quiz to check your understanding:

TIPS:
Continuous tenses are also called progressive tenses.

Simple Past Tense

I sang

The simple past tense is sometimes called the preterite tense. We can use several tenses to talk about the past, but the simple past tense is the one we use most often.

In this lesson we look at the structure and use of the simple past tense, followed by a quiz to check your understanding:

Present Perfect Continuous Tense

How do we make the Present Perfect Continuous Tense?

I have been singing

The structure of the present perfect continuous tense is:

subject+auxiliary verb+auxiliary verb+main verb


have
has

been
base + ing

Here are some examples of the present perfect continuous tense:


subjectauxiliary verb
auxiliary verbmain verb
+Ihave
beenwaitingfor one hour.
+Youhave
beentalkingtoo much.
-Ithasnotbeenraining.
-Wehavenotbeenplayingfootball.
?Haveyou
beenseeingher?
?Havethey
beendoingtheir homework?

Contractions

When we use the present perfect continuous tense in speaking, we often contract the subject and the first auxiliary. We also sometimes do this in informal writing.

I have beenI've been
You have beenYou've been
He has been
She has been
It has been
John has been
The car has been
He's been
She's been
It's been
John's been
The car's been
We have beenWe've been
They have beenThey've been

Here are some examples:

  • I've been reading.
  • The car's been giving trouble.
  • We've been playing tennis for two hours.

How do we use the Present Perfect Continuous Tense?

This tense is called the present perfect continuous tense. There is usually a connection with the present or now. There are basically two uses for the present perfect continuous tense:

1. An action that has just stopped or recently stopped

We use the present perfect continuous tense to talk about an action that started in the past and stopped recently. There is usually a result now.

I'm tired because I've been running.
pastpresentfuture

!!!
Recent action.Result now.
  • I'm tired [now] because I've been running.
  • Why is the grass wet [now]? Has it been raining?
  • You don't understand [now] because you haven't been listening.

2. An action continuing up to now

We use the present perfect continuous tense to talk about an action that started in the past and is continuing now. This is often used with for or since.

I have been reading for 2 hours.
pastpresentfuture


Action started in past.Action is continuing now.
  • I have been reading for 2 hours. [I am still reading now.]
  • We've been studying since 9 o'clock. [We're still studying now.]
  • How long have you been learning English? [You are still learning now.]
  • We have not been smoking. [And we are not smoking now.]

For and Since with Present Perfect Continuous Tense

We often use for and since with the present perfect tense.

  • We use for to talk about a period of time - 5 minutes, 2 weeks, 6 years.
  • We use since to talk about a point in past time - 9 o'clock, 1st January, Monday.
forsince
a period of timea point in past time

x
20 minutes6.15pm
three daysMonday
6 monthsJanuary
4 years1994
2 centuries1800
a long timeI left school
everthe beginning of time
etcetc

Here are some examples:

  • I have been studying for 3 hours.
  • I have been watching TV since 7pm.
  • Tara hasn't been feeling well for 2 weeks.
  • Tara hasn't been visiting us since March.
  • He has been playing football for a long time.
  • He has been living in Bangkok since he left school.
TIPS:
For can be used with all tenses. Since is usually used with perfect tenses only

Present Perfect Tense

I have sung

The present perfect tense is a rather important tense in English, but it gives speakers of some languages a difficult time. That is because it uses concepts or ideas that do not exist in those languages. In fact, the structure of the present perfect tense is very simple. The problems come with the use of the tense. In addition, there are some differences in usage between British and American English.

In this lesson we look at the structure and use of the present perfect, followed by a quiz to check your understanding:


TIPS:

The present perfect tense is really a very interesting tense, and a very useful one. Try not to translate the present perfect tense into your language. Just try to accept the concepts of this tense and learn to "think" present perfect! You will soon learn to like the present perfect tense!

Present Continuous Tense

I am singing

We often use the present continuous tense in English. It is very different from the simple present tense, both in structure and in use.

In this lesson we look the structure and use of the present continuous tense, followed by a quiz to check your understanding:

Simple Present Tense

How do we make the Simple Present Tense?

I sing

subject+auxiliary verb+main verb


do
base

There are three important exceptions:

  1. For positive sentences, we do not normally use the auxiliary.
  2. For the 3rd person singular (he, she, it), we add s to the main verb or es to the auxiliary.
  3. For the verb to be, we do not use an auxiliary, even for questions and negatives.

Look at these examples with the main verb like:


subjectauxiliary verb
main verb
+I, you, we, they

likecoffee.
He, she, it

likescoffee.
-I, you, we, theydonotlikecoffee.
He, she, itdoesnotlikecoffee.
?DoI, you, we, they
likecoffee?
Doeshe, she, it
likecoffee?

Look at these examples with the main verb be. Notice that there is no auxiliary:


subjectmain verb

+Iam
French.
You, we, theyare
French.
He, she, itis
French.
-Iamnotold.
You, we, theyarenotold.
He, she, itisnotold.
?AmI
late?
Areyou, we, they
late?
Ishe, she, it
late?

How do we use the Simple Present Tense?

We use the simple present tense when:

  • the action is general
  • the action happens all the time, or habitually, in the past, present and future
  • the action is not only happening now
  • the statement is always true
John drives a taxi.
pastpresentfuture

It is John's job to drive a taxi. He does it every day. Past, present and future.

Look at these examples:

  • I live in New York.
  • The Moon goes round the Earth.
  • John drives a taxi.
  • He does not drive a bus.
  • We meet every Thursday.
  • We do not work at night.
  • Do you play football?

Note that with the verb to be, we can also use the simple present tense for situations that are not general. We can use the simple present tense to talk about now. Look at these examples of the verb "to be" in the simple present tense - some of them are general, some of them are now:

Am I right?
Tara is not at home.
You are happy.
pastpresentfuture

The situation is now.
I am not fat.
Why are you so beautiful?
Ram is tall.
pastpresentfuture

The situation is general. Past, present and future.

GRAMMAR

What is Grammar?

Think of grammar as a signpost.Grammar is the system of a language. People sometimes describe grammar as the "rules" of a language; but in fact no language has rules*. If we use the word "rules", we suggest that somebody created the rules first and then spoke the language, like a new game. But languages did not start like that. Languages started by people making sounds which evolved into words, phrases and sentences. No commonly-spoken language is fixed. All languages change over time. What we call "grammar" is simply a reflection of a language at a particular time.

Do we need to study grammar to learn a language? The short answer is "no". Very many people in the world speak their own, native language without having studied its grammar. Children start to speak before they even know the word "grammar". But if you are serious about learning a foreign language, the long answer is "yes, grammar can help you to learn a language more quickly and more efficiently." It's important to think of grammar as something that can help you, like a friend. When you understand the grammar (or system) of a language, you can understand many things yourself, without having to ask a teacher or look in a book.

So think of grammar as something good, something positive, something that you can use to find your way - like a signpost or a map.

* Except invented languages like Esperanto. And if Esperanto were widely spoken, its rules would soon be very different.

 
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