| The American Heritage® Book of English Usage. |
A Practical and Authoritative Guide to Contemporary English. 1996.
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Page 43
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| Future time can also be expressed by certain verb phrases like be going to (The tree is going to bloom soon), be to (We’re to have a meeting this morning), and be about to (They are about to start the race). | 1 |
| perfect tenses
| The perfect tenses show completed state or action. The present perfect is formed with has or have and a past participle. The past perfect, also called the pluperfect, requires had and a past participle. The future perfect uses will have or shall have and a past participle.
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Tense
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Uses
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Examples
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Present Perfect |
state or action that occurred in the past and may continue to the present |
He has walked in the park. I have lived in Arizona all my life. |
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Past Perfect(Pluperfect) |
state or action that occurred before |
He had walked in the park that morning. I had lived in Arizona before moving to Oregon. |
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Future Perfect |
state or action that will occur before something else in the future |
He will have walked in the park by the time we
arrive. Come March, I will have lived in Arizona
for two years. |
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| 2 |
| progressive tenses
| The progressive tenses show a state or action that is continuing or in progress. The present progressive is formed with am, is, or are and a present participle. The past progressive requires was or were and a present participle. The future progressive uses will be or shall be and a present participle.
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Tense
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Uses
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Examples
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Present Progressive |
ongoing state or action |
They are walking in the park. |
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future state or action |
I am going to the museum tomorrow. |
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Past Progressive |
state or action ongoing in the past |
They were walking in the park. |
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Future Progressive |
state or action ongoing in the future |
They will be walking in the park all day. They
will be walking in the park tomorrow. |
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| 3 |
| The perfect and progressive tenses are sometimes called aspects instead of tenses since they show how verb action is viewed or experienced with respect to time. The perfect and progressive tenses can be combined to show action in the past | 4 |
| The American Heritage® Book of English Usage. Copyright © 1996 by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
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