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Simple Verb Tenses
Simple Verb Tenses
What is a verb tense?
A verb tense tells us when the action happened - an action or past state of being (i.e. a to be verb).
There are 3 simple verb tenses we are going to learn about:
#1 - Present tense means something that is happening NOW!
#2 - Past tense means that something already happened.
#3 - Future tense means something is going to happen in the future.
HINT! What’s a to be verb? Here’s a reminder:
Simple Past Tense
Past tense means something that already happened or a past state of being.
How do you make a verb past tense?
For most verbs, you add the ending -ED.
Present tense | Past Tense |
---|---|
I walk to school. | I walked to school. |
You jump rope. | You jumped rope yesterday. |
He picks up the cat. | He picked up the cat. |
Simple Present Tense
Present tense means something is happening right now. It can also mean things that repeatedly happen or general things that you always do, like a routine or a habit.
Examples:
• I Slide down the slide.
• You smell the flowers.
• We look at books.
Repeated Actions:
These can happen anytime in the past, present, or future, but the simple present tense is used to describe things you do repeatedly or as a habit.
Examples:
• Joey eats vegetables to stay healthy.
• Sarah exercises to keep her body strong.
• I like chocolate.
Generalizations:
Generalizations means something that is a constant or reality. They are formed using linking verbs with to be.
Examples:
• I am happy.
• You are very smart.
• Our family is large.
Simple Future Tense
Future tense means something that will happen in the future.
Examples:
• I will go to school tomorrow.
• You will eat four cookies after dinner.
• We will read for one hour for homework.
• They will be tired next week.