What are Tenses? Simple Present Simple Past Simple Future Comparison Tips & Mistakes Exercises
play played will play eat ate will eat
Topic 10 · Class 7 English

Simple Tenses

Simple Present · Simple Past · Simple Future

📚 PAST
✅ PRESENT
🌟 FUTURE
I played.
I play.
I will play.
Section 1

What are Tenses?

Tense is the form of a verb that shows the time of an action or event. It tells us when something happens — in the past, present, or future.

Every sentence you say or write has a verb, and that verb changes its form to show when the action takes place. There are three main time periods:

Time Period Meaning Example
Past Action already happened She danced yesterday.
Present Action happening now / regularly She dances every day.
Future Action that will happen later She will dance tomorrow.
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Each time period has three types: Simple, Continuous, and Perfect. That makes 9 tenses in total! In this chapter, we focus on the three Simple Tenses.

The Simple Tenses describe actions that are complete or factual — they don't show actions in progress (that's continuous) or completed before another time (that's perfect).

Section 2

Simple Present Tense

The Simple Present Tense describes actions that happen regularly, always, or are general facts. It uses the base form of the verb (V1).

Structure

Subject + V1 (base form) / V1 + s/es

Rules for Adding -s / -es / -ies

Rule When Examples
Add -s Most verbs (with he/she/it) play → plays, read → reads, run → runs
Add -es Verbs ending in -s, -ss, -sh, -ch, -x, -o watch → watches, go → goes, wash → washes, fix → fixes
Change -y to -ies Verbs ending in consonant + y carry → carries, study → studies, fly → flies
Keep -ys Verbs ending in vowel + y play → plays, enjoy → enjoys, say → says
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Remember: We add -s / -es only with he, she, it (third-person singular). With I, you, we, they, we use the base form (V1).

When Do We Use It?

✔ Habits & routines

I brush my teeth every morning.

✔ General facts & universal truths

The sun rises in the east.

✔ Timetables & schedules

The train leaves at 6 PM.

✔ Permanent situations

She lives in Mumbai.

Signal Words

always usually often sometimes never every day every week generally rarely seldom

Positive, Negative & Question Forms

Form Structure Example
Positive (I/you/we/they) Subject + V1 They play cricket.
Positive (he/she/it) Subject + V1 + s/es He plays cricket.
Negative (I/you/we/they) Subject + do not (don't) + V1 They do not play cricket.
Negative (he/she/it) Subject + does not (doesn't) + V1 He does not play cricket.
Question (I/you/we/they) Do + subject + V1 ? Do they play cricket?
Question (he/she/it) Does + subject + V1 ? Does he play cricket?

Examples

Section 3

Simple Past Tense

The Simple Past Tense describes actions that started and finished at a specific time in the past. It uses the past form (V2) of the verb.

Structure

Subject + V2 (past form of the verb)

Regular Verbs: Adding -ed

Rule When Examples
Add -ed Most verbs play → played, wash → washed, help → helped
Add -d Verbs already ending in -e like → liked, dance → danced, live → lived
Double last letter + ed Short vowel + single consonant (CVC) stop → stopped, plan → planned, drop → dropped
Change -y to -ied Verbs ending in consonant + y carry → carried, study → studied, try → tried
Keep -yed Verbs ending in vowel + y play → played, enjoy → enjoyed, stay → stayed

Irregular Verbs (20+ Common Ones)

These verbs do not follow the -ed rule. You must memorise their past forms!

go → went
eat → ate
buy → bought
come → came
see → saw
take → took
give → gave
write → wrote
read → read
drink → drank
run → ran
swim → swam
sing → sang
think → thought
bring → brought
teach → taught
catch → caught
sit → sat
stand → stood
know → knew
speak → spoke
break → broke
find → found
lose → lost
make → made

When Do We Use It?

✔ Completed actions in the past

She visited her grandmother last Sunday.

✔ A series of completed actions

He woke up, brushed his teeth, and ate breakfast.

✔ Past habits (now stopped)

When I was young, I played in the park every evening.

Signal Words

yesterday last week last month last year ago in 2020 the other day once upon a time

Positive, Negative & Question Forms

Form Structure Example
Positive Subject + V2 She walked to school.
Negative Subject + did not (didn't) + V1 She did not walk to school.
Question Did + subject + V1 ? Did she walk to school?
⚠️
Important! In negative and question forms, we use did + V1 (base form), NOT V2. So: "She did not walked" is WRONG. The correct form is "She did not walk."

Examples

Section 4

Simple Future Tense

The Simple Future Tense describes actions that will happen at a later time. It uses will or shall before the base form (V1) of the verb.

Structure

Subject + will / shall + V1 (base form)

Will vs Shall

Word Used With Modern Usage
Shall I, We (traditional/formal) I shall go. / We shall meet.
Will He, She, It, You, They He will come. / They will help.
Will (modern) All subjects (widely accepted today) I will go. / We will meet.
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Good to know: In modern English, will is used with all subjects. Shall is still used in formal writing, offers, and suggestions: "Shall I open the window?" / "Shall we dance?"

When Do We Use It?

✔ Predictions about the future

It will rain tomorrow.

✔ Promises

I will help you with your project.

✔ Instant decisions

"The phone is ringing." — "I will answer it."

✔ Future facts & schedules

The exam will start at 10 AM next Monday.

Signal Words

tomorrow next week next month next year soon in the future later the day after tomorrow

Positive, Negative & Question Forms

Form Structure Example
Positive Subject + will + V1 She will visit us tomorrow.
Negative Subject + will not (won't) + V1 She will not visit us tomorrow.
Question Will + subject + V1 ? Will she visit us tomorrow?

Examples

Section 5

Comparison: Simple Present vs Past vs Future

Here is a big colourful table comparing all three simple tenses side by side:

Feature Simple Present Simple Past Simple Future
Time Now / regularly Before now (finished) After now (not yet done)
Structure (+) S + V1 / V1+s/es S + V2 S + will/shall + V1
Structure (-) S + do/does not + V1 S + did not + V1 S + will not + V1
Structure (?) Do/Does + S + V1? Did + S + V1? Will + S + V1?
Helping Verb do / does did will / shall
Signal Words always, every day, usually, often yesterday, last week, ago, in 2020 tomorrow, next week, soon, later
Example (+) She plays tennis. She played tennis. She will play tennis.
Example (-) She does not play. She did not play. She will not play.
Example (?) Does she play? Did she play? Will she play?
Section 6

Quick Tips & Common Mistakes

Quick Tips

🎯
Tip 1: Look for signal words to identify the tense quickly. "Yesterday" = past, "every day" = present, "tomorrow" = future.
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Tip 2: In negative and question forms of Simple Past, the main verb goes back to V1 (base form) because did already carries the past meaning.
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Tip 3: In Simple Present, add -s/-es ONLY with he/she/it. With I/you/we/they, use the base form.
🎯
Tip 4: After will/shall, always use the base form (V1). Never say "will played" or "will plays".
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Tip 5: Remember the mnemonic: V1 = Present, V2 = Past, will + V1 = Future.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Mistake 1: He don't like pizza.

Correct: He doesn't like pizza.

(Use "doesn't" with he/she/it, not "don't")

Mistake 2: She did not went to school.

Correct: She did not go to school.

(After "did not", use V1, not V2)

Mistake 3: I will goes there.

Correct: I will go there.

(After "will", always use the base form V1)

Mistake 4: She playes tennis every day.

Correct: She plays tennis every day.

(No -es needed here — "play" just takes -s)

Mistake 5: They buyed a new car.

Correct: They bought a new car.

("Buy" is irregular — its past form is "bought", not "buyed")

Mistake 6: Does she plays the piano?

Correct: Does she play the piano?

(After "does", use V1 without -s)

Section 7

Exercises

Exercise A

Identify the Tense

Read each sentence and write whether it is in Simple Present, Simple Past, or Simple Future Tense.

  1. She drinks a glass of milk every morning.
  2. We visited the museum last Saturday.
  3. They will travel to Kerala next month.
  4. The sun sets in the west.
  5. My brother ate all the cookies yesterday.
  6. I shall complete my homework before dinner.
  7. Dogs bark at strangers.
  8. The teacher gave us a surprise test last week.
  9. It will snow in December.
  10. He always carries an umbrella.
  11. The students sang beautifully at the concert.
  12. We will meet at the library tomorrow.
✅ Exercise A — Solutions
  1. Simple Present — "drinks" (V1 + s), signal word: "every morning"
  2. Simple Past — "visited" (V2), signal word: "last Saturday"
  3. Simple Future — "will travel" (will + V1), signal word: "next month"
  4. Simple Present — "sets" (V1 + s), universal truth
  5. Simple Past — "ate" (V2 of eat), signal word: "yesterday"
  6. Simple Future — "shall complete" (shall + V1), signal word: "before dinner" (future intent)
  7. Simple Present — "bark" (V1), general fact
  8. Simple Past — "gave" (V2 of give), signal word: "last week"
  9. Simple Future — "will snow" (will + V1), signal word: "in December" (future prediction)
  10. Simple Present — "carries" (V1 + ies), signal word: "always"
  11. Simple Past — "sang" (V2 of sing)
  12. Simple Future — "will meet" (will + V1), signal word: "tomorrow"
Exercise B

Fill in the Correct Simple Tense

Fill in the blanks with the correct form of the verb given in brackets.

  1. She (go) to school every day.
  2. We (watch) a movie last night.
  3. They (play) football tomorrow.
  4. My mother (cook) delicious food.
  5. He (buy) a new phone yesterday.
  6. I (help) you with your project next week.
  7. The birds (fly) south every winter.
  8. She (write) three letters last Sunday.
  9. It (rain) heavily tomorrow.
  10. The baby (cry) loudly last night.
  11. He always (speak) the truth.
  12. They (not come) to the party yesterday.
✅ Exercise B — Solutions
  1. goes — Simple Present (she + V1+es, signal: "every day")
  2. watched — Simple Past (signal: "last night")
  3. will play — Simple Future (signal: "tomorrow")
  4. cooks — Simple Present (my mother = she, general fact)
  5. bought — Simple Past (buy → bought, signal: "yesterday")
  6. will help / shall help — Simple Future (signal: "next week")
  7. fly — Simple Present (the birds = they, V1, signal: "every winter")
  8. wrote — Simple Past (write → wrote, signal: "last Sunday")
  9. will rain — Simple Future (signal: "tomorrow")
  10. cried — Simple Past (cry → cried, signal: "last night")
  11. speaks — Simple Present (he + V1+s, signal: "always")
  12. did not come — Simple Past negative (signal: "yesterday")
Exercise C

Change the Tense

Rewrite each sentence in the tense mentioned in brackets.

  1. She plays the piano beautifully. (Simple Past)
  2. They watched a horror movie. (Simple Future)
  3. I will buy a new notebook. (Simple Present)
  4. He eats an apple every day. (Simple Past)
  5. We visited our grandparents. (Simple Future)
  6. The train will arrive at 5 PM. (Simple Present)
  7. She wrote a letter to her friend. (Simple Present)
  8. The children play in the park. (Simple Past)
  9. He will teach us mathematics. (Simple Present)
  10. I drank a glass of water. (Simple Future)
✅ Exercise C — Solutions
  1. She played the piano beautifully.
  2. They will watch a horror movie.
  3. I buy a new notebook.
  4. He ate an apple every day. (He ate an apple.)
  5. We will visit our grandparents.
  6. The train arrives at 5 PM.
  7. She writes a letter to her friend.
  8. The children played in the park.
  9. He teaches us mathematics.
  10. I will drink a glass of water.
Exercise D

Write the Past Tense (V2) of These Irregular Verbs

Write the simple past form (V2) of each verb.

  1. go →
  2. eat →
  3. drink →
  4. write →
  5. take →
  6. give →
  7. come →
  8. see →
  9. buy →
  10. think →
  11. teach →
  12. catch →
  13. break →
  14. find →
  15. speak →
✅ Exercise D — Solutions
  1. go → went
  2. eat → ate
  3. drink → drank
  4. write → wrote
  5. take → took
  6. give → gave
  7. come → came
  8. see → saw
  9. buy → bought
  10. think → thought
  11. teach → taught
  12. catch → caught
  13. break → broke
  14. find → found
  15. speak → spoke
Exercise E

Correct the Errors

Each sentence has one error related to tense. Find and correct it.

  1. She go to school every day.
  2. They did not went to the market yesterday.
  3. He will comes to the party tomorrow.
  4. I eated lunch an hour ago.
  5. Does she plays the guitar?
  6. We doesn't like cold weather.
  7. The teacher teached us a new poem last week.
  8. She will not forgot your birthday.
  9. He drink milk every morning.
  10. Did she wrote the letter?
✅ Exercise E — Solutions
  1. She goes to school every day. (he/she/it needs V1+es)
  2. They did not go to the market yesterday. (after "did not", use V1)
  3. He will come to the party tomorrow. (after "will", use V1)
  4. I ate lunch an hour ago. ("eat" is irregular — past = "ate", not "eated")
  5. Does she play the guitar? (after "does", use V1 without -s)
  6. We don't like cold weather. (we + "don't", not "doesn't")
  7. The teacher taught us a new poem last week. ("teach" is irregular — past = "taught")
  8. She will not forget your birthday. (after "will not", use V1)
  9. He drinks milk every morning. (he + V1+s for Simple Present)
  10. Did she write the letter? (after "did", use V1)
🏆 🌟 💪

You've Mastered Simple Tenses!

Now move on to Continuous Tenses to learn about actions in progress. Keep practising — you're doing great!

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