Understand the basics of Tenses

 1. Understand the Basics of Tenses

English mainly has 3 basic times:

Present (now)

Past (yesterday/before)

Future (tomorrow/after)

Each has different forms, but let’s start simple:

✅ Present (now)

Simple Present: For daily habits or general truths.

Example: I eat rice every day.

Present Continuous: For actions happening now.

Example: I am eating rice now.

✅ Past (before)

Simple Past: For completed actions.

Example: I ate rice yesterday.

Past Continuous: For something that was happening before.

Example: I was eating rice when you called.

✅ Past Participle (used with “have/has/had”)

Works with have/has/had to show completed actions.

Example: I have eaten rice already.

Example: She had eaten before I came.

✅ Future (after/next)

Simple Future: Will + verb.

Example: I will eat rice tomorrow.

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2. Easy Formula to Remember

Here’s a quick way to think:

Present = now (I eat / I am eating)

Past = finished (I ate / I was eating)

Past Participle = “have done” (I have eaten / I had eaten)

Future = later (I will eat / I will be eating)

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3. Practice Trick

Pick one verb and practice it in all forms:

Verb: go

Present: I go to school every day.

Present Continuous: I am going to school now.

Past: I went to school yesterday.

Past Participle: I have gone to school many times.

Future: I will go to school tomorrow.

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4. How to Improve Speaking Fluency

Read aloud every day (even a small paragraph).

Think in English: When you want to say something, try forming it in English in your mind.

Record yourself speaking: Then listen and correct mistakes.

Focus on short, simple sentences first. Don’t try to speak “big grammar.”

Let’s go deeper into Past Participle because this is where most learners get confused.

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🔑 What is Past Participle?

It’s the third form of a verb.

Base form (present): go, eat, write

Past (yesterday): went, ate, wrote

Past Participle (used with have/has/had): gone, eaten, written

We usually use past participle in:

1. Perfect Tenses → I have eaten.

2. Passive Voice → The book was written by her.

3. Adjectives → A broken chair, a written exam.

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📖 Examples with Common Verbs

Regular Verbs (add -ed)

Play → played → played

I have played football.

The game was played yesterday.

Cook → cooked → cooked

She has cooked rice.

The rice was cooked by my mother.

Wash → washed → washed

He has washed his clothes.

The car is washed every morning.

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Irregular Verbs (change form)

Go → went → gone

I have gone to school.

She had gone before I arrived.

Eat → ate → eaten

I have eaten already.

The food was eaten by the children.

Write → wrote → written

He has written a letter.

The letter was written yesterday.

Break → broke → broken

The glass has broken.

That’s a broken chair.

See → saw → seen

I have seen that movie.

She had seen the man before.

Take → took → taken

I have taken my bag.

The picture was taken last week.

Speak → spoke → spoken

She has spoken to me.

English is spoken worldwide.

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🎯 Short Practice Exercise

Can you try filling in the blanks with the past participle?

1. I have ____ (eat) breakfast.

2. She has ____ (write) the notes.

3. They have ____ (go) home.

4. The car was ____ (wash).

5. We had already ____ (see) that film.