10 Basic Tense Rules for beginners you can apply everyday

Knowing the basics of English Tense rules is important to be able to create well-structured sentences for both oral and written communication.

If you would like to learn to write or speak English quickly and fluently, then you need to constantly practice these English grammar Tense rules until you can apply them naturally in any conversation.

Here, you will get the basic tense rules, rules for completing sentences, and it is considered relevant to master the language in a short time and have successful conversations in English. So, take note where necessary from the 10 Basic English Grammar and tense rules for beginners. 

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Now, let’s check basic English grammar and tense rules for beginners. Surely, it will help you to learn English Grammar fast. 

 

1. English grammar rules for present simple tense

In English grammar, the present simple is used to refer to events or actions that happen all the time, but are not happening right now. Let’s check the structure that you have to follow in this type of statement. 

Subject (I, you, he, she, they, we, it) + Verb + Object

However, in this English grammatical structure, you have to keep in mind that the verbs for the subjects He, She, and It are a bit different, as an s has to be added to the end. For the other subjects, the verb remains unchanged.

Example:
 

• I exercise in the morning. 
• She exercises in the morning.
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2. English grammar rules for negative sentences in present simple

After knowing the grammatical structures for sentences in the present simple, we are now going to teach you how to convert these sentences from positive to negative. For this, it is important to know that you only need to add the word don't or doesn't since both are contractions that are used to express negation.

Don't = Do not

Doesn't = Does not

 

When is Doesn't used?

The rules of English indicate that doesn't is used for the subjects he, she and it. It must be placed before the verb, as shown in the following examples:
 

• She does not exercise in the morning.
• He doesn't run at the park. 
• It doesn't rain every day. 

Attention: Previously, we mentioned that for the subjects he, she, and it you have to add an s at the end of the verb in the present simple. However, when the phrase is negative, this s has to be deleted. For example:

• Positive sentence: She plays at the park.
• Negative sentence: She does not play at the park.

When is Don't used?

In the case of the contraction don't, the English grammar rules indicate that it must be placed before the verb in sentences that have the pronouns I, you, they, and we as subjects, as can be seen in the following examples:

• I don't play video games.
• You don't love burgers. 
• They don't swim naked. 
• We don't work every day. 

To ask questions

To ask questions, the grammatical structure changes:

Auxiliary verb + Subject + Verb + ?

Examples:

• Do / Don't I play video games?
• Does she / Doesn't she run at the park?
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3. English grammar rules for present continuous

According to English grammar rules, the present continuous is used to refer to things that are happening at the moment. The structure to follow is the following:

Subject (I, she, he, it, you, we, they) + verb to be + verb-ing

Verb to be

In the English language, the verb to be meant to be, to be, or to have, depending on the context of the sentence. The rules of the verb to be are the following:

• She / He / It is
• You / We / They are

Verb-ing

The grammatical rules of English indicate that to convert a sentence from the present simple to the present continuous, the verb must have the ending -ing added. Let’s see some examples:

• I am loving it.
• She is watching a football match. 
• We are cooking dinner. 

Negative sentences in the present continuous

 

When the sentence is in the continuous tense (either past, present, or future), the word not must be added to the verb to be. Here are some examples:

• I am not learning / I'm not learning. 
• She is not learning / She isn’t learning. 
• We are not learning. 

 

Questions in present continuous

You must bear in mind that, to formulate a question, it is necessary to enter the Wh questions, which refer to why, what, where, which, when, who, how, and whom. The English grammar rule for questions in the present continuous is as follows:

Wh question + verb to be + subject + verb-ing + complement + ?

Examples:

• How are you feeling right now? 
• What are you doing tomorrow?
• What are you cooking for dinner?

 

4. English grammar rules for past simple

The rules of verbs in English can be a bit complicated, however, here we will teach you how to structure sentences well according to the tense of the sentence. In the case of the simple past, there is a variation in the verb, which depends on whether it is a regular or irregular verb.

Regular verbs

The grammatical rules of the regular verb in the past tense indicate that the ending -ed or -d is added to them. For example:

• Talk - talked
• Walk - walked 
• Love - loved 
• Cry - cried 
• Learn - learned 

Irregular verbs

In the case of irregular verbs, the whole word changes and no ending has to be added to it. Some examples of this grammar rule in English are:

• Drink - drank 
• Eat - ate 
• Make - made 
• Run - ran 
• Take - took 

Negative sentences in past simple

According to the English rules, to convert a sentence in the past simple to negative, it is enough to add the word didn't (abbreviation of did not) before the verb without any modification. So that you can better understand this rule, here are some examples:

• I didn't talk. 
• She didn't run.
• We didn't love. 
• He didn't drink. 

Questions in the past simple

The grammatical structure in English for the formulation of questions in the past simple is as follows:

Did / Didn't + Subject + Verb in infinitive + ?

Examples:

• Did / Didn't I talk? 
• Did / Didn't she run? 
• Did / Didn't we love? 
• Did / Didn't he drink? 

 

5. English grammar rules for past continuous

According to the rules of English grammar, the past continuous is used to talk about action from the past that has not yet been finished. To use this verb tense was or were must be added before the verb, as shown in the following grammatical structure:

Subject + Verb to be (was / were) + -ing Verb

How to know when to use was or were? Well, the rules of English indicate that when the subject is I, she, he, and it, you have to use was. While for the subjects they, we and you, were is added. Let’s see some examples.

• I was trying to talk.
• She was working pretty hard.
• He was talking all the time. 
• It was making too much noise.
• They were going to San Francisco. 
• We were dancing in the club. 
• You were giving me a hug. 

Negative sentences in the past continuous

English grammatical structures for negative sentences in the past continuous are very easy. You just have to add not after was (was not / wasn’t) or were (were not / weren’t), as you can see in the following examples:

• I wasn't trying to talk. 
• She was not talking all the time. 
• We weren't dancing in the club. 
• You weren't giving me a hug. 

Questions in the past continuous

As in the other grammatical rules in English, to formulate a question you have to exchange the order of the verb and the subject, following the following structure:

Was / Were not + Subject + -ing Verb + ?

Examples:

• Was / Wasn't I trying to talk? 
• Were / Weren't we dancing in the club? 
• Was / Wasn't it making too much noise? 
•  

6. English grammar rules for future simple

Another important rule to learn English grammar is the simple future tense, which is used to talk about things that we think or know will happen in the future. Regarding the structure of this verb tense, two important aspects must be taken into account:

The modal verb will is used between the subject and the verb.

The verb after will will remain in the infinitive (nothing is changed or added).

Subject + Will + Verb in infinitive

Examples:

• I will run. 
• She will exercise in the morning.
• It will rain during the night. 
• We will work together. 

Negative sentences in future simple

The grammatical structure for negative sentences in the future simple is very simple since the will is replaced by will not or won't (its contraction). Likewise, the verb is kept in the infinitive.

Subject + Will not / Won't + Verb in infinitive

Examples:

• We will not/won't work together. 
• You will not / won't be beautiful. 
• She will not / won't exercise in the morning. 

Questions in the future simple

As in the other cases of English grammar for the formulation of questions, here you have to exchange the positions of the subject with the will not or won't.

Will not / Wont + Subject + Verb in infinitive + ?

Examples:

• Won't we work together?
• Won't you be beautiful?
• Won't she exercise in the morning?

 

7. English grammar rules for future continuous

The use of English grammar for the future continuous occurs when you want to refer to events or actions that will be happening in the future at a certain time. To use this verb tense you have to use will be with all types of subjects.

Subject + Will be + Verb -ing

Examples:

• John will be working during the holidays. 
• The team will be traveling during that week. 
• I will be taking pictures on Sunday. 

Negative sentences in the future continuous

Unlike the future simple, the English grammar rule for negative sentences in the future continuous states that you have to replace will not or won't with will not be or won't be. The structure would be the following:

Subject + Will not be / Won't be + Verb -ing

Examples:

• John won't be working during the holidays. 
• The team won't be traveling during that week. 
• I won't be taking pictures on Sunday.

Questions in the future continuous

The grammatical rule in English for making questions in this verb tense indicates that you have to divide the will be or won't be and add the subject between both words, as shown in the following structure:

Will / Won't + Subject + Be + Verb -ing + ?

Example:

• Will / Won't John be working during the holidays? 
• Will / Won't the team be traveling during that week? 
• Will / Won't I be taking pictures on Sunday? 

8. When you use the past tense in the principal clause, the subordinate clause will be also in the past tense. It is also known as the sequence of tenses. 

Example: 

• I found out that he was guilty. 
• I took care that he should not hear me. 
• I worked hard so that I might succeed. 

In the case of universal truth, the subordinate clause may not follow the principal clause in the past tense. 

Example: 

• Galileo maintained that the earth moves around the sun. 
• He said that honesty is always the best policy. 
• Newton discovered that the force of gravitation makes apples fall. 

 

9. As a sequence of tenses, if the subordinate clause is introduced by that, although the principal clause is past tense, the subordinate clause will follow the required tense according to the sense. 

Example: 

• He valued his friendship more than he values mine. 
• He helped him more than he helps his own children. 
• He liked you better than he likes me. \

 

10. As rule no. 9, in the case of Present or future tense in the principal clause, the subordinate clause will use Sense to use the right tense. 

Example: 
 

• He thinks that she was there. 
• He will think that she was there. 
• He thinks that she will be there. 

Thus knowing the sequence of tenses is also important in the formation of sentences. 

Where to learn

Now that you know the basics of English grammar, you are ready to start practicing engaging in conversations in this language. Additionally, you can use different apps to learn English that are available on the internet for free.

Are you interested in the English Language courses? Then don't forget to visit Ghoori Learning where you can learn different skills that will help you in your personal development. See you in the next article!

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