Anglais · 2ème année Bac — Lettres

English tenses

English Tenses: A Complete Grammar Guide for 2nd-Year Baccalaureate

English has 12 main tenses divided into three time periods — Present, Past, and Future — each with four aspect forms: Simple, Continuous, Perfect, and Perfect Continuous. A tense is a verb form that indicates time and the continuance or completeness of an action. Mastering all 12 tenses is essential for writing accurate essays, answering comprehension questions, and passing the Baccalaureate exam.

Definition and Rule: What Is a Tense?

A tense is a grammatical category that locates an event in time and describes the nature of that event — whether it is a habit, an ongoing action, a completed action, or a long-duration action still in progress.
The four aspects work as follows:
  • Simple — habitual, routine, or completed actions (She writes a paper / She wrote a paper)
  • Continuous — ongoing or incomplete actions (She is writing a paper / She was writing a paper)
  • Perfect — completed actions with a link to another time (She has written a paper / She had written a paper)
  • Perfect Continuous — long-duration actions still in progress at a reference point (She has been writing / She had been writing)

Form and Structure: All 12 Tenses at a Glance

Present Tenses

  1. Present Simple: Subject + base verb (add -s/-es for he/she/it) → She writes a paper
  1. Present Continuous: am/is/are + verb-ing → She is writing a paper
  1. Present Perfect: has/have + past participle → She has written a paper
  1. Present Perfect Continuous: have/has + been + verb-ing → She has been writing a paper

Past Tenses

  1. Past Simple: verb + -ed (regular) or irregular form → She wrote a paper
  1. Past Continuous: was/were + verb-ing → She was writing a paper
  1. Past Perfect: had + past participle → She had written a paper
  1. Past Perfect Continuous: had + been + verb-ing → She had been writing a paper

Future Tenses

  1. Future Simple: will/shall + base verb → She will write a paper
  1. Future Continuous: will + be + verb-ing → She will be writing a paper
  1. Future Perfect: will + have + past participle → She will have written a paper
  1. Future Perfect Continuous: will + have + been + verb-ing → She will have been writing a paper

Uses of Each Tense Group

Present Simple — Uses

  • Daily habits and routines: I work every day
  • General truths and facts: The sun rises in the east
  • Permanent states: She lives in Paris
  • Timetabled future events: The train leaves at 6 PM
  • Conditional clauses: If you study hard, you pass
Signal words: always, usually, often, sometimes, never, every day, regularly

Present Continuous — Uses

  • Actions happening right now: Adam is teaching in the conference room
  • Temporary situations: I'm living in London at the moment
  • Future arrangements already decided: I'm meeting my father at the airport at 5 o'clock tomorrow
  • Annoying habits (with 'always'): He's always forgetting his keys
Signal words: now, at the moment, this week, for the time being, right now, these days, currently

Present Perfect — Uses

  • Completed actions with present impact: I have finished my work (the work is done now)
  • Life experiences at unspecified times: I have visited Italy (sometime in my life)
  • Recently completed actions: She has just called me
  • Unfinished duration from past to now: He has worked here for three years (still working)
Signal words: already, yet, just, ever, never, for, since, today, this year, recently

Present Perfect Continuous — Uses

  • Actions started in the past and still continuing: I've been living in Ireland for almost 4 years
  • Duration emphasis — how long?: They have been learning English for two years
  • Recent actions showing current visible results: Her eyes are red because she's been crying all evening
Signal words: for, since, how long, all day, recently, lately

Past Simple — Uses

  • Completed actions at a specific past time: I went to New York last year
  • Series of consecutive past actions: She woke up, had breakfast, and left for school
  • Habitual actions in the past no longer occurring: He always studied in the library
Signal words: yesterday, last week, last month, last year, in 1995, ago, when, then

Past Continuous — Uses

  • Actions in progress at a specific past moment: Three years ago, I was studying business management
  • Background action interrupted by another: She was cooking when the phone rang
  • Two simultaneous past actions: While he was reading, she was writing
Signal words: when, while, as, all day, at that moment, during

Past Perfect — Uses

  • Action completed before another past action: She had left by the time he arrived
  • With 'by the time' to establish sequence: By the time she was 20, Amanda had already published three books
  • In conditional structures: If Tobias had woken earlier, he would have caught the bus
Signal words: by the time, before, after, when, already, just, never, ever, for, since

Past Perfect Continuous — Uses

  • Duration before a past event: The boys had been playing soccer for about an hour when it started to rain
  • Explaining the cause of a past condition: Richard needed a holiday because he had been working hard for six months
Signal words: for, since, by the time, before, until

Future Simple (will) — Uses

  • Spontaneous decisions at the moment of speaking: I will help you (just decided)
  • Predictions: It will rain tomorrow
  • Promises and offers: I will call you tomorrow / I'll carry your bag
Signal words: tomorrow, next week, in the future, probably, certainly, will, shall

Future Continuous — Uses

  • Actions in progress at a specific future moment: At 8 PM, I will be watching the match
  • Temporary future situations: They will be living in Paris for six months
Signal words: at this time tomorrow, this time next week, while, when

Future Perfect — Uses

  • Actions completed before a specific future time: They will have finished dinner by 8 PM
  • Actions completed before another future action: They will have left before you arrive
Signal words: by this time, by the time, before, when, as soon as, already, by the end of

Future Perfect Continuous — Uses

  • Duration of action continuing up to a future deadline: She will have been working for 2 years (by a certain future point)
  • Continuous action from past through future to a specific time: By the time you arrive, I will have been waiting for an hour

Worked Examples

Present Tenses in Context

Present Simple: She drinks water every morning. / He studies French at university. / We meet on Fridays.
Present Continuous: I am reading War and Peace. / We are playing football. / The children are watching television.
Present Perfect: They have finished their homework. / I have not written the letter. / Have you ever been to London?
Present Perfect Continuous: He has been studying for three hours. / They have been playing soccer since this morning. / She has been working on her project all week.

Past Tenses in Context

Past Simple: She bought a new shirt yesterday. / They worked hard last summer. / I saw the film last week.
Past Continuous: I was living in Paris when the accident happened. / What were you doing when I arrived? / They were working on the project all morning.
Past Perfect: He had eaten before he came to the party. / The lesson had already started when Luis arrived. / She had never been to Paris before 2010.
Past Perfect Continuous: The boys had been playing soccer for about an hour when it started to rain. / Richard needed a holiday because he had been working hard for six months.

Future Tenses in Context

Future Simple: She will write a paper. / I will travel to Canada next week. / They will win the match.
Future Continuous: I will be working all day tomorrow. / At 9 PM, we will be watching the film. / Next month, she will be traveling in Europe.
Future Perfect: I will have finished my project by the weekend. / This time next year I will have graduated from college. / She will have prepared the meal before the guests arrive.
Future Perfect Continuous: She will have been working for 2 years by 2027. / By next summer, they will have been living in the house for five years. / When you arrive, I will have been waiting for three hours.

Key Tense Distinctions for Baccalaureate Students

Present Simple vs. Present Continuous

Use Present Simple for habits, routines, and permanent states. Use Present Continuous for what is happening right now or for temporary situations.
  • "I work every day" (habit) vs. "I am working now" (happening right now)
  • "She lives in Paris" (permanent) vs. "She is living in Paris" (temporary)

Present Perfect vs. Past Simple

This is the most tested distinction at Baccalaureate level. The key rule: use Present Perfect with unspecified or ongoing time; use Past Simple with a definite closed past time.
  • "I have visited Italy" (unspecified — some time in my life, still relevant now) vs. "I visited Italy in 2010" (specific closed past)
  • "I've lived here for 5 years" (still living here) vs. "I lived here for 5 years" (no longer living there)

Present Perfect vs. Present Perfect Continuous

  • Perfect Simple emphasizes completion and result — "How many?": "She has finished her homework."
  • Perfect Continuous emphasizes the process and duration — "How long?": "She has been working for 2 hours."

Future Simple (will) vs. Going To

  • Use "will" for spontaneous decisions made at the moment of speaking: "I will help you." (decided just now)
  • Use "going to" for decisions already made or plans: "I'm going to help you." (already decided)
  • For predictions: "will" with no evidence ("It will rain tomorrow") vs. "going to" with visible evidence ("Look at those clouds! It's going to rain!")

Past Simple vs. Past Perfect

  • "He arrived and we left" (sequence, timing not emphasised) vs. "He had arrived before we left" (clearly shows he arrived first — sequence emphasised)

Common Mistakes and Corrections

Mistake 1 — Present Perfect with Past Time Adverbs

  • Wrong: "India has won the match last week."
  • Correct: "India won the match last week."
Rule: Never pair the present perfect with definite past time expressions such as last week, yesterday, last month, or in 2020.

Mistake 2 — Double Future in Conditional or Time Clauses

  • Wrong: "I will hire you when your degree will be complete."
  • Correct: "I will hire you when your degree is complete."
Rule: In subordinate time and conditional clauses, use the present tense rather than the future, even when the main clause is in the future.

Mistake 3 — Irregular Verb Errors

  • Wrong: "I growed two inches this year." / "I have wrote a book."
  • Correct: "I grew two inches this year." / "I have written a book."
Rule: Learn irregular verb forms carefully. Do not apply the regular -ed ending to irregular verbs.

Mistake 4 — Continuous Forms with Stative Verbs

  • Wrong: "I have been owning my car since 2007."
  • Correct: "I have owned my car since 2007."
Rule: Stative verbs (be, have, own, like, love, know, want, need, believe, understand, belong) do not take continuous forms. Always use the simple form instead.

Mistake 5 — Incorrect Type 3 Conditional Formation

  • Wrong: "If he would have known, he would have come."
  • Correct: "If he had known, he would have come."
Rule: In Type 3 conditionals, the if-clause must use the past perfect, never "would have."

Mistake 6 — Third-Person Singular Agreement in Present Simple

  • Wrong: "He go to school every day."
  • Correct: "He goes to school every day."
Rule: Add -s or -es to present simple verbs when the subject is third-person singular (he, she, it).

Mistake 7 — Tense Shift Within a Narrative

  • Wrong: "We were on the way to school. Suddenly, the sky turns dark."
  • Correct: "We were on the way to school. Suddenly, the sky turned dark."
Rule: Maintain consistent tense throughout a paragraph or narrative unless you have a specific reason to shift.

Essential Time Expressions and Signal Words

Recognising signal words is one of the fastest ways to identify the correct tense in multiple-choice and gap-fill exercises.
  • Present Simple: always, usually, often, sometimes, never, every day, weekly, regularly
  • Present Continuous: now, right now, at the moment, at present, this week, currently, these days
  • Present Perfect: already, yet, just, ever, never, for, since, today, this year, recently, so far
  • Present Perfect Continuous: for, since, how long, all day, all week, recently, lately
  • Past Simple: yesterday, last week, last year, in 1995, ago, when, then, once, one day
  • Past Continuous: while, when, as, at that moment, all night, all day, during
  • Past Perfect: by the time, before, after, when, by then, already, just, never, ever
  • Past Perfect Continuous: for, since, by the time, before, until, how long
  • Future Simple: tomorrow, next week, next year, in the future, in three days, probably, certainly
  • Future Continuous: at this time tomorrow, this time next week, while, when, during
  • Future Perfect: by this time, by the time, before, when, as soon as, by the end of, already
  • Future Perfect Continuous: by this time, by the time, for, how long, in 10 years
Important distinction — "for" vs. "since": Use for with a duration (for two hours, for three years) and since with a starting point (since morning, since 2020). Use during to say when something happens (during the meeting) and for to say how long it lasts (for two hours).

Reported Speech and Backshifting

When the reporting verb is in the past tense, the reported verbs must be shifted one step back in time. This is called backshifting.
  • Present Simple → Past Simple: "I live in London" → He said (that) he lived in London
  • Present Continuous → Past Continuous: "I am not feeling well" → Sam told me he wasn't feeling well
  • Present Perfect → Past Perfect: "I have finished" → She said she had finished
  • Will → Would: "I'll telephone this evening" → Sam said he would telephone that evening
  • Can → Could: "I can help" → He said he could help
  • Must → Had to: "I must leave" → She said she had to leave
Exception — Universal Truths: If the original statement is a general or scientific truth, the present tense is kept even with a past reporting verb: "He said that the sun rises in the east" (not 'rose').
Direct: "I will help you." → Indirect: He said he would help me.
Direct: "We are studying hard." → Indirect: They told us they were studying hard.
Direct: "I have finished my homework." → Indirect: She said she had finished her homework.

Conditional Sentences (If-Clauses)

Conditional sentences express hypothetical situations and their results. There are four main types, each using a specific combination of tenses.

Type 0 — Zero Conditional (Universal Truths)

Form: If + present simple, present simple
Use: Situations that are always true, scientific facts.
If you heat ice, it melts. / If it rains, the ground gets wet.

Type 1 — First Conditional (Realistic Future)

Form: If + present simple, will + infinitive
Use: Probable or possible situations that may really happen in the future.
If it rains, I will stay home. / I'll call you if I work late.

Type 2 — Second Conditional (Unlikely or Imaginary)

Form: If + past simple, would + infinitive
Use: Unlikely, improbable, or imaginary situations in the present or future. Use "were" (not "was") for "be" in formal speech.
If I won the lottery, I would buy a house. / If I were you, I would accept the offer.

Type 3 — Third Conditional (Unreal Past)

Form: If + past perfect, would have + past participle
Use: Situations that did not happen in the past; examining what-if scenarios about the past.
If I had studied harder, I would have passed the exam. / She wouldn't have come if I hadn't invited her.

Key-Point Callout

💡
Key point: The 12 English tenses are built from just three time periods (Present, Past, Future) and four aspects (Simple, Continuous, Perfect, Perfect Continuous). To choose the correct tense, always ask two questions: (1) When does the action happen? and (2) What is the nature of the action — is it a routine, an ongoing event, a completed result, or a long-duration process? Master the signal words for each tense, never use the present perfect with a definite past time expression, never use continuous forms with stative verbs (own, know, love, want, believe, understand), and keep tense consistent throughout a narrative. These four rules alone will eliminate the most frequent Baccalaureate errors.