Past and present tense
How a verb shows when something happens, and how to keep the same tense all the way through.
The answer
Tense shows when something happens: the present tense (I walk) is for now, and the past tense (I walked) is for things that have already happened.
Examples
Jamal goes to the pool every day.
Present tense for a habit.
Yesterday we visited the museum.
Past tense with -ed.
The dog ran off with my sock.
An irregular past tense: run becomes ran.
I am hungry now, but I was full an hour ago.
How to spot it
- Add yesterday or every day to the sentence. The verb that has to change is the one showing tense.
- Most past tense verbs end in -ed (jumped), but many common ones change completely (go, went; see, saw).
- English verbs have only two tense forms of their own: present and past. To talk about the future, we use words such as will.
The common mistake
Switching tense halfway through.
‘We went to the beach and we swim in the sea’ starts in the past and slips into the present. Keep to one: ‘We went to the beach and we swam in the sea.’
When it is taught
- First met
- Year 2
- On the pupil word list
- Year 2, as “tense (past, present)”
Year 2 names tense (past and present) and teaches choosing the right one and using it consistently. Year 4 adds Standard English forms: we were, not we was; I did, not I done.
Try a question
Which verb is in the wrong tense?
Last week Ali forgot his kit, so he borrows a pair of shorts.
Show the answer
Answer: borrows, which should be borrowed
Last week tells you the whole sentence is in the past, and forgot is already past tense.
Related terms
- Practise the 11+ skill: Maintain consistent tense
More grammar terms
Questions parents ask
Is there a future tense in English?
Not as a separate verb form. The national curriculum glossary explains that English talks about the future using present-tense verbs, such as will leave, is going to leave or even leaves tomorrow, unlike French or Spanish, which have a future tense form.
What is the simple past?
The one-word past tense form: walked, ran, saw. It is simple because it has no helper verb, unlike was walking or has walked.
Why is ‘we was’ marked wrong?
Standard English uses were with we, you and they: we were, they were. Year 4 teaches this in place of local spoken forms such as we was.
Grammar turns up in 11+ English too
Many 11+ English papers include grammar and punctuation questions alongside comprehension. The free diagnostic checks maths, English and both kinds of reasoning, and shows what to practise next. No card is required.