Level: beginner
Verbs in English have four basic parts:
| Base form | -ing form | Past tense | Past participle |
|---|---|---|---|
| work | working | worked | worked |
| play | playing | played | played |
| listen | listening | listened | listened |
Most verbs are regular: they have a past tense and past participle with –ed (worked, played, listened). But many of the most frequent verbs are irregular.
Level: beginner
Basic parts
Verbs in English have four basic parts:
| Base form | -ing form | Past tense | Past participle |
|---|---|---|---|
| work | working | worked | worked |
| play | playing | played | played |
| listen | listening | listened | listened |
Most verbs are regular: they have a past tense and past participle with –ed (worked, played, listened). But many of the most frequent verbs are irregular.
Verb phrases
Verb phrases in English have the following forms:
- a main verb:
| main verb | ||
|---|---|---|
| We | are | here. |
| I | like | it. |
| Everybody | saw | the accident. |
| We | laughed. |
The verb can be in the present tense (are, like) or the past tense (saw, laughed).
| auxiliary be | -ing form | |
|---|---|---|
| Everybody | is | watching. |
| We | were | laughing. |
A verb phrase with be and –ing expresses continuous aspect. A verb with am/is/are expresses present continuous and a verb with was/were expresses past continuous.
- the auxiliary verb have and a main verb in the past participle form:
| auxiliary have | past participle | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| They | have | enjoyed | themselves. |
| Everybody | has | worked | hard. |
| He | had | finished | work. |
A verb phrase with have and the past participle expresses perfect aspect. A verb with have/has expresses present perfect and a verb with had expresses past perfect.
- a modal verb (can, could, may, might, must, shall, should, will, would) and a main verb:
| modal verb | main verb | |
|---|---|---|
| They | will | come. |
| He | might | come. |
- The verb phrase 1
- The verb phrase 2
Level: intermediate
- the auxiliary verbs have and been and a main verb in the –ing form:
| auxiliary have been | -ing form | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Everybody | has been | working | hard. |
| He | had been | singing. |
A verb phrase with have been and the -ing form expresses both perfect aspect and continuous aspect. A verb with have/has expresses present perfect continuous and a verb with had expresses past perfect continuous.
- a modal verb and the auxiliaries be, have and have been:
| modal | auxiliary | verb | |
|---|---|---|---|
| They | will | be | listening. |
| He | might | have | arrived. |
| She | must | have been | listening. |
- the auxiliary verb be and a main verb in the past participle form:
| auxiliary be | past participle | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| English | is | spoken | all over the world. |
| The windows | have been | cleaned. | |
| Lunch | was being | served. | |
| The work | will be | finished | soon. |
| They | might have been | invited | to the party. |
A verb phrase with be and the past participle expresses passive voice.
- The verb phrase 3
- The verb phrase 4
Level: advanced
We can use the auxiliaries do and did with the infinitive for emphasis:
It was a wonderful party. I did enjoy it.
I do agree with you. I think you are absolutely right.
We can also use do for polite invitations:
Do come and see us some time.
There will be lots of people there. Do bring your friends.
Comments
Sir,
If I ask someone to keep sitting or standing, do I mean for them to sit or stand again and again or do I mean for them to stay seated or standing ?
Good wishes and Happy New Year!
Hello SonuKumar,
Happy New Year to you too!
That means to stay seated or standing.
Best wishes,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi
I would like to ask you if the following sentence is correct
I teach math. All lessons are designed to help you progress quickly.
In this case progress is a noun?
Is the sentence correct?
Thank you in advance
Hello Nagie23,
In this case, 'progress' is a bare infinitive and yes, it is grammatically correct. 'help' can be followed by an object (in this case, 'you') and then an infinitive ('progress' -- 'to progress' is also correct).
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Sir,
"I saw him washing his car".
This sentence means that I saw him washing his car but not from the begining to the end; not the complete action but just in the process.
"I saw him wash his car".
This means that I saw him wash his car from the begining to the end; the complete action.
But I think when I say this "I saw him wash his car from the begining to the end". This sentence has more emphasis on the fact that I saw the complete action than the previous sentence does. Am I right, what do you say ?
Can I also say "I saw him washing his car from the begining to the end" does it make sense or is it senseless and I should only use the first form of the verb in this sentence ?
Hello SonuKumar,
When you add 'from the beginning to the end' to the sentence you emphasise this face, as you say.
The continuous form is used when we are focused on the activity (the work done) rather than the action (the achievement/result). That can mean that an action is incomplete or that we do not see it all, but it can also mean simply that we are more interested in the process than the product. Thus, your example is quite possible.
Imagine a situation in which you are confirming that the person washing the car did not take any breaks. In this situation you are interested in the process and also in confirming that you saw the whole thing and know that the person did not stop. In this case your sentence would make perfect sense.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi,
I would like to ask the following
I love making cookies
Making is gerund?
Being part of the community
Being is gerund?
Thank you in advance
Hi Nagie23,
In your first example, making is a gerund.
The gerund is a verb form which functions as a noun and so in a sentence is can function as a subject or as an object. In your example, making cookies is the object of the verb love.
Your second example is less clear. Being could be a gerund or it could be a participle. The example is only a fragment of a sentence and it would depend on how the rest of the sentence is structured.
You can read more about -ing forms (gerunds and participles) on this page:
https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/english-grammar-reference/ing-forms
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi,
according to the dictionaries the verb "reconcile" is a transitive verb. Therefore, the following sentences should be unaccepbtable, although they sound quite alright to me. Can you help?
1. They (mother and daughter) reconcile after 20 years.
2. They reconcile with each other.
3. We reconciled before her death (or does it have to be: we reconciled our differences).
Thanks in advance!
Best,
Magnus
Hi Magnus,
Reconcile is a transitive verb, but it is generally used in the passive voice:
1. They (mother and daughter) were reconciled after 20 years.
2. They were reconciled with each other.
3. We were reconciled before her death.
As you suggest in your last example, you can use it in the active voice when an object is present:
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
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