Formation of verb tenses in English. Present Simple or simple present tense in English

Hello guys! Many will agree that the topic of this article evokes fear. Times in English language- this combination of words can scare even an experienced student learning English, not to mention beginners.

Just about English times

It is worth understanding that in English there are 3 pillars on which all grammar rests - “ to be», « to have" And " to do».
Each of these whales can swim in three times: Present,Past And Future.
In turn, Present, Past and Future will flow into the seas Simple,Continuous, Perfect And Perfect Continuous.
In the meantime, whales (or whales) swim in these seas, they have babies, or rather, new forms are formed.

Are you confused? Let's take a closer look.

How to learn all tenses in English

You just need to sort everything out and systematize your learning until it becomes automatic. You will know how much you have studied and how much is still to come, then the study of times will not seem like something limitless and endless.

Present Simple used to express a common, regularly repeated action.
Past Simple used to express an action that happened in the past.
Future Simple used to express an action that will happen in the future.

Present Continuous used to express an action taking place in this moment.
Past Continuous used to express an action that occurred at a certain point in time in the past.
Future Continuous used to express an action that will occur at a certain point in time in the future.

Present Perfect used to express a completed (or still ongoing) action, the result of which is associated with the present.
Past Perfect used to express an action that ended earlier than another action or a specific moment in the past.
Future Perfect used to express an action that will be completed by a specific point in time in the future.

Important! There is also the time Future in the Past, which we talked about in the corresponding article.

Present Perfect Continuous used to express an action that began in the past and continues in the present, or the duration of the action is important.
Past Perfect Continuous used to express an action that began at a certain point in the past and continued for some time before the beginning of another action.
Future Perfect Continuous used to express an action that, having begun at a certain moment, will still continue at some point in time in the future.

How not to be afraid of tenses in English?

Be prepared for the fact that you should have a good feel for the difference between times, from a logical point of view. The tenses in English and Russian are not 100% similar, so it is not always possible to draw a parallel.
After getting acquainted with each new time, you must practice it well by performing various grammar exercises to remember the design and, of course, the situation where we use it.
It is important to learn irregular verbs. For this purpose, there are now special songs that consist of all irregular verbs. Give it a try. This is very effective method studying irregular verbs. Especially for music lovers.
Study English tenses systematically, without trying to learn everything in one day. As soon as you begin to navigate one time, you can move on to the next. Then be sure to practice the mixed exercises where the tasks will be collected in order to check if you are not confused about these tenses.
It is advisable to practice English every day for 15 minutes. In this case new luggage knowledge will be stored in your memory for a long time and you will use it automatically.
If you are studying English tenses on your own, search the Internet. useful videos. On our website you will find many useful grammar video lessons. This is much more interesting and reliable than looking for rules anywhere on the Internet.
Don't overwork yourself! It's important to give yourself rest. If you turn English into daily hard labor, it will not benefit you, but will only discourage you from learning it.
When learning tenses in English, pay attention to whether your memory is visual or auditory. Based on this, you can understand which tasks are best to give preference to achieve the most effective result.
Don't try to learn all tenses in English at once. To start, learn 5-6 basic tenses. This will be quite enough to communicate in English competently.
As a result, it is important to be able to use these tenses in a conversation. This is quite difficult to do on your own. Suppose you can find rules, exercises and answers to them on your own, but understanding whether you use English tenses in your speech is not an easy task.

Conclusion

WITH English times Usually there are 3 scenarios:

The student decides that he doesn’t need tenses in English because he just wants to improve his conversational skills.
The student finds a popular grammar textbook and slowly studies each tense on his own.
The student turns to the teacher and trusts him on his path to mastery at times in full.

Which one do you choose?

Definitely the second and third! It is impossible to communicate in a language like a native speaker without knowing the tenses. Definitely, if you want to know English, tenses are very important. So which side should you approach them from?

The EnglishDom online school employs many experienced teachers who have already proven to many students that learning tenses is not a disaster.

Many students come to a free introductory lesson with the request “just not grammar,” and after a few lessons with the teacher, they take grammar tests and other interactive tasks with great pleasure. So don't be afraid! U can do it! Times are waiting for you :)

Big and Friendly family EnglishDom

Verb forms in English are one of the most intimidating grammatical topics for Russian speakers. And it frightens not with its complexity, but with its volume. Surely, everyone has ever heard that in English, compared to Russian, there is simply a huge number of tense forms. There is some truth in this, but not everything is so scary. The English language has a very developed system of verb tenses. We'll talk about it today. And at the same time we will try to answer the main question:

It is necessary to immediately make a reservation that this question is rather of a philosophical nature. Absolutely possible here various options answer and it all depends on “how to count.” If you use several reference books on English grammar at once, you may get completely different answers to the question posed. From possible options will be: 12, 14, 16 (in two ways), 24, 26, 32. The thing is that in some sources only the forms of the active voice are taken into account, in some they are added to the forms passive voice(10 forms), some add here the forms “future in the past”, which are used only in indirect speech, or structures with modal verbs and to be going to. Now you understand what is possible different variants answer to the question - how many tenses are there in English? It all depends on what you understand by the concept of verb tense. Each answer will be correct and scientifically based.

But still, most classic reference books on English grammar There are 12 main temporary forms of the active voice. And I also advise you, in order not to get confused in the rather voluminous system of English tenses, consider that there are 12 tenses in the English language. With other nuances and forms English verb you will get acquainted in the process of improving the language. In the meantime, don’t complicate what’s already “complicated.”

Please review the following table carefully. This is the form in which the English tense diagram is usually depicted in most textbooks.

Let's figure out how this tablet works and where the 12 times come from.

Past - Present - Future

In the rows of the table you see the so-called “absolute tenses”: Past - past, Present - present, Future - future. They describe "when the action occurs." So far everything is very similar to the tense system in Russian. These tenses work the same way as in Russian: if an action was performed in the past, we use Past; if it is performed in the present, we use Present; it will be performed in the future, we use Future.

Simple - Continuous - Perfect - Perfect Continuous

Now comes the hard part. The columns of the table indicate 4 subcategories, namely 4 types of tense forms of the verb: Simple - simple, Continuous - continuous, Perfect - perfect, Perfect Continuous - completely continuous. They determine not “when an action occurs,” but “how it occurs.” For comparison, remember that in Russian there are 2 types of verbs: perfect (expresses the result) and imperfect (expresses the process).

The tense forms in the Simple (Indefinite) group are translated as simple (indefinite) tenses. Simpler times are used to describe an action or state in the past, present or future tense, without indicating the nature of the action. For example: I did it yesterday, I do it in general, I will do it tomorrow. That is, they describe the action in the most general way, without indicating duration, completion, or precedence.
Temporal forms in the Continuous (Progressive) group, translated into Russian as continuous (long) tenses, are used to emphasize the “duration” of an action. That is, they express an action as lasting (flowing) at some specific moment or period of past, present or future time.
The tense forms in the Perfect group are perfect (perfect) tenses. Perfect tenses, as a rule, imply the presence of some result of an action that is observed in the past, present or future. The main meaning of perfect tenses is to express the connection of a past action with the present time or to express the precedence of an action to any moment in the past or future tense.
The tense forms in the Perfect Continuous (Perfect Progressive) group combine the characteristics of the two previous groups. Translated into Russian as completely long times. They express a long-term action that began before the moment of speech, or until some point in the past or future and lasted until that moment.

What happens in the end? When crossing 3 rows and 4 columns, we formed 12 combinations. Here they are, the main tenses of the English language:

Present Simple (Indefinite) Tense − Present simple (indefinite) tense
Present Continuous (Progressive) Tense − Present continuous (continuous) tense
Present Perfect Tense − Present perfect tense
Present Perfect Continuous (Progressive) Tense − Present perfect continuous tense
Past Simple (Indefinite) Tense − Past simple (indefinite) tense
Past Continuous (Progressive) Tense − Past continuous (continuous) tense
Past Perfect Tense − Past Perfect Tense
Past Perfect Continuous (Progressive) Tense − Past perfect continuous tense
Future Simple (Indefinite) Tense − Future simple (indefinite) tense
Future Continuous (Progressive) Tense − Future Continuous (Continuous) Tense
Future Perfect Tense − Future Perfect Tense
Future Perfect Continuous (Progressive) Tense − Future perfect continuous tense

However, many of these tenses are rarely used both in writing and in speech. The following tenses are most often used in oral narration: Present Simple Tense, Past Simple Tense, Future Simple Tense, Present Perfect Tense, Present Continuous Tense.

Therefore, if you are just starting to learn tense forms of the English language, I advise you to start with the Simple group. This can be said to be the “basic” group of times. Having mastered them, proceed to the other two important tenses: Present Perfect Tense, Present Continuous Tense. And only then gradually enter the remaining times from unfamiliar table cells that are not used very often in colloquial speech.

Looking ahead, I want to warn you that this is not all. 8 of the 12 tenses presented above can have, in addition to the active voice, also the passive voice. But this is a slightly different topic.

Let's summarize. The verb in English, unlike the Russian language, has a rather complex and extensive system of tenses. When asked how many tenses are in the English language, we can safely answer that there are 12 main tense forms. They are formed as combinations of 3 “absolute” tenses - Past, Present and Future with 4 “species forms” - Simple, Continuous, Perfect , Perfect Continuous.

Now even a child knows that “without English you can’t get anywhere.” But no one can clearly explain how to learn to speak and understand effectively, where to start, and how to understand that the result has appeared.

In this article we will look at one of the most “painful” topics in language learning, namely English tenses. Everyone knows that there are many of them, they are all different: some require some kind of endings, others require a table of irregular verbs. Are times as scary as they say?

Verb tense(namely, it changes tense) is a concept that characterizes the change of the verb, depending on whether the action happened, is happening, or will happen.

Let’s immediately dispel the popular myth that three times of the Simple group are enough for communication.
Communication may work, but it will be of very poor quality; in most cases, you simply will not be able to convey the idea.

Tenses in English are more related to mentality English speaking countries, because it was their affection and attention to detail that created the long (Progressive) and completed (Perfect) groups of times.

Present tense in English

There are four present tenses in English:

Present Simple;
Progressive;
Perfect;
Perfect Progressive.

The same situation applies to past and future tenses.

Present Simple - present simple tense

Is used for:

Transferring an action that happens regularly (I work 5 days a week; he walks the dog in the morning);
Habits (I don’t smoke; my neighbor runs in the morning);
Traditions (we visit grandma every Christmas; her husband gives her jewelry for every birthday);
Facts (snow melts in spring, water boils at 100 C).

In every time there are so-called marker words, which will help you navigate the choice of time in case of difficulties.

So, write out this list for yourself, and you will not have problems with Present Simple tense:

Always - always;
Usually – usually;
Often – often;
Sometimes - sometimes;
Seldom – rare;
Never - never;
Every day (week, month etc.) – every day (week, month, etc.);
Once/twice a... - once in..., twice in....

In order to make a statement in the Present Simple, you need to remember that the first 2 places in the sentence are a priori occupied by the actor and the verb. The subject comes first, then the predicate. S (subject - subject) + V (verb - verb/predicate) + Obj. (object – object/addition) I(you, we, they) work everyday. BUT! He/She/It works every day.

When the actor is a third party singular – we must add the ending –s, -es(if the word ends in –o/-s/-ss/-sh/-ch/-x).

To ask a question, you need to use auxiliary. Such verbs have no translation, they simply indicate the time in which the question is asked. After all, in English, unlike Russian, there are no gender or temporal endings.

Auxiliary verbs to form a question:

I/you/we/they – DO
He/she/it – DOES

As you may have noticed, the third person singular always ends in –s/-es. BUT! The ending should be repeated only once per sentence. Therefore, if a sentence has DOES, NO endings need to be added to the verb.

The question is structured like this:

Do(does) + S + V + Obj.
Do you work here?
Does he work here?

If we need to ask special question, just need to be endured question word to the very first place:

WHY do you work here?

Negation is also done using the already familiar do/does, but with the negative particle NOT:

S + do not (does not) + V + Obj.

Shortening for negative auxiliary verbs:

Do not = don`t — I don`t work here.
Does not = doesn`t — He doesn`t work here.

But if the action does not occur at all, every day, often or rarely, but right now, at the time of speech, we will need time Present Progressive.

Present Progressive - present continuous tense

To understand and remember it, you first need to construct a sentence in an unusual way for yourself: I am the one writing this text, my brother is playing football now, etc. This is exactly what the literal translation of sentences sounds like in this tense.

Formula: S + be (am/is/are) + Ving + Obj.

Continuous auxiliary verb – to be.

In the present tense it has 3 forms:

I AM - I am working now;
He/she/it IS — He/she/it is working now.
You/we/they ARE - We/you/they are working now.

Question:

Be + S + Ving + Obj:
- Am I working?
- Is she working?
- Are we working?

Denial:

S + be + not + Ving + Obj:
- I am not working now.
- He is not working now.
- We are not working now.

Reduction:

I'm not;
He/she/it isn`t;
We/you/they aren`t.

Past tense in English

Past Simple- the time we use for events that began and ended in the past.

Marker words:

Yesterday - yesterday;
The day before yesterday - the day before yesterday;
Late (week, Friday, year etc.) – on last week, last Friday, last year, etc.;
10 years AGO – 10 years ago;
When I was a child - when I was a child;
In 1996 – in 1996.

Statement:

S + V (II/ -ed) + Obj — I worked yesterday.

Note! In English there is Irregular Verbs, that is, those that form the past tense not according to the rules. For example, the verb go. We can't add the ending -ed to it because it's incorrect. We simply look at the table, find its second form - went, and insert it into the sentence. I went to school yesterday. I went to school yesterday.

Question:

Did + S + V + Obj: Did you work last week?

Did is used for all persons, and the verb we WE DO NOT CHANGE.

Negation:

S + didn`t + V + Obj — I didn`t work last week.

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Past Progressive

To express a long-term action in the past, it is used Time Past Progressive. Most often, it is used in conjunction with the Past Simple when we're talking about about a process that was interrupted brief event in past.

For example:

I was reading a book when I heard a strange noise. I was reading a book (process) when I heard a strange sound (it interrupted the process).

As with any time, markers will help you find your way:

At 7 pm – 7 pm (or any other specific time;
From…. Till….. – from…..to….;
While - while.

Statement:

S+be+Ving+Obj

As you can see, the formula is absolutely identical to the Present progressive tense, but there is still a difference. And this is the form of the verb to be.

In the past tense, the verb has only 2 forms:

was (for singular);
were (for plural).

Question:

Be + S + Ving + Obj. —Was I sleeping at 10 am?

Negation:

S + be NOT + Ving + Obj — I wasn`t sleeping at 10 am.

Future tense in English

The future tense can be expressed in several ways. The most used ones are time Future Simple and the phrase be going to.

The Future Simple is used for unplanned events in the future. We often use it for spontaneous decisions. The catch is that most school teachers This time was presented as the only time available for talking about the future, but in practice, other phrases overtake it in frequency of use.

You can create this tense using an auxiliary verb will.

Time markers:

Tomorrow - tomorrow;
Next week (month, Summer) – next week, next month, next summer;
In 10 years – in 10 years;
Later - later.

Statement:

S + will + V + Obj:
- I will call you later.
- He will call you later.
- We will call you later.

As you can see, the verb after will does not need to be changed.

Reduction:

I will – I'll
He will – he'll
We will – we'll

Question:

In any interrogative sentence in English, we need to put the auxiliary verb first:

Will + S + V + Obj:
- Will you call me later?
If the question is special, put a question word before the auxiliary verb:
- WHEN will you call me?

Negation:

S + will NOT + V + Obj — I will not call you later.

Reduction:

Will not = won`t

Design be going to used for a pre-planned action in the future, it is often translated as "about to do something."

Statement:

Question:

Be + S + going to + V?:
- Am I going to swim?
- Is he going to swim?
- Are you going to swim?

Negation:

S + be NOT + going to + V + Obj:
- I am not going to swim.
- He is not going to swim.
- We are not going to swim.

Signs of tenses in English

We have already found out that each tense has marker words that help distinguish one grammatical tense from another. Therefore, you should remember the markers, which is best done by making several dozen different sentences with each.

Remember that the ending – ing can only be used in conjunction with the verb be.

One of the most common mistakes up to high levels we can consider sentences like:

I'm working here.
We're living here.

They are grammatically incorrect because the verb ending in –ing is used in the following sentences:

I AM working.
We are living.

If we are not talking about this moment, but about what is happening in general, a simple character and a verb are enough:

I work here.
He work here.

Coordination of tenses is a topic that makes you want to quit studying, but in fact, the logic behind it is very simple.

Remember, if the past tense was used at the beginning of the sentence, then we can ONLY use the past tense, even if the Russian version uses the present tense.

For example:

Her father found out that she smokes.

The past tense comes first, and the present tense comes second. This is not possible in English.

We must say:

Her father found out that she smoked.

How to remember tenses in English?

There are several ways to remember times, but, unfortunately, there is no universal way:

Remember the name of the time along with the formula, like a rhyme:
- Present Simple (I do/he does)
- Present Progressive (I am going)
- Past Simple (I did), etc.
Find interesting text and highlight all the tenses you see. Then explain the use of each:
Watch movies and TV series in the original and pay attention to the use of tenses;
Practice and practice again!

Exercises on tenses in English with answers

Put the verb into the correct form, using markers and auxiliary verbs:

He often (cut)himself.
What time did Peter (arrive)?
Mike never (forget)
Are you (sit) here?
We (drink) a lot of Coke at the party yesterday.
It was (rain)all night yesterday.
The train_______ leave in a few minutes.
I (put) on a clean shirt yesterday

Answers:

Choose the correct auxiliary verb:

____ did you like the movie we watched yesterday?
_____ do you like ice-cream?
_____ he smoke?
_____ he speaking now?
_____ we writing?
_____ you live in Lindon?
What ____ do you usually have for breakfast?
When ____ you wake up this morning?
What ____ did you watch on TV yesterday?
_____ is it raining now?

Answers:

Did you like the movie we watched yesterday?
Do you like ice-cream?
Does he smoke?
Is he speaking now?
Are we writing?
Do you live in Lindon?
What do you usually have for breakfast?
When did you wake up this morning?
What did you watch on TV yesterday?
Is it raining now?

Oh, the times! Oh, morals!

Tenses in the English language are considered to be the most difficult section of grammar. But this is one of the most common misconceptions. Along with the fact that the majority distinguishes a dozen tenses in English, and three in Russian. So: don’t trust anyone :) In the English language, experts will highlight more than 12 tenses (take at least Future-in-the-Past for warming up). And in Russian, in theory, there are also more than three. Need proof? Yes please.

Only a first grader thinks that we have past, present and future tenses. But at the same time, everyone will feel the difference in these proposals:

I was walking home through the park yesterday.
I walked home through the park yesterday

Just a quick question: what is the tense in the sentences? Yeah, past. What verb did “went” come from? Well, yes, from the verb “to go.”

The English language also has tricky irregular verbs, which in the past tense take on such a form that you can try to guess the original one. So the myths that camouflage is practiced only in the English language can already be safely considered debunked.

Let's go back to "went" and "went". Can we smell the difference? In the first case, we are talking about some long time: I walked to myself and walked through the park, without touching anyone. And in the second - about what has already happened. The questions answered by “went” and “went” are also different: “what did you do?” and “what did you do?” Such forms of verb tenses in Russian are usually called imperfect/non-perfect form (what to do) and perfect/perfect (what to do).

And that is not all. For example, when we want to emphasize the duration of an action, we become more sophisticated and use synonyms of verbs that are very close in meaning. For example:

Yesterday I walked through the park in in a great mood.

Now you can imagine how difficult it is for a foreigner when he wants to convey a long action using the verb “go”. Surely he will come up with something like “Yesterday I walked... mmm... walked... walked... through the park in a great mood.” And try to explain to him that to convey a long-term action, it is better to take the verb “to walk” and put it in the past tense in the non-perfect form.

Whose tense system is easier?

This is ours:

	Imperfect form (Indefinite)	Perfect form ( Perfect)
	Imperfect form (Indefinite)	long-term	regular
Present	I'm playing	—	—
Past (Past)	played	played	played
Future (Future)	I will play	I'll play	I'll play

Moreover, in order to denote the present continuous or past imperfect tense, we will have to explain this further. Compare:

I play the guitar (that is, in principle I know how to play this instrument).
And
I'm currently playing the guitar (that is, I'm sitting and playing right now, I have nothing else to do).

Tenses in English

While we are getting more sophisticated with perfect/non-perfect forms of the verb, and also practicing finding synonyms, the English have created a completely logical and understandable system of tenses. Each verb easily forms 12 main groups. Let’s take the same “walk” (walk) and use it by default with the pronoun I (I).

Table of tenses in English with examples

	Simple	Continuous	Perfect	Perfect Continuous
Present	I walk I walk (in general, in principle)	I am walking I'm walking/walking (right now)	I have walked I went (already)	I have been walking I walked (did it and completed it by now)
Past	I walked I went (in general, in principle)	I was walking I was walking/walking (a while ago)	I had walked I was walking (the action had already ended at a certain point in the past)	I had been walking I walked (did it and completed it by a certain point in the past)
Future	I will walk I will walk (in general, in principle)	I will be walking I will walk/walk (for a while)	I will have walked I'm like (the action will end at a certain point in the future)	I will have been walking I will walk (and complete it by some point in the future)

Thus, when reading a sentence in English, one can easily understand what the person means. While in our country the use of explanatory words is mandatory. While we need to use explanatory words for this. For example, to convey the Future Perfect tense, we will add “I’ll finish” to the main semantic verb: “I’ll finish doing my homework by 5 pm.” These are the simple rules of English tenses that, thanks to exercises, are quickly memorized.

And whose tense system is ultimately easier?

It is no secret that one of the most popular grammatical topics for students and those interested in English is still the topic: tenses in English. Interest in it is quite justified, since the cases of using one or another tense in English differ from their understanding in other languages and thereby cause many difficulties.

There are such lovers of conquering linguistic peaks who strive, at all costs, to master everything English tenses. But in reality, even the British themselves do not use half of them.

English tense table

Of course, sketchiness will help to understand the ornateness of this topic. English tense table is a wonderful visual aid and should always be at hand for every beginner learning a language.

Answer unambiguously the favorite questions of beginners: “ How many tenses are there in English?? What to prepare for? Why so many? pretty hard. You could say 24! (16 in the active voice and 8 in the passive) and frighten students with the abundance of tense forms, especially continuous, complete and complete-continuous, the analogues of which seem to have no analogues in their native language.

Tense	Simple	Continuous	Perfect	Perfect Continuous
Present		I am doing		I have been doing He has been doing
Past	I did	I was doing	I had done	I had been doing
Future	I will do	I will be doing	I will have done	I will have been doing
Future in the Past	I would do	I would be doing	I would have done	I would have been doing

You can reassure us by answering that in English there are also three time planes - past, present and future, and then we are faced only with shades of actions. True, the verb forms that you have to comprehend will not become smaller from this :)

	Simple	Continuous	Perfect
Present	The work is done	The work is being done	The work has been done
Past	The work was done	The work was being done	The work had been done
Future	The work will be done	-	The work will have been done

Let's leave this question to the world's leading philologists, who have been arguing about this for many years, and let's focus on the use of tense forms.

Tenses in English seem quite complex, but this is only at first glance. It is important to understand some principles:

Firstly, it is possible to draw a parallel when studying tenses with the Ukrainian and Russian languages. The difference is that to convey shades of actions in English, they use grammatical means, and in Ukrainian and Russian - lexical.

Secondly, the formation of tenses in English is much simpler and more logical. Memorizing these forms usually does not cause difficulties for students. It is much more difficult to decide where and what form should be used. This is exactly what we will focus on Special attention.

Active Voice / Active Voice

	Simple	Continuous Long-term	Completed	Perfect Continuous Completed-long
	Data. What we do with a certain frequency. Always used when you need to talk about a sequence of events.	Long procces. As a rule, it is translated with an imperfective verb.	Perfect action. Translated using perfective verbs.	An action that lasted a certain period of time and, accordingly, ended or ended at a certain moment.
Present The present	I cook and pizza sometimes. - Sometimes I cook pizza.	I am cooking a pizza now. - Now I'm making pizza.	I have just cooked the pizza. - I just made pizza.	I have been cooking the pizza for half an hour. - I have been preparing pizza for half an hour (up until now).
Past Past	I cooked the pizza, wrote the letter and went to the shop. - I made pizza, wrote a letter and went to the store.	I was cooking the pizza yeasterday. - I cooked this pizza yesterday (for a while).	I had cooked the pizza by the meeting. - I prepared pizza for the meeting (the action ends at some point in the past).	I had been cooking the pizza for twenty minutes when my friends came. - I had been preparing pizza for twenty minutes when my friends arrived.
Future Future	I will cook a pizza tomorrow. - I will cook pizza tomorrow (there is no emphasis here on the duration or completion of the process, we are simply reporting the fact).	I will be cooking a pizza tomorrow. - I will cook pizza tomorrow (within a certain time).	I will have cooked a pizza by the meeting. - I will prepare the pizza for the meeting (that is, the pilaf will be ready by this time.	I will have been cooking a pizza for twenty minutes by the time my friends come. - I will have been cooking pizza for twenty minutes by the time my friends arrive. (This form is used very rarely and, as a rule, in book speech).
Future in the Past denotes a future action relative to a specific moment in the past. As can be seen from the examples, the sentence necessarily contains a verb in the past tense in the main clause; without it, the use of Future in the Past is impossible.	He said that he would cook a pizza tomorrow.	He said that he would be cooking a pizza tomorrow.	He said that he would have cooked the pizza by the meeting.	He said that he would have been cooking pizza for twenty minutes by the time his friends came.

Passive Voice

	Simple	Continuous Long-term	Completed	Perfect Continuous Completed-long
The present	Letters are sent every day. - Letters are sent every day.	Letters are being sent now. - Letters are being sent now.	Letters have already been sent. - The letters have already been sent.
Past	Letters were sent yesterday. - The letters were sent yesterday.	Letters were being sent at 5 yesterday. - Letters were sent at 5 o'clock yesterday.	Letters had been sent before he phoned. - The letters were sent before he called.
Future	Letters will be sent tomorrow. - The letters will be sent tomorrow.		Letters will have been sent by 5 tomorrow. - Letters will be sent tomorrow before 5 o'clock.
Future in the Past

Tense agreement in English

If you have figured out the forms of construction of certain tenses and cases of their use, then the next difficulty may be tense agreement in English. Here you not only need to correctly construct the tense itself, but also understand the very principle of coordinating the main and subordinate parts of a sentence. This is difficult to explain at first glance. The good news is that special attention should be paid to the fact that if in the main clause the verb is in past form, then in subordinate clause the verb must also be in one of the past tenses, and it does not matter whether it is talking about actions in the present or the future.

Table of tense agreement in English:

Time in direct speech	Present Indefinite	Present Continuous	Present Perfect	Past Indefinite	Past Perfect	Future Indefinite
Time in indirect speech	Past Indefinite	Past Continuous	Past Perfect	Past Perfect	Past Perfect	Future Indefinite in the Past

And the main thing is that in English you don’t need to know many tenses to communicate. After all, the British speak as easily as possible without a clutter of complex structures. The basic tenses (Present Simple, Past Simple, Future Simple) are quite enough, but it is also advisable to master the Present Continuous and Present Perfect. The use of complex tense forms in colloquial speech will only indicate your illiteracy.

Of course, for varied and sophisticated coherent speech while working and expressing your thoughts on paper, you should be patient and learn the entire table of tenses. And we will be happy to help you, contact us, we offer classes in groups and individually: