Learn all the Tenses in English: Complete Course

Learn English with Rebecca · engVid2 minutes read

Mastering English tenses is essential for understanding when actions occur in communication, with Rebecca leading comprehensive classes to guide learners through basic and advanced tenses, like present simple and continuous. The present simple tense is used for general truths and routines, while the present continuous tense describes temporary actions happening now or trends, requiring the correct form of the verb "to be" and -ing.

Insights

  • Mastering English tenses is crucial for effective communication, as they indicate when actions occur and structure language. Weak structure leads to weak English, while a strong structure results in strong English proficiency.
  • The program led by Rebecca offers comprehensive classes on all English tenses, guiding learners from basic to advanced levels with detailed instruction, practice, and comparison lessons. Learners are advised to actively engage, take notes, and review material to enhance learning.
  • Understanding and practicing the present simple and present continuous tenses are fundamental before advancing to more complex tenses. The present simple is used for permanent situations and general truths, while the present continuous describes temporary actions happening now. Both tenses have distinct uses and should be applied correctly to convey different meanings in English communication.

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Recent questions

  • What are English tenses?

    Ways to express time in English communication.

  • How many tenses are in English?

    Twelve tenses in English language.

  • Who leads the English tenses program?

    Rebecca, an experienced English teacher.

  • Why is understanding tenses important?

    Essential for structuring effective language.

  • How can learners enhance English skills?

    Create a schedule, participate actively, review material.

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Summary

00:00

Mastering English Tenses for Fluency and Clarity

  • Mastering English tenses is crucial for improving English skills, distinguishing between different tenses like "I work" or "I am working", "I have worked", or "I had worked".
  • Tenses indicate when actions occur in English communication.
  • The series offers comprehensive classes on all English tenses, guiding learners from beginner to advanced levels with step-by-step instruction and ample practice.
  • Understanding tenses is essential for structuring language effectively; weak structure leads to weak English, while a strong structure results in strong English.
  • Rebecca, an experienced English teacher, leads the program to help learners communicate fluently and confidently in English.
  • Tenses are the linguistic method of expressing time in any language, with English having twelve tenses divided into basic and advanced categories.
  • The basic tenses include simple and continuous tenses, with patterns and rules learned in basic tenses aiding in understanding advanced tenses.
  • The program provides detailed classes on each tense, explaining usage, grammar, common mistakes, and offering comparison lessons to clarify differences between tenses.
  • Learners are advised to create a schedule, actively participate in lessons, take notes, review learned material, and engage fully to enhance learning and retention.
  • Rebecca's extensive teaching experience and tailored program ensure learners receive expert guidance to elevate their English proficiency.

15:24

Understanding Present Simple Tense and Usage

  • "It" refers to non-personal entities, distinct from people.
  • Differences between entities are noted but will be explained later.
  • The present simple tense is being introduced.
  • Five situations where the present simple tense is used are outlined.
  • The tense is used for permanent situations, like living in a city.
  • It is also used for routines, such as waking up at a specific time daily.
  • Facts, like the sun rising in the east, are expressed using this tense.
  • Schedules, indicating when events occur regularly, are described.
  • Adverbs of frequency, like always or never, are used with this tense.
  • Forming the present simple tense involves adding "s" for he, she, and it in positive sentences.

31:48

Mastering Present Simple Tense in English

  • Consonants are any letters that are not vowels in English, such as b, d, g, x.
  • Vowels in English are a, e, i, o, or u.
  • When a word ends in a consonant before a y, drop the y and add "ies", like in the word "studies".
  • Some verbs have irregular forms in the present simple tense, like "go" becoming "goes".
  • Short answers in English are used in conversations to avoid repeating the whole question.
  • If a question starts with "Do", the answer should include "do" or "don't" depending on the sentence's positivity.
  • Common mistakes in present simple tense include confusion between present simple and present continuous.
  • Mistakes can also occur in verb forms, spelling, or missing essential words in sentences.
  • Practice exercises include completing sentences with the correct verb forms and creating negative sentences and questions.
  • Understanding and practicing the present simple tense is crucial before moving on to more advanced English tenses.

47:59

"Present Continuous: Actions Happening Now"

  • Present simple: used to talk about general truths or permanent situations, like "I work in this company."
  • Present continuous: describes actions happening now or temporarily, such as "I am working" or "He is writing a book."
  • Forming present continuous: subject (I, you, he, she, it) + verb "to be" + verb + -ing, like "I am working."
  • Uses of present continuous: for actions happening now, around now, temporarily, or as trends, like "The prices of homes are increasing."
  • Advanced uses: can express repeated negative actions with words like "always" and can indicate future actions by adding time references.
  • Not to use present continuous for permanent actions or stative verbs, like "I am living in Canada" or "I am understanding English."
  • Forming present continuous: subject + verb "to be" (am, are, is) + verb + -ing, ensuring correct usage of the verb "to be."
  • Negative form: add "not" after the verb "to be," like "I am not working."
  • Question form: invert the subject and the verb "to be," like "Are you working?"
  • Practice forming present continuous with positive, negative, and question sentences for various subjects.

01:03:56

Forming Present Continuous Tense: Rules and Practice

  • To form the negative present continuous tense, add "not" before the verb with -ing, such as "not working" for "working".
  • For questions, reverse the order, like "Am I?" instead of "I am", especially with the verb "to be".
  • Question forms for present continuous tense include "Am I working today?", "Are you working?", "Are we working?", "Are they working?", "Is he working?", "Is she working?", and "Is it working?".
  • Question words can be added before the question, like "When are you working?", "Where are you working?", and "How long are you working?", while maintaining the same order.
  • Contractions in present continuous tense are used for informal conversations and writing, such as "I'm learning" for "I am learning".
  • Common contractions include "I'm", "you're", "we're", "they're", "he's", "she's", and "it's".
  • Negative contractions involve adding "not" after the contraction, like "I'm not watching" for "I am not watching".
  • Verbs in present continuous tense require adding "-ing", with exceptions like dropping the "e" for verbs ending in "e" and doubling the last letter for C-V-C pattern verbs.
  • Short answers in present continuous tense should include more than just "Yes" or "No", like "Yes, he is" or "No, he isn't".
  • Practice involves converting sentences to present continuous tense, changing them to negative, forming questions, and correcting common mistakes like missing the verb "to be".

01:22:19

Correct Usage of Present Continuous Tense Verbs

  • The present continuous tense requires the verb "to be" for correct usage.
  • Incorrect forms of the verb "to be" can lead to errors in sentences.
  • Slang terms like "ain't" should be avoided in academic English.
  • The main verb in a sentence should be used correctly, such as "She is doing her homework."
  • Spelling errors, like "lieing" instead of "lying," should be corrected.
  • Apostrophes should be used in contractions, like "We're going to the mall."
  • Stative verbs should not be used in the present continuous tense, like "I am needing some water."
  • Permanent situations should be described using the present simple tense, not the present continuous tense.
  • The present simple tense is used for general truths or routines, while the present continuous tense is for temporary actions or actions happening now.
  • Differences between the present simple and present continuous tenses include talking about facts, trends, habits, and specific actions.

01:38:40

Present tense usage in English verbs explained.

  • Present simple is used for regularly scheduled events, like a flight leaving at 7:00pm always. In contrast, present continuous, such as "The flight is leaving," indicates an action happening right now.
  • Both present simple and present continuous can be used to discuss future events. For instance, "The flight leaves at 7:00pm tomorrow" connects to the schedule, while "The flight is leaving at 7:00pm tomorrow" specifies the future action.
  • Verbs in English can be categorized as action verbs (e.g., run, jump) or stative verbs (e.g., know, like). While both types can be used with present simple, stative verbs are generally avoided with present continuous, which is more suitable for action verbs.
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