English Tenses Guide
Clear explanations, real examples, and 5 free exercises for each English tense — from Beginner to Advanced. Pick a tense to start practicing.
A1 — Beginner
Present Simple
Learn when to use Present Simple, how to form it, and avoid the most common mistakes — with 5 exercises right on this page.
Present Continuous
Learn when to use Present Continuous, how to form it, and avoid the most common mistakes — with 5 exercises right on this page.
Past Simple
Learn when to use Past Simple, how to form regular and irregular verbs, and avoid common mistakes — with 5 exercises right on this page.
A2 — Elementary
Future Simple
Learn when to use 'will' for the future, how to form Future Simple, and how it differs from 'going to' — with 5 exercises right on this page.
Going To
Learn when to use 'going to' for plans and predictions, how to build it, and how it differs from 'will' — with 5 exercises right on this page.
B1 — Intermediate
B2 — Upper-Intermediate
Present Perfect Continuous
Learn when to use Present Perfect Continuous, how to form it, and how it differs from Present Perfect — with 5 exercises right on this page.
Past Perfect
Learn when to use Past Perfect, how to form it, and how it differs from Past Simple — with 5 hands-on exercises right on this page.
Future Continuous
Learn when to use the Future Continuous, how to form it, and avoid the most common mistakes — with 5 hand-picked exercises right on this page.
Future Perfect
Learn when to use Future Perfect, how to form 'will have + V3', and avoid common mistakes — with 5 exercises right on this page.
C1 — Advanced
Present Simple
You already know I work / she works. This guide covers what advanced learners search for: the narrative present, performative verbs, stative-dynamic crossover, register in academic writing, and the subtle contrast with Present Continuous.
Present Continuous
You already know 'I am working.' This guide targets the distinctions that separate B2 from C1: stative-dynamic shifts, irritation patterns, arrangement vs intention, and editorial framing.
Past Simple
You already know 'I worked' and 'She went.' At C1, Past Simple carries hypothetical distance, literary inversion, and register-sensitive choices that separate advanced writers from intermediate ones.
Past Continuous
Go beyond 'I was working' — master politeness softening, narrative texture, future-in-the-past arrangements, and register distinctions with 5 C1-level exercises.
Present Perfect
You already know the basics. This guide tackles the distinctions that separate proficient speakers from truly advanced ones — journalism register, negative inversion, stative duration, and the shifting boundary of 'now'.
Present Perfect Continuous
You already know the form. This guide tackles what separates B2 from C1: process vs result, the visible-evidence reading, stative verb restrictions, and the register choices that native speakers make instinctively.
Past Perfect
You know the form. Now master the nuance — inversion with negative adverbials, counterfactual conditionals, reported speech backshift, and when to drop Past Perfect entirely.
Future Simple
You already know 'I will go'. At C1, the real work begins: modal 'will' for deduction, 'shall' in legal contracts, habitual 'will' for character, and the fine line between prediction and evidence.
Future Continuous
Go beyond the basics. At C1, Future Continuous is a tool for diplomatic distancing, projected scheduling, and nuanced professional communication — not just 'an action in progress at a future time'.
Future Perfect
Go beyond the basic form. Learn how Future Perfect signals committed milestones, encodes present-time deduction, and shifts register in legal and contractual prose — with 5 C1-level exercises.
Going To
Move beyond the basics. Understand evidential prediction, pre-formed intention, past unrealised plans, and when to avoid 'going to' entirely — with 5 C1-level exercises on this page.