ADVANCED GRAMMAR
AND COMPOSITION
MAED- ENGLISH
Complete the sentence by choosing the
correct form of be to match the progressive
tense written in parenthesis.
If the team wins the championship, the
crowd _____ (future progressive tense)
cheering like crazy.
a. was
b. will be c. is
Tense refers to the form a verb takes in a sentence,
whether to express the present, past or future.
Simple Tenses
Perfect Tenses
Progressive Tenses
The progressive tenses express
continuing action. You can form
them with the appropriate
tense of the verb be plus the
present participle
am, are,
is, was,
were,
been and
being
running
Jumping
barking baking swimming
enjoying making giving
approaching
burning
looking
waiting
Present progressive
The present progressive tense (also called present
continuous tense) is the verb form of the present
tense that expresses actions happening now, actions
that are in progress, or actions that will occur in the
near future.
Present progressive tense
- Actions happening now
• I am watching television.
• You are frustrating me.
• He is finishing his homework.
Present progressive tense
- Actions in progress
• My dad is working on a solution to fix
the leak.
• They are trying to solve the problem.
• I am training for a marathon.
Present progressive tense
- Actions that will occur in the near future
• She is going to the party this weekend.
• We are going on vacation this
summer.
• They are going out for drinks later.
Past progressive
The past progressive tense indicates two kinds of
past action.
• a continuing action in the past
• an action occurring at the same time in the
past as another action
Past progressive
A continuing action in the past
• Poe’s writing was becoming
increasingly bizarre and dark.
• She was working on an email when the
fire alarm rang.
Past progressive
an action occurring at the same time in the past as
another action
• The mob tackled Jean-Luc Goddard while
he was introducing the film.
• While he was writing an e-mail, the phone
rang.
Future progressive
The future progressive tense indicates a
continuing in the future
• The government will be monitoring the
phones in the lab.
• The man is excited because he will be seeing
his long-distance girlfriend over the holiday
weekend.
Future progressive
• We will be celebrating like kings if it works.
• She'll be coming around the mountain when
she comes.
• They will be finishing school soon.
• We will be living in San Francisco.
Past Progressive
Subject+ was/were+ verb+ing
Present Progressive
Subject+ am/is/are + verb+ing
Future Progressive
Subject+ will be + present participle
Change the simple tense verbs to progressive tense
verbs using the same time period (present, past,
future).
Example:
Martians land on the planet Earth. (present)
Martians are landing on the planet Earth. (present
progressive)
1. He enjoys his flowers, vegetables
and herbs.
He _________________ his flowers,
vegetables and herbs.
2. His friends will call at the next
holiday or break.
His friends ______________ at the next
holiday or break.
3. Ferdinand answers the phone
saying “What?”
Ferdinand _________________ the phone
saying “What?”
4. He screened his calls last week to
avoid bill collectors.
He ____________ his calls last week to
avoid bill collectors.
5. His money goes under his mattress
until he needs it.
His money __________ under
mattress until he needs it.
his
6. He will go fishing next week if he
gets his license.
He _____________ next week if he gets his
license
7. Bill, on the other hand, will join the
Coast Guard.
Bill,
on
the
other
hand,
____________________ the Coast Guard.
Write an essay based on the topic below
by using the three types of progressive
tenses. Underline the verbs to be used.