Regular verbs form their past tense and the past participle by adding ed or d to the form of the present tense.
The word play is a regular verb since you just add 'ed' to the verb to form its past tense and its past participle.
The verbs eat and is are irregular verbs since they do not form the past tense and past participle in the regular
way. The following are examples of regular verbs.
The above examples should suffice. There are thousands of regular verbs and it is easy to form their past
tense and past participle forms.
Errors are frequently made when using the past tense and the past participle of irregular verbs. It is highly
important for you to become knowledgeable about the principal parts of the irregular verbs that are in common
use. If you plan on taking an English language exam, such as IELTS, be careful of these frequent mistakes.
◆Mistakes are commonly made when using the wrong form for the past tense: done for did, seen for saw,
come for came; swum for swam; dove for dived, run for ran, drunk for drank.
◆Mistakes are also made when using the wrong form for the past participle: went for gone, did for done,
swam for swum, tore for torn, began for begun; came for come.
Progressive Forms of Verbs
A verb has a special form to show that the action is continuing or progressing at the time indicated by a
particular tense.
◆I am studying English grammar.
◆ He is contemplating marriage.
1. The present progressive tense shows continuing action, something going on now. It may also show that
something will happen in the future. It is formed by combining the present tense of the verb to be with the
present participle of another verb (the form of the verb that ends in ing).
◆I am speaking as a representative of my people.
The verb am is the present tense of the verb to be (you can check in our table) and is combined to the present
participle of the verb speak (actually the ing form).
◆ We are going to SM City.
The verb are is the present tense of the verb to be and is combined to the present participle of the verb go
(actually the ing form). Can you construct other sentence examples?
◆ Our friends are arriving in 10 minutes.
◆You are irritating me.
◆This parrot is calling my name.
◆She is dating my friend.
2. The past progressive tense shows continuing action, something that was happening at some point in the
past. It is formed by combining the past tense of the verb to be with the present participle of another verb
(again the ing form).
◆I was singing when you came.
The verb was is the past tense of the verb to be (again, you may check our table) and is combined to the
present participle of the verb sing (actually the ing form). Try constructing other sentence examples.
◆We were drinking beer when the cop barged inside.
◆Femy was smiling when he gave her his picture.
◆You were chatting in the Internet when your manager came.
3. The future progressive tense shows continuing action, something that will be happening at some point in
the future. It is formed by combining the future tense of the verb to be with the present participle of another
verb.
◆ I shall be calling you every day.
◆In another four years, politicians will be running in another election.
◆ By the end of the day, we shall be paying you.
In the first sentence, the verb shall be is the future tense of the verb to be (you may check our table) and is
combined to the present participle of the verb call (actually the ing form).
4. The present perfect progressive tense shows a continuous action that has been finished at some point in
the past or that was initiated in the past and continuous to happen. It is formed by combining the present
perfect tense of the verb to be with the present participle of another verb (ing form).
◆I have been calling you.
◆He has been checking the papers of our students.
5. The past perfect progressive tense shows a continuous action completed at some point in the past. It is
formed by combining the past perfect tense of the verb to be with the present participle of another verb (ing
form).
◆I had been running but I felt tired.
◆Jonathan had been recording his songs all morning.
6. The future perfect progressive tense shows a continuous action that will be completed at some point in the
future. It is formed by combining the future perfect tense of the verb to be with the present participle of another
verb (ing form).
◆On my retirement day, I shall have been teaching for thirty-five years.
◆By sunset, we shall have been working on this project for ten hours.
For the sake of completeness, I will give you a table showing the verb 'care' in its progressive forms.
Agreement of Subject and Verb
One common error made in both speaking and writing is the lack of agreement between the subject noun or
pronoun and the predicate verb.
The verb must agree with its subject in person and number.
◆Shella does not want to go to the office today. (correct)
◆The subject (Shella) and the verb (does) are both singular and in the third person.
◆Shella do not want to go to the office today. (incorrect)
◆You were not in the hall last night. (correct)
◆You was not in the hall last night. (incorrect)
Special Cases of Agreement
Words like pants, pliers, scissors, and tongs are plural and take a plural verb. When the word pair is used as
the subject, the subject is regarded as singular and takes a singular verb.
◆ These scissors are mine. (correct)
◆This scissors is mine. (incorrect)
◆ A pair of scissors is all I need. (correct)
◆ A pair of scissors are all I need. (incorrect)
A plural noun that shows weight, extent, or quantity is singular, and takes a singular verb.
◆Ten kilometers is a long distance to walk. (correct)
◆ Ten kilometers are a long distance to walk. (incorrect)
◆Fifty kilograms is a heavy load. (correct)
◆Fifty kilograms are a heavy load. (incorrect)
◆One million pesos is the price of a brand new car. (correct)
◆One million pesos are the price of a brand new car. (incorrect)
The words half and part are singular or plural according to the meaning of the sentence.
When these words refer to a mass or a section, they are singular. When they refer to a number of individuals
or things, they are plural.
◆Half of the children have eaten. (number - plural)
The sentence tells us that a number of children have eaten, that is, more than one child is being spoken
about. Thus, the word have is used instead of has.
◆Half of the cake is left. (mass or section - singular)
The preceding example communicates the idea that half of a whole cake is left, that is, the subject is singular.
◆The front part of the car was destroyed. (mass or section singular)
When the word number is preceded by the article a, it takes a plural verb; however, when it is immediately
preceded by the article the, it takes a singular verb.
◆A number of doctors are waiting for you. (correct)
◆A number of doctors is waiting for you. (incorrect)
◆The number of doctors waiting inside is small. (correct)
◆ The number of doctors waiting inside are small. (incorrect)
Compound Or Phrasal Prepositions
A preposition is not always a single word. There are a number of prepositions in common use that are made
up of a group of two or more words. Such prepositions are called compound prepositions or phrasal
prepositions. Do not confuse phrasal prepositions with prepositional phrases. Remember that a prepositional
phrase contains a preposition. This preposition may be a word or a phrase called a phrasal preposition. In
other words, the phrasal preposition is contained in the prepositional phrase. It is a case of a phrase contained
in a longer phrase.
Although the compound preposition consists of two or more words, it is regarded as a unit, or as a single
preposition. The following list includes the compound prepositions that are in common use:
Verbals
Verbals are derived from verbs and retain many of the characteristics of verbs. There are three verb forms
that are known as verbals: participles, gerunds, and infinitives.
1. Participles
A participle is a verb form that acts as an adjective. There are three kinds of participles: present participles,
past participles, and perfect participles.
Present participles end in-ing and describe a present condition.
◆The most beguiling people come out before elections.
The word beguiling comes from the verb beguile. That is the reason why it is called a verbal. In the sentence
above, beguiling acts as an adjective modifying the noun people. Present participles are verbals (their root
words are verbs) that act as adjectives (modify nouns and pronouns) and end in-ing. Note that our example
above ends in ing.
◆He has to behave in a manner befitting his position as chairman.
◆She is truly an exciting woman.
The news was startling.
Gerunds
Like a participle, a gerund is a verbal, that is, both are formed from verbs. In contrast to a participle which is
a verbal that functions as an adjective, a gerund is a verb form that acts as a noun. A gerund ends in -ing. It
may function as a subject, direct object, or object of a preposition.
◆Boxing is Mohammed Ali's sport. (gerund used as subject)
In our example, the word boxing is a verbal because it is derived from the verb box. It also ends in -ing.
Although a verb form, the word functions as a noun and is the subject of our sentence example.
◆ Mohammed Ali's sport is boxing. (boxing is a predicate noun referring to the noun sport in the subject)
◆Mohammed Ali loves boxing. (boxing is the direct object of the verb loves)
◆ Schwarzenegger earns his living by acting. (acting is the direct object of the preposition by)
If there are dangling participles, there are also dangling gerunds.