TENSE :SARKARI LIBRARY

Tense is a grammatical concept that indicates the time at which an action takes place. It helps us understand whether an action occurred in the past, is happening in the present, or will happen in the future.

Types of Tenses

There are three main tenses in English and most languages:

1. Present Tense (वर्तमान काल)
2. Past Tense (भूतकाल)
3. Future Tense (भविष्यकाल)

Each of these tenses can be further divided into four subtypes:

1. Simple (साधारण)
2. Continuous/Progressive (सतत)
3. Perfect (पूर्ण)
4. Perfect Continuous (पूर्ण सतत)

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1. Present Tense (वर्तमान काल)

a. Present Simple Tense (साधारण वर्तमान काल)

• Usage: Describes habitual actions, universal truths, or current states.
• Structure: Subject + base form of verb (for third person singular, add “s” or “es”)
• Examples:
  • He plays football.
    (वह फुटबॉल खेलता है।)
  • The sun rises in the east.
    (सूरज पूर्व से निकलता है।)

b. Present Continuous Tense (सतत वर्तमान काल)

• Usage: Describes an action happening at the moment of speaking.
• Structure: Subject + is/am/are + verb+ing
• Examples:
  • She is eating dinner.
    (वह रात का खाना खा रही है।)
  • They are studying for exams.
    (वे परीक्षा की तैयारी कर रहे हैं।)

c. Present Perfect Tense (पूर्ण वर्तमान काल)

• Usage: Describes actions that occurred at an unspecified time in the past and have relevance to the present.
• Structure: Subject + has/have + past participle (third form of verb)
• Examples:
  • He has finished his homework.
    (उसने अपना होमवर्क पूरा कर लिया है।)
  • They have visited the Taj Mahal.
    (उन्होंने ताजमहल का दौरा किया है।)

d. Present Perfect Continuous Tense (पूर्ण सतत वर्तमान काल)

• Usage: Describes actions that started in the past and are still continuing.
• Structure: Subject + has/have + been + verb+ing
• Examples:
  • She has been working here for two years.
    (वह यहाँ दो साल से काम कर रही है।)
  • We have been studying since morning.
    (हम सुबह से पढ़ रहे हैं।)

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2. Past Tense (भूतकाल)

a. Past Simple Tense (साधारण भूतकाल)

• Usage: Describes completed actions that happened in the past.
• Structure: Subject + past form of verb
• Examples:
  • I went to the market yesterday.
    (मैं कल बाजार गया था।)
  • She visited her grandparents last week.
    (वह पिछले हफ्ते अपने दादा-दादी से मिलने गई थी।)

b. Past Continuous Tense (सतत भूतकाल)

• Usage: Describes actions that were ongoing at a particular point in the past.
• Structure: Subject + was/were + verb+ing
• Examples:
  • He was watching TV when I called.
    (जब मैंने फोन किया, वह टीवी देख रहा था।)
  • They were playing football in the afternoon.
    (वह दोपहर में फुटबॉल खेल रहे थे।)

c. Past Perfect Tense (पूर्ण भूतकाल)

• Usage: Describes actions that were completed before a certain point in the past.
• Structure: Subject + had + past participle (third form of verb)
• Examples:
  • She had already left before I arrived.
    (मेरे पहुँचने से पहले वह जा चुकी थी।)
  • They had finished their work before the meeting.
    (बैठक से पहले उन्होंने अपना काम पूरा कर लिया था।)

d. Past Perfect Continuous Tense (पूर्ण सतत भूतकाल)

• Usage: Describes actions that were ongoing in the past up until another point in the past.
• Structure: Subject + had + been + verb+ing
• Examples:
  • I had been reading for two hours when he came.
    (जब वह आया, मैं दो घंटे से पढ़ रहा था।)
  • They had been waiting for her since morning.
    (वे सुबह से उसका इंतजार कर रहे थे।)

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3. Future Tense (भविष्यकाल)

a. Future Simple Tense (साधारण भविष्यकाल)

• Usage: Describes actions that will happen in the future.
• Structure: Subject + will/shall + base form of verb
• Examples:
  • I will go to the party tomorrow.
    (मैं कल पार्टी में जाऊंगा।)
  • They will travel next month.
    (वे अगले महीने यात्रा करेंगे।)

b. Future Continuous Tense (सतत भविष्यकाल)

• Usage: Describes actions that will be ongoing at a particular time in the future.
• Structure: Subject + will be + verb+ing
• Examples:
  • He will be sleeping when you arrive.
    (जब तुम पहुँचोगे, वह सो रहा होगा।)
  • We will be waiting for you at the station.
    (हम स्टेशन पर तुम्हारा इंतजार कर रहे होंगे।)

c. Future Perfect Tense (पूर्ण भविष्यकाल)

• Usage: Describes actions that will be completed before a certain time in the future.
• Structure: Subject + will have + past participle (third form of verb)
• Examples:
  • She will have finished the project by tomorrow.
    (वह कल तक परियोजना समाप्त कर चुकी होगी।)
  • They will have left by the time we arrive.
    (जब तक हम पहुँचेंगे, वे जा चुके होंगे।)

d. Future Perfect Continuous Tense (पूर्ण सतत भविष्यकाल)

• Usage: Describes actions that will have been ongoing for a period of time up until a specific point in the future.
• Structure: Subject + will have been + verb+ing
• Examples:
  • By next year, I will have been working here for five years.
    (अगले साल तक मैं यहाँ पाँच साल से काम कर रहा होऊंगा।)
  • They will have been studying for three hours by noon.
    (दोपहर तक वे तीन घंटे से पढ़ाई कर रहे होंगे।)