You can find the formulas of the English tenses in the tables below. You can also inspect the formation of the tenses to identify the verbs, auxiliaries and the subjects better.
⬤ Verb to be (am, is, are) Sentence Formula
Subject + am/is/are + noun/adjective/preposition
| (+) Affirmative sentences | (-) Negative sentences | (?) Interrogative sentences |
|---|---|---|
| I amhere. | I am not here. | Am I here? |
| You arehere. | You aren’t here. | Are you here? |
| He ishere. | He isn’t here. | Is he here? |
| She ishere. | She isn’t here. | Is she here? |
| It ishere. | It isn’t here. | Is it here? |
| We arehere. | We aren’t here. | Are we here? |
| They arehere. | They aren’t here. | Are they here? |
Click here for the verb to be sentence formation section
⬤ Modal “can” Sentence Formula
Subject + can + Verb (Base form)
| (+) Affirmative sentences | (-) Negative sentences | (?) Interrogative sentences |
|---|---|---|
| I can swim. | I can not swim. | Can I swim? |
| You can swim. | You can not swim. | Can you swim? |
| He can swim. | He can not swim. | Can he swim? |
| She can swim. | She can not swim. | Can she swim? |
| It can swim. | It can not swim. | Can it swim? |
| We can swim. | We can not swim. | Can we swim? |
| They can swim. | They can not swim. | Can they swim? |
Click here for the modal “can” sentence formation section
⬤ Simple Present Tense Sentence Formula
Subject + Verb
Subject + do/does not + Verb
Do/Does + Subject + Verb
| (+) Affirmative sentences | (-) Negative sentences | (?) Interrogative sentences |
|---|---|---|
| I speak | I don’t speak | Do you speak? |
| You speak | You don’t speak | Do you speak? |
| He speaks | He doesn’t speak | Does he speak? |
| She speaks | She doesn’t speak | Does she speak? |
| It speaks | It doesn’t speak | Does it speak? |
| We speak | We don’t speak | Do we speak? |
| They speak | They don’t speak | Do they speak? |
Click here for the Simple Present Tense sentence formation section
⬤ Present Continuous Tense Sentence Formula
Subject + am/is/are + Verb-ing
| (+) Affirmative sentences | (-) Negative sentences | (?) Interrogative sentences |
|---|---|---|
| I am working. | I am not working. | Am I working? |
| You are working. | You aren’t working. | Are you working? |
| He is working. | He isn’t working. | Is he working? |
| She is working. | She isn’t working | Is she working? |
| It is working. | It isn’t working | Is it working? |
| We are working. | We aren’t working | Are we working? |
| They are working. | They aren’t working | Are they working? |
Click here for the Present Continuous Tense sentence formation section
⬤ Future Simple Tense Sentence Formula
Subject + will + Verb
| (+) Affirmative sentences | (-) Negative sentences | (?) Interrogative sentences |
|---|---|---|
| I will buy. | I won’t buy. | Will I buy? |
| You will buy. | You won’t buy. | Will you buy? |
| He will buy. | He won’t buy. | Will he buy? |
| She will buy. | She won’t buy | Will she buy? |
| It will buy. | It won’t buy | Will it buy? |
| We will buy. | We won’t buy | Will we buy? |
| They will buy. | They won’t buy | Will they buy? |
Click here for the Future Simple Tense sentence formation section
⬤ Simple Past Tense Sentence Formula
Subject + Verb (past simple)
Subject + did not + Verb
Did + Subject + Verb
| (+) Affirmative sentences | (-) Negative sentences | (?) Interrogative sentences |
|---|---|---|
| I watched | I didn’t watch | Did I watch? |
| You watched | You didn’t watch | Did you watch? |
| He watched | He didn’t watch | Did he watch? |
| She watched | She didn’t watch | Did she watch? |
| It watched | It didn’t watch | Did it watch? |
| We watched | We didn’t watch | Did we watch? |
| They watched | They didn’t watch | Did they watch? |
Click here for the Simple Past Tense sentence formation section
⬤ Past Continuous Tense Sentence Formula
Subject + was/were + Verb-ing
| (+) Affirmative sentences | (-) Negative sentences | (?) Interrogative sentences |
|---|---|---|
| I was going. | I was not going. | Was I going? |
| You were going. | You were not going. | Were you going? |
| He was going. | He was not going. | Was he going? |
| She was going. | She was not going. | Was she going? |
| It was going. | It was not going. | Was it going? |
| We were going. | We were not going. | Were we going? |
| They were going. | They were not going. | Were they going? |
Click here for the Past Continuous Tense sentence formation section
⬤ “Be going to” Future Tense Sentence Formula
Subject + am/is/are going to + Verb
| (+) Affirmative sentences | (-) Negative sentences | (?) Interrogative sentences |
|---|---|---|
| I am going to visit. | I ‘m not going to visit. | Am I going to visit? |
| You are going to visit. | You aren’t going to visit. | Are you going to visit? |
| He is going to visit. | He isn’t going to visit. | Is he going to visit? |
| She is going to visit. | She isn’t going to visit | Is she going to visit? |
| It is going to visit. | It isn’t going to visit | Is it going to visit? |
| We are going to visit. | We aren’t going to visit | Are we going to visit? |
| They are going to visit. | They aren’t going to visit | Are they going to visit? |
Click here for the “Be going to” Future Tense sentence formation section
⬤ Present Perfect Tense Sentence Formula
Subject + have/has + Verb (past participle)
| (+) Affirmative sentences | (-) Negative sentences | (?) Interrogative sentences |
|---|---|---|
| I have lost. | I have not lost. | Have I lost? |
| You have lost. | You have not lost. | Have you lost? |
| He has lost. | He has not lost. | Has he lost? |
| She has lost. | She has not lost. | Has she lost? |
| It has lost. | It has not lost. | Has it lost? |
| We have lost. | We have not lost. | Have we lost? |
| They have lost. | They have not lost. | Have they lost? |
Click here for the Present Perfect Tense sentence formation section
Similar pages:
>> Timelines of English tenses with images.
>> Formation of tenses with animated sentences.