Sentence structure: Map of tenses

In this chapter

• Two questions

  Ask two questions to choose a tense: When? (past, present, future) and How? Simple: a plain event or a habit. Continuous: in progress at that moment (-ing). Perfect: it happened before and connects to another moment (have + V3; V3 = the third form of the verb: played, seen).

• Present family

  Present simple: I play every day. · Present continuous: I am playing now. · Present perfect: I have played this game before. · Present perfect continuous: I have been playing for an hour.

• Past family

  Past simple: I played yesterday. · Past continuous: I was playing at 5 o'clock. · Past perfect: I had finished my homework before the game. · Past perfect continuous: I had been playing for an hour when Mom called.

• Future family

  Future: will: I will play tomorrow. · Future: be going to: I am going to play on Saturday. · Future continuous: I will be playing at 5 tomorrow. · Future perfect: I will have played ten games by Friday. · Future perfect continuous: I will have been playing for two hours by 6.

• Turkish equivalents

  Present simple

  Example: I play.

  Example: I am playing.

• One verb, four looks

  Simple: a habit.

  Example: I read every night.

  Example: I am reading now.

• Tip

  Don't trust the Turkish ending when you translate: -iyor can be the present simple (Her gün yürüyorum → I walk every day), and -dı can be the present perfect (Hiç gördün mü? → Have you ever seen…?). First ask “When? How?”