help with tenses

Hi, I am self studying English Grammar and one activity in my workbook is the need to define these sentences into the following Categories:

Past/Present/Future Perfect Simple
Past/Present/Future Progressive
Past/Present Future Perfect Progressive

Sentences are:

We had finished fishing before they arrived.
I met Brian as I was walking to the restaurants.
I had been cycling all night and was exhausted.
She had had that cat since she was twelve.
He walked to work every day.
I have been waiting for Tim over an hour.
He became a success in later life.
They will have finished their work before breakfast time.
I'll be waiting by the City Hall.


**please help i have been studying for one week and cannot understand**

[Lib]

The past simple is formed by adding 'ed' to regular verbs. Verbs with irregular pasts have to be learned sepatately e.g. go - went, eat - ate etc.
The present simple is formed with the present form of the verb, which looks very like the infinitive but takes an 's' in the third person singular - I live, he lives.
The future simple is (I suppose) formed with 'will + infinitive' - I will go, he will eat.
The progressive tenses are formed with 'be' (in past, present or future) + the -ing form of the verb - He is playing, they were writing, I'll be working.
The perfect tenses are formed with 'have' + participle. Past - I had done. Present - I have done. Future - I will have done.
The perfect progressive tenses are formed with 'have / had / will have + been + ing form. Past - I had been doing. Present - I have been doing. Future - I will have been doing.

Why don't you look at your sentences again and try to work out what tense they are in? Then post it and someone here will look at it for you.

[RonBee]

We had finished fishing before they arrived.

That one is in the past perfect tense. Finishing fishing was completed before their arrival.

Try composing some more sentences in past perfect tense.

8)

Thank you for your help! I will look t the sentences again and label them according to your tips. :)

hello again. here i tried to answer questions. let me know if there are wrong answers. thanks!


We had finished eating before they arrived.
*past perfect

I met Brian as I was walking to the restaurants.
*past progressive

I had been cycling all night and was exhausted.
*past perfect progressive

She had had that cat since she was twelve.
*past perfect simple

He biked to work every day.
*past simple

I have been waiting for Tim over an hour.
*present perfect progressive

He became a success in later life.
*past progressive

They will have finished their work before breakfast time.
*future perfect

I'll be waiting by the City Hall.
*future progressive

[Lib]

Very good Cyrus!
The first sentence is past perfect SIMPLE (just to be more exact)
The second sentence has two verbs, the first is past simple, the second is past progressive.
He became a success later in life ..... Do you really think this is progressive? Remember - be + ing = progressive.
The rest are perfect, as far as I can see.
I have been waiting for Tom over an hour. I suppose this is correct, but I'd say: I've been waiting for Tom for over an hour. Too many for's? What does Ronbee think?

[Tdol]

I agree with Lib- 'he became' is the past simple.

[RonBee]

I have not been able to find a definition for past perfect simple. How does that differ from past perfect?

http://www.usingenglish.com/glossary/past-perfect.html

[Anatoly]

Originally Posted by RonBee

I have not been able to find a definition for past perfect simple. How does that differ from past perfect?

http://www.usingenglish.com/glossary/past-perfect.html

Excuse me, gentlemen, would you mind if I offer some additional links? They seem to be visual aids to your remarkable lesson.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/le...rnitv210.shtml
http://grammar.englishclub.com/verb-...-perfect_u.htm
http://www.learnenglish.org.uk/gramm...perfect01.html
http://www.englishpage.com/verbpage/pastperfect.html
:)

[Lib]

Ronbee, I said 'past perfect SIMPLE' so that there would be no confusion. The past perfect can be 'simple' (I had done), or 'continuous / progressive' (I had been doing.