Các thì và cách dùng các thì trong Tiếng Anh

Actions stopping just before the present moment I’m out of breath because I’ve been running to get here in time?. Past simple vs present perfect simple: Past simple Periods of time or mo

I PRESENT SIMPLE:

2 Permanent situations Angie teaches French at a local adult education

centre

4 General truths and facts Poland is in the European Union

5 How often things happen Angela doesn’t visit us very often

7 Live sport commentary Adam passes to Kareshi It’s a goal!

8 Reviews and summaries The film ends with us not knowing whether

they have been successful or not

9 Instructions and directions You turn left at the end of the road and the

school is up ahead

10 Proverbs and sayings Too many cooks spoil the broth

11 Schedule (of buses, ferries, trains, …) The train leaves the station at 5pm

12 The future ( for fixed events) Term ends on 21st December

13 The future ( in time clauses) I’ll be so relieved when I finish this crossword

14 Emphasize contrast Adam doesn’t know much about psychiatry but

he does know know quite a lot about psychology

15 Emphasize strong feeling I do like going by bus for short distances

16 In the IF clause of the 1st conditional

II PRESENT CONTINUOUS :

1 Actions happening now Jan is watching a DVD upstairs

2 Actions happening around now What book are you doing in English at the

moment?

3 Temporary situations She is working at the museum until the end of

this month

4 Temporary series of actions Taxi drivers aren’t stopping at the train station

because of roadworks

5 Changing and developing situations Holidays abroad are becoming increasingly

popular

use it!

7 Background information in jokes and other

informal stories A man goes to see his psychiatrist He’scarrying a bag full of honey…

8 The future ( for arrangements) When are you taking your driving test?

9 The future ( in time clauses) I’ll probably be a bit scared when I’m waiting

outside for the exam to start

STATIVE VERBS: Stative verbs do not usually describe actions, they express states (thoughts, feelings,

…) They are not usually used in continuous tenses

Uses (Stative verbs often refer to) Examples

Possessions and relationships between things Belong to, consist of, have, include, involve, own

III PRESENT PERFECT SIMPLE :

1 Situations or sates that started in the past and

are still true I’ve been a member of MENSA for over fiveyears

2 A series of actions continuing up to now She’s done a BA, an MA and a PhD so far

3 Completed actions at a time in the past which is

not mentioned

Have you ever read any books by Edward De Bono?

4 Completed actions where the important thing is

the present result

She’s been awarded a scholarship to study at Harvard

5 Actions completed recently I’ve just received my exam result

6 The future ( in time clauses) Tell me when you’ve finished the report?

In American English, the past simple is often used instead of present perfect simple:

US: Did you find the answer yet? UK: Have you found the answer yet?

US: I already found the answer UK: I’ve already found the answer

In informal American English, gotten is sometimes used as a past participle instead of got when it means

‘obtain’, ‘become’ or ‘move’

US: I haven’t gotten the books yet (= I haven’t bought the books yet.)

UK: I haven’t got the books yet

IV PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS :

1 Actions continuing up to the present We’ve been driving for hours Can’t we have

a break soon?

2 Actions stopping just before the present

moment

I’m out of breath because I’ve been running

to get here in time

3 The future ( in time clauses) I won’t take my driving test until I’ve been

having lessons for at least two months

V PAST SIMPLE :

1 Single completed actions Sony and Philips invented the CD in the early

1980s

2 Habitual or repeated actions in the past We moved house a lot when I was a kid

3 General truths and facts about the past Crosswords didn’t become popular until the

1930s

4 Permanent situations and states in the past A famous footballer lived in our house before

we bought it

5 Main events in the story John pushed the door open and looked inside

the room

6 The present (in conditional sentences) If we didn’t have computers, what would the

world be like?

7 The present (after wish, it’s time, would rather) I’d rather Michael didn’t waste so much time

playing video games

Emphatic past simple:

Emphasize contrast in the past Perhaps our grandparents didn’t have e-mail, but

they did have telephone and telegram

Emphasize strong feeling in the past I did enjoy our visit to the Science Museum last

summer

Past simple vs present perfect simple:

Past simple Periods of time or moments which are

finished

The nineteenth century saw many technological advances, such as the camera and the light bulb

Present perfect simple Periods of time which continue up to the

present There have been manytechnological advances in recent

years, the most important being the spread of the Internet

Past simple Events at a specific time in the past I first sent my e-mail six months

ago

Present perfect simple The specific time something happened

isn’t important or relevant, or the present result of a past event is important

Have you ever sent an e-mail before?

VI PAST CONTINUOUS :

1 Actions in progress at a particular moment in

the past

Were you chatting to Matt online at midnight last night?

2 Action in progress around a particular moment

in the past

At the turn of the twentieth century, many discoveries were being made in physics and other sciences

3 Temporary situations in the past Greg was living in London at the time

4 Annoying or amusing past habits When we were young, my brother always

borrowing my toys

5 Actions in progress over a period of time Daniel was playing video games all morning

yesterday

6 Two actions in progress at the same time While I was playing computer game, my

brother was doing his homework

7 Background information in a story The sun was shinning and the birds were

singing Lisa opened the window and looked out

8 Changing and developing situations in the past I was getting frustrated with my internet

provider so I decided to change

9 The present and the future (in conditional

sentences)

Would you be happier if you were studying computer science?

10 The present and the future (after wish, it’s time,

would rather, etc)

I wish we were going to the computer fair next weekend

Past continuous vs past simple

Past continuous Background events in progress We were talking about MP3s

when Andrea mentioned her new music website

Past simple The main events

We normally use the past simple to describe regular or repeated actions

in the past, not the past continuous When I was a child, I visited mygrandmother every week Past continuous vs present perfect continuous

Past continuous Actions in progress during periods of time or

at moments which are finished

We were working on my computer for four hours yesterday

Present perfect

continuous

Actions in progress during periods of time which continue up to the present

We have been working on my computer for four hours so far

VII PAST PERFECT SIMPLE :

1 Situations and states before the past We’d lived next to the gym for a couple of

months before I decided to join

2 Completed actions before a moment in the past When talking films appeared, the cinema had

already become a popular form of entertainment

3 A series of actions continuing up to a moment By the time of his death, Thomas Edison had

the past invented a number of things that changed

everyday life

4 Completed actions where the important thing is

the result at a moment in the past

I beat Jason at the International Captain as I’d played it a lot with my brother

VIII PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS :

1 Actions continuing up to a moment in the past When you saw us, we had been running for six

miles – and we still had a mile to go

2 Actions stopping just before a moment in the

past

Sarah looked tired because she had been exercising all morning

IX FUTURE TIME :

Expressing the future: WILL

3 Decisions made at the moment of speaking I know! I’ll ask for a pay rise tomorrow

6 Requests Will you give a presentation on the sales

figures?

figures

For questions and offers in the question form, with

Shall we discuss this in the morning?(Suggest)

For requests, we also use could, would or can.

Would, could are more polite.

Would/Could you give a presentation on the sales figures?

For refusals, we also use couldn’t or can’t.

Expressing the future: BE GOING TO

1 Predictions based on present evidence Look at that wall! It looks as if it’s going to

fall down

2 Plans and intentions (which you already have

when you speak)

I’m going to get my degree, then get a well-paid job

Expressing the future: PRESENT CONTINUOUS

1 Arrangements I’m meeting Fiona on Friday to discuss the

advertising campaign

2 Intentions (NOT in the distant future) I’m asking for a pay rise tomorrow

(NOT I’m working for a multinational company one day.)

Expressing the future: PRESENT SIMPLE

1 Timetables, arrangements and fixed events

(which the speaker cannot change)

The bus to the Science Museum leaves at 8 o’clock tomorrow morning

2 After if in first conditional and zero

conditional sentences

If technology continues to advance so quickly, what will life be like in a hundred years?

3 After certain time expressions We’ll find out as soon as we get to the lab.

Expressing the future: FUTURE PERFECT SIMPLE

1 Completed situations before a certain time It looks as if Jake will have lost his job by the

end of next week

2 Continuing situations up to a certain time This time next month, I’ll have worked the

company for exactly 25 years

3 Completed actions at some time between now

and a point in the future

I’ll have finished my chemistry homework by the time you come here

Expressing the future: FUTURE PERFECT CONTINUOUS

1 Actions in progress up to a certain point in the

future (Emphasises duration)

This time next month, I’ll have been working

at the company for exactly 25 years

Expressing the future: FUTURE CONTINUOUS

1 Actions in progress at a point in the future This time next week, I’ll be travelling round

Russia on business

2 Habits or repeated actions at a point in the

future I think that, in the future, more and morepeople will be commuting to work by plane

3 Situations which happen in the future in the

normal course of events The company Chairperson will be arriving onThursday

TIME CLAUSES

1 Present simple I’ll give you a pay rise when you start working

here

2 Present continuous I’ll give you a pay rise once you’re bringing in

three new customers a week

3 Present perfect simple I’ll give you a pay rise as soon as you’ve

proved you’re a hard worker

4 Present perfect continuous I won’t give you a pay rise until you’ve been

working here for three years

OTHER WAYS TO EXPRESS THE FUTURE

Be just (about) to For the (very) near future I’m just about to ask for my pay rise

Be (just) on the point/verge

of For the (very) near future I’m just on the point/verge of asking for mypay rise

Be due to For formal arrangements I’m due to meet my boss at eleven o’clock

For formal announcements

You’re to get these reports written before Friday

The factory is to open in July

possibility, etc

I might ask for a pay rise tomorrow

REFERENCES:

1 Destination B1, Grammar & Vocabulary with Answer Key, by Malcom Mann and Steve Taylore-Knowles, Macmillan Publishing 2008;

2 Destination B2, Grammar & Vocabulary with Answer Key, by Malcom Mann and Steve Taylore-Knowles, Macmillan Publishing 2008;

3. Destination C1, C2, Grammar & Vocabulary with Answer Key, by Malcom Mann and Steve Taylore-Knowles, Macmillan Publishing 2008