5 Most Commonly Used English Verb Tenses

Why learn English verb tenses? When we speak or write, we use tenses. We switch from simple present to simple past, or from present continuous to present perfect or future. Often, we do this without realizing that English grammar tenses are guiding our communication. This is the reason why you need to know tenses.

So, in this post, you’ll learn the five English verb tenses to use in daily conversation and writing. This guide is ideal for beginners and includes a printable-friendly verb tense chart. It can help you build confidence in English.

Each lesson includes a clear goal, Mozambican-contextualized examples, and printable-friendly structure. This will help you better practice and use the tenses the easiest way.

Ready?

The Five Most Commonly Used English Grammar Tenses in Daily Conversation and Writing

1. Simple present: “I live in Angola.”

• Goal: Describe habits, routines, and general truths.
• Structure: Subject + base verb (add -s for he/she/it)
• Signal words: always, usually, often, never
• Examples:
  • “She teaches English every day.”
  • “We eat chicken on Sundays.”
  • “She always goes to school on foot”
• Activity: To practice the English grammar tenses, write your own sentence with “wake up” or “eat”.

This tense is foundational in any verb tense and essential for beginner. To learn here; common beginner expressions

2. Present Continuous – “I am learning English.”

• Goal: Talk about actions happening now or around now.
• Structure: am/is/are + verb-ing
• Signal words: now, at the moment, today
• Examples:
  • “He is cooking rice right now.”
  • “They are studying for exams.”
• Activity: Role-play classroom scenes using verbs like write, read, listen.

Practicing this helps with how to use English grammar tenses in speaking.

3. Simple Past – “I visited Beira last month.”

• Goal: Describe completed actions in the past.
• Structure: Regular verbs + -ed; Irregular verbs (2nd form)
• Signal words: yesterday, last week, ago
• Examples:
  • “We danced marrabenta (a typical dance practiced in Mozambique) at the party.”
  • “She went to school early.”
• Activity: Fill in a timeline with past events using verbs like play, go, eat.

4. Present perfect – “I have learned many new words.”

• Goal: Connect past actions to the present.
• Structure: have/has + past participle
• Signal words: already, yet, just, ever, never
• Examples:
  • “He has visited Maputo twice.”
  • “I have never eaten meat.”
• Activity: Interview classmates using “Have you ever…?” questions.

This tense is key for English verb examples with sentences focused on experience.

5. Future with “going to” – “I’m going to study tomorrow.”

• Goal: Talk about planned future actions.
• Structure: am/is/are + going to + base verb
• Signal words: tomorrow, next week, soon
• Examples:
  • “We are going to visit Ilha de Moçambique.”
  • “She is going to teach English next year.”
• Activity: Create a weekly planner with future goals.

English Grammar Tenses: Confidence-building Sentence Starters

Here’s a set of bilingual, confidence-building sentence starters tailored for beginner learners like you. These help practice English grammar tenses for beginners in everyday contexts.

Practice also 7 Essential health verbs to use in your everyday life.

“I Can Say…” / “Eu Posso Dizer…”

Everyday Actions (Simple Present)

I can say what I do every day.
Eu posso dizer o que faço todos os dias.
→ “I wake up at six.” / “Eu acordo às seis.”

I can say what I like.
Eu posso dizer o que gosto.
→ “I like matapa.” / “Gosto de matapa.”

I can say where I live.
Eu posso dizer onde moro.
→ “I live in Gurúè.” / “Moro em Gurúè.”

What do you say, did the bilingual, confidence-building section help to practice the English grammar tenses? Leave a comment below.

Talking about now (Present continuous)

I can say what I’m doing now.
Eu posso dizer o que estou a fazer agora.
→ “I am studying English.” / “Estou a estudar inglês.”

I can say what someone else is doing.
Eu posso dizer o que outra pessoa está a fazer.
→ “She is cooking.” / “Ela está a cozinhar.”

Talking about the past (Simple past)

I can say what I did yesterday.
Eu posso dizer o que fiz ontem.
→ “I visited my grandmother.” / “Visitei a minha avó.”

I can say what I saw.
Eu posso dizer o que vi.
→ “I saw a rainbow.” / “Vi um arco-íris.”

Practicing English grammar tenses in past helps you talk about past experience.

Talking about the future (Future with going to)

I can say what I’m going to do.
Eu posso dizer o que vou fazer.
→ “I’m going to study tomorrow.” / “Vou estudar amanhã.”

I can say my plans.
Eu posso dizer os meus planos.
→ “We are going to travel.” / “Vamos viajar.”

See also here vocabulary for talking about your plans in English.

Expressing Experience (Present Perfect)

I can say what I have done.
Eu posso dizer o que já fiz.
→ “I have learned many new words.” / “Já aprendi muitas palavras novas.”

I can say what I’ve never done.
Eu posso dizer o que nunca fiz.
→ “I have never flown in a plane.” / “Nunca viajei de avião.”

Bilingual headers are designed for beginner clarity and confidence. Each one pairs a clear English phrase with its Mozambican Portuguese equivalent. They’re good for you to start speaking English with confidence—one step at a time.

English Verb Tenses: Bilingual Section Headers (English / Português)

English Grammar Tenses: Charts with Mozambican Examples

Each of the 5 verb charts below focuses on one key tense. They include common verbs, sentence examples, and culturally relevant contexts. These charts reinforce English grammar tenses and serve as a concise beginner guide.

To build even more on verbs, visit also the article: Top 11 Essential English Verbs

1.      Simple Present – Rotina diária

2. Present Continuous – Ações Agora

3. Simple Past – Ontem e antes

4. English Grammar Tenses: Present Perfect – Experiências

5. Future with “going to” – Planos

Beginner second language learner most of the time misuse English verbs by making verb mistakes. Learn here: the common ESL verb mistakes to boost your confidence building.

Final Thoughts

These English verb tenses are the most frequently used. Practice and use them in your everyday conversation for confidence building. Always remember this: you learn a language by practicing—without practice, all effort is useless. To know more about verbs visit the article Top 11 Essential English Verbs to strengthen your knowledge.

Have a question? See our contact page

Need to know about us? Click here.

Download a PDF to this lesson on the “Community” Page.