C-5

VERB TENSE AND VERB AGREEMENT

Verb tense refers to the form of the verb that indicates time. Verb agreement refers to the proper relationship between a subject (subjects) and a verb (verbs).

There are many different verb tenses; however, this handout will concentrate on four of them: present, past, present perfect, and past perfect.  This handout will also focus on subject-verb agreement in each of these tenses.

PRESENT TENSE

The present tense of a verb is the plain or base form, and it is also the dictionary form of a verb (Examples: eat, sleep, read). The present form shows that the verb’s action is occurring in the present time.  Look at the example of present tense agreement shown below.  The example verb is TO LEARN

SINGULAR                                                                             PLURAL

1^st person                     I learn                                                   1^st person: We learn

2^nd person                    You learn                                             2^nd person: You learn

3^rd person                     He learns                                              3^rd person: They learn

                                    She learns

                                    It

NOTE: The only time you should add an “s” or “es” to a verb in the present tense is when the subject is 3^rd person singular (he, she, it).

EXERCISE 1: Fill in the correct present tense form of the verb in the blanks.

1. - You NEED a raise.                                                They ________a raise

2. - She EATS like a pig.                                              You _________like a pig.

3. - We WALK to class.                                              He __________ to class

4. –They LIKE peanut butter.                                       I      ______-peanut butter.

5. - He SWIMS fifty laps a day.                                   She ________fifty laps a day.

6. - It SMELLS disgusting.                                           He _________disgusting.

7. - You LAUGH at silly things.                                    They ________at silly things.

8. - She PRACTICES daily.                                         We_________daily.

9. - He RUNS rapidly.                                                 It _________rapidly.

10. -I DRIVE carefully.                                                You_________carefully.

So far, the subjects of the sentences have been pronouns (I, you, he, she, it, they, we).  When the subjects of the sentences are nouns (cat, Susan, ball, father, books), the same rule applies.  In order to be sure that the verb agrees with the subject, mentally change the noun into a pronoun (cat-it, Susan-she, ball-it, father-he, books-they).

EXERCISE 2: Circle the correct verb form.

1. - Regina (seem, seems) to be a wonderful person.

2. - Barbara and Suzy (hate, hates) each other.

3. - Michael (get, gets) in extremely late every night.

4. - The dog (lap, laps) the water desperately.

5. - Lauren often (pretend, pretends) to be rich.

6. - The twins (arrive, arrives) late for school every day.

7. - Her mother (cook, cooks) gourmet meals but she (burn, burns) everything she

 (touch, touches)

8. - Because the girl is pushy, her classmates (want, wants) her to lose the race for     class president.

9. - The baby (want, wants) to eat, but his mother doesn’t have money for food.

10. - Her grandmother (spend, spends) all day cleaning apartments, but in the evening, she (go, goes) out on the town.

11. - Her parent (dislike, dislikes) her fiancé because he (spend, spends) his extra time at Biscayne Dog Track.

12. - Roberta (daydream, daydreams) during her microeconomics class; therefore, she (continue, continues) to fail all of the tests.

13. - The waitress (get, gets) annoyed when the customers don’t leave gratuities.

14. - She is a good tutor, but she (grade, grades) papers too slowly.

15. - His son (lack, lacks) common sense.

EXERCISE.3: Put the correct verb form in the blanks in the paragraph below.

            Rachel is a physically fit young lady.  She _________(to get) up every morning at 5:30, and she____(to exercise) until she’s about to pass out.  Her sisters_______(to think) she is insane, but they ____(to know) she____(to look) great.  Her friends are jealous because she has an excellent shape. Rachel’s friend Lourdes constantly _______(to beg) for her secret, but Rachel never_____(to give) in.  In a few years, when Rachel still ______(to look) great, all her friends will look flabby.

There are a few verbs in the present tense that don’t follow the pattern that the other present tense verbs do. These are sometimes called troublesome verbs.  They are the verbs TO BE, TO HAVE, and TO DO.

TO BE

I -------------------am

You ----------------are

We-----------------are

They -------------are

He ------------------is

She------------------is

It -------------------is

EXERCISE 4: Study and memorize the chart above.  Without using the chart, fill in the correct form of the present tense verb TO BE.

1. - He thinks he __________intelligent, but he really ______not.

2. - She likes expensive clothes, but she can’t afford them because she ______on welfare.

3. - They ______straight A students, so the teacher ________pleased with them.

4. - The new song _______disgusting, and all of the parents________upset about it.

5. - She thinks her boyfriend __________in love with her, but he _______in love with her best friend.

6. - She _________going to be in this room, but you________going to be in the room down the hall.

7. - The computer _____challenging, so I ______going to use it more often.

8. - Sex _______goof, but a relationship _____better.

9. - You ________about to discover the meaning of life.

10. - I ________glad she ________moving because she ________an obnoxious girl.

TO HAVE

I------------have                                                          He-----------has

You-------- have                                                          She ----------has

We--------- have                                                         It ------------has

EXERCISE 5:  Fill in the correct present tense form of the verb TO HAVE

1. - I ____an extremely good-looking husband.

2. - She ____an attitude problem.

3. - If Steve ______extra time he will proofread the student’s research paper.

4. - Bob_______a good sense of humor, and his classmates think he ______a good chance of being a comedian.

5. –We ______to stop and get gas, so they _____to wait.

6. – Karen ______a tremendous crush on her French teacher.

7. - Betty _______ a skimpy sundress because she is sunburned.

8. - We _________a surprise party planned for my father’s birthday.

9. - The children _______to go to bed every night at 9:00.

10. - If a man ________a good personality, he doesn’t have to have a cute face; if a woman ________a good personality, she doesn’t have to have a nice body.

11. - If you believe that, I ______some land in the Everglades that I want to sell to you.

12. - Because he _______a twenty-five year jail sentence, he no longer____his subscription to Life magazine.

13. - Some people like beer, but I think it ______a bitter taste.

14.- The typewriter_____ a loose screw , so I ______to finish my typing later.

15.- The twins _______curly hair, and so does the milkman.

TO DO

I----------------do                                           He -------------does

You------------do                                            She ------------does

We-------------do                                           It----------------does

                        They-----------do                                           

EXERCISE 6               Fill in the correct present tense verb form of TO DO.

1. - Becky often_______ the dishes rapidly so that she can watch T.V.

2. - We _______our written assignments in class.

3. - The radio _____ not work well, so he listens to the record player.

4. - “I -_____ housework all day”, screamed the filthy housewife.

5. - They _____their laundry on Saturday, but she _____hers on Tuesday

6. - She thinks she _____a good job, but her work is awful.

7. - Swimming _____wonders for the body.

8. - Shirley often ______things that upset her family.

9. - I always ___my best at work and at school.

10. - You ____ very well when you have a positive attitude.

11. - He ______spend a great deal of time reading.

12. - If you _____your homework, you will do well on the test.

13. - Scott _______horrible things to the neighbors’ cat.

14. - He ______the grocery shopping for the family, and she ____the bills.

15. - We_____exciting things on the weekends.

SPECIAL PROBLEM IN AGREEMENT

There are some tricky cases in which finding the subject of the sentence can be difficult.  One of these cases, for example, involves the prepositional phrase.  A prepositional phrase is a group of words beginning with a preposition (in, on, over, under, of, at, to, with about, etc.) and usually ending with a noun or pronoun.  By locating the subject, we can figure out the correct verb form to use.

FOCUSING ON THE SUBJECT

EXAMPLE 1               A bag of peanuts sits on the table

 What sits on the table?

Don’t be confused by the prepositional phrase (of peanuts) which is before the verb

Just one bag sits on the table.

Bag is the subject. Bag takes the third person singular form.  Therefore, the verb is sits.

A bag (of peanuts) sits on the table.

subject                   verb

NOTE:            It is helpful to put parentheses around the prepositional phrase.  This makes it easier to locate the subject.

EXAMPLE 2:              The horses in the field smell like manure.

                                    What smells like manure?

Don’t be confused by the prepositional phrase (in the field) that comes between the subject and the verb.

The horses smell like manure.

Horses is the subject.  Horses takes the third person plural form. Therefore, the verb is smell.

                                    The horses (in the field) smell like manure.

                                    subject                           verb

EXERCISE 7: Circle the correct verb form in the sentences below.

1. - The dresses on that rack (look, looks) cheap and worn.

2. - The cake with the cherries (are, is) Steve’s favorite.

3. - My teammates on the softball team (is, are) average players.

4. - The shoes with the shabby laces (are, is) Lorraine’s.

5. - The people in the room (talk, talks) loudly.

6. - The eyeglasses on the table (need, needs) repairing.

7. - Grandma’s apple pie near the window (cool, cools) slowly.

8. - The tree in the field (grow, grows) crookedly.

9. - Betty’s car in the garage (has, have) a flat tire.

10. - The pictures in the scrapbook (represent, represents) the child’s first five years.

11. - The distinguished-looking gentleman with the expensive clothes (is, are) rally a cat burglar.

12. -The fat girl with the candy bar in her mouth (has, have) to go on a diet.

13. - My friends in Texas (send, sends) me gifts every year.

14. - His knowledge in mathematics (amaze, amazes) me.

15. - The reason for his questions (remain, remains) unclear.

SPOTTING SPECIAL SINGULAR SUBJECTS

Either of the tutors seems qualified.

Neither of the tutors seems qualified.

 Each of the tutors seems qualified.

One of the tutors seems qualified.

Every one of the tutors seems qualified.

            *Either, neither, each, one, and every are the real subjects of these sentences.

*Either, neither, each one and every are special singular subjects and always take a singular verb (a verb that usually ends with “s” or “es”.

*Notice that OF THE TUTORS is a prepositional phrase.

EXERCISE 8               Circle the correct verb in the parentheses.

1. - Each of the eggs (sell, sells) for 2c.

2. - One of my good friends (own, owns) a fifty-foot yacht.

3. - Neither of the flashlights (are, is) working.

4. - Either of the trails (take, takes) you to my ranch home.

5- One of Lorita’s stockings (has, have) a sense of humor.

6. – Neither of the girls (has, have) a sense of humor.

7. - One of Kathy’s sisters (work, works) in a factory downtown.

8. - Either of the dresses (is, are) appropriate.

9. - Every one of Shirley’s bracelets (is, are)

10. - Each of the bridesmaids (has, have) a pink dress.

11. - Neither of the boys (has, have) common sense.

12. –One of the students (do, does) well in chemistry.

13. - One of the clinics (has, have) exactly what you need.

14. - Every one of his clients (trust, trusts) him faithfully.

15. –Neither of the shirts (is, are) the right size.

Either. …or, Neither….nor.

Either Bob or the twins have the money.

Either his parents or his sister has change for a dollar.

Neither John nor his cousins want to go back home.

Neither the students nor the teacher wants to go on the fieldtrip.

When a sentence has “either…or” or “neither…nor”, look at the subject closest to the verb.  That subject will determine whether the verb is singular or plural.

…the twins have

…his sister has                                     The verbs were picked by looking at the subject closest to the verb.

…his cousins want

…the teacher wants

EXERCISE 9   Circle the correct verb in the parentheses

1. -Either Robin or the tutors (remember, remembers) what the assignment was.

2. - Either the ghosts or the goblins (haunt, haunts) Bill during the night.

3. - Neither Reggie nor Regina (know, knows) about the surprise party.

4. -Either Susan or Elaine (plan, plans) to take a lunch break.

5. - Neither the train nor the airplanes (take, takes) that route.

6. - Either Raymond or Patsy (have, has) the right answer.

7. - Neither Freddy nor the quadruplets (have, has) blue wyes.

8. - Neither Vicky nor Loretta (understand, understands) the assignment.

9.-Neither the fat lady nor the skinny lady (run, runs) well.

10.- Either Janice of her brothers (have, has) company.

Using THERE to begin a sentence

1. - There is a spot on the rug.

2. - There are spots on the rug.

*Although sentences often begin with THERE, THERE cannot be the subject of a sentence.

*Usually, the subject follows the verb in sentences that begin with THERE.

*The way to find the subject (so that you can make the verb agree) is to mentally drop the THERE and rearrange the sentence.

*There is a spot on the rug.  BECOMES A spot is on the rug.

*There are spots on the rug.  BECOMES Spots are on the rug.

*In the first sentence, the subject is SPOT and the verb is IS.

*In the second sentence, the subject is SPOTS and the verb is ARE.

Exercise 10:      Circle the correct verb in the parentheses.

1. -There (is, are) mistakes in his paragraph.

2. -There (is, are) pictures hanging on the wall.

3. -There (is, are) a ball, a pencil.

4. -There (is, are) a rainbow in the sky.

5. -There (is, are) ten dimes in a dollar.

6. -There (is, are) a bird nest in that tree.

7. -There (is, are) a single gray hair hanging down her forehead

8. -There (is, are) fifty people in line in front of Jessica.

9. -There (is, are) many reasons why Gertrude hates her name.

10. -There (is, are) no money in the cash box.

PAST TENSE

The past tense is used to express an action that occurred in the past and is no longer going on.

Regular Verbs in the Past Tense

The past tense of REGULAR verbs is formed by adding –d or –ed to the end of the verb.

EXAMPLES:               They walked home late last night.

The dog died last month.

The student passed her chemistry test.

EXERCISE1:               On the line to the right of the sentence, write “present” if the underlined verb is in the present tense or” past” if the verb is in the past tense.

1. - The jester jokes with the king.              __________________

2- The king liked the jokes.                         __________________

3. - Pedro fixed his uncle’s car.                               __________________

4. - Michael pretends to be sick all the time.            __________________

5. -Martin smelled horrible today.               __________________

6. - She often laughs at stupid jokes.                       __________________

7. - Kathy floats on her back in the pool.                 __________________

8. - Lorita sinks in the water at the pool.                  __________________

9. - Marlene needed twenty dollars right away.        __________________

10. - Ronald watched the clock impatiently.            __________________

 EXERCISE 2:       Write the past tense of the verb that is in parentheses.

1. - The monkey ___________(approach) the banana with a great deal of excitement.

2. - The student __________(fail) because of poor study habits.

3. - Roger, Lewis, Steve, and Ralph__________(camp) out in the Everglades.

4. - Baxter________(spill) the hot chocolate on Beverly.

5. - Jody ________(peel) the bikini off slowly because she was sunburned.

6. - The bus________(pass) rapidly by Paula, but it _________(stop) for Shirley.

7. - The candy ________(taste) like it was old and stale.

8. - Peabody ________(lift) his hand to spank his little brother, so his mother_________(punish) him.

9. -When the rabbit_____(die), Susie knew she was in trouble.

10. - Her ex-husband is in jail because he _______(kill) her boyfriend.

11. - When Jack ________(jump) over the candlestick, he _________(burn) his britches.

12. - When Lorraine _______(scream), her mother________(wash) her mouth out with soap.

13. - Robin ______(dip) her French-fries in mustard.

14. - Humpty Dumpty_________(crack) when he fell off the wall.

15. - The entire town _______(enjoy) scrambled eggs for a month.

IRREGULAR VERBS IN THE PAST TENSE

Sometimes we have verbs in the past tense that do not end in –d or –ed.  Verbs that one does not add –d or –ed to form the past tense are called IRREGULAR verbs.

EXAMPLES:               The plane flew very low.

The car broke down ten miles from the house.

The old lady finally went crazy.

The following is a list of irregular verbs that should be learned.  These are only some of the common verbs; there are still many others.

You may already know some irregular verbs in the past tense form.  If not, you should group the similar words (blow, grow, know) and memorize them.  When you are unsure of a word, check the chart.  If you can’t find the word on the chart, look the present tense form up in the dictionary.  The past tense is usually given before or after the definition.

            EXERCISE 3: Study the list of irregular verbs and fill in the correct form of the verb in past tense.  Don’t guess; if you have to use the chart, use it.

1. - Cary _________(throw) her arms up and screamed, “I _____(win)!

2. - Bill _________(hit) Gisela because she called his girlfriend a dirt bag

3. - Kathy _______(eat) the eleven-piece chicken McNuggets at McDonalds.

4. - Pedro didn’t catch any fish; he _______(catch) a cold.

5. - The river_________(freeze) last night, so the children______(go) ice-skating.

6. - Elaine_____(break) a nail last night, and she cried.

7. - Suzette_________(buy) ten dollars worth of chocolate, and she _____(eat) it all by herself.

8. - The sun ______(shine) brightly all day today.

9. - Joseph _______(teach) Jennifer how to do the homework, and she __________(understand).

10. -Katty ________(draw) a picture for the art show.

11. - Laura ________(quit) her job and got a new one.

12. - The woman _______(feed) her nine hungry children and _______(send) them to bed.

13. - The scientist _________(choose) ten people out of the audience for his experiment.

14. - Sammy _______(grow) faster than his older brother.

15. - Fred ________(swim) twenty laps, ______(run) five miles, and _____(lose) ten pounds.

The verb TO BE has two past tense forms.  The forms are WAS and WERE.  Examine the chart below to find out when each form is used.

                        SINGULAR                                         PLURAL

                        I ---------was                                      we------------were

                        you------were                                      you ----------were

                        he/she--------was                                 they ----------were

                        it-------was

EXERCISE 4: Fill in the correct past tense form of the verb TO BE.

1. - I ______late for my class yesterday.

2. - Janice _______at the restaurant at two o’clock.

3. - The billboard _______misleading.

4. - The children _______very excited about going to the pool.

5. - The spider________carrying a deadly poison.

6. - We ______overjoyed about the family picnic.

7. - Because of her personality, Susan ______chosen as the class queen.

8. - They _______on the eleven o’clock news show.

9. - Jack _______angry because I ______late.

10. - The movie ________exciting.

THE PAST PARTICIPLE

Although the present perfect and the past perfect tenses seem difficult, they really aren’t.  They only seem difficult because, in order to understand them, one must have a clear understanding of want is called the past participle form.  The past participle is necessary to use when constructing the present perfect and past perfect tenses.

Every verb has a form that can be combined with a helping verb like HAS or HAVE to make verbs of more than one word.  This form is what we call the PAST PARTICIPLE.

1. - She has solved the problem.

2. - Bob and Jackie have raked the yard

3. - I have worked there for two years and six months.

4. - Aliza Jean had promised to help with the party.

Notice that each sentence has a helping verb (has, have, had).  Each sentence also has a main verb (to solve, to rake, to work to promise).  In the sentences above, solved is the pas t participle of to solve; raked is the past participle of to rake; worked is the past participle of to work; and promised is the past participle of to promise.  Notice that has is used when the subject is singular, and have is used when the subject is plural.  Had, the past tense is used in both cases.

PAST PARTICIPLE OF REGULAR VERBS

The past participle of regular verbs is just like the past tense of regular verbs except the past participle has a helping verb (has, have, had) in front of the main verb.  In both cases, the main verb will end in –d or –ed.  Look at the sentences below.

PRESENT TENSE                  PAST TENSE              HELPER+PAST PARTICIPLE

Scott fishes.                              Scott fished.                 Scott has fished.

The twins skate.                        The twins skated.          The twins have skated.

Sandy walks.                            Sandy walked.              Sandy has walked.

EXERCISE 1:              In the sentences below, change the past tense verb to the past participle. (Write the entire sentence.)

EXAMPLE:     Bill cooked all day for the women.

                        Bill has cooked all day for the women.

1. - Ingrid laughed at all of the ridiculous jokes.

2. - The child’s death affected the mother’s mental state.

3. - The prize money inspired them to work harder.

4. - The children roasted peanuts all day.

5. - Kip enjoyed paying with her younger sister.

6. - Laura burned the eggplant again.

7. - Sylvia jumped into the pool.

8. - They eagerly watched the movie.

9. - The children peeked at the presents under the tree.

10. - Regina raced to the store to buy the new Jackie Collins book.

EXERCISE 2:  Fill in the correct past participle in the blanks below.

1. - Tracy ________ ________(to develop) into a beautiful lady.

2. - We _______ ________(to study) all day today.

3. - The lovers _______ _____(to embrace) passionately.

4. - Holly _______ ________(to play) the record ten times.

5. - Stuart _______ ________(to crack) his mother’s favorite vase.

6. - I ______ _______(to clean) the entire house.

7. - Kevin______ ______(to wait) for the bus for three hours.

8. - Ronald _______ ______(to call) her every night at eight.

9. - Lorita and Justin _______ _______(to plan) their wedding for a year.

10. - Finally, the class _______ ______(to end).

PAST PARTICIPLE OF IRREGULAR VERBS.

Most of the verbs that are irregular in the past tense are also irregular in the past participle.  There are so many irregular changes in the spellings of the words that there are not certain or special rules to follow.  The best way to learn the past participles of irregular verbs is to memorize the chart that is printed on the following pages.  Again, remember that the participle form will have one of the helping verbs (has, have, had) in front of it.

Reference Chart: Irregular Verbs

EXERCISE 3: Rewrite each sentence changing the verb from past tense to the past participle.  (Don’t forget the helping verb.)

EXAMPLE:                 Jake fell out of the tree.

                                    Jake has fallen out of the tree.

1. - Sabrina chose a career in medical science.

2. - Michael bought a dozen roses for his girlfriend.

3. - Becky’s mother gave her thirty days to find a job and an apartment.

4. - Shirley kept a diary of all her deep dark secrets.

5. - The girls blew up one hundred balloons for the party.

6. - Diane won the fifty –thousand dollar lottery.

7. - Lorraine stole five hundred dollars from Diane.

8. - Kathy went to the police to report Lorraine.

9. - Diane gave Kathy a one thousand dollar reward.

10. - Kathy took her good friend Regina to an expensive lunch.

EXERCISE 4:  Fill in the correct past participle of the verb indicated.  (Don’t forget to add the helping verb.)

EXAMPLES:               Cal has given (to give) up smoking.

                                    Justin has fallen (to fall) off the horse.

1. - Willie _____________(to make) a triple layer chocolate cake.

2. - Nobody ____________(to forget) her birthday.

3. - The students __________(to drive) the teacher crazy.

4. - Jackie Collins ________(to write) an excellent novel.

5. - We _____________(to see) the movie two times already.

6. -Jimmy Lee ______________(to leave) the room.

7. - Terri _____________(to hurt) himself playing football.

8. - Zackary ___________(to teach) the children how to swim.

9. - Bobby ____________(to cut) his face with the razor.

10. - The airplane _____________(to fly) to San Francisco.

THE PRESENT PERFECT TENSE

Now that we have learned about the participle, we can discuss the perfect tenses.  The first perfect tense that we will discuss is the PRESENT PERFECT tense.  The present perfect tense is composed of the present tense of the verb to have (has, have) plus the past participle.

1. - She has eaten ten cupcakes today.

2. - I have taken that class before.

3. - Lennie has become supervisor of the store.

*Remember to use the correct perfect form of the verb TO HAVE plus the participle.

I have                                       We have

You have                                  You have

He has

She has                                    They have

It has

USING THE PRESENT PERFECT TENSE

The present perfect tense is used to show (1) that an action began in the past and has continued until now or (2) that an action has just happened.

A.     Frankie ate at the restaurant last week.

*Notice that this is in the past tense.

*The action happened last week and ended last week.

B.     Frankie has eaten in that restaurant every day for two years.

*Notice that this is in the present perfect tense.

*“Has” is in the present tense and, “eaten” is in the participle.

                              *The action started two years ago and is still going on.

C.     Polly has just fallen down twenty stairs.

*Notice that this is in the present perfect tense.

*The action has just happened.

It is very important that you pay attention to the word choice in the sentences.  This can help you in deciding if past tense or present perfect tense should be used.  In looking for the present perfect clues, look at words like “for” and “since”.

She has been working here for two years now.

They have slept since eight o’clock last night.

EXERCISE 1:         Pay close attention to the meaning of the sentences below and decide whether the past tense or the present perfect tense completes each one best.

1. - Two years ago, Jackson (got, has gotten) his medical degree.

2. - For the past five years, his wife (had, has had) and affair with the television repair man.

3. - Marcus (broke, has broken) out from mushrooms yesterday.

4. - She (used, has used) that face cream for ten years now.

5. - Her acne (improved, has improved) over the past few months.

6. - Joseph and Mary (went, have gone) out last night.

7. - She (was, has been) in love with him since September.

8. - Since eight o’clock this morning, the triplets (broke, have broken) four glasses, one vase, two plates, and one mirror.

9. - Last night Pedro (hid, has hidden) the money in his sock.

10. - During the last hour, Sebastian (blew, has blown) up 150 balloons.

11. - Francheska (wrote, has written) one poem in the last five minutes.

12. - The phones (rang, have rung) for two hours now.

13. - Penny (wore has worn) that shirt every day this week.

14. - The girl scouts (sold, have sold) 5,000 boxes of cookies so far.

15. - The river (froze, has frozen) last night.

THE PAST PERFEC TENSE

The past perfect tense is made up of the past tense of the verb “to have” (had) plus the past participle.  Remember that had is used in the past tense for singular and plural nouns.

The past perfect tense is used when you are writing in the past tense and you want to show something that happened even earlier than that.

EXAMPLES:

1. - Because she had robbed the bank, she went to jail.

                  *Notice that this is in the past perfect tense and past tense.

                  *“She went to jail” is in the past tense.

                  *”She had robbed” is in the past perfect tense.

                  *Both actions happened in the past.

                  *One, however, happened before the other.

*The one that happened first takes the past perfect tense.

2. - Cary told us that she had won the race.

3. - The lady thought that she had locked the door.

Usually, we use the present tense in relation to the present perfect and the past tense in relation to the past perfect.

1.      - Ralph thinks (present) he has found (present perfect) the meaning of life.

2. - Ralph thought (past) he had found (past perfect) the meaning of life.

EXERCISE 2:        Review all of the rules, hints and clues mentioned. Write the appropriate present perfect or past perfect form of the verbs in the parentheses.

1.      - Biff finally went to Europe, he ____________(to plan) the trip for an entire year.

2.      - Victor and Larry failed the test even though they ________(to study) all night.

3. - Kelly saves all of her money because she ____________(to want) to go to Hollywood for two years now.

4. - I am glad that this handout is almost finished because I_________(to run) out of ideas for sentences.

5. - Peter, Paul, and Mary go skiing every year: they ___________(to go) every year for the past ten years.

6. - Because he _________(to want) to be excused, he raised his hand.

7. - He excused the class early because the air conditioner__________(to break).

8. - The firemen rescued the small boy after he___________(to fall) into the river.

9. - Jeremy finally married Laurie; he _____________(to be) in love with her for fifteen years.

10. - Angie made a wonderful dinner; she _____________(to prepare) it all day.

11. - Alexis wants to be a doctor; she ____________(to dream) about it all her life.

12. - The little boy finally learned his phone number.  He__________(to practice) it all day.

13. - Melissa said that Reggie was her best friend; they __________(to know) each other all their lives.

14. -Loretta borrowed money from Jean again.  She ________already ________(to get) thirty dollars from her.

15. - Beverly still remains quit about the incident.  She________not__________(to speak) about it since it happened.

Regina Butler, 1986

Revised, C. Fumero, 2001

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