In English grammar, verbal aspects describe the nature of an action expressed by a verb, focusing on whether the action is completed, ongoing, or habitual. English primarily uses two aspects:
- Simple Aspect: Describes general facts, habits, or single completed actions.
- Progressive (Continuous) Aspect: Indicates ongoing actions happening at the moment of speaking or around a specific time.
- Perfect Aspect: Shows completed actions with relevance to the present or another past time.
- Perfect Progressive Aspect: Combines both to express the duration of an ongoing action up to a point.
Understanding verbal aspects helps convey the timing and nature of actions more precisely.
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Table of Contents
- Simple Tenses
Simple tenses in English grammar express habitual actions, general truths, or states, and describe events that are not marked by ongoing timing.
- Continuous (Progressive) Tenses
Continuous (Progressive) tenses showing how to form and use -ing verb forms to describe ongoing actions in the past, present, and future.
- Perfect Tenses
English grammar rules for using perfect tenses (present, past, and future) to describe completed, ongoing, or anticipated actions.
- Perfect Continuous Tenses
A complete guide to perfect continuous tenses in English, including explanations, examples, and usage tips for the past, present, and future forms.
Last updated: Wed Jun 18, 2025
