Czasy w języku angielskim cieszą się złą sławą. Jest ich dużo więcej, niż w języku polskim, na pierwszy rzut oka wydają się bardzo skomplikowane, trzeba pamiętać o operatorach, drugich i trzecich formach, czasownikach statycznych, odmianach, wyjątkach i wyjątkach od wyjątków… Koszmar? Wcale nie :) Wbrew pozorom, mowa Szekspira jest bardzo logiczna, a zastosowanie czasów w języku angielskim we właściwy sposób wcale nie jest trudne do opanowania. Dzisiaj przedstawiamy zestawienie czasów angielskich, które ułatwi ci ich zrozumienie i szybkie opanowanie.
Użycie czasów angielskich sprawia kłopoty Polakom głównie dlatego, że w przeciwieństwie do tego, co ma miejsce w naszym języku, w angielskim czasy bardzo precyzyjnie określają rzeczywistość. To powoduje, że jest ich więcej. I tak - wszystkie z nich są używane na codzień przez native speakerów, warto więc poświęcić chwilę, aby bliżej się z nimi zaprzyjaźnić.
Pierwszym krokiem w tym kierunku niech będzie zrozumienie, skąd biorą się nazwy konkretnych czasów. Nie jest to wcale przypadkowy zlepek słów mający na celu utrudnienie życia osobom zmagającym się z ich opanowaniem. Nazwa każdego czasu składa się z dwóch lub trzech elementów.
1 |
2 |
3 |
PAST PRESENT FUTURE |
(PERFECT) |
SIMPLE CONTINUOUS |
Element z pierwszej kolumny występuje zawsze i określa, czy czas odnosi się do przeszłości (past), teraźniejszości (present) czy przyszłości (future). Tak więc, każdy czas, którego nazwa zaczyna się od słowa PAST będzie dotyczył przeszłości, PRESENT - teraźniejszości, a FUTURE - przyszłości.
Czasy w języku angielskim dzielą się na te, które są “PERFECT” lub nie, stąd element z drugiej kolumny występuje w nazwie połowy czasów.
Każdy czas, natomiast, jest albo “SIMPLE” albo “CONTINUOUS”, co w języku polskim często tłumaczy się na “prosty” lub “ciągły”. I tu nasza pierwsza uwaga. Lepiej, łatwiej i efektywniej jest uczyć się nazw angielskich, polskie bywają mylące i nieprecyzyjne.
Podsumowując, każdy czas przeszły, teraźniejszy lub przyszły może występować w czterech wariantach, np.:
PRESENT SIMPLE
PRESENT CONTINUOUS
PRESENT PERFECT SIMPLE
PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS
Łatwo policzyć, że istnieje zatem dwanaście czasów angielskich: cztery teraźniejsze, cztery przeszłe i cztery przyszłe.
Mamy nadzieję, poniższe zestawienie czasów angielskich w tabeli pozwoli ci usystematyzować wiedzę na ich temat i w razie potrzeby - posłuży za szybką ściągę.
Nazwa czasu | Budowa - twierdzenia | Budowa - przeczenia | Budowa - pytania | Zastosowanie i przykłady | |
1 | PRESENT SIMPLE | podmiot + orzeczenie w 3 osobie l. pojedynczej (he/she/it) dodajemy końcówkę -s np. I live in London. He lives in London. |
podmiot + don’t/doesn’t + orzeczenie w 3 osobie l. pojedynczej (he/she/it) używamy operatora doesn’t np. I don’t live in London. He doesn’t live in London |
do/does + podmiot + orzeczenie w 3 osobie l. pojedynczej (he/she/it) używamy operatora does np. Do you live in London? Does he live in London? |
- nawyki, czynności powtarzalne: We always spend our holidays at the seaside. - stany, sytuacje niezmienne: It rains more often in autumn. - czasowniki statyczne, np: love, like, remember, forget, believe, want, prefer, see itd. - rozkłady jazdy, programy: The plane takes off in ten minutes. |
2 | PRESENT CONTINUOUS | podmiot + am/is/are + orzeczenie+ing np. I am learning English. She is reading a book. |
podmiot + am/is/are + not + orzeczenie+ing np. I’m not learning English. She isn’t reading a book. |
am/is/are +podmiot + orzeczenie+ing np. Are you learning English? IS she reading a book? |
- czynności wykonywane w chwili mówienia: You’re reading this text. - czynności wykonywane w okolicy czasu mówienia, niekoniecznie w tej chwili: I’m reading a fantastic book. - czynności zaplanowane na najbliższą, określoną przyszłość: My husband and I are going to the cinema on Saturday. - nawyki innych ludzi, które nas irytują - ze słówkiem “always”: Why are you always leaving dirty dishes on the table?! |
3 | PRESENT PERFECT SIMPLE | podmiot + have/has + orzeczenie (III forma/ -ed) w 3 osobie l. pojedynczej (he/she/it) używamy operatora has np. We have made the reservation. She has lived here for along time. |
podmiot + haven’t/hasn’t + orzeczenie (III forma/ -ed) np. We haven’t made the reservation. She hasn’t lived here for along time. |
have/has + podmiot + orzeczenie (III forma/ -ed np. Have we made the reservation? Has she lived here for along time? |
- czynności, które odbyły się w nieokreślonym czasie w przeszłości a ich skutki są widoczne w teraźniejszości, i to one są dla nas istotne: Adam has broken his leg. Nieważne kiedy, istotne jest, że TERAZ ma złamaną nogę. - czynności i stany o charakterze długotrwałym, które rozpoczęły się w przeszłości i trwają do tej pory, charakterystyczne słówka: “for” i “since”: They have known each other for over 15 years. - doświadczenia i osiągnięcia osób żyjących (lub ich brak): They have never been to Spain. - kiedy okres czasu, o którym mowa, jeszcze się nie zakończył i sytuacja może ulec zmianie: John has sent ten emails today. - z charakterystycznymi wyrażeniami: yet, already, recently, lately, so far, ever, just: Our friends have already invited us to their wedding. |
4 | PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS | podmiot + have/has + been + orzeczenie+ing w 3 osobie l. pojedynczej (he/she/it) używamy operatora has np. They have been waiting for ten minutes now. She has been doing her homework since lunch. |
podmiot + haven’t/hasn’t + been + orzeczenie+ing np. They haven’t been waiting for ten minutes now. She hasn’t been doing her homework since lunch. |
have/has + podmiot + been + been + orzeczenie+ing np. Have they been waiting for ten minutes now? Has she been doing her homework since lunch. |
- czynności o charakterze tymczasowym,odbywające się w momencie mówienia, które rozpoczęły się w przeszłości i trwają do tej pory, nacisk kładziemy na to, jak długo trwają: We’ve been talking the whole evening. - kiedy chcemy powiedzieć, że dana czynność miała miejsce i np. widoczne są jej niezamierzone skutki: My towel is wet. Somebody has been using it! |
5 | PAST SIMPLE | podmiot + orzeczenie (II forma/ -ed) np. Jim practised judo when he was young. My friends got married in 2014. |
podmiot + didn’t + orzeczenie np. Jim didn’t practise judo when he was young. My friends didn’t get married in 2014 |
did + podmiot + orzeczenie np. Jim practised judo when he was young. My friends didn’t get married in 2014. |
- czynności, które rozpoczęły i zakończyły się w przeszłości, najczęściej tłumaczymy je na polski przy użyciu trybu dokonanego: She visited Paris last summer. - nawyki, czynności powtarzalne z przeszłości: He usually spent his holidays in the countryside. - stany, sytuacje niezmienne w przeszłości: They truly loved each other. |
6 | PAST CONTINUOUS | podmiot + was/were + orzeczenie+ing np. It was raining when I arrived. They were working yesterday at 6 pm. |
podmiot + was/were + not + orzeczenie+ing np. It wasn’t raining when I arrived. They weren’t working yesterday at 6 pm. |
was/were + podmiot + orzeczenie+ing np. Was it raining when I arrived? Were they working yesterday at 6 pm? |
- czynności, które odbywały się w określonym momencie lub przedziale czasu w przeszłości, najczęściej tłumaczymy je przy użyciu trybu niedokonanego: I was reading a magazine yesterday in the evening. - kiedy mówimy o dwóch lub więcej czynnościach, które odbywały się jednocześnie w przeszłości: John was sleeping while his wife was driving. - kiedy mówimy, że jakaś czynność trwała w przeszłości i została przerwana przez inną: Jim was doing his homework when his girlfriend texted him. |
7 | PAST PERFECT SIMPLE | podmiot + had + orzeczenie (III forma/ -ed) np. My parents had known each other for a long time before they got married. |
podmiot + had + not + orzeczenie (III forma/ -ed) np. My parents hadn’t known each other for 2 years before they got married. |
had + podmiot + orzeczenie (III forma/ -ed) np. Had your parents known each other for a long time before they got married? |
- czas zaprzeszły, określa czynności, które wydarzyły się przed określonym momentem lub wydarzeniem w przeszłości: They had packed their suitcases before the taxi arrived |
8 | PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS | podmiot + had + been + orzeczenie+ing np. We had been travelling for hours before we finally got to our hotel. |
podmiot + had + not + been + orzeczenie+ing np. We hadn’t been travelling long when we got to our hotel. |
had + podmiot + been + orzeczenie+ing np. Had you been travelling for hours before you got to your hotel? |
- czynności, które trwały przed inną czynnością, wydarzeniem lub określonym momentem w przeszłości, używając go, kładziemy nacisk na to, jak długo dana czynność trwała: She had been crying all morning before they finally told her she had passed the test. |
9 | FUTURE SIMPLE | podmiot + will + orzeczenie np. I will order a pizza for dinner. |
podmiot + will + not + orzeczenie np. I won’t order a pizza for dinner. |
will + podmiot + orzeczenie np. Will you order a pizza for dinner? |
- decyzje podjęte w chwili mówienia, bez wcześniejszego planowania: Wait! I’ll help you! - przewidywania na przyszłość: I think Donald Trump will win the next election as well. - obietnice i groźby: Touch my laptop again and you will regret it! - prośby w formie pytań: Will you help me with cleaning, please? |
10 | FUTURE CONTINUOUS | podmiot + will + be + orzeczenie+ing np. This time next week we will be lying on the beach. |
podmiot + will + not + be+ orzeczenie+ing np. This time next week we won’t be lying on the beach. |
will + podmiot + be+ orzeczenie+ing np. What will you be doing this time next week? |
- czynności, które będą odbywały się w określonym momencie w przeszłości np. At 7 pm she will be watching her favourite TV series. - wyrażanie przypuszczeń dotyczących chwili obecnej: Tom will be driving to work at the moment. - uprzejme pytania: Will you be waiting for us? |
11 | FUTURE PERFECT SIMPLE | podmiot + will + have + orzeczenie (III forma/ -ed) np. Jimmy will have finished the project before the boss comes in. |
podmiot + will + not + have + orzeczenie (III forma/ -ed) np. Jimmy won’t have finished the project before the boss comes in. |
will + podmiot + have + orzeczenie (III forma/ -ed) np. Will Jimmy have finished the project before the boss comes in? |
- czynności, które w pewnym momencie w przyszłości będą już zakończone: She will have written the email by noon. - wyrażanie przypuszczenia, że dana czynność została już wykonana: The plane will have landed. - określenie jaki okres czasu upłynie w danym momencie w przyszłości od kiedy rozpoczęła się dana czynność lub stan: Her parents will have lived in Florida for ten years next month. |
12 | FUTURE PERFECT CONTINUOUS | podmiot + will + have + been + orzeczenie+ing np. The baby will have been sleeping for five hours soon. |
podmiot + will + have + not + been + orzeczenie+ing np. The baby won’t have been sleeping for five hours |
will + podmiot + have + been + orzeczenie+ing np. Will the baby have been sleeping for five hours soon. |
- mówiąc, że w pewnym momencie w przyszłości upłynie jakiś okres, w którym dana czynność ma miejsce: They will have been swimming for an hour soon. |
Budowa czasów angielskich (tabela) wcale nie jest tak skomplikowana, jak mogłoby się wydawać :) Wpadaj na nasz blog - już wkrótce znajdziesz tu dokładne omówienie czasu Past Simple.
Potrzebujesz więcej wskazówek jak robić to efektywnie?
ENGLISH VERSION
Oh, the tenses - English in a logical way
English tenses are quite infamous. There are more of them than in Polish, at the first glance they seem to be very complicated, you need to remember about auxiliary verbs, past participles, stative verbs, declination, exceptions and exceptions from exceptions… Seems like a nightmare? Not necessarily :) Contrary to what most people think, Shakespeare’s mother tongue is very logical and applying English tenses in the right way is not that difficult to master. Today we are presenting a chart that will help you grasp them quickly and effortlessly.
The right usage of English tenses causes problems to Polish students mainly because - contrary to what happens in our language - in English tenses describe reality in a very precise way. Because of that there are more of them. And yes, all of them are used in everyday speech by native speakers, so it’s worth spending a while to make friends with them.
The first step should be understanding how names of tenses are created. The are not accidental blends of words that are supposed to make lives of English learners harder. The name of each tense is made up of two or three constituents.
1 |
2 |
3 |
PAST PRESENT FUTURE |
(PERFECT) |
SIMPLE CONTINUOUS |
The constituent from the first column is crucial as it describes whether given tense refers to the past, to the present or to the future.
All English tenses are divided into those that are “PERFECT” or not, so this constituent is only used in names of a half of the tenses.
Each tense, on the other hand, is either ‘SIMPLE” or “CONTINUOUS”. We would like to make one important note here - it’s better, easier and more efficient to learn English names of the tenses rather than the Polish ones. The latter might be misleading and not very precise.
To sum up, each of the tenses - past, present or future - may come in four variants, eg.:
PRESENT SIMPLE
PRESENT CONTINUOUS
PRESENT PERFECT SIMPLE
PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS
It’s easy to count then, that there are twelve English tenses: four present tenses, four past ones and four future ones.
We hope that the below chart will help you consolidaqte knowledge regarding English tenses and, if necessary - will serve as a quick cheat sheet.
Tense | Structure - positive sentences | Structure - negative sentences | Structure - questions | Application and examples | |
1 | PRESENT SIMPLE | subject + verb in the 3rd person singular (he/she/it) -s is added to the verb eg. I live in London. He lives in London. |
subject + don’t/doesn’t + verb in the 3rd person singular (he/she/it) auxiliary verb doesn’t is used eg. I don’t live in London. He doesn’t live in London |
do/does + subject + verb in the 3rd person singular (he/she/it) używamy auxiliary verb does is used np. Do you live in London? Does he live in London? |
- habits, repetitive actions: We always spend our holidays at the seaside. - states, permanent situations: It rains more often in autumn. - stative verbs, np: love, like, remember, forget, believe, want, prefer, see itd. - timetables, programmes: The plane takes off in ten minutes. |
2 | PRESENT CONTINUOUS | subject + am/is/are + verb+ing eg. I am learning English. She is reading a book. |
subject + am/is/are + not + verb+ing eg. I’m not learning English. She isn’t reading a book. |
am/is/are + subject + verb+ing eg. Are you learning English? IS she reading a book? |
- actions happening at the moment of speaking: You’re reading this text. - actions happening around the time not speaking: I’m reading a fantastic book. - actions planned for the nearest, specified future: My husband and I are going to the cinema on Saturday. - irritating habits of other people -with the word “always”: Why are you always leaving dirty dishes on the table?! |
3 | PRESENT PERFECT SIMPLE | subject + have/has + verb (III form/ -ed) in the 3rd person singular (he/she/it) auxiliary verb has is used eg. We have made the reservation. She has lived here for along time. |
subject + haven’t/hasn’t + verb (III form/ -ed) eg. We haven’t made the reservation. She hasn’t lived here for along time. |
have/has + subject + verb (III form/ -ed eg. Have we made the reservation? Has she lived here for along time? |
- actions that happened in an unspecified time in the past but their results are visible now and they are important for us: Adam has broken his leg. It doesn't matter when, what we focus on is that his leg is broken NOW. - permanent actions and states that started in the past and still continue, characteristic words: “for” and “since”: They have known each other for over 15 years. - experiences and achievements of people who are still alive: They have never been to Spain. - unfinished periods of time, the situation may change: John has sent ten emails today. - with words: yet, already, recently, lately, so far, ever, just: Our friends have already invited us to their wedding. |
4 | PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS | subject + have/has + been + verb+ing in the 3rd person singular (he/she/it) auxiliary verb has is used eg. They have been waiting for ten minutes now. She has been doing her homework since lunch. |
subject + haven’t/hasn’t + been + verb+ing eg. They haven’t been waiting for ten minutes now. She hasn’t been doing her homework since lunch. |
have/has + subject + been + been + verb+ing eg. Have they been waiting for ten minutes now? Has she been doing her homework since lunch. |
- temporary actions still happening at the moment of speaking that started in the past , the emphasis is on duration: We’ve been talking the whole evening. - when we want to say that an action has been taking place and eg. some side-effects are visible: My towel is wet. Somebody has been using it! |
5 | PAST SIMPLE | subject+ verb (II form/ -ed) eg. Jim practised judo when he was young. My friends got married in 2014. |
subject + didn’t + verb eg. Jim didn’t practise judo when he was young. My friends didn’t get married in 2014 |
did + subject + verb eg. Jim practised judo when he was young. My friends didn’t get married in 2014. |
- completed actions in the past: She visited Paris last summer. - habits and repetitive actions in the past: He usually spent his holidays in the countryside. - permanent states and situations in the past: They truly loved each other. |
6 | PAST CONTINUOUS | subject + was/were + verb+ing eg. It was raining when I arrived. They were working yesterday at 6 pm. |
subject + was/were + not + verb+ing eg. It wasn’t raining when I arrived. They weren’t working yesterday at 6 pm. |
was/were + subject + verb+ing eg. Was it raining when I arrived? Were they working yesterday at 6 pm? |
- actions in progress at a specific time in the past: I was reading a magazine yesterday in the evening. - two or more actions happening at the same time: John was sleeping while his wife was driving. - one action in progress in the past disturbed by another one: Jim was doing his homework when his girlfriend texted him. |
7 | PAST PERFECT SIMPLE | subject + had + verb (III form/ -ed) eg. My parents had known each other for a long time before they got married. |
subject + had + not + verb (III form/ -ed) eg. My parents hadn’t known each other for 2 years before they got married. |
had + subject + verb (III form/ -ed) eg. Had your parents known each other for a long time before they got married? |
- completed actions that took place before another action, date or event in the past: They had packed their suitcases before the taxi arrived |
8 | PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS | subject + had + been + verb+ing eg. We had been travelling for hours before we finally got to our hotel. |
subject + had + not + been + verb+ing eg. We hadn’t been travelling long when we got to our hotel. |
had + subject + been + verb+ing eg. Had you been travelling for hours before you got to your hotel? |
- actions that took place before another action, date or event in the past, the emphasis is put on duration: She had been crying all morning before they finally told her she had passed the test. |
9 | FUTURE SIMPLE | subject + will + verb eg. I will order a pizza for dinner. |
subject + will + not + verb eg. I won’t order a pizza for dinner. |
will + subject + verb eg. Will you order a pizza for dinner? |
- decisions made at the moment of speaking, with no planning beforehand: Wait! I’ll help you! - predictions for the future: I think Donald Trump will win the next election as well. - promises and threats: Touch my laptop again and you will regret it! - requests in the form of a question: Will you help me with cleaning, please? |
10 | FUTURE CONTINUOUS | subject + will + be + verb+ing eg. This time next week we will be lying on the beach. |
subject+ will + not + be+ verb+ing eg. This time next week we won’t be lying on the beach. |
will + subject + be+ verb+ing eg. What will you be doing this time next week? |
- actions that will be in progress at a specified moment in the future, eg. At 7 pm she will be watching her favourite TV series. - expressing assumptions about the present moment: Tom will be driving to work at the moment. - polite questions: Will you be waiting for us? |
11 | FUTURE PERFECT SIMPLE | subject + will + have + verb (III form/ -ed) eg. Jimmy will have finished the project before the boss comes in. |
subject + will + not + have + verb (III form/ -ed) eg. Jimmy won’t have finished the project before the boss comes in. |
will + subject + have + verb (III form/ -ed) eg. Will Jimmy have finished the project before the boss comes in? |
- actions that will be completed at a specified moment in the future: She will have written the email by noon. - expressing an assumption that he action has been completed: The plane will have landed. - stating what period of time will have passed from the moment the action or state (permanent) started until a specified time in the future: Her parents will have lived in Florida for ten years next month. |
12 | FUTURE PERFECT CONTINUOUS | subject + will + have + been + verb+ing eg. The baby will have been sleeping for five hours soon. |
subject + will + have + not + been + verb+ing eg. The baby won’t have been sleeping for five hours |
will + subject + have + been + verb+ing eg. Will the baby have been sleeping for five hours soon. |
- expressing what period of time will have passed at a specified moment in the future since a temporary action started: They will have been swimming for an hour soon. |
Structure of English tenses (the above chart) is not as complicated as it may seem :) Visit our blog - we are going to explain Past Simple soon.
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