Tense & Time

It is important not to confuse the name of a verb tense with the way we use it to talk about time.

For example, a present tense does not always refer to present time:

• I hope it rains tomorrow.
  "rains" is present simple, but it refers here to future time (tomorrow)

Or a past tense does not always refer to past time:

• If I had some money now, I could buy it.
  "had" is past simple but it refers here to present time (now)

The following examples show how different tenses can be used to talk about different times.

Basic Tenses »