Verb Tenses
Los verbos son palabras de acción. Señalan una acción, un suceso o un estado.
Los verbos en Inglés tienen tres tiempos verbales: pasado, presente y futuro. A continuación te explicamos cómo formar los distintos tiempos verbales en Inglés:
Pretérito Perfecto Simple
El Pretérito Perfecto Simple se utiliza para hablar de acciones que se han completado antes de este momento (en el pasado).
Sujeto + verbo en tiempo pasado
I ate the banana you are looking for this morning.
We slept in the spare room last night.
The team played icebreaker games before the event started.
She hadn't thought about how many people would be coming to dinner.
Ritu hasn't eaten since breakfast.
They haven't taken the driving test yet.
Pretérito Continuo
El pasado continuo se utiliza para hablar de acciones inacabadas o incompletas en el pasado. Este tiempo muestra que la acción que se inició en el pasado continua ocurriendo ahora.
Sujeto + was/wasn't/were/weren't + participio presente (verbo + ing)
Henri was playing the guitar when I came over.
When we got there the girls were running around.
I was mad that Mari wasn't ready when I drove up to her house.
We weren't singing when she got to the concert hall.
Pretérito Perfecto
El pretérito perfecto muestra que un acontecimiento ha ocurrido antes que otro en el pasado y deja claro cuál ocurrió primero.
Sujeto + had/hadn't + verbo en participio pasado
Angel had saved his work before the computer crashed.
We had prepared the buses by the time the tourists arrived.
I hadn't cooked anything when my friends turned up.
There was nothing to eat because he hadn't been shopping.
Pretérito Perfecto Continuo
El pretérito perfecto continuo muestra acciones del pasado que terminaron antes que otras acciones del pasado.
Sujeto + had/hadn't/ been + participio presente (verbo + ing)
By the time the restaurant opened we'd (we had) been waiting for an hour.
John had been swimming already by the time his friends go there.
She hadn't been doing her homework when her dad got home from work.
Presente Simple
El presente simple muestra repetición, hábito o generalización.
Sujeto + verbo en presente
I go to work every day.
He loves to eat something sweet after dinner.
Americans eat lots of junk food.
The boxing class starts at 6 p.m. every week night.
It rains in Vancouver all the time.
Presente Continuo
El presente continuo se utiliza para describir acciones que tienen lugar en el presente.
Sujeto + am/is/are + participio presente (verbo + ing)
She is cleaning out her car.
Megan's putting together the annual report.
We're living in Moscow right now.
They're having breakfast, let's join them.
Tiempo Pretérito perfecto
El presente perfecto muestra un acontecimiento pasado que tiene consecuencias presentes.
Sujeto + have/haven't/has/hasn't + verbo en participio pasado
I have lived in this house since 1992.
She has worked at the same job for 22 years.
She hasn't studied Japanese for very long so she finds it tough to speak.
He hadn't seen her at all yet today.
Presente Perfecto Continuo
El presente perfecto continuo expresa acciones iniciadas en el pasado que continúan en el presente o acaban de terminar.
Sujeto + have/haven't/has/hasnt been + participio presente (verbo + ing)
It has been raining for five days straight.
She hasn't been eating breakfast because she's been sick.
The tourists have been feeding the birds in the park.
We just haven't been taking care of the yard this summer as it's been so hot.
Futuro Simple
El futuro simple se utiliza para hablar de acciones que ocurrirán después del presente. Este tiempo verbal expresa hechos y certeza.
Sujeto + shall/ shall not / will/ will not + verbo base
I will go to the office tomorrow.
We won't leave until later this evening.
They shall eat at the table and not on the sofa.
He shall not run in the race if there is a thunderstorm.
Future Continuous
El futuro continuo expresa una acción continuada o en curso en el futuro.
Sujeto + will / will not be + verbo en participio presente (forma -ing)
Jake will be coming over later to watch a movie.
The team will be playing in the tournament on Wednesday of next week.
My brother won't be joining us at next week's practice.
I will not be drinking that milk, it's sour.
Futuro Perfecto
El futuro perfecto se utiliza para mostrar una acción que ocurrirá en el futuro antes de otra acción o momento en el futuro.
Sujeto + will / won't have + verbo en participio pasado
I will have lived in Barcelona for three years on the 20th of this month.
He won't have finished the essay by tomorrow's deadline.
Ami will have finished high school by the time her dad returns from working abroad.
Futuro Perfecto Continuo
El futuro perfecto se utiliza para mostrar una acción que ocurrirá en el futuro antes de otra acción o momento en el futuro
Sujeto + shall/ shall not / will / will not + have be/been + verbo en participio presente (forma -ing)
We will have been driving for 10 hours come 6 o'clock.
Next month I will have been coming here for lunch every day for a year.
They will have been sleeping for an hour by the time you get home from work.
Condicional tipo Cero
El condicional tipo cero se utiliza para expresar verdades generales.
If + presente simple + presente simple
People bleed if you cut them.
Water boils if you heat it enough.
Primer Condicional
El primer condicional habla de la condición posible y de su resultado probable. Básicamente dice "si ocurre esto, también ocurre/podría ocurrir esto otro."
Si + presente simple + futuro simple
If you fails the test, he will not graduate.
If he drops the glass, it will smash.
If she eats that meat, she might get sick.
If he climbs that tree, he may fall.
Segundo Condicional
El segundo condicional habla de situaciones o acciones en el presente o en el futuro que son improbables, hipotéticas, imaginarias o imposibles.
If + pasado simple + presente condicional o presente continuo condicional
If I were younger, I would go backpacking around the world.
If she were taller, she would have tried out for the basketball team.
If I won the lottery, I would buy a Ferrari.
Tercer Condicional
El tercer condicional expresa una condición imposible en el pasado y el resultado de esta condición en el pasado.
If + pretérito perfecto + would have + verbo en participio pasado
If I had trained harder I would have run a faster time in the marathon.
If you had gone to law school, you would have been a great lawyer.
If you had invited them to, they would have played for longer.
Condicional mixto
En los condicionales mixtos, el tiempo de la cláusula principal es diferente del tiempo de la cláusula condicional o de la cláusula "si".
Si + pretérito perfecto + presente condicional
Si + pasado simple + condicional perfecto
If we had checked the directions before we left, we wouldn't be lost now.
We wouldn’t be lost now if we had checked the directions before we left.
Verbos Modales
Los verbos modales aportan información adicional sobre la función del verbo principal que va después de iot en una frase. Este tipo de verbos se utilizan para expresar permiso, obligación, falta de necesidad, posibilidad, capacidad, prohibición, consejo y probabilidad.
Algunos ejemplos de verbos y frases modales:
| Permiso | |
|---|---|
| Can | Can I please come to your party? |
| May | May I take a cookie from the jar? |
| Might | Might I suggest a different approach? |
| Obligación | |
|---|---|
| Must | You must tell me what he said. |
| Should | He should leave the room. |
| Ought to | They ought to find a place to stay. |
| Falta de necesidad | |
|---|---|
| Need not | You need not worry, I will take care of it. |
| Posibilidad | |
|---|---|
| Can | Eating more fruit can make you healthier. |
| Could | Rewriting the paper could get you a higher grade |
| May | It may be cheaper at the other store. |
| Might | It might be better to try tomorrow. |
| Capacidad | |
|---|---|
| Can | I can run faster than Jim. |
| Could (past ability) | I could swim for miles when I was a teenager. |
| Prohibición | |
|---|---|
| Must not | You must not drink alcohol until you are at least 18 years old. |
| Consejo | |
|---|---|
| Had better | You had better go to bed now if you want to get up at 5 a.m. tomorrow. |
| Should | You should call your grandmother, she would like that. |
| Ought to | They ought to clear their driveway so we can park our car. |
| Probabilidad | |
|---|---|
| May | It may rain this afternoon. |
| Might | We might go play tennis tomorrow. |