Verb Tense and Consistency

When the CSE asks you to find the error in a sentence or pick the correct version, the verb is the single most common place the error hides. Examiners love tense questions because they test two things at once: whether you know the forms (has gone vs. has went) and whether you can track time logic across a whole sentence (By the time the memo arrived, the staff had already left). This lesson gives you the full tense map, the sequence-of-tenses rules, and the shift errors that show up again and again.

The tense system at a glance

English builds twelve tenses from three times (past, present, future) and four aspects (simple, progressive, perfect, perfect progressive).

Tense	Form	Example
Simple present	base / -s	Ana files the report every Monday.
Present progressive	am/is/are + -ing	Ana is filing the report now.
Present perfect	has/have + past participle	Ana has filed the report already.
Present perfect progressive	has/have been + -ing	Ana has been filing reports since 8 a.m.
Simple past	-ed / irregular	Ana filed the report yesterday.
Past progressive	was/were + -ing	Ana was filing the report when the power went out.
Past perfect	had + past participle	Ana had filed the report before the deadline passed.
Past perfect progressive	had been + -ing	Ana had been filing reports for hours when help came.
Simple future	will + base	Ana will file the report tomorrow.
Future progressive	will be + -ing	Ana will be filing reports all afternoon.
Future perfect	will have + past participle	By Friday, Ana will have filed all the reports.
Future perfect progressive	will have been + -ing	By Friday, Ana will have been filing reports for a week.

Two reminders that save points:

• The perfect tenses always take the past participle, never the simple past: has written, not has wrote; had gone, not had went.
• The progressive tenses always take the -ing form with a form of be. Never say "is file" or "was wrote."

The perfect tenses: when to reach for them

The perfect tenses connect two times. Use them when a sentence relates one event to another event or to a reference point.

• Present perfect links past to present. Use it for actions that started in the past and continue now, or past actions with present relevance: "Mr. Santos has worked at the LGU office for ten years" (he still works there). Signal words: since, for, already, yet, ever, so far, just.
• Past perfect marks the earlier of two past events: "The applicants had submitted their forms before the cutoff was announced." If only one past event is mentioned, plain simple past is usually right; do not sprinkle had everywhere.
• Future perfect marks completion before a future point: "By December, the office will have processed 5,000 permits." Signal phrase: by + future time.

Worked example 1. Choose the correct verb: "Since 2019, the barangay ______ three feeding programs." (a) conducted (b) conducts (c) has conducted (d) had conducted The phrase "since 2019" reaches from a past starting point up to now, so present perfect is required: has conducted. Answer: (c).

Sequence of tenses: reported speech and dependent clauses

When the main verb is in the past, verbs in the dependent clause normally step one tense back.

Direct statement	Reported with past main verb
"I am busy."	She said she was busy.
"I finished the audit."	She said she had finished the audit.
"I will attend."	She said she would attend.
"I can help."	She said she could help.

Exception: general truths stay in the present even after a past main verb. "The teacher explained that water boils at 100 degrees Celsius." Do not backshift scientific facts, permanent truths, or habitual facts that are still true.

Worked example 2. Find the error: "The director announced that the seminar will be moved to August because the venue was flooded." The main verb announced is past, so the future in the clause should backshift: would be moved. Corrected: "The director announced that the seminar would be moved to August because the venue was flooded."

Shifts to avoid

A tense shift is an unjustified jump between time frames inside one sentence or passage. Shifts are fine when the meaning truly changes time ("Liza worked in Cebu before, but she works in Davao now"). They are errors when nothing in the meaning calls for the change.

• Faulty: "Carlo opened the drawer, takes out the folder, and hands it to the clerk." (past, then two presents)
• Correct: "Carlo opened the drawer, took out the folder, and handed it to the clerk."

Watch for these classic shift traps:

• Narrative drift: a story starts in past tense, then a verb slips into present midway.
• When/while clauses: the two actions must make time sense. "While the staff were counting the ballots, the generator fails" should be failed.
• Before/after/by the time: these often demand a perfect tense on one side. "By the time the inspector arrived, the contractor had left."

Worked example 3. Which sentence is correct? (a) When the alarm sounded, everyone leaves the building. (b) When the alarm sounded, everyone left the building. (c) When the alarm sounds, everyone left the building. (d) When the alarm had sounded, everyone leaves the building. Both actions happened in the same past moment, so both verbs take simple past. Answer: (b).

Conditionals: the if-clause patterns

Conditional sentences follow fixed tense pairings, and the CSE tests them often.

Type	If-clause	Result clause	Use
Zero	simple present	simple present	general truths: If you heat ice, it melts.
First	simple present	will + base	real future: If it rains, the parade will be moved.
Second	simple past	would + base	unreal present: If I were the mayor, I would fix the drainage.
Third	past perfect	would have + participle	unreal past: If Ben had studied, he would have passed.

Three rules examiners exploit:

1. Never put will or would inside the if-clause: "If you will submit early" is wrong; say "If you submit early, you will get a slot."
2. In formal second conditionals, use were for all persons: "If she were here," not "If she was here."
3. Match the halves. A past perfect if-clause needs would have, not would: "If the team had prepared, they would have won," not "they would win."

Worked example 4. Complete the sentence: "If the office ______ the request last week, the permit would have been released by now." (a) receives (b) received (c) had received (d) has received The result clause uses would have been released, signaling a third conditional, so the if-clause needs past perfect: had received. Answer: (c).

Consistency across a paragraph

Reading-based grammar items sometimes test tense consistency across sentences. Pick a controlling time frame and keep it unless the meaning moves. In a report about a completed event, stay in past tense. In a description of standing policy, stay in present: "The office accepts applications from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Walk-in clients receive priority numbers."

Worked example 5. Identify the inconsistent verb: "The audit team reviewed the disbursement vouchers, traced each entry to the ledger, and submits its findings to the regional office." The first two verbs (reviewed, traced) are past; submits breaks the frame and should be submitted.

Common traps

• Has went, had did, have wrote: perfect tenses need the participle (gone, done, written). Memorize irregular participle lists: go-went-gone, do-did-done, see-saw-seen, take-took-taken, begin-began-begun, drink-drank-drunk, ring-rang-rung, write-wrote-written, choose-chose-chosen, lie-lay-lain.
• Unneeded past perfect: "Yesterday I had gone to the bank" is wrong when only one past event exists; say "Yesterday I went to the bank."
• Since vs. for confusion: since + starting point (since March), for + duration (for three months); both usually signal a perfect tense.
• Present perfect with a finished-time word: "I have seen him yesterday" is wrong; a specific past time (yesterday, last week, in 2020) forces simple past: "I saw him yesterday."
• Backshifting universal truths: "She said the Earth revolved around the Sun" should keep revolves.
• Will inside if-clauses in first conditionals.

Exam strategy

1. In error-spotting items, check the verbs first. Underline every verb and ask: does the form match its aspect (participle after has/had, -ing after be)? Does the time frame stay consistent?
2. Hunt for time markers: yesterday, since, by the time, last year, now, every day. The marker dictates the tense more reliably than your ear does.
3. In conditionals, identify the type from the half you are given, then force the matching pattern on the other half.
4. When two past events are sequenced with before, after, or by the time, expect a past perfect on the earlier event.
5. If a sentence sounds fine but a specific past time sits next to a present perfect, it is wrong. Trust the rule over the sound.

Verbs carry the time logic of the sentence. If you can name the time frame of every clause and check each form against its aspect, tense items become mechanical points instead of judgment calls.