Progressive Verbs

In present progressive sentences, the verb expresses action that is in progress as the speaker says it. “I am typing” is an example of present progressive. In it, the main verb is “type” while the auxiliary verb “be” is conjugated according to the subject, “I.”

We also use past and future progressives to explain what was or will be happening when some other event occurred or will occur.

Passive Voice

If you can add the phrase, “by a purple monster” to the end of your verb phrase and still have a grammatically correct sentence, you’re probably using passive voice. Here are some examples:

There’s nothing grammatically wrong with passive voice; it’s an excellent use of the verb “be.” It’s just not very exciting writing. It’s more interesting to say:

Perfect Tenses

The perfect tenses in English explain the order of things. When we use present perfect, we are explaining what has happened up until now. Past perfect explains what had happened in the past before something else happened in the past. And future perfect tells us what will have happened up to a certain point in the future.

All the perfect tenses use at least one auxiliary verb, “have.” The future perfect also uses “will.” And the progressive perfect tenses also use “be.”