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Here is something that will make you doubt everything you've learned in English. Just five English tenses are used in around 96% of English interactions. Yeah. Out of all 12 tenses we learn, you only need a literal handful in many conversations. So, let's be efficient here. I'm going to show you what those five tenses are and how we use them. To make this even more efficient, I think efficiency is my word of the month here. I've also created a free PDF. It's basically an ebook at this point. It contains everything we discuss today. All of the information about each tense, extra examples, and a quiz to check what you've learned. If you would like to download that for free, just click on the link in the description or scan that
QR code there. Sign up to my mailing list and the PDF will arrive directly in your inbox. Okay, here is your pie chart. Let's start with the biggest slice. The most commonly used English tense. I wonder if you can guess what it is. Drum roll please. About to do it myself. It's the present simple. It's used around 55% of the time in spoken English. Next, we have the past simple at almost 21%. So over 34 of spoken interactions in English happen in just two tenses. Following that, there is the present perfect simple at around 8.4%, the future with will at 6.4% and the present continuous coming in with 5.7%.
The rest of the tenses are in that tiny slice of leftover pie. Now, these figures are based on a study of spoken British English. And as we know, there isn't just one variety of English. There's North American English, Australian English, Indian English and so on. Within these varieties, there are countless dialects and regional nuances, and people use tenses differently. Spoken English itself changes depending on context. A casual conversation with friends is quite different from a job interview. And then of course there is written English. In news reports and fiction books, the past tense tends to
be used more often than the present. So 96% here is an estimate. The figures within it vary, but even with all of this variation, the same five tenses rise to the top time and time again. If you're interested in learning more, I've put some links to sources in the description below. But now let's go through some of the most common uses of these five key tenses. First, the present simple. This is usually the first tense that people learn in English. The structure is subject plus base verb or with third person subjects, a base verb with s. I love it. He lives nearby. To see how to form negatives and questions and examples for the present simple and all the tenses to come, make sure you download the PDF. The link's
down there. So, why is the present simple used so much? Well, it has a lot of functions when talking about the present, but it can also be used to refer to the past and the future. It's the Swiss Army knife of tenses. We use the present simple to talk about habits, routines, and things that are true at the present. For example, I often go to the gym on Wednesdays or she lives in Belfast. It's also used to discuss facts and general truths. There are billions of stars in our galaxy. And the present simple can refer to fixed or scheduled events in the future. The play starts at 8. Finally, the present simple often appears when we tell a story or discuss what happens in a book or film. So, I'm
at the beach yesterday when suddenly I see a massive wave coming right for me. Or Elizabeth Bennett meets Mr. Darcy. Now, of course, we also tell stories in the past simple. And that is our next most common tense used around 20% of the time in spoken interactions. The past simple is formed by adding ed d to regular verbs like start started. But some of the most common verbs in English are irregular. Do you know the past simple of have, go and be, had, went, was, or were. Okay. And how do we use the past simple? Well, we use it to talk about completed actions or events that happened before now. It might be something that happened once. I bought a new phone last weekend or something that
happened several times. We went camping in Wales every summer. Or something that was true for a long period in the past. They worked together for over 30 years. Next up, the present perfect simple. This is formed with subject plus have or has plus the past participle. Again, regular past participles are formed by adding ed d to verbs just like in the past simple. For example, enjoy, enjoyed, enjoyed. But of course, there are many irregular past participles like eat, ate, eaten. Now, my students often
find the present perfect tense quite challenging, but here's a basic overview. Of course, there's more information in the PDF. We can use it for states or actions that began in the past, but continue to the present. For example, we've known each other since primary school. Began in the past, we still know each other now. We also use it for describing life experiences. I've read The Great Gatsby. We've never been to Ireland. And we use it when something that happened in the past has an effect on or is relevant in the present. I think I've broken my wrist. It really hurts. Now, it's worth noting that perfect tenses are more common in British English than in North American English. For example, in British English, we would say, "I've
just spoken to John." While in North American English, speakers might prefer the past simple. I just spoke to John. Actually, can we get an American to say that? I just spoke to John. Thank you. Our next tense is the future simple or the future with will. This is my favorite tense because my husband's name is Will. The form is subject plus will plus base verb. I will see. She will help. Now in spoken English will is nearly always contracted to apostrophe ll. I'll sh and so on. They have one syllable. Ital has two syllables. The negative form of will is will not. usually contracted to won't in speech. And fun fact, if my husband's ever rude
to me, I call him won't because he is not my will. We make offers, promises, and spontaneous decisions with will. For example, I'll give you a hand with that, meaning I'll help you with that. Or you're going to the shop. I'll come. We also use it to express beliefs and make predictions. It'll be amazing to see you again or you'll drop that glass if you're not careful. However, a small study based on the sitcom Friends found that be going to appears more often than will when referring to the future. Be going to is definitely a key structure to use when discussing future plans or making predictions based on present evidence. In fast speech, we use the informal contraction gonna. It's gonna
chuck it down any minute. It's going to rain hard soon. All right, let's move on to our final tense, the present continuous formed with subject plus am, is, or are plus ing verb. For example, I'm speaking. Are you coming? This tense is used for ongoing actions happening at or around the moment of speaking. Ellie's walking the dog. They are creating a cycle path. And we use it for future arrangements. Mom's coming for dinner on Friday. It's actually a very versatile tense. We also use it for things we think are temporary, things that are changing or developing, and repeated actions that might be annoying.
Okay, now we've gone through our tenses. Let's do a short quiz together to test what you remember. Use the correct form of the verbs in brackets to complete the sentences. There are five questions, and I want you to use each tense from this video once. One, Helen University in Glasgow last year. The word in brackets is start. Two, we them tomorrow morning and your word is meat. Three, I you back in about 5 minutes and your word is cool. Four, bees to tell other bees where food is. And your word is dance. And five I Goodwill hunting. And your words are never see. Pause the video now to have a think if you need more time.
Now I'm going to reveal the answers. Number one is started in the past simple. This is a completed action in the past. For number two, you could have used our meeting using the present continuous to talk about a future arrangement. We are going to meet them is also fine expressing a future plan. Three should be will call or I'll call. That's a promise made with will. Four should be dance. the present simple for a fact and five should be have never seen. The present perfect simple to talk about an experience up to now. How did you score out of five? Let me know your results in the comments and tell me which of these five tenses do you need to practice the most. That's it for today's lesson, but don't forget to
download the PDF. It is stuffed full of information, examples, and there's another quiz because one isn't enough. The link for that is in the description box or you can scan the QR code there. I will see you soon for another lesson.
