1.3 Verb Tense and Consistency

Verb Tense and Consistency

Verbs are the engine of a sentence. They tell the reader what is happening, but just as importantly, they tell the reader when it is happening. The time an action takes place is indicated by the verb tense.

On the PERT Writing exam, you will be evaluated on your ability to use the correct verb tense for a given context and, more importantly, your ability to maintain tense consistency. Mixing past, present, and future arbitrarily makes writing confusing and difficult to follow.

The Basic Tenses

The English language has three primary time frames: present, past, and future. Each of these has a simple form.

1. Simple Present: Describes an action happening right now, a habitual action, or a general scientific truth.
   • Example: She walks to school every day. (Habit)
   • Example: Water boils at 100 degrees Celsius. (General Truth)
2. Simple Past: Describes an action that was completed entirely in the past.
   • Example: She walked to school yesterday.
3. Simple Future: Describes an action that will happen later.
   • Example: She will walk to school tomorrow.

The Progressive Tenses

Progressive tenses describe ongoing actions that are happening at a specific point in time. They are formed using a form of the auxiliary verb to be and the present participle (the -ing form of the verb).

• Present Progressive: Indicates an ongoing action happening right now.
  • Example: I am studying for the PERT exam at this moment.
• Past Progressive: Describes an ongoing action that was happening in the past when another action occurred.
  • Example: I was studying when the power went out.
• Future Progressive: Describes an ongoing action that will be happening in the future.
  • Example: This time tomorrow, we will be taking the college placement test.

The Perfect Tenses

In addition to the simple and progressive tenses, English uses perfect tenses to show complex time relationships, especially actions that span across different points in time or are completed prior to another action. Perfect tenses are formed using a helping verb (a form of have) plus the past participle of the main verb (usually ending in -ed or -en).

Present Perfect

The present perfect tense describes an action that started in the past and continues into the present, or an action that occurred at an unspecified time in the past but has relevance to the present.

• Form: has/have + past participle
• Example: I have lived in Florida for five years. (I started living there in the past, and I still live there now.)
• Example: She has visited the tutoring center three times this semester. (Occurred at unspecified times, relevant now.)

Past Perfect

The past perfect tense is used when describing two actions that both happened in the past, but you need to clarify which one happened first. The action that occurred first uses the past perfect tense, while the action that occurred second uses the simple past.

• Form: had + past participle
• Example: Before the storm arrived (past), we had secured (past perfect) the windows. (Securing the windows happened before the storm arrived.)
• Example: The professor realized that he had misplaced the exams after he entered the classroom. (Misplacing the exams happened before entering the classroom.)

Future Perfect

The future perfect tense describes an action that will be completed before a specific moment in the future.

• Form: will have + past participle
• Example: By the time you wake up, I will have cooked breakfast.
• Example: She will have graduated by next June.

Verb Tense Consistency

One of the most frequently tested concepts on the PERT is verb tense consistency. The rule of thumb is simple: Do not shift verb tenses unless the meaning of the sentence requires it.

If a paragraph begins in the past tense to describe a historical event, it should remain in the past tense. Shifting arbitrarily to the present tense creates an illogical timeline.

Incorrect (Unnecessary Shift): Yesterday, we went to the beach. The weather was beautiful. Suddenly, a dolphin jumps out of the water and surprises everyone. (The writer shifts from past tense 'went/was' to present tense 'jumps/surprises' without reason.)

Correct (Consistent): Yesterday, we went to the beach. The weather was beautiful. Suddenly, a dolphin jumped out of the water and surprised everyone.

Logical Shifts in Tense

Sometimes, shifting tenses is necessary to accurately reflect different times. This is perfectly grammatical as long as the shift makes logical sense.

Correct (Logical Shift): Many people believe (present) that the Earth is flat, but scientists proved (past) centuries ago that it is round.

In this example, the shift is necessary. The belief is happening currently (present), but the scientific proof happened long ago (past).

Summary Table of Key Verb Tenses

Tips for the PERT Exam

When you are reviewing sentences for verb tense errors, look for time markers or context clues. Words like yesterday, tomorrow, historically, currently, last year, or by the time give you vital hints about which tense is appropriate.

Furthermore, always look at the surrounding verbs in the sentence or paragraph. If three out of four verbs are in the past tense, the underlined portion likely needs to be in the past tense as well, unless a clear time word dictates otherwise.