0Verb Tenses:
After subject-verb agreement, verb tenses are among the most tested rules in the SAT. Let’s begin by reviewing what a verb is and what its tense signifies.
A verb is one of the main parts of the sentence that indicates activity either through an action, a happening or a state of being.
And verb tenses describe the time that the action or occurrence took place. Without the tenses, it would be impossible to know when the event (action) took place.
There are typically 12 tense forms to a verb, which we will look at in the table below (through the verb ‘drive’ as an example):
But it is important to remember that in the context of the SAT, you don’t need to know the names of the tenses. All you need to be able to do is to identify them and to understand how they are used in sentences so you can spot the errors and replace them with the correct forms of the tense (when needed).
Let’s understand the different forms of the three tenses: past, present and future
Simple Tense:
This is the simplest form of the tenses used to describe an action that was completed in the past; is a daily occurrence or that is currently happening (present); or will happen tomorrow (future).
Here it is important to remember that the simple past tense form is used to describe a completed action. Here are three examples that use the verb ‘drive’:
He drives the car every day to work (Present).
I drove the truck to the beach last night (Past).
She will drive to the mall tomorrow (Future).
Progressive Tense:
This form of verb tense is used to show something that was happening in the past, is happening at present or will happen for a period of time. Here the tense is reflected by the past/present/future forms of the helping verb ‘to be’ i.e. was/is/will be which is used along with a gerund (the -ing form of the main verb).
Note: The past progressive tense refers to an action that remains incomplete.
Here are three more examples:
He was swimming in the river.
He is swimming in the rooftop pool.
He will be swimming in the race tonight.
Perfect Tense:
Let’s consider these sentences:
Men have walked the Earth for millennia (Present Perfect).
By the time the sun rose, the frost had evaporated from the trees (Past Perfect).
Two years from now, she will have graduated from high school (Future Perfect).
The present perfect tense is formed with the verbs has/have along with the past participle of the action verb. It is used to indicate actions that began in the past but are continuing in the present. While the past perfect verb tense form is used to indicate an action that happened first in a sentence that features two completed actions. Often (but not always), sentences that take the present perfect tense feature words such as ‘for’ or ‘since’.
Future perfect tense forms highlight an action that will take place at some point in the future.
Perfect Progressive Tense:
In the world of verb tenses, ‘perfect’ signifies the completion of an action and ‘progressive’ signifies an incomplete action. Verb forms in the perfect progressive tenses reflect the time taken to complete an action that was unfolding.
The verb form is made up of the helping verb ‘to have’, used along with the verb ‘to be’ and finally the action verb in the progressive tense.
Consider these examples to better understand this verb tense form:
I have been waiting to complete the examination for a year (Present Perfect Progressive).
I had been waiting to complete the examination for a year (Past Perfect Progressive).
I will have been waiting to complete the examination for a year (Future Perfect Progressive).
The present perfect progressive form is used to indicate the relationship of the action to the present. Sometimes it is also used without a reference to time, in the form of questions relating to recently completed actions (For instance, ‘Have you been working out?’)
The past perfect progressive form is usually used to highlight the duration of a action that took place in the past before another action happened.
While the future perfect progressive tense is used to indicate an action in connection with an event in the future. These tenses form rare, complex sentences.
Verb tense concepts tested in the SAT:
1) Consistency in Tense:
This is one of the most tested concepts in the SAT. Here all you have to do is to ensure that all the verbs in the sentence follow the same tense, this means that sentences that begin with a particular tense must maintain the same throughout, unless the verbs are in different clauses.
See if you can spot the error in the following sentence:
I ate the cake and drinks the tea.
Here the sentence begins in the past tense, with the verb ‘ate’ but suddenly switches to the present with the verb ‘drinks’. This goes against the rule that verbs in a sentence clause must follow the same tense. So the correct version will be:
I ate the cake and drank the tea
or
I eat the cake and drink the tea.
The correct version would also depend on the context in which it is placed.
Observe this sentence:
He listened to the song because he wants to sing it later to the audience.
Here the verbs are in different tenses but the sentence is still correct because they are in different clauses.
2) Gerund Vs. Infinitive:
Gerunds (verbs which take the -ing form) and infinitives (verbs which are preceded by the word ‘to’, but not as a proposition) sometimes take the form of nouns. They can be replaced by infinitives, but not always. Some sentences require that you use either the gerund form or the infinitive form of the verb. The best way to decide which one to use, when either is underlined in an SAT question, is to simply see which sounds better.
I want learning Spanish this year.
I want to learn Spanish this year.
Which sentence do you think sounds better? The second sentence, naturally.
3) Choosing the right verb form:
a) between the simple past and the present perfect:
In some SAT questions, you might have to replace a verb carrying the simple past tense for the present perfect. Remember, the present perfect tense is used for an action that began in the past but continues in the present while the simple past tense is used to indicate a completed action.
If such a verb is underlined as part of the question in the SAT, check what purpose the verb in the sentence serves.
Observe this sentence:
For the last six months, I went to the gym.
Here the beginning of the sentence does not indicate completion, it seems to indicate that the action is ongoing. The correct way to write the sentence would be:
For the last six months, I have gone to the gym.
b) between the simple past and the past perfect:
Remember, verbs carrying the simple past tense are used to signify completed actions while verbs carrying the past perfect tense are used to signify the first of two completed actions.
Can you correct the following sentence?
I walked ten miles before I realised I forgot my water bottle
The correct version of the sentence is:
I had walked ten miles before I realised I forgot my water bottle.
The sentence features two completed actions, and so the first action (of walking ten miles) will take the past perfect tense.
Let’s review what we have learnt through these sample SAT questions:
Choice B is the best answer because it provides a grammatically standard preposition that connects the verb “serves” and noun “digestive aid” and accurately depicts their relationship. Choice A is incorrect because the infinitive form “to be” yields a grammatically incorrect verb construction: “serves to be.” Choices C and D are incorrect because both present options that deviate from standard English usage.
Choice C is the best answer because it presents a verb tense that is consistent in the context of the sentence. The choice is also free of the redundant “it.” Choice A is incorrect because the subject “it” creates a redundancy. Choices B and D are incorrect because they present verb tenses that are inconsistent in the context of the sentence.
Choice A is the best answer because the verb tense is consistent with the preceding past tense verbs in the sentence, specifically “produced” and “drifted.” Choices B, C, and D are incorrect because each utilizes a verb tense that is not consistent with the preceding past tense verbs in the sentence.
Choice B is the best answer because it provides a verb that creates a grammatically complete, standard, and coherent sentence. Choices A, C, and D are incorrect because each results in a grammatically incomplete and incoherent sentence.
Choice D is the best answer because the gerund “waiting” corresponds with the preposition “for” and the present tense used in the rest of the sentence. Choices A, B, and C are incorrect because each contains a verb form not used with the preposition “for.”
