tense Affirmative/Negative/Question Use Signal Words

always, every …,
 action in the present taking
Simple A: He speaks. never, normally,
Present N: He does not speak. place regularly, never or often, seldom,
Q: Does he speak? several times sometimes,
 facts usually
if sentences type I
 actions taking place one (If I talk, …)
after another
 action set by a timetable or
schedule
Present A: He is speaking. at the moment,
 action taking place in the
Progressive N: He is not speaking. just, just now,
Q: Is he speaking? moment of speaking Listen!, Look!,
 action taking place only for now, right now
a limited period of time
 action arranged for the
future
Simple Past A: He spoke.  action in the past taking
yesterday, 2
N: He did not speak. minutes ago, in
Q: Did he speak? place once, never or 1990, the other
several times day, last Friday
 actions taking place one if sentence type II
(If I talked, …)
after another
 action taking place in the
middle of another action
Past A: He was speaking. while, as long as
 action going on at a certain
Progressive N: He was not speaking.
Q: Was he speaking? time in the past
 actions taking place at the
same time
 action in the past that is
interrupted by another
action
Present A: He has spoken. already, ever,
 putting emphasis on
Perfect N: He has not spoken. just, never, not
Simple Q: Has he spoken? the result yet, so far, till
 action that is still going on now, up to now
  action that stopped recently
 finished action that has an
influence on the present
 action that has taken place
once, never or several
times before the moment of
speaking
Present A: He has been speaking. all day, for 4
 putting emphasis on
Perfect N: He has not been speaking. years, since 1993,
Progressive Q: Has he been speaking? the course or how long?, the
duration (not the result) whole week
 action that recently stopped
or is still going on
 finished action that
influenced the present
Past A: He had spoken. already, just,
 action taking place before a
Perfect N: He had not spoken. never, not yet,
Simple Q: Had he spoken? certain time in the past once, until that
 sometimes interchangeable day
with past perfect if sentence type
III (If I had
progressive
talked, …)
 putting emphasis only on
the fact (not the duration)
Past A: He had been speaking. for, since, the
 action taking place before a
Perfect N: He had not been speaking. whole day, all day
Progressive Q: Had he been speaking? certain time in the past
 sometimes interchangeable
with past perfect simple
 putting emphasis on
the duration or course of
an action
Future I A: He will speak. in a year, next …,
 action in the future that
Simple N: He will not speak. tomorrow
Q: Will he speak? cannot be influenced If-Satz Typ I (If
 spontaneous decision you ask her,
she will
 assumption with regard to
help you.)
the future assumption: I
 think, probably,
perhaps
Future I A: He is going to speak. in one year, next
 decision made for the
Simple N: He is not going to speak. week, tomorrow
Q: Is he going to speak? future
(going to)  conclusion with regard to
the future
Future I A: He will be speaking. in one year, next
 action that is going on at a
Progressive N: He will not be speaking. week, tomorrow
Q: Will he be speaking? certain time in the future
 action that is sure to
happen in the near future
Future II A: He will have spoken. by Monday, in a
 action that will
Simple N: He will not have spoken. week
Q: Will he have spoken? be finished at a certain
time in the future
Future II A: He will have been speaking. for …, the last
 action taking place before a
Progressive N: He will not have been couple of hours,
speaking. certain time in the future all day long
Q: Will he have been  putting emphasis on
speaking? the courseof an action
Conditional A: He would speak.  action that might take
if sentences type
I Simple N: He would not speak. II
Q: Would he speak? place (If I were you,
I would go home.)
Conditional A: He would be speaking.  action that might take place
I N: He would not be speaking.
Progressive Q: Would he be speaking?  putting emphasis on
the course/ duration of the
action
Conditional A: He would have spoken.  action that might have
if sentences type
II Simple N: He would not have spoken. III
Q: Would he have spoken? taken place in the past (If I had seen
that, I would
have helped.)
Conditional A: He would have been speaking.
 action that might have taken
II N: He would not have been
Progressive speaking. place in the past
Q: Would he have been speaking?
 puts emphasis on
the course / duration of the
action