Summary table of the verb tenses we have seen (cuadro resumen de los tiempos verbales)
- Present simple
- Past simple
- Present progressive
- Past progressive
- Used to / would
- Present perfect
- Future with will
- Future with going to
- First conditional
Present simple
Habits and timeless facts.
🔹 Hábitos y verdades atemporales.
I work in an office. She always eats at 8 am.
Past simple
Actions at a specific moment in the past.
🔹 Acciones en un momento concreto del pasado.
Yesterday I went to the gym. She called me last Monday.
Present progressive
Actions happening right now.
🔹 Acciones que ocurren ahora mismo.
I am reading a book right now. She is cooking.
Past progressive
Descriptions in the past. Actions in progress that were interrupted.
🔹 Descripciones en el pasado. Acciones en progreso que fueron interrumpidas.
It was raining. I was eating when she called.
Used to / would
Habits in the past.
🔹 Hábitos en el pasado.
I used to live in Madrid. She would always cook on Sundays.
Present perfect
Life experiences (no specific time). Recent actions with a present result.
🔹 Experiencias de vida (sin tiempo específico). Acciones recientes con resultado presente.
I have visited Paris. She has lost her keys.
Future with will
Predictions, spontaneous decisions, promises.
🔹 Predicciones, decisiones espontáneas, promesas.
It will rain tomorrow. I'll help you. I'll call you later.
Future with going to
Plans already decided, predictions with evidence.
🔹 Planes ya decididos, predicciones con evidencia.
I'm going to visit my parents. Look! It's going to rain.
First conditional
Possible or probable situations.
🔹 Situaciones posibles o probables.
If it rains, I'll stay home. Unless you study, you'll fail.
Releer parece una actividad productiva, pero no es el método más eficaz. Es mejor cerrar la página e intentar recordar lo que acabas de estudiar. El esfuerzo de reconstruir el material de memoria favorece la retención a largo plazo.