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Question
What has been the situation of your village/town/city five to ten years ago and how has it changed since then? Write a short paragraph describing the changes in its size, population, traftlc, buildings, lifestyle etc. Which verb forms would you mainly use to describe the changes? (Hint: Simple Past and Present Perfect forms.)
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Solution
How has our city changed ?
Our city has greatly changed now. Ten years ago it had a population of eight lakhs. Now it has around fiftee to twenty. There used to be a few thousand cars then. Now every street or road has as many cars as are human beings. There were no new colonies. Now it has several sectors and new multiplexes. Almost everywhere there is a continuous construction activity. Malls, air conditioned showrooms, etc, were just absent then. Now there is an enormity of them. The traffic has increased manifold as has the city’s size. It has swallowed the agricultural land that it once had around it. Almost everywhere one can see a variety of traffic like cars, buses, trucks, tractors, auto-rickshaws and rickshaws. Now the crowd and traffic jams add to the chaos on city roads. This way there is always a great hustle and bustle almost everywhere with enormous growth of the city’s population. No doubt, people’s standard of living has increased with a healthy lifestyle. They are now awakened towards the healthcare trends through yoga, jogging, walking etc.
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RELATED QUESTIONS
Let us begin by studying the relationship between the different verb forms and the time they denote.
Work individually
Indicate the tense and time of each of the highlighted verbs in the table below.
The first has been done as an example.
| Sentence | Tense | Time | |
| 1. | We are planning to go out for a picnic tomorrow. | Present | Future |
| 2. | India has made tremendous progress in the past few decades. |
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| 3. | It has been raining since morning. | ||
| 4. | Could you please send your e-mail address as soon as possible? |
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| 5. | The train must have reached Delhi by now. |
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| 6. | It always rains in July here. | ||
| 7. | Cold wave intensifies further. (A news headline) |
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| 8. | He was playing here a minute ago. | ||
| 9. | She won the Student of the Year award last year. |
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| 10. | All incomplete forms will be rejected. |
Form
• Have/has+ past participle
• Have/ has+ been + past participle
Work individually
Complete the following sentences by using the present perfect form (as
given in C.l)ofthe given verbs.
a) The kids (work) really hard for the show. Now, don't cancel it, please.
b) Yippyl I (select) for the interschool dance competition!
c) I ... (contest) five elections so far.
d) John? 0, he is a delightful boy. I (know) him since his childhood.
e) ... you ever (be) to the Taj Mahal?
• The box below shows different uses or meanings of the present perfect. Match the sentences above with the uses or meanings of the present perfect they illustrate.
i) Something that has happened several times up to the present.
ii) Announcement or news of a recent event.
iii) Finished event connected with the present.
iv) An action or situation that has continued up to the present.
v} Finished event at some/ any time up to now.
Answer: i - c; ii - b; iii - a; iv - d; v - e

- S + is/am/are + verb + ing
- S + is/am/are + not + verb + ing.
- Is/am/are + S + verb + ing?
- S + is/am/are + being + Verb (past participle)
Present Perfect vs. Simple Past
b. What conclusion can you draw from these sentences about the use of present perfect and simple past forms of verbs?
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As Susie, write a reply to Nikita's letter. Do take care to answer all the
questions Nikita has asked you. What verb forms would you like to use?
Milan
25th October, 2011
Dear Nikita
.............................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................
Yours
Susie
Now write short paragraphs to describe the trends in the other groups of visitors featured in the graph.
• Overseas Visitors
....................................................
....................................................
• Domestic Visitors
....................................................
....................................................
• Total Number ofVisitors
....................................................
....................................................
Read this sentence.
M. Hamel had said that he would question us on participles.
In the sentence above, the verb form “had said” in the first part is used to indicate an “earlier past.” The whole story is narrated in the past. M. Hamel’s “saying” happened earlier than the events in this story. This form of the verb is called the past perfect.
Pick out five sentences from the story with this form of verb and say why this form has been used.
Name the Tense of the Verb underlined to include Time (Past/Present/Future) and Aspect (Simple/Continuous/Perfect/Perfect Continuous).
You haven’t found it.
Name the Tense of the Verb underlined to include Time (Past/Present/Future) and Aspect (Simple/Continuous/Perfect/Perfect Continuous).
I am fine, now.
Name the Tense of the Verb underlined to include Time (Past/Present/Future) and Aspect (Simple/Continuous/Perfect/Perfect Continuous).
I shall be telling you three stories.
Change the Tense as instructed.
I started the company. (Present Continuous)
Observe the following underlined phrases. Here ‘have/has’ are followed by the past participle form of the verb. This construction indicates the present perfect tense. Find more such sentences from the text.
- We have made progress in the last couple of decades.
- We have prevented millions of child deaths.
- It has happened.
Rewrite the sentence as per the instruction given along with it.
The mother langur looked straight into my eyes.
(Rewrite the sentence in the Simple Present Tense)
Rewrite the sentence as per the instruction given along with it.
I took the baby langur to our backyard.
(Rewrite the sentence in the Past Perfect Tense)
Rewrite the sentence as per the instruction given along with it.
She simply sat there quietly.
(Rewrite the sentence in the Present Continuous Tense)
Underline the verb and choose the correct option from the options.
They are sportsmen.
(singular/plural)
Identify the type of sentence:
What a big challenge it is!
Rewrite the sentences in present perfect tense:
I had been working for Anil for almost a month.
Rewrite the sentence in the simple present tense.
He will go to the school.
