There are only five forms of the verb in English: [1] base form, [2] the -s form (the third person singular present simple), [3] past form, [4] 3rd form (also known as the past participle or -ed participle) and [5] the -ing form (also known as the present participle).

see
sees
saw
seen
seeing

80% - 85% of academic and technical English is in the present, including passives
5% - 10% is in the past, including passives
5% is in every other tense/verb form (Source: Longman Grammar of Written and Spoken English)

English has both regular and irregular verbs:

	work	take
	works	takes
	worked	took
	worked	taken
	working	taking

English use verb tenses to indicate time. English has two tenses: present and past.

Whereas the past is only used to express the past ...

Apple developed the first iPhone between 2004 and 2007.

... the 3rd form (also known as the past participle or -ed participle) is used

with have to express past aspect: Apple has released several generations of iPhone since then. (between now and 2007)
with be to express the passive voice: The iPhone 6 was unveiled in September 2014.
to begin a clause: Launched in 2014, the iPhone 6 includes a faster processor and improved Wi-Fi connectivity.

English uses aspect to indicate how the time of action of the verb is regarded - e.g. whether it is complete, in progress or showing duration. English has four combinations of aspect: [1] simple, [2] continuous (or progressive), [3] perfect and [4] perfect continuous:

They work at the Particle Physics Research Group at the University of Bristol.
They are currently working on upgrades to the Large Hadron Collider (LHC).
They have worked on several similar projects.
They will have been working here for ten years, in June.

English makes use of passive and active to express how an action is viewed. Compare:

Apple unveiled the iPhone 6 in September 2014.
The iPhone 6 was unveiled in September 2014.

Notice in the second example how iPhone 6 becomes more important in the sentence and some information (the agent Apple) can be left out.

To refer to the future, English uses a wide range of words and phrases, including:

will
can, could, may, might, etc.
be to
be due to
be (un)likely to
be on the point of [-ing form]

...using the present simple, or the present continuous, with adverbials such as adverbs (currently), prepositional phrases (in the future), some nouns and noun phrases (today, this century), and some subordinate clauses (when demand reaches a certain level).

Test Yourself 1

Identify the main verb in the sentence. Type your answer in the box.

1. In 1762, Romney moved to London, leaving his wife and son behind, in what became a permanent, albeit amicable, separation.

2. Innocent, which markets itself as eco-friendly and distributes drinks in vans made to look like cows, sold an 18% minority stake to Coca Cola in 2009.

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3. It is necessary to focus on EAD's strategy for building on its strengths and selecting arenas for successful competition.

JXUwMDMxJXUwMDFh

4. Although there are some exceptions, this technological innovation is often due to new market entrants which can be disruptive to incumbents and even cause their demise.

JXUwMDMxJXUwMDFh

5. Being pro-active and transparent has the potential to increase brand loyalty.

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The English Verb