express a simple truth (not limited in time)	present simple	She works very hard. My friend speaks four languages John lives in Berlin. I don't like dogs. Do you smoke?
express a world truth	present simple	Water freezes at 0° Celsius. Trees lose their leaves in autumn. Cats don't live as long as humans. Does wealth bring happiness?
express an intention about the future	going to	I'm going to be a teacher when I grow up. I'm going to try and learn 10 new words a day. She's going to buy a new computer as soon as she has enough money. What are you going to do tomorrow?
express an untrue or unlikely thought about the past (conditional 3)	past perfect	If I had known she was here, I would have called her. If I had had enough money, I would have bought you a better mp3 player. I wish I had studied for my exams. I would have been in big trouble if you hadn't helped me.
express an untrue or unlikely thought about the present (conditional 2)	past simple	If I had a lot of money, I'd buy a new car. If you bought an iPod, you wouldn't have to use mine. It would be better if you didn't do that!
express annoyance at repeated actions	present continuous	You are always interrupting me when I'm talking. My mother's always telling me to clean my room.
make a prediction about the future	will	The sun will rise at 6.30 tomorrow. You will be in trouble if you do that again. We will run out of oil by the end of the 21st century. Will you be here next week? I'm sure my parents won't let me go to the party.
refer to a future scheduled event	present simple	Hurry up! The train leaves in 10 minutes. The meeting starts at 2.45. My plane departs from Frankfurt at 5am and arrives in Seoul 14 hours later.
report words said in the present perfect	past perfect	I told her that I had never eaten sushi before. He said that he hadn't done his homework. I asked him if he had ever seen a ghost.
report words said in the present simple	past simple	She said she was 12 years old. ("I'm 12.") He said he could speak 5 languages. ("I can speak 5 languages.")
summarize the plot of a book or film	present simple	Romeo thinks that Juliet is dead and he kills himself. Frodo decides to leave his home and go in search of the ring.
talk about actions happening at some time in the past	past continuous	You phoned while I was having a bath. Sorry, I wasn't listening. Can you say it again please? What were you doing at 8 o'clock yesterday? . How fast was she driving when she had the accident? I threw my calculator away because it wasn't working properly
talk about future arrangements	present continuous	I'm meeting my sister in town tomorrow. I can't go to the dance next week. I'm playing tennis with John. I'm not going to the doctor after school today as planned. I feel much better.
talk about past events with a connection to the present	present perfect	I have lost my dictionary. Mary has fixed my computer. You haven't eaten very much. Don't you feel well? Have you seen my calculator?
talk about the past in the past	past perfect	I arrived very late at the party. All my friends had already gone home. As soon as she had done her homework, she went to bed. I was very hungry because I hadn't eaten lunch. Had you seen the film before?
talk about the past using a word of unfinished time	present perfect	I've lived in Germany since 1986. He's had a lot of bad luck recently. I haven't seen my mother for 2 months. Have you ever seen a ghost? Has she lived here all her life?
talk about things happening now	present continuous	I can't come now; I'm doing my homework. Look! Someone is trying to break into your locker. Your work is getting better and better. It isn't raining any more. Why are you talking? You should be listening to me?
talk about things that happen regularly/repeatedly	present simple	I always clean my teeth before breakfast. Once a week I play golf with my brother.
talk about what happened in the past (finished time)	past simple	I came to Germany two years ago. Italy won the World Cup in 2006. I didn't see you in school yesterday. Did you like the film? Why didn't you do your homework?
tell a joke or retell past events in a such way as to make them seem more interesting	present simple	A man walks into a bar and orders 5 glasses of beer .. So I go up to him and knock his hat off ..
use a verb of mental processes or senses	present simple	I know the answer. I don't believe you. This cheese tastes strange. Do you smell something funny?