Next CSE-PPT: 14 March 2027 · Professional & Subprofessional
Civil Service Exam verbal ability reviewer on English verb tenses and forms: simple, continuous and perfect tenses, irregular verbs, conditionals, active and passive voice and reported speech.
Choosing the right verb form is at the heart of many sentence completion and error recognition items in the Civil Service Exam. This set practises the present, past and future tenses in their simple, continuous and perfect forms, irregular verbs, conditionals, the passive voice and reported speech.
Look for time clues in each sentence, such as "yesterday", "since 2020", "by next month" or "every day". They usually tell you exactly which tense is needed, as each explanation shows.
Correct answer: D. has worked
"Since 2020" connects the past to the present, so the present perfect "has worked" is needed. The simple past "worked" would suggest she no longer works there.
Read detailsCorrect answer: A. approved
"Yesterday" refers to a finished time in the past, so the simple past "approved" is correct. The present perfect is not used with a specific past time such as "yesterday".
Read detailsCorrect answer: D. will have completed
"By next month" points to an action finished before a future time, which calls for the future perfect "will have completed".
Read detailsCorrect answer: C. had already moved
The past perfect "had already moved" shows an action completed before another past event (the typhoon hit). It makes the order of the two past events clear.
Read detailsCorrect answer: B. opens
Habits and regular schedules take the simple present. "The office" is singular, so the verb takes -s: "opens". "Every weekday" is the time clue.
Read detailsCorrect answer: D. is checking
"Right now" and "Look!" show an action in progress, so the present continuous "is checking" is correct. The simple present "checks" would describe a habit, such as "The clerk checks documents every morning."
Read detailsCorrect answer: A. Chose
"Choose" is irregular: choose (present), chose (past), chosen (past participle). "Choosed" is a common error. Example: "She chose the Professional level."
Read detailsCorrect answer: C. Begun
"Begin" follows the pattern begin – began – begun, like swim – swam – swum and sing – sang – sung. The past participle is used with "have": "The exam has begun."
Read detailsCorrect answer: A. will be
A real possible condition about the future uses the present tense in the if-clause ("rains") and "will" in the result clause: "will be postponed".
Read detailsCorrect answer: B. had
An unreal or imaginary present condition uses the past tense in the if-clause ("had") and "would" in the result clause. The speaker does not actually have more time.
Read detailsCorrect answer: D. would have passed
An unreal past condition (she did not study harder) uses "had + past participle" in the if-clause and "would have + past participle" in the result clause.
Read detailsCorrect answer: C. The ordinance was signed by the mayor.
In the passive voice, the object becomes the subject and the verb becomes "be + past participle" in the same tense. "Signed" is past, so it becomes "was signed".
Read detailsCorrect answer: A. The forms will be distributed by the staff.
The future active "will distribute" becomes the future passive "will be distributed". The tense must stay the same when changing voice.
Read detailsCorrect answer: B. She said that she was preparing the report.
In reported speech after a past reporting verb, the present continuous "am preparing" usually shifts back to the past continuous "was preparing", and "I" becomes "she".
Read detailsCorrect answer: A. is
"Neither" is singular, so it takes "is". The plural noun "reports" in the phrase "of the reports" does not change the subject.
Read detailsCorrect answer: C. goes
A habitual action ("every day") takes the simple present, and the third-person singular subject "he" needs the -es ending: "goes".
Read detailsCorrect answer: C. had been filed
The filing was completed before another past event (the auditor's arrival), so the past perfect passive "had been filed" is correct.
Read detailsCorrect answer: B. hearing
In "look forward to", "to" is a preposition, so it is followed by a gerund (-ing form): "look forward to hearing". This phrase is common in formal letters.
Read detailsCorrect answer: B. moving
The verb "suggest" is followed by a gerund, not an infinitive: "suggested moving". "Suggested to move" is a common error.
Read detailsCorrect answer: D. took
"Last month" places the action in the past, so the simple past "took" is needed. The past participle "taken" must follow a helping verb such as "have" or "were".
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