Correct inappropriate shifts in verb tense

Key Notes :

🎯 The tense of a verb tells when the action takes place. Do not shift tenses within or between sentences unless you need to reflect a time change.

  • Rachel grabbed the microphone and speaks spoke to the crowd.
  • There is no need to reflect a time change, so both verbs should be in the same tense.

Learn with an example

👉 Fix the verb that doesn’t match the tense of the verb in bold.


👉 Lucy challenged Tommy to the match, but he scores more points in the end.

  • Look at the verb in bold, challenged. It is in the past tense.
  • The other verb, scores, is in the present tense. Change scores to its past-tense form, scored.

👉 Fix the verb that doesn’t match the tense of the verb in bold.


👉 Whenever Nina gets the ball, her team cheered wildly.

  • Look at the verb in bold, gets. It is in the present tense.
  • The other verb, cheered, is in the past tense. Change cheered to its present-tense form, cheers.

👉 Fix the verb that doesn’t match the tense of the verb in bold.


👉 Frank always forgets the take the rubbish out, so each week his wife dragged the bin to the kerb.

  • Look at the verb in bold, forgets. It is in the present tense.
  • The other verb, dragged, is in the past tense. Change dragged to its present-tense form, drags.

Let’s practice!🖊️