tense (noun): a verb-based method used to indicate the time, and sometimes the continuation or completeness, of an action or state in relation to the time of speaking. ORIGIN Latin tempus "time" The concept of tense in English is a method that we use to refer to time - past, present and future. Many languages use tense to talk about time.

Grammar tenses refer to the state of the verb. The state, or tense, of the verb explains the time of the action. There are three major tenses in English. These include past, present, and future. Each of these tenses can explain an event that occurred in the past, an event that occurs in the present, or an event that will occur in the future.