The three tenses represent the actions of verbs at different times. We can use the verb “keep’’ in different tense forms. Now, we will explore how it acts in various tenses.
We make “keep” “keeps” by adding the “s” while framing a sentence having the third person and singular number subject. The present participle form is “keeping” which helps to frame continuous tense. “Kept” is the 2nd and 3rd form. We can use “keep’’ in all the different types of present, past, and future tenses.
Now, let us see the explanations of the roles of “keep” in different forms of three tenses.
“Keep’’ in the present tense.
The verb “keep’’ is used in the present tense in the forms “keep’’, “keeps’’, and “keeping’’. Now, we will learn its usage in the present tense.
The verb “keep’’ is used in the present tense to refer to the action of remaining in the same place or situation and we have not changed its position.
When can we use “keep’’ in the present tense?
When there is a need to present the action putting us in a position we must use “keep’’. It is also used when we refer to staying in a place without changing our position.
Structure or pattern sentence with “keep’’ in the present tense-
| Type of present tense | Rule of forming sentence with “keep’’ in the present tense |
| 1. Present indefinite tense/ Simple present tense | (i) Subject + keep/keeps + object + remaining part (assertive sentence) (ii) Do/dos + subject + keep + object + remaining part +? ( interrogative sentence) |
| 2. Present continuous tense/ Present progressive tense | (I) Subject + am/is/are + keeping + object + remaining portion(descriptive sentence) (ii) Am/is/are + subject + keeping + object + rest of the sentence +?(asking question) |
| 3. Present perfect tense | a. Subject + have/has kept (past participle form) + object + rest (describing sentence) |
| 4. Present perfect continuous tense/ Present perfect progressive tense | a. Subject + have/has been keeping + object + rest (describing sentence) b. Have/has + subject + been hurting + object + rest of the sentence +?(question) |
Examples and explanations of “keep’’ in the present tense-
| Type of present tense | Example | Explanation |
| 1. Present indefinite tense/ Simple present tense | My parents keep on telling my sister what she will do in the program. | Here the verb “keep’’ is used to show the remaining of my parents in a way to tell my sister what she will do in the event. |
| 2. Present continuous tense/ Present progressive tense | David is keeping the books on the bookshelf in his drawing room. | The term “is keeping’’ is used to form the ongoing action in which it is seen David is putting the books in the places of a shelf in the drawing room. |
| 3. Present perfect tense | Have you kept the rules of the class while writing in the exercise book? | Here we come to know that a question has been formed whether you have maintained the rules of the class at the time of writing. |
| 4. Present perfect continuous tense/ Present perfect progressive tense | My mother has been keeping the vegetables in the basket for an hour. | In this case, we see that the verb “has been keeping’’ helps us to know the action of the ongoing situation in the present time. |
“Keep’’ in the past tense.
A past tense has the function to present us with happenings of the past. Here we will have a justification for the function of “keep’’ in the past tense.
The action word “keep’’ can be applied in the form “kept” in the past tense to represent the action of putting a thing or remaining in a situation or position without removing it before.
When to use “keep’’ in the past tense?
We apply the irregular verb “keep’’ in a sentence when we have some wish to indicate the retaining of holding one’s possession in the past. We must use kept/keeping along with was/were, had, had been to refer to holding one’s own position.
Sentence structure or formation with “keep’’ in the past tense-
| Type of past tense | Rules of making a sentence with the verb “keep’’ in the past tense |
| 1. Past indefinite tense/ Simple past tense | a. Subject + kept + object + rest of the sentence (assertive sentence) b. Did + subject +keep + object + remaining portion +? (question) |
| 2. Past continuous tense/ Past progressive tense | a. Subject + was/were keeping + object + remaining part of the sentence (declarative sentence) b. Was/were + subject + keeping + object + remaining part of the sentence +?(interrogative sentence) |
| 3. Past perfect tense | a. Subject + had + kept (past participle form) + object + rest of the sentence(assertive or declarative sentence) b. Had+ subject + kept + remaining portion +? (to form question) |
| 4. Past perfect continuous tense/ past progressive tense | a. Subject + had + been + keeping + object + rest (assertive sentence) b. Had + subject + been + keeping + object + rest +? (for question-making) |
Examples and explanations of “keep’’ in the past tense-
| Type of past tense | Example | Explanation |
| 1. Past indefinite tense/ Simple past tense | The companies kept detailed records of the transactions for the previous years. | Here we have seen that the verb “kept’’ has been used to show an act of putting the records of a company in the past. |
| 2. Past continuous tense/ Past progressive tense | My friends were keeping a limited budget for arranging a picnic. | In this sentence, the verb “were keeping’’ maintains to manage a formation of a continuous action of keeping the limited budget. |
| 3. Past perfect tense | Moumita had kept her promise before her friends could blame her. | Here the verb “kept’’ along with had shows us the construction of action in the past. Moumita’s keeping her promise had been done before her friends could understand it. |
| 4. Past perfect continuous tense/ Past perfect progressive tense | Rahim had been keeping the expenditure of his family at twenty thousand rupees per week for the last five years. | It is obvious to the fact that the verb “keeping’’ has shown its activity of keeping the expenditure of a family for some period of time. |
“Keep’’ in the future tense.
The future tense is another form of tense in which the verbs refer to future works. Let us get an explanation of the application of how “keep’’ acts in the future tense.
The usage of the verb “keep’’ in the future tense shows that something or someone will stay in a state, position, or place without changing or moving.
When do we use “keep’’ in the future tense?
We use the verb “keep’’ along with shall/will is used to display in the future tense when we need to mention someone or something will continue doing something without removing from the place.
Sentence structure with the verb “keep’’ in the future tense-
| Type of future tense | How to form a sentence with “keep’’ in the future tense |
| 1. Future indefinite tense/ Simple future tense | a. Subject + shall/will keep + object + remaining part(assertive sentence) b. Shall/will + subject + keep + object + remaining part +?(interrogative sentence) |
| 2. Future continuous tense/ Future progressive tense | a. Subject + shall/will be keeping + object + remaining part(declarative sentence) b. Shall/will + subject + be keeping + object + remaining part+?(question) |
| 3. Future perfect tense | a. Subject + shall/will + have + hurt + object + remaining part (assertive sentence) b. Shall/will + subject + have hurt + object + remaining part +?(question making sentence) |
| 4. Future perfect continuous tense/ Future perfect progressive tense | a. Subject + shall/will +have + been + hurting + object + remaining part(assertive sentence) b. Shall + will + subject + have + been + hurting + object + remaining part +?(making sentence question) |
Examples and examples of “keep’’ in the future tense-
| Type of future tense | Example | Explanation |
| 1. Future indefinite tense/ Simple future tense | Lalkamal will keep up the prestige of her family with her bright performance in the competition. | Here it is seen that the verb “will keep’’ is used to give us an example of making the family a bright one with the performance in a general sense. |
| 2. Future continuous tense/ Future progressive tense | The visitors will be keeping their luggage in boxes. | We see that the question format is stated if the visitors will keep their luggage on the balcony. |
| 3. Future perfect tense | Gouri will have kept the garlands on the table for the worship. | In this sentence, the verb “will have kept’’ has constructed a sentence to provide us with the sense that Gouri will have put the garlands on the table in the future. |
| 4. Future perfect continuous tense/ Future perfect progressive tense | The students will have been keeping the standard of their institution for some years. | We get the instance in the example that the verb “will have been keeping’’ has made a sentence in the progressive form in which we find that the pupils of the school will be going to honor their school with their excellent performance for a certain period. |
Conclusion
After the above discussion, we may say that we can frame phrases with the verb “keep’’ such as “keep at it’’, “keep going’’, “keep something to yourself’’, and “keep yourself to yourself’’, etc. We are certain in framing phrasal verbs like “keep away’’, “keep up’’, “keep down’’, “keep on’’, “keep out’’, etc.
Hi…. I am Goutam Datta. I have completed a double M. A. in English and B. Ed. I am a creative writer. Currently, I am a part of the LambdaGeeks.