3 Facts On Use Of Reduce In Tense(Present, Past And Future)

A verb is a word that represents an action by expressing the act’s time of occurrence through the use of tense. We will learn how “reduce” is used in all tenses in this article.

Reduce” means to make something less, small, or low in size, quality, cost, importance, value, status, condition, rank etc., to change to a less complicated form, to simplify, and to lose weight. ‘Reduce(s),’ ‘reduced,’ and ‘will reduce’ are the simple forms of “reduce” in the present, past, and future tense.

We will examine how the word “reduce” is used in all of its tenses and forms to refer to the time frame in which the above-stated activities occur.

“Reduce” in present tense

The present tense refers to any action that might have begun in the past but is occurring now or happens often. We will learn to apply “reduce” in all present tense variations.

The verb “reduce” can be used in a variety of ways in the present tense, including “reduce,” ‘reduces,’ ‘has/have reduced,’  ‘is/am/are reducing,’ and ‘has/have been reducing,’ in order, for the simple present, present perfect, present continuous, and present perfect continuous forms.

When is “reduce” used in the present tense?

The present tense of the verb “reduce” is used to denote actions that are currently occurring or frequently occurring, such as making something low, less, or small in quantity, quality, size, cost, condition, rank, status, etc., simplifying, changing to a different or less complicated form and losing weight.

Examples of “reduce” in the present tense

ExamplesExplanations
a. I/we reduce the speed of my/our vehicle whenever there is a heavy vehicle in front of me/us.
 
b. You reduce the speed of your vehicle whenever there is a heavy vehicle in front of you.
 
c. Sheetal reduces the speed of her vehicle whenever there is a heavy vehicle in front of her.
 
d. They reduce the speed of their vehicle whenever there is a heavy vehicle in front of them.
Both the simple present tense forms of the verb “reduce,” ‘reduce’ and ‘reduces,’ are employed in these lines. An ‘s’ is added as an inflectional element to the basic verb. The verbs “reduce” and ‘reduces’ are used in these example sentences to denote that whenever (always, frequently, regularly) the subject sees a heavy vehicle in front, decreases or lowers (happens always) the speed of his, their, or her vehicle.
a. I am reducing the cost of the course so that many students can afford and benefit from it. 
 
b. We are reducing the cost of the course so that many students can afford and benefit from it.
 
c. You are reducing the cost of the course so that many students can afford and benefit from it.
 
d. The management is reducing the cost of the course so that many students can afford and benefit from it.
 
e. They are reducing the cost of the course so that many students can afford and benefit from it.
In these instances, the verb “reduce,” as in ‘am/is/are reducing,’ is used to convey the present continuous tense by adding the suffix ‘-ing’ to the original (root) verb. The present continuous form of the verb “reduce” is thus ‘reducing,’ which denotes that the subject is currently (presently occurring at that precise moment) lowering the cost of the course so that many students can afford and befit from it.  
a. I/we have reduced weight through regular exercise, yoga and a healthy diet.
 
b. You have reduced weight through regular exercise, yoga and a healthy diet.
 
c. Surendar has reduced weight through regular exercise, yoga and a healthy diet.
   
d. The siblings have reduced weight through regular exercise, yoga and a healthy diet.
The verb tenses ‘has reduced’ and ‘have reduced’ are in the present perfect tense in these contexts. The present perfect tense, that is formed using the past participle of the primary verb “reduce,” ‘reduced,’ explains the subject’s action of losing weight through regular exercise, yoga and a healthy diet. The act of losing weight began in the past but is still having an impact on the subject.
a. Since last month, I/we have been reducing the costs of production gradually.
 
b. Since last month, you have been reducing the costs of production gradually.
 
c. Since last month, Srikanth has been reducing the costs of production gradually.
 
d. Since last month, the employers have been reducing the costs of production gradually.
In these statements, the action verb “reduce” is employed in the present perfect continuous tense, as in ‘has/have been reducing.’ According to the present perfect continuous form, in these cases, the subject has been continuously lowering or decreasing the costs of production gradually since last month – beginning from the previous month (past) and is still going on (present).
Usage Of “Reduce” In The Present Tense Forms

“Reduce” in past tense

Any activity that began and ended in the past—before this time or right now is said to be in the past tense. We will analyze the past tense forms of the verb “reduce” in this part.

The verb “reduce” has a number of different forms in the past tense, including ‘reduced,’ ‘had reduced,’ ‘was/were reducing,’ and ‘had been reducing,’ in the simple past, past perfect, past continuous, and past perfect continuous forms respectively.

When is “reduce” used in the past tense?

The past tense of the verb “reduce” is used to show the activities of losing weight, making something small, less, or low in quantity, quality, cost, size, condition, importance, rank, status, etc., changing to a different or less complicated form and simplifying, that have already been done, over, or completed.

Examples of “reduce” in the past tense

ExamplesExplanations
a. I/we reduced the speed of the fan as it was a windy day.  
 
b. You reduced the speed of the fan as it was a windy day.  
 
c. She/they reduced the speed of the fan as it was a windy day.  
In these instances, the verb “reduce” becomes ‘reduced’ with the addition of the suffix ‘-ed’ to it. These sentences use the simple past tense to emphasize that the subject lowered (happened in the past) the speed of the fan as it was a windy day (someday in the past).
a. I was reducing the already existing workforce of my firm when Varun applied for the job last year.
 
b. We were reducing the already existing workforce of our firm when Varun applied for the job last year.
 
c. You were reducing the already existing workforce of your firm when Varun applied for the job last year.
 
d. Balaji was reducing the already existing workforce of his firm when Varun applied for the job last year.
 
e. They were reducing the already existing workforce of their firm when Varun applied for the job last year.
The suffix ‘-ing’ modifies the action word (verb) “reduce” in these lines. The past continuous form of the core (base) verb “reduce” is ‘was/were reducing.’ Here in these given sentences, the past continuous form is employed to demonstrate that the subject was decreasing (laying off) the already existing workforce. The act of laying off was continuing to happen when Varun applied for the job last year (the previous year-past).
a. I/We/You/She/ they had reduced the spices in the dishes when Miya came for dinner as she didn’t like spicy food.   The supporting (helping) verb ‘had’ is joined to the participle of the basic verb “reduce” to create the past perfect tense. This sentence’s usage of the past perfect tense, ‘had reduced,’ suggests that the subject added less quantity of spices in the dishes when Miya came for dinner as she did not like spicy food (both the actions took place in the past).
a. I/We/You/She/They had been reducing the prices of the products even when faced with a heavy loss.   The verb form ‘had been reducing’ is in the past perfect continuous tense in this sentence. According to the past perfect continuous form used in this example phrase, the subject was decreasing the prices of the products (was happening) even when faced with a heavy loss.
Usage Of “Reduce” In The Past Tense Forms

“Reduce” in future tense

The future tense refers to any event that will start and finish in the future at a time after right now. We will discuss about how to use the verb “reduce” in future tense forms.

In the future tense, the verb “reduce” can have several forms, such as ‘will reduce,’ ‘had reduced,’ ‘will be reducing,’ and ‘will have been reducing’ for the simple future, future perfect, future continuous, and future perfect continuous.

When is “reduce” used in the future tense?

The future tense of the verb “reduce” is used to denote acts that have not yet taken place but will eventually do so, such as losing weight, changing to a different or less complicated form, simplifying, or making something small, less, or low in quantity, quality, cost, size, condition, importance, rank, status, etc.

Examples of “reduce” in the future tense

ExamplesExplanations
a. I/We/You/he/They will reduce the volume of the song while I/we/you/he/they practise so that nobody will be disturbed.        The basic verb “reduce” in this line is rendered as ‘will reduce’ by adding the modal auxiliary ‘will’ in order to create the future tense. According to the simple future tense form ‘will reduce,’ the subject has not yet indulged in the act of decreasing the volume of the song but will do so when he, she, or they practice so that no one will be disturbed.
a. I/we/you/he/they will be reducing the new product’s supply in the upcoming weeks to create demand among the target audience.The future continuous tense form of the action word “reduce,” which is employed in this example to mean ‘will be decreasing,’ indicates that the action has not yet taken place. It’s clear from this sentence’s use of the future continuous tense that the subject will be lowering the supply of the new product in the upcoming weeks (in the weeks yet to come) to create demand among the target audience.
a. I/We/You//she/They will have reduced the team’s scores by this time tomorrow if they don’t apologize for their mistakes.The verb ‘will have reduced’ is used in place of the basic action term (verb) “reduce” in the future perfect tense. This example makes use of it to suggest that by this time tomorrow (the following day), the subject will decrease the scores of the team if they don’t apologize for their mistakes (both the actions of reducing the scores and apologizing have not yet occurred).
a. If it continues this way, I/we/you/he/they will have been reducing the salary of the employees very soon as a part of the cost cut.    The future perfect continuous form of the verb “reduce” is ‘will have been reducing.’ Its usage suggests that if it continues this way, then the subject will have been lowering the salary of the employees very soon (a time which is in the near future) as a part of the cost cut.  
Usage Of “Reduce” In The Future Tense Forms

Conclusion

This article looks at how to employ the action word (verb) “reduce” in all tenses (past, present, and future), including the simple, continuous, perfect continuous, and perfect forms, to communicate different meanings.