About the verb tense wheel
Spin for one of the 12 English verb tenses, then ask students to write or say a sentence in that tense. It’s a quick way to practice grammar in ESL classes and upper-elementary or middle school English.
Ways to use it
- Sentence-writing practice in a random tense.
- ESL speaking practice: answer a question in the tense.
- Pair it with the irregular verbs wheel for a harder challenge.
The 12 English tenses with "play"
Present: I play, I am playing, I have played, I have been playing. Past: I played, I was playing, I had played, I had been playing. Future: I will play, I will be playing, I will have played, I will have been playing. Each tense has a 1 in 12 chance on the wheel.
Tense practice games
Spin a tense and ask students to make a sentence about their weekend in it, or spin a tense and a verb (from the irregular verbs wheel) and write the form on mini whiteboards. A time marker game works well too: say "yesterday", "right now" or "by next year" and students choose the tense that fits.
What’s on this wheel (12)
- Simple present
- Present continuous
- Present perfect
- Present perfect continuous
- Simple past
- Past continuous
- Past perfect
- Past perfect continuous
- Simple future
- Future continuous
- Future perfect
- Future perfect continuous
Frequently asked questions
What are examples of each tense with "eat"?
I eat, I am eating, I have eaten, I have been eating; I ate, I was eating, I had eaten, I had been eating; I will eat, I will be eating, I will have eaten, I will have been eating.
Can I use only the simple tenses?
Yes. Delete the others and keep simple past, present and future for younger students.
Is the wheel really random?
Yes. The winner is chosen by your browser’s random number generator before the wheel starts turning, and every slice has the same chance.
Can I save or share my wheel?
Click "Save" to keep the wheel in My wheels in this browser, or "Share wheel" to copy a link that opens your exact list on any device.