Verb Phrases & Tenses

Verb phrases
A verb phrase contains verbs which can be lexical, auxiliary, or modal. The head is the first verb in the verb phrase.
Example:
"I didn't notice Rowen around tonight," remarked Don, as they began to prepare for bed. "Might have been sulking in his tent," grinned Terry." Here, the verb phrase "might have been sulking" has the form "modal-auxiliary-auxiliary-lexical."

A verb phrase contains the following optional features:
A modal verb (e.g., will)
The verb have to express perfect aspect
The verb be to express progressive aspect
The verb be to express passive voice

The modal comes first, then the auxiliary or several auxiliaries, and finally the lexical (main) verb.When a verb phrase has a combination of modal and auxiliaries, it is constituted usually in the following order: modal verb >> perfect have >> progressive be >> passive be >> Lexical verb.Whichever verbs are used in the verb phrase, the first verb is conjugated for tense, person and number.

The following table shows the different collections of these features being used.

Tense

Verb phrases can vary with tense, in which case they are called "tensed verb phrases."

Example:
"They have accomplished a lot this year, but they accomplished even more last year."

There are several non-finite constructions as well:
The infinitive phrase with "to".
Examples:
"Did you see her, chief—did you get a glimpse of her pleasant countenance, or come close enough to her ear, to sing in it the song she loves to hear?"
"She got so she could tell big stories herself from listening to the rest. Because she loved to hear it, and the men loved to hear themselves, they would 'woof' and 'boogerboo' around the games to the limit."
Constructions with the "-ing" form, called the gerund or present participle.
Examples:
"From the very beginning, Coltrane was an indefatigable worker at his saxophone spending hours upon hours practicing every day."
"By assuming a good position and by practicing every day he will in time acquire a feeling and an appearance of ease before people."

The time frame of a non-tensed verb phrase is determined by examining that of the main clause verb.
For example
in the first example above the time frame (past) of "practicing" is determined by "was" in the main clause; in the second, the time frame (present and future) of "practicing" is determined by "will in time," also in the main clause.