define ATM ( tense,aspects,mood) and explain various types of tenses with appropriate examples

ATM in the context of language studies stands for Aspect, Tense, and Mood. These are grammatical categories that express how an action, event, or state, denoted by a verb, relates to the flow of time.

1. Aspect: This is a grammatical category that deals with the temporal flow of an event or situation. It's about the 'internal time' of an event or state - whether it's seen as a whole, or as something happening over time. There are two main types of aspects: perfective (viewing the action as a complete whole) and imperfective (viewing the action as an ongoing process). For example, "I have eaten" (perfective) vs "I was eating" (imperfective).

2. Tense: This is a grammatical category that locates a situation in time, to indicate when the situation takes place. In English, there are three basic tenses: past, present, and future. For example, "I ate" (past), "I eat" (present), "I will eat" (future).

3. Mood: This is a grammatical category that expresses modality, that is, whether the action or state it denotes is a fact, a command, a possibility, a necessity, etc. In English, there are three moods: indicative (stating a fact), imperative (giving a command), and subjunctive (expressing a hypothetical situation, a wish, a supposition). For example, "I am a student" (indicative), "Be quiet!" (imperative), "If I were rich, I would travel the world" (subjunctive).

Now, let's look at the various types of tenses:

1. Simple Tenses:

   • Present Simple: Expresses a fact or a habitual action. For example, "I play tennis every weekend."
   • Past Simple: Describes an action that happened and finished in the past. For example, "I visited Paris last year."
   • Future Simple: Talks about an action that will happen in the future. For example, "I will start a new job next week."

2. Continuous (or Progressive) Tenses:

   • Present Continuous: Describes an ongoing action happening right now. For example, "I am reading a book."
   • Past Continuous: Describes an ongoing action that was happening at a specific moment in the past. For example, "I was cooking when you called."
   • Future Continuous: Describes an ongoing action that will be happening in the future. For example, "I will be studying when you arrive."

3. Perfect Tenses:

   • Present Perfect: Describes an action that happened at an unspecified time before now. For example, "I have visited France."
   • Past Perfect: Describes an action that took place before another action in the past. For example, "I had already eaten when he arrived."
   • Future Perfect: Describes an action that will have been completed by a certain point in the future. For example, "By the time you arrive, I will have finished cooking."

4. Perfect Continuous Tenses:

   • Present Perfect Continuous: Describes an action that started in the past and is still continuing or has just finished. For example, "I have been reading for two hours."
   • Past Perfect Continuous: Describes an action that was happening continuously in the past until another action interrupted it. For example, "I had been studying for three hours when he called."
   • Future Perfect Continuous: Describes an action that will start in the future and continue up to a point in the future. For example, "I will have been working for six hours by the time you arrive."