Main Entry: ¹tense

Pronunciation: \ˈten(t)s\

Function: noun

Etymology: Middle English tens time, tense, from Anglo-French, from Latin tempus

Date: 14th century

1 : a distinction of form in a verb to express distinctions of time or duration of the action or state it denotes
2 a : a set of inflectional forms of a verb that express distinctions of time b : an inflectional form of a verb expressing a specific time distinction