The Simple Present
The simple present tense
- its form
- and its use.
Before
you continue the lesson read the following passage and try to see how
the verbs are formed and used.
James
is a taxi driver. He drives
a taxi. But on Sundays he doesn't drive his
taxi. He stays at home. The verb be, drive, stay are in the simple present. (more on the simple present of the verb to be) |
The forms of the simple present
The affirmative form of the simple present:
-
I, you, we, they
play.
He, she, it
plays.
Remember the verbs in the third person singular (he,she and
it) always take an "s". For example, "he plays,
she sings,it works..."
Examples:
The interrogative form of the simple present:
-
Do
I, you, we, they
play?
Does
he, she, it
Examples:
- Do you speak good German?
- Does Nancy work in a restaurant downtown?
The negative form of the simple present:
-
I, you, we,they
do not
play.
don't
He, she, it
does not
Examples:
- No, I don't speak German.
- No, she doesn't work in a restaurant downtown
The use of the simple present:
The
simple present is used:
- to talk about schedules - The library opens at eight. It doesn't open at 7.
- to give facts - The earth circles the sun. The moon doesn't circle the sun.
The spelling of the third person singular form of the simple present:
All
the verbs take an "s" in the simple present when conjugated
in the third person singular (he, she, it) form:
Examples:
- My brother meets his girlfriend everyday.
So
the rule is:
-
He / she / it + Verb + S
Examples:
- She drives to work every morning.
Exception:
- The verb to have changes its forms as follows:
I have two sisters and two brothers. But she has one sister and two brothers.
I have = he / she / it has
Things to remember about the simple present:
1.In
the interrogative forms, we use "do" or "does".
- "Do you like the house?"
- "Does she go to school?"
2;
Verbs never take an "s" in the the negative and
interrogative forms.
- "Does he speak German?"
- "Do they play soccer?"
- She doesn't like ice cream.
- I do not speak Italian, or
- I don't speak Italian.
4.doesn't
is the short form of "does not". you can say either:
Grammar Exercises - Simple Present
Do the exercises below on the simple present and click on the answers button to check your answers.
(Before
doing the exercises you may want to read the lesson on the
simple present )
Choose the correct form of the following verbs:
wake(s) up - open(s) - speak(s) - take(s) -
do(es) - cause(s) - live(s) - play(s) - close(s) - live(s)
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