What is simple present tense?

Simple present tense is a grammatical tense that is used to talk about daily activities and habits in general.

It usually refers to our daily routine; things that we regularly do in our life.

It is the first tense in the group of other present tenses that have a relation with the present time. These tenses are in order: Present Continuous tense, present perfect simple and present perfect continuous.

All verbs in these tenses are conjugated in four forms:

1. Affirmative Form
2. Negative Form
3. Interrogative Form
4. Interro-negative form

Adverbs used with simple present tense

There is a number of adverbs that can be used with the simple present tense. They add more information about the frequency of the action.

These adverbs of frequency are: always – usually – often – sometimes – rarely – never

Examples:

• Affirmative form:

I always go to school on foot.

He/she sometimes meets his/her friends at the cafe.

We/they often play football in the university campus.

• Negative form:

I do not always go to school by bus.

He/she does not speak Spanish.

We/they do not study Hebrew language at school.

• Interrogative form:

Do you always go to school on foot?

Does he/she speak Chinese?

Do we/they do our/their work every day?

• Interro-negative form:

Do you not usually go to school on foot? (Don’t you usually go to school on foot?)

Does he/she not speak English? (Doesn’t he/she speak English?)

Do we/they not do our/their work every day? (Don’t we/they do our/their work every day?)

The auxiliary “do” for simple present tense

In English grammar, there are three major auxiliaries: do – be – have

Each one is for specific tenses. For example:

The auxiliary do is used with: simple present tense and simple past tense only (it always appears in the negative form, the interrogative form and the interro-negative form as illustrated in the examples above).

The auxiliary be is always used with: present continuous, past continuous, future continuous, present perfect continuous, past perfect continuous, and future perfect continuous.

The auxiliary have is used with: present perfect simple, present perfect continuous, past perfect simple, past perfect continuous, future perfect simple, future perfect continuous.

The addition of ‘-s’ or ‘-es’ with verbs in the third person singular

In simple present tense, verbs in the third person singular take either ‘-s’ or ‘-es’.

For example:

• Verbs like: speak, write, like, listen, swim, talk, walk …. BECOME [ speaks, writes, likes, listens, swims, talks, walks…. ]
• Verbs ending in -SS , -SH , -X , -CH , -O take -es , for example:

He passes – she washes – it xeroxes – he watches – she goes/does

With verbs ending in ‘y’ preceded by a consonant, we change ‘y’ into ‘i’ and we add ‘es’

For example: fly —> flies – cry —> cries – spy —> spies

With verbs ending in ‘y’ preceded by a vowel, we simply add ‘s’ without any changes.

For example: play —>plays – pray—>prays – buy—>buys

Exercises: Test yourself with these short exercises

Put the verbs between brackets in the correct form:

1. They (wish) …………………….to speak to you.
2. The bus (pass) ……………………my house every hour.
3. She (worry) ……………………….too much.
4. This carpet (not/match) …………………………….the curtains.
5. Your child (rely) ………………………….on you.

Read the following sentences in the third person singular:

1. They usually catch the 8.10 bus.

He ……………………………………………………………………………………………..

2. They fly from London to Edinburgh.

She ……………………………………………………………………………………………

3. They wash the floor every week.

She ……………………………………………………………………………………………

4. They realize the danger.

He …………………………………………………………………………………………….

5. I cash a cheque every month.

He …………………………………………………………………………………………….