The Present Simple Tense (also called the Simple Present Tense)

Simple present tense with 'be':

The verb ‘be’ is different from the other verbs in this tense. Let's look at ‘be’ first:

Here’s the positive form (positive means a normal sentence, not a negative or a
question. This is sometimes called ‘affirmative’):

Positive Positive Short Form

I am I'm
you are you're
he is he's
she is she's
it is it's
we are we're
they are they're

For example:
• I’m Scottish.
• She’s hungry.
• They’re always late.

Next, here's the negative. It's very easy. You only add ‘not’:

egative egative short form

I am not I'm not
you are not you aren’t
he is not he isn't
she is not she isn’t
it is not it isn't
we are not we aren't
they are not they aren't

For example:
• I’m not cold.
• He isn’t from Spain.
• We aren’t at home.

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Here's the 'yes / no' question form:

Yes / o Questions
am I ?
are you ?
is he ?
is she ?
is it ?
are we ?
are they ?

For example:
• Am I next in the queue?
• Are you from Tokyo?
• Is he at the library at the moment?

If you'd like to make a ‘wh’ question, you just put the question word at the front:

Wh Questions
Where am I ?
What are you ?
Why is he ?
Who is she ?
When are we ?
How are they ?

For example:
• Where are you from?
• Who is that girl?
• Why are they still at work?

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Present simple tense with other verbs:

With all other verbs, we make the present simple in the same way.

The positive is really easy. It's just the verb, with an extra ‘s’ if the subject is ‘he’,
‘she’, or ‘it’. Let's take the verb ‘play’ as an example:

Positive (of 'play')

I play
you play
he plays
she plays
it plays
we play
they play

For example:
• I play tennis every week.
• He likes chocolate.
• They usually go to the cinema on Fridays.

Don't forget the ‘s’! Even really advanced students do this!

For a few verbs, there is a spelling change with ‘he’, ‘she’ and ‘it’ before the ‘s’. For
example, ‘study’ becomes ‘studies’. (See spelling changes PDF for more information).
.
There are also few verbs which are irregular in the present simple:

• 'have' becomes 'has'

• 'do' becomes 'does'
• 'go' becomes 'goes'

To make the negative form, you need to use ‘do not’ (don't) or ‘ does not’ (doesn't):

egative (of 'play') egative Short Form

I do not play I don't play
you do not play you don't play
he does not play he doesn't play
she does not play she doesn't play
it does not play it doesn't play
we do not play we don't play
they do not play they don't play

For example:
• You don’t study very much.
• Julie doesn’t like sport.
• We don’t live in London.

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We use ‘do’ or ‘does’ before the subject to make the 'yes / no' question:

Yes / o questions
do I play ?
do you play ?
does he play ?
does she play ?
does it play ?
do we play ?
do they play ?

For example:
• Do you work in an office?
• Does John play cricket every weekend?
• Do they like travelling?

Just like with 'be', if you'd like to make a ‘wh’ question, you put the question word at
the front:

Wh Questions
Where do I play ?
What do you play ?
Why does he play ?
Who does she play ?
When do we play ?
How do they play ?

For example:
• Where do you live?
• What does she like to eat?
• Why do they work so hard?

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 Afirmative Negative Interrogative

I walk I don’t walk Do I walk?

You walk You don’t walk Do you walk?
He walks He doesn’t walk Does he walk?
She walks She doesn’t walk Does she walk?
It walks It doesn’t walk Does it walk?
We walk We don’t walk Do we walk?
You walk You don’t walk Do you walk?
They walk They don’t walk Do they walk?

Short answers

Affirmative Negative

Yes, I / you / we / they do No, I / you / we / they don’t

Yes, he / she / it does No, he / she / it doesn’t

Third person singular

We add –s to the verb to form the third

person singular (he, she, it).
I drink – he drinks We use the Present Simple:
I run – he runs
• for habits and actions that
BUT we do regularly:
• We add –es to verbs that end in –ss, He visits his friends every
-sh, -ch, -x, -o. Sunday.
I watch – he watches She goes to school by bus.

• With verbs ending in consonant + y, • for general truths:

we change the –y to –ies. The sun rises in the East.
I cry – he cries
But with verbs ending in vowel + y, • for permanent situations:
we just add –s as usual. He lives in Athens.
I play – he plays
 Expressions used with the Present Simple

Frequency adverbs: always, usually, often, sometimes, rarely, never

(they are placed before the main verb)

Time expressions: every day / week / Friday…

on Mondays / Sundays…
at the weekend…
in the morning / afternoon…
in winter / spring…
once a day / week…

A. Write the third person singular of the following verbs.

play ____________ go ____________

wash ____________ teach ____________

drive ____________ carry ____________

fly ____________ start ____________

help ____________ kiss ____________

watch ____________ tidy ____________

like ____________ enjoy ____________

cry ____________ mix ____________

B. Complete the sentences with the Present Simple of the verbs in brackets.

1. Peter and his friends __________ to school by bus. (go)

2. Elephants __________ leaves and grass. (eat)

3. David's father __________ in a hospital. (work)

4. The bank opens at 9.30 and __________ at 4.30. (close)

5. Tom and Jim __________ football every day after school. (play)

6. Mr Jones is a teacher. He __________ History. (teach)

7. Our lessons __________ at 9.00 and __________ at 3.30. (start / finish)

8. My pen friend __________ in Japan. (live)

9. Mary and her brother __________ cartoons every Sunday morning. (watch)

10. John __________ his room every day. (tidy)

C. Complete the blanks with the Present Simple of the verbs in the box.

go work ride deliver love jog rest fish walk

Mr Letty is a postman. He doesn't work in the post

office. He always works outside in the streets.

He __________ letters to all the people in the

neighbourhood every day. He doesn't __________

but he __________ his motorbike.

At the weekend, Mr Letty doesn't work.

He __________. He __________ the countryside,

so he always __________ to his country house with

his wife. Mr and Mrs Letty __________ in the river

and they __________ in the woods every weekend.

D. Look at the pictures and write questions and answers, as in the example.

1. play / the guitar / in the afternoon

Does he play the guitar in the aftenoon?

No he doesn’t play the guitar in the afternoon.
He plays the accordion.
2. walk / after lunch

_________________________________________

_________________________________________

_________________________________________

3. ride / their / bicycles / to work / every day

_________________________________________

_________________________________________

_________________________________________
 4. listen / to the radio / every Sunday

_________________________________________

_________________________________________

_________________________________________

5. clean / the house / on Mondays

_________________________________________

_________________________________________

_________________________________________

6. watch / TV / after school

_________________________________________

_________________________________________

_________________________________________

E. Complete the blanks with the negative or the interrogative form of the
Present Simple of the verbs in brackets.

Mark: Hi, Tess! What are you doing?

Tess: I'm watching the football team.

Mark: Do you watch (watch) them every day?

Tess: No, I don't. They __________ (not play)

every day. They play four times a week.

Mark: __________ you __________ (have)

a favourite player?

Tess: No, I __________ (not have) a favourite player. Everyone on the team is

good.

Mark: __________ the attacker __________ (move) fast?

Tess: No, he __________ (not move) fast, but he's very clever. __________

you __________ (like) football, Mark?

Mark: No, I __________ (not like) it. I like basketball. It's a great sport.