







In English we use the present simple tense to talk about facts or things that are always true, as well as things in general. Present simple is also used to talk about a repeated action such as a habit, a hobby, a daily event, a scheduled event or something that often happens.
In English we use 'do' and 'does' as auxiliary verbs in negatives and questions and we often use the present simple with adverbs of frequency such as sometimes, always, often, never, usually, rarely, and hardly ever.
Notes for use of present simple :
In the third person, ‘s’ is added to the verb form. For example;
work --> works
run --> runs
live --> lives
For verbs that end in 'o', 'sh', 'ch', 's' and 'x', we add 'es' to the verb form. For example;
go --> goes
wish --> wishes
watch --> watches
kiss --> kisses
fax --> faxes
For verbs that end in a consonant + 'y', we change the 'y' to 'i' and add 'es'. For example;
try --> tries
study --> studies
The table below shows the different forms of present simple :
Example Verb : Work | I / You / We / They | He / She / It |
| Positive | ... work. | ... works. |
| Negative | ... don't work. | ... doesn't work. |
Questions | Do ... work? | Does ... work? |
| Short answers | Yes, ... do. / No, ... don't. | Yes, ... does. / No, ... doesn't. |
For the verb 'to be' we use 'am', 'is', 'are' in the present simple. No auxiliary verbs are used in negative sentences and questions.
Verb: Be | I | You / We / They | He / She / It |
| Positive | I'm ... | ... 're ... | ... 's ... |
| Negative | I'm not ... | ... aren't ... | ... isn't ... |
| Questions | Am I ... ? | Are ... ...? | Is ... ...? |
| Short answers | Yes, I am. / No, I'm not. | Yes, ... are. / No, ... aren't. | Yes, ... is. / No, ... isn't. |
Present Simple Example Sentences :
Positive Examples of Present Simple :
Negative Examples of Present Simple :
Question Examples of Present Simple :
| Present simple example sentences | |
|---|---|
| I think I deserve a kiss... | Ich denke ich habe einen Kuss verdient... |
| Is there a problem with your phone battery? | Gibt es ein Problem mit dem Akku deines Telefons? |
| That's why they're 50% off. | Deswegen sind sie 50% günstiger. |
| Why do you think it's weird? | Warum denkst du es ist eigenartig? |
| I think you wake me up more often than mosquitoes do! | Ich denke du weckst mich öfter auf als die Stechmücken! |
| It's difficult to find all the items manually on the self-checkout. | Es ist schwierig alle Sachen manuell an der Selbstbedienungskasse zu finden. |
| You can ask whatever you want to know. | Du kannst mich alles fragen, was du wissen möchtest. |
| Maybe they prefer electric stoves in shared houses for safety reasons. | Vielleicht bevorzugen sie aus Sicherheitsgründen elektrische Herde in Gemeinschaftshäusern. |
| Is that what you want to do? | Möchtest du das? |
| Yes, that's the one. | Ja, genau die. |
| Also, he has got a very lovely, cute dog. | Außerdem hat er einen sehr lieben, süßen Hund. |
| I'm sure it's where it always is. | Ich bin mir sicher sie ist am üblichen Platz. |
| Thank you again for giving me your turn. | Danke nochmals, dass du mich vorgelassen hast. |
| Then he finds out he is a robot, not a real kid. | Dann findet er heraus, dass er ein Robotoer ist und kein echtes Kind. |
| Do we have a sieve? | Haben wir ein Sieb? |
| Yes, I think she's great! | Ja, ich denke sie ist großartig! |
| Diego, do you want me to get you anything to eat? | Diego, soll ich dir etwas zu essen holen? |
| Does that help you to believe me? | Hilft dir das, mir zu glauben? |
| I'm sorry but I have bad news about the room... | Es tut mir Leid, aber ich habe schlechte Nachrichten über das Zimmer... |
| I guess I can meet you there at 20:30, or is it too late? | Ich schätze ich kann mich mit dir um 20:30 Uhr treffen oder is das zu spät? |