







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 | |
|---|---|
| Well, that's another problem! | Nun, das ist ein weiteres Problem! |
| And Pogo gets very scared of the crowd and the noise. | Und die Menschenmenge und die Geräusche erschrecken Pogo sehr. |
| I took Bear out and I'm just about to leave. | Ich war mit Bear draußen und bin gerade dabei zu gehen. |
| There is a robot in a kid's body, but he doesn't know he's a robot. | Es gibt einen Roboter im Körper eines Kindes, aber er weißt nicht, dass er ein Roboter ist. |
| There is nothing under 3,000 in Angel! | Es gibt in Angel nichts unter 3000! |
| Maybe they prefer electric stoves in shared houses for safety reasons. | Vielleicht bevorzugen sie aus Sicherheitsgründen elektrische Herde in Gemeinschaftshäusern. |
| Calm down dear, I don't think he realises what he says. | Beruhige dich Schatz. Ich denke nicht, dass er weiß was er sagt. |
| For the risotto, I need some arborio rice. | Ich brauche etwas Arborio-Reis für das Risotto. |
| Then I want to roast it, though. | Dann will ich es aber braten. |
| I see them around a lot where I work, actually. | Ich sehe sie oft dort wo ich arbeite. |
| Erm... Yeah... Sure! It's our first anniversary! | Ähm... Ja... Klar! Es ist unser erstes Jubiläum! |
| Anyway, I need to go to the loo as well... | Egal, ich muss auch auf die Toilette gehen... |
| Thanks, yeah, as I said, Camden is in zone-2... | Danke. Ja, wie ich gesagte habe, Camden ist in Zone 2... |
| Anyway, what else do we have left to do now? | Egal, gibt es irgendetwas was wir noch machen müssen? |
| I don't want you to spend a fortune. | Ich möchte nicht, dass du ein Vermögen ausgibst. |
| I think I did, too, but I've got a really bad headache! | Ich denke ich habe auch gut geschlafen, aber ich habe schlimme Kopfschmerzen! |
| Yeah, it's better not to fully fill the bath, it leaks downstairs. | Ja, es ist besser wenn Sie die Badewanne nicht ganz vollmachen. Sie leckt ins Erdgeschoss. |
| The meeting is not the actual problem! | Das Treffen ist nicht das eigentliche Problem! |
| Yep, she was born in Australia, but her mother is Japanese. | Ja, sie ist in Australien geboren, aber ihre Mutter ist Japanerin. |
| But one of them is £2.44 and the other one is £1.22. | Aber eine Packung kostet £2,44 und die andere £1,22. |