







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 | |
|---|---|
| But sometimes I feel guilty not being there! | Ma a volte mi sento in colpa a non essere là! |
| I guess you need to change your cooking plan now! | A quanto pare dovrai cambiare i tuoi piani di cucina adesso! |
| Do you have any area in mind? | Hai in mente delle zone? |
| He must be sleeping, he usually works at night, too. | Deve essere a letto, di solito anche lui lavora la sera. |
| Why don't you get it then? Do you want to see upstairs or not? | Perché non prendete quella allora? Volete vedere piano di sopra o no? |
| What do you think about him, Cate? | Cosa ne pensi di lui Cate? |
| I mean, you look too young to be a teacher. | Voglio dire, sembri troppo giovane per essere un insegnante. |
| There are plenty more, but I think gumtree.com is the best. | Ce ne sono molti altri, ma penso che gumtree.com sia il migliore. |
| So I want to cook as much as I can now. | Quindi voglio cucinare quanto più possibile adesso. |
| Sh*t! I can't believe it's already 10:30! | Merda! Non riesco a credere che siano già le 10:30! |
| It's impossible for me to commute from zone-9 to 1 everyday. | È impossibile per me fare la pendolare dalla zona 9 alla 1 tutti i giorni. |
| Excuse me ma'am, here is an undamaged packet of rice for you. | Mi scusi signora, ecco una confezione non danneggiata di riso per lei. |
| I haven't seen her, either, and I don't really want to... | Nemmeno io l’ho vista, e non voglio proprio farlo… |
| No worries, I am not together with Mike. | Non preoccuparti, non sto insieme a Mike. |
| Yeah, it's quite a big country, more like a continent. | Già, è una nazione piuttosto grande, più tipo un continente. |
| As I'm a smoker, I prefer sitting outside. | Dato che fumo, io preferisco sedermi fuori. |
| Sorry, look, here is the station. | Scusa, guarda, ecco qui la stazione. |
| Do you want to bet on it? | Vuoi scommetterci? |
| No worries, everybody uses my stuff all the time. | Non preoccuparti, tutti quanti usano la mia roba continuamente. |
| It's half past 4, so we are here right on time. | Sono le 4 e mezza, quindi siamo giusto in tempo. |