







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 | |
|---|---|
| Eating leftovers during the week saves me some time. | Mangiare gli avanzi durante la settimana mi fa risparmiare un po’ di tempo. |
| But which button? It doesn't show which controls which! | Ma quale pulsante? Non si vede quale pulsante controlla cosa! |
| Why is that? | Perché? |
| I'm so sorry, but we need to cancel our meeting today. | Mi dispiace molto, ma dobbiamo cancellare il nostro appuntamento di oggi. |
| Is it because the other tenants don't want pets? | È perché gli altri inquilini non vogliono animali? |
| Do they weigh them here or at the checkout? | Li pesano qui o alla cassa? |
| I think I deserve a kiss... | Credo di meritarmi un bacio… |
| It's difficult to find all the items manually on the self-checkout. | È difficile trovare tutti gli oggetti manualmente alla cassa fai da te. |
| This is my boyfriend, Mike. | Questo è il mio ragazzo, Mike. |
| How dare he... He is so stupid!!! | Come osa… È così stupido!!! |
| What kind of trick is that? | Che tipo di trucco? |
| It's not a nice thing to do. | Non è una cosa bella da fare. |
| Is there anything else you want me to do? | C’è qualcos’altro che vuoi che faccia? |
| In the recipe it says 600g. | La ricetta dice 600 g. |
| No, she is totally fine, thankfully. | No, lei sta assolutamente bene, grazie al cielo. |
| Is the first one washing the dishes or cleaning? | La prima è lavare i piatti o pulire? |
| Okay, I want to have something similar then! | Ok, allora voglio qualcosa di simile! |
| Okay, I found it... but it looks filthy! | Ok l’ho trovato… Ma sembra sporco! |
| I'm sorry, I'm not good at remembering names sometimes! | Mi dispiace, a volte non sono bravo a ricordarmi i nomi! |
| I don't know, probably put it in the bin. | Non so, probabilmente la metterei nel cestino. |