







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 go out sometimes with the girls from school. | A volte esco con le ragazze della scuola. |
| No worries Mike, as I said, he only does it when he is stressed. | Non preoccuparti Mike, come ho detto, lo fa solo quando è stressato. |
| Pogo still hates coming to the vet, though! | Pogo però odia ancora venire dal veterinario! |
| You are so realistic dear, where is your wedding ring? | Sei molto realistica cara, dov’è la tua fede nuziale? |
| It's hard to believe, but we have a pressure cooker in the house. | Difficile a credersi ma abbiamo una pentola a pressione in casa. |
| Then people come and complain to me! | Poi la gente arriva e si lamenta con me! |
| I guess he wants to drink some water. | Credo che voglia bere un po’ d’acqua. |
| I'm sorry, I'm not good at remembering names sometimes! | Mi dispiace, a volte non sono bravo a ricordarmi i nomi! |
| Thank you, I'm 26. | Grazie, ne ho 26. |
| Do you want me to get you a glass of wine? | Vuoi che ti prenda un bicchiere di vino? |
| Of course, there are 4 girls, all uni students from Germany. | Naturalmente, ci sono 4 ragazze, tutte studentesse universitarie dalla Germania. |
| Then you can decide if I'm a good cook or not! | Poi deciderai se sono un buon cuoco o no! |
| He wants to, but tonight it's impossible. | Vuole farlo, ma stasera non è possibile. |
| I can't imagine myself being on a plane for that long! | Non mi ci vedo su un aereo per tutto quel tempo! |
| Sorry, they don't serve chips here... | Scusa, non servono le patatine qui… |
| Look at the shelf, the price tag says £2.20 a kilo. | Guarda lo scaffale, l’etichetta dice £ 2,20 chilo. |
| If you are going to ask for money, I don't have any, either. | Se stai per chiedermi dei soldi, non ne ho neppure io. |
| He just moved from Brighton and lives around here. | Si è appena trasferito da Brighton e vive qui vicino. |
| Sure, our kitchen is newly refurbished... | Certo, la nostra cucina è stata rinnovata di recente… |
| What else do we need? | Cos’altro ci serve? |