







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 | |
|---|---|
| Yeah, I think it's a bit early to knock on someone's door! | Sì, penso sia un po’ presto per bussare alla porta di qualcuno! |
| Um, on this floor, it's only me and a French girl next door. | Um, su questo piano solo io ed una ragazza francese alla porta accanto. |
| Do you want me to tell her that you are here? | Vuoi che le dica che sei qui? |
| I'm calling him now then, do you want anything else? | Lo chiamo adesso allora, vuoi qualcos’altro? |
| But I think that's only for older women. | Ma penso valga solo per le donne più anziane. |
| Good point, I'm sure they don't pay that much! | Giusto, sono sicuro che non pagano così tanto! |
| Sorry, madam, Friday is one of our busiest nights! | Mi spiace, signora, venerdì è una delle nostre sere più affollate! |
| Well, maybe we can get a 2 bedroom flat. What do you think? | Beh, magari possiamo prendere un appartamento con 2 camere da letto. Cosa ne pensi? |
| Yeah, I guess normally you go to work around 06:30. | Già, normalmente mi sembra vai al lavoro attorno alle 6:30. |
| Sorry, they don't serve chips here... | Scusa, non servono le patatine qui… |
| That's not nice, Mike! | Non è carino, Mike! |
| How often do you have free time, then? | E quanto spesso hai del tempo libero allora? |
| But which button? It doesn't show which controls which! | Ma quale pulsante? Non si vede quale pulsante controlla cosa! |
| Really? Sade is one of my favourites, too. | Davvero? Sade è anche uno dei miei preferiti. |
| Thank you very much! | Grazie mille! |
| 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 the last one and, unfortunately, it has a hole in it. | Questo è l’ultimo e sfortunatamente c’è un buco. |
| Come on, don't cry, she is just a stupid girl! | Andiamo, non piangere, è solo una stupida ragazza! |
| Depends on where you look. | Dipende da dove cerchi. |
| What line is it on? | Su quale line si trova? |