







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 | |
|---|---|
| Erm, she's the marketing manager at the company. | Ehm, era la manager del marketing dell’azienda. |
| Do we have to do that every time we need to open the door? | Dobbiamo farlo ogni volta che bisogna aprire la porta? |
| No, I'm a real estate agent. | No, io sono un agente immobiliare. |
| I hope it's not related to me! | Spero che non sia per causa mia! |
| But I want to see Brighton Pier before the sun sets. | Ma voglio vedere il molo di Brighton prima che cali il sole. |
| Sorry to ask, but are you on your period or something? | Scusa se te lo chiedo, ma hai le tue cose o roba del genere? |
| I will ask him to take Bear out, so we can have breakfast. | Gli chiederò di portare fuori Bear, così noi possiamo fare colazione. |
| I guess mine is older than yours! | Mi sa che il mio è più vecchio del tuo! |
| I don't need to wake up very early. | Non devo svegliarmi molto presto. |
| Of course, my name is Cate and my number is 077... | Naturalmente, il mio nome è Cate e il mio numero è 077… |
| I'm really sorry about that! | Mi dispiace davvero tanto! |
| Hm, okay... I think I got it, is it like Pinocchio? | Hm, ok… Penso di aver capito, è come Pinocchio? |
| I am planning to sleep in a bit since it's a holiday. | Voglio dormire un po' dato che è festa. |
| How dare he... He is so stupid!!! | Come osa… È così stupido!!! |
| And the buses always arrive on time. | E gli autobus arrivano sempre in orario. |
| 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. |
| Set times always stress me out. | Gli orari fissi mi provocano sempre stress. |
| Of course, here you go, this is the bathroom. | Naturalmente, ecco qui, questo è il bagno. |
| But... I'm not good at lying... | Ma… Non sono brava a mentire… |
| Yeah, that's a good idea. | Sì, è una buona idea. |