







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 don't like violence in real life, I only like it in movies. | Non mi piace la violenza nella vita vera, mi piace solo nei film. |
| I don't like their chardonnay. | Non mi piace il loro Chardonnay. |
| How is it my fault? | Com’è che è colpa mia? |
| What is it about? | Di cosa parla? |
| Actually, it's quite urgent for me. | In realtà, è molto urgente per me. |
| Bear hates being at a vet, too. | Anche Bear odia andare dal veterinario. |
| What line is it on? | Su quale line si trova? |
| Thank you very much! | Grazie mille! |
| Do you know her well? | La conosci bene? |
| All of my work is in that laptop and I don't have any backup! | C'è tutto il mio lavoro in quel laptop e non ho nessun backup! |
| Well, it's about a kid, I mean a robot. | Beh, parla di un ragazzino, voglio dire un robot. |
| Do we have a sieve? | Abbiamo un colino? |
| Do you know how to use them? | Sai come usarle? |
| Hey, before you go... | Ehi, prima che vai… |
| It's in Islington, zone-1, it's the best place for me so far. | È ad Islington, zona 1, per me il luogo migliore finora. |
| That's a very interesting combination. | Una combinazione molto interessante. |
| Is it because the other tenants don't want pets? | È perché gli altri inquilini non vogliono animali? |
| That's true! How much is your rent? | Vero! Quant’è il tuo affitto? |
| How are things going, is everything ok? | Come vanno le cose, tutto bene? |
| There is a robot in a kid's body, but he doesn't know he's a robot. | C’è un robot nel corpo di un ragazzino, ma lui non sa di essere un robot. |