







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 | |
|---|---|
| Hi, is your cat okay? | |
| Is that what you want me to do? | |
| I'm hungry, but it's better to have something when we meet the guys. | |
| Exactly, I hate getting woken up in the middle of the night! | |
| I mostly work till late at night, I never wake up at 7 in the morning. | |
| I mostly cook meat, fish and chicken dishes. | |
| Sorry, they don't serve chips here... | |
| It makes all of our clothes stink! | |
| Exactly, one of them is asking for 3,500, the other one is 3,000... | |
| Hm, it's comes to roughly £150 a week, it's about the same. | |
| How much do you pay for your room? | |
| I like girls' nights out. | |
| I'm calling him now then, do you want anything else? | |
| By the way, the deposit is £3,000 and non-negotiable... | |
| Do you remember me? | |
| How do you want me to chop the onions, big or small? | |
| Yeah, it's quite a big country, more like a continent. | |
| Thank god there is nothing to worry about. | |
| By the way, I like the colour of the walls... What do you think? | |
| Don't worry Mike, I think this one is better. | |