







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 | |
|---|---|
| Come on in, here on the ground floor, we have two bedrooms... | Entrez, au rez-de-chausse, on a deux chambres... |
| Mike, 250 degrees is the highest! | Mike, 250 degrés est le maximum! |
| Do you want the tray in the middle? | Tu veux que le plateau soit au milieu? |
| I go out sometimes with the girls from school. | Je sors parfois avec les filles de l'école. |
| He also wants to increase our rent by 50%! | Il veut aussi augmenter le loyer de 50%! |
| Except mosquitoes because they ruin my sleep. | Excepté les moustiques, parce qu'ils ruinent mon sommeil. |
| Oh, sorry, I didn't know I wasn't allowed to order what I want! | Oh, pardon, je ne savais pas que je n'étais pas autorisé à commander ce que je veux ! |
| Okay, the total is £36.74, sir. | Okay, le montant est de 36.74 livres monsieur. |
| No, it doesn't look clean, do you want me to clean it? | Non, il n'a pas l'air propre, tu veux que je le nettoie? |
| It's difficult to find all the items manually on the self-checkout. | Il est difficile de trouver tous les produits manuellement dans les caisses automatiques |
| I see them around a lot where I work, actually. | J'en vois beaucoup là où je travaille à vrai dire. |
| That's nice, what do you usually cook? | C'est bien, qu'est-ce que tu cuisines habituellement? |
| Who is Mike, darling? | Qui est Mike, chéri ? |
| And the buses always arrive on time. | Et les bus arrivent toujours à l'heure. |
| So I want to cook as much as I can now. | Alors je veux préparer autant à manger que possible. |
| Hello guys, is it possible to make a little less noise? | Salut les gars, c'est possible de faire moins de bruit? |
| People take cutlery to their rooms and don't bring it back! | Les gens emmènent les couverts dans leur chambre et ne les rapportent pas! |
| Okay, I want to have something similar then! | Okay, j'aimerais avoir quelque chose de similaire du coup ! |
| Yeah, our room has only got one window! | Ouais, notre chambre n'a qu'une fenêtre! |
| No, it's the owner, she is an old lady and very strict about that. | Non, c'est la propriétaire, c'est une vieille dame et elle est très stricte à propos de ça. |