ENGLISH GRAMMAR
PRESENT SIMPLE TENSE: formation and use
(example : to play)
The present simple tense of verbs in English is formed as follows:
| PRESENT SIMPLE TENSE | |||
| Affirmative | Negative | Interrogative | |
| Long Form | Contracted Form | ||
| I play | I do not play | I don't play | Will I play? |
| You play | You do not play | You don't play | Do you play? |
| He/she/it plays | He/she/it does not play | He/she/it doesn't play | Does he/she/it play? |
| We play | We do not play | We don't play | Do we play? |
| You play | You do not play | You don't play | Do you play? |
| They play | They do not play | They don't play | Do they play? |
The present simple tense is used :
- To talk about regular activities :
- John plays tennis once a week.
- We start work at 9 a.m. every morning.
- Tom has lunch every day with his colleagues.
- Mary goes to visit her parents on Sundays.
- Alex takes the bus every day.
- To talk about tastes :
- Peter likes Chinese food.
- Julie doesn't like classical music.
- Many people dislike snakes and spiders!
- Most children love chocolate.
- Eva hates most sports but she enjoys swimming.
- To talk about facts :
- The sun rises in the east.
- In Europe, the weather is cold in winter.
- Authors write books and articles.
- Horses and cows can sleep while standing up.
- Students go to school or attend college.
- To give instructions or directons:
- You walk up the hill, then you turn left at the church.
- First you pour the mixture into a dish, then top with grated cheese.
- To talk about fixed arrangements:
- The concert starts at 9 pm.
- Our flight leaves at 11h40 tomorrow.
- With stative verbs:
- Verbs that express state rather than action:
like, love, hate, see, hear, believe, know, understand, think, need ...
More on stative verbs here
- Verbs that express state rather than action: