Present Simple: Uses and Formation

Study Notes

The present simple is a verb tense with two main uses

Uses

Used to describe habits, unchanging situations, general truths, and fixed arrangements
Often used to indicate a belief
Used to give instructions or directions
Used to discuss scheduled events, in the near future

Forming the Present Simple

The form depends on the subject
I, you, we, and they use the base form
He, she, and it require adding -s to the base form
Examples: I eat, you eat, he eats, she eats, it eats, we eat, they eat
To form a question, use "do" before I, you, we, they and "does" before he, she, it
Examples: Do I eat? Does he eat?
To form a negative sentence, use "do not" or "does not" before the base form of the verb
Examples: I do not eat, he does not eat

Use with Habits and Routines

Used to describe actions that are done regularly
Often used with adverbs of frequency like "always", "usually", "often", "sometimes", "rarely", "never"
Example: I always brush my teeth before bed
Example: She usually drinks coffee in the morning

Use to Express General Truths

Used to state facts that are generally true and not specific to a particular time
Example: The sun rises in the east
Example: Water boils at 100 degrees Celsius

Use to Describe Fixed Arrangements

Used to talk about events that are scheduled
Common with timetables, plans, and appointments
Example: The train leaves at 9 AM
Example: The meeting starts at 10:30 AM

Use to Give Instructions or Directions

Used to explain how to do something or to guide someone to a location
Example: First, you turn left, then you go straight
Example: To make tea, you add hot water to the tea bag

Use with Stative Verbs

Stative verbs describe states, not actions
These verbs are often not used in continuous tenses
Common stative verbs include: be, have, know, like, love, hate, understand, believe, remember, seem, and appear
Example: I know the answer (not I am knowing the answer)
Example: She likes chocolate (not She is liking chocolate)

Spelling Rules for Third Person Singular

For most verbs, add -s to the base form
Example: work -> works, play -> plays
Add -es to verbs ending in -ss, -x, -ch, -sh, or -o
Example: kiss -> kisses, fix -> fixes, watch -> watches, wash -> washes, go -> goes
If the verb ends in a consonant + y, change y to i and add -es
Example: study -> studies, cry -> cries
Exception: If the verb ends in a vowel + y, just add -s
Example: play -> plays, enjoy -> enjoys

Signal Words

Adverbs of frequency: always, usually, often, sometimes, rarely, never
Time expressions: every day, every week, every month, on Mondays, in general
Other common words: usually, generally, normally, occasionally

Examples

She works at a bank
They play football every Sunday
He does not like coffee
Do you speak English?
The Earth revolves around the Sun
We always eat dinner together
The store opens at 9 AM
She teaches English at the university
I live in London
They don't eat meat

Description

Explore when to use the present simple tense in English: for habits, general truths, and scheduled events. Learn how to form affirmative, negative, and interrogative sentences using the correct verb conjugations and auxiliary verbs.