What Is the Simple Present Tense?
Examples of the Simple Present Tense
(1) To describe facts and habits:
- I like ice cream. (Fact)
- Angela runs a business. (Fact)
- I play badminton in Augusts. (Fact and habit)
(2) To describe scheduled events in the future
- The train gets in at 5 o'clock.
- The bus leaves from here at 2.
The forms of the simple present
The affirmative form of the simple present:
If the verb in is the third person singular (he,she and it) always use an "s".
If the verb is in plural form (they, we and you) do not use anything.
Examples:
- He helps.
- She sings.
- It barks.
- They play.
- We sing.
- You work.
The interrogative form of the simple present:
In third person singular form use "Does".
In plural form use "Do".
Examples:
- Does he help?
- Does she sing?
- Do they Play?
- Do you sing?
The negative form of the simple present:
In plural form we use "Do not or Don't"
Examples:
- He does not help me. / He doesn't help me.
- She does not sing. / She does't sing.
(Here also we use 'does' with 'not' so remember to remove "s" )
- They do not play. / They don't play.
- We do not sing. / We don't sing.
How about this Video???
Things to remember about the simple present:
1.In the interrogative forms, we use "do" or "does".
"Do you like the house?"
"Does she go to school?"
2. Verbs never take an "s" in the the negative and interrogative forms.
"Does he speak Tamil?"
"Do they play badminton?"
She doesn't like ice-cream.
3. don't is the short form of "do not". You can say either:
I do not speak Tamil, or
I don't speak Tamil.
4. doesn't is the short form of "does not". you can say either:
He does not listen to rock music, or
He doesn't listen to rock music.
To check your knowledge do the exercise
1. I ——————— at a bank.
2. She ——————– with her parents.
3. Cows ———————– on grass.
4. He ———————- a handsome salary.
5. Janet ———————- to be a singer.
6. Emily ———————– delicious cookies.
7. Arti and her husband ——————- in Singapore.
8. Rohan and Sania ———————- to play card games.
9. Sophia ————————– English very well.
10. Martin ———————– for a walk in the morning.
11. My grandfather ——————– his pet dog.
12. Plants ———————– water and sunlight for making their food.
Answers
1. I work at a bank.
2. She lives with her parents.
3. Cows feed on grass.
4. He earns a handsome salary.
5. Janet wants to be a singer.
6. Emily makes delicious cookies.
7. Arti and her husband live in Singapore.
8. Rohan and Sania like to play card games.
9. Sophia speaks English very well.
10. Martin goes for a walk in the morning.
11. My grandfather adores his pet dog.
12. Plants need water and sunlight for making their food.
