The simple present (also called present simple or present indefinite) is a verb tense which is used to show repetition, habit or generalization. Less commonly, the simple present can be used to talk about scheduled actions in the near future and, in some cases, actions happening now. Read on for detailed descriptions, examples, and simple present exercises.
The affirmative form of the simple present:
| I, you, we, they | play. |
| He, she, it | plays. |
Remember the verbs in the third person singular (he,she and it) always take an “s”. For example, “he plays, she sings,it works…”
Examples:
- Nancy and James speak good German.
- Nancy works in a restaurant downtown.
- The children play in the garden every weekend.
The basic form of the simple present is the same as the base form of the verb, unless the subject is third person singular, in which case a form with the addition of -(e)s is used.
- For pronouns I, you, we, they, there is no modification for verbs.
- For pronouns he, she, it, a suffix is added following these rules:
For verbs that end in –o, –ch, –sh, –s, –x, or –z, the suffix –es is added
Examples:
Do – Does
Touch – Touches
Fix – Fixes
For verbs that end in a consonant + y, the letter y is replaced by the suffix –ies.
Example:
Try – Tries
Study – Studies
Carry – Carries
The interrogative form of the simple present:
| Do | I, you, we, they | play? |
| Does | he, she, it |
Examples:
- Do you speak good German?
- Does Nancy work in a restaurant downtown?
The negative form of the simple present:
Examples:
- No, I don’t speak German.
- No, she doesn’t work in a restaurant downtown
Vkey 