THE SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE

The simple present tense in English is used to describe an action that is regular, true or normal.

We use the present tense:

1. For repeated or regular actions in the present time period.

I take the train to the office.

The train to Berlin leaves every hour.

John sleeps eight hours every night during the week.

2. For facts.

The President of The USA lives in The White House.

A dog has four legs.

We come from Switzerland.

3. For habits.

I get up early every day.

Carol brushes her teeth twice a day.

They travel to their country house every weekend.

4. For things that are always / generally true.

It rains a lot in winter.

The Queen of England lives in Buckingham Palace.

They speak English at work.

Verb Conjugation & Spelling

We form the present tense using the base form of the infinitive (without the TO).

In general, in the third person we add 'S' in the third person.

Subject Verb The Rest of the sentence

I / you / we / they speak / learn English at home

he / she / it speaks / learns English at home

1. For verbs that end in -O, -CH, -SH, -SS, -X, or -Z we add -ES in the third person.

go goes

catch catches

wash washes

kiss kisses

fix fixes

buzz buzzes

2. For verbs that end in a consonant + Y, we remove the Y and add -IES.

marry marries

study studies

carry carries

worry worries

NOTE: For verbs that end in a vowel + Y, we just add -S.

play plays

enjoy enjoys

say says

Negative Sentences in the Simple Present Tense

To make a negative sentence in English we normally use Don't or Doesn't with all verbs EXCEPT To
Be and Modal verbs (can, might, should etc.).

Affirmative: You speak French.

Negative: You don't speak French.

You will see that we add don't between the subject and the verb. We use Don't when the subject
is I, you, we or they.

Affirmative: He speaks German.

When the subject is he, she or it, we add doesn't between the subject and the verb to make a
negative sentence. Notice that the letter S at the end of the verb in the affirmative sentence (because
it is in third person) disappears in the negative sentence. We will see the reason why below.

Negative Contractions

Don't = Do not

Doesn't = Does not

I don't like meat = I do not like meat.

There is no difference in meaning though we normally use contractions in spoken English.

Word Order of Negative Sentences

The following is the word order to construct a basic negative sentence in English in the Present
Tense using Don't or Doesn't.

Subject don't/doesn't Verb* The Rest of the sentence

I / you / we / they don't have / buy

* Verb: The verb that goes here is the base form of the infinitive = The infinitive without TO before the
verb. Instead of the infinitive To have it is just the have part.

Remember that the infinitive is the verb before it is conjugated (changed) and it begins with TO. For
example: to have, to eat, to go, to live, to speak etc.

Examples of Negative Sentences with Don't and Doesn't:

You don't speak Arabic.

John doesn't speak Italian.

We don't have time for a rest.

It doesn't move.

They don't want to go to the party.

She doesn't like fish.

FREQUENCY ADVERBS

We use some adverbs to describe how frequently we do an activity.

Frequency Adverb of Frequency Example Sentence

100% always I always go to bed before 11pm.

90% usually I usually have cereal for breakfast.

80% normally / generally I normally go to the gym.

70% often* / frequently I often surf the internet.

50% sometimes I sometimes forget my wife's birthday.

30% occasionally I occasionally eat junk food.

10% seldom I seldom read the newspaper.

5% hardly ever / rarely I hardly ever drink alcohol.

0% never I never swim in the sea.

* Some people pronounce the 'T' in often but many others do not.

The Position of the Adverb in a Sentence

An adverb of frequency goes before a main verb (except with To Be).

Subject + adverb + main verb

I always remember to do my homework.

An adverb of frequency goes after the verb To Be.

Subject + to be + adverb

They are never pleased to see me.

When we use an auxiliary verb (have, will, must, might, could, would, can, etc.), the adverb is placed
between the auxiliary and the main verb. This is also true for to be.
Subject + auxiliary + adverb + main verb

She can sometimes beat me in a race.

They might never see each other again.

They could occasionally be heard laughing.

We can also use the following adverbs at the start of a sentence:

Usually, normally, often, frequently, sometimes, occasionally

Occasionally, I like to eat Thai food.

BUT we cannot use the following at the beginning of a sentence:

Always, seldom, rarely, hardly, ever, never.

We use hardly ever and never with positive, not negative verbs:

She hardly ever comes to my parties.

They never say 'thank you'.

We use ever in questions and negative statements:

Have you ever been to New Zealand?

I haven't ever been to Switzerland. (The same as 'I have never been Switzerland').

We can also use the following expressions when we want to be more specific about the frequency:

- every day - once a month - twice a year - four times a day - every other week