Present Simple

The Present Simple is a basic verb tense that you should know from the moment you start learning English. Pay attention because here I explain everything to you!

The present simple in English is the most basic verb tense, although this does not mean it is the easiest by any means.

In this article, I am going to tell you how the present simple is formed, when it is used, and certain considerations you need to keep in mind.

How to form the Present Simple

The only thing that makes the present simple complicated for English beginners is how it is formed. Therefore, it is important that you pay close attention.

The present simple is basically the verb in its infinitive form, except in the third person singular, where an -s is added. However, there are exceptions, the most important of which is the verb to be.

Below, I will show you how to form affirmative sentences, negative sentences, and questions in the present simple, both with regular verbs and with the verb to be.

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Present Simple: affirmative sentences

The present simple is formed using the base of the verb (infinitive) and an -s in the third person singular. Let’s look at some examples:

I speak English.
You eat breakfast.
He lives in New York. (3rd person singular)
She goes to school every day. (3rd person singular)

Looking at the examples, we see that an -s or -es is added to the third person if the verb ends in o, such as go or do.

Important exceptions in this regard are the verb to be and the verb to have. Let’s look at some examples:

The verb to be in the present simple

The verb to be is not formed with the infinitive, but as shown in the examples below:

I am tall.
You are awesome.
She is a teacher. (3rd person singular)
We are never late.
You are a fantastic family.
They are here already.

The verb to have in the present simple

The verb to have is formed like the rest, except the third person is not haves but has. Like this:

I have many friends.
You have a nice car.
He has a good job. (3rd person singular)
We have some problems at work.
You have two children.
They have a vacancy.

Present Simple: negative sentences

To form negative sentences in the present simple, we have to add an auxiliary verb (except for the verb to be) and a negative particle: do/does + not. And we have to keep the following in mind:

• We add these words before the main verb with all verbs except to be.
• With the verb to be, we simply add not after the verb.
• When we have an auxiliary verb, the main verb is not conjugated; we only conjugate the auxiliary verb (do/does).
• The following contracted forms exist:
  • Do + not = don’t
  • Does + not = doesn’t (3rd person singular)
  • Are + not = aren’t (verb to be)
  • Is + not = isn’t (verb to be)

Let’s look at some examples with regular verbs:

Let’s look at some examples with the verb to be:

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Present Simple: questions

To ask questions, we also have to use the auxiliary verb do/does. Furthermore, we must keep the following in mind:

• We have to invert the order of the subject and the auxiliary verb (do/does).
• If it is the verb to be, we invert the order of the subject and the verb to be.

Let’s look at some examples of questions with regular verbs:

Now let’s look at some examples of questions with the verb to be:

When to use the Present Simple

Now that we know how to form sentences with the present simple, the most important thing is to know when it should be used. Below we will see the main uses of the present simple in English.

• Routines and habits: things that happen regularly, with frequency.

I get up at 7am and have breakfast at school. I spend six hours a day at school, and then I go home for lunch at 3pm. I do my homework in the evening, I watch TV and chat with my friends. Then I go to bed around 11.30pm. Weekends are different…

• Facts, generalisations, and universal truths

Dogs hate cats. (generalisation)
My sister teaches at a local school in Hull. (fact)
He plays football really well. (fact)
Water freezes at 0ºC. (scientific fact)
Young people love pubs. (generalisation)
Nurses look after patients in hospitals. (fact)
The earth goes round the sun. (scientific fact, universal truth)

• Scheduled events in the future

The train leaves at 6 am. 
The party starts at 8 pm. 
Lessons begin tomorrow.

Other considerations

Stative verbs (state verbs) and the Present Simple

When we talk about verb tenses and how verbs are conjugated, we have to keep in mind that, depending on their meaning and use, there are verbs that can only take simple tenses. These verbs are called stative verbs, whose meaning does not imply an action. Below are some examples:

agree, be, believe, belong, care, forget, hate, hear, know, like, love, mean, mind, notice, own, remember, seem, suppose, understand, want, wish, etc.

For example, if we use these verbs to describe photos in English, we should most likely use them in the present simple, and not the continuous.

Adverbs of frequency (frequency adverbs) and the Present Simple

Adverbs of frequency in the present simple usually go before the verb, except with the verb to be. However, some adverbs can also go at the beginning or at the end of a sentence, just like adverbial phrases, which can only go at the beginning or the end, not in the middle.

Let’s look at some examples:

I usually go home at 8 o’clock. (adverb + verb to go)
I get up at 8 a.m. every morning. (every morning = adverbial phrase)
I am normally free on Fridays. (verb to be + adverb)
Sometimes I don’t feel like going to work.

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In conclusion, the Present Simple in English is a verb tense that you must know from the beginning, but that does not mean it is easy to put into practice. My advice is that, apart from understanding the grammar I have explained here, you practise by repeating sentences to internalise the structures, especially interrogative and negative structures.