In our English language course, and after we teach students hellos and goodbyes, we introduce then to the Simple Present Tense. It is the simplest yet most important tense to learn in English. Because if you understand it well, everything else that follow will be easy!
What is the Simple Present Tense?
In language when we teach grammar, we use the tenses; present, past and future. “Tense” means time. Present means now. And Simple indicates the use of this grammar rule. It is used mostly in simple sentences that have one verb, one subject and one object.
When do we use the Simple Present tense?
It has many uses. But the most common use is when we talk about everyday routine, habits and facts. For example:
- I go to school everyday.
- She walks to school everyday.
- They drink coffee in the morning.
- The sun rises at 6:30AM
How do we make sentences in the Simple Present tense?
For affirmative (positive) sentences:
|
Subject |
Verb |
Object |
|
I, you, we, they |
aake up |
at 5:30 in the morning |
|
He, she, it |
wakes up |
at 5:30 in the morning. |
note that we add an -S to the verb in singular third person.
For negative sentences:
We use the auxiliary “don’t / doesn’t”
|
Subject |
Verb |
Object |
|
|
I, you, we, they |
don’t |
aake up |
at 5:30 in the morning |
|
He, she, it |
doesn’t |
wake up |
at 5:30 in the morning. |
For Yes / No questions:
We use the auxiliary “do / does”
|
Subject |
Verb |
O / C? |
|
|
Do |
I, you, we, they |
go |
To the gym? |
|
Does |
she, he, it |
sleep |
early? |
note the -S on the verb for singular third person doesn’t exist.
If you want to learn more about the simple present tense, Please sign up for English Courses in San Francisco