Present Simple Tense

 

FORM

[VERB] + s/es in third person

Examples:

• You speak English.
• Do you speak English?
• You do not speak English.

Complete List of Simple Present Forms

USE 1 Repeated Actions

  

Use the Simple Present to express the idea that an action is repeated or usual. The action can be a habit, a hobby, a daily event, a scheduled event or something that often happens. It can also be something a person often forgets or usually does not do.

Examples:

• I play tennis.
• She does not play tennis.
• Does he play tennis?
• The train leaves every morning at 8 AM.
• The train does not leave at 9 AM.
• When does the train usually leave?
• She always forgets her purse.
• He never forgets his wallet.
• Every twelve months, the Earth circles the Sun.
• Does the Sun circle the Earth?

 

USE 2 Facts or Generalizations

The Simple Present can also indicate the speaker believes that a fact was true before, is true now, and will be true in the future. It is not important if the speaker is correct about the fact. It is also used to make generalizations about people or things.

Examples:

• Cats like milk.
• Birds do not like milk.
• Do pigs like milk?
• California is in America.
• California is not in the United Kingdom.
• Windows are made of glass.
• Windows are not made of wood.
• New York is a small city. It is not important that this fact is untrue.

 

USE 3 Scheduled Events in the Near Future

Speakers occasionally use Simple Present to talk about scheduled events in the near future. This is most commonly done when talking about public transportation, but it can be used with other scheduled events as well.

Examples:

• The train leaves tonight at 6 PM.
• The bus does not arrive at 11 AM, it arrives at 11 PM.
• When do we board the plane?
• The party starts at 8 o'clock.
• When does class begin tomorrow?

USE 4 Now (Non-Continuous Verbs)

Speakers sometimes use the Simple Present to express the idea that an action is happening or is not happening now. This can only be done with Non-Continuous Verbs and certain Mixed Verbs.

Examples:

• I am here now.
• She is not here now.
• He needs help right now.
• He does not need help now.
• He has his passport in his hand.
• Do you have your passport with you?

ADVERB PLACEMENT

The examples below show the placement for grammar adverbs such as: always, only, never, ever, still, just, etc.

Examples:

• You only speak English.
• Do you only speak English?

ACTIVE / PASSIVE

Examples:

• Once a week, Tom cleans the car. Active
• Once a week, the car is cleaned by Tom. Pass

Exercise 1
Exercise 2
Exercise 3 : Fill in the blanks with the correct form of words given:


1.                 I  ____________ (read) a very interesting book now.
2.                 Joanne  ____________  (work) eight hours a day.
3.                 Tonight we ____________  (see) a play at the thereatre.
4.                 Who ____________  you ____________ (speak) to just now?
5.                 I  ____________  (not know) him very well.
6.                 What will you do if she ____________  (come) late?
7.                 My wife ____________  (like) coffee for breakfast.
8.                 What ____________  Tom usually ____________(have) for breakfast?
9.                 Your train ____________  (leave) at 17.25 from platform 3.
10.             What ____________  Mary ____________ (do) ? She's a student.
11.             My whole family _______________(go) to church once a week.
12.             My wife and I _________________(go) to the beach in the summer.
13.             Listen! The phone ________________(ring) in the other room.
14.             Rain seldom ________________(fall) in the Sahara.
15.             He is thirteen years old now, and his voice _____________________(change).  
16.             Let's change the conversation. It _________________(get) too serious.
17.             Leap year __________________(come) every four years.
18.             My grandfather ________________(grow) tomatoes in his garden this summer.
19.             He ________________(grow) them every summer .
20.             The children ______________________(leave) for school right now.


Resource

http://www.englishforums.com/English/SimplePresentTenseExercise/dqrlk/post.htm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kmHgSh9UFfE