Difference between revisions of "Language/English/Grammar/Present-Tense"
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<span style="font-size:200%;">Simple Present Tense in English</span> | |||
==How do we make the Simple Present Tense?== | |||
subject + auxiliary verb + main verb | subject + auxiliary verb + main verb | ||
===There are three important exceptions:=== | |||
1. For positive sentences, '''we do not normally use the auxiliary'''. | 1. For positive sentences, '''we do not normally use the auxiliary'''. | ||
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3. For the verb '''to be''', we do not use an auxiliary, even for questions and negatives. | 3. For the verb '''to be''', we do not use an auxiliary, even for questions and negatives. | ||
===Look at these examples with the main verb like:=== | |||
{| class="wikitable" | {| class="wikitable" | ||
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===Look at these examples with the main verb be. Notice that there is no auxiliary:=== | |||
{| class="wikitable" | {| class="wikitable" | ||
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===How do we use the Simple Present Tense?=== | |||
We use the simple present tense when: | We use the simple present tense when: | ||
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| colspan="3" |'''It is John's job to drive a taxi. He does it every day. Past, present and future.''' | | colspan="3" |'''It is John's job to drive a taxi. He does it every day. Past, present and future.''' | ||
|} | |} | ||
===Examples=== | |||
Look at these examples: | Look at these examples: | ||
· I live in New York. | · I live in New York. | ||
Revision as of 14:39, 25 March 2018
Simple Present Tense in English
How do we make the Simple Present Tense?
subject + auxiliary verb + main verb
There are three important exceptions:
1. For positive sentences, we do not normally use the auxiliary.
2. For the 3rd person singular (he, she, it), we add s to the main verb or es to the auxiliary.
3. For the verb to be, we do not use an auxiliary, even for questions and negatives.
Look at these examples with the main verb like:
| subject | auxiliary verb | main verb | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| + | I, you, we, they | like | coffee. | ||
| He, she, it | likes | coffee. | |||
| - | I, you, we, they | do | not | like | coffee. |
| He, she, it | does | not | like | coffee. | |
| ? | Do | I, you, we, they | like | coffee? | |
| Does | he, she, it | like | coffee? |
Look at these examples with the main verb be. Notice that there is no auxiliary:
| subject | main verb | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| + | I | am | French. | |
| You, we, they | are | |||
| He, she, it | is | |||
| - | I | am | not | old |
| You, we, they | are | not | old | |
| He, she, it | is | not | old | |
| ? | Am | I | late? | |
| Are | you, we, they | late? | ||
| Is | he, she, it | late? |
How do we use the Simple Present Tense?
We use the simple present tense when: · the action is general · the action happens all the time, or habitually, in the past, present and future · the action is not only happening now · the statement is always true
| John drives a taxi. | ||
|---|---|---|
| past | present | future |
| ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ||
| It is John's job to drive a taxi. He does it every day. Past, present and future. | ||
Examples
Look at these examples: · I live in New York. · The Moon goes round the Earth. · John drives a taxi. · He does not drive a bus. · We do not work at night. · Do you play football?
Note that with the verb to be, we can also use the simple present tense for situations that are not general. We can use the simple present tense to talk about now. Look at these examples of the verb "to be" in the simple present tense—some of them are general, some of them are now:
| Am I right?
Tara is not at home. You are happy. | ||
|---|---|---|
| past | present | future |
| ----------- | ||
| The situation is now. | ||
| I am not fat. Why are you so beautiful? | ||
|---|---|---|
| past | present | future |
| -------------------------------------------------------------- | ||
| The situation is general. Past, present and future. | ||