Welcome to our lesson on the simple present tense. The simple present tense is one of the most important and frequently used tenses in English. It describes actions that happen regularly, facts and general truths, and permanent situations. The basic structure is simple: Subject plus base verb. For example, 'I work every day', 'She speaks English', or 'Water boils at 100 degrees Celsius'. We often use time expressions like always, usually, often, sometimes, and never with the simple present tense to show how frequently something happens.
Now let's learn how to form the simple present tense correctly. The formation rules are straightforward but important to remember. For the subjects I, you, we, and they, we use the base form of the verb without any changes. However, for he, she, and it, we must add s or es to the end of the verb. There are specific spelling rules to follow. Most verbs simply add s, like work becomes works, play becomes plays. But verbs ending in s, sh, ch, x, or o need es, such as watch becomes watches. When a verb ends in a consonant plus y, we change the y to ies, like study becomes studies. Some verbs are irregular, such as have becomes has and go becomes goes. Let's look at this conjugation chart to see these patterns clearly.
The simple present tense has five main usage patterns that you need to understand. First, we use it for habits and routines - things we do regularly, like 'I wake up at 7 AM every day'. Second, it expresses general truths and facts that are always true, such as 'Water boils at 100 degrees Celsius'. Third, we use it for permanent situations or states, like 'She lives in London'. Fourth, it describes scheduled events, especially with transportation and programs, for example 'The train leaves at 9 PM'. Finally, we use the simple present for instructions and directions, such as 'Turn left at the corner'. Each of these uses has specific time expressions and contexts that help you identify when to use the simple present tense.
Now let's learn how to form negative sentences in the simple present tense. The structure is: Subject plus do or does plus not plus the base verb. The key rule is that we use 'do not' with I, you, we, and they, but 'does not' with he, she, and it. Notice that when we use the auxiliary verb 'does', we always use the base form of the main verb, not the third person singular form. We commonly use contractions in spoken English: 'do not' becomes 'don't' and 'does not' becomes 'doesn't'. Let's look at some examples. 'I do not work on Sundays' or 'She doesn't speak French'. This comparison table shows how positive sentences transform into negative ones. Remember, the auxiliary verb carries the tense information, so the main verb always stays in its base form.
Now let's learn how to form questions in the simple present tense. The structure is: Do or Does plus subject plus base verb plus question mark. We use 'Do' with I, you, we, and they, and 'Does' with he, she, and it. For example, 'Do you work here?' or 'Does she speak English?'. We can also form WH-questions by adding question words like what, where, when, why, or how at the beginning. For instance, 'What do you do?' or 'Where does she live?'. When answering yes-no questions, we use short answers like 'Yes, I do' or 'No, she doesn't'. This comparison table shows all the sentence types we've learned: positive, negative, question, WH-question, and short answer forms. Notice how the auxiliary verb 'do' or 'does' appears in questions and negatives, but not in positive statements.