Simple Present

FORM
S +[VERB] + s/es in third person] + O
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. Passive

How do we make the Simple Present Tense?

subject + auxiliary verb + main verb

do

base

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

am

French.

You, we, they

are

French.

He, she, it

is

French.

am

not

old.

You, we, they

are

not

old.

He, she, it

is

not

old.

Am

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 Johns job to drive a taxi. He does it every day. Past, present and future.
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 tensesome 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?
Ram is tall.

past

present

future

The situation is general. Past, present and future

Simple Present Tense

I sing

How do we make the Simple Present Tense?

subject + auxiliary verb + main verb
do
base
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

am

French.

+ You, we, they

are

French.

He, she, it

is

French.

am

not old.

You, we, they

are

not old.

He, she, it

is

not old.

? Am

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.
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?
Ram is tall.
past

present

future

The situation is general. Past, present and future.

This page shows the use of the simple present

tense to talk about general events. But note
that there are some other uses for the simple
present tense, for example in conditional or if
sentences, or to talk about the future. You
will learn about those later.

Simple Present Tense

Simple Present Tense : Dipergunakan untuk menyatakan suatu perbuatan atau peristiwa
yang terjadi pada saat sekarang atau kejadian yang berulangkali atau sesuatu yang
merupakan kebiasaan sehari-hari.
Pattern :
A. S + to be (am, are, is) +
B. S + Verb1 (s/ es) +
A. S + to be (am, are, is) +
Example :
I am here every morning (+)
They are students of Situs Informasi Internet Course Sumedang (+)
She is sad today (+)

1. Jika kita hendak membuat kalimat tanya (interrogative) maka to be (am, are, is)
kita letakan di muka subjek.
Example :
Are you new student here ?
2. Jika kita hendak membuat kalimat menyangkal (negative) maka kita
menambahkan not (nt) di belakang to be (am, are, is)
Example :
They are not (arent) at home in the evening.
B. S + Verb1 (s/ es) +
Example :
I usually wake up at five in the morning (+)
She goes to Sumedang twice a week (+)
We study English with Mr. John every Friday (+)
1. Jika kita hendak membuat kalimat tanya (interrogative) maka do atau does
diletakan di muka subjek :
Do + (I, You, They, We)
Does + (He, She, It)
Example :
Do you speak English ? (+)
Does she visit her grand mother every week-end ?
2. Jika kita hendak membuat kalimat menyangkal (negative) maka kita
menambahkan not (nt) di belakang kata bantu do atau does.
Example :
He does not (doesnt) come here
They do not (dont) study English

Time Signal : always, generally, normally, usually, often, never, regularly, sometimes,
seldom, nowdeys, steadly, everyday, every other day, on and of, once in a while, once a
week, twice a month, etc.

How is the present simple tense used?

The present simple is the tense used to describe actions that are timeless. If the time of
the action can be defined, then the present simple tense is used. The time and/or place is
stated or understood.
The Present Simple Tense is used in the following situations:

permanent actions actions that happen on a regular basis

facts
statements that are always true
to state existence
to state feeling
static verbs
general actions

Past

Present

Future

I go to school everyday

I live in New York.

Water boils at 100 degrees Celsius

I love to go to my English class.

This is a pen.

Note: The x prepresents the time of the action.

Note: the present simple tense is also used in other parts of English grammar, such as
conditional statements and the future tense.