A. Prezentare
The simple present tense expresses habits .
I eat breakfast every morning.
Ann speaks English every day.
We sleep every night.
They go the beach every weekend.
Notice: the verb after she, he, it (3rd person singular) has a final -s : e.g. talks
SINGULAR: I talk, you talk, she talks, he talks, it rains ;
PLURAL: we talk, you talk, they talk
Using frequency adverbs :always, usually, often, sometimes, seldom, rarely, never.
SUBJECT + FREQUENCY ADVERB + SIMPLE PRESENT VERB
Bob always comes to class.
Mary usually comes to class.
We often watch TV at night.
I sometimes drink tea with dinner.
They seldom go to the movie.
Anna rarely makes a mistake.
I never eat paper.
Using frequency adverbs with BE.
SUBJECT+BE+FREQUENCY ADVERB
Frequency adverb come before all simple present verbs except BE.
Tom is always late for class.
Tom is often late for class.
Spelling of final -ES:
-SH: push-pushes
-CH: teach-teaches
-SS: kiss-kisses
-X: fix-fixes
Adding final -S/ES to words that end in -Y:
End of verb : consonant+ -Y , change y to i, add -es : cry-cries, try-tries
End of verb : vowel+ -Y, add -s : pay-pays, enjoy-enjoys
Irregular singular verbs: HAS, DOES, GOES
I have a book. He has a book.
I do my work. She does her work.
They go to the school. She goes to school.
Have, do, and go have irregular forms for third person singular.
The simple present : NEGATIVE
I, we, you, they + DO NOT + main verb
e.g. I do not drink coffee.
She, he, it + DOES NOT + main verb
She does not drink coffee.
Notice: In 3rd person singular, there is no -s on the main verb; the final -s is part of does.
Contractions: do not=don't, does not=doesn't
The simple present : YES/NO Questions
DO/DOES + SUBJECT + MAIN VERB
Do you like coffee?
Does Bob like coffee?
The main verb in the question does not have final -s.
When the main verb is a form of BE, do is not used.
Are you a student ?
Do you like tea ? Yes, I do. No I don't.
Does Bob like tea ? Yes, he does. No, he doesn't.
Do, don't, does, and doesn't are used in the short answers to yes/no question in the simple present.
The simple present : ASKING INFORMATION QUESTIONS WITH WHERE
(WHERE) + DO/DOES + SUBJECT + MAIN VERB
Where do they live ? In Tokyo.
Does Gina live in Rome ? Yes, she does./No, she doesn't.
Where does Gina live ? In Rome.
The simple present : ASKING INFORMATION QUESTIONS WITH WHEN AND WHAT TIME
QUESTION WORD + DO/DOES + SUBJECT + MAIN VERB
What time do you go to class? At nine o'clock.
When does Anna eat dinner ? At six P.M.
What time does Anna eat dinner? At six P.M.
What time do you usually go to class ?
The frequency adverb usually comes immediately after the subject in a question.
QUESTION WORD + DOES/DO + SUBJECT + USUALLY + MAIN VERB
SUMMARY : INFORMATION QUESTIONS WITH BE AND DO
QUESTION WORD + BE + SUBJECT
Where is Thailand? Thailand is in Southeast Asia.
Where is your books? My books are on my desk.
When is the concert? The concert is on April 3rd.
What is your name? My name is Yoko.
What time is it? It is ten-thirty.
QUESTION WORD + DO/DOES + SUBJECT + MAIN VERB
What time does the plane arrive? The plane arrives at six-fifteen.
What do monkeys eat? Monkeys eat fruit, plants, and insects.
When does Bob study? Bob studies in the evenings.
NOTICE: In questions with BE as the main and only verb, the subject follows BE. In the simple present questions with verbs other than BE, the subject comes between do/does and the main verb.
B.Exercitii
1. Add the frequency adverb to the sentence.
- always Ann is one time for class. e.g. Ann is always one time for class.
- always Ann comes to class one time. e.g. Ann always comes to class one time.
- often Sue is late for class.
- never Ron is happy.
- never Ron smiles.
- usually Bob is at home in the evening.
- usually Bob stay at home in the evening.
- seldom Tom studies at the library in the evening.
- seldom Tom is at the library in the evening.
- rarely I eat breakfast.
- often I take the bus to school.
- usually The weather is hot in July.
- never Sue drinks coffee.
- sometimes She drinks tea.
- brush Anita ......... her hair every morning. e.g. Anita brushes her hair every morning.
- teach Alex ........... English.
- fix A mechanic .......... cars.
- drink Sonya ............. tea every afternoon.
- watch Joon Kee often ........... television at night.
- kiss Peter always .......... his children goodnight.
- wear Tina usually ............. jeans to class.
- wash Eric seldom ............. her dog twice each day.
- walk Jessica ................ her dog twice each day.
- stretch / yawn When Don gets up in the morning, he .............. and ............... .
- pay, always Boris...... his bills on time. e.g. Boris always pays his bills on time.
- cry, seldom Our baby ................... at night.
- study Paul ............ at the library every day.
- stay, usually Jean ................. home at night.
- fly Kunio is a pilot. He ....... a plane.
- carry, always Carol.......................... her books to class.
- pray Jack ............ every day.
- buy, seldom Ann ................... new clothes.
- worry Tina is a good student, but she ............. about her grades.
- enjoy Don ............. good food.
- do Pierre always ......... his homework. e.g. Pierre always does his homework.
- do We always ...... our homework.
- have Yoko and Kunio ............ their books.
- have Ali ..... a car.
- go Bill ...... goes to school every day.
- go My friends often ........... to the beach.
- do Ana seldom ...... her homework.
- do We ........ exercises in class every day.
- go, go Roberto ..... downtown every weekend. He and his wife ...... shopping.
- have Jessica ........ a snack every night around ten.
- like, not Ingrid .......... tea. e.g. Ingrid doesn't like tea.
- like, not I ...... tea. e.g. I don't like tea.
- know, not Mary and Jim are strangers. Mary.......... Jim.
- need, not It's a nice day today. You ................. your umbrella.
- snow, not It ............. in Bangkok in the winter.
- speak, not I.................. French.
- be, not I........ hungry.
- live, not Butterflies ....................... long.
- have, not A butterfly ............. a long life.
- have, not We ..................... class every day.
- Alex (like).............. tea, but he (like, not)............coffee. e.g. Alex likes tea, but doesn't like coffee.
- Sara (know) .....Ali, but she (know, not) ........Hiroshi.
- Pablo and Maria (want) ........ to stay home tonight. They (want, not)....... to go to a movie.
- Robert (be, not) .........hungry. He (want, not) .............a sandwich.
- Mr. Smith (drink, not) ...... coffee, but Mr. Jones (drink) ...... twelve cups every day.
- I (be, not) ................ rich. I (have not)......a lot of money.
- This pen ( belong, not) ................... to me. It (belong).................. to Pierre.
- My friend ( live, not) ...........in the dorm. They (have)................ an apartment.
- It (be)............ a nice day today. It ( be, not) ............cold. You ( meet, not)................... your coat.
- Today (be)............. a holiday. We (have not) ....................class today.
- e.g........Does ( Carlos) speak English ?...........
- .......Yes he does. ........ (He speak English).
- e.g.........Does (Yoko) speak Spanish ?...........
- ........No, she doesn't........(She doesn't speak Spanish).
- e.g.........Is (Ali) in the class today ?................
- ........No, he isn't. ............(He isn't in class today).
- ..................................................................
- ........................................( He comes t class every day).
- ..................................................................
- ........................................( They are in class today).
- ..................................................................
- ........................................( She sits in the same seat every day).
- ..................................................................
- ........................................( They speak English).
- ..................................................................
- ........................................( He has a mustache).
- .................................................................
- .........................................( She doesn't have a bicycle).
- .................................................................
- ........................................( He's wearing blue jeans today).
- e.g. Does Jean eat lunch at the cafeteria every day ?
- Yes she does. ( Jean eats lunch at the cafeteria every day ).
- e.g. Where does Jean eat lunch every day ?
- At the cafeteria. ( Jean eat lunch at the cafeteria every day).
- .....................................................................................
- At the post office. ( Peter works at the post office).
- .....................................................................................
- Yes, I he does. ( Peter works at the post office).
- ....................................................................................
- Yes, I do. ( I live in an apartment).
- ....................................................................................
- At a restaurant. ( Bill eats dinner at a restaurant every day).
- ....................................................................................
- In the front row. ( I seat in the front row during class).
- ....................................................................................
- At the University of Wisconsin. ( Jessica goes to school at the University of Wisconsin).
- ....................................................................................
- On my desk. ( My book is on my desk).
- ....................................................................................
- To class. ( I go to class every morning).
- ....................................................................................
- In class. ( The students are in the class right now).
- ...................................................................................
- In Australia. ( Kangaroos live in Australia ).
- When/What time do you eat breakfast ?
- At 7:30 ( I eat breakfast at 7:30 in the morning ).
- When/What time do you usually eat breakfast ?
- At 7:00 ( Alex eat breakfast at 7:00 ).
- .........................................................................
- At 6:45. ( I get up at 6:45 ).
- ........................................................................
- At 6:30. ( Maria usually gets up at 6:30 ).
- .......................................................................
- At 8:45. ( The movie starts at 8:45 ).
- .......................................................................
- Around 11:00. I usually go to the bed around 11:00.
- .......................................................................
- At half past twelve. ( I usually eat lunch at half past twelve ).
- ........................................................................
- At 5:30. ( The restaurant opens at 5:30 ).
- ........................................................................
- At 9:05. ( The train leaves at 9:05 ).
- ........................................................................
- Between 6:30. ( I usually eat dinner between 6:30 and 8 ).
- ........................................................................
- At 10 P.M. ( The library closes at 10:00 P.M. on Saturday.
- .......................................................................
- At a quarter past eight. ( My classes begin at a quarter past eight ).