N. The simple present tense

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

Do they live in Tokyo ? Yes they do./No, they don't.
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

When do you go to class? At nine o'clock.
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

Where do you live? I live in Los Angeles.
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.

 2. Use the verbs to complete the sentences .

• 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 ............... .

3. Use the words to complete the sentence.

• 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.

4. Use the given verbs to complete the sentences.

• 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.

5. Use the words to make NEGATIVE SENTENCES.

• 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.

6. Complete the sentences. Use the words in parentheses. Use the SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE.

• 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.

7. Make questions. Give short answers. Use the name of your friends in the questions.

• 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).

8. Make questions.

• 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 ).

9. Make questions.

• 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 ).