Learn about English PRESENT TENSES!

The English language has FOUR present tenses. Do you know them?

They are present simple, present continuous, present perfect, and present perfect continuous.

PRESENT SIMPLE Form AFFIRMATIVE: (subject + base form [+s/es]) I work You work He/she/it works We work You work They work NEGATIVE: (subject + auxiliary verb ‘do’ + not + base form) I don’t work You don’t work He/she/it doesn’t work We don’t work You don’t work They don’t work QUESTION: (auxiliary verb ‘do’ + subject + base form) Do I work? Do you work? Does he/she/it work? Do we work? Do you work? Do they work?

USAGES with example sentences 1. Habitual or routine actions He plays tennis every week. 2. Permanent situations or facts. The sun sets in the west. 3. Commentaries Beckham passes to Fowler who shoots and scores! 4. Directions and instructions First you go left, and then you go straight on. 5. Newspaper headlines Stock market falls to all time low. 6. Present stories So I open the door and what do I see? A policeman in a pink uniform! 7. Historical sequence 1945: The Second World War begins. 1969: The first man lands on the moon.

Typical student MISTAKES/ ERRORS Here are some examples of the most common mistakes students make with the present simple. Correct them and make note of the errors or mistakes. 1. She walk to school everyday. 2. He no(t) like to watch TV. 3. Where lives your father? 4. She go often to Paris. 5. She doesn’t likes football. 6. I’m play golf most weekends.

TEST YOUR LEARNING Activity #1: Tell me a few sentences about your daily routine. What do you do every day? For example, ‘I wake up at 7am and I take my dog for a walk.’

Activity #2: Let’s play ‘Guess my profession?’ I am thinking of a random profession, and you have to ask me questions until you figure out which profession I am thinking of. For example, you may ask me questions like ‘Do you work with kids?’ Good luck!

PRESENT CONTINUOUS Form The present continuous tense is made with the present simple tense of the auxiliary verb ‘to be’ and the present participle (verb plus ing - e.g. 'working') of the main verb. AFFIRMATIVE: (subject + auxiliary verb ‘be’ + verb + ing) Regular form: I am learning You are learning He/she/it is learning We are learning You are learning They are learning Contracted form: I’m learning You aren’t learning He/she/it isn’t learning We aren’t learning You aren’t learning They aren’t learning NEGATIVE: (subject + auxiliary verb ‘be’ + not + verb + ing) Regular form: I am not learning You are not learning He/she/it is not learning We are not learning You are not learning They are not learning. Contracted form: I’m not learning You’re not learning He/she/it isn’t learning We’re not learning You’re not learning They aren’t learning QUESTION: (auxiliary verb ‘be’ + subject + verb + ing) Regular form: Am I learning? Are you learning? Is he/she/it learning? Are we learning? Are you learning? Are they learning? Contracted form: No contracted form. NOTE: The contracted form is commonly used in speech while the regular form is used in writing.

Attention: NON-PROGRESSIVE VERBS Most non-action verbs are not normally used in the continuous form, we usually use the present simple form instead. Here are some of the most common ones: Like, love, hate, understand, want, believe, hear, own, owe, seem, appear, wish, mean, remember However, there are exceptions, and some verbs have different meanings depending on whether they are used in the simple or continuous tense, e.g. She thinks you are right. (meaning = has the opinion that); She’s thinking about it. (meaning = considering)

USAGES with sample sentences 1. To talk about an action that is in progress at the time of speaking Please be quiet, I’m watching TV. 2. To talk about a temporary action that is not necessarily in progress at the time of speaking I am reading a good book at the moment. 3. To emphasize very frequent actions (often with always) She is always biting her nails. 4. Background events in a present story So I’m standing there when a policeman comes in. 5. To describe developing situations It’s getting dark. 6. To refer to a regular action around a point of time He’s usually working at this time.

Typical student MISTAKES/ ERRORS Correct the sentences and make note of the errors or mistakes. He watching TV. We are have a meeting. Do you not coming to the cinema? I’m working hard every day. I'm believing in God.

Activity #1 & #2: Describe what is happening in the following pictures using the present continuous.