Simple Present - Summary

Form

be

	affirmative	negative	question
I	I am.	I am not.	Am I?
he/she/it	He is.	He is not.	Is he?
you/we/they	You are.	You are not.	Are you?

have

	affirmative	negative	question
I/you/we/they	I have got. / I have.	I have not got. / I do not have.	Have I got? / Do I have?
he/she/it	He has got. / He has.	He has not got. / He does not have.	Has he got? / Does he have?

other verbs

	affirmative	negative	question
I/you/we/they	I play.	I do not play.	Do I play?
he/she/it	He plays.	He does not play.	Does he play?

Exceptions in Spelling

Exception	Example
The verbs can, may, might, must remain the same in all forms. So don't add s.	he can, she may, it must
Verbs ending in o or a sibilant (ch, sh, s, x) add es instead of s.	do - he does, wash - she washes
A final y after a consonant becomes ie before s. (but: don't modify y after a vowel)	worry - he worries (but: play - he plays)

Short Forms

affirmative	negative
I am English. = I'm English.	I am not English. = I'm not English.
We are English.= We're English.	We are not English. = We're not / We aren't English.
He is English. = He's English.	He is not English. = He's not / He isn't English.
I have got a dog. = I've got a dog.	I have not got a dog. = I've not got a dog. / I haven't got a dog.
He has got a dog. = He's got a dog.	He has not got a dog. = He's not got a dog. / He hasn't got a dog.
	I do not play tennis. = I don't play tennis
	He does not play tennis = He doesn't play tennis.

Use

Use	Example
action in the present taking place once, never or several times	Colin always plays soccer on Tuesdays.
actions in the present taking place one after another	She takes her bag and leaves.
facts (something is generally known to be true)	The sun sets in the west.
action set by a timetable or schedule	The train leaves at 9 pm.
verbs of possession, senses, emotions and mental activity	I love her.

Typical Signal Words

• always
• every ...
• often
• normally
• usually
• sometimes
• seldom
• never