Grammatical tenses in English table. Verbs in Present Simple

Already in the first lessons of a foreign language, students are taught the simplest verbal constructions, because action is the basis of our life. The English tense system has many branches, so each category is usually analyzed separately. Today we will look at the simplest temporary form, which is called the simple present (Present Simple / Indefinite). This aspect is very easy and simple to learn; it is even taught to children in a playful way. primary school. A table in which we will analyze various constructions and situations of using this tense will help us study the present simple.

English perception of the present tense

To begin with, let us note the difference between our understanding of the present and the criteria of the British. Russian grammar classifies this temporary category as actions occurring at the moment of speech, or periodically repeating events. The English language delimits time intervals more narrowly, so it has four subdivisions of the present tense. On this moment You should not overload yourself with complex information in all categories yet, but it is important to understand that the present indefinite we are studying today is just one aspect of the present, and not a full-fledged group of time. Let's consider the structure and use of this subspecies.

Present simple construction tables

Before studying specific situations typical for present simple , Let's learn how to construct the verb construction itself so that later we can independently compose several example sentences.

When composing statements that convey events and actions in the present simple, the predicates receive a simple infinitive form, but without using a particle to. In other words, the dictionary form of the verb is taken, from which it is discarded to.

Everything would be very simple, but there is one catch. Predicates relating to nouns and third-person pronouns require the addition of the endings s or es. The shape of the ending depends on the letters preceding it: es is added after o, sh, s, x, ch, ss; in other cases, a simple s is used. Let's pay attention to their pronunciation: es - IZ, s after voiceless ones - C, s after voiced consonants and vowels - Z.

Affirmative form
Pronouns	Predicate		Pronouns	Predicate
+ noun	read...	BUT	+noun	read s … watch es … speak s … mean s … write s … wash es …

Please note, verbs with final unreadable e, retain it when adding a third person ending s, But e still remains unreadable! That is, this is by no means es (from), but an ordinary s (c/z). It is worth clarifying that only pronouns are used in the table, but the rules are also valid for nouns in the role of 3rd person.

Particularly difficult for beginners is creating interrogative and negative sentences in the present simple tense. To construct such expressions, you must use the auxiliary word do.

When composing questions, do is placed at the beginning of the sentence, followed by the subject, and the main verb in third place. And again let us dwell in more detail on the 3rd person construction, for which the auxiliary do turns into does. This transformation is not accidental, since this is still the same ending, characteristic of the indefinite tense, which we used in the statements. And here we come to study the most common mistake: no endings are added to the main verb in negatives and questions. Only the verb do takes on the role of adding an ending.

And once again we urge you to pay attention to the last column of the table: in the third person, verbs do not have any additional endings.

In negative phrases present indefinite, the same do/does are used, only the particle not is added to them. In writing you can often find the abbreviated constructions don’t and doesn’t. The negation is located in the sentence immediately before the main verb.

Negative form
Subject	Predicate with negation		Subject	Predicate with negation
I + noun	don't send...	BUT	He +noun	do es n't send... do es don't buy... do es don't call... do es don't fly... do es don't eat...

And we'll repeat it again Golden Rule that in case of negation and questions in the present simple, the main predicate does not have any additional endings. Please pay close attention to this information so as not to make serious mistakes in your speech.

Present simple table of cases of use and circumstances-markers

The time has come to consider directly the situations of using this aspect. Learn basic meanings present simple will help table given below. Note that in English, with a certain category of time, the corresponding adverbs of time are often used. They are also indicated in the table, since you can easily navigate from them which design needs to be used.

Use of present indefinite
Situation	Example	Translation
1. A story about regular actions, periodic events.	Anna goes to the swimming pool twice a week. He often plays with children. Grandparents visit us every month.	Anna goes to the pool twice a week. He often plays with children. Grandparents visit us every month.
2. Designation permanent signs and qualities inherent in people and objects.	My friend speaks Polish fluently. This pen is blue.	My friend speaks Polish fluently. This pen is blue.
3. Expression of facts, known truths, proverbs and sayings.	Doctors treat patients. 2017 is the year of the cock. All is well that ends well.	Doctors treat patients. 2017 is the year of the rooster. All is well that ends well.
4. Drawing up plans, schedules, schedules for the near future.	The football match begins at half past eight. The plane arrives at 09 o'clock.	The football match starts at half past nine. The plane arrives at 9 o'clock.
5. As an exception, with some verbs denoting processes. As a rule, these are designations of feelings, mental activity, relationships, desires, etc.	I understand your actions and I believe you. My parents know that I own this house. It belongs to me. She loves this fellow.	I understand your actions and trust you. My parents know that I own this house. He belongs to me. She loves this guy.
Signal words: always, regularly, often, every, never, usually, sometimes, ever, from time to time.

There is one topic in language learning that we can probably talk about endlessly. Of course, we mean tenses in English. It is sometimes difficult for students new to the language to get used to the way English-speaking people divide their time for themselves. In fact, each tense form in English has its own analogue in Russian, we just don’t distinguish these forms into separate groups. Therefore, understanding tenses is not at all difficult, and today you will see for yourself.

First let's do short review all time groups so that you have an idea of ​​what we will talk about today. As in Russian, English sentences can be built in the past, present and future. But besides these tenses, English also has 4 tense forms, namely: Simple, Continuous, Perfect and Perfect Continuous. In general, it turns out that one idea can be expressed in twelve temporary forms Oh. Each form has different way formation of verbs that appear in a sentence. With their help you can determine the time. Detailed table for clarity:

Formation of tenses in English
Time/View	Simple	Continuous or Progressive (long)	Perfect	Perfect Continuous / Progressive (perfect continuous)
Past (past)	V2	to be (2nd form) + V-ing	had + V3	had + been + V-ing
Present (present)	V1	to be (1st form) + V-ing	have / has + V3	have / has + been + V-ing
Future (future)	will + V1	will be + V-ing	will + have + V3	will + have + been + V-ing

Having briefly examined English times, let's move on to their more detailed study and consider the rules for forming tenses with examples.

Why are tenses needed in English?

But first I would like to dwell on the question of why times are needed in English and is it worth teaching them all? The tense system in English helps to correctly convey your thoughts to others. That is, you can make it clear what action we're talking about. Was it in the past or present? Has it already ended or is it still going on? Or maybe it happens regularly? - all these questions will disappear on their own , if it is known what tense was used in the sentence.

“So I’m just starting to learn the language, and I’ll immediately have to learn all 12 tenses of the English language?” - you ask. Ideally, yes, you need to learn all tenses. But, most likely, you will not be able to do this at once. Therefore, start your training from the times of the Simple group. Knowing the simple tense, you will be able to explain what happened or will happen to you, what you need and why. But you shouldn’t limit yourself to this time, and therefore, having dealt with it, gradually continue to study other groups. The latest one to consider is the Perfect Continuous group. It is often resorted to when the language level of the students already “exceeds” the average, because the tenses of this group are used quite rarely and are used more to demonstrate their knowledge.

Tenses in English: Simple group

Simple		Present	Past	Future
	+	V1	V2	will + V1
	—	do / does + not + V1	did + not + V1	will + not + V1
	?	Do/Does... V1?	Did... V1?	Will...V1?

Present Simple

Present Simple or simple present tense , is perhaps the most used. The use of this English tense is necessary to express regularly repeated actions, habits, schedules and facts.

As you may have noticed from the table above, the present tense is formed using a verb in its initial form, that is, in the form in which the word is indicated in the dictionary. However, this form may vary slightly depending on the person and number. So, if an action is performed by a third person in the singular, the verbs have an ending -s (-es):

To form negative and interrogative sentences, the auxiliary verb do is used. If it is used with third persons in the singular, then this verb turns into does, because it takes away the ending -s (-es) from the semantic verb.

Examples:

As you can see, this tense does not have any complex grammatical rules.

Past Simple

Past Simple or simple past tense in English is used to express the same simple repeated actions, but only in the past. To form it, a verb in the second form is used. It comes in two types. If the verb is regular, then it is enough to add the ending –ed. If it is irregular, then you just need to memorize the second form, because each irregular verb has its own one. Compare:

In this case, the person performing the action does not affect the verb in any way, that is, for all persons the form of the verb is the same. Let's look at the use of this time using examples:

To form negative and interrogative sentences in this case, the auxiliary verb did is used. It takes over the function of the past tense determiner, so the semantic verb returns to its initial form:

Future Simple

Future Simple or simple future tense in English is used to express simple actions that will happen in the future. It has the auxiliary verb will in all three sentence forms:

	She will help you.	She will help you.
	I will explain you how to do this.	I'll explain to you how to do it.
	They will share their main ideas.	They will share their main ideas.
	You will not (won’t) remember anything.	You won't remember anything.
	She won’t be available because she’ll turn off her phone.	She won't be available because she will turn off her phone.
	They won't sign the documents.	They won't sign the documents.
	Will you be with me?	You will be with me?
	Will they like the description of the product?	Will they like the product description?
	Will he lie or not?	Will he lie or not?

Tenses in English: Continuous group

Continuous / Progressive (Long)		Present	Past	Future
	+	to be (1st form) + V-ing	to be (2nd form) + V-ing	will be + V-ing
	—	to be (1st form) + not + V-ing	to be (2nd form) + not + V-ing	will + not + be + V-ing
	?	to be (1st form) ... V-ing?	to be (2nd form) ... V-ing?	Will...be V-ing?

Present Continuous

Present Continuous (Present Progressive) or present continuous tense in English (also known as continuous tense in English) is a tense that shows that an action is ongoing, that is, in the process of being performed at a given moment in time. It is usually constructed using the auxiliary verb to be, which is expressed in three forms, depending on person and number:

Examples:

	I am typing him a message right now.	I'm typing a message to him right now.
	We are watching TV all day long.	We watch TV all day.
	They are translating the text at the moment.	They are currently translating the text.
	He is not (isn’t) reading now.	He's not reading now.
	Jim isn’t writing a new post.	Jim doesn't write a new post.
	I am not (‘m not) learning Turkish.	I don't study Turkish.
	Is she working here till summer?	Is she working here until the summer?
	Are you doing this on purpose, huh?	You're doing this on purpose, right?
	Are they studying the course at the moment?	Are they currently studying this course?

Past Continuous

(Past Progressive) or past continuous tense is used to show that some action lasted at a certain point in the past. Its formation also requires auxiliary and semantic verbs. The same verb to be acts as an auxiliary verb, but only in the past tense:

Pronouns	to be in the past tense
I	was
We	were

The semantic verb is formed in the same way as for the present continuous tense.

Examples:

	I was sleeping when he called me.	I was sleeping when he called me.
	She was cooking while I was reading a newspaper.	She was cooking while I was reading the newspaper.
	They were watching a cartoon when the electricity was suddenly cut off.	They were watching a cartoon when suddenly the lights went out.
	He was not (wasn’t) surfing the Internet at 8 in the evening.	He wasn't surfing the Internet at 8 p.m.
	They were not (weren’t) talking to each other when I came in.	They weren't talking to each other when I walked in.
	I wasn't analyzing the results.	I didn't analyze the results.
	Was she laughing during your presentation?	Did she laugh during your presentation?
	Were they training in the evening?	Did they train in the evening?
	Was she teaching her student at 3 p.m.?	Was she tutoring her student at 3pm?

Future Continuous

Accordingly, Future Continuous (Future Progressive) or future long time shows an action that will take place at a specific moment in the future. All 3 sentence forms in this tense require an auxiliary verb will be and a semantic verb ending in –ing:

	When I come back, they will be listening to music.	When I return, they will listen to music.
	I will be passing the exam this time tomorrow.	Tomorrow at this time I will be taking the exam.
	They will be rehearsing here at 9 p.m.	They will be rehearsing here at 9 pm.
	Diana will not (won’t) be recording a song tonight.	Diana won't be recording the song tonight.
	Unfortunately, I will not be spending time with my friends during my vacations.	Unfortunately, I won't be spending time with my friends during my vacation.
	They will not be building a website this time on Monday.	They will not be developing the website at this time on Monday.
	Will they be chilling the whole day?	Will they chill out all day?
	Will she be washing the dishes when we go downstairs?	Will she be washing the dishes when we go downstairs?
	Will they be conducting a research?	Will they do the research?

Tenses in English: Perfect group

Perfect (Perfect)		Present	Past	Future
	+	have / has + V3	had + V3	will + have + V3
	—	have / has + not + V3	had + not + V3	will + not + have + V3
	?	Have/Has…V3?	Had...V3?	Will... have V3?

Present Perfect

Present Perfect or present perfect tense is a tense in English used to express actions that have completed by now. It differs from the simple past tense in that it places emphasis on the result in the present that caused an action in the past.

This tense form requires the auxiliary verb have, which changes to has for the third person. But with verbs used as semantic ones, not everything is so simple. They are answered by the past participles. The participle can be formed in two ways:

• If the verb is correct, then it is enough to add the ending –ed:

Example sentences:

	The son has broken the window with a ball.	My son broke a window with a ball.
	My children have already made the list of presents.	My children have already made a gift list.
	I have heard this story many times.	I've heard this story many times.
	I have not (haven’t) hurt people ever.	I've never hurt people.
	She has not (hasn’t) decided yet.	She hasn't made a decision yet.
	They haven’t learned these formulas by heart; that’s why I’m sure they have written cheat sheets	They didn't memorize these formulas, so I'm sure they wrote spurs.
	Has she been to Europe?	Has she been to Europe?
	Have you ever watched an eclipse?	Have you ever watched an eclipse?
	Have they met him yet?	Have they already met him?

Past Perfect

Or the past perfect tense is used to show that some action took place before a specific moment in the past. It is formed using the auxiliary verb had and the same past participles:

	I had prepared a surprise for my children by 7 o’clock in the evening.	I have prepared a surprise for children by 7 p.m.
	We had considered all suggestions by Friday.	We reviewed all proposals by Friday.
	I wanted to visit her but she had moved already.	I wanted to visit her, but she had already moved.
	She had not (hadn’t) spent too much time before she understood the concept.	It didn't take her long before she understood the concept.
	They hadn’t finished the construction by the deadline.	They didn't finish construction by the deadline.
	We hadn't published the magazine by Monday.	We had not published the magazine by Monday.
	Had she edited everything by the end of the day?	Did she edit everything before the end of the day?
	Had he learned the details carefully before he started doing the project?	Did he study all the details carefully before starting the project?
	Had she come back by Thursday?	Was she back by Thursday?

Future Perfect

Future Perfect or future perfect tense, as you might have guessed, shows that the action will be completed by a certain point in the future. To form this tense, in addition to the auxiliary verb have, you will need the verb will. The meaning is the past participle:

	I will have changed everything by this time.	By this time I will change everything.
	She will have been in the Maldives at 3 a.m.	She will be in the Maldives at 3 am.
	The builders will have built the stadium by next winter.	Builders will build the stadium by next winter.
	They will not (won’t) have spent much time on family until they understand its value.	They will not spend much time on family until they understand its value.
	She won’t have reached her goals until she starts working.	She won't achieve her goals until she starts working.
	I think George and Quincy won’t have made up before your birthday party.	I don't think George and Quincy will make up until your birthday.
	Will they have made it by March?	Will they do it by March?
	Will she have got his real intentions before they get married?	Will she understand his true intentions before they get married?

Tenses in English: Perfect Continuous group

Perfect (Perfect)		Present	Past	Future
	+	have / has + been + V-ing	had + been + V-ing	will + have + been + V-ing
	—	have / has + not + been + V-ing	had + not + been + V-ing	will + not + have + been + V-ing
	?	Have / Has … been + V-ing?	Had... been + V-ing?	Will... have + been + V-ing?

Present Perfect Continuous

Present Perfect Continuous or present perfect continuous tense is a tense used to show an action that began and lasted up to a certain moment or continues to last now.

It has auxiliary verbs have been, which change to has been for the third person. The semantic one is the same verb that was used in Continuous tenses. Among all tenses of the English language of this group, time Present Perfect Continuous is the most commonly used:

	It has been raining all day long.	It rained all day.
	My friend has been persuading me to go with him for an hour.	My friend convinces me to go with him for an hour.
	I’m tired because we have been creating a studio all night.	I was tired because we had been setting up the studio all night.
	She has not (hasn’t) been learning French since she moved from Canada.	She hasn't studied French since she moved from Canada.
	Bryan hasn’t been enjoying his weekends since his mother-in-law came to visit them.	Brian didn't enjoy the weekend because his mother-in-law was visiting.
	We haven't been sleeping all night.	We didn't sleep all night.
	How long have you been living here?	How long have you lived here?
	Have you been fighting again?	Did you fight again?
	Who has been touching my documents?!	Who touched my documents?!

Past Perfect Continuous

The Past Perfect Continuous or past perfect continuous tense is used in the same way as the Present Perfect Continuous, only in this case the action ends at a certain point in the past. Sentences are formed in this tense using the auxiliary verbs had been and the semantic verb ending in –ing. Since this form is not used very often and there are not many options for its use, let's look at just a few examples:

Future Perfect Continuous

Future Perfect Continuous or future perfect continuous tense implies a certain moment in the future. Time is used in very rare cases. It uses auxiliary verbs will have been and still the same semantic verb:

That's all. We hope that the explanation of the topic helped you, and the use of tenses in English is no longer a problem for you. Try to use all tense forms as often as possible when speaking, make up examples with them, do various exercises on English tenses and make translations.

To avoid having to constantly return to this article, redraw or create your own table of English tenses. It will be like a cheat sheet for you. Refer to it periodically, even if you have finished studying this topic, since repeating what you have covered will never do any harm. If you still have a little confusion with the tenses at first, with enough practice you will quickly understand how to use them. The main thing is that we deal with all the tenses step by step and do not move from one group to another until we have completely mastered the material.

Hello guys! Many will agree that the topic of this article evokes fear. Tenses in English - This combination of words can scare even an experienced English student, let alone a beginner.

Just about English times

• It is worth understanding that in English there are 3 pillars on which all grammar rests - “ to be», « to have" And " to do».
• Each of these whales can swim in three times: Present,Past And Future.
• In turn, Present, Past and Future will flow into the seas Simple,Continuous, Perfect And Perfect Continuous.
• In the meantime, whales (or whales) swim in these seas, they have babies, or rather, new forms are formed.

Are you confused? Let's take a closer look.

How to learn all tenses in English

You just need to sort everything out and systematize your learning until it becomes automatic. You will know how much you have studied and how much is still to come, then the study of times will not seem like something limitless and endless.

• Present Simple used to express a common, regularly repeated action.
• Past Simple used to express an action that happened in the past.
• Future Simple used to express an action that will happen in the future.

• Present Continuous used to express an action taking place at the moment.
• Past Continuous used to express an action that occurred at a certain point in time in the past.
• Future Continuous used to express an action that will occur at a certain point in time in the future.

• Present Perfect used to express a completed (or still ongoing) action, the result of which is associated with the present.
• Past Perfect used to express an action that ended earlier than another action or a specific moment in the past.
• Future Perfect used to express an action that will be completed by a specific point in time in the future.

Important! There is also the time Future in the Past, which we talked about in the corresponding article.

• Present Perfect Continuous used to express an action that began in the past and continues in the present, or the duration of the action is important.
• Past Perfect Continuous used to express an action that began at a certain point in the past and continued for some time before the beginning of another action.
• Future Perfect Continuous used to express an action that, having begun at a certain moment, will still continue at some point in time in the future.

How not to be afraid of tenses in English?

• Be prepared for the fact that you should have a good feel for the difference between times, from a logical point of view. The tenses in English and Russian are not 100% similar, so it is not always possible to draw a parallel.
• After getting acquainted with each new tense, you must practice it well by completing various grammatical exercises in order to remember the construction and, of course, the situation where we use this tense.
• It is important to learn irregular verbs. For this purpose, there are now special songs that consist of all irregular verbs. Give it a try. This is very effective method studying irregular verbs. Especially for music lovers.
• Study English tenses systematically, without trying to learn everything in one day. As soon as you begin to navigate one time, you can move on to the next. Then be sure to practice the mixed exercises where the tasks will be collected in order to check if you are not confused about these tenses.
• It is advisable to practice English every day for 15 minutes. In this case, the new store of knowledge will be stored in your memory for a long time and you will use it automatically.
• If you are studying English tenses on your own, look for useful videos on the Internet. On our website you will find many useful grammar video lessons. This is much more interesting and reliable than looking for rules anywhere on the Internet.
• Don't overwork yourself! It's important to give yourself rest. If you turn English into daily hard labor, it will not benefit you, but will only discourage you from learning it.
• When learning tenses in English, pay attention to whether your memory is visual or auditory. Based on this, you can understand which tasks are best to give preference to achieve the most effective result.
• Don't try to learn all tenses in English at once. To start, learn 5-6 basic tenses. This will be quite enough to communicate in English competently.
• As a result, it is important to be able to use these tenses in a conversation. This is quite difficult to do on your own. Suppose you can find rules, exercises and answers to them on your own, but understanding whether you use English tenses in your speech is not an easy task.

Conclusion

With English tenses there are usually 3 scenarios:

• The student decides that he doesn’t need tenses in English because he just wants to improve his conversational skills.
• The student finds a popular grammar textbook and slowly studies each tense on his own.
• The student turns to the teacher and trusts him on his path to mastery at times in full.

Which one do you choose?

Definitely the second and third! It is impossible to communicate in a language like a native speaker without knowing the tenses. Definitely, if you want to know English, tenses are very important. So which side should you approach them from?

The EnglishDom online school employs many experienced teachers who have already proven to many students that learning tenses is not a disaster.

Many students come to a free introductory lesson with the request “just not grammar,” and after a few lessons with the teacher, they take grammar tests and other interactive tasks with great pleasure. So don't be afraid! U can do it! Times are waiting for you :)

Big and friendly EnglishDom family

2015-12-17

Hello my beloved readers.

Today we have a very important topic. Unlike foreigners, who will never be able to understand the meaning of the phrase “no, probably”, for us (even the most novice dummies!) to understand them 12 - I ask you to note, - sometimes it’s worth nothing. It's true?

And if you have ever had problems with them, then today we will solve them with you. Topic of the day: tenses in English. We will understand when, where, what is used, as well as time indicators.

Please note that for each time I attached color scheme with formulas and examples for clarity, after which you can follow the link to fix the time using exercises and online tests . Also, all the names of times (highlighted in red) are clickable - to go to separate page with more detailed rules and explanations and examples. Let's start in order.

Times are real

I was cooking when the phone rank.

The second most popular time for many schoolchildren (the first, of course, Present Simple), - This . And the reason for this is simple: it is used if an event occurred BEFORE another event in the past (See for more details about this time).

See:

When she called I had already packed my suitcase.
I was ready to go when he called and told me that he had forgotten the keys.

No less amazing time denotes an event that began at some specific point in the past, and ended before some point in the past - or is still continuing in the past.

I had been doing this report for 3 hours when I found it in the Internet.

Future times

Commands what will happen in the future. Here are the cases in which it can be used:

• Simple future event;
  I will call you tomorrow.
• Regular actions;
  I will come here every year.
• Description of the sequence;
  I will come home, my mother will give us some food and we will hit the road.

Describes events at a specific future moment.

At 5 p.m. we will be conducting a meeting session. I expect you to be there.

C, everything is similar to its counterparts in other tenses: an action is described that starts in the future and ends then.

I will have spent a lot of time for preparation before taking part in this competition.

Many English language learners believe that they need to immediately master all tenses in order to put a long-awaited check mark on a long list of planned English tasks. But I’ll tell you as an experienced teacher - first you need to master 3-5 running times. When you know them by heart and know how to use them, then you can move on. Otherwise, you will get stuck at this stage and quit English without tasting all its charm!

By the way, I recommend that many of my friends (who want to remember or just learn the basics of English grammar) take online course from LinguaLeo « Grammar for Beginners» . You definitely won't be bored there. In addition, the information is as practical as possible. In addition to the 5 tenses that are proposed to be mastered in this course, everyone will find others there. basic grammar concepts, which will simply be impossible to forget after a bunch of interesting practical tasks.

How easy is it to remember all these times? A table with examples will help you with this. Everything you need in one place. Convenient, isn't it?

I hope, my dears, that now you will have much fewer questions about verb tenses. But if you still have unresolved questions, do not hesitate to write them under the article. I will be happy to answer them.

Do you want to be the first to receive a selection where we will collect best exercises on this topic - then subscribe to delicious my blog newsletter.

And for today I say goodbye.
Until we meet again, my dears.

In contact with

Hello! Today you will get acquainted with the present indefinite (simple) time in English - Present Simple, or as it is also called Present Indefenite. The study of tense forms of a verb in English always begins with the Present Simple, since it is basic. If you understand the structure of this tense, it will be easy for you to understand the rest of the tenses.

After studying the material, you will learn in which cases the Present Simple tense is used, get acquainted with the rules for forming the Present Simple and with many other nuances of using the Present Simple tense, shown in individual examples.

Meaning of Present Simple Tense

First, let's define the meaning of Present Simple tense. So, Present Simple expresses actions or states in the present tense, without indicating their duration, completion, precedence in relation to another action, etc.

Actions expressed in the Present Simple refer to the present tense, but, as a rule, do not occur at the moment of speech. This is how Present Simple differs from the present tense in Russian. The Russian present tense denotes both actions that relate to the present period of time and actions that occur at the moment of speech. In English, to express the latter, another form of the present tense is used, namely Present Continuous. You can see this with this example:

• Present Simple: I speak Russian. - I speak Russian. (meaning, I can generally speak Russian)
• Present Continuous: I am speaking Russian - I speak Russian. (meaning - I speak Russian at the moment)

Pay attention to the rules!

Rules for the formation of Present Simple Tense

And now it’s time to move on to the main thing - the rules of education Present Simple Tense in English.

Affirmative form of Present Simple Tense

To form the affirmative form of the Present Simple, auxiliary verbs are not required. For persons I, you singular and we, you, they plural, the forms of the verb in the Present Simple coincide with the infinitive form. This applies to both regular and irregular verbs.

Only in the 3rd person singular ( he, she, it) ending is added to the verb − s or —es. These endings are pronounced like [s], [z] or . For example:

• I make - he make s
• I sing -he sing s
• I rise - he rise s[ˈraɪzɪz]

The rules for pronouncing and writing these endings are the same as for the plural endings of nouns. You can find them in the article Plurals of nouns in English.

in the affirmative

Question form Present Simple Tense

The interrogative form is formed using an auxiliary verb to do, with the exception of modal verbs and verbs to be And to have. But we'll talk about these exceptions a little later. So, auxiliary verb to do used in forms do or does(For he, she, it), agreeing in person and number with the subject, and the main verb in all persons has the infinitive form.

For education interrogative form Present Simple the auxiliary verb do (does) comes first before the subject, and the subject is followed by the main verb in the infinitive form.

Table
verb conjugations in Present Simple Tense

in interrogative form

Negative form of Present Simple Tense

The negative form is also formed using an auxiliary verb do (does), but in combination with a negative particle not. So, the subject comes first, then the auxiliary verb do (does) + negative particle not, and the main verb in the infinitive form.

Auxiliary do (does) usually merges into one word with a particle not:

• don't - don't
• does not − doesn't

Verb conjugation table in Present Simple Tense

in a negative form

Verb conjugation rules in Present Simple Tense

Exceptions to the rules

Now is the time to talk about exceptions to the rules! Remember!
Modal verbs can, ought, may, should, must, would, as well as the verbs to be and to have form the Present Simple forms not according to the general rules!

In the affirmative form, modal verbs in the 3rd person singular form do not have an ending − s or —es:

• I can—he can
• I may -he may
• I ought—he ought
• I must -he must
• I should—he should
• I would -he would

Verb to be in the affirmative form has the forms am, is, are, was, were, depending on person and number, and the verb to have forms − have And has.

In interrogative and negative form, all these verbs are used as auxiliaries!

Review the following tables carefully and memorize them!

Conjugation table for the verb to be in the Present Simple Tense

Number	Face	Affirmative form	Interrogative form	Negative form
Unit h.	1 2 3	I am You are He/She/It is	Am I? Are you? Is he/ she/ it?	I am (I"m) not You are not (aren't) He/She/It is not (isn"t)
Mn. h.	1 2 3	We are You are They are	Are we? Are you? Are they?	We are not (aren't) You are not (aren't) They are not (aren't)

Conjugation of the verb to be in Present Simple Tense

Conjugation table for the verb to have in the Present Simple Tense

Number	Face	Affirmative form	Interrogative form	Negative form
Unit h.	1 2 3	I have You have He/She/It has	Have I? Have you? Has he/ she/ it?	I have not (haven't) You have not (haven't) He/She/It has not (hasn't)
Mn. h.	1 2 3	We have You have They have	Have we? Have you? Have they?	We have not (haven't) You have not (haven't) They have not (haven't)

It should be noted that such a conjugation of the verb to have occurs only in cases where to have denotes the possession of something. In American English, and in this meaning, it is preferable to conjugate the verb to have using the auxiliary verb to do according to the general rules of Present Simple:

• British - I haven't any pens.
• American - I don't have any pens.

If the verb to have means - to receive, take, accept, experience, etc., then it is conjugated according to the general rules, both in British and American. For example:

• Do you have any difficulties getting there? − Is it difficult for you to get there?

In informal British English, the construction is often used instead of the verb to have have got, in which have plays the role of an auxiliary verb. For example:

• I haven't got any pens − I don't have any pens

Another way to express the negative form of the verb to have is to use the particle no instead of not a/ not any:

• I haven’t got any pens = I haven’t got any pens = I have no pens

Conjugation table modal verbs in Present Simple Tense

(using the example of the verb - can)

Number	Face	Affirmative form	Interrogative form	Negative form
Unit h.	1 2 3	I can You can He/She/It can	Can I? Can you? Can he/ she/ it?	I cannot (can't) You cannot (can't) He/She/It cannot (can't)
Mn. h.	1 2 3	We can You can They can	Can we? Can you? Can they?	We cannot (can't) You cannot (can't) They cannot (can't)

Present Simple Tense is used:

1. When expressing repeated or constant actions in the present tense. Very often, such sentences contain time adverbials that express the frequency of the action:

• аlways - always
• often - often
• daily - daily
• usually - usually
• every day - every day
• regularly - regularly
• never - never
• sometimes - sometimes
• rarely - rarely
• rarely - infrequently

In most cases, time adverbs are placed between the subject and the predicate. Examples:

• I always help my brother in his studies. — I always help my brother with his studies.
• She usually gets up at eight o'clock. — She usually wakes up at eight o’clock.
• We have breakfast every day.− We have breakfast every day.
• Do you often visit your Grandmother? — Do you often visit your grandmother?
• Sandra daily makes exercises. — Sandra does exercises every day.
• I rarely meet with Jim. — I rarely meet Jim.
• Nick never goes home before nine. Nick never goes home before nine.
• My mother doesn't often give me work. — My mother doesn’t often give me work.
• She sometimes goes in our swimming-pool. — She sometimes goes to our pool.

The meaning of repeated or constant actions can be shown not only by adverbs, but also by the Present Simple form itself, for example, if the place or time of a regular action is indicated, or in the case of a list of successive actions.

• Nick goes to school at 9 o'clock. — Nick goes to school at 9 o’clock.
• I wake up, wash, have my breakfast, dress and go to university. — I wake up, wash my face, have breakfast, get dressed and go to the university.

2. When expressing an action or property that characterizes the subject at the current moment in time or constantly. For example:

• Nick speaks Russian very well. — Nick speaks Russian very well.
• My brother plays violin and sings. — My brother plays the violin and sings.
• He is a student. - He is a student.
• What is your name? - What is your name?

3. When expressing general provisions or well-known truths:

• The earth goes round the sun in 24 hours.− The earth goes around the sun in 24 hours.
• Two and two is four.− Twice two is four.

4. When denoting actions or states that occur at a given moment of speech, if they are expressed by verbs that are not used in the present continuous tense. Usually these are verbs that denote feelings, states, desires, thoughts, etc.

• Verbs of desire and expression of will: to want - to want, to desire - to desire, to wish - to desire, to mind - to worry, to refuse - to refuse, to forgive - to forgive, to demand - to demand...

• Verbs of feelings and emotions: to love - to love, to hate - to hate, to like - to like, to dislike - not to like, not to love, to adore - to adore, to respect - to respect, to detest - to disgust, to care for - to love, ...

• Verbs of physical perception and thinking: to hear - to hear, to see - to see, to smell - to smell, to agree - to agree, to believe - to believe, to doubt - to doubt, to notice - to notice, to forget - to forget, to remember - to remember, to know - to know , to suppose - to believe, to understand - to understand, to recognize - to recognize, to realize - to understand, to mean - to mean, to imagine - to imagine, to imagine, to fancy - to imagine, to perceive - to perceive, to think - to consider ...

• Verbs general meaning: to be - to be, to have - to have, to belong to - to belong, to differ from - to differ, to concern - to touch, to consist of - to consist of, to contain - to contain, to resemble - to remind, to depend on - to depend on , to own - to own, to equal - to be equal, to include - to include, to involve - to involve, to lack - to lack, to matter - to matter, to owe - to be due, to possess - to possess, to deserve - to deserve, to remain - remain, to result - lead to...

For example:

• We respect our parents very much. — We respect our parents very much.
• What do you hear? -What do you hear?
• I don't see her here. - I don't see her here.
• We don't understand you. - We don't understand you.
• My mother don't allow me to go there. — My mother doesn’t allow me to go there.

5. When expressing future actions or states (presumed in the future) in adverbial subordinate clauses of time and conditions after conjunctions:

• if - if
• when - when
• unless - if not
• аs son as - as soon as
• till, until - yet (not)
• before - before

In Russian, such subordinate clauses are translated into the future tense. For example:

• I'll wait till you finish your homework. − I'll wait until you finish your homework.
• What shall we do if does it snow tonight? — What will we do if it snows tonight?
• Come tomorrow unless you are very busy. - Come tomorrow if you are not too busy.
• Let's wait until the rain stops. - Let's wait until the rain stops.
• I'll join you as soon as I can. - I'll join you as soon as I can.

Don't confuse these offers with additional ones subordinate clauses after unions when, if, which use the future tense. For example:

• Ask him if he will do it. − Ask him if he will do it.

5. When expressing planned actions in the near future with verbs:

• to leave - to leave
• to come - to come, to arrive
• to start - to go
• to return - return
• to come back - return
• to arrive - to arrive
• to go - to leave, leave, depart

For example:

• They leave next year. — They are leaving next year.
• We come back tomorrow. - We're coming back tomorrow.

As you can see, despite the fact that the structure of the formation of Present Simple Tense is one of the easiest among all tense forms, you will still have some work to do. I advise you to learn the basic rules for forming and using the Present Simple by heart. Good luck in learning English!