Simple Present Tense

The simple present tense in English is used to describe an action that is regular, true or normal.

We use the present tense:

1. For repeated or regular actions in the present time period.

• I take the train to the office.
• The train to Berlin leaves every hour.
• John sleeps eight hours every night during the week.

2. For facts.

• The President of The USA lives in The White House.
• A dog has four legs.
• We come from Switzerland.

3. For habits.

• I get up early every day.
• Carol brushes her teeth twice a day.
• They travel to their country house every weekend.

4. For things that are always / generally true.

• It rains a lot in winter.
• The Queen of England lives in Buckingham Palace.
• They speak English at work.

Verb Conjugation & Spelling

We form the present tense using the base form of the infinitive (without the TO).

In general, in the third person we add 'S' in the third person.

Subject	Verb	The Rest of the sentence
I / you / we / they	speak / learn	English at home
he / she / it	speaks / learns	English at home

The spelling for the verb in the third person differs depending on the ending of that verb:

1. For verbs that end in -O, -CH, -SH, -SS, -X, or -Z we add -ES in the third person.

• go – goes
• catch – catches
• wash – washes
• kiss – kisses
• fix – fixes
• buzz – buzzes

2. For verbs that end in a consonant + Y, we remove the Y and add -IES.

• marry – marries
• study – studies
• carry – carries
• worry – worries

NOTE: For verbs that end in a vowel + Y, we just add -S.

• play – plays
• enjoy – enjoys
• say – says

Negative Sentences in the Simple Present Tense

To make a negative sentence in English we normally use Don't or Doesn't with all verbs EXCEPT To Beand Modal verbs (can, might, should etc.).

• Affirmative: You speak French.
  Negative: You don't speak French.

You will see that we add don't between the subject and the verb. We use Don't when the subject is I, you,we or they.

• Affirmative: He speaks German.
  Negative: He doesn't speak German.

When the subject is he, she or it, we add doesn't between the subject and the verb to make a negative sentence. Notice that the letter S at the end of the verb in the affirmative sentence (because it is in third person) disappears in the negative sentence. We will see the reason why below.

Negative Contractions

Don't = Do not
Doesn't = Does not

I don't like meat = I do not like meat.

There is no difference in meaning though we normally use contractions in spoken English.

Word Order of Negative Sentences

The following is the word order to construct a basic negative sentence in English in the Present Tense using Don't or Doesn't.

Subject	don't/doesn't	Verb*	The Rest of the sentence
I / you / we / they	don't	have / buy eat / like etc.	cereal for breakfast
he / she / it	doesn't

* Verb: The verb that goes here is the base form of the infinitive = The infinitive without TO before the verb. Instead of the infinitive To have it is just the have part.

Remember that the infinitive is the verb before it is conjugated (changed) and it begins with TO. For example: to have, to eat, to go, to live, to speak etc.

Examples of Negative Sentences with Don't and Doesn't:

• You don't speak Arabic.
• John doesn't speak Italian.
• We don't have time for a rest.
• It doesn't move.
• They don't want to go to the party.
• She doesn't like fish.

Questions in the Simple Present Tense

To make a question in English we normally use Do or Does. It has no translation in Spanish though it is essential to show we are making a question. It is normally put at the beginning of the question.

• Affirmative: You speak English.
  Question: Do you speak English?

You will see that we add DO at the beginning of the affirmative sentence to make it a question. We use Dowhen the subject is I, you, we or they.

• Affirmative: He speaks French.
  Question: Does he speak French?

When the subject is he, she or it, we add DOES at the beginning to make the affirmative sentence a question. Notice that the letter S at the end of the verb in the affirmative sentence (because it is in third person) disappears in the question. We will see the reason why below.

We DON'T use Do or Does in questions that have the verb To Be or Modal Verbs (can, must, might, should etc.)

Word Order of Questions with Do and Does

The following is the word order to construct a basic question in English using Do or Does.

Do/Does	Subject	Verb*	The Rest of the sentence
Do	I / you / we / they	have / need want etc.	a new bike?
Does	he / she / it

*Verb: The verb that goes here is the base form of the infinitive = The infinitive without TO before the verb. Instead of the infinitive To have it is just the have part.

Remember that the infinitive is the verb before it is conjugated (changed) and it begins with TO. For example: to have, to eat, to go, to live, to speak etc.

Examples of Questions with Do and Does:

• Do you need a dictionary?
• Does Mary need a dictionary?
• Do we have a meeting now?
• Does it rain a lot in winter?
• Do they want to go to the party?
• Does he like pizza?

Short Answers with Do and Does

In questions that use do/does it is possible to give short answers to direct questions as follows:

Sample Questions	Short Answer (Affirmative)	Short Answer (Negative)
Do you like chocolate?	Yes, I do.	No, I don't.
Do I need a pencil?	Yes, you do.	No, you don't.
Do you both like chocolate?	Yes, we do.	No, we don't.
Do they like chocolate?	Yes, they do.	No, they don't.
Does he like chocolate?	Yes, he does.	No, he doesn't.
Does she like chocolate?	Yes, she does.	No, she doesn't.
Does it have four wheels?	Yes, it does.	No, it doesn't.

However, if a question word such as who, when, where, why, which or how is used in the question, you can not use the short answers above to respond to the question.

Short Answers - To Be

Short Answers with To Be

With To Be it is possible to give a short answer or a long answer to a question in English though in casual conversation, short answers are much more common than long answers. Long answers are for more formal conversations or if you want to give more information in your response.

In questions that use Is or Are it is possible to give short answers as follows:

Sample Questions	Short Answer (Affirmative)	Short Answer (Negative)
Am I late?	Yes, you are.	No, you aren't.
Are you tired?	Yes, I am.	No, I'm not.
Are you both happy?	Yes, we are.	No, we aren't.
Are they thirsty?	Yes, they are.	No, they aren't.
Is he sick again?	Yes, he is.	No, he isn't.
Is she a good teacher?	Yes, she is.	No, she isn't.
Is it available?	Yes, it is.	No, it isn't.

Examples

Are you from Chile?
- Yes, I am. (= Yes, I am from Chile)
- No, I'm not. (= No, I am not from Chile)

Is he an engineer?
- Yes, he is. (= Yes, he is an engineer)
- No, he isn't. (= No, he isn't an engineer)

Present Tense - Short Answers

Short Answers with Do and Does

In questions that use do/does it is possible to give short answers, to direct questions as follows:

Sample Questions	Short Answer (Affirmative)	Short Answer (Negative)
Do I need a ticket?	Yes, you do.	No, you don't.
Do you need a dictionary?	Yes, I do.	No, I don't.
Do you both speak English?	Yes, we do.	No, we don't.
Do they need help?	Yes, they do.	No, they don't.
Does he like chocolate?	Yes, he does.	No, he doesn't.
Does she want to come?	Yes, she does.	No, she doesn't.
Does it have four legs?	Yes, it does.	No, it doesn't.

Short Answers with To Be

In questions that use Is or Are it is possible to give short answers as follows:

Sample Questions	Short Answer (Affirmative)	Short Answer (Negative)
Am I early?	Yes, you are.	No, you aren't.
Are you busy now?	Yes, I am.	No, I'm not.
Are you both surprised?	Yes, we are.	No, we aren't.
Are they hungry?	Yes, they are.	No, they aren't.
Is he late again?	Yes, he is.	No, he isn't.
Is she a good student?	Yes, she is.	No, she isn't.
Is it ready?	Yes, it is.	No, it isn't.

In most cases, it is possible to give a short answer or a long answer to a question in English. In casual conversation, short answers are much more common than long answers. Long answers are for more formal conversations or if you want to give more information in your response.

Examples

• Do you like seafood?
  - Yes, I do
  - No, I don't.
• Can you speak German?
  - Yes, I can
  - No, I can't.
• Is there a hotel in this street?
  - Yes, there is
  - No, there isn't.
• Are they coming to the movies?
  - Yes, they are
  - No, they aren't.

If you look at the examples above you will notice that the answer uses the first verb in the question (even if it is an auxiliary verb). This is a common characteristic of short answers in English. Contrast that to long answers to each of those questions:

• Do you like seafood?
  - Yes, I like seafood.
  - No, I don't like seafood.
• Can you speak German?
  - Yes, I can speak German.
  - No, I can't speak German.
• Is there a hotel in this street?
  - Yes, there is a hotel at the end of this street.
  - No, there isn't a hotel in this street.
• Are they coming to the movies?
  - Yes, they are coming to the movies.
  - No, they are not coming to the movies.

You will notice that long answers often sound repetitive. A long answer to one of these questions would be considered very formal in English, and in most cases, unnecessary.

Remember, when you are accepting or refusing something to say 'yes, please' or 'no, thank you'. It is much more common to give short answers to questions like these:

• Would you like a beer?
  Yes, please.
• Do you need any help?
  No, thank you.

Past Tense - Short Answers

As is the case with any verb tense in English, it is generally possible to give short answers to a question. This is certainly the case for questions in the past tense.

If the question commences with one of the traditional question words such as WHO, WHERE, WHEN, WHY, WHAT, WHICH or HOW, it requires a more detailed answer and it is not possible to give a short answer.

Examples of long answers

What did you do on the weekend?
- I went to a party with my friends.
(It is not possible to give a short answer to this question like 'Yes, I did').

Why did you call him?
- Because I needed to borrow his computer.

However, if the question is more direct, and commences with a verb or Did, then it is generally possible to give a short or a long answer to the question.

Examples

Was Chris at the party last night?
- Yes, he was. (short answer)
- Yes, Chris was at the party last night. (long answer)

Did you see Julie on the weekend?
- No, I didn't. (short answer)
- No, I didn't see Julie on the weekend. (long answer) 

Could they speak Japanese?
- Yes, they could. (short answer)
- Yes, they could speak Japanese. (long answer)

As you can see, long answers usually sound repetitive and are not commonly used.

Short Answers with DID

Remember that if the question starts with DID, you can give a short answer using DID. It is not necessary to use the main verb in the answer.

Examples

Did you sleep well last night?
Yes, I did / No, I didn't.

Did the airplane arrive on time?
Yes, it did / No, it didn't.

Did they remember your birthday?
Yes, they did / No, they did not.

Did your parents ring you last week?
Yes, they did / No, they didn't.

Did you lose your dog?
Yes, I did / No, I did not.

In questions that use DID it is possible to give short answers as follows:

Sample Questions	Short Answer (Affirmative)	Short Answer (Negative)
Did I pass the test?	Yes, you did.	No, you didn't.
Did you need a dictionary?	Yes, I did.	No, I didn't.
Did you both like the movie?	Yes, we did.	No, we didn't.
Did they finish their homework?	Yes, they did.	No, they didn't.
Did he have a good time?	Yes, he did.	No, he didn't.
Did she want to leave early?	Yes, she did.	No, she didn't.
Did it have blue buttons?	Yes, it did.	No, it didn't.

Short Answers with Was / Were

In questions that use Was or Were it is possible to give short answers as follows:

Sample Questions	Short Answer (Affirmative)	Short Answer (Negative)
Was I correct?	Yes, you were.	No, you weren't.
Were you busy yesterday?	Yes, I was.	No, I wasn't.
Were you both embarrassed?	Yes, we were.	No, we weren't.
Were they hungry?	Yes, they were.	No, they weren't.
Was he late again?	Yes, he was.	No, he wasn't.
Was she a good student?	Yes, she was.	No, she wasn't.
Was it ready?	Yes, it was.	No, it wasn't.

Object Pronouns

The seven basic pronouns have one form when they are used as subjects and another form when they are used as objects.

Subjects are what the sentence is about. (See more about Subject Pronouns)
Objects are what is affected by the action of the subject.

• I like whisky. (I is the subject).
• I read books. (Books is the object as it is receiving the action).

PRONOUNS
Subject Pronoun	Object Pronoun
I	Me
You	You
He	Him
She	Her
It	It
We	Us
You (plural)	You
They	Them

Object pronouns are used instead of nouns, usually because we already know what the object is. It makes the sentence easier to read and understand and avoids repetition. We normally use object pronouns after a verb or a preposition.

Examples
I like horses.	Subject Pronoun
Horses don't like me.	Object Pronoun
We talk to our neighbour.	Subject Pronoun
She talks to us.	Object Pronoun
They listen to the teacher.	Subject Pronoun
Listen to me carefully.	Object Pronoun
You speak very quickly.	Subject Pronoun
We watch them on TV.	Object Pronoun

The Object Pronoun - it

Be careful when using 'it' as an object pronoun because it is only in the correct context that it has meaning. It needs to have already been mentioned or obvious to the listener what you are referring to. Compare;

• You are sitting on it! (The listener probably doesn't know what the speaker refers to).
• The letter is on the sofa. You are sitting on it! (It is obvious in the second sentence that the reference is to the letter)

Possessive Pronouns

Possessive pronouns are used in English to avoid repeating information that is already clear. In general it makes the sentence less confusing because the same information is not being repeated.

This book is my book, not your book. (Sounds repetitive)
This book is mine, not yours. (Mine and yours are possessive pronouns)

In the sentence, mine is a possessive pronoun that replaces my book.
In the sentence, yours is a possessive pronoun that replaces your book.

The possessive pronouns in English are as follows:

Subject	Possessive Pronouns
I	Mine
You	Yours
He	His
She	Hers
It	Its
We	Ours
You (pl)	Yours
They	Theirs

Examples:

• I didn't have my umbrella so Marta lent me hers.
  (I didn't have my umbrella so Marta lent me her umbrella).
• Her car is faster than mine.
  (Her car is faster than my car).
• That food is ours and not theirs.
  (That food is our food and not their food).
• I know this drink is yours but I need to drink something.
  (I know this drink is your drink but I need to drink something).

Remember that with possessive pronouns there are no apostrophes (').

Of yours

It is also very common to say a friend/some friends + of + possessive pronouns.

• I saw one of your friends last night.
  I saw a friend of yours last night.

Both of these sentences are correct and both common in English.

Yours faithfully - Yours sincerely

Yours is also used in English with faithfully or sincerely at the end of a formal letter or e-mail. The two common expressions are:

• Yours faithfully (If it someone that you don't know)
• Yours sincerely (If it is someone that you know)

Possessive Adjectives

`

Possessive adjectives are used to show possession or ownership of something. While we use them when we refer to people, it is more in the sense of relationship than ownership.

The possessive adjectives in English are as follows:

Subject	Possessive Adjective
I	My
You	Your
He	His
She	Her
It	Its
We	Our
You (pl)	Your
They	Their

The possessive adjective needs to agree with the possessor and not with the thing that is possessed.

Examples

• My car is very old.
• Her boyfriend is very friendly.
• Our dog is black.
• Their homework is on the table.

Like all adjectives in English, they are always located directly in front of the noun they refer to. (Possessive Adjective + Noun)

We do not include an S to the adjective when the noun is plural like in many other languages.

Examples:

• Our cars are expensive. (Correct)
  Ours cars are expensive. (Incorrect)

However, the verb that is used needs to be in agreement with the noun - if the noun is singular then the verb is singular; if the noun is plural then the verb is plural.

Examples:

• My pen is black. (Singular)
  My pens are black. (Plural)
• Our child is intelligent. (Singular)
  Our children are intelligent. (Plural)

Its vs. It's

Be careful not to confuse its and it's.

Its = The possessive adjective for It.
It's = a contraction of it is.