ENGLISH GRAMMAR
TENSES AND THEIR FORMS
I-/ THE SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE
a- Usage
The simple present tense is used:
- to express habits (e.g. I smoke), general truths (London is a large city), repeated or regular
actions (We sing in church every Sunday), permanent situations (My parents live in the
village)
- to give instructions or directions (e.g. You walk for three hundred meters then you turn
left.)
- to express fixed arrangements (e.g. Your exam starts at 7.30.) N.B: The future is also
possible here.
- to express future time after some conjunctions: when, after, before, as soon as, until. (e.g.
He will give it to you when you come next Sunday. / As soon as our mother comes, we will
tell her to call you.
More examples
- For habits
He drinks tea at breakfast. / She only eats fish. / They watch television regularly.
- For repeated actions or events
We catch the bus every morning. / It rains every morning in October. / They travel to Kribi
every weekend.
- For general truths
Water freezes at zero degree. / The Earth revolves around the Sun. / Toyota is Japanese.
- For instructions or directions
Close the door behind you and keep quiet. / You walk until the junction then you turn right.
- For fixed arrangements
Our father arrives next week. / His annual leave starts on the 1st of November.
- With future constructions
Asta will come here before she travels. / We will give her that money when she arrives.
b- The third person singular
* Most verbs take “s” in the third person singular. (e.g. He eats, drinks, sings, jumps )
* Verbs that end in “ss”, “sh”, “ch”, “x”, “o” take “es” in the third person singular.
(e.g. She kisses, washes, catches, mixes, does)
* When a verb ends in “y”, it changes “y” into “ies” if “y” is preceded by a consonant.
(e.g. John studies, carries, modifies, occupies, flies)
N.B: John plays, says, pays, conveys
c- The negative form
Rule 1: For simple verbs. Simple verbs are other verbs apart from “to be” and “modal
verbs”.
(subject+do/does+not+verb in the infinitive)
e.g.: I do not drink tea in the morning. / My sister does not like chocolate.
Rule 2: For “to be” (subject+am/are/is+not+noun/adjective/adverb)
e.g.: I am not Peter. / You are not happy. / Paul is not here.
Rule 3: For modal verbs (Some modal verbs: can/could, will/would, shall/should,
may/might, must)
(subject+modal verb+not+verb in the infinitive)
e.g.: You cannot swim. / My brother must not violate the rule.
N.B: The contracted form or the short form
Are not = aren’t / is not = isn’t / do not = don’t / does not = doesn’t / cannot = can’t / could
not = couldn’t / will not = won’t / shall not = shan’t / should not = shouldn’t / might not =
mightn’t / must not = mustn’t
d- The interrogative form
Rule 1: For simple verbs (Do/Does + subject + verb in the infinitive + ?)
e.g.: Do you drink tea in the morning?
Does my sister like chocolate?
Rule 2: For “to be” (Am/Are/Is + subject + noun/adjective/adverb +?)
e.g.: Am I Peter? / Are you happy? / Is Paul here?
Rule 3: For modal verbs (modal verb + subject + verb in the infinitive+?)
e.g.: Can you swim? / Must my brother violate the rule?
II-I THE PRESENT CONTINUOUS
a- Form: am/are/is + Verb (ing)
b-Usage:
- We use the present continuous to express actions that that happen at or around the time
of speaking. The action has started bus has not finished. e.g.: I am listening to the teacher. /
We are doing our assignment. Anna is playing with Nina.
- We use the present continuous for temporary situations. e.g.: This year we are growing
vegetables.
- We can also use it to express future actions.
e.g.: Thierry is travelling next Monday. / We are starting our work tomorrow morning.
c- The negative form
Rule: (subject + am/are/is + not + verb(ing)) e.g.: I am not listening to the
teacher. / We are not doing our assignment. / Anna is not playing with Rita.
d- The interrogative form
Rule: (Am/Are/Is + subject + verb (ing) + ?) e.g.: Am I listening to the teacher? /
Are we doing our assignment? / Is Anna playing with Rita?
