I - Complete the sentences with the verbs in the PRESENT SIMPLE
or the PRESENT CONTINUOUS tense):
1 In a well-used kitchen in west London, it’s 6:30 pm. and Anna
…….………………………………..…….. (cook) supper.
2 It……………….(be) a variation on a Jamie Oliver recipe: grilled fillets of fresh
pink fish.
3 “Anna………………………………………………………..…… (constantly - read) cookbooks”, her
boy friend .…………………………………………....(say)
4 Before he met her he thought his meals were healthy enough.
He…………………………(look)much healthier and ……………………..…(feel) much
better now.
5 Why …………………………………………... (so many of us still - eat) so poorly these
days?
6 Partly, of course, it's about money: healthy food, in general, ………………….(cost)
more than unhealthy food .
7 Researchers ………………………..…(think) it…………………………….(be) more often a
problem of dietary imbalance than under-nourishment.
8 Scientists found out after a special survey that even people who ……………..
……………………….(do) well financially and socially …………………………(eat)
ever greater quantities of junk, fast and processed food too.
9 One of the reasons is that - whatever Jamie Oliver ………………….. (say) - when
we're tired or it's late ready meals ……………………………(be) easier and quicker.
10 Sugary, fatty and processed foods usually…………………………………….... (taste) really
good.
11 Sheila, ………………………………………………… (always – cook) a meal for herself and
her son, Tyrone.
12 “It ……………………………..(shock) me that some parents ………………………………. (not
take) the time to cook," she……………………………….(say). She ……………………….
(not work) full time and …………………………………………….. (get by) with her 13-
year-old son on £120 a week.
13 At the moment, she ………………………………………(prepare) a chicken curry, with
vegetable rice and salad, in her clean small kitchen. Generally, she……….(buy)
the food she …………………….….(need), spending maybe £50 a week.
14 On Fridays, when she …………………………(work) late, there might be a frozen
ready meal. However, she ………………………..…(tend) to cook big the night before.
Adapted from < http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2011/may/10/britains-food-habits-well-eat>
II – Make questions with these words. Choose the correct tense of the verb: present simple or present
continuous? Then, answer the questions with short answers. Read the model.
MODEL: practical/ ready meals/ be/ but/ help / they people/ to eat/ healthily?
• Ready Meals are practical, but do they help people to eat healthily?
• No, they don’t.
1. still / cook book /that/ spare/ you/ in your/ time/ write?
……………………………………………………………………………………...................................................................
………………………………………………………….
2. the Spanish and Italians/ cook/ home-made meals/ the British/ more often/ than/?
…………………………………………………………………………............................................................…………………………
.................................................................
3. do/ an evening/still/ your mother/ in traditional / course/ British cooking?
…………………………………………………………………………………......................................................
…………………………………….
4. sometimes / cook/ your own / you / dinner?
……………………………………………………………………...................................................................
……………………………………..
5. believe / ready meals/ health experts/ our health /be / good/ for/?
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
…………………………………….
6. fruit and vegetables /try /you and your friends/this week/ / to eat/ more?
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
…………………………………………………………………………………………..
7. your mother/ fresh food /buy/online?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………
8. how / eat out / you and your family/ often?
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
………………………………………………………………………………..
III – Tick the correct sentence:
1. a She’s thinking about buying a new cooker.
b She thinks about buying a new cooker.
2. a I’m hearing strange noises in the kitchen, aren’t you?
b I can hear strange noises in the kitchen, can’t you?
3. a. This cake is tasting so good!
b. This cake tastes so good!
4. a. Why is she smelling the fish?
b. Why does she smell the fish?
5. a. She’s being too stubborn! She insists that she did nothing wrong.
b. She’s too stubborn! She insists that she did nothing wrong.
6. a. Speak up! I’m not hearing you.
b. Speak up! I can’t hear you.
7. a. Look at my new coat! It’s feeling so soft and warm!
b. Look at my new coat! It feels so soft and warm!
8. a. Your daughter looks tired!
b. Your daughter is looking tired!
9. a. He knows what he has to do now.
b. He’s knowing what he has to do now.
10. a. I need help to finish my homework today.
b. I’m needing help to finish my homework today.
