SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE

The simple present is used to express facts, habits, and mainly used for  habitual actions.

 

The simple present tense is often used with adverbs or adverb phrases.

These adverbs are placed directly before the verb in a sentence:

     always,               never,          often,          rarely,         usually

 

Examples: Penéloppe Cruz never eats meat.

                 Kate Winslet usually wears a size 11 shoe.

 

And the following adverbs are placed either at the beginning or at the end of a sentence:

Sometimes,       every day,       every week,       every year,       occasionally

 

Examples: Every day Penéloppe Cruz eats meatless meal.

 

The simple present tense is formed:

 

-         in an affirmative sentence , by adding S for the 3rd person singular (he, she,  it).

Example: He dislikes interminable movies like "Eyes Wide Shut".

 

-         in a negative sentence, by adding DON'T or DOESN’T after the subject.

Examples: You don’t enjoy horror movie.

                  He doesn’t watch movie on TV.

               

-         in an interrogative statement, we use DO or DOES after the subject.

Examples: Do you see filmmaking as an art?

                Does she see filmmaking as an art?

 

The simple present tense of irregular verbs is formed in exactly the same way.

Examples: Sean Penn keeps a mobile home permanently parked on the front

                  lawn of his multimillion-dollar Malibu home.

 

Spelling notes

Verbs ending in ss, sh, ch, th, x and o add ES, instead of S alone, to form the third person singular.

Examples: Annabella Sciorra bathes four times every day.

                 Tom Cruise kisses Nicole Kidman in "Eyes Wide Shut".

                 He goes to his drama lesson.

 

Verbs ending in " y " following a vowel obey the usual rule.

Example: Bruce Willis plays in The Story of Us.

 

Source References:

     Grammar Notes from Micheline Perreault, CS des Bois-Francs, QC

     Teen Movieline Magasine, April 2000.

     Thomson A.J. and Martinet A.V.  A Practical English Grammar,  3rd edition,     Oxford University Press, pp144-146.

    Sylvie Drouin, CS des Bois-Francs, QC