Welcome to the Present Simple. Be sure to watch the introductory grammar video on the left before continuing to read this section.

This is one of the first tenses you will learn in English and it is one you will use often. It's pretty easy to form this tense from the infinitive. For the third person singular, you simply add an "s" or "es":

I speak
you speak
he/she/it speaks
we speak
they speak

There are a few irregular verbs such as "to be" and "to have" and they have irregular conjugations in the present tense as demonstrated below. These are also verbs you will use a lot so you will have to memorize them:

I am___________I have
you are________you have
he/she/it is___he/she/it has
we are_________we have
they are_______they have

Click on the links below to learn some irregular verbs and how to form irregulars, negative sentences and questions:

To be, to have, to do
Making Negatives
Making Yes/No Questions
Making Wh Questions

Try the games below to practice what you learned:

Conjugating Present Simple
Making Questions Present
Fill in the Blanks
Present Word Order
To Be
To Have
To Do

Take the tests below to check your knowledge. The subject and infinitive are provided and you need to write the correct verb form to go with the subject. Good luck!

Irregular Verb Test
Regular Verb Test

Present Simple Tips

The present simple is used for an action that is a custom, a general truth, indicates origin, or happens regularly. Both action verbs and linking verbs can be in the present tense.

For the subjects I, you, we and they, do not add an ending to the verb.

For he, she or it, add an -s to the verb. There are certain spelling rules that apply to this form:

If the verb ends in a consonant + y, change the y to i and add -es.

If the verb ends in a vowel + y, do not change the y, just add -s.

If the verb ends in ss, sh, ch, or x, add -es and pronounce an extra syllable.

Verb "to be" - to form the negative add "not" after the conjugated form of to be (Ex: I am not short). To form a question, reverse the subject and verb (Ex: Are you tall?).

Other verbs - to form the negative use the helping verb "do" followed by "not" and the main verb (Ex: I do not like alligators). To form a question, use the helping verb "do" plus the main verb (Ex: Do you like rabbits?).