Simple Present Tense | Examples, Uses, Rules, Exercises.

Rules for Adding -s/es and -ies to Verbs in Simple Present Tenses 

There are two rules that will help you understand where and when to add “s”, “es” and “ies” as suffixes to first form of verbs in sentences while using simple present tense (or Present Indefinite Tense formula). correct use of s/es and ies are given below. 

• When first form of verb ends in -o, -ss, -sh, -ch, and -x.

When verb in simple tense ends in -o, -ss, -sh, -ch, and -x, suffix “es” is added. In rest of cases, add “s” to verb. For example, “go” becomes “goes”, “search” becomes “searches” and “run” becomes “runs”.

• When first form of verb ends in a consonant followed by -y. 

When verb in a simple present tense sentence ends in a -y and there is a consonant before -y, “ies” is added as a suffix to verb. For example, “carry” becomes “carries” and “copy” becomes “copies”.

Note- Base form of verb is used in simple present tense sentences with first and second person singular while s/es is used with third person singular. However, with all plural forms, only base form is used.

Common Verbs Used in the Simple Present Tenses

Here is the list of the most commonly used verb forms in most of the simple present tense examples. 

Verb	Subject Forms
	I, We, You, They	He, She, It
To play	play	plays
To be	am/are	is
To work	work	works
To have	have	has
To do	do	does
To study	study	studies

Simple Present Tense Examples (for each Case)

Examples of the present indefinite tense for every case/situation are- 

Examples of Simple Present Tense for each Case/Condition
Use Cases	Examples
Habits	Sonal exercises in the gym five times a week.
General Facts	Water boils at 100° C.
Near Future	My exams end next week.
Present Moment	I live in Delhi.
Exclamatory Sentences starting with "here" and "there"	Here comes my brother.
Repeatation of a Quotation	Shakespeare says, "All the world's a stage."
Expression of a Past Event in a Narration	The king rides out of the castle.
Imperative Sentences	Brush your teeth every morning.

Simple Present Tense Exercises

This section contains diff. present indefinite tense exercises and upon solving these you will become confident for taking your exam. You may also use these questions as simple present tense worksheet for practicing later.  

Fill out blanks in sentences below

1. The mother …….. (cook) food.
2. Rita …….. (call) me every morning. 
3. She …….. (read) in tenth class.
4. The cat …… (kill) rats. 
5. The sun …… (rise) in east. 
6. The train …….. (depart) at 7 am tomorrow.
7. Sarah …….. (go) to yoga classes every day. 
8. The gardener ……. (take care) of plants
9. Here …….. (come) the train. 
10. I go to …….. (play) every evening.
11. …… (do/does) he ……… (play) tennis?
12. When …….. (do/does) bus ……. (leave)?
13. We …….. (achieve) great things when we work together. 
14. Most people ………. (believe) in importance of education. 
15. The children …….. (play) in garden every afternoon after school.

Answers-

1. cooks
2. calls
3. reads
4. Kills
5. rises 
6. Departs
7. Goes
8. takes care
9. Comes
10. play
11. Does, play
12. Does, leave
13. achieve
14. believe
15. play

Transform given sentences

Rewrite given sentences in simple present tense form.

1. She was preparing dinner.​
2. They visited the art gallery.​
3. He is listening to music.​
4. We were jogging in the park.​

Answers-

1. She prepares dinner.​
2. They visit the art gallery.​
3. He listens to music.​
4. We jog in the park.​

Note how above sentence transformations bring sense of daily habits or present time in sentences after conversion.

Correct the Errors

Identify errors in sentences below and correct these errors as per rules of simple present tense.

1. The concert start at 9 PM.​
2. He don't enjoy spicy food.​
3. I enjoys painting landscapes.​

Answers-

1. The concert starts at 9 PM.
2. He doesn't enjoy spicy food.​
3. I enjoy painting landscapes.​

Importance of Simple Present Tenses in English Language Exams 

The present indefinite tense is base form of verb tense and forms the foundation of learning the sentence structure in English. Thus, the learning of the Simple Present Tense plays a good role in preparation for the standardised English language tests to study abroad, like IELTS, TOEFL, PTE, and Duolingo. Let us read about the benefits of learning the Simple Present Tense for success in any of these English exams: 

1. Foundation of other tenses: The simple present tense forms the base for understanding other tenses like the present continuous tense, future simple tense, and past simple tense. 
2. Expresses Daily Routines and Habits: You will likely encounter prompts or questions that ask about your daily routines, study habits, or background in any of the English exams and since the simple present tense specifies how you can describe your daily routines, facts or general truths in its rules, it will be way lot easier for you to anwer these questions in the exam.  
3. Indirectly Tested in Other Sections: Even if a specific question does not directly ask about the simple present tense, understanding it can help you eliminate other incorrect answer choices.

Read More:

• Prepositions
• Personal Pronouns

Are you willing to take the first move towards realising your dream of studying abroad? Prepare for your next English language exam to study abroad with Shiksha’s Free IELTS Classes. 

This was all about the simple present tense definition, simple present tense formula, present indefinite tenses sentences and examples. We studied the basic verb form of the English grammar tenses, i.e. the simple present tense (also known as the Present Indefinite tense), simple present tense definitions, simple present tense sentences, do/does use, simple present tense examples and simple present tense questions. You can download the simple present tense examples PDF by clicking on the “Download Guide” button. 

Related Reads:

1. Present Continuous Tense
2. Present Perfect Tense
3. Present Perfect Continuous Tense
4. Past Perfect Tense
5. Future Plans