Present tenses in English
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In this part of the course you will learn all about the English present tense. The English tense has the following present tenses:
This chapter will show you an overview of when to use the different present tenses. For a more detailed explanation of the tenses you can take a look at the different chapters of this course, where you will also find exercises to practice the tenses.
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To be able to conjugate the English verbs in the present simple, the root of the verb is used. The third person singular (he, she, it) forms an exception: '-s', '-es' or '-ies' is added to the stem to form the present simple.
To form the present continuous tense the verb 'to be' is used together with the main verb + '-ing'.
For the present perfect the verbs 'to have' and 'to be' are used together with the past participle.
For the present perfect continuous the auxiliary verb 'to have' is used, followed by the participle of the verb 'to be' plus the main verb + '-ing'.
The table below gives you an overview of the different present tenses in English.
Tense | Usage | Example |
---|---|---|
Present simple | The present simple is used to describe habits and routines. |
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Present continuous | The present continuous tense is used to describe an action or event that is taking place in that moment. |
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Present perfect | The present perfect is used to describe an action or event that happened in the past and continues in the present. |
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Present perfect continuous | The present perfect continuous is used for actions that have started in the past, but continue in the present. |
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In addition, in this part of the course the difference between the present simple and present continuous, and the difference between the past simple and present perfect.
Do the exercise to practice the different tenses!
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Hi, I'm Jason, I'm English and live in Central Italy where I teach English to students of all levels, all ages and all abilities. English for school, for exams or tests, for work or for business.
My methods are based on building your confidence to speak English, developing your listening skills so you can understand English and helping you understand the grammar rules of the English language.
Why in this way? Because my students have the best results when they are able to speak in English as soon as possible. Then, when you can converse in English and understand simple conversation you can develop all your language skills very quickly.
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For others they need to learn specific vocabulary for their work, I have given courses in business, medicine and tourism that can be adapted for all types of work situations.
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1 Present simple tense in English | Learn everything about the English present simple. |
2 Present continuous tense in English | Learn everything about the English present continuous. |
3 Present simple vs present continuous in English | Learn about the difference between the English present simple and present continuous. |
4 Present perfect tense in English | Learn all about the present perfect in English. |
5 Present perfect continuous tense in English | Study the English present perfect continuous with this overview of the grammar. |
6 Difference past simple and present perfect in English | Learn about the difference between past simple and present perfect in English. |