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Present simple tense is used to talk about general facts that are permanent:

  • London is the capital of England.
  • Fish swim in the ocean.
  • The sun sets in the west.
  • Carol speaks two languages.
  • It rains a lot in winter.

Regular Actions

We use the present simple to talk about regular, repeated actions. Things that occur over and over again.

  • I play netball every week.
  • Johnny drives to work on Monday.
  • I drink coffee every morning.
  • The school bus arrives at 7 am every morning.

Present Simple for the Future.

We use the present simple to talk about the future when we are talking about timetables. They are usually timetables written by a company such as a train line.
  • The bus leaves at 6.pm tonight.
  • The meeting starts at 10. a.m.
  • The film starts at 7. p.m.
Stative Verbs for Present Simple
When we are using stative verbs, we need to use the present simple. Stative verbs are verbs that describe states (rather than actions)  like love, hate, believe, know and own etc. State verbs are  also called non-continuous verbs.
  • I love chocolate.
  • He hates windy days.
  • I own a shiny red car.
  • You seem sad today.

Signal Words for Present Simple

  • We often see the present simple tense used with adverbs of frequency. Adverbs of frequency say how often an action takes place. If you see an adverb of frequency in a sentence, you know you are reading a present simple sentence.
  •  every week
  • every year
  • every day
  • once a week
  • never
  • sometimes
  • often
  • usually
  • regularly
  • seldom
  • rarely.
These words help you to work out which tense you are reading in English. There are words that tell you when to use different English tenses. If you want to learn the signal words for  the present simple tense, take a look here.
 
Try and use these words in your spoken and written English until they come naturally. It’s a sure fire way of impressing the English examiners. 
 
 
If you would like to learn how to make the present simple tense in English, please go here.
 
 To practise using the present simple affirmative, please click below.
 
 
To practise using the present simple negative tense, please click below.