Present tenses in English

Different types of present tense in English

English uses two forms of the present, the Present simple and the Present progressive. This page looks at verbs in the active voice. See The Passive for forms of the present tenses in the passive voice.

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1. The present simple

In short, the Present Simple is used to express:
   a) permanent states and permanent truths.
   b) repetitive actions
   c) instant actions.

1.1. The present simple affirmative

It is formed using the root form of the verb : there is only one ending to add, an S on the third person singular, or ES onto verbs ending in -s, -sh, -x, and - o

Sample verbs	1st sing.	2nd sing.	3rd sing.	1st plural	2nd plural	3rd plural
Bring	I bring	you bring	he, she, it brings	we bring	you bring	they bring
Do	I do	you do	he, she, it does	we do	you do	they do
Pass	I pass	you pass	he, she, it passes	we pass	you pass	they pass

1.2. The present simple negative

For all verbs, the present simple negative is formed using the root of the verb, and the auxiliary do in the negative form: do not and does not are normally contracted in spoken English, and may also be contracted in the written language.

Sample verbs	1st sing.	2nd sing.	3rd sing.	1st plural	2nd plural	3rd plural
Bring	I don't bring	you don't bring	he, she, it doesn't bring	we don't bring	you don't bring	they don't bring
Speak	I don't speak	you don't speak	he, she, it doesn't speak	we don't speak	you don't speak	they don't speak

Examples:
   a1) I like apples, but I don't like oranges.
   a2) I live in London, and I work for a big bank.
   a3) Flowers grow well in a warm sunny climate.
   a4) Tomorrow never comes
   b1) My brother often goes to London.
   b2) It snows in winter in New York.
   b3) I get up at 6 every morning.
   c1) Oh, I understand what you mean.
   c2) And now Beckham gets the ball, he shoots, and he scores!

2. The present progressive

In short, the Present Progressive is used to express:
   a) developing situations.
   b) actions that are actually taking place.
   c) future actions.

2.1. The present progressive affirmative

This is formed using the present participle of the verb and the present tense of to be. The present participle is formed by adding -ing to the root (or to the root minus its final -e for verbs ending in e). The auxiliary is usually contracted in spoken English (as in the second line of examples).

Sample verbs	1st sing.	2nd sing.	3rd sing.	1st plural	2nd plural	3rd plural
Stand	I am standing	you are standing	he, she, it is standing	we are standing	you are standing	they are standing
Take	I'm taking	you're taking	he, she, it's taking	we're taking	you're taking	they're taking

2.2. The present progressive negative

The negative is formed by adding the particle not : there are two different ways of contracting the present progressive negative, as illustrated by the two lines of examples for the verb take. Contracted forms are normally used in spoken English, and may be used in the written language too.

Sample verbs	1st sing.	2nd sing.	3rd sing.	1st plural	2nd plural	3rd plural
Stand	I am not standing	you are not standing	he, she, it is not standing	we are not standing	you are not standing	they are not standing
Take	I'm not taking	you're not taking	he, she, it's not taking	we're not taking	you're not taking	they're not taking
Take	I'm not taking	you aren't taking	he, she, it isn't taking	we aren't taking	you aren't taking	they aren't taking

► Click here for more on negative structures

Examples:
a1) John is getting better.
   a2) The weather isn't improving.
   b1) This week I am working in New York.
   b2) Look! That man's stealing my car!
   b3) Slow down, you're going too fast!
   c1) He's not going on holiday tomorrow.
   c2) He said he's retiring next year.

Verbs that are never used in the progressive form

Note: some verbs are almost never used in the present progressive - notably certain verbs of permanent state, such as know, be, like, exist.
We can say: I know the train is arriving late.
We cannot say: I am knowing the train is arriving late.

3. Present simple vs. present progressive:

A contrastive example :
This sentence is a clear example of the difference in usage between the two forms:

I eat hamburgers, but I'm not eating a hamburger right now.

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