1. Present Simple
Form
+ | verb / verb + (e)s | He buys a new game. |
– | do / does not + verb | I don’t play Wii. |
? | Do / Does … + verb? | Do you play games? |
When to use
- to talk about regular habits or repeated actions:
- I get up early every day.
- I buy a new game every week. (not me)
- Words that describe how often or when are often used (e.g. always, generally, normally, usually, often, sometimes, rarely, never, every …).
- to talk about permanent situations:
- My father own the company.
- If we want to say how long something has continued, we use present perfect instead.
- to talk about facts or generally accepted truth.
- I am a boy.
- The following words are often used: generally, mainly, normally, usually, traditionally.
- to give instructions or directions:
- First, you unpack the box. Then …
- to tell stories and talk about films, books, and plays:
- In the film, the man falls in love with his son. ( – -“ )
2. Present Continuous
Form
+ | am/is/are + verb + -ing | You are reading my blog. |
– | am/is/are not + verb + -ing | I’m not talking but typing. |
? | Am/Is/Are … + verb + -ing? | Are they learning? |
When to Use
- to talk about temporary situations:
- I’m studying really hard for my IELTS.
- Following words are often used: at the moment, currently, now, this week/month/year
- to talk about actions happening at the moment of speaking:
- I’m typing the blog.
- to talk about trends or changing situations:
- The price of RAM is rising dramatically.
- to talk about things that happen more often than expected, often to show envy or to criticize with words like always, constantly, continually, forever:
- My mum’s always saying I don’t exercise enough! (complaint)
- He’s always buying new hardware! (envy)
3. State verbs
The present continuous is not normally used with state verbs!!
These verbs describe thoughts, feelings, senses, possession and description.
Example:
- thoughts: agree, assume, believe, disagree, forget, hope, know, regret, remember, suppose, think, understand
- feelings: adore, despite, dislike, enjoy, feel, hate, like, love, mind, prefer, want
- senses: feel, hear, see, smell, taste
- to talk about something happening now we use can;
- I can smell bla bla bla. (NOT I’m smelling …)
- possessions: have, own, belong
- descriptions: appear, contain, look, look like, mean, resemble, seem, smell, sound, taste, weigh.
!Some state verbs can be used in the continuous form when the meaning is temporary.
She’s having a great time. (is having = is experiencing, not possession)
What are you thinking about? (now)
Source: Diana Hopkins, and Pauline Cullen. Grammar for IELTS, Cambridge : University Press, 2007.