Present simple

Как говорил английский писатель Тэрри Прэтчет устами одного из героев своей серии фантастических романов «Плоский мир! «Нет иного времени, кроме настоящего». И имел он в виду, конечно же, английское простое настоящее время = Present simple.

A. Study this example situation:

Alex is a bus driver, but now he is in bed asleep. So: He is not driving a bus. (He is asleep.) but He drives a bus. (He is a bus driver.)

Drive(s)/work(s)/do(es) etc. is the present simple:
I/we/you/they drive/work/do etc.
he/she/it drives/works/does etc.

B. We use the present simple to talk about things in general.

We are not thinking only about now. We use it to say that something happens all the time or repeatedly, or that something is true in general. It is not important whether the action is happening at the time of speaking: Nurses look after patients in hospitals.

I usually go away at weekends.
The earth goes round the sun.

Remember that we say; he/she/it -s. Don’t forget the s:

I work… but He works…
They teach… but My sister teaches…

C. We use do/does to make questions and negative sentences:

Do
I/we/you/they (work? come? do?) I/we/you/they don’t
(work come do)

Does
he/she/it (work? come? do?) he/she/it doesn’t
(work come do)

I come from Canada. Where do you come from?
‘Would you like a cigarette?’ ‘No, thanks. I don’t smoke.’
What does this word mean? {not ‘What means this word?’)
Rice doesn’t grow in cold climates. In the following examples do is also the main verb:
‘What do you do?’ (= What’s your job?) ‘I work in a shop.’
He’s so lazy. He doesn’t do anything to help me. (not ‘He doesn’t anything’)

D. We use the present simple when we say how often we do things:

I get up at 8 o’clock every morning, (not ‘I’m getting’)
How often do you go to the dentist? (not ‘How often are you going?’)
Ann doesn’t drink tea very often.
In summer John usually plays tennis once or twice a week.

E. I promise /1 apologise etc.

Sometimes we do things by saying something. For example, when you promise to do something, you can say ‘I promise…’; when you suggest something, you can say ‘I suggest…’. We use the present simple (promise/suggest etc.) in sentences like this:

I promise I won’t be late. (not ‘I’m promising’)
‘What do you suggest I do?’ ‘I suggest that you…’

In the same way we say:

I apologise… /1 advise… /1 insist… /1 agree… /1 refuse… etc.

Изучите следующие ситуации:

Билл — писатель. Но сейчас он спит в кровати.
Итак, сейчас он не пишет книгу (он спит): He is not writing a book (he is asleep).
Но вообще-то он пишет книги: He writes books.

Это время present simple

I / we / you / they write
he / she / (it) writes

Every day my husband and I get up at 7 o’clock. We have our breakfast and go to the office. It is seven o’clock now, but we are sleeping because it is Saturday and we don’t have to go to the office.

We get up, have breakfast, go to the office — все эти действия происходят пять раз в неделю, регулярно, но не в момент разговора.

Мы используем present simple, для того, чтобы сказать о действиях, которые происходят постоянно.Мы не связываем действие с определенным моментом,а считаем, что действие происходит постоянно или повторяется время от времени. Неважно, когда произошло действие по отношению ко времени разговора:

I always put down the new words into my notebook.
Does she study French three times a week?
They do not watch TV every evening.

— Who does the shopping in your family?
— My mother does. She goes shopping twice a week.

Помните, мы говорим: he / she / it -s.

Не забывайте s: I work with the computer every day. My friend works every day too.

Мы используем do/does, чтобы задать вопрос или построить отрицательное предложение.

do I/we/you/they work
does he/she/it//sh/she/it work?
I/we/you/they don’t work
he/she/it//sh/she/ doesn’twork

Excuse me, do you speak English?
`Would you like a cigarette?’ `No, thanks. I don’t smoke’.
What does this word mean? (а не `What means this word?’)
Rice doesn’t grow in Britain.

Мы используем present simple, когда говорим, как часто мы делаем те или иные вещи

Every Saturday we go to the cinema. (Как часто?-1 раз в неделю)
She doesn’t often read newspapers.
How often do they come to see you?

Мы используем время present simple, когда хотим сказать о чем-то, что действительно является фактом

The Earth is round. It goes round the Sun.
In Britain most of the shops close at 5.30 p.m.

EXERSICES

1 Complete the sentences using one of the following:

cause(s) close(s) drink(s) live(s) open(s) speak(a) take(s) place

Ann ………………………German very well.
I never ………………………….. coffee.
The swimming pool……………………. at o’clock and …………………………. at 1.30 every day.
Bad driving ……………………… many accidents.
My parents …………………. in a very small flat.
The Olympic Games …………………………..every four years.

2 Put the verb into the correct form

Jane … ……………….. (not/drink) tea very often.
What time …………………………………………………………………. (the banks / close) in Britain?
‘Where …………………………………………………………………. (Martin/come) from?’ ‘He’s Scottish.’
‘What……………………. ……………………………………… (you/do)?’ ‘I’m an electrical engineer.’
It…………………… (take) me an hour to get to work. How long……………………….. …. (it/take) you?
I…………………………………. (play) the piano but I……………………………………….. (not/play) very well.
I don’t understand this sentence. What………………………….. …………………………… (this word/mean)?

3 Use one of the following verbs to complete these sentences. Sometimes you need the negative

believe eat flow go grow make rise tell translate

The earth … …………………………round the sun.
Rice … …………………………in Britain,
The sun …………………………………… in the east.
Bees ……………………………………………….. honey,
Vegetarians …………………………………….. meat.
An atheist…………………………………….. in God.
An interpreter ……………………………. from one language into another.
A liar is someone who ……………………………….. the truth.
The River Amazon …………………………….. into the Atlantic Ocean.

4 Ask Liz questions about herself and her family

You know that Liz plays tennis. You want to know how often. Ask her.

How often ………………………… tennis?

Perhaps Liz’s sister plays tennis too. You want to know. Ask Liz.

……………………… your sister…………………………………………………………..

You know that Liz reads a newspaper every day. You want to know which one. Ask her.
You know that Liz’s brother works. You want to know what he does. Ask Liz.
You know that Liz goes to the cinema a lot. You want to know how often. Ask her.
You don’t know where Liz’s mother lives. Ask Liz.

5 Complete using one of the following

I apologise I insist I promise I recommend I suggest

It’s a nice day. … …………………………… we go out for a walk.
I won’t tell anybody what you said. ……………………………
(in a restaurant) You must let me pay for the meal. ……………………………
………………………….. for what I said about you. It wasn’t true and I shouldn’t have said it.
The new restaurant in Hill Street is very good. ………………………….. it.

Изучите и другие времена английского глагола