PRESENT TENSES

PRESENT SIMPLE
PRESENT CONTINUOUS
PRESENT PERFECT

AIM: TO REVISE PRESENT TENSES

 1. I’m learning Chinese.
 2. You’ve walked across the Amazon jungle.
 3. It has meant that I can finance my next
expedition.
 4. My mum and dad always watch my
documentaries.
 5. My agent is waiting for me.
 6. I’ve always loved travelling.
 7. I don’t like going with groups.
Answers
 1. I’m learning Chinese. – Present Continuous
 2. You’ve walked across the Amazon jungle. – Present
Perfect
 3. It has meant that I can finance my next expedition. –
Present Perfect
 4. My mum and dad always watch my documentaries. –
Present Simple
 5. My agent is waiting for me. – Present Continuous
 6. I’ve always loved travelling. – Present Perfect
 7. I don’t like going with groups. - Present Simple
Present Simple
 I live in Belgrade.  We live in Belgrade.
 You live in Belgrade.  You live in Belgrade.
 He/She/It lives in  They live in Belgrade.
Belgrade.
Present Simple - questions
 Do I live in Belgrade?  Do we live in
 Do you live in Belgrade?
Belgrade?  Do you live in
 Does he/she/it live in Belgrade?
Belgrade?  Do they live in
Belgrade?
Present Simple - negative
 I don’t live in  We don’t live in
Belgrade. Belgrade.
 You don’t live in  You don’t live in
Belgrade. Belgrade.
 He/she /it doesn’t live  They don’t live in
in Belgrade. Belgrade.
We use the Present Simple to talk about:

 Activities that we repeat regularly (routines, habits).

My mum and dad always watch my documentaries.
 Permanent situations and states.

I don’t like cheese.

 General truths

A doctor works in a hospital.

Common time adverbials:

always, often, usually, sometimes, never
every day, every week, every year ...
twice a week, once a month
regularly, seldom, hardly ever, occasionally
Spelling
 Y is lost in verbs  We use –es with verbs
ending in consonant ending in -s, -z, -sh, -
+y: ch, -s, -x:
fly – flies watches, teaches,
study – studies washes, fixes...
 -es where you wouldn’t
normally expect it
does
goes
Present Continuous
 I am watching TV.  We are watching TV.
 You are watching TV.  You are watching TV.
 He/she/it is watching  They are watching TV.
TV.
Present Continuous - questions
 Am I watching TV?  Are we watching TV?
 Are you watching TV?  Are you watching TV?
 Is he/she/it watching  Are they watching TV?
TV?
Present Continuous - negative
 I am not watching TV.  We are not watching
 You are not watching TV.
TV.  You are not watching
 He/she/it is not TV.
watching TV.  They are not watching
TV.
We use the Present Continuous to talk about:

 Activities that are going on at the time of speaking.

Right now, I am giving a lecture and you are listening.
 Activities that happen regularly but only for a limited
period of time (temporary routines and habits).
I’m studying English a lot these days because we are
having a test next week.

Common time adverbials:

now, at the moment, at present, these days
Spelling
 Verbs ending in –e lose the  Short verbs ending in one
final -e when –ing is vowel + one consonant
added. double the last consonant.
phone – phoning sit – sitting
make – making cut – cutting
change – changing swim – swimming
 Verbs ending in –ie:

lie – lying
tie – tying
Present Perfect: have/has +3rd column

 I have done the  We have done the

homework. homework.
 You have done the  You have done the
homework. homework.
 He/she/it has done  They have done the
the homework. homework.
Present Perfect - Questions
 Have I done the  Have we done the
homework? homework?
 Have you done the  Have you done the
homework? homework?
 Has he/she/it done  Have they done the
the homework? homework?
Present Perfect - negative
 I have not done the  We have not done the
homework. homework.
 You have not done the  You have not done the
homework. homework.
 He/she/it has not  They have not done
done the homework. the homework.
We use the Present Perfect to talk about:

 Past events and activities with results or consequences in the

present.
I’ve lost my keys and now I can’t open the door.
 An action in the past when we don’t know or are not
interested in when it happened. (to talk about experience)
I’ve been to China.
 Things that started in the past and continue up till now.

I’ve always wanted to travel.

Common time adverbials:

never, ever, since, for, already, yet, all my life, always
The use and meanings of time adverbials
 already and yet
We use already in
statements and yet in
questions and negative
sentences.
I’ve already seen that film.
I haven’t finished yet.
 since and for
Since tells us about a point
in time when the activity
began.
We’ve been friends since
2003.
For tells us about the
period of time that the
activity has taken.
We’ve been friends for
five years.
Do the matching task
Matching task - answers
 1. I’m learning Chinese. – activities that happen regularly but only
for a limited period of time around the present
 2. You’ve walked across the Amazon jungle. – events that happened
in the past but it doesn’t matter when
 3. It has meant that I can finance my next expedition. – past events
that have clear results in the present
 4. My mum and dad always watch my documentaries. – activities
that happen regularly
 5. My agent is waiting for me. – activities going on at this moment
 6. I’ve always loved travelling. - things that started in the past and
continue up till now
 7. I don’t like going with groups. – permanent situations or states
Revision
Give a wider context for each of the sentences below.

 I write emails.
 I’m writing an email.
 I’ve written an email.
Now choose a verb and write similar examples of your
own.