Download Present Tenses

English Language Learners’
Reference Guide
from the Writing Center
Present Tenses
Form
Meaning
How to
use it
Present Simple
Brown students study every day.
Professors do interesting research.
I don’t study in the library. Do
you study in the library?
The most common places to use
the simple present are:
-Routine/Habitual Actions (Often
used with adverbs of frequency like
always, sometimes, often, never.)
-Facts/General Truths
-Schedules
Present Progressive
We are studying these verbs right
now. The students are listening to
the professor. Some students aren’t
listening? Are you listening?
The most common place to use the
present progressive is:
-To express actions in progress right
now
The affirmative uses the base form
of the verb. In the third person, be
sure to add an “s” or an “es.”
When creating any progressive tense,
BE is the auxiliary. In the present
progressive, be is in the present form:
AM, IS, ARE. The verb must always
been in the gerund (-ing) form.
I
You
We
They
Negatives
Special
Notes
walk.
He
She
It
used with for and since. Choose for
when referring to a period of time and
since for the starting point.)
I
walks.
Use the auxiliary verb do/does
+ not.
-I do not walk. (I don’t walk.)
-She does not walk. (She
doesn’t walk.)
*Note the use of the “s” on do
means you don’t need it on the
verb!
am
walking.
She
It
When creating any perfect tense, HAVE is
the auxiliary. In the present perfect have
is in the present form: HAVE or HAS. The
verb must always be in the past participle.
I
You
He
is
walking.
You
We are walking.
They
Use NOT between be and the
verb.
-I am not walking to class in the
rain. (I’m not walking…)
-She is not walking to class in the
rain. (She isn’t walking/She’s not
walking…)
The Literary Present
We often use the Present Simple
to talk about anything relating to a
work of literature, even if it was
written in the past.
Shakespeare says that, “all the
world is a stage…”
Present Perfect
We have studied for four hours. The
professor has spoken for two hours!
Have you studied all night? I haven’t
eaten breakfast yet.
The most common place to use the
present perfect for a present meaning is:
-To express an action that starting in the
past and continues to the present (Often
Can also be used to indicate a future
arrangement or plan.
Compare:
-We are eating at the new Chinese
restaurant right now.
-We are eating at the new Chinese
restaurant tonight.
We
They
have
walked.
He
She
has
walked.
It
Use NOT between have/has and the
verb.
-I have not walked to school this
year. (I haven’t walked…)
-She has not walked to school this
year. (She hasn’t walked…)
The present perfect is also used FOR THE
“Indefinite” past. The indefinite past
expresses an action that was done at
some unspecified time in the past; it tends
to refer to life experience without giving
specific time.
-I have studied in Rome. (I no longer
study there but I have had this
experience.)
The present perfect progressive can be
used to add extra emphasis to the
ongoing or continuing nature of an action.
-We have been studying for four hours
(and we are still studying!) The professor
has been speaking for two hours (and
this lecture is not over!)
Present Tenses
continued
Information Questions
Question Word
Auxiliary
Where
do
Where
are
How long
have
Question Word
Subject
you
you
You
Yes/No Questions
Auxiliary
Subject
Do
You
Are
You
Have
You
Answers to information questions
give some new information.
-Where do you live?
- I live in Providence.
Answers to Yes/No Questions
can be as simple as yes or no but often
also use the subject + auxiliary.
Verb
live?
living this semester?
lived in the U.S.A.?
Asking questions in the
Present Tenses
Verb
eat lunch on campus?
eating here today?
eaten in the Ratty?
Basic questions follow a
specific formula in English.
You can use this formula
across verb tenses as long
as you update the auxiliary
and verb form.
-Do you live in Providence.
-Yes, I do.
-Are you eating at the Ratty?
-Yes, I am.
The auxiliary shifts based on the verb tense being used. The present simple will always use some form of do; the present progressive
will always use some form of be; and the present perfect will use some form of have.
Note: Subject questions don’t use an auxiliary. (The new information given in the answer is the subject.)
-Who lives with you?
-Maria lives with me.
-Who has eaten at the Ratty?
-Brown students have eaten at the Ratty.
Key Terms
Third Person: He, She, It
Auxiliary Verbs: “Grammatical” verbs which do a job in the sentence but don’t carry meaning. Because they “help” create a tense, a
negation, or a question, they are often called “helping verbs.”
Past Participle: For regular verbs, the past participle is the verb+ed. For irregular verbs, the past participle form is found in the third
column. For example, the verb to speak is irregular and its breakdown is: SPEAK SPOKE SPOKEN. Spoken is the past participle to be
used with simple perfect tenses.
Need more help: Email Rachel Toncelli, ELL Director, at [email protected]
for a schedule of English Language Seminars.