GREEN for RIGHT
RED for WRONG
In general, the PRESENT TENSE refers to the timing of actions that are happening right now or that occur every day. This tense may be broken up into:
PRESENT SIMPLE – I write…
PRESENT CONTINUOUS – I am writing…
PRESENT PERFECT – I have written…
PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS – I have been writing…
Some people say
I likes chocolate.
instead of
I like chocolate.
and
They does too.
instead of
They do too.
• When the PRONOUNS I, You, We, You / Ye and They are followed by a VERB in the PRESENT TENSE, there isn’t any s at the end of the VERB.
EXCEPTION: When the VERB already ends in s. EXAMPLE: miss / toss, etc.
(I miss…) (We toss…)
• When the PRONOUNS He, She, It& Who are followed by a VERB in the PRESENT TENSE, there is an s at the end of the VERB. (Exceptions to follow)
I lives in Ireland.
I live in Ireland.
You walks to school every day.
You walk to school every day.
We goes to England regularly.
We go to England regularly.
Ye eats sweets all the time.
Ye eat sweets all the time.
They usually scores in the second half.
They usually score in the second half.
He answer most of the questions for us when we take part in the table quiz.
He answers most of the questions for us when we take part in the table quiz.
She do it well when it matters most.
She does it well when it matters most.
It behave badly.
It behaves badly.
Who know the difference?
Who knows the difference?
Whether or not the letter s is added on at the end of the VERB in the PRESENT TENSE depends on the PRONOUN being used.
1. WITHOUT s: I, You, We, Ye and They
2. WITH s: He, She, It & Who – EXCEPTIONS are as follows:
• When a QUESTION is asked:
Does she write as fast as her cousin? (no s in write)
Does he sing as sweetly as his friend? (no s in sing)
Does it work? (no s in work)
• When he & she – both treated as SINGULAR on their own – are regarded as PLURAL when grouped together:
He and she usually follow the dog to the park. (no s in follow)
She and he play together all the time. (no s in play)
• When the POSITIVE becomes a NEGATIVE with the addition of does not
(doesn’t) / cannot, etc.
He buys presents for everyone.
He does not buy presents for anyone. (no s in buy)
She sends birthday cards all the time.
She cannot send birthday cards any more. (no s at the end of send)
It knows where to go.
It doesn’t know where to go. (no s in know)
Who knows where to go?
Who doesn’t know where to go? (no s in know)
Write the correct form of the VERB in the PRESENT TENSE in the following sentences:
1. I usually _______ home immediately after school. (come / comes)
2. I ______in the red house at the end of the terrace. (live / lives)
3. We ______ our home games on Saturdays. (play / plays)
4. We always _____ butter on our bread. (put / puts)
5. They______ the way home. (know / knows)
6. On occasions, you _____ to the radio late at night. (listen / listens)
7. I _____ in bed on Sunday mornings. (stay / stays)
8. Every morning I __ out the window when I __ up.(look / looks) / (get / gets)
9. We_____ going to the park every Sunday. (enjoy / enjoys)
10. We _____ over the gate all the time. (jump / jumps)
11. They _____ here every Saturday. (sleep / sleeps)
12. They _____ e-mails to their pen pals every Wednesday. (send / sends)
13. We_______ early on Fridays. (finish / finishes)
14. We _______ to school every Monday. (cycle / cycles)
15. You ______ a lot. (laugh / laughs)
16. It _____ every Hallowe’en. (appear / appears)
17. She _____ to her aunt’s house after school. (go / goes)
18. She doesn’t______ to the swimming pool every morning. (go / goes)
19. Does she _______ to her aunt’s house at the weekend? (go / goes)
20. He and she ______ to the movies every Sunday night. (go / goes)
1. come 2. live 3. play 4. put 5. know 6. listen 7. stay 8. look/get 9. enjoy 10. jump 11. sleep 12. send 13. finish 14. cycle 15. laugh 16. appears 17. goes 18. go 19. go 20. go
There is usually an s at the end of VERBS in the PRESENT TENSE that follow He / he & She / she. There isn’t any s at the end of VERBS which follow either I, You / you, We / we, Ye / ye or They / they. Similarly, the rule holds when NOUNS are used.
He likes apples.
Jamie likes apples.
She reads a new book every week.
Mary reads a new book every week.
We work hard in school.
Jamie, Mary and I work hard in school.
Jamie, Mary and I works hard in school.
Ye eat ham sandwiches every day.
You, Jamie and Mary eat ham sandwiches every day.
You, Jamie and Mary eats ham sandwiches every day.
They drink milk when they’re thirsty.
The children drink milk when they’re thirsty.
The children drinks milk when they’re thirsty.
I like chocolate, and they do too.