Present Tenses Masterclass

ENGLISH WORLD
ACADEMY
PRESENT TENSES
MASTERCLASS
January 2014
C/ Hortes 34, Baixos – Figueres

Tel. 972 677 979 / 661 879 913
englishwacademy@gmail.com
ENGLISH WORLD ACADEMY
PRESENT TENSES
Present Simple
The Present Simple tense is used to describe an action that is habit or a routine in the present
time. We use the present tense:
1. For repeated or regular actions in the present time period.
 The train to Berlin leaves every hour
2. For facts (fets)
 The President of The USA lives in The White House
3. For habits.
 I get up early every morning

 I go to the gym on Tuesdays
4. For things that are always / generally true.
 It rains a lot in winter (A l’hivern plou molt)

 The fire burns (el foc crema)
Verb Conjugation & Spelling
In general, in the third person we add 'S' in the third person:
Affirmative Negative Question

I play (jo jugo) I don’t play Do I play?
You play You don’t play Do you play?
He/she/it plays He/she/it doesn’t play Does he/she/it play?
We play We don’t play Do we play?
You play You don’t play Do you play?
They play They don’t play Do they play?
Spelling for the verb in the third person differs depending on the ending of that verb:
1. For verbs that end in –S, -CH, -SH, -SS, -X, –Z, or,-O, we add -ES in the third person, for
reasons of pronunciation (except for those that end with –o, which are just an exception).
 go – goes
 catch – catches
 wash – washes
 kiss – kisses
 fix – fixes
2. For verbs that end in a consonant + Y, we remove the Y and add -IES.
 marry – marries
 study – studies
 carry – carries
NOTE: For verbs that end in a vowel + Y, we just add -S.
 play – plays
 enjoy – enjoys
 say – says
Key words: Every day/hour/week/month/year…, On Mondays/Tuesdays…, frequency adverbs,

in the morning…, in the afternoon…, at night…
Exercise: Use the present simple affirmative.
1. I ________ (go) shopping with my brother.

2. We sometimes ________ (use) a dictionary in class.
3. My friends ________ (study) Italian at their school.
4. School ________ (finish) at three o’clock.
5.You ________ (live) near me.
6. He ________(like) rap music.
7. She ________ (do) her homework before dinner.
Present Continuous
The Present Continuous (or progressive) tense is used to describe an action that is happening
now, at the moment of speaking (S’utilitza per descriure accions que estan passant ara, en el
moment de parlar).
1. Actions happening at the moment of speaking (now)
 I am taking the train now (estic agafant el tren ara)

 John is sleeping in this moment (en John està dormint en aquest moment)
KEY WORDS (paraules clau): Now, right now, at the moment, in this moment
2. For actions happening in a present period of time repeatedly.
 I am studying a lot this month (jo estic estudiant molt aquest mes)
 We are doing a lot of sport this week (Nosaltres estem fent molt d’esport aquesta semana)
KEY WORDS: These days/months/weeks…, this year/month/week…, at present, at the

moment
3. For arrangements in the future (per plans de futur)
 I am going to the doctor tomorrow afternoon (Demà a la tarda vaig al doctor)

 We are playing tennis tomorrow morning (Demà al matí juguem a tenis)
Verb Conjugation & Spelling (conjugació i ortografia)
We use the verb to be conjugated and a gerund (a verb form ending with –ing):
Utilitzem el verb to be conjugat i un gerundi (forma verbal acabada en –ing):
Affirmative Negative Question

I am playing I’m not playing Am I playing?
You are playing You aren’t playing Are you playing?
He is playing He isn’t playing Is he playing?
We are playing We aren’t playing Are we playing?
You are playing You aren’t playing Are you playing?
They are playing They aren’t playing Are they playing?
 Remember that with certain verbs we never use the continuous form (stative verbs):
belive, remember, know, understand, forget, think (opinion), like, prefer, hate, own…
 Also remember that those verbs that end with consonant + vowel + consonant pattern
(CVC), double the last consonant:
Sit – sitting, run – running, swim – swimming, travel – travelling,
begin – beginning… But listen – listening, visit-visiting*
 Those verbs that end in –ie, drop both last letters and they are substituted by –y:
die-dying, lie-lying
 Those verbs that end in –e drop the –e before adding –ing:
Write-writing, breathe-breathing…
Exercise: Write sentences with the correct forms of the verbs using present simple or
continuous.
(She \ start) schoolat 8.30

She starts school at 8.30.
1. Why (you \ eat) a sandwich now? Dinner will be ready.

2. (You \ play) football ever Saturday?
3. (Your friend \ come) too? Yes, just wait for a minute for him.
4. Where (your grandparents \ live)? In Bilbao.
5. Please be quiet! (I \ try) to listen to the news.
6. What (your mother \ do)? She is a teacher.
Present Perfect S.
It is used to talk about:
1. States, actions and events that started in the past and still continue in the present: “How
long have you been here?”
2. Something which happened in the past and has and effect in the present or happened
very recently: “She has passed her exams”, “I have just left”.
3. About past experiences, without mentioning exactly where they took place: “I’ve made a
lot of new friends”.
 Affirmative: I have gone (He anat)

 Negative: I haven’t gone (No he anat)
 Question: Have you gone? (Has anat?)
Key words: Just, since, for, already, yet, ever, how long,…
JUST: It is written between the auxiliary verb and the main verb to mean that an action has
started very recently.
He has just left (Acaba de sortir) / He has just finished (Tot just ha acabat)
SINCE & FOR:
Since (desde) – It refers to the beginning point of the action

I have worked here since 1999
For (durant) – It refers to the length/period/amount of time the action lasted

I have known her for 10 years
ALREADY & YET:
Already (ja) – For affirmative sentences:

I have already finished (Ja he acabat)
Yet (ja, encara) – For negatives and questions:

Have you finished yet? (Has acabat ja?)
I haven’t finished yet (No he acabat encara)
EVER & NEVER (mai):
Have you ever been to London? (Has estat mai a Londres?)

I have never been to London (No he estat mai a Londres)
HOW LONG (quant de temps):
How long have you been here? (Quant temps has estat…?)
Exercise: Fill in SINCE/FOR
- He has been back ___________ two hours / __________ 3 o’clock.

- I haven’t seen him _________ over two months / ________ Christmas.
- You’ve been watching TV __________ you came home from school.
- Carol has been looking after the baby _________ this morning / ______ over four hours.
- The Healers have had Dusty ________ their old dog died / ________ nearly two years.
- We’ve been standing here ________ twenty-five minutes / _________ half past six.
- Kate has been learning French ________ she was eleven / _________ four years.
- Grandpa has been living with us ____________ Granny died / ________ quite some time.
Exercise: Fill in with the Present Perfect of these verbs: clean, rain, be, eat, have, see.
1. Chris ___________________ all the biscuits. (They are gone now.)
2. The boys ___________________ the car. (It looks beautiful now.)
3. Mrs Wood _______________ a busy day. (She is tired now.)
4. It _________ not _________ for weeks. (The garden is very dry.)
5. I _________________ the film. (I know it.)
6. My sister _______________ to Paris several times. (She knows it.)
Exercise: Complete the sentences using the correct form of present perfect.
Already make / be / not finish / not play / send / watch
1 I ___________________________ to three parties since I arrived.

2 They _______________________ their homework yet.
3 She _____________________ two text messages today.
4 I ___________________________ basketball for a long time.
5 We _______________________ lots of friends.
Present Perfect Continuous

We use Present Perfect Continuous in a similar way than Present Perfect but emphasizing the
duration and progress of the action.
Key words: all morning/afternoon/night/day, for hours, for days…
 Affirmative: I have been working (He estat treballant)

 Negative: I haven’t been working

 Question: Have you been working?
PRESENT TENSE ACTIVITIES

Exercise: Choose the correct alternative.
1 We are / have been here since yesterday.
2 I usually play / have played football twice a week.
3 We’ve known each other for / since 1998.
4 Have you ever tried / Try you ever surfing?
5 I’ve already / yet done my homework.
6 Where are you going / have you gone at the moment?
Exercise: Choose the correct alternatives
1 Hi Kate. Do you wait / Are you waiting for your friends?

2 Who’s that boy over there? He’s waving / waves at you.
3 Kate rarely listens to / is rarely listening to dance music.
4 Excuse me! Are you using / Do you use that computer at the moment?
5 She doesn’t watch / isn’t watching TV in the mornings.
6 Is she ever arriving / Does she ever arrive on time?
7 The library doesn’t close / isn’t closing now.
8 Does she live / Is she living here at the moment?
Exercise: Complete the sentences using present perfect or present perfect continuous.
1 I _____________________ (learn) Japanese for three months.

2 I heard that you ______________________ all your exams.
3 We _______________________ (visit) Toledo before – is it nice?
4 _____________________ (you/use) my computer while I was out?
5 _____________________ (they/ see) Javi recently?
6 She ____________________ (drive) since she was 18, and she has already had one crash.
Exercise: Write sentences with the correct forms of the verbs using present simple or
continuous.
(She \ start) school at 8.30 - She starts school at 8.30.

1. Why (you \ eat) a sandwich now?

2. (You \ play) football ever Saturday?
3. (Your friend \ come) too? Yes, just wait for a minute for him.
4. Where (your grandparents \ live)? In Bilbao.
5. Please be quiet! (I \ try) to listen to the news.
6. What (your mother \ do)? She is a teacher.
Exercise: Complete the text with present simple or present continuous forms of the verbs
in the list.
(Be, enjoy, get, live, look, sleep, stay, take, train)
1. Matt is (be) a student. He (1) ………………………. with his parents in a flat in Badalona. He is alsoa
champion swimme. Every day he (2) ………………. Up early and (3) ………………..for two hours
before going toschool. This week he (4) ………………. Part in an international competitioninMadrid, so
he (5)……………. With some relatives ther. He ………………….. the experience of living in a different
city, but he (7)……………….forward to goinghome. “I (8) …………….. much better inmyownbed,” he
says.

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ENGLISH WORLD

C/ Hortes 34, Baixos – Figueres

1. For repeated or regular actions in the present time period.

 The train to Berlin leaves every hour

2. For facts (fets)

 The President of The USA lives in The White House

 I get up early every morning

4. For things that are always / generally true.

 It rains a lot in winter (A l’hivern plou molt)

Verb Conjugation & Spelling

In general, in the third person we add 'S' in the third person:

Affirmative Negative Question

2. For verbs that end in a consonant + Y, we remove the Y and add -IES.

NOTE: For verbs that end in a vowel + Y, we just add -S.

Key words: Every day/hour/week/month/year…, On Mondays/Tuesdays…, frequency adverbs,

Exercise: Use the present simple affirmative.

1. I ________ (go) shopping with my brother.

1. Actions happening at the moment of speaking (now)

 I am taking the train now (estic agafant el tren ara)

2. For actions happening in a present period of time repeatedly.

KEY WORDS: These days/months/weeks…, this year/month/week…, at present, at the

3. For arrangements in the future (per plans de futur)

 I am going to the doctor tomorrow afternoon (Demà a la tarda vaig al doctor)

Verb Conjugation & Spelling (conjugació i ortografia)

Affirmative Negative Question

Sit – sitting, run – running, swim – swimming, travel – travelling,

begin – beginning… But listen – listening, visit-visiting*

 Those verbs that end in –e drop the –e before adding –ing:

(She \ start) schoolat 8.30

1. Why (you \ eat) a sandwich now? Dinner will be ready.

 Affirmative: I have gone (He anat)

SINCE & FOR:

Since (desde) – It refers to the beginning point of the action

For (durant) – It refers to the length/period/amount of time the action lasted

ALREADY & YET:

Already (ja) – For affirmative sentences:

Yet (ja, encara) – For negatives and questions:

EVER & NEVER (mai):

Have you ever been to London? (Has estat mai a Londres?)

Exercise: Fill in SINCE/FOR

- He has been back ___________ two hours / __________ 3 o’clock.

1 I ___________________________ to three parties since I arrived.

Present Perfect Continuous

Key words: all morning/afternoon/night/day, for hours, for days…

 Affirmative: I have been working (He estat treballant)

 Negative: I haven’t been working

PRESENT TENSE ACTIVITIES

Exercise: Choose the correct alternatives

1 Hi Kate. Do you wait / Are you waiting for your friends?

1 I _____________________ (learn) Japanese for three months.

(She \ start) school at 8.30 - She starts school at 8.30.

1. Why (you \ eat) a sandwich now?

(Be, enjoy, get, live, look, sleep, stay, take, train)

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- He has been back _ two hours / 3 o’clock.