This document provides an overview of the present simple and present continuous tenses in English. It explains that the present simple is used to express facts and habitual actions, while the present continuous describes what is happening at the moment or for a limited time period. Examples are given for conjugating common verbs like "to be", "to have", and "to do" in the present simple. The formation of the present continuous using verbs ending in "-ing" is also demonstrated. Practice exercises are included for learners to reinforce the uses of these tenses.

1. Grundlagen Englisch
- Present simple
- Present continuous
- time expressions
HFW Bern
Philipp Brunner

2. Present simple
• We use the present simple to express facts
and when something happens regularly.
• Fact: The sun shines every day.
• Regularity: Pete goes to work every day.
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Englisch Grundlagen, Present Tenses,
Time Expressions

3. Present simple - to be
the verb ‚to be‘
I am we are
you are you are
he / she / it is they are
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Englisch Grundlagen, Present Tenses,
Time Expressions

4. Present simple - to be
• I am a teacher.
• He is a football player. He is not /isn’t a teacher.
• Is she an actress? – Yes, she is.
• We are in Berne. We are at school.
•  article a/an + profession
• In all the examples ‘to be’ is used as a main
verb.
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Englisch Grundlagen, Present Tenses,
Time Expressions

5. Conjugation of to be
Positive + Negative - Question ?
I am (I‘m) I‘m not (I am‘t) am I?
you are (you‘re) you‘re not / you aren‘t are you?
he/she/it (he‘s/she‘s/it‘s) he‘/she‘/it‘s not
(he/she/it isn‘t)
is he/she/it?
we are (we‘re) we‘re not / we aren‘t are we?
you are (you‘re) you‘re not / you aren‘t are you?
they are (they‘re) they‘re not / they aren‘t are they?
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Englisch Grundlagen, Present Tenses,
Time Expressions

6. Present simple - to do
the verb ‚to do‘
I do we do
you do you do
he / she / it does they do
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Englisch Grundlagen, Present Tenses,
Time Expressions

7. Present simple - to do
• I do sports three times a week.
• You don‘t do your homework regularly.
• He does like math.
• Do you come here often? – Yes, I do.
• Does he like rock music? – No, he doesn‘t.
• In all the examples ‘to do’ is used as a main
verb.
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Englisch Grundlagen, Present Tenses,
Time Expressions

8. Present simple - to have
the verb ‚to have‘
I have we have
you have you have
he / she / it has they have
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Examples:
- I have a new computer.
- She has a new car.
Englisch Grundlagen, Present Tenses,
Time Expressions

9. Present simple - to play, to rest, to learn
the verbs ‚to play‘, ‚to rest‘, ‚to learn‘
I play
rest
learn
we play
rest
learn
you play
rest
learn
you play
rest
learn
he / she / it plays
rests
learns
they play
rest
learn
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Englisch Grundlagen, Present Tenses,
Time Expressions

10. Present simple - to go, to fly
the verbs ‚to play‘, ‚to rest‘, ‚to learn‘
I go
fly
we go
fly
you go
fly
you go
fly
he / she / it goes
flies
they go
fly
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Englisch Grundlagen, Present Tenses,
Time Expressions

11. Present simple – your turn!
• practice alone or in pairs
• Grammar Book, Unit 1 (p10)
• Murphy copies
• Time: 10 minutes
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Englisch Grundlagen, Present Tenses,
Time Expressions

12. Present continuous
• We use the present continuous to describe
what is happening at the moment of
speaking.
• We use the present continuous to describe
that we talk about a limited time.
• Now: I am explaining grammar to you.
• Limited time: I am reading a book at the
moment. (e.g. over a period of 2 weeks)
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Englisch Grundlagen, Present Tenses,
Time Expressions

13. Present continuous (+)
• person + to be + verb + -ing
positive:
I am talking we are talking
you are talking you are talking
he/she/it is talking they are talking
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Englisch Grundlagen, Present Tenses,
Time Expressions

14. Present continuous (-)
• person + to be + not + verb + -ing
negative:
I am not talking we are not talking
you are not talking you are not talking
he/she/it is not talking they are not talking
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Englisch Grundlagen, Present Tenses,
Time Expressions

15. Present continuous (?)
• to be + person + verb + -ing +?
positive:
am I talking? are we talking?
are you talking? are you talking?
is he/she/it talking? are they talking?
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Englisch Grundlagen, Present Tenses,
Time Expressions

16. Present continuous (O)
• Rechtschreibung
• Achtung zum Beispiel bei:
– stop  stopping
– come  coming
– fly  flying
– swim  swimming
 see Appendix 5 (p148)!
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Englisch Grundlagen, Present Tenses,
Time Expressions

17. Present simple – your turn!
• practice alone or in pairs
• Grammar Book, Unit 2 (p12)
• Grammar Book, Unit 19 (p46)
• Murphy copies
• Time: 15 minutes
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Englisch Grundlagen, Present Tenses,
Time Expressions