Use the Present Simple for habits and routines, facts and general truths, and permanent situations: She works in a bank. Water boils at 100°C. With he, she and it, the verb takes -s.
I drink coffee every morning.
Dots spread across past, present and future: it's what usually happens, not something happening at this exact moment.
| Positive | I work. · She works. |
|---|---|
| Negative | I don't work. · She doesn't work. |
| Question | Do you work? · Does she work? |
After does and doesn't, the verb loses its -s: Does she work?, not Does she works?
I go to the gym three times a week.
Things you do regularly. Words like usually, often and every day are typical.
Water boils at 100°C.
Things that are always true, not only at the moment of speaking.
My sister lives in Cluj.
Situations you see as long-term. For something temporary, use the Present Continuous.
The train leaves at 7:15 tomorrow.
Fixed, official times, even in the future: trains, flights, films, classes.
Words that often go with this tense. They're hints, not rules.
She _____ to work by bus every day.
Other present tenses: Present Continuous, Present Perfect, Present Perfect Continuous.
Paste an email or an essay. Clarigram marks the mistakes you actually make, shows the rule behind each one as a picture, and builds your practice from them.
After -s, -sh, -ch, -x and -o: he watches, she goes, it fixes. After a consonant + y, change y to -ies: she studies.
Yes, for timetables and schedules: The film starts at 8. For plans and decisions, use going to, will or the Present Continuous.
State verbs, which describe states rather than actions: know, believe, understand, like, love, hate, want, need, prefer, own, belong, seem, mean. They normally stay simple even when you mean 'right now': I know, not I'm knowing.