Simple Present Tense in English

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Simple Present Tense in English: A basic guide

In most cases when using simple present tense in English, verbs in the regular form use the root form. The one example when this is not true is the third-person singular – in these cases, you will find the ‘s’ in the word. Your English instructor can provide more thorough examples of these situations.

What follows here are basic examples of simple present tense in English, meant to give you a basic understanding and to have a written guide to refer to in your studies or in practical use.

First-person singular: I write

Second-person singular: You write

Third-person singular: He/she/it writes (note the ‑s)

First-person plural: We write

Second-person plural: You write

Third-person plural: They write

First-person singular: I run

Second-person singular: You run

Third-person singular: She runs

First-person plural: We run

Second-person plural: You run

Third-person plural: They run

In many cases, you put the negation of verbs, i.e. the word negating the action of the sentence, prior to the verb. For example, “He won’t lead the group” or “I won’t lead the group.”

Here is how we sure the verb to be as an irregular verb, in forms such as I am or you are:

First-person singular: I am going to the store.

Second-person singular: You are going to the store.

Third-person singular: He is going to the store

First-person plural: We are going to the store.

Second-person plural: You are going to the store.

Third-person plural: They are going to the store.

You can make simple present tense negative by adding ‘not’ after the ‘to be’ form in the sentence. Notice that the word ‘not’ remains consistent.

First-person singular: I am  NOT going to the store.

Second-person singular: You are NOT going to the store.

Third-person singular: He is NOT going to the store

First-person plural: We are NOT going to the store.

Second-person plural: You are NOT going to the store.

Third-person plural: They are NOT going to the store.