Thursday, 13 December 2012

Simple Present Tense




The simple present tense is one of the most common tenses in English. This page will explain the rules for forming the tense with regular verbs.
1. Forming the simple present tense
There are only two basic forms for the simple present tense; one ends with -s and the other doesn't. Here are the rules, using the example verb "sing":
Subject
Verb Form
Example
I
simple form
I sing
You
simple form
You sing
He
simple form + S
He sings
She
simple form + S
She sings
It
simple form + S
It sings
We
simple form
We sing
They
simple form
They sing
In other words, only THIRD PERSON SINGULAR subjects (he, she and it) have to have a verb with -S.
2. -s or -es ?
With most verbs, the third person singular form is created simply by adding -S. However, with some verbs, you need to add -ES or change the ending a little. Here are the rules:
Verb ending in...
How to make the 3rd person singular
Example
s
Add -ES
He passes
z
Add -ES
She waltzes
sh
Add -ES
She wishes
ch
Add -ES
He watches
x
Add -ES
She mixes
o
Add -ES
He goes
consonant + y
Change Y to I, then add -ES
It flies
[anything else]
Add -S
He sings

1 comment:

  1. Thanks a lot. The post was indeed very brilliantly written.

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