0It is important to understand the structure and usage of different types of grammatical sentences to use them correctly.
Present simple or present indefinite is the most simple and most underused sentence structure as sometimes we feel that adding -ing or has/have adds weight to our English and makes us sound fancy. On the contrary, keeping it simple is the key to the spoken form of any language.
Basic structure:
I + eat + an apple.
subject (s) + 1st form of verb (v1) + object (o)
Note:
'I' is 1st person. 'You' is 2nd person. Both 'I' and 'You' use the above-mentioned structure.
He/She/It/ Name is considered 3rd person and use an -s, -es or and -ies with the verbs.
- I eat an apple. You eat an apple. He eats and apple. She eats an apple. Seema eats an apple.
- I do my work. You do your work. He does his work. She does her work. Tim does his work.
- I study math. You study math. He studies math. She studies math. Nandu studies math.
Plurals do not use an extra -s, -es or -ies.
- They study math. Children do their work.
Also, note that the helping verb changes with the subject.
I am , You are , He/She/It is , We are , They are.
- I am an Indian . You are Japanese. He is Chinese.
Usage:
There are six different usages for this grammatical structure.
a) To talk about habits.
e.g.:
- I go to school.
- She takes a bath.
Do not use present continuous (Verb + ing) to describe habits as it is incorrect to do so and might confuse your listener.
Practice Task: List down your daily and weekly habits. As an extension of this, you can try to list the patterns of your family members or friends.
b) To talk about universal truth.
e.g.:
- Earth is a planet.
- Sunsets in the west.
- 2x2 is 4.
- I am a girl.
Practice Task: List some facts that are always true about yourself, your country or another topic of your interest.
c) To talk about the current permanent situation.
e.g.:
- He lives in Delhi.
- I teach at a school.
- She uses an iPhone.
- I drive a Volkswagon Polo.
Practice task: List your likes and dislikes. Also, list a few current permanent situations in your life like the phone you use, or the car you drive, the place where you work/study, the laptop you use, etc.
d) To talk about current short actions. (Like a commentary)
e.g.:
- He hits the ball for a six.
- She dives into the pool gracefully.
- He opens his laptop and sends the email.
Practice task: Watch this video and write a commentary on the same.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lK13SW0QW04
e.g., A bird flies and sits on the wire.
e) To talk about future time tables.
e.g.:
- My train leaves at 5 pm.
- Her class starts in 10mins.
Practice task: Look at the timetable below and write a few sentences for practice.
e.g., The train leaves from Oxford at 10:43.
f) To add clauses about the future.
eg: Future simple clause + if/when + Present simple clause
- I will go to Dubai in January if I save two lacs by December.
- I will grow plants when I have an open yard.
Practice task: List a few things you want to do this year which are dependent on something else. Make sure they are not imaginary.
e.g., I will play in the school team if I clear the trials.
Please remember to keep it simple. Feel free to ask any doubts.
Happy learning!!
