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Use the present simple for routines, repeated actions, facts, permanent situations, and things that are generally true.
Overview
Use the present simple for routines, repeated actions, facts, permanent situations, and things that are generally true.
Form and rules
Use the base verb with I/you/we/they: I work, they live.
With he/she/it, usually add -s. Add -es after verbs such as watch, go, do, and finish. Have becomes has.
Use do not/don't with I/you/we/they and does not/doesn't with he/she/it.
Use Do/Does + subject + base verb for questions: Do you work here? Does she drive?
After does or doesn't, use the base verb, not the -s form: She doesn't work, not doesn't works.
A closer look
The present simple is the normal tense for routines, repeated actions, facts, schedules, and permanent or long-term situations.
After does or doesn't, the main verb returns to the base form: Does he work? He doesn't work. The -s belongs to does, not the main verb.
Examples
I start work at nine.
He watches TV after dinner.
My sister has two children.
We don't eat meat.
Does your father work on Saturdays?
Common mistakes
Add -s or -es with he, she, and it in affirmative sentences.
After does, use the base form.
Ready to practise?
The test combines multiple choice, gap completion, error correction, and sentence building so students have to recognise and produce the grammar, not simply reread the rule.