Present Simple Tense

The Present Simple is the most basic and common tense in the English language. It is also an interesting tense because it can express both the present and the future.

Use

1. Facts and generalization
   
2. Habits and routines
   
3. Permanent situations
   
4. State verbs (e.g. be, have, think, know)
   
5. Fixed / official arrangement that we can't change
   
6. Narrations (e.g. telling a story or a joke)
   

   
    

USE 1: Facts and Generalizations

 

The first and most important use of the Present Simple is to talk about things we believe are (or are not) true. It's also used to generalize about somebody or something. 

Examples:

• It is a big house.
  
• He talks a lot.
  
• Berlin is the capital city of Germany.
  
• Buenos Aires is a large city.
  
• The Elephant doesn't fly.
  
• Dogs don't smoke cigarettes.
  
• A dog is not large than an elephant
  
• London is the capital city of France. (Remember: the sentence doesn't have to be true)