Present Continuous tense

We use the present continuous tense to talk about the present:

ü for something that is happening at the moment of speaking:

I’m just leaving work. I’ll be home in an hour.
Please be quiet. The children are sleeping.

ü for something which is happening before and after a given time:

At eight o’clock we are usually havingbreakfast.
When I get home the children are doingtheir homework.

ü for something which we think is temporary:

Michael is at university. He’s studying history.
I’m working in London for the next two weeks.

ü for something which is newand contrastswith a previous state:

These days most people are usingemail instead of writing letters.
What sort of clothes are teenagers wearingnowadays? What sort of music are they listeningto?

ü to show that something is changing, growing or developing:

The children are growingquickly.
The climate is changingrapidly.
Your English is improving.

ü for something which happens again and again:

It’s always raining in London.
They are always arguing.
George is great. He’s always laughing.

Note: We normally use always with this use.

2. We use the present continuous tense to talk about the future:

for something which has been arrangedor planned:

Maryis goingto a new school next term.
What are you doingnext week?

3. We can use the present continuous to talk about the past:

When we are telling a story:

When we are summarising the story from a book, film or play etc.:

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Exercises

№ 1 Replace the infinitives in brackets by the Present Continuous.

1. I _____to you, boy. (to speak)

2. I’m glad you______ with us. (to stay)

3. Listen! Somebody ______the back door. (to open)

4. Go on with what you _____me . (to tell)

5. We ____about the weather now. (to talk)

6. You _______with the only beautiful girl in the room, Jack. (to dance)

7. Sure, it is Tom you ____ to. (to phone)

8. It _____so heavily! (to rain)

9. She ______ even ____to be polite. ( not to try)

10. It ____any longer. (not to rain)

11. Now listen, I _______. (not to joke)

12. Don’t be afraid, nobody _____. (to come)

13. Keep quiet, nothing out of ordinary ______. (to happen)

14. _______we really ______at last? (to start)

15. _______they _____too fast? (to walk)

16. What’s the matter? Why _____you ____? (to tremble)

17. My God, what ____you____! ( to say)

18. Why ____you _____at me ? ( to smile)

19. What ____you _____about?( to think)

20. Who _____at the terrace over there? (to stand)

21. What ______in that house of yours? (to go on)

Present Simple or Present Continuous?

Simple Present	Present Progressive
infinitive (3rd person singular: infinitive + 's') I speak you speak he / she / it speaks we speak they speak	form of 'be' and verb + ing I am speaking you are speaking he / she / it is speaking we are speaking they are speaking
Exceptions
Exceptions when adding 's' : § For can, may, might, must, do not add s. Example: he can, she may, it must § After o, ch, sh or s, add es. Example: do - he does, wash - she washes § After a consonant, the final consonant ybecomes ie. (but: not after a vowel) Example: worry - he worries but: play - he plays	Exceptions when adding 'ing' : § Silent e is dropped. (but: does not apply for -ee) Example: come - coming but: agree - agreeing § After a short, stressed vowel, the final consonant is doubled. Example: sit - sitting § After a vowel, the final consonant l is doubled in British English (but not in American English). Example: travel - travelling (British English) but: traveling (American English) § Final ie becomes y. Example: lie - lying

Use

In general or right now?

Do you want to express that something happens in general or that something is happening right now?

Simple Present	Present Progressive
in general (regularly, often, never) Colin plays football every Tuesday. present actions happening one after another First Colin plays football, then he watches TV.	right now Look! Colin is playing football now. also for several actions happening at the same time Colin is playing football and Anne is watching.
Signal words
§ Always § every ... § often § normally § usually § sometimes § seldom § never § first § then	§ at the moment § at this moment § today § now § right now § Listen! § Look!
Note: The following verbs are usually only used in Simple Present: be, have, hear, know, like, love, see, smell, think, want

Timetable / Schedule or arrangement?

Do you want to express that something is arranged for the near future? Or do you refer to a time set by a timetable or schedule?

Simple Present	Present Progressive
action set by a timetable or schedule The film starts at 8 pm.	arrangement for the near future I am going to the cinema tonight.

Daily routine or just for a limited period of time?

Do you want to talk about a daily routine? Or do you want to emphasis that something is only going on for a limited (rather short) period of time?

Simple Present	Present Progressive
daily routine Bob works in a restaurant.	only for a limited period of time (does not have to happen directly at the moment of speaking) Jenny is working in a restaurant this week.

Certain Verbs

The following verbs are usually only used in Simple Present (not in the progressive form).

§ state: be, cost, fit, mean, suit

Example: We are on holiday.

§ possession: belong, have

Example: Sam has a cat.

§ senses: feel, hear, see, smell, taste, touch

Example: He feels the cold.

§ feelings: hate, hope, like, love, prefer, regret, want, wish

Example: Jane loves pizza.

§ brain work: believe, know, think, understand

Example: I believe you.

§ Introductory clauses for direct speech: answer, ask, reply, say

Example: “I am watching TV,“ he says.

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Exercises

№ 1 Complete the sentences. Use Simple Present or Present Progressive.

1. (you / go) __________ on holiday by plane sometimes?

2. (they / play) __________ computer games every day?

3. (she / eat)___________ dinner at the moment?

4. What (they / do)_______________ right now?

5. (she / visit) ______________ her grandma very often?

6. Look! Jenny (go)__________ to school.

7. On her back, Jenny (carry)___________ her school bag.

8. The school bag (be)____________ very heavy

9. Normally, Jenny (wear) __________________ black shoes, but today she (wear) red wellies.

10. And look, she (wear) ______________ a raincoat because it (rain) ___________ outside.

11. Jenny (not / want) _____________ to get wet.

12. We (help) _______________ in the canteen this week.

13. Martin usually (drive) __________________ to work.

14. But today, he (take) ______________________ the bus.

15. Listen! She (practise)_________________ the piano.

16. My friend (play) _____________________ the guitar every evening.

17. He (not / spend) _____________ his holidays in Spain each year.

18. I (not / meet)____________ Francis tonight.

19. They (not / fly) _____________ to London tomorrow.

20. We (not / work)____________ this week.

21. The film (not / begin) ______________ at 7 o'clock.

22. (leave / you) ____________ the party now?

23. (have / you) ______________ any brothers or sisters?

24. (love / she) ______________ him?

25. Who (cook) ___________________ dinner tonight?

26. (send / he) ______________ you an e-mail every day?

№ 2

Complete the sentences. Use the Present Simple or Present Continuous.

1. Alice (take, not) _______the bus to school every day. She usually (walk)_______ instead. (Take, you)________ the bus to get to school every day, or (walk, you)_________? 2. It (rain, not)________ right now. The sun (shine)________. (Rain, it) __________a lot here? 3. Right now I (look)__________ at the board. (I, see)_________ some words on the blackboard. 4. I (need) ____________to call my parents today and tell them about my new apartment. They can’t call me because they (know, not)_______ my new telephone number. 5. The tea is good. I (like)__________ it. What kind is it? I (prefer)_______ tea to coffee. How about you? 6. Right now the children (be)__________ at the beach. They (have)_________ a good time. They (have)__________ a beach ball and they (play)________ with it. They (like)_______ to play catch. Their parents (sunbathe)_________. They (try)_________ to get a tan. They (listen)_________ to some music on a transistor radio. Тheу also (hear)_________ the sound of sea gulls and the sound of the waves 7. Right now I (think) ___________about sea gulls and waves. I (think)________ that sea gulls are beautiful birds. 8. Sam is at the library. He (sit)_________ at a table. He (write)__________ a composition. He (use)_________ a dictionary to look up the spelling of some Words. The dictionary (belong, not) _________ to him. It (belong)_________ to his roommate. Sam (look) _________up words in the dictionary because he (want)_________ to make sure that he doesn’ t have any misspelled words in his paper.
9. A: Which colour (prefer, you)___________, red or blue?
В: I (like)_________blue better than red. Why?
A: According to this magazine article I (read) ________ right now, people who (prefer)________ blue to red (be) _______calm and (value) ________ honesty and loyalty in their friends. A preference for the colour red (mean) ______ that a person (be)________aggressive and (love)_______excitement.
B: Oh? That (sound)_________like a bunch of nonsense to me.
10. A: (Believe, you)_________in flying saucers?
B: What (talk, you)____________about?
A: You know spaceships from outer space with alien creatures aboard.
B: In my opinion, flying saucers (exist) ________ only in people’s imagination.
11. Janice: What (write, you)___________in your notebook?
Diane: I (make)_________notes about questions I want to ask the teacher.
Janice: (Prepare, you, always)___________ so thoroughly for every class?

Diane: I (try, always)____________to.

12. Bob: Jack really makes me angry!

Sue: Why?

Bob: Well, for one thing, he (interrupt, always)_______ me. I can barely get a whole sentence out of my mouth.
Sue: Is that all?

Bob: No. He (ask, always) _________ me to do his homework for him. I have enough homework of my own without doing his homework too!
13. Mother: Susie! Get your fingers out of the dessert! What (do, you) ________?
Susie: I (taste) ___________the cake. It (taste) __________good.
Mother: Well, you’ll just have to wait until dinnertime. You can have some then.
14. This morning it (rain) __________. I can see Janet from my window. She (stand) ___________ at the comer of 5th and Pine. She (hold) _________ her umbrella over her head. She (wait) ___________for the bus. 15. Right now I (look) at Janet. She (look) _________angry. I wonder what’s the matter. She (have) ___________a frown on her face. She certainly (have, not) __________ any fun right now.

16. I can’t afford that thing. It (cost) ________too much. 17. I (own, not) _________an umbrella. I (wear) __________ a waterproof hat on rainy days. 18 The house is in a mess, because we’ve got the workmen in. The plumber (put) __________ in a new bath, the electricians (rewire) __________ the system, and the carpenter (build) _________us some new bookshelves. 19. You (hear)_________ the wind? It (blow) _________ very strongly tonight 20. You (see)__________ my car keys anywhere?—No, I (look) __________for them but I (not see) them. 21. Why you (walk) _________ so fast today? You (walk, usually) ___________quite slowly. 22. You (recognize)________ that man?—I (think) _______I have seen him before but (not remember) _________his name. 23. Look at that crowd. I (wonder) ________what they (wait) _______for. 24. Stop! You (not see) ________ the notice? — I (see) _______ it but I can’t read it because I (not wear) ________ my glasses. What it (say)_______? — It (say) ______, “These premises are patrolled by guard dogs.” 25. You (need) _________ another blanket or you (feel) _____ warm enough?

№ 3 Translate the following sentences into English.

1. Где Ника и Джон? — У них урок французского языка. У них всегда французский язык по вторникам.

2. Давайте покатаемся на велосипедах. Дождя нет.

3. Мои братья работают инженерами на фирме. Они говорят, им очень нравится их работа.

4. Моя мама хорошо знает математику. Она помогает студентам решить контрольные работы.

5. Послушай. Звонит телефон.

6. Где ты обычно проводишь отпуск? — В Шотландии. Мои родители живут там. — Там есть река или озеро? — Там есть большое и красивое озеро. Я хорошо провожу там время.

7. Куда ты торопишься? — В кино. Мой друг ждет меня около кинотеатра.

8. Сколько стоит этот смартофон? — 800 долларов.

9. С кем она разговаривает? — Со своим начальником.

10. Мужчина так пристально смотрит на вас. Вы его знаете?

11. Ты часто пишешь своим родителям? — Каждую неделю.

12. Моя сестра живет сейчас в Москве. Она там учится в Московском университете.

13. Что ты думаешь об этом фильме? — Он скучноват.

14. Какие товары экспортирует ваша страна?

15. Что ты здесь делаешь? — Просматриваю новые журналы. Я делаю это каждую неделю.

16. Почему вы изучаете английский? — Собираюсь поехать за границу на несколько месяцев. Кроме того, английский мне нужен для научной работы.

17. 0 чем они говорят? — Думаю, они обсуждают итоги конференции.

18. Почему ты так сердит? Почему ты кричишь на меня?

19. Она не любит мясо, она предпочитает рыбу.

 

 

Past Simple

 

Подчеркивает регулярность действия или единичный факт в прошлом. Past Simple правильных глаголов образуется путем прибавления к инфинитиву окончания – ed.

Формы неправильных глаголов приводятся в специальной таблице.

We discussed these questions last Friday.

He left school last year.

Вопросительная и отрицательная формы образуются с помощью вспомогательного глагола did.

Did you go abroad last year? No, I didn’t. I did not (didn’t) go abroad last year.

Past Simple употребляется для выражения обычных, постоянных или повторяющихся действий в прошлом и используется с обстоятельствами времени: yesterday, the day before yesterday, yesterday morning (evening, afternoon), last week (night, month, year), last time, five days (weeks, years) ago, in 1998.

I saw him yesterday morning.

We went to the country last week.

Для выражения повторяющихся действий в прошлом употребляется сочетание «used to», которое переводится словами обычно, бывало, раньше.

Last year we used to go to the theatre.

В прошлом году мы обычно (бывало) ходили в театр.

He used to be a doctor.

Он раньше был врачом.

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Past Simple Tense

ü something that happened once in the past:

I metmy wife in 1983.
We wentto Spain for our holidays.
They gothome very late last night.

ü something that happened again and again in the past:

When I was a boy I walkeda mile to school every day.
We swama lot while we were on holiday.
They always enjoyedvisiting their friends.

ü something that was true for some timein the past:

I livedabroad for ten years.
He enjoyedbeing a student.
She playeda lot of tennis when she was younger.

ü we often use phrases with ago with the past tense:

I met my wife a long time ago.