Unlocking Word Forms and Mastering Present Tense

Embarking on the journey of learning English is an exciting adventure. Mastering verb tenses, especially present tenses, is essential for effective communication. This guide is specifically designed to empower beginners with a thorough understanding of these concepts. It offers explanations of formulas and examples that are relatable to everyday life, thus facilitating comprehension for beginners.

Before we discuss the present tense, it is important to fully comprehend the nuanced meaning and significance of the term "form."

✍️What Are Word Forms?

Word forms refer to the different variations of a word that can change its meaning or function. These variations include different tenses, such as past, present, or future, as well as different forms of the word, such as gerunds (e.g., "playing") or nouns (e.g., "player"). For example, the base form "play" can be transformed into "playing" for the present progressive tense, "played" for the past tense, or "player" for a noun referring to someone who participates in a game or sport.
 
“Common Word Forms”

Nouns: Nouns are words that represent people, places, or things. For example, "friend" and "happiness" are nouns.
Verbs: Verbs are words that describe actions or states. For instance, "run" and "is" are verbs.
Adjectives: Adjectives are words that describe nouns. "Happy" and "blue" are examples of adjectives.
Adverbs: Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs. They describe how, when, where, or to what extent something is done. Examples of adverbs include "quickly" and "very."

Example 1: Word Family of "Play"

Noun: play
Verb: play, playing, played
Adjective: playful
Adverb: playfully
Verb: play, playing, played
Adjective: playful
Adverb: playfully
 
Conversation:

• A: What did you do last weekend?

• B: I went to a play with my friends.

• A: That sounds fun! Do you like to play games?

• B: Yes, I enjoy playing board games, especially when I'm feeling playful.

• A: I like to playfully tease my friends during game night!

 
Example 2: Word Family of "Creation"

Noun: Creation
Verb: create, creating, created
Adjective: creative
Adverb: creatively
Verb: create, creating, created
Adjective: creative
Adverb: creatively

Conversation:

• A: Are you a creative person?

• B: I like to think so! I love to create art.

• A: What kind of creations do you make?

• B: I recently created a painting, and I try to think creatively when I work on my projects.

 
Example 3: Word Family of "Run"

Noun: runner
Verb: run, running, ran
Adjective: running (as in "running shoes")
Adverb: (less common but can use "quickly" or "fast")
Verb: run, running, ran
Adjective: running (as in "running shoes")
Adverb: (less common but can use "quickly" or "fast")
 
Conversation:

• A: Do you consider yourself a runner?

• B: Yes, I love to run every morning.

• A: How far do you usually run?

• B: I ran five kilometers yesterday! I wear my running shoes, so it’s more comfortable.

 
Example 4: Word Family of "Bright"

Noun: brightness
Adjective: bright
Adverb: brightly
Adjective: bright
Adverb: brightly

Conversation:

• A: Why is it so bright here?

• B: The sunlight is shining brightly through the window!

• A: I love the brightness it brings to the room.

• B: Yes, it makes everything feel more cheerful.

 
The Simple Present Tense

The simple present tense is a grammatical form used to express habitual actions, general truths, and states of being that are ongoing or constantly true. It is commonly used to talk about daily routines, scientific facts, and universal truths. This tense is formed by using the base form of the verb (e.g., "go," "eat," "play") and adding "s" or "es" for third-person singular subjects (he, she, it). For example, "She goes to the gym every morning," "The sun rises in the east," and "Water boils at 100 degrees Celsius" are all examples of sentences using the simple present tense.
 
Before delving deeper into our discussion, let's take a moment to refresh our understanding of the fundamental structure of a "sentence". A sentence is comprised of three essential components:

S: Subject
P: Predicate
C: Complement
 
It's important to note that while the subject and predicate are mandatory components, the complement is optional. Now that we've revisited the basic components of a sentence, we can move on to explaining the formula and offering illustrative examples.
 
In a verbal sentence, after the subject, a verb will follow. Meanwhile, in nominal sentences, the subject will be accompanied by a verb that we usually recognize as an auxiliary verb or to be.
In the simple present tense, a positive sentence with a verbal pattern follows the formula Subject + Verb (s/es) + Complement. On the other hand, for sentences with a nominal pattern, the formula is Subject + Auxiliary Verb (to be) + Complement.
 
Nominal Simple Present Tense

 

Example:

• (+) I am excited about the concert

• (-) I am not excited about the concert

• (?) Am I excited about the concert

 

• (+) She is a talented artist

• (-) She is not a talented artist

• (?) is she a talented artist

 

• (+) They are going to the movies tonight

• (-) They are not going to the movies tonight

• (?) Are they going to the movies tonight

 

Conversation:

 Lena              : Hi Sister! How are you today?
Rubina           : I am good, thanks! How about you?
Lena               : I am doing well. What is your plan for the weekend?
Rubina           : I am visiting my family. They are having a barbecue.
Lena               : That sounds fun! What time is the barbecue?
Rubina           : It is at 3 PM. Are you free to join us?
Lena               : I am free! I’d love to come. What food is on the menu?
Rubina           : There are burgers, hot dogs, and salad.
Lena               : Great! I am looking forward to it.

Pattern for Spelling Changes on Present Simple 

To gain a deeper comprehension of this concept, it would be beneficial to examine the following examples and detailed explanations below.

•  Adding -s:

When using most verbs in the third-person singular form, simply add -s. For example, "She plays soccer."

•  Adding -es:

When a verb ends in -ch, -sh, -x, -s, or -z, add -es for the third-person singular form. For instance, "He watches TV."

•  Changing -y to -ies:

For verbs ending in a consonant followed by -y, change the -y to -ies when forming the third-person singular. For example, "She carries the bag."

•  No change for -y after a vowel:

If a verb ends in a vowel followed by -y, just add -s for the third-person singular form. For instance, "He plays the guitar."

•  Irregular verbs:

Some verbs have irregular forms in the third-person singular. For example, "He has a car." In this case, the verb "have" changes to "has" in the third-person singular.

Summary of patterns:

1. Add -s: talk → talks
2. Add -es: go → goes
3. Change -y to -ies: study → studies
4. Add -s (no change): play → plays
5. Irregular: have → has

Verbal Simple Present Tense

 
  Example:

• (+) She walks to school every day

• (-) she doesn't walk to school

• (?) Does she walk to school

 

• (+) They play soccer on weekends

• (-) They don’t play soccer on weekends

• (?) Do they play soccer on weekends

 

• (+) I go to the office every day

• (-) I don’t go to the office every day

• (?) Do l go to the office every day

 
 
 
Conversation: Daily life

 Lena               : What time do you usually wake up?
Rubina             : l usually wake up at 05.00 am. What about you?
Lena                : I do the same. Do you have breakfast before work?
Rubina             : Yes, I do. Does your brother eat breakfast too?
Lena                : No, he doesn’t. He usually skips it.

Conversation: Work

Rubina                 : What do you do for a living?
Lena                    : I work as a teacher. What do you do?
Rubina                 : I’m a pharmacist. Does your job require you to travel?
Lena                    : Great! I am looking forward to it.
Rubina                : Sometimes it does, but not often.
 
When using the simple present tense, there are several characteristics to keep in mind:

1. The main verb is used in its base form (infinitive) or as a familiar irregular verb. For example, in the sentence "I play soccer every weekend," the verb "play" is in its base form.
2. When forming negative and interrogative sentences, the auxiliary verbs "do" or "does" are used. For instance:
   - Negative form: "She doesn't eat meat" (In this case, "doesn't" is the contraction of "does    not," and it is the auxiliary verb in the negative form for the subject "She").
   - Interrogative form: "Do you like chocolate?" (Here, "do" is the auxiliary verb used to form a question with the subject "You").
 
 
 
Pattern for Spelling Changes on Present Simple

In the context of the simple present tense, time expressions or adverbs of time are commonly employed. These temporal indicators may not be ubiquitous in every sentence structured in the simple present tense, but they are essential in sentences that necessitate this tense. Presented below is a catalog of time expressions and adverbs of frequency that merit attention.
 
Adverb of Frequency

 
Frequency adverbs indicate how often an action occurs. For example, “Never” indicates a frequency of 0%, which means that the activity is never performed.
For example:

  Always: This refers to an activity that is consistently done every time in your daily routine. For example, "He always has coffee in the morning."

Usually: This refers to an activity that is commonly or generally done in your daily routine. For instance, "She usually goes for a run after work."

Often: This indicates an activity that is done frequently but not necessarily every time. An example would be, "They often have dinner together."

Sometimes: This indicates an activity that is done occasionally, but not on a regular basis. For instance, "I sometimes watch movies on the weekends."

Rarely: This indicates an activity that is hardly ever done, only occurring in rare instances. For example, "He rarely travels for work."

Never: This indicates an activity that is absolutely not done at all, with a 0% frequency. For instance, "She never eats breakfast."
 
When analyzing a song to gain a deeper understanding, it is very important to start by understanding the use of the present tense. We've already learned the structure of the present tense, including its formulas and the correct procedure for applying it in sentences. To enhance our understanding, let's look at the following example to illustrate this concept.

"Every Breath You Take" by The Police

Every breath you take
And every move you make
Every bond you break
Every step you take
I'll be watching you
The simple present tense here describes ongoing actions and habitual behaviors. It suggests a constant observation and a sense of timelessness in the feelings expressed.
 
For example, "I walk alone, I see the stars, I feel alive."
Let's analyze the text together! In the first lyric, when we say "I walk", should it be "I walks" instead? The rule is that when the subject is "I", the verb should be in its base form, like "walk". Since the subject in the lyric is "I", we don't need to change "walk" to "walks". Now, let's analyze the next part.
I see:
Subject: I (pronoun)
Verb: see (base form of the verb)
I feel:
Subject: I (pronoun)
Verb: feel (base form of the verb)
 
"Having covered Adverbs of Frequency, the formula, and the meaning of the simple present tense, it's time to test your understanding by attempting the questions below. If you find the concept challenging, consider revisiting the lesson to strengthen your grasp. Good luck!"
 
 
 
1.     Some students ____________ much homework.

a.     give
b.     gives
c.     are give
d.     is give
 
2.     Lena  and Rubina __________ good friends.
 
a.      be
b.      is
c.      are
d.     does
 
3.     _______ your parents let you go to bed late?

a.     Are
b.     Does
c.     Do
d.     Is
 
4.     How many books __________ they read in a week?

a.      are
b.     were
c.      did
d.     do
 
5.     She is good at football but he _____ want to play now.

a.      isn't
b.     wasn't
c.      doesn't
d.     don't