The simple present tense is one of the most commonly used in English grammar tenses. The simple present tense is used to express an action that is
1) Repeated, routines and events happen regularly
2) In habits
3) True facts or general truths
4) Scheduled events or to express fixed arrangements
5) In jokes, anecdotes and film or book summaries
6) In commentaries on events taking place at the moment
7) In demonstrations and instructions
8) In synopses
9) In newspaper headlines
10) In instructions or directions
11) to express future time
Now, let’s look at some example of the above usages for the simple present tense
1. For repeated, routines and regular actions
- We take the train to the office every morning.
- It rains every afternoon in the hot season.
- Steven sleeps seven hours every night.
2. For habits
- He drinks coffee at breakfast
- Alicebrushes her teeth twice a day
- She only eats fish
3. For truth facts or general truth
- The Queen of England lives inBuckinghamPalace.
- A cat has four legs.
- They come fromIndia.
4. For scheduled events or to express fixed arrangements
- The train leaves tonight at8 PM.
- The party starts at9 o’clock.
- The class begin tomorrow
5. In jokes, anecdotes and film or book summaries
- Good resolutions are like beautiful girls: they are easy to make but hard to keep.
- In his new film Steve McQueen plays the part of a brave cowboy
6. In commentaries on events taking place at the moment
- Madonna passes to Albert, Albert makes a quick pass to Steve.
7. In demonstrations and instructions
- First, boil some water. Then warm the teapot. Then add two teaspoons of tea. Once water is boiled, pour in the boiling water to the teapot
8. In synopses such as review of books or films
- Steve’s novel is an historical romance set in Londonin the 18 century. The action takes place over a period of 25 years
9. In newspaper headlines
- Suu Kyi launches bid forMyanmar parliament
10. In instructions or directions
- Walk straight to end of the street and then turn right.
11. In expressing future time
- He will come to my house in the coming New Year
I hope the above will help you understand the usage of the simple present tense. This tense is one of the most commonly used tenses in English. Learn them by heart if you want to master the English grammar tenses.