How long ... together when their first child was born? (2) had they been
After I paid, I ... that I ... to buy cheese. (2) remembered / had forgotten
People ... eat so many carbohydrates before. (1) didn't use to
By the time the concert ... , the fans ... impatiently for almost two hours. (2) began / had been queueing
Sally ... for her mid-term all day yesterday. (2) was revising
Answer key - Past time - Exercise 3
What were you doing at 5 o'clock?
Carlos didn't come to the cinema because he was working.
I took the bus to work today because my car had broken down.
How long had Nick and Susan known each other when they moved together?
It was getting colder and colder.
While the professor was giving a lecture, some students were talking to one another.
By Tuesday, we had painted every room.
What did you want to be when you were younger?
I fell off my bike when a cat ran in front of me.
When John got his first pay rise, he had been working for the company for 10 years.
Answer key - Past time - Exercise 4
I came to London three weeks ago.
When did you last take an exam?
By the time she got to the theatre, the play had begun.
Paul used to live in Brazil when he was young.
Did you meet anybody interesting at the reception?
When Filip rang me, I had already left the office.
While he was speaking, somebody knocked on the door.
We cleaned up after everybody (had) left.
The man had been driving the wrong way for several miles when the police stopped him.
What time did you use to go to bed when you were a kid?
Present time
Guiding questions: present time
Present simple
Present continuous
Present perfect
Present perfect continuous
Revision questions: present time
Exercises: present time
Guiding questions: present time
What adverbs of frequency do you know?
What is a general truth?
Which two times does the present perfect tense connect?
What is the difference between the present perfect and the present perfect continuous tenses?
When do we use for with the present perfect tense and when do we use since?
Present simple
Form: present simple
Present simple for present habits and states
Present simple for general truths
Present simple in instructions
Present simple in commentaries
The auxiliaries DO and DOES for emphasis
Present simple with SINCE WHEN
Form: present simple
VERB/VERB-S
Affirmative
Subject
Verb (present tense)
I
work.
You
We
You
They
He/She/It
works.
The present simple form of the verb is identical to the base form in all persons except the third person singular. The third person singular is formed by adding -s to the base form. Note the changes in spelling:
work
»
work
s
live
»
live
s
stay
»
stay
s
try
»
tr
ies
(a final -
y
changes to -
ie
- after a consonant)
wash
»
wash
es
; kiss
»
kiss
es
; watch
»
watch
es
; box
»
box
es
(we add -
es
after -
sh
, -
s
, -
ch
and -
x
)
go
»
go
es
(we add -
es
)
do
»
do
es
(we add -
es
)
have
»
has
Negative
In the negative, we use the auxiliary do + not followed by the bare infinitive in all persons except the third person singular. In the third person singular we use does + not:
Subject
Auxiliary
not
Verb (bare infinitive)
I
do
not
work.
You
We
You
They
He/She/It
does
The contracted forms don't and doesn't are often used instead of do not and does not in spoken and in informal written language.
Interrogative
In the interrogative, we use the auxiliary do followed by the subject and the bare infinitive in all persons except the third person singular. In the third person singular, we use does:
(Question word)
Auxiliary
Subject
Verb (bare infinitive)
(How)
do
I
work?
you
we
you
they
does
he/she/it
The verb BE in the present simple
The verb be has irregular present tense forms. In the present simple, the auxiliaries do and does are not used in the negative and interrogative if the main verb is be:
Affirmative
Negative
Interrogative
I
am
at home.
I
am not
at home.
Am