The time of an action or the state of being is expressed by different forms of the verb. These forms are called the tenses of the verb. There are three main forms of a verb: the present, the past, or the future.
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The Present Tense
A verb which is in present tense indicates what the subject of the sentence is doing right now.
Example: The teacher sees the students.
The verb sees tells that the teacher is seeing the students now.
To show the present tense, an -s or -es is added to most verbs if the subject is singular.
If the subject is plural, or I or You, the -s, or -es is not added.
Example: The bird hatches in the nest.
The stream flows down the hill.
The boys rush for their breakfast.
We talk a lot.
Rules for forming the Present Tense with Singular Subjects
- Most verbs: add –s
Get – gets
Play – plays
Eat – eats
- Verbs ending in s, ch, sh, x, and z: add-es
Pass – passes
Mix – mixes
Punch-punches
Buzz – buzzes
Push – pushes
- Verbs ending with a consonant and y: change the y to i and add -es
Try – tries
Empty – empties
Exercise 3
Write the correct present form of each verb in the brackets in the following sentences.
- She carefully ________________ the map (study)
- A fish _______________ in the water near me. (splash)
- She _______________ her hands. (wash)
- He ______________ to the classroom. (hurry)
- Bryan and I ____________ the assignment. (discuss)
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