Present Simple and Present Continuous Explained

This page teaches you what the present simple and present continuous are, and how/when to use them.

I eat food.

I am eating food.

What is the difference between the two sentences shown above?

I eat food. is in the present simple. (tegenwoordige tijd)

I am eating food. is in the present continuous. (onvoltooid tegenwoordige tijd)


Present Simple

When do we use the present simple?

We use the present simple when we are talking about:

- facts or things that are generally true.

Apples grow on trees. This is a fact.

- habits or repeated actions (routines).

She rides her bike to school every day. This is a routine.

He brushes his teeth after breakfast. This is a habit (and routine).

 

How do we apply the present simple?

When the subject (onderwerp) of the sentence is I/You/ /They/We it is subject + verb (onderwerp+werkwoord).

For example, I ride my bike to school every day.

 

When the subject (onderwerp) of the sentence is He/She/It, you add an -s to the verb (onderwerp werkwoord + -s).

For example, She rides her bike to school every day.

Table 1: Present Simple

 

Eat

Drink

Sleep

I

Eat

Drink

Sleep

You

Eat

Drink

Sleep

He/She/It

Eats

Drinks

Sleeps

They/We

Eat

Drink

Sleep

 

Words you can often find in sentences in the present simple:

always, often, generally, normally, usually, sometimes, never...

every day, every week, every year...

once a day, twice a week, three times a month...

in the morning, in the afternoon, in the evening, at night

on Mondays, on Fridays…


Present Continuous

When do we use the present continuous?

We use the present continuous when we are talking about:

- An action happening right now at the moment of speaking.

You are staring at a screen. This is happening right now.

- Something that is happening AROUND the time of speaking but not necessarily at that exact moment.

I am reading a great book. This doesn't have to mean that I'm reading the book right now, I have started reading the book but I haven't finished it yet. It talks about this moment in my life.

Jack is learning Italian. This doesn’t necessarily mean he is learning the language right now at a desk with all of his language books. It talks about this moment in his life.

 

How do we apply the present continuous?

When we want to use the present continuous we use to be + verb + -ing.​

The table below shows you how to use To be when using the present continuous.

The form of ''to be'' always comes after the subject, followed by the verb + -ing.

Table 2: To be

Subject

To be (form)

I

Am

You

Are

He/She/It

Is

They/We

Are

 

Table 3: Present Continuous

Subject

To be (form)

Verb + -ing: Read

Verb + -ing: Talk

I

Am

Reading

Talking

You

Are

Reading

Talking

He/She/It

Is

Reading

Talking

They/We

Are

Reading

Talking

Examples from the table above:

I am reading.

You are talking.

She is reading.

We are talking.


Back to where we started.

You should be able to explain why ''I eat food'' is in the present simple and why ''I am eating food'' is in the present continuous.

''I eat food'' is in the present simple because it is a fact, humans eat to survive.

''I am eating food'' is in the present continuous because I am doing it right now, at this moment, as we speak.

 

(Anderson, V., 2015, pp. 11, 100).

(Swan, M., 2017, pp. 30-34).