6
and: now” of the utterance.
4
Most grammatical tense systems allow the speaker to describe situations as prior to, concurrent with, or following the act of speaking.
5
In other words, deictic refers to an interval or period of time which contains the moment of utterance. It can be expressed by some words: yesterday, now,
tomorrow. There are many kinds of tenses; one of them is simple tense. The
simple present tense says that something was true in the past, is true in the present, will be true in the future. It is used for general statement of fact. Meanwhile the
simple present tense is sometimes used to describe an that is actually in progress at the moment of speaking. Beside that
,
the simple present tense can describe habits, routines, or events than regularly.
6
Similarly as proposed by Huddleston that “the central use of present tense form is to indicate present time.
For example, the door opens inwards describes a state affairs that obtains now,
at the moment of speaking.
7
Based on the preceding definitions of simple present tense, the writer concludes that simple present usually doesn’t refer to a particular time. Use the
simple present for facts and general statements that include the present and true at anytime. In addition the simple present is uses to indicate a habitual action, event
or condition.
According Thompson and Martinet, that in the affirmative, the simple present tense has the same form as the infinitive adds an s for third singular.
8
Also
for the first and the second singular person and for t plural is without s. on the
4
Bernard Comrie, , Cambridge: Cambridge University press, 1976, p. 2
5
John I. Saeed, , Blackwell Publishing, 2003, p. 125
6
Patricia K. Warner, , New York: The McGraw
-
Hill Companies, Inc, 2002, p. 3
7
Redney Huddleston and Geoffney K. Pullum,
,
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005, p. 31
8
A. J. Thomson and A. V. Martinet,
, Oxford: Oxford
University Press, 1986, p. 159
1. Pattern of the Simple Present Tense
a. Affirmative Statement
Aspect: An Introduction to the study of verbal aspect and related problem
Semantics: 2
nd
edition
Interaction 2 Grammar 4
th
Edition A Students Introduction to English
Grammar A Practical English Grammar
7
other source stated that for the 3
rd
person singular he, she, it, we add s to the main verb or es to the auxiliary.
Here is the pattern of affirmative sentence in simple present tense:
For example: -
- -
- -
-
In the present form “to be” has three forms: is, am, and are. These form used as a substitute for a verb in sentences where there is no verb. This is
because in English, unlike in Indonesia o
r
Arabic, a sentence can only be made with a verb. The complement of such a sentence is usually a noun, am
adjective or an adverb of place or time.
9
For example: . Noun
. Adjective . Adverb of place
Negative statement in the simple
present is formed by adding do not or
does not before the simple form of the verb. And here the pattern of negative sentence in simple present:
9
Drs. Nasrun Mahmud, M. Pd, ,
Jakarta:
PBB UIN, 2003, p. 74
S = V1 S ES + ….
S + do not does not + V1 + …. b. Negative Statement
I work in the office everyday. You work in the office everyday
We work in the office everyday They work in the office everyday
He works in the office everyday She works in the office e
veryday
He is a farmer She is diligent
They are in the classroom
English for Muslim University Students 3
rd
edition
8 For example:
- -
- -
- -
The negative sentence in “to be” is formed by adding ‘not’ after ‘to be’. For example:
Especially in speaking, is not and are not are contracted to isn’t and aren’t.
The interrogative form is also using auxiliary do and The auxiliary is placed before the subject; here is the pattern of interrogative
sentence in simple present tense
For example: -
- -
-
The interrogative sentence in ‘to be’ is formed by placing ‘to be’ before the subject of the sentence.
For example:
Do does + S + V1 + …. ? c. Interrogative Statement
I do not work in the office everyday You do not work in the office everyday
We do not work in the office everyday They do not work in the office everyday
He does not work in the office everyday She does not work in the office everyday
He is a student. He is not a student.
They are at home. They are not at home.
Do you eat breakfast every morning? Do they eat breakfast every morning?
Does she eat breakfast every morning? Does he eat breakfast every morning?
He is a student. Is he a student?
They are at home. Are they at home?
9
Short answer to questions is made with the following pattern:
-
Yes + Subject + pronoun + to be for positive answer
-
No + Subject + pronoun + to be not for negative answer
For example:
The form negative “do not does not” is contracted in the negative interrogative into don’tdoesn’t and here is the pattern of interrogative
sentence in simple present tense:
For example: -
- -
-
Negative questions are used to indicate the speaker’s i.e., what shehe believes is or is not true or attitude e.g., shock, annoyance,
anger.
1 0
These are the examples of the
-
s form correctly:
a. For most verbs, add -
to the simple
form. You
coffee He
tea I
book
He
newspaper
They
football
Aldo football
We
in the kitchen
the cat a fish
b.
Add
-
to verbs that end in , and
unless the is
pronounced with the sound of
.
10
Betty Scrampfer Azar,
, Jakrta:
Binarupa Aksara and Prentice Hall, Inc. 1993, p. A. 14
Don’t doesn’t + S + V1 + ….? d. Negative Interrogative Statement
Is he a student? Yes, he is
No, he isn’t
Don’t you stay in the apartment? Don’t they stay in the apartment?
Doesn’t she stay in the apartment? Doesn’t he stay in the apartment?
s drink
drinks read
reads play
plays cook
eats es
o, s, z, sh, x ch
ch k
Understanding and using ENGLISH GRAMMAR
10 I
to work early
She
to work late
You
a mouse
She
a mouse
I
the news
He
the opera
c.
Omit a final
–
and add
–
unless the letter comes before
the . I
to work He
home
You my car
He
my car
I the food
She the furniture
d.
For the verb have, use the irregular from has and put on’t or doesn’t for negative statements.
Affirmative : I have English class today
She has a good racket
Negative : I don’t have English class today
She doesn’t ha
ve a good rackets
Interrogative : Do you have English class today?
Does she have good racket? Short answer
: Yes, I doNo, I don’t Yes, she doesNo, she doesn’t
Long answer
: Yes, I have English class today
Yes, she has a good racket
: No, I don’t have English class today No, she doesn’t have a good racket
e. Adverb of frequency.
Frequency adverbs modify verbs or adjective.
1 1
They describe how regularly or what percentage of time happens. The following adverbs like
always, usually, often, sometimes, seldom, and never are often used with the simple present tense to indicate frequency. Here are the meanings of
some frequency adverbs in approximate percentage of time: 100 : always
11
Elaine Kirn, Darcy Jack and Korey O’ Sullivian, ,
Ney York: McGraw
-H
ill, Inc. 1990, p. 17
-
18.
go goes
catch catches
watch watches
y ies
a, e, I, o, or u y
hurry hurries
carry carries
buy buys
Interaction I Grammar 4
th
Edition
11
90 : usuallygenerally
75
: often
50
: sometimes
10 : seldomrarely
: never
For example:
Affirmative
: Students are
busy.
She gets sick.
They are
together.
Negative : They don’t
study. We don’t
want to go there again I’m not
tried.
Frequency adverb generally appears AFTER the verb “to be” but BEFORE the all other verbs.
In addition:
If there is an auxiliary verb can, must, should, will, have, …. , the
frequency adverb comes after it
If there are two auxiliary verbs would have, should have, … , the
frequency adverb comes after the first.
f. Longer time expressions that describe repeated action come at the
beginning or the end of the sentence for emphasis. The buses run every
. , I don’t go to the office on Saturday
The simple present tense performs the following function:
1
. Express general truths
Coffee
from Brazil.
Costa Ricans Spanish.
2
.
Express
habitual actions, often with such adverbial expression as frequency; usually, everyday, and so on. It is also the usual present tense
always sometimes
rarely usually
ever oft
en
hour As a rule
comes speak
2. The Function of the Simple Present Tense
