Present simple exercises from basic to advanced, with detailed answers

The following article ETEST Study Abroad English will provide you with a variety of present simple exercises – one of the basic and important grammar topics in English that you need to understand clearly and practice regularly. The following exercises are distributed from basic to advanced and come with detailed answers. Let's start doing the exercises with ETEST Study Abroad English!

Present Simple Theory Summary

Present simple tense – Present Simple used to describe an action/event that happens regularly like a habit or to describe an obvious truth. 

Some grammar points of the present simple tense you need to master are as follows:

Present simple tense formula

Below is the present simple formula table you need to know:

See more articles: Summary of 12 tenses in English

How to use the present simple tense

The present simple tense is used in some cases:

• Describes an action/event that is repeated regularly.

For example: Annie always goes to this tailor for an Ao dai.

• Expresses an obvious fact or truth

For example: The sun rises in the East.

• Describes an action/event that has a plan or schedule such as a program, train time, flight schedule, competition schedule, etc.

For example: The train departs at 8 am from Da Nang city.

• Used in the IF clause of type 1 conditional sentences

For example: If he comes here tonight, I will take him to the theatre.

• Describe thoughts, states, emotions and sensations

For example: She is so excited about the trip!

Signs to recognize the present simple tense

Sign 1: The sentence contains adverbs of frequency.

• Always
• Usually
• Often/ Frequently/ Regularly
• Sometimes
• Seldom/ Rarely/ Hardly
• Never

For example: She sometimes goes to the dentist to get her teeth checked.

Sign 2: In the sentence, there are some phrases like:

• Every + period of time (every month,…)
• Once/ twice/ three times/ four times + period of time (once a week,..)
• In + morning (in the morning,…)

For example: Linh visits the pagoda twice a month.

Some notes on the pronunciation of the present simple tense

Some notes about the present simple tense you need to know before starting to work present simple exercises, specifically:

How to add s/es after verbs

• Add s to the end of most verbs ending in p, t, f, k: want-wants; keep-keeps…
• Add es to verbs ending in ch, sh, x, s: teach-teaches; mix-mixes; wash-washes…
• Drop y and add es after verbs ending in a consonant + y: lady-ladies;…
• Some irregular verbs: Go-goes; do-does; have-has.

How to pronounce final consonants

Note that the pronunciation of these final consonants must be based on the international phonetic transcription:

• /s/: When the word ends with the consonants /f/, /t/, /k/, /p/, /ð/.

For example: likes /laɪks/; cakes /keɪks/; cats /kæts/; cuffs /kʌfs/; coughs /kɒfs/; paths /pɑːθs/

• /iz/: When the word ends with the sounds /s/, /z/, /∫/, /t∫/, /ʒ/, /dʒ/ (usually ends with the letters ce, x, z, sh, ch, s, ge).

For example: misses /mɪsɪz/; places /pleɪsɪz/; washes /wɒʃɪz/

• /z/: When the word ends in a vowel and the remaining consonants

For example: cabs /kæbz/; beds /bedz/; needs /niːdz/; bags /bæɡz/

Basic and advanced present simple exercises with answers

Here are some forms present simple exercises from basic to advanced for you to refer to and practice daily.

Basic present simple exercises 

When you start learning you should try different forms. present simple exercises to understand the general tense and apply it to more difficult types of exercises later.

Here are some exercises from basic to advanced for you to practice.

Exercise 1: Fill in the blanks with the verbs in parentheses.

1. I usually____________________ (go) to school.

2. Timmy____________________ the picnic basket every weekend. (to pack)

3. Daniel____________________ (fly) to Paris once a year.

4. My problem is not the grammar. It's the spelling. I often_____ (to spell) the words incorrectly.

5. The sun____________________ (rise) in the east.

6. The sun____________________ (set) in the west.

7. I____________________ (love) going to school everyday.

8. In Monopoly, you____________________ (move) around the board, buying houses and hotels.

9. Regular exercise____________________ (help) you to stay healthy.

10. ____________________ you ____________________ (have) any sweaters in a larger size?

11. London____________________ (be) in England.

12. The summer____________________ (be) very hot and humid.

13. She ____________________ (drive) very well.

14. They____________________ (open) the store at 8:00.

15. Linda____________________ (be) a very pretty, sensible, and lovely girl.

16. I____________________ (have) several jobs.

17. Water____________________ (boil) at 100 degrees Celsius, and water____________________ (freeze) at 0 degrees.

18. My sister____________________ (be) proficient at English.

19. He____________________ (possess) a grandeur villa in Phu My Hung.

20. A triangle____________________ (have) 3 triangles.

21. My birthday____________________ (be) on May 10th.

22. Dogs____________________ (seem) to be human's best friends.

Exercise 2: Choose the correct answer

1. She ________ in Florida but prefers California.

A. lives

B. goes

C. arrives

2. When we ________ on vacation, we never fly.

A. are

B. go

C. went

3. I ________ four languages, but I love Italian above all.

A. talk

B. speak

C. talks

4. That dog always ________ with his head against the wall.

A. goes

B. bark

C. sleeps

5. We don't ________ which airport the plane goes from.

A. know

B. think

C. like

7. My girlfriend ________ her eyes when there's a horror movie on TV.

A. open

B. smoke

C. closes

8. Kathy always ________ about the boss. She hates her job!

A. says

B. tells

C. complains

9. She ________ to disco music, only tango.

A. no listen

B. doesn't like

C. doesn't dance

Exercise 3: Arrange the order into complete sentences

1. Every day/ get up/ Helen/ at half past seven

2. He/ eat fast food for lunch/ often

3. in the evening/ John/ usually/ meet his friends for coffee

4. once a week / Hannah/ watch a movie at the cinema

5.rarely/ go to the gym/ Vu Dang/ ,and/ he/ do exercises outdoors

6. have a driving lesson/ twice a week/ Gia Uyen

Advanced present simple exercises

Exercise 1: Choose the correct answer

1. Where _______ she ______________?

A. was / lived

B. does / lives

C. do / lives

D. is / lives

2. She __________ French.

A. don't study

B. doesn't study

C. isn't studying

D. doesn't study

3. My parents ________ work on Saturdays.

A. isn't

B. doesn't

C. don't

D. wasn't

4. What time _______ your father goes to work?

A. is

B. does

C. because

D. was

5. They never __________ Maths.

A. studies

B. studying

C. study

D. were studying

6. _______ you feel happy?

A. Have

B. Are

C. Does

D. Due to

7. Susana __________ TV after school.

A. watches

B. is watching

C. watch

D. watching

8. He __________do his homework every day.

A. doesn't

B. don't

C. isn't

D. is

9. When does he __________ his room?

A. tidying

B. tidies

C. tidy

D. does tidy

10. Emilia ____________ every evening.

A. wash up

B. wash ups

C. wash up

D. wash up

11. I ____________ to the gym every week.

A. am going

B. go

12. I'd hate to live in London because it____________ all the time.

A. rains

B. is raining

13. I___________ my cousin from Germany tomorrow. Do you want to come along?

A. meet

B. am meeting

14. I can't talk right now. I____________ really busy. I'll call you later.

A. am

B. am being

15. The service at the new restaurant is exceptional and it____________ reasonably inexpensive.

A. is being

B. is

Exercise 2: Fill in the blanks to complete the conversation below.

1. A: ____________ do you live in a house or a flat?

B: I live in a flat in London, near my college.

2. A: ____________ you live alone?

B: No, I don't. I share the flat with my brother.

3. A: ____________ he goes to the same college as you?

B: No, he's a bit older than me. He's got a job.

4. A: ____________ you work at the weekend?

B: Yes, I work in a cafe on Saturday and Sunday mornings.

5. A: ____________ you have a girlfriend at the moment?

B: I do! Her name's Adele.

6. A: ____________ she comes from London?

B: No. She's from Scotland but she came here to study.

Exercise 3: Choose the correct answer

1. ____________ any one object if I turn the heating down?

A. Doing

B. Did

C. Does

D. Due to

2. Sally____________ (never/ take) her dog for a walk. Her brother____________ (do/always) it.

A. never doesn't take/always does

B. never don't take/always do

C. never take/ does always

D. never takes/ always does

3. And at other times I'm glad I____________ know what the future holds.

A. doesn't

B. hadn't

C. didn't

D. don't

4. All the___________ a stage said Shakespeare, the meaning of life is like a play in the theater.

A. earth's

B. country's

C. land's

D. world's

5. She wonders why I never____________ abroad by plane.

A. will have travelled

B. has travelled

C. travel

D. have been travelling

6. I___________complete silence now while I try this experiment.

A. have wanted

B. want

C. did want

D. am wanting

7. She____________ trying to pass her driving test but fails every time.

A. had kept

B. is keeping

C. kept

D. keeps

8. ____________(have) the car keys? -No.

A. Do you have

B. Are you having

C. You do have

D. Have you

9. I suppose as we live in a very rural area, we are lucky that a train service actually____________here.

A. operates

B. works

C. functions

D. takes

10. What do you____________ to do when you leave school?

A. wants

B. wanted

C. want

D. wanting

Lesson 4: Rewrite the complete sentence

1. (he / drive to work every day)

->

2. (I / not / think you're right)

->

2. (we / have enough time)?

->

3. (I / eat cereal in the morning)

->

4. (they / write e-mails every day)?

->

5. (you / watch a lot of TV)

->

6. (he / not / read the newspaper)

->

7. (she / dance often)?

->

8. (where / I / come on Mondays)?

->

9. (what / you / do at the weekend)?

->

10. (you / not / drink much tea)

->

11. (how / he / travel to work)?

->

12. (they / not / like vegetables)

->

13. (she / catch a cold every winter)

->

14. (I / go out often)?

->

15. (you / speak English)?

->

16. (we / take the bus often)

->

17. (she / not / walk to school)

->

18. (what / you / buy in the supermarket)?

->

19. (how / he / carry such a heavy bag)?

->

Lesson 5: Put the verbs in parentheses into the blanks.

1. ____________(she/play) tennis every week?

2. They____________(go) to the cinema once a year.

3. ____________(be)she a singer?

4. ____________(Does)you find the weather in Georgetown cold?

5. Gia Uyen___________(ride) bicycle to ETEST District 7.

6. Vietnam____________(be) a tropical country.

7. USA's national anthem____________(be) “The Star-Spangled Banner”.

Lesson 6: Put the appropriate verb in the blank to form a complete paragraph.

It's been said that to know a language completely you need to be able to understand its humor. Integrating jokes in the English classroom when reviewing the present simple with advanced learners 1. ____________(beige) fun and it will really test their comprehension. Start the lesson by asking if the students 2. ____________(knows) any jokes in English. If they do, encourage them to share them with the class. Scour the internet and find some age and content appropriate jokes (one-liners 3.____________(beige) great for this) that uses the present simple tense. Split the group of collected jokes in half. Project one or two of the first half of the jokes on the board and explain that the segments 4.____________(beige) part of an English joke. Ask your learners to try and guess the second part of the joke or encourage them to come with their own endings. On a worksheet have all of your split jokes in two jumbled up columns and ask the students to match the two halves to form the complete joke. Model retelling one of the completed jokes using your voice to exaggerate the necessary parts and take pauses in the right places. Work your way around the class having the students do the same for the remainder of the jokes. The most challenging part of this 5.____________ the last exercise where learners are encouraged to write their own one-liner jokes based on the structure of the jokes they can see on their worksheet using the present simple tense. Working with jokes 6.____________ not only fun, it 7.____________(help) to practice and review one of the uses of everyday English and of course it gives your advanced learners a review of the present simple tense without them even realizing it. The use of jokes 8.____________ is also beneficial for advanced learners as it can be very relevant to life as jokes and storytelling 9.____________(play) a huge role in everyday life.

Present simple exercise answers

Below are the answers to the above simple present tense exercises for your reference. The answers will include basic and advanced exercises.

Basic present simple exercises answers

Exercise 1:

1. go 
2. packs 
3. flies 
4. spell 
5. rise
6. sets 
7. love 
8. move 
9. help 
10. Do/ have
11. is 
12. is 
13. drives 
14. opens 
15. is
16. have 
17. boils/ freezes 
18. is 
19. possesses 
20. has
21. is 
22. seem

Exercise 2:

1. A 2. B 3. B 4. C 5. A 6.C 7. C 8. C

Exercise 3:

1. Helen gets up at half past seven everyday.
2. He often eats fast food for lunch.
3. John usually meets his friends for coffee in the evening.
4. Hannah watches a film at the cinema once a week.
5. Vu Dang rarely goes to the gym, and he does exercises outdoors.
6. Gia Uyen has a driving lesson twice a week.

Advanced Present Simple Exercise Answers

Exercise 1:

1. B
2. D
3. C
4. B
5. C
6. D
7. A
8. A
9. C 
10. A
11. B
12. A
13. A
14. B
15. B

Exercise 2:

1. Because 
2. Because 
3. Does  
4. Because 
5. Because 
6. Does

Exercise 3:

1. C
2. D 
3. D 
4. B 
5. C 
6. B 
7. D 
8. A 
9. A 
10. C

Exercise 4:

1. He drives to work every day.
2. I do not think you're right/ I don't think you're right.
3. Do we have enough time?
4. I eat cereal in the morning.
5. Do they write e-mails every day?
6. You watch a lot of TV.
7. He doesn't read the newspaper/ He doesn't read the newspaper.
8. Does she dance often?
9. Where do I come on Mondays?
10. What do you do at the weekend?
11. You do not drink much tea.
12. How does he travel to work?
13. They do not like vegetables/They don't like vegetables.
14. She catches a cold every winter.
15. Do I go out often?
16. Do you speak English?
17. We take the bus often.
18. She doesn't walk to school/ She doesn't walk to school.
19. What do you buy in the supermarket?
20. How does he carry such a heavy bag?

Exercise 5:

1. Does she  
2. go 
3. Is 
4. Because 
5. rides  
6. is  
7. is

Exercise 6:

1. is 
2. know 
3. are 
4. are  
5. is 
6. is 
7. help 
8. is  
9. plays