What is the difference between present simple and present continuous

Difference Between Present Simple and Present Continuous

September 6, 2012 Posted by Admin

Present Simple vs Present Continuous

Tense is a category of grammar that marks a situation in a timeline such as past, present, or future. It is the tense in grammar that tells us when the event or situation took place in time. The form of a verb gives a clue to the tense of an event. In tenses, it is the present tense, especially the present simple and present continuous that confuse the students of English language very much. This article attempts to differentiate between present simple and present continuous tenses, to enable them to grasp the nuances of English grammar, especially the tenses.

Present Simple

Present simple, also called simple present, is a tense that is reflected by events that take place regularly. For example, sun rises every morning or the gentleman goes for a walk everyday indicate simple present tense.

I take a shower every morning.

This is a sentence with the verb indicating simple present tense.

Preset simple tense is also reflected by general events such as cows eat grass and birds fly in the sky.

Present Continuous

Present continuous is the present tense that indicates that the event is continuing in the present. So, if there is an action continuing right now but will stop in the future, it is described using present continuous tense. Interestingly, present continuous is also used to describe future events for which there is a definite plan. Take a look at the following example.

The next Olympics will be taking place in Rio de Janeiro.

If you have definite plans to throw a party, you say that you will be having a party at your place the next week. In this sentence too, present continuous is used to indicate a future event.

What is the difference between Present Simple and Present Continuous?

• Present simple is a grammatical tense that indicates events that take place regularly such as Sun rises and I play.

• Present continuous is a tense that is indicated by verb form made by adding ing as a suffix.

• Routines that do not change or habits that are fixed necessitate use of simple present.

• For events that are taking place in the present, but will stop in the future, present continuous is used.

• For events that will take place in the future but are certain, present continuous is to be used too.

• If an action is repeated sometimes, use simple present. However, use present continuous if it is continuing at present but will stop later.

• If the time is now, use present continuous.

Differences between present simple and present continuous

English verbs can sometimes be a little irritating when it comes to figuring out if you have to use one tense or another. Today we are going to look at the differences between the uses of the present simple and the present continuous in English.

When do we use the the present simple?

This is the tense we use when we are talking about everyday things and habitual actions in general in the present.

What about the present continuous?

In English, we do not tend to use the present continuous to describe general things in English but more to describe things that we are doing in a specific moment as the action is an ongoing action.

It is important to pay attention to the fact that the action is in progress in these examples and not something that happens on a regular basis.

Does the present continuous have any other uses?

The present continuous is also used to express a future action that will occur within the near future.

Examples:

In some instances, people in the United Kingdom actually use the present continuous for the distant future instead of “will”. It is important to remember that “will” remains the official future simple auxiliary verb.

What’s the key?

It is important to remember the clear differences of these tenses:

Present simple – To speak in general in English about general present tense actions

Present continuous – To speak about an ongoing continuous action or close future action

If you adhere to these rules, everything will fall into place. For more information on this you can sign up for free to the ABA course and check out unit 38

Difference between Present Simple and Present Continuous

Today we are going to talk about the difference between Present Simple and Present Continuous. So, when do we use these tenses? Let’s go through some examples.

If reading is not your thing, scroll down and watch a video lesson.

Table of Contents

Present Simple – Examples

I play tennis every day. She plays tennis every day.
I don’t play golf. He doesn’t play golf.
Do you drive to work? Does he drive to work?

Present Continuous – Examples

I am playing tennis at the moment. She is playing tennis at the moment.
I’m not playing golf. He’s not playing golf.
Are you driving to work tomorrow? Is he driving to work tomorrow?

Difference between Present Simple and Present Continuous

We use the Present Simple:

To talk about states or things that are always true.

To talk about habits and routines.

To talk about timetables and schedules.

Intermediate to Advanced English Marathon

INSANITY: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

Difference between Present Simple and Present Continuous

We use the Present Continuous:

To talk about things happening at this time or around this time. These are temporary situations.

To talk about plans and arrangements. This will refer to future events.

To describe changes.

Non-continuous Verbs in English

Some verbs that express state not action are not used in the continuous form. These include:

Verbs of the senses:

Verbs of perception:

List of Non-continuous Verbs in English

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Verbs which express likes and dislikes:

Some verbs have more than one meaning and are not usually used in the continuous form with one of those meanings.

to have = to possess
to think = to have an opinion
to see = to understand

Find out what typical signal words are used with Present Continuous

I hope this short post has helped you better understand English Grammar Rules and the difference between Present Simple and Present Continuous.

I would also recommend to watch this short video where I explain the difference between Present Simple and Present Continuous and provide examples:

Difference Between Present Simple and Present Continuous

Main Difference – Present Simple vs. Present Continuous

Present tense is the tense that is used to talk about the present and the future. There are four present tense forms in the English Language. They are Present Simple and Present Continuous, Present Perfect and Present Perfect Continuous. The main difference between Present Simple and Present Continuous is that Present Simple is used to describe daily routine, repeated actions, and facts while Present Continuous is used to discuss actions, events taking place as we speak. In this article, we are going to focus on the difference between Present Simple and Present Continuous based on their use and formation.

Present Simple – Meaning and Usage

The Present simple is used when we are talking about general actions or else actions that take place repeatedly. The instances in which the Present Simple is used can be categorized under the following themes.

Habits, Daily Routine or Repeated Actions

I wake up every day at 6.30 am.

He plays cricket with his friends every weekend.

He works at St. Mary’s hospital.

Facts or Generalization

The sun rises from the east.

Colombo is a city in Sri Lanka.

Scheduled events in the future

He leaves for London this evening.

This program starts at 10.00 pm.

The train leaves at 6.55 am.

Non-Continuous Verbs

I have two daughters.

The sky is blue.

Formation

The only change that can be noticed in the simple present formation is the inflection in singular third person. You have to add ‘s’ or ‘es’ to pronouns he, she and it. Given below is the conjugation of the verb ‘to like’.

Present Continuous – Meaning and Usage

The Present Continuous tense is also known as present progressive tense. Present continuous is used to refer to events and actions that are happening now.

I’m writing a grammar article.

She is chatting with her friends.

It is also used to refer to actions and events that take a long time or the actions in progress.

He is trying to learn cooking.

She is studying to become a doctor.

Are you looking for a job?

Present continuous tense denotes Present plans for the future as well.

I’m going to a party tonight.

He is meeting his friends this evening.

I’m taking my son to Disneyland for his birthday.

Remember that some verbs cannot be used in the continuous tense. Verbs that indicate state (ex: be, suit, mean, fit), possession (ex: belong, have), senses (ex: feel, hear, sense, taste, touch), feelings (ex: hate, hope, like, regret, want) cannot be written in the Present continuous tense.

The baby is sleeping

Formation

Present continuous tense is formed by adding verb+ ing to the ‘be’ verb. For example, look at the conjugation of ‘to talk’ given below.

Subject + BE+ verb+ing

You are talking

He/She/It is talking

They are talking

Difference Between Present Simple and Present Continuous

Present Simple is used to discuss daily routine and repeated actions.

Present Continuous is used to discuss actions, events taking place as we speak (now).

Formation

Present Simple tense is easier to form as most of the nouns take the infinitive as the verb.

Present Continuous is more complex as it involves auxiliary verb and infinitive + ing.

Verbs

All the verbs can be used in Present Simple Tense.

Certain verbs cannot be used in Present Continuous tense.

How to distinguish the present simple from the present continuous

Present simple and present continuous are the real tenses of the English language. It should be said that, unlike Russian, English has 3 times to mean doing something in the present.

Namely: present simple and present continuous, and also present perfect.

In order to make it easier to use these grammatical forms in speech, you need to know in what cases you should use this or that tense.

Time difference

The most commonly used are present simple and present continuous. First of all, you need to understand the difference between them. The present simple tense is similar to the usual present, which is used in Russian. And a long time means the length of what is happening at the present moment in time.

For example, in order to say in English what a person is doing all the time, day in and day out, you should use the simple time. Namely, to say, “I go to the office every day,” simple is used.

Or inform that every Saturday a person visits the pool, simple time is also used. But continuous will be used when it is necessary to inform the interlocutor of what is being done right now.

For example, in order to say that at a particular moment someone is going somewhere or performs another action related to what is happening right now, you should use continuous.

Present Simple Sentence Rules

Present simple and present continuous are grammatically different from each other. To build a sentence in the present simple, it is necessary to add a semantic verb and secondary members of the sentence to the subject.

Below are examples of statements in simple tense.

The English verb tenses are a real talk of the town, since a table for 16 grammatical forms will scare anyone, especially impressionable beginners. And usually the first difficulties arise when students learn in addition to Present Simple Present Continuous.

This is where the confusion begins, because both are common present tense for a Russian speaker. But in fact, the aspects are very clearly delineated, which we will talk about in detail in today’s article.

Join, read and absorb information: then you will quickly become friends with these seemingly «rebellious» English times. Well, let’s start!

What is Present Simple and Present Continuous

Agree, before looking for the difference between Present Simple and Present Continuous, you first need to understand what is actually being compared. Therefore, let’s start the lesson with a small explanation of the very essence of the aspects. So, we understand what Present Continuous is, and what Present Simple is.

The very word «present» in English means the present. For us Russians, the present is what is being done now and nothing else. For the English, the «present» is woven from several different layers, so the term is always added to the word expressing its exact meaning.

For example, Present Simple is translated as “simple present”, which implies regular activities that constantly accompany our life. What can be attributed to this category of actions? Everyday life, skills, hobbies, well-being, work, etc.

Thus, Present Simple is everything that is familiar, everyday and constant.

But the present KONTINIUS is translated by the mysterious for a Russian-speaking phrase «the present continued», it is also «the present lasting».

But in fact, behind such a tricky name, nothing supernatural is hidden: it expresses Present Continuous a certain activity, carried out at a particular moment in time.

For example, you are reading now, and therefore you can safely say: I am reading an article now. That is, the point is to talk about the process taking place right here and now. To consolidate, we will analyze a few more examples.

And so it turns out that Present Simple and Present Continuous are both present tense, but with a different and clearly defined shade. We hope you already understand it, and the grammar rules for Present Simple and Continuous will reliably consolidate this formed understanding.

Grammatical differences Present Simple vs Present Continuous

If you carefully looked at the above examples, then you will agree that it is simply impossible to confuse the Continuous Present with Simple outwardly.

These aspects have such different verb forms that there should not be any difficulties in distinguishing them from each other, even theoretically.

Nevertheless, let us consider once again the rules and examples on Present Continuous and Present Simple, it’s not in vain that repetition is the mother of learning. Moreover, when using these aspects, beginners often make mistakes in the grammatical structure of the phrase.

English Grammar for Simple Present Tense

To build an ordinary affirmative sentence in Present Simple, you just need to take the infinitive of an English verb and remove the to part from it.

And everything would be very easy, but there is one important point: with the subject in the 3rd person singular, the predicate attaches an additional ending –s (sometimes –es). This rule must be remembered, since using the initial form of the verb with such subjects is considered a gross mistake.

And if the statement is formed in Present Simple by one infinitive, then the auxiliary verb do is still used for questions and negations. In questions, a sentence begins with it, and in negations, it adds the particle of negation not and stands between the subject and the semantic verb.

This is how you can briefly describe the grammar of the present simple. And now, in order to competently compare Present Simple and Present Continuous, we will also delve into the rules for the formation of the latter.

Grammar of the Continued Present in English

Time utterances Present Continius always forms a verb link, which includes the auxiliary to be and the semantic verb with the –ing ending. It is this volumetric structure that helps to recognize at first glance in the Present Continuous sentence. Note that the ingovaya form is unchanged, but to be alternates forms depending on the person of the subject.

Due in part to the change to be and the use of ing verbs, Continius is considered more difficult than Present. However, in questions and negations, it is definitely easier, since it does not require the participation of an auxiliary do, than by the way, it differs from Present Simple Present Continuous. So, to create questioning context, move the to be form to the beginning of the sentence.

With negatives, it’s even easier: you just need to add the negative particle not to to be. The following statements will turn out.

That’s all. We made sure that the formation of Present Simple and Present Continuous is completely different, and it is really impossible to confuse these two aspects in appearance. Nevertheless, for correct use in speech, you should remember a few grammatical rules for presenting simple and continuius. The following small table will help us to fix them in memory.

However, even memorized grammar is not all. You also need to understand the situational differences between Present Simple and Present Continuous, and just now we will understand them in detail.

Use Situations of Present Continius and Present Simple

So, we have already understood how to distinguish Present Continuous from Simple in grammatical terms, now it is the turn of the rules for applying aspects in speech. Usually this information is presented in the form of a long table with typical use cases, but we suggest going the other way. We will bring out the general categories, and already using their example, we will analyze what to choose: Present Simple or Present Continuous.

Common action in the Present

When you need to talk about everyday activities that are regularly or periodically repeated, you should use the Present Simple aspect. For example, this category can include the daily routine, study, work, hobbies, hobbies, etc.

Thus, with the aspect of Present Simple, we express the constancy of activity. It is quite another matter when it comes to the action taking place at the moment. To tell about what is happening here and now, you should use Continius, because it reflects the process of action. By the way, it is precisely because of the incompleteness of the event that it is easiest to distinguish Present Simple from Present Continuous, since the latter is always relevant at the time of the conversation.

It turns out that it is possible to derive such a rule for Present Simple and Present Continuous: permanent actions require a predicate in Simple, and temporary actions in a continuus. For example, we must say I live in Sankt-Petersburg if we permanently reside in St. Petersburg. And it is also necessary to use the continius if we live somewhere temporarily: now I’m living in London.

State and static verbs

This point causes difficulties for most students, since here the logic is slightly at variance with the grammatical rule. The fact is that in the English language there is a whole list of state verbs, or so-called «static» verbs.

And it was created specifically to prohibit the use of these words in Continius. For example, you can say the phrase “I see an island” only in this form: I see an island.

Although the meaning of the action takes place at the moment of speech, we are forced to use Simple, because this is what the rules of grammar say.

But at the same time, there is a small note to this rule. Some verbs from the list of static verbs can be used in Present Indefinite and Present Continuous at the same time. But such use is allowed only in the case when the verb can have the meaning not only of a state, but also of an active action.

Thus, for this point, the choice of aspect depends on the polysemy of the verb and the specific speech situation.

Plans, schedules, schedules

In the context of plans for the near future, Present Simple and Present Continuous can also be used simultaneously, but again in different roles. If you are building a statement about a TV program, a transport schedule, a meeting schedule, etc., then you should undoubtedly use the Simple.

Present simple and present continuous: rules of use

Times in English is one of the hardest topics. There are 16 times in total, of which there are several present, several past and future. That is why it can be very difficult to use them correctly and not to be confused in your speech. In this article we will analyze the topic: «Present Continuous vs Present Simple». The two present tenses differ from each other, both in education and in use. Learning to distinguish between them is easy, you just need to remember a few rules.

What are 2 real tenses for?

What you need to know about Present Indefinite?

The auxiliary verb do / does is used to construct negative and interrogative sentences.

Present Simple is used to express the action of an ordinary, constant, characteristic of a person (or object), expressed by the subject, i.e. action that occurs in general, and not at the time of speech.

Simple present means:

Also, the present simple is used when transmitting the content of a film, any literary work, in sports commentary and instead of Present Continuous with static verbs (stative verbs).

Present Continuous: education, use cases

Formed using the auxiliary verb to be in n. time. (I am, he / she is, we / they are) and a semantic verb in the form of the present participle Present Participle (with the ending ‑ing).

Negative sentences are formed using the «not» particle, which is placed after the auxiliary verb.

When asked, an inversion occurs: the auxiliary verb becomes at the beginning of the sentence.

Present continuous tense is used to express indignation, annoyance, reproach in the form of irritation with the words always, constantly, always having a negative meaning.

Present Continuous denotes processes of increase, decrease (to get, to become, to rise, to increase, to decrease, to fall).

Present tense to express future actions

There are times when the present serves to express actions from the future.

It is usually used with the verbs of movement: go / leave / come.

It is also appropriate when the future action is obvious from the surrounding signs.

Oh, it’s so dark outsides. It is going to rain. “It’s so dark outside. It will rain!

Anchoring exercise

Use verbs in brackets in the form Present Continuous vs Present Simple.

are the real times of the English language. It should be said that, unlike Russian, English has 3 tenses to mean doing something in the present, namely: present simple and present continuous, and also present perfect. In order to make it easier to use these grammatical forms in speech, it is necessary know when to use this or that time.

How the present is formed for a long time

For a long time, it is used very often in English, as well as simple. It indicates the extent of the ongoing action at the moment. The length of time can be different, from a short period to a long one. The construction of a sentence of a temporary form present continuous follows the same rules as all sentences in English.

Namely, first comes the subject, followed by the auxiliary verb, then the semantic verb in a certain form and the secondary members of the sentence. The auxiliary verb for present continuous is the verb tobe in the present tense. A semantic verb with an ingo ending is added to it.

For clarity, below will be listed examples of constructing sentences in the present continuous.

If we analyze in more detail a long time, then it should be said that the length of time can be indicated not by a specific action at a given time, but by an action that lasts for several days.

It is understood that not specifically now, but for several days, the move is being carried out. Also using present continuous talks about a temporary situation that should end.

Difference between present simple and present continuous

To understand the difference between simple present и present continuousLet’s start by looking at the following suggestions.

Justin plays the piano but he is not playing the piano now.
Is he playing the piano? No, he isn’t. (present continuous)
Does he play the piano? Yes, he does. (present simple)

Present continuous

present continuous (I am doing) = what is happening now, at the moment, at the moment of speech.

present simple

present simple(I do) = some action as a whole, constant or periodic.

Pay attention

There are a number of verbs in English that are not used in the present continuous. They need to be remembered.

; want; know; understand; remember; prefer; need; mean; believe; forget.