GRAMMAR

Present Simple
Present Continuous

Present Simple
I work
work?
You work
We work
They work

dont work

do you

He/ she / it works

doesnt work
Does He/she /it work?
Yes he does/no he
doesnt
Do you work for this company?

Present Continuous
I am working - Im not working.
You are working You arent working
He/she/it is working - He/she/it isnt
working
We are working - You arent working
They are working they arent working
(Where/when/why)are you/we/they
working?
What languages is she/he/it studying?

Grammar
present simple/continuous
Are the sentences correct? Yes or No?
Clearly the price of petrol increases
at the moment.
We meet our new employees in 20
minutes.
First we are doing the testing and
then we are sending the products to
the packaging area.

Present simple or
Continuous?
Permanent
situations

Actions happening
now

To talk about
certain/definite
future plans

Future
programmes,
schedules and
timetables

To give intructions

Temporary present
actions

To criticise
irritating/annoying
actions

Routines, habits
General truths and

Present simple / Continuous

Permanent
situations

Actions happening
now

To talk about
certain/definite
future plans

Future
programmes,
schedules and
timetables

To give intructions

Temporary present
actions

To criticise
irritating/annoying
actions

Routines, habits
General truths and

Present simple / Continuous

Permanent situations:
I live in Siena
To give intructions:
First you turn left and then you go
straignt on
Routines, habits:
I always check my emails first and
then I start studying

Actions happening now:

I am having an english lesson
To talk about certain/definite future
plans.
She is arriving at 4pm and then will be
getting the 5 Oclock train.

To criticise irritating/annoying actions.

Future programmes, schedules and She is always using her phone during the
timetables
lessons

The meeting starts at 9am and ends at Temporary present actions.

6pm tomorrow. The train arrives at
5 oclock
Where are you staying? We are staying with
our friends in central London.
General truths and facts:
Water boils at 100 degrees.

Present continuous and

always/forever/continually/constantly
Eg: You are forever making the same
mistakes.
Eg: She's always arriving late for the
meeting
This is used to talk about something
irritating or annoying or to
criticise.

Adjectives used with the Present Simple

Always
Often
Sometimes/ Occasionally
Usually
Hardly ever
Rarely/seldom
= adjectives of frequency:
How often do you go out? I usually go
out twice a week.

Adjectives of frequency

Entrepreneurs take risks often in

business
Or
Entrepreneurs often take risks in
business
This company is always successful
Or

Position of Adverbs
The adverbs go before main verbs
Eg:Entrepreneurs often take risks in
business
BUT
After the verb to be
Eg:This company is always
successful

Which sentence is correct?

The company twice a week orders new
products.
The company orders twice a week new
products.
The company orders new products
twice a week
The phrases: Once a week, twice a
year, three times a month etc...
Go at the end of the sentence.

State verbs
These verbs are not usually used in
the continuous form. They talk about
a condition or a situation which
continues over a period of time. It is
not always clear or important when
this situation begins and ends.

State Verbs
Verbs of emotion (like, hate,prefer,
detest,fear)
Verbs of thinking (believe, doubt, think,
suppose, imagine)
Verbs of the senses (hear, see, smell, feel,
appear)
Verbs used to describe things and their
qualities (contain, measure, carry, mean,
need, consist of)
Verbs expressing possession (belong to,

Simple and continuous forms

Are these sentences correct?
This machine is having two handles
at the front and it is being very easy to
operate.
The wine is tasting very good.
You are sounding French.
I see my boss tomorrow at 4pm
Im hating the rain. When will it stop?

Simple and continuous forms

Are these sentences correct?
This machine has two handles at the
front and it is very easy to operate.
The wine tastes very good.
You are sound French.
Im seeing my boss tomorrow at 4pm
I hate the rain! When will it stop?

Both forms
When we talk about physical
feelings, there is not much
difference between the continuous
and simple form:
Eg:How do you feel? And How are you
feeling?
Eg:My leg hurts or My leg is hurting

Correct?
Where are you from? You are
sounding French.
This wine is tasting very nice. What is
it?
John is seeming unhappy? Im
wondering what is wrong?
What are you thinking about the
increase in the interest rate

This is correct
Where are you from? You sound
French.
This wine tastes very nice. What is it?
John seems unhappy? Im wondering
what is wrong?
What do you think about the increase
in the interest rate?

THE PAST
Past simple and Past Continuous
I worked for that company 5 year ago
and .
I was working for that company 5 year
ago when....

Past Simple or Continuous?

Completed past
actions
temporary past
actions
Past situations
(states or
conditions) which
were permanent
Used to describe
consecutive past
actions, one action
after the other

A long, continuous
situation in past
happening at a
specific moment
or simultaneous
actions happening in
past
Past habits or
routines
Past actions
changing at a
certain time

Past Simple or Continuous?

Completed past
actions
temporary past
actions
Past situations
(states or
conditions) which
were permanent
Used to describe
consecutive past
actions, one action
after the other

A long, continuous
situation in past
happening at a
specific moment
or simultaneous
actions happening in
past
Past habits or
routines
Past actions
changing at a
certain time

Was/were going to + verb

Example: The company was going to
invest more in market research.
(past continuous)
Did the company invest more? NO
Was it an intention? YES
(but the intention never happened
the company never invested)

All past tenses used together =

narrative tenses
Past Simple: When the manager
arrived the meeting started and
he introduced the new employees
to the old staff.
Past continuous: When the
manager arrived the meeting was
just starting.
Past Perfect: When the manager
arrived the meeting had just

Past simple: for finished actions and

for actions
happening one after
the other. A sequence
of
actions.
Past Continuous: An action in
progress at a
specific time.
Past Perfect: When you are talking
about the
past and you want
to talk about something
earlier

When you arrived I called the manager.

First you arrived then I called
(consecutive actions.
When you arrived I was calling the
manager.
One action interrupted the other.
When you arrived I had called the
manager.
One action happened before the other.