Present Simple: Affirmative and the -s Ending

Level: A1. The present simple is the tense you use for things that are generally true — habits, routines and facts. In the affirmative it is almost the base verb unchanged; the one thing to master is the -s that appears with he, she and it.

The rule

A verb is a word for an action or state (work, live, have). The present simple describes what happens regularly or is always true, rather than what is happening right now.

The form is simple: for I, you, we and they you use the plain base verb. For the third person singular — he, she, it, or any single person or thing — you add -s to the verb:

• I work. / They work. → He works. / She works.
• We live here. → It lives here.

That final -s is the whole trick of the affirmative present simple. Dropping it (“he work”) is the single most common beginner mistake in English.

Spelling of the -s ending

So the ending you write depends on the last letters of the verb — but it only ever changes in the he / she / it form.

How to say it

The written -s has three different sounds. English learners often add the wrong one, so match the sound before it:

The verbs goes and does are also pronounced with a changed vowel: goes rhymes with “nose”, and does sounds like “duz”, not “dooz”.

Example sentences

1. I work in an office.
   Base verb with 'I' — no -s.
2. She works in a hospital.
   Add -s for 'she'.
3. They live in London.
   Plural subject — base verb.
4. He lives in Paris.
   'He' takes -s.
5. We play football on Sundays.
   A regular habit.
6. The sun rises in the east.
   A general truth.
7. Water boils at 100 degrees Celsius.
   A scientific fact.
8. My father watches the news every evening.
   -es after -ch.
9. She studies Chinese.
   consonant + y becomes -ies.
10. The shop opens at nine.
    A fixed timetable.
11. He goes to work by train.
    Irregular -es spelling: goes.
12. I drink coffee every morning.
    A daily habit.
13. The baby cries at night.
    cry becomes cries.
14. My brother and I speak two languages.
    Compound subject = plural, base verb.
15. The train leaves at six o'clock.
    A scheduled event.
16. She has a big family.
    Irregular: have becomes has.
17. He does his homework after dinner.
    Irregular -es: does.
18. Cats sleep a lot.
    A general fact about a group.

Common mistakes

• ❌ He go to school. → ✅ He goes to school. Add -s (here -es) for he / she / it.
• ❌ She study English. → ✅ She studies English. Consonant + y becomes -ies.
• ❌ He haves a car. → ✅ He has a car. Have is irregular: he/she/it → has.
• ❌ I works here. → ✅ I work here. Only he / she / it take -s, never I / you / we / they.
• ❌ She watchs TV. → ✅ She watches TV. After -ch you add -es, not just -s.

A short conversation

A: What does your sister do? B: She works in a bank and studies at night. A: And you? B: I work from home. We both start early.

Usage notes

• Habit vs now. The present simple is for routines, not the moment of speaking. “I work in a bank” (my job) is different from “I am working right now” (this minute).
• Adverbs of frequency. Words like always, usually, often, sometimes, never go before the main verb: She always takes the bus — and the verb still keeps its -s.
• Only the verb changes, once. In a present-simple affirmative sentence the -s appears on the main verb and nowhere else; there is no helping word.

Compared with…

• Present continuous describes what is happening now and uses am/is/are + verb-ing: She is working today (this moment) versus She works on Mondays (a routine). See Present Continuous. For the helping verb to be that it uses, revisit Verb ‘To Be’ in the Present.

Quick recap before you practise.

Practice

Practice

Present simple practice

Try each one, then press Check. No sign-up, nothing is sent anywhere — it all runs in your browser.

1 Choose the correct form: 'She ___ in a hospital.'

work works working to work

Check

Show answer

works — 'She' is third person singular, so add -s: works.

2 Spell the he/she/it form of 'study': She ____ French.

Check

Hint: consonant + y

Show answer

studies — A consonant before -y changes to -ies: studies.

3 Put the words in order to make a correct sentence.

toworkgoesHe

CheckReset

Show answer

He goes to work — 'He' + the -es form 'goes' + 'to work'.

4 Match each verb to its correct he/she/it form.

• watch Match for watch — choose — carrieshasplayswatches
• play Match for play — choose — carrieshasplayswatches
• carry Match for carry — choose — carrieshasplayswatches
• have Match for have — choose — carrieshasplayswatches

Check

Show answer

• watch → watches
• play → plays
• carry → carries
• have → has

-ch takes -es; vowel+y takes -s; consonant+y takes -ies; have is irregular (has).

5 Which sentence is correct?

I works at home. They works at home. He work at home. He works at home.

Check

Show answer

He works at home. — Only he/she/it take -s; I, they use the base verb.

Quiz

Check yourself

Present simple affirmative quiz

12 questions · pick an answer and you'll see straight away if it's right.

0/12 0 answered

1. 1Which subjects add -s to the verb in the present simple?

   A I, you, we B he, she, it C they, we D all subjects
   Show answer

   he, she, it — Only the third person singular — he, she, it — adds -s.

2. 2Complete: 'He ___ to school every day.'

   A go B gos C goes D going
   Show answer

   goes — Verbs ending in -o add -es: goes.

3. 3Complete: 'She ___ English.' (study)

   A studys B studies C studyes D study
   Show answer

   studies — Consonant + y becomes -ies: studies.

4. 4Complete: 'My father ___ the news.' (watch)

   A watchs B watches C watch D watchies
   Show answer

   watches — After -ch add -es: watches.

5. 5Which is the correct he/she/it form of 'have'?

   A haves B haved C has D haz
   Show answer

   has — 'Have' is irregular: he/she/it → has.

6. 6Choose the correct sentence.

   A I works here. B I work here. C I working here. D I to work here.
   Show answer

   I work here. — 'I' uses the base verb with no -s: work.

7. 7The present simple is used for…

   A something happening right now B habits, routines and facts C the distant past D polite requests
   Show answer

   habits, routines and facts — It describes habits, routines, general facts and timetables.

8. 8Complete: 'The train ___ at six.' (leave)

   A leave B leaves C leafs D leaving
   Show answer

   leaves — 'The train' = it, so add -s: leaves.

9. 9Which sentence is WRONG?

   A She plays tennis. B He studies hard. C They lives here. D It costs five dollars.
   Show answer

   They lives here. — 'They' is plural, so no -s: they live here.

10. 10Complete: 'Water ___ at 100 degrees.' (boil)

    A boil B boils C boiling D boiled
    Show answer

    boils — A general fact with 'water' (it) takes -s: boils.

11. 11Type the he/she/it form of 'carry': She ____ the bags.
    Check
    Show answer

    carries — Consonant + y becomes -ies: carries.

12. 12In 'She always takes the bus', where does 'always' go?

    A after the verb B before the main verb C at the very end D before the subject
    Show answer

    before the main verb — Adverbs of frequency go before the main verb, which keeps its -s.

Recap cheat-sheet

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