The present in general: the simple present
If you want to talk about your thoughts and feelings at the present moment, or about your immediate reactions to something, you use the simple present.
I'm very busy. I have a lot of work to do.
They both taste the same.
God, she looks great.
I want something to drink.
You can also use the simple present to talk about a physical feeling that is affecting you or someone else.
I feel tired. I do. I feel drowsy.
My stomach hurts.
If you are talking about physical perceptions such as seeing and hearing, you normally use the modal 'can', although the simple present is occasionally used.
I can see the fishing boats coming in.
I can smell it. Can't you?
I see a flat stretch of ground.
I hear approaching feet.
General present including present moment
If you want to talk about a settled state of affairs which includes the present moment but where the particular time reference is not important, you use the simple present.
My dad works in Saudi Arabia.
He lives in the French Alps near the Swiss border. He is a very good brother. We love him.
She's a doctor's daughter.
Meanwhile, Atlantic City faces another dilemma.
General truths
If you want to say that something is always or generally true, you use the simple present.
Near the equator, the sun evaporates greater quantities of water.
A molecule of water has two atoms of hydrogen and one of oxygen. A chemical reaction occurs in the fuel cell.
Windmills intended for electricity generation rotate rapidly and have a small number of vanes.
Regular or habitual actions
If you want to talk about something that a particular person or thing does regularly or habitually, you use the simple present.
Do you smoke?
I get up early and eat my breakfast listening to the radio.
Used in reviews
You usually use the simple present when you are discussing what happens in a book, play, or film.
In the film, he plays the central character of Charles Smithson.
In those early chapters, he doesn't say very much.
USAGE NOTE
You can use the simple present of the verb 'say' when you are describing something you have read in a book.
The criminal justice system, the author says, has failed to keep pace with the drug problem.
The Bible says love of money is the root of all evil.
Used in commentaries
On radio and television, commentators often use the simple present when describing an event such as a sports match or a ceremony at the time that it is happening.
Rodriguez takes the ball upfield again, passes to Leduc on the edge of the field. He turns, shoots-and a fine save from Park.
Used in reporting
When you are reporting what someone said to you at some point in the recent past, you can use the simple present of a reporting verb such as 'hear' or 'tell'.
I've never been greyhound-racing myself, but they tell me it's a fascinating sport.
There are some fine railings in Westminster Abbey, I hear.
I hear you're moving.
Grace says you told her to come over here.
When commenting on what you are saying or doing, you use the simple present of a performative verb such as 'admit', 'promise', 'reject', or 'enclose'.
This, I admit, was my favourite activity.
I enclose a small cheque which may come in handy. I leave it with confidence in your hands, Emmanuel.
Accent on the present: the present progressive
If you want to talk about something that is happening at the moment you are speaking, you use the present progressive.
We're having a meeting. Come and join in.
What am I doing? I'm looking out of the window.
My head is aching.
I'm already feeling tense.
If you want to emphasize the present moment or to indicate that a situation is temporary, you use the present progressive.
Only one hospital, in Montreal, is functioning efficiently.
We're trying to create a more democratic society.
She's spending the summer in Europe.
I'm working as a British Council Officer.
I'm living with my mother while I look for a new apartment.
You also use the present progressive to indicate changes, trends, development, and progress.
The village is changing but it is still undisturbed.
His handwriting is improving.
World energy demand is increasing at a rate of about 3% per year.
If you want to talk about a habitual action that takes place regularly, especially one which is new or temporary, you use the present progressive.
You're drinking too much.
Do you know if she's still playing these days?
She's seeing a lot more of him than she used to.
Emphasizing time in the present: using adjuncts
You do not normally need to use an adjunct of time or other time expression with present tenses, but you can add them in order to emphasize the immediate present or general present, or to contrast the present with the past or future.
We're working with Britney Spears just at this moment, recording an autumn series.
We're safe now.
What's the matter with you today, Marnie?
I didn't get a school loan this year.
If you want to complain that something happens too often, use the Present Progressive with always.
My husband is always leaving the toilet seat up.
Why are you always coming to class late?
