EfS Grammar I: Two Present Tenses – Simple and Continuous Explaining how things work and describing what is happening.

Simple - Affirmative I you he/she/it we they to be am are is to have got have got has got to work work works "One s" rule: The third person is either plural (a noun would end in "-s") or the verb ends with "-s".

Simple - Negative I you he/she/it we they to be am not are not is not to have got have not got has not got to work do not work does not work "One s" rule: Where an "s" is added, it is added to the auxiliary verb (be, have, do).

Simple - Interrogative to be am I? are you? is he? are we? are they? to have got have I got? have you got? has she got? have we got? have they got? to work do I work? do you work? does he work? do we work? do they work? "One s" rule: "s" is added to the auxiliary verb. Subject and first verb are inverted.

Spelling rules When adding an "s" to the verb: Normally just add -s -s, -z, -sh, -ch, -o word endings add -es -y word ending consonant –y changes to –ies vowel –y goes to -ys

Continuous – All Forms Affirmative (Negative) I am (not) doing you are (not) doing he/she/it is (not) doing we are (not) doing they are (not) doing Interrogative am I doing? are you doing? is he/she/it doing? are we doing? are they doing? Form: to be + present participle (-ing form)

Present Participle - Spelling Present participles are formed by adding -ing The final consonant may be doubled: Mainly in one-syllable verbs ending with consonant-vowel-consonant, e.g. stop – stopping Words ending in –ie: -ie changes to –y, e.g. lie – lying Words ending in –e: final –e is dropped, e.g. make - making

Simple and Continuous - Use Simple is used: to explain something in an expository text; to express repeatedness of an action; to express completedness of an action; with verbs of state. Continuous is used: to express incompleteness of an action; and therefore sometimes temporariness.

States and Actions Some verbs may be either verbs of state or verbs of action and their meaning changes accordingly: to see (a state): is an involuntary action. to see someone (an action): is to meet that person and talk to him/her. to feel (a state) is an emotion. to feel something (an action) is to move your fingers over an object.

Examples in Technical Texts In describing the characteristics of something (typifying) we use the present simple e.g.: "Organisms play an important role in the water cycle." "These nitrogen-fixing bacteria come in three forms." Dave McShaffrey: Ecosystems The present continuous is used only rarely, e.g.: "The main concepts we are trying to get across in this section [...]" McShaffrey (2006)

What is wrong with …? Graham is speaking 5 languages. What??? All at the same time? The River Thames is flowing into the North Sea. And tomorrow into the Irish Sea... I take tennis lessons this summer. "This summer" suggests that the action is incomplete or temporary.

Reference McShaffrey, Dave (2006): Environmental Biology – Ecosystems. http://www.marietta.edu/ ~biol/102/ecosystem.html, accessed April 5, 2009. Alternative citation style: marietta.edu