English Test Simple Present and Present Progressive Use When to use which tense? 1.

Which tense do you have to use with the following signal words: Look!, now? 2. Which tense do you have to use with the following signal words: often, seldom, never? 3. For actions happening at the moment of speaking, we use . 4. For actions set by a timetable or schedule, we use . 5. In a story, for present actions happening one after another, we use . 6. For arrangements for the near future, we use . Positive sentences Complete the sentences. Use Simple Present or Present Progressive. 1. We (help) in the canteen this week. 2. Martin usually (drive) to work. 3. But today, he (take) the bus. 4. Listen! She (practise) the piano. 5. My friend (play) the guitar every evening. Negative sentences Complete the sentences. Use Simple Present or Present Progressive. 1. He (not / spend) his holidays in Spain each year. 2. I (not / meet) Francis tonight. 3. They (not / fly) to London tomorrow. 4. We (not / work) this week. 5. The film (not / begin) at 7 o'clock. questionn Complete the sentences. Use Simple Present or Present Progressive. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Text (leave / you) the party now? (have / you) any brothers or sisters? (love / she) him? Who (cook) dinner tonight? (send / he) you an e-mail every day?

Complete the sentences. Use Simple Present or Present Progressive.

1. Maria (want) to improve her English. 2. Therefore, she (do) a language course in London at the moment. 3. She (stay) with a host family and (must) take the tube to get to her language school. 4. It (be) only a five-minute walk to the nearest tube station. 5. The tube (leave) at half past eight. 6. The first lesson (begin) at 9 o'clock. 7. In the afternoons, the school (offer) sightseeing tours in and around London. 8. Tomorrow, the students of the language school (go) to Windsor.

Form Fill in the correct form (pronoun + verb). Simple Present Present Perfect Progressive I / look he / live you / swim she listen they / take Use When to use which tense? 1. 'never' is a signal word for 2. 'every Monday' is a signal word for 3. 'for eight months' is a signal word for 4. 'twice a week' is a signal word for 5. 'since yesterday' is a signal word for Positive Sentences

Fill in the correct tense (Simple Present or Present Perfect Progressive). 1. My friend(travel) around Canada for five weeks. 2. They(sleep) for more than 10 hours. 3. She(visit) another museum every week. 4. He(feed) his dog three times a day. 5. The children(play) in the garden since they came home. Negative Sentences Fill in the correct tense (Simple Present or Present Perfect Progressive). 1. We(see/not) each other very often nowadays. 2. My little brother(learn/not) English for a year yet. 3. They(play/not) for ten minutes, but the score is 5:1 already. 4. My mum(work/not) on Tuesdays. 5. My socks are smelly although I(wear/not) them for a complete day yet. Questions Fill in the correct tense (Simple Present or Present Perfect Progressive). 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Text (go/you) by bus very often? Since when(ski/Betty) ? What time(have/he) dinner in the evenings? How long(rain/it) ? (work/you) at the hospital for a long time yet?

Fill in the correct tense (Simple Present or Present Perfect Progressive). 1. William and his parents(live) in Aberdeen for one year. 2. Although William was a little afraid of moving to Aberdeen, he(have) many friends here now. 3. Four of his best friends(go) camping every summer. 4. This year, William(want) to go with them. 5. The five boys(plan) their holiday for a few months now. 6. They already(know) where to go and what to do. 7. What they(need) now, is a little more money. 8. William only(get) very little pocket money every month. 9. That(be) not enough. 10. To earn some extra money, he(deliver) newspapers for 6 weeks.

Present Perfect Simple Present Perfect Progressive Exercises and Tests Form Present Perfect Simple Present Perfect Progressive

irregular verbs: form of 'have' + 3rd column of form of 'have' + been + verb + ing irregular verbs Example: I / you / we / they have been speaking Example: he / she / it has been speaking I / you / we / they have spoken he / she / it has spoken regular verbs: form of 'have' + infinitive + ed Example: I / you / we / they have worked he / she / it has worked Exceptions Exceptions when adding 'ed' : Exceptions when adding 'ing' : silent e is dropped. (but: does not apply for when the final letter is e, only add d Example: -ee) love - loved Example: come - coming after a short, stressed vowel, the final aber: agree - agreeing consonant is doubled after a short, stressed vowel, the final Example: consonant is doubled Example: sit - sitting final l is always doubled in British English after a vowel, the final consonant l is (not in American English) doubled in British English (but not in American Example: English). travel - travelled Example: travel - travelling after a consonant, final y becomes i (but: final ie becomes y. not after a vowel) Example: Example: lie - lying worry - worried but: play - played

admit - admitted

See also explanations on Present Perfect Simple and Present Perfect Progressive Use Both tenses are used to express that an action began in the past and is still going on or has just finished. In many cases, both forms are correct, but there is often a difference in meaning: We use the Present Perfect Simple mainly to express that an action is completed or to emphasise the result. We use the Present Perfect Progressive to emphasise the duration or continuous course of an action. Result or duration? Do you want to express what has happened so far or how long an action has been going on yet? Present Perfect Simple Result (what / how much / how often) I have written 5 letters. / I have been to London twice. Certain verbs The following verbs are usually only used in Present Perfect Simple (not in the progressive form).

Present Perfect Progressive Duration (how long) I have been writing for an hour.

state: be, have (for possession only) Example: We have been on holiday for two weeks.

senses: feel, hear, see, smell, taste, touch Example: He has touched the painting.

brain work: believe, know, think, understand Example: I have known him for 3 years.

Emphasis on completion or duration? Do you want to emphasise the completion of an action or its continuous course (how has somebody spent his time)? Present Perfect Simple Present Perfect Progressive

Emphasis on completion I have done my homework. (Meaning: My homework is completed now.) Result or side effect?

Emphasis on duration I have been doing my homework. (Meaning: That's how I have spent my time. It does not matter whether the homework is completed now.)

Do you want to express that a completed action led to a desired result or that the action had an unwanted side effect? Present Perfect Simple desired result I have washed the car. (Result: The car is clean now.) Present Perfect Progressive unwanted side effect Why are you so wet? - I have been washing the car. (side effect: I became wet when I was washing the car. It does not matter whether the car is clean now.)

Time + negation: last time or beginning of an action? In negative sentences: Do you want to express how much time has past since the last time the action took place or since the beginning of the action? Present Perfect Simple since the last time I haven't played that game for years. (Meaning: It's years ago that I last played that game.) Present Perfect Progressive since the beginning I haven't been playing that game for an hour, only for 10 minutes. (Meaning: It's not even an hour ago that I started to play that game.)

Permanent or temporary? If an action is still going on and we want to express that it is a permanent situation, we would usually use the Present Perfect Simple. For temporary situations, we would prefer the Present Perfect Progressive. This is not a rule, however, only a tendency.

Present Perfect Simple permanent James has lived in this town for 10 years. (Meaning: He is a permanent resident of this town.) temporary

Present Perfect Progressive

James has been living here for a year. (Meaning: This situation is only temporary. Maybe he is an exchange student and only here for one or two years.)

Signal words Present Perfect Simple

Present Perfect Progressive

how often ... times

how long since for

English Test Present Perfect Simple Present Perfect Progressive Test your knowledge on Present Perfect Simple Present Perfect Progressive. After submitting your answers, you will see how well you have done in the test. Form Fill in the correct form (pronoun + verb). Present Perfect Simple Present Perfect Progressive I / speak he / write they / do you / swim

she / live Use When to use which tense? 1. '5 times' is a signal word for ... 2. 'for two hours' is a signal word for ... 3. 'since 9 o'clock' is a signal word for ... Positive Sentences Fill in the correct form (Present Perfect Simple or Present Perfect Progressive). 1. I(practise) the piano for 30 minutes. 2. Bob(run) 10 km. 3. The children(be) on holiday for six days. 4. The dog(bark) since midnight. 5. We(miss) the bus twice this week. Negative Sentences Fill in the correct form (Present Perfect Simple or Present Perfect Progressive). 1. You(eat / not) up yet. 2. He(speak / not) on the phone for half an hour, just a couple of minutes. 3. They(work / not) since 5 o'clock. They just started an hour ago. 4. We(know / not) them for a long time. 5. She(hang / not) up all the pictures yet. Questions Fill in the correct form (Present Perfect Simple or Present Perfect Progressive). 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Text How long(wait / she) for us? How many times(tell / I) you? How often(clean / you) the windows this year? How many months(take / you) piano lessons? (stay / you / ever) in a castle?

Fill in the correct form (Present Perfect Simple or Present Perfect Progressive). 1. Tom: Hi Ana. I (try) to ring you several times today. Where (you / be) ?

2. Ana: I(be) at home all the time. But I(clean) the house all day, so maybe I didn't hear the phone ring. 3. Tom: (you / clean) everything now? 4. Ana: No, not yet. I(tidy / not) up the kitchen yet. But why are you here? 5. Tom: Don't you remember? Jane(invited) us to her birthday party and we(buy / not) a present for her yet. 6. Ana: Oh, that's right.(you / find out / already) what she wants? 7. Tom: Well, she(learn) Spanish for a year and wants to spend her next holiday in Mexico. Maybe we could get her a guide book. 8. Ana: That's a good idea. There is a good bookshop in the big shopping centre. I(see) some nice books about Mexico there recently. English Test Present Perfect Simple Present Perfect Progressive Test your knowledge on Present Perfect Simple Present Perfect Progressive. After submitting your answers, you will see how well you have done in the test. Form Fill in the correct form (pronoun + verb). Present Perfect Simple Present Perfect Progressive she listen they / take I / look you / sit he / lie Use When to use which tense? 1. If we want to emphasise the duration of an action, we use ...

2. If we want to tell, how often something has happened so far, we use ... 3. If we want to emphasise the result of an action, we use ... 4. If we want to emphasise that an action is completed now, we use ... 5. If we want to emphasise how we have spent our time, we use ... Positive Sentences Fill in the correct form (Present Perfect Simple or Present Perfect Progressive). 1. Sandy(cook) dinner four times this week. 2. We(travel) around Scotland for 8 days. 3. Why are your hands so dirty? - I(repair) my bike. 4. I(read) the book, you can have it back. 5. Paul(believe) in God since he was a child. Negative Sentences Fill in the correct form (Present Perfect Simple or Present Perfect Progressive). 1. Sorry for being late. I hope you(wait / not) long. 2. My grandparents are coming to see us next weekend. They(visit / not) us for two years. 3. She(be / not) on holiday for 3 years. 4. I don't want you to drive my car. You(drive / not) a car for ages. 5. He(watch / not) TV all afternoon, he only switched the telly on 10 minutes ago. Questions Fill in the correct form (Present Perfect Simple or Present Perfect Progressive). 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Text How much money(Jack / spend) in the casino? How long(she / sit) there? How many short messages(send / you) this month? (you / empty) the bin yet? Lucy,(you / bathe) your dolls? The bathroom floor is absolutely wet.

Fill in the correct form (Present Perfect Simple or Present Perfect Progressive). 1. Daughter: Mum, Jane(phone / just) to ask if I will go to the cinema with her. May I? 2. Mother: (you / do) your homework yet? 3. Daughter: Well, I(do) it for about 2 hours now, but I(finish / not) it yet. 4. Mother: If you(complete / not) your homework, you cannot go. School comes first. Remember, you(promise) me to study harder this year.

5. Daughter: But mum, I(work) really hard this year and I(improve / already) in Maths and Chemistry. 6. Mother: But that's only because I(push / always) you to do something. 7. Daughter: But I also need a break some time. Look, I(be / not) to the cinema for two months. May I go? Just this once. Present Perfect Simple - Present Perfect Progressive Exercise 11 Put the verbs into the correct tense (Present Perfect Simple or Present Perfect Progressive). 1. A: I (call) for you for half an hour. Where (be) ? And why are your clothes so dirty? 2. B: I (tidy) up the shed in the garden. 3. A: (you / find) a box with old photos there? I (look) for it for ages. 4. B: I (discover / not) it yet, but I (work / not) for a long time yet. I (come / just) in to eat something. 5. A: I (cook / not) anything yet because I (talk) to our neighbour. Present Perfect Simple - Present Perfect Progressive Exercise 10 Put the verbs into the correct tense (Present Perfect Simple or Present Perfect Progressive). 1. A: (you / take) the dog for a walk yet? 2. B: I (work) all day. I (come / just) home from work and I (have / not) the time yet to walk the dog. 3. A: How long (the dog / be) home alone? 4. B: For about 6 hours. You (walk / not) the dog for a long time. Don't you want to go? 5. A: Well, I (laze / not) about all day either, you know. I have a very important meeting tomorrow and I still (finish / not) my presentation. 6. B: Okay, I will go then. Where (you / put) collar and leash? 7. A: They are in the kitchen. By the way, (you / eat) anything yet? If not, could you get us something from the supermarket? Simple Past or Past Progressive

Put the verbs into the correct tense (simple past or past progressive). 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. When I(do) the washing-up, I(break) a plate. While Tom(play) the piano, his mother(do) the washing-up. He(drink) some juice and then he(eat) a few chips. I(have) dinner when I suddenly(hear) a loud bang. When my father(work) in the garden, an old friend(pass) by to see him. She(go) to school,(take) out her textbook and(begin) to learn. When it(start) to rain, our dog(want) to come inside. When Jane(do) a language course in Ireland, she(visit) Blarney Castle. When I(be) on my way home, I(see) an accident. I(not / understand) what they(talk) about.

English Test Simple Past Present Perfect Simple Test your knowledge on Simple Past and Present Perfect Simple. After submitting your answers, you will see how well you have done in the test. Form Write down the correct form (pronoun + verb). Simple Past she / live I / look you / buy he / see they / take Use When do we use which tense? Present Perfect Simple

1. 'How often so far' is a signal word for ... 2. '... ago' is a signal word for ... 3. 'Until now' is an signal word for ... 4. 'Yesterday', 'last week' und 'in 2006' are signal words for ... 5. 'Just', 'already', 'yet' are signal words for ... Positive Sentences Put the verbs into the correct tense (simple past or present perfect simple). 1. William (tidy / already) up his room. 2. Caroline (miss) the schoolbus yesterday. 3. I (finish / just) my homework. 4. I cannot go out tonight. My grandparents (come) to see us. 5. In 2004, the Olympic Summer Games (take) place in Athens. Negative Sentences Put the verbs into the correct tense (simple past or present perfect simple). 1. We (watch / not) TV last night. 2. Joanna (read / not) the book yet. 3. Collin (not / go) on holiday last year. 4. I (have / not) any problems so far. 5. They (learn / not) the new words yet. Questions Put the verbs into the correct tense (simple past or present perfect simple). 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Text (they / be / ever) to New York? (you / see) Catherine a minute ago? What time (you / get) up today? (he / hear) the news yet? How often (you / play) that game up to now?

Put the verbs into the correct tense (simple past or present perfect simple). 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. A: I (see / not) you for a long time. Where (you / be) ? B: I (come / just) back from Canada. A: Oh really? What (you / do) in Canada? B: I (take) a nature tour. A: Wow! (you / see) many wild animals there?

6. B: Of course. I (watch) bears, wolves and whales in the wild. That (be) so interesting. (you / spend / ever) a holiday in Canada? 7. A: Yes, I (travel) around Canada twice so far. 8. B: When (you / go) there? 9. A: The first time I (go) there (be) in 1997 and the second time in 2004. 10. B: (you / enjoy) it? 11. A: I absolutely (love) it, especially the west coast. Form Write down the correct form (pronoun + verb). Simple Past he / listen they / speak I / watch she / grow you / fall Use When do we use which tense? 1. To talk about an action in the past (without any consequences in the present), we use ... 2. To emphasise a past action's consequence in the present, we use ... 3. 'so far' is a signal word for ... 4. '5 minutes ago' is a signal word for ... 5. 'recently' is a signal word for ... Positive Sentences Put the verbs into the correct tense (simple past or present perfect simple). 1. He (leave / just) his house. Present Perfect Simple

2. We (build) a tree house last week. 3. Two years ago, Fiona (break) her leg. 4. I (wash / already) the dishes. 5. The other day, our cat (bring) home a mouse. Negative Sentences Put the verbs into the correct tense (simple past or present perfect simple). 1. We (empty / not) the bin last week. 2. She (be / not) there an hour ago. 3. He (lose / not) any game so far. 4. My brother (pick / not) me up at 8 o'clock. 5. I (make / not) up my mind yet. Questions Put the verbs into the correct tense (simple past or present perfect simple). 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Text (you / see) Bob recently? Who (switch) off the lights a minute ago? When (she / become) a teacher? (you / ride / ever) an elephant? (you / hurt) your knee when you were playing football?

Put the verbs into the correct tense (simple past or present perfect simple). 1. Last week I (be) very busy and I (have not) the time to do a lot in the household. 2. On Monday I (work) three hours overtime and (come) home very late in the evening. 3. From Tuesday to Thursday I (be) on a business trip. 4. On Friday I (go) to a friend's birthday party and at the weekend I (visit) my grandparents. 5. Tomorrow some friends are coming over. I (see / not) them for ages and they (be / never) at my place before. 6. I (clean / just) my house so I can show them around. Now everything is perfect.

Filling in the correct form

Put the verbs into the correct tense (simple past or past perfect simple).

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Yesterday a boy(destroy) the snowman that we(build) . Jimmy(tell) us about the film that he(see) . We(find) the mobile phone that Marwin (lose) . He(sing) a song that I(hear / never) before. Cathrine(open) the window that I(close / just) .

Choosing the correct form

Choose the correct tense (simple past or past perfect simple).

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

When I at school, the lesson . I to New York last month. I to the USA before. Bob us into his room because he it for weeks. I very hungry because I anything yet. As Vanessa the film before, she to go to the cinema with us.

Filling in the correct form

Put the verbs into the correct tense (simple past or past perfect simple).

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

William(live) in Boston for six years before he(move) to New York. The blue car(cross) the street after the lights(turn) red. When James(try) to ring us, we(leave / already) the house. After Joanna(finish) her presentation, we(ask) our questions. On her first day at the driving school, we(be) very nervous because we(drive / not) a car before.

Text
Put the verbs into the correct tense (simple past or pas perfect simple).

1.
before.

It(be) a cold and rainy Sunday, so I(decide) to finish the essay that I(start) writing a few days I(switch) on the computer and(open) the document. Then I(begin) looking for my notes that I(handwrite) on a sheet of paper. But the notes(be) not on my desk and I(can / not) remember where I(put) them. I(turn) the whole house upside down. And where(find / I) my notes? I(leave) them in the sitting room, under a huge staple of papers and magazines. Now that I(find) my notes, I(want) to continue writing my essay. First I(know / not) what to write but then I(have) lots of ideas.

2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

I(complete / almost) my essay when my computer suddenly(crash) and I(notice) that I(forget) to save the document.

11. 12.

After I(reboot) my computer, I (see) that at least 5 of the pages I(type) (be) missing. So I(have) to start all over again.

Exercise - Future Mix

Put the verbs into the correct form (will, going to, simple present or present progressive).

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

I love London. I(probably / go) there next year. Our train(leave) at 4:47. What(wear / you) at the party tonight? I haven't made up my mind yet. But I think I(find) something nice in my mum's wardrobe. This is my last day here. I(go) back to England tomorrow. Hurry up! The conference(begin) in 20 minutes. My horoscope says that I(meet) an old friend this week. Look at these big black clouds! It(rain) . Here is the weather forecast. Tomorrow(be) dry and sunny.

What does a blonde say when she sees a banana skin lying just a few metres in front of her? - Oh dear! I(slip) !