Simple and Progressive Tenses: a basic explanation
Himes/ESL/De Anza
Basic Subject/Verb Agreement
First person singular
– I
Second person singular/plural – you
Third person singular – he/she/it/Jerry/Joe/Sugar/the man…
First person plural
– we
Third person plural
– they/ Joe and Jerry, the ladies…
Subject
I you
Daphne we
Joe and Jerry simple present am are is are are like likes like like like simple past was were was were were liked liked liked liked liked
Past or Present?
How do you decide when to use the present or when to use the past? When you are retelling a movie, news story, historical event, or work of fiction, you may often use the present or the past. Even when the story was completed in the past, the people often choose to summarize in the present to draw the listener or reader into the story. Whatever time axis you choose, present or past, stay with it throughout your retelling unless you have a logical reason to switch.
Simple Present
It shows a present habit or something that reoccurs . Such sentences often contain adverbs of frequency.
The chief of police smokes cigars everyday.
Joe repeatedly bets his money on dogs.
Nellie always forgives Joe for his lies after he sweet-talks her.
Some adverbs of frequency from least often to most often:
Never, rarely, sometimes, often, usually, always
Simple present describes general statements of fact that are not related to time.
Joe and Jerry are musicians.
Jerry plays the string bass.
Water boils at 100 degrees Celsius.
1

Present Progressive
It shows an activity that is in progress at the moment. The activity may be temporary. It is something that started in the past and will probably end in the future.
They are wearing nice clothes for a change.
It can also show a quick action that is in the process of being repeated.
The police are firing their guns.
Firing a gun is a short action that is not in progress for long, but the action is repeated multiple times so we use the progressive as if it were a continuous action.
Some nouns are stative , meaning they show a state of existence instead of action. They often express cognition, perception, emotion, and relation. They are not typically used in the progressive aspect.
Cognition Emotion know understand believe
Perception see love hate like
Relation own hear look like belong to hear
Some verbs can be used in active or stative situations taste – stative: This spaghetti sauce tastes delicious. active: He is tasting the spaghetti sauce to see if it needs more basil. smell
– stative: Ana’s roses smell sweet. active: She is smelling the roses in her garden and enjoying the sun.
The verb “feel” expresses emotion, but it can be used in simple present or present progressive aspects. The simple aspect tends to sound more permanent or long term. The progressive feels more temporary or short term.
Tien feels frustrated.
Tien is feeling frustrated.
2

Putting actions together
Simple present is used together with the present progressive when one action interrupts another.
They are riding in the hearse when the police surprise them.
If you want to emphasize that two actions are taking part at the same time use two progressives.
The gangsters in the back are shooting while the driver is trying to lose the cops.
Simple Past
The simple past is used to tell about an action that was completed in the past and has no connection to the present.
The police chief said he was at Mozarella’s place for Grandma’s funeral.
Past Progressive
It shows an activity that was in progress in the past. It can also show a quick action that was in the process of being repeated. Like in the present, it can show the interruption of an action by another. It is often used together with the simple past or the past continuous to show how one action was taking place at the same time as another.
Continuing action:
The police chief was smoking a cigar.
Repeated action:
Spats men were shooting at the police.
One action interrupting another:
Jerry spotted the police badge while he was playing in the band.
Two actions taking place at the same time:
Joe and Jerry were talking while the band was playing.
-or-
Joe and Jerry were talking while the band played.
The gangsters were drinking buttermilk when they were in the speak-easy.
3