Unit
3
Present continuous and present simple 1
(I am doing and I do)
Co m pare:
Prese n t continuous (1 a m d oin g)
Prese n t sim ple (I d o)
W e use the co ntin u o us for things hap pening at
or around th e ti m e of speaking.
The action is not co m plet e.
W e use t h e simple for things in ge n eral or
things t h a t happen repeatedly.
1 a m d oi n g
p ast
O
I do
n ow
fu tu re
T he w a t e r is b oilin g. Can you turn it
o ff?
Listen to those people. W h a t language
a re t h e y s p e a k in g?
Let's go out. It is n't r ain in g now.
T m busy.' ‘W h a t ar e yo u d o i n g?'
I'm g e t ti n g hungry. Let's go and eat.
Kate wa n ts to work in Italy, so she's
le a r n in g Italian.
The p o p ulatio n of th e world is
in cr e a si n g very fast.
now
p ast
o
fu tu re
W a t e r b oils at 100 degrees Celsius.
Excuse me, d o yo u sp e a k English?
o
o
o
It d o e s n ’t rain very much in su m mer.
W h a t d o yo u usually d o at w ee k e n ds?
1 always g e t hungry in t h e afternoon.
Most peopLe le a rn t o swim wh e n t h ey
are children.
Every d ay th e p o p ulatio n of th e world
incre ase s by a b o ut 200,000 people.
W e use the continuous for te m porary situations:
I'm livin g wit h so me friends until 1find a
place of m y own.
a : Yo u're w o r k i n g h a r d t o d a y .
b : Yes, 1 have a l o t t o d o .
W e use th e simple for p erm a n e n t situations:
My parents liv e in London. T h ey have
See U nit 1 for more infor m ation.
See U n it Z for m ore infor m ation.
O
o
liv e d t h e r e a ll t h e i r liv e s .
Jo e isn't lazy. He w o r k s hard m ost of
th e tim e.
I a l w a y s d o and I'm a l w a y s d oin g
I a l w a y s d o (so m et hin g) = I do it every time:
G I a l w a y s go t o work by car. (n ot I'm aLways going)
‘I'm a l w a y s d oin g so m e thin g' has a diff ere nt meaning. For e x a mple:
ve lost my phone again. I'm always losing things. ^
I'm a l w a y s losin g things = I lose things very often,
perhaps to o often, or more often than normal.
More e x a mples:
O Yo u're a l w a y s p la yi n g co m p u ter games. You should do so m et hin g m ore active.
(= You play co m p u t er ga m es t o o oft en)
Tim is n ever satisfied. H e's a l w a y s co m p la in in g . (= H e co m plains t o o m uch)
Prese n t co n tin u o us and si m ple 2
U nit 4
Prese n t te nses for t h e fut ure
U n i t 19
Exercises
Are t h e u n d erlin e d ver bs rig ht or w r o n g? C o rr e ct t h e m w h e r e n ecessary.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
W a t e r boils at 100 degrees Celsius.
The w a t e r boils. Can you turn it o ff?
Look! T h at man tries to open t h e d oor of yo ur car.
Can yo u hear th ose p eo ple? W h a t do t h ey talk a b o u t?
The moon goes round t h e earth in a b o ut 27 days.
I m ust go now. It gets late.
I usually go to work by car.
'H urry up! It's ti m e to leave /
‘O K, I c o m e .'
I hear yo u've g ot a new job. H o w do yo u get o n?
Pa u lis never late. He's always getting t o work on time.
T h ey d o n't get on well. T h ey're always arguing.
OK
i&.boiling
............
.....
.....................
.........
.......................
................................ .... ........
...........
.....................
Pu t t h e ver b in t o t h e c o rr e ct f or m , p rese n t co n tin u o us or p rese n t si m ple.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
Le t’s go out.
I t Is n 't ra m w g
(it / n ot / rain) now.
Julia is very good at languages.
She- spe&Jcs (she / speak) four languages very well.
H urry up!
(every b o d y / w ait) for you.
'
(you / listen) to t h e r a d io?’ ’No, yo u can turn it off.'
1
(you / listen) to th e radio every d a y?' 'N o, just occasionally.'
The River Nile
(flo w) into
the Me diterra nea n.
The river
.
(flo w) very fast t o d ay - m uch faster than usual.
(we / usually / grow) vegetables in our garden, but this ye ar
................
(we / not / grow) any.
a : H o w's yo ur English?
b : N o t bad. I thin k
(it / im prove) slowly.
Rachel is in N e w York right now.
(she / stay) at th e Park H otel.
(she / always / st ay) t here wh e n she's in N e w York.
Can we stop walkin g soo n? .......
....
(I / start) to feel tired.
a : Can yo u drive?
b ; ....................................... (I / learn). My f a t h e r .................................
(t e ach) me.
NormaLly
(I / finish) work at five, but this wee k
.
( ! / work) until six to earn a little more money.
My parents
(live) in Manchester. T h ey were born th ere and have never
lived a nywh ere else. W h e r e
(yo ur parents / live)?
Sonia
(look) for a place to live.
(she / stay)
wit h her sister until she finds so m ewh ere.
a: What
(yo ur brother /d o)?
b : He's an architect, but ....................................
(he /not /work) at t h e m o m e nt.
(a t a p arty)
(I /usually enjoy) parties, but
(I / n o t / e njoy) this one very much.
1 a: I've lost my p hone again.
b : N o t again!
You Y e olwcujs Losing yo ur p h o n e
2 a:
b:
3 a:
b:
4 a:
b:
.
Finish B's se n t e nces. Use a l w a y s -ing.
The car has broken d own again.
T h at car is useless. It ....................
...............................
........
.............
Look! You've made th e sa m e mistak e again,
O h no, not again! I ..............................................................................................................
O h, I've f orgotte n my glasses again.
Typical!
....................
.
.
Unit
4
Present continuous and present simple 2
(I am doing and I do)
W e use co ntin u o us for ms for actio ns and hap penings t h a t have starte d but n ot finished (t h e y are
e a ti n g / it is r ain in g etc.). So m e verbs (for e x a mple, k n o w and li k e) are n ot n or m ally used in this
way. W e d o n't say 'I a m k nowing' or ‘t h e y are liking'; w e say ‘I k n o w', 't h e y like'.
The f ollowin g verbs are n ot n or m ally used in th e present continuous:
lik e
want
know
re a lis e
b el o n g
Q
f it
need
p re f e r
su p p o se
co ntain
mean
c o n sis t
u n d e rst a n d
b e li e v e
re m e m ber
se e m
I’m hungry. I w a n t so m e thin g to eat. (n o t I'm w a n tin g)
D o you u n d e rst a n d w h a t I m e a n?
A n na d o e s n't se e m very ha p py at th e m o m e nt.
T h in k
W h e n t h i n k m eans ‘b elieve' or ‘have an opinion', w e do not use t h e continuous:
I t h i n k Ma ry is C anadian, but I'm not sure, (n ot I'm thin king)
W h a t d o yo u t h i n k of m y pla n? (= W h a t is yo u r o pinio n?)
W h e n t h i n k m eans ‘consider', t h e co ntin u o us is possible:
O I'm t h i n k i n g a b o ut w h a t happened. I often t h i n k a b o ut it.
C
Nic k y is t h i n k i n g of giving up her job. (= she is considering it)
Se e
h e a r s m e ll t a s t e
W e n or m ally use th e present sim ple (n o t co ntin u o us) wit h t h ese verbs:
O D o you s e e t h a t man over t h e r e? (n ot Are yo u seeing)
This roo m s m ells. Let's open a win d ow.
W e oft e n use ca n + se e / h e a r / s m e ll / t a st e :
I ca n h e a r a strange noise. C a n yo u h e a r it?
Loo k
feel
You can use th e present simple or co ntin u o us to say h o w so m e b o d y looks or feels now:
CJ You lo o k w e ll today, o r Yo u're l o o k in g w ell today.
H o w d o yo u f e e l n o w? or H o w are you f e e li n g n o w?
b ut
j I usually f e e l tired in t h e morning. (not I'm usually feeling)
H e is s e lfis h and H e is b ein g selfis h
H e's b ein g = He's behavin g / He's acting. Co m pare:
I ca n't un derstand w h y he's b ein g so selfish. H e isn’t usually like th at.
(b ein g selfish = b ehavin g selfishly at th e m o m e n t)
Q He never thin ks a b o ut o th er people. He is very selfish, (n ot He is being)
(= He is selfish generally, not o nly at th e m o m e n t)
W e use a m / is / are b ein g to say h o w so m e b o d y is behaving. It is n ot usually possible in o t h er
sentences:
J It's hot to day, (n ot It is being hot)
Sarah is very tired, (n ot is being tire d)
8
Present co ntin u o us and si m ple 1 - > U n i t 3
H ave -
U n i t 17
Present tenses for t h e f uture -* U n i t 19
Exercises
Pu t t h e ver b in t o t h e c o rr e ct f or m , p rese n t c o n ti n u o u s o r p rese n t si m ple.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Are yo u h u n gry? . Do you w a n t (you / w a n t) so m e thin g to e a t?
D o n't put th e dictio n ary away.
(I / use) it.
D o n't put th e dictio n ary away.
(I / need) it.
W h o is t h a t m a n? W h a t
( h e / w a n t)?
W h o is t h a t m a n? W h y
(he /look) at us?
ALan says he's 80 years old, but n o b ody
..
.. (b elieve) him.
She told me her na me, but
(I / not / re m e m b er) it now.
(I / thin k) of selling m y car. Wo u ld yo u be interested in buying it?
(I / thin k) yo u should sell yo u r car.
(yo u / n ot / use) it very often.
10 Air
(consist) m ainly of nitrogen and oxygen.
Use t h e w o r d s in b rac k e ts t o m a k e se n t e n ces. (You sh o uld also st u d y U n it 3 b ef ore y o u do
t h is e x ercise.)
©
(these gloves / not / fit / me)
S- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Excuse me. (anyb o dy /
T hey're too small.
V ______________________ ___
A re t h e u n d erlin e d v er bs rig ht or w r o n g? C o rr e ct t h e m w h e r e n ecessary.
1
2
3
4
5
Nic k v is thin king of giving up her job.
Are yo u believing in G o d?
I'm feeling hungry. Is th ere a nythin g to e a t?
This sauce is great. It's tastin g really good.
I'm thinking this is yo ur key. A m I rig ht?
OK
.......
......
..............
....
........
........
...............
.........
.....
C o m p l e t e t h e s e n t e n c e s using t h e m o st s u it a b le f or m o f be. Use a m / is / a r e b ein g (c o n ti n u o u s)
w h e r e p ossible; o t h e r w is e use a m / is / a r e (si m p le).
1
2
3
4
I ca n't un derstand w h y kie-’s being so selfish. He isn't usually like that.
Sarah
very nice to me at t h e m o m e nt. I w o n d er why.
Yo u'll like So p hie wh e n yo u m e e t her. She
.......
.
very nice.
You're usually very patient, so w h y
so u nreasona ble a b o ut w aitin g
ten more m in u t es?
5 W h y isn't St e ve at work t o d a y?
ill?
Unit
^5|f
Past simple (I did)
St u d y t his e x a m ple:
Wolf g a n g A m a d e us Mo z art w a s an Austrian
musician and co mposer. He liv e d fro m 1756 to
1791. H e s t a r t e d co m posin g at the age of five
and w r o t e m ore th a n 6 0 0 pieces of music.
He w a s o nly 35 years oLd wh e n he died.
Liv e d / s t a r t e d / w r o t e / w a s / d i e d are all p ast simple.
Very oft e n th e past simple ends in - ed (re g ular verbs):
O I work in a travel a g e ncy now. Bef ore t h a t I w o r k e d in a d e p art m e n t store.
W e in vit e d t h e m t o our party, but t h ey d ecid e d n ot t o co me.
O The police st o p p e d m e on my w a y h o m e last night.
Laura p asse d her e x a m because she st u d ie d very hard.
For spelling (sto p pe d, stu die d etc.), see Ap pendi x 6 .
But m any
w rite
se e
go
sh u t
ver bs are irre g u la r. T h e p ast si m p le d oes n o t e n d in - ed. For e x a m ple:
—> w r o t e
O Mo z art w r o t e m ore th a n 6 0 0 pieces of music,
—> s a w
Q W e s a w Tanya in t o w n a f e w d ays ago.
—> w e n t
I w e n t to th e cin e m a t hree ti m es last week,
—» s h u t
It was cold, so I s h u t th e win dow.
in q u e stio n s a n d n e g a tiv e s w e use d i d / d i d n 't + in fin itiv e (e n j o y / s e e / g o e tc.):
I
she
t h ey
O
3
C
enjoyed
saw
went
did
you
she
t h ey
e n j o y?
s e e?
g o?
I
she
t h ey
d i d n't
enjoy
see
go
a: D i d y o u g o o u t last n i g h t?
b: Yes, I w e n t to th e cine ma, b ut I d i d n't e n j o y th e film much.
‘W h e n did M r T h o m a s d i e ?' ‘A b o u t t e n ye ars ago.'
T h ey d i d n't i n vit e us to th e party, so we d i d n't go.
‘ D id y o u h a v e ti m e t o do t h e sh o p pin g?' ’ N o, I d i d n't .'
In t h e f ollowin g e x a mples, d o is t h e main verb in t h e sente nce (did ... d o / d i d n't do):
W h a t did y o u d o a t t h e w e e k e n d? (n o t W h a t did yo u a t t h e w e e k e n d?)
Q I d i d n 't d o a nyt hin g. (n o t I d id n't a nyt hi n g)
T he p ast of b e (a m / is / a re) is w a s / w e r e :
l / he / she / it
we / yo u / th ey
w a s / w a s n 't
was
were
w e r e / w e r e n 't
l / he / she / it?
w e / y o u / t h ey?
N o t e t h a t w e do not use did in ne gatives and q uestions wit h w a s / w e r e :
I w a s angry because t h e y w e r e late.
O W a s t h e w e a t h e r g o o d w h e n y o u w e r e o n h o lid a y?
T h ey w e r e n 't able to co m e because t h ey w e r e so busy.
Did yo u go o u t last night or w e r e yo u t o o tire d?
10
Past si m ple and past co ntin u o us
U nit 6
Past si m ple and p rese nt p erf ect * > U n its 12 - 14
Exercises
Re a d w h a t Laura says a b o u t a t y p ic a l w o r k in g d ay:
I usually get up at 7 o'clock and have a big breakfast. I walk to work, which
takes me a b out half an hour, I start work at 8,45. I never have Lunch. I finish
work at 5 o'clock. I'm always tired when I get home. I usually cook a meal
in the evening. I d on't usually go out. I go to bed at ab out 11 o'clock, and I
always sleep well.
x—__________________________________________________________________________________
Laura
Y e st e r d a y w a s a t y p ic a l w o r k in g d a y f o r Laura. W r i t e w h a t she did or d id n't do y e st e r d a y.
SVie got wp
1
2 She
3 S h e ..
4 I t .............................
5
6
at 7 o'clock.
a big breakfast.
to get t o work.
at 8.45.
lunch.
7
8
9
10
11
12
at 5 o'clock.
tired wh e n
home,
a m eal yest e r d ay evening.
............................ o ut yest e r d ay evening.
at 11 o'clock.
w e ll last night.
C o m p l e t e t h e se n t e n c e s using t h e f o ll o w i n g ver bs in t h e c o rr e c t f or m :
buy
1
2
3
4
5
6
c a tc h
cost
f a ll
h urt
s e ll
sp e n d
teach
Mo z art wro t e
more than 6 0 0 pieces of music.
'H o w did yo u learn t o d rive?' 'M y fat h er
me.'
W e co uld n't afford t o keep our car, so w e
it.
Dave
d own th e stairs this morning and
j o e .......................... th e ball to Sue, wh o
..................... it.
Ann ...
a lot of m o n e y yester day. She
£ 100 .
throw
Wntc
his Leg.
a dress which
You ask Ja m e s a b o u t his h olid ay. W r i t e y o u r q u estio ns.
Hi. H o w are thin gs?
1
2
3
4
5
6
Fine, than ks. I've j ust had a great holiday.
Wh ere
y ow 9° ?
To t h e U.S. W e w e n t on a trip fro m San Francisco to Denver.
H o w .....
? By car?
Yes, w e hired a car in San Francisco.
It's a long w a y to drive. H o w long
to get to D e nver?
Two weeks.
Wh ere
? tn h o tels?
Yes, s m all h otels or motels.
........................................................... g o o d?
Yes, but it was very hot - so m e ti m es t o o hot.
t h e Gran d C a n yo n?
O f course. It was wo n d erful.
C o m p l e t e t h e se n t e n ces. Pu t t h e ver b in t o t h e c o rr e c t f or m , p ositiv e or n e g a tive.
1 It was war m, so I took o ff my coat, (tak e)
2 The film w a s n't very good. I d u tr) t enjoy it much, (enjoy)
her. (disturb)
3 I k new Sarah was busy, so I
t h e p arty early, (leave)
4 W e were very tired, so we
... welL. (sleep)
5 The bed was very u nco m f orta ble. I
.
into t h e room, (fly)
6 The w in d o w was open and a bird
m uch t o stay there, (cost)
7 The h otel w a s n ’t very e x pensive. It
ti m e t o phone you. (have)
8 I was in a hurry, so I
very heavy, (be)
9 It was hard carrying th e bags. T h ey
Unit
6
. Past continuous (I w as doing)
Study this example situation:
Yest erd ay Karen and Ji m played tennis. T h ey starte d at
10 o'clock and finished at 11.30.
So, at 10.30 t h ey w e r e p la yi n g tennis.
T h ey w e r e p la yi n g = t h ey were in t h e mid dle of playing.
T h ey had not finished playing.
W a s / w e r e -ing is th e p ast continuous:
ru n ~ |iu
--
]
l / he / she / it
we / yo u / th ey
was
were
p la yi n g
d oin g
w orkin g
etc.
I w a s d oin g so m ethin g = I was in t h e mid dle of doing so m e thin g at a certain tim e. The actio n or
situ a tio n had alre a d y starte d before this ti m e, but had n ot finished:
I s t a r t e d d oin g
I
I w a s d oin g
I fi n is h e d d oin g
'
p ast
O This ti m e last ye ar I w a s livin g in Brazil.
W h a t w e r e yo u d oin g at 10 o'clock last nig ht?
I wave d to Helen, but she w a s n 't lo o kin g.
p ast
n ow
C o m p are t h e p ast con tin uo us (I w a s d oin g) and p ast sim ple (t did):
Past continuous (in t h e mid dle of an actio n)
I w a s w a l k i n g h o m e wh e n I m et Dan.
(in th e mid dle of walkin g ho m e)
Kate w a s w a t c h i n g T V wh e n we
arrived.
Past sim ple (co m ple t e actio n)
I w a l k e d h o m e aft er th e p arty last night.
(= all th e way, co m ple t ely)
Kate w a t c h e d televisio n a lot wh e n she
was ill last year.
W e often use t h e past simple and t h e past co ntinu o us to g e t h er to say t h a t so m e thin g hap pened in th e
mid dle of so m e thin g else:
M a tt p h o n e d w hile w e w e r e h a vin g dinner.
It w a s r ain in g w h e n I g o t up.
I s a w you in th e park yesterd ay. You w e r e sit t i n g on th e grass and re a d in g a book.
I h u rt m y back while I w a s w o r k i n g in t h e garden.
Bu t w e use th e past sim ple to say t h a t one thin g hap pened aft er another:
I w a s w a l k i n g alon g th e road wh e n I s a w Dan. So i st o p p e d , and w e h a d a chat.
C o m pare:
W h e n Karen arrived, we w e r e h a vin g
dinner. (= w e had alrea dy started
before she arrived)
U
W h e n Karen arrived, w e h a d dinner.
(= Karen arrived, and th e n we had
dinner)
So m e verbs (for e x a mple, k n o w and w a n t) are not n or m ally used in th e co ntinuo us (see U nit 4A):
W e were good friends. W e k n e w each o t h er well. (n ot W e were k nowing)
I was e njoyin g th e party, but Chris w a n t e d to go ho me. (n ot was wa ntin g)
Exercises
W h a t w e r e y o u d oin g a t t h ese t i m e s? W r i t e s e n t e nc es as in t h e e x a m ples. T h e p ast c o n ti n u o u s
is n o t a l w a y s n e ce ssa ry (se e t h e seco n d e x a m ple).
1 (a t 8 o'cloc k y est er d ay eve nin g)
I w a s h avin g d in n e r . ...... ..................
2 (at 5 o'clock last Mo n d ay)
I w a s on a bus on my w a y home.
3
4
5
6
(a t 10.15 yest e r d ay morning)
(at 4.3 0 this mornin g)
(at 7.45 yest e r d ay evening)
(half an hour ago) .... ..
.......
............
.............
.
................................................................
.............
......
.
.......
Use y o u r o w n id eas t o c o m p l e t e t h e se n t e nces. Use t h e p ast co n ti n u o us.
1 M a tt phoned w hile we w e r e h avin g
2 The d oorb ell rang w hile I
d x n ner
3 The car began to mak e a strange noise wh e n we
4 Jessica fell asleep w hile she
.......
5 The t elevision was on, but n o b o d y ...................
Pu t t h e ver b in t o t h e c o rr e c t f or m , p ast c o n ti n u o u s o r p ast si m ple.
I saw
(see) Sue in t o w n
yesterday, but she
...
(n o t / see) me.
She
(look) th e o th er way.
I
(m e e t)
To m and Ja n e at th e airp ort a
f ew wee ks ago. T hey
(go) to Paris and
I
(go)
to Rome. W e
........ (have)
a ch at w hile we
(w ait) for our flights.
I
(cycle) ho m e
yest e r d ay wh e n a man
(step) o ut
into th e road in front of me. I
(go) q uite fast,
but luckily I ..........................
(m a na ge) to stop in ti m e and
(n o t / hit) him.
Pu t t h e ver b in t o t h e c o rr e c t f or m , p ast co n ti n u o u s or p ast si m ple.
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Je n n y w a s w aitin g (w ait) for me wh e n I a r r i v e d (arrive).
'W h a t
.......
(yo u / do) at this ti m e y e st e r d a y?' 'I was asleep.'
‘
....
(yo u / go) o ut last nig ht?' ‘ No, I was t o o tired.'
H o w fast
(you / drive) w h e n t h e accid e nt
(h a p p e n)?
Sa m
......................................
(ta k e) a picture of m e while I
(n ot / look).
W e were in a very difficult position. W e
(n ot / k now) w h a t to do.
I h ave n't seen Alan for ages. W h e n I last
...
(see) him, he
(try) t o find a job.
I
.......
.
... (wal k) alon g th e stre et w h e n su d d e nly I
(hear) f ootste ps behind me. So m e b o d y
(f o llo w) me. I was
scared and I
(start) to run.
W h e n I was young, I ..............................
(w a n t) to be apilot.
Last night I ...
...(drop) aplate wh e n !
(do) the
washing - up. F ort u n ately it
(n o t / b r e a k).
-» A d d i t i o n a l e x ercis e 1 (p a g e 3 0 2)
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