Prezentul Continuu ( Present Continuous)

A. Study this example :


Ann is in her car. She is on her way to work.
She is driving to work.
This means: she is driving now, at the time of speaking. The action is not finished.
Am/is/are ~ing is the present continuous:
I am(= I'm) driving
he/she/it is(he's etc.) working
we/you/they are(we're etc.) doing etc.


B. I am doing something = I'm in the middle of doing something; I've started doing it and I haven't finished yet.
Often the action is happening at the time of speaking:
* Please don't make so much noise. I'm working. (not 'I work')
* 'Where's Elena?' 'She's having a bath.' (not 'she has a bath')
* Let's go out now. It isn't raining any more. (not 'it doesn't rain')
* (at a party) Hello, Andreea. Are you enjoying the party? (not 'do you enjoy')
* I'm tired. I'm going to bed now. Goodnight!


But the action is not necessarily happening at the time of speaking. For example:
Ionut and Ana are talking in a cafe. Tom says:
Ionut: I'm reading an interesting book at the moment. IT lend it to you when I've finished it.
Ionut is not reading the book at the time of speaking. He means that he has started it but not finished it yet. He is in the middle of reading it.


Some more examples:
* Catalina wants to work in Spain, so she is learning Spanish. (but perhaps she isn't learning Spanish exactly at the time of speaking)
* Some friends of mine are building their own house. They hope it will be finished before next summer.


C. We use the present continuous when we talk about things happening in a period around now (for example, today/this week/this evening etc.):
* 'You're working hard today.' 'Yes, I have a lot to do.' (not 'you work hard today')
* 'Is Sabina working this week?' 'No, she's on holiday.'
We use the present continuous when we talk about changes happening around now:
* The population of the world is rising very fast. (not 'rises')
* Is your English getting better? (not 'does your English get better')

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Present Simple ( Prezentul Simplu)

    A. Study this example situation:

 Alex is a bus driver, but now he is in bed asleep. So: He is not driving a bus. (He is asleep.) but He drives a bus. (He is a bus driver.)

  
Drive(s)/work(s)/do(es) etc. is the present simple:

  I/we/you/they  drive/work/do etc.

he/she/it  drives/works/does etc.

    B. We use the present simple to talk about things in general. We are not thinking only about now. We use it to say that something happens all the time or repeatedly, or that something is true in general. It is not important whether the action is happening at the time of speaking:

  
  * Nurses took after patients in hospitals.

  * I usually go away at weekends.

  * The earth goes round the sun.

*Remember that we say: he/she/it -s. Don't forget the s:

  I work ... but He works ... They teach ... but My sister teaches ...
    

C. We use do/does to make questions and negative sentences:

  
do I/we/you/they work?/come?/do?

does he/she/it work?/come?/do?

I/we/you/they don't work/come/do

he/she/it doesn't work/come/do

  
  * I come from Romania. Where do you come from?
  * 'Would you like a cigarette?' 'No, thanks. I don't smoke.'

  * What does this word mean? (not 'What means this word?')

  * Rice doesn't grow in cold climates.

 In the following examples do is also the main verb:

  * 'What do you do?' (= What's your job?) 'I work in a shop.'

  * He's so lazy. He doesn't do anything to help me. (not 'He doesn't anything')

    
D. We use the present simple when we say how often we do things:

  
  * I get up at 8 o'clock every morning. (not 'I'm getting')

  * How often do you go to the dentist? (not 'How often are you going?')

  * Ann doesn't drink tea very often.

  * In summer John usually plays tennis once or twice a week.

    E. I promise/I apologise etc.

  
Sometimes we do things by saying something. For example, when you promise to do something, you can say 'I promise ...'; when you suggest something, you can say I suggest ...'. We use the present simple (promise/suggest etc.) in sentences like this:

  * I promise I won't be late. (not 'I'm promising')

  * 'What do you suggest I do?' 'I suggest that you ...'

  In the same way we say: I apologise .../I advise .../I insist .../I agree ... /I refuse ... etc.

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