#Ep. 15 Mastering Present Tense (Part 2- Negatives) : Simple Present and Present Continuous Explained

Unlock the secrets of mastering English negatives as we journey through the complexities of the present tense together. Ever wondered why we say "I do not like coffee" but "He does not eat meat"? We promise a deeper understanding of this distinction, guiding you through forming negatives in both the simple present and present continuous tenses. Discover practical examples and tips that will make these concepts second nature, ensuring you can express habits, routines, and ongoing actions with absolute confidence.

As we progress, transform your learning with engaging activities designed to reinforce your newfound knowledge. You'll craft sentences that mirror real-life scenarios, capturing both daily routines and current actions. Feel free to showcase your creativity on TikTok or connect with our vibrant community on YouTube and Patreon at Learn English with Natalie. For reading enthusiasts, we offer exclusive content on modern and classic English novels through our Patreon. Don't miss out on the chance to enrich your English proficiency and ensure you're prepared for next week's exciting exploration of English tenses.

Chapters

• 0:00 Mastering Present Tense Negatives
• 7:07 English Learning Activity and Content Access

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Are you looking to further your understanding of how to use the different tenses in English? Then welcome to Learn English with Natalie. This is the channel for you. This week, I am continuing our journey on exploring the tenses and we're going to focus on the present tense. So this is part two of me covering the present tense for you.

Speaker 1: 0:22

The present tense is essential for us when we are discussing facts, habits, routines and ongoing actions. Mastering the present tense helps you to communicate clearly and fluently, and you'll feel so confident when you do this. Last episode we discussed the simple present tense and the continuous present tense, so make sure you check that out so that you've got a really good understanding of how to use the present tense in different ways. Today, our new learning will be forming negatives in the present tense. Now we're going to start off by forming negatives in the present tense, using the simple present tense. So we're going to be describing habits and routines first of all. To do this, we use the word do or the word does. Now that will change depending on what we're talking about. So we use do, and then the word not plus the base verb comes at the end, so it might be do not verb or does not verb. Here are some examples I do not like coffee, now do not. You can also change to don't. You can shorten it for your informal language If you're interested in formal versus informal language.

Speaker 1: 1:39

I did an episode on this a couple of weeks ago, so go and check that out Now. For this sentence we've used the contraction don't. I do not, don't, I don't like coffee, so you will choose. You will either say do not or don't. I do not like coffee. Here's another example he does not eat meat, so my subject is he. He does not eat meat, so my subject is he. I use the word does, then not eat meat. In the first example it was I do not like coffee, so when I'm talking about myself, I use the word do. If I was talking about him, he, I use the word does. Here's my top tip for learning English this week when you are forming negatives in the present tense, if you are talking about I, you or they, you use the word do. If you were talking about she or he, you say does.

Speaker 1: 2:42

We're going to have a look at some more examples now to make this a bit clearer for you. Here's our practice round. We're going to do a. My turn, your turn format, so that you can practice using these types of sentences. I do not eat fast food often. Your turn, wonderful. She does not like chocolate. Your turn, fantastic. Now notice, because I said she, I used the word does instead of do. Next sentence my turn. They do not study on Sundays. Your turn, fantastic. Now I'm using the word they, so I use the word do instead of does. We only use does for she and he. My turn. He does not drive to work. Your turn, wonderful. And finally, we do not watch horror movies. Your turn, excellent.

Speaker 1: 3:54

Now we're going to have a look at forming negatives in the present continuous, which is describing actions happening right now. To do this, we use the following structure we use the word am or is or are, depending on what our subject is, plus the word not, and then the verb ending in ing. So I'm going to show you an example now. I, I'm the subject, I am, so I've used the word am because I'm using I, I am, I am not, I am not going. My verb is go, so I add ing. I am not, I am not going, my verb is go, so I add ing. I am not going to the party, I am not going to the party Now. I'm going to talk about she, so I'm not going to use the word am. Instead, I'm going to use the word is. She is not working today. She is not working today. So here's a top tip for remembering English If you use the word I, you use am, I am.

Speaker 1: 5:14

If you're talking about he, she or it, you use the word is.

Speaker 1: 5:19

If you are talking about you, we or they, you use the word are. So am we use with I. I am a teacher, I am excited about the trip. I am not ready yet. When we use the word is, we use it with he, she or it, or singular nouns. For example, she is my best friend. The dog is in the garden. Singular noun dog. The dog is in the garden. He is not feeling well today. And if we are talking about you, we or they, we use the word are A-R-E. Or if we're talking about plural nouns, here's an example. You are very kind, we are learning English. They are not here yet.

Speaker 1: 6:21

Let's practice reading some sentences. My turn. I am not reading a book right now. Your turn, excellent. She is not watching TV at the moment. Your turn, brilliant. They are not playing football outside. Your turn Excellent. He is not cooking dinner this evening. Your turn, brilliant. Is not cooking dinner this evening your turn, brilliant. We are not studying for the exam your turn Wonderful.

Speaker 1: 7:07

Now it's activity time. Your activity for this week is to write five sentences. I want you to write three sentences using the simple present so daily routines or facts and two sentences using the present continuous, so talking about actions. Right now, if you are feeling confident enough to share your work, you can tag me on TikTok, and I'm also available on YouTube at Learn English with Natalie. I'm also available on Patreon at Learn English with Natalie.

Speaker 1: 7:39

Now, if you are a reading fanatic like me, then I want you to stick around and listen to this. If you love reading books and you are interested in learning English through stories, then you may want to consider joining my Patreon, where I will deliver exclusive content to you every single week. I will be diving into modern and classic English novels to take your English learning even further and have some enjoyment while you're doing that. If you're interested, please check out my information in the show notes and in my bios. I would love to have you there. Thank you so much for joining me today and make sure you subscribe so that you can join me next week when we cover more learning on the English tenses. See you then.