Present Simple (am/is/are, Do/Does) – Grammar Exercises for A1
Grammar » Grammar Exercises for A1 » Simple Present Tense – English Grammar Exercises for A1
You are at school/work and need to confirm your schedule for today and tomorrow with a colleague or teacher. You want to make sure you know exactly when things start and finish so you aren’t late.
Read the conversation below and choose the best option (A, B, or C) to complete each blank.
1 Excuse me, what time _____ it right now?
(A) does
(B) is
(C) are
2 I _____ a very important class this morning.
(A) have
(B) has
(C) haves
3 _____ you busy this afternoon? I need to check our schedule.
(A) Is
(B) Do
(C) Are
4 My first English lesson _____ at 9:00 a.m.
(A) starts
(B) start
(C) is start
5 What time _____ the team meeting tomorrow?
(A) does
(B) are
(C) is
6 _____ the company bus arrive at 8:15 a.m. every day?
(A) Is
(B) Does
(C) Do
7 Oh no, we are late! The train _____ wait for anyone.
(A) don’t
(B) isn’t
(C) doesn’t
8 What time _____ we finish the afternoon workshop?
(A) do
(B) does
(C) are
9 The lunch break _____ for exactly 45 minutes.
(A) last
(B) lasts
(C) is last
10 _____ Mr. Smith teach the advanced group on Mondays?
(A) Does
(B) Is
(C) Do
11 Yes, he _____. His class is always in Room 302
(A) do
(B) is
(C) does
12 Don’t worry, we _____ late for the presentation. It starts at 10:30
(A) aren’t
(B) don’t
(C) isn’t
13 What time _____ the library open on weekdays?
(A) is
(B) do
(C) does
14 The final exams _____ next week, so the schedule is very tight.
(A) are
(B) is
(C) do
15 I need to check carefully because everyone _____ a different schedule today.
(A) have
(B) has
(C) haves
16 The manager’s flight _____ at 6:00 p.m., so he must leave early.
(A) usually leaves
(B) leaves usually
(C) is usually leave
17 The new training sessions _____ until Friday.
(A) doesn’t start
(B) aren’t start
(C) don’t start
18 How long _____ the journey to the conference center take?
(A) does
(B) is
(C) do
19 It _____ about 30 minutes by taxi.
(A) take
(B) takes
(C) is take
20 Does the director _____ to change the meeting time to tomorrow afternoon?
(A) wants
(B) wanting
(C) want
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 B
- Why it’s correct: “It” is a singular subject representing time, so we use the “to be” verb “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option A “does” requires a main action verb. Option C “are” is for plural subjects.
2 A
- Why it’s correct: The subject “I” takes the base form “have”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option B “has” is for he/she/it. Option C “haves” is not a real word.
3 C
- Why it’s correct: “Busy” is an adjective. To ask a question with an adjective and the subject “you”, we use “Are”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option B “Do” is a very common trap; learners often forget that adjectives require the “to be” verb. Option A “Is” is for he/she/it.
4 A
- Why it’s correct: “My first English lesson” is a singular event (it), so we add “-s” to the action verb: “starts”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option B misses the “-s”. Option C mixes “to be” and an action verb, which is a structural error.
5 C
- Why it’s correct: “The team meeting” is a singular noun (it), and we are asking for its time/status. We need the “to be” verb “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option A “does” is a common mistake; learners use it thinking about the action of the meeting, but there is no action verb here (like start or end). Option B “are” is for plurals.
6 B
- Why it’s correct: “The company bus” is a singular subject (it), and “arrive” is an action verb. We use the auxiliary “Does” for the question.
- Why the others are wrong: Option A “Is” cannot be used with the action verb “arrive”. Option C “Do” is for plural subjects.
7 C
- Why it’s correct: “The train” is a singular subject (it), so the negative auxiliary is “doesn’t”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option A “don’t” is for plural subjects. Option B “isn’t” incorrectly mixes “to be” with the action verb “wait”.
8 A
- Why it’s correct: “We” is a plural subject. To ask a question with the action verb “finish”, we use “do”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option B “does” is for singular subjects. Option C “are” is a structural error when used with a base action verb.
9 B
- Why it’s correct: “The lunch break” is singular (it), so the verb “last” needs an “-s” → “lasts”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option A misses the “-s”. Option C incorrectly mixes “to be” with an action verb.
10 A
- Why it’s correct: “Mr. Smith” is singular (he), and “teach” is an action verb. We use “Does”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option C “Do” is for plural subjects. Option B “Is” cannot be used with the base verb “teach”.
11 C
- Why it’s correct: Short answers match the auxiliary used in the question (“Does Mr. Smith…?”). So, “Yes, he does.”
- Why the others are wrong: Option A “do” is for I/you/we/they. Option B “is” is incorrect because the question didn’t ask “Is he…”.
12 A
- Why it’s correct: “Late” is an adjective. For the subject “we”, the negative “to be” verb is “aren’t”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option B “don’t” is a common mistake when learners forget that “late” is an adjective, not an action verb. Option C “isn’t” is for singular subjects.
13 C
- Why it’s correct: “The library” is a singular subject (it), and “open” acts as an action verb here. We use “does”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option A “is” is a common mistake because “open” can sometimes be an adjective, but in the phrase “What time does it open?”, it functions as a verb. Option B “do” is for plurals.
14 A
- Why it’s correct: “The final exams” is plural (they), so we use the “to be” verb “are”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option B “is” is a trap if learners don’t notice the plural “-s” on “exams”. Option C “do” requires a main action verb.
15 B
- Why it’s correct: The pronoun “everyone” is always grammatically singular (like he/she/it), so we use “has”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option A “have” is a common logic trap; learners think “everyone” means a lot of people, so they use the plural form. Option C does not exist.
16 A
- Why it’s correct: Adverbs of frequency (usually) go before the main action verb. “Flight” is singular, so it’s “usually leaves”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option B places the adverb in the wrong position. Option C is a structural error mixing “is” with an action verb.
17 C
- Why it’s correct: “Training sessions” is plural (they), so the negative auxiliary is “don’t”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option A “doesn’t” is a mistake if the learner misses the plural “-s” on “sessions”. Option B “aren’t” cannot be used with the action verb “start”.
18 A
- Why it’s correct: “The journey” is a singular subject (it), and “take” is the action verb. We use “does”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option C “do” is for plural subjects. Option B “is” cannot be used with the base verb “take”.
19 B
- Why it’s correct: “It” is a singular subject, so the action verb needs an “-s”: “takes”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option A misses the “-s”. Option C mixes “to be” with an action verb.
20 C
- Why it’s correct: After the auxiliary “Does”, the main action verb MUST return to its base form (“want”).
- Why the others are wrong: Option A “wants” is a very common mistake where the learner leaves the 3rd person “-s” on the main verb even in a question. Option B is the continuous form.
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
- The “Timetable Future”: Even if a meeting, flight, or class is happening tomorrow or next week, we use the Present Simple because the schedule is fixed. (e.g., The flight leaves at 6:00 p.m. tomorrow.)
- Asking for the time: If there is no action verb, use is/are (What time is the meeting? When are the exams?).
- Asking about actions: If there is an action verb like start, end, finish, arrive, or leave, you MUST use do/does (What time does it start? When do we finish?).
- “Late” is an adjective: Never say “I don’t late”. Always use the “to be” verb: I am not late, We aren’t late, She isn’t late.
- Watch out for plural nouns: Words like sessions, exams, or lessons are plural (They). Use are, do, or don’t with them.