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 walking down the street in your city. A foreign tourist stops you to ask for directions to the main train station. You explain the route step-by-step.
Read the conversation below and choose the best option (A, B, or C) to complete each blank.
Tourist: Excuse me, (1) _____ you speak English?
(A) Are
(B) Do
(C) Does
Local: Yes, I (2) _____. How can I help you today?
(A) do
(B) am
(C) are
Tourist: I (3) _____ lost. Where is the main train station, please?
(A) is
(B) are
(C) am
Local: Don’t worry. It (4) _____ not very far from here.
(A) is
(B) does
(C) are
Local: First, you (5) _____ straight down this street for 200 meters.
(A) go
(B) goes
(C) are go
Tourist: (6) _____ I need to take a bus?
(A) Am
(B) Does
(C) Do
Local: No, you (7) _____. You can easily walk there.
(A) don’t
(B) aren’t
(C) doesn’t
Local: You (8) _____ past the big supermarket on your left.
(A) walks
(B) walk
(C) are walk
Local: The supermarket (9) _____ a large red sign, so it is easy to see.
(A) have
(B) haves
(C) has
Local: After that, you (10) _____ a large green park.
(A) see
(B) sees
(C) seeing
Local: The park (11) _____ very beautiful, but you don’t go inside it.
(A) does
(B) is
(C) are
Local: At the corner, the road (12) _____ into two smaller streets.
(A) divide
(B) is divide
(C) divides
Local: You (13) _____ the street on the right.
(A) takes
(B) take
(C) taking
Tourist: (14) _____ the station next to the park?
(A) Does
(B) Do
(C) Is
Local: No, it (15) _____. It is behind the post office.
(A) isn’t
(B) doesn’t
(C) aren’t
Local: A lot of people (16) _____ lost at this corner, so just follow the signs.
(A) get
(B) gets
(C) is get
Local: You wait until the traffic light (17) _____ green, and then you cross the road.
(A) turn
(B) turns
(C) is turn
Tourist: Thank you! By the way, what time (18) _____ the last train leave?
(A) does
(B) is
(C) do
Local: It leaves at 11:00 p.m., so you (19) _____ plenty of time.
(A) have
(B) has
(C) are have
Local: Everyone in this town (20) _____ very friendly, so just ask if you need more help!
(A) are
(B) do
(C) is
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 B
- Why it’s correct: To ask a question with the subject “you” and the action verb “speak”, we must use the auxiliary “Do”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option A “Are” cannot be used with a base action verb. Option C “Does” is only for he/she/it.
2 A
- Why it’s correct: In short answers, we match the auxiliary from the question (“Do you…”). So, “Yes, I do.”
- Why the others are wrong: Option B “am” is wrong because the question didn’t ask “Are you…”. Option C is for plural subjects or “you”.
3 C
- Why it’s correct: “Lost” functions as an adjective here. With the subject “I”, we use the “to be” verb “am” (I am lost).
- Why the others are wrong: Options A and B do not match the subject “I”.
4 A
- Why it’s correct: “It” (the station) is a singular subject describing a location/state, so we use the “to be” verb “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option B “does” requires an action verb. Option C “are” is for plural subjects.
5 A
- Why it’s correct: For the subject “you”, the action verb “go” stays in its base form.
- Why the others are wrong: Option B “goes” is only for he/she/it. Option C mixes the “to be” verb with an action verb, which is a structural error.
6 C
- Why it’s correct: To ask a question with “I” and the action verb “need”, we use the auxiliary “Do”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option A “Am” cannot be used with the action verb “need”. Option B “Does” is for he/she/it.
7 A
- Why it’s correct: The question is “Do I need…?”, so the negative reply for “you” is “No, you don’t.”
- Why the others are wrong: Option B “aren’t” is wrong because the main verb is an action (need). Option C “doesn’t” is for singular 3rd person subjects.
8 B
- Why it’s correct: For the subject “you”, the action verb “walk” stays in its base form.
- Why the others are wrong: Option A “walks” is a common trap if the learner thinks of the singular “supermarket”, but the subject here is “you”. Option C mixes “are” with an action verb.
9 C
- Why it’s correct: “The supermarket” is a singular subject (it). The 3rd person singular form of “have” is “has”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option A “have” is for I/you/we/they. Option B “haves” is not a real word in English.
10 A
- Why it’s correct: “You” takes the base form of the verb “see”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option B “sees” is for he/she/it. Option C is the continuous form without a “to be” verb.
11 B
- Why it’s correct: “The park” is a singular subject (it), and “beautiful” is an adjective. We use “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option A “does” is a common error when learners forget that adjectives need the “to be” verb. Option C “are” is for plural subjects.
12 C
- Why it’s correct: “The road” is a singular subject (it), so we add “-s” to the action verb → “divides”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option A misses the “-s”. Option B incorrectly mixes “is” with an action verb.
13 B
- Why it’s correct: The subject is “You”, so the verb “take” remains in its base form.
- Why the others are wrong: Option A “takes” is for he/she/it. Option C “taking” requires a “to be” verb.
14 C
- Why it’s correct: We are asking about the location of “the station” (singular). There is no action verb, so we use “Is”.
- Why the others are wrong: Options A and B (“Does/Do”) are used when there is a main action verb in the question (like go, turn, walk).
15 A
- Why it’s correct: The question was “Is the station…?”, so the short negative answer must be “No, it isn’t.”
- Why the others are wrong: Option B “doesn’t” is used for action verbs. Option C “aren’t” is for plural subjects.
16 A
- Why it’s correct: “People” is a plural noun (they), so the verb “get” stays in its base form.
- Why the others are wrong: Option B “gets” is a very common mistake because learners often treat “people” as singular. Option C is a structural error.
17 B
- Why it’s correct: “The traffic light” is a singular subject (it), so we add “-s” to the verb → “turns”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option A misses the “-s”. Option C mixes “is” with an action verb.
18 A
- Why it’s correct: “The last train” is singular (it), and “leave” is an action verb. We use the auxiliary “does”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option B “is” cannot be used with the action verb “leave”. Option C “do” is for plural subjects.
19 A
- Why it’s correct: “You” takes the base form of the verb “have”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option B “has” is for he/she/it. Option C is a structural error mixing “to be” and an action verb.
20 C
- Why it’s correct: The pronoun “Everyone” is grammatically singular, so we use “is” with the adjective “friendly”.
- Why the others are wrong: Option A “are” is a logic trap (everyone implies many people, but grammar treats it as a single unit). Option B “do” cannot link a subject to an adjective.
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
- Soft Instructions: Instead of saying “Go straight, then turn left” (which can sound like a strict command), you can say “You go straight, then you turn left.” This uses the Present Simple to make the directions sound friendly and helpful.
- Locations and Landmarks: When describing buildings or streets, treat them as “It”.
- Use is/are for descriptions (The park is green, the streets are small).
- Add -s/-es to action verbs (The road turns left, the sign says ‘Stop’).
- People is Plural: Remember that the word people equals they. Never add an “-s” to the verb after “people” (People get lost, NOT People gets lost).
- Asking for the way: * If using an action verb: “How do I get to the station?”
- If asking for location: “Where is the station?”