Chapter 1 - B1 English Grammar – Present Tenses Review – Ex 01

The Four Present Tenses

• Present Simple: habits, routines, general truths (I work. Water boils at 100°C.)
• Present Continuous: actions happening now or temporary situations (I’m studying. She’s living in Berlin.)
• Present Perfect: life experiences or actions that started in the past and continue (I’ve visited Paris. We’ve lived here for years.)
• Present Perfect Continuous: emphasis on duration of a recent or ongoing action (I’ve been waiting for 20 minutes.)

Key tip: Look at time words—they often tell you which tense to use.

Frequent B1 Errors to Avoid

• ❌ I am knowing the answer. → ✅ I know the answer. (Stative verbs like know, like, need don’t use continuous tenses)
• ❌ I have seen her yesterday. → ✅ I saw her yesterday. (No Present Perfect with finished time words like yesterday)
• ❌ She go to school. → ✅ She goes to school. (Don’t forget -s for he/she/it in Present Simple)
• ❌ I have been knowing her. → ✅ I have known her. (Stative verbs don’t work in Perfect Continuous)

Time Words = Tense Clues

When to Use Each Tense:

correct “I’ve lived here for five years.” (still living here)
incorrect “I have lived here in 2020.” (use Past Simple with finished time)

How This Quiz Works

• 20 questions randomly selected from a pool of 50
• Tests identification and correct use of all four present tenses
• Hints guide you without giving the answer
• Immediate feedback with specific explanations
• Click “Check Answers” to see the full answer key
• “Change Questions” gives you a new quiz