Present Simple — Negatives & Questions

A1 — grammar, listening, reading, writing

Common mistake: “Does she works here?” — Correct: “Does she work here?”

To make negatives and questions in the present simple we use do/does + the base verb (no '-s'): the '-s' goes onto 'does'.

do / does in negatives and questions
SubjectNegativeQuestion
I / You / We / Theydon't workDo you work?
He / She / Itdoesn't workDoes she work?

Practice

  1. ___ Sofía work in Medellín? (Do, Does, Is)
  2. Ben ___ like tea. (don't, doesn't, isn't)
  3. After 'do' or 'does', the verb has no '-s': 'Does she work?', not 'Does she works?'.
  4. ___ you like coffee? No, I don't.
  5. Kenji ___ not speak Spanish very well.
  6. Unscramble: you, Do, English, speak, ?
  7. Find the mistake: He don't like coffee.
  8. Sofía likes her job. — Make it negative (use 'does not').
  9. You speak English. — Turn it into a question (use 'do').
  10. Do you speak English? (Answer: Yes, I do. / No, I don't.)

Listening

Kenji: Do you like Colombian coffee, Ben?

Ben: No, I don't! I prefer tea.

Kenji: Really? Does Sofía drink coffee?

Ben: Yes, she does. She drinks it every morning.

Kenji: And you? Do you cook?

Ben: No, I don't cook. I eat at restaurants!

Reading

Ben does not like coffee, but he loves tea. Every morning he asks Sofía, 'Do you want tea?' Sofía always says, 'No, thanks. I don't drink tea; I drink coffee.' They laugh. Kenji doesn't drink either — he prefers water. Do they agree on anything? Yes, they do: they all love arepas!

← → · F fullscreen