The simple present and present progressive in narration

When we are telling a story or describing things that have happened to us, we often use present tenses (even though the events are in the past) in order to sound more interesting and dramatic. The progressive is used for 'background' and the simple tense for the main events: I'm driving along this country road and I'm completely lost Then I see this old fellow He s leaning against a gate I stop the car and ask him the way He thinks a bit then says, 'Well, if I were you, I wouldn't start from here '

The simple present in demonstrations and instructions

This use of the simple present is an alternative to the imperative [>

9.51]. It illustrates step-by-step instructions: First (you) boil some water Then (you) warm the teapot Then (you) add three teaspoons of tea Next, (you) pour on boiling water

The simple present in synopses (e.g. reviews of books, films, etc.)

Kate Fox's novel is an historical romance set in London in the 1880's The action takes place over a period of 30 years

9.12.5 The simple present and present progressive in newspaper
headlines and e.g. photographic captions

The simple present is generally used to refer to past events:

FREAK SNOW STOPS TRAFFIC

DISARMAMENT TALKS BEGIN IN VIENNA The abbreviated progressive refers to the future. The infinitive can also be used for this purpose [> 9.48.1]:

CABINET MINISTER RESIGNING SOON (or: TO RESIGN SOON)

The simple past tense

Form of the simple past tense with regular verbs

The form is the same for all persons [> App 39].

Pronunciation spelling

	played	Id I	arrive/arrived
He	arrived	IdI	wait/waited
She	worked	ltl	stop/stopped
	dreamed/dreamt	/dri:md/or/dremt/	occur/occurred
	posted	/id/	cry/cried
You
They