Meanings
plural simple presents
- uncountableusuallygrammarThe present tense; a verb or sentence in this tense.
Synonyms: present simple, present indefinite
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThe present tense; a verb or sentence in this tense.
More synonyms by meaning
nounthe tense that is used to refer to events, actions, and conditions that are happening all the time, or exist now.
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
From simple (“accompanied by no modal or auxiliary verb”) + present (“current time”).
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Chinese Mandarin 一般現在時 /一般现在时
- 一般現在時 /一般现在时 (yībān xiànzàishí)present tense
Dutch onvoltooid tegenwoordige tijd v O.V.T.
- onvoltooid tegenwoordige tijd v O.V.T.present tense
Finnish preesens
- preesenspresent tense
French indicatif présent, présent
- indicatif présentpresent tense
- présentpresent tense
German Gegenwart
- Gegenwartpresent tense
Italian presente indicativo, indicativo presente
- presente indicativopresent tense
- indicativo presentepresent tense
Persian حال ساده
- حال ساده (hâl-e sâde)present tense
Polish czas teraźniejszy prosty
- czas teraźniejszy prostypresent tense
Spanish presente
- presentepresent tense
Vietnamese thì hiện tại đơn
- thì hiện tại đơnpresent tense
Cite this entry
simple present. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/simple%20present
“simple present.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/simple%20present. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “simple present,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/simple%20present.
Source: simple present on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.