THE USES OF THE PRESENT AND PAST TENSESs

217The Simple Present is used

(1) To express a habitual action as:

drinks tea every morning

My watch keeps good time

(2) To express general truths ; as

The sun rises in the east

Honey is sweet

Fortune favours the brave

(3) In exclamatory sentences beginning with here and there to

express what is actually taking place in the present as

Here comes the hus

There she goes !

(4) In vivid narrative, as substitute for the Simple Past :

Soharab now rushes forward and deals a heavy iow so Rasam.

Immediately the Sultan hurries to his capital.

(5) To express a future event that is part of a fixed timetable or

fixed programme

The next flight is at 7.00 tomarrow morning

The match starts at 9 o'clock.

The train leaves at 5.20.

When does the coffee house reopen?

218. Note also the other uses of the Simple Present Tense.

(1) It is used to introduce quotations ; as

Keals says, A thing of beauly is a joy for ever

(2) lt is used, instead of the Simple Future Tense, in clauses of

lime and of condition ; as.

I shall wait till you finish your lunch

(3) As in broadeast commentaries on sporting events, the Simple

Present is used, instead of the Present Continuous, to describe acti

where there is stress on the succession of bhapns

ather than on the duration

(4) The Simple Present is used, instead of the Pse

with the type of verbs referred to in 231 u h