Spanish present tense verb forms may be translated to English in a variety of ways. For example, the yo form of the verb hablar is hablo. It may be translated to English as:
I speak
customary action
I am speaking
action in progress
I do speak
emphatic form
I will speak
near future action
do I speak
interrogative form
I have been speaking
action started in the past but still in progrerss
In Spanish, the Present Tense indicates the current time; however, sometimes there are actions or states that are not in the present.
habitual present -it happens habitually. Juan se afeita todos los días.
Juan shaves every day.
current present -the actions is happening right now. Mis amigos están en clase ahora.
My friends are in class right now. Estoy escribiendo.
I am writing.
universal present -the statement is always true. El perro está siguiendo al gato.
The dog is chasing the cat.
present by future -it will happen in the near future but the verb is in the present tense. Nos vamos de vacaciones en julio.
We are going on vacation in July.
historical present -the action was in the past but it´s told in the present time. Ayer comí pastel y, cuál es mi sorpresa, que veo una mosca dentro de él.
Yesterday I ate a piece of cake, and to my surprise I see a fly inside it.
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