English for Beginners: Basic Verbs (go, eat, drink, play)

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Welcome to the wonderful world of English verbs! “Go,” “eat,” “drink,” and “play” are fundamental verbs that beginners learn early on. They are essential for describing everyday actions, activities, and desires. Mastering these verbs will allow you to form simple yet meaningful sentences about what you do, what you like, and what your plans are. Think of them as tiny, powerful words that unlock countless possibilities for communication!

Key Phrases

• go: To move from one place to another.

  Example: “I want to go to the store.”

• eat: To put food into your mouth, chew it, and swallow it.

  Example: “Let’s eat dinner together tonight.”

• drink: To take liquid into your mouth and swallow it.

  Example: “He likes to drink a lot of water.”

• play: To engage in an activity for enjoyment and recreation, or to participate in a game or sport.

  Example: “They often play soccer in the park.”

Grammar Points

Simple Present Tense for Basic Verbs

We often use “go,” “eat,” “drink,” and “play” in the simple present tense to talk about:

• Habits or routines: things you do regularly.
• General truths: facts that are always true.
• Scheduled events: things that happen at a specific time.

Forming the Simple Present:

The form of the verb changes depending on the subject (who is doing the action).

• For I, You, We, They: Use the base form of the verb.
  • I go to school.
  • You eat breakfast.
  • We drink tea.
  • They play games.
• For He, She, It: Add -s or -es to the base form.
  • He goes to work. (add -es to ‘go’)
  • She eats an apple. (add -s to ‘eat’)
  • It drinks milk. (add -s to ‘drink’, for an animal)
  • He plays the guitar. (add -s to ‘play’)

Questions and Negative Sentences:

To ask questions or make negative sentences in the simple present, we use “do” or “does.”

• With I, You, We, They:
  • Question: Do you go to the park?
  • Negative: I do not (don’t) eat meat.
• With He, She, It:
  • Question: Does she drink coffee? (NOT “Does she drinks coffee?”)
  • Negative: He does not (doesn’t) play sports. (NOT “He doesn’t plays sports.”)

Practice Exercises

Exercise 1: Fill in the blank with the correct verb (go, eat, drink, play).

1. I want to _______ some water.
2. Let’s _______ to the cinema tonight.
3. They _______ football every Sunday.
4. She likes to _______ apples for a snack.

Answers:

1. drink
2. go
3. play
4. eat

Exercise 2: Choose the correct form of the verb (simple present tense).

1. He often (go / goes) to the gym.
2. We (eat / eats) dinner at 7 PM.
3. My cat (drink / drinks) milk every morning.
4. She (play / plays) the piano very well.
5. They (go / goes) to bed early.

Answers:

1. He often goes to the gym.
2. We eat dinner at 7 PM.
3. My cat drinks milk every morning.
4. She plays the piano very well.
5. They go to bed early.

Exercise 3: Make a sentence using the given verb.

1. (go)
2. (eat)
3. (drink)
4. (play)

Possible Answers: (Your sentences might be different, and that’s okay!)

1. I often go to the library on Saturdays.
2. We eat pizza for lunch sometimes.
3. He wants to drink a glass of water.
4. They play video games after school.