Travel Grammar: Simple vs Progressive

Simple vs Progressive: The Traveler's Choice

Learn to distinguish between your travel habits and what you are doing right now.

Grammar Explanation

Feature Present Simple Present Progressive
Focus Routine / Permanent Action in progress / Temporary
Example I take photos on every trip. I am taking a photo right now.

Also includes Past Tenses and Present Perfect for advanced review.

Score: 0 / 25

1. He usually ______ breakfast at 7. (simple present: routine) Er frühstückt gewöhnlich um 7 Uhr.

a) has b) had

2. Look! He ______ breakfast now. (present progressive: happening now) Guck mal! Er frühstückt gerade.

a) has b) is having

3. Yesterday she ______ to Cologne. (simple past: finished action) Gestern fuhr sie nach Köln.

a) went b) has gone

4. She ______ to Cologne three times. (present perfect: life experience) Sie ist dreimal nach Köln gefahren.

a) was b) has been

5. We ______ TV when the phone rang. (past progressive: action in progress in the past) Wir sahen gerade fern, als das Telefon klingelte.

a) were watching b) watched

6. I ______ my keys. I can’t find them. (present perfect: result now) Ich habe meine Schlüssel verloren. Ich kann sie nicht finden.

a) lost b) have lost

7. They always ______ coffee in the morning. (simple present: habit) Sie trinken morgens immer Kaffee.

a) drink b) are drinking

8. At the moment she ______ for her exam. (present progressive: now) Im Moment lernt sie für ihre Prüfung.

a) studies b) is studying

9. Last night I ______ very badly. (simple past: finished time) Letzte Nacht habe ich sehr schlecht geschlafen.

a) slept b) have slept

10. I ______ this film before. (present perfect: before / experience) Ich habe diesen Film schon einmal gesehen.

a) have seen b) saw

11. The children ______ outside when it started to rain. (past progressive: interrupted action) Die Kinder spielten draußen, als es anfing zu regnen.

a) played b) were playing

12. She ______ in Hamburg since 2020. (present perfect: since + starting point) Sie wohnt seit 2020 in Hamburg.

a) has lived b) lived

13. He never ______ meat. (simple present: general habit) Er isst nie Fleisch.

a) eats b) ate

14. Right now they ______ football in the park. (present progressive: happening now) Gerade spielen sie Fußball im Park.

a) play b) are playing

15. We ______ our grandparents last weekend. (simple past: finished time) Wir haben letztes Wochenende unsere Großeltern besucht.

a) visited b) have visited

16. I ______ my homework already. (present perfect: already) Ich habe meine Hausaufgaben schon gemacht.

a) did b) have done

17. She ______ dinner when I arrived. (past progressive: action in progress) Sie kochte gerade Abendessen, als ich ankam.

a) was cooking b) cooked

18. My train usually ______ at 8:15. (simple present: timetable) Mein Zug fährt normalerweise um 8:15 Uhr ab.

a) leaves b) is leaving

19. This week we ______ from home. (present progressive: temporary situation) Diese Woche arbeiten wir von zu Hause aus.

a) work b) are working

20. He ______ his bike two days ago. (simple past: two days ago) Er hat sein Fahrrad vor zwei Tagen repariert.

a) repaired b) has repaired

21. They ______ never ______ to London. (present perfect: never / experience) Sie waren noch nie in London.

a) were b) have been

22. I ______ an email when my computer crashed. (past progressive: interrupted action) Ich schrieb gerade eine E-Mail, als mein Computer abstürzte.

a) was writing b) wrote

23. She ______ English every Monday. (simple present: regular lesson) Sie lernt jeden Montag Englisch.

a) is studying b) studies

24. We ______ lunch at the moment. (present progressive: now) Wir essen gerade zu Mittag.

a) are having b) have

25. I ______ him at the conference last year. (simple past: last year) Ich habe ihn letztes Jahr auf der Konferenz getroffen.

a) met b) have met
Current Score: 0 / 25