PRESENT TENSES
Identify the tense and Open the brackets
Explain why it’s used:
“Water (boil ) at 100°C.”
Water BOILS at 100°C
Present Simple
— used for scientific facts and general truths.
What holiday is celebrated on December 25th in most English-speaking countries?
✅ Answer: Christmas
100
What does “to cost an arm and a leg” mean?
✅ Answer: To be very expensive
What should you do if you spill salt, according to old superstition?
✅ Answer: Throw a pinch of it over your left shoulder
What does “give up” mean?
✅ Answer: To stop trying; to quit
Correct two mistakes in this sentence and explain each correction:
“She is always forget her keys and leave them at home.”
“She always forgets her keys and leaves them at home.”
-“is always forget” → always + Present Simple (habit, not temporary action)
-“forget” → forgets (3rd person singular)
-“leave” → leaves (parallel structure, 3rd person)
Which celebration includes trick-or-treating and carving pumpkins?
✅ Answer: Halloween
Complete: “you can't have your cake ___.”
✅ Answer:....and eat it
True or False: In the UK, a black cat crossing your path brings bad luck.
✅ Answer: False — it’s considered good luck in the UK!
Complete the sentence: “Please ______ the lights when you leave the room.”
✅ Answer: turn off
300 🐱 (Cat in the Bag!)
Your team receives a short paragraph with 4 mixed-up present tenses. You have 60 seconds to rewrite it correctly and justify one tense choice.
ОПОРА У ВЕДУЩЕГО
“I have lived…” → Present Perfect because “since 2020” shows duration from past to present.
“I am studying…” → Present Continuous because it’s happening right now.
“I love…” → Present Simple because “love” is a stative verb and expresses a general feeling (not temporary).
“calls” → Present Simple for habitual action.
Name two symbols of Easter in Western cultures.
✅ Answer: Easter eggs, Easter Bunny, chicks, crosses
🐱 (Cat in the Bag!)
One player acts out aCAKE idiom without speaking. Team guesses in English within 15 seconds.
be a piece of cake
sell like hot cakes
have your cake and eat it
the icing on the cake
Why is Friday the 13th considered unlucky? (Give one common belief.)
✅ Answer:
Because both Friday and the number 13 are seen as unlucky in Christian/Western tradition (e.g., Last Supper had 13 people; Jesus was crucified on a Friday).
🐱 (Cat in the Bag!)
Your team has 20 seconds to write down as many phrasal verbs with “look” as possible (e.g., look after, look up…).
✅ Possible answers:
look after, look for, look forward to, look into, look up, look out (for), look down on
Rewrite the following sentence using Present Perfect Continuous, and explain how the meaning changes:
“He works in this company.”
“He has been working in this company (for five years / since 2019).”
🐱 (Cat in the Bag!)
Your team must sing or recite the first 2 lines of a well-known English holiday song
✅ Example:
“We wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas…
Use two of the following idioms in one logical sentence:
“under the weather”, “once in a blue moon”, “pull someone’s leg”
✅ Example:
“I thought you were pulling my leg when you said you saw snow in July — that happens once in a blue moon!”
🐱 (Cat in the Bag!)
Your team must invent a new “English-style” superstition using the phrase: “If you ______, you’ll ______.”
✅ Example:
“If you find a four-leaf clover on a Tuesday, you’ll get an A on your next test!”
Choose the correct phrasal verb:
“I need to ______ my little brother while Mum is at work.”
a) look after
b) look up
c) look into
✅ Answer: a) look after
Compare the meanings of these three sentences. Explain the difference in nuance and when you would use each:
“I have read this book.”
“I have been reading this book.”
“I read this book every summer.”
“I have read this book.”
→ Present Perfect (Simple): Focus on completion. The action is finished, and the result matters now (e.g., “So I know the plot”).
“I have been reading this book.”
→ Present Perfect Continuous: Focus on the ongoing process. The action is not finished — I’m still in the middle of reading it, or I’ve been reading it recently over a period of time.
“I read this book every summer.”
→ Present Simple: Describes a habitual or repeated action in the present (a tradition).
Compare Guy Fawkes Night (UK) and Independence Day (USA). What do they have in common?
Both are celebrated with fireworks, public events, and national pride.
Guy Fawkes Night: November 5, bonfires, “Remember, remember the 5th of November!”
Independence Day: July 4, parades, barbecues.
Use two of the following idioms in one logical sentence:
“under the weather”, “once in a blue moon”, “pull someone’s leg”
✅ Example:
“I thought you were pulling my leg when you said you saw snow in July — that happens once in a blue moon!”
Explain three ways people try to reverse bad luck after something unlucky happens.
Knock on wood
Say “touch wood”
Throw spilled salt over the shoulder
Wear a lucky charm
Cross fingers
500
Use three different phrasal verbs in one short story (3–4 sentences).
ОПОРА У ВЕДУЩЕГО
✅ Example:
“Yesterday I woke up late. I hurried up to catch the bus, but I missed it. Then I called up my friend, and she picked me up.”