By Vahid Alaghehband
Do and does are the present simple auxiliaries for questions and negatives. Use does with he, she, it and do with I, you, we, they: Does she work? Do you work? After does, the main verb has no -s.
When do you use do and when does?
In the present simple, does goes with the third person singular (he, she, it or a singular noun) and do with everything else (I, you, we, they or a plural noun). You don't normally use them in positive sentences (She works), except for emphasis.
| Subject | Question | Negative | Short answer |
|---|---|---|---|
| I / you / we / they | Do you work? | I don't work. | Yes, I do. / No, I don't. |
| he / she / it | Does she work? | She doesn't work. | Yes, she does. / No, she doesn't. |
After does, no -s on the verb
The third-person -s moves to the auxiliary: She works → Does she work? → She doesn't work. So Does she works? is wrong.
Do as a main verb
Do is also an ordinary verb, so it can appear twice: What do you do? (What's your job?), She does yoga every morning.
Common mistakes
- Do she like pizza? ✗ → Does she like pizza? ✓.
- He don't know ✗ → He doesn't know ✓.
- Does she likes pizza? ✗ → Does she like pizza? ✓.
- Do you are tired? ✗ → Are you tired? ✓ (no do with be).
Exercises with answers
- ___ you like coffee?
- She ___ (not) work on Sundays.
- ___ your brother play football?
- We ___ (not) have a car.
- What time ___ the class start?
- Does he ___ (speak) English?
Answers: 1. Do · 2. doesn't · 3. Does · 4. don't · 5. does · 6. speak.
Practice the present simple by speaking
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Explore Vozi Grammar →Read next: the present simple guide and the English verb tenses chart.
Next step: if you don't know your level, take the English level test (about 15 minutes, with instant results). To keep working on this topic, see Vozi Grammar's English grammar exercises by level.
Frequently asked questions
When do you use do and does?
In the present simple, use does with he, she and it, and do with I, you, we and they, to make questions and negatives: Does she work? Do you work? She doesn't work.
Why is there no -s after does?
Because the third-person -s is already in does. Say Does she work?, not Does she works?
What's the difference between do and did?
Do and does are present simple; did is the past form and works with every subject: Did she work yesterday?
Can do be a main verb?
Yes. It means to perform an action: She does her homework. In What do you do?, the first do is the auxiliary and the second is the main verb.
