Remember how your parents always told you to pay attention to your English classes? Or that you should study English because it would give you many opportunities? Well, they really weren’t lying about that. English is a very important language in today’s globalized society. To put it simply: it’s the most spoken language around the world!
So, you can figure out how English can help you in many ways. You can communicate with many people from many countries, even from those where English is not the first language. You can get a raise or get a job abroad. And there are many more benefits you can have if you know English.
But what’s the best way to learn the language? You can, of course, take classes, but you still have to practice it beyond school hours to truly acquire it. One of the best and most fun ways to do that is by listening to music. Songs can help us remember conjugations, acquire useful idioms and vocabulary, and improve our pronunciation.
That’s why here we’ve listed some great songs in English to practice one of the most important topics: the present tense. They’ll be useful whether you want to learn from scratch, or practice what you’ve learned in school so far.
Songs to Practice the Present Tense in English
Levitating – Dua Lipa
What’s better than learning with one of the most famous singers nowadays? Many people love this multiple GRAMMY nominated and GRAMMY award winning singer. If you’re one of her fans, this is your lucky day because you can learn the English present tense with her famous song Levitating.
This song has a lot of present simple and present continuous verbs. So you’ll learn a lot of both types of present tenses. A great learning benefit of the song is that it’s very repetitive. So, the verbs will really stick to you. Another benefit is its catchy rhythm, which will help you better memorize the lyrics and remember what you’ve learned.
Key phrases:
- I know
- You want / I want
- I’m levitating
- I need you
- I’m feeling
Enjoy the music video: Dua Lipa – Levitating Featuring DaBaby (Official Music Video)
Just the Way You Are – Bruno Mars
You’ve probably heard of Bruno Mars. He’s an American singer-songwriter. He’s co-written many songs for other famous artists, such as Adele, Mark Ronson, and Alicia Keys. Up to this day, Mars has 31 GRAMMY nominations, and has won 15 of them!
“Just the Way You Are” is one of his most famous songs from his studio album. This is the perfect song for English beginner learners since it has basic verbs and it’s very easy to understand. It’s also great to understand the third person present tense conjugation, as it speaks about another person. Since it describes another woman, it’s also an amazing song to learn descriptions in the present tense.
Key phrases:
- She’s so beautiful
- She asks me
- I see
- You’re amazing just the way you are
- She hates
- I think
Enjoy the music video: Bruno Mars – Just The Way You Are (Official Music Video)
I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For – U2
U2 is a renowned Irish rock band with an extensive discography. In 2005, they became part of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and they were inducted by Bruce Springsteen. So far, they’ve won 22 GRAMMY Awards and have been nominated more than 40 times. They’ve also been nominated for many other awards, including the Golden Globes – which they’ve won twice – and the Oscars.
Are you struggling to understand the present perfect tense? This is your song! “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” is a very acclaimed song. And it’s not only great for the music industry, but it’s also a great tool to learn English. It has many verbs in the present perfect form, so it’ll help you truly understand the formula of this tense. As you memorize and sing the lyrics, you’ll repeat the formula over and over again until it sticks with you.
It’ll also help you understand that to express something that hasn’t been finished yet, you use the present perfect tense. We see this in the title itself: “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For”.
As a plus, the song also has a few simple present and present continuous verbs in it.
Key phrases:
- I have climbed
- I have run
- I have kissed
- I still haven’t found (something)
Enjoy the music video: U2 – I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For (Official Music Video)
Uptown Girl – Billy Joel
You’ve probably heard of singer-songwriter Billy Joel, a music icon. Or at least you’ve heard some of his songs as they’re very popular and have become classics. He has 23 GRAMMY nominations, has won 5, and received a GRAMMY Legend Award in 1991. And he’s also part of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
He’s received many honorary doctorates from different universities, including a Doctor of Music from Berklee College of Music.
“Uptown Girl” is one of his many famous songs. It is perfect to practice the different present tenses in English, as it has verbs conjugated in all of them. A good exercise would be to listen to the song and try to catch which type of present is conjugated in each phrase. Of course, like any song, it has verbs in other tenses, but present is the main tense.
It’s also a great song to learn third person present conjugation.
Billy Joel also has other great songs to learn the present tense, like “Piano Man” and “Vienna”.
Key phrases:
- She’s been living in…
- She’s never had… (something)
- She’s looking for… (something)
- She’s looking so fine
- She wakes up
- I’m in love
Enjoy the music video: Billy Joel – Uptown Girl (Official Video)
Way Back into Love – Hugh Grant and Drew Barrymore/Haley Bennett
This song was written by Adam Schlesinger for the romantic movie “Music & Lyrics.” Schlesinger was an American songwriter and producer. He wrote songs for movies, theater and television, as well as for different artists, such as The Monkees and Fountains of Wayne, the band that he formed and belonged to.
He was nominated for different prestigious awards, like the Academy Awards, the Golden Globes, the GRAMMYs, and the Emmy Awards, of which he won 3 Emmys and 1 GRAMMY.
“Way Back Into Love” has many phrases using the present perfect continuous tense. So if you are struggling with that, this song will help you to understand the conjugation. It also has other verbs in other tenses, and in other types of the present tense.
This song is sung by Hugh Grant and Drew Barrymore, and in another version by Hugh Grant and Haley Bennett. You get to listen to your favorite version!
Key phrases:
- I’ve been living with a shadow overhead
- I’ve been sleeping
- I’ve been setting aside time
- I’ve been watching
Enjoy the song: Way Back Into Love
Keep Improving Your English with TruFluency
Once you’ve mastered these English present tense songs, you have to upgrade the level. Because to have a fluent conversation in English or to sing other songs, you have to know other verb tenses and more vocabulary. The best way to learn new things is by taking TruFluency’s English lessons.
We have native teachers that’ll help you improve your grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation. They’ll give you enough time to speak in each lesson, as our main goal is language fluency. Everything we teach is useful, so you actually end up speaking and writing like a native.
If you’re ready to become English proficient, get started today! Or try our trial classes – 2 hours for only $49!
