The Spanish
presente de indicativo corresponds to SEVERAL English tenses.
This
site explains this pretty well, so I won't repeat it here. Read it all the way through.
Note that the present progressive (continuous) is mentioned on that page, but it is noted as another form; it is not the same as the
tiempo presente. The progressive form, as poli mentions, is used less often in Spanish than it is in English.
It means that you are currently in the act of doing the action represented. You'll see, if you look at the examples, and others elsewhere, that it doesn't always mean the same thing as the Spanish
presente de indicativo.
One thing not mentioned on the site is that the Spanish present indicative tense also corresponds to the affirmative or emphatic use of 'do' + verb.
I do eat. =
(yo) sí como. | Yo como.
There is an amusing riddle in Spanish. It is a string of six words, all spelled the same: como como como como como como
See if you can add proper accent marks and punctuation to have the string make sense and ensure its proper intonation.
The answer is below. One possible translation into English follows the answer.
Click to show hidden text - Da click para revelar el texto oculto
¿Cómo, cómo como? Como como como.
"What do you mean how do I eat? I eat the way I eat."