), to reflect, to use your brain to solve a problem. I'm typing, I'm sleeping soon, and I'm falling asleep in an hour. Not the timeline. The suspense is killing me! (They were behaving really stupidly at that moment. can suggest that you smell the smoke on the person. At midnight, I am usually reading a book. More and more people are becomingvegetarian. Another reason to learn it is that, if you want to know all the English tenses, the present continuous is a great place to start. He wonders what is happening …, LearnEnglish Subscription: self-access courses for professionals, Maya.micheal replied on 26 October, 2020 - 00:28 Australia. Today, most people are using text messages instead of the phone. The present perfect continuous is formed using has/have + been + present participle. Something important to know about the English present continuous tense is that the action you’re describing can be ongoing, which means it lasts for a long time. Are you drinking coffee? And best of all, you’ll be on your way to covering all of the English tenses! We can do this simply by using the following pattern: He is cooking dinner in the kitchen. [=I'm thinking about it/trying to decide]. In fact, some people like to call the present continuous tense the present progressive tense, so don’t get worried if you hear both terms. If I wanted to tell the story after it happened, I’d use the past tense: But what I really want to convey is how the event unfolded, showing the action as it is happening: From this narrative point of view, the action is immediate and continuous; there’s momentum. It’s a simple, useful and multifunctional tense that’s guaranteed to improve your English! Examples of this use include: Another use of this tense is when talking about a planned event in the future. The second sentence, with the simple form (read), means that you begin reading at midnight. (NOT I am understanding you. They’re the same thing! The Present Continuous Formula: to be [am, is, are] + verb [present participle], Key words: Verb, present participle, tense, dynamic verbs, stative verbs. I am hearing. We are walking to school. To make it even easier, follow this simple pattern: Subject + to be (conjugated) + not + -ing verb. Like we already discussed, the present continuous is a very useful tense for natural-sounding conversations with English speakers. Examples of this use include: Present continuous tense can be used in questions as well. Could you plz tell me what these two sentences actually mean? For example. We often use the words "lately" or "recently" to emphasize this meaning. I like to call it the “what’s happening tense” or the “what are you doing tense,” as it’s a fun and simple way to get familiar with it. / He’s cooking dinner in the kitchen. The children are growing up quickly. What kind of pancakes will Scott and his aunt order? / She’s working in China. Are you reading? ), Why is he being so selfish? Rafaela1 replied on 18 October, 2020 - 13:17 Cambodia. FluentU is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. The clue to this tense is in the name—present means “right now” and continuous means “progressing” or “to keep going.”. Tone vs. Words like always, constantly and forever are used along with the verb. Gemischte Übung 1 zur Verwendung des Present Simple und des Present Continuous (ing-Form). It’s important to note that the action hasn’t finished yet. “I noticed that contractions are used for the subjects in the example sentences. This sense is called "dynamic". Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you All you need to do is add the adverb not after the contraction of the subject and “to be.”. ), John is being careful. But that’s also why it’s important to get a full and complete grasp of the tense! You might not be reading your law school textbooks right now, but “studying law” is still ongoing and unfinished. Just choose your level, find a fun video, learn new words and grammar and then take a quiz at the end! In other words, midnight is your usual time for starting reading. something which is changing, growing or developing. Do not use the present continuous tense with stative verbs. These "stative" verbs are about state, not action, and they cannot express the continuous or progressive aspect. An easier way to remember the present participle is to simply refer to it as an -ing verb. (John is acting carefully now, but maybe he is not always careful - we don't know. ), Is he always so stupid? It adds energy and action to writing, and its effect helps readers understand when the action is happening. Sometimes writers use this tense to add suspense or humor in fictional pieces. And the good news is, it’s pretty easy to learn. You have been successfully subscribed to the Grammarly blog. NOTE: Present perfect continuous is less commonly used in its passive form. Once you’ve nailed it, you’ll be speaking more naturally, describing ongoing situations and talking about the future. The present perfect continuous (also called present perfect progressive)Â is a verb tense which is used to show that an action started in the past and has continued up to the present moment. For one sense we cannot use a continuous tense. Examples of this use include: Present continuous tense can be used for actions that are still happening at the time of speaking. The present continuous (present progressive) tense is a way to convey any action or condition that is happening right now, frequently, and may be ongoing. Michael is at university. I am teaching an English lesson. I am having dinner at the moment. Try FluentU today! However, it seems not to be in keeping with the general rules. (Why is he acting so selfishly at the moment? I would not suggest you use the present tense in an exam for that reason. I know that can sound scary, but it isn’t. Conjugation of Hear. Examples of this use include: Present continuous tense can be used when speaking about current trends. George is great. As with all tenses in English, the speaker's attitude is as important as the time of the action or event. Are you visiting your cousin this weekend? The stocks are dropping constantly due to the economy. Present Continuous Tense. FluentU brings English to life with real-world videos. When is she going home? In fact, we use it daily and it has a number of different uses. But, as we say in English, there’s more than meets the eye (it’s deeper or more complicated than it appears) when it comes to this tense. Remember that wherever possible, contractions should be used. The present continuous is made from the present tense of the verb be and the –ing form of a verb: We use the present continuous to talk about: I'm just leaving work. A registered charity: 209131 (England and Wales) SC037733 (Scotland). The examples below show the placement for grammar adverbs such as: always, only, never, ever, still, just, etc. Here, the stative verb to prefer shows opinion, and therefore should not be conjugated into the present continuous. Take the very last example sentence, for example—”I’m writing my thesis.”. You aren't listening. Using this tense in a question suggests you can see, smell, hear or feel the results of the action. I am reading a book when the lights go out. So it’s correct to use the present continuous tense. Compare, If you have a doubt about a particular verb, ask yourself the question: "Is there any real action or activity? In formal writing, the experts recommend that when you can use fewer words to express a thought, you should, so use the present continuous sparingly—short and sweet can’t be beat! She is speaking at the conference this evening. I am reading a book when the lights go out. Now, let’s take a look at how we actually form the present continuous. What is the difference,please? This is an important point and a key difference between the tenses. On the other hand, you would never hear a native speaker say these sentences: If you are teaching English or learning it, I’d recommend simply sticking to grammatically correct constructions and leaving the idiomatic expressions to the creators of advertisements and song lyrics. ", Mary is a careful person. Stative verb categories include emotion (to love), possession (to belong), and thoughts (to recognize), and none of these should use the present continuous form. If you answered my first question, though, there’s a good chance that you may have answered using one of the most common and useful English tenses of all—the English present continuous. These are sometimes referred to as WH-words or WH-questions. (Yes, that is what is happening right now) You are watching a video. Shopping online is growing in popularity nowadays. Fowler replied on 14 September, 2020 - 09:36 Germany. All Rights Reserved. The present continuous tense is sometimes used in a negative way to describe behavior that you might consider annoying. FluentU takes real-world videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.