Present Perfect Continuous Tense
How do we make the Present Perfect Continuous Tense?
Quote:
The structure of the present perfect continuous tense is:
subject + auxiliary verb + auxiliary verb + main verb (ing form)
Here are some examples of the present perfect continuous tense:
subject _______ auxiliary verb _____auxiliary verb ________main verb
+_____ I _____________have ___________ been________ waiting for one hour.
+ ____ You ___________ have __________ been _________talking too much.
- _____ It ___________has not ___________ been _________ raining.
- _____ We _________ have not __________ been _________ playing football.
? ____ Have you _______________________ been _________ seeing her?
? _____ Have they _____________________ been __________doing their homework?
Contractions
When we use the present perfect continuous tense in speaking, we often contract the subject and the first auxiliary. We also sometimes do this in informal writing.
I have been I've been
You have been You've been
He has been
She has been
It has been
John has been
The car has been He's been
She's been
It's been
John's been
The car's been
We have been We've been
They have been They've been
Here are some examples:
I've been reading.
The car's been giving trouble.
We've been playing tennis for two hours.
How do we use the Present Perfect Continuous Tense?
This tense is called the present perfect continuous tense. There is usually a connection with the present or now. There are basically two uses for the present perfect continuous tense:
1. An action that has just stopped or recently stopped
We use the present perfect continuous tense to talk about an action that started in the past and stopped recently. There is usually a result now
I'm tired because I've been running.
I'm tired [now] because I've been running.
Why is the grass wet [now]? Has it been raining?
You don't understand [now] because you haven't been listening.
2. An action continuing up to now
We use the present perfect continuous tense to talk about an action that started in the past and is continuing now. This is often used with for or since.
I have been reading for 2 hours.
I have been reading for 2 hours. [I am still reading now.]
We've been studying since 9 o'clock. [We're still studying now.]
How long have you been learning English? [You are still learning now.]
We have not been smoking. [And we are not smoking now.]
For and Since with Present Perfect Continuous Tense
We often use for and since with the present perfect tense.
We use for to talk about a period of time—5 minutes, 2 weeks, 6 years.
We use since to talk about a point in past time—9 o'clock, 1st January, Monday.
Here are some examples:
I have been studying for 3 hours.
I have been watching TV since 7pm.
Tara hasn't been feeling well for 2 weeks.
Tara hasn't been visiting us since March.
He has been playing football for a long time.
He has been living in Bangkok since he left school.
How do we make the Present Perfect Continuous Tense?
Quote:
The structure of the present perfect continuous tense is:
subject + auxiliary verb + auxiliary verb + main verb (ing form)
Here are some examples of the present perfect continuous tense:
subject _______ auxiliary verb _____auxiliary verb ________main verb
+_____ I _____________have ___________ been________ waiting for one hour.
+ ____ You ___________ have __________ been _________talking too much.
- _____ It ___________has not ___________ been _________ raining.
- _____ We _________ have not __________ been _________ playing football.
? ____ Have you _______________________ been _________ seeing her?
? _____ Have they _____________________ been __________doing their homework?
Contractions
When we use the present perfect continuous tense in speaking, we often contract the subject and the first auxiliary. We also sometimes do this in informal writing.
I have been I've been
You have been You've been
He has been
She has been
It has been
John has been
The car has been He's been
She's been
It's been
John's been
The car's been
We have been We've been
They have been They've been
Here are some examples:
I've been reading.
The car's been giving trouble.
We've been playing tennis for two hours.
How do we use the Present Perfect Continuous Tense?
This tense is called the present perfect continuous tense. There is usually a connection with the present or now. There are basically two uses for the present perfect continuous tense:
1. An action that has just stopped or recently stopped
We use the present perfect continuous tense to talk about an action that started in the past and stopped recently. There is usually a result now
I'm tired because I've been running.
I'm tired [now] because I've been running.
Why is the grass wet [now]? Has it been raining?
You don't understand [now] because you haven't been listening.
2. An action continuing up to now
We use the present perfect continuous tense to talk about an action that started in the past and is continuing now. This is often used with for or since.
I have been reading for 2 hours.
I have been reading for 2 hours. [I am still reading now.]
We've been studying since 9 o'clock. [We're still studying now.]
How long have you been learning English? [You are still learning now.]
We have not been smoking. [And we are not smoking now.]
For and Since with Present Perfect Continuous Tense
We often use for and since with the present perfect tense.
We use for to talk about a period of time—5 minutes, 2 weeks, 6 years.
We use since to talk about a point in past time—9 o'clock, 1st January, Monday.
Here are some examples:
I have been studying for 3 hours.
I have been watching TV since 7pm.
Tara hasn't been feeling well for 2 weeks.
Tara hasn't been visiting us since March.
He has been playing football for a long time.
He has been living in Bangkok since he left school.