Level: beginner
The present continuous is made from the present tense of the verb be and the –ing form of a verb:
| I am | working |
| You are | playing |
| He is | talking |
| She is | living |
| It is | eating |
| We are | staying |
| They are | sleeping |
We use the present continuous to talk about:
- activities at the moment of speaking:
I'm just leaving work. I'll be home in an hour.
Please be quiet. The children are sleeping.
- Present continuous 1
- Present continuous 2
- future plans or arrangements:
Mary is going to a new school next term.
What are you doing next week?
- Present continuous 3
- Present continuous 4
Present continuous questions
We make questions by putting am, is or are in front of the subject:
Are you listening?
Are they coming to your party?
When is she going home?
What am I doing here?
- Present continuous questions 1
- Present continuous questions 2
Present continuous negatives
We make negatives by putting not (or n't) after am, is or are:
I'm not doing that.
You aren't listening. (or You're not listening.)
They aren't coming to the party. (or They're not coming to the party.)
She isn't going home until Monday. (or She's not going home until Monday.)
- Present continuous negatives 1
- Present continuous negatives 2
Stative verbs
We do not normally use the continuous with stative verbs. Stative verbs include:
- verbs of thinking and feeling:
| believe dislike know like |
love hate prefer realise |
recognise remember suppose think (= believe) |
understand want wish |
- verbs of the senses:
| appear feel |
look seem |
smell sound |
taste |
- others:
| agree be |
belong disagree |
need owe |
own possess |
We normally use the simple instead:
I understand you. (NOT I
am understandingyou.)
This cake tastes wonderful. (NOT This cakeis tastingwonderful.)
Level: intermediate
We also use the present continuous to talk about:
- something which is happening before and after a specific time:
At eight o'clock we are usually having breakfast.
When I get home the children are doing their homework.
- something which we think is temporary:
Michael is at university. He's studying history.
I'm working in London for the next two weeks.
- something which is new and contrasts with a previous state:
These days most people are using email instead of writing letters.
What sort of clothes are teenagers wearing nowadays?
What sort of music are they listening to?
- something which is changing, growing or developing:
The children are growing up quickly.
The climate is changing rapidly.
Your English is improving.
- something which happens again and again:
It's always raining in London.
They are always arguing.
George is great. He's always laughing.
Note that we normally use always with this use.
- Present continuous 5
Level: advanced
We can use the present continuous to talk about the past when we are:
- telling a story:
The other day I'm just walking down the street when suddenly this man comes up to me and asks me to lend him some money. Well, he's carrying a big stick and he looks a bit dangerous, so I'm wondering what to do …
- summarising a book, film or play:
Harry Potter is a pupil at Hogwarts school. One day when he is playing Quidditch he sees a strange object in the sky. He wonders what is happening …
Comments
I'm typing, I'm sleeping soon, and I'm falling asleep in an hour. ;)
Are these sentences correct??
Hello Rafaela1,
The second two are a little odd.
If I understand what you mean, I'd suggest 'I'm going to sleep' or 'I'm going to bed' for the second form, and 'I'll be asleep in an hour' for the third one.
Does that make sense?
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Could you plz tell me what these two sentences actually mean?
At midnight, I am usually reading a book.
At midnight, I usually read a book.
Thanks a lot.
Hello DaniWeebKage,
The first sentence, with the continuous form (am reading), means that you are usually in the middle of reading at midnight. In other words, you start some time before midnight and are still reading when midnight comes.
The second sentence, with the simple form (read), means that you begin reading at midnight. In other words, midnight is your usual time for starting reading.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Ok, Sir,
Let's focus on the meaning of these sentences. Not the timeline.
I am reading a book when the lights go out.
I was reading a book when the lights went out.
Do these sentences have the same meaning?
And what if a question in my exam like
I (read) a book when the lights (go) out.
Can I use both?
Thanks a lot, Sir Peter
Hello again DaniWeebKage,
Both of your examples have a similar meaning:
This describes an action (the lights going out) which interrupts another action in progress (reading a book) in the past.
This has the same meaning, but uses the present tense. Sometimes this is used in narrative fiction to create a sense of immediacy, or in anecdotes or jokes. It is a stylistic choice
Exam questions are designed to test your knowledge of standard forms, not forms used in very specific and limited contexts or genres. I would not suggest you use the present tense in an exam for that reason.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi there,
I have frequently heard the phrase 'I am working every afternoon' being used by native speakers. However, it seems not to be in keeping with the general rules. Is this an exception, or does it simply mean they want to stress the time adverbial 'every afternoon'?
Hi Fowler,
You're right that this is a common usage. The present continuous (I am working) can describe future arrangements – that is, future actions that are already confirmed and organised. This usage strongly implies that other people (e.g. coworkers or managers, in this case) are aware of the arrangements, and some kind of preparation was involved (e.g. drawing up a schedule).
Although every afternoon can potentially include a past timeframe, with this usage of the present continuous it refers to a future timeframe: every afternoon from now on.
Does that make sense?
Best wishes,
Jonathan
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello, The LearnEnglish Team,
I have been studying Present Simple and Present Continuous lately, and I have learned that both of these tenses can be used to describe an action that happens repeatedly. This is quite confusing to me, because for instance, among the examples the team listed above, there are sentences like this: "It's always raining in Britain" and "George is great. He's always laughing".
If I use Present Simple for these two examples ( It always rains in Britain", "He always laughs"), whether there are any differences in the meaning or is it correct?
Or if I have wrongly understood the usage of these two tenses, could you please clarify for me. Thank the Team so much!
Hi Sophia,
It's a good question! These sentences are all grammatically correct, but there are slight differences in the meaning.
The present simple is used to express facts, so the present simple sentences sound like you are describing the repeated action factually or objectively.
The present continuous sentences don't have this factual meaning. Instead, they suggest more subjectivity in the description, giving more of a sense that this is how the speaker experiences or feels about the repeated action. The present continuous is often used with always, for example, to complain about things, e.g. He's always making noise when I'm trying to sleep. Saying He always makes noise ... (present simple) is also possible, but sounds more like a factual description and less like a complaint.
Does that make sense?
Best wishes,
Jonathan
The LearnEnglish Team
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